Two days later.
Bell followed behind Goddess Astraea as they walked through a flea market, picking up groceries for home.
As they passed from stall to stall gathering what they needed, the people around them exchanged cautious glances. Even some of the larger stalls sat empty, their owners and wares nowhere to be found.
"Bell, why does everyone seem so uneasy?" Goddess Astraea asked, her eyes narrowing as she surveyed their surroundings.
"Let's ask someone, Goddess." Bell replied.
He stepped up to a fruit stall and gathered a handful of fruit for later. After handing his payment to a woman behind the counter, he lowered his voice.
"Excuse me, miss... do you know why everyone seems on edge lately?"
"Boy, you living under a rock?" She glanced over her shoulder, lowering her voice.
"Freya's top dogs went silent in the Dungeon. Word is Evilus finally got to 'em. And now those Rakia bastards are marching on the city! If Loki's brats don't hold the line, we're all screwed."
Bell raised an eyebrow. Had the Freya Familia already been tied up by Evilus?
Things were progressing faster than he had anticipated. He'd have to adjust his timeline for the Rakia invasion.
"But isn't Loki Familia strong enough to handle the Rakia invasion on their own?" He asked, tossing another coin her way.
She snatched that coin up and pocketed it with ease.
"The Loki Familia could indeed protect Orario all by themselves. But fear doesn't follow reason, eh?" The woman shrugged.
Bell didn't reply. He stepped away from that stall in silence, with Goddess Astraea—who had quietly observed the entire exchange—following close behind.
...
..
.
Night.
Bell sat on the edge of a bed, tightening the last strap of his platinum breastplate. Astraea had been watching him in silence for a while now. He could feel her gaze on his back without looking back.
Astraea lay on her side beside him, propped on one elbow. The sheet covering her had slipped down unknowingly, barely covering her.
"You're going out?" She kept her voice light, but her expression had changed.
"Yes... Goddess. I have a thing or two to accomplish tonight." He spoke, his voice reassuring.
"Is it about what's happening in Orario nowadays?" She traced idle circles on the bedsheet with her finger.
"That and some other things." He pulled his arm guard tight.
Astraea's finger paused mid-circle. Then it resumed.
Neither of them pressed further.
She rose without a word and moved behind him. Her arms slid around his shoulders, warm and unhurried. When she turned his face toward hers, he didn't resist.
Their kiss was slow. Unhurried. Like she had something to say but chose this instead.
"Come back soon." Astraea murmured after pulling back.
"I will." Bell replied.
...
..
.
Night air was cold against his face as he walked through the streets of Orario. The warmth of his bed and Goddess Astraea was gone, replaced by a familiar, icy clarity.
Belit Babili.
Ishtar felt her heart leap to her throat as Bell slowly emerged from a shadowed corner of the main hall.
Since when!?
Bell watched as Ishtar scrambled from her seat and tossed the cigar between her fingers aside.
"My lord, what can this Ishtar do for you?" She plastered a stiff smile across her face.
"No need for the excessive bootlicking. I want something from you." Bell spoke as flames conjured a chair behind him.
He settled into it a moment later, his gaze remaining fixed on Ishtar.
"Whatever sir desires. I will leave no stone unturned." Ishtar puffed her chest and tapped it twice.
"Oh? Then you should have a grimoire on hand, right?" Bell asked, his expression intrigued.
Ishtar's smile faltered.
"Ah—that... Unfortunately, I don't have any on hand." Her eyes dropped, suddenly finding great interest in his legs rather than his face.
Waste.
"But I can get one for you." She snapped her gaze back up.
Bell regarded her arrogant posture and snapped his fingers.
Flames erupted beside him, coalescing into eight massive spears made up entirely of fire.
"If I don't have that grimoire by tomorrow night, I'll let you experience exactly what these spears can do. I hear the Ishtar Familia is used to taking piercings, but I doubt you'll enjoy these." He gestured toward his conjured punishment, making the stakes abundantly clear.
Ishtar's face drained of color.
Her knees trembled as her imagination filled in the rest.
"If you take two days?" Eight became ten.
Ishtar's legs nearly gave out.
She nodded her head faster than a pecking hen.
"I'll get it done. I'll get sir a grimoire in a day." Her words were desperate—yet her eyes kept darting back toward those flaming spears when she thought he wasn't looking.
...
..
.
Bell walked back from the Ishtar Familia base.
A grimoire is secured. Now all tha—
His line of thought was cut off as his gaze unconsciously snapped toward a sword resting in another man's grip.
It had a polished blade with a reddish-gold handle.
His gaze traveled from that sword to the man holding it. He looked to be in his early twenties, with short black hair and green eyes.
"Arnold... Man, your sword looks so cool." Another man, Derrick, wrapped an arm around Arnold's shoulder, his other arm reaching out to touch the blade.
Arnold swatted Derrick's hand aside.
"No touching, man. It's a family heirloom. My father used to say that this was a Crozzo magic sword wielded by Argonaut himself eras ago." Arnold held onto the sword like it was more precious than his own life.
"Yeah, yeah, and I have a spear at home that was used by Fianna eras ago that I now use to discipline unruly children." Derrick grumbled.
"So, what is it called again, Tyron? Tynon?" Another man, Silas, pushed his glasses up and asked.
"It is called Typhon. They say that before the gods came down from heaven, Argonaut used this very sword to defeat a minotaur, ushering in the age of heroes." Arnold's voice dropped to a reverent whisper, his fingers tracing Typhon's edge as though it were a holy relic.
"I hate to break it to you, Arnold, but according to the records from back then, it's not even certain if Argonaut existed in the first place." Silas spoke plainly, his tone realistic and composed.
"No! He is real!" Arnold pushed Derrick's hand away from his neck and raised his voice.
"Look... Can you read what is written on this blade's spine?" He asked, turning Typhon to show its spine to his friends.
A line of ancient glyphs was carved across it.
Derrick and Silas looked at the glyphs and shook their heads in incomprehension.
"This reads...
Whenever the world needs me... From beyond death... I will come.
In ancient script."
Silas and Derrick exchanged glances. Derrick broke down in loud laughter while even Silas chuckled.
"Hahahaha... You can't be serious... Hahaha." Derrick tried to muffle his laughter.
"We can't prove anything by those words alone, Arnold." Silas shook his head with a smile.
"Why don't you guys believe me? Why doesn't anyone believe me?" Arnold's shoulders sagged, his expression turning sad as he looked back down at the engraved words.
Suddenly, a golden radiance illuminated from those glyphs for a brief moment, as if awakening from dormancy.
Arnold felt his breath catch. He blinked, and the light was gone.
He snapped his gaze up and looked at his surroundings.
Normal people passed his group by, each busy with their own affairs.
His excited smile faded.
What he didn't know was that...
Bell stood on a rooftop nearby, his gaze resting on Arnold and Typhon.
He slowly tilted his head up, his eyes turning toward the night sky.
Argonaut, huh?
...
..
.
***
[300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter]
[8 chapters ahead on P@tr3on = [email protected]/Not_Aaryan]
...
[Author's Thoughts]
Foreshadowing... Foreshadowing.
...
Another day. Another chapter.
Have a wonderful day everyone.
...
Note: A statue of Argonaut exists in Orario. Yet, his tale is treated as a story within a story. Similar to King Arthurs in our world. Meaning they think Argonaut is not a real person, instead he is a fictional being like King Arthur. Since, no records point toward him existing.