Astraea snapped out of her thoughts at Hestia's urging. Both goddesses rested their hands on the divine script etched across his back.
Hieroglyphs of his Falna twisted, shifted, and reintegrated in a sudden surge.
Both took a deep, simultaneous breath.
Goddess Hestia couldn't hold herself back, speaking with palpable excitement.
"Bell! You have so many development abilities to choose from:
[Mage], [Swordsman], [Archer], [Greater Pyromancer], [Undying], [Magic Resistance], [Chain Attack], [Abnormal Resistance], [Luck], [Instinct], [Asura].
Which one would you like to choose?"
The list was mostly the same as before. Only three options were new.
Bell guessed their inner workings from their names themselves.
[Greater Pyromancer] - An ability that would probably increase my flame control further than it already was, bringing it near perfection at S-Rank.
[Undying] - An ability that would probably increase my vitality with each tier, rendering me nearly unkillable at S-Rank.
[Magic Resistance] - Weak spells wouldn't even be able to scratch me. At S-Rank, only something on the level of the Nine Hells' magic would be considered a threat.
Bell thought deeply, weighing every option, whether old or new. Finally, he spoke.
"I want [Luck], Goddess." Bell chose firmly, having already weighed the pros and cons of every ability.
He could make do without [Mage], [Swordsman], or [Archer].
His mind lingered on [Greater Pyromancer], [Undying] and [Magic Resistance] longer than the rest. Any among them would make him significantly harder to kill, but only at higher ranks. He set them aside for another level-up.
[Abnormal Resistance] was unnecessary since his wheel could adapt and build resistances to status ailments on its own.
[Chain Attack] would have complemented his fighting style well. He could see the combos stacking in his head. But raw output had never been his problem.
That left [Instinct] and [Asura]. He passed on both because he wasn't entirely sure how they would interact with his existing skills. He would experiment with them at higher levels, when he had more leeway.
Right now, however, he was absolutely certain that Hermes was plotting alongside Ouranos to finish him for good.
So... It was better to choose [Luck] with his current circumstances. No amount of power would save him if he once again walked into a trap set up by Hermes. He needed fortune on his side more than he needed another weapon in his arsenal.
Bell had known that Hermes would not stop from the moment he decided to deal a heavy blow to the Hermes Familia, nearly wiping them out entirely.
His thoughts continued unimpeded as Astraea and Hestia finalized his choice, completing the update.
Goddess Astraea took a blank piece of parchment and engraved his updated status upon it, handing it to Bell after a brief glance.
[Name: Bell Cranel
Level - 3 (↑)
Attributes (Astraea Falna) -
Strength: 356 [F]
Endurance: 548 [D]
Dexterity: 233 [G]
Agility: 479 [E]
Magic: 589 [D]
Attributes (Hestia Falna) -
Strength: 327 [F]
Endurance: 412 [E]
Dexterity: 146 [H]
Agility: 446 [E]
Magic: 601 [C]
Magic:
Gresde (↑) - Demonic flames of purification.
Astra—Vesta—Calibur - Eternal flame envelop. Vitality stabilise. Justice judge. Exempt are not even the Divine.
Skills:
Eight Handled Wheel - Adaptation to any ***********.
Ittou Shura/Rasetsu - Ignite my vitality. Ignite my will. Ignite my emotions. Ignite it all.
Instinct - All I see is Victory. All I hear is Victory. All I can ever be is... Victory.
Super Regeneration - Between immortality and mortality. Between limbo and nothingness. Between infinity and eternity.
Asura Soul Reaping - Monster created by ***.
Development Skills:
Adaptability [G] - Affinity + 10%
Luck [H] - Fortune + 5%]
"Alright... now that we've updated your Falna, you have some explaining to do," Goddess Astraea said. She folded her arms beneath her chest, her gaze fixed on his back.
Bell turned to face Astraea, then shifted his gaze to a visibly curious Goddess Hestia.
He took a slow breath to compose himself.
"I told you both about being ambushed by Evilus in the dungeon, right?"
Astraea nodded, her gaze turning colder than a frozen tundra at the mere mention of Evilus.
"Wait—wait. When did something like that happen? You didn't tell me about this!" Hestia exclaimed, her expression instantly shifting to one of grave concern.
Bell met her eyes, slowly and methodically explaining what had transpired from the very beginning. This time, for Goddess Hestia.
...
"So, you haven't been home for ten days because Evilus ambushed you in the dungeon! But why would they target you? You haven't done anything to them, right?"
"Let me remind you, Goddess. Officially, I'm a member of the Astraea Familia." Bell said, glancing toward Astraea.
"You can understand now why they're targeting me."
"Hm? I don't understand why they'd go that far." Hestia frowned, her brow creasing.
"You are merely a Level 1 adventurer officially. Why would they target someone who is a newbie in their eyes?"
.
"Basically, Evilus doesn't want me—or rather, the Astraea Familia itself—to grow and take up the mantle of our predecessors. They don't want us hunting them down like before." Bell wore a slightly exasperated expression as he broke it down into simple terms.
"Oh! I think I get it now." Goddess Hestia finally said, the realization dawning on her.
"But during my final fall into the deeper floors, I caught a glimpse of a certain god's hat." Bell's voice had gone cold by now.
"Don't tell me...?" Astraea asked, her eyes widening.
Goddess Hestia's hand went to her mouth.
He took in both of their reactions and let silence settle between them for a moment.
His lips slowly fell flat. The warmth in his eyes didn't fade. It left. Like a candle snuffed out between one breath and the next.
He resembled Asura Bell to an uncanny degree right now, though his eyes still remained their vibrant red.
"Yes... I think... No, I know. It was God Hermes." His voice rang in the ears of both goddesses, making them go quiet from sheer shock.
Everything clicked into place within Astraea's mind.
"Your wheel was adapting against its connection with Ouranos because... It was him who gave your location to Hermes... No."
"Ouranos would never join hands with Evilus." Astraea's words were firm. This was what she truly believed.
"Yes, he wouldn't. But using Evilus to further his own agenda? That he can do." Bell started to put his tunic back on, mid-sentence.
Astraea opened her mouth, then closed it. Her fingers dug into her own arms where they were crossed. She wanted to argue. That much was obvious. But the words never came.
"I have known Ouranos for a long, long time. I don't think he would target our Bell without a reason." Hestia's face was serious, no longer as carefree as she usually was.
"Bell, do you have any idea why he and Hermes would both target you?" Hestia asked, her gaze landing on him. Astraea's gaze snapped to him as well.
Bell spoke under their collective stares.
"There is no reason..."
Both let out a breath they hadn't realized they were holding.
Yet... he continued.
"Because I am the reason."
Their expressions shifted, both looking at him with varying degrees of shock.
"They wanted me to be a hero... on strings."
A pause.
"I chose to be an unbound storm."
...
..
.
***
[300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter]
[8 chapters ahead on P@tr3on = [email protected]/Not_Aaryan]
...
[Authors Thoughts]
I know what you guys are thinking. Why are Bell's stats so low?
I'll clarify it here. Bell has so much Excilia from completing great feats that he could Level up to Level 5 right now, even with double the requirements for leveling up due to his double Falna.
His normal excilia in comparison lags far behind. Bro seriously needs to go grinding deep into the dungeon. But he hasn't had the time with all these things going on.
As for his current stats? He got them from climbing up from the deep floors in a single dive.
...
Have a good day everyone! We're back again with another chapter. The reveal has been done.
From our perspective, Hermes is wrong for trying to manipulate Bell, but from the higher perspective, if manipulating a single Bell can save the whole world, I don't think any god would blink an eye, whether Hermes or Ouranos. Free will is the most important thing for every living being, but sadly... most don't know its true value before losing it first.
Anyway... Ignore my rant. Just take care of yourselves.