Bell sat looking down as Eina scolded him non-stop; something about running in the street covered in blood isn't really an image that should be shown by an adventurer in public.
"Sorry..." Bell could only apologize as he scratched the back of his head.
Eina sighed, unable to stay mad at the cute adventurer who looked like a wet rabbit now that the blood was all cleaned up. "So let me get this straight... You want to know everything there is about Ais Wallenstein of the Loki familia, right?"
Bell's face lit up as his eyes suddenly snapped in attention, a dazzling gleam sparkled as he nodded repeatedly.
"Well, what can I tell you that the public doesn't already know? She's a pretty private person, you know. A level 6 adventurer, she leveled up just two and a half months ago..." The elf paused as she clenched her hand and looked down. Ais was able to level up due to her participation in the amphitheater incident, and for Eina, even talking about the event made her feel dark, crippling emotions bubbling to the surface.
She shook her head, trying to erase the memory of that day, as she forced a smile back on her face. "Known for her skill in the sword, she earned the alias Sword Princess; she is also one of the top executives of the Loki familia." She looked at Bell, a look of pity momentarily showing on her face.
"I already know all of that stuff." Bell's voice sounded a bit down; everything Eina said was standard knowledge that everyone in the city already knew. "How about her likes? Her favorite food? Hobbies?" His voice started to sound energetic again as he asked a torrent of questions.
"Didn't you hear what I just said? She's a pretty private person... And she's a member of the Loki familia." The elf sighed as she held a soft look toward Bell. "Look, I know you know what that means, right? With you being a member of the Hestia familia."
Bell's shoulders slumped slightly, disappointment evident in his eyes. "I just... I admire her a lot, you know? I want to be strong like her."
Eina softened, understanding the earnestness in Bell's voice. "I get it, Bell. Ais is incredible, and it's natural to look up to someone like her. But remember, everyone has their boundaries, their secrets. Even heroes need their privacy."
Bell nodded, absorbing Eina's words, though the longing in his eyes didn't waver. "I guess you're right. It's just... I wish I could talk to her, learn from her directly."
Eina gave him a reassuring smile. "You never know, Bell. Orario is full of surprises. Maybe you'll get your chance one day. In the meantime, focus on your own journey. Who knows? Maybe you'll create your own path to becoming a hero."
Bell's expression brightened a little at the thought. "You're right, Miss Eina. I won't give up. I'll keep training and working hard. Maybe one day, I'll be strong enough to catch her attention."
With newfound determination, Bell thanked Eina and stood up, his resolve evident in his eyes. "I'll see you later, Miss Eina. Thanks for listening."
As he walked away, Eina watched him with a mix of concern and hope. She knew that the path of an adventurer was challenging, but Bell's unwavering spirit was a beacon of light in the midst of Orario's darkness.
"*Sigh* Honestly... I don't know what I'll ever do with you, Bell..." Eina muttered as she watched the back of the white-haired boy as he joyfully walked out of the adventurers guild.
"LOVE YOU, MISS EINA!!!" Bell glanced back and waved as he shouted gleefully toward the elf.
Eina turned red as blood rushed into her face; the adventurers inside the guild started to chuckle and whistle, which made her even more embarrassed and red, resembling Bell when he was covered in blood. "B-B-B-Bell!" she quickly covered her face and apologetically bowed at the other patrons inside the guild, her eyes glancing at the exit where the young boy left.
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Moments after Bell left the guild, Denki and the rest of the Heracles familia arrived; the adventurers inside the guild quickly turned quiet as whispers and murmurs started to churn inside the building.
This had been going on for months now; a look of pity was always thrown their way whenever they entered the guild halls.
Denki at first hated it, but as the days had gone by, he had learned how to ignore those looks and be on his way.
"Oi... This is beginning to grow old now," one of the new members of the Heracles familia named Ozwald grimaced as he walked beside Denki.
Ozwald Len was a level 2 mage adventurer who lost his falna in the attack; he joined the Heracles familia not too long after, as he wanted to be a member of the familia led by the hero of Orario.
Ozwald had a slightly pudgy build due to his role as a backline mage; he had long hair tied in a bun and wore loose mage tunics. He was the party's main firepower due to his plethora of short-chant magic.
He was disappointed at first when he found out that August was in a coma because of the attack, but he still joined nonetheless; for him, this was a way to pay it back for August saving Orario against the creature. Most of the new members joined because of that very same reason.
"You said it..." Katty Prusha, another level 2 adventurer who joined the familia, chimed in. She was a petite hume bunny, dressed in light armor and chainmail. She had a brown bob-cut chestnut hair that had a long braid in the front, reaching her chest. "They should really mind their own business by now."
The female adventurer had two sets of daggers on her back, as well as multiple throwing knives in her leg belt. She was the main scout of their party, as well as the attacking supporter.
"Ignore them," Denki said calmly. "They are just worried about the captain..."
"Yeah... I get you," Oswald shrugged. "But it would be nice to not receive those gazes once in a while."
"Well, what can we do? As long as August Kaiser is stuck in that coma, they will continue to pity us," Helga Baldswurth, chimed in. She was a level 3 adventurer from the same familia as Oswald, somewhat rough-looking, with copper-like skin and sharp eyes. Her body was toned and muscular, and on her back was a large kite shield and a claymore that she freely switched between, depending on the need of their battles. Sometimes, she'd use the shield to act as the main tank, or the claymore to aid Denki at the front.
Denki gave Helga a look, which in turn made her raise her hand in surrender. "Fine... I'll shut up now," she sighed.
The other members awkwardly looked at one another because of the interaction between the two. Helga was someone who always questioned Denki's orders; she'd follow them, but not without some snide remarks or an annoyed look.
The reason was, Helga believed that she was more suited to lead the familia with August's absence. Due to her having more experience than Denki, she was, after all, 32 years old and had been adventuring for more than 20 years. She was adventuring before Denki was even born.
But alas, because Denki joined the Heracles familia earlier than she did, Heracles had appointed him as acting captain, something that didn't sit well with Helga.
This had led to many arguments inside the dungeon, mainly due to them not agreeing with each other when it came to strategy. But when it came to battle, Helga was able to show her experience and provide teamwork within the party.
She admitted, Denki was way more talented than her; being a level 3 at 19 years old was nothing to scoff at. But she still viewed him as inexperienced when it came to leading a team. At least with August, who was only 15 - the public knowledge was that he was 16, but his birthday hadn't come up yet - him being a captain was justified, due to him being level 5 and being the first member of the familia who was trained by Heracles since he was 6.
And he had shown that he was capable; Helga had a huge amount of respect for the young adventurer, especially after his feat of killing that hellish creature. That was the main reason why he joined the Heracles familia in the first place.
Many of the others who joined the familia felt that Helga should be the one leading them as well. After all, if any of them were asked who they would follow, a 20-year veteran or a 19-year-old boy who had only started dungeon diving three months ago, they would inevitably answer the 20-year veteran.
That was primarily the reason why only ten adventurers decided to join the Heracles familia; there were plenty of applicants who came knocking at their doors, but once they found out that an inexperienced 19-year-old would be leading them instead of the hero of Orario, those applications dwindled and backed out, leaving only ten who committed to joining the familia without second thought, mainly out of gratitude and debt for what August did.
Denki sighed, he was not dense, he knew how his teammates are seeing him, he knew that they don't trust him making the decisions inside the dungeon, he was essentially holding their lives, and being a newbie at this, didn't help at all.
There were numerous times where he asked his god to make Helga acting captain, but Heracles always refused, stating that he trust Denki more. This would make Denki happy, but the pressure would be doubled as Denki didn't want to disappoint Heracles' trust in him.
He really wished August was here, he was much better suited when it comes to leading, but then he realized that his captain would probably just watched at the back while making him and the other deal with the "small fries" as he calls it. This made him chuckle a bit, as he remembered how August would always make him and Froke fight everything, while he points out mistakes at the back. 'He really was such a slave driver.' he thought. But at least he was assured, that no matter what happened, even if he fucked-up, nothing would be able to kill him inside the dungeon. All because August Kaiser is watching his back. 'Froke huh.'
The thought of Froke made Denki grimaced, since the incident at the hostess, the hybrid had been avoiding him like the plague. No matter how much he approached her, Froke always finds an excuse to get away from him. The look on her face everytime he saw her made Denki angry.
He remembered the last time he and Froke talked, her eyes were puffy, and there was a dark look on her face. Ever since then, Froke always dodged Denki, not even looking at his direction.
He was planning on recruiting her, to have a familiar face on his party, yet all of that was thrown out the window when the girl started to avoid him. He had made multiple attempts to talk to her, but it all ended the same way.
One day, after a bad trip on the dungeon, Denki confronted her in anger, something he regrets to this day.
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-Flashback about a month ago.
Denki exited the dungeon feeling angry, they had suffered a huge loss in resources because of a mistake he made.
The rest of the familia didn't blame him, at least not verbally, but he knows that they are scrutinizing him in their minds, especially Helga.
He decided that he would be exchanging the cores alone, Katty volunteered to come with him, but he insisted firmly on doing so on his own.
He walked to the guild, with an ugly look on his face and a bitter taste in his mouth. Along the way, he saw a familiar face, walking alongside a party of 6 adventurers.
It was Froke, and from the looks of it, she had joined another party to support, this made the young samurai snap.
He thought that the girl just wanted time to cool off, after the incident in the hostess of fertility. But now she's running alongside a new party.
Denki quickly ran after them, and with an angry scowl, he called. "OI!!! FROKE!!!" His voice carried a rough tone. The party of 6 stopped along with Froke, who looked back toward the young acting captain.
"Denki?" Froke muttered.
"You okay here?" one of the 6 adventurers asked Froke, and she nodded, urging them to go along without her, that she would catch up later.
The six shrugged and nodded, leaving Froke alone with Denki.
"Denk-"
"WHAT THE FUCK!?" Froke flinched; she didn't even get to finish the word that was forming in her mouth as Denki cut her off angrily. "So you have a new party now huh?" Denki spoke sarcastically, his tone mocking and angry.
"....." Froke didn't answer; she just looked at Denki, shocked at how the young samurai was talking to her.
"After what we've been through? And here I thought we were friends. Here I thought that me and August actually meant something to you."
"We are friends, come on Denk-"
"BULLSHIT!!!" Denki cut her off again. "I needed you! WE NEEDED YOU!!! Over a month had passed, and not even once did you visit the captain. Is it because I can't pay you as well as the captain did? Are you avoiding me because the prestige of being a supporter of the great August Kaiser is now out of your grasp now that he's in a coma?" Denki then looked at Froke mockingly. "Well, that's to be expected from a money-hungry bitch-"
*Slap*
Denki's face snapped to the side; he felt a numbing tingle as a prickly sensation enveloped his right cheek.
He scowled, as blood started to rush to his head; he snapped his sight toward Froke, a fuming look on his face, but before he could let loose, he stopped.
Froke's eyes glistened with tears, she had a broken look, biting her lips to the point of bleeding. A tear started to fall; she hurriedly wiped it down roughly. With a shaky voice, she spoke. "Fuck you, Denki." her tone, sorrowful. After that, she turned and ran away, leaving Denki stunned, standing in the street, alone...
"Fuck!" he cursed as he clenched his fist, realizing what he had just said.
-end of flashback
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He shook his head and made his way toward the reception; he's here to exchange the monster core they have collected, as well as to give an update to Sophie, who became his adviser due to August's recommendation.
Sophie had been visiting the manor every chance she gets, checking on August without fail.
Denki appreciated that, and because of it, he had grown close to the elf adviser.
For the past two months and a half, this had been Denki's routine, this had made him mature and grow as a leader, he has to make adjustments because of the responsibility that was placed upon his shoulders. And every day, he will do his utmost best to keep the familia together, waiting for the day that his captain would finally wake up.
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***
Chapter 95 is done now, how do you guys like the story so far?
Please leave a comment, a review and feedback so I can improve on writing this fanfic. every little thing helps as it allows me to see your preference on things and would help me write a better fanfic for you all to enjoy.
thanks for picking up this fanfic. hope you guys like it.
good day, love y'all.