Good morning, afternoon, and evening my dearest readers! Welcome back to the story.
Well, the war in Athens has intensified and many plots are afoot. Yet, this is a but a warm-up, for even greater challenges lie beyond the horizon and our heroes are travelling down a dangerous path that may lead them into situations they are not fully prepared for. But enough of my ominous words, let us rejoin the story and see what happens next.
I do not own Danmachi
Bell dragged himself back to his familia while doing his best to smile and ease the mother and daughter behind him. He knew he wasn't doing well, given their looks, but they had been generous and not questioned him, likely understanding that he was putting on a brave face for them.
I just have to get them to the others. Then I can rest. Just a little further. Just a little further.
He picked up his pace a little bit, his resolve renewing some of his strength. However, this lasted but a moment as not five seconds later, his foot caught on something and he fell over.
"Bell-onii-chan!" little Minerva cried as she and her mother rushed over.
He pushed himself off the ground, but he found his arms shaking terribly.
I guess even with Wrath of the Dragon the poison is still affecting me, he thought.
"Are you alright, Bell-san?" the mother asked.
He turned and tried to smile, but his shaking arms and sweating face made that borderline impossible.
"I'm fine. I just tripped," he said, though he knew how obvious it was that he was lying. With this in mind, he tried to force himself to stand again and did manage to get back on his feet, though his legs now shook worse than his arms had. "Come on. Let's continue."
He turned and put his foot down, only for his leg to give out under him, sending him straight towards the ground again.
This time however, he did not crash onto the stone street, but suddenly found himself lifted up and placed into two very strong arms.
"Hi Dad," he said, not even needing to see the tall mass of muscle to know who it was.
"What the hell happened, Bell?" Achilles asked, worry permeating every corner of his voice as he looked down at his sweating son.
"I found...one of the attackers," Bell said, his breathing labored, "she was an Evilus. She ran off...then another group...someone different attacked. They," he pointed to Minerva and her mother, "threatened them. I beat them and they...ran off too...but they...and the Evilus...used...a lot of...poison."
"Start with that!" Achilles roared before quickly fishing for an antidote. He brought it to Bell's lips and the young man quickly drank it down.
"Thank you," Bell said weakly.
"Geez," The Father on High replied, not knowing what to do with the young man. This being the case, he turned to the mother and daughter. "Come on, we'll get you to safety."
The two nodded and the four quickly made their way back to the square where not only the Hestia familia, but the other familias as well, were waiting for them.
"Bell!" many cried as they saw Achilles approaching with the Hestia captain in his arms.
"Hi everyone," he greeted quietly, though he did manage a small smile.
"What happened?" Aiz cried as she rushed to her lover's side.
"I found one of the attackers," he explained, "she was the one controlling the spiders. A few bit me before she ran off. I also found out she was Evilus."
"Evilus? In Athens?" Riveria asked.
"Yes. She didn't say why they were here though," Bell continued, making sure to keep quiet about the Revis revelation as not only was he unsure of what to make of that, but he didn't exactly want to have that conversation with Aiz and the other ladies. "I was then attacked by another group that I'm pretty sure was unrelated to the ones attacking Athens."
"Someone else attacked you, Bell-sama?! Who was it?" Lili asked.
"I don't know," he responded with a shake of his head. "They were all wearing hoods and face coverings. But they said they knew who I was," he continued, which made everyone even more uneasy than they already were. "They also said that there couldn't be witnesses, which is why Minerva-chan and her mother are here."
Everyone turned to the two. The mother bowed to show her gratitude while Minerva bounced happily.
"Bell-onii-chan saved us!" she declared.
The sheer cuteness of that declaration eased some of the anxiety in the air, though everyone was still worried.
"Did you catch anything else? Anything that might tell us who they are?" Achilles asked.
"All the voices I heard were feminine," Bell answered, "and they clearly had worked together before. They also said they would remember what happened."
"Meaning they're going to try again at some point," Achilles added, his fists tightening as his eyes turned to Riveria, who looked nearly as upset as him.
"We won't let anything happen to you, Bell. I promise," Welf said.
"We'll guard you day and night if we have to," Ryuu added.
"Guys, that won't be necessary. I'm fine. A little tired, but fine," he said, trying to calm them down.
"Yeah, 'fine', now that you've had an antidote to deal with all the poison in your system," Achilles countered.
"Poison!" numerous ladies cried, immediately giving a sweating Bell the stink eye.
"That's it, we're setting up a watch over you and that's final!" Lili declared.
"Guys," Bell attempted again.
"Don't even try, Bell," Ryuu commanded.
He immediately fell silent and shrank into his father's arms.
"We can assist in guarding him."
Everyone turned to find Ottar looming over them.
"We can watch over him plenty well ourselves," Achilles shot back.
"Given Bell Cranel's ability to find danger, I sincerely doubt," the boaz countered.
Achilles glared at him while Aiz, Lili, and Ryuu all shot a look at Bell, who shrank back even more.
"Well there's no point talking about it anymore here. Bell needs treatment and rest and I'm sure Hestia will want a say in all this," Achilles said.
"Very well," Ottar replied.
Everyone prepared to head back towards Athena's palace. Seeing this, Haruhime decided to go over to Minerva and her mother.
"We'll take you both to the palace. I'm sure Athena-sama will be happy to help you once we arrive."
"Thank you all so much," the mother replied, bowing again.
"Yes, thank you!" Minerva proclaimed, "you're really pretty," she quickly added.
Haruhime blushed lightly, but smiled sweetly at the young girl.
"Thank you. You're very pretty too."
Minerva blushed and giggled before she and her now smiling mother joined Haruhime in making their way to the palace.
Achilles carried Bell all the way back to the Mania apartments, the young captain pouting the entire way.
"That really wasn't necessary," Bell said with more than a bit of annoyance as they all-but burst into the section of the palace.
"Consider it punishment for not immediately stating that you had been poisoned," Achilles responded.
"Oh you guys are back. I was so worr-" Hestia said as she and Mania entered the living room, immediately stopping as she discovered Bell in Achilles's arms.
"Bell found trouble again," the Father on High stated.
"What happened?" Mania asked as she and Hestia rushed over to the group.
They quickly explained everything, ending with a heavy sigh from Hestia.
"Beeelllll-kuuuun," she dragged out before turning her sapphire eyes to him, "I'm beginning to get mad at your attempts to turn my black hair white with worry."
His eyes fell.
"I swear I wasn't looking for trouble this time. I just stumbled upon Shiro."
"And then gave chase to her when she ran instead of telling the others," Hestia countered, causing his head to sink. She sighed again. "But I suppose I really should be used to it by now. Saving people and stopping the bad guys is what you do."
Bell looked up and smiled softly at her. Her own tired eyes quickly turned into affectionate ones, allowing things to proceed.
"I suppose I must second that," Mania said with her own soft smile, "still," her eyes darkened, "I would like to know who this second group who dared to attack my grandson was."
"Unfortunately we'll have to wait to find out. The attack on the city was undoubtedly a diversion on Rakia's part, meaning it is very likely that everything outside the walls is in chaos, and there's no way Athena isn't going to use us to her full advantage to counterattack," Achilles stated.
Everyone nodded, knowing full well that the orders were soon to arrive.
"What should we do about Bell-sama? There's no way to know if the attackers will try again while we're away," Lili stated.
"I'll stay and guard him," Aiz immediately volunteered.
"There's no way in heaven or hell that Athena's going to allow the Sword Princess to stay behind during the upcoming operations," Achilles pointed out.
"I'll stay then," Ryuu said, "I'm a high enough level to be able to deal with most threats and I wasn't asked for by name like Aiz-san was."
Everyone seemed willing to agree to that.
"I-I can also stay."
Everyone turned to the shrinking form of Cassandra.
"I-I wasn't asked for e-either and I-I'm not much of a fighter, b-but I do know healing magic so if the p-poison's not out of his system yet, I-I can help."
Though everyone was a bit surprised by the offer of the normally very shy girl, no one saw any reason to deny her.
"I think we'll take you up on that offer, Cassandra-kun," Hestia said.
Cassandra began beaming before quickly bowing a few times before them all, which eased the tension in the room and got a few smiles.
Unfortunately, this did not last long as an urgent knocking echoed from the door, telling them all it was time.
Rei answered it, finding an Athenian familia messenger at the door.
"Athena has summoned all Orario and Mania adventurers to an emergency meeting!" she cried.
"We'll be there," the rabbit captain replied.
"I'm surprised it took her that long to fetch you," Mania said after her captain closed the door.
"Which could mean either that things aren't as bad as we feared, or are worse," Riveria said.
"Anyone want to take bets on which it is?" Achilles said, getting no reply, "me neither."
"You'd all best get going," Hestia said before turning back to Bell, "and you should head off to bed and get some rest."
Bell nodded and soon enough he and everyone else were on the move again.
"Good luck everyone," the young captain said as he began moving towards his room.
"We'll kick their butts extra hard for you, Argonaut-kun!" Tiona declared with a smile.
He chuckled and nodded.
"Thank you, Tiona-san."
The amazon turned away with a blush, but kept smiling.
"We'll be back soon," Achilles said.
The Orario adventurers departed, leaving Bell, Cassandra, Ryuu, Hestia, and Mania in the room.
"Alright mister, it's time for you to get some rest," Hestia ordered.
He simply nodded and made his way to his room, Cassandra and Ryuu close behind.
They arrived at Bell's room not long after and stopped before the door.
"I'll be right outside if you need anything, Bell," the elf said seriously, but with a warm smile.
"Thank you, Ryuu," he replied and made his way inside with Cassandra.
Ryuu eyed the shy human as she entered Bell's room.
Should I be worried about her? she wondered. After a moment to contemplate she shook her head. No, Cassandra wouldn't try anything...right?
Bell sat down on his bed with a grunt.
"Are you alright, B-Bell-san? N-No wait...that's a dumb question," Cassandra said, turning away in mortification.
"I'm fine, Cassandra," he reassured her with a smile, "just a bit drained."
"T-Then you should really get some rest," she encouraged.
He nodded and slowly moved himself fully into the bed. Once he was situated, he sighed.
"Is there anything I can h-help you with? Any aches or pains?" the seer asked.
"No, I think I'll be fine, thank you though."
The room fell quiet. Cassandra wanted to talk more as she enjoyed talking with Bell immensely, but she didn't know what to talk about.
The weather? No that's stupid. About his familia? That could work though...I wish I had joined his familia now more than ever. I shouldn't have allowed Daphne to convince me not to join just because of Hestia-sama's debt! Though...Miach-sama has been a wonderful god, so I suppose I don't really regret it.
"Cassandra."
The poor girl nearly jumped out of her skin before turning to the surprised Bell looking up at her.
"Y-Y-Yes!"
"I...wanted to ask you a question."
"O-Of course! I'd be happy to answer."
Bell still seemed unsure for a moment, but after a tense few seconds, he continued.
"I wanted to talk to you about your dream again."
That stunned Cassandra for a couple of moments, then filled her with a noticeable amount of anxiety.
"T-The...the one about the white dragon?"
"Yes," he replied, sitting up in the bed. "If it makes you too uncomfortable though, I can drop it."
"N-No, i-it's alright. I admit I-I'm still frightened about what I saw, b-but I know you're a good person, Bell! So I'm not afraid to help you in any way I can!"
The strength in her voice legitimately shocked Bell as he wasn't sure he'd ever seen such strength in her before. However, that shock soon turned to happiness as he reached out and took her hands.
"Thank you, Cassandra."
The poor girl's face exploded into red and, after remembering what he'd figured out about the young girl, Bell's face got red as well as he pulled back.
"I-I'm sorry," he said, "that was very presumptuous of me."
"N-N-No! Not at all!" Cassandra shouted, already missing the contact. "A-Anyway, what question did you have for me?"
Now refocused on the matter at hand, Bell met her eyes.
"We both are sure I am the white dragon in your dream, but do you have any clue about the warrior you saw? Was there anything that you can remember about them? Even the smallest detail would help tremendously."
"No. I'm sorry," she replied, shaking her head. "All I remember is what I shared with you. It was you, as the white dragon, and a warrior in armor. You both fought and in the end you won and ate the warrior's heart. That's all I saw. I don't remember anything about the warrior. Not their eye color, whether they were a man or a woman, I can't even really remember the type of armor they were wearing."
Bell nodded.
"I didn't figure it would be that easy, I just wanted to check," he said, giving her a smile to show that he wasn't upset.
Silence fell over the room again before the young captain, now serious and even withdrawn, added.
"I need to get control of this power."
"W-What do you mean, Bell?" Cassandra asked.
"You saw what happened when I fought Ottar during the tournament?"
"I-I did," she said, her fear returning as she worried where this was going.
"That was my Wrath of the Dragon skill. I hate the skill and what it does, but it's helped me many times already. Even today I used it to protect Minerva and her mother," he clenched his fist. "I need to gain mastery over it so that I can call upon it at will and, more importantly, not fall into when I don't want to."
"I-I see."
Silence. Silence, anxiety, and fear. That was the air of the room after Bell's statement. However, the fear was not radiating from Cassandra, a fact that she noted very quickly.
He's afraid. Afraid of himself, she quickly realized.
That hurt her deeply. More surprising, it angered her.
He should not be afraid of himself. He's too good!
That anger made Cassandra do something extraordinarily bold for her as she suddenly reached out and took his hands.
"I don't know how much help I will be, but if there's anything I can do to help you, I will!" she declared.
Bell stared wide-eyed at the young dark-haired woman, unable to make a response.
I can see both her eyes right now, he recognized. Normally one is hidden behind her hair. It...she...looks really nice.
His smile returned and he squeezed her hands.
"Thank you, Cassandra."
The Orario adventurers were quickly ushered into the war room where Athena and her officers were already discussing or perhaps more accurately, Athena was shouting at them and they were nodding along and occasionally giving some feedback.
"You're late!" Athena bellowed as they entered.
"Calm down, Athena. Biting off the heads of those you're about to ask to help you is beyond stupid," Achilles told her.
Athena growled, but knew he was right and so took a deep breath to calm herself, though when she turned back to the Orario expedition, she was still clearly upset.
"Yes, I need your help getting this situation under control. We're receiving reports from all over the front. The attack on my city has not only demoralized my own troops, but provided the Rakians the opportunity to negate all the gains we've made since your arrival."
"There is a chance here though, Athena-sama. The enemy are now out in the open and after the losses they've taken, this is likely the last major push they can make," Admiral Liner stated.
"It had better be, my patience with Ares is officially burned to ash," she growled before shifting back to the adventurers, "you heard Liner. I need you all not only to push the Rakians back, but so utterly destroy them that they cease being a threat. The main objective is to encircle the main points of attack and force as many Rakians and mercenaries to surrender as possible," she pointed at several locations on the map. "Liner's marines will be landing here to help encircle their left flank which has had the most success. Achilles, you will aid them in the encirclement while the Loki familia stops their advance."
The adventurers nodded.
"Ottar, you and your familia will focus on the Rakian right flank. That is the second most dire front. It appears the Rakians were trying a giant encirclement themselves, though they don't appear to have the manpower. Your familia will cut off the line of retreat while my familia and the Zeus and Hera familias halt their advance."
"Very well," Ottar said.
"The rest of you," Athena continued, looking at the remaining familias, "will spread out along the remaining front," she gestured towards the map. "This is the largest area to cover, but is also facing the least amount of pressure. Mostly the Rakians are just herding monsters at this area to cause general chaos with a few, lower-leveled adventurers appearing in the mix. You will be joined by the Forest and High Elf forces. Combined with your several familias, you should have little trouble halting the advance."
"Why do we get the boring assignment?" Argana complained.
"There should be enough monsters to keep you from being too bored," Bache stated.
"But the men are sure to be shitty weaklings who'd break if I so much as tapped them."
Athena, snarling in barely controlled rage at the laissez faire attitude of the amazons quickly spat out.
"If you finish quickly you'll have plenty of time to find more suitable company back within the city. Shit, I don't even care if you take some of the Rakians and their mercenaries for your own enjoyment, just stop the attack on my country!"
Many of the Orario adventurers, especially the younger members, were shocked by this statement, Haruhime first and foremost amongst them and she hugged herself as unpleasant memories filled her mind.
"Hm, I guess that's not bad encouragement," Argana shrugged before her eyes turned to Achilles, "don't take too long with the pests big guy. I doubt even a dozen of those small fry will satisfy me like you will."
Achilles gave her a look, but said nothing, while Riveria looked ready to tear the amazon's tongue out, only calming when her lover's hand began to rub soothing circles on her back.
"You all have your assignments. Excused!" Athena shouted.
The adventurers quickly made their way out of the war room, none being exactly keen on remaining near the goddess of wisdom at the moment.
Athena was prepared to continue where she had left off before the Orario adventurers arrived when she heard someone clear their throat.
She turned to her captain who then herself gestured towards somewhere else. Turning again, she found Dido and Imilce still in the room, staring at her.
"What is it Dido? In case you haven't noticed, I'm busy working to counter Rakia's treachery."
"This is a conversation best done in private," the Hera captain stated.
Athena quickly deduced what this meant and though not keen on the conversation that was to come, she turned to Liner and the other officers.
"I trust you'll be able to complete your orders?"
"Yes Athena-sama," Liner replied before his wary eyes turned to Dido.
"Then you are also excused."
"Athena-sama!" the officers all saluted and departed, leaving only Athena, her familia, and the two Hera familia members within the room.
"Next time you feel like killing Bell Cranel, bring us in. It'll decrease the likelihood of you botching the job as you did," Dido spat the moment they were gone.
Enraged by her tone, the Athena familia members grabbed their weapons, though their goddess quickly signaled for them to stand down.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Athena replied, knowing it would annoy the mortal before her.
"Don't play stupid with me," Dido growled, "we tell you about Bell Cranel and then a group of adventurers, female adventurers," she quickly added, "specifically target him for assassination? That's not a coincidence, and don't even try to suggest they were with the Rakians or some of the adventurers in their employ. The boy informed us that their leader had already fled when a new group of would-be assassins tried to kill the brat."
Athena snarled at the insolent tone, but did not keep up the charade.
"You assume you would have been successful where my familia failed?"
"We are not as incompetent as you are."
The Athena familia, now properly enraged by the insult towards their goddess, drew their weapons, but one glare from Dido later and they found themselves too frightened to move.
"If you had brought us in we could have ended perhaps the single greatest threat the world has ever known," Dido continued, turning her burning eyes back to the goddess.
"Is that boy really so frightening?" Athena questioned in disbelief.
"Right now, yes. Soon enough, he'll be worse than either of us can imagine."
Had this been almost anyone else, Athena might have laughed at their obvious attempt to scare her. However, within Dido's eyes and voice was nothing but truth. Truth, rage, and fear.
No. Terror, Athena recognized.
Even so, she wasn't about to let the Hera captain see how unnerved she was.
"Well, we can't change anything about it now. All we can do is deal with Rakia and wait for new opportunities."
"Which will be harder to find now that his friends and familia have been alerted," Dido pointed out.
"I'm the goddess of wisdom, Dido, figuring things out is what I do."
The Hera captain growled one final time before she departed, an extremely anxious Imilce following after her.
Athena watched them go, hoping that it would ease her own anxiety some, but it did not.
Is Bell Cranel so horrifying?
"Athena-sama." She turned to her captain. "The leader of the Bell Cranel mission is here. She says she needs to speak with you."
That did not sit well with the already uneasy Athena.
"Very well. Send her in."
A few moments later, the leader of the attackers came in, bandaged up and in clear discomfort, if not pain, and bowed to her goddess.
"Thank you for seeing me, Athena-sama."
"Well when a member of my familia is so desperate to speak with me it seems only right I should see what they have to say. So...I presume this has something to do with your mission."
"Yes Athena-sama," the woman replied only to suddenly go quiet.
The quiet immediately filled the room with an uneasy feeling. Seconds passed and the uneasiness turned to anxiety and then to a whispering dread that crawled up the spines. None could explain truly why they were so quickly filled by such fear, but something seemed to echo from the attempted assassin that made them all feel it.
"Well?" Athena said after feeling her own dread well up.
"That...man…" the woman choked. "No...he's not a man," she met her goddess's gaze, "he's a monster."
The dread now became a lead weight upon their shoulders as the words mixed with fear into a poisonous brew that well and truly did choke those in the room.
"What...what do you mean?" Athena forced out, trying to sound powerful, but barely managing to not sound meek.
"He...changed, Athena-sama," the woman said, shuddering. "He came at us like a monster. Full of wrath and bloodlust. He tore right through us without thought of self or restraint. A-And his eyes...t-they were like a dragon's."
"A...dragon?" the goddess asked, her voice a whisper as fear stole away her strength.
Soon enough, he'll be worse than either of us can imagine.
Dido's warning echoed through her mind.
She rose to her feet, though she was loath to admit she was shaking a bit.
"T-This is troubling news," she cursed when she heard the shaking of her voice, but pressed on regardless, "however it does change anything, truly."
"Athena-sama?" the scared assassin looked up.
"Our goal was already to be rid of Bell Cranel, so if he is indeed the monster that you claim then we must simply do what comes naturally to mortals and gods with regards to monsters," she stared down into her child's eyes. "We must slay him."
"What were you talking with Athena about?" Achilles asked upon Dido and Imilce's return.
"She didn't exactly give us a great amount of detail, Achilles. I just needed some clarification," Dido stated bitterly.
"Is it physically impossible for you to talk without being snarky or unpleasant?" he shot back.
She growled but said nothing.
"Alright alright, no need to bite each other's heads off," Ajax cut in, "let's save the fighting for the Rakians and monsters."
"Fine," Achilles quickly agreed before turning to Riveria, "I should head off. If I take too long to do my part Athena will be extra annoying."
"Stay safe," she said before kissing his cheek.
He smiled at her.
"I'll do my best, but they did poison my son so I may let loose a little bit," he replied, earning a roll of the eyes from his elven lover before he departed.
"We should get going too," Aiz said, quite eager herself to get to the fight to punish those who hurt Bell.
"Yeah, let's kick some Rakian butt!" Tiona declared.
The expedition began making their way towards the landing strip where a host of dragonic mounts were waiting to whisk them to the battlefield.
As they walked, Haruhime felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and found a worried Agrippina beside her.
"Are you alright, Haruhime-san? I saw how distressed you were when Athena-sama made her comment to that amazon."
"I…" Haruhime wanted to reassure her that she was fine, but at the same time, she didn't like to lie. Eventually, she decided to be honest. "I was once a slave myself, so to have Athena-sama say something like that...to allow Argana-sama to take others as her own should she so desire...it makes me uneasy."
"I had no idea!" Agrippina cried, looking genuinely upset. "I swear that she only said that because of how stressed and upset she is. Athena-sama abhors slavery and has worked to eliminate in our country! I swear!"
"If that's true, that does put my mind a little at ease," Haruhime replied with a small smile.
"I swear to all the gods it is," Agrippina vowed, "as for putting you at ease," she reached into her pocket and pulled out a small bag. After fumbling with it for a moment, she managed to pull out a piece of chocolate. "Here. Chocolate has always helped me with my nerves, maybe it will help you with yours."
"Oh, I couldn't," Haruhime replied gently.
"Please. I feel it is only right after all the stress I and my familia have caused you."
Haruhime hesitated for a moment more before she smiled softly, nodded, and took the chocolate. She then popped it into her mouth and hummed in delight.
"It's very good."
"I'm glad you liked it. If you ever feel down or need a pick me up, there's more where that came from," Agrippina replied.
"Thank you, Agrippina-san. I do appreciate that."
"My pleasure, Haruhime-chan. My pleasure."
Nearby, the Freya familia eyed the Athena vice-captain with ever more suspicious eyes.
The Orario adventurers quickly jumped off their dragonic mounts and prepared to rush towards the front lines.
"We'll see you weaklings back in Athens!" Argana declared before she ran off in some random direction, followed not so long after by her sister.
"Geez, they could at least try and cooperate with us," Lili complained.
"I'm not sure those two know the meaning of the word," Welf said.
"As long as they help us stop the Rakian advance, I'm fine with allowing them to go off and do their own thing," Rei stated, "regardless, we need to get to the battlefield as well. My familia and I will head west and join up with the High Elves. If we get control of the front before you manage to, we'll rejoin you and help stabilize your front."
"Likewise if we get done with the east," Lili replied.
The Mania familia soon after headed west to join the High Elves, leaving the Hestia familia to head east and join the Forest Elves.
"No point sticking around here, let's get moving!" Welf shouted.
It did not take long for the Hestia familia to find the first signs of trouble as they soon discovered a village about to be attacked by a horde of monsters and defended by only a dozen Forest Elves.
"I've got this," Welf said, taking one of his magic swords off his back.
"Are you sure that's wise, Welf-dono? The Forest Elves will no doubt hold animosity towards you due for being a Crozzo," Mikoto said.
"If I don't do all I can to help them despite that then I'll be worthy of their animosity," he replied instantly. "Using this will give us enough time to set up a proper defense of the village and maybe even allow us to move onto the next location. That trumps any scorn they can send my way."
The other Hestia members shared a quick look before nodding.
"That was surprisingly mature for you," Lili said.
"I have my moments," he replied with a smile,
Uncovering the magic sword, Welf took a deep breath before rushing forward, his familia following close behind.
They rushed through the village and passed the elven defenders, who were too surprised to do anything but gawk at them, until they were right before the oncoming horde of monsters.
"Mo Fubuki!"*
Welf swung the sword with all his might, sending out a wave of ice and lightning at the monsters, crashing into them with terrible force and destroying them all in one fell swoop.
Welf took a deep breath and looked down at the sword before smiling.
Would you look at that; it didn't break. Maybe all that hard work is paying off.
"That…" Welf and the others turned to find the Forest Elves now only a few paces away. "That was a magic sword. A Crozzo magic sword," the lead elf said.
Furious and vengeful eyes fell upon Welf as the Forest Elves grabbed their weapons.
"Don't even think about it, you idiots," Lili ordered as she stepped forward. "In case you all didn't notice, he just saved you from the horde of monsters."
"That doesn't change the fact that he's a Crozzo!" one of the elves roared.
"It most certainly does," Lili spat back, "or are you going to claim that all Forest Elves are the same and shouldn't be treated as their own people? That a blood connection matters more than one's own actions and choices?"
Some of the elves looked away, understanding her point, even if they were still bitter, though most still looked eager for a fight.
"Listen," Welf said, drawing all attention to him. "If you guys want to fight me to get some of the anger out, fine, we can fight, but can you at least wait until after we make sure there aren't any monsters or enemies nearby?"
The nonchalant way the smith said this weirded out both his familia and a few of the elves, causing many to share confused looks. Still, it did remind the elves that they were in the middle of a battlefield, which in turn made them recognize that fighting the man who just saved them from literally hundreds of monsters might not be the best thing to do at the moment.
"This isn't over, Crozzo," the lead elf said.
Before Welf could respond, another voice called out.
"Well I guess it's our lucky day."
Everyone turned and found a group of about twenty adventurers making their way towards them.
"You must be the Crozzo smith that Ares wants so badly," the lead adventurer, a Dark Elf, said as he approached. "He offered ten million valis to the person who captured you," he continued, pointing a sword at Welf.
"And he's got some pretty ladies with him as well," a Light Elf added, eyeing up the women of the Hestia familia who all shuddered at his gaze.
"Is that a renard? Hooo boy, I've never actually seen one in person! And shit, she's fucking hot! I can only imagine what it'll be like to take a roll in the hay with her," a young, scrawny, human adventurer said.
Haruhime backed away and Mikoto, now fully enraged, stepped in front of her, sword drawn and ready.
"That dark-haired girl isn't too bad either. They both look like they're from the east. Never bred an eastern girl before," a werewolf man joined in.
"And you never will," Lili growled, aiming her crossbow at him.
"Oh, a feisty prum girl. I might have to mount you as well."
"No one 'mounts' Lili," she spat.
"Well I guess we'll have to see about that," the Dark Elf said. "Of course, you could all just surrender now so we don't have to hurt you before we take you. I'm sure my compatriots will be happy to be gentle or...gentler with you if you do."
"I don't do gentle," the werewolf stated, getting a few unpleasant chuckles.
"Haruhime," Welf said as brought his enchanted blade up, "start chanting."
Haruhime quickly nodded and began.
"Beloved snow. Beloved crimson. Beloved white light. Please let me be beside you."
"Hey now, we're trying to be nice here," the Dark Elf said as he drew even closer.
Welf met his eyes.
"We're not."
Not a second later, the smith swung his magic sword with all his might.
"Shit!" the Dark Elf cried.
"Mo Fubuki!"
Once more, ice and lightning shot out from the blade, only this time, it crashed into the ill-prepared adventurers, many of whom, many of whom, including the Dark Elf, were sent flying as the rest were scattered about.
"Charge!" the leader of the Forest Elves cried.
As the elves charged, Haruhime finished her spell.
"Kokonoe!"
Several tails appeared behind the fox girl who was far from finished as she immediately began chanting her next spell.
"Grow. That power and that vessel."
"You bastards!" the werewolf roared as he charged at the Hestia familia.
He did not get far as a pair of bolts pierced straight through his knees.
"Ah!" he cried.
Not a moment later, Mikoto appeared before him and slashed him across the chest, sending him crashing into the ground.
"Told you," Lili said with a smirk.
"Uchide no Kozuchi!"
Several pillars of lights descended from the heavens upon the members of the Hestia familia, leveling them all up and making them fully ready to tear through the mercenaries.
"Alright guys, let's show these assholes what the Hestia familia can do and make Bell, Ryuu, and Achilles proud," Welf said with his broadsword in hand.
Bell's eyes fluttered open and quickly gazed around the room, finding it empty.
That's right, I managed to convince Cassandra I was fine and to get some rest, he thought, smiling as he remembered how uncharacteristically difficult she had been to leave him, only agreeing after she had used up a good chunk of her mana to heal his perfectly healthy body, "just to be sure".
He moved himself to the side of the bed and stretched, groaning as his muscles awoke.
"I wonder what I should do now. Maybe I should get something to eat, it has been a while since I last ate."
Before he could make his way out of his room however, a knock came from the door.
"Yes?"
The door opened, revealing Ryuu.
"Hello Bell, I'm glad to see you're looking better," she said with a smile.
"Thank you, I do feel better," he replied with a smile. "Was there something you needed?"
Her smile dropped.
"Asfi-san and Hermes-sama are here to speak with you."
He was surprised for only a moment before he was fully on alert.
"Did they say what they wished to talk about?"
"No," she answered, "only that you would wish to hear it."
Bell frowned, but eventually nodded.
"Alright."
Ryuu nodded in turn and a few seconds later Hermes and his captain entered the room.
"Ah, there he is! I'm glad to see you doing better, Bell!" Hermes declared.
"Thank you, Hermes-sama," Bell replied politely.
"As I'm sure Ryuu-san has told you, there is something I wish to discuss with you," he turned his eyes towards the elf, "in private, if I may."
"Anything you wish to say to me can be said in front of Ryuu or any one in my familia," the Red Dawn replied sternly.
Ryuu smiled happily before it turned smug and she met Hermes's gaze. The god, however, simply chuckled.
"Oh, I know that's not true. I'm sure you wouldn't want to discuss what you did with Aisha during your 'training sessions', at least not if what she said was true."
Ryuu's eyes filled with jealous rage and soon shot back to Bell who began to sweat.
"Hermes-sama," Asfi said coldly.
"I suppose that was a bit unfair of me," he conceded. "Don't worry Bell, Aisha was actually quite tight-lipped about whatever you two did during your time together." That did nothing to calm the rage in Ryuu's eyes or the fear Bell felt as she glared at him. "And I will acquiesce to revealing the information to you both."
The two Hestia members turned back to the god, though Bell did take a moment to calm his heart.
Facing Asterios was less terrifying than that glare, he thought.
"Thank you, Hermes-sama," Bell said.
"Of course. I suppose, now that I think about it, it was foolish of me to even try and keep things between us. Knowing you Bell, you would probably tell your familia at the nearest possible opportunity anyway."
"Yes I would."
"Well then, no point in holding back then," the god cleared his throat dramatically, "I believe I have found where the Xenos are being held in Athens."
Bell and Ryuu's eyes widened.
"You found them?" Bell asked.
"Indeed, and I will be happy to show you precisely where they are at this very moment, if you're feeling up to it, of course."
Bell was immediately on his feet.
"Let's go."
Hermes's smile grew.
"Excellent. Asfi."
The two turned, only to find Perseus beside Ryuu.
"I'm sorry Ryuu," she said before blowing a shining, dust-like substance at the elf.
"Wah-" Ryuu tried, only for her eyes to roll up and her body to fall.
"Ryuu!" Bell shot across the room and caught her, before lifting her up into his arms. "Why did you do that?! What was that?!" he demanded.
"That was a special kind of fairy dust. It'll make her think that everything that just occurred was a dream," Hermes answered. "As to why, that's simple," his eyes turned serious, "I want you to decide for yourself how you proceed with what comes next, Bell. Whether you bring in your familia or go in alone."
"Why wouldn't I tell my familia?!"
"Because where you're about to go is dangerous," Hermes said coldly. "You're about to delve into the dark underbelly of Athens, Bell, and discover something that you're not meant to see. There will be repercussions to your actions should you travel down this path, which I'm already sure you will. If you go in alone you may be able to protect Hestia and the others from the consequences, but it will mean burdening yourself with keeping a secret from them. Ultimately the choice will be yours, but I wanted to at least provide you the option."
Bell stared into the god's eyes for a moment longer, before looking down at Ryuu. She looked so peaceful and beautiful and, for a moment, he recognized just how much he wanted to protect her from harm. To protect his familia and his friends from harm. Yes, he knew they would all stand by him and were all very capable, most notably his adopted father. Yet, the desire to safeguard them was still there.
He sighed before bringing Ryuu over to his bed and laying her down.
"I'll be back soon," he said quietly before moving a strand of her hair behind her ear.
"Bell," she whispered in her sleep.
He smiled, but only for a moment, as he soon turned back to Hermes, his eyes dangerous and foreboding.
"Let's go."
Hermes, smiling once again, bowed.
They had made their way through a good chunk of the city. It was far less crowded than the day before due to the attack and very few paid them any mind, but none of that matter to Bell at the moment, only the destination did. Finally, Hermes brought the young captain to an alley and pointed towards something.
"There."
Bell looked out to where the god was pointing.
He found two rugged men at the end of an alley, guarding a suspicious door.
"Who are they?" he asked.
"They're mercenaries in Athena's employ," the god answered.
Bell turned to him, confusion playing in his eyes.
"Don't be fooled, Bell. It may be two men guarding that door, but they are paid for by Athena. She chose men specifically because of her well-known disdain for the rougher sex," he explained before he gestured towards the end of the alleyway. "Beyond that door are several 'special projects' that Athena does not want people to know about, amongst them, her research of the Xenos." Bell had never liked the word 'research' less than he did at that moment. "That also means that if you go through with what I'm sure you plan to, you will earn her ire, Bell. That is not a question and you'd best steel yourself for that. I do not doubt your strength in the slightest, but even the most powerful adventurer would find Athena and her familia challenging."
"It doesn't matter," Bell replied with startling quickness. "I won't let them suffer. I'll save those who need help, no matter who they are or where they come from. Besides, it didn't seem like she really liked me anyway."
Hermes's smile returned.
"Then I will leave you to decide how you proceed from here on out, Bell. If you need anything, please feel free to ask."
"Thank you," Bell said, though it sounded more than a tad hollow. "I should get back to the palace. I don't want Ryuu waking up and being alarmed when I'm not there."
"Of course."
Hermes waved as Bell departed, smiling the entire time until the young man was out of view.
"Something you wish to say, Asfi?" he said, his eyes turning to his captain.
The young woman did not respond immediately, causing the tension in the air to grow until it would have been suffocating for most people. Only then did she speak.
"This could end disastrously, Hermes-sama. If Bell-san sees what's down there, he may very well go to war with Athena."
His unwavering smile grew.
"I know. In fact, I'm counting on him doing just that."
Her eyes narrowed and she glared at her god.
"What goal could you possibly accomplish by having those two go to war with each other? Saving the Xenos will not make his legend grow, a fact I know you are well aware of, given your past actions with regards to them."
Hermes's smile remained unchanged, if anything, he seemed more delighted and eager with each passing moment and with each question his captain gave him.
"The Xenos accomplish more than simply building his legend. They build his spirit and drive. His connection with them has strengthened his conviction into something comparable to the greatest of heroes, like the Argonaut and the Sword Hero. At this point I'm not even sure if there's anything that could break his spirit, though, of course, that doesn't mean I can't help make it even stronger," he chuckled, "so really, it's only natural that I would...convince him to partake in this great 'rescue mission' as it were."
Asfi's frown deepened.
"And what of the other things he will find down there? What purpose will exposing him to all that fulfill beyond upsetting him or awakening his new skill? Or do you hope for that as well?" she asked accusatorily.
"Not necessarily, but I don't think that would be the worst thing in the world." Asfi's glare intensified. "Bell's a hero, Asfi. He won't be able to simply leave things be, when he sees everything Athena has hidden away. He'll do what he always does. He'll be a hero and save the day...even if he has to tear Athens down to do it."
"And that's a good thing? Having Bell Cranel, one of the kindest, most empathetic, and heroic people in the world tear down one of the world's greatest cities is a good thing?"
"There's hardly anything better!" Hermes declared, throwing up his arms in excitement. "Just think of the title of that chapter of his story, Asfi. 'The Last Hero versus The Cruel Goddess'. Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"
Asfi fell deathly silent for a long time, her now blank eyes staring into the energetic, passionate eyes of her god.
"You're pushing your luck, Hermes," she said with a cold seriousness that gave even the excited god pause. "Bell-san, Achilles-san, and the Hestia familia will not take kindly to this."
Hermes, now devoid of his smile, moved closer to her so that they were now mere inches apart.
"Don't tell me you're going to rat me out, Asfi?"
The two stared into each other's eyes for a few moments, their wills battling each other before Asfi finally blinked and shook her head.
"No. I'm just warning you," she said, before turning to leave.
Hermes watched her go and chuckled.
"Duly noted."
Hermes followed after his captain, smiling like a child who knows they're about to get a toy they've been wanting. However, not far away, a hidden pair of eyes watched the two depart.
Cloaked by a pendant created by her beloved god, Uriel, with anxiety and fear filling her heart, took in all she had seen and heard.
"I need to get back to Hades immediately."
Opening her wings, she turned to the sky and shot into the air, needing to get to her god as quickly as possible.
The plot thickens.
Alright, another chapter bites the dust. I am really, REALLY sorry these keep taking so long guys. I know I say that almost every time, but I am sorry. However, I do have some potentially VERY good news on that front. I FINALLY got a new job! I will soon be leaving the job that has been absolutely killing me these last two years and, hopefully, that means my burnout will disappear too! So, fingers crossed, I will soon be filled with new energy, motivation, and vigor, allowing me to churn out chapters more quickly. Who knows, if things go well I might be able to get back to my weekly schedule which I would be VERY happy about.
Anyway, I don't want to promise too much, but I am very excited and I think things will really improve from here on out. All that said, it's time for me to ask you for your thoughts. So, what did you think? Did you like the chapter? Hate it? Have some questions or things you want to point out? Please share with me in the reviews; I am more than happy to hear from you.
With that, I will bid you all a very fine farewell and I'll see you all next time. So, until then, bye for now.
*Blizzard (I'm hoping. I did triple-checking but you can only trust the internet so much).