131 Confrontation: Me? It's complicated...
I am... Awakened
I have discovered the perfect way to maximize time.
Instead of listening to those long-ass conversations my teachers have the inkling to start, I'll now read the Light Novel, expanding my knowledge into something interesting instead of Integrals and Derivatives.
Today, I read about a fifth of the 9th volume of Sword Oratoria, likely, by the end of next week, I'll have finished the 12th, and with it, everything from this side.
I'll then start reading the Original Danmachi Light Novel, I know, I'm very dedicated to my craft...
If only Calculus was half as interesting.
...
As for the chapter, I have mixed feelings about it.
This is the last chapter from the rewritten section, so that's a thing.
I hope you like it, I'll answer any questions once I'm back from Uni, see ya!
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'His words rang deep in their minds… The truth, cannot be denied.'
'With a solemn expression, Silver remained still, waiting for them to process what he had said.'
'There was no point in rushing them.'
"You can call them back if you wish, I won't be saying anything sensitive anymore." He said as he cracked his neck
'Loki nodded, she turned around and called them back, and the room was soon filled with people once again… With the exception of Bete, who seemingly disappeared…'
'To where that wolf had gone to... They could only imagine.'
"Excuse me..." Lefiya said as she entered the room
"Loki, Bete said he would go out for a walk." Tione said as she entered the room
'Loki frowned, but she let out a sigh.'
"Just leave him, he'll come back eventually."
"Ohayo… We're back, missed us?" Tiona said with a small smile
'She jumped and sat on the couch, looking straight at Silver.'
"What are you all talking about?"
"Well..."
'Silver smiled and let out a sigh, telling them a resumed story that didn't involve Ais' personal story.'
'At the end of it, they were just as confused and shocked as Loki, especially Tione, who managed to realize the same thing Loki did.'
'What caused him to grow so fast?...'
'Taking this chance, Loki asked:'
"... What about you?" Loki asked with a sharp gaze
"..."
'Silver remained silent.'
'But she kept pressing:'
"Does your growth has anything to do with this?" She asked as she touched Ais' neck, making sure to savor the sensation of her skin…
"..."
'Ais' expression darkened.'
"Ha… I'm joking, of course not, you just explained that wasn't possible…" She said lightly
'She looked at him with a serious expression and asked:'
"Then how?"
'Silver remained silent, he closed his eyes, deep in thought while the mood became heavier…'
'The others wanted to intervene and stir things back to how they were before, but they were also curious… How? And if so, could he also tell them?'
'Was it... Too greedy?'
'It may seem preposterous to ask him of his secrets, but they couldn't help it.'
'They are adventurers after all...'
'However, what each of them felt about that was different…'
'Tiona felt bad, she was between asking her Goddess to stop and remaining silent, seeing how things developed.'
'Tione was very very interested, but she was fine with either, if she felt that things were going on a bad turn, she would use everything in her ability to make amends, she had to keep their reputation intact, as that was what her beloved Captain would've desired.'
'Lefiya was interested in this subject greatly, strength… That was something she had always envisioned ever since she joined the Loki Familia after graduating from her School and becoming Riveria's apprentice.'
'Haruhime on the other hand was the calmer of the bunch, for her, who had never properly understood what is to reach your limits, this talk was merely a novelty…'
"Ha… I thought this question was coming."
'But his expression turned serious as he replied:'
"Don't you think you're straying off topic too much? Does this have anything to do with your personal investigation?"
"... Is that a refusal?" Loki asked sharply
"Beating around the bush won't lead us anywhere…" She said as she shook her shoulders
"You're right, and I guess I do have some things to say..." Silver said with a pensive gaze
"But, it's something very personal to me, so I'll have to stop you right here."
"I refuse to explain this to you." Silver replied sternly
"?!"
'No one expected him to be so blunt.'
'Not even Loki… She expected a refusal, just not like this.'
'He wasn't tactfully at all! Talk about being rude and direct...'
'Well... She was the one that didn't want to beat around the bush in the first place... But hey, she was Loki, being unreasonable and shameless was in her blood.'
/Tap…/
'Hestia used her elbow to Silver's side, but he ignored her.'
'He knew what she wanted to say, but he had to remain strong about his choices, he was the front of the Hestia Familia, and despite him wanting to keep good relations with the Loki Familia, he has some pride and understanding about himself.'
'If he's going to talk, then he first needs to have them understand how meaningful it is to him.'
"You… Do you understand just who you are talking with?" Loki asked surprised
This guy… He is so bold!
Tsk, is it a lack of trust? We don't know each other that deeply... Or is it something else?
It looks like this infringes too much on his personal space.
Urg... Riveria and Finn are much better at sweet-talking people...
But I can't lose here and lose face to my precious children and…
This Boobasaurus of a woman!
"Yes, yes I do know you…" Silver replied as he shook his head
"Loki, the trickiest prankster that loves to have fun, drink wine, especially Soma's, joke with her Familia children, laze around, touch little girls, and has a complex…"
'But Silver stopped as he looked at her chest.'
"#!!"
Where are you looking at you fucker?!
And how does he know so much about me?!
"Yup, that's Loki." Tiona said with a nod
"It's actually a bit scary how precise that is..." Tione said
'Lefiya nodded with a frown, she was thinking deeply... But lacked the words to refute.'
'Everyone seemed to nod to his words, he had hit the sweet spot...'
"And also… Someone who owes me a tad bit much." He said seriously
"I'll stay adamant about my choices..." Silver said unwavering as he looked at Loki
"..."
'But when things were getting tense, Ais intervened:'
"Please… Please tell me how to get stronger." She asked with a serious expression as she clutched onto her dress
"?!"
'Her eyes seemed to shine, even her expression was slightly flushed…'
'Silver knew that this must be hard for her, whatever was passing through her mind, taking the first step in requesting someone else's help…'
'It was clear that Ais had thought greatly about this, despite the circumstances.'
'It was no surprise why everyone was so surprised.'
"Did you hear what I said?" Silver asked with a frown
Hum... I'll apologize right now Ais.
I'll have to trick you a little.
My Skill isn't something that should be shared, but everything else?
So first...
"Yes, that is why…"
'But Silver shook his head.'
"This was the reason why I warned you all at the start."
"I'm not explaining to you how to do things, and I told you all that this wasn't going to make sense…"
"I simply can't bring myself to tell you something that doesn't suit you, you know that yourself."
"..."
'She looked at the ground, depressed and even slightly ashamed.'
'But at the same time, she wanted to say… At least she thought she wanted…'
'She... She didn't know what she wanted…'
'Ais felt she needed to say: What do you even know about me?!'
'But the words never came out from her lips, she only stared at the ground, frustrated, or so she thought, she didn't know what she was feeling.'
"..."
'Silver looked at Ais and said honestly:'
"I'm not trying to shoot you down… Nor am I trying to make little of your efforts."
"I can tell just by looking about your achievements, at your mindset, and at the way you hold your sword… Your conviction."
"The amount of effort you put into all of this, the burden you carry."
"But it's exactly because of this that I can't say that you aren't suited for the method I used to grow stronger."
Will you bite?
Do I have to push more?
"..."
'She didn't reply.'
"The strength you seek, I can understand why you do so…"
"But if you push yourself too hard… Wasn't that the reason why they always pulled you back?" Silver asked as he looked at Loki and… At the door
'After all, a certain Elf had been standing there for a while now… Even though most had yet to realize, too focused on his words to pay attention to her faint presence.'
"People have limits, and breaking them was never supposed to be a simple thing, since what does it even means to break your limits?"
"You want to grow stronger so desperately, but does it really have to be at any cost?"
This is something she has to learn if I were to tell them how I grow…
Would she throw herself in a wave of minotaurs alone? Of course not… Not quite.
She would definitely consider, and it's that indecision that would make both Loki and several others hostile to me… Or at the very least, make them have dual feelings about me.
If any of them were to get hurt by my words, no matter how truthful I am or how much I warned them, they would still feel upset.
"..."
My Limit…
'Ais didn't expect to be scolded, for a moment, she felt as if she was hearing Riveria talk…'
'From the other side of the door, a certain Elf smiled slightly…'
"Besides, what I did to grow was very particular, not really something I would recommend you all to follow… And I have my own secrets to keep."
"Even if I were to do so… These two beautiful ladies would beat me up." Silver said as he pointed at the door and at Loki
"Heh?"
Trying to sweet talk me, kid?!
But... Two? Ah... I see.
""Hm?""
/Creak…/
'Everyone apart from Loki looked at the door as it slowly opened, revealing a beautiful Elf with green hair…'
'It was Riveria, with her cold and serious gaze…'
"R-R-R-R-Riveria-Sama?!... OUCH!" Lefiya exclaimed in surprise as Riveria approached behind her and smacked her head with a cane
"I told you to be more composed in such meetings many times before, didn't I?" She said as she closed one of her eyes
This child…
'She then looked at Silver and nodded slightly before taking a seat next to Loki's after Tiona made up some space.'
"I didn't quite expect us to meet like this again." She said with a thin smile
"Neither did I, nevertheless, it's a pleasure to meet the Nine Hell again." Silver replied with a smile
"No need to be so formal, Riveria will do. Didn't I say that last time as well?" She said with a smile
"Hm?"
'She looked around, but she seemed confused.'
"Where's Bete?"
'Everyone then smiled helplessly.'
"He left early after he lost his patience, you must've missed him." Loki said with a calm smile
'But the true meaning of her words was: I'll tell you later, leave that guy alone.'
"... That's unlike him..." Riveria said suspiciously
Even if he was upset, he would've stayed just for the sake of being around…
Is he still upset about that? Perhaps too embarrassed to remain any longer...
The last time something like this happened was when he became drunk and said some regrettable things around Loki… He stayed out of her sight for close to half a month.
'Seeing that everything was under control, she simply let it be.'
'She then became serious and said:'
"Enough side talk. Firstly, my apologies for coming so late, I missed the start of the conversation due to the Guild being busy as always, and now I'm lost in what to make of all of it."
"Even after trying, I still can't make ends meet about the meaning of your words."
"What you said about limits… I can't help but be skeptical about what you said."
"Limits can be broken? Even after all you said, I'm finding difficulty believing that."
'Silver nodded, he understood her point.'
'For her, it was already very hard to limit the actions of Ais and the others, she always had to limit them, after all, they work together, and not separately.'
'This is because, even with their strength, they can't act on their own in the Deep floors, else they would die.'
'She has to control their unending desire for power and impede them from throwing themselves in the army of monsters the Dungeon throws at them…'
'But it's not her fault either, since she also believes that once you hit the limit… It's that.'
'Unless you dedicate unending amounts of time to increase that limit step by step like Ottar, then your only solution is to train something else or to Level up.'
'Not that she knows how Ottar became that strong in the first place…'
(N0)
"It is not an opinion, it is a fact… Since you came in late, I do not mind going over everything again quickly."
'Riveria nodded, saying thank you to Haruhime for pouring her tea, waiting for Silver to recount his story…'
...
/5 minutes later…/
'She was left shocked, but not overly so as most of his words were within her expectations...'
'When she listened to Loki's account about Ais' growth before coming here, she had already formulated a certain understanding of the matter, it just came as a shock to her to hear this from an outsider's mouth... Confirming her doubts.'
'And this was shown by her expression of deep confusion and disbelief.'
"Even so…"
'She tried to formulate a comeback, but she was unable to.'
'The almost 100-year-old sage was unable to refute this.'
'Of course, she could simply say that their knowledge about the Item was wrong and that it had no such effect… But then, what would be the explanation for what happened?'
"Well… This is all I had to share." Silver said as he looked at them
"You now know that the item is safe, and its supposed effects, its history, how it got into my hands, what else do you need? My favorite food? I quite like a well-made steak..." He replied with a small smile
"Perhaps you'd prefer my 3 sizes?"
"No, thank you!" Lefiya said embarrassed
"..."
/Bam!/
'Loki slammed her hand on the table, making the teacups fly, but Silver stopped them by making them float in the air.'
'She wouldn't lose her composure like this, it was obvious she expected him to react like this.'
"I can't take this out of my head! How, just how did you grow if… MHMPH?!"
'In the middle of her talk, Riveria grabbed Loki's mouth, impeding her from talking further.'
"My apologies, Loki is a very curious person, I hope you take no offense to that."
'Silver smiled helplessly.'
"I don't mind… I'm used to it already... She just like her..."
"Haaa? Me?! Say that again!" Hestia said as she grabbed Silver's collar
"HA! Let me go, Revi!" Lokis explained as she looked at Riveria
'Riveria did just that, and Loki was released, hitting her bum on the ground.'
"Urg… I can't believe this humiliation is coming from my own child…" She said as she massaged her sore ass
"So you should behave more and stop asking about other people's personal things."
In the end, we got what we wanted to, what she's doing is using her authority to try and poke her nose where it doesn't belong...
Classic Loki behavior.
"HA?! Don't tell me you aren't curious about it?"
'Riveria's eyes twitch, and she became very very slightly flushed, the non-expressive Elf showed a rare emotion...'
"Perhaps just a little…"
'Everyone then looked at Silver.'
"What? I told you many times already…" He replied as he moved his hands
'But they did not budge.'
"You're all so insistent, do you know that?"
I guess this is it.
'Loki smiled, she had gotten him!'
"Many say that to me."
"Sigh…"
'Silver tiredly closed his eyes.'
It's not like I need to reveal anything deep, just some of my habits in the Dungeon should be enough to show just how much I work.
However, it needs to be shocking if I want to make them believe in it, especially since Ais trained with her life on the line when she was younger, the only reason why she didn't push herself further was because of none other than Loki and the top Executives.
Tione and Tiona are similar... Almost all Amazons are.
"Silver…" Hestia said worriedly
"No, it's okay, I know what I'm doing."
'He raised his head and got up from his seat, looking down at them as he said:'
"Fine, I'll tell you how I got this strong, but I have a few conditions…"
"YAY!" Loki exclaimed with a smile as she jumped from her seat
'She approached him and tapped his back excitedly...'
"..."
'She raised her head to look at Silver, he had one of his eyebrows raised, thinking about her actions.'
'Silver rolled his eyes.'
/Grinding…/
'It took no longer than a second for the sound of grinding to be heard, Loki looked at the side to see Hestia, her hair rising into the sky, defying gravity as she ground her teeth in anger.'
"What are you doing?..." Hestia said word by word as steam came off her mouth
'It wasn't that Hestia was possessive, it's just that from the large selection of people she didn't want Silver to associate with, Loki was at the very top.'
"Me? I'm giving him my appreciation…"
Hehehe, her reaction is quite amusing...
"He doesn't need your appreciation! Now, get away!" Hestia said as she jumped after Loki
'Then it became a tug of war where one was pulled, and the other held…'
'Silver remained unmoving this entire time, looking at Riveria and the others with a blank expression.'
"Sigh…" Riveria said as she got up from her seat…
/SMACK!/
"AH!..."
'But surprisingly, it wasn't her who smacked Loki in the head, sending her face first onto the ground… It was Ais!'
/Hiss!/
'While Loki twitched on the ground, Hestia hissed to her as she clung onto Silver.'
"Can I get some time off?..." Silver requested with a frown
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Notes
N0
In the end, there are many holes in this explanation.
You see, Riveria is old, old enough to know many people and to have lived in the time of the Zeus and Hera Familias.
So it wouldn't have been impossible for one or several unique individuals to have appeared here and there.
It's not like she was a child when she entered the Loki Familia, she was around 50 to 60 years old, same for Finn and Gareth who were around their late 10s to early 20s.
Of course, even that is not enough, just living in that era, doesn't mean she has a great deal of information about it…
After all, perhaps not even Zeus and Hera know about the fact you can break past your limit.
Even if they knew, there is nothing forcing the two Familias in sharing the information they know, perhaps they did, and the Guild censored it, in fear of having promising adventurers kill themselves off over the prospect of breaking their own limits…
