180 Defiance: Sleepless night

Thank you all for waiting, I can now say I'm okay.

Albeit my stomach still makes some strange noises from time to time, I don't feel any discomfort anymore much less pain.

A few things to say before we go.

As I have stated before, I have started to dive deep into the lore of this series.

I read the entire Sword Oratoria... Though there are now Volumes 13 and 14 to read if I'm correct, at least the 13th.

And now I just need to reach from Volume 15 to Volume 18 of the Main story, which is pretty much Freya's Arc.

I'm midway through Episode Freya, and I have watched the entire Astrea Record from the game, about 10 hours worth of content... Sheesh.

It covers what happens 7 years ago in the timeline, or currently, about 5 years.

There is still the story about how they all died to the Juggernaut, but for that, I have the book Episode Ryuu, though I don't think it covers that part.

I would like to know if anyone knows where I can read or watch that.

With that... I could say I have reached peak canon lore.

The only things left for me would be to read those special side stories that no one cares such as the winter/summer festivals and whatever... But honestly, it seems like too much work.

After I'm done with all of this, I may step into the world of the games, as there we may find some decent things to explore and do, it would also be great to have some characters make their appearance.

My only regret about this all is that we just reached a hollow point in the main story.

Slight spoilers?

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Literally, the main problems of the Sword Oratoria have been taken care of, while Bell literally defeated his strongest enemy, the Freya Familia.

It's up in the air how the author will lead this story forward, I can think of some things, but it doesn't seem like there'll be an "Enemy".

The only one left would be the Demi Spirit itself somewhere beneath the 59th floor.

Evilus has been defeated, the Freya Familia has fallen, who can move the plot forward?

It would be interesting to have access to the next few Volumes.

In any case, thanks for reading!

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/Shaa…/

"..."

'Smoke clouds rose from the rubble vision, embers flared in the air…'

'Wood crackled as it burned, stone melted down due to the heat.'

'It lasted only a moment, but it left behind a large scar.'

'One side of the room remained the same with only a few parts charred, the other one… Burned to cinders.'

'With the exception of a bed where 5 people laid, still sleeping, unaware of how close to death they had just been.'

"Huuuu…"

'In front of the bed, Phryne stood like a bolder, her skin was a little charred, no... Considerably so, smoking hot as her hair had been burned into oblivion...'

'But she was still very much awake and alive.'

'Although... Her expression was as furious as she could muster…'

'This was definitely by far, her angriest moment in all of her life.'

"You're sturdier than I thought." He mocked slightly as steam came out from inside his mouth, his hand still pointing forward

As I thought, Plasmids won't work that well against her…

/Turn/

'Silver turned around, uninterested in this situation anymore.'

'Everything he came here to do was done, there was no point in lingering here any further.'

'The rest... If he wanted to finish this in the best way possible... Then ending Phryne now wasn't the answer.'

'Let her dig a hole for herself, let Ishtar build the stage for him.'

'An elaborate trap... That he is going to overcome.'

'Reap everything at the end.'

"You…"

'Phryne, however, wasn't a very fan of his actions.'

'Such blatant disrespect... Was she supposed to leave it be?!'

'But she hesitated, her body was still up for a fight, but his actions proved to her that he...'

'Could kill her right now.'

"COME BACK HERE!"

'Yet her anger was too much, blood rushed to her head when...'

/Tremble!/

"Huh?!"

'The tower started to shake, and it was obvious, half of this floor had been blasted away, stone, metal, everything...'

'It had lost most of its support.'

/Tremble.../

'Hanging by a tread, the upper corner of this tower was about to fall, and there was no one to stop it...'

'Wrong, there was indeed one person, but he cared little about it.'

"..."

'Silver stared at her, waiting for her to move.'

'Due to this, Phryne was given a choice, to go after Silver, or to take Ishtar away to safety…'

'An unconscious and defenseless God like her would die if as much as a small stone were to hit her head a tad too hard...'

'Much less if a few floors worth of stone were to collapse on top of her.'

'If she returned to heaven just like that, then her blessing would seal itself, and then, the man that was just about to leave might think again about doing that...'

'So she also turned around, grabbing her from the bed, but only her.'

'The other hunks were nonimportant to her, which was rather cruel.'

'They literally had nothing to do with this...'

/Cracks… Crack…/

"Next time."

"I'll kill you myself." She said with a twisted glare as stones started to fall from the ceiling

'Some fell on her, others on the bed, she didn't care, it barely tickled her...'

"..."

I wonder who will end up dead…

'As he left, his eyes fell onto the bed.'

"Sigh."

I'll take this as my good action of the day.

'The 4 hunk dudes vanished.'

'Silver jumped from the window as well, disappearing mid fall…'

/CRACK!/

/Cronnnk!!.../

'The tip of the tower finally gave in, tilting to the side…'

'People all around gasped as it fell…'

/BOOOM!/

/SPLASH!/

'With a drop loud enough to wake up a quarter of Orario, the tower crashed onto the artificial lake surrounding the Ishtar's Familia home…'

"ZZzzz…"

'And the woman in question still slept in Phryne's arms… Unaware of what had just befallen her.'

…

/Back in the Hearth Manor…/

/Creak…/

/Thud!/

'Silver crossed the magical door, tumbling down onto a small table next to his bed, almost dropping down the things above it.'

"Huff… I went a tad overboard there…"

Arrg… This damn headache.

'Mind Zero, usually triggered when someone utilizes too much Mind over long periods of time, thus falling unconscious due to a lack of mental integrity.'

'Or it can also happen when too much of it is used at once.'

'It isn't strange for fully rested mages to fall unconscious after doing one singular attack due to trying too hard.'

'Silver understood very well how it felt to fall unconscious due to it, he wasn't a stranger to it.'

'The only reason why he could stay awake was thanks to his many years of endurance training, his willpower was commendable.'

My whole body's stiff… My arm feels like it's about to fall...

'He raised his hands in front of his face.'

'They were fully carbonized, with parts of his bone showing.'

'Broken metal tubes rose and disappeared from and into his flesh, like some sort of forbidden experiment.'

'The side effects of his Plasmid, the severe physical alteration that followed…'

"It doesn't hurt, but it'll take a while to get back to normal."

It isn't impossible to hurt myself due to my own Plasmids.

This happened before and during the War game, and many times before in the Dungeon as well.

It does bother me a little... As I can't let anyone see me like this.

'The patches of charred muscle and skin were healing to the naked eye, but it would take a good minute for them to go back to what they were supposed to look like.'

'So Silver took off his clothes with some difficulty, considering he couldn't use his hands nor his Plasmids for the sake of a quick recovery, making his way to the bathroom to soak in water for a few minutes…'

…

/Splash…/

/Sizzle.../

"Haa…."

'Silver let his body sink, resting his head on the side of the bathtub, his body so hot the water boiled when he got inside.'

"I used a lot of power there…" He mumbled as he raised his still-transformed hand

And yet, Phryne only received medium burns, perhaps a few severe ones.

Though it's nothing for her, she would be able to fight.

She may be a fat one, but she's still an Amazon.

"Regardless…"

I'm reaching it.

The true form of my Plasmids, how they should've been from the beginning.

My Magic stat is so high right now, the power behind even a single zap of electricity packs quite the punch.

Although this buff will eventually dissipate… And I'll return to Level 3.

Once I reach Level 4 myself, things will change.

And from then on...

"I'll surpass my old self… For good now."

Perhaps not in scope, but in overall capabilities…

/Chuckle.../

'He let out a dry laugh, let some water splash on his face.'

Well… Dreaming isn't bad…

'Silver let his head sink in the warm water…'

…

/Sometime later… Somewhere far yet not so far.../

/BAM!/

"Ahhh ahhh! Please! I said it already, I don't know anything about it!" Hermes pleaded to the goddess in front of him

My poor table... It has suffered so many beatings today...

"Don't play around with me Hermes!" She exclaimed

"Please listen… I..."

'Hermes seemed to be about to cry.'

…

'Time passed, and Hermes finally managed to drive away the angry God from his home…'

"HAAAA… Can't I have a rest already?..."

Again and again... Why do people come to me?

I was sleeping too okay?!

'He laid back on his chair, tilting it as he looked through his window.'

Couldn't it have happened after my rare full night of sleep?

Perhaps I should retire...

/Knock knock…/

'Hermes' expression twisted.'

"I'm done! Leave me alone…"

'He almost cried...'

"It's me."

'The voice was a bit dark, and it was hard to distinguish if it was a man or a woman…'

'Upon hearing that voice, however, Hermes' threw away his tiredness.'

'Even so, he didn't open the door, and instead, got his chair back in place, pulling his head up.'

"... To find me first… That's rare."

It was only a matter of time before Ouranos made his move.

"Don't joke around Hermes, this isn't the time to play around."

"I know."

"Since you're here, should I just have them back?"

It's strange for Ouranos to contact me first.

This means... He's somewhat aware of what happened.

That was faster than expected, though it raises the question of how.

'For a moment, a thought echoed inside his mind... "Was this planned?" he thought to himself as his eyes sharpened.'

It can't be, this isn't his style.

"No… Keep them busy, there is much to learn and understand about the intricacies surrounding this situation." The person behind the door replied stoically

"Besides, others would find it strange were you to pull your forces now of all times."

"Everyone's eyes and ears are open wide, it would be hard to act undercover, so let them be."

"Instead, I need you to do something for me…"

"Hm?"

More work?...

"Can we leave it to tomorrow...?"

"I have an inkling that won't be possible... As we speak, the Guild is preparing to host it..."

"Ahh..."

Work... I'll leave it to Asfi.

...

'A meeting between two shadows in the middle of the night.'

'Their conversation went on for a few more minutes before both parted ways, one meddled back onto the shadows, the other wanted this to end already...'

'But the night was long…'

…

"This is driving me… NUTS!!!" Loki exclaimed as she pulled her hair

"Is Ana still not back from the Guild?!"

/Slam!/

/Creak!/

'Loki hit her tiny fists on her office table, making it creak in pain and agony.'

Worst of all, they're still in the Dungeon!

What should I do about this shitty situation?

"Sign..."

I've become so pathetic...

Since when did I need the help of others to do such simple work?

'Loki raised her head, light flashing within them.'

"Time to do some private investigations..."

But first, I should wait for Ana to come back with the Guild's response.

"Hm... No."

I'll ask that old fattie myself!

And I'll show him if he refuses to meet me!

'Loki stormed out of the office, dragging someone with her.'

'A shy girl with thick glasses, her expression was one of helplessness as she dragged outside.'

…

/At the same time.../

'While Orario woke up a bit sooner than usual, going into chaos, Silver scrubbed his ass with a towel.'

"Going traditional every once in a while isn't bad." He said with a relaxed mood

I feel better already.

'With a nice bath and smelling fresh, Silver left the bathroom after brushing his teeth and putting on some Pajamas.'

'He then left his own room, and without anyone noticing, invaded Hestia's room, taking a spot next to her.'

"Mnm…"

'Noticing his presence, the sleepy Goddess just hugged him, still lost in her own dreams.'

'And he did the same.'

'He would care about those problems, tomorrow.'

…

/Chirp!/

/Chirp!/

"Mnm..."

'With the beautiful sounds of the birds, Silver opened his eyes to a new, beautiful morning.'

/ZZZZzzz/

'Hestia still slept by his side, with her back facing down, she snored slightly.'

'One of her feet somehow made its way to his chest, as always, her sleeping habits were terrible.'

"..."

Time to work.

'Silver got up from the bed, staring at the outside from the window of his room.'

'He could see the back garden in all of its glory, and even a few ducks here and there.'

'Instead of enjoying the view, he quickly walked to the office on the other side of the Manor, stopping only to put on some clothes.'

'It was still a bit over 5 and a half Am and the sun was still slightly pink.'

"Hm?"

'Midway through his walk, he stopped, looking to his right.'

Below me...

Heh.

These kids sure are energetic.

'Silver could tell that one of the triplets was already awake, making his way across the corridors to go train in the forest.'

He wakes up around 5 am, trains until 6:30, eats with his brothers, and then goes to the Dungeon with his team around 9 am...

When he comes back, he rests a little in the Library or reads some other interesting books before spending the rest of the time until dinner training.

He'll become a great adventurer, and just like his brothers, it seems he'll Level up within a year.

Only the best of the best can do that.

"I wonder where his and his brother's limits lie..."

'With a small smile, Silver continued.'

...

/Another hour later.../

'The people were finally waking up, and this included Daphne, the one who was acting as the Vice Captain of the Familia.'

'At first, she was against it, the years working for Apollo still left a shadow in her heart, but after a few months in charge, she grew fond of her position.'

'Perhaps because in here, she was free, and the people around her were all people she would love to spend time with, not the two-faced bastards that once shared a room with her here.'

'As such, from a job she previously hated, she started to feel that it wasn't that bad... Though sometimes, she feels conflicted, it was her the same home, but the people had changed...'

'Yet sometimes, she can still see shadows of the past in the silent hallways.'

'Of course, out of everything that annoys her, her grudges for her Captain... A certain Silver eyed boy... Were the biggest.'

'He may think he was smooth and sneaky... But she saw it as clear as day how he slowly pushed her into this damn position.'

/ZZZzzz/

'Unlike Silver and Hestia, Daphne didn't live alone, instead, she shared a room with a blue-haired prophet who liked to sleep topless...'

"Mnmm..."

'Although... It seemed that yet again, she was having some really bad dreams... Just what kind of nonsense would she bring up today?'

/Knock knock.../

"Huh?"

Someone's at the door?

'Daphne was still getting ready, but considering she was in the female dormitory, she opened the door without much fear...'

"Is it you Igva? I'm almost up..."

"..."

'It wasn't Igva...'

'In front of her was a man, one of the only four in the entire Familia, and the only one over 17.'

'His expression was pretty awkward, though his expression did not move away from her eyes.'

"Oh... It's you Captain." She replied without much fluster

'Daphne was indeed a serious woman, such a thing didn't phase her...'

'Although it would be a lie to say she didn't mind, of course, she did, if she could, she would scream and say he was a pervert...'

'Of course, nothing really would come out of that, Daphne was a woman that thought first, acted later, even if that proves to be detrimental...'

'Regardless, she understood it was her fault for opening the door so suddenly and not giving him time to speak despite him knocking on it first.'

"Sorry for coming so soon in the morning, it'll be quick, but I don't mind waiting a little bit, especially since..."

"ZZzzz..."

"I wouldn't want to bother her." He said with a small smile

"I... Give me a sec." She said as she closed the door lightly

/Clack.../

"... Phew."

I almost slapped him out of instinct...

'It's not like this was the first time someone had suddenly appeared in front of her like that.'

'Back in the Apollo Familia, boys would often try to peak on her and Cassandra, this included Apollo himself, albeit he was much more... Direct.'

'He would often appear in front of their room to see their Pajamas and then proceed to say some long nonsense just so he could have a few glances...'

'And one time a boy tried to peep through the lock hole, so she just slapped him away.'

'Because of this, they had quite the bad reputation, not as they cared, but Daphne understood it wasn't a good thing to be hated within a Familia...'

"No Daphne... You're not in that place anymore..." She said to herself as she shook her head

It may be the same walls... But the people and the atmosphere...

...

'In no time at all, she put on a simple shirt and a pair of shorts.'

'Albeit her hair was still disheveled, and her appearance was in no way ideal, she still had a certain unique beauty and charm.'

'But Silver only appreciated this for a moment, he had to relay his orders before leaving... He can't leave his guests waiting.'

"Once again, sorry for coming all the way here so early in the morning."

"There's a first time for everything..."

I'm already happy you knocked...

"In any case... Take these for now." Silver said as he gave her some papers

"Pa... pers?... Well... This isn't the worst gift I ever received, but certainly not the best." She joked with a half smile

'It was a bit rare of her to joke, but it has become a bit more common recently.'

'Slowly, she broke free of her silent and cold personality she grew in order to survive in the Apollo Familia, becoming someone she could be proud of.'

"Don't say that... It's not work... Kind of." Silver replied as he scratched his head

'His expression then became a bit more somber.'

"First... I'll ask you to keep everyone inside the Manor today."

"Wh-What?"

'His words greatly surprised her.'

"Look... It's a bit too complicated to say it here, 6:30 am in the middle of the corridor of the Girls' wing of the Manor..."

"So let me be frank with you... You all deserve it after all."

'Silver was truly sorry and apologetic, and most importantly, he felt disappointed in himself as this time, he did something that impacted everyone, not only himself.'

'It's normal for this to happen over time since, as his fame and power grow, what he does will eventually affect more people regardless of his intentions.'

'But this time, things are a bit different...'

"Soon enough, you and everyone will understand what's happening, and I'll also properly explain myself... But for now, I need to go with Hestia to Babel..."

"Babel? Wasn't the Danatus like..."

"Indeed. But I believe today there'll be an exception."

"Because I caused quite the commotion you see..."

"C-Commotion?... Everything was fine till yesterday..."

You even waved me goodnight as if nothing had happened...

Did anything happen from that time to now?

'Memories started to play inside Daphne's mind, hadn't she seen something similar before?...'

'That's right, when Apollo...'

"Is it...?"

"I'm unsure of what you're thinking, but at the same time, I believe you have hit the bullseye." He replied with a depreciating smile

"Though I'll leave, this won't mean I'll leave you hanging."

'He lifted the papers to her again, saying:'

"I've written a mostly detailed debrief of what has happened, it isn't very long, and most of it is mostly... Pre-made answers."

I did it after taking a bath at night, so it's likely severely incomplete.

"Answers?"

"In case people started asking questions..."

"..."

"Don't look at me like that, I didn't make any crimes... Depending on the angle you look at it."

"..."

That doesn't sound very convincing...

"Cough!... In any case... I hope you take a look at it first... Alone."

"What's in there... Isn't something you should show to others that easily, you see when you read it."

"You're making me regret even grabbing it..."

"Heh... If that's the case, then just wait for me, I'll explain everything when I'm back."

"Normally, I wouldn't like you all to see this ugly side of me... But at the same time..."

"We are a Familia." Cassandra said from the side, moving from the bed with wide eyes

"Cassandra?"

"..."

'The woman with blue hair gazed at Silver, her expression a bit dark.'

/Step.../

'She took a step, moving past Daphne, and next to Silver.'

'Her eyes carried faint tears as if she knew something Daphne didn't...'

"Why do you pull yourself so hard?..."

"I..."

Is she a mind reader or a Prophet?

Haha...

"Because I... Failed the most basic duty of a Captain... And that is to take others into consideration."

'Cassandra nodded, not refuting his words.'

"That is true... A Familia is... The Familia you want to make that is true to its name... A home for all."

"But a Captain also carries the responsibility of making the right decisions... Even in the darkest and heaviest of times, when people cannot move forward, it's up to you to do so."

"We'll follow you, do not underestimate us, do not brush off our resolve." She said with a rare serious expression

'Today, perhaps because it was one of the few times she had actually managed to see him before the time of her prophecy, Cassandra let out the emotions she so desperately wanted to say.'

'But it was when she realized she was holding his face that she realize how close she was... And she immediately became flustered.'

"I-It may have been short... But the time we spent together made me Uhh... Un-Understand how uh... You are..."

"So uh... Don't think we would see you unfavorably just because of this!"

"Do not pull yourself down, I know everyone else will understand it."

"..."

Sigh.

'With a small breath, Silver smiled as he looked at her, before giving her a small pat.'

"You win."

"?!..."

'Cassandra's face turned red, but she was also smiling.'

'The mood was good, but suddenly...'

"EEEK!"

'Cassandra crouched on the ground with a loud pitched scream, covering herself...'

'With a fully crimson face, she turned into a stone, unable to move.'

'Daphne let out a sigh.'

'She grabbed her friend's shoulder and pulled her back inside, saying:'

"Apologies Captain, but Daphne didn't sleep well tonight... So... Uh..."

"Don't worry about me... I'll be back soon to discuss this later." Silver replied with a helpless smile as he waved his hands

"Goodbye!"

/CLACK!/

'Daphne hastily closed the door, and with it, whispers came from within.'

'They seemed to be arguing with each other, with one complaining and the other trying to calm the other down...'

'For the first time, Silver heard Cassandra's angry and overly flustered voice as she threw all sorts of accusations at Daphne...'

"..."

It must be hard...

'Though Silver wasn't the kind of guy to peep on their conversation, so he turned around, and left, this time, he went back up again to fetch up a Goddess.'

'Meanwhile, back in Daphne's room.'

"For a moment there I thought you were going to confess." Daphne teased as she put the papers inside a drawer

"AHHHHH! Sh-Stoooop! It wasn't like that! I was being serious you know!" Cassandra replied as she buried her face in her pillows

How could I forget that?!

"Really now? Why didn't you just continue? You were so close I thought you were going to steal a kiss, might've as well done it..."

/THUD!/

"Shut up!"

'Like a little girl, Cassandra ran to the side bathroom and closed the door, locking herself inside.'

"..."

Did I push her too far?

Well... It was very fun.

I never saw those reactions, and it was the first time she ever told me to shut up...

But... It's not like I don't understand where's she coming from.

'Daphne paused, thinking for herself about the moments she spent with him...'

'His serious expressions when teaching them to his...'

/SHAKE!/

"Uh... What am I thinking off now?..."

'Her attention was drawn to the papers.'

"I have a bad feeling about this..."

For now... I'll wait for Cassandra to cool off before eating some breakfast and warning everyone not to leave...

I would like to do it now, but my appearance is...

"Sigh... Cassandra!..."

"At least let me use the mirror..."

...

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Notes

Small inter-arc chapter, "small" as it has 4K words.

Several things happened in this chapter, I tried to show an appropriate reaction the city would have to that display, especially now that I read some things relating to the dark age of Orario... People would surely get ballistic if they were to see the skies burning.

Several people would suddenly have their PTSD flare, that was how intense those times were.

We'll continue with the meeting of the Gods next chapter, see ya all then!