With the pressure they were experiencing and seeing the boy draw his sword, all

three men immediately reacted. The short, stout man closest to Lili lifted her body
and put a knife to her throat as the other two began maneuvering to flank Vahn’s
sides.

Seeing the man use Lili’s body as a shield, any remaining restraint in his body
completely vanished. A state of mind similar to when he had awakened on the second
floor set in as he dashed towards the smallest man to his left.

Vahn approached with a terrifying momentum, causing the man to panic as he shouted
towards his companions. He took up his sword and tried to thrust it towards Vahn to
break the charge.

From Vahn’s perspective, the shout was muted in his ears and the movement of the
sword seemed to trace its path in a slow motion due to the vast difference in their
stats. Using his gauntleted left hand, he altered the vector of the blade and
directed it into the ground.

Having his blow suddenly change direction, the small man was knocked off balance as
he stared in absolute shock at the shadow of the approaching blade. Instead of a
thought, the last thing that passed through his mind before embracing death was the
blade of Vahn’s sword.

The other two men looked on in horror as the hooded assailant turned their
companions head into meat paste with the sheer force of the wind generated by the
deadly thrust. They felt their legs begin to tremble at the ruthlessness of the
figure before them. The stout man tightened his grip on Lili’s neck before shouting
out.

"You [email protected]! You killed Todd!" He saw the figure turn towards him and he
subconsciously tried using the small body in his grip to create a wall between him
and the monster.

"M-move another step and the b!tch is dead! Dead, you hear me you [email
protected]!?" As if to solidify his threat, he squeezed until the girl began to
gurgle and twitch.

Vahn couldn’t seem to hear anything the man was saying, but as soon as the first
syllable issued from Lili’s throat he sprung into action and bisected the man that
had been maneuvering into his blind spot.

The man was completely unprepared for the blow and stared at the 30cm gap that had
separated his torso from his legs. Even though Vahn had cut cleanly through him, in
a manner similar to what he had seen happen to his friends head, the trailing winds
tore through the severed area like a meat grinder. He couldn’t even scream as he
stared at the legs that had yet to fall to the ground. Almost as if echoing the
sounds of the young girl held hostage, he began to gurgle before finally choking on
his own blood and organs.

Screaming at the sight of his second companions death, the man squeezed Lili’s neck
like a vice causing her windpipe to collapse. He attempted to use the dagger and
jam it into her ribs with the intent of robbing her life.

*THOOOM* *SHHNK*

A muffled sound tore through the air. The stout man who had backed up against the
wall while holding Lili hostage stared in horror at the left arm which previously
held the dagger. In its place, there was the sheen of an evil black blade embedded
into the wall beneath where his shoulder previously connected to his arm. Before he
was able to regain his senses, an irresistable force surrounded his neck.

Vahn lifted the 155cm raccoon-eared man using his right hand as he shattered the
man’s remaining wrist with his left, freeing Lili in the process. Seeing the small
girl fall to the ground unmoving, Vahn put more pressure into his grip until he
could feel the outline of the man’s spine in his palm. At this point, the man’s
face had bloated beyond recognition as the pressure caused his eyes to free
themselves from their sockets.

*SNAP*

Even though the man had long-since died, Vahn completed snapping his neck. When he
released the bloated creature, the head dangled loosely like a sack as the body
collapse to the ground twitching.

The moment the body hit the ground, Vahn felt a powerful migraine overcome him as
his clarity returned. He grits his teeth before turning towards the young girl who
lay helplessly on the ground gurgling for air. She had already begun to froth at
the mouth as light pink bubbles were endlessly generated in her attempts to draw
air.

As he cradles her body, she stared at him with her single tear-filled eye. Vahn’s
heart wrenches in pain as his brain starts churning rapidly to come up with methods
to save her. As her throat had collapsed, he couldn’t feed her a [Senzu Bean] and
none of the potions he possessed would be able to remedy the injury quick enough to
prevent her from asphyxiating. There was no time to look through the system and
find a solution.

Vahn did the only thing he could think of. He took a [Senzu Bean] and placed it
into his mouth, chewing it into a paste. He gently caressed Lili’s face as if to
reassure her...and activated his [Wound Transfer: B] for the first time as he
swallowed the bean paste.

Steam began to emit from all the wounds on Lili’s body as she was rapidly healed.
The resultant steam entered through the pores of Vahn’s skin and the wounds that
had previously been on her body began to appear on his.

He grits his teeth until his gums start bleeding as the pain begins to wrack his
body. The now fully recovered Lili stares in shock as the boy that just saved her
begins to writhe on the ground in a state worse than she was in previously. She
didn’t know what had happened but understood the boy had somehow transferred all of
her wounds to his body and was now on the verge of death.

She screamed and tried to help, but no matter what she did the wounds only seemed
to get worse.

Vahn felt his body tearing apart. Though he had consumed a [Senzu Bean] to
counteract the damage absorbed by the transfer, the two mystical forces seemed to
battle within his body. One was trying to heal his wounds while the other continued
with unrestrained vigor trying to generate them. As a result, the two forces were
wreaking havoc in his body and causing his flesh and bones to shatter in their
wake.

He could feel warm tears dripping onto his face, and stared through bloodied eyes
at the young girl crying over his body. Due to his [Pain Tolerance: S] Vahn was
able to maintain his clarity through the pain. He lifted his hand to try and
console the girl but stopped after seeing it’s bloodied state.
Seeing his attempt and hesitation on his face, the girl grabbed the outstretched
hand and placed it to her face as she tried to stifle her tears. The blood from his
hand marred her otherwise flawless face, and Vahn couldn’t help feeling a little
guilty as he smiled at her.

Suppressing her tears, Lili tried speaking to the boy that had sacrificed himself
to save her. "I don’t even know your name. *sniff* Please don’t die, please,
please...." She kept repeating the word over and over, mixed between her sobs and
snot.

Vahn shook his head before withdrawing his identity slip from the inventory. Seeing
the name of her would-be hero, she managed to speak out a few more words. "Thank
you Vahn..."

Hearing her words brought a smile to his face as he laid back and felt the strength
leaving his body. He couldn’t help but recall part of the words Chloe had spoken
before they parted ways. "For now, focus on discovering where you want to go in
your life. When you figure that out and become strong enough to share the burden of
others...if your feelings remain unchanged, you can try asking me out again...
Though I can’t promise I’ll accept when the time comes-nya"

The smile on his face increased as he began to lose consciousness.

-[Effigy of the Hero: S] Activated-

Vahn felt a powerful energy fill his body and he opened his eyes to meet the
gobsmacked expression of Lili. One woundless boy covered in blood, and one
disheveled young girl both stared incredulously at each other.

For the first time in both of his lives, Vahn began laughing without inhibition.
Lili stared at him like he had lost his mind, unsure of what happened to bring
about the current situation.

After a while, she tried asking the boy named Vahn what was going on, only to see
him collapse powerlessly onto the ground and fall unconscious. She flusteredly
checked to make sure he was still breathing before releasing a relieved sigh.

"What kind of crazy person did I get involved with..." She shook her head before
resting to boys head on her lap, waiting for him to wake up.

As Lili stared at the unconscious Vahn, she couldn’t help but clean the blood from
around his face.

"Eeeeeh!? Isn’t he way too handsome?" She was shocked when she finally saw his
face. Her heart, which had just recently calmed down, began to beat loudly in her
chest.

With a flustered expression and a mild blush, she stared closely into the face of
the sleeping boy...

After a while, she looked around to confirm there was nobody in the area before
mocking herself for her caution. Trying to calm herself, she began to focus on the
boy once again. She reached out her hand ...and started poking him in the cheek.
"Ehehehe- Such a cute sleeping face."

While this was happening, the seemingly unconscious Vahn couldn’t help but sweat
internally. Although his body had been put into a ’dormant’ state by the effigy, he
was still aware of everything going on around him. He could feel the softness of
the thighs on the back of his head and the muttering of the girl as she gently
poked his cheek while laughing.

Vahn remembered how Bell had saved her in the original plot, and how she began to
follow him around after the event. He began to worry she would become attached to
him in the same way, but tried putting the issue to the back of his mind
temporarily.

There was no way he could have ignored her suffering as it had happened right in
front of him. He didn’t regret saving her, nor how he had almost died due to the
intermixing of the two opposing energies within his body. His only regret was the
fact she had to suffer for so long in the first place. While he was running around
training, interacting with people, and enjoying good food...she was still under the
oppressive influence of her supposed comrades from the same Familia...

Though, this situation wasn’t all bad. This incident proved that his strength was
growing rapidly, and he was beginning to possess the strength that would allow him
to alter the fate of those around him. If they had met sooner, he would still have
tried to save her, but the outcome may have been vastly different. It was fortunate
that the scumbags were all only level 1, and weren’t very proficient in combat due
to their lifestyle choices. Vahn knew his future opponents would be far more
powerful, proficient, and experienced in combat, planning, and tactics.

At this time Lili had begun to stroke his head while mumbling under her breath.
Vahn’s instincts told him it would be very dangerous to listen to what she was
saying since he was supposed to be unconscious right now. To distract himself, he
began reviewing the changes in his status as a result of the fight and his previous
exploration of the dungeon.

Name: [Vahn Mason]

Age: 14

Race: Human, *sealed*

Parameters: [Danmachi: 1-4]

-Level:1[+](0)

-Power: S909 -> SS1001

-Endurance: B740 -> SS1108

-Dexterity: A833 -> A887

-Agility: A889 -> S940

-Magic: SSS1493 -> SSS1611

-Total: 4864 -> 5547

Soul Strength: Tier 2 (Hero Soul)

Karma: 721 -> 749

He now had raw stats nearing the peak strength of a Level 2 while his Magic and
Endurance had grown to monstrous values. It turns out the collision of the forces
within his body had helped to temper his endurance. Most surprising of all though
was that his [Pain Tolerance: S] had evolved into a new innate skill called
[Rakshasa Body].

[Rakshasa Body]

Rank: Innate, (H) *Innate skills cannot be identified. Attempts to do so will

result in a backlash.*

[Passive]: Provides a moderate increase to pain resistance. Allows the body to

disperse internal forces. Promotes natural recovery rate.

[Active]: Increases power and endurance based on damage received. Heavy stamina
consumption.

This became Vahn’s second innate skill, and would probably become one of his trump
cards in the future. He looked forward to being able to test its effects, but the
active component of the skill worried him a bit...

Vahn continued going through his status and had begun to grow bored, so he made
casual conversation with Sis. She was sulking a bit since Vahn had gone into a
’rage’ state where he once again became unresponsive, but she forgave him since it
was brought about by his resolve to save someone.

(So what are you going to do with her?) She asked, more mechanically than usual.

Vahn thought before ’shaking’ his head. ("I’m not sure Sis. The only thing I
thought about was saving her. What she does from now on is up to her.")

(Oh? Is that really the case?)

Vahn was confused by the questioning tone. ’Was she still angry with him for
earlier?’

(Now that you’ve saved her, you have to take responsibility for your actions. If
you don’t take care of her she’ll just end up in a similar situation in the future.
That is unless you plan to wipe out the Soma Familia and every other disreputable
adventurer in the entire City?)

That was one of the things Vahn was worried about as well. Lili was still young,
probably between 12-13 years old. She had no parents to care for her, and the Soma
Familia was full of scumbags and scoundrels that only cared about making money to
satiate their addiction. The biggest factor...was that she was weak. Even if she
wanted to become independent, she was unable to do so because of her lack of
talent. That’s why she was so easily exploited by mere level 1 adventurers.

The only options seemed to require that he either: take care of her and protect her
or, help her become strong enough to protect herself. He knew she wanted to become
stronger, but lacked both the confidence and the aptitude to do so.

("Sis, can I purchase items from the shop to help increase her strength?") Vahn was
curious, as the thought of using his system to empower others hadn’t really crossed
his mind before.

(It is impossible Vahn. Unless you were able to alter the structure of their body,
they wouldn’t be able to use the items within the System. The only reason you’re
able to do so is that The Path’ had integrated with your soul and took part in the
construction of your current body. The energy contained within your body is
’source’ energy, while the inhabitants of this world use ’mana’. There is a
fundamental difference between the structure of your body and the body of those
born within the ’records’.)

("Wait, does that mean [Senzu Beans] don’t work on people in this world? And what
about equipment?") After finding out about the differences in his body, he asked
about the pressing matters in his mind. Was it possible that if he had given the
[Senzu Bean] to Lili she would have experienced the same thing he had gone
through!? The thought brought a chill to his mind.

(That is correct, but it’s not as bad as you’re imagining. Since the essence
contained within the bean is fundamentally different from this worlds ’mana’, their
body would simply filter it out and disperse it into the atmosphere. The same
’Laws’ that keep the mana contained within their body would expel any foreign
energy. As for equipment, any clothes or armor you purchase is automatically sized
to fit your body. If you wanted to give equipment to others, you would have to
unlock the ’Gift’ function after triggering its quest.)

Vahn relaxed as he listened to the first part of her words, before growing
increasingly interested in the second half. He was relieved that his potential
slip-up wouldn’t have endangered Lili’s life, and was curious about how to trigger
the ’Gift’ function Sis had mentioned.

After asking, Sis informed him that she couldn’t disclose any information about
triggering the system’s functions. He would have to rely on his own efforts to
discover their requirements.

...

After the three-hour imposed dormancy, Vahn finally ’awakened’. Lili, who was
currently smiling as she enjoyed playing with his [Plague Mask] noticed his gaze
and began to blush fiercely.

Vahn tried to lift his head from her lap, but she panicked and held his head down
before speaking in a flustered tone. "Y-y-you shouldn’t be moving so-so-suddenly.
You just woke up after all!" She had been caught up in playing around with his
’unconscious’ body and hadn’t yet prepared herself to interact with him normally.

"I’m fine. I was just knocked unconscious as a side-effect of the item that had
healed my wounds. My body is in perfect health." Though he found her actions
amusing, it was very uncomfortable being held down by his head and neck. He could
easily free himself if he wanted, but he didn’t want to startle the girl before
they had a proper conversation.

Lili reluctantly released his head before hiding her face. As Vahn checked his
body, she would give him curious glances from time to time.

He looked around at the blood and gore surrounding them, and then gazed towards the
shy girl who seemed to be completely oblivious to the corpses and stench
surrounding them. Vahn himself was overcome by the foul smelling odor and ended up
vomiting due to the induced nausea.

Lili gave an incredulous glance at the still retching Vahn, ("He is acting as if he
has never seen a dead body before. Why was he able to kill them in such a ruthless
manner if he can’t even keep calm seeing the result? Could it be...")

"Excuse me Vahn...sama. Could it be you’ve never killed anyone before?" (A/N: Let
me know if using honorifics is odd. I can remove them if people don’t like it.)
Vahn wiped the drool from his mouth and gave her an awkward smile before shaking
his head.

Seeing his response, Lili was overcome with powerful emotions. ("It’s his first
time killing someone, and he did it to save me!?")

She began to panic, thinking her weakness had caused the handsome and innocent boy
to turn into a murderer. She even began to regret that he had saved her in the
first place after seeing how much pain and trouble he had to go through...

Suddenly, a thought hit her. Though she knew his name, she hadn’t even told him
hers’ yet. She was still being influenced by her fear and hate for adventurers, and
even though the boy had saved her life she hadn’t even told him her name even as he
was ’dying’. The second wave of guilt hit her at the realization, and she began to
cry, unable to look into the face of the boy she had wronged so irrevocably.

As she sits, crying at her own realization, a warm hand is placed on her head. She
holds back her tears and looks upwards at the boy who stares at her with a gentle
smile. Feeling his kindness, the guilt in her heart becomes palpable, threatening
to devour her from the inside. She tries to speak out, but can’t seem to form the
words. She wants to apologize but doesn’t know how...

Vahn smiles gently while patting the small girls head. She really is much smaller
than he remembered from the manga. When standing, she is probably only around 105-
110cm, so when she is sitting on the ground like this she looks like a crying
child. He can see loss and guilt in her eyes and knows that she probably blames
herself for everything that happened.

As he tries to comfort her, he begins to recall all the experiences he had on his
date with Chloe. Every word and action seemed to be trying to help him break down
the walls he had built around his heart. She didn’t try to bear his burden or take
advantage of his weakness. Instead, she allowed him to expose himself before her
without judging him for his cowardice. Finally, she helped guide him on a path that
would allow him to overcome his past and even gave him a goal to work towards...

Remembering all this, he looked down at the crying Lili and saw an image of
himself, weak and afraid. It had been such a short period of time, but he was
already able to become much stronger...and Vahn decided he would give her the same
opportunity. He couldn’t live to protect her, but he could help guide her along a
path that would enable her to break free of her fears and inhibitions.

"Do you wish to become stronger?" He gently whispered the words causing Lili’s body
to startle.

She looked towards him with her tear stained face...and nodded. She didn’t want to
be weak. She didn’t want others to suffer like the old couple that had helped her.
She wanted to become strong enough to stand on her own two feet without having
people sacrifice themselves to save her. She wanted to be like the boy in front of
her...

Vahn stood up from his kneeling position and extended his hand towards the crying
Lili. (A/N: Lili is quite smol so Vahn had to kneel to pat her-)

"I am Vahn Mason. If you can trust me, I can help you find your way to the path you
seek."

Staring at the face of the boy, she couldn’t help but imagine that the radiance of
the cave had increased by several folds. After a brief hesitation...she grasped the
outstretched hand.
"I’m Liliruca Arde. Please show me the way...Master Vahn."

...

[View Affection: Liliruca Arde] [Affection: 88[Trust], Intrigue:61[Curious]

(A/N: She uses Master at the end instead of Sama, because it’s more personal. She
sees Vahn as someone that can help her get stronger, instead of just as the boy who
saved her.)

Vahn ran towards the entrance of the dungeon as fast as he could. Behind him, Lili
continued desperately chasing as she became short of breath...

A few hours before...

After agreeing to train Lili, they began getting to know each other better. She
told him about her past, how her parents mistreated her and forced her to work as
soon as she was capable of performing manual labor. She detailed the suffering she
experienced after they both died in the dungeon.

Though she tried becoming an adventurer herself, she was unable to make any
progress into the dungeon since she was just a child. Whenever she tried to team up
with others in the familia, they would force her to perform all the menial chores
like looting magic cores and carrying the luggage. Eventually, it escalated to
full-on exploitation, as they started taking away her earnings for their own use.
Fearing for her life, she ended up fleeing the familia and became a street orphan.

Eventually, a kind elderly couple picked her up, and for a time she was happy. They
bought her nice clothes and treated her well for the first time in her life, and
she did her best to help out in the shop and earn their praise.

Unfortunately, the group that had been taking her money ended up tracking her down.
As punishment for her escape, they trashed the shop of the elderly couple before
leaving a devastated Lili behind. The old couple that had been so kind to her
before now looked at her with eyes of blame and scorn.

That night, she cried in an alleyway as she hid from the rain. Several days later,
the same men that had forced her to a corner offered her a job. She would have to
act as their supporter when they entered the dungeon, and in exchange, they would
give her 1% of the earnings. If she refused, they would make sure that anyone who
showed her kindness would meet the same fate as the couple.

Swallowing her tears, she accepted their offer...and that is when her true hell
began. The men would often keep what little she earned while giving various
reasons, often citing her incompetence as an excuse. The leader of the group even
came up with the idea of forcing her to pay a ’protection fee’ for keeping her from
harm in the dungeon. Because of this, there were times when she would go days
without eating until she collapsed from hunger. They would then give her rotten
vegetables and stale bread while she tried to recover her strength.

After that things got even worse. Whenever the men got bored, they would force her
to perform embarrassing acts like walking on all fours and barking like a dog while
begging for food. As she continued to age, some of them even tried forcing her to
engage in sexual acts, and when she resisted they beat her until she was unable to
move. When they were done, they poured defective recovery potions onto her wounds
and dropped her body into an alleyway to survive the night.

Following that event, she stopped talking, and even when they tried forcing her to
act like an animal she just stood there until they got frustrated and beat her. She
learned not to resist, as it only brought them a sadistic glee and extended the
duration of the beating. All she could think about was preserving her dignity and
saving enough money to buy her freedom and escape the familia for good...

Other than working for her tormentors, she started working as a ’Support-for-Hire’
for newbie adventurers. She would find targets that had yet to become accustomed to
the dungeon and lure them into a situation of false-security before stealing their
valuables. Though she did her best to ensure they would be able to escape, things
didn’t always go as planned.

One of the young adventurers she had tricked ended up believing she hadn’t
abandoned him and continued fighting instead of running away. Lili watched in
horror as he inevitably succumbed to the assault, and for the first time, she saw
someone die. She was unable to sleep for more than a week after that, as flashbacks
of watching the boy be ripped limb-from-limb replayed itself endlessly in her mind.

Seeing the state she was in, the people that had been exploiting her increased
their efforts in tormenting her. They refused to let her stay inside if she was
unwilling to work, and even emptied waste bins onto her while forcing her to stay
in the trash pile with her ’real family’...

...

Vahn listened in silence as Lili continued her story. It was far worse than
anything shown in the manga, and he genuinely wondered how she was able to survive
for so long. At least he had a mother who loved him, even though he wasn’t able to
meet her until his death...but Lili, her parents treated her as a tool to make
their lives easier. While he got to experience the kindness of Klyscha and obtain
’The Path’, Lili had to continue living in a world surrounded by people that
tormented and exploited her. When he heard the part where she was almost raped, he
nearly shattered the bones in his hand after hitting the dungeon wall.

He had experienced a tragic fate far beyond the comprehension of others, but no
matter how bad the experiments got the researchers always took care of his body and
tended to his basic needs. Vahn had never truly experienced the darkness and
depravity that exists within ’civilized’ society.

After she was finished telling her story, Lili looked towards Vahn to gauge his
expression. It was the first time in her life she had spoken so much about herself,
and she felt like if she saw disgust or disbelief on his face..she would fall to a
place she would never be able to return from.

She wasn’t looking for pity or understanding, she just wanted to expose everything
to the boy who had gone so far to help her. And what she saw brought the first real
smile she had shown since her happy days back in the flower shop. She didn’t see
any pity in his eyes, nor things like contempt or disgust. Instead, there was a
righteous flame burning within. She could see that he was imagining all the things
in her past and that if he could, he would change it and save her from that fate.

The darkness that had been building in the back of her mind began to dissipate, so
she did the only thing she could think of to convey her feelings. She smiled.

Vahn, noticing the change, reached out his hand...wiping away the tears that had
begun to mar her smiling face.

After that, they continued to talk, this time about the future. Vahn told her his
intention of becoming she strongest adventurer, which brought a smile to her face.

Lili began to ask him various questions about his life, likes, and dislikes. She
wanted to know where he came from, what kinds of foods he enjoyed, things that he
hated...and even asked about his preference in women.

Vahn answered each question to the best of his ability while trying to skim over
areas that would reveal the existence of the system. He told her that he lived in
the Western Forests with his grandpa before coming to Orario after he passed away.
For food, he said he liked pretty much anything he has eaten after arriving in the
City. As for dislikes...he hated people that exploited others for their own
benefit.

When she heard him mention that, Lili smiled and nuzzled against him. Feeling her
touch, Vahn smiled and gently patted her head.

When he got to the part about his preference in women, Lili began listening closely
with a fierce glint in her eyes. "I’m not too sure. I haven’t really met anyone I
don’t like so far..."

Hearing him, she couldn’t help but respond, "Eeehh? That isn’t a real answer Vahn-
sama!" She began to pout, thinking he was just beating around the bush.

Vahn really didn’t know what to say to make her understand. He felt it would be
awkward to say he liked girls like Chloe, because it wasn’t really anything about
her appearance that drew him to her. After he got over his apprehension with how
she used to look at him, he just began to enjoy her company...

Lili changed the topic after seeing the serious expression on his face, "By the way
Vahn-sama. What familia are you in?" Given his strength, she assumed he was
probably a core member in a B rank familia.

"Ah, I’m not in a familia yet. I just arrived in the City six..days....ago." Vahn
trailed off the last part of his sentence and began to release a cold sweat. Lili
noticed his expression and wanted to ask, but Vahn grabbed her hand and started
running up the stairs at a fast pace.

"Vahn-saaaaamaaa- What’s going ooooon!?" Unable to keep pace, she half ran, half
allowed-herself-to-be-dragged up the stairs.

Vahn noticed she was struggling and released her arm while slowing his pace a bit.
"I just remembered that my temporary identification slip expires today! I also need
to renew my room at the Inn I’m staying at before the day ends!" Vahn checked the
time within the system as he ran. It was already 6:29 PM and the gate closed at
9:00 PM. Though he wouldn’t get in any trouble unless he was caught, he didn’t want
to walk around the City illegally and cause unnecessary trouble.

"Wait, Vahn-sama! I can’t leave behind my pack!" Though it didn’t have much, it
still contained all of her possessions. Lili didn’t want to leave it behind to be
lost in the dungeon.

Vahn stopped before returning to the rest area and picking up the pack. Lili tried
to take it from him, but he just stored the entire thing into his inventory. She
stared at him with a slack-jawed expression while he ’revealed’ the existence of
his storage magic. Without further explaining he started running upstairs, leaving
a dumbfounded Lili behind.

"Then what use do I have..." Knowing Vahn had such a convenient magic, she wouldn’t
be able to use the excuse of following him as Supporter easily in the future. She
began trying to think of ways to spend more time with him, before hearing a shout
from further up the path.

"Lili, are you coming!?" Vahn was confused since Lili hadn’t been following him. He
ended up stopping and shouting to get her attention.

She startled before shouting back, "A-ah, yes Vahn-sama! I’m coming, don’t leave me
behind!"

(A/N: Don’t ask me why I had to add "don’t leave me behind" to the end of that
sentence.)

Return to the present...

The two continued to run before stopping at the corridor to the first floor. Vahn
removed the backpack from his inventory before returning it to Lili’s possession.
Seeing her gasping for air, he let her catch her breath and handed over his
[Decanter of Replenishment].

Lili stared at the mouth of the canteen for a few moments before taking a few large
gulps of water. She attempted to drain it dry but was surprised after finding the
amount never seemed to decrease. Her excuse to continue the ’indirect kiss’ flew
out the window as she dejectedly returned the canteen.

Vahn also took a drink since he was rather thirsty and noticed a crimson blush
appear on Lili’s face. He looked at her curiously before putting away the canteen.
"What’s wrong Lili?"

She simply turned her head away before picking up her backpack and headed towards
the entrance. Vahn followed after her until they finally arrived on the first floor
of Babel. At the entrance Lili made Vahn promise to meet her the following morning
before saying she had to take care of a few things.

Vahn stared at the retreating figure of the small girl bearing a burden far greater
than her size. He hoped he would be able to allow her to walk freely along her own
path in the future...

(Vahn, are you forgetting something?) Sis interrupted his momentary reverie with an
exasperated tone.

Vahn looked at the nearby clock and saw it was nearly 7:00 PM and began running
towards the direction of the Guild.

Vahn continued running in the direction of the Guild while checking the time within
the system. At his current pace, he would still need around 20 minutes to reach the
Guild, which would leave him less than an hour and a half to make his way to the
City gates and back to the Inn.

He began to sweat after realizing he would most likely be unable to finish

everything in time. It would take several minutes to wait in line at the Guild, and
even if he was seen immediately upon his arrival it would take time to process the
exchange. As his worries began to compound, Vahn felt energy begin to slowly
release from his abdomen as his speed began to slowly increase.

("I can use [Will of the Emperor] to increase my speed!?") Because he hadn’t been
switching between the two recently, he was unaccustomed to the differences between
his normal state and empowered state. He knew the skill seemed to increase his
speed, but thought it was just a result of the increased perception and mobility
within the domain.

While fully activating the skill, Vahn resolved to perform more experiments over
the next few days as he trains Lili. After completely activating [Will of the
Emperor] he noticed his speed more than doubled and began to have hope that there
was enough time to complete everything.

In his gleeful state of mind, he hadn’t been paying attention to the looks of the
surrounding pedestrians. The moment he activated [Will of the Emperor] they felt a
suppressive wave pass through them. They stared in horror as the boy ran with a
terrifying speed through the City streets with a demonic grin on his face. Weaker
civilians even had hallucinations that the boy was the grim reaper himself come to
collect their souls, which resulted in some of them passing out on the spot.

Vahn continued forward blissfully unaware of the rumors he would cause to circulate
in the following days. His only focus was arriving at the Guild as fast as
possible, so he began using some of the alleyways he had previously mapped to
circumvent the populated roads. With his minimap and the mobility he had polished
within the forest and dungeon, he was able to easily navigate through the various
corridors without losing speed.

When he was close to his destination, Vahn began to further increase his speed due
to his excitement. Unfortunately, even with the increased perception brought about
by the skill, he was unable to prevent himself from colliding with the body of a
person that had just walked by the entrance of the alleyway. At the last moment, he
tried to shift his weight to avoid a direct collision and ended up losing his
balance after bumping into the unsuspecting passerby and slamming into the ground.
Hard.

He sat on the ground in a daze, unable to recover from the near head-on-collision.
From an area behind him, he could hear the sound of a woman addressing him.

"Hey kid, are you okay?"

After shaking his head a bit, Vahn looked towards the source of the voice. He fell
into a daze after seeing who had been speaking to him. Looking towards him with an
expression of intrigue stood a character he was familiar with from the manga.

Probably due to her identity as a Goddess, she looked nearly identical to her manga
counterpart. She stood at 165cm with matching red hair and eye. She was garbed in
casual attire, wearing a loose linen blouse and black pants which seemed to hug her
figure. On her arms and legs were a pair of brown knee-high boots and black gloves
that went past her elbows. Her most striking features were her large breasts that
peaked through the open collar of her blouse, and the large black eye-patch
covering the right half of her face.

It was Hephaestus, Master Smith and Goddess of the 3rd ranked Hephaestus Familia.
Vahn knew that she would be the one to receive Hestia in the future and that she
would one day forge the living dagger for Bell which would aid his monstrous
growth.

While he was staring at her, Hephaestus was also evaluating the boy that had nearly
crashed into her. He seemed rather young but had a handsome face with a bit of a
naive and detached look. What caught her eye, and the reason she hadn’t simply
walked away, was the aura being emitted by the boy and the sword that was on his
back.

His aura was remarkably similar to that of a god releasing their divinity, albeit
on a much smaller scale. It seemed to have a repressive force that even made her
soul tremble slightly. She suspected that he was likely the descendant of a god,
but she couldn’t identify which. Her main interest was the sword at his back...

As a goddess of forging, she had seen and practiced almost every technique between
the heavens and earth. This was the first time she saw such a uniquely forged
blade, and the most surprising thing was the materials used in its construction.
Given her eye’s unique ability, she could easily discern between the grade and
constituent materials used to forge a blade. Though it seemed similar to a magical
composite of iron and heavier elements, she couldn’t see through the make-up of the
blade or its grade!

"Hey kid, if you’re not in a hurry I’d like to take a look at that sword on your
back. You can treat it as my accepting your apology for nearly tackling me. What do
you say?" She really wanted to get a better look at the sword, so tried to come up
with an easy compromise that wouldn’t harm either party.

Hearing her speak yet again, Vahn quickly got to his feet before bowing. "I am very
sorry for nearly running into you, but I’m in a hurry right now so I can’t stick
around." He began to turn away to make his way towards the Guild which was just a
few blocks from his current location. From behind, a hand grasped at the collar of
his hood and prevented him from moving forward. Vahn was surprised at the amount of
power in the grip.

"Come on kid, I’m sure whatever it is can wait for a few minutes. What’s the rush?"
Hephaestus didn’t know when she would get a chance to inspect the blade in the
future and seeing how the boy trying to leave without introducing himself or
explaining the situation left a sour expression on her face.

Vahn noticed the look she was giving him so he quickly explained his current
predicament. He was hoping she would be understanding and allow him to leave, but
her reaction surprised him.

"Hahahahaha, is that it? Then it’s no problem at all. Let me introduce myself, kid.
My name is Hephaestus, and I’m the Goddess of the Hephaestus Familia. You should
have heard of me, right?" She gave a cheeky grin which irked Vahn a little, though
he wasn’t sure why.

"My name is Vahn Mason, and yes, I’ve heard of you and your Familia." He could see
her expression light up a bit at his words, and she nodded as if to say, ’of
course, of course-’.

"Then how about a trade, Vahn? My Familia has something called a ’guest pass’ that
can be issued to the merchants that transport materials for us from outside the
City. As long as you hold the pass you’ll be treated as a guest of the Hephaestus
Familia, and none of the City guards would dare harass you. In exchange, I’d like
you to accompany to my workshop nearby so I can inspect that sword on your back.
Deal?"

Vahn weighed her words for a moment before finally nodding. If he could get around
having to run back-and-forth between the guild, gate, and Inn, that would be
helpful. It would also give him the opportunity to build some rapport with
Hephaestus which would make it easier to approach Hestia in the future.

Hephaestus nodded, expecting his agreement before leading the way to a building
nearby. Vahn was surprised when he realized the workshop was in the same commercial
district as the Hearth’s Embrace. He began to realize why so many businesses in the
area seemed to be named after fireplaces and forges...It turns out the main
workshop of Hephaestus was within the same district.
She continued to lead him through the lower floors of the shop that showed a
variety of uniquely designed weapons and equipment. Vahn noticed that none of the
items on display had a price listed, and the security of the store was incredibly
tight. Even with his use of [Will of the Emperor], he could feel a sense of danger
coming from each of the shops’ guards as they gave him a cold glare in response to
his curiosity.

"Hey kid, when are you going to stop emitting that aura of yours? Don’t tell me you
can’t control it?" Hephaestus had been growing a bit annoyed at how much attention
Vahn had been drawing to them. She began to suspect the kid behind her was missing
a few parts inside his head.

"Ah, sorry, I had forgotten about it..." Vahn laughed awkwardly while Hephaestus
just released a big sigh while placing her hand on her forehead.

"Anyways, we’re here. Make sure not to touch anything without permission." She had
led him into a room within the most secure area of the workshop. When he entered he
could see weapons and armor that almost seemed to possess life. Though they weren’t
presently being used, he could feel an aura of danger emitting from the blades
while the armor seemed to possess the unassailable qualities of a mountain. He
could see a large disparity between his own equipment and the masterpieces in front
of him.

While he was staring in awe at the items, Hephaestus gave an appreciative nod
seeing his expression. She sat behind a large desk where several blueprints and
designs could be seen spread out along its width. After cleaning the designs and
storing them away, she tapped the table to get Vahn’s attention.

"Go ahead and place the sword here. And if you don’t mind answering my questions,
that would be helpful." Vahn nodded, but before placing the sword on the table he
asked about the guest pass. Though she seemed a bit annoyed, she removed a metal
emblem from her desk that depicted two hammers crossed over a volcano. She tossed
the emblem towards him, and Vahn stared at it briefly before putting his sword on
the table.

Hephaestus inspected the make of the metal closely and even used various tools to
knock along the length of the blade. She would lightly tap while listening for
something Vahn wasn’t able to hear, and she would nod her head on occasion as if
realizing something from her actions. Vahn was very curious what she was able to
discern from the blade and began to get nervous...

Seemingly satisfied with her investigation, Hephaestus turned towards Vahn with a
curious expression on her face. "Where did you obtain this sword?" This was the
most important question in her mind, as she was genuinely curious about its
origins.

Since he had agreed to answer her questions, Vahn told her the lie he had prepared
while she was inspecting the sword. "It was an heirloom of my deceased Grandfather.
I’m not sure where he got it." Using his ’grandfather’ as an excuse again, Vahn
began to feel indebted to the man he had never met.

"Hmm, and when did he die? What was his profession?" Hephaestus could sense a
feeling of incongruity in his words so decided to pry more deeply. It was very
difficult to hide anything from her eyes, and she was determined to see through the
boy in front of her.

Vahn became nervous seeing the look in her eyes and began to regret agreeing to
come here...
Vahn had begun to regret his decision. His thoughts began racing a mile a minute
through his mind as he tried coming up with a believable story.

"He died several months ago. He was a hunter in the Western Forests where he raised
me. When I was younger he would tell me stories of his youth and his travels as an
Adventurer. I came to the City after his death to follow a similar path."

Before he could continue further, Hephaestus began questioning him again. "Oh? And
where did these adventures of his take place? How long ago was this? And have you
used this sword at all after he left it to you?" She continued pressuring him to
find holes in his story.

Vahn began to get visibly flustered, and his [Will of the Emperor] began to
activate subconsciously. Hephaestus noticed this and began to smile like she had
obtained victory. "These should all be relatively easy questions to answer Vahn.
Unless of course, you’re planning to lie and can’t come up with a viable story?"

Hearing her words, Vahn looked directly into her eye. "Miss Haphaestus, everyone
has things they want to protect. I thought you were just going to ask about the
sword, not my family and background. I don’t think that was part of our original
agreement at all." He decided to take a firm stand to prevent himself from
divulging too much information. [Will of the Emperor] seemed to affirm his stance
as it began to emit a subtle pressure on Hephaestus’s body and mind.

She squinted her eye and looked seriously at the boy in front of her. Perhaps she
did overextend her boundaries by asking so many personal questions. She couldn’t
really fault him for his anger and her trying to divulge his secrets. Sighing, she
eased her expression a bit before continuing. "My bad. I won’t ask about your past,
but I’m still curious if you’ve used the sword since obtaining it. That should be
an easy enough question to answer."

Vahn calmed down and began to repress his [Will of the Emperor] a bit. He thought
about the question a bit before deciding it wasn’t too far outside their original
agreement. "Yes. I’ve been using the sword in the dungeon for a few days now."

Hearing his words, Hephaestus felt her curiosity grow exponentially. She had
determined the blade was a composite iron that had been reforged more than one-
hundred times using a variety of unique techniques. Though the blade was carved
with a powerful enchantment, she could infer it only increased the sharpness of the
blade and not its durability. Given the low quality of the materials, there would
be no way to prevent the blade from accumulating the signs of use. However, the
blade before her was in a pristine condition...almost as if it had been forged and
polished hours ago.

"And how far into the dungeon have you ventured? What level are you? Since you have
a temporary pass, I’m assuming you are a freelancer, right?"

Vahn noticed she had begun to deviate from the topic again, but since the questions
didn’t ask about his past he decided to respond. He didn’t want to offend her by
avoiding questions that most people would be willing to answer. "I’ve gone down to
the 7th floor alone, and I’m still level 1 since I’ve never joined a Familia
before."

Hephaestus’s eyebrow shot up hearing his response. He was still lv 1 but had gone
into the 7th floor of the dungeon alone? This confirmed her suspicion that the boy
was keeping a secret, and she began to wonder how to get him to divulge it before a
plan began to form in her mind.
"Vahn, I’ve understood the composition of this sword and know that it isn’t made of
a very durable material. How are you able to keep the blade in such pristine shape
if what you’ve said is true? The blade should wear down after cutting through so
many monsters, and their body fluids should dull the blade after continued use. I
can tell there is an enchantment to enhance the sharpness, but it still wouldn’t
explain the current state." Instead of looking directly at him, she began to
closely inspect the runes on the blade, pretending she was only mildly interested
in the answer.

Vahn didn’t think the question was abnormal, so he told her that he maintained the
blade using whetstones.

Hephaestus couldn’t help thinking, ’he maintains the blade himself using
whetstones?’. As a master blacksmith, she had used hundreds-of-thousands of
whetstones during her time, and nothing would be able to emulate the result of the
blade in her hands. "Can I see one of the whetstones you use? I’m quite curious
what material can bring out so much luster in a sword."

Without thinking too much, Vahn decided to hand over one of the whetstones. As far
as he knew, there wasn’t a difference between the ones he used and normal stones.
When he passed the flat piece of rock to Hephaestus, both of their eyes lit up when
the stone launched itself out of her hand of its own volition.

They both stared at the stone that had fallen to the floor with blank expressions.
Hephaestus looked incredulously towards Vahn for an explanation as Sis began
speaking in his mind. (Vahn, you can’t give items to people that were obtained
through the system without activating the ’Gift’ function. That is especially the
case for items obtained from other records.)

Vahn remembered that this was indeed the case, and moved to pick up the stone. He
returned an awkward smile at Hephaestus who continued to stare at his movements.
"Sorry Miss Hephaestus, it doesn’t seem like others can use the stone."

Hephaestus was very curious about the implications behind his words and asked that
she be allowed to examine the stone while he held it. Nodding, Vahn moved forwards
and extended his hand holding the stone. Hephaestus used her eye to look as closely
as possible but was unable to see anything unique about the whetstone in his hand.
It seemed to be made of Novaculite and other dense minerals, and she was unable to
sense any enchantments or curses that would prevent others from holding it.

As a test, she tried using her tools to interact with the stone without making
physical contact, but there seemed to be a small rebounding force repelling the
tools on contact. She was more confused that she had ever been and began to develop
a powerful curiosity about the origin of the stone. "Vahn, where did you obtain
this whetstone? It seems like a common stone, but has a mysterious force even my
’god’s eye’ can’t detect."

Vahn began to realize he had made a mistake. What he thought was a simple whetstone
ended up drawing unnecessary interest from the Goddess before him, and he was
unable to think of an explanation. While he was thinking, Hephaestus reached
towards one of the weapons that had been displayed near her desk. She used a
strange cloth to mar the surface of the blade and reduce the luster it emitted.

Turning to Vahn, she handed him the blade. "I want to see your skills. Show me how
you use that whetstone. Since I can’t handle it myself, I want to see how it
affects a high-quality item."

Since Vahn didn’t know how to dig himself out of his current predicament, he
decided it would be best to just move forward without stepping back. If he
retreated now he would feel pathetic, and he didn’t want to create friction between
himself and the third most powerful Goddess within the City. He grabbed the blade
and began using the whetstone as he had done many times before.

Hephaestus stared closely, and the first thing she noticed was that he had no idea
how to properly handle a whetstone. She began to suspect he had been lying to her
the entire time, but as the stone came into contact with the blade her concerns
vanished. The moment the whetstone touched the marred blade, it began to glow with
a subtle white luminance that only a god would be able to see. Each successive
stroke of the whetstone increased the luminance until the third stroke, where the
blade flashed a bright light before being restored to its pinnacle state. Even the
nick in the blade she had left had completely vanished.

She grabbed the sword as he handed it to her, and began to inspect it from every
conceivable angle. The blade was in perfect condition! It was even polished to a
state unattained by the previous sword, as it had yet to be sharpened properly
since it was just a display piece. Now the blade had a cold gleam that seemed to be
able to cut anyone that stared at it too intensely. As a test, she used another one
of the display pieces and crossed the two blades and inspected the result. The
first sword had easily cut into the blade of the second, even though their
materials and construction were of similar qualities...

She looked towards the stone in Vahn’s hand with intrigue but noticed that it had
turned into dust. "What happened to the whetstone?" She couldn’t understand how the
stone turned to dust when it was previously in a whole, unused, state.

Vahn shrugged at the question and gave what he thought was an obvious response,
"They always break after one use."

She could tell he was speaking the truth and lamented at the loss of the godly
tool. Even if the whetstone was a single-use item, it could be a powerful asset to
any familia adventuring into the dungeon. If it could restore the state of damaged
weapons to their optimal form, it would be an incredibly useful tool for long
expeditions. "Can you tell me how you found that stone Vahn? It could save a lot of
lives in the dungeon if people didn’t have to worry about their weapons breaking
down from overuse."

Vahn shook his head and decided to speak the truth. "I can’t really tell you where
I got them since it is an important secret I can’t divulge to anyone..."

-Optional Quest Triggered-

[Quest: Convince Hephaestus to Reveal her Eye]

Rank:(G)

Rewards: Development Ability: [Blacksmith], 1x Hephaestus’ Favor

Failure Conditions: Death, 30 seconds pass [0:19S]

Penalty: 100 Karma

Vahn was surprised at the notification that appeared mid-sentence and became
shocked after seeing the failure conditions. He had less than 20 seconds
remaining!? Since he was unable to come up with a viable excuse, he decided to
repeat his last sentence. "I can’t really tell you where I got them since it’s a
secret, but I can use them to assist the Hephaestus Familia if..."

Though she was disappointed he was unwilling to divulge the information about the
whetstones, she became curious seeing the hesitation in his body as he slowly
trailed his words. "If what Vahn?"

"I will use the whetstones to aid your familia if you let me see what is under your
eyepatch. Since its something deeply related to my secret, it would only be fair to
reveal something of your own..."

Hearing the continuation of his words, all the curiosity she had previously faded
away. Now there was a melancholic and sad expression on her face, and Vahn almost
blurted out an apology by reflex. He kept trying to think of how to convince her to
reveal her eye and began to panic as the timer counted down.

Hephaestus sighed but noticed that Vahn had begun to panic when her mood changed.
She thought he was just curious and hadn’t meant to offend her. He was right; she
had tried time-and-again to pry out his secrets without exchanging anything even
after offending him earlier. If he wanted to see her eye in exchange for those
magical whetstones, it was a fair trade considering the benefits she could gain for
her Familia.

"Very well Vahn...but know that what lays under my eyepatch isn’t something
interesting or mysterious. In fact, it might even disgust you...do you still want
to see whats underneath?" She looked into his eyes as he began to calm down. She
could see his eyes were clear as he returned her gaze before giving a gentle smile.

"Please. I really want to see." Vahn knew she was often looked down on by the gods
in heaven, and that was the reason she had become friends with Hestia. Hestia was
the only Goddess that had seen her eye without showing fear or disgust. Though he
hadn’t thought to ask before the quest triggered, he was genuinely curious what
made so many gods ostracize one of their own, especially when she was such an
accomplished blacksmith.

Hephaestus saw he didn’t waver, so she removed her eyepatch. After a brief
hesitation, she slowly looked at the boy to gauge his reaction. Though she tried to
pretend she wasn’t worried, her eye had been a trauma to her for so long that she
subconsciously lost confidence whenever anyone gazed upon it. She looked towards
him, expecting to see the familiar disgust or contempt that everyone except her
best friend Hestia showed...but it wasn’t there. He still had the gentle smile on
his face as he gazed directly into her disfigured eye. There wasn’t any disgust or
feigned calmness, only an undisguised intrigue, relief, and even...concern?

As various thought began circulating through her head, Vahn continued to observe
the eye. The white sclera had turned completely black, surrounding the glowing
crimson eye at its core. The eye looked almost demonic, a thought that would only
be emphasized when seeing the malformed skin around the socket. It seemed like the
skin had dried into a wrinkled red mess like a bloodstain surrounding her eye.

Vahn was actually relieved seeing the eye since it wasn’t nearly as bad as he
expected given the mentions in the story. If anything, he even thought it looked
kind of cool...but he could see by the expression on Hephaestus’s face that it
brought her a lot of pain. He began thinking of ways to cure it and started
inquiring with Sis for a solution.

Hephaestus continued to stare into the face of the boy and noticed that he was able
to easily look directly at her for such a long period of time without changing. Her
interest in the boy began to grow, as he was only the second person in her several-
million-year lifespan to react this way. She almost felt the urge to cry as she
continued to enjoy the kindness in his gaze.

"You aren’t afraid of my eye Kid? Isn’t it disgusting like a monster?" She saw his
expression change for the first time since removing her eyepatch. He seemed
confused at her question.

"That’s a dumb question. Though your eye might be different, it doesn’t change who
you are. Why would I be afraid of you after all our interactions so far?" This was
genuinely what Vahn thought since he always respected the actions Hephaestus took
in the anime. She was always kind to the people she cared about and even forged
Bell a 200,000,000V dagger just for her friend Hestia. She didn’t deserve to be
looked at like a monster by those around her since she was actually a kind and
gentle girl.

Hephaestus was shocked. She couldn’t see any falsity in his words and could tell
that he was actually offended not by her eye, but the fact she thought he would be
afraid of it. She decided she had to re-evaluate this kid and began to examine his
features a bit and noticed that he was actually quite handsome, albeit a bit
young...Given a few years, he would likely grow to be a capable Adventurer, and he
was currently without a Familia. There was also the unique aura he possessed which
likely meant his "Grandfather" wasn’t a simple adventurer turned hunter...

A lightbulb went off inside her head as she looked towards Vahn with both her eyes
gleaming. "Vahn, would you like to join my Familia?"

Hearing Hephaestus ask him to join her Familia, Vahn began seriously considering
the idea. He knew if he wanted to grow stronger without drawing too much attention
he would need a strong backer, and the Hephaestus Familia was one of the best.
There was also a chance that he can convince Hephaestus herself to forge him a
weapon since many of the ones within the shop were higher quality than his current
sword. If he could get a weapon that can grow, he would have a much easier time in
the future when he delves further into the dungeon.

He began to consider his other options, such as the Loki Familia. He was really
interested in joining that Familia, as it was home to many memorable characters
like Finn, Riveria, the Amazoness twins Tione and Tiona, as well as the infamous
airhead Ais, who Bell had fallen for in the manga. His main reason for not joining
was because he wanted to join the Hestia Familia later, and there was an ongoing
discourse between Loki and Hestia.

Seeing him in deep contemplation, Hephaestus didn’t know why, but she began to get
a little nervous. She wanted him to join her Familia, but didn’t want to pressure
him too hard since he may end up being pushed away if she was too firm. Thinking it
was due to how she expressed interest in the whetstones that was causing his
indecisiveness, she tried explaining things in a manner that would help alleviate
his concerns.

"If you’re worried I just want to use you for your access to the whetstones, then
don’t be. My reasons for asking you to join the Familia have nothing to do with any
of that. I’m just...curious about your potential. I won’t force you to reveal your
secrets without your consent, I just want to see how far you can go with my
support." Towards the latter half of her words, she began to feel her face heat up.
This wasn’t like her usual self.

Hearing the reason she had come up with, Vahn couldn’t help but let out a smile.
Maybe he was overthinking things too much, as there weren’t really any downsides to
being in a Familia in the first place. He also knew Hephaestus wasn’t the type to
divulge secrets about the people she cared about. This would also allow him to get
close to people within the Loki Familia, since the two different Familia often
teamed up together when going on expeditions into the dungeon.

"Thank you, Hephaestus...sama. I would very much like the opportunity to join your
Familia." He gave the most polite bow he could manage and waited for her response.

Staring at the boy bowing before her, Hephaestus felt an uncomfortable feeling in
her chest. Though she didn’t mind him calling her ’Miss’ earlier, now that he was
agreeing to join the Familia at her request it felt awkward having him address her
with ’Sama’. It was almost like a wall was built between them, and she wanted to
smash it down to prevent future complications.

"Call me Hephaestus." She stated firmly, causing Vahn to look towards her in
confusion. Seeing his expression, she turned her head as a warmth crept onto her
cheeks. "I said, you can call me Hephaestus. There is no need for sama or anything
like that..."

Vahn nodded in agreement but found her actions to be very peculiar. It was almost
like she was...shy? He knew she had a soft spot for people due to her trauma, but
he didn’t imagine it had such an immediate effect on their relationship. He
actually felt a bit guilty but shook the thought away since he genuinely didn’t
find her eye to be disgusting. In fact, he wanted to help her heal it, but the only
solution Sis came up with was to learn alchemy.

Noticing she had started looking at him as if waiting for his response, Vahn smiled
while gently calling, "Hephaestus."

Hearing the intimate way in which he spoke, it felt like electricity went up the
back of her spine. She could feel her heartbeat accelerate, and tried to cover her
embarrassment with a cough. "Hmmf, anyways. Let’s go ahead an perform the crest
ceremony. I want to see how strong you are and if you have any potential in
becoming a blacksmith. Don’t worry though, even if you can’t become one, I’ll still
allow you to be my assistant...or you can venture into the dungeon and collect
materials. Though most of the members in my Familia are craftsman, we aren’t
completely without capable explorers, else we’d be at the mercy of other Familia to
procuring materials."

As she spoke she pulled out a chair and positioned it in the center of the room.
She was trying to remain calm but still noticed that her heartbeat had yet to
normalize. Gesturing for Vahn to sit, the next words actually got caught in her
mouth.

After waiting for a few seconds without anything happening, Vahn looked curiously
towards Hephaestus who seemed to be in a daze. "Hephaestus?" When he spoke he saw
her flinch before giving him a weird look.

"It’s nothing...You just need to remove...your shirt." She didn’t know why she had
such a hard time saying such simple words. Though she appreciated the fact he
didn’t shy away after revealing her eye, she didn’t think she had fallen for him.
He wasn’t even a fully grown man yet!

As she watched him remove his clothes, she could help but have her eyes drawn to
his body. He had a very athletic figure and wasn’t overly muscular. His physique
was likely the result of intense training, and she could see the lines of his
muscle drawn into his lean frame. She began to feel like she was developing a
devious tendency as she struggled to pull her eyes from his body.

After removing his shirt and cloak, Vahn sat with his flesh exposed to the air
while leaning against the backrest of the chair. Waiting a few moments, he began to
turn around as a voice interrupted him.

"Stay facing forward, I’m going to begin. Try to relax, since the ceremony can
sometimes cause discomfort." Hephaestus couldn’t understand what her own expression
might be, and she didn’t want Vahn to see the look on her.

Staring at the well-developed back muscles, she slowly placed her finger to his
back after pricking it with a needle. She began to mutter an incantation as she
draws the crest of her Familia onto his back. Though she is a bit distracted by the
physical contact she manages to complete the ceremony without incident. Throughout
the entire duration, she noticed Vahn was able to maintain his posture without
flinching in the slightest. ’He must have good tolerance’, she thought as she began
to inspect his new status board.

What she saw just about sent her soul back to Heaven.

Name: [Vahn Mason]

-Level:1

-Power: SS1001

-Endurance: SS1108

-Dexterity: A887

-Agility: S940

-Magic: SSS1611

Skills: [Bow Mastery:C], [Stealth:D], [Chainbreaker:S], [Yggdrasil’s Favor:S],

[Veil of the Traveler: S]

Magic: Empty

Development Skills: [Wound Transfer:B], [Spirit Healing:B], [Blacksmith:F]

His lowest parameter was A, and even possessed three stats over the limit!? And how
did he have so many skills related to stealth and concealment!? She remembered he
claimed to come from the Western Forests, so it wasn’t too much of a stretch to
have a way to survive, but his current skills seemed a bit obsessive. He even had
three skills she had never seen before, and each of them had incredible effects
that would incite jealousy from other gods.

However, what she didn’t expect was that Vahn still had skills she couldn’t even
detect through reading the status board. Had she known, she may have passed out on
the spot due to the sheer ridiculous of the situation.

Though she desperately wanted to ask what kind of circumstances he had, Hephaestus
decided it could wait till a later date. He had already joined her Familia, and
there would be plenty of time to question him when he opened up on his own.

"Vahn, your stats are incredible for a Level 1. They’re some of the highest I’ve
ever seen, and your magic stat is probably some kind of record...When I infuse my
Falna into you to complete the ceremony, it’ll consume all the exilia you’ve
obtained from slaying monsters and increase your level. Are you okay with that?"

Vahn thought for a moment before nodding. Ever since he rescued Lili earlier, there
had been an ache within his body even after the full recovery from the effigy.
After asking about it, Sis told him it was due to overtaxing his body as a result
of his rampant growth. Without leveling up it would become increasingly difficult
to increase his parameters, and even if he could it may result in his body
exploding due to the stress.

Hephaestus dripped another drop of blood and updated Vahn’s Status board. She
looked for any changes that may have appeared as a result of the increase and was
surprised to see he had gained an additional two skills, bringing the total to
seven normal and three development.

Vahn could feel the change in his body as his pressure in his abdomen broke through
some kind of floodgate that had been preventing the energy of his body from
properly dispersing. It felt very refreshing, and he could see the two new skills
that had been obtained through the system.

[Swordsman:D]

Increases comprehension of sword skills and techniques. Provides a slight increase

to the kinetic vision and spatial awareness of the user.

[Featherfoot:E]

Increases comprehension of movement abilities and footwork. Provides a moderate

increase to stealth related abilities.

As he was reading the newly acquired skills, Hephaestus had used some kind of
parchment to transfer his information. When she was finished she handed the paper
to Vahn with a tired look.

"I knew there was something special about you, but you’re really something else. I
don’t even know what to say when you’ve managed to acquire so many skills while
still being level 2. Even with my eye, I can’t see the limit of your potential.
Fortunately, you have the [Blacksmith] development ability, so I can at least guide
you with that. I can also introduce you to a swordsmanship instructor later if you
want."

Vahn dressed while listening to the Hephaestus speak. He looked over the paper she
had given him and saw that all his parameters had reset to I10, which was also
reflected in the system. Fortunately, he had the advantage of seeing his hidden
stats, so it wasn’t too sorry a sight.

He turned towards Hephaestus while giving a slight bow. "Thanks, Hephaestus. I look
forward to your guidance." Vahn could see her look away, and couldn’t help but
smile.

Seeing how Vahn was seemingly taking advantage of her, she got a little annoyed but
decided to ignore it. She grabbed a hammer from the wall next to her desk before
triggering a mechanism which revealed a secret workshop. Gesturing for Vahn to
follow, he began to trail in her direction before they both stopped next to a forge
that burned with an eternal flame.

"You might have a monstrous level of talent for combat, but let’s see how much
potential you have as a blacksmith." She turned towards Vahn with a unrivaled
confidence on her face. Unlike all the emotions she had shown to him previously,
this was what Vahn felt to be her most suitable expression.
Vahn nodded, taking a seat next to the forge to observe her actions. It wasn’t
every day a person had the chance to watch an actual ’Goddess of Smithing’ display
her skills. He began to focus on her every word and movement as she began to
process of teaching him how to forge.

Hephaestus started the process by taking a rough piece of metal that had been
soaking in solution to remove the impurities contained within the ore. She then
inserted it into a heat-resistant container that could withstand the heat of the
’eternal flame’ within the forge. She would periodically remove the super-heated
metal before inspecting before hammering away any slag buildup.

Vahn watched the process and marveled at how methodically she performed each step.
She seemed to be extremely relaxed, but there was an intense focus in her eyes
which created the illusion they could see through anything. Every small change in
the metal was easily noticed by her gaze, and she used the magical hammer within
her hands to beat out the imperfections within the ore. After what seemed like
several hours, which was in fact only a few minutes, she finally withdrew the
purified metal and began shaping it into the shape of a bar.

"This is the process for refining an ingot. The metal you saw me use is the
magisteel alloy used in some of our higher end products. We use mana to force out
any impurities within the raw iron ore and then enhance the structure of the
resultant material using pressure. During this phase, you can use your hammer to
reinforce the structure of the metal and give it a magically charged nature. This
allows it to conduct mana for use in skills, and with enough practice, you’ll even
be able to incorporate special qualities into the metal."

Seeing the befuddled look on his face during her explanation, she began to laugh
before setting the metal on a nearby platform to cool. "You don’t have to worry
about it too much, Vahn. What you just saw was the process of countless hours of
effort and experimentation. As long as you understand the basic principles, you’ll
get the hang of it as you accumulate more experience. Here, give it a try. I’ll
walk you through it step-by-step."

She offered the hammer she had used to refine the magisteel, and Vahn took it into
his hands. His first impression was that it was much heavier than he expected. If
not for his increase in strength the past week, he may not even be able to lift it.
He was half tempted to put it into his inventory for analysis but decided to focus
on the task at hand.

Removing a piece of raw iron from the solution, he began trying to replicate the
process of creating the ingot. He noticed it was very difficult to position the ore
within the flame, and even small miscalculations would result in the loss of iron
to the fire. Understanding this was probably the reason why Hephaestus would often
remove the ore from the flame, he began trying to look for any change in the metal
to indicate it needed to be removed.

Hephaestus watched and gave an appreciative nod seeing his progress. Though it was
very obvious he was a beginner, his attention to detail when making mistakes showed
he possessed the observational prowess to become a blacksmith. She continued to
watch as he processed the ore and offered him words of advice when necessary.

Vahn’s focus began to increase to it’s maximum allowance, and he began to struggle
while trying to handle the raw iron. Whenever he removed it from the flame to beat
out the impurities, he noticed it was actually very difficult to shape the
material. The hammer’s weight aided in the effort, but he was unable to shape the
metal as he desired.
"Remember Vahn, you need to focus and channel your mana through the hammer strikes.
It will make it easier to shape the metal." Hephaestus understood why he was having
difficulties. Because of his monstrous stats, she had decided to pressure him by
allowing him to use a hammer from her personal collection. Without proper control,
he wouldn’t be able to shape the metal, but she believed that his SSS magic stat
would allow him to adapt to the situation with practice.

Hearing her advice, Vahn took a deep breath and tried to relax. If it was an issue
of control and focus, he just had to use his trump card. He activated his [Will of
the Emperor] and his domain spread throughout the entire forge.

Hephaestus frowned a bit at the act, but once she saw him continue working the
metal she gave an appreciative nod. The moment he activated his pseudo-divine
state, she noticed his control over his mana increased exponentially and he was
able to easily infuse it into the hammer. She was surprised since the internal mana
conduits of the hammer are typically impossible to use without an understanding of
their internal structure. She believed his aura allowed him to perceive the flow of
mana within the field he generated, and she wasn’t that far off from the truth.

Vahn used his enhanced perception and control to finish removing the impurities. It
took nearly five times the duration required by Hephaestus, but he still managed to
keep more than 70% of the initial amount. He immediately started shaping the raw
metal into the shape of an ingot, but only managed to form it into a lumpy oblong
shape.

Hephaestus saw the final product and laughed a bit on the inside. Even though he
seemed to have an incredible talent for refining the metal, it would still take a
lot of experience before he was able to control shaping the metal. She could see
the reason he failed at the end was due to how he let the metal cool while
observing it. If he had begun immediately shaping the raw metal after removing it
from the forge he would have been able to generate better results.

Seeing the dissatisfaction on his face, she decided to cheer him up. "Don’t worry
Vahn, you did very well for your first time. Remember that this is the material we
use in our higher-end products, as well as your first time forging. If you had
succeeded in your first try, that would have been abnormal."

She grabbed the malformed ingot before reheating it using the ’eternal flame’.
"Watch closely, I’ll demonstrate again. You have to begin shaping the metal the
moment it reaches its critical state. Due to the conductive nature of the material,
it will quickly cool down by absorbing the elements from the air. You only have a
brief window to shape the metal before reheating and repeating the process."

This time, instead of immediately forming the shape of the ingot, Hephaestus showed
him the normal process a blacksmith had to go through. She repeated the process of
shaping and reheating the magisteel a total of seven times before it had taken the
same shape as her previous ingot, albeit smaller in size.

When she was done, she set it on the shelf before turning towards the observant
Vahn. "That’ll be it for today. I can tell you have a lot of latent ability when it
comes to forging. I’ll have someone teach you the basics in the future, and when I
have free time I’ll give you some personal lessons. Make sure you pay attention
when the time comes because my time isn’t cheap."

She gave him a playful grin while speaking the words, but ended up losing her smile
after seeing his reaction. Though he was obviously listening, and even nodded when
she spoke, he seemed more focused on the metal within the solution than her words.

(’Does he want to try again?’) She appreciated his motivation but understood it was
dangerous to overexert yourself, especially when first starting out. The build-up
of physical and mental exhaustion would just make the process more difficult. As
she was about to try and convince him, she stopped after seeing his current state.

Vahn had picked up the hammer and grabbed a piece of raw iron. The aura that had
spread throughout the entire forge had converged to an area of three meters around
him. Perhaps it was due to his embarrassment at his previous failure, or maybe the
emergence of his competitive nature, but Vahn decided to purchase manuals on
blacksmithing within his mind to absorb the teachings within.

He spent a total of 17,000 OP to purchase all the manuals he could use at this
current soul tier. As his brain processed the veritable tidal wave of information,
Vahn almost lost consciousness but managed to hold on by pushing his [Will of the
Emperor] to the limit.

From the outside, Hephaestus could see an actual fluidlike energy forming a bubble
around Vahn. Though she could sense it originally and make out its area using her
eye, this was the first time she had seen a physical representation of his mana. It
wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that it took a god-like level of control to
reach such a state. She worried that anything she said or did would break the
mysterious state Vahn entered, so she remained silent and continued to observe.

After his brain had finished sorting all the information, Vahn suddenly felt as if
he had been a blacksmith for decades. He knew his practical skills were a bit
lacking, but with enough effort, he would be able to quickly improve in the future.
Since the information he obtained included a variety of ’records’ outside of
Danmachi, he very likely had more theoretical knowledge in the basics than even
Hephaestus. He might not be able to match her in actual skill or experience, but he
would be able to innovate and master his ’otherworldly’ techniques given enough
time.

Vahn entered a state of absolute focus and began refining the metal. Though there
was still a bit of loss, he managed to retain around 83% of the total raw material.
After he removed the newly created magisteel he quickly began forming its shape,
this time using his mana to forcibly mold the basic structure of the ingot as he
hammered away.

He repeated the process of reheating the metal and shaping it until an idea popped
into his mind. (’If I can use my mana to hold the shape of the ingot, can’t I do
the same while heating it up?’) He immediately attempted to verify his conjecture,
but quickly understood the difficulty involved. While the influence of the flame
was negligible when he was just refining the metal normally; when he exposed his
energy to the flame in a concentrated amount he was able to feel an actual burning
sensation within his body, almost as if the energy of his body was on fire.

Hephaestus had been closely observing as he worked the metal, and immediately
noticed the change. Through her eye, she could see that he was using his mana to
’cast’ the ingot within the forge. As the ’eternal flame’ was a mystical fire that
could burn anything, it was very dangerous to concentrate mana directly into it. If
he were unlucky, it could lead to a rebound within Vahn’s spirit and cause harm to
his foundation.

Though she wanted to stop him, she feared that interrupting at this moment would
hasten the arrival of the worst case scenario. Hephaestus began to feel helpless as
she watched him struggle. Had she known he was such a hothead, she would have
prevented him from taking action earlier.

A tense atmosphere began to permeate throughout the room. On one side there was a
boy, Vahn, focusing his mental energies beyond what he thought to be his previous
limits. But no matter how much he pushed himself, it seemed as if failure was close
at hand. On the other side of the room was the veteran Goddess, Hephaestus, who
began to blame herself for the current situation. She held her breath and began to
feel a strange emotion tugging at her heart.

As the pressure continued to increase, Vahn began feeling as if he was teetering on

the edge between consciousness and unconsciousness. He had long noticed something
had gone wrong but refused to give up after seeing how close the ingot was to
taking shape.

Finally, after several painstaking seconds which seemed to stretch for an eternity,
the ingot had been formed. Its surface had a flawless metallic luster and each edge
was well defined. Unfortunately, Vahn didn’t have time to celebrate as he found
himself unable to remove his energy and awareness from the flame. It seemed intent
on consuming his energy to the brink, almost as if it possessed a spirituality of
its own. And on a very rudimentary level, it did...

The so-called ’eternal flame’ had been a unique possession of Hephaestus since she
obtained her divinity. It had even accompanied her to the mortal world to continue
aiding in the production of thousands of peerless items. But during that time it
had begun to grow bored of the tedium of the mortal world. It longed for the days
when it could process celestial metals and create artifacts fit for use only by the
gods themselves.

When Hephaestus allowed this novice to work metal using its flame, the ’eternal
flame’ began to focus all its resentment on the foolish human in front of it. He
made almost imperceptible adjustments to the balance in the flame, which resulted
in a greater loss of the materials. It even mocked the boy for his inability to
adapt to the changes, completely ignoring any blame owed to itself.

After the boy had completed his shoddy product, the ’eternal flame’ watched as he
failed to convert it into an ingot. At that moment, if it could laugh, it would
have done so uproariously. After Hephaestus had reheated the ingot in its flames,
it allowed her to demonstrate what true mastery was so as to discourage any hopes
he may have about being a blacksmith in the future. But what did Hephaestus do? She
slowly worked the metal and demonstrated the process of forging used by novices. It
had to reheat the same piece of bland metal over and over until the ingot had
finally taken shape.

The ’eternal flame’ had begun to resent the human child even more, for dragging its
master down to his miserable level. When he saw the boy try to work another piece
of metal, he tried to get revenge but was unable to because of the control the boy
showed. The ’eternal flame’ began to burn with a vengeful fury seeing that the boy
had managed to retain so much of the metal even with its interference.

As the boy began shaping the ingot, its rage had begun to peak...until the boy made
a foolish error! The idiotic child had the audacity to try and infuse his mana
directly into the flames internal energy structure. The moment the ’eternal flame’
realized this, it attempted to create a spiritual lock around the invading energy
but was surprised at the result. The energy possessed by this human seemed to
suppress its pure elemental nature, causing an instinctual fear within the flame.

The fear it had felt caused its rage to reach the absolute pinnacle of its meager
intelligence. It began trying to consume the energy of the boy and convert it into
its own, and was surprised by the absolute purity of the energy. It seemed to be
able to nourish its ’core’ and make the flames even stronger. All the hate it had
built up for the boy turned into jubilation as it greedily tried to consume the
energy.
Vahn could feel the suppression of the flames grow increasingly stronger, and began
to grit his teeth till his gums bled. He tried forcibly removing his energy,
causing his ’soul’ to scream out in protest. Every failure brought him closer and
closer to collapse, but he adamantly refused to yield to the flame. His desire to
escape the flames imprisonment grew, and he could feel his spiritual strength
compound.

Within Vahns eyes, the image of a warrior appeared. If the unfortunate kobolds that
had experienced this previously were around, they would note that the illusion had
grown far more tangible than before. The figure raised an awe-inspiring sword
towards the heavens before cutting down with an unstoppable might.

Vahn could hear the resonating sound of chains being shattered as he finally
wrested control of the ingot from the flame.

He held the flawless ingot and gazed at it in a fervent manner before presenting it
to the befuddled Goddess who had observed the series of events. "I did it..." As
the words left his lips, Vahn entered a state of ’Mind Zero’ as he continued
holding out the result of his efforts.

Hephaestus stared at the unconscious boy who stood proudly displaying his
achievements. She slowly relieved him of the ingot before carrying his body to a
couch within her office workshop. After laying him down, she continued to stare
with both of her eyes for several minutes.

"What kind of kid did I accept into my Familia...to be able to contest against the
will of the ’eternal flame’ and pull away as the victor...." As she continued to
stare into his sleeping face, an anticipation for the future began to build within
Hephaestus.

"His sleeping expression is very cute-. He looks like he worked so hard-"

The cool Goddess began to smile and laugh like a fool, completely contrary to
Vahn’s impression of her. Sadly, it would be a long time before he was able to see
this adorable side of her for himself.

Vahn was floating in the void. He couldn’t determine which direction was up as his
body slowly rotated through space. There was a warmth permeating through his body,
reminding him of a feeling he had lost long ago. As time passed a chill began to
set in his body; he could feel the warmth begin to fade and a panic began to spread
throughout his consciousness. He began a desperate search for the feeling, but no
matter how much he struggled; no matter how much time passed, he could not find it
again.

Eventually, he gave up searching and began seeking solace in the stillness brought
about by the chill which had permeated every fiber of his being. But, even though
he gave up searching, he wanted to protect the memory of the warmth deep within. He
curled his body into the smallest form he could manage and imagined the warmth
still existed, a distant echo of a memory which he should have never allowed to be
lost.

The concept of time had long been lost as his body drifted aimlessly through the
endless void. The stillness had been a part of him for so long he even lost the
concepts that had defined him in the first place. His curled body had turned into
an ambiguous shape and taken on a spherical nature. Thoughts, emotions, even dreams
had long faded...remnants of a time long forgotten. Only the memory of the warmth
kept his body from dispersing in the endless, eternal, darkness of the void.

One day the thoughtless sphere came across a small light within the darkness,
stirring something within the remnant spirit contained within. From the tiny,
almost inconsequential light, it could feel the now ancient warmth it had so
desperately sought in the past. It quickly sought solace within the comfort of the
light, but in its haste nearly extinguished the light entirely. It became
conflicted, both wanting to take the light for itself, but unwilling to seize it
for fear of losing it once again.

It began to gently surround the light, allowing it’s gentle touch to slowly warm
its now cold and desolate frame. Every now and then it would split a small part of
itself to nurture the light, hoping that it would one day grow and help it reclaim
what it had lost. When it split these fragments, the light would emit fragmentary
images of times and places the entity had never experienced. Within the images, it
could see a figure, the source of the lights warmth. It leads smaller, but powerful
lights, to confront the darkness and create a path through the abyss. The being
hoped that one day the light and its companions would be able to-

Vahn woke up in a cold sweat. His head was throbbing with a powerful migraine
similar to the times he had overused [Will of the Emperor]. He desperately tried to
remember what he had been dreaming about, but the more he focused on the thoughts
the faster they would vanish. The only thing still remaining by the time he had
calmed down was a deep, all-encompassing loneliness...

"You’re awake. I was worried you would end up sleeping all day." A gentle voice
broke the empty feelings that had began to take root in his heart. Vahn turned to
see the source and saw Hephaestus giving him a worried look.

"Sorry...I was having a dream, no, a nightmare...." Vahn shook his head to dispel
the remaining negative feelings before leaving the couch. Hephaestus, who was
currently sitting at her desk working on diagrams, gave him a gentle smile while
setting her pen aside. "What are your plans for today? Since you’ve officially
joined my Familia, you can have your own workshop, but I think it would be better
for you to apprentice under someone else for the time being. If you’re not busy
I’ll introduce you to a veteran blacksmith. She is quite capable, and someone I can
trust to teach you everything you need to know for the future."

Vahn shook his head with an apologetic look. "I’ve already made plans to meet up
with someone this morning, and I still need to report my level up to the guild and
renew my booking at the Inn. Hopefully, they haven’t let someone else take the room
yet."

Hephaestus nodded in understanding, remembering his haste from the previous night.
Even though she had already accepted him into the Familia, it wasn’t appropriate to
force him to change his current plans and living conditions until he was able to
sort everything out. "Very well then. I’ll give you a week to get everything
sorted, but you’ll have to report to me if anything changes. Though there aren’t
many requirements for being in the Familia, you’ll still be acting as a
representative of our brand. You’ll have to put more thought into your future
actions. I don’t want you running around causing a bunch of problems for me to
clean up."

After informing him of everything he needed to keep in mind, Hephaestus began

escorting him from the workshop. She was back to her usual attitude and had begun
to wear her eyepatch again while Vahn was asleep. Once they had reached the
entrance, Vahn gave a polite bow before waving goodbye. Seeing this, Hephaestus
stopped him with a small hint of a blush on her face. "Make sure you let me know if
you run into any problems. You’re a child of my Familia now, and I won’t let anyone
bully my children."

Hearing her words, Vahn gave her his best smile before saying, "Thanks Hephaestus.
I believe in you..." As he began to turn away, he continued his words. "And one
day, I hope you’ll be able to believe in me." He then ran towards the direction of
the guild, leaving a smiling Hephaestus leaning against the door frame with her
arms crossed.

She watched his retreating figure until it had disappeared, then sighed as she
returned to her workshop. After entering, she looked towards the now empty couch
where Vahn had slept the night before. After securely locking the door, she made
her way over before falling face first into the cushions. For some reason, the room
that was full of peerless equipment now felt empty. From the couch, she could smell
a peculiar fragrance that hadn’t been there previously, and she began to blush
after identifying the source...

Remembering his back as he left, Hephaestus had seen hints of the loneliness
contained in the small silhouette. But beneath that, she also saw a powerful desire
to grow stronger, as well as an intrigue in the world around him. His last words
stirred her heart a bit, and her attempts to maintain her calm demeanor had worn
away at her energy as she returned to her workshop. Once she was in the security of
the room, she felt an exhaustion build up in her and decided to use the couch to
take a small nap.

After a while, she fell asleep. While Vahn had slept the night before, she spent
much of the time watching his various expressions. When he had started having his
nightmare, she began gently rubbing his head to soothe his unease. This continued
well into the morning, until he began to show signs of awakening which prompted her
to return to her desk and pretend to be working. Once he had awoken, she wanted to
ask what he was dreaming about, but seeing the pained expression on his face made
Hephaestus swallow her words and try to act casually. All these factors had
accumulated in the fatigue of the red-haired goddess as she fell into the land of
dreams herself.

Vahn made his way to the Guild, and was sad seeing that none of his acquaintances
were available. He saw Fauna dealing with customers at the mission counter, while
Eina, probably due to her adorable looks, had a long line of customers in front of
her desk. He ended up being seen by a gentlemanly looking elf with green hair that
gave him looks of contempt before changing to shock after seeing the number of
cores Vahn had submitted. After finding out Vahn had been entering the tower for
less than a week and had become level 2, he almost thought the boy before him was a
monster in the guise of a human. However, once he found out Vahn had been accepted
by the Hephaestus Familia and officially registered as an Adventurer, he gave a
curt and respectful bow before processing the exchange.

On his way out, Vahn caught the sight of Eina and the two waved at each other. He
was happy to see that when the young half-elf made eye contact with him, there was
a slight blush on her cheeks. Vahn felt a tickling sensation in his heart and
resolved to try and tease her more in the future. Seeing the combination of her
cute looks and serious nature trying to hide shyness brought a smile to his face
for reasons he couldn’t explain.
He made his way to the Hearths Embrace before booking his room for an additional
week. The proprietress, Milan, had tried to keep him for a few minutes. She wanted
to know what he had been up to the previous week and advised that, if he were in
trouble, he could come to her. "I may not look like it, but I used to be a Level 3
back in my active days. If some hoodlums are bothering you I’ll give ’em a good
beating-".

Vahn smiled and thanked her for her kindness, assuring her that nothing serious had
happened and promised to tell her about the details later. After having him
promise, she finally let him go before giving him a small lunchbox. "My daughter
made it especially for you-. Make sure you eat it all or you’ll break her heart-
nya."

Vahn looked around and noticed the little girl was missing, and Milan laughed
seeing his questioning expression. "She stayed up late because you hadn’t shown up
to renew the room. You know she lost her father to the dungeon, so she was very
worried. Make sure you make it up to her later, okay?"

Accepting the lunchbox, Vahn promised he would buy Tina a present before returning
this evening. Milan patted his back while pushing him towards the exit and telling
him to take care of himself. "Remember, a man always keeps his promises-nya!"

After leaving the Inn, Vahn began running towards the Babel Plaza. It was already
nearing 9 AM, and he was worried Lili had been waiting for a very long time.
Adventurers typically entered the dungeon at even earlier times, and since they had
agreed to meet in the morning she had likely been in the area for several hours by
now.

He continued running for nearly half an hour before finally reaching his
destination. Looking around, he couldn’t see Lili anywhere, and he began to worry
she had left after he failed to show up on time. Finding a nearby bench, he sat
down and began waiting. Even if she didn’t show up, he would continue waiting for
the rest of the day as a means of atoning for his actions.

Three hours later, as Vahn continued to stare aimlessly at the sky in

contemplation, he felt a sudden weight added to the bench near him. He looked over
and saw Lili staring into his face with annoyance and displeasure written on her
face. She had adopted the look of an elven child with blond hair and light-hazelnut
colored eyes.

"You’re late." She said with a pout.

"Sorry Lili, I got caught up trying to take care of a few things." All Vahn could
do was awkwardly apologize why trying to appease the young Pallum.

She stared at him before closing the distance and smelling his clothing. "It was a
woman, wasn’t it?"

Vahn was shocked, "Eh? Yes?" He didn’t understand why she now had an angry
expression after sniffing his body.

"Grrrr, I want to meet her later. Promise me." A glint had appeared in her eyes as
she began pressuring Vahn for his word.

Vahn could feel a chill run down his back as he nodded his head like a clucking
chicken. "Yes, sure. I’ll introduce you to them later."

"THEM!? There is more than one!?" The young girl acted like she was undergoing an
intense struggle and began acting out a tragic play on the bench. After a few
seconds had past, she gave Vahn a fierce look before nodding after coming to some
kind of understanding.

"I want to meet them all." She got very close to his body before staring into his
face with a determined expression.

Vahn just continued to nod, before giving in to the urge to pat her head. He
understood she was a bit jealous but didn’t understand the reasons. She probably
just wanted to keep him to herself, since he had just recently saved her life. He
thought petting her on the head would help ease some of the insecurities she was
feeling.

When Vahn had started patting her head, Lili tensed up for a moment before
entrusting her body to Vahn. All her frustrations seemed to fade away in the face
of the emergent pleasant sensation coming from her head. She wanted to snuggle and
leave her mark on his body to warn any females that got too close...

"Well, let’s get to training." Vahn stopped petting the girl that had begun to lose
herself to her delusions. He stood from the bench and waited for her to react
before heading towards the dungeon.

"Wait, Vahn-sama! Don’t leave me behind!" Seeing his departure, Lili began to chase
after his back. She wouldn’t allow herself to fall behind anymore...

Vahn and Lili made their way into the ’Beginner’s Road’ on the first floor of the
dungeon. Vahn looked around and found the entrance to the path he had taken when he
first entered the dungeon. He continued leading the way as Lili trailed behind him
as the two made small talk.

"Lili, what is your goal in entering the dungeon?" Vahn decided to be direct, so he
asked her why she wanted to become stronger.

Lili looked into his eyes and saw his seriousness. She began to seriously
contemplate the question before speaking. "I want to become strong enough to
survive...and to protect the things I care about." During the last half of the
sentence, she stared at his face, only to see him nod while thinking about her
words.

"That’s enough for now, but I want you to have a bigger dream. Everyone wants to
protect something, be it their way of life or the people close to them. I learned
that it’s important to also have a goal to work towards since you won’t be able to
become stronger just by wanting strength."

Lili nodded while hanging her head. She didn’t disagree with him, but couldn’t
think of any goal besides just earning her freedom. Even now she was just escaping
instead of directly facing her problems. Suddenly, something clicked in her mind
and she looked curiously towards Vahn.

"Vahn-sama, why aren’t you surprised by my appearance? It slipped my mind, but you
were able to instantly recognize me even though my magic changed my appearance."

Vahn laughed at her question, which caused her to frown slightly. "That’s easy. I
was waiting in the area we agreed to meet, and you were the one that mentioned I
was ’late’. Besides, even if you change your appearance a little, I can easily tell
you apart from others."

"Eh, how come?" Not many people had been able to see through her disguise before,
so she wanted to know why he was able to do so.
Vahn thought for a brief moment, but couldn’t tell her it was because he had seen
her change form in the manga. He decided to tell a half-truth that should make her
overlook any misgivings she might have. Looking towards the top of her head, he
could see her pinkish-blue aura and decided that would suffice. "It’s because
you’re cute and have a very unique aura. No matter what form you take I’d be able
to easily recognize you." He decided to compliment her since girls seemed to be
happy whenever he was polite to them.

Hearing his reasons, Lili began to blush fiercely and hugged Vahn from behind.
"Uuuuuu, it’s not fair to say things like that Vahn-sama..." She began putting
strength into her arms as she rubbed her head against his back.

Vahn was surprised at the effectiveness of his simple compliment. He began to think
he should try complimenting people more often if it’s able to make them this happy.
Seeing the way people reacted to his words also made him feel a variety of
emotions, and it was very interesting since he had so few noteworthy interactions
before coming to this world.

Eventually, Lili separated herself from his back before assuming her original form.
As long as they were in the dungeon and weren’t around other people she should be
fine. Besides, she wanted Vahn to get used to the real her as much as possible. To
hide her previous embarrassment, she tried continuing the conversation from
earlier.

"Vahn-sama, why do you want to become stronger?" She was very curious about his
reasons since he had gone out of his way to protect someone he had never met
before. As far as she could tell, he had a very heroic disposition, but she could
still see a painful and solemn expression on his face from time to time.

Vahn stopped walking and looked directly into her chestnut colored eyes. "I want to
become strong enough to change the fates of those bound by the whims of others. I
don’t want to see people suffer just because it makes someone else’s life
convenient. And..." He looked towards the ceiling as if he could see through to
something far off into the distance. "There is someone I must become stronger
for..."

Though she felt a warm feeling while he was stating his convictions, Lili felt her
heart tense up when he spoke about becoming stronger for a specific person. ’Is it
his lover?’. She became saddened at the thought she had already lost the race
before she even had a chance to compete. Through her dejection, she decided to ask,
even though the answer might disappoint her.

"Who is it you need to become so strong for...your lover?" She couldn’t look him in
the eyes, afraid he might see through her false bravado.

"Ah, no, I don’t have anything like a lover. It’s my Mother. I want to become
strong enough to reunite with her, but I don’t know how strong I’ll have to become
before I’m able to do so." Though he couldn’t understand why she was acting so
strangely, Vahn decided to be honest with her.

Hearing that the person in question was his mother, Lili released a heavy sigh. She
also noted he specifically said he didn’t have a lover, so if she tried her best
she should still have a chance. Now she just had to meet the women he mentioned
earlier to get a better understanding of the situation. A fierce competitiveness
began burning in her eyes as she pumped her tiny fists in front of her chest.

She seemed to be a lot more excitable than Vahn remembered, but he wanted to think
it was a healthy change. Maybe it was because he had met her so much sooner than
Bell, so she hadn’t yet devolved to the state of mind she had in the canon
storyline?

"Well Lili, for now, I want you to start thinking of a goal for yourself. While we
train your foundation you can think of why you want to grow stronger, while I’ll
think of how to make you stronger." This was the best solution he could think of
for now. As long as he was able to give her time, she should be able to find a
reason for herself even without his interference.

Lili nodded before shaking her head moments later. "I’m not sure I can become
stronger Vahn-sama. I already learned early on that I don’t have the talent to be
an Adventurer. Since I’m a Pallum, my body is weak and my small stature makes it
difficult to directly engage stronger monsters. Its probably better that I just
focus on being a Supporter while you continue to work towards your own goals. I’m
happy just being at your side."

She tried to give him a smile, but Vahn could see the melancholic undertones and
believed that she was forcing herself. He also noticed the aura around her body
began to flicker slightly, so he understood her emotions were becoming unstable.

"Are you an idiot?" He decided he needed to be a bit harsh, or else she might not
be willing to listen to his words. "What made you decided you couldn’t be an
Adventurer just because you were a Pallum? One of the strongest Adventurers in the
entire City is a Pallum, and he has even reached Level 6. You think just because
you failed once or twice when you were just a kid you have no talent? That is
completely ridiculous."

Lili became absolutely shocked after hearing her kind and gentle Vahn-sama calling
her an idiot before berating her. ’Eh? Did I say something wrong?’. She couldn’t
process the sudden change and just absentmindedly listened as the continued.

"You might not believe it after seeing me now, but there was a long period of time
when I couldn’t do anything. I lived at the convenience of others, and couldn’t
even make a single decision to change that reality. There was even a time when I
tried to take my own life, only to be prevented from doing so and facing severe
repercussions for my failure..." The entire time he was speaking, he continued
locking eyes with the now terrified girl.

(You are listening this at Webnovel Audio World. It takes a lot of effort to
provide this in youtube, please consider donating or buying me a coffee if you like
my work. Links in description. Enjoy!)

"My life continued in that fashion until a series of events changed the conditions
I had grown accustomed to. I had completely given up, but by the grace of external
forces, I was guided back towards a path where I could live as I please. So as not
to fail to meet their expectations, I continued to train tirelessly while
constantly seeking to improve my own capabilities. It wasn’t until facing death on
numerous occasions and experiencing the kindness of several people that I reached
my current strength." At this point Vahn had begun showing a smile on his face as
he remembered all the past events and interactions that have defined his life in
this world.

Lili had begun to tremble as he spoke. When he first began she could see the pain
he had experienced through his expressions and how he conveyed his words. She knew
he wasn’t lying to her and had likely experienced a terrible suffering in the past.
When he continued and started talking about his efforts to become stronger, she
could see an impassioned expression on his face filled with desire and a hint of
confidence. Lastly, she could see the appreciation on his face as he reflected upon
everything that had happened...
She began to wonder, ’Can I really become stronger?’. Everything she has
experienced seemed to scream at the impossibility, but the boy before her inspired
something inside of her. She wanted to believe. She wanted to see if the boy could
really change the frail image she had of herself. Most importantly, she wanted to
become strong enough to meet his expectations...she didn’t want to fail.

Lili looked towards Vahn who had returned her gaze. She had tears in her eyes as
she questioned, ’Vahn-sama...can I really become stronger? Can I be like you?"

Vahn smiled before reaching out and placing his hand on her head. As he gently
patted the tearful girl who had experienced so much tragedy in her life, he put on
the most confident airs he could manage.

"As long as they are willing to put in the effort, Lili...Anyone can become
strong."

After Lili had calmed down, the two began discussing her current strengths and
weaknesses. At this point, they were both standing outside the entrance to the
second floor, and Vahn needed a better understanding of her current abilities.

"That skill you use to disguise yourself, does it give you any other benefits? And
what other skills do you possess?" This is what Vahn was most interested in. From
his perspective, the ability to transform was quite powerful, and he even envied it
a bit.

"My transformation comes from my magic [Cinder*Ella]. It lets me change into

anything of similar size and weight, though I can push the ability to change my
size for a short period of time...As for other abilities, I possess a skill called
[Artel Assist] which increases my parameters based on the amount of weight I’m
carrying, though the buff isn’t that great and the weight itself restricts my
movement..."

Vahn nodded with his hand to his chin. He was thinking about a way to use the two
abilities to their greatest potential in the future...but for now, he should help
her strengthen her foundation. Though he couldn’t give her the manuals from the
system, that didn’t prevent him from using the information within his head to offer
advice to aid in her growth. For now, he’d teach her the basic CQC (Close Quarters
Combat) skills he developed in the forest. Even if they weren’t that useful for
killing monsters, it would give her the ability to protect herself in the future.

"For now we’ll start strengthening your foundation. I know a series of exercises to
help increase your familiarity with combat that will also help improve the mobility
of your body while increasing your reaction time. We might be able to use your
[Artel Assist] to help aid your stamina training, and we’ll also practice actual
combat. For now, we’ll restrict it to the monsters on the upper levels, and then
move on to sparring later in the afternoon. What weapons do you prefer?"

Seeing how seriously Vahn was treating the training, Lili began amping herself up
for the coming trials. "Yes, Master Vahn! Since I’m a Pallum, I have enhanced
vision which allows me to see in the dark so I use a bow to attack monsters from
the backline. Though I can use my [Cinder*Ella] to adopt the traits of other races,
I haven’t used them in combat!"

"Ah, it just so happens that I also use a bow, but it won’t be a very practical
method to increase your parameters. Even if you can gain the exilia from monsters,
it would mainly influence your dex. We’ll have to train a method that allows you to
increase all of your parameters until you find a combat style that suits you." Vahn
was considering purchasing a weapon for Lili, but couldn’t think of a good
option...

"Master Vahn also uses a bow?" Lili gave him a questioning look since she had only
ever seen him use a sword till now.

Hearing her question, Vahn swapped to the bow in his secondary slot. Lili startled
seeing the sword disappear while an emerald green bow took its place. "Is that your
storage magic? It seems to be very useful if you’re able to swap out weapons so
quickly."

Vahn nodded while leading the way into the second floor. Since he didn’t have a way
to explain his storage magic in detail, he wanted to avoid talking about it
whenever possible. After a few minutes they came across a group of kobolds, and
Vahn quickly loosed three arrows, precisely hitting the core of each monster.

"Ah, that’s amazing Master Vahn! You have impeccable aim-" Lili was jumping behind
him while cheering loudly.

Vahn shook his head and turned towards her. "Lili, unless we’re in the corridors
between floors you have to retain your focus. A small lapse in concentration is all
it takes to lead to a pitiful end. And you can stop calling me Master. Just call me
Vahn. Hearing you praise me while calling me Master worries me for some reason..."

"U-understood...Vahn...sama" Hearing her still address him with ’sama’ Vahn let out
a sigh. At least it was better than being called ’Master’ over and over. Hopefully,
she would be able to break the habit on her own in the future.

"For the next group, I want you to engage them using your crossbow. If things get
dicey I’ll make sure to intercept, but you should try your best to eliminate them
on your own." He continued to progress further into the second floor until the
encountered a group of three kobolds and two goblins.

Lili drew her crossbow and began to fire rapidly. Most of her bolts found their
target, but she was a little off from hitting the cores so the monsters began
charging towards her. She stood still and kept firing bolts as quickly as she
could, but was only able to kill the two goblins before the kobolds had approached
her. Just as they were about to lunge, three arrows accurately pierced the bodies
of the kobolds mid-leap turning them to dust in the process.

Lili had a ghastly expression on her face and lost feeling in her legs. She
collapsed on the spot while stuttering towards Vahn, "T-t-thanks Vahn-s-sama. I’m
s-s-sorry I failed."

Vahn could see fear written all over her face, and he tried comforting her by
kneeling down and petting the top of her head. "It’s okay Lili. You didn’t fail...I
just wanted to see how you fought monsters without support. From now on I’ll show
you how to properly fight using ranged weapons."

While she was still powerless to move, more kobolds had begun spawning from the
walls of the dungeon. This time it was a group of five, and Vahn immediately moved
to close the gap between them. Lili, from her seated position, stared at his charge
in a confused manner. ’Why is he getting close if he is using a bow?’

The answer to her question came in the following few seconds, as she watched Vahn
nimbly dodge the kobolds and use the blind spots created by their movements to
easily target their cores. In the span of just a few breaths, he was able to easily
deal with the entire group without having to reposition or open a distance between
the monsters. She began to understand what he meant by ’proper’...
Vahn approached the still seated Lili before smiling and saying, "Did you see?
Though using ranged weapons does provide an advantage in eliminating monsters from
a distance, if you have to sacrifice your mobility in exchange it isn’t worth it.
You struggled to hit the monsters at a distance, but if you had used their
movements to target their weaknesses at a close range you would have been able to
slay them all without using so many bolts. Do you understand?"

Lili nodded before accepting the hand he had offered to her. "But Vahn-sama...I’m
not nearly as agile as you are. I can’t evade the attacks of kobolds at such a
close range, and it would be very dangerous if I got surrounded..." Though she
agreed with Vahn’s statement, she didn’t believe she could replicate the methods he
used. There was too large a gap between their stats...

"Yes, that is true, at least for now. Though you seem to think being a Pallum is a
disadvantage, it should allow you to have more nimble movements when you polish
your skills. Since you have a lower center of gravity and an easier to manipulate
pivot, your agility growth should be much higher than most races. I think it’s
because you’re too used to attacking from the backline and carrying a lot of weight
that you’ve neglected the benefits of your own bloodline. And if you’re that
concerned, can’t you just use [Cinder*Ella] to use the traits of a Cat Person or
Elf? They both have very high agility and dexterity after all."

Lili was surprised hearing his explanation. She often used her magic to disguise
and fool people, but whenever she entered the dungeon it was always as a Pallum
Supporter. She hadn’t practiced combat as other races or tried to adapt their
racial traits for training...Remembering Vahn’s words from earlier, she began to
believe she really had neglected to make an effort in becoming stronger. It seemed
she was content with just surviving and trying to escape all this time...

Vahn noticed she had become dejected while mulling over his words, and he let out a
sigh while patting her head again. ("She is such high maintenance...I really wish
she could develop some confidence. Well, I guess that’s my job from now on.").

The two continued advancing into the dungeon and engaging each group of monsters
they came across. Lili began trying to develop her agility and footwork by fighting
the monsters up close, but she was only able to make small improvements. Much of
the time was spent with Vahn trying to console her and dispatching the majority of
the mobs, while she would later collect the cores. This continued later into the
afternoon before they both made their way to the 1st-floor corridor.

"Okay, now we’ll move on to actual sparring. For now, we’ll avoid the use of
weapons. I want you to try to attack me using your arms and legs. I’ll only be on
the defensive, but don’t think I won’t counter attack if you show an opening. There
are never any absolutes, and you should always be prepared for the unexpected."
Vahn got into the fighting stance he had honed during his time in the forest.
Though he didn’t possess any specific style, he had become quite capable using
mixed martial arts.

Lili nodded seriously before trying to launch a barrage of weak punches in his
direction. Vahn became a bit flustered at the adorable action, and almost allowed
himself to be hit due to his urge to laugh. Luckily, he managed to save some face
by quickly side-stepping the flurry of attacks before patting her on the back.

"You should only attack with intent. If you flail about you’ll lose your balance
and expose yourself to the opponent. Come, attack me again! Don’t think about it,
just act!"

This time Lili tried kicking his legs, and he easily managed to stay outside her
range. She tried several more times before suddenly launching a punch towards his
abdomen. After the repeated kicks, Vahn had begun to anticipate a change in the
attack pattern so he easily diverted the momentum of the punch. As a result, Lili
began to fall face-first towards the ground, but Vahn caught her before she made
contact.

"Remember, never overcommit to the attack. Though its good to change your attack
pattern, you need to target the opponent where they are exposed. Look for the gaps
in the movements, and try to attack when they are shifting their weight since it’s
difficult to change direction when you’ve yet to complete a movement."

He continued to explain while holding Lili in his arms. The young Pallum’s face had
turned crimson and she was barely able to hear his voice through the pounding in
her ears as a result of her heart rate increasing. When he finally returned her to
her feet, she just stood there blankly for a few moments.

Seeing her lack of focus, Vahn closed the distance before issuing a punch directly
towards her face. His fist stopped just centimeters before making contact, causing
Lili to fall onto her butt with a startled expression.

"A momentary loss of focus leaves you open to devastating counter-attacks. If I was
an enemy or a monster you would have been severely injured or killed by that
attack." Vahn extended his hands to help her up, but she just stared at the
outstretched hand without accepting it.

Lili continued sitting silently, unable to process the series of events. Though she
knew he was serious in making her stronger, she didn’t expect that he would be so
intense during the training. Her mind was a roller-coaster of ups and downs, and
she wasn’t able to easily stabilize her emotions. In some moments she was happy,
like when he prevented her from falling, while others she became terrified seeing
the ferocious nature of his attacks. Though she believed he wouldn’t harm her, the
strike to her face had drained all the strength from her body. She didn’t want to
continue anymore and feared to grab the hand before her...

(Shit. I scared her. It’s only the first day of training and I immediately moved on
to real life combat and sparring...I’m such an idiot.) Vahn withdrew his hand with
a sad expression. Though Lili flinched when he pulled away, she didn’t make an
attempt to stop him.

She watched as he moved towards the wall of the dungeon...and began punching it.
She was terrified by his actions and began to believe he may have gone crazy, but
as she saw his hands begin to bleed a painful feeling spread in her heart. She
shouted, "Vahn-sama, stop! What are you doing!? Your hands, they-"

Vahn sighed, hearing her call out to him. He stopped hitting the wall and rested
with his back against it. "I’m sorry Lili. I shouldn’t be pushing you so hard on
the first day. I...I didn’t want to scare you...I just don’t want to see you harmed
in the future. I’m afraid that, when I’m not around, something terrible may happen
to you. By helping you grow stronger, I believed I could prevent that from
happening...but I don’t want to grow stronger at the expense of you growing afraid
of me."

Lili began to feel a mixture of sadness and anger in her heart. She was sad seeing
how quickly he punished himself on her behalf, but angry seeing the extent he
pushes himself when left to his own thoughts. "Are you an idiot!?" She began to
cry, unable to express her emotions with words.

She walked towards Vahn and took his hands into her own. Seeing the torn flesh
around his knuckles, she began to regret being afraid earlier. He was just doing
his best to help he grow strong, but she began to act like she was
terrified...terrified of the person that had just the day before sacrificed himself
to save her life.

Vahn continued to watch as she began bandaging his hands. He wanted to save her the
effort and use a healing potion but felt like it wasn’t the best time to speak
up...

After she had tended to his wounds, she stepped back and did a full servile bow
with her face to the ground. "Please help me get stronger Vahn-sama. I won’t
complain anymore, and I won’t be afraid no matter how harshly you treat me. Just
please don’t punish yourself for someone like me. It pains my heart to see you do
that to yourself."

From his position, Vahn could only see the top of her head. But even though she was
hiding it, he was able to see the tears dropping onto the floor. He didn’t know
what to say, and began feeling like his self-inflicted punishment had gone too far.
Vahn hadn’t even considered how she would feel seeing his actions, he just wanted
to take out his conflicting emotions on the hardest surface in the area.

Seeing the determination in her actions, Vahn couldn’t bring himself to try to
explain the situation. He just sighed within his own mind before standing up and
approaching the still bowing Lili. Noticing his approach, she looked towards him
with her tear stain faced. She began to speak but was prevented from doing so when
Vahn hugged her to his chest. She just stood there accepting his embrace as he
stroked the back of her hair while her tears and snot stained his mantle.

"Lili, you’re already far stronger than you know. I swear I will do my best to make
you realize it for yourself..."

The two continued to hug until finally separated several minutes later. By now
Lili’s tears had begun to dry, but there was still the trace of their previous
existence still on her face. Vahn was worried, but she simply gave him a beaming
smile, dashing away any concerns he had in the process.

"I will do my best, Vahn-sama-!"

-[Liliruca Arde] affection has reached Affection:90[Love], Intrigue:59[Curious]-

-Quest Triggered: ’The Hearts Desire’ [Repeatable]-

[The Hearts Desire: Obtain 100 Affection/Intrigue with any person.]

Rank: (C-SS)

Rewards: ’Gift’ function permanently unlocked on first completion,

10,000OP[Current: 0], 1x ’Hearts Desire’[Current: 0]

Failure Condition: Death

Penalty: None

Vahn blanked out as he stared at the system notification. He never expected that
Lili would fall in ’love’ with him after such a short period of time. Staring at
the young girl that had gotten close to his body during his absentmindedness, he
wasn’t really sure what to feel. Though he understood what love was from reading
manga and the memory of his mother, he didn’t really know how to express it. He
knew he liked Lili, since she was very adorable, but he also liked Chloe’s
playfulness and Hephaestus’s bashful coolness.
Seeing the quest required him to get 100 affection, Vahn was at a loss. Even though
they had spent a fair amount of time together, her affection had only increased
twice throughout the entire duration. He had almost even forgotten about it since
her aura had remained persistent since he saved her the previous day.

Since he couldn’t think of the solution himself, he tried asking his reliable big
Sis. ("Sis, how can I increase someones affection to 100? Do I...need to marry them
or something?")

A deep, mechanical sigh sounded in his mind. (I’m sure if you got someone to 100
Affection and they loved you as a member of the opposite sex, they would probably
marry you. But marriage doesn’t mean someone has 100 affection. There are several
types of love as well, such as the bonds between comrades that have fought
together, or the familial love like what your mother had for you. How you get the
affection to 100 will be entirely dependant on you, since my help would have more
negative influence than positive gain.)

Vahn sighed within his mind. ("Why is love such a complicated thing..."). He looked
towards Lili who had been sticking to his body for some time now. It seemed like
she was developing the tendencies of some kind of hug type monster. He even noticed
she would periodically smell his body, which always caused a cold sweat to drip
down his back.

As a test, he tried seeing if he could increase her affection by petting her...

When his hand came into contact with her head, she began to snuggle against him
more intensely, almost as if the hand was a signal that allowed her behavior.
Though Vahn was beginning to get uncomfortable, he also felt an ’awkward’ feeling
within his chest as his pulse began to markedly increase. Through his petting, he
noticed that her aura seemed to become very lively as it danced about, but there
was no change in the amount of affection displayed in the system.

He almost thought about giving her a kiss, but eventually dismissed the idea. They
hadn’t known each other for very long, and there was still a long while before he
could complete her training. If he kissed her now before she had become more
stable, he would feel like he was manipulating her. This thought brought back
memories of his sunset rendezvous with Chloe, and he began to truly understand why
she had prevented him from confessing at that moment. If she had accepted his
feelings then and there, he would have become reliant on her. All of his efforts
would have been spent trying to make her happy, and it would most likely cause him
to make a mistake in the future.

Once again he could see the parallels between himself and Lili. Since she had been
neglected so much as a child and also exploited by the people she should have been
able to rely on, she was in desperate need of an anchor to ground her emotions.
Though he could see she ’loved’ him through the system, it was more of a ’puppy
love’ or ’dependency’ instead of genuine infatuation...

He began to understand the dangers of the current situation, so after he gave her
two more soft pats he stood up. "It’s time we head out of the dungeon. Even if this
is the corridor of the first floor, there is no guarantee that danger won’t present
itself. I also have several things to take care of this evening, so we shouldn’t
loiter around here for too long."

Lili was disappointed that he put an end to their little moment. She thought things
were progressing in a good direction, but right as she was about to try and push
things forward he ended up running away. She began thinking Vahn was either too
dense to sense the atmosphere, or maybe he wasn’t interested in her. Looking at his
face, he seemed calm and collected, which caused her to feel a little down.
Vahn noticed her actions but knew if he gave her too much attention it would
probably develop into an issue in the near future. He still gave her a gentle smile
and softly called out to her. "Come, Lili. Let’s get out of this dreary dungeon. We
might even make it in time to see the sunset from the plaza."

Her ears twitched at his words, and she immediately bounded to her feet. "Yes,
Vahn-sama- Lets go go go-!" She began leading the way while Vahn just helplessly
shook his head.

They made their way out of the dungeon, and Lili took the few cores they had earned
to a guild managed window near the information desks outside the dungeon entrance.
Vahn watched her curiously, and he wondered why she had taken the cores. After
fifteen minutes, she rushed back holding a small bag of Valis and presented it to
him.

"Here you go Vahn-sama. You managed to earn 14,830V today-!" She stuffed the bag
into his hands and gave him a look like she wanted to be praised. Vahn decided to
give in, and began rubbing her head which caused her to squirm about while making
strange noises.

"This Valis, it came from the cores we earned today? Were you able to exchange them
here at the tower?" He looked towards the direction she had left earlier. He
noticed there were a few adventurers entering and exiting the small building he had
previously neglected.

Lili gave him a confused look before asking, "Eh? Vahn-sama? Have you not been
exchanging your cores outside the dungeon?"

Vahn shook his head and told her he had been trading them in at the main Guild
branch. She looked at him like he was a weirdo, but then recalled that he was a
newbie freelancer that had been in the City for little more than a week.

"Vahn-sama, it would be very time-consuming if people had to walk all the way to
the Guild every time they wanted to exchange cores and drop items. That’s why the
Guild set up an exchange booth near the entrance of the dungeon. Though they offer
a 1% markup from the normal tax, it’s still much more convenient than spending
nearly an hour just to take your spoils to the Guild. Most people only visit the
main office to accept and report quests and level ups."

Vahn couldn’t help but laugh after hearing her words. It definitely made sense, and
he probably should have paid more attention to his surroundings. He began to
consider mapping the entire City in the future and trying to obtain as much
information as he could. Seeing the expectant expression on Lili’s face, he decided
to pat her again while teasing her a bit.

"Thanks, Liliruca-sama. This ignorant one has heard your guidance and taken it to
heart."

After he had spoken, Lili visibly froze. She mechanically turned to him with an
incredulous expression on her face. "Vahn-sama...please don’t address me like that.
I’m offering my advice because I want to, not because I think I’m in a higher
position than you are..."

Vahn simply smiled in response. "It’s the same for me Lili. I’m helping you because
I want to, so you shouldn’t address me as sama either. We’ll be together for a long
time, so it feels awkward being addressed in such a subservient way.

She began to grit her teeth while she struggled with the words. After a while, she
looked into his eyes while nodding slightly. "Yes...Vahn. I will try to fix my bad
habit."

They continued generating their unique atmosphere as the passing adventurers gave
them strange looks. Some of the less sensitive ones even whistled and gave them
playful calls to embarrass the two senseless children.

Hearing the surrounding voices, Lili hung her head and began to blush. She gave shy
glances at Vahn, but seeing his composed expression she couldn’t help but sigh.
"Vahn-sa...Vahn, where are you going from here?"

Vahn smiled before looking towards the sky. The sun was going to set in about
twenty minutes, so he decided to keep his word and view it together. "For now let’s
find a better vantage point to watch the sunset. I did say we would watch it if we
made it in time. After that, I’ll head back towards my Inn after stopping at the
market to purchase a gift."

"Eh, gift? For who?" Hearing the words gift, Lili became excited and concerned at
the same time. She hoped that the gift might be for her, but seeing as how he
mentioned it casually it was likely for someone else...probably a woman.

"Ah, it’s for the Proprietress’ daughter. She was the one that made the lunchbox I
ate during our break in the dungeon, remember?" Vahn casually mentioned Tina, as it
wasn’t really a secret.

"Umu...I want to meet her." There was a cautious glint in her eye, with a hint of
competitiveness. If it was a cute girl, she had to make sure to protect Vahn from
her devious clutches. There was also the matter of the Proprietress who allowed her
daughter to make a lunchbox for a customer...

"Sure, I’ll introduce you in the future."

They two eventually ended up on the same viewing platform where Vahn had watched
the sunset with Chloe. Lili used the opportunity snuggle again Vahn, but wasn’t as
restless as she had been previously. She just continued staring towards the sunset
in a daze, silent until it had disappeared beyond the horizon. Vahn observed the
silence and allowed her to lean against his body. For some reason, as the light
faded he felt a melancholy deep within his heart that he couldn’t explain. It
wasn’t until the light had completely faded that he broke the silence.

"What will you do from here on Lili?" Though they had agreed to meet up again, much
earlier this time, Vahn was still curious about what she had decided upon. He knew,
given her current disguise, that she was still actively hiding from her Familia.

Lili silently contemplated her next words carefully. She looked towards Vahn and
noticed the concern in his eyes, so she mustered up her courage. "I...I want to
stay in the same Inn as you. I don’t want to return to my Familia as they’ll likely
blame me for the deaths of the three members that died in the dungeon. Though there
isn’t a lot of camaraderie in that detestable place, they’ll still punish me
severely to appease their own unease. In the worst case, they may even kill me..."

Vahn grit his teeth in anger hearing her words. He understood what she said was
true, and since it was due to his actions that caused the death of the three, he
needed to take responsibility and protect her until she became strong enough.
Seeing the fear that begun to show in Lili’s eyes, he smiled before walking towards
the stairs leading to the lower levels.

After he took a few steps, he turned towards the dejected looking Pallum. "Come on
Lili, lets go home." As the words left his lips, he felt a powerful force nearly
knock him to the ground.

"Vahn-saaaama-" Lili had lept into his body after his Vahn’s words. She nuzzled
against his abdomen and gripped his body like a vice.

-[Liliruca Arde] Affection +1-

After several painstaking minutes, Vahn finally managed to separate the hugging
demon from his body. He turned and continued his way outside of the tower, as the
cheerful girl followed closely behind.

Vahn and Lili made their way towards the ’Hearth’s Embrace’ and stopped at a small
stall that sold trinkets and gifts. Since he didn’t know what to buy as a gift for
a young girl, he decided to ask Lili since she was around the same age as Tina.

"Eh? You want me to help you pick a gift for another girl...?" She began to pout
while giving him a look of dissatisfaction.

Vahn nodded while picking up and examining some animal shaped charms. "Yeah, I’ve
never bought a gift for anyone before, so I’m not really sure what to get."

Never bought a gift before? The words repeated themselves in Lili’s mind over and
over. (’I have to get him to buy me something as well. I can’t let the first gift
he ever purchases go to some random Inn employee!’) She began forming a plan in her
head...

"Vahn-sa...Vahn. How about in exchange for me helping you pick a gift, you buy me
one as well? It doesn’t have to be something expensive, but I would like something
to remember our meeting and the first day of training by. Ah! I know, I can buy you
a gift and we can exchange presents!" She began getting fired up at the thought of
exchanging gifts. As far as she knew, if he had never given a gift, wasn’t it
almost as likely he had never received any!?

"Sure, Lili. I don’t really see a reason not to reward you for your help. Though,
you don’t really need to get me anything." From manga, Vahn remembered that girls
liked gifts and sweets, and he could see from her aura that she was happy at the
idea of receiving a present.

Lili began dragging Vahn around the stalls until she came upon an area that sold
ornamental brooches and accessories for women. After asking Vahn more than a fair
amount of questions about Tina, she finally selected a small green brooch shaped
like a fish.

Vahn inspected the small brooch and noticed it was a similar aquamarine color as
his eyes, and thought it was a bit strange to purchase it. Seeing his hesitation,
Lili insisted that it would be well-received so he eventually gave in. As a
precaution, he also purchased some salted caramel wrapped in a decorative
container. After having the two items packaged, Lili ended up dragging him to
another section of the store.

When they were browsing around earlier, Lili had found an object that caught her
eye and thought it would be the ideal exchange item. Within the display case were a
pair of lockets shaped to represent hearts. The larger of the two was silver in
color, while the slightly smaller locket was a vibrant bronze similar to brass.
Though other items could be stored inside them, what drew Lili’s attention was how
the smaller bronze locket could be seated inside the silver locket, turning the two
individual parts into a singular whole.

Vahn noticed the item on display and thought it was kind of cool how two different
pieces of jewelry were made to be able to fit together. Without thinking too much
about it, he ended up asking the shopkeep to ring up the item, but Lili
interrupted...

"I want to pay for the silver locket myself. You can buy the bronze locket, and
then we’ll exchange them." Lili seemed adamant at the idea, and Vahn recalled that
she had gotten excited at the idea of purchasing gifts for each other. He decided
to give in to her whimsy, even though he noticed that the silver locket was the
more expensive of the two. Vahn figured there always time to make up for the
difference later.

After they had finished the purchase, Lili had the two of them stop a few meters
away from the stall. She had Vahn kneel down so she could more easily reach around
his neck. With a blush on her face, she connected the locket around his neck before
staring into Vahn’s face with an anticipatory look. Realizing what she wanted, he
took the small bronze locket and placed it around her small, fragile, neck in
return. (A/N: Flashbacks anyone?)

-[Liliruca Arde] Affection +3-

Once the exchange was completed, the two walked towards the direction of the Inn.
Lili became very quiet for the duration of the trip and kept fiddling with the
locket. She would mumble to herself while releasing a dream-like expression on her
face.

Vahn, seeing how much she liked the locket, became certain that girls must really
love receiving gifts. He hadn’t expected to get a whopping three additional
affection for a trinket that only cost 800 Valis. Looking at his own locket, he
could feel a discomforting pressure from around his neck. However, this discomfort
was offset by the sense of warmth he could feel emanating from the cold metal.

They finally arrived outside the Inn, and Lili seemed to become more alert than she
had appeared even when they were in the dungeon. There was a glint in her eye like
she was about to face a dangerous enemy. Vahn was very surprised, (’Why doesn’t she
show this kind of motivation in the dungeon?’) Thinking it would be a dangerous
question, he decided to lead the way through the Inn’s entrance.

"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeelcome-! Would you like to stay the nya-ight-?" In a manner almost

identical to the first time he stepped into the Inn, a young cat girl excitedly
greeted them when they stepped through the door.

"Ah, Mister-nya-!? You’re finally back! I’m super angry-nya!" The small 120cm tall
cat girl rushed forward before standing directly in front of Vahn. "Kneel." She
stomped her tiny foot and gave him a fierce look with her arms across her non-
existent chest.

Though he was confused, Vahn figured it was best to listen to her for the time
being. It was his fault for worrying her in the first place, and there wasn’t any
harm in allowing her to release her pent-up emotions. Besides, he also found her
attempts at acting mature to be rather adorable.

Just as Tina was about to begin lecturing, she paused after seeing the small
cloaked girl standing behind Vahn. The two made eye contact, and Tina could feel
her instincts screaming that the girl before her was an ’enemy’.
Turning her focus away from the kneeling Vahn, she began sizing up the slightly
smaller girl in front of her. At first, she smiled after noticing that the girl was
shorter than she was, but when her eyes came across the chest area she felt an
impact to her mental state. Tina began to pat her flat chest with a sad expression
which quickly turned to anger when she noticed the small girl proudly ’puff’ out
with a gloating look on her face. Between the two shapely mounds, Tina could even
see the existence of a small brass locket that seemed very similar to the silver
locket worn by the kneeling Vahn!

"Who are you-nya? What is your relationship with Mister-nya?" Tina refused to yield
before the unknown girl before her. She looked directly into her eyes, trying to
pry out any information she could obtain.

Lili smiled while continuing to flaunt her ’weapons’. She began to fiddle with the
locket before giving the cat girl a cheeky look and responding, "I’m Vahn-sama’s
partner and Supporter. He is also training me from sunrise to sunset-What about
you, ’little’ girl-?"

From the side, Vahn could see an illusion of sparks colliding between the area
where the twos line-of-sight crossed. He could also see that both of their auras
were dancing around like flames and he began to feel a cold sweat streak down his
back. Thinking he needed to step in to prevent a fight from starting, he tried
standing and separating the two.

"Lili, Tina, why are you glaring at each other after just meeting? Lili, Tina is
the daughter of the Proprietress I mentioned earlier. Both she and her mother have
shown me kindness after I arrived in the City, so I don’t want to see you making
trouble with them for no reason." As he admonished Lili, she began showing an
ashamed expression while Tina began beaming with a smile on her face.

"And Tina, Lili is an important companion and student of mine. I am training her to
become stronger, while she helps supplement for my own lack of knowledge. There
would be many things I couldn’t do without her, including this..." Seeing the
demeanor of the two invert, with Lili now showing a smile while Tina began to sulk,
Vahn pulled out his trump card.

"Here you go Tina. A present to apologize for making you worry, and some salted
caramel to thank you for the delicious lunch you prepared on my behalf. Thanks, I
really appreciate it." As he spoke he passed the two items to the young cat girl
and she received them with a gleeful expression. When she saw the fish-shaped
brooch that matched Vahn’s eyes, she was extremely happy.

Tina held the brooch in her hands as she glanced at the girl introduced as Lili.
Since Vahn had said Lili helped pick out the present, she wanted to thank her, but
seeing the locket around Lili’s neck made her annoyed. With a sudden burst of
inspiration, she handed the brooch back to Vahn before asking him to pin it to the
collar of her blouse.

Vahn received the brooch and did as she asked, noticing a fierce blush spread on
her cheeks in the process.

-[Tina Yuel] Affection +8-

Hearing the notification, Vahn almost tripped and fumbled with the brooch in his
right hand. He managed to catch himself but noticed a stillness spread through the
atmosphere. Looking around he saw Lili with a shocked expression, while Tina was
blushing so fiercely that the aura emitting from her body created the illusion of
steam. From his left hand, Vahn could feel an incredibly subtle but soft sensation
on his palm. Perhaps due to some base instinct, he slightly squeezed the hand which
caused the blushing Tina to mewl and immediately dash towards the back room.

"Vaaaaahn-nya- Yoooou perveeert-idiot-demon-nya!!!" She quickly dashed through the

door, leaving a stunned Vahn still holding out his hand.

("Sis, what did I just grab?") Vahn was very confused at the turn of events and
tried asking the only person that would be able to help him make sense of his
predicament.

(Pervert.) Hearing Sis also call him a pervert, Vahn almost fell over for the
second time. ’What on earth had he done to be labeled as a pervert by two girls in
such a brief period of time!?’ He looked towards his last hope of getting an
answer, Lili, who was staring at him with a sad expression on her face.

"Vahn-sama...do you like smaller ones?" As she asked the question, she closed both
hands over her chest and Vahn began to realize the seriousness of his offense. When
he slipped he must have accidentally touched Tina’s boobs...and then he even
squeezed.

Even the dense Vahn understood he had done something inexcusable, but he didn’t
know what he had to do to remedy the situation. For now, he just looked towards
Lili and gave an awkward smile. "I...I don’t really have a preference...I think."

Lili released a sigh of relief while patting her own developing chest. "Thank
goodness Vahn-sama-" As she spoke she began to close the gap between them.

A terrible premonition began to arise within Vahn’s mind and he began to backstep
to keep the distance from shortening. He could see an evil look in Lili’s eyes as
she approached him with a ’kind’ smile on her face. Eventually, he backed up into a
wall and lost all possibility of further retreat.

Lili continued to close the gap until she was standing just beneath him. While
looking upwards with those same fearful eyes, she suddenly reached back her right
hand...and smacked him across the face.

"VAHN-SAMA, YOU PERVERT!"

The pain from the slap and the fact he had been called a pervert three times in
such a short period dealt critical damage to Vahn’s mental state. As he used one
hand to cover his burning face, Lili ended up seizing his free hand...and placed it
directly onto her chest.

"I won’t lose..." She mumbled almost inaudibly.

Vahn stood there in shock as Lili continued holding his hand on her chest. His
mouth gaped open and closed like a fish out of water. He was trying to find a
solution but struggled to find the words. Though he tried removing his hand, he was
shocked to find Lili had been holding his wrist like a vice seemingly unwilling to
let him extricate it from her grasp.

"Ara-. Even though the sun has gone down, it isn’t appropriate to show such
displays of affection in public."

The cold sweat that had settled on his back began to increase as Vahn heard the
unamused words that seemed to be spoken by a demon from a dark icy abyss. Both he
and Lili turned towards the sound of the voice in a mechanical manner and saw a
mature woman staring at them with an icy gaze. The smile on her face, though it
appeared friendly on the surface, seemed to possess a veiled threat as it coldly
observed their actions.
The woman, Milan, continued to stare at the two children who were frozen by her
sight. Though she was laughing in her mind, she felt a mischevious urge and wanted
to tease the two of them. She moved her ’icy’ gaze towards the hand that was still
being held to the chest of the hooded girl and Vahn immediately snatched his hand
away as a result. The hooded girl was broken from her stupor by the movement before
crouching down into a ball and hiding her face from view.

After staring at the girl for a moment, she turned her gaze back towards Vahn and
increased the depth of her smile. "Vahn, it seems you not only took advantage of my
daughter but in the span of a few minutes you found a second victim-nya? Perhaps
it’s too dangerous to allow you to stay under this roof any longer so as to protect
our female residents and employees-?

Every word seemed to increase the mental damage Vahn had received since entering
the Inn. Had he known something like this was going to happen, he wouldn’t have
tried pinning on the brooch in the first place! At this point, he could only
swallow his regrets and try to explain the situation while apologizing.

"Mrs. Yuel...please, I can explain...I didn’t mean to offend your daughter. This
whole situation is just a big misunderstanding caused by my slip and lack of
focus." He raised both his hands and waved them in surrender.

Milan couldn’t help but find his reaction hilarious, but she wasn’t willing to let
him get out of things so easily. "Ara-? So you’re saying that after you
’accidentally’ slipped and groped my daughter, you also ’accidentally’ squeezed her
chest-?"

Hearing the words, Vahn fell to his knees with his palms on the ground. Though he
could explain away the first part, he didn’t have a reasonable excuse for the
second half of her words. After she had repeated the series of events, he was dealt
a critical blow and couldn’t remain standing any longer. He now began to understand
why so many ’dense’ protagonists suffered in anime and manga, and he resolved to
try and remedy his bad habits in the future.

While staring at the boy who had black lines covering his face, Milan had to cover
her mouth to prevent laughing aloud. She had no doubt everything was caused by a
misunderstanding, but it didn’t change the fact he took advantage of the situation
to gain benefits. Seeing that it would likely take time for Vahn to recover, she
decided to change her focus to the second ’victim’.

Milan was surprised at how small the girl was. If she wasn’t wrong, the girl was
even younger than her daughter if height was any indicator. "Little miss, what
brings you here to my Inn? Were you accompanying this rogue willingly, or did he
kidnap you from somewhere-?"

Lili twitched when the woman began addressing her. She turned towards the voice and
took a good look at the woman who spoke. She could see the similarities between the
woman and the young cat person, Tina, from before. This was probably the girl’s
mother and the proprietress of the Inn.

"Umu...I’m Lili, and I’m following Vahn-sama by my own will." As she began
speaking, a small amount of courage started emerging from her heart. "And he isn’t
a rogue! He didn’t touch your daughter on purpose, and it was my decision to let
him feel my chest!"

"Nyahahahahaha-" Hearing Lili’s words, Milan could no longer hold back her laugh.
She began to laugh boisterously as the two children before her started at her with
confused expressions. Lili began to blush and wanted to shout at her, but Milan
interrupted the attempt. "It’s fine Lili, I know Vahn isn’t like that-. Even if he
was curious, he is the type of boy to ask permission, isn’t that right Vahn-nya?"

Vahn was unable to answer her words, he just continued to stare at her blankly.
From his side, he could feel the atmosphere become stagnant as an oppressive aura
started to emit from outside his line-of-sight. Turning his head, he could see Lili
staring at him with an aggrieved expression.

Within Lili’s mind, all she could think of was the last few words spoken by the
proprietress. If she was telling the truth, that means Vahn ’asked permission’ to
touch her at some point!? She grits her teeth before glaring at her new ’opponent’.

"Where...?" Lili clenched her fists as she asked the question.

"Ara-nya? It was one of my most sensitive parts you know-? Even after he touched
it, he wasn’t satisfied and even tried touching again-nya" While speaking, Milan
crossed her arms and seemed to emphasize her chest.

Lili stared at the woman’s chest with fierce eyes and compared the size against her
own. Though her’s were smaller, it wasn’t a very big difference. "If it’s just
that...then even I...."

"Nya-? Who said it was just that-? It was a place much more sensitive you know-?"
Seeing the anger and competitiveness in the young girl made Milan feel fifteen
years younger. It reminded her of the times when she would compare herself to her
’rivals’ back in her Adventuring days. She wanted to tease the girl even more but
decided it was enough seeing as how Vahn was on the verge of a mental collapse.

"Vahn seemed to be curious about a Cat People. When he first moved in, he asked if
he could touch my ears, so I allowed him to-nya. Only once though-" She began to
laugh while sending a wink towards Vahn who was still lamenting his misfortune on
the ground.

"Ears...?" Lili gave a glance towards Vahn before muttering a chant under her
breath. Once she was finished, she removed her hood and revealed...a pair of cat
ears on her head. "If its ears...I have them too." She gave a confident look
towards the shocked Proprietress.

"Ara-? It seems Vahn is more interested in cat people than I thought, to bring one
home with him..." She looked towards Vahn who had been staring at Lili in
confusion. She began thinking she may have to sit down with her daughter and have a
long talk...

"So Lili, will you be staying with us at the Hearths Embrace, or are you just
visiting?" Since the talks had gone on long enough, Milan decided to find out what
had brought the two here at this time.

Vahn had begun to recover and tried to stand up and answer on Lili’s behalf. He
thought it was a good opportunity to clear up matters before they got any worse.
Unfortunately, it seemed the floor hadn’t had enough intimate contact with him as
he ended up meeting it once again after hearing the words spoken by Lili.

"I will be staying with Vahn-sama, in the same room. I don’t mind paying the costs
separately." She immediately pulled out a bag of Valis with a serious expression.

From the floor, Vahn quickly raised his voice. "No, I object!" He knew it would be
dangerous in various ways if he allowed Lili to stay in the same room as him. After
all, there was only one bed, and he was still worried about the implications behind
her ’love’ status. He didn’t want to break down the walls he was trying to build to
protect them both.

"I have to agree with Vahn. Even if the two of you are close, it’s not appropriate
for a young boy and girl to share the same room. If you have the money, you should
lease your own room and visit whenever you have matters to discuss. Though keep in
mind the walls are rather thin and there are other residents within the Inn." As
she spoke the last words she gave a warning look at Lili who still seemed intent on
getting the same room.

"Fine, but I want the closest room to Vahn-sama. I’ll even pay the current resident
to change rooms if necessary." For Lili, this was as far as she was willing to
compromise. Even if she couldn’t share the same room, being in the next room over
was better than nothing. Plus, she would be able to hear if Vahn brought any
company into his room without her notice...

After paying for the room, the three continued to talk for a while. From the back
room, a small silhouette could be seen peaking through the area between the door
and frame. Whenever anyone would look over, the silhouette would immediately vanish
causing the mature woman to laugh.

After Vahn had refused to stay for dinner, Milan allowed the two to leave. As they
went up the stairs she gave them one last parting remark reminding them to be
mindful of the other residents. Hearing this, Vahn sighed while Lili seemed to
blush with a look of conviction on her face.

They stowed away Lili’s luggage and decided to grab dinner together. Before they
left, Lili insisted on seeing Vahn’s room so he allowed her access. When she saw
the room lacked any decorations, Lili was reminded of Vahn’s storage space.

"Vahn...Even if you have storage magic you should still personalize your living
space a bit. It is kind of lonely seeing the place someone lives being so...empty."
She began wandering around his room looking for any signs that he actually lived
there. After failing to find anything, she sat down on his bed and used her
empowered senses from turning into a Cat Person to smell the scent coming from the
bed.

"Eh, it smells like fresh linens. That demon or her daughter must have changed the
sheets recently. Guuu.."

Vahn was helpless seeing her actions. There wasn’t anything he could think of that
wouldn’t hurt her feelings if he tried to stop her, so he just let her be and hoped
she grew out of it. While she was lost in her own thoughts, he looked around at the
barren room. It was the same as the first time he moved in, and other than the
sheets nothing had changed since his arrival. For Vahn, he never had thought of
decorating, but remembering how much stuff he had added to his cave he thought he
should do so in the future. If he was treating this place as his home, he should
show that he is ’living’ in it.

Eventually, Lili snapped out of her delusions, and the two made their way towards
the Hostess of Fertility. Vahn had been talking about the amazing food, but Lili
was only focused on one of the other well-known aspects of the pub...it’s women.

After they arrived, Vahn took the time to enjoy the aroma as he had done so on all
his previous visits. He leads Lili through the doors and was received...by Chloe.
The black-haired cat girl stared at the two new guests with a professional smile on
her face. "Nya- Would you like a table for two-? She looked between Vahn and the
new face of the cat person at his side. The small girl was also staring directly at
her with a defensive posture...but Chloe could also see something else behind the
girl’s bravado.

Lili stared at the girl that seemed to be familiar with Vahn based on their
reaction to each other. After noticing the black-haired woman was also a Cat
Person, Lili began to wonder if Vahn wasn’t interested in her because of his
preferences...

Feeling a gaze, Lili noticed that the woman was staring at her with a strange
expression. It was almost like she was able to see through her, and Lili began to
feel a fear emerge from the back of her mind. She could tell that this
woman...would be a terrifying opponent.

As that thought crossed her mind, she couldn’t help but scream internally, (’Aren’t
there way too many opponents!?’)

Lili began to feel restless under the penetrating gaze of the girl before her. She
couldn’t understand why the look made her feel so much insecurity. It was something
beyond just fearing she would lose Vahn to this woman...but she wasn’t able to
understand. All Lili knew was that the gaze seemed familiar, but she wasn’t able to
place why and from where she had seen it before.

"Nyahaha- Isn’t your friend very cute, Vahn-? You should introduce me-" As Chloe
began guiding them towards a small table, she gave Vahn a questioning look, almost
as if her eyes were urging him to explain in detail how he met the young girl.

Vahn noticed that Chloe was acting very similar to their first meeting. Just like
his case, Chloe seemed to be very sensitive towards those that had experienced
suffering in their past. He smiled at her concern and the willingness she showed to
let him act as he thought best.

"Yes...This is Lili. I can’t go into too many details, but I’ve decided to help her
become stronger." As he introduced her, Lili bowed her head slightly but didn’t
relax since Chloe made her feel very uncomfortable. "And this is Chloe...she is
someone that helped me realize...a lot of things." When he spoke the words, he
couldn’t help but show a thankful smile.

Both Lili and Chloe noticed his expression; Lili was somewhat dissatisfied since it
felt like she was in a disadvantageous position from the outset. Chloe just gave a
cheeky smile while closing in on Vahn...and giving him a brief kiss on his cheek.

Afterward, she took their orders, though it would be more appropriate to say
’order’ since Vahn had to make the decision for both of them. After Lili saw Chloe
give him a kiss, she had begun to pout with her head down while refusing to speak
and make eye contact. Without saying anything further, Chloe went to the kitchen to
inform the chefs before continuing her rounds with other customers.

Lili looked up as Chloe walked away. She traced her path through the pub with her
eyes before turning to Vahn once Chloe had gotten far enough away. "Vahn, please
tell me about your relationship with that woman. I can tell there is something
going on between the two of you, but it seems to be different than lovers."

Vahn shook his head. Even he didn’t know what their relationship was...he just knew
he had a lot of gratitude towards Chloe, and that he even wanted to confess to her
in the past. "I would say...she is like a mentor, or maybe a guide? It’s hard to
put it into words really...but she saved me from my isolation and helped me realize
a lot about myself. I want to become stronger to meet her expectations...but I’m
not sure if that is to become lovers."

"But you wouldn’t just let any girl kiss you...I can see that when she kissed your
cheek you were happy." She continued staring, almost as if to blame Vahn for all
her present grievances.

Vahn nodded and decided to speak about his past with Chloe. He told her about their
first meeting, about how was afraid at how Chloe looked at him. He went over how
she seemed to be trying to break down the barriers he had built around his heart
and mind. After that, he talked about how they had agreed to a date on only their
second meeting. He went over everything from the early rendezvous...the experience
at the clothing store...and even discussed their viewing of the sunset together.
Lastly, he talked about how he had even tried to confess but was stopped in the
end.

Throughout the whole story, Lili just continued to silently listen. She watched as
his expression changed between each scene, and could sense the emotions behind the
words. Her heart began to feel pain with how much passion Vahn seemed to have when
speaking about his ’transformation’. Though she hadn’t been there, she could
imagine the entire series of events...and began to realize she hadn’t been taking
Vahn’s current life and past into consideration...

Lili began to shrink into her seat, afraid to look at Vahn. She realized she was
taking advantage of his kindness ever since he had saved her. Even though he was
making so many efforts to help her change, the only thing on her mind was trying to
get closer to him...she even had possessive thoughts and wanted to prevent others
from doing the same.

While she was lost in her thoughts, Vahn couldn’t help but sigh after seeing her
current state. He wanted her to know the truth so that she was able to understand
he wasn’t the powerful hero she painted a false picture of in her mind. In many
ways, he was very similar to her...just a little bit further along the same road.

The two sat in silence, one unsure of what to say while the other brooded over the
past. After a few minutes, Chloe arrived with their meals.

"Nyahaha- One order of chicken-curry rice for Vahn, and one children’s special for
the moody cat girl-nya!" Chloe placed the meals on the table, and Vahn noticed the
order for Lili was different than what he had ordered.

"Umm, Chloe-"

"Go ahead and eat up-nya! It’s full of nutrition and even has a little toy you can
keep for yourself- Don’t be shy-nya!" Chloe ignored Vahn and continued to pester
the still silent Lili. She even slowly nudged the plate towards her while leaning
over the table somewhat.

Eventually, Lili looked at the plate before staring at the girl that wouldn’t leave
her alone. "This isn’t what I want...I want what Vahn-sama ordered for me." She
stared directly at Chloe with a look of dissatisfaction. She didn’t understand why
Chloe was bothering her when she obviously didn’t want to deal with her.

"Nya-? How curious, a little girl that thinks she knows what she wants, but is just
sitting around while other people make decisions for her-. Vahn or me, why does it
matter who chooses what you eat? Aren’t you just happy someone is treating you to a
meal-nya?" Without losing her smile, Chloe gave Lili a look of ’contempt’. She
nudged the plate directly in front of Lili. "Go ahead- Don’t be shy little girl-."
Vahn wanted to interject, but he could feel Chloe’s tail tapping his leg every time
he tried to open his mouth. He decided to trust in her and began to slowly eat his
meal. It was delicious...

Seeing Vahn start eating without saying anything, Lili began to feel betrayed. She
could see he clearly wanted to speak up but then decided to suddenly ignore the
situation. Negative emotions began to stir within her heart, and she wanted to vent
them but didn’t know how.

"Vahn-sama, please ask your friend to leave me alone. I’d rather eat nothing that
be toyed with by her." Ignoring Chloe who had raised her brow in contempt, Lili
tried appealing to Vahn.

"Nya-? Whats this-? You even ask for help to resolve such minor things-? Is Vahn
supposed to be your caretaker now-?" Chloe began to chuckle while continuing to
stare into the glaring eyes of Lili.

She began to inch closer towards Vahn in spite of the increasing intensity of the
glare...

"Vahn, nyaaaaaaahn-" She opened her mouth just as Vahn was about to take another
bite of his curry. He seemed to struggle internally for a moment before letting her
eat the bite he was about to take. As she chewed on the spicy dish, she almost
dropped her act seeing the sad expression on Vahn’s face. Luckily, the wrath coming
from Lili made her able to keep her cool.

"You thieving cat! Get away from Vahn-sama!" Lili was genuinely pissed. She
couldn’t believe Chloe would go so far as showing a public display of affection
while simultaneously pestering her! She rose from the table and shouted the words
at the top of her lungs.

Mama Mia had been observing the incident from the bar but didn’t intervene since
Chloe had warned her earlier. She just gave Chloe a look implying she needed to
control the situation better or she would have to step in.

"Thieving cat-? Didn’t you see with your own eyes him feeding it to me-nya? Instead
of focusing on what we’re doing, shouldn’t you be brooding or eating your
children’s menu-?" At this point, Chloe had begun to snuggle against the now
sweating Vahn.

Lili was at a loss of words seeing how her outcry went largely ignored. The only
people that seemed to be affected were the other patrons, while both Chloe and Vahn
remained unmoved. She began feeling very aggrieved...she couldn’t handle Vahn
ignoring her, and she began to hate Chloe for doing this when she just wanted to
enjoy a meal with Vahn...

She fell back into the seat and started crying. She had never expected that the
person who saved her would wrong her in such a way. He just ignored her while
another woman bullied her right in front of him. Even though she had run away from
the Familia to stay with him...even though she had moved into the same Inn and
displayed multiple signs that she liked him...

Her thoughts began to become jumbled and she couldn’t form anything coherent. She
was just terribly sad, more-so than she had been when the elderly couple looked at
her in contempt. Even more than when she was mistreated by her own parents...Seeing
the boy that had shown her so much kindness now ignoring her made her feel more sad
and lonely than all of her previous experiences combined.

Through her sobs, she heard a gentle voice speaking. "You really are quite the
selfish child, aren’t you?" Lili looked towards the source and saw Chloe staring at
her with sad eyes and a gentle smile.

"You don’t know me, you have no idea what I’ve gone through. Even though I finally
found something I wanted...you’re taking it right in front of me." Lili couldn’t
help but blame Chloe for everything that was happening. If Chloe wasn’t here, she
and Vahn would have been able to enjoy a happy meal like a date.

Chloe continued to stare at her while speaking in the same gentle tone. "That’s why
you’re selfish Lili...you think you know what you want, but have you ever
considered for a moment if that is for the best? Have you once considered what the
person you ’want’ thinks?"

Lili felt a heavy impact on her mind. Even though the words were very hurtful,
there was no way she could refute them. It’s not that she didn’t think about what
Vahn wanted, she just wanted to be there with him when the time comes. Surely that
wasn’t too much to ask for? Wasn’t she allowed to be happy?

"There you go jumping to conclusions in your own head. Tell me Lili, surely Vahn
has told you all kinds of things about his past and desires...but have you ever
once asked him what he wants? Why did he want to be strong? Or have you just
listened when he spoke while forcing your own desires on him in the end?"

Hearing the heavy words, Lili couldn’t help but look towards Vahn. She could see
the concern on his face...he was probably worried about her even though he wasn’t
saying anything. But, behind that gentle gaze, she could see the shadows of the
pain she had observed on his face in the dungeon. Whenever he lost focus and
allowed his mind to wander, Lili always saw a deep melancholy and profound
loneliness in the eyes of the young boy. That’s right, though he was older than
her, he was still very young...

During her reflection, Chloe continued speaking. "You see, you aren’t the only one
that has suffered Lili. Though none of us can understand what you had gone through,
there are always others that had gone through similar, if not worse situations. You
probably wondered to yourself why Vahn would save someone like you, and I can tell
you the reason..."

When Chloe trailed her words, Lili looked towards her. She wanted to know the
answer since it had been something bothering her for a while. Remembering that Vahn
had been willing to sacrifice himself to take on her injuries...she couldn’t help
but think he had ulterior motives, but her heart wanted to believe in the hero that
saved her...

"It is because...Vahn has also suffered a lot. I’m sure he has told you bits and
pieces, but I can tell that what he had gone through...is probably something more
horrible than anything we can imagine." Both girls looked towards Vahn and could
see the hurt in his eyes as Chloe spoke her thoughts.

For the first time, both Lili and Chloe’s minds were in sync and felt they wanted
to help heal the boy silently eating curry.

"But you see, unlike you, Vahn has found solace in the present. Though he can’t let
go of the past, he has decided to move forward. His desire for strength stems from
his convictions and willingness to seize control of his own fate..." As she spoke
till here, Chloe began leaning against Vahn’s shoulder while closing her eyes. "And
he can do it too, you want to know why?" She slightly opened her eyes as she asked
the question.

Lili swallowed hard before slowly nodding her head.

"It’s because he wants others to be able to believe in him. He wants to become
strong enough, not to just escape his own fate, but to change the fates of others
around him." At this point, both girls could see a fiery look in the eyes of Vahn.
Within the furrowed brows a powerful conviction was present which caused both of
their heart rates to increase.

"Do you think he can bear the burden of your selfishness forever?" Chloe dropped
her final bombshell on the unsuspecting Lili.

Lili began remembering all the events leading up to this moment. All the suffering
from her past that had been brought to an abrupt halt by Vahn’s actions in the
dungeon...all of his words and actions as he tried to guide her towards a path
where she could become stronger...strong enough to control her own fate. She even
remembered all the times he pampered her when she was feeling insecure, and how he
always kept a certain distance when she tried to push things too far...their entire
relationship was just her receiving over and over again. Lili knew it couldn’t
continue forever...thats why she wanted to become his lover. At least then she
could repay him, even if it was with her body...

Looking towards Vahn, she could still see the conviction in his eyes, but the
concern shown on his face had never left. (’Ah, I know what it is that I
want...it’s such a simple thing.’)

"I want to become stronger...strong enough, not to avoid being a burden, but to be
able to walk on the same path...using my own power." Still maintaining eye contact
with Vahn, she saw a smile expand on his face. She even noticed, out of the corner
of her eye, Chloe was also smiling.

"I guess you aren’t as much of a child as I thought-nya."

After things had settled down, Chloe left the two to finish their meal. Lili still
seemed a bit down, but she looked a lot better than before. She ate away at the
children’s menu without complaint while making small talk with Vahn. Once they had
finished and settled the bill, Vahn and Lili bid farewell to Chloe and headed home.

On the path back to the Inn, Lili remained quiet and just looked around at the
various passersby. She saw people traveling in groups, families with their
children, and even individuals simply enjoying the evening atmosphere. There were
also a few couples that were walking around in the night markets, most likely
enjoying the final hours of their dates. When Lili saw them, she would just stare
for a few moments before continuing forward without saying anything.

Vahn could tell she was thinking about a lot of things, but the stability in her
aura made him feel as though things were changing for the better. Though he often
ran around the City to save time, Vahn just continued along the path while enjoying
the same atmosphere. The cool night air was very calming, and the warmth generated
by the flow of people made his heart feel at ease. When Lili would get distracted,
he would just patiently wait for her, giving her as much time as she needed.

After more than an hour, they were finally nearing the Inn when Lili decided to
stop so they could speak. Most of the pedestrians had already disappeared at this
time, and only a few hard-working vendors and adventurers could be seen in the
nightscape of the city. Lili leads the way towards the small plaza that served as a
central point for the markets near the Inn.

For a few minutes, the two just stood there in silence. Vahn could see the aura
around Lili fluctuate periodically before stabilizing again. Finally, she seemed to
have made up her mind, turning towards Vahn with a serious expression. "Vahn...I
want to apologize. For my selfishness...and insecurities...and so many other
things. Even though you had saved me and put in so much effort to help me grow, I
was just focused on my own thoughts..." She began to have trouble breathing as
tears began to appear in her eyes.

"I just...I just wanted to do something to help secure my own happiness. I thought
I could rely on your kindness to escape all my problems...and even if I wasn’t able
to become strong, I thought you would still help me. I even thought of using my own
body as compensation to make you dedicate yourself to me...I really am a selfish
woman...no, a selfish child, just like Chloe said." While she was speaking, she
continued to hold eye contact with Vahn who maintained a calm expression on his
face.

"I know you won’t abandon me, even though I did so many foolish things...but, I
don’t want to just rely on your kindness anymore. I want to become stronger...I
want to see what it is like to walk on a path where I’m not reliant on others to
live. And...I want to be able to repay this debt of gratitude I owe you...using my
own power." She was shaking while trying her best to hold back the tears that
continued to stream down her face. Lili didn’t want to lose anything anymore just
because she couldn’t hold onto it with her own strength.

Vahn could feel an indescribable pain coursing through his body as he watched the
small girl state her convictions through tears and muffled-sobs. He didn’t expect
it would be so hard to just stand by and listen as someone poured their heart out
to him. After her words ceased, he felt an overwhelming urge to just hug the girl
and help drive away all the negative feelings she was keeping within her
heart...but he couldn’t, not now. Vahn balled his hands into fists, holding back
his emotions as he waited for her to continue.

"From now on, please don’t hold back in my training. I will do whatever it
takes...I will prove that I’m worthy to walk at your side...not just a burden that
weighs you down!" Lili mustered the remainder of her strength and shouted the final
words. For her, it was both a confession and her heartfelt desire. Even if he never
returned her feelings, she still wanted him to know.

Vahn heavily placed his palm on her head, causing Lili to flinch. It wasn’t the
gentle patting he often gave her; it was almost as though he was angry. She looked
through her tear stained eyes and saw Vahn looking at her with a pained and
dissatisfied expression on his face. Lili began to wonder if she had upset him, and
her heart began to twist in her chest.

"You’re an idiot Lili..." Vahn released an exasperated sigh as he spoke the words.

"Eh..? Vahn?" Lili was confused and heartbroken. She couldn’t make sense of his
derisive words, especially after everything that had happened.

Before she could process what was happening, Vahn pulled her into a powerful hug.
She could feel his warmth begin to spread through her body. And on the side of her
face, she could feel a wetness that didn’t come from her eyes.

"You are such an idiot...don’t say things like "worthy" or "burden". Everything
I’ve done for you was by my own will. Even if I thought I had to protect you, I
never once thought you were a burden that wasn’t worth saving. It breaks my heart
to heart to hear you say something so cruel..." Vahn continued hugging Lili as
warms tears slowly streamed down his face. He couldn’t bear the words she spoke any
longer.

"Vahn..." Lili sunk her face into his chest, enjoying the sensation. She didn’t try
to take advantage of the situation, she just allowed herself to be held by Vahn.
Through his chest, she could feel the powerful beating of Vahn’s heart...it was
slow and rhythmic...and seemed to contain a powerful vitality that helped comfort
something deep within her soul.

Vahn continued to hug her tightly for a few minutes until they had both long
stopped crying. When he pulled away, Lili didn’t try latching onto him like
previously. Instead, they just stared at each other before displaying awkward
smiles seeing their unsightly appearance. The young boy and girl began laughing,
driving away all of the negative emotions that had settled in the atmosphere.

Once they had collected themselves, they headed to the Inn. After exchanging
pleasantries with Milan who had given them strange looks, they two headed to their
respective rooms. Before they each entered, Vahn stopped Lili and gave her a gentle
hug. Though she was shocked, Lili just accepted it without resisting.

"Good night Lili. Tomorrow will be difficult, and I won’t go easy on you anymore so
get plenty of rest. I cannot help replace what you had lost in the past, but I will
do my best to guarantee you are able to find a path where you can seize your
future." Vahn spoke the words gently, but firmly. Lili just nodded before
eventually turning towards her room when the hug ended.

Before she closed the door, Lili looked into Vahn’s eyes. "I will do it Vahn
sama...no matter how long it takes, or how much I have to struggle. I swear." With
those parting words, she closed the door, leaving a grinning Vahn in the hallway.

Within his own room, Vahn laid down on his bed with a powerful feeling of
exhaustion. He recalled the events of the day and could barely make sense of
everything that happened. ("Sis, why are people so difficult? Why do they have to
expend so much effort to break away from suffering and try to find happiness?")
Vahn stared at the ceiling while remembering all the people he had interacted with,
in both his present world and past life.

(That isn’t a question I know the answer to Vahn. You will have to find the answers
for yourself through experience. All I can do is help guide you along ’The Path’
until you become strong enough to possess the ’freedom’ you desire.)

Vahn nodded. With ’The Path’ he had an advantage over almost everyone else within
the stories he could recall in his mind. Most people had to go through life dealing
with the lot they were given at birth...even Vahn himself was a victim of
unfortunate circumstance. Now, he had to power to control his fate, and as long as
he put in the effort there were very few things that could halt his momentum.

He began thinking about how best to use his power, and what worlds he should visit
in the future. There were many things he wanted to experience, but after
interacting with people like Chloe, Lili, and Hephaestus, Vahn began having doubts
about the path he was taking. Though he originally just wanted power and the
ability to travel through the worlds of his dreams, now it was becoming harder and
harder to think of himself as a bystander. Now he was proactively beginning to
drive events within the world, and depending on his decisions he could completely
alter the events he knew from the canon...

Releasing a sigh, Vahn tried to stop worrying about things. If he let himself get
caught up in self-doubt, he would just create unnecessary stress for himself. The
best thing he could do now was to continue growing stronger so that he could deal
with each situation as they arose. With that thought in mind, Vahn decided to take
the time to review all of his current stats and items before going to sleep.
[[STATS]]

Name: [Vahn Mason]

Age: 14

Race: Human, *sealed*

Parameter: [Danmachi: 1-4]

-Level:2(2)

-Power:1001+(I38)

-Endurance:1108+(I51)

-Dexterity:887+(I41)

-Agility:940+(I40)

-Magic:1611+(E244)

Total:5547+(414)

Soul Strength: Tier 2 (Hero Soul)

[Karma]: 801

[OP]: 27,490

[Valis]: 49,700(A/N: I Actually feel like I forgot something here)

Skills: [Will of the Emperor:SSS], [Rakshasa Body:H][Bow Mastery:C], [Stealth:D],

[Chainbreaker:S], [Call of the Reaper:B],[Yggdrasil’s Favor:S], [Veil of the
Traveler: S], [Swordsman:D], [Featherfoot:E]

Magic: Empty

Development Skills: [Wound Transfer:B], [Spirit Healing:B], [Blacksmith:D]

[[ITEMS]]

Equipment: [Runic Tamahagane Blade:A], [Plague Mask:E], [Nullifying Mantle:C],

[Mithril Poniard:B], [Damascus-Steel Gauntlets:C], [Scout’s Guille Suit:F],
[Handloomed Shadowsilk Tunic:D], [Runic Tempered Yew Shortbow:B], [Decanter of
Replenishment:B], 1x Hephaestus’ Favor, 1x Skill Enhancement Scroll, Etc...

[[QUESTS]]

[Birth of a Legend:SS], [The Hearts Desire:C-SS(repeatable)]

His Magic was still increasing at an alarming rate, probably due to his contest of
wills against the ’eternal flame’. The rest of his stats were trailing far behind,
but Vahn thought it was due to the minimal effort he had used in hunting monsters
with Lili. He would have to fight much stronger monsters if he wanted to experience
the rapid growth he had in the previous week.

One thing that caught his eye was the ’1x Hephaestus’ Favor’ that he had overlooked
after completing the optional quest. He had been so focused at the time, and then
immediately moved onto forging and other stuff that he never had the chance to
determine its use.

[Hephaestus’ Favor] x1

Rank: Unique

Use: After consumption exponentially increases the likelihood of a successful

request from the ’Goddess of Forging, Hephaestus’. Success rate determined by
Affection.

Vahn was surprised after reading the items description. It was his first unique
item, and he wasn’t sure if it was good or bad. After a bit of thought, he figured
it could be used to ask her to forge a weapon for him in the future, though he
would probably have to increase his affection with Hephaestus before then...

Thinking of Affection, Vahn decided to see the values of all the current people
whose auras he had touched.

[Liliruca Arde]: Affection:94(Love), Intrigue:66(Concerned)

[Chloe Lolo]: Affection:78(Trust), Intrigue:89(Hope for the Future)

[Eina Tulle]:59(Confused), Intrigue:72(Uncertain but Interested)

[Hephaestus]: Affection: 82(Belief), Intrigue:100(Insatiable Curiosity)

[Milan Yuel]: Affection: 55(Amicable), Intrigue:51(Neutral)

[Tina Yuel]:Affection: 68(Crush), Intrigue:53(Confused)

[Nicholas Grimm]:47(Disatisfied), Intrigue:60(Curious)

Seeing Tina on the list, Vahn could help but cringe remembering his earlier
failure. He was also very curious when Nicholas had been added to the list. Vahn
didn’t remember ever touching him, but it was likely after he had lost
consciousness outside of the dungeon. Since he didn’t see any names he didn’t
recognize, he wasn’t sure though. There were likely several doctors that had
touched him when he was asleep, so maybe the system only included people he was
familiar with beforehand?

The thing that concerned him the most was the fact Hephaestus’s intrigue had hit
100, which Sis informed him was the max. The thought anyone possessed an
’insatiable curiosity’ towards him actually terrified Vahn. He didn’t know to what
extent she would go to in order to satiate her curiosity in the future...

Meanwhile, Hephaestus was experiencing shock after trying to forge metal in the
’eternal flame’. The temperature was not only significantly stronger, but the flame
was much easier to manage. It seemed to proactively regulate the heat when the raw
metal began to reach its peak, allowing her to almost completely ignore tending to
the metal herself...

She looked towards a nearby wall and her gaze seemed to penetrate through the
structure of the building. If anyone was to draw a line tracing her gaze, they
would find out she was looking directly towards where Vahn was presently bathing in
a cold sweat.