Chapter 19: Gale wind
Chapter Nineteen: Dōshi
Ryu Lion "Gale Wind"
Level 4} 5
Strength: E-488} B-797 (I-0)
Endurance: F-352} C-689 (I-0)
Dexterity: A-888} S-999 (I-0)
Agility: A-889} S-999 (I-0)
Magic: B-717} S-973 (I-0)
Magic Spell Slots:
1.) Luminous Wind: a wind and light element wide-area offensive magic that summons green stardust to attack the enemy. This stardust gathers in several orbs which can be released all at once to cover a wide area, or deployed individually at convenient moments. (A single orb can be made to explode with the secondary chant: Luvia)
Chant: In the sky of a now distant forest,
Infinite stars scattered in the endless night sky,
Respond to my foolish voice,
Give me now divine protection of starfire,
Give the mercy of light to the one that abandoned you,
Come, wandering wind, the wandering traveler,
Cross the sky and run through the wilderness,
Run faster than anything else,
Imbue the light of stardust and destroy the enemy!
-Luminous Wind-
2.) Noah Heal: a recovery magic that can heal wounds and recover stamina, though the effect is gradual, unlike with potions, taking time to work. The efficacy of this magic is effected by the surroundings; the efficacy is higher in forested environments.
Chant: The song of a now distant forest,
The nostalgic song of life,
Please bring the mercy of healing to those that seek you!
-Noah Heal-
Skills:
[Fairy Serenade]: increases the efficacy of magic; this effect is more potent at night.
[Mind Load]: increases Ryu's strength stat when attacking using Mind; it has an active trigger.
[Aero Mana]: increases Ryu's attack power the faster she is moving; a blue flash borders her weapon when this skill in in use.
Development Abilities:
Hunter G} F
Abnormal Resistance G} F
Magic Resistance I} G
*Available Abilities to choose from:
*Mage I*
Spirit Healing I
Healing Power I
Ryu had been a level 4 for some time, and had gone through many harrowing events since the last time Astraea looked at her status; while it was pleasing to hear, it was not overly surprising that she- like Bell- had earned the right to advance to level 5, gaining the Mage ability when she did so. This was generally good news for the Familia, but of course, it also presented a particular problem…
"Nnnnnngggghhh… there's no way around it; this will make our Familia A rank, which means way more taxes" Lili groaned, very much not looking forward to the increased budget management this change would bring, as well as the regular paperwork from their Familia growing so quickly. With Haroeris, Bell, Alfia, and Ryu all being first-class level adventurers, they were officially evaluated on par with the likes of Ganesha, Freya, and Loki Familia. Really, she wanted to count them lucky that having the two veteran adventurers didn't make them an S rank familia, but not only would that require a public release that the Guild wouldn't like, but…
"Hm, yes… if I recall, that means our tax obligation will be twelve million vallis annually now" Aedan muttered, thinking about how this might impact their activities.
"Actually master Haroeris, the tax for A rank familia is eighteen million per year" Lili corrected him, as his knowledge was quite dated, after all, "Honestly, I know it was important to clear her name, but it might have been smarter to leave Ms. Ryu's bounty alone for a little while for purely economic reasons…" Aedan had- once again- put his seemingly stupendous wealth to use for the Familia and had advanced the payment for Ryu's bounty. After speaking with Rose early that morning, he discovered that the loophole was very much still applicable, and had the funds transferred then and there. Needless to say, Ryu and Bell both forced him to accept their promise to pay him back as soon as they could.
"Lili!" Bell reprimanded her.
"S-sorry master Bell; Lili was just thinking out loud. She is happy that Ms. Ryu isn't burdened by that faulty bounty, too, but~"
"I see where you are coming from, young Lili; if the familia is now A rank, then we need to budget one-and-a-half million per month just for taxes… it is the bothersome side of things" he clicked his tongue, remembering that taxes were some of the most annoying parts of being highly ranked as a familia. Required quests expeditions were no issue as that was the point of adventuring anyway; taxes though, they were awful no matter what. At least the Guild did not mismanage the tax revenue, for the most part. If they did, it would just be a slap in the face, especially to those who carried the highest burden of taxes.
The two failed to notice that their conversation caused most of the people around them to pale as such large numbers were thrown out.
"That much… every month?" Bell whispered, face blank as he contemplated that Aiz and Finn had needed to deal with this sort of thing for some time already. The Hestia Familia had jumped from D rank to A rank even faster than he levelled up; this whole thing wasn't fair at all!
Welf was blessedly ignorant of the whole situation, as he had been stuck in his forge like a child with a new toy, given all of the materials he had to work with from Bell and Aedan going to the deep levels; not the least of which was the grand Udaeus sword drop, of course.
Now motivated by more than just growing in strength, the Hestia Familia revamped their efforts in the Dungeon, setting a blistering pace for themselves as they went; Ryu and Bell allowed Alfia to stay at home more often than not, the both of them training each other within the Dungeon as the mapping work progressed. All the while, Aedan pushed the girls hard, but forced them to take a full rest day each week, and a half day in between each one to prevent excess fatigue. They were growing their status tremendously, and the effect was actually increasing over time, against the commonly held wisdom.
In the course of it, Haruhime reached the point where she felt confident in levelling up to 2, having been growing more quickly as well, joining her friends and adjusting to the heightened power her new status granted. She had pushed hard until her strength and endurance were C rank, her dexterity and agility high B and low A respectively, and her magic a pristine and very impressive max S rank. The choice of the Mage ability was simple, and she continued to work hard so she might reach where her friends had been pushing themselves to since their own previous level ups.
Their work remained on schedule, and despite each of the middle floors taking significantly more time than the upper floors- multiple full days in each case- they finally cleared the 17th floor all the way to the last area: the Goliath's spawn room. It was a simple layout of a square room, the Great Wall of Sorrows on one long side and the entrance to the 18th floor on the far end. The only hard part was mapping all of the various entrances from the floor before it, but that was done, now. That meant that their work was completed and ready for submission to the Guild, but that wasn't all.
Even as Lili worked to compile the final edit- working out a separate, private map for their Familia- Emma and the other girls had pushed themselves harshly. It was to the point that every single one was eligible to level up, even Oriana could, just barely having pushed her endurance to D rank under the harsh instruction of Horus. They, too, had pushed to the edge of the 17th, and after returning home, had been delivered their assigned quest by their trainer.
"When it next respawns, you will all- alongside Welf, Mikoto, Haruhime, and with Lili in command- fight the Goliath and bring it down" he stated, shocking them even after all the work they had done under his direction, "your captain, Ryu, myself, and Alfia will be present to watch over you, but will not interfere unless you are at great risk; it will be your fight to win"
"This… this is to get us the chance to level up, right?" Emma asked.
"That's right; Goliath is ranked at a level 4 threat, but your combination of skills, magic, and abilities are enough to combine with your teamwork to kill it. It will be more beneficial for us to also equip you with what Welf has been working on, too; in terms of both excellia, as well as the fact that his gear is now better than what most of you could get to carry down beyond the Water City, let alone what you've been using until now"
They swallowed what he'd told them slowly; Mikoto was at the point that she could level up, as well, with her Dexterity having just hit the D rank. Welf still had a bit to go, and Haruhime still had to get one of her stats high enough, too, having levelled herself not long ago. As everyone thought about this, they received an unexpected visitor, who was led in by a very nervous Haruhime. Bell was the first to address the large, cloaked man, even in his surprise, "The Warlord!?" despite being still quite new as an adventurer and resident of Orario, pretty much everyone knew about Ottar of Freya Familia, especially someone who had aspired to be an adventurer for some time. Despite never having formally met with him, Bell recognized him, and had guessed at what this visit had to do with, or rather who it had to do with.
"Greetings Bell Cranel, and all of Hestia Familia" the boaz bowed his head, presenting the picture of polite manners, "thank you for receiving my visit"
Realizing this was his place, Bell smiled and went to shake the man's hand, "Of course! But this is surprising; to what do we owe the pleasure of you visiting our home, King?"
"Please, call me Ottar; I simply wished to pay a visit to see and ask something of one of your new members: Master Horus"
Bell wasn't entirely surprised at this point, though he wasn't sure what the question would be; the others were shocked though. Most of the familia weren't completely informed about Aedan's situation, and even then they didn't know everything. So it was surprising to hear the Warlord, King of Orario come to make a request of a publicly new level 7; addressing him as "master", no less.
"Ah, ya came to see me, Ottar?" Aedan moved to sit beside his captain as they got comfortable, "Does this have to do with the last time we saw each other before Alfia and I joined Hestia Familia?"
"Yes, I wish to pursue further training with you; my Goddess has given her permission in this"
"Oh, I see… I have no issue accepting, only that I require acceptance from my own Goddess and captain" he accepted easily, turning to Bell, "What do you think, Bell?"
Knowing now that the two men likely had a positive relationship in the past, Bell had no desire to deny this, but still needed to get the final word, "It's okay with me, I just need to ask Goddess; we'll have to wait until she's finished with her bath, though" he chuckled, knowing that one of the few luxuries Hestia was afforded were the baths she could have at home, cutting them short was a sure way to get on her nerves.
So as they waited, Ottar surprised them by engaging in conversation, ever polite, about their recent activity, congratulating Bell on his rise to level 5 and the growth of the Familia. Eventually, it was mentioned that the lower level members were soon to face Goliath, and the King glanced at Aedan, "You haven't changed; this is good, in some ways" he focused back to the others, "That is a bold goal for you, and will prove an enriching adventure, I'm sure; make the most of that experience" he gave them the only advice he cared to, but meant it; for those who rose high in the ranks, the first adventure was the most important, in his experience.
Hestia eventually joined them, looking both expectant and wary of their guest, but greeting him politely as the hosting Goddess, and he explained his visit.
"Hm… if everyone is in agreement, I don't see any reason not to allow this; however, I do not expect this training to be without compensation of some form" Ottar nodded in response to Hestia, "I will leave that mostly to Aedan himself, but I would ask that if he does this for you, then you return a favor to my Familia in the future, and that I will leave to the discretion of my first child: Bell" it was a bit of a vague request, but Ottar didn't object. Honestly, she could have asked for some amount of money or any other boon, but to ask for a simple favor to the Hestia Familia captain- essentially- was not a bad deal.
"In that case, I have only one requirement; for it, I will guide you to the greatest extent in the shortest time I can. If I am to train you again, then at the time we must, you will join myself and others to complete what Zeus and Hera failed" this finally shocked their guest, and he showed the first signs of hesitation as he thought about whether he should proceed.
"How far do you think I can go by that time, if you can guess?"
"… I can't be sure of the exact time, but given your present state, I believe you can grow to Hippolyta's level by that time; if you have remembered my teachings from before, your own power should exceed hers"
"I accept" his answer was immediate.
"We can arrange the details at another time, but I can tell that right now, there is little to be done until you grow to level 8"
"I have tried to defeat Balor to achieve it, but only managed to wound it badly and retreat"
"You will succeed in killing him to gain your claim, and I will accompany you to ensure that you may fight unencumbered and without worry of your return journey. I'm afraid it will have to wait, though; I suspect Balor was slain a bit ago and will still need at least a few more weeks to spawn"
"… Loki Familia?"
Aedan put a finger to his lips, "You didn't hear it from me, but yes. I think that Loki's kids have earned their own advance. If I have my way, they will come to me as you have, and I hope more from your own Familia does the same. To accomplish our goal, much more is yet needed"
"How much?" Ottar was careful in asking in a way that didn't imply he knew Haroeris was much stronger than the Guild announced, "how much more strength would you need for yourself to finish it?"
Aedan understood what he was asking, and spoke with utmost seriousness, "From what I learned, were I to face it now myself, I would- at best- be able to trade my life for maiming the beast"
For most, they thought that meant he could severely cripple the One-Eyed Black Dragon, but Bell and Ottar interpreted it differently. Both realized he was referring to the Dungeon Oratoria; by his own estimation, Aedan was about as strong as the Sword Champion: Albert Waldstein. For most it would be an absurd claim, but Ottar seemed to accept it, and acknowledged his desire to gather enough strength to complete the last Great Quest.
"Then I understand the need to grow stronger myself, even if only for that purpose; have you planned further than recruitment for that battle?"
"No, not substantially. Once we have enough allies here in Orario, I will seek out more help abroad both for our fighting strength and supplies. I will employ everything I have learned to train all of us optimally for the task, and we shall equip ourselves as best we can. Hopefully time is with us, but there is much to discuss, and it would be best to wait until we have everyone in Orario with us in the cause"
"Understood, then until you are ready to go with me to Balor, I will excuse myself; thank you again for having me" he bowed his head once more to Bell and Hestia as he stood then left, escorted out by Haruhime.
"Well… that happened" Welf said, sweating from having been close to such an overpowering presence for so long. Aedan and Alfia were different in being fellow familia members, the Warlord was another matter entirely.
"Not much one for words, that one" Aedan mused, "He's always been that way, though; I suppose that makes him a bit more intimidating for most; if you knew him when he was a boy, you would realize that he is just a man like anyone else"
"He is quite tenacious, though" Alfia added, "I cannot even recall the number of times he challenged members of our old familia, coming back several times no matter how much or badly he was defeated" That made everyone in the room shudder; the idea of a group of people who were able to defeat the King repeatedly was hard to wrap their minds around, but even then they understood that he was someone who became exceptionally strong; he wasn't always that way.
After their guest departed, they rejoined discussion over their confrontation with Goliath, working until they came to an agreeable formulation. That evening, they delivered their intention to the Guild, and were approved to fight it when it spawned in a handful of days. They also turned in the completed work for the mapping to the 18th floor; and were told that paperwork would need to be filed on their end to continue. The next step would likely take place after their battle, so they focused on it.
Welf was perhaps the busiest of all of them, using metals and materials from the lower levels and deep floors to craft arms, armor, and equipment for the assault team. Swords, axes, maces, a hammer, and a couple of spears, armor plates, some chainmail sections, and a shield for Oriana were his first works. These were followed by clasps for bags, belts, and holsters for potions; naturally, he had to perform adjustments after all of their equipment was tried out, too. All of this took the entirety of his time until the day prior to their mission, which he took as rest.
Lili continued to run different combinations of strategies in her mind, consulting with her captain and Master Aedan, as well as Ms. Alfia. The Goliath had been the obvious choice for the number of members they had, the quality of excellia it would provide, and using Welf's equipment would boost their gains even further. Having the high-rank members stay in the sidelines was obvious, as their involvement would nullify a good deal the previously mentioned benefits. For this reason, Lili made the call not to use Haruhime's level-boost magic unless it was an emergency; they had discovered that it severely crippled excellia gains- not including Haruhime's own- and might even prevent a level-up. She would not do the same for Emma and her unique skill, though it would be carefully used.
Meanwhile, Haruhime had continued to train vigorously in the Dungeon- mostly on her own, though usually with the company of Mikoto. She fiercely wanted to push at least one of her stats to D rank so that she stood a chance of qualifying for a level-up with the others during the battle, even if she didn't go through with it immediately, like her first one. She had no idea what it would take for her to get another chance, but her desire to not fall behind her friends spurred her to greater heights.
A day before the fight, Bell and Ryu were confident in their control of their new level 5 power, Welf was getting his rest- having gotten his endurance to D rank after all of his blacksmith work- and Haruhime joined him after she just managed to get her magic stat into the desired rank, too. This shocking achievement had floored everyone, as it had shown the renard demonstrating a level of growth which was close to their own captain's when he had been a level 1 newbie. Lili also took a break from her work. Everyone had made their preparations and were in wait for the approaching day.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone