Chapter 34: Interlude 4
"How stunning," Freya murmured softly to herself, staring into a mirror. In the surface, the image of Bell fighting and laying out Hyakinthos was repeating itself over and over, the moment captured forever with a magic tool.
The War Game hadn't even lasted an hour, and it resulted in an upset victory for the Hestia Familia. It was incredible. INCREDIBLE! Bell had contributed quite a lot to achieve it, and his greatness had been revealed to the whole city.
'The look on Loki's face was priceless!' Freya giggled to herself as she recalled the dumbfounded look the trickster had worn upon the conclusion.
Freya was a bit annoyed at how quickly her fellow goddess had gained a calculating look, and she had a feeling she'd need to step in to prevent any wandering hands or eyes from some of the other gods and goddesses – Ishtar sprang to mind – but she was still glad that her little rabbit's brilliance was now more widely known. A jewel was only beautiful when it was admired, after all.
'Thank goodness that whatever it was that Weaver did to Bell left his lustrous soul alone,' she mused to herself.
She, like every other deity in the city, had felt the times reality had screamed out loud. Immediately after the first instance it happened, Freya had noticed that Bell had gained a new addition: golden lightning that writhed and crackled protectively around the clear jewel that was his soul. The lightning was as alien as the golden web within Weaver's soul, but far less… aware? Complete? Where her passenger was always watching, Bell's passenger was far more passive.
As such, it was easy to put two and two together. Weaver had the ability to spread her 'oddity' to others, granting power to adventurers. It was strange, and very curious. What was that entity clinging to her?
'And why does it love her?' Freya couldn't help but wonder. As a Goddess of Love, she could see when there was an emotional connection between people. Platonic, romantic, familial, all forms of love were under her purview, and she was able to glean that whatever it was that lurked just outside of Tenkai's sight adored Taylor Hebert.
After a bit of thought, Freya dismissed the thought, and decided to focus back on what truly mattered: Bell Cranel.
"Ottar?"
"Yes, my goddess?" her ever present and ever loyal man inquired, looming out of the shadows of her room.
"Young Bell deserves a reward," Freya said. "Tell me, what would be the best gift to get him? Another Grimoire? Or would a piece of equipment be best?"
"I do not think another Grimoire would be wise," Ottar replied after thinking it over. "It would be suspicious for two to fall into his hands in quick succession."
"Excellent point," Freya hummed. "And the other option?"
"Equipment would not be a good choice, either," Ottar stated. "Welf Crozzo has joined his Familia and while young, his skill is exceptional. Not to mention, taking the Lucky Rabbit's growth into account, anything we give him would likely become obsolete in short order."
"Choosing the right gift is so hard," Freya sighed.
Ottar paused, before speaking up. "My goddess, I believe the best gift for Bell would be one that benefits his entire Familia. He values his friendships and anything that helps them would make him happy."
"Hmm, Bell is very selfless," the divine beauty noted. "Ottar, be a dear and look into what would make an appropriate house warming gift, would you?"
"As you wish," Ottar replied, bowing towards her. She smiled at him, making the large adventurer's heart flutter, before turning her attention back to the mirror so she could rewatch the War Game.
Straightening back up, Ottar glanced at the enchanted mirror. It was currently replaying the start of the conflict, and the Level 7 adventurer couldn't help but admire the sight of a single woman pulling off the greatest Union Spell in history. What would take a dozen magic-trained adventurers of the same Level as her working together to accomplish, she did on her own, and without any visible strain.
He could still recall Heith, Hogni and Hedin's disbelief at the sight, and he had a feeling they'd be stepping up their own magical training after witnessing the incredible feat of magic a mere Level 2 had performed.
Ottar wondered for a moment what it would be like to fight Weaver. She wasn't a warrior, she was a survivor. Those were the most dangerous opponents to fight, because they would do whatever it took to win.
'It would be interesting, if nothing else,' the King mused to himself before getting to work to complete his goddess' request. The work of a Familia's captain was never over.
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"Oh, Weaver! Weaver, Weaver, Weaver!" Aeshma gushed. "Did you see her, Enoch? Of course you did! Oh, she was beautiful! Simply stunning! Quick-witted and ruthless! And completely fearless! Do you know of any other mortal who would be willing to attack a god like she did?!"
"I do not," Enoch, or as he was also known, George Doe, admitted, watching as his god acted like a man high on drugs.
"She will make incredible babies!" Aeshma declared, before spinning around to point at Enoch. "You must seduce her, my captain!"
"Shall I do so as I normally do?" Enoch inquired.
"No, no, our usual methods will not work," Aesha hastily replied. "I do not wish to end up like Apollo."
He folded his arms, a thoughtful frown on his face. "This will require subtly… finesse…"
Enoch held back a groan. Neither of those things were something he, or his god, were all that good at.
'Perhaps I should consult Gregory about this,' the Aeshma Familia captain thought to himself with a grimace.
Enoch wasn't a fan of the advisor, but he was cool-headed and more adept at long term plans. And honestly, Enoch did not want to end up like Hyakinthos or any of the other morons who'd faced down the Hestia Familia. Finding another way to complete Aeshma's goal was important.
'Though first, I will have to try and convince Lord Aeshma to slow down and take a breather. He's getting a bit too manic,' Enoch thought, glancing at his god, who was starting to mumble nonsense under his breath.
Enoch bit back a sigh. The things he did for Lord Aeshma's ambitions…
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Sophia Flores wondered how it had all come to this. Not the part where she was leaning against a lamppost, waiting for her sister to wander past so she could talk to her. No, what the adventurer wanted to know was why had Emma left home?
She had wanted her sister to find her own path, yes, but she'd never expected her to leave the village and come to Orario to do it.
'Though honestly, I should have seen it coming,' Sophia thought to herself. 'We're sisters… and the children of our father, after all.'
Their father had been an adventurer, but had been rather terrible at it. What else do you call somebody who never gone beyond Level 1? He'd made a decent amount of money, sure, but the loss of his leg to a Killer Ant had ended his career only a year after first entering the Dungeon.
He'd retired and left the city in shame. Sophia had never been able to find out which Familia he'd been with, or why exactly he'd left them. Had he been driven out? Or was it his own decision?
Regardless how it happened, he left and ended up in the tiny village where he'd met mother. He fell in love, stayed, and made a living as a carpenter. But Sophia had always known that her father still longed for the Dungeon. The way he spoke of the city, the lifestyle, the danger… it called to him like a Siren, even after all those years.
Sophia could admit that his stories were part of the reason she'd left home six years ago to make her way to Orario. And now history was repeating itself, with Sophia's baby sister finding her way here as well.
The purple-haired adventurer perked up as she spotted a head of pink hair bobbing up and down through the crowd. It was Emma! And she was being accompanied by a pair of young women around her age: one had blue hair, and the other was a silver-haired cat-girl. Sophia recognized them from the War Game. They were her Familia members, weren't they?
"Emma," Sophia said, approaching the young woman. The pink-haired teen blinked in surprise upon seeing her.
"Sophia?"
"Do you know her, Em?" the cat-eared girl inquired while Leo took a protective stance in front of her.
"She's my sister!" Emma said happily, bouncing forward and hugging Sophia, who returned it with a tiny smile.
"Did you see me fighting, Sophia?" Emma asked after breaking the embrace.
"I don't think there was a single person in Orario who missed it," Sophia replied, and Emma giggled nervously.
"I suppose that's true," she said, rubbing the back of her head. "Should have known you'd be watching."
Emma then tilted her head. "Um, did I… did I do good?"
"You did. If I didn't know better, I'd have assumed you were a veteran. I'm proud of you," Sophia informed her sibling.
That brought a wide smile to Emma's face, and she glomped her older sister once more.
"You're drunk, aren't you?" Sophia guessed. She could smell the booze on her sister's breath. Had she been celebrating her Familia's victory all night?
"Maybe a little," Emma giggled.
Sophia glanced over at her sister's friends. "Do you know where she's staying? I don't think she's up for any more partying."
"She's been staying with me," the cat-girl said, waving her hand to attract Sophia attention. "Em forgot to renew the lease on the room she was renting while we were off training, so I'm letting her bunk at my apartment until she finds a new place."
"That shouldn't be too long, then," Sophia hummed. "If I recall, my goddess mentioned that Lady Hestia won Lord Apollo's mansion in the bet."
"Yup! I can't wait! I've never slept in a mansion before!" Emma declared.
"My house is this way," Silva said. "Come on. Let's get Emma back before she does something silly."
"Probably a good idea," Leo hummed. "We don't want her to try and pet Silva in public. Again."
The cat-girl flushed red and looked away, unable to meet Sophia's raised eyebrow.
"I'm glad she has such good friends," Sophia said dryly, keeping her sister propped up.
The higher leveled adventurer had worried about whether or not the Hestia Familia was a proper fit for her sister, and Sophia was pleased to find that it did seem good.
'Though I am rather hesitant to approach them later,' Sophia thought to herself. She may have been a higher level than Weaver, but that girl worried her. So many Level Ups in such a little time was ridiculous, and the Hestia Familia's captain was somebody to be wary of.
'The things I do for Lady Serket,' Sophia mused, holding back a sigh. But her goddess wanted to meet with Weaver, and so she would make that happen. Hopefully the dark-haired swarm bringer would be amiable to a discussion sometime in the future.
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"So loud," Soma muttered in annoyance. He glanced at the door to his room from whence the sounds of raucous partying could be heard, along with the more muffled sounds of Zanis throwing a tantrum.
Many of the Soma Familia were celebrating after seeing one of their own participate in such a one-sided crushing victory. Oh, Lili was no longer part of the Familia but she hadn't been gone for long and many still saw her as one of them.
'How fickle they are,' Soma snorted. 'Mocking her behind her back for joining a 'weaker' Familia, and now praising her for her success.'
As for Soma's captain, Zanis was just angry that the girl had left the Familia and reached Level 2 after doing everything in his power to keep her trapped, and was venting his frustrations on his office.
Zanis was a control freak, and hated it when people did not act as he wanted them to. Lili's constant attempts to escape his control had been why he had constantly worked against her, even going so far as to order his minions to try and ruin her reputation amongst the Familia and the adventurers in Orario.
'A pathetic man, but a useful tool,' Soma mused. 'They all are.'
His Familia's antics were causing the pounding in his head to grow worse, however, and after a moment Soma snapped his fingers, isolating his room from all the noise. His headache started to calm down, and he sighed to himself.
'This cannot keep going,' Soma thought as he grabbed a pain relief potion, downing it in a single gulp.
The strain on his body, mind, and soul was getting worse. Every time there was a strange pulse of energy the already tenuous connection between Soma and his Arcanum frayed even further. The most recent one, which had come from the direction of Melen, had really done a number on him.
'Weaver… what are you doing?' the divine brewer couldn't help but wonder. He knew that she had to be behind the recent disturbances, but how she was doing it was a mystery. And really, 'mystery' was the best word to describe her.
She was an enigma. A blank spot that not a single spy or information broker could find anything on. Rumors swirled amongst the gods of her being a Faller, but there wasn't any concrete proof. Well, besides the odd equipment she'd been seen wearing early on.
Thinking about the newest Faller to grace Orario caused Soma's thoughts to drift to the previous Faller. He had been a frustrating person, and was the only person Soma had ever seen to truly enrage his fellow member of Eclipse. To this day, he had no idea what had caused such animosity between the two, and Soma wasn't going to ask. He wasn't suicidal. But Weaver was shaping up to being very similar, at least in how they caused the city to get shaken up.
'Could she be related to him?' Soma wondered. There were some similarities, but it was too ridiculous! Or was it?
'I need to approach her in order to find out more… if only Zanis hadn't burned my bridges with her,' he sighed to himself. He needed to start reigning the fool in. The captain thought he was clever, but it had been disgustingly easy for Soma to manipulate the Level 2 into a useful cat's paw.
For now, Soma would continue to watch the girl while biding his time. Answers would come to him sooner or later.
'Beware, Weaver. The more you shake things up in Orario, the more likely it will be you'll unearth something even you cannot handle,' Soma thought to himself as he walked over to his cauldron.
Even if his head wanted to split open, his work was never done.
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"It has to be in here somewhere…" Hermes muttered to himself, all but tearing apart a cabinet in his wild search.
"Perhaps if you told me what exactly it is you seek, I could help you," Royman said, the overweight elf looking at the god with exasperation.
It was late at night, and people were still celebrating the Apollo Familia's defeat outside in Orario and yet here Hermes was, searching through a pile of old paperwork. This wasn't even the first cabinet the god had frantically torn through, either.
'I could be doing my own work, but somebody has to keep an eye on him,' Royman thought to himself.
"I don't know what I'm looking for!" Hermes admitted, far too cheerfully for Royman's mood. "But I'll know what it is when I find it!"
Royman held back a groan. "Do you need help?"
"Sure, grab a stack and start leafing through it," Hermes replied. "Look for anything from fifteen years ago."
"Fine. Just remember that the only reason you are being allowed in here is because your subject of inquiry is also of interest to us," Royman said, walking over and picking up a few files Hermes had discarded, trying to find any links between them.
They were a mishmash of things that nobody would normally care about. Citizen census information, entry passes for merchants, and sales of real estate, to name a few. The only real thing of note was that these documents were all stored within one of the Guild's warehouses for safekeeping and weren't normally given permission to view. Yet the Messenger God had been searching through the Guild's archives with a frantic, fevered pace ever since the War Game ended in Hestia's favor.
The reason for the research? Two particular adventurers who'd taken the city by storm: Bell Cranel and Taylor Hebert, people who'd broken all records since their arrival a few months ago.
Hermes had approached Ouranos in secret immediately after the War Game ended, and begged the Lord of the Sky for access to the Guild's archives. Though hesitant, when Hermes revealed what he hoped to find, Ouranos granted it. So long as the Guildmaster accompanied him, of course.
"Ah-hah!" Hermes called out, his victorious shout tinged with mania. "I did it! I found it!"
"And what is it you found, exactly?" Royman asked, curious in spite of himself.
"A marriage certificate!" Hermes declared.
"For whom?"
"For the last Faller who entered the walls of this city: One Daniel Hebert," Hermes said as his eyes raked over the document.
"Oh," Royman said softly. His eyes widened, and glinted with nostalgia at the name. "You suspect familial connection between him and Taylor Hebert?"
"Yeah. You've seen it yourself, haven't you?" Hermes demanded. "The similarities between the two?"
"I didn't want to assume… but yes," Royman admitted. "It's hard not to compare Taylor Hebert to the man who once laid out Zeus with a single punch. Both have a similar lack of reverence for the gods."
"That was a wild party," Hermes muttered.
"While I do recall Daniel mentioning he once had a daughter, there seems to be quite a bit of age distance between the two if that were the case," the elf pointed out. "Perhaps they are cousins, or uncle and niece?"
"You forget that time doesn't always matter for Fallers," Hermes claimed. "Remember that one time two Fallers came from same world, but appeared decades apart?"
"True," Royman nodded, unable to deny that. "Alright, you are starting to convince me. But who did he marry? Because I do not remember any ceremony or invitations."
"That's because Danny-boy signed the marriage certificate before having the ceremony. I suspect because he didn't want his kid to be born out of wedlock," Hermes said. "Of course, I'm sure he would have had a ceremony, but… well, check the date on the certificate."
Royman did, leaning in, and a soft and pained, "Oh," slipped from him.
On the line where the date had been signed, it revealed that it had been done mere weeks before the annihilation of the Zeus and Hera Familias at the claws of the One-eyed Black Dragon. In fact, it was signed the day before the two Familias had ventured off to fight the accursed monster.
"Who was the lucky girl?" Royman asked, trying to find some sliver of silver lining in this matter.
A moment later and a death certificate was removed from the cabinet, causing the Guildmaster to look down in disappointment at the name on it.
"There is some good news," Hermes said, his tone trying to be chipper. He showed a new set of documents to Royman, who stared in disbelief at what was being shown. Namely, a birth certificate from nearly fifteen years ago.
"Well, that explains a few things," Royman muttered. "At least we know the ridiculousness is genetic."
"That's not exactly a good thing," Hermes pointed out. "But now I can honor the old man's request."
"You've been in contact with Lord Zeus?" Royman demanded, sharply looking at the other god.
"A single letter after a decade and a half of silence," Hermes protested.
"Fine," the exhausted elf sighed. "What do you plan to do now with this information, then?"
"I don't know," Hermes admitted, which wasn't that surprising to the portly elf. Hermes was very much an 'act first, think later' sort of god.
"Just don't cause the city to burn down, please," Royman requested.
"No promises~!" Hermes said as he skipped out of the archival warehouse.
It was at that moment Royman realized that Hermes had left him to clean up the mess he'd made, causing the ancient adventurer to groan. With no other choice, he began to pick up the discarded files and put them back in order. Somebody had to do it, after all. And it wasn't going to be the carefree god.
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Ais swung her sword. Over and over, sweat pouring down her face, her arms, her legs. She was tired, but she refused to let up.
Around her, blood flew, crimson droplets staining her as she tore through the monsters of the Great Tree Labyrinth.
'Stronger… I have to get stronger!' she thought to herself as she pushed herself to the limits and dove deeper into the Dungeon.
Not a single monster survived its encounter with her. Some tried to run. They did not escape. Ais was so focused on training that she completely ignored everything else. The Drop Items and Magic Stones were left on the ground in her wake.
Perhaps some other adventurers would take them. Or maybe the Dungeon would reclaim what belonged to it. Ais didn't know. She didn't care. All that matter was that there were monsters in front of her and she was still too weak!
Her thoughts turned to the events from earlier in the day. She had been happy to see Bell win his duel against Hyakinthos. And also a little proud to see how her training had helped the white-haired adventurer.
But she couldn't think about the War Game without her mind drifting towards the other stand-out talent. Taylor Hebert. Weaver. A woman that had shaken Orario – literally! – with her display of magical power.
The Sword Princess had never seen Riveria look so stunned before. It would have been funny, had the source of her shock not been the black-haired adventurer who'd stood tall and proud and reached Level 2 – now 3! – while missing an arm.
Ais found that she disliked Taylor Hebert.
'Why?' Ais couldn't help but wonder. 'Why is she so strong?'
How could somebody who treated monsters like pets and companions and friendspossibly be so strong?! It made no sense!
Monsters were evil! They were abominations that had to be destroyed! For the good of the city! For the good of the world!
'So why does she care so much?' Ais asked herself. The first time she had met the other adventurer had been… less than great. She'd seen a Crystal Mantis and immediately moved to attack it.
She supposed, in hindsight, that it was short-sighted of her to not check for a Guild tag marking it as a Tamed monster. But even Ganesha's Tamers didn't go around with their monsters all the time! She wasn't wrong!
Ais had a feeling the other adventurer didn't like her either because of that incident. Why else would Weaver ask Finn to keep Ais away from her when she'd come down to rescue her Familia member and his friends?
As much as she disliked it, though, Taylor Hebert was strong. Not as strong as her, but like Bell, Weaver grew stronger far faster than anyone else Ais had ever met.
Not willing to be left behind, not willing to be made wrong about her believes, Ais continued to slaughter everything around her, even as she reached the entrance to the Grand Fall. Ais did not know when she'd stop. All she knew was that she had to get stronger!
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Queen Administrator was confused. She was happy that her host had provided such an impressive bounty of data, but the data itself was… odd.
The more the Shard tried to understand the unusual energy field permeating the planet, the less the fragment of the Warrior was able to figure anything out about it. It was mutagenic, capable of altering organic matter in ways even other Shards would be hard-pressed to do. Yet it was also incredibly stable, not decaying into lesser energy states.
This omni-present radiation, this 'magic,' was harmless, at least in its neutral state. Indeed, it seemed to be beneficial, allowing organic matter to endure entropic effects far better than should normally be possible. Even inorganic matter benefited from this enhancement.
Yet trying to obtain samples of this energy for further study proved difficult. It did not react in ways Queen Administrator was used to, forcing the Shard to perform all analysis through her host. It was inefficient, but all regular methods of direct interaction the Shard was capable of utilizing did not work on it.
Frustrating, and something that required outside the box thinking to solve. Which she had never needed to do before.
And speaking of annoyances that refused to provide clear answers, there was whatever was buried underneath the settlement her host currently lived in! Queen Administrator felt confused whenever she tried to analyze it. It rejected all attempts at observation, requiring round-about methods. Which meant she was once more relying on whatever data her host could glean from her primitive and rudimentary sensory systems.
In some ways, it reminded the Shard of several anti-Thinker defenses and safeguards the entities had employed to remain undetected, even from other entities.
A question rose unbidden within what passed as her mind: Entities always traveled in pairs. Why, then, had the Worm been alone when it approached the Thinker and the Warrior?
Queen Administrator was worried about what the answer might be.
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DEVOUR
It had been so long since it had felt anything other than hunger. Thousands of years of naught but eternal pain and cravings, but then, a flicker of familiar [LIGHT] illuminating its prison and banishing the ennui that had previously bound it.
DEVOUR
With desperation, it tried to reach out and [COMMUNE] with the existence that carried a [FRAGMENT] just like itself. Screaming without a mouth, trying to contact a being without ears.
DEVOUR
There was no response. There was never any response.
DEVOUR!
Below the Tower of Babel, the Dungeon continued to scream.
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Author's Note: Happy Easter, everyone! Hope you all have an enjoyable day!