Morning at the Hestia residence was as bustling as ever. But this time, a dangerous aura hung in the air.
"Bell!" Hestia rushed anxiously into the young man's room. "Something's happened to Take's child!"
The goddess was breathing heavily, cold sweat pouring down her face.
Before dawn, she'd been roused by Laurier, who said her friend Takemikazuchi had come calling. Hestia never imagined the devastating news he would bring.
"Take's child..." Hestia pulled back the covers, only to find the delicate, alluring Airmid lying there.
"You... you two... ?!" Gazing at the vivid crimson stain, the goddess couldn't finish her words before fainting.
When she awoke, Airmid had already dressed herself.
"Hestia-sama, Bell and the others have already departed." Airmid spoke up.
"Um... you two..." Hestia's mind was in turmoil, utterly speechless.
Airmid seemed to read the pure goddess's distress and spoke softly, "You know my feelings for Bell are genuine, right?"
"Of course..." Hestia replied without hesitation. Had the girls' affections been mere child's play, she would have banished them from the estate long ago. The same principle applied to the young man.
"Truthfully, I feel embarrassed too. Such impure matters are difficult for any girl to accept. But, Hestia-sama, do you know what Bell has endured?" Airmid gazed into the goddess's eyes, showing her resolve.
"I don't know... That child never tells me anything..." Hestia was the one closest to Bell, yet also the farthest. From having nothing at the start to living in this mansion now—how much effort Bell had poured in, how much suffering he had endured. Hestia knew none of it. Hestia herself did not know. Once she learned, she knew she would surely weep. Both she and the youth understood this well.
"I will tell you what Bell endured, Hestia-sama. If after hearing it, you still harbor anger toward me for what I did last night, please do not take it out on Bell. I alone bear the responsibility." Airmid spoke with sincerity.
"Hmm... I swear by my god's authority that I shall punish neither you nor Bell." Had Bell been part of Artemis's familia, the chaste goddess would surely have expelled him upon witnessing this scene. But Hestia would not do such a thing. After all, having witnessed the War Game, she had already prepared herself for the consequences. At most, she might throw a tantrum or act like a child. Yet, preoccupied with establishing the Takemikazuchi Familia, Hestia had missed that opportunity.
"Tell me... what exactly did that boy... Bell go through?" With those words, unease began to stir within Hestia's heart.
…
Within the dungeon, a small party raced forward. Bell charged ahead, while Daphne, Cassandra, Lili, and Welf abandoned all offensive and support actions, following the youth. Bell chose the shortest possible route, avoiding encounters with monsters. They made no effort to collect Magic Stones or dropped materials, pressing onward toward the Middle Floors.
According to the god Takemikazuchi, his Familia members had already exceeded their scheduled return time. Though adventurers spending a day in the dungeon was nothing unusual, their current location was the middle level, which inevitably caused concern.
"Turn right up ahead! Watch out for the trees in the mist!" Bell charged forward, landing a foot on a tree trunk swung by a Kobold, then leaped high into the air. After assessing the monster distribution, he gripped his dagger and delivered a fatal strike from above.
"Now head left-front! We're about to pass through the tenth floor!" Bell issued his command decisively.
"He took out the monsters all by himself..." Daphne, who had once served as a commander, was astonished. Not only did he watch over those behind him, but he also dealt with the monsters ahead while choosing the optimal path forward. Under Bell's command, Lili and the others faced no risks whatsoever. The party advanced rapidly through the dungeon.
Soon, they reached the entrance area of the Middle Floors. The gods could sense whether their Falna had been lost. Since Takemikazuchi had sought their aid, it meant that before Bell and the others set out, no casualties had occurred. However, the Middle Floors differed from the Upper Floors—its floor area was immense.
"Bell-sama... how are we supposed to find people in such a vast area?" Lili voiced the question first. During their previous ordeal, Bell and the others had anticipated rescue would not arrive swiftly, so they had made a desperate dash toward the 18th floor.
But that extremely risky decision had relied entirely on the magic of Welf and Laurier. According to the god Takemikazuchi, even if Yamato Mikoto and the others were prepared, they lacked the means to break through the middle layer.
"Look here. Judging by the affected surface, this is caused by gravity magic." After advancing some distance, Bell pointed at the sunken ground. It appeared as though an immense, invisible stone pillar had crushed the area from above.
Bell had once requested the Takemikazuchi Familia to prepare special confections. During that time, he learned that gravity Magic consumed immense energy, and Mikoto only employed it in critical moments.
"The Takemikazuchi Familia must have fallen somewhere nearby." Bell surveyed the surroundings. Beyond the monsters, vertical chasms opened downward. Multiple paths branched off. The longer they delayed, the slimmer the Takemikazuchi Familia's chances of survival.
"We'll split up. I'll search the chasm alone while you continue advancing through this level." Bell made his decision swiftly.
Daphne's command skills were exceptional. During Bell's travels, she had prepared Salamander Wool and other tools, leading the group to conquer the thirteenth floor. This was precisely why Bell had brought them along for the rescue. The Middle Floors were simply too vast; their combined strength was indispensable.
"Understood. Please be careful." Daphne responded decisively, assuming command.
"Cassandra, have you been dreaming of anything?" Before leaping into the vertical pit, Bell posed one final question.
"No... In my recent dreams... there's only one moon, and a massive bow drawn beneath it..." Cassandra answered, her voice trembling.
"Understood." Since it involved the moon, it was surely unrelated to the dungeon's events. Bell committed this information to memory before turning and leaping down the vertical shaft.
…
In a narrow passageway on the fourteenth floor of the Dungeon, Yamato Mikoto steadied herself against the wall before stumbling and collapsing onto the ground.
I've failed.
I promised my comrades we'd return together, but now it seems impossible...
Gritting her teeth, she struggled to her feet. Her clothes were drenched in blood, her left arm hanging limply by her side.
This was the result of her desperate attempt to save her comrades. With a death-defying resolve, she had used gravity magic to drag a horde of monsters down with her, plunging into the fourteenth floor.
Mikoto's vision was reddened by blood. She had barely stood before collapsing once more. This time, no matter how hard she strained, her body refused to obey.
This was enough.
Takemikazuchi-sama would surely request reinforcements. By then, Chigusa and the others on the thirteenth floor would be able to return...
That would be enough...
That would be enough...
God, please keep them safe...
The next second, darkness engulfed everything.