by Fujino Omori
Bell didn’t quite understand what she said at first.
Lilly continued her explanation.
“Level eighteen is one of the few floors in the Dungeon where monsters cannot be born—a safe point. It is used as a staging area for expeditions going to the lower levels and beyond. Lilly believes we’ll be safe if we can get there.”
In a Dungeon infested with monsters, there were very few areas that could be considered “safe.” Adventurers had learned over the years that no monsters came out of the walls on the eighteenth floor, and so they used it as a rest area.
The eighteenth floor was the first safe point in the Dungeon after entering the first floor, so it was highly likely that adventurers much stronger than they were there right now. If they could somehow join a group that was heading back to the surface, that would guarantee them safe passage home.
“L-Lilly, wait a second. We have no idea if we can make it out of this floor. If we went farther down…”
“We’ll use the holes. There are hundreds of them, and they all lead down. With good luck we can reach our destination quickly. We’re lost. Lilly thinks we have a much better chance to find one of the holes than a staircase leading up.”
Lilly’s logic made sense. Bell had no counterargument and cleared his throat.
Welf fought back the pain in his leg long enough to open his eyes just enough to meet Lilly’s gaze and asked a question of his own.
“What do we do about the floor boss? Isn’t that massive son of a bitch on level seventeen?”
Even when faced with a thought of one of the most powerful monsters in the Dungeon, Lilly had an answer ready.
“On the day that Mr. Bell slew the Minotaur…Two weeks ago, Loki Familia started an expedition. In order to protect a group that large, they would have defeated the monster head-on rather than try to avoid it.”
“H-how do you know?”
“Lilly’s heard that level seventeen’s floor boss, Goliath, is located in front of the entrance to the eighteenth floor. Many powerful adventurers belong to Loki Familia. It would be easier for them as a group with the floor boss out of the way.”
Lilly went on to explain that leaving the Monster Rex untouched actually put the lower-level adventurers in their group in danger.
“Goliath respawns about every two weeks…There is a chance that we can make it to the eighteenth floor just before it emerges.”
There still might be time to pass through a boss-less level seventeen if they moved quickly.
That’s what Lilly was implying.
“You’re serious…?”
Not up, but down.
That would mean putting themselves in more danger in order to get home safely.
Welf was at a loss for words at the serious look on Lilly’s face.
He looked at her with a mixture of shock and awe that she was able to come up with such a daring strategy under the circumstances.
Bell, too, looked at her and wondered how so much courage and spirit could fit in such a small frame.
“…This is only an option. As Mr. Bell and Mr. Welf have said, trying to find a way up is the safer route. There is a chance that we could find another battle party just by walking around.”
However, that was completely up to chance.
While it was easy to find lower-level adventurers in the upper levels, the upper-class adventurers strong enough to prowl the middle levels were few and far between. To make matters worse, the layout of the middle levels included intertwining upper and lower tunnels while the higher floors were just one flat, circular maze. It would take a considerable amount of luck to find anyone. That was why Lilly had mentioned that high-level adventurers gather on the eighteenth floor.
Lilly fell silent for a moment before looking up at Bell with unwavering resolve.
“Mr. Bell is the leader of this party. Lilly leaves the final decision up to you.”
All of the air suddenly left Bell’s lungs.
Her words ignited a fire within his belly that was hotter than anything he’d felt that day.
Every pore in his skin opened; cold sweat poured down his face.
Bell looked over at Welf. The young man was grimacing in pain but met his gaze and flashed a smile.
“It’s up to you. Whatever you choose, I won’t hold it against you.”
Those words showed just how deep their bond of trust ran.
And at the same time, they closed off any means of escape Bell had from making this decision.
His heart rate quickened.
Party leader…He was the only one who could fill that role.
Lilly the supporter and Welf the smith were lending their talents and abilities to Bell the adventurer. He was the leader, without a doubt.
He had no choice but to rise to this challenge.
…!!
His heart kept speeding up. It felt as though it would tear itself apart at this rate.
This decision would determine his party’s fate. He’d never felt such pressure before. His next words would determine whether his friends lived or died.
Fear of losing them made his knees shake. He wanted to cry, to run away, to beg for forgiveness, and to hide from the responsibility.
However—behind all this fear and anxiety, he understood that it was the party leader’s job to make decisions like this.
A solo adventurer never felt this much pressure. Every member of a battle party had to trust the leader with their lives.
The opposite was also true. Bell had to trust Lilly and Welf with his life. They were the ones who protected his blind side, the ones who covered his back. He had to have the utmost faith in them.
They chose him and believed in him. It would be sacrilege to abandon allies who held him in such high esteem. If there was a time to prove to them that he was worthy of their trust, this was it.
Bell clamped his jaws together and clenched his fists. He breathed in as deep as he could to steady himself.
He built up the courage. Now all that was left was to make the decision.
Go back or press forward.
Depend on luck or blaze their own path.
To go on an adventure or not.
Bell closed his eyes for a moment—opened them.
He looked at each of his party members in turn with confidence and said:
“Let’s push on.”
The clock on the wall showed that it was early evening.
Hestia was standing inside the Azure Pharmacy, Miach Familia’s home.
They sold potions and other healing items in this wooden building. Since many adventurers came here anyway, it worked well for a gathering spot to begin the quest. The preparations for rescuing Bell’s battle party had begun.
Along with Hestia, Miach, and Nahza, the crimson-haired goddess Hephaistos was also present.
Across from them stood Takemikazuchi, his long hair tied regally up in three places: on the sides of his head and at the back. The rest of his Familia was standing behind him, including Mikoto.
“My apologies, Hestia. It is very possible that my children are part of the reason that yours has not come back.”
“…”
Hestia crossed her arms, shut her eyes, and looked away. Mikoto and the others stood behind him, silently staring at the floor as if repenting.
Takemikazuchi Familia’s pass-parade maneuver on the thirteenth floor.
Mikoto and the other adventurers had safely returned to their home by the time Hestia came looking for information about Bell. They heard everything—how Bell and his allies were dressed, their features, their formation—and realized what had happened. They hid nothing from their god and told him everything, their faces pale.
Takemikazuchi understood that they had been in a desperate situation, but he had no choice but to apologize for what his followers had done. Hestia’s silence was deafening as she realized that they were more than likely the cause of Bell’s disappearance.
At long last, Hestia opened her blue eyes
and made eye contact with the children on the other side of the room. Miach and Hephaistos stood at her side.
“If Bell never makes it back, I’ll hold a grudge against all of you like you’d never believe. But I will not hate you. I promise.”
Mikoto gawked at Hestia’s words.
Takemikazuchi Familia’s hearts were moved by this goddess who, despite her anguish, was able to look at them with resolute eyes and show tolerance. This was the first time anyone other than their own god had had such an impact on them.
Hestia forgave them and made a request.
“As for right now, would you be willing to help me?”
““—On our honor.””
All six of Takemikazuchi Familia’s members took a knee in one swift motion before lowering their heads toward her.
Takemikazuchi and Miach were taken aback by this group of children’s resolve, led by their leader, Ouka, to repay the kindness that Hestia had shown them.
Meanwhile, Hephaistos smiled as her friend gave these children an opportunity to make amends for their mistake.
“Shall we proceed? Time is of the essence.”
Miach took a step forward as he spoke. Hestia nodded in response.
“This is a search party, yes? And we know that Hestia’s boy’s still alive?”
“Yes, he is. Hephaistos, what about yours, Welf?”
This time it was Takemikazuchi who asked the question. Hestia responded and then turned to Hephaistos. The goddess closed her non-bandaged eye and scratched her chin for a moment before answering. Since using her divine power, Arcanum, wasn’t an option, she chose to look at the total number of “contracts” that were active, rather than find a specific one, to save time.
“Wait just a moment. Many children have my Blessing, so sensing a single one is rather difficult…Yes, he’s probably alive. The number of bonds I have with my children hasn’t decreased.”
Now Miach had a question for her.
“Can any of your children help us, Hephaistos?”
“Most of mine are currently helping Loki Familia’s expedition…Everyone who could make it that far down is there right now. The ones who are available at the moment wouldn’t last long in the middle levels, I’m afraid.”
Hephaistos turned to Hestia and apologized, but Hestia shook her head to tell her it was okay.
“Looks like we’ll have to count on Také’s group after all.”
“That’s fine with me…Ouka and Mikoto will go for sure…Chigusa, can you accompany them as a supporter?”
“Y-yes.” A girl whose eyes were covered by her bangs nodded at her god’s request.
Ouka and Mikoto were Takemikazuchi Familia’s only upper-class adventurers—the only ones who’d reached Level 2. The girl named Chigusa was still Level 1, so she would be deployed as a supporter to supply the others with weapons and potions.
They were the best that the Familia had to offer, so they were selected to form the search party.
“Ouka is the only one I’ve got who can hold his own against anything in the middle levels. The others would just fall behind.”
“I think the most important thing for a search party is speed…”
“I agree with Nahza. If we sacrifice speed and maneuverability by increasing numbers for strength, it’ll be too late.”
“So that means we’re depending on these three…?”
Nahza, who had nearly died in the middle levels herself, added her opinion and was supported by Hephaistos. Words spilled out of Hestia’s mouth as she again crossed her arms in front of her bulging chest.
That’s when they arrived.
“—I’ll join you, Hestia!”
The front door was flung open to reveal a charming god standing in the doorway.
“Hermes?! What are you doing here?!”
“Quite the greeting, Takemikazuchi. Of course, I’m here to help my friend out of a pinch.”
Hermes glided his way to the middle of the room under the watchful eyes of Miach and Nahza, and smiled at Takemikazuchi. His follower Asfi quietly walked in behind him.
“Hey there, Hestia. Nice to see you!”
“Hermes…Why are you here?”
Hestia wore the same expression of confusion as everyone around her. Hermes walked right up to her with that same dandy smile on his face.
He reached into his jacket and pulled out a sheet of paper—a quest form from the Guild.
“You’re in trouble, aren’t you?”
“…”
Hermes softly waved the sheet in front of her. The words FIND BELL flashed before her eyes.
Hestia tried to respond, but no words would come out.
“Why would you want to help Bell Cranell, Hermes? Out with it.”
“Hey, hey, Takemikazuchi. I’m the one and only Hermes, you know? When one of my buddies is in need, I’ll pull out all the stops to help them out.”
“Hermes, this is the first time you’ve seen Hestia since she came to this world, is it not?”
“Some friend you’ve been.”
“Ha-ha, Hephaistos, Miach, aren’t you two being a little harsh?”
In addition to Takemikazuchi’s watchful eyes, Hermes was now acknowledged by the other two deities in the room. They weren’t fooled by his charm. Nahza, Mikoto, and the other humans were completely ignored as the drama unfolded in front of them.
Hermes dropped his jolly bluster for a moment and spoke in a serious voice for the first time since he arrived.
“But my desire to help Hestia is real. I want to save Bell.”
He opened his arms and smiled earnestly at each of them in turn.
“How about it, Hestia?”
“…”
Hermes turned to face Hestia last. Smiling with his narrow eyes, the charming deity met her gaze straight-on.
She stared at his orange eyes for a few moments before letting a small “hmph” out of her nose.
“Fine…I’ll accept your help, Hermes.”
“Great! You can count on me!”
Hermes’s charming smile returned after Hestia accepted his offer.
Back to his usual self, he walked over to Miach, who was glaring at him out of one eye, and patted him a few times on the shoulder.
“Are you sure, Hestia?”
“Rescuing Bell and his party is our first priority. The fact is, we need more people.”
“…Okay, if you say so.”
Takemikazuchi, keeping his eyes locked on Hermes, leaned close to Hestia and whispered into her ear. She responded as quietly as possible.
He decided to keep his mouth shut for the time being, and to do his best to work with Hermes.
“This means that Hermes’s followers can join us…Will that be enough?”
“Aren’t most of the children in your Familia at Level Two, Hermes?”
“Yeah, what about it, Hermes.”
“It’s just like you said, Hephaistos. Unfortunately most of them are out of town on business—that’s why I’m bringing Asfi with me! She’s my ace; there’s nothing to fear!”
Hermes Familia was registered as a Dungeon-type Familia. At the same time, many of its members were involved in other types of business as well. They were famous as a jack-of-all-trades Familia. The Guild assigned them an F ranking.
Choosing to believe Hermes’s assertion that Asfi’s Dungeon range included the nineteenth floor, Miach and the other gods decided to let her join the search party.
The girl breathed a heavy sigh, realizing that her god had just signed her up for the group.
“We’ll leave as soon as preparations are complete. Sometime later tonight?”
“Indeed, that will be best.”
“Ouka, Mikoto, Chigusa. Make sure you’re ready.”
“““Yes, my lord!”””
Something occurred to Asfi while Hephaistos and the other gods were speaking.
She made her way to Hermes’s side and said in a low voice:
“Lord Hermes…Just now you said yo
u were taking me along. Don’t tell me you’re planning to…”
“Of course. I’m coming with you.”
Asfi’s silver glasses slid to the end of her nose. She quickly pushed them back up with her finger.
“Isn’t it forbidden for gods to enter the Dungeon?”
“That just means we can’t make our presence known, right? What’s the big deal? Go in and get out before the Guild even knows I’m there. I said it before, didn’t I? I want to save Bell.”
“Don’t tell me you’ve been planning this all along…!”
“Ha-ha-ha! I’m going to need your protection, Asfi.”
Asfi’s eyebrows arched, and she sucked in her cheeks in frustration as Hermes turned on the charm again with a toothy grin. Suddenly—whap!
Hestia just happened to be in earshot of their conversation. Her head whipped around so fast that everyone in the room could hear it.
Her twin ponytails came to life as if guided by their master and wrapped themselves around Hermes’s neck.
“Gaoh?!”
“—Bring me with you, Hermes.”
The deity bent over backward as Hestia’s hair pulled at him from behind. Asfi jumped back in surprise.
Hestia stepped up to his face, her hair not letting him say a thing.
“I’m going to save Bell. I can’t just sit here and do nothing while others are out there looking for him.”
“W-wait just a moment, Hestia! Calm down!”
Hermes had managed to free himself from enough of the hair to get words out. He flipped his body around to face her.
He made eye contact with her once again and tried to convince her to stay behind.
“The Dungeon is very dangerous. Without our power, one hit from the monster and we’re done. But most of all—what would happen if you’re found out?”
“You think I don’t know that?” responded Hestia curtly.
“You’re going in after saying all that, aren’t you? Another god or two isn’t going to make that much difference.”
“Ummm…”
“I’m going, got that?”
Hestia’s strong tone left Hermes speechless.
A defeated look emerged on Hermes’s face as he came to grips with the fact she wouldn’t be swayed.