The Fallen Argonaut

Rated; M (Blood/Gore)

Disclaimer; I do not own Danmachi or anything created by the author Fujino Ōmori, all rights go to him

Authors: Eli-er01 & ViceroyChalister

Summary: The will of a hero is strong, yet unwavering but all good things must come to an end, even at the cost of one's Heroic Will. Imprisoned and blamed for a crime he hadn't committed, Bell seeks a way out of his predicament so that he can live without fear of being hunted by the people he once looked up to.

53: The Glacier Territory

=Dungeon, Floor 60=

Two hours had passed since the battle against the myriapoda and the expedition had put up their tents in the north-west corner of the 60th floor. Out of everyone, it was the kids and Haruhime that had used the least amount of stamina on the way down.

Thus, Adrienne and Jannor had been chosen to stay at watch while Aralaya and Haruhime had healed those that needed it.

Currently, Adrienne and Jannor were sitting in a half-tent, a fire to warm them up slightly as they had warm soups in their hands.

"Hey, brother… is it only me or aren't these floors too easy?" Adrienne asked as the half elf looked at her confused before shaking his head.

"Not really. Sure, we can still hurt the monsters but they are incredibly tough, even with my magic"

"That's not what I meant. The Loki familia who have fifteen first class adventurers haven't reached further than the sixty-third floor. Doesn't that sound strange to you?" Adrienne clarified her meaning as Jannor's eyes drifted down to his food, frowning slightly in thought.

"I… that does sound weird when you put it like that"

"Yeah, so I am honestly wondering what they have been doing. If even level 3's can hurt monsters down here and survive with the right stuff, then why haven't they reached… I don't know, the seventieth floor?"

"Maybe it has something to do with mapping issues? These floors are completely uncharted as far as they know, so they have to do it from scratch" He suggested as Adrienne hummed.

"Maybe… I honestly think it has to do with them not taking any risks. It only slows them down and lowers both the quality and quantity of the excelia they gain"

"You have a point there, but I stand by my point. It's probably the main reason. Yours may tie into it somewhat… but still, finding the way through unknown territory trying to find a single point is like a needle in a haystack, especially when there are interconnecting passageways that are like a maze" Jannor explained as the amazoness nodded.

"Makes sense… but eh, it's not really our business anyway. They handle it how they want to while we do it our way"

"Yeah…" Jannor's voice wavered slightly as Adrienne frowned, narrowing her eyes slightly, intrigued by it.

"Why di-"

"Hello, is everything going alright here?" Aralaya abruptly stopped her sentence as both she and Jannor turned towards the soft yet beautiful voice.

"Oh, it's good Haruhime. Care to join us?" The half elf asked, smiling as he made some room for her.

She gladly nodded before crouching under the half-tent and taking a seat beside him.

"What were you talking about?"

"Ah, nothing important. Just what we think on the glacier territory so far" Adrienne shrugged with a nonchalant smile on her face.

"Oh, I find them terrifying. Barely being able to see my feet is… horrific. I'm glad everyone is there to protect me when I need it… I only wish I wasn't such a hindrance" The Renard's tail slumped as her ears fell flat, her expression radiating sadness in waves while the two rapidly moved to rebuke.

"You're not a hindrance. Your magic helps us a ton. Aralaya's may be able to heal limbs and blood, but it's slow. Yours is faster and ever negates effects such as poison, slight drowsiness and even curses! That doesn't even touch our trump card!" Jannor said, his smile wide in awe at the thought. Truly, he felt that she was one of the most important aspects of their party. A dedicated healer that can even level boost the rest of the party. It was a game changer that if used correctly, could change the tide of even the worst of battles if implemented at the right moment.

"My brother is right, Haruhime, having you ready at all times to heal us or even boost us is… it eases my mind considerably at least. Jannor probably feels it even more with him being in the front lines" Adrienne agreed as a blush and a smile spread across the renard's face as her tail started wagging slightly with tiny motions.

"Y-you overestimate me" She said timidly as the two just laughed.

"Nah, you're underestimating yourself" Adrienne shrugged while shaking her head, her smile not wavering in the slightest.

"I Do-... Thank you" All three fell silent after that, eating their soup as they continued their watch with Haruhime joining in as well.

=Close by=

"Lili thinks we should push on another floor" Lili announced her opinion to the group present. The fight had been somewhat tiring, leaving Bell with one sword down due to his… mishap with Elora's one, not counting the three highest level's aching muscles.

"I am not disagreeing. I think we can get through another floor as well, if not all the way to the 64th if we really push it. Thanks to our knowledge on the floors, we know what paths to take to get to the next" Elora agreed with a pause "But we should rest for the rest of the day. Bell, what was the respawn timer of the Myriapoda?"

"Eight Months" He said as she nodded.

"That is optimal, we all should recuperate our bodies in order to be at our optimal performance when the time comes. Sadly, we do not possess a sauna to relax our muscles…" Mikoto said with a sad tint to her voice at the end.

"I swear, you and your baths…" Welf muttered.

"They are not mere baths, they are sacred" She shot back instantly with vigor as Bache couldn't help but snort, causing Mikoto to snap in her direction.

"Do you believe so too?" She asked as the Amazon tried desperately to withhold her laughter while shaking her head.

"N-no… Ju-ust you- pfft- Your reaction" Mikoto narrowed her eyes as if giving divine judgment before nodding with a huff.

"Acceptable"

"Anyway, Lili agrees with our need for rest. We should leave at dawn at latest. It's already been a week since we departed from the surface" At that, everyone nodded at her.

"That's good, I'll switch out with Jannor or Adrienne in an hour or so" Bell said as he rolled his arm in a circle, stretching it as it felt a little stiff from the repeated Argonaut punches with it.

"Are you sure honey? You probably spent the most energy out of all of us" Elora asked with concern as Bell smiled softly at her.

WIthout saying a word, he gave her a peck on the lips before nodding.

"I'm sure, it's just my arm is a little stiff" He told her as she glanced at it before nodding.

"Okay, just make sure not to exert it. Let it heal" She answered back, understanding his predicament. She sometimes feels it too with her skill due to her endurance stat being behind her strength, making the boost to that stat larger than the latter.

It's one of the two reasons she doesn't use it unless she feels she has to, but she doesn't complain about it either. The skill is an important part of her capabilities and instead acts like a trump card for her to gain a boost to surprise opponents.

"I'll do that. I'll take a nap though, so if I don't wake up after an hour, feel free to force me awake"

"Happily!" Welf snickered as Bell rolled his eyes. Guess that gives him more incentive to wake up on time.

He dragged his and Elora's… well, enlarged sleeping bag into the corner before putting away his weapons. Elora couldn't help but smile as she watched him get into the embrace of the sleeping bag, completely ignoring everyone watching him do so.

"Well, guess we should leave him to it" Bache suggested as everyone nodded, leaving the tent before shivering at the sudden invasion of searing cold. The tents were insulated so they gave moderate protection against it and that doesn't even account for the wind protection. Out here, they were at its complete mercy.

The effects of Bell pushing back the storm had only lasted for a few minutes before it had attacked them at full blast again. Fires were an impossibility in the middle of it and only under some protection from the wind did it actually stay ablaze without being overwhelmed by the sheer force of it.

It was a complete mystery how the tents were surviving it but it wasn't as if they were complaining.

"Hey, Elora" The elf turned towards the amazoness she trusted the most in the world, trying her best to withhold a biting remark at the cold.

"Yeah?"

"He doesn't usually get stiff in the arm from a few Argonaut punches… do you know what gives?" She asked as the elf shrugged.

"I don't know, but he did put scourge into the last one. That lowers his endurance which could have led him to pushing his arm a little beyond its limit" She suggested as she nodded.

No skills were without their disadvantages, even ones as completely broken as Liaris Freeze. Boosting skills normally need harsh activation requirements to work such as being close to death while others sacrifice one stat to boost another.

Bell's Scourge falls into the latter category for boosting skills with it sacrificing a large portion of his endurance to boost every other stat. The more he boosts the stats, the more his endurance takes a hit.

His strong body does mitigate the effect somewhat, but even that is barely noticeable. When using scourge at its maximum, even a level three could potentially kill him with a well placed strike.

Elora found it ludicrous that it would ever happen though. A level 3 in Bell's eyes, especially boosted so much by scourge would not even be a snail. It would be as if they were frozen in time.

The problem comes when he uses all of his strength in his hits due to it damaging himself in the process as his body can't keep up with the blowback. Add Argonaut on top of that and the only reason his arm hadn't broken or blown right off was due to Strong Body.

"True, I swear, he needs to be more careful" Bache sighed as Elora could do nothing but nod in agreement.

"Well, what are you going to do?" The elf asked as Bache looked out at the blizzard covered dungeon floor.

"I think I'm going to look around a little, see what materials these floors have" She said as Elora nodded.

"Alright, just stay close to camp. Don't want you to get lost again, do we?" She teased as Bache scoffed.

"How many times- You were the one who got lost!" Bache laughed at the end.

"Really? Because I could have sworn it was you"

"You're impossible"

"That's my job!" The two went quiet for a moment before chuckling.

"Yeah, yeah… but I'll do that. I won't go further than a kilometer away" Elora nodded, satisfied with that before the amazon turned and left, disappearing into the blizzard.

Left alone, she turned and headed back towards the center of the camp with a makeshift Veranda that was put up to protect against the word of the wind with a fire at the center. On top of it was the thick meat soup that Haruhime had made before… heading off who knows where.

All she knew is that she was still in the camp somewhere so she paid it no mind.

Grabbing a bowl that had been secured to the side, she filled it up with a generous portion to serve as her dinner for the day. A well earned one might she add, she lost her sword today for crying out loud.

At the thought of it, she glanced at her hip, staring at the holster that held Bell's white sword, Lunastus. He had lent her it until they could make her a new one, which wouldn't happen until they got back.

Well, he had promised to have it made with the Durandal Attribute so hers wouldn't break again so she reasoned that was something.

Snapping herself out of her thoughts, she headed back towards hers and Bell's tent, intent on eating before resting as well.

=The Hostess of Fertility, 7PM=

"Here's your order, Nya!" Chloe exclaimed in her usual manner, putting down a plate of food and drinks for the two customers at the table.

At the moment, rush hour had just peaked with the hostess quite literally being smack full with people to the point that it was bursting. It was honestly impressive considering the extensions made over the years meaning more customers at once.

Sadly enough for the staff, it just meant more and harder work. For people like Lunoire who were actually effective and efficient at being a waitress, it wasn't that big of a deal. For someone like Ryuu… it was another story.

After all, she had never really had the aptitude towards the service industry with her usual business-like and non-approachable attitude. Add to the fact that despite her immense grace and scary efficiency in combat, she's the clumsiest out of all of the waitresses at the hostess, making Anya and May look like veterans in comparison.

To the elf, she had been working at the bar for two decades in total, meaning she had spent the majority of her life here.

Despite her being nearly inept at her job, Mia had kept her around and in turn, this place had become a second home for her after the destruction of her familia. She really wanted to pay back everything they had given her despite it having been forced on her in the beginning so she always did her best and pushed herself to be as little of a burden as possible.

Despite that, there were times she couldn't help but shirk her work for personal reasons, a prime example being her monthly visits to the 18th floor to visit her family's grave. A habit that had stuck with her throughout the years.

Recently though, she had also been zoning out more, sifting through her thoughts after she had found out who the mysterious 'Apollyon' was underneath the mask.

Namely, her friend thought to be murderer, Bell Cranel. At first, she didn't know what to think about him. On one side, what he was accused of doing had gone against everything she believed in warranting scorn and justice. On the other hand, hadn't she done the same? Did that mean she didn't deserve a chance at redemption? Wasn't that what everyone around her wanted for her?

If so, then shouldn't the same courtesy be extended towards him? For a few days after the duel between him and the sword princess, she had been mulling over such thoughts, trying to make sense of them.

That was until he had come and actually talked to her and admitted what had really happened. To say she had been relieved was an understatement, though she was still a bit saddened at how much he had clearly been affected by the ordeal.

His usual excitable nature had been nearly obliterated into nothing making him somewhat feel like a different person but despite that, there were traces of who he had been in there.

The way he had smiled, spoken and sacred at times reminded her of his past and for that, she was grateful.

Now, instead of trying to figure out what to think on him, she had been mulling over what to think on what he had said.

Did he really trust her that much? Did she, such an undesirable unwomanly elf deserve such trust?

If one asked her, she would outright deny it, but deep inside of her heart and mind, she knew that it wasn't for her to decide. It was for him to do so.

She may call herself unwomanly and undesirable but that's truly a matter of opinion. After all, Bell had told her once that he wanted to see her in a dress some time and even called her beautiful.

Granted, that was fifteen years ago at this point, but he said it nonetheless.

"Oi, you damn elf, get a grip! Customers need servin'!" Mia bellowed out loud enough to make her sensitive elven ears twitch in discomfort and make her entire body jolt in shock.

"Ah- Of course, Mia" She said after composing herself and heading towards the kitchen.

"Oh god, the vegetables! But the meat needs salting- oh no! The soup!" The moment Ryuu entered the kitchen, she blinked before sighing. May was running around with her hair standing in every direction. Out of everyone, she was the hardest pressed by the increase in customers. After all, more customers meant more orders at once.

She really needed to talk to Mia about potentially hiring another chef alongside May.

"Oh! Ryuu! Could you help me cut the vegetables?" The catgirl asked as the elf nodded, quickly grabbing a knife and positioning herself by the cutting board.

Within a second or two, the vegetables were cut to perfect sized pieces that Ryuu was well versed in making.

'Or perhaps I should change my role from Waitress to chef?' She hummed mentally before shuddering, remembering her complete wreck of a vegetable soup a few years back. If there was one thing she was not destined for, it was being a good cook.

"Ah, you're incredible Ryuu! Could you also check on the chicken in the oven?" Without thinking about it, Ryuu moved over and inspected the chicken. After feeling pleased, she nodded towards May who smiled in return.

"Thank you Ryuu. The next order is on the plate over there. It's for table thirty-three" May motioned towards the far end of the room. It's normal for her to just put it on a plate and leave it with the table number. Her workload is large enough that she doesn't bother placing it in a certain spot anymore.

Nodding, Ryuu walked over and picked up the plate before heading out towards her usual duties, and by the looks of it, it was going to be another long night.

=The 61st Floor, The next morning=

"Brrr… Is it only me or is it colder than before?" Adrienne shivered as both Jannor and Aralaya gave the girl a small glare.

"We have the same gear and you have a level advantage over us, and I don't see you complaining!" Aralaya responded, rubbing his arms violently.

"Hey dad, can you like… give us some heat with your magic?" Jannor asked as Bell's eyes turned around from where they were headed, looking at him before nodding.

He lagged behind the front slightly before continuing beside them before holding out his hand.

"Firebolt" the flame instantly burst from his hands as he kept the stream of magic coming as the three kids quickly tried to soak up as much heat as possible.

"Hey, Elora. How long was that?" Bell asked as the elf looked at him.

"I'd say a bit over two hours" She responded, knowing what he was trying to check.

"Right, so we need to reheat everyone by then. Lili, Haruhime, Welf? How do you feel?" He asked as the three were close together.

"Lili feels fine, Bell-sama. Anvil-head's magic sword helps us keep warm" She said as Bell nodded, remembering it being used once earlier.

"That's good. Mikoto, are there any monsters nearby?"

"No, Bell-dono. None are within the range for my skill" That was a relief. They had been down on the 61st floor for a little under two hours at this point and had already encountered two groups of monsters native to the region.

Monsters such as a few Ice Troll's, quite a lot of Ice Mephits and one Frost Giant. The latter being a pain in the ass due to its high defense. The kids couldn't even hurt it so they were reduced to clearing monsters such as Mephits and Ice Troll's which they could at the very least hurt.

"That's good. From what I remember, this floor is nearly twice the size of Orario, so by now we should be halfway across it meani-" He stopped his words when a giant wall with a passageway spread across in front of them as if out of nowhere "-ng… yeah, that" he finished before he stared into the dark passage in front of them. The glacier territory is known for being split up into two sub-regions per floor excluding the 60th which is just one large room. From the 61st to the 69th, it begins as a large open room before morphing into frozen open passageways similar to those located in the Water City… only as mentioned, frozen over.

"Guess we're heading in" Bache mumbled as she took the first step, the others not far behind.

As they entered, the thing that became immediately apparent was the fact that the cold became somewhat more manageable with the constant storm raging within the large open room in beginning thinning out the deeper they went.

With it, their perception increased as their eyesight was able to see farther, even if it was darker here, especially considering the lack of lighting due to the thick icing covering the walls, blocking any light from coming through.

"Oy, is it just me wondering but… if the walls are this iced, then how do monsters spawn here?" Welf asked as Bell deadpanned him at the same time Lili did.

"The Ice breaks, Anvil-head" She shot back with a bite as the smith chuckled awkwardly at the obvious answer.

"There's a split up ahead, which path should we take?" Elora asked, peeking behind her as their commander seeme to ponder on it as they walked.

"Lili believes the left one should be the correct path" She answered back after a moment.

Nodding, Bell took the lead, walking past Elora and Bache as he turned the corner into a sharp left.

"Bell-dono. Monsters up ahead" Mikoto warned as Bell instantly nodded, his eyes scanning the somewhat wide iced passageway before walking forward.

"Weird… they should be on top of us…" the samurai mumbled as everyone came to a halt, looking around.

The pure and utter confusion on Mikoto's face was mirrored with that of the rest of the party. Her skill had never malfunctioned before, giving them no reason to think it would happen now.

Bell and Bache, even with their level 7 senses were stumped, their hearts racing as the knowledge of a monster being close by alongside their inability to spot it made for a hell of an adrenaline kicker.

"I- where is it? This has never happened before! If my skill isn't lying, there should be an entire monster party right here!"

*Crack*

Bell's head snapped back behind him as his entire body went rigid from his senses suddenly picking up a multitude of monsters. What he saw made his face pale for a split second.

A huge fist had grabbed hold of Aralaya from below, her face still being in its confused state from not having time to react.

The ice on the walls had cracked, revealing gaps in it where the bodies of monsters native to the region had seemingly waited to ambush any unsuspecting prey.

His legs moved before he could think, propelling him towards the single target of his focus as he positioned his hand over his remaining sword.

In the next moment, Aralaya cried out in shock from the sudden pressure enveloping her entire body as the Ice around the entire group fell to the ground in pieces. Instantly the arm spurted blood and fell limply to the floor, Aralaya rolling out of it as she tried to get up as fast as possible.

"AMBUS-!" Bell cried out but was interrupted by multiple sharp icicles rapidly flying by him as he dodged.

He blinked as one graced his cheek as a small cut was made before his eyes landed on the persecutor.

Behind two Ice Troll's around many three dozen Ice Mephit was what he could only describe as a witch. A skinny, pale witch with ice snow hair falling down to her feet.

Her robes are deceptively thin and ragged with her entire body looking aged and almost… dead.

'Is that… a Bheur Witch?' He thought before frowning. It was a rare monster that had higher intelligence than other monsters. Thanks to that, it had the ability to actually chant magic and use it offensively as well as command other monsters to battle.

It was a nightmare to face in large groups, and clearly, this one had gathered quite a large group.

"Haruhime, Aralaya! Get back! Jannor, protect them at all costs! Mikoto, you focus on the Ice Mephits while Welf-sama cuts them off with his sword!" Lili had taken a deep breath before bellowing out her commands, trying to push order into the chaotic circumstance they had found themselves in.

"Bache-sama, Elora-sama! You handle the Ice Trolls. Bell-sama… take care of… that thing" Lili motioned to it as Bell nodded. He may know what it was called, but Lili had no clue. He hadn't thought they would run into one so he had thought it not necessary to inform her on it.

'Goes to show how much I know' He thought bitterly before shooting forward, heading in a beeline towards the witch as it began singing, the magic circle appearing underneath it.

The ice trolls tried to intercept him alongside the mephits, only to be interrupted by Mikoto, Bache and Elora either killing any that ignored them or pushing the ones that needed it back.

About a dozen ice mephits remained in his path as they leaped into the air before diving towards him using the two wings on its back to increase its speed.

Pushing its fingers forward as a weapon, it shot multiple projectiles towards him, only to be lightly swatted away with the back of his left hand before Bell's sword swiftly cut through its head, slicing it in half.

Seeing the fate of one of its members, the other mephits pushed some distance between them and Bell before all peppering him with as many projectiles as possible, its icy body slowly getting smaller as its projectiles by its own mass.

Pushing out his fist, he sent a single firebolt through about half of the incoming attacks before shooting himself to the side into the now ice-cleared adamantite wall before launching himself through three of them before swiftly cutting the head off of the last one.

Standing up straight, he glanced at the other group only for a tiny icicle to impact him in the eye, making him instinctively flinch from the annoying feeling.

Groaning slightly, Bell chastised himself slightly for stopping before glaring at the remaining Ice Mephit.

"Bache! A little help here!?" In a moment's notice, he threw a throwing knife straight into its skull before peeking behind him.

Elora was engaged with a frost giant on her own which in and of itself was bad news with it being estimated at high level 6 meaning in theory… it was around the same strength as the elf herself, not accounting for her stacked excelia since level 4.

Bache immediately responded, grappling the ice troll she was fighting around its thick arm before violently throwing it straight towards its companion, sending both of them tumbling onto the ground.

Immediately, the amazoness took a position next to the elf, giving her a flash of her grin before the two attacked once again.

"Through the protection of the forest, power flows through me" Elora began her chant, signifying what she wanted Bache to do.

"Di asla" Bache uttered, her fists getting coated in her poison before jumping and sending her one of her clenched fists straight between the eyes of one of the trolls as a sickening crack sounded from its now broken nose.

As soon as she was close enough to the ground, one of her hands reached out before pushing off of it hard, sending her feet straight into the stomach of the second troll, pushing it back.

"-It cuts down the enemies, who stand before me" As Bache heard the end of Elora's chant, she jumped back before putting one of her coated arms next to the sword pointing straight at their opponents before smirking.

'Checkmate'

"Secatus Veti!" The magic cuts of wind flew out, interacting with the poison as they formed and combined together, before flying straight towards their target.

The trolls pushed their arms together in hopes of protecting their vitals as the magic hit, making deep cuts into the arms and legs as the bombardment continued.

Bache watched as the magic slowly died out before the monsters slowly pulled their arms apart before smirking, thinking they had made it out.

She just shook her head before motioning towards it to look at the wounds, even if it couldn't understand.

One step. That's all it took for the troll to collapse on the ground, the blood from the wounds leaking onto the ground with a sick greenish substance mixed in.

It didn't take long before the other monster fell to its knees, trying desperately to get back up and keep its eyes open before it finally succumbed to the rapidly spreading poison before falling backwards with a large thud.

"Well, guess that's that" Elora hummed happily before turning around, seeing Bell thrusting his sword into the chest of the Bheur Witch. It may be a rare monster, but its focus is magic. Once its protectors are eliminated… it's as good as dead.

"Aralaya, are you alright?" Jannor asked as he walked up to her, concern etched onto his face at her sister's clear discomfort. Having been grabbed by a monster classified as a level 6 while level 3, she was in quite some discomfort as a result.

"Yeah… Just need a moment" She responded, clutching her midsection where a bruise was forming.

The girl's eyes perked up as another pair of footsteps approached. Elora's eyes scanned her daughter's form completely, eyes reflecting her emotions as she crouched down. Grabbing a potion from her belt, she handed it to her with an encouraging smile.

"Thanks, Mom" She uttered before uncorking the vial and downing it, her wounds healing.

"Aralaya!" All three pairs of eyes turned towards the voice of Bell as he jogged up to them before crouching down as well.

"How is she?"

"She should be fine, it seems it hadn't done too much damage before you cut its arm off and Mikoto finished it off" Elora responded as Aralaya nodded in confirmation of her words, not that it was needed.

"That's good" was all he said before sitting down completely as well, intent on not leaving his daughter's side.

"Are we taking a break?" Welf's voice sounded as they looked at him.

"Seems so, once Aralaya can continue, we'll go. It's warmer here and with the ice gone, we can break the walls" Bell answered. Welf understood immediately and moved to cut gaps in the wall for a small break.

"Lili thinks that we should not linger. Monsters may move to our position due to the noise we made during the battle" Lili suggested as everyone nodded, Mikoto activating her skill and sitting down on the uneven icy floor, putting all of her focus on keeping track on any monsters that may approach them.

Meanwhile, Adrienne glared at the magic stones on the ground as if they had personally insulted her existence.

To her, this was honestly the closest she had been to losing one of her siblings. Sure, they had leveled up before and risked their lives, but her parents had always had their sole focus on them.

If that sneak attack had played out just a little faster, enough to outpace her father… then what? Would she have lost her sister? The mere thought of it sent her stomach tumbling down into nausea. It was unfathomable to her.

Gritting her teeth, she stomped one of the magic stones to bits hard, growling slightly in an attempt to calm herself, catching the eyes of the group.

"Adrienne?" Bache asked as she walked up behind her, putting a hand on her shoulder as Adrienne closed her eyes.

"It's just… mom… she almost…" She said, trying to keep her voice straight.

"Hey, don't think like that. She's alright, and she'll stay that way. We protect each other, every step of the way, as we always have… and always will" She said as the girl soaked up the words, nodding slightly before taking deep breaths, forcing tears back.

"Yeah… it's just… it never got that close" She said with Bache knowing the truth of the words. If Bell hadn't reacted as fast as he did, the ice troll would have managed to crush her before they'd even heard her scream.

That's just how much of an advantage their own confusion had given them. Bache herself would be lying if she said the thought didn't shake her, but in the end, things worked out. Giving oneself a slight reprimand for their lack of attention or letting the confusion take hold was fine but fixating on it wasn't. It'd only hold them back in the end.

"Come on, Aralaya seems to be getting up" Bache told her daughter as said amazoness nodded.

"Are we continuing?" She asked Bell who looked down, seemingly not sure of the idea any more.

"I don't know…" he said as all eyes were on him "What do you all think?" He uttered after a moment as everyone looked at each other before taking a moment to think it over.

"Lili believes it would be wise to head back. If the storm on this floor is any indication, it only gets colder the deeper we go. Any deeper than this is…" Lili gave her input.

"Yeah, Bell, I'll give it a no on freezing to death" Welf agreed, Mikoto and Haruhime agreeing as well.

Nodding, Bell turned towards the rest of the party, Elora nodding to Lili's words but not before giving a glance towards Aralaya.

She was clearly going along with it because she had a scare she had no desire to repeat, not that anyone could blame her. She just wanted to get her safe to fully recuperate without any potions and this was not where that was at.

Bache nodded too before he looked at the kids who looked a little more skeptical but after looking at the faces of their parents, the worry etched onto their faces, they nodded.

"Before I announce anything, I want to ask if you're all sure about this? The whole point of going as deep as we can was to achieve a great feat" Bell began, pausing to let them all think for a second.

"Bell… our daughter nearly died" Elora whispered as he nodded.

"I know… and trust me, I'm shaken from that fact as well. It's just… danger is something that's a part of leveling up. You know that" He said as the elf looked at him, seeing the message he was conveying.

'We promised not to force them into anything, but only to best prepare them. If they want this, then let them' She almost heard the words in her own head as her eyes fell down on the ground.

"But… What about the storm?" She asked as Bell turned to Lili.

"That's true… Lili has a point, the cold only gets worse the deeper you go" He said before looking at the Prum who nodded at him.

Shortly after, he walked up to the three children who shared his blood before getting down on one knee before giving them a small smile.

"I'm not going to tell you to do anything" He said as all three looked at him quizzically.

"So I'm just going to ask this and I want your opinion, not what you think we want to hear" He paused again before taking a deep breath.

"What do you want?" The question filled the area with silence as one could see the multitude of thought processes in the three's eyes.

"I… I hate to admit it but… I'm scared" Adrienne uttered after a moment as Bell looked at her, his smile widening at the honesty.

"It's not wrong to be afraid. I'd honestly be weirded out if you weren't, after all, I'm afraid every time I fight, even if it isn't against something that can realistically hurt me" Bell answered back as the amazoness nodded.

"It's… I'm not just afraid of that… but-" she stopped, looking towards her half-sister who looked back at her, emotions conveyed through their eyes. Bell understood what she meant, Adrienne, in all her life had never really had that 'Big Scare' where anyone in her family had really almost died.

Sure, him, Bache and Elora had done so before but that was far away from where she was. The kids had always stayed behind whenever a great feat had happened, the only exception being when Bache reached level 7, but then, it wasn't due to her nearly dying, but breaching her limits.

"I… I agree with her" Jannor said after a moment of thought, his eyes fixated on the ground.

"I don't want to see her like that again" Aralaya looked at her brother with wide eyes before they fell to the ground too, softening at the care in her voice.

"Of course, neither do I. Aralaya, what about you?" He asked as the half elf nodded.

"Let's go back… I… It seems like the smartest approach" She began before shaking her head before looking at him with eyes filled with determination.

"Besides, as Lili said, I don't know if I could handle the storm on the next floor" She added as Bell nodded.

In a way, he was happy as the decision to go back was made but in another, he was also a bit disappointed. Not at anyone else, but at himself.

He wanted to beat Loki Familia's record, but logically, that wasn't a possibility.

'Even if I usually defy logic' A voice in his head spoke without permission as he shook it off.

"Well then, I guess we are heading back. Aralaya, are you fit to walk?" He asked as the girl nodded.

"Alright, Lili, lead the way" the Prum gave him another nod before guiding them back through the passageway, heading back for the safety of the 50th floor.

=Twilight Manor=

A swift jab flew past Fiona's face as she guided the force and direction of it with her arm, protecting her facial features. Her opponent in training, Ais, had the face of determination one could envy, focusing hard on the action at hand.

Swiftly retracting her arm, Ais leaned back just enough for Fiona's punch to not reach her before grabbing her wrist, positioning her leg behind her opponent before twisting, flipping her onto her back.

The next thing Fiona saw was Ais' knuckles right in front of her eyes as she panted.

"Well… I lasted longer than last time" The girl smiled at the golden haired princess which she happily returned in kind.

"You did" She said simply, forgoing with mentioning her holding back the majority of her power.

Since Bell had left, Fiona had worked hard training alongside Ais whenever they could. Granted, they weren't anywhere near as brutal as he was, giving less excelia, but their techniques were without a doubt improving.

Ais' footwork, movements and predictability had massively improved since they had originally started being trained with Ais. Almost scarily so for having occurred within such a short amount of time.

Fiona's wasn't anything to scoff at either. Even if her mother had trained her as well as she could within the time she had, Bell's teachings have made her much more efficient with not only her overall technique, but also stamina efficiency.

The effects of minimizing the necessary movement was beyond important, and her mother herself had said so too but it wasn't until Bell had practically grinded it into her entire form that she had truly understood it.

How long does she last in battle now? Around twice as long as before her training with Bell.

How much of a difference does it make? More than one thinks. It takes longer to tire, meaning you show less opening for an extended period of time, extending the time you have to force an opening in your opponent. A single more second can be the difference between life and death, so doubling the amount of time she can fight is incredibly effective.

The training also made her more alert to her opponent's movements. Knowing how you should stand, fight and move means you know when your opponent makes a mistake, allowing you to capitalize upon it.

"Auntie Ais. Why don't we eat? It should be around dinner time" Fiona suggested as the sword princess turned her head towards the direction of the sun, clearly closing in on the eastern western horizon.

"Uh-huh" She hummed while nodding before extending her hand which Fiona grabbed before being pulled up.

"Oh, are you two finally done?" The two turned to the voice of the resident 'mother' of the Loki Familia, her green eyes looking at the two, clearly frustrated.

"Uhm… Auntie Riveria…" Fiona said in a questioning tone, tilting her head in an almost identical manner as Ais at the moment "Is something wrong?"

"'Is something wrong' she asks" The high-elf scoffed before nearly glaring at the two "When was the last time you ate?" She asked as Fiona instantly went pale while Ais' head tilted slightly more before uttering her answer.

"Yesterday" She answered as if it wasn't a big deal. As if not eating for an entire day until dinner wasn't unhealthy.

As the glare intensified, Ais seemed to catch on with her anger before instinctively making herself look smaller and her golden irises dashed towards the grass.

"That's precisely the issue! Not only aren't you eating, but you're giving a bad image for Fiona! Speaking of, haven't I taught you better?" He glare turned to the girl in question as she too shrunk in size at the 'mama bear'.

"Sorry… I'm just gonna…" She began, slowly moving towards the door, Ais following behind he "Get something to eat" She finished as the glare didn't lessen in the slightest before they exited Riveria's view, heading towards the dining room.

"Auntie Ais… from now on, let's bring food with us…" Fiona shuddered as Ais nodded, her eyes reflecting the fear of the consequences otherwise. Her mind swirls with images of weights strapped to her ankles and water.

Sweat began to form around her face at the mere thought of it. Glancing down towards her mini-self, the two of them subconsciously nodded at each other in a silent promise of never ever forgetting to eat again.

That's chapter 53, Sorry for the delay but as most have said before. Take the time I need!

Also, don't worry. This isn't the end of the arc, in fact, it marks the beginning of the true hell to begin muahahaha!

Anyway, I won't keep you any longer and get right into the reviews.

NinjaFang1331:Geez when I said deeper I didn't think it would be going to the 60th floor.

Author: Oh trust me, you haven't seen anything yet…

Mairsarmy321:In regards to the Goddess of Beauty who destroyed Bell's life, were we given any indication why she was after him. I completely forgot if that was the case.

Cannot wait for the next chapter

Author: Not yet, but there is a reason. We recently even introduced her if you reread a little but without name dropping. Anyway, there will be a reason and you will find out once the time is right.

Mattn10076:Forgive me if I'm wrong but wouldn't Bell using Erebus' name instead of Themis alert one or two in the expedition. Lili, having lived through the evilus war, would especially know the God's name. Perhaps I'm just misremembering. Anyways great chapter as always

Author: Not necessarily, no. It would be another story if Bell hadn't revealed to them about Themis being Erebus in chapter 43. Anyway, don't worry. We all forget things xD

Stevenpiskunov2:I know you have teased in the previous chapters that there will be hell in store for these characters, i know you probably not gonna fully answer these questions as they might spoil so I'll understand if there is no response but, would we have something happen similar to what happened to Bell and Ryu when they were stuck in the lower floors? Maybe not have it happen to Bell because as we see he can handle himself, would it happen to the kids instead? Would be nice to have a moment when it's just Bell's kids together surviving themselves rather than always seeing them with the other adults all the time.

Will we have Bell's kids meet Wiene and the Xenos? That is something I'm definitely looking forward to. Also it will be funny to see how Ray and Wiene react to seeing Jannor because as we know he looks just like Bell except smaller, cuter(lol), and with elf ears. I say this because as we have seen with Ais and others reaction to first seeing Jannor, all I am saying is that I won't be surprised if we get some kind of reaction whether it be funny or not of them seeing Jannor remind them of Bell.

Anyway that's all I have for now. I'll see you next chapter.

Author: Well, perhaps so or perhaps not. As you said, I can't really say since it would be spoilers but bad things will definitely happen from here on out. This chapter was after all the final calm before the storm, next one will start the hell in store for them.

As for the Xenos, we haven't forgotten about them. They will show up sooner or later when it's their time but can't say anything more.

Thrivean:Slightly concerned about the death flag for self when he complained about the floors, I'm going to be really surprised if they all make it back alive considering how much y'all keep hinting at something bad happening, and IMO his old familia is ideal cannon fodder because of their levels

Author: Well, I won't spoil anything but I just wanted to say this. How is the old familia cannon fodder when Jannor and Aralaya are lower level than them? Lol. Anyway, you'll just have to wait and see if everyone survives or not… fufu

That's it for the reviews, I hope to see you all next time!