Loki's request End

Enjoy, this is a big double chapter.

Peace.

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"You wouldn't mind if I use my magic here would you?" He asked as he turned to Loki

"Why would you need to do that?..." She asked with some lingering suspicion 

"Sure." Riveria replied calmly

"Huh?!"

You weren't supposed to agree! 

HEY! I'm the one in charge here!

"Let him show us what he wants, there's no point in stopping him now that we're here anyway." Riveria said as she shook her head, ignoring Loki's actions

"I agree, I'm rather curious myself." Finn added in his usual calm tone

"Gareth?"

'Upon being called, the small giant raised an eyebrow.'

"I wasn't planning on saying anything, you already know what I think of this." He said with a light smile as he rested his hands on his legs

"There you have it Loki." Finn said as he turned to his goddess

"Urg… Since you all agree."

'She turned to side with a "humph" as she rested her head on her hand.'

"Just don't break the floor, we spent too much in the recent renovations, and I don't have a dime on me anymore." She added with a grunt as she pointed at him

"If you do, it's on you!" 

"I have no plans on doing so." Silver said as he turned to the side

This is my first time showing this scene to someone else.

Hestia should've seen it when she first updated my Status, but we never really had the chance to discuss it, nor has she ever brought it up.

She was always just happy to see me Level up and improve, never really asking for the details, that was her way of respecting my privacy.

Now that we have more recruits, I could try showing some of my fights to them, though, at the same time, I'm not a good example for them to follow...

I do want everyone to try their best, but I also don't want them to throw themselves into a fire either.

This is quite tricky.

/Raise…/

'He raised his hand, and slowly, bark started to grow on his hand as ephemeral light shone from within the cracks of his skin.'

/Crunk… Crack!/

'The wood on the ground resonated with an invisible force, rising and twisting, growing as if alive, becoming something like a flat rectangular surface.'

"I really can't comment on how bizarre this feels..." Loki said as she scratched her chin

Wait... Now that I think about it, I should look for an opportunity to request of him some... Commissions... Hehe.

Finn's painting is very good, but not nearly enough, I need one of everyone... No! I need full-size models of Ais in a swimsuit!

Perhaps I can have him add some 'boing' to it as well hehehehehe...

"?... #!!"

'As she thought about that, Riveria ended up seeing her lecherous expression, and in reply, she slammed her fist on her head before anyone had the time to see it happen, like a flash of lightning in the sky.'

/BONK!/

"GUA?!"

...

/Flash.../

'Eventually, a small light ignited in the center of the wood, expanding to all four corners as an image was slowly reflected in it.'

"That is…" Riveria asked as she furrowed her eyebrows

This is fascinating, to be able to display images in such a carefree way...

It's an invaluable logistics ability, anything he sees becomes his alibi.

However, believing everything we see is foolish, we cannot assume he cannot manipulate what he shows.

In the past, I might not thought much of it but now, given how varied his abilities are, there is no way to guarantee he cannot manipulate that as well, the more absurd it may sound.

He could be lying about the origin of his magic from the very beginning, Finn definitely thinks of that as well...

"That's me." Silver replied plainly as he adjusted the image, focusing his attention on every detail of the screen

"This is the day I became Level 2, somewhere in the Middle floors." 

"What?!" Loki exclaimed as she turned to look at him

Is he trying to show off or something?

"Cool right? Like I did in the Denatus, I can show any of my memories to others whenever I want."

"This includes days like this." He said as he snapped his fingers

/Snap!/

'The image changed, showing a dark room, a bar.'

"Huh?... Wait..."

This bastard!

'She remembered, she knew what he was going to show...'

'This was the day he "saved" her by teleporting her to the Hostess of Fertility!'

'At that day, she was extremely curious about the appearance of the classic white knight in shining armor with nonsensical abilities to save the day, causing her to act quite... Upfront because she wanted to take off his helmet.'

'The mortal world is said to be full of interesting events, some believed to be fate, some created by another's will, as such, like the fairy tales she would usually hear and read about in the books of her Children, she found it inspiring to be saved as well.'

'Causing her to act a bit out of character.'

"You... You want to die?" She asked as her eyes grew heavy and dark

'She looked at Silver with a gaze that meant 1000 words, each one of them depicting what sort of end he would have if he were to cross the line.'

'She may have laughed and gone with the joke if the situation was another, but in front of the Top Executives?'

'There was no amount of Wine that would allow her to overlook such transgression.'

"... Haa... It's nothing like that." Silver said as a beat of sweat fell from his forehead

For a moment there, the Loki that used to kill Gods as a pass time in Heaven descended...

Just like how there's the Hestia that used to take care of the Fire with an Iron fist, we have this Goddess that never descended.

And I would prefer that it remained as such.

"Anyway... I can also do this with others if they let me."

"How about it? Interested in reliving the day you became Level 2?" Silver asked as he turned to the Executives

"Hum... I'll never forget that day..." Gareth said with a relaxed expression as he thought of the past

"Of course you won't, you jumped straight into a crowd of Minotaurs, they bashed your head so many times that it wouldn't have been strange for you to forget about it, the experience must've been imprinted on your skull." Riveria replied with a scoff as she looked at Gareth

"Really? Yours wasn't any prettier..." Gareth replied with a scoff as well

"... I'll pass for now, maybe if we have the time later." Finn replied with an awkward smile as he looked at his companion's discussion

For him to show such a thing... It must mean he can read out memories to a certain extent.

That is in itself fearsome, can he peer into my thoughts right now?

Should I test him from now on?

"... I'll hold onto that, I'm quite curious about your experiences." Silver said with a light smile as he continued with the images

It seems they don't mind that I changed the course of the conversation.

Maybe they were not that suspicious of me, I might've overestimated the situation.

Though the danger still remains.

'Silver turned to the screen.'

"On this day… I was training in the Middle Floors as per usual when I was ambushed by a strange group of adventurers, likely belonging to that group of people that attacked you all those months ago."

"... Are you talking about those lowlives?" Loki asked as her fists cracked

'Her expression being a mix of anger and awkwardness, Loki's eyelids twitched as multiple irritating events were brought up one after the other.'

Just thinking about what they did... Pisses me off.

Prometheus... It's all her damn fault for not putting a proper leash on her children.

She let them be and this is the result... One of them even...

"..."

'Loki's expression returned to normal, but her gaze was heavy.'

"Yes, those guys."

"But they don't really have much to do with our discussion, they were likely trying to figure out who I was, but that's not the point here, it's a matter of the past." He said as he raised his right hand

'Though of course, his words did not pass by just like that, Finn continuously rummaged through them as he tried to figure out why they would be after him.'

/Snap!/

'Silver snapped his fingers and the image flashed as it continued moving forward, jumping to an intense fight between Silver and one of the mysterious adventurers.'

'For the sake of simplicity, Silver changed the contents a little.'

'A few of the words they exchanged were better not shown as it could lead to further problems later on.'

'And also due to his profanities… On that day, Silver cursed his enemy in all kinds of ways to try and piss him off, as in a way to break his concentration and to try and gather more information out of him, it wouldn't be gracious to show such a display.'

'Much less with Loki as a witness, he would only be giving her bullets for her to mess around with later.'

'So he changed it for something more proper, or what he believes complimented the story more, a silent battle between two matched individuals... No, a struggle for survival.'

'A small detail like that wouldn't change anything but it would make this moment more memorable for everyone, and most importantly, it would make him look cooler.'

'Not like there was anyone there to contest for the veracity of this event... Unless Hestia decided to just rat on him...'

'Silver definitely did not have the most inspiring and heroic Level Up event out there, but it was certainly one he could brag about, especially if he could show it to everybody.'

'A moment he could edit to only display the best... Though that would feel too artificial.'

/CLANG!/

'A fierce fight soon ensued, ending with a bloody Silver walking slowly as he bled heavily.'

'His brutality wasn't changed or censored, he showed everything, not for any reason really, it was just how things went.'

'Had he changed things Finn and the others may not even have believed it, knowing full well what a Level up is supposed to represent and look.'

'His enemy came to him with the intent of ending his life, he just reacted as he should, and no one batted an eye at it.'

'Gareth even gave him a silent nod as that was a good fight worth seeing.'

'Nevertheless eventually…'

"Muu…"

'As the fight came to an end and Silver limped his way outside of the cavern, the breathing of a creature entered their ears.'

/Exhale!/

'A minotaur holding the head of an adventurer and a spear approached from the dark caverns, gazing at Silver with a heavy and dark expression.'

'The sight of this creature immediately made Finn's expression change, he now understood, this was the reason he was being shown all of this in the first place.'

"Mino-Tan… You came for my rescue… Right?" The injured and tired Silver said as he breathed heavily, never once stopping his walk

'They didn't know why, but instead of fleeing, Silver always walked forward to the beast, as if doing so would be safer than otherwise.'

"Wait a moment." Riveria said as she had Silver interrupt the video

"Yes?"

Did I make a mistake?

"I can't help but notice your actions."

"Not only did you not retreat, but you also knew the creature?" She asked with some suspicion

"Ah, that…" Silver said as he thought about how to explain what he did

It wasn't a mistake per se... I wanted to show this.

"The reason why I was walking in the monster's direction was due to the Anti-Magic field that the adventurer deployed in the cavern before our fight started."1

"It was preventing me from teleporting away, and my original intention was to reach the end of the path and leave to where my bag was so I could recover and retreat from the Dungeon."

"When I was ambushed, I was forced to fight as I moved, this led me to that dead end you saw, and at that point, I could just either fight or flee, I chose to fight, no matter how dangerous it was."

I'm glorifying my actions and omitting a lot, but it should be enough to paint a picture. 

"As for me knowing the Minotaur… There is no way I wouldn't." He said with a chuckle as he remembered the past

"Because I made him."

""!!""

/THUD!/

"What did you say?!" Loki exclaimed as she slammed her fist on the table

What's this madman talking about now?

"Was I not clear? I made this Minotaur, accidentally though."

It was... A happy accident.

""...""

"As I grew stronger, I realized I lacked something very important... A proper sparring partner." 

"And at the time, I wasn't confident in my ability to descend further, or to be more precise, I felt I needed to prepare myself more."

"I couldn't challenge adventurers on the surface, I wasn't keen on the attention it would've brought me, and neither could I go further below to challenge stronger monsters, I was only Level 1 after all."

"???"

Even though you were fighting Minotaurs?

'Loki's eyelids twitched.'

"... So in my search for a sparring partner, I came to a simpler conclusion." Silver continued 

"If I can't find any, then I'll make my own." Silver said in a calm tone, as if it was the simplest thing in the world

""...""

'The four of them looked at Silver each with their own expressions...'

'Gareth's eyes were wide open, Finn was rather curious but shocked, Riveria touched her forehead, trying to think about the idea while Loki was...'

'Fumming?'

"I fought Minotaurs for many days and eventually I found a Minotaur with exceptional combat ability and relatively high intelligence, a Minotaur with potential I would say."

"A minotaur... With potential?" Gareth asked as he opened his eyes even more

Ha! This is the first time I've heard someone talk about monsters like that.

""...""

'While Gareth chuckled, the others awaited for the rest of his story.'

"Once I found the Minotaur of my dreams, I fought with it on a daily basis, feeding it Magic Stones until it couldn't move whenever I left to rest."

"Between my visits to the Dungeon, I would seal the Minotaur within the Dungeon's walls, and it worked perfectly, It could never escape its confinement I could go face it whenever."

"That's... Extremely reckless and monstrously dangerous..." Riveria said as she stopped from time to time

/Shrugg/

'But Silver only shrugged.'

"Anyway, after a few days, the result was this Enhanced Species you're seeing there."

"I originally just wanted something I could fight against properly, but the result was a bit over my expectations."

"Because I got tired of calling it Minotaur, I gave it a name, the problem was, midway through our daily training, I was ambushed and we were separated, a tragedy really." Silver said as he shook his head

"In the end, it came back to me, didn't I train it well?" He asked with a proud smile as he turned to Loki

""...""

'Loki was so impressed and even a bit horrified that she only raised her index finger and opened her mouth, but when the words came to her tongue they vanished as she didn't quite know what to say anymore.'

"..."

This guy... Deserves some praise.

I've never heard something as nonsensical as this... Traning a monster to act as a sparring partner...

It's... It's so crazy it makes sense... A Minotaur is too much though... 

Or is it? It's actually...

'Loki's expression was a pensive one, she was thinking of why she never had thought about it before... And the more she thought about it, the better the idea seemed to become...'

'Oh yeah, she finally understood why that shouldn't have worked!'

'Because training a monster makes no sense unless you're a tamer, and even then their purpose would be something else entirely!'

'What Silver was doing was making a small Colleseum, grabbing his own monsters and training them to fight him before the day he would butcher them for his own profit.'

"That was irresponsible in every sense of the world." Riveria said with a sigh

Indulcing a transformation within the Dungeon... Had it gone wrong, a massacre might've ensued.

No matter how well it went...

'Thinking about this situation seemed to bother Riveria, it just kept tugging at her strings, causing her discomfort.'

"True, but I took all necessary precautions." Silver said as he looked at Riveria 

"What kind of precautions can you take against Enhancing a monster?" She retorted with a serious expression

"The same kind of precautions you all make whenever you go to the Dungeon." Silver replied with a scoff 

""...""

"Don't try to act as if you don't understand, you can never fully prepare." Silver said with a serious expression as he looked at them

"No matter how strong you are or how deep you plan to go, the Dungeon always has something waiting for you."

"I tried something, and it worked, isn't the same as diving in the Dungeon?"

'Riveria wanted to say that his words were just excuses, but he wasn't wrong.'

'It didn't change the fact they were excuses though.'

"You learn with the experiences of others, and with that, many gather together to come to a conclusion as to what would help someone or a group survive down there."

"That is what the Guild is at its Core."

"People created all kinds of rules and I followed them all for the most part, but they are merely guidelines for those that do not possess the ability to take action on their own."

"To travel to the Middle floors make sure to do this and that and to be with a group so you... That kind of story."

"I 'never' ignored the words of my advisor, and I don't want to sound arrogant, but there is a time one must start thinking for oneself."

"So I chose my own way, as following the ordinary won't lead me to experience something extraordinary and Leveling up."

"Even if it will, I don't have the time to spend half a lifetime pursuing it."

"Not all need to be like that, and I'm more than happy to contribute to this cause, that is why I'm having all of my recruits train."

"I'm not someone that would be happy to see their blood spilled in the Dungeon, that place isn't meant to be anyone's tombstone."

"... What if you die? Or worse, end up implicating someone else?" Finn asked as he raised an eyebrow

"Then that is my responsibility to bear… But I won't change my way of thinking." Silver said, resolute

"That's quite the egocentric way of thinking." He added with a light exhale

"Isn't it? Adventurers are like that, we hunt monsters for money, a few for revenge or some other petty reason..."

"But amidst all of their reasons, it makes me wonder if there's a wrong one…" Silver mumbled with a small smile

"Regardless of why one rose to the challenge, someone has to take the next step, no matter what their reasons may be."

"Trying to be rational all the time, posing as something that you're not, pursuing an ideal that has nothing to do with your method…"

"You'll never move if you're content with staying still, longing for an ideal that is built around sand, only meant to please oneself."

"That is not how you go on an adventure, that is not how you'll level up."

"After all, I can question you all as well."

"How wise is it to gather an army and march 50 floors under the earth to kill monsters? Doesn't that sound… Irresponsible as well?"

"But people approved of it don't they? So what's the difference?" Silver said with a shrug 

"... You're changing the topic." Loki said with a sharp gaze

Were it not for Riveria holding me back... I would've pulled his pants down for his words!

Make him remember who's in charge around here!

'Loki was fuming in anger, those words were the most collected she could utter without cursing Silver once.'

"That is true, I apologize, I rambled too much." Silver replied as he turned to the video on the side

...

'He quickly went over the rest of his video showing his final bout against the Minotaur at the end of the whole after they fell.'

'An epic bout between two equally matched opponents, no… An adventurer fighting monsters stronger than itself.'

'An adventure, there were no other words to describe the moment.'

"... This is pretty much where it ends, the Minotaur I met was an Enhanced species, one of my making."

"The descriptions of both creatures are similar, but that is about it." He said as he used his Plasmids to make everything return to how it used to be

"I read somewhere that the Dungeon is frequently testing new things, be it changing its layout or the distribution of monsters in a given floor…"

"Maybe the little experience I had gave it some inspiration? Or maybe my own experience was nothing more than fate giving me a chance to witness what the Dungeon had under its sleeves."

"Or perhaps it was all just a coincidence, maybe all and a little more at the same time."

"This is everything I have, it's not much."

"So? Any other questions?" Silver asked as he rested his back on the couch

"... None, that was all." Finn replied with a calm and collected expression as if Silver's words did not impact him at all

'Whatever his thoughts were, he was showing them at all.'

"Is there anything else I can help you all with?"

"I only have one last question." Finn said as he looked straight into his eyes

"What do you plan to do from now on? As an adventurer."

'This question came as a surprise to Silver... And the others as well.'

"Me?... I was planning on fighting Amphisbaena on my own followed by continuous training on the Deep Floors."

"If I have the chance, I would also like to face Udaeus… On my own."

"... Do you even understand how deranged you sound?" Loki questioned as she tapped the table

I give up trying to make sense of him.

"..."

'Silver only gave her a smirk.'

"That's how I am, I seek the thrill of the Dungeon if I can put it that way."

"When I first fought the Goliath, I came to learn about the changes Monster Rexes may experience when certain conditions are met."

"So I would like to see it for myself… If Udaeus will have any change."

"What if it doesn't have any? Won't you have just risked yourself for nothing?" Riveria asked 

"Then that's it, I'll finish the fight and move on, there is no 'wasting time' in the Dungeon."

"You're just either fighting or resting, be it to go deeper or return."

"You sound confident, too much of it can be poisonous." Gareth said deeply

"Thank you for the reminder, but I am a very cautious person."

"Regardless, from this point on, if I wish to join the ranks of First Class… Then I must do something most would consider suicide, it's just how it has always been."

"From one adventure to the next, this is the life of an adventurer, isn't it?"

""...""

…

'In the end, Silver left after they exchanged a few more words, leaving Loki and the rest alone with their thoughts.'

'And not long after the door closed...'

/SLAM!/

"TCHE! THAT SCUMBAG! WHY DID YOU STOP ME?! I'LL KICK HIS ASS FOR CALLING FINN A FAKE!!" Loki exclaimed out loud as she trashed around the place

"Leave it Loki, that's not what's important now, besides, he didn't mean badly, he spoke the truth in a sense." Finn replied as he thought deeply

Trying to be rational all the time, posing as something that you're not, pursuing an ideal that has nothing to do with your method...

That's exactly what I am.

'Finn might act as a Hero, but he did not believe himself to be one.'

'Because a Hero acted out of his own ideals, he carved the world to make them a reality, Finn did not have the right for such a thing as he needed to be the light of his species, that was his goal, his ideal.'

'He merely followed the waves, doing whatever he found would be what "Fiona" would've done.'

'To be the example of all Pallums and bring them light so they may take up arms and rise in glory.'

'Finn had to be perfect, more pristine than a God, but to that, he often had to give up on what he himself felt was right.'

'He would avoid challenges if it meant returning back home in a better condition, he would prioritize the safety of everyone over their growth, he may even control the flow of a fight to make him and the other Executives shine more.'

'He would never do so if it resulted in his companions getting hurt, but he would do so if it strengthened his Reputation, in and outside of the Familia.'

'Sometimes, he would sacrifice others for the sake of the Familia as well.'

'Finn was always looking at the future, sometimes forgetting the present.'

'He was fake, a plastic Hero.'

"I'm too afraid to make hasty decisions that in the end, I overthink everything."

"You don't need to take it that hard upon yourself, everyone knows how hard it is for you." Riveria replied as she looked at the streets through the window

"That's right, no one else could be the Captain but you." Gareth added with a chuckle

"Hey! If we're all praising Finn then you can't forget to add me, you know?" Loki said as she moved in to give Finn a hug, only for the latter to evade it by getting up, causing Loki to hit her head on the sofa

"Thanks, everyone, but now's not the time for that."

'Gareth rolled his eyes, this guy was never honest with himself was he?'

"You're so stiff Finn, but I have to agree." Riveria added as she approached the table

"What do you think of his replies?"

"... I can't quite put my finger around it, but I thought he led us into something else." Gareth said as he scratched his beard

"I had a similar impression, but it's baseless without any evidence, and putting pressure on him to confess isn't right." Riveria added as she crossed her arms

"He's definitely hiding something, his actions and expression may have been silent, but he kept mixing in lies with truths, there would be no point in lying at all unless he had something to hide… Or if he's trying to show off to us." Loki added as she rubbed her face

"... That's right, we don't pressure others to confess to things we don't even know exist, we'll pursue the truth on our own terms, this is how we operate." Finn said as he smiled

"This leave us with only one person to ask left…"

"Leave that to me, I've been wanting to complain to that old guy for a while now." Loki said as she waved her hand in the air dismissively 

"Then, there's only one thing left to do." Finn said as he got up from his seat

""...""

'The others nodded, no words needed.'

'It was time for another Expedition.'

…

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Notes

Cool, with this, this arc has ended, right to the next one!

It's time to go to Melen and wrap up the situation over there before leaving Orario.

There will be quite a few interesting things and visits outside of the city...

For those on P@treon, we're still a few chapters deep in this Arc, so enjoy.

Happy week, until next time!