Chapter 3

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Chapter 3: Twilight

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[Third Person]

Another day of work, full of disappointment for her. "Aww," Hestia sighed in defeat, hiding her face in the worn pillow. "I never thought it would be so difficult!" she complained with obvious weariness, scanning the bleak surroundings around her.

It had already been two weeks since Hephaestus had kicked her out, forcing her to live in the basement of a dilapidated church, with few clothes and ruined furniture as her only assets to start a new life.

But at least she could be happy with what she had: her dear friend had helped her find work selling "jagermankun", potato balls, for thirty valis an hour. It wasn't much, but at least she could get by. She knew, however, that sooner or later she would have to repay her debt to her old friend...

[Picture ----> Hestia]

Fortunately, she had descended to the mortal world and met a wonderful child to whom she imparted her blessing. Her first children shone like bright stars in the sky, and she was certain that they would write their own legend in history, drawing others like moths to a flame.

Together, she knew, her family would prosper through hard work, creating a legend that would last for a thousand years and beyond. But for now, this remained a daydream, for her child was too young to achieve anything in the Dungeon.

This was no surprise; after all, death was a common occurrence. Every day, every minute and every second in the Dungeon, and even in Orario, people died for various reasons.

To ensure their own survival and advancement, adventurers usually chose to join a powerful family, seeking an easier path to the greatness and wealth they so desired.

"Perhaps tomorrow will be a luckier day?" she thought hopefully. "If only there were someone to help her in the dungeon, I would feel much better..." She got out of bed and walked over to the only device she owned: a small lamp powered by a decent level magic stone that she had purchased to try to make this place more comfortable and warm.

Just as she was about to switch off and fall into bed to sleep, a loud banging sounded in the church basement. "Huh?" Hestia blinked in confusion. 

It was strange, no one had come to visit her here except Hephaestus. She turned and walked towards the church, towards the door. Opening it, she gazed curiously at the spectacle before her.

He was a handsome young man with short, shaggy blond hair, blue eyes, and fair skin that made him very attractive by mortal standards. His hair was slicked back, and he was quite tall, with a slender but athletic build.

As for his attire, he wore a simple white t-shirt and long black pants that accentuated his athletic physique, which could easily attract the attention of several goddesses.

"Em... Can I help you?" Hestia asked the man.

He gave her a bright smile that she had to admit pleased her immediately. "I'm sure you can," he replied with a nod. "I am Aiden Steiner. You are the goddess Hestia, are you not? The goddess of hearth and home?"

Aiden, an unusual name Hestia had never heard before, but she was not surprised considering the vastness of the mortal world. "That's me, yes," Hestia nodded, wondering what she wanted from her, since she was not expecting visitors or anything.

"Very well," he said with a smile, and for some strange reason Hestia felt her heart beat faster. "I just came from the guild and heard you were looking for members for your family. I'm here to join you, and if it helps, I also have a letter of recommendation."

...Huh? What?

Hestia blinked slowly as she listened to his words. Did she feel sick? Or was she looking for someone else? But ... she was the only one here. And he had mentioned her name and her main domain, which marked her as a goddess.

There was silence between them for a few seconds while she tried to process what he had said. "Do you wish to join my family?" she asked, pointing to be sure.

"That's right," he simply nodded, as if there was no problem with what she had said.

She had to admit that this was certainly not what she had expected, since she had been trying so hard to recruit others for the past few weeks. How ironic was it that someone would come to her?

Suddenly she was really confused about the situation, "All right, I'm glad you're with me, Aiden!" she turned to the boy and stepped forward, wrapping her hands around one of his and pulling him into the church with her.

She really wished that "she" was there right now, but she was too excited to wait, and it was late, and she would probably be back from the dungeon by now.

He laughed a little himself and let her pull him in. "So how do we do this?" he asked as she led him down.

"Umu," Hestia let go of his arm as they reached the bottom of the narrow stairs and pointed to her bed, "take off your shirt so you are shirtless and lie face down on the bed so I can see your back," she ordered as a feeling of happiness filled her stomach.

He didn't let her repeat herself twice and reached down and pulled his white hooded t-shirt up over his head and over his jacket, leaving him naked from the waist up. His shoulders were surprisingly broad for his age and he had quite strong muscles. Which was good for him, because he already looked very fit.

He slowly lay down on his stomach on the bed and Hestia swallowed as she climbed on top of him, sitting on his lower back with her legs on either side of him. She had to admit that it was a very comfortable position and she could certainly get used to it.

She raised her hand and was about to prick her finger to draw blood, but he stopped, hesitating. "I... Are you sure you want to join my familia? We're not doing very well and I can't give you much," Hestia asked in a weak, vulnerable tone.

As much as she hated herself for saying it, she would not want a child to regret joining her unnecessarily. If only he could. 

"Perhaps," he replied, and Hestia felt her stomach clench, "but as I told someone else, I'd rather join you. You are the goddess of hearth and family, aren't you? And that's what I'm looking for the most right now."

She sniffed with her nose and held back the urge to cry with happiness; she didn't want to ruin this moment!

"Besides, a larger family means I won't be able to be the head of the family right away, right?" he mused, looking over his shoulder to give her a reassuring smile. "I think I would rather carry this family on my shoulders and make sure it is feared and respected all over Orario."

Mortal children could be truly adorable when they were so open about their dreams and ambitions. It was bold, and perhaps a bit arrogant, to say such a thing, but his smile was infectious, and Hestia found herself smiling back, happiness threatening to overwhelm her.

"All right, then I will make sure that you can, Aiden!" she promised with a smile. "Welcome to my familia!" She brought the needle to her thumb, a small drop of blood gushed out to where it pricked. He held it to Aiden's back and let it fall onto his back as she summoned his divine power, her Arcanum.

Light rippled into existence as her drop of blood was absorbed into his back and he Falna appeared on his back as she felt a connection form with him.

Aiden let out a grunt, a sound of pain that stunned Hestia as she watched with wide eyes as the muscles in his back swayed and grew noticeably, becoming more toned and massive, almost transforming him into another person.

"Huh!? Did I do something wrong?" cried Hestia, panicking as she stared at the figure forming on Aiden's back. Her eyes widened at the sight, completely shocked.

Aiden Steiner

Level: 1

Strength: I0

Endurance: I0

Dexterity: I0

Agility: I0

Magic: I0

Skills

[Twilight: The Power to store the sun's energy within, unleashing it at will the form Pride, thereby enhancing oneself and gaining mastery over fire manipulation. Evolution of physiology towards peak physical perfection. Possessing formidable combat instincts and the power to surpass all boundaries]

"...."

What is this! Did she use her divine (Arcanum) power by mistake? No, she shook her head, if she had, she would have been banished back to heaven by now. It was not uncommon for children to have one or two abilities in the beginning, but nothing like this!

"What a crazy ability!" Hestia gasped as she looked at his back in awe. This was perhaps one of the strongest, if not the strongest, power she had ever heard of.

Storing the sun's energy? Manipulating fire? Evolution of physiology to the pinnacle body? Monstrous fighting instinct and power to overcome all limits?

Normally, it would have taken a great deal of effort and merit for an adventurer to acquire even one skill in his lifetime, but he had just obtained his Falna and could be considered stronger than most people at his level.

It didn't even seem like a skill. Still, she could only be happy for her new child, since he had already jumped so high!

"Um... Aiden, are you okay?" she asked, trying to figure out exactly what had happened, but if she had to be completely honest, she was completely confused.

"Yes?" he replied after a moment, "I feel a little strange though...are you okay?" he asked, feeling a new sensation of warmth spreading through his body, a tremendous power, an infinite energy that he knew he could use to fulfill his desires.

"Yes, I think so," Hestia nodded, "you've gained an ability I wasn't expecting." It had been so strange, she could have tried to hide the evidence. But she couldn't. It was not something he could really benefit from without knowing it himself.

She took a piece of paper from the bedside table and laid it on his back, making Falna's imprint so he could see it. He had to know his limits if he was to have any chance of realizing his dreams.

"Huh, really?" he asked, sounding quite surprised by the news, "but abilities shouldn't be that easy to achieve." At least that was what he remembered from the original series.

"Well... Not really," Hestia admitted as she finished and moved away from his back to let him sit down, "Yours is definitely weird too..." But very powerful, with limitations that have yet to be clarified.

When he sat up and looked at her, Hestia's eyes widened in surprise as she saw that Aiden's body had grown and transformed before her eyes. "Is it because of his skill? His body has completely changed!" her thoughts were quick, flooding her with questions and doubts....

His green eyes widened as she handed him the sheet of paper and he read her status, "What the hell...!" he gasped in shock as she scrolled through the description of said skill.

How could he not when he recognized the ability he had awakened? It was indeed the magical ability of one of his favorite characters: Escanor, the Sin of the Pride Lion!

His ability had a different name, but it was obviously "Sunshine", the most powerful grace of the Goddess Clan, which gave a mere human the power to rule over any other race.

However, his ability seemed a bit different from what he remembered, as Sunshine's original characteristics were much simpler:

The closer the hour is to noon, the stronger the user becomes.

At night, the user loses Sunshine's power.

The user cannot control when he gets his power. At least these characteristics were true for both Mael and Escanor.

But it seemed that, unlike them, he would be able to store the power of the sun within himself and release it whenever he wanted to achieve his form of Pride (basically a Human Rhitta).

And from this it could be concluded that his power was indeed charge-based (Human Rhitta), and from this he could easily infer that he could enter it at will, regardless of the time of day.

"It's really rare for someone to get away with a skill, let alone one as powerful as yours," Hestia remarked as her eyes roamed over his body, which had a light golden aura around it. 

"Fire manipulation? So that was the reason I was able to survive against that goblin?" he wondered, still looking at the piece of paper with different emotions.

"You should keep it a secret. If you don't, many gods will follow you and try to get you to join them." She was terrified at the thought of gods from high ranking families wanting to take it, like Loki, or worse, Freya. It was an incredibly powerful power.

"I see," Aiden nodded, turning to her and smiling slightly, "I will have to keep my mouth shut about this until I am strong enough to tell everyone that you are the only goddess I have chosen and I want no other."

Hestia sniffed at his words and could not contain herself, "You are such a good boy, Aiden!" she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding him tightly to her chest. But even with the full weight of her body slamming into him, he only rocked back slightly and she ended up sitting on his lap.

Aiden could only admit that it was a situation that could easily be misunderstood, fortunately it was just the two of them in this old church at the moment...

"Kami-sama, I'm back!" A clearly excited and happy female voice said as she entered the church, only to stop at the spectacle before her eyes.

She was a young girl with short white hair that fell softly over her shoulders, framing a face with a vivid, penetrating gaze that resembled a beautiful ruby. Her eyes shone with a light of their own, revealing a determination and wisdom beyond her young years.

Her figure, slender but athletic, was certainly not hidden by her clothing. A sturdy shirt and pants, along with light armor across her chest, gave her a minimum of protection without compromising her agility and advantages in combat. 

[Image ----> Belko Cranel]

"Huh? What's going on here?!" 

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A/N: I hope you enjoy the chapter!

As mentioned earlier, Mc's ability is vastly different from Escanor's, and naturally, it takes on another name to demonstrate the distinction of the Sun's Grace from the original.

To be clearer, it's much more akin to Gawain's ability, as it's far more balanced for integration into this world. Moreover, this ability will slowly grow with Mc over time.

I've also introduced female Bell, as it seemed somewhat intriguing, and their dynamics are bound to be very amusing. Her abilities are likely to be different from canon, but I have yet to see them.

If you have suggestions for skills or chants for the future, feel free to leave a comment, and I'll be happy to read them.

On the other hand, if you want to see something specific in the next chapters, or even just have some good advice for the story as a whole, I am always willing to read a comment if it is constructive criticism.

If you see any mistakes, I would be grateful if you would point them out to me, so that I can correct them when I have some spare time, and make the story as complete as possible for myself and especially for you.

To facilitate a clearer understanding, I've retained pictures of the respective characters. Your feedback is always valued, and if you have any suggestions for the upcoming chapter, please feel free to comment—I'll be sure to respond as usual.

Please leave a review if you like the story.

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