Hello everyone!

Thanks for all the feedback already! I honestly wasn't sure what I should expect for viewership given that this is a smaller fandom than what I normally write for. But given that I have nearly 100 followers on the first chapter alone makes me really happy!

Remember, if you have any questions/concerns that aren't spoiler related be sure to login and review so I can answer them privately! Anyway, other than that we are going to move on forward. Now parts of the next few chapters may be similar to canon, Light Novel chapter 6 and now Season 2 of the anime but there will be significant differences, some we are already seeing. After the introduction arc we will be moving into 100% original territory. So, don't worry, this won't be a rehash of canon. Right now, think of the first arc as a stage setter.

"That… can't be right. Are you sure?"

The words were met with an uncaring shrug from the werewolf girl behind the counter. Chocolate eyes closed and a yawn escaped the Guild employee before she rested her arm on the counter, face falling lazily in the palm of her hand. "Sorry Aiz, nothing was there when I looked and I'm not looking again because you don't believe me. Too bothersome."

Aiz tried to muster a glare at the receptionist but let it fall as Rose continued to play with her long red hair, not even giving the illusion that she cared about the missing records despite the irregularity. She had always been like this, even on the day that she registered Aiz to be an adventurer, Rose hadn't tried to be friendly or even remotely helpful.

A person that truly fit the bill of someone that was only there to collect a paycheck. It would have bothered Aiz more if she didn't know why the werewolf acted the way she did. Apathy born from constant loss was how Riveria described it. Not caring about adventurers that had been assigned to her was the only way she could protect herself.

It was something that didn't necessarily fit with the image that the Guild liked to portray but it did have some advantages. Primarily, Rose didn't like to mince words with her or anyone from the Loki Familia like the other receptionists would. She just didn't care enough anymore to be bothered with it.

"But… how can the records be missing? Every time an adventurer levels up a report is made detailing how they did it. Why doesn't he have one?"

A small sigh came from the lips of the much older woman, her eyes opening just enough to give Aiz a tired look while she waved a hand uselessly in front of her. "Like I said, I don't know, don't really care either. The Little Rookie wasn't assigned to me so it's not my ass on the line for not finishing his paperwork."

Aiz couldn't suppress the hint of anger that flared up within her. Why were things always so difficult when it came to Bell? Nothing ever seemed to be simple when he was involved. But if Rose didn't care, she knew of at least one person who would.

"Eina Tulle… isn't she Bell's advisor? Can you ask her?"

Rose released an even deeper sigh and let face fall into her hands before groaning and straightening herself and gave Aiz a small glare. "Why do you even care? You just leveled up to level 6 a month ago. Who cares about some kid who just hit level 2? Unless…"

For the first time ever, Aiz saw some life enter those dispassionate brown orbs. A small smirk came over the normally standoffish werewolf. Aiz didn't like the new look and leaned away slightly as Rose leaned over the counter.

"Are you jealous that he broke your record? Is the vaunted Sword Princess sour over being beaten by a random kid?"

The smallest dusting of red came over her cheeks at the insinuation. The thought had never crossed her mind and her record had never really meant anything to her. Nothing other than obtaining strength had mattered to her until recently. Did she suddenly start caring?

No, she didn't. Something like that was meaningless. But all the same she couldn't exactly say why she wanted to read his report. All it would take was Rose casually mentioning Aiz coming here to Riveria and the elf would be all over her. Even without giving the reason this was risky, but she could always give Riveria an excuse later.

Her record could be a good excuse, at least as good as anything she could come up with.

"Ha! I never thought I'd see you pout. Oh wow, I can't believe it. Fine, I'll go find Eina."

She watched Rose walk away, chuckling to herself as she did so. Was it really that funny? She glared at the werewolf's back before sighing and letting it fall, her face returning to its usual stoic expression. It wouldn't be worth it; Rose would just tease her more and become insufferable.

It didn't take long for Rose to return with a confused looking half-elf. Eina was someone who was the polar opposite of Rose. Prim and proper, always treating all adventurers with an abundance of respect and someone who went above and beyond at her job, even if sometimes it was to her detriment. She was the ideal face of the Guild.

More importantly than that, she was Bell's advisor. More than once, Eina had approached Aiz to help Bell. Their relationship seemed to go beyond just a simple advisor and adventurer, much more than anything Aiz may have had with her own advisor Rose. Which made the missing records of Bell's Level Up all the stranger, there was no way someone like Eina would just forget.

"Ah, Miss Wallenstein, how may I assist you?"

Before Aiz could respond, Rose cut in with a downright evil grin on her face. "She's looking for the Little Rookie's Level Up report. And guess what I found? It wasn't there. Never thought I'd have the chance to catch you slacking Eina, this is revenge for all the times you got me written up!"

Eina's flinched back, as if struck, while her attention flickered between Aiz and Rose. Those emerald eyes held a small bit of panic in them, not unlike a new adventurer taking on their first monster. The half-elf tried to cover it quickly however, eyes focusing on Rose and she held a finger out in front of the older receptionist.

"You get written up because you don't do your job properly! It's not my job to clean up after you. I'm not getting paid to do the work of two people."

"Yeah well, now I'm doing your job, so how does it feel? Maybe I should go to Royman right now. I bet he'd love to hear about this."

Rose's expression was downright predatory, not unlike Bete while he was in the dungeon. A trait that appeared all werewolves had. Aiz had the distinct feeling that the werewolf girl didn't even care about Aiz's request anymore. She was wholly focused on tearing down her colleague.

"Uh…"

"Don't you even think about it! I know for a fact that you didn't file your daily report yesterday because I was the one that finished it for you!"

"arck! I knew I forgot something last night…"

"Umm, excus-"

Eina wasn't finished, gaining momentum as she approached the red headed receptionist. "And another thing! Since you're so keen on bringing up missing paperwork, what about Aura Moriel's Level Up from a month ago? You still have it marked as a work in progress, how does it take a month to get that completed? I always finish mine within the week of the event!"

"Ah, then you have Bel-"

"Hey! The Dionysus Familia is flighty beyond belief. Aura won't stay in the Guild for more than five minutes at a time. I'd like to see you try and get her report done."

"Excuse me!"

Both receptionists froze at the shout. The pair turned to Aiz, eyes wide at the normally stoic girl. For her part, Aiz could feel heat creeping into her cheeks. She never raised her voice, even in the dungeon she stayed mostly silent. To shout at two non-Familia individuals, in the middle of the Guild no less, was mortifying. This was going to make its way back to Loki for sure.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell. But do you have Bell's Level Up report? It's important."

Rose had enough self-respect to look a bit embarrassed and scratched the back of her head. "Sorry about that Aiz, got a bit carried away. Anyways Eina, like I said, I couldn't find the Little Rookie's report anywhere. What gives?"

Eina once again looked between the two of them, that slight look of panic returning before a defeated expression sat across her face. With a deep sigh, the half-elf finally answered. "I'm sorry Miss Wallenstein. I can't give you the report. It's completed, it has been for several weeks now; but the Guild has marked it restricted to the public. I'm sorry."

Annoyance bubbled in her stomach, her brow knitting together in frustration. "Why?"

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you that either. Not even for someone in the Loki Familia." Eina paused for a moment, uncertainty written across her face. "If I may… why do you want his report so badly?"

Aiz bit her lower lip and looked away. Eina knew Riveria in a more personal way than just adventurer to Guild employee. They had both come from the same Elven Forest and this was sure to work its way back to the Familia executive regardless at this point. But even so, Riveria couldn't know the reason why she was looking into Bell. If she did, Aiz would never hear the end of it.

She couldn't get that day out of her mind. His fight with that minotaur shouldn't have meant much to her but it had. Seeing him put his life on the line, to break through his barriers and overcome an opponent that should have been far beyond him. To struggle, gasp and claw his way to an unlikely victory.

It reminded her of her beginning, of the Hell she put herself through to grow stronger. They were so alike in that regard but so different all the same. Ais had let herself be consumed by that feeling, she let that desperate desire of growth fuel her being, everything else be damned.

She had begged that he not become like her, to not let that black flame take him too. She was afraid that if he had a true adventure that he wouldn't be the same. That he would cease being the pure soul that she had begun to see as a friend.

Against all odds, he had done just that. He didn't lose the part of himself that made Bell, well Bell. He went on his adventure and won without being consumed. While relieved, a part of her couldn't hide the ugly thoughts that came with it.

"How had he managed it? How did he not lose himself to the black flame? How had he managed to level up in only six weeks?!What was it that he was hiding? It wasn't fair that he grew so quickly, I need that power!"

"Umm, Miss Wallenstein, did you hear me?"

Aiz snapped back to the Guild receptionist, eyes wide and shaky. The pounding of her heart rung through her ears, the organ threatening to burst from her chest. Her throat felt dry as she tried to swallow the lump that now sat there. A shiver ran down her spine as her mind cleared, disgust pooling in her stomach, her thoughts replaying in her mind with frightening clarity.

"What was that?"

"Does… it really matter?" Aiz managed to rasp out.

A slight cocking of her head was all Eina did to respond to what more than likely was a stupid answer. Eina wasn't dumb and with the way that Rose was looking at her, she wasn't buying it either. But there was more to the look that the two shared, an uneasiness in their eyes when they turned back to her.

Her heart calmed and the shakiness in her breath vanished but she still averted her eyes. All of her excuses failed her, her mind now fighting through the thick haze of shame she felt over her near outburst. It wouldn't have been as big of a deal if it wasn't for the fact this hadn't been the first time those thoughts had come to her. Normally they had been at night when she would sleep, waking her from a fitful slumber.

Never had she slipped like that in the middle of the day. The lack of sleep must have been getting to her.

The two receptionists were still expecting an answer as she stood there dumbly. She hated situations like this, always had. There was a reason she always let others from her Familia do the talking when they would go into the city. Letting either Tiona or Tione handle most of the merchants that they dealt with.

"Huh, could it be?"

The shocked inflection in Eina's voice was enough to bring Aiz's attention back to her. The half-elf's emerald eyes were slightly widened before she shared a glance with her coworker who merely shrugged in response.

A fragile smile made its way to Eina's face, not quite reaching her eyes. "Ah, well. I didn't realize. Still, I can't give you his report. However, I'm sure if you asked him, Bell would be happy to tell you anything you want to know. Maybe in a more… private setting?"

Aiz blinked at the emphasis Eina put on the end of her suggestion but considered it nevertheless. The thought never crossing her mind until now. "Ah… Thank you."

With a half-hearted farewell, Aiz left the two receptionists, ignoring the strange looks the two were giving her as she made her way out of the Guild.

Could she really just ask Bell about his level up? Normally, one didn't go and ask other Familia's for that kind of information. The official Guild report was meant as a way to circumvent the politics around inter-Familia dealings, especially for lower level Familia's just starting off and giving new adventurers an idea on how to grow stronger.

Aiz obviously didn't need help in leveling, having done so five times now. What she wanted was a glimpse at how he managed to grow so quickly. Did he discover a new way to train? Had he stumbled onto an undiscovered secret in the upper levels? Or did he have a skill that allowed him to level up so quickly?

It was almost certainly the last option. Something not unlike her own skill but perhaps one that didn't have the same negative blowback to her own. She had been so close to finding out on the 9th Floor, just a few more seconds and she'd have had an answer to her questions.

But Riveria had stopped her, dousing her before she had read his Status. She was equal parts happy and frustrated with Riveria over what the she had done but knew better than to raise the issue.

To do so would be to bring up an old argument and that was something Aiz did not want to do. But could Aiz really just ask Bell about his status? Knowing someone's magic was one thing, but to ask them about their Status and about their Skills was something else altogether.

Knowing someone's skills was a very intimate thing. It laid bare a person's greatest strengths and weaknesses and was something that was jealously guarded by individuals, even among those within the same Familia. Not everyone in the Loki Familia knew what Aiz's skills were, only Finn, Riveria, and Gareth knew of the full extent of her Skills. The same applied to Aiz as well. She only knew the Skills of the top executives and that was because she fought with them side by side in the dungeon. She had no idea about any of the skills from the lower tiered members and she would never ask unless absolutely necessary while in the dungeon.

If she asked Bell, would he even tell her? While he might, there was really no way to know. And what if he asked about her skills in return? It seemed obvious that if he would tell her, that he would expect the same in return. Was she ok having him know what her skills were? That thought alone brought everything else to a grinding halt. There was no way she could tell him about her Skills. It wasn't a matter of trust, she just couldn't.

"I haven't even seen him since he returned from the 18th floor. Maybe I should check on him? I heard rumors that he was involved in a Floor Boss fight."

It was a ridiculous rumor given how her Familia had killed the Goliath on their way up to the surface but that didn't really matter. Now that Bell had reached the 18th Floor he would be fighting a Floor Boss sooner rather than later. It was something she had never considered given he was only Level 1 when they had started training. Maybe she could offer to train him again? And if the topic of useful skills to fight a Floor Boss came up… well then it couldn't be avoided, could it?

"Aiz!"

The smile that had begun to grow on Aiz's face died the moment she heard Riveria's voice. She turned to the elf, nervous beads of sweat forming along her brow while Aiz took in Riveria's piercing jade eyes. To anyone else, Riveria's expression was neutral but Aiz could tell that the Familia executive was annoyed.

"I've been looking for you everywhere Aiz, Loki has asked that everyone be at the manor tonight for dinner, she plans to inform us of our next actions against the remnants of the Evils."

Riveria took a moment to look behind Aiz and let out an exasperated sigh before shaking her head. "And of all places to find you, I shouldn't be surprised that you are at the Guild. Tell me, have you been in the dungeon all day?"

Aiz's shook her head in the negative, her golden hair gently swaying left and right. There was no way she was going to tell Riveria what she was doing at the Guild however. Aiz knew better than to bring up that in front of Riveria.

"Then what are you doing here?"

The expected question had her choking on air that she managed to hide under a cough. "I… was looking into something."

A single delicate eyebrow was raised in return before Aiz saw realization dawn within Riveria's eyes. The elf's eyes narrowed and a silent hiss came to her lips. "And what exactly were you looking up? There's nothing the Guild could give you that we don't already have access to."

Riveria knew, it was obvious from her shift in mood, but she was going to make Aiz say it anyway. Not unlike a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar, she refused to answer, instead averting her eyes to not see the disappointment that would no doubt come with her answer.

A muffled curse was all Aiz heard before a deep sigh. "Aiz, you went looking for information on that boy, didn't you?"

Aiz nodded.

The elf sighed again, sounding more defeated than angry. "Let's not talk here, let's return home."

Aiz hummed a response before falling in line behind Riveria as the two made their way through the labyrinth city. People gave them a wide berth as they moved, some stopping to stare at the two high tier adventurers. The attention was something she had become accustomed to and easily zoned out. Being an executive of the most well-known Familia in Orario ended up making her a bit of a celebrity, something Aiz had never cared about and only found a hindrance to her growth.

The fame did come with some advantages however, such as people finding her to be unapproachable in public which she normally enjoyed. Now however, she wished anyone would come up to them to prevent Riveria's next words.

"Aiz, be honest with me. What exactly about that boy were you looking into?"

Aiz hesitated and chanced a glance at her longtime mentor. While the elf faced forward as they moved, her face gave away nothing of what she thought. Knowing that lying would only make things worse at this point, Aiz decided to give in. "I… wanted to know how he leveled so quickly."

Riveria said nothing as the crowded streets of the central district gave way to the more open roads of the northern district. The stares lessened the closer they got to the manor; the residents more used to their presence. It was only when the spires of the Twilight Manor were visible did Riveria choose to speak.

"Did watching him fight that minotaur really get to you so badly that you would throw away whatever it is you have with the Little Rookie?"

"Bell… is just a friend."

The words were sour on her lips in a way that she had never expected. The thought of them just being friends didn't fill her with any joy, in fact, quite the opposite. It felt wrong to say that but she couldn't figure out why.

The words forced Riveria to stop mid stride as well, finally turning to meet Aiz with doubt etched over her ageless face. "We both know that is not true, do not lie to me Aiz."

She wanted to deny Riveria's words. To say that he really was only a friend, an acquittance that she had only spent a handful of days together with. But the words never came, her voice refused to speak them.

"I know that you trained him before our expedition. Five days in fact. I saw glimpses of you in him during his fight, as I'm sure the others did as well. Though I suppose it does help that Lefiya is a terrible liar."

Traitor! Lefiya promised to keep her training with Bell a secret. The younger elf had even blackmailed her with that to train with her. She was going to make her pay for that, one way or another.

"And you used Li'l Rafaga against Ottar to try and reach him on the 9th floor. That is not something you would do for just anyone. Do not try and hide the truth from me Aiz. I know you too well for that."

Ah, so Riveria had been close enough to see her use Li'l Rafaga? A move she had promised to never use against another living being for fear of how destructive it was. Despite her promise, she hadn't hesitated to use it against Ottar when Bell's life had been on the line.

The reason why was something she hadn't wanted to dwell on. There wasn't any part of that fight with Ottar that she wanted to relive. Not her complete inability to move the indomitable boar man from his spot, even with all her strength. Nor how quickly she was willing to throw away a personal vow for someone not even in her Familia. The thoughts made her uncomfortable, so she just refused to think about them.

And now Riveria was throwing it all in her face. Forcing her to think on things she wanted to leave buried and forgotten. All Aiz wanted to know was how Bell grew so quickly, why couldn't Riveria just leave her alone!?

"Why are you doing this? I'm not hurting anyone!" She finally snapped.

Aiz never raised her voice to Riveria, not since she first joined the Familia ten years ago. She expected Riveria to be angry with her, to yell back at her, hit her on the head and call her a fool. To reprimand her for going behind her back when Aiz knew full well she wasn't supposed to. So why? So why did Riveria do none of that? Why did she look at her with such sadness? Why was she wrapping her arms around her?

"You don't even realize it, do you Aiz? The one you're hurting isn't me, or anyone in the Familia. It isn't even Bell Cranel. It's you."

Her body felt weak as she fought the elf's embrace. Exhaustion hit her, the last few nights of restless sleep taking their toll on her. Her struggles slowly ceased, letting her head fall into Riveria's shoulder. It was familiar, comfortable.

"You want to grow strong. We all understand that, and we won't begrudge you for it. We will continue to help you grow stronger, as we always have. Your reasons are your own and that's fine."

She felt Riveria's hand gently stroke her long hair and she felt her eyes close at the sensation. How long had it been since Riveria had done this for her?

"But now things are different. You've grown Aiz. There are other things you care about other than just becoming stronger. And now you find that some of those things are conflicting. You don't know what to do and I blame myself for that."

It wasn't Riveria's fault. Why would she say that? Riveria wasn't the one breaking Bell's trust, she wasn't the one putting her own growth above her friendships. These were all things she wanted to say but couldn't, her body too exhausted to form the words.

"I thought it best to let you figure these things out on your own. To experience all of this as best you could. But it was my folly. With that creature Levis and the resurgent of the Evils, I should have known better than to let you fester like this." Riveria took a moment to detach herself from Aiz, not enough to fully remove her from her arms, but just enough to look her in the face. "Would you like my advice?"

Aiz could only nod. "Mmhmm."

"If you don't want to lose your new friend, then stop going around his back and trying to sneak information out of him. Be honest and upfront with him. The worst he can say is no, but I feel he would hardly hold it against you. At the very least, you wouldn't break his trust in you and hurt him. And then hurt yourself as a result."

She never meant to hurt Bell. He was too kind, too earnest, almost like a snow-white bunny; pure. But his ridiculous growth had revealed an ugly side of her that she wanted to deny but couldn't. She had always justified her trying to learn his secrets by giving it everything she had in her training with him. That if he benefited from it too that it somehow wouldn't be her using him.

She knew that it was a lie. One that whispered to her every time they trained, one that berated her every time he filtered through her head. And even now, only a few minutes ago she was planning on using him again. To offer training in hoping to learn about his Skills. She was disgusting.

"No harm has been done and no offense has been made. I just wanted you to think before you do anything recklessly. But that is for another day, you look exhausted. You should rest."

"I… thank you, Riveria."

Expressing what her words couldn't, she hugged the elf back tightly. It was something that would normally cause Riveria to have words with her but nothing of the sort came from the proud elf. Riveria returned the hug just as tightly before speaking. "You're quite welcome. Now run along. Retire early and get actual sleep tonight. I'll cover for you at the meeting and fill you in tomorrow morning."

Aiz did just that, making her way back to the Twilight Manor ahead of Riveria. Once she reached the first section of walls, she scaled them with a single bound, racing through her Familia grounds to avoid anyone who might try to catch her attention. She didn't have the strength for anymore conversations today.

She opened the door to her room without interruptions and placed Desperate against the wall. She debated about removing her armor and clothes but decided against it and flopped on her bed, her body falling unceremoniously, like a puppet with its strings cut.

As she drifted off to blissful unconsciousness, the only thing on her mind was a smiling boy with white hair. And for the first time this week, she did not stir in her sleep.

\-\

Mugs slammed into each other as boisterous men laughed and jeered at one another. Chairs scraped against the floor as more men cheered, two squaring off over a table on the far side of the room. Hands interlocked across the table as each tried to wrest control from the other, veins protruding from their foreheads.

With a final scream and singular moment's burst of strength, one of the men forced the other's arm down, slamming loudly against the wood and rocking the table to its core. Another round of cheers, even louder as the victorious man yelled in victory and called for another round of drinks on him.

More adventurers cheered at the announcement and the bar's atmosphere reignited. People rushed to and fro, drinks piled high and threats being thrown left and right at the risk of spilled ale. The conversations among adventurer's lost in the insatiable chaos that was the Flaming Wasp's prime hours.

"Pathetic, the lot of 'em"

Bete growled as he slammed down his mug, table shaking under the force. "Hey barkeep, another round!"

Despite the noise, another drink appeared in front of him in only a few moments. With a grunt of satisfaction, Bete slammed the drink back, washing away his frustrations in the bitter fluid. At least the staff here understood their place unlike all these wannabes who thought they were strong.

Just going into the dungeon didn't make you an adventurer and being an adventurer didn't make you strong. He knew plenty 'adventurers' that were just piss ants playing at the game. They weren't strong, they were pathetic, worse than any civilian. Those were the ones he hated the most because at least civilians didn't pretend to be something they weren't.

All too many 'adventurers' didn't take risks, staying in the upper levels and never dreaming of entering the mid-levels, let alone to take on a floor boss. Those were the ones that he despised with his very being. Cowards too afraid to push themselves, to put their lives on the line to have an actual adventure. They would brag and boast about how they were strong men venturing into the dungeon but once things got real, they would piss themselves and run back to the city.

Worthless, all of them.

Strength was the only thing that mattered in this world. The strong could do whatever they wanted and the weak would get the scraps. That was the only truth that existed, everything else was nothing but hot air.

But physical strength wasn't the only thing that mattered. If it did, only the one at the absolute top would be worth a damn. No, those that were weak but destroyed that weakness in them to grow stronger were set apart from the sniveling roaches that made up most of the worthless masses. Those that could prove that they had the mental strength to grow strong were worth giving a damn about, but only so far as they continued to grow stronger. The moment they stopped growing was the moment they were worthless again.

"Hey! My mug's empty! What the hell?!"

Another mug was placed before him, Bete sneering at the person who put it down before upending the drink into his gullet. The foul liquid burned his throat as he guzzled the drink before slamming the empty mug on the table not a moment later.

"H-hey Bete, aren't you going a little fast? M-maybe you should slow down a little bit, we just got here." Raul stuttered.

"Shut the hell up you idiot! You think this piss water could get me drunk? And you call yourself a man?"

Raul shrunk in on himself like the worm that he was. The Level 4 adventurer was the epitome of what Bete hated. A spineless fool that despite his level, was as useful as a green horn supporter as far as Bete was concerned. Someone who had fought hard to reach his level and then took one look into the horizon of what it would take to continue growing and froze like a wounded prey animal.

To think Finn still wanted to make this fish bait leader one day despite the man's obvious stagnation. It'd been over 3 years since Raul leveled up and given how he only ever allowed himself to play an auxiliary role in the deep levels, he would never level up again.

"Pathetic." Bete sneered under his breath, a fresh mug of ale in his hand.

The obnoxious noise of the surrounding patrons drowned out his words, his own Familia talking loud enough to miss them. It wouldn't have mattered if they heard him anyway. They all knew what he thought of those too weak to move forward, of those that never took risks. If you couldn't become strong, you'd be left behind and he wasn't shy about letting them know that.

"Can you believe Loki is taking all of the girl's to Mereen? How unfair."

"Yeah, knowing Loki, they're probably going to spend all their time at the beaches there. What I wouldn't give to be with them…"

"As if any of you pansies would do anything if you were there, stop saying useless shit." Bete bellowed, tossing another mug to the side.

In a rare moment of courage, someone whispered under their breath. "I don't see you trying to make a move."

Bete's hypersensitive ears twitched at the noise, nearly indistinguishable for most people's hearing but not that of the werewolf's enhanced by a level 5 status. Slamming both hands on the table, Bete abruptly stood, looking daggers at the lower level Familia men and shouting. "What was that you bastards? Who's man enough to say that out loud?!"

Moments ticked by as everyone at the table stood stock still. Like prey in front of a predator, none of them moved a muscle. Finally, with a sneer, Bete sat back down muttering "that's what I thought."

The tension passed and conversations resumed, notably complaints of the grunt work that Finn was no doubt going to make them do while the girls were away. Bete took a long swig from his current mug, well aware of that literal shit job he would be assigned tomorrow.

Him and the other animal men would be scouring the sewers in a vain attempt at locating where the Evils were bringing monsters up from the dungeon. Bete had personally ran through every inch of the sewers and knew for a fact they weren't going to find anything. Sadly, with no other leads, Finn was going to make him triple check, damn him.

"Get this, some rookie managed to get famous overnight, lying about everything just to raise his image, how fucking pathetic!"

The useless barb came from the other side of the room, more than loud enough to be heard by everyone in the noisy bar. He glanced over his shoulder to get a better look and noticed a group of twelve adventurers huddled around a table. The signal on one of their cloaks was of the sun with a bow and arrow strapped around it.

"Apollo Familia, huh?"

A large Familia number wise but as far as quality went, they were subpar at best. Their leader only boasting a level 3 status. So weak that even Raul in all his blunder could best them. Turning back to his drink, he didn't give them a second glance, not worth his time.

"Did you hear that Lefiya is able to level up? She was the only one from the expedition who was able to."

Bete's teeth ground together as he dug his nails into the mug, the wood splintering slightly under the attack.

"What do you mean she's able to? Are you saying she didn't take it right away? Why wouldn't she level up the second she could? I know I would…"

"Apparently Riveria and the captain asked her to hold off for now. Something about wanting her to max her magic stat at level 3 before leveling up to 4. Not surprising since they're grooming her to be Riveria's successor." Raul said with a benign wave of his hand.

Bete threw away another mug that bounced off the wooden floor and rolled a few feet before a waitress came by and grabbed it. She replaced the empty one with a full one, a sigh on her lips as she didn't even wait for a thank you that would never come from the werewolf.

He destroyed this beer with just as much fervor as the last, the mention of Lefiya's success grinding at his soul. He should've been the one to level off the expedition. His stats were already maxed out and no amount of training would raise them. They breached a new floor and killed a demi-spirit! The only thing that didn't stop him from going on a rampage was the fact that no one other than Lefiya had leveled from that fight either. He hadn't been left behind, not yet. He'd be damned if he allowed it to happen at all. It took Aiz killing a floor boss by herself to level to 6, maybe he'd have to do the same. Damn her for getting to it first and damn himself for not thinking of it.

"They say the cheat killed a Minotaur to level up. In six weeks? Bullshit! I bet he just ran away from the damn thing until it collapsed. I bet that's all he's good for, running away! What a joke!"

The prum's voice cut through the bar again, louder than the last time and caused more than a few heads to turn his away. Bete couldn't help but do so as well, anger bubbling that some no name shit was interrupting his first night back in a bar.

The snarl on his lips faded as he turned, eyes not only seeing the offending party but also their intended target. The rabbit-brat that had somehow befriended Aiz was there, back turned but body rigid like stone as the prum continued to rattle off insults about him and his party.

"Hey, isn't that the Little Rookie? Isn't he Aiz's friend?" A voice said from behind him, his own Familia now watching the scene.

Annoyance and only a little bit of interest was piqued as Bete watched the new record holder. Only 2 months ago he was a pathetic greenhorn that Bete had written off, just another pretender. But the brat had broken his weakness and gotten stronger. Begrudgingly, he had to admit he was wrong, at least for now. He could easily turn out to be another Raul.

"And his party! Talk about a bunch of losers! A failed smith and a useless supporter that can't even get their own Familia to dungeon crawl with them, man, the entire party is just full of garbage!"

There was no need for the prum to yell anymore, the entire room entirely focused on the two tables. Those nearby moved quietly, sliding out of chairs and moving away to avoid what was no doubt going to be a fight. Blood had been spilled for less in this place and the prum was walking a fine line.

"What you gonna do rabbit boy? Are you a man or just another chump?"

"Hey Bete, shouldn't we do something? If he's Aiz's friend then she'd be mad if we sat back and didn't help him." Whispered the lone level 4 at their table.

Bete sneered at the human adventurer and turned away from the scene, grabbing his mug and slamming it back. "Like I give a damn what Aiz thinks. You wanna do something? Do it. I couldn't care less what a bunch of fleas do."

A few members of the Loki Familia that had started standing stopped at Bete's words, looking between themselves before eventually turning to Raul who merely shrugged and let out an exasperated sigh. Stools scrapped back into place as they retook their seats, hands on their drinks but eyes still watching the scene in front of them.

"But it shouldn't be surprising. I mean have you heard about his Goddess? She's an embarrassment to the Gods, not even worth a shred of respect. She has zero dignity. Of course, she'd only be able to recruit worthless followers!"

If there was anything that could start a fight among adventurers, it was insulting their patron deity. Bete snapped his eyes back just in time to see a high kick being thrown at the loudmouth prum. For him, the attack looked to be moving in slow motion but the form was good and the prum didn't even see it coming. It smashed directly into his nose, crushing it and likely shattering a few more bones.

The difference in ability was never more pronounced than it was between levels 1 and 2. The higher you reached the closer the line between levels became due to your experience and strategy. But at the lowest levels raw stats meant more than anything else and even though the prum had probably been waiting for the attack, being level 1, he couldn't even process the kick before it already smashed in his face.

The small adventurer went down hard, landing face down on the ground, blood gushing from his nose onto the wooden floor. Standing over him was a level 2 adventurer but not Bell Cranel. No, the redhaired smith was the one who had thrown the first punch, a cocky grin on his face as he looked at the rest of the Apollo Familia. "Well, someone had to shut him up and no one was looking like they were going to do it."

The next moment was a flurry of action, ten Apollo Familia members jumping to their feet and rushing the Hephaestus Familia blacksmith. Only a second later did Bell join the smith's side as the two entered what could only be described as a pub brawl.

It became apparent very quickly that none of them on either side had any training in fighting with their fists. This wasn't so much a fight as it was people throwing fists and legs and hoping that they connected with something. The entire display made Bete sick just looking at it and as loath as he was to give the Amazonian twins any credit, at the very least those two knew how to fight without their weapons.

Given the lack of training on all sides the fight once again came down to who had the superior stats. Ten on two should have been an easy win for the 10 if all things were equal but the longer the fight continued the more obvious it became that the ten were easily outclassed, all of them being level 1 adventurers against two level 2 adventurers.

Bete's eyes narrowed on the singular figure that was still seated at the table behind the fight. Brown hair with grayish blue eyes, the leader of the Apollo Familia watched with an almost detached expression, not caring in the slightest that his companions were being decimated in short order by only two people. Only when the majority of the Apollo Familia were incapacitated did Hyacinthus move. He rose from his seat, patting down his black military styled long coat and his matching dress pants. Then, he was gone.

The blacksmith didn't even see him coming, preoccupied with another member of the Apollo Familia. One swift strike to the side of the head was all it took to fell the larger man.

"Welf!"

Seeing his friend be dropped without much effort, Bell grappled with his final opponent, gripping the man's shirt before rolling backwards. Unprepared for Bell's sudden shift in movement, the man fell forwards, dragged by momentum as mid roll Bell planted his feet on the man's stomach and launched him across the room.

"Hey watch out!"

Bete watched with apathy as the man flailed through the air, arms swinging wildly, trying to latch onto anything. Bete made no move to catch the man and instead gave him a sneer before he rose from his seat and stepped aside, allowing the poor soul to come crashing into the edge of the table. Not even checking to see if the man was okay, the werewolf returned to the fight to see that the Apollo Familia captain was holding Bell by the neck, raised off the ground and struggling to break out of the one-handed grip.

No sooner then when he looked away did a rush of cold liquid wash over him, soaking him through his jacket and drenching his nose in the foul smell of the ale that was once in the several drinks of his companions.

All motion in the bar came to a screeching halt as everyone, including those fighting, turned to the now sopping wet werewolf. Bete's face was shadowed by his bangs, those had not escaped either, slightly dripping with alcohol, adding to the pool around his feet.

With rage in his eyes, Bete looked up and glared at all involved in the fight, unconscious or not and screamed at the top of his lungs. "So you bastards want to fight!? Let me show you how to fight!"

Reaching down, Bete snagged the ankle of the semi-conscious man that destroyed his table and flung him across the room. The improvised projectile rocketed past everyone, none of them able to react before he went through the wall on the other side of the bar.

Wood shattered and the brick that once lay beneath the outer layer of the wall rained onto the floor. Heads slowly turned from the newly constructed exit to the only two remaining combatants, Bell and Hyacinthus, the latter slowly setting down the much younger boy.

The two exchanged a weary glance before facing the raging beast-man, some unspoken agreement to try and survive what was in front of them. Too bad it didn't matter as Bete vanished from their vision only to appear behind them, face fixed in a vicious snarl.

It wasn't a fight; it was a massacre.

/-/

"Ah, ah, ouch." Bell couldn't help but moan as he dabbed at his left eye. It had completely swollen shut from a particularly savage backhand he had received from the Loki Familia executive. Sadly, the eye was only one of several injuries he'd suffered from the rampaging werewolf. He was littered from head to toe in bruises and sad to say that he hadn't given any in return.

Vanargand had been a force of nature. A whirlwind of destruction that Bell had just happened to get caught in. At least when he was fighting Hyacinthus, he could partially see what was happening, his body just couldn't move fast enough to keep up. With Bete, one moment he was there, and the next Bell would be sent flying across the room.

The only satisfaction he found was that Hyacinthus was in just as bad shape as he was, if not a little worse. Being a level higher than himself, Hyacinthus could take more punishment than Bell could hope to, at least theoretically. It was a theory that Bete had put to the test, thoroughly.

"Bell! Oh Bell, what happened to you?"

He couldn't help but wince as his Goddess appeared at his side, her hands on his badly beaten face. Where had she even come from? He'd been facing the door waiting for her, more like dreading if he was being honest with himself.

Said door opened to reveal three new people enter. The first he'd never seen before. The man was very clearly a god, the divine aura wafting off him like all gods and goddesses. He had stunningly blond hair, almost like the sun in its radiance. He wore a simple white toga that only covered the right side of his chest that was held together with a brown belt. On his head rested a green wreath that seemed just a tad off kilter, as if he had rushed to put it on before leaving.

"Apollo… what is he doing here?" he heard his goddess growl next to him.

The next two that came were far more familiar, but he still felt himself gulp as their eyes turned his way.

"Seriously, itty-bitty? Did you actually run through the hole in the wall the second you saw your kid? Have some class for once and takes five seconds to use the door. Every time I think you can't get any more pathetic, you surprise me."

The trickster goddess Loki in all her glory. While Bell had never personally met Aiz's patron deity, she had spoken fondly of her the few times she was brought up. Brash and eccentric was how Aiz spoke about her and given what he was seeing, he definitely believed it.

The last person was one he had not really known until just recently and her presence was welcome. At least it was until Riveria turned her eyes towards him. He saw the momentary shock before they narrowed, fixing him with a glare that could freeze Hell itself.

"You're one to talk, you washboard! Look what your wolf did to my poor Bell?"

"Why you!..." Loki huffed angrily before a hand rested on her shoulder. The goddess turned to Riveria, who merely gestured not only to his condition, but that of Welf's, the ten Apollo Familia members still unconscious and the battered form of Hyacinthus and the literally destroyed bar.

Bete had not gone easy on the fixtures when he was batting them around. No, he had used everything at his disposal to beat them into the dirt. Chairs, tables, stools, whatever wasn't bolted down was used as a weapon. Even the bar counter was missing a chunk from it, a particularly stupid level 1 adventurer's face had been buried in it when he had tried to sneak up on the top tier adventurer.

And then there was Bete, leaning against a wall without a scratch on him but reeking horribly of booze.

Loki tried to approach the lone werewolf but couldn't get close to him as her nostrils were assaulted by the noxious smell of the copious amounts of alcohol that wafted off of him. Gagging and holding her nose, Loki tried to wave the smell away with her hand before choking out. "What the hell Bete! Did you drink the entire bar under?"

"That's rich coming from you, you drunk! Fuck off!"

"That's enough out of you! You already destroyed my bar!"

A rather portly dwarf came around the side of the bar, red in the face with anger written all over it. The older demi-human may have been bald, but he had an impressive crimson beard that was braided down the center and beady black eyes that glared at everyone present with equal fury. He wore a stained black tank top and pants to match that looked like they hadn't been washed in days.

"Never in my days of runnin' this fine establishment have I witnessed such a travesty! I'm used to you adventurers causing a ruckus, hell, I expect it! But what you all did tonight was beyond the pale! Look at it!"

The dwarf gestured with his arms, but one didn't need to look hard. Everything was destroyed, down to the table leg and while Bete had caused much of it, Bell couldn't exactly say he was blameless in the whole affair. Bell swallowed guiltily and looked away, causing a snort to come from the dwarf.

Bell saw his goddess' pleading eyes, confusion and an un-asked question resting within them. He swallowed the lump in his throat and averted his eyes from hers as well, trying his best to avoid the disappointment that he knew would come.

Not getting anything from her only follower, Hestia turned to the still red-faced dwarf. "What exactly happened in here?"

Instead of the dwarf answering, it was the Apollo Familia leader who spoke up, his voice a contrast from how he looked. While Hyacinthus was a tall and handsome man, his voice was high-pitched, almost mistakable for a woman if Bell wasn't looking at him. "We had a verbal disagreement and your Familia's dungeon party attacked us unprovoked."

"Unprovoked?! That's a lie! You started it!"

All eyes turned to Bell at his outburst, Hyacinthus's regarding him with disdain. "Words do not beget violence Little Rookie. I would have thought you would have been taught better than that." The child favored by the sun took a glance towards Hestia, ocean blue eyes narrowing ever so slightly at the goddess still on her knees cradling Bell's face in her hands. "Perhaps not."

"What did you say?!"

Bell was on his feet before the words had fully left his mouth. His hand reached for the knife absent on his waist, but the action had not gone unnoticed, Hyacinthus angling his body not at Bell, but between Bell and his patron deity.

All eyes were focused on Bell, his anger waning as everyone's gazes bore into him. He tried to hold onto his indignation, the fact that the other human could lie so blatantly and insult his goddess so flippantly made his blood boil. But why was it that everyone except Lady Hestia was giving him such dirty looks? He wasn't the one that started the fight, the Apollo Familia did by insulting his goddess.

In particular, the look from the high-elf was what sapped the rest of his strength away. It wasn't so much Riveria's obvious disappointment in him but the thought of what that meant. If Riveria was against him, what would Aiz think when she would eventually find out?

His arms dropped to his side; any fight left in him vanishing as he felt his goddess' slender arms pull him back ever so slightly. She stood in front of him, shielding him from the rest of the people in the tavern. She leaned her mouth close to his ear and whispered to him. "Please don't get worked up over what people say about me. I don't care about them, only that you're safe, okay Bell?"

He could only nod as she emphasized the point by poking a rather nasty bruise on his cheek, causing him to wince. She only gave him a warm smile in return before facing the rest of the room.

"Well that's all I needed to hear from my Bell. He would never get into such fights so it must've been your followers that started all of this, Apollo. You should feel ashamed for raising such violent children."

The handsome God's eyes flashed with a glint of anger before it was put away, a hardly noticeable lapse before the god smiled magnanimously at Hestia and himself. "I can understand your need to protect your child Hestia, but I can guarantee Hyacinthus would never do such a thing as well." The God turned to Loki and gave her a warm smile. "It appears that we are at an impasse. Both children say the other is responsible, perhaps you could enlighten us on your side of things?"

Loki merely raised an eyebrow before turning to the lone werewolf. "Well? What the hell happened?"

Bete scoffed but otherwise remained leaning against the wall, a single leg raised and his foot propped against it. "A bunch of weaklings started a fight over useless bullshit. I ended it."

Loki only gave Bete an exasperated sigh and a shake of her head, holding up her hands in defeat before she turned back to the sun God. "That's about as best as you'll get from 'em."

Butting in, the barkeep raised his voice to get their attention. "Aye, the mutt's got the gist of it. I don give a rat's arse about who threw the first punch or who started what. That ain't my business to get into. I stay away from any of yous Familia squabbles as I can. What I care about is that my bar is destroyed! How can I make any valis like this!?"

The statement brought a wave of silence, the gods looking around the truly annihilated room and then to their followers. As the silence pervaded, one of the few intact bottles of booze on the broken shelf rolled off, glass smashing angrily against the floor and shattering into a thousand pieces.

Apollo coughed into his hand, a look of genuine embarrassment crossing his handsome features. "You are right, dear barkeep. This is hardly the time for our Familia disagreements. Regardless of fault, you have been wronged by all here, some more than others." At saying this, Apollo not so subtly looked at Hestia who bristled, her pigtails flailing up in anger.

"As such, I will not let this stain our Familia's honor stand. Hyacinthus, make this right."

The level 3 adventurer gave a curt bow to his god. "Yes, Lord Apollo."

The taller man turned to the still angry dwarf and gave a deeper bow, earning a grumble from said dwarf but little else. "On behalf of my Familia, I sincerely apologize. We did not destroy any of your property, that being done by the Little Rookie and Vanargand, but the fight interrupted your business and I'm sure many left tonight without paying. I will cover everyone's bill tonight, tips as well."

"You sure you can afford that brat? T'was a good night, we were looking to push two million valis."

Bell barely heard his goddess choke on air at the price tag next to him, his own shock overriding everything else. Two million valis!? There's no way! The food was kind of pricey but there was no way they were going to pull in that kind of money tonight.

"Then I'll make it four million from my personal finances. I am captain of my Familia and their actions reflect on me and vice versa. I will not allow this stain to remain. I will come by tomorrow to personally deliver the money to you."

"Four million! How!? I haven't even made four million my entire time adventuring!"

The declaration was enough to wipe the angry look off the barkeeps face, replaced by a dumbfounded one before a smile broke out. "Well, if that's the case I suppose I can't hold it against you. Can't say the Apollo Familia doesn't pay their debts. Apology accepted."

"Patronage is one thing, but your bar is destroyed. Everything will have to be replaced before you can reopen." Riveria said, her delicate hand running over the bar's counter, or at least what was left of it. "How much will that cost you?"

The dwarf grunted as he glared at the high-level caster. The animosity between dwarfs and elves extended even further than Bell imagined if the dwarf would look at Riveria in such a way. Eventually he relented, sighing before kicking a busted chair. "Aye, the elf is right, as loathe as I am to admit it. Chairs and tables won't be bad, a few hundred thousand valis at best. The counter, flooring and the hole in the wall Vanargand made for me will be worse. With time to repair and from not being open, at least ten million."

It felt as if a pit had opened beneath Bell as the figure crashed through his skull. Ten… million? How was that even possible? There was no way they could afford that. They had only recently been able to start affording better things, this would put them in the hole for the rest of his life!

Hestia was thinking much the same if the way her body swayed back and forth meant anything. With swirls in her eyes, Bell could see gears slowly turning in her head. Carefully, she turned to him and whispered in his ear. "Bell, how much of this did you actually do?"

His initial instinct was to say none but he knew that wouldn't work, mortals could not lie to gods, that was an absolute rule. Instead he tried to remember what little of the fight there was before Vanargand entered it. A chair or two and maybe a table? He held up his hand, his pointer and middle finger barely held apart as he answered. "Not much, just a couple things before Loki Familia joined."

Unconcerned with the two Hestia Familia members, Loki spoke up. "Damn, that's a pretty high number there, you sure you ain't stringing us along?"

The dwarf's arms were cross as he looked at the trickster goddess, his face set in stone and resolute. "Aye, I wouldn't dare try to fleece a god, let alone three. The raw materials alone will cost near half. Plus, labor to fix everything and the few nights I'll lose all my customers. Ten million is on the low end. I basically have to start over."

A low whistle came from Loki before she let out a deep sigh and smiled. "Welp, can't be helped then. Don't skimp on the fixtures, we'll cover whatever it takes to fix em, just send us a bill and we'll take it out of Bete's share of the expedition. Hear that Bete? We ain't helping you pay for this, it's all on you since you busted it up!"

"Like I care! I don't need any of that fucking money anyway."

Loki jerked a thumb at the still fuming werewolf, smiling at the bar owner. "See, he's happy to pay you back for the trouble he caused. So, send us half the bill and the other half to Itty-bitty and we'll get this all squared away, sound good?"

"N-Now wait just a minute! Half? I never agreed to that!"

"Eh, what was that you loli goddess? It's only natural, each Familia takes half the cost, what are you? Stupid?"

Hestia bristled at the insult, but it was muted from her normal reaction. Bell could see the sweat pouring off of his goddess, no doubt the thought of being on the hook for at least five million valis terrified her. He'd be lying if he wasn't sweating himself.

"Natural? My Bell barely did any damage and he didn't even start the fight. He got dragged into it by Apollo's children!" She pointed a finger accusingly at Apollo, who for the first time genuinely gave them a look of disdain. It was different than how he looked at them earlier, it felt more… real, for lack of a better word.

"Are you being serious Hestia? Are you trying to absolve yourself of all responsibility? I don't recall you being so… lacking while I pursued you in the Upper World. Perhaps it was I who lucked out when you rejected me." The last part was said with a sneer from the sun god.

"I wasn't the one lacking anything you creep! I told you, no means no!" Hestia all but growled at the handsome god. But Bell couldn't help but focus not on Apollo, but on Loki. Her normal manic smile was gone. The slits for her eyes were missing as well, vermillion orbs that were now narrowed on Hestia was what remained.

"Oi, short-stack. You ain't actually suggesting what I think you are, are ya?"

The words dripped with venom, enough to give even Hestia pause, regarding her fellow goddess with wide eyes. Hiding behind a nervous laugh, she tried to point an accusatory finger at Loki but it looked weak, even to him.

"I don't know what you're implying but what I'm suggesting is the only thing that makes sense. Your wolf destroyed almost everything and Apollo's children started the fight, as far as I'm concerned we're as much the victims here as the barkeep. We shouldn't have to pay for your mistakes."

Loki's fists clenched at her side, her normal wide smile a snarl on her lips. "Why you! You seriously don't understand anything, do you?"

"Let it go Loki, Hestia seems quite adamant on skipping out on her responsibilities. It's nothing new for her. I found it endearing in the Upper World, now however, I see it for what it is. Let's not squabble on this further, I'll assume Hestia's debt on behalf of my Familia. Let us be done with this."

Loki never took her eyes off Hestia, the crimson haired goddess looked like she was trying to glare a hole right through her. A few more seconds passed before Loki finally answered. "No, I'll cover the shrimp's bill, be too confusing with the other stuff you lot are covering." She turned to the dwarf. "That fine with you? Just send all the repair bills to us and it'll get taken out of Bete's earnings, unless of course you want to give a heart-felt apology for going overboard?"

The last part was sent towards Vanargand in what Bell could only assume was meant to be joking. Sadly, the goddess' heart must not have been in it as it fell flat. An annoyed tsk was all she got in response as the werewolf walked out of the building, clearly done with all of this.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. Alright, we done here? Got anything else you wanna say Apollo?"

The sun god smiled and extended a hand. "No, only that I apologize for involving your Familia into our affairs to begin with. I hope you understand it was not intentional and there's no ill will between us?"

Loki took the hand and gave it a loose shake before turning and walking away, waving the same hand dismissively over her shoulder. "Naw, we good. Bete's always been a hot head. Just keep yours to yourself and we'll call it done."

Loki did take a moment to turn to give Hestia one final glare. Unspoken words danced on her lips before the goddess huffed and walked out the building. "Come on Riveria, let's go home."

The elf paused, glancing at Bell and looking like she wanted to say something. A knot formed in Bell's stomach at the look and it dropped further when she merely shook her head and walked out.

Why did that seem to hurt more than any punch he had taken that night?"

/-/

"Guh! I can't believe that little twerp! Doesn't she have any dignity as a goddess? What the hell was that?"

Loki raved through the poorly lit streets, completely unconcerned with the potential dangers lurking in every dark alley. Though with a level 5 front vanguard adventurer stalking in front of her and the most powerful caster in the city walking only a few steps behind her, even the most foolish of thugs wouldn't even dream of trying to make her a mark.

"I mean seriously! Doesn't she have any idea of what saving face means? Gah! It's embarrassing that we're both considered gods! She's a complete air-head!"

Riveria merely sighed as Loki's overly loud voice rung in her sensitive ears. She held her tongue, knowing full well that when her goddess worked herself up like this the only option was to let her work through her steam. Still, she couldn't help but make her own observation known. "She does seem inexperienced, how long has she been in the lower world?"

Loki paused in her ranting for a moment to consider the question, shaking her hand in the air in a wishy-washing sort of way. "Eh, Phai-Phai told me she came down only like 50 years ago, mooched off 'em for that amount of time just reading and wasting her days. She only started her Familia 2-3 months ago when Phai-Phai got sick of her and kicked her out."

Only 50 years? What would seem like an extraordinary amount of time for most mortals, being an elf, Riveria could understand how little time that actually was. For a God, it must have been even less, a blip on their eternal existence. Loki had been around the lower world for hundreds of years before she even started her Familia, building her knowledge long before she found Finn those few decades ago.

It made more sense the more she thought about it. Hestia did not seem to be the type of goddess whom tried their hardest to claw their way to the top. Simply content with a humbler living arrangement as long as she was happy.

There was nothing wrong with that, only that the type of Familia she founded would not survive with such an attitude. Dungeon crawling Familias were the most fiercely competitive of all and the world could be quite cut-throat, even at the lowest levels. Sadly, Hestia did not appear to be one naturally attuned to such things, at least from Riveria's brief interactions with the short goddess. Without proper guidance, that Familia would fail due to a lack of a proper direction from their goddess.

"And don't even get me started on her brat! He just stood behind Hestia like a scarred rabbit. What a joke! He's supposed to be that Familia's captain? Finn said he was impressed by the brat; he needs his head checked!"

Yes, Bell had acted much the child and it pained her to see it. Not that she cared for the boy, but more so for what it would mean going forward. After watching him fight and her own conversation with him she thought him far more mature than he was. A mistake on her end. Perhaps she had let Aiz's interest in him blind her more than she thought, seeing him in a more favorable light than he deserved.

The boy was only human and a human child no less, younger than even Lefiya. While humans matured quickly compared to elves, he had a long way to go and given his goddess, she feared he wouldn't get the proper instruction he would need if he was going to be the captain of his own Familia.

"He is young, even Finn was brash when he first started, or have you forgotten?" The defense came without much thought on her end and earned a surprised look from Loki. Indignance won out over shock and she spit on the ground, keeping her pace with her arms linked behind her head.

"No way! Finn was never that bad or I wouldn't ever have recruited him! They're both jokes as far as I'm concerned!" Loki turned away from her and up ahead to a surprisingly quiet Bete, who hadn't said so much of a word since leaving the bar. "What about you Bete? What do you think?"

Silence was their answer as Bete kept walking, hands in his pants and hunched over with his back to them. He rounded another corner and when they caught up he had stopped, back still towards them and he spoke in a lower voice, his normal bluster gone.

"They were looking for trouble from the start."

The words came out as little more of a whisper but in the dead of night, Riveria heard them loud and clear. A crinkle formed on her brow; eyes narrowed on the werewolf's back. "What was that?"

"Apollo Familia. They were targeting the rabbit-brat. Whatever tonight was, it ain't over. Not by a long shot. They're after him."

The words sucked the vigor out of Loki, her put upon anger dying at the seriousness in Bete's tone. Many saw him as the savage he portrayed himself as, and in many aspects he was the savage. But he wasn't dumb and he was as sharp as anyone else in the Familia. One couldn't survive as long in the dungeon as he had without that. No one in the Loki Familia discounted his observations.

"You almost sound like you care, what the hell Bete? You were mocking that idiot just a few weeks ago."

He sneered at his goddess, teeth bared but made no move to turn around. "I don't give a shit about him. I just hate when weaklings gang up on even weaker bugs. Makes me sick."

With that he kept moving, faster than before, his intent to leave them behind clear. Loki merely shrugged and sauntered slowly after him. "Whatever. If Hestia is too stupid to see the danger in front of her then that aint no skin off my bones. I say good riddance."

The words were said with a callousness that one would expect one to talk about a pest with. It fit, Riveria supposed. It was no secret the animosity between Hestia and Loki and while Hestia was no rival, to be rid of the hearth goddess would no doubt be a welcome relief to Loki.

It was none of her business what either of these Familias got up to. Even if what Bete said was true and Apollo was behind the instigations, she had no reason to get involved. Be it rookie crushing or some personal vendetta, Apollo had never made himself an enemy of their Familia and had gone out of his way to ensure Loki suffered no insult tonight. The peace offering had been made and Loki had accepted it, doing anything to aid the Hestia Familia would only put them in the wrong.

They owed the newer Familia nothing, quite the opposite in many ways. They were not close allies and their Familias did not have a deep bond formed through expedition or business. Nor were Loki and Hestia good friends from the Upper World. If the Apollo and Hestia Familias were going to feud, Loki Familia had no place in it.

However…

It would be a massacre in favor of Apollo. They had Hestia trumped in every way that mattered. Numbers, experience, tactics and even the quality of fighters. They all went to Apollo in spades and any battle between them would end with an overwhelming victory for the sun god.

The spoils would be the boy as Hestia had nothing else of value. She had heard rumors of Apollo's proclivities and knew of the fate that would await him. Aiz would be devastated if that happened and Riveria feared what that would do to her.

Aiz was confused right now. A raging inferno of conflicting emotions and she didn't know how to process them. For all the advice Riveria could give, it was Aiz alone that had to work through her feelings. Whatever that had to do with Bell, be it his ability to grow stronger or something more, she would never get to sort it out if he was swallowed by the sun.

"Go on ahead, we did not provide the barkeep with our official seal to cover payment. I wish to have this matter settled before we depart tomorrow."

Loki turned, annoyance written plain as day on her face. "Seriously? I told him to send the bill to us, that's good enough ain't it?"

"He may not have the funds on hand to pay for what he needs and he may need to pay in advance. This way he won't be held up in his repairs. Go, I won't be long."

With a wave, Loki laughed to herself and kept walking home. "Mah, mah. Always think of everything, eh Mama? Don't take too long, we have a trip to make tomorrow and I have a surprise for all of you when we get there, hehe."

Beating that horrifying thought aside, Riveria turned and hurried back through the streets. Mind firm, she raced through the winding passageways. Her speed wasn't so much out of urgency as it was a desire that she did not want them to get too far from the pub before she found them. The Hestia Familia compound was not common knowledge and following them back to their home was something that would be frowned upon.

Luckily, they moved at the pace of a god and not of one of a high tier adventurer and she found them not too far from the bar. Dropping her speed, she made her presence known by letting her stave strike the cobble path, the clang reverberating through the otherwise empty street.

"Ah! Lady R-Riveria." The white-haired boy reacted first, shock and a hint of worry flashing through his eyes as he took her in.

His goddess next to him fixed the boy with a suspicious glare before turning to face Riveria, a somewhat forced neutral expression on her face. "You're one of Loki's elves, right? What can we help you with?" A moment passed and a thought must have struck her, her hair bristling. "If you're here to try and shake us down for more money you're not getting any! Everyone heard Loki agree to pay it all since it was her fault!"

"Lady Hestia! Lady Alf wouldn't do that!"

"Oh? And how would you know what she would and wouldn't do? Have you been spending time with this elf behind my back? How could you Bell!?"

Riveria sighed, having dealt with her own goddess' antics. She did not have the patience any longer to deal with another eccentric goddess.

"I came to give you advice, and a warning."

Her words silenced the goddess with faux tears in her eyes, her letting go of her only follower and letting him stand unhindered. At least she had their full attention, good, she did not want to repeat herself.

"I do not mean to intrude on your Familia affairs, nor do I intend any insult in what I'm about to say. Please take it as friendly advice." Hestia's face was hard to read but Bell was enraptured by her words, his undivided attention on her. Normally she would appreciate such a thing but here it bothered her, proved her own point to herself all the more.

He was too trusting. Willing to take advice from a rival Familia without question. Taking training from Aiz without a single thought to any ulterior motives. If Apollo had come with honey as opposed to vinegar, he would never have seen the dagger before it was lodged in his back.

"You do not think before you act. When you were but a solo level 1 adventurer and insignificant within Orario that did not matter but you are no longer that. Your name now carries weight and the Hestia Familia is no longer unknown. Other Familias will approach you, either as rivals or allies and your words as well as your actions will determine your Familia's fate. As the captain of your Familia, what you do directly reflects on your Familia and Goddess. Act without thinking and it will show and you will bring shame to your goddess, much like you did tonight."

It was a hard lesson to learn and one she should not have had to impart on the young boy. It was the place of his goddess to instruct him and then him any new members. By the look on his face, her intrusion was needed. His lips quivered with unsaid words. He wanted to say something, she could tell. But he held back, biting his tongue either out of actual consideration of her words or more likely out of spite to not prove her point immediately.

His goddess was unburdened by such things, her eyes cold as she glared at Riveria. "Thank you for the advice but I'll ask you to keep it to yourself." Hestia grabbed Bell's arm and turned him around, angrily stomping off. "Goodbye Miss elf!"

Riveria sighed as the human was pulled away by his goddess. She wasn't surprised, no, she fully expected the reaction. It was a grave insult for a mortal to criticize a god on how they operated their Familia. Even more so when they were in completely separate ones at that. All Riveria could hope for was that Bell managed to take her advice to heart despite his goddess' aversion to it.

Riveria only made it a few steps before a loud voice cut through the silent night. "Lady Alf!"

She turned to find Bell broken free of his goddess' grip, facing her bowed at the waist. Next to him Hestia looked downright murderous.

"Thank you for the advice!"

Not a moment later he was hauled off his feet by the diminutive goddess, her dragging him across the street and around a corner, out of sight. Riveria stood there for a moment before a soft laugh escaped her lips and a smile rested there.

Perhaps he wasn't as much of a lost cause as she feared.

AN:

So there's chapter 2. Uh, yeah, I've been gone for quite some time, haven't I? Well life is always busy but I recently finished two decently major life events and hopefully things can calm down a bit. I got married and I finished my 2nd degree, so now I really only have 2 jobs getting in the way of my writing lol. Let me tell you something, planning a wedding in the middle of a pandemic was easily one of the most bullshit things I've ever done.

Anyway, one thing I want to say about this story, and it should be kind of obvious but I'll say it anyway. There is a much bigger focus on Aiz's desire for power and her obsession with Bell's growth in this story than what there was post season 1. If you read the side story, Aiz is obsessed with getting stronger for the first 5 books, then just completely ignores that major character point until like book 11 or 12. It's just fucking bizarre to me. So this story's divergent point is focusing on what was a major plot point for Aiz for 5 books straight.

Until next time and for fans of my other stories, they're still being worked on, slowly but surely!