Gloria Oratoria

by DungeoneerOfGods

Arnold 'Arne' Alfson suddenly finds himself away from home. Taken away from his world, he finds himself in an entirely different reality, one where magic, gods and adventurers are the driving factors behind history as people know it. An up and coming age of heroism, or perhaps an up and coming age of ruin. What does fate have in store for him? Only time will tell..

3. Volume 1 - Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Baby Steps Towards a Larger World

Waking up the next day didn't feel as bad or as off as I expected it to. I did not feel stiff, nor did I feel any pain, which meant that the healing potions Raul provided for me did their job well. It certainly felt quite strange, but I guess I would slowly get used to it. I still have not gotten used to my newly enhanced senses, especially my expanded range of hearing.

Regardless, as I got off my bed, I simply went into my new shower, which was fed by a magical pump and was kept cool, exactly the way I enjoyed it. There was a heater too, but I did not exactly feel like it currently. If anything, I'd love to use it in Winter. I ended up finishing before the sun came up fully and then I stood by the window. I loved waking up at dawn and even if I was in another world, this was not a habit I would soon change, if I could help it. It was a very similar routine to my old in my old world and even though I was not there currently, this sense of familiarity was a huge relief and a huge comfort. Waking up was easier too because I was not fully used to the new bed I would be spending my time sleeping on but the sleep was miles better than back on Earth. I blame the open air and the mattress. Either way, it felt divine, and I liked it, even if I would not exactly admit it openly now.

Sunlight eventually peeked from the far away mountains that were visible in the distance, casting its brilliant rays as if it were a halo, which was a welcome sight for the morning. Orario glowed a gentle pastel in the distance as light slowly crept into view. There was smoke that wafted, twirled and went up into the sky from the distant chimneys, which signaled the beginning of a busy working day shortly. I could see the Courtyard from my room's window, and I could also certainly see people from the Familia, most likely the early risers, slowly trickle in, first in pairs, then in trios and then quartets. Perhaps the most interesting sight was seeing Aiz in the distance, already up and about, swinging her sword around while standing next to a fountain.

It did look like a normal day for these people, my newfound comrades, and it certainly was my new norm, something I would have to come to accept sooner or later.

I looked down at my phone briefly, in false hope of seeing any response to the messages I sent but I was greeted with the 'NO SIGNAL' immediately, which surprisingly did not disappoint me as I accepted the fact that this whole situation was real. It still felt saddening, but I would have to live with it until I got strong enough. I looked back to my room and saw my backpack by the dresser, the sunlight dancing on its surface. It was one of the few reminders of home that I carried with me. I also spied my Grandfather's army knife sitting neatly on my nightstand. My eyes wandered to some books I also had with me, the one that was worth of note the most being my copy of the 'Odyssey', the subject I would begin teaching my students back home starting Tuesday. But I guess that would not be happening any time soon. Aside that, I also had my Laptop in my backpack, which was useless since I could not get on the internet in this world. Unfortunate, but I could live with it. It still had music playlists and it would last for a while until its battery ended up dying out. I was already prepared for that much.

Sighing, I sat back on my bed after taking one last look outside the window. Sure, I was practically alone here because nobody truly knew me or appreciated me here but at least the room and the view were nice. As for Loki, the only person I have thoroughly interacted with aside Gareth, Raul, Riine and Rakta, was quite something. While I was thankful for how far she was willing to go for my sake, I also felt that I wasn't sure about whether what I could offer in return was good enough.

No use in overthinking things. At least that's what my old man would say.

I walked to my dresser and picked up my good old (day old) tunic and pants, put them on and then also put on Gareth's old leather jacket, graves and vambraces. I picked up my loaned shield, my shortsword which was strapped safely on my belt and lastly, I picked up my Grandfather's knife, securing it in my pouch. The set up I chose with Gareth's help was serving me well so far, at least in my one foray into the Dungeon, so I would keep rolling with it until it ended up failing me. Gareth did tell me that I'd soon need to gear up more because the further down we went in the Dungeon, the more obsolete my old gear would turn. I was doing very well against smaller than humanoid targets, perhaps I'd be fine against humanoids as well, but I heard from the others that they often dealt with titanic enemies in the lower floors. That simply meant that I had to up my game. I really hoped I'd end up developing some magic, because according to Lefiya, an elf I met properly yesterday while drinking in Loki's favorite place, The Hostess of Fertility, Magic was amazing and worked wonders against the enemies the familia regularly faced. Riveria, the older elf, also seemed to agree. Maybe I am a huge nerd, but I'd love to have magic in my arsenal as well. It was either that or I'd end up having to turn into Guts, swinging around a huge slab of stone as a greatsword. Time would tell, though I really hoped for the former rather than the latter.

Loki also gave me a month to level up before I'd join them down in the lower floors (she seemed oddly certain that I'd make it to level two in a month's time for some reason) and the chance to kill off a higher level mob, wait not mob, monster (Damn all those MMORPG sessions!) would probably grant me a lot of experience. Those damn gods surely didn't remove that from the code- I mean, rules! Probably!

Gareth told me before the feast we enjoyed last night that I'd be taking my equipment for maintenance first thing in the morning. Apparently, he knew some fine smiths and I wasn't fully surprised, given that he seemed the type to enjoy fine smithing works. He was a dwarf, after all! They loved merry drinks, fine stonework and a good forge! At least Loki seemed to agree to my logic. I don't know whether that was good or not though.

I walked out of my room soon after I got dressed, taking a backpack I bought yesterday with me. I would use that for carrying supplies into the dungeon for my grinding sessions. I locked the door behind me and then I went down the stairs, feeling as if I was going down some hotel staircase for the buffet that supplied some sort of continental breakfast. It sort of was like that. The cooks cooked really hard with the dishes, putting them on display with pride. I ended up picking a mushroom omelet, some fried beef sausages, a few pieces of bread and some fine orange juice. I then ended up sitting with a different group for breakfast this time around, since I would be risking my butt with them in the near future and getting to know people was both something I wanted personally and a necessity. Best build trust and bridges with as many people as possible. That was Erik's advice when you found yourself in a new working environment and I took it to heart as it served me well. It was best to know and trust in each other, so that way you both would save each other in any rough situation, or when you made a customer mad. I guess the latter doesn't matter in this case.

I wanted to do the same, because that way I would learn from them as a newbie and not end up getting in their way.

"Hey! How was your first dungeon run, Arne?" A cat person lady called Anakity, with a very chill demeanor and silky dark hair asked me with curiosity. I was surprised that Anakity was her name, but that was not a conversation for this time.

Rakta ended up joining us after the question was asked and she answered before I could do so. "It was brutal!" She said as she set down her tray of food, it mostly consisting of veggies and a few eggs. Speaking of food, Anakity enjoyed a lot of fried food and a bit of cheese.

"It went pretty well, all things considered. It didn't go as bad I expected."

Yes it was, Arne. You and I both know it..

Shut it, Loki!

Rakta's eyes proceeded to stand up, and her eyes began squinting a bit. "And he keeps flirting with Loki every single time they are in the same place. I swear they do that even when they share that mental connection of theirs! They should get a freaking room!" The bunny woman said with a toothy, cheeky grin.

Anakity couldn't help but join in on her friend's teasing. She elbowed me lightly on my side. "You just can't get enough of her, can you?"

Heh, I know. I am truly irresistible!

"Hey, mind you." I said. "I am keeping this connection up just because it ends up upping my magic stat. Loki did tell me that doing things that are relevant to the stat in question would lead to a better, stronger growth. Hence, I am grinding."

And the damn brutal way you killed all those monsters was because you wished for more Strength?

And Endurance! I will abuse this system as much as I can. I need to grow stronger fast.

Alas, my newfound companions from this world had no idea of my world's idioms so all they got from what I said earlier showed in their scandalized tone, especially Rakta's. "You and Loki grind against each other?!"

Anakity simply added fuel to the fire which was started by the sinister and cunning rabbit by daring to squeal. "Arne's such a daring man!" She faked swooning and everyone who sat around us began laughing, including Riine and Raul. I didn't really mind that, nor did it annoy me. And sadly, me and Loki hadn't really gone as far as doing any actual flirting aside our usual banter when we met for the first time, which was yesterday. Nobody needed to know that though. Right?

"Hey, a gentleman keeps his secrets." I said while waving my still untouched bread. "I simply wish I had better sleep though." I let out a fake yawn.

Anakity and Rakta paused in surprise. "For real? Huh?" Rakta asked with her ears on attention.

I took a bite off my bread and just raised an eyebrow. I would not say anything more. Let them stew on it for a while, it's funnier that way.

You do know that your monologues are not filtered when I receive them, right?

Just let me have my moment..

My ears twitched as I heard footsteps approaching the stairs and then what I saw simply confirmed my hunch.

"Arne, you snore too damn loudly!" Loki showed up, rubbing her hips as if implying they were sore.

Well. Loki's 'attack' had the intended result. Rakta and Anakity went all red up to their ears. Loki ended up joining our table while also dragging Aiz behind her who was having a shitton of sweet food, especially pastries for breakfast. At least Loki knew how to have breakfast, by having a balanced plate of scrambled eggs, toasted bread, some greens and even coffee.

"Damn, that's an interesting amount of sugar." I said while nodding towards Aiz's plate.

"Energy." Aiz simply said in response, flexing her arm in the meantime.

Loki proceeded to give her a pat on the head, something that Aiz did not seem to appreciate as she looked like a cat that desperately wanted to avoid physical contact. Loki hummed, smiling slightly in her own way. "So precious.." She whispered.

The bunny and cat ladies next to me were still shocked from earlier, just mindlessly eating in silence. Another familia member named Cruz ended up joining us soon after, a human who was a friend of Anakity and like her, had a mountain of meat on a single plate.

"You don't mind me joining in, right Arne?" Cruz asked and I laughed slightly.

"I'd consider it an insult if you didn't join us." I said with a smile.

Cruz nodded and sat next to Anakity, kinda confused as he poked her cheek and tried to bring her back down to not earth. "She does this often." Cruz said.

"You mean the teasing?"

"Yeah." He said with a wry smile.

Aiz seemed to be busy nibbling on some sort of candy and Loki seemed content to watch her do so. Rakta snapped out of her trance when Raul popped up and asked her about whether they would be going down into the dungeon to get some money. The bunny's ears came back to life the moment the word 'Money' was heard. Someone loved it, it seemed.

Raul looked over to us and clapped his hands together in front of him as he spoke to me. "I'm sorry Arne but it seems like we won't be going with you down in the Dungeon today."

I nodded and smiled at him. "Hey, don't worry, we're co-, we're alright."

Raul looked troubled and confused and apologized further. I sighed internally at the display. I was touched that he cared enough to apologize that much but it also was tough seeing the cultural differences somewhat hindering me. I needed to get used to the way people talk around here..

Loki leaned next to me as if to school me about something. "Just tell em it's alright and that's good enough. Cool and no problem don't exactly work around here."

I nodded at her. She was right, of course, but it would take some time for me to get used to this. Damn all those cultural differences!

"If you say so.." Raul said, still feeling somewhat unsure.

Loki began rubbing my back, while telling me that it was going to be okay. Probably one of her pranks or something because I wasn't really annoyed nor disappointed about Raul's decision. If anything ,it was understandable, given that he had no obligation to babysit a newbie nor did he ALWAYS have to do that.

Then, Loki began explaining how all that money earned during those familia expeditions into the dungeon all went towards funding the next one while the familia members had to spend their own money for repairs or equipment upgrades. Supplies were naturally handled by the budget, but anything else including training, maintenance, extra training and equipment (as mentioned before) were up to the individual adventurer and their pockets. A simple way to manage finances and it also served as a motivator for everyone to keep up with each other and always be prepared, which also meant they were immersed and understanding the importance of the task they were undertaking.

Then, as I was considering her words, Loki pulled me close. "That does remind me. We got to give your status a look."

Rakta's and Anakity's ears instantly stood up as they turned to look at me immediately. I could swear I heard something break.

Loki simply grinned.

They really couldn't stand a chance. It was funny, almost sad.

Then Loki made me carry her back to her room, bridal style. She didn't seem to have any limit when it came to teasing her own familia and the more they focused on this supposed romance, the easier it'd be for my inconsistencies to go unnoticed. I was supposed to be an Elf from a faraway land with Noble blood in my veins. Oh well, it was amusing enough to mess with them and entertain them. Either way, who could say no to seeing a bunny girl blushing?

"Rankta, huh? Really?" Loki proceeded to poke my cheek while raising an eyebrow.

"Bunnies are nice. Though I wouldn't say they're the best." I said simply, looking at her.

"I like my elves a lot more. Come on now!" Loki said with a smirk as she briefly looked at my elvish ears for a moment before she sat on her bed. "I will be giving you a special service~"

I swallowed. Hard. Did she hear that or..?

"I heard that."

"Thank god we don't share bodily sensations. That would be quite something."

"Kinda feels like a shame." She winked at me and I sighed softly, smiling slightly. "You know what to do now."

I nodded and took off my tunic, then I went to get the stool from the dresser again.

"Oh, don't get that." She said, coy with a smirk.

"Am I allowed to feel aroused?"

"Are you?" Loki's eyes opened slightly, her smirk ever in place.

"Maybe."

"Very good." Loki pat her bed again. "Time to lay on your belly here now!"

I wiped away some imaginary sweat off my forehead. I'm so glad I didn't drink any coffee otherwise my heart would burst through my chest or something. I did as she said and felt the smooth and cool sheets beneath me as I lay there. Once again, they smelled like cinnamon, a good type of smell. "Here?"

"Perfection~" Loki said by my ear as she proceeded to briefly touch them which made me suddenly let out a soft sigh. Guess my ears were sensitive and she seemed to notice, which made her giggle in a somewhat sinister way.

"Lefiya and Mama always dodge me but I guess that since you're here now, I'll be getting my fill of elfhood anyway.." She trailed off with her smirk in place and I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Wait a second, she said Mama. Oh boy, if that is who I think it is, I do not expect her to like being called that..

Anyway..

I felt Loki's weight press down on my butt, very soft and I also could feel her knees at my sides, being there for balance. I was very very aware of how we both were sunk into the bed, her bed, one part kinda pressed harder. Loki fidgeted on top of me as she used my shoulder as support. "Oh wow. Very wow." I said with a slight blush.

"You're enjoying this, aren't ya, Arne?"

"Well, you're not exactly wrong.."

Loki removed her hand from my back and a moment later, her finger touched the same spot she touched yesterday, the spot where she engraved my falna. I blinked as a bright blue light engulfed the room, and I also felt heat on my back, it felt heavy and calm, large and imposing, gentle and graceful. The sensations slowly changed with time. It was quite mesmerizing.

Loki hummed, then tsked at me. "Damn, you're such a nerd."

"Huh? What's up?"

"I don't think it's anything bad but it's certainly interesting."

It took a few more moments but she eventually pressed a sheet of paper on my back, and the mood we had been experiencing vanished due to the rustling and her earlier comment. She then got off me and showed me the sheet.

---

Level 1

Strength = I0 - I9

Endurance = I0 - I10

Dexterity = I0 - I18

Agility = I0 - I6

Magic = I0 - I40

Madness Grief = I

Divine Intervention = I

Fateful Actor = I

World Treader = I

Magic

Patron of Gods = Allows for two-way communication with one's patron god or goddess, with mind consumption based on the distance between the two. Chantless Magic.

Jötunn's Frost Rune = A magic spell that resembles the frost that the Jotun giants wield in the legends. By chanting, the user of this magic creates a rune which can blast an opponent with an extremely cold projectile that slows down the movement of those it strikes, while also slowly sapping their strength.

O' Mighty Farbauti, freeze my foes!

Skills

King of Babel = Grants the user the ability to comprehend and to be comprehended by the people of this world. Grants knowledge of the languages spoken in the world as well as knowledge in writing them. It is also capable of affecting the User's soul to become more alike the soul of a resident of this world.

---

"Oh! That was a lot sooner than I expected, but hey, I am not complaining. Magic huh?!" I got very excited, to the point where I almost jumped at Loki but I held myself back from doing so. I had some type of magic that apparently was related to Loki's father, if that even applies to this world.

"I'm very interested in why this is my first type of magic but I won't complain.." I said after a bit of silence and Loki seemed to have snapped out of some sort of stupor, which meant she would be now explaining things. Hopefully.

"My best guess is that it manifested so soon because of you crossing over, but there might be another factor that played a role in this." Loki bit her thumbnail. "I wish I could access the Arcana right now, but well, we'll be fine. Farbauti though, huh…" Loki then shook her head and offered one of her usual smiles, then nodded to herself. "That's it, you're getting Riveria to give a look at this later. She's the best mage in the familia and she might have a better idea about this compared to me."

I sighed softly. "This is kinda crazy. It feels as if it is too soon for me to have this." I felt like something was off, given that I literally got this after a single day spent in the Dungeon. Part of me was thankful because I had one more weapon in my arsenal now, which meant that I would be safer in the dungeon. Another part of me thought that this would attract unwanted attention if it got out of the familia that I attained some sort of magic so soon.

"Did you know about this beforehand?" I asked Loki, after I was done with my musings.

"Nope." Loki said with a serious expression. "Gods that open a child's Falna do so for the Arcana to flow in. If I did this from up in heaven, I'd be able to give you answers but since I'm not, it's not as easy to figure out." Loki said with a shrug. She did not seem to mind this too much, for now at least.

"I would like for this to not get out of the familia for now. According to what you guys told me, attracting too much attention on myself, especially this early on, is not a good idea…" I trailed off and Loki seemed to nod. She understood precisely what I meant.

"I assume it is safe to use though? According to what you just showed me, it seems harmless to me but I have never used magic before so.." I was very excited about this but I also was cautious. Magic was a new thing to me and using it unwisely could lead to many complications. At least that's what I assumed.

"A Falna would never yield anything harmful." Loki said with certainty. "At least for the children here. You might be a bit different since you're not of this world. Regardless, it does not look like it'll cause you any harm according to its description. As such, you have nothing to worry about outside of overusing it. We do not want you to suffer a Mind Down in the middle of an expedition." I nodded numbly as Loki finished her mini lecture. It was nice to see that she cared enough to do that.

"That's fair. I'll be careful with this."

I got dressed up and Loki went to call for Riveria who ended up coming to us after a few minutes, accompanied by a younger elf named Lefiya, the elf I saw before who wore a pink dress. She put down the tome she carried and I took off my tunic again to show them the hieroglyphs. The Familia Executives were already aware of my secret anyway so letting the next leading mage of the familia knowing about this wasn't an issue.

"You do not see this often. Especially when it comes to short chant spellcraft. And this one allows you to take away an enemy's attack power and speed. It'll certainly be a boon." Riveria spoke as she nodded towards Loki. I raised an eyebrow but said nothing. "And to obtain it without leveling up too.. This is also something you do not see often. This simply means that we'll be having that training after all." The Green haired elf nodded once again, her eyes smiling at me.

"I am glad that this is the case." I said and bowed slightly which seemed to make Riveria wave a hand at me as if saying I did not have to.

"U-Um.. I could not find much about the Jotun giants mentioned in the description outside of the fact that they were a people that existed a long time ago. They seemed to be related to a few gods as well.." Lefiya spoke up hesitantly, somewhat downcast. I assumed it was because she did not find much but in my opinion, even this was better than nothing. I decided to give her a pat on the shoulder, which surprised her.

"I'm sorry I could not find more on the tomes! I will continue looking into it until something comes up!" She somewhat panicked, thinking I would say something bad to her.

"Thank you for that, Lefiya. Keep up the good work, I appreciate it." I hummed and nodded with a smile of my own, which seemed to calm the elf down.

Loki and Riveria watched from the sides, both smiling at the display of me calming down Lefiya.

"Worry not Lefiya! Arne here will not hold it against you so you can relax!" Loki spoke up after a bit then proceeded to slightly open her eyes. "Any legends on World Crossers? Anything concerning fate?"

"From what I am aware of," Riveria began, "those aren't mentioned much in our legends. Elves live longer than other races so we focus our stories on journeys and achievements instead of something like destiny. And this mention of fate you made implies that Arne is meant to be part of some event or any other occurrence. As if he belongs or is fated to be here." Riveria finished with her thought process, remaining with a thoughtful expression after.

Loki tsked and then sighed. It seems she had come to the same conclusion which she confirmed soon after. "That is what I thought as well, but his Falna did not reveal much, if anything at all."

"Sucks to be human, does it not?"

Loki simply shrugged in response. "It does." She said simply. "And I believe you meant Mortal. Remember?"

"Oh right. Other races exist in this world. Woopsies! Gotcha!"

Riveria raised an eyebrow at our display. "I see why Tiona keeps mentioning you two to everyone."

Loki simply pouted and pulled me against her. "He belongs to me. He's mine."

Riveria simply raised her hands in no contest. "We do know. You've been saying this ever since he got here."

I looked at Loki and simply smiled. "Damn, that's pretty sweet of you."

"He's acting exactly like you right now." Riveria pointed out.

"Hey, why does Riveria make it sound like it is a bad thing?"

"All elves have sticks up their butts. No offense Arne."

"Hey!" Lefiya said from behind the book she was holding and I simply rolled my eyes.

Loki blew raspberries at her, clearly amused.

"You're very mature, aren't you?" I said with a teasing hum.

Riveria laughed like a tinkling bell. I thought to myself that I quite enjoyed that sound. I should talk to her more later. "You two do seem to be enjoying yourselves." She looked at us as she said this, her eyes full of mirth. "Shall we leave you for some private time now?"

"Nah, we'll save it for tonight." Loki said.

Lefiya proceeded to go red.

"Hey, we are? For real?"

"Shhh you." Loki said. "And Riveria, can you join us later with Gareth? I would like to see his magic firsthand to provide your input."

"Very well then, Loki." Riveria said, with a small smile gracing her features.

The duo then excused themselves and Lefiya promised to meet me with something sometime later. Loki told her to check it out only when she had free time since time was something we all had a lot of right now. Maybe everyone except myself. Yes, I wished to go back home as soon as possible, but rushing up ahead was bound to cause many complications and issues. In the end though, Lefiya promised not to overdo it with this, but the fire in her eyes simply told me a different tale.

"She just found a hobby, don't stop her from pursuing it." Loki said as if she could read my thoughts.

"I can." Shit.

"Wouldn't that whole ordeal be, I don't know, unhealthy?"

"I believe she needs it. Lefiya lacks a lot of confidence."

"I doubt she'll find that in books."

"True. But if she feels like she's achieved something, I am certain that will help."

"Fair."

"Oh and Arne?" Loki's tone shifted to a much more serious one. "Do not be too noisy with your status. Do not share it with others, and especially with other Gods."

"Is this the part where you show jealousy about me even coming into contact with other Gods?"

She pinched my side. "If I ever catch you cheating.." She said with a narrow gaze and a wide smile. "Kiddin'!"

"Yeah, I get it. I'll be careful."

"Some of the other Gods might offer you assistance but never, and I mean never, trust Freya. She has all the male gods wrapped around her little finger and she's a huge wild card. We never know what she's planning. You're a good guy Arne and getting you back home is something I support wholeheartedly. But I want you to remember that you will be dealing with Gods that usually get what they want."

I did not really speak up, instead watching her, which prompted her to continue.

"I am no different from them." She began. "Was no different is what I meant. Still though, you better keep yourself safe. Please?"

I nodded, offered a bright smile and said. "I promise, I will."

Then Loki smiled to herself like a cute girl, proceeded to blush slightly in embarrassment and then she had me kicked out of her room..

---

After a few minutes spent to make some final preparations for the day, I was picked up by Gareth along with Riveria, Finn, Alicia and Tione. Tione was the amazoness twin that wore a red bikini which I constantly had to keep reminding myself about, to not confuse her name with her sister, Tiona (Damn them and their similar names) while Alicia was a fellow elf with chestnut brown hair. Now that I think about it, most of the females in Loki's familia all had big chests, excluding Tiona, Tione's yellow dressed sibling. Maybe she was Loki's sole comrade?

Zip it, damn you!

We were all walking to the place where Gareth's friend stayed at. As we made our way there in comfortable silence, I could not help but voice a question that I had in mind for some time now.

"Hey Tione, do amazons usually not wear armor when they're fighting or in the Dungeon?"

Gareth and Finn nodded as if they were some sages, the former even having offered to pick some decent armor pieces for the siblings before. Riveria and Alicia did not care much about my question and simply raised an eyebrow at me, which I reacted to with an awkward smile.

Tione tilted her head, not really annoyed much at the question. Maybe she's been asked about that before. "It simply tends to get in the way." She said. "In my case, at least. And.." She proceeded to look at Finn. "The captain doesn't wear any either."

Gareth raised an eyebrow at the halfling adventurer and then silently stared at him with disapproval. "My clothes are blessed items, made by using Cadmus hide. They're just as good as armor, if not a bit better." He was so dashing, wearing his purple and yellow frock!

"I assume that is a monster drop."

Finn nodded at me.

Tione frowned briefly in thought as she crossed her arms under her bountiful chest. "I'd say that it feels weird wearing anything non-amazon, because these clothes remind me of home."

"Oh. I feel you on that one." All too well, too.

The two elves finally did something other than being silent, which meant that they simply nodded. I noticed they wore no armor either but I guess their robes might have been enhanced, just like Finn's clothing.

"Oh and, it also reminds me of the Sea." Tione had a nostalgic expression as she looked eastward briefly.

"I guess that explains your general look." I said, referring to her skin tone and type of clothing.

"You should know that Armor itself is not what is most important when in the dungeon, Arne." Riveria spoke up, a gentle tone used to speak. It was quite soothing to hear. The other girls seemed to nod as she spoke. "What matters is wearing something you're comfortable with. That is the true point of what you wear in the Dungeon." She finished and the others nodded once more.

I could certainly see her logic with that one. Being stiff and feeling unwelcomed even with your own clothes on was something that would pose as a problem when out in the Dungeon. It would make combat harder and would weigh on your mental as well. Not to mention that it would probably tire you out faster. Riveria's words were something I would keep in mind next time I purchased equipment.

Finn proceeded to nod as well, because he seemed to agree with the High Elf's words but Gareth let out a groan instead. He certainly had another opinion entirely. He leaned towards me and whispered: "This lot will all kill me by making me worry too much.."

We all let out a laugh at that but Gareth did not seem to be amused, though he did not seem to pursue the matter further, instead managing to persuade Tione to check out some defensive charms at the very least. He did not bother trying to persuade Riveria and Finn though. Maybe he trusted them a lot more. Or maybe armor got in the way of magic? Either way, that was it.

We crossed a small, humble crossroad and continued to walk towards another street I've never been to and eventually we came to a small village-esque area within the city. We could see some sort of white huts and a lot of chimneys but what stood out the most was the constant ringing of metal hammering against metal. The entrance showcased an arch displaying two hammers that crossed over a volcano of sorts, which made me think of Hephaestus, or Vulcan as he was also known as. Additionally, there was another small building which showcased a glass window that displayed all sorts of armor and weaponry, with some scary, heart attack inducing long price tags.

"Huh. Is this the Vulcan familia's smithery?"

"Hmm? Vulcan?" Gareth looked at me, sharing the same puzzled look as everyone else around me.

"I meant uh.. Hephaestus maybe?"

"You say it weird and kinda wrong." Tione said. "Here, we say it as Hephaistos."

"Uh-huh. I see. So basically you're calling a tomato a tomato."

Tione sneered then sighed. "It's as if we have Loki here with us."

Finn proceeded to drag her away, which she seemed to really enjoy, as Riveria and Alicia followed them with the purpose of checking out the store while Gareth and I walked further into the village. "I'll be taking you to my friend." He said shortly, with a smile.

After two lefts and a right, we came across another generic hut, this one marked with the number seven. Gareth knocked on the door. Something exploded and smoke spewed out of the windows in billowing puffs and then out came a lady wearing something akin to a red hakama with her body wrapped in bandages. She also carried a huge blacksmith hammer. Inside the hut, we could make out a large forge and the beginnings of a fire.

"Hey Gareth!" She said with excitement and gave the dwarf a hug.

"It's been some time, Tsubaki." The dwarf returned the hug.

"Uh..Is that alright? Seems as if it's about to catch on fire." I asked after I let them have their moment, pointing at the fire lapping at Tsubaki's spare coal.

"He's new here." Gareth spoke up. "His name is Arnold but we call him Arne."

"Oh." The lady said with a nod. And as if magic was at play here, the fires died down. "Is that better now?"

"Many thanks."

"Aww, he's polite." Tsubaki said with approval in her voice.

"You should not be fooled." Gareth grimaced as they looked at me.

"Hey! I am right here, you guys!"

A small pause.

"Tsubaki." Gareth looked at the smith, ignoring me for the moment. "We need some help with a blade, just to check how it fared for its first raid."

"Hmm.. A new child perhaps?" Tsubaki hummed with wonder in her tone. "I would like a contract with him." Her eyes shone with a very shrewd light, a light I knew I'd see often on most people I would be interacting with if I needed equipment or supplies.

"Well, he's already using my equipment." Gareth shrugged. "I do not see why not."

Huh? "Wait, did you just decide for me?" I said with a raised eyebrow.

Tsubaki put an arm around my shoulders as she smirked. "Hey, don't think too much about it!" She smelled like fresh steel and ash, with a tinge of sweat. And god. They were HUGE. Tsubaki then patted me on the back.

Well.. I guess..

"Well.." I began. "Gareth has not caused me any issues and has been quite trustworthy in the short time I've known him, so I guess I will go with his suggestion and form a contract with you." I guess I was too trusting of him but he had not led me astray just yet and I really appreciated that. Was it too fast for me to trust him? Yes. Was there a better alternative? No, not really.

"Aye laddy." Gareth said. He seemed pleased and approving. "Tsubaki here would not have offered this to you otherwise."

The lady in question proudly nodded. "Now then, you mentioned some sort of weapon?" Her eyes shone the moment that came up. Someone really loved their craft. It was quite different from seeing her capitalism filled gaze from earlier.

I took my knife out of my pouch, the army knife my Grandfather left behind, and carefully handed it to her.

When she picked it up, the surprise on her features was unmistakable. Her brows came together as she unsheathed it. Then she was confused as she gave it a few swings and even ran her finger over its blade. "What in Hephaistos' name is this supposed to be?"

"Aye lass." Gareth said with a nod. "It surprised me a lot when I held it as well."

Tsubaki brought the blade to her nose and sniffed it, flicked at it with a finger, tried to bend it. Her eyes then went wide. "This is some type of steel..?" She said. "And then there's some extra coating of some material I do not exactly recognize." She bit the handle briefly. "What the hell is this handle supposed to be?" She gave it a few scratches. "Some type of resin mixed with wood? Huh?"

Holy fuck, she really knows her stuff, huh?

Who knows her stuff, hmm~?

This Tsubaki blacksmith woman, some friend of Gareth's

You're so damn lucky.

Huh? For real?

That lady is one of the few blacksmiths that sit at level five as of now.

Oh, damn.

"Don't worry." Gareth said. Shit, they must have been talking to me as I was discussing with Loki. "That is just him when he's flirting with Loki."

The look of absolute pain and horror on Tsubaki's face was a sight to behold. She quickly snapped out of it though. "Do you wish to exchange this?" She asked. "The materials on it are interesting enough but it's the technique that I really want to learn about. This finish that prevents reflecting is superb! The flexibility and its toughness too! What sort of godlike blacksmith made this absolute tool?!"

"Some type of company back home."

Tsubaki proceeded to grab me by the shoulders and then shoved me close, putting us eye to eye for a bit. Well, as much as one could when they wore an eyepatch. Briefly reminded me of my gramps too. He wore one as well. "I. Must. Know. Now."

Why the hell was everyone that had such a high level so weird!?

Huh.. Now that I think about it, you've got a point.

You're not helping here!

"I am sorry but I do not think I can sell this to you. " Her fingers dug into my skin briefly. This was quite something.

I kinda approve, ya know.

You heard that?

You talk a ton in that pretty elf head of yours.

Why do you think my magic stat is so high so fast?

You've got a point there.

"Give me." Tsubaki's eyes were crazed now. This was so concerning. Gareth though, damn him! He was just standing there, trying to act as if he was not partially responsible for this!

"My answer cannot change. It holds sentimental value for me."

"I am willing to pay you with my body."

I froze. "Please don't."

"Huh? Weird. I thought you'd change your mind." Tsubaki showed genuine surprise at this. Damn you..

Damn you what?

Nope.

Well hey, you're the one keeping the connection between us up at all times, silly!

Eh, you're enjoying listening in anyway.

Don't you dare take away my commentary from me!

Oh fine..

"Hey now, let's not be too hasty.." Gareth said with pursed lips. "And please ask Loki if you're making an offer like that." Why the fuck does he look like he got roped in this when he's partially the reason it happened in the first place?!

It was his idea in the first place!

"Oh. I wasn't serious anyway." Tsubaki hummed.

"Thank you." I massaged my forehead, already feeling a headache. "So that's that. I cannot sell this to you. However.."

I put up a finger to stop her from speaking up. Gareth watched me, impressed.

"I can lend it to you for a fee sometimes, so you can examine it and try to document the techniques that were used for it if you want to. It's the best I can do for you." I finished.

Tsubaki rubbed her chin. "That's mostly what I wanted it for anyway." She thought to herself before speaking up. "The materials aren't worth much over three thousand Valis but the technique alone is probably worth at least fifty thousand if I were to be selling this.."

Gareth nodded. "That's a good price."

"But." Tsubaki spoke up again. "Learning those techniques, I can easily put its value at maybe five hundred-"

"Million?" I spoke up with a grin not unlike one of Loki's.

Tsubaki looked at me as if I was stupid for a moment. "Thousand. Are you crazy or something? This is a technique that allows you to make cheap and reliable goods, not some labor fee for processing rare magical items that nobody outside one or two people can do!"

"I guess you're not wrong.." Damn you and your reasoning!

"And since Gareth was such a dear for introducing you to me, I will bump up the price to seven hundred."

"Hmm.. I am not sure just yet. Keep in mind, I will only give this to you for short bursts of time as I will need it myself." I said with a thoughtful frown. "Maybe when I manage to go deeper into the dungeon and have less need for it, I will give this to you for a week or so. As I said, it holds sentimental value to me so I cannot exactly give it away." It was a memento from my Grandfather and he did keep saying I should not treat it lightly.

"Hey, I don't mind that. If it ever breaks, I am prepared to buy it off you for a million Valis if needed." She said casually. "And even if I reforge it, it'll lose its properties so I'll basically be using this just as a template. I simply want to do some research on it, nothing more, nothing less."

"That's fine and all." I said, my quick thinking kicking in. "But if you manage to begin selling weapons that use the techniques you learn from it, I want a piece of the royalties from both you and those you teach about it." I held a shrewd smile myself. I needed to make some money to keep upping my strength after all.

Gareth smirked at me, and Tsubaki began laughing. It was not a mocking laugh either, she must have liked what she heard. "I like you, Arne. Truly."

She extended a hand for a handshake and I shook her hand with a firm grip. As firm as a level one adventurer's grip could be at least.

"I hope you don't mean this in a strange way." I said cryptically and she tilted her head.

"I don't get what you mean, but I assure you, I do not."

"Don't mind him, lass." Gareth said.

Tsubaki handed the blade back after inspecting its current state. Strangely enough, it was not even damaged. I then asked if she had any cheaper swords up for sale and she took out a few, affordable ones. Gareth proceeded to buy one of the better ones for me, saying that I should treat this as a present from a friend. I obliged and I then made a silent promise to get him a gift of my own when I make enough Valis.

Tsubaki even hoped to spend some quality time with my Grandfather's knife and I didn't ask her to elaborate, as Gareth mouthed to me that we should cut this meeting short. He seemed strangely adamant about it. Tsubaki also told us she would be drafting the contract for me later on and she already was betting on getting me because apparently, she couldn't manage to get a contract with Aiz. She said she would not miss this chance again, after seeing how interesting I was.

After a few pleasantries and goodbyes were exchanged, me and Gareth went to meet up with the others as I quietly sheathed my new sword, as well as my Grandfather's knife.

---

We ended up looking at the rest of the shops for some time, and then we met with everyone else soon after. Finn and Tione had picked up some lunch for us and we then instantly went to the Dungeon. Gareth gave Alicia a few warnings before he allowed me to go fight the Dungeon Monsters. It felt somewhat offensive to me, but compared to Rakta's reaction to me poking some monster's eyes out, this was basically nothing. She wasn't forced to watch me do that, but according to Gareth, it was quite the enlightening experience, although Riveria doubted the praise Raul gave.

The goal for today's foray into the Dungeon was for me to test out my new magic and to see how far I'd end up going. Yesterday, I ended up killing every single monster I came across, but that meant that I did not end up gaining much due to the lack of challenge. So, we ended up rushing through the first four floors, with me killing everything on sight although we did not go for everything breathing on those floors.

When we reached the fifth floor's staircase, I noticed a green hue on the Dungeon's crystal lights, and I also noticed the sound of water drops dropping in the distance. It felt as if I was in some cave or something.

Then, I ended up facing a new monster. Some type of frog. The folks around me called it a Frog Shooter.

"Wow. It's just a huge frog." I said with a hum.

"Aye." Gareth responded to my obvious words.

"It's an amphibian of sorts."

"What do you mean with that?" Finn asked, curiously.

"Amphibians are creatures that need water to survive. Or so it is supposed to be, at least." I explained, keeping my eyes on the monster.

"It's simply magic. Don't worry about it." Finn said with a smile.

"But Loki said that magic doesn't solve everything."

Eh, it isn't a law.

"It solves the issues of the Frog Shooter." Finn hummed, his smile still in place.

"Just kill it already." Tione spoke up.

"So lively…" Alicia sighed as she said this. I felt as if she was disappointed at me or something.

"Does Alicia not like to talk much?" I said, even though the person in question was in front of me. That was the first thing she said today too!

"You're the one who talks too much, Arne." Tione crossed her arms under her bust as she said this.

"She's not wrong, you know." Gareth added his own opinion to the conversation.

I sighed and unsheathed my shortsword. I held it with my left arm, because yesterday I held it with my right arm because I felt more confidence in fighting like that. I wanted to try fighting this creature with my weaker arm, since I probably would only have to stab it to death anyway. Good enough!

The frog proceeded to stare at me. Thank god that it was only one for this encounter. It was lucky and convenient but I doubt my luck will hold up for long. I should get started on polishing my skills with the blade already, because fighting the monsters like a savage is not cutting it exactly.

"Just get it over with, damn you!" Tione said.

Sigh. I proceeded to charge at the frog and it fought back by using a tongue shot, heh, out with a flash. I brought up my shield and blocked it but I found myself getting pulled over. What the-! It opened its mouth and revealed rows of sharpened teeth. Something was wrong here.

"Frogs aren't supposed to have teeth!" I proceeded to stab its snout just as its jaws began clamping down on me, which meant that I avoided losing an arm or something. How the fuck did it manage to avoid biting its own tongue though? Maybe the gaps between the teeth were good enough for the tongue? "This is just pure bullshit!"

"Stop trying to use your brain and just kill it!" Tione shouted, trying to support me. I assumed that was the case, at least.

I tried to bash its head but its skin was too slippery to make actual contact with, which meant that I basically ended up doing nothing to it. "How is it actually damp in an environment like this?!"

"Why are you whining so much, huh?!"

"Carry on, Arne. Don't worry about her." Finn said.

The frog jerked and then threw me off, but its slippery skin meant that it just slapped against my side. It tried to shoot out its tongue at me again but I managed to handle that move as long as I kept track of where its eyes looked at. I tried to charge at it from the side and it slowly turned, it could have just hopped! I tackled that thing and kept it close, freeing my arm to stab at it in the gut until it stopped moving.

"What a mess." Tione said.

"Are you not fond of frogs?" Gareth asked.

"It was certainly unique." Finn offered, smiling awkwardly.

"That felt quite wrong." Riveria offered her own opinion.

"I quite agree." Alicia chimed in.

I then pulled out my knife and then carved out its magic stone and then I was relieved of the frog's blood that was staining me. "Please tell me its slime is not the drop loot."

"The slime IS the drop loot." Finn pointed at the puddle resting by my feet. "People use it in potions as a preservative of sorts."

Fuck. Shit.

Damn, you hugged the frog shooter.

Yes.

That's quite hardcore of you.

It was necessary.

Alicia flinched when I came back to join the group and then spoke up. "Is this going to be an actual thing?"

"It already is an actual thing." Gareth said.

"Can we just go to the sixth floor and be done with this already?"

We walked and ended up at the stairs soon after. We paused for a few minutes so I could catch my breath. As we were sitting there, a group of three frogs and two kobolds popped up. My group stepped back as I stood up.

"Wait, isn't he like, a level one?" Alicia asked.

"Are you actually asking that when we're in so deep?" Finn said.

"Nevermind, carry on with this then." Alicia shrugged.

"Can't we just skip these?"

"Less talking, more fighting!" Tione said with a huff.

I sighed to myself as my ears twitched then I unsheathed my shortsword and ended up charging at the group of five monsters as three tongues shot out for my sorry ass. I went left. A kobold ended up trying to lunge at me with its claws. I stepped into its guard and then shoved my shield into its face, ending up throwing it off its feet and its claws then I went straight for the frog closest to me. The leftmost frog brought its tongue back and then it tried to hop forward in order to bite me. I kneeled midway through and then I allowed my greaves to slide along the Dungeon's floor so I could get behind it. I ended up standing up quickly then I stabbed its lower back a few times.

The next frog began charging. I rolled to the right and I ended up between it and the other frog while the Kobold I had not hit tried to dive at my face. At the moment the two frogs tried to shoot their tongues, I dove for the Kobold too, placing my shield between me and its claws as I ended up landing on my back on the other side. In hindsight, running into the thick of things was not the brightest of ideas but I'd try to make do. I could already feel how rough wielding a shorter weapon was compared to something like a longsword or a rapier. Before those damn frogs showed up, I could just rush at things and kill them but their slick bodies countered me quite easily.

"That was a horrible exchange!" Tione exclaimed.

"I'm level one, damnit!"

The Kobold recovered and then tried to lunge at me as it was accompanied by three tongues, one being slower as the frog was injured. I leapt into the slower tongue and got dragged into the middle of things but not before running a gash through another frog with my shortsword and bashing the one that got me with my shield. The Kobold I punched on the snout tried to grab me from behind and succeeded but I jumped into its face and rammed my helmet into it, causing it huge amounts of pain.

Gareth truly was right about helmets.

"Thanks Gareth!"

"Helmets, Arne! Helmets!" He exclaimed, cheering me on.

I stabbed the Kobold behind me with a reverse grip and then flipped it into the dazed frog, skipping back a step to open up some free space but then I got pulled from behind and then I landed on my butt just in time to put my shield in front of me to stop a frog from biting my head off. I kicked it from my position and crouched to see a fresh group of four frogs and two freaking lizards. What the hell was going on?!

"Fuck."

"Need some help, Arne?" Finn asked genuinely.

"I uh.." I rolled away from two tongues and a tail whip only to turn tail and run back to put my team behind me. I put up my shield as best as I could and then prayed that the group in front of me could not stop me, but then I ended up getting pulled back by the same tongue from earlier. I hit my back a little harder this time and then I was encircled instead of attacked. "Don't worry, I got this!"

It's not like I expected the path of power to not have to do with pain and painful trials. As such, I was prepared about the fact that I wasn't getting out of this unscathed. I simply shouted to drive away the nerves. Those bastards frequented the deep floors, from the fiftieth and below so I was not going to allow anything lesser than that to kill me. "I hate this damn floor so much!"

I then rolled away from an incoming lizard tail and then kept trying to dodge another three tongues then I went for the closest frog and just clung to it as if my life depended on it, hacking and slashing through it without giving a damn about the slime. I tanked a tail whip and then got pulled back but I hung on my victim with my legs. The pulling stopped and the frog got stabbed by me long enough that it stopped. After that, I ended up getting hit by two more tongues and then I got pulled two ways until I scraped the one attached to my left with my shortsword and then I got dragged into a lizard. I stopped it from snapping my head and then stabbed and attacked anywhere I could, while the tongue kept pulling at me and I got hit by a Kobold.

Shit.

I stabbed the Kobold on the sides until it stopped struggling against me and then pushed its body into the frog's waiting mouth before I slit its throat but then my sword slipped and I had to scramble for the thing's back to put it in front of me and my own back against the wall.

Shit man, I could not tell how many were left. I just kept stabbing the frog like a dumbass from behind until I got pulled away and came face to face with a frog's maw. My shield met its teeth and I stabbed at its throat from below until another frog clamped down on my arm soon after. Fuck, that hurts!

Are you sure you're alright? I'm getting kinda worried.

"I got this!"

I tanked the pain, thankful to Gareth for the greaves and the leather jacket while I repeatedly bashed the frog's head against the wall as I kept the other one from biting me by forcing it to bite my shield. When the one that bit my arm let go, I drove my hand in, with the sword and all, up to the top of its mouth and then wiggled the blade hard, those teeth be damned and then pulled it free as I stabbed the one still biting me through its eye and then its skull.

The fight felt like a blur after this, with me scrambling about to stab at whatever I could, then there was some kobold whose leg I stomped on with another lizard that bit my shoulder as I stabbed its head through and stupidly hurt myself, thankfully without the blade going through the jacket. It must have been a high level item because despite the overwhelming amount of pain that made me want to cry and curl into a ball, I could still move my arms. Frogs kept coming up and I kept grabbing and stabbing and then getting bitten, pulled one way then tackled, stabbed back, got hit more. I do not know how long it took but once it was over and the blood I bathed in disappeared, I sighed in relief that I survived.

Next thing I knew, I saw Riveria walk up to me then standing over me as she muttered some sort of phrase. I could only make out a single phrase as soft green light passed from her to me. "…my name is Alf."

The green light washed over me and the stinging disappeared although the fatigue remained. I sat down and was thankful that I made it through. Finn approached me with Gareth and the others soon after.

Gareth then threw a waterskin at me and I managed to catch it without any issue. "How did I do?" I asked curiously after I gulped down some water.

Gareth passed me the new sword he bought me earlier and then proceeded to give my back a pat. "I'd say so-so. You did well enough but you need some more work that needs to be put into your strategy."

Finn wore a wry smile as he approached me. "It was quite something alright." He said and then shook his head. "It was messy but I guess it was also effective. You took the blows you could handle but you also gave back twice the blows you received. It can work for now but I'd say that you should not make it a habit. You won't last in the lower floors like that." He finished, his wry smile still in place as he patted my sword. He had a point. I should not allow this to become a habit. Otherwise, I could very easily lose my life. I shuddered slightly and it was noticed as Gareth patted me on the shoulder again.

"It would have been such a bad day for our Familia if you died to that, you know." Tione spoke up.

Alicia walked over to me. "Hey, you did your best. That is admirable enough." She said to me and patted me where the slime was not too thick. Someone did not seem to like touching others. I guess that's fair.

I sighed to myself. It wasn't even lunch time yet! But well, there was work to be done so I took a deep breath and steeled my nerves as much as I could. It was time to prepare for more.

"Let us rest for a few minutes first. Arne here needs to regain his strength." Finn spoke up for me, most likely noticing how I needed that.

"Thanks." I said with gratitude.

Our rest did not last for long nor was it too short. Gareth and Finn took turns keeping watch as I sat with Riveria, Alicia and Tione by a small campfire. We chatted a bit about small topics, with the highlight being elf culture. I did not learn as much as I wanted aside from how most elves disliked magic swords for what happened to their forests. I managed to get Riveria to promise to teach me more though so that was a plus.

We stood up after our rest was over, and I held my sword in hand, with my shield. All I had to do was stab and slash at the monsters. It was too early to show off my fencing experience, especially with enemies that act like beasts and do not wield much weaponry if any at all. As such, I only had to block, stab and bash at things until they were dead. Simple enough, not risky.

The next group of monsters that we met were two lizards, two frogs and a kobold.

Gareth looked over at me, as he spoke up. "Take it slow this time."

I nodded and then stepped forward while the others backed off to give me some space. The buckler I wielded was about a foot across, and it was just enough to block a frog's mouth but it was not enough to serve as a wall against everything. The hallway was large enough for some of the monsters to slip by me and flank me if they wanted, which meant I could not enclose it on my own. That was not an excuse for me to fight risky though, nothing ventured nothing gained as they say, but not all risk I could take had to have my full weight thrown behind them. I guess the fifth floor was my match for now.

I approached the group of monsters with my buckler up with my right and my blade on my left waiting right behind. Perhaps I should have the sword on my right but I believed that controlling the shield with my stronger arm was more important right now.

The Kobold proceeded to lunge at me but I rolled back, favoring dodging over blocking so I could also dodge the tongues at the same time, and I also did a quick step back which caused the Kobold to mistime its grab, providing me with enough of an opening to bash it with my shield and then stab it in the gut while it was stunned. I then stepped back after pulling out the blade, with my shield up once more.

"Hey, you should have fought like that from the beginning!" Tione called out after me.

"I need to get my damn experience points!" If keeping up my connection with Loki boosted my magic stat considerably, it stands to reason that running around and being active a lot would boost up my physical stats. Maybe even getting hit would be decent for that. "It should promote status growth!"

"That is not how it works!"

"Yes it is!" I dodged a tail whip and rolled away dark souls style from the tongues. "It's my fight!"

I hopped forward into a lizard who tried to bite me but instead it only received a bashing or it would, but I missed. "Shit."

"It was right in front of you!" Tione exclaimed.

I sighed and ignored her as I ran into the lizard and proceeded to stab it at the neck, the spot where it connected to the body. It twitched and then it went limp. I kinda felt bored but that's a topic for another time. A frog tongue then pulled at my shield and managed to pull it away which opened me up for a tail whip, but then I stepped into the pull and was able to twist myself back into a defensive pose after dragging my sword through the frog tongue. Then, another tail whip came up from the side but the shield was enough for me to parry it.

I then stepped to the right, hugged the wall and came closer to the lizard, putting it between the two frogs. The bite came and I bashed then ran into it again with the same stab I used to kill the other one earlier. And then, only two remained.

"What the hell was that for?!"

"I'm doing this for experience points."

They did not respond back so I lunged at the frog for another stabbing session. Two more frogs jumped in just as I was about to finish this one off and I had to guard my rear using my buckler otherwise I would be dragged around like a ragdoll. I went back to doing what I was doing earlier and eventually ended the other two frogs.

Finn sighed as he spoke. He seemed somewhat disappointed. "What you did near the end was very stupid."

"Hey, it will grant me higher points in the longrun!" I said, feeling as if I was back to playing an rpg at the moment.

"Again, it does not work like that." Tione chimed in.

"Remind me to show you my stats later. You'll see."

Tione grumbled something I couldn't make out and then let the matter go.

"Hey Arne." Gareth spoke up with a raised eyebrow. "You're really abusing the leather jacket I gave you, eh?"

"Exactly."

"Exactly like Loki." Riveria chimed in, amused.

We then kept going further into the fifth floor and whenever a single monster was left behind from an encounter, I would proceed to stab at it without killing it to further my stat growth until it could not handle it anymore and another encounter would start. I believed that by doing this I would gain more stats across the board. Dodging and moving most likely would lead to an agility increase while tanking hits would lead to an increase in endurance while monster fighting and wrestling would most likely increase strength and dexterity. I also made sure to twirl my swords whenever I had the chance to potentially increase my dexterity. It also really annoyed Tione which was funny.

We ended up reaching the sixth floor and Gareth proceeded to pull me close to tell me about the place. "The monsters native to this floor are the War Shadows." He looked at me straight in the eyes. "Do not take those lightly or you will regret it."

I swallowed as I shivered. "Understood, Gareth."

The group then allowed me into the sixth floor of the dungeon after that. Also, it was fortunate that we were not meeting anyone during our trip, maybe this place was large enough to accommodate everyone? Or maybe while I was fighting, the others were keeping other adventurers away so they wouldn't interrupt me. I was not going to question it.

I ended up coming face to face with three War Shadows for my first encounter on this floor. They were slender, blackish things that stood out against the Dungeon's green glow. They had three claws on each hand a totally obvious weak spot which happened to be the singular eye thingy in the middle of their heads. The challenging thing about them was reaching said eye because they were as tall as me, which to me meant that they were as strong or stronger than me as well.

"I think now's a good time to use my Magic, no?"

"That's fine, Arne." Riveria said. "Feel free to do so when you feel ready."

"I will remove the other two first before I do that." I said with determination.

"Alright then." Riveria approved.

The other members of our group scattered forwards and backwards, most likely driving away other people from interfering. It was best I took care of those two and fast. Also, it was around this point I began missing fighting the Goblins of the first floor. Then again, the exp grind was just beginning. Oh well.

I charged at the nearest shadow, with my shield out and my sword behind. It lunged forward with its claws reared back, the other two on either of its flanks. They had better coordination it seemed. I backpedaled just as the first one closed its arms on me and stepped leftwards to meet the other War Shadow then I got down to one knee to barely escape the deadly hug coming my way. I ended up charging its side, driving my blade against its neck and slitting its throat. It seemed to work pretty well too.

The black figure dropped to its knees.

I lunged for the one on the right and easily pushed it into the wall using my shield. I drove it in, and then crushed it. After bashing in those damn slippery frogs, these things were quite easy to deal with, although they were faster and their sharp claws could do way more damage in such a short time compared to those sleepy amphibians. The last one I backpedaled from to give me some time to prepare myself.

"I'm ready." I said and then raised my guard once more.

"Concentrate on your magic. Then say your incantation." Riveria began instructing me. "The falna will then take care of the rest."

"Uhh.. How do you concentrate on magic?"

The War Shadow came running after me.

"You feel it in your source and then you pull."

"Yeah, that doesn't help exactly."

I rolled out of the way as I almost got clawed at.

"You will figure it out." She said.

"That's easy for you to say!"

The War Shadow swiped with its claws, aiming for my head and I leaned back in order to avoid it. I then weaved in to avoid another swipe before I rolled away.

"This is not working!"

"Try saying the chant."

Another claw swipe came for my head. Damn it all, what was the chant again.. I hate this! Come on! Come on! That's it!

"O' Mighty Farbauti, freeze my foes!" Nothing seemed to happen. I had to weave my head back again, to avoid another strike. What was the issue here?!

"Are you still talking to Loki now?" Riveria asked knowingly.

I avoided another claw coming at me. Actually, this might be perfect for practice. I kept it in mind for the future. "Yes, I am!"

"Then stop it."

"Huh? Wha-" I dodged another claw swipe and even kicked the shadow. "Why?"

"Because you're already using a spell just by maintaining this connection with her."

"What? You cannot dual cast spells?"

"What do you think you are? A spirit?"

"Oh fine." I cut the connection with Loki off.

I am still here, in your head though Arne.

"How do I cut the connection?"

"We really should have considered this possibility. For now, just kill the shadow for now." Riveria said.

I adjusted my grip on my sword and shield and then turned to face the War Shadow. I rolled to the side to avoid another claw swipe and after continuously dodging its strikes for some time, I decided that it was enough and then I patiently waited for a chance to strike it directly on its weak point. After a few more dodges, I ended up hitting its weak spot after it left itself open for an attack, which prompted the shadow to die and Gareth to cheer for me briefly.

"Damn, you seemed really cool for a second there." Tione commented as the others approached me. I offered a simple smile at her which she returned before Rivera stood in front of me.

"So, you are not even aware of how to toggle off your first spell." Riveria said with her stern gaze. Though, I had a hard time reading her mood. Alicia who stood next to her had a very sour look and Tione began feeling livid. Finn and Gareth were just laughing it off entirely.

"I thought that it was a passive of sorts."

Finn opened and closed his mouth, gesturing for Riveria to continue. Maybe he thought he was not as qualified to speak about that. "Arne." She said. "All Magics are active. Only Skills can be passive."

I nodded, appreciating her input even if it should have been a thing said earlier. "Thank you for letting me know."

"How do you usually communicate with Loki?" Riveria asked after a moment of thought.

"I just think about it and bam, she's there speaking back."

Riveria massaged the bridge of her nose as she thought of something. "Let's do it this way." She began and held out a hand. "Here, try to see if you can feel my own magic."

Alicia gave me a nasty, dirty look. I decided to comply with her instructions but that made me slightly uneasy.

"Harbinger of the end, the white snow." Riveria's voice seemed to begin to echo and half way through the first syllable uttered, a glowing circle of power (I lacked a better word) appeared beneath her feet.

"Blow with the wind before the twilight."

There was a weight of sorts that just inflated, like there was a lead balloon just beyond my fingers.

"Closing light, the freezing land."

I let go of Riveria's soft hand and tried to dig in for that same sensation I felt Loki call from me before, the great shifting. I focused on the feeling, remembering the gravity of it, its immensity and complexity. Then I called out.

"O' Mighty Farbauti, freeze my foes!"

I felt the temperature around me drop very fast as a rune of power slowly formed in front of my now extended right arm. It reminded me of those runes that I read earlier in my life while studying for my university and it also reminded me of the dwarven runes of power from The Lord of the Rings. It held a lot of power within it, I could feel that much.

It seemed like the area we were in was slowly freezing as everyone else had wide eyed looks and Tione began shivering slightly. I spied a War Shadow approaching and swiftly turned my extended arm towards it. I then imagined that I was shooting it with a bow and arrow and the projectile let loose, striking the Shadow directly below its weak point.

It immediately stopped moving as it began freezing over, slowly at that. I could also see its claws begin to break down and as I approached it, wielding my sword too, it did not move to strike at me. It felt as if it was a lot weaker than the ones before it and that feeling kept growing over time.

I simply stabbed its weak point and it froze up entirely, shattering into pieces with its magic core dropping on the floor.

All the while I had the widest smile I've ever had in this world so far that threatened to split my face. I did it! I learned magic! I used magic! It was amazing!

The others approached me, with Riveria taking the lead. She offered me a smile, Alicia did the same despite her earlier attitude, Tione offered a thumbs up and Finn with Gareth also held satisfied smiles on their faces.

Riveria was the first to speak.

"Congratulations Arne." She said, pointing at my hand.

I held it in front of me and saw a blue rune engraved unto it. It glowed in the darkness of the dungeon and felt slightly cold. Then, it simply faded away.

"That is pretty amazing." I said, fascinated. It simply made me wonder about the magic I would probably obtain later on. Becoming a rune mage did not sound bad.

"That it is. It's very impressive with its effects too. You practically neutralized that War Shadow." Riveria said, seemingly impressed.

I nodded, offering her a friendly smile. "I look forward to learning more."

She nodded back, satisfied at my current attitude before she asked me about something. "How are you feeling now?" She asked as Alicia and Tione approached while Gareth and Finn were satisfied just sitting back.

I closed my hand, feeling the freeze slowly subsiding. "I felt like I was freezing over but strangely enough, it did not affect me negatively. Now I feel the frost slowly subsiding."

Riveria nodded with a hum. "That is your magic now. Regardless of its effects."

Finn walked up and clapped his hands. "Let's have you test it out more then we'll have some lunch." He said with his trademark smile that made Tione swoon slightly.

"That works for me." I said my opinion and the others agreed.

We began moving around the sixth floor again and I proceeded to prepare my magic once again. This time, the rune itself did not fade away but remained engraved on my hand. I tried this three times and I ended up having three runes engraved on my hand. I felt the frost gather around me as the place around us was slowly freezing. Riveria was the one who was watching me closely, accompanied by Alicia while the others looked out for any sightings of monsters.

"You know, first time spell users usually faint from using too much of their magic." Tione said after a bit of silence. "You've been wasting Mind by repeatedly chanting your magic for so long and you've been using your first spell for quite a while as well. Do you really have such a high capacity for magic? Well, you're an elf now so it is not as strange I guess.." Tione continued, raising an eyebrow.

I shrugged. I guess elves really had better magic potential than other races, huh? "I do not know, but magic is currently my highest stat." I said with a hum. "Maybe it's because of my developmental abilities or something."

"You said abilities, not ability." Alicia cut in, noting this with a raised eyebrow. She glanced at Riveria who shook her head, then at Finn who simply shrugged and then at Gareth who sighed softly. "I see."

Tione gave her a backrub. "Shhh.. Don't worry about it. It's not you, it's him."

I proceeded to chant once again and another rune formed on my hand. The feeling of frost intensified as I could see the ground slowly begin to form ice. I envisioned a snowy plain, much like the one from back home where I lived with my Grandfather. "We are here to test my limits anyway so this should be fine."

We ended up coming across a Frog Shooter and three War Shadows. I looked at my companions who nodded and stood back then turned to face the monsters.

"O' Mighty Farbauti, freeze my foes!" I chanted and then one of the runes on my hand faded away as a frost projectile launched itself at the Frog Shooter, hitting it right in the face. The Frog froze briefly as ice formed around it and eventually, it could not even move a single muscle. Its tongue also got frozen and stuck inside its mouth.

"It seems to be a weakening type mixed in with an attack type." Riveria observed keenly.

"That's coo-, I mean, amazing!"

A War Shadow attempted to swing at me and I blocked its strike using my buckler only to chant my spell again to cause another rune on my hand to fade away, a projectile forming and hitting the shadow point blank. It let out a shriek and then began to slowly freeze up as well, until it was frozen solid. I shattered it in half with my sword and its magic core dropped to the ground. I then blocked two more strikes from the rest of the War Shadows, batting away what I could not block with the back of my blade. Was it just me or did this now feel easier?

Either way, I decided to experiment a bit and pointed my sword at one of the shadows. I then chanted again and another projectile went off, this time taking the shape of a sword as it struck the Shadow head on. It also began to freeze up and I turned to face the last one standing.

I then proceeded to rush it and when I striked at it with my sword, I muttered the incantation one last time, discharging my last rune that was carved on my hand. The projectile never formed, instead a tip of ice shot through my sword, penetrating the Shadow completely and leaving a wide, gaping hole where its eye was supposed to be.

I then turned to the frozen Shadow and cut it in half then walked towards the frozen Frog Shooter. I gave it a punch and shattered its frozen mouth then a kick and it broke into pieces, only its core dropping on the ground.

"Interesting." Riveria said. "Those monsters gradually became immobilized and could not attack you further the more time passed. You've got yourself a very promising magic, Arne."

"Their steps were also slowed down. Some did not even get to move." Finn shared his observations. "That Frog Shooter could not even send out its tongue at you as it froze solid inside its mouth. You also seemed faster. I do not wish to say that your Status evolved that fast so it must have been your magic at play." He finished with a thoughtful expression.

"I agree." Gareth said. "They were acting normally but their movement was strained and you quickly immobilized them too."

"It is a weakening enchantment." Riveria said knowingly. "Given the way your magic clung to the monsters. I would also like to study that rune later on, if you'd allow me to." She said with a neutral expression although her eyes seemed to slightly twinkle. Someone was interested in knowledge.

"Good magic." Tione said.

Alicia nodded with her lips pursed. "If anything, it'll be useful and it seems to fit him nicely."

What was that supposed to mean?! "I'm sure we can test it out some more." I said. "Let's go for another monster encounter."

We ended up finding a group of three Frog Shooters and three War Shadows. I took care of everything and saved a last frog for testing purposes. I opened some space between us and put up my shield and waited after hitting it with my magic. Its tongue managed to shoot out but it stopped midway into the air as it froze solid. I raised an eyebrow and poked it after lowering my shield, which led to the frozen tongue shattering. It seemed like I could shatter my own ice with just a simple touch.

The Frog slowly froze over too and I decided to test this again by poking it. It worked much the same way as the frog crumbled into pieces, only its magic core remaining in place.

"I can confirm the slowing down effect. I assume the attack power reduction will work better on foes that will not actually freeze over." I said thoughtfully. Indeed, I assumed that my magic was too strong for those simple monsters.

"I can see that." Riveria agreed.

"Very methodical." Finn said.

"All hail the power of science!" I said randomly.

"If only he wasn't so damn similar to Loki." Alicia lamented.

"So." I began. "What happens if you run out of mana-, I mean, Mind?" Wasn't Mind just Mana?

Hey Loki, you there?

You called?

Is mind basically Mana?

Not exactly in the way you're thinking of, but that's close enough.

I see.

"You will end up fainting." Riveria said.

"Can you end up dying from it?" I said with concern.

"If you end up passing out in the middle of a fight, there's a very high chance you might. But not usually from Mind Down itself."

"Good, very good." I said and a grin made its way on my face. "I have a very good idea."

"Why does it feel like that's a very awful and bad thing?" Tione asked, sweatdropping.

So, Loki. Mind down is basically like running out of Mana?

Sure, let's go with that.

How bad can it be?

I dunno, I never experienced it.

"Riveria, if you do not mind me asking, what does Mind Down feel like?"

"It feels like the morning where you have a bad hang over and Loki is chasing after you while holding a bikini." She was oddly specific with that one which made me raise an eyebrow and make a mental note to ask Loki about the details later.

"Are you speaking from experience?"

Gareth laughed and spoke up. "We do not talk about that."

"We almost lost the manor that time." Finn said.

"Right. Well, I wanna feel that Mind down thingy." I said with a hum.

"I was kidding when I spread some rumor about you loving getting whipped!" Tione said.

"That was your doing?" Alicia said with a frown.

"Ehh!" I exclaimed. "It's all about the stats! Besides, I want to know my limit when it comes to casting magic! Should be useful, right?"

"He does make a good point." Gareth agreed with me.

So I kept using my magic as much as I could, constantly fighting anything that we came across. My companions always had my back just in case I ended up fainting in the middle of a fight too. At one point, I had three runes engraved on my hand again and I was approached by Tione, Riveria and Alicia.

"Mind if I touch that?" Tione pointed at one of the runes.

I looked at Riveria for confirmation and she narrowed her gaze as she looked at the runes herself. She was thinking. Proficiency was pretty important when coming face to face with new things and I did not exactly know how it'd affect anyone who touched the runes.

"She'll be fine." Riveria concluded. "She will most likely not be affected due to the level difference between you."

I then extended my hand towards Tione and the runes were there, exposed for her to see and touch. She proceeded to put a finger on one of the runes and then raised an eyebrow.

"It does not hurt. It feels as if I am touching snow." She flexed her hand. "Not bad."

"Probably the level difference at play." I said with a shrug.

Tione returned the shrug.

We met some more monsters after that, even going as far as reaching the stairs to the floor below. My magic made dealing with frog shooters and war shadows a lot easier as I could completely neutralize them almost immediately if I managed to hit them. The Lizards proved to be a bit rougher, because I could not instantly freeze them. Instead, I finally witnessed the attack power reducing effect because their swings became slower and the power behind their tail whips a lot weaker. I made the assumption and mental note that to freeze an enemy instantly, I'd have to strike at their weak point.

Regardless, my group and I continued to wander the Dungeon floor, fighting monsters and carving out magic cores until eventually, I ended up passing out after one last fight against a few lizards and shadows...

---

I ended up waking up in a dark room with just enough light to see myself laying in a four-poster bed, covered in rose petals. My head hurt as if someone slammed it on bricks.

"Loki."

She entered my vision from my left, laying down side ways next to me. "Yes, darling?"

"Is this meant to be a joke?"

"Yes."

"Thank you."

She placed a soft hand on my chest. "You missed dinner."

"I also have a massive headache." I said with a groan.

"You were such a wild beast last night."

"If only I could remember…" I looked at her, my eyebrows raised and everything. "I hope you are joking."

"I was kidding." She proceeded to pat my cheek. "I figured you would go crazy or something with that magic. I had those three come with you to make sure you'd be fine."

"I figured as much." As much as we vibed with each other, there was no way Gareth, Finn and Riveria would accompany a low level adventurer like me on a whim. "And thank you. For keeping an eye out for me. Truly."

"Don't mention it." She smiled as she laid her head on my shoulder. "You ought to get some food though."

"That's the plan currently. I might dress up and go out for food. I need some time to myself." I shared my thoughts with her, and she smirked.

"You should feed me sometime."

Damn. She's direct. "Maybe sometime?" I said with a raised eyebrow, grinning slightly.

"Would you not rather get to touch a budding young lady during the entirety of your dinner~?"

"If by budding, you mean still growing, and trying really h-"

She got all red in the face and pushed me off the bed. At least she helped me up soon after and helped me with dressing up.

"Did I have to be topless though? Also, did you really touch my ears while I was passed out?" They were feeling slightly sore.

Loki put a finger on her lips. "Shhh.. You talk too much."

We left her room, and I saw it was now nighttime outside. "How long was I out for?"

"Two weeks." Loki said with a straight face.

I proceeded to glare at her. Hard.

"Two hours."

I rolled my eyes.

She hugged me and stuck her cheek against mine. "You're too fun to mess around with, Arne."

On our way downstairs, we passed by Riine who gave Loki a thumbs up and a smile.

I looked at Loki.

"She's the one who provided the petal flowers."

I shrugged. "Did Finn and the others inform you about my magic?"

"They did." She said with a nod. "I want to see it in action sometime."

"Can't you at least get someone to look after you while I do that?" I said with concern. "You don't know shit about my magic aside what you learned from the Arcana. Right?"

"Eh, it's all good."

I frowned at her.

"I trust you, Arne."

"Well. I appreciate that and I hope I live up to your trust." I said genuinely, which caused her to smile.

We finally got to the ground floor and everyone was mostly there, simply lounging about. Lefiya was happily chatting with Alicia, Anakity and Elfy. Elfy was Lefiya's roommate and a human. She was a level three, just like her roomie. Rakta also was level three, while Alicia, Anakity, Cruz and Raul were level fours. There were only three level ones currently present in the familia. Namely it was me, Tina and Agata. It was so in character for Loki to favor women.

Finn was with Gareth and Riveria, seated and drinking wine. They waved at us when they saw us.

"Glad to see you up, Arne." Finn said.

"Man, this feels so bad." I said with a groan.

"I told you so." Riveria said.

Gareth hummed, clearly agreeing. "Care to do it again?"

"If it helps bump up my magic stat then sure."

Loki put her hand on my shoulder then shook her head. I guess that's a nope.

"That's a no for sure then." I concluded.

Loki looked at me for a moment as she considered her next words before she spoke up. "I could accompany you for dinner if you'd like." She offered with a small smile. "I'd feel bad, leaving you to eat alone." Unfortunately for her though, I wanted some time to myself so I'd have to decline.

"I would love to but not this time. I'm sorry Loki but I want some time to myself to sort out my thoughts. I promise to take you out for dinner tomorrow though if you're fine with that much." I said with a slight smile, offering an alternative. I felt bad for rejecting her suggestion but I would not budge from that now.

Loki's smile faded, replaced with a slightly concerned expression that nobody saw often on her features, which made me feel bad. Regardless, she spoke up. "I see.. Well, you can do that then but no staying out for too long, okay?" She said and I nodded. I was not planning to stay out until too late. "And you better follow through with what you just promised, ya hear?!" She then wore a wide grin, far more fitting her persona as she smacked me on the back.

"I promised so it'll happen!" I said with a slight chuckle.

Riveria's face cracked into a small smile. "So that's going to be a date for tomorrow. You're moving quite fast."

I looked at Riveria, raising an eyebrow, before Loki laughed.

"You guys could come along if you'd like." I added, offering a smirk of my own, knowing their answer beforehand.

"Nah. That'd be deadly and would cause us severe headaches. We're fine like this." All three exclaimed at the same time.

"Damn, that was kinda savage." I said with amusement.

"Very much so." Loki added.

"Well then, I'll be going now. I'll see you folks either later tonight or tomorrow." I said. I was wearing my red tunic, my black pants and my mountaineer boots. My usual outfit. I had a pouch attached to my belt, carrying my grandfather's knife and I also had a money pouch in one of my pockets. I had Thirteen Thousand and Five Hundred Valis stored in there from yesterday's efforts, while I kept the rest of my money safe in my room. No need to carry everything with me.

After exchanging a few goodbyes with everyone, and after receiving a pinch on my cheek from Loki, I then departed from the Twilight Manor and walked into the streets of Orario, with a destination already in mind. If I did not get lost along the way, that is…

---

I left the Manor and walked into Orario's well lit night scenery, the magic lamps dotting the streets every ten feet or so. It was a very surreal feeling, seeing the familiar sight of activity during the night, it was the same yet also alien, powered not by electricity but with ingenuity all the same. People laughed, chatted and went about with their usual activities unbothered and unhampered by the beautiful starlit sky, a sight I did not see often due to where I used to live. Though, with so many stars visible and the moon, I doubt anyone could find a spot where absolute darkness was present.

I carried with me a total of Thirteen thousand and five hundred Valis, a decent haul from yesterday's efforts and most likely enough for me to enjoy some warm food and good drink. Tomorrow, I would attempt to reach a deeper floor, because the sixth level was already manageable due to my magic trivializing most of it and all this steamrolling I was doing was slowly getting to my nerves. By their lonesome, those monsters could not exactly kill me but the combinations of them working in tandem was what made fighting them difficult. Apparently, I would be going with just Gareth tomorrow too because Finn and Riveria had to work towards earning more cash and making up for any lost time.

With my money pouch heavy, I continued to walk through the streets. Earlier, as I was leaving, I discussed with Loki using my mental connection to her. She suggested a few places she frequented in the city and I resolved to check out at least one of them today. The one she recommended the most was the pub/tavern we went at yesterday, the Hostess of Fertility. Apparently, it was a good place, with good people and good food and drink.

"Still.. People are amazing, aren't they..?"

I whispered to myself in thought, as I walked. This view of cobblestone coupled with the magical, non electrical lights was amazing. My mind also wandered back to the explanation I received from Riveria and Loki about Mind down. The full explanation this time. Apparently the brain is used as a conduit to channel the mystery of a magic subconsciously so if it is utilized too much, the brain's grey matter shorts out.

Loki also told me that the real explanation was along the lines of the brain being used to focus on knowledge it isn't supposed to be aware of normally to impose change into the world. In her words, me fainting was basically me running out of steam to fuel that type of thought. It sounded kinda crazy, just like this whole situation, but well, I am used to crazy by now.

There was no response because I told Loki I wanted time to myself which meant no mental connection until I returned. She sounded worried and maybe a bit disappointed, but it just had to be that way for tonight. I would make it up to her tomorrow by taking her out for food anyway.

Back to the situation at hand however, I ended up passing by the Tower of Babel, seeing some folk out and about even this late at night although nobody was going into the Dungeon nor coming out of it. It made sense really, because going into the Dungeon at night probably amounted to suicide. I would probably get manhandled by the familia if I made Loki worry about me like that, even if they would never admit to it.

I chuckled to myself as I continued my walk, remembering Loki's instructions for reaching the Hostess while also remembering the way we took yesterday as well. There were more taverns along the way, some full of life while others barely had any customers, which was sad but business is business in the end.

Eventually, I reached the fine establishment. The Hostess of Fertility sat on a brick-lined street. It was a two-story building made out of stone and wood which showcased the depth of a well made and neat inn. Located along the western main street, there were a lot of people passing by and a lot of them also visited the place itself to eat and drink.

I walked to the front entrance, thankful about the fact that not many people were around just yet although I could tell they were starting to gather currently.

The front entrance had a set of double doors with wooden carvings decorating its frame. I glanced to the side and saw the sign showcasing the pub's name, which made me hum at how much it fitted the fantasy-esque taverns I was used to seeing in my games, both dnd and rpgs.

I took a deep breath then proceeded to make my way inside the place. The moment I did, I was hit with a pleasant smell of good food and the voices of adventurers enjoying it with fine company and a good drink. I could see some of the waitresses moving about the place, serving people or taking orders. Some cat girls, a silver haired human and another brown haired human.

The one trait they shared in common was the fact that they were women. I guess I could see why Loki enjoyed this place a lot, aside the food and drinks. They all seemed to be busy and my eyes spied the boss of the place, the one everyone called Mama Mia, who was standing behind the bar and watching the entire thing unfold while most likely waiting for more work to come her way.

I must have stood out because some people looked over to me and I was confused for a moment until I was approached by another waitress I did not notice until just now.

She was an elf, just like me. She had green, short hair and sky blue eyes. She had beautiful skin, white as snow and she also was quite well built. I could not help but think that she was a fairy. She wore the standard uniform of the establishment, which was a green maid outfit with a white frilled headband, a matching white apron and a pair of brown boots over black leggings.

I was silent for a bit as I observed her and it must have been visible because she coughed into her hand as she repeated what she said earlier to me.

"Welcome to the Hostess of Fertility, how may I assist you?"

She had a good voice, although she did not showcase much emotion and her expression neutral at best. It felt like she wore a poker face but who was I to argue, I was here just for food and drink. I could not really say much to her.

"U-Uhm. My apologies about that. I am here for some fine food and drink to end the day, I would like you to show me to an empty table, preferably a corner table where I could remain seated without much attention coming my way." I said with a soft smile, and the elf in front of me seemed to raise an eyebrow. Did I sound suspicious or something? I hope not. I just wanted to think about things without worrying about other people who might have wanted to bother me.

She looked at me in silence for a few seconds, and I seriously thought about walking away when she spoke again.

"Certainly, sir. Come this way."

The elf told me and I nodded wordlessly, following after her. Mama Mia certainly knew how to get them.

The elf led me towards a corner table where I would not exactly be bothered by other people and then gestured for me to take a seat. She then took the seat in front of me, and took out a waitress' notebook of sorts alongside a wooden pencil. Seems like she was waiting for me to order.

I looked down at the wooden table in front of me as I sat and noticed a menu. I picked it up and briefly scanned it twice. I then decided…

"I would like to start with a plate of pasta and a mug of ale. If I need anything else, I will ask for it, miss waitress." I said, putting up my best friendly smile and the elf seemed to nod at me, her blue eyes watching me briefly before she stood up, uttered an 'excuse me' and then walked off towards Mama Mia's direction.

"Hmm.." I refocused and looked around the place from my seat. There were a lot of wooden tables, a bar and what looked like a staircase that led upstairs. I briefly recalled that this place also worked as an inn. The atmosphere inside was that of a medieval fantasy tavern, filled with chatter and laughter by the various people it accommodated.

I could even make out some familiar faces around the place, those that belonged to the same familia I was from. People were happily chatting; my ears twitched a lot due to my heightened senses and I let out a sigh as I slowly lost myself in thought.

I was away from home, in another world where the comforts and norms of my home world were either nonexistent or different. I met new people that would be present in my life for a long while until my goal is fulfilled and I am now fighting daily to improve myself as a warrior with the goal to reach godhood. If I said this to anyone back home, they'd probably label me as a madman.

While I had accepted the fact that this was my home away from home now, it still did not fully sit well with me due to the risks involved and the height of ambition the goal I chased after carried. One wrong step and my life would be over.

I put my hands on my face as I groaned when I heard someone cough into their hand which snapped me out of my thoughts of doom. It was the same elf from before, who was looking at me strangely with a raised eyebrow. She carried a tray with her that held a plate of pasta alongside a mug of ale.

I nodded in appreciation and offered a gentle smile, a contrast from how I looked like a moment ago. The elf herself though did not seem to mind nor really question it, so she just placed my order down on the table.

"If you require anything else, make sure to call for me or anyone else. I will be close by." The elf said, her sky-blue eyes looking into my own for a moment before she walked towards the bar.

"Wow.." I murmured then looked down at my table. The pasta smelled amazing, and I was quite hungry and in need of sustenance, so I quickly began eating. The flavor was rich, the person who cooked this clearly knew what they were doing.

I looked up from my plate to see the elf spare me another glance from a distance as she was talking with a silver haired waitress who seemed to be amused about something, but my hearing could not pick up what they were talking about, so I simply picked up my mug of ale and took a long sip, savoring the taste. This ale was far better than the junk I had back home. Maybe because of the way it was made compared to ale back home. Regardless, I was having a great time because compared to yesterday when I was distracted by everyone around me, I was enjoying this place alone.

Even so, that was not enough for me to forget the reason I wanted to spend some time alone. I put down my now empty mug of ale and sighed softly to myself. Loki was cool and the other members of the familia were also amazing as well but I still felt like I was out of place. I was out of my element and the only thing that I could do to push myself forward was to try and become stronger in a short timeframe.

Thinking about it, it was not the healthiest way to cope with my situation, but I failed to see any alternative. Looking down at my now empty mug, I thought about what to do next. I did not really want to go anywhere else at the moment, not even back to the Twilight Manor. Just going back to bed without doing anything did not sit well with me.

Oh well, might as well drink some more. I just had to make sure I did not overdo it. I was not made of Valis in the end.

I raised my mug of ale in a gesture towards the idle waitresses in my point of view. Currently it was some brown-haired cat girl, the green haired elf from earlier and the silver haired human I observed earlier as well. They did not move at first but after exchanging a few nods, the silver haired human proceeded to approach my table, wearing a cute smile.

"Hello there, good sir! How may I help you?" She asked sweetly, it felt somewhat off to me in a way, but I pushed that feeling back because it'd be rude to the girl in front of me. I offered a weak smile and motioned to my empty mug.

"I would like some more ale if it's no trouble." I said simply, my weak smile still in place. The girl tilted her head as if she was expecting to hear something else then gave me a simple nod, her smile ever present. I looked behind her and saw the elf and the cat both looking our way, a bit surprised.

"Anything I can help you with, miss?" I asked because she did not move to get my order, instead opting to look at me curiously.

"O-Oh! How embarrassing, being caught looking! It must have seemed rude of me but I would like to know your name.." She trailed off and I raised an eyebrow. I briefly recalled Loki's words about not revealing too much information to other people I met and I intended to honor that much. Revealing my name should be fine, mostly.

"Oh. Well, I would not call that rude. If anything, you should have asked from the start." I said simply, my elf ears twitching briefly. "The name's Arnold Alfson, people like to call me Arne." I introduced myself as smoothly as possible, to make a good first impression. At least I assumed it'd be a good first impression.

The girl's eyes lit up and she even giggled briefly in delight. I guess she was happy too. How weird. "I see! My name's Syr Flova! A pleasure!" The waitress said in delight and I hummed. I gave her a nod. "Still.. Alfson.. Huh? Sound's kind off familiar, but I can't put my finger on it…" The silver haired girl said with a thoughtful expression before her gaze sharpened. I raised an eyebrow. Familiar? But…

"Anyway! I'll get one of my colleagues to bring you your ale! Thank you for your patronage!" The now introduced Syr walked off towards the Elf and the Cat girl, and whispered something to them in delight. The Elf remained stoic while the Cat girl grinned and even uhh.. meowed? Wow.

Either way, with that distraction out of the way, I tapped my fingers against the table's surface, waiting for my mug of ale. I did not have to wait for long because I saw the green haired elf approach and set down the mug on my table. I nodded towards her, offering a slight smile and she nodded back, not really saying much in return as she walked away.

That type of behavior that contradicted everyone else that worked alongside her got me quite curious about her backstory but I was not about to crack that nut nor did I have the energy and time to spare to do so. I had my own priorities currently and I could not get distracted if I wanted this to end as soon as possible.

I ended up staying seated for a few more hours, drinking some more ale and when the real dinner rush began for the Hostess, I began making my exit. I got off my table, walked towards the Bar and paid Mama Mia what I owed her, which amounted to around Three thousand and a half Valis. I drank quite a bit after all. The dwarf offered me a friendly smile and told me she was looking forward to seeing me here again soon.

"Oh, before I leave." I dug into my pouch and took out a thousand Valis. "I would like for you to give this to the elf lady waitress. It's a tip. I'll be sure to come by again. Have a pleasant night." I said with a soft smile then proceeded to walk out of the pub after sparing her a glance. She seemed surprised at my gesture before I left. I wondered why, briefly. Either way, I had to go back to the manor now..

---

I ended up reaching the Twilight Manor with ease, a lot easier than before and after checking in with the guards at the gate, I ended up going inside. Most people of the Familia had retired to their rooms. I did not see Loki around either, which meant she was probably enjoying her own free time in her room. I did not bother opening up the connection between us now as there was no point.

After taking a look at the view from the balcony on the floor my room was on, I walked into my room and proceeded to remove my clothes. I took a shower in my bathroom, put on a simple pair of pants for sleeping purposes and then I lay in bed. Soon enough, sleep claimed me and my day was over…

---

"Hey Ryuu, Mama Mia said this is for you!" It was closing time for the Hostess of Fertility when the waitress known as Syr talked to the green hair elf now known as Ryuu, showing her a pouch filled with some Valis. The elf was confused because she was not used to receiving gifts or anything really from people outside of Syr and the girls of the pub.

"For me? From whom?" Ryuu asked, confused and surprised. Syr showed a smile, then it evolved into a teasing grin. "It is from the lovely elf gentleman that visited our establishment tonight. Mama told me that he entrusted this to her so you could have it as a tip for your exemplary service." Syr said.

Ryuu raised an eyebrow, her surprise and disbelief still evident. Still, she would not turn it down if it was given in good faith. "I…see. I am glad to hear that much." She said simply, taking the pouch. "Still.. He seemed so lonely." Ryuu shared her observation of the man who somewhat reminded her of herself. He did look as if he was out of place, out of touch with his surroundings. As if he did not belong.

"Well, maybe you can find out more next time he comes by!" Syr said in her jovial tone, although her silvery eyes glowed briefly as they narrowed once she was out of view of Ryuu who decided to retire to her quarters. Syr showcased a smirk as she nodded to herself.

"Curious indeed…" She whispered and then got back to work…

---

Author's Note: Hello everyone and many thanks to those that took the time to read this story so far! Here we are with another chapter of Gloria Oratoria, this time taking a look into another of Arne's forays into the Dungeon, him establishing a contract with Tsubaki and getting some time to himself. I would like to mention that this fic will also focus on Ryuu and a few other characters that will be seen later on, to not spoil the surprise.

A few hints of what's to come have also been dropped in this chapter as well, which was exciting for me to write! I still cannot guarentee a stable update schedule but I'll try to keep you guys up to date and I'll try to push out chapters as often as I can. I do want this fic to reach the finish line eventually.

I do not have much else to say so I'll leave it at that. Thank you for reading and I'll see you on the next update.

Next up: Chapter 2 - Of Godly Meetings and of Dungeon Experiments.