HOT NOVEL UPDATES



Hint: To Play after pausing the player, use this button

CHAPTER 1 

A DAY OF DEPARTURE, A DAY OF BEGINNING 

“The city of Orario has everything.” 

That’s what he told me when I was young. 

“Fetching young ladies, of course—those elves you’re so fond of, goddesses with voluptuous figures…and of course, even your soul mate. If you’ve an urge to go, then go!” 

Back then, all I could do was hold on to my dreams in one hand, with a book of fairy tales in the other. 

“If you play your cards right, riches and fame could be yours, too. But once you set foot there, like it or not, you’ll be drawn into the ebb and flow of history. That’s just the kind of place it is,” he said, neither smiling nor angry, only simply stating a fact. “But…that’s exactly what gives you the chance to be a hero. So, if you’re ready, go.” 

That’s what my grandfather told me. 

“I’ll say only this: Don’t compromise yourself for anyone. Not for a spirit, nor for a god.” 

I remember his words well. 

“Don’t blindly obey. Decide for yourself.” 

I remember his eyes. 

“This is your story.” 

I’ll never forget the way he smiled. 

He’s gone now, but I hold dear all the many things he told me. 

Somehow, I can tell those memories are going to keep popping up as they please for a long, long time. 

 

“Hey, kid. You can see it now.” 

Ka-tunk, ka-tunk. 

I slip out of a dream to the noisy jostling of the cart and open my eyes. I’ve been sleeping curled up around some hay bales, but when I hear the voice belonging to the old man driving the cart, I hastily poke my head out to see. 

“…!” 

A single sight greets me as the cart crests a small hill on the well-maintained road. My jaw drops as I stare dumbfounded at the stunning view. 

“This is amazing!” 

“Ha-ha-ha! That’s what everyone says when they see Orario for the first time, boy!” The old man driving the cart—a human merchant—laughs in amusement at how I’m trembling in astonishment. 

Up to this point on the road, the main highlight has been the distant but still clearly visible towers that greet me every time I look up. The scale of the sight that now greets me, though—it’s on another level. My village upbringing leaves me at a complete loss for words. 

The Labyrinth City of Orario. 

The center of the world, where one can find riches, fame, and fated encounters. 

It gives me goose bumps to be able to lay my eyes on the place that served as the stage for so many of the adventures from my beloved stories and epics about legendary heroes. 

“Thank you so much, mister! I’ll be all right from here!” I give my thanks to the kindly merchant who’s brought me this far and leap out of the cart, shouldering my few belongings as I rush down the road that leads to the awesome metropolis. 

“Hey! You’ve quite a ways until you actually reach the city, boy!” 

“It’s all right! I’ll run!” I say over my shoulder with a wave and a smile. Then I turn back to the city and charge up the hill toward it, as though propelled by my uncontainable excitement. 

The old man was right. It takes quite a while before I reach the high stone walls. 

I’m exhausted, gasping and sweaty, but now that I’m face-to-face with these walls that looked gigantic even from a distance, I feel yet another wave of wonder. 

They’re high enough that craning my neck to see the top is actually pretty painful, which only adds to their overwhelming grandeur. As the barrier surrounding the only labyrinth in the entire world, the stately, imposing walls have endured since ancient times. 

I finally come to my senses and make up my mind to enter the city, joining the end of a long line of merchants, carts, and travelers that snakes out from the entrance. 

“Next!” My turn finally comes while I’m distracted, scanning the line for anyone wearing a sword and armor. Awkward with nervous energy, I approach the two gatekeepers. 

“Have your entry permit?” 

“Uh…D-do I need something like that?” 

As I flail at the demand for documents, one of the guards, an animal person wearing a black uniform—he must be one of the Guild members I’ve heard about—immediately laughs. “Well, you’re obviously not a merchant…You’ve come to be an adventurer, right?” 

“Y-yes, sir!” 

“Then you’re fine. Hundreds, maybe thousands of aspiring adventurers come to this city. There’s not enough time in the world to question them all,” explains the Guild member as he directs me to turn around and bare my back. 

When I do as I’m told, he holds a lamp-like object up to my back. 

“Wh-what are you doing?” 

“Checking whether you’ve got a Falna. It’s a test to keep out foreign spies.” 

He explains that it responds to something called “ichor,” but to a country bumpkin like me, it’s just all mumbo jumbo. 

Right as I’m starting to worry, the other gatekeeper, a man with a sword at his waist, speaks up. “Looks like we’ve got more new blood!” 

I can tell with a glance—he’s an adventurer. 

On the shoulder of his rumpled clothing there’s a crest. Looking closer, I can tell it’s a design patterned after an elephant’s head, the emblem of his patron deity’s faction—his familia . 

The dark-skinned, scruffy-bearded adventurer has a presence that even I can sense. Before this adventurer, a person who has the life I so badly want, someone who lives the life I admire so much, I feel an emotion that’s something like nervousness. 

“So why’d you come to Orario? Don’t tell me you’re here for something boring like just earning your keep. Is it money? Fame? Women?” 

Being casually spoken to by one of the adventurers I’ve dreamed of becoming catches me so off guard that I just blurt out the truth. “Uh…umm…! I—I came to meet people in the Dungeon…!” 

The human man’s eyes go wide, and he laughs so heartily that it draws attention to us. “…Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! This is the first time I’ve ever met anyone who actually came out and said straight up that they’re looking for a hot date in the Dungeon! You’re funny, kid!” 

My face is burning up after saying something so embarrassing. 

“Hashana, we’re on duty,” his Guild mate reminds him. 

“C’mon, don’t be like that. You Guild guys are all too serious about work,” says the adventurer with a shrug and a grin. 

Apparently, Guild members and adventurers both get assigned to guard duty. I finally realize the fact when, out of the corner of my eye, I notice there are two distinct types of people putting on black uniforms at a station by the gates. 

My test seemingly over, the Guild member puts away his magic item. “First thing you need to do is go to Guild Headquarters to register as an adventurer. That’s where you’ll get your orientation.” 

“Oh, thank you very much!” 

“However, registration requires you to have a Falna…In other words, you must join a deity’s familia to properly register as an adventurer.” The Guild member delivers a well-practiced explanation of the process for becoming an adventurer. 

Familia. The organizations established by the deusdea—gods and goddesses who hailed from the heavens. 

By entering into a contract with one of the deities, the inhabitants of the mortal plane could become one of their followers and gain certain blessings. 

And a familia is a family that sticks together through the good times and the bad. 

My heart begins to pound as I faintly recall the knowledge my grandfather shared with me. 

“Anything you want to know? Now’s your chance. I’m an open book.” The adventurer who thought my answer was hilarious is offering advice after raising a good-natured laugh. 

A moment of hesitation later, I look upward to meet his gaze. “What’s the most important thing for an adventurer?” 

The compactly built, medium-height adventurer answers without any hesitation. “Finding a good god to serve, I’d say.” He folds his arms, giving me a confident nod and a smile. “That’s the one place where the Guild won’t look out for you at all. Picking a good god is when an adventurer—or, rather, the god—really shows what they’re made of. Other than that…probably luck.” 

“Luck…” 

“Yup. It’s the most important thing an adventurer can have.” Then he adds, “Good luck, greenhorn!” and pats my back. 

His smile makes me so happy that I immediately return it and say, “Yes, sir!” and make for the opening gates. 

My chest swells with excitement, nervousness, and anticipation as I pass over the threshold and a whole new world opens up before me. 

“Whoa…” The city streets that greet me are more beautiful than anything I imagined while outside the walls. 

A broad avenue leads directly from the square just past the gates where I’m currently standing. An orderly stream of horse-drawn carts flow past shops that line both sides of the wide road. The streets of Orario, arrayed around the magnificent white tower at its center, are more dazzling and busier than any rural farming village could ever hope to be. 

I walk down the avenue, excitement coloring my cheeks. It’s obvious to anyone who bothers to look that I’m a new arrival. I can’t stop myself from turning my head from side to side and exclaiming at each new wonder. 

So many of the people walking the streets are demi-humans! And then there’s all the adventurers, decked out in weapons and armor! 

My eyes light up at the sight of elegant, sword-bearing elves and dwarven knights with great axes strapped to their backs. The childlike prum sorcerers with their pointed hats and staves are just as enchanting. 

The village where I was raised had only humans and the occasional animal person, so the sheer number of races walking around like it’s a given is already enough to thrill me. The din emanating from the crowd is strangely heartening. 

The word that comes to mind is exotic . 

For the first time, I’m seeing the Labyrinth City with my own eyes. 

Every sight and sound is so fresh and awe-inspiring. I’ve never been more excited in my life. 

“…? What’s that?” I’ve been wandering aimlessly south along the avenue that leads from the north gate for quite a while, then encounter a crowd that seems to be forming for something. 

I approach the throng. “Um, excuse me! What are people gathering for?” I ask. 

“It’s Loki Familia ! They’re back from their expedition!” 

Loki Familia? Expedition…? 

The young human man who answered me looks at my uncomprehending face with suspicion. “What, did you arrive in Orario, like, yesterday? What kind of hayseed doesn’t recognize the name Loki Familia ?” 

With an exasperated expression on his face, the man explains. 

Loki Familia is one of the top adventuring groups in the city. Evidently that makes them one of the few parties in the city—and even the world—that are worthy of being called “first-tier adventurers.” 

And apparently, they’ve just returned from an expedition into the farthest reaches of the Dungeon—the labyrinth that lies beneath the city. 

The top familia in the city. 

When I hear those words, I can’t resist joining the crowd to try to catch a glimpse of them. The onlookers keep their distance from the adventurers, making space for them as they pass, almost like they’re afraid to get too close. I manage to poke my head through a gap and finally get a good look at the adventuring party in question. All I’d been able to see before that were flashes of battered armor. 

The first ones I spot are a formidable dwarf knight and an elf mage—or is that a high elf? They’re all carrying heavy packs, and their unfamiliar weapons and staves gleam in the sunlight. They look for all the world like a band of heroes returning triumphantly from the field of battle. 

Every single member of their party has the presence of a seasoned adventurer. 

It hasn’t even been one day since I arrived in Orario and I’m already witnessing a scene straight out of a legend. Here I am with the rest of the crowd, looking on in astonishment. 

“Hey, look!” 

“That golden hair! Those golden eyes—!” 

“It’s the Sword Princess!” 

Now it’s not just the gathered onlookers watching from a distance raising their voices in excitement, but passerby adventurers as well. 

The Sword Princess…? I think—but it only takes a moment for me to realize who’s gotten them so worked up. 

Long, golden hair and silver armor. A single, sheathed sword. 

The adventurer passes by before I can make out her face through the small gap in the crowd I’m peering through, so all I can see clearly is the back of a girl about my height, her long hair shimmering like so much gold dust as she walks away. 

Could such a delicate girl really be part of the top group of adventurers? 

My eyes continue to follow the vividly sparkling golden hair walking among the seasoned fighters as the heavily laden group disappears down a side street leading away from the main avenue. 

“‘Sword Princess’…Is she a literal princess?” I repeat the name under my breath as I move on after the crowd dispersed. 

I can’t afford to be dazzled by the sights of the city forever, though. Now that I’ve arrived, the first priority is finding a place to stay. It’s a basic fact of travel. Or at least that’s what the people in my village told me. 

I start looking for a cheap inn, keeping my head on a swivel and occasionally summoning my courage to ask passing strangers for recommendations. The money I’m carrying is everything that was left in my grandfather’s house after he died, and it’s all I have, so I can’t spend it carelessly. 

Reaching the center of the city, I enter a grand, spacious plaza centered around an alabaster-white tower—the entrance to the Dungeon. I stop in front of it briefly before heading over to the eastern part of the city, where I’ve heard the inns are concentrated. 

The wider avenues there are dense with fancy redbrick hotels, but the establishment I enter is one of the wooden buildings on a shabbier street. It’s a snug little two-story affair with the word INN scrawled on its signboard. I don’t mean to be rude, but it definitely looks like a cheap place to stay. 

“Excuse me…!” I say as I open the creaky door. A middle-aged human man behind the counter looks up from the pamphlet he’s reading. 

“Looking for a room?” 

“Er, yes. I’d like to stay for a short while…” 

“Eight hundred valis a night. No meals.” 

—Eight hundred valis?! 

How expensive is this place?! That’s not even close to what I had in mind!! 

From what the people in my village said about their trips to local markets, I’d been expecting to pay maybe two or three hundred valis at most, but I guess this is what you can expect from Orario. They don’t call it the center of the world for nothing, after all. 

What am I gonna do? 

Just getting a room is going to run through a good chunk of my money, but I don’t think other inns will be much cheaper. 

“If you stay three nights, it’s two thousand valis. If you don’t like it, the door’s right there—” 

I pounce on the innkeeper’s offer of a better rate if I pay for three nights up front. “I’ll take it, please!” 

“—Huh?” 

He lifts his eyes from the news pamphlet he’s unsociably reading and stares at me. I add, “Thank you very much!” as he regards me curiously. 

At this, the innkeeper shifts uncomfortably in his seat. “Uh, sure thing,” he says, returning to his reading. 

I take the key he slides across the counter and dash upstairs to my room. 

A room with a lock and a key! This is city life! There was nothing like this in my grandfather’s house. 

The room is furnished with a bed and not much else, but it’s more than enough for me. Having gotten a bargain on top of ensuring I’ll have a place to stay for three days has definitely improved my mood. 

I decide to go right back out into the city, so I leave all my belongings except my money in my room and head back down the stairs. “Thanks, I’ll be back!” I shout toward the front counter on my way out of the inn. There’s no reply from the grumpy innkeeper, but I pay that no mind as I pick up speed after reaching the cobblestone street. 

I know that in order to become the adventurer I long to be in both name and reality, first I have to join a familia and then register at Guild Headquarters…But before that, there’s something else I want to do. 

There’s a place I promised myself I would visit when I finally made it to Orario. 

After asking for directions, I learn that my destination is nearby in the southeastern section of the city. Some people warn me about the Daedalus Street slums that are apparently close by, but I don’t run into any trouble before I reach my destination. 

It’s a cemetery packed with countless graves. 

“…” 

This is a public burial ground in Orario called the First Graveyard, also known as the Adventurers Graveyard—the final resting place for those who fall in the Dungeon. 

There’s no one else present in the spacious area where I emerge after taking a long set of stairs that lead away from a side street. Murmuring in surprise at the sheer number of white gravestones, I make for the center. 


Eventually a giant jet-black monument comes into view. 

Its noticeably different from the other markers…because this is a memorial dedicated to heroes from ancient times. 

“It’s…” 

My eyes go wide as I take in the five-meder-tall monument. 

The Dungeon Oratoria was like scripture to me when I was a child. It’s a miraculous tale of heroism, a historical account spun from the very soil of Orario. 

The great heroes who appear in its pages risked their lives to turn back the tide of monsters that flowed endlessly from the underworld—and it is before the grave of those heroes who I’ve idolized for so long that I now stand. 

“…” 

Names from the stories I know by heart are carved into the black stone. It feels like my body has been set aflame as my gaze passes over each name. For some reason, I find myself on the verge of tears. 

Dozens of flowers have been left at the foot of the monument. Even now, these great heroes still receive gestures of respect and admiration from the people. Having brought nothing but myself, I hang my head at my lack of forethought, before straightening and closing my eyes. 

From here on out, I, too, am an adventurer of Orario. 

I may never manage to become a true hero…but maybe I can get just a little bit closer to the world those legends inhabited. 

I make my silent wish as the clear blue sky watches over me. 

 

The next day, I begin my search for a familia to join. 

“Status” is another word for the blessing of receiving a Falna from the patron god of a faction. Without one, you can’t call yourself an adventurer in the Labyrinth City. 

I muster all the energy and determination I can before presenting myself at the home base of one of the city’s many familias, marked out by their unique emblems. 

…Or that was my original plan anyway. 

“Rejected again…” 

It’s already afternoon. I pause to rest in a plaza shaped like a half-moon that’s facing a busy avenue. Ten failures in a row calls for a break. 

I sit on a stone curb, my head drooping gloomily. 

Clearly, it’s not as simple as just wanting to join a familia. In contrast to my burning determination, the reception I’ve gotten from all the familias I’ve visited has been incredibly cold. 

Most of them turned me away on sight. 

On top of obviously coming fresh from the countryside, the only occupation I can really claim to have any real experience in is farming. And I’m showing up totally empty-handed to boot, without a single weapon to my name. Everything about me screams “peasant.” There isn’t a single reason why any familia would consider me an attractive recruit. 

If I’d been someone more accustomed to hard labor, or if I had experience as a blacksmith or some other type of craftsman, maybe I would’ve been treated differently. 

“Race probably has something to do with it, too…” 

When I was trudging away from my tenth rejection, I passed a male elf who had come to meet with the familia that had just turned me away. They greeted him with open arms. 

I really feel the barriers of race in the turned backs and sneering faces I’m met with at seemingly every door. I heard before that humans and prum are generally looked down upon as potential adventurers when compared with other races. 

It’s not surprising that the fierce Amazons or the keenly perceptive animal people receive better treatment—to say nothing of the graceful, magically attuned elves or the powerfully built dwarves, who are strong enough to take on the monsters in the lower levels even without divine blessings. 

Maybe a completely average human like me has little to be proud of. 

No—the problem probably lies with me specifically, a country boy who can’t even hide how much of a hick I am. 

“…Gh!” 

After sighing again for the umpteenth time, I smack my cheeks and look up. There’s no point in feeling sorry for myself. If I have enough energy for that, I have enough energy to find a familia that will let me into their ranks. 

I’ve asked around a bit, and it seems like most of the well-established familias aren’t accepting new members at all. I should be looking for one that’s more up-and-coming, with an adventuring party that’s a bit shorthanded. 

In order to fill my empty belly, I buy some potato puffs at a nearby stall with the curious name Jyaga Maru Kun. They cost a mere thirty valis, which my coin purse is thankful for. They’re quite filling, too. 

While I wrestle with an inexplicable feeling that I’ll be seeing a lot more of this food stall in the future, I plunge back into the bustling streets of Orario more determined than ever. 

 

Then—two days later. 

“A-another day of total failure…” I begin to stagger back to my room, roasting in the evening sunlight that lances over the western lip of the giant walls encircling the city. 

Orario is shockingly big and walking all over the city from dawn to dusk is exhausting. 

And there still hasn’t been a single familia that’s willing to take me in. 

I’ve rushed around to all the groups that have flyers posted at various street corners advertising openings for new members, but as soon as they compare me to the other applicants, I’m turned away. 

“…” 

I can hear laughter. A god and their followers are walking side by side, chattering happily about something. 

My lone shadow seems to bind my feet to the ground, keeping me from moving. All I can do is look down. 

Finally, I force myself to move again and trudge over to the inn where I’m staying, my pathetic face painted red by the sunset. 

Today’s the third day of my stay, so I go to inquire about extending it. 

“With the extension fee, that’ll be twenty-five hundred valis.” 

“Wha…?” I say, surprised at the higher price. 

“You only paid for three days up front. That’s one less room that I’d been planning to rent out to other customers. Gotta make up that difference. It’s a fee for my trouble,” the innkeeper explains brusquely. 

I guess he has a point. I fish my coin purse out of my backpack and leave nearly all my remaining money on the counter. As the innkeeper sweeps it toward himself with his forearm, I turn and make for my room on the second floor. 

I decide to climb into bed without dinner. 

“Another day of disappointment…” 

I stare up at the wooden ceiling as I cover myself in the bed’s thin blanket. 

My money’s about to run out. If I can’t find a familia willing to take me in within the next three days, I’ll be sleeping outside. 

At every familia’s headquarters I’ve checked out, the people who greeted me have been adventurers. If I can’t get them to take me seriously, then my only other option is to appeal directly to the gods. These last few days as I’ve walked around the city, I’ve seen quite a few deities…but I’ve been far too intimidated to call out to any of them and just clam up instead. Besides, they’re nearly always accompanied by some security. If I carelessly approach one, the only greeting I’ll get is a nasty glare. I’ve gotten so many already. 

The only time I met a god who seemed like he was willing to let me into his familia, he said something rather strange—“On the condition that you become my personal toy, cutie!”—so I ran. 

That was a pretty scary encounter, though I’m still not sure why…and it’s probably the reason I still find it nerve-racking to approach gods directly. 

“…Is it even possible to meet a decent god?” 

It’s gotten quite dark outside while I’ve been lost in my thoughts. 

I recall the words of the adventurer I spoke to at the city gates. He said that picking a good god is where an adventurer really shows their ability. 

He also said it would come down to luck. 

Am I ever going to meet a god who wants me? A familia that’ll welcome me home? 

“…” 

When I first came to Orario, I was brimming with so many feelings that I thought I’d burst—so much hope, anticipation, and excitement. 

But now all I feel is the chill in my hands and feet. A lump of ice has settled in my chest. 

Anxiety, loneliness, despair. 

This sense of isolation is beyond anything I’d experienced back in my village. It’s something I’d never felt even once when I lived with my grandfather. 

The only thing that comes close is the grief I felt when I lost him. 

For the first time, this vast-walled birdcage of a city feels unbearably cold. 

Night has fallen, and the light of the city’s magic-stone lanterns flickers uncertainly. 

The ceiling I’m peering up at is dim and indistinct in the gloom. 

…It’ll be all right. 

Tomorrow…I’m sure tomorrow will be all right. 

 

However. 

“Don’t come back. We’ve got no room for dead weight here.” 

It was like the world was sneering at my futile attempts to comfort myself the night before. 

“You, an adventurer? Try coming back once you’ve found a supporter to carry stuff!” 

All I found waiting for me was cold gazes and refusals. 

“Try bringing some coin with you and maybe we’ll consider it! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” 

Before I knew it, three more days had passed without finding a single familia that would accept me. 

“…Thank you for putting me up these past few days,” I told the innkeeper behind the counter the morning I was supposed to check out of my room. 

I don’t have any more money to pay so the end result is obvious. 

Miserable as can be, I don’t even bother looking up. I say nothing more as I leave through the front entrance. Then, just as I’m about to close the door on my way out— 

“…Aww, hell!” The innkeeper who’s just been reading news pamphlets behind the counter musses his hair in sudden consternation. At first, I assume he’s getting up because he’s mad about something, but instead he reaches somewhere beneath the counter, then comes around and suddenly thrusts it in front of me. “Here, take this.” 

“Huh…?” 

He’s holding out a bagged loaf of rye bread. 

I hesitate to accept it only for the gruff innkeeper to force it on me. “Listen, boy…You be a little more skeptical from now on, all right? You won’t make it otherwise.” His black hair is still swaying as he gives me a stern warning. 

Then he turns his back to me as though to ward off any emotional moment and shuts the door behind him. 

As I peer down at the bag in my hands, I feel a sudden heat in the corners of my eyes for some reason that I can’t quite place. 

I bow deeply toward the closed door of the inn, holding tightly to the sack of bread. 

“…Time to go.” 

Putting the inn where I’ve spent the last six days behind me, I set off. 

The sky above Orario is clear and blue again. The springtime air is warm and pleasant. I find myself unconsciously staying in the shadows of the buildings lining the streets. 

After I stop and sit in a quiet corner and eat the whole loaf of rye bread, I begin my search for familias I haven’t been rejected by yet. 

On many occasions, I pass adventurers sporting formidable equipment or beautiful clothing. They’re heading to the center of the city where, beneath that white tower, they’ll be able to enter the vast labyrinth. There, in that monster-infested lair of evil, they’ll live out new tales of heroic adventure. 

The gods watch over the adventurers embarking on new legends of their own while the people of the city breathlessly await the stories of their travels. Today, like any other day, begins with the happy anticipation and smiles of countless people. 

Surrounded by those cheerful voices, I walk the city alone. 

And after I’m turned away from the sixteenth familia…I finally collapse exhausted on some street corner. 

“…” 

I lean against the wall of a building, my strength depleted, staring blankly at the foot traffic passing by on the street. 

Is there a place in this city for me? 

Is there someone here who will even look at me? 

I feel as though the ground I’m standing on has been cut adrift from the rest of the world. The footsteps and clamor of the city feel distant, and no one seems to notice or care that I exist. 

It’s like I’m a lost child, wandering all alone through the city without a destination or a home. 

The anxiety and solitude are overwhelming. 

“I…” 

I came here to Orario in search of connections and bonds. 

I couldn’t resist the yearning for heroism beyond my station, and so I came here to the Labyrinth City. Unwilling to abandon the memories my grandfather left me, I came. 

But…the truth is… 

What I really wanted was… 

“…” 

I rise unsteadily to my feet, my face downcast, my eyes hidden by my disheveled hair. Without any idea of where I ought to go, I make for a dark alley in order to get away from the busy avenue. Nobody pays any attention to me. I’m all alone. 

“Heeey! You there! The back alleys are pretty dangerous, so I’d steer clear if I were you!” 

Which is why when someone calls out to me, I don’t understand what’s going on at first. 

“Huh…?” 

I am absolutely, completely, utterly certain of this: I will never forget this moment. 

“Th-thanks but…um, who are you? All alone in a place like this…Are you lost, by any chance?” 

“…Uh, I think you’re the one who looks lost here.” 

Her appearance. Her voice. 

“So, um…the thing is, I’m recruiting for my familia. Just so happens I’m looking for adventurers to join up, so, y’know, uh…” 

The hand she reaches out to me. 

“I’ll join! Please let me join!” 

“…R-really, you will? Even if it’s my familia?!” she asks with a beaming smile when I grasp her hand. “My name’s Hestia! What’s yours?” 

The warmth of the voice that asks my name. 

“It’s Bell…Bell Cranell.” 

The joy filling this moment makes me want to weep. 

I’ll remember every last detail for the rest of my life. 

I met a goddess. 

Here in these streets full of meetings and partings, in the Labyrinth City where tales of adventure begin every day, in this place where heroes are born—I met a single goddess. 

“This is your story.” 

My story, I’m certain, began on this day. 

The day our familia started. 



Share This :


COMMENTS

No Comments Yet

Post a new comment

Register or Login