" Favourite...hero story...? "

He parroted, tilting his head at the question.

" Yup. Everyone's gotta have one of their own right? Though, I have a feeling you might have a few interesting stories to tell... " Tiona jerked at Bell, eager to listen to what he has to say.

" ...Hmm. " the boy hummed.

He could recount several great legends of old, from the times when the land of Lothric still bore the name Lordran.

However, a few prominent figures stood out within his mind, for their presence in the annals were proven to be just that significant.

Among these figures were...

A paladin of the Way of White covenant, who wielded with him a blessed war hammer and a healing shield, tasked with the first undead mission as the appointed holy knight of the covenant.

A warrior of the Knights Berenike, as stout as iron and unmoving as the very fortress that was part of his legend. Traversing the great fortress of the gods, he helped pioneered a new path to the city of old Londor, defeating the armored behemoth that stood guard before it.

A divine general, who bore an armor hewn directly out of a great boulder. A comrade-in-arms of the Lord of Sunlight himself, he fought alongside Gwyn as the commander of his proud silver knights. Notorious for his feats in dragonslaying, and well-known for his ravenous hatred towards a certain pale one of their ilk, his warhammer made from the tooth of an ancient dragon is a testiment to this notion, as well as his strength.

A legendary wolf knight, and one of the four blades of Lord Gwyn. Widely renown for his feats of abysswalking, he is the known slayer of Manus, father of the abyss. The hero of ancient Oolacile, he was skilled in the mastery of the great blade that became a symbol of his heroism, emblemed by those that watches over the abyss as he had inspired them so. He was tasked with overcoming the abysm scourge by Gwyn, and proved to had succeeded so in his slaying of the primeval man responsible for the outbreak. So brave, and so noble was he, that his long-time companion, the great grey wolf, Sif remained long after his death in order to guard his grave from being ever being desecrated...

...

Those were the ones that he can recall at the top of his head.

Of course, there were other legends as well. Although lesser known as ones of many of the nameless undeads, they still managed to engrave themselves as part of the history of Lordran.

The most famous ones were a certain elite knight of the darkmoon blades hailing from Astora, who wielded with him a curved sword that has slain many foes.

And another who, from mere banditry came, proclaimed himself as the father of giants. He carried by his side a greatsword infused with the power of the primordial chaos, and wielded the flames of the abyss as his own.

" ... "

Bell contemplated for a while, thinking to himself of which legend to tell stories of to the girl. Although renowned, hardly many of the legends had an ending that befitted them as heroes, which proved to be quite the obstruction when telling legends about heroes.

One went mad in his search for more humanity, the other died within his first few steps in the city of the gods, another was branded a traitor, and...

Internally shaking his head, he realized that there are scant but a few who's legends aren't as embellished as they are true in the archives' records, and he out of all people should know, having seen these figures for himself in person.

...A certain ivory king from a land faraway came to mind.

Mayhaps...it's best that some heroes are burried together with their legends.

" ...! "

He suddenly came up with an idea.

" Well...when it comes to heroes...perhaps there is, one... " Bell said after a while.

" Oh? Who is it? Tell me, tell me. "

" ...Are you certain? " It was less of a question that was directed towards the girl as it was towards him.

...After all, telling her of his own journey might sound like he is boasting of his own feats, and it certainly did to him. Whatever is left of his self-consciousness is currently screeching at him to not do it.

However, what better story is there to tell, than the ones he personally experienced by his own?

" Yup. C'mon, I wanna hear it! "

" Then...let me tell you the story of... " He trailed off, cringing inside.

...As expected, he couldn't bring himself to use his real name.

" ... "

Looking at the book in his hand, the name of the author on the bottom of the cover stood out.

Marcus Gaelus Apicius

" ...Champion Gael. " He stated the name of the ideal version of himself.

" Champion Gael? I've never heard of him before... " Tiona said whilst putting thumb on her chin.

" He is...an old legend from the lands I came from... "

" Hm? So you're not from Orario, then? "

" ...Yes. The land I came from...was called, Lordran. "

" Oooh...So, who is this Champion Gael? "

" He is...was, a lowly slave knight. "

" A slave...knight? "

Bell noticed something shifting within the young girl's green eyes...but regardless, he continued on in his story.

" The name should tell you well enough but...they were exactly that. Mere slaves, turned knights by the religious order of the kingdom of Lordran in the age of the ancients. "

" ... " Tiona simply stayed silent, yet the way she is looking at Bell implied that she is hearing to his every word.

...He had decided to omit the part about them being undead slaves and instead only as slaves, as explaining the undead curse would most likely be another complication on it's own, and one that he would prefer not to disclose with the people of this world.

" The slave knights...long and hard did they fight since their inception. Their presence were valued by the kingdom, as their sheer numbers and prowess in battle made them formidable foes to be reckoned with, to those with ill intent towards the kingdom...but, also because they proved to be easily disposable, and just as easily replaceable. "

" ... "

" One can say that, to the slave knights, the comrades of today may not be the same as tomorrow...if they even survive, until tomorrow. For that is just how arduous the battles they fought. "

" ... "

" However...one, persisted through it all. "

" ...! "

" He survived countless battles...and fought in many wars...time, and time again. "

" Is it...? " Tiona trailed off.

Bell nodded, knowing who it was that she implied to.

" Yes, that is right...That particular slave knight, is Gael. "

" ... "

" He alone survived through the many wars in ancient Lordran...even in the crusade against the everlasting dragons. Despite his comrades having their skins charred black from the battles, he survived and persisted until the end. "

" Wait...everlasting dragons? Like the ones that are found in the dungeon? "

...Right, dragons exist in this world as well, he thought to himself. Although, even though he hadn't encountered any, he is sure that none of them can compare to the ancient dragons, if not by virtue of their sheer terror.

" ...One could say that...Although, the ancient dragons of Lordran were much different. "

" How so? I mean, they can still fly and breath fire right? "

" Yes...that, they can. However, instead of scales made from a chitinous substance, their scales were, in the literal sense of the word, solid stone. These stone scales, are what granted them their trait as everlasting beings. Truly immortal, they are, as their scales made them impervious to even the strongest of assaults. The slave knights fought valiantly...but for every one of them, the slave knights lost three scores of their own. "

Tiona sent him a look as if asking, "Are you serious?".

She then said

" So...how did they end up beating these dragons? Aren't they supposed to be invincible? "

" They...were invincible. That is until Lord Gwyn, the Lord of Sunlight, weaved the rays of the sun into mighty bolts, and with it, peeled the very scales of immortality of the ancient dragons. "

" ...This Lord Gwyn sounds strong. "

" He was, as you can call the sun, "strong". His power is unrivaled in the age of the ancients, as he and the other Lords proved themselves victors in the war against the everlasting dragons...and thus, came the age...of fire. "

" ... " Now that made her eyes shine.

Tiona then jerked at Bell, urging him to continue.

" ...I'm sorry, miss Tiona, but I'm afraid this is where my story ends. "

" Eh?! Why...?! "

Bell simply pointed to something behind her.

Turning around to see what it was, the direction of his finger seems to be pointing at a man that is currently packing up his things, preparing to close his stall for the day.

" ...Ah. " Tiona let out a voice of realization.

" ...It is getting rather late...And I still need to be on my way to purchase the ingredients. " He gestured to his cookbook.

" *sigh*...I got it...My bad for holding you up for this long... " Tiona said abashedly, shifting the...sack that only now Bell noticed that she's carrying.

...The sack had indeed peaked his curiosity, and so he decided to ask her about it.

" ...Miss Tiona...If I may ask...what is it that you are carrying? "

" Hm...? Ah, you're talking about this? " She gestured to the sack.

Bell nodded, which prompted her to continue.

" Well...uhm, you see, actually this is kinda embarrassing to say but...I'm in a lot of debt...hehe... "

" ...Debt? " This struck something within Bell, considering the current state of his covenant.

" Yeaa...I kinda broke a super-expensive weapon recently while dungeon diving...so I took out a loan to have another one made. And, well, let's just say my sister wasn't too happy about that, so she sent me out to sell these stuff that we kinda have just lying around. "

" ...Is that so...? "

He managed to held his tongue, but if he were to word out what he really thought it would've been something along the lines of her bringing her circumstances upon herself...though,who is he to judge?

" *Sigh*...she's definitely gonna laugh at me for this...Ughh, just imagining her smug expression is making me mad... "

" ...Hmm... " Bell put a finger and a thumb on his chin, deep in thought about something.

He then thought back to the amount of valis that he had made recently...and...

" ...Miss Tiona...If I may...perhaps, I can offer a bif of help, on my part... "

" Hm? What is it? " Tiona said, now keenly listening.

" ...An accord, if you will...I will take a look at your items...and if they are to my interests...I will purchase them...In exchange, could you maybe...help me procure these ingredients...? As, admittedly, I am rather unfamiliar with matters regarding the kitchen... "

" Hm?! Are you sure?! No take-backs! "

" ...Ha ha ha...yes... " he felt a bit of a cold sweat running at the back of his head...though, it should probably be fine, right? He's offering his help to her, so she probably won't take advantage of his kindness and swindle him off his hard-earned valis...right?

" Alright, alright! I know this will definitely interest you! So first, there's this damascus steel knife made from the material of monsters found in the deep levels in the dungeon. Then, there's also this adamantite cooking pan that- "

...

A couple minutes later

" Hm,hm! " Tiona let out a satisfied smile, while grinning from ear to ear.

One can also see that her initially large sack had been reduced to half of it's size...

...Along with the sight of Bell barely holding in his tears after being parted with almost half of his valis, his own coin pouch now also reduced to half of it's size.

" Thanks for your patronage! " Tiona said in high spirits towards Bell.

" ...You are most welcome. " ...Oh, well. There's nothing he can do now, so he decided to accept her earnest gratitude.

" Alright, since you've helped me in my coin problem, I'll help you look for your ingredients, now. " She said to Bell.

" ...Of course. Please, lead the way. " Bell said, hoping he still has enough valis to purchase his ingredients.

" Okay...! So, what's first on the list? " Tiona asked the boy.

" ...Hm...let's see here...I think it would be wise to procure the aromatics first... "

" The herbs? Okay, then. Follow me...! "

Tiona then lead the way towards the items on the list...and one by one, the pair dashed from stall-to-stall, shops-to-shops in order to obtain the items in Bell's list...

...

A few more moments later

" ...Aaand, that, should be the last one. " Tiona said, passing over a bottle of grape juice to Bell, who accepted it and promptly put it inside his backpack.

Upon making sure that he had obtained all the items required for his recipe, he turned to Tiona and thanked her.

" ...Miss Tiona, I thank ye, so much, for your assistance... " He said with a great many gratitude in his tone.

" Hehe...don't worry about it! You helped me, and I help you in return. It's a give-and-take. "

" ...Still...Had I been alone, it would've taken me longer to look for these items... "

" Then, you can thank your lucky stars that you've met me. "

" ...Ha ha ha...Yes, that may be so...Please, wait for a moment. " He said to Tiona, before rummaging through his backpack.

A few seconds later, and he pulled out a book from within the bag.

" ...For your troubles. " He said while passing the book over to Tiona.

" ! This...! " Eyes wide, Tiona accepted the book titled "Arcadia" with trembling hands.

" When did you-? "

" Whilst we were walking to the stalls, I saw the book shop in the distance...And last I checked, I've the coin...so, I went ahead and bought this book for you... "

" You...You really didn't have to. Especially after I ripped you off your valis and all... "

So you do admit to ripping me off, Bell thought to himself.

Still, it can't be denied that she did help him, especially with...

" ...reading the book... " He said under his breath.

" Hm? "

" ...This is my thanks...for reading the book for me... "

" ...Geez...Fine! I'll graciously accept your thanks, then...! " Tiona said after a moment of consideration.

...Though, deep inside, she's happy for the book Bell had given her.

" ...Well, if that is all...I will be taking my leave... " Bell said before turning away, eager to go home to his goddess.

" ...Wait. " The voice from behind him made him stop in his steps.

" ...Next time...When I'm free, I'll read this book for you...! And in return...you must continue your story about Champion Gael...! " Tiona said to Bell.

" ...That...would be nice. " His reply made the girl smile...what can be called her happiest smile yet.

...This is good, too.

Was what Bell thought.

And so, with high hopes, and an oddly warm feeling in his heart, he continued in his steps, to go back home to his goddess.

" ... " Despite not showing it on his face, he is actually barely containing in his excitement to cook food for Hestia.

At last, he would be able to fulfill his dream. Now, all he had to do is go back home, and finally, finally cook for her. Thus, he hastened his steps towards the abandoned church...

...Only to later find out that his goddess wasn't there.

" ...Kami-sama...? "

He called out to the emptiness.

The dungeon

" H-hurry up! Damnit! " A male adventurer shouted towards his comrades who is running closely behind him.

Now, as for why it seemed that they were running for their lives...it's because they are.

To be exact, the thing...or rather things that they were running from were a horde of minotaurs who're currently out to get their hides.

...Now, admittedly, they did got themselves into this situation. Felt a little brave they did, earlier in the morning. Thus, in their foolishness, they tried their luck and proceeded to venture further into the dungeon...and well, things happened and it lead to them currently being chased by a group of angry minotaurs.

" ...! W-wait! Hold on! " The leading man suddenly shouted towards his comrades.

In their escape towards the upper floors, he saw another group of adventurers just a few meters in front of them.

A nasty thought then began to creep it's way into his mind, one that disgusted him...but is much needed in order to ensure his safety, and the safety of his comrades.

He will perform a pass parade, which is the act of transfering the focus of monsters from one party to another in the middle of the dungeon. This act is often frown upon due to it's despicable nature...but it looks like he would have no choice but to-

" C-captain! " A voice from behind him managed to snap him out of his thoughts.

" What is it?! " He replied, urgency present in his tone. If he were to hesitate any longer then their lives would be forfeit.

" Behind us! Look! " The man shouted at his captain, making him turn around to see...a figure, facing the entirety of the monster horde alone.

Due to the figure being somewhat far away from them, he is unable to discern specific features...however, they are tall, far taller than any human he had ever seen, and they seemed to be donning what seems to be a long, black hood that reached all the way until past their knees.

Their most discernable features however...were the two colossal sized weapons that they carried, the paired greatswords seemingly taller than the person themselves.

...He does not know where this person came from or who it was. However, even he thinks that it's only a fool's wish to face the entirety of that alone...Still, now that they are there, perhaps they could prove to be good distraction whilst he and his party members made their escape, if only for a short time...

* Gulp *

Swallowing his guilt inside his heart, he was ready to tell his comrades to simply leave the adventurer alone to their deaths...however, before he can...

* CLANG! *

" ...! "

The figure crossed the two greatswords together, creating a spark that ignited the paired weapons, the sheer force behind it stopping the entirety of the horde.

Shortly after, the figure heaved up the crossed twinswords-

" Wha... "

* FWOOOOSH-! *

-before delivering a lightning-quick cleave that sliced through the very air, as well as the minotaurs before them.

Not stopping there however, the figure quickly recovered their stance...before delivering a second blow, this time a downward slam that sent forward a massive explosion that shook the entire floor, the reverberation of the impact felt by all of the adventurers on that particular floor.

* BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!! *

" ... " The man now had his mouth agape, his bottom touching the dungeon floor due to the shockwave from earlier.

Meanwhile, the surviving minotaur that had witnessed what happened...quickly turned around to where they came, escaping to the floor that spawned them.

Once making sure that none of the monsters had remained, the large figure turned around, now directly facing the man as well as his comrades.

" ...! "

What he saw underneath the hood greatly surprised him.

Ringed Knight Paired Greatswords

Paired greatswords wieldes by the Ringed Knights.

The arms of early men were forged in abyss, and betrayed a smidgen of life. For this the gods casted a seal of fire upon such weapons, and those who possessed them.

However...with the fading of the flame, the seal is undone, and the arms now display their true strength once more.

Skill : Flare

"Cross the twin timeworn greatswords to unleash their true power. A lightning-quick upward heave slices the very air as well as extending the weapon's range, and performing a strong attack soon after lets out a large burst of flame before the caster.

The flames on the blade remains, even after a certain amount of time had passed, and during this time the user is able to perform a special strong attack that cleaves continuously into a group of enemies. "

Author notes : Alright, done. That's another chapter in the bag.

Okay so as some of you guys may have guessed, I've decided for tiona to be the main / one of the main heroines of this fic.

Well, some of y'all may be confused as to why tiona out of all the girls were to be the main heroine of this fic and there is actually a practical reason why I had elected for her.

No.1 she's my fav girl in danmachi and this is my fic so I can do whatever I damn well please.

Now for my serious reason, you see, Bell had been an introvert for thousands of years(having your close friends hollowing and dying around you tend to do that you see) and so his social skills leaves a lot to be desired.

As it is now, the only one who can hold even a semblance of a conversation with him is tiona...cuz she's tiona, and let's be honest, having him interact with aiz is just gonna be them awkwardly staring at each other, and I'd rather avoid that.

Also, for my readers, sorry for the shitty quality of chapters. I recommend for those who are having a headache reading it on to instead switch to Ao3 as my formating is better there. Plus Ao3 keeps the edits to chapters that takes days to even process, and sometimes they don't even get updated at all.

I update on both sites at roughly the same time(I basically just copy and paste the chapter I posted on onto Ao3 and post it there as well). Anyways, thats all from me and i'll see yall in the next one. Ciao!