The Rescue To Floor 18

'Thinking'

"Talking"

Inner Voice

(Ddraig)

[Albion]

Chapter 8: The Rescue to Floor 18

As the group arrives at Babel's entrance to the dungeons, Hestia and Hermes wear disguises, as Gods are not supposed to enter the dungeon. The rest of the members involved were Ryu from Hostess of Fertility, a member of Astrea, Ouka, Chigusa, Mikoto from Takemikazuchi Familia, and Asfi from Hermes Familia. Of course, Issei was there, too. 

"Okay, Ryu and I will be in front, Mikoto and Issei in the centre with both Hestia and Hermes and Chigusa and Ouka in the rear guards," Asfi said while looking at everyone, who nodded in agreement.

"Ok, let's go!" Hermes said in a happy mood.

"Lord Hermes, please be quiet unless you want to be noticed", Scolded Asfi.

"Is he always like this?" Issei asked out of curiosity.

"Sadly, yes," Hestia said while Issei and Hestia silently prayed for Asfi.

"Erm, Sir Issei, it's a pleasure to work with you," Mikoto said with a slight blush.

"Ah, no pleasure is mine and all the Takemikazuchi Familia, as well as Asfi and Ryuu," Issei said with a smile.

"May I ask what kind of spear is that?" Ouka asked curiously.

"Ah, it's one I designed linked to the origins of where I live, which is similar to the Far East if I'm correct but has a bit of my design," Issei said, glad some looked interested in the spear.

"Well, I'd love to see some more future works sometime, " Ouka said, apologising for his attitude earlier.

"Thanks. Well, we better head out and rescue Bell and crew," Issei said as he got ready.

With that, everyone started going down the dungeon, hoping Bell and crew were safe. On the way, they could see the teamwork of Ryuu and Asfi in complete sync on how they fought the monsters while the only person to keep up with their speed was Issei, using his spear expertly after he did some training in his mindscape and skills he made with the sword work with his spear as well.

"Fifth Form: Dragon's Breath!" Issei shouted as everyone watched, his speed and strength increasing. This allowed monsters to be struck and turn to dust as soon as they collided with the walls, leaving imprints of the contact.

"Woah, Issei, what was that attack just then?" Hestia asked with stars in her eyes.

"It's a style of fighting I made, which is normally used for my swords but made it possible to use it with the spear as well", Issei explained.

"Ano Sir Issei, what other styles are there?" Mikoto asked curiously.

"Many of each branched off other styles, but the first style was sun breathing, and mine was dragon breathing," Issei said 

"Wait, did you say Breathing styles?" Chigusa asked, now interest peeked.

"Yes, if I'm correct, it should be well known in my area and the Far East," Issei said with a smile.

"Wait, do you know this style, Chigusa?" Mikoto asked, stunned that someone had heard of it.

"Well, I heard about it when looking at some scrolls that Tsukiyomi-sama had when she and Takemikazuchi. We're looking after us," Chigusa said with a blush.

"Well, maybe we can ask Takemikazuchi when we return to the surface. Meanwhile, we better catch up to others and carry on heading down the dungeon," Issei said as he got ready to catch up with everyone else.

"Yeah, let's catch up with everyone, Mikoto" Ouka said, following Issei and the others.

"Come on all, we are nearly at the entrance to Floor 10. From there, we go to Floor 13, where Bell and crew were last seen," Asfi shouted.

After that, everyone regrouped and carried down the floors to floor 13, where the Takemikazuchi Familia last saw Bell. Once they arrived at the area, they noticed something was off by something that had changed. Once they made their way to the area, they caught it collapsed and could see the remains of bottles of potions and one of Bell's weapons, a sword stuck in the rocks.

"What's this?" Ryu said as the group looked at the cavein.

"A Cavein?" Ouka said.

"Th-this is Bell's", Hestia said, looking at the sword stuck in the rocks.

"They're not here now," Ryu said as she was at the top of the cavein.

"The odds are low that they'd wander blindly around the dungeon after being injured and losing most of their equipment here. A party who'd make such a stupid choice would have been wiped out long ago. So, giving it some thought… perhaps they abandoned trying to reach the surface and instead headed for the safe zone on Level 18." Asfi said, explaining her thoughts.

"Huh?" Mikoto said suprised.

"There are countless shafts in the dungeon. Going down would be far more efficient than trying to get back up," Asfi said, continuing the explanation.

 "You mean, they went deeper? That doesn't make sense." Ouka said, confused.

"It's what I would do, And they… or, rather, he… having just beaten his first adventure, would want to keep moving forward," Ryu said while getting a nod from Issei.

"I support that opinion," Hermes said in agreement.

"So do I. Bell's gone deeper. I can sense it." Hestia said, turning to the group.

"Then it's settled. Let's head for Level 18." Asfi said in seriousness.

"Please be okay… Bell," Hestia thought to herself.

The group then carried on moving down the levels while supporting each other, with Ryu and Asfi taking the lead, killing the monsters quickly as they appeared in front of them, While Issei and Mikoto protected the gods in the middle with Ouka and Chigusa in the rear for support and protecting from rear assault if any appear from behind. As the group continued down, Hestia decided to confront Hermes about something.

"Hermes, please explain why you want to help Bell?" Hestia said, looking at Hermes suspiciously.

"Hey, hey, I already told you. It's only natural to help an old friend," Hermes said before Hestia cut him off.

"Just stop with that, Okay?" Hestia said in all seriousness.

"I was asked to. A certain someone wanted me to check on him." Hermes said, relaxing abit.

 "A certain someone?" Hestia asked, confused.

"However, I didn't come all the way down here just because I was asked to. I also have a personal interest in Bell. I want to see Hestia for myself, with my own eyes. I want to see if he has what it takes to shoulder the burden of age." Hermes said as he explained.

"Hermes, I hate to interrupt your view here, but Bell has what it takes to become what you desire but needs more training to understand the world is nasty and not including the monsters in this dungeon or on the surface," Issei said as he heard the conversation.

"What do you mean, Issei?" Hestia asked curiously.

"You see, Hestia, Bell reminds me of my past self per se, but he has also been sheltered abit, so he has a lot of innocence, which makes him abit naive in a way, but his desires are what drive him to succeed as you probably noticed," Issei said glancing at Hestia.

"True, through his falna and the experiences he gets, he is working hard at a fast pace," Hestia said in agreement.

"Sorry, I don't know you that well, but how come you know what I hinted at?" Hermes asked curiously.

"To be honest, it was clear as day, plus I know all about you, Hermes", Issei said in all seriousness. "So I wouldn't do anything stupid when I am around as it could bite you in the ass," Issei says as he moves away from the gods.

"What does he mean about that, Hestia?" Hermes asked, confused.

"I'm guessing he knows about your work and also certain goals, plus you being a pervert makes him more aware of you. Also, he is working for Ouranos while under Hephaestus," Hestia said to Hermes in all seriousness.

"Okay, he's a big deal then. If working with Ouranos while under another god, does that mean he can do stuff that could threaten people?" Hermes asked now, trying to work out Issei.

"Yes and no, depending on what the said person does. Also, I wouldn't provoke or look into him, as you won't find anything, and if he finds out, I am sure you would feel the backlash," Hestia said with a warning.

"Hmm, I guess it's something that's on a need-to-know basis and needs a lot of trust to earn it. Ah, man, he is just like a mysterious person that is a must-know about," Hermes said as he sighed in depression.

"Sadly, yes to your answer, hehe," Hestia said as she giggled at the end cause of Hermes's appearance.

As the group descended the floors, Ryu became interested in Issei's Aura. She had never felt so calm but was also on edge because of its magnitude. It got to the point where she kept glazing at Issei, using the corner of her eyes to avoid getting noticed. She didn't know Issei already felt her looking but paid no attention. A look of curiosity made him and Ddraig laugh inside their thoughts. 

As the group reached floor 16, they came across a group of minotaurs and ligarfangs. That was when Issei disappeared from view from the group, reappeared in front of the minotaurs, and started fighting at such a fast pace that it just looked like a blur before all the minotaurs vanished into dust. At the same time, both Asfi and Ryu finished the ligarfangs but were shocked at Issei's speed and power. The rest of the group had wide eyes, minus Hestia, as she knew what he could do from seeing his life.

What Issei managed to get through were some minotaur drops and some ligarfang fur drops, which would make good armour and weapons. The group passed these to Issei for his smithing trait, for which he was thankful. The group continued their journey while being on alert as they were near the 17th floor, which leads to the floor boss room called Goliath. They weren't sure if it respawned due to the time the Loki Familia went down on their journey down to the lower floors.

"We're nearing the boss room. Be careful, as he should be spawning back soon. Hopefully, we can get through without him showing. If not, we need to run for it while Ryu and I hold him off to give you time to pass, and then we will follow," Asfi said to the group, Ryu nodding to the agreed-upon plan.

As the group got closer, they could hear a roar and something throwing a fit in anger. Asfi looked at Ryu, and they both knew what it was.

*Roar!* *Vibrations of the floor from something hitting it*

"Well, it looks like Goliath has spawned, and it seems someone managed to pass it, causing it to get angry about missing its prey," Asfi said with a calculating glare.

"Well then, let's do a run for it. I'll help protect the gods and others while you and Ryu distract him," Issei said with a nod, showing his resolve.

"Okay, but be careful. Goliath equals a level 4-5 person", Asfi said, understanding the situation.

"No worries. You'll be surprised at what I can handle. Apart from that, I shout when it's clear for you two to make it to the exit," Issei said with a smile.

As the group got ready, Asfi and Ryu headed off first to get Goliath's attention while everyone else bolted to the exit to floor 18. Issei made sure to cover everyone in case any attacks headed their way. A few boulders flew past them several times, but it wasn't much for Issei as he dealt with them efficiently. Once the group reached the entrance, Issei shouted to the girls to clear off to join them on floor 18.

"Asfi, Ryu, everyone is through. You can make a break at the entrance now!" Shouted Issei as both girls nodded.

With that, both girls made it through the exit, with Goliath throwing another fit for losing his prey again. Issei watched Bell getting hugged to death by Hestia, trying not to laugh at the scene. Bell thanked them for coming but also needed clarification about why the party had the group that caused the issue with them.

A/N: The rest of the scene follows canon with Bell and the group talking to Takemitchzuki's familia.

As the group finished the talk in the tent, everyone was going to head to bed to explore floor 18 and take in the new environment, but as soon as Welf exited the tent, Issei called him out.

"Hey, Welf, got a sec? I have a message from Hephaestus to pass on to you," Issei asked his friend.

"Sure, what did she say?" Welf asked curiously.

"She said not to let the past keep you from helping your friends and accept the Crozzo blood", Issei said as he passed over the sword he had with him from her.

Welf took the weapon from Issei and looked lost in thought, so Issei also added his own words to the mix to help him understand the message better.

"Here is my advice, Welf, that helps you understand the message better since you look lost in thought. Yes, you hate your blood cause the past relatives did, but you are not them. Use that blood to push your goal to higher heights. Using your blood, the spirit inside has gifted it to you for a reason. Also, I know your goal is to make an unbreakable magic sword, and I will tell you it is possible. I can guide you through ideas if you need advice, but the process is yours. With that, I will leave you and see you in the morning," Issei said as he waved goodbye and disappeared.

After that, something clicked in Welf's mind, and now he was laughing at himself, knowing how stupid it was. Now, he grins, knowing what the message from Hephaestus and Issei means. It was challenging for Love to prove himself and others as an older brother and correct his path with a slap. 

"Thank you, Issei and Hephaestus. I finally understand, and I won't disappoint you," Welf said before heading to the tent he shared with Bell.

Issei was now heading towards a cliff edge to view the area's scene but saw a lovely tree to lay on. So he climbed up the tree, set a hammock on the strong branches, and laid down, looking at the view and speaking to Ddraig about the venture down the floors.

"What do you think of the journey down the dungeon so far, Ddraig?" Issei asked in his thoughts.

"( Its different but looks fun especially for training, maybe we can simulate this when we go home to our world to train for the rating game?)" Ddraig says with an idea.

" Oh, now that's a good idea. I'm sure with Ajuka's help, he can set something up using my memories of this place if I share them with him. If he is successful, maybe we could also profit from it," Issei said while giggling.

"( Haha, I trust you, partner, but I agree with you there, and if we study the monsters here, we can improvise them as characters to be more realistic as well)," Ddraig says with a grin.

"Deffo, well, we already got some, but maybe when we are alone, we can go stealth and just watch them from a distance for the patterns, etc." Issei thought.

Soon, both Issei and Ddraig stopped talking as they heard footsteps coming. Then, as he looked down, he saw Bell and a blonde girl stopping and chatting away from the camp. So Issei lowered his presence and watched the scene below him with a mischievous grin, thinking how to tease Bell.

"I can't believe this is the dungeon," Bell says.

"What's wrong?" ??? Says.

"Oh…" Bell said, surprised. "Well… I just couldn't sleep. Uh, what are you doing here, Miss Ais?"

"I saw you walking. I was a little worried about you. Am I bothering you?" Ais said, not realising Bell was going red from embarrassment.

"N-no! Absolutely not! I'm happy! I mean…!" Bell says stuttering.

"Bell, you're always so stressed," Ais said while smiling at him and watching him pouting at the end. "When do you set out?"

"Well, after you all do. We're going to take it easy tomorrow." Bell said, now smiling back at Ais.

"I see. Then you'll see the city?" Ais asked curiously.

"Huh? There's a city in the dungeon, too?" Bell said in shock.

"Would you like to go see it tomorrow?" Ais said while nodding to Bell's question.

"Y-yes! Please!" Bell said with a big smile on his face. "A city, huh? I wonder what it's like."

"A city, huh?" ??? said with abit of an annoyed tone.

Issei heard this now, laughing as he saw what would happen. He wished he had some popcorn to eat while watching it.

"You've been holding out on me, Bell!" ??? said with a tick mark on her head and the ever-so-sweet smile that promises death. "If you were going, you should have invited me first! Because Bell and I…have that kind of relationship, RIGHT?!"

"I… I'm sorry!" Bell said while recoiling under his Goddess.

"Anyway, Wallen-whatsit, Don't try to horn in on him without my permission! And you are never, EVER getting my permission to go out on a date with him!" Hestia says with determination.

"Date?" Ais said, confused, tilting her head.

"Sh-she doesn't mean that! Goddess, you've got this all wrong!" Bell said, trying to stop the situation.

"What's this about a date, Master Bell?!!" ??? Says in shock.

"Are you after him too, you little thieving cat?!" Hestia says, screaming at her.

Issei couldn't hold it any longer and started laughing out loud, making them all look up to the tree seeing Issei there. Bell went red immediately while Hestia and Lily looked in shock and horror, knowing what Issei could do now. Ais was confused and wondered who he was and why she hadn't noticed him until now.

"Issei, how long have you been up there?" Bell asked, still red in embarrassment. 

"I have been up here from the beginning as I thought it was a nice play to rest, hence why I set up my hammock here," Issei said while tapping it.

"Ano, may I ask who you are? I've never seen you before." Ais asked, now tilting her head to the side, wondering.

"Ah well, I've never seen you, but my name is Issei Hyoudou from the Hephaestus familia. I came down with everyone to look for the bunny there to make sure he was okay," Issei said with a smirk while pointing towards Bell.

"Oh… My name is Ais Wallenstein, and I am from the Loki familia. You look strong. Want to spar?" Ais asked curiously.

"Well, not now since it's late, plus I had a long day, and all maybe tomorrow," Issei said.

"Okay, see you all in the morning," Ais said, disappearing into the woods.

The following day, everyone was waiting on the cliff that headed towards the town of Rivira, which was built on floor 18. They were only waiting for Bell and Hestia to arrive. You can hear her struggling and moaning as she is tired.

"Bell, are we almost to this city of yours?" Hestia asked, tired and getting pushed up the hill to the cliff edge.

"We should be almost there, Goddess. Let's keep going." Bell replied to Hestia's question.

"Right…" Hestia said, exhausted. "Anyway, I never thought I'd be on a date with you and those other two." "Why's there such a big group?" Hestia complained.

"Oh, Master Bell! Look!" Lily shouted to him.

"Sure," Bell answered while having Hestia on his back.

"Monsters enter this level just as we do," Ais said 

"It'd be more appropriate to say that Level 18 is a place for monsters to relax than for us, wouldn't it?" Asfi said

"Goddess… The world's a beautiful place, isn't it?" Bell says, admiring the view.

"It is Bell," Hestia replied, also admiring the view.

"Yosh, let's head down to the town then. I'm also looking forward to exploring," Issei said with a smile.

"Hai!" replied everyone.

So everyone now ventured down to the town, but Issei noticed he was getting stared at by some of the girls that came with Ais. He wondered why but didn't think much of it as he thought they might ask who I was.

"Welcome, Colleagues…" Bell read out from the sign at the entrance to the town.

"This is Rivira, the town built by adventurers," Ais says, finishing it.

With that, everyone entered and started walking around exploring while browsing a few of the shops. In the distance, you can hear both Welf and Lily shocked and complaining about something.

"This is… expensive!" Welf shouted in shock. "This whetstone is 13,000 valis?! That's impossible!"

"20,000 for this ratty old bag is practically criminal!" Lily shouted just as bad.

"You don't like it, shop someplace else." The shopkeeper said not fused.

"The Inns here are also crazy expensive." Said the busty-looking Amazon that came with them.

"Hence the reason we're camping in the forest." Replied the slim-chested Amazon, who looked like the sister of the busty one.

"I see…" Bell replied, shocked at hearing this. "Huh, where's Goddess?"

"Over there," Ais said, pointing toward Hestia.

"So she is. When did she slip away?" Bell said, curious.

"By the way, who are you?" Asked the busty Amazon, looking at Issei.

"Yeah, are you strong, too?" Replied the flat-chested Amazon.

"Ah, yes, this is our first meeting. My name is Issei Hyoudou from Hephaestus familia," Issei said as he went to shake hands.

"My name is Tione Hiyute, and this is my sister, Tiona Hiyute. We are also from the Loki familia," Tione says as she introduces herself and Tiona.

"Cool, by the way, is it true that your goddess is a pervert?" Issei asked curiously.

"Sadly, even though she is a nice goddess, it just gets tiring," Tione says, sighing.

"I see…. I didn't think the rumours I heard were true, but then again, I wouldn't be surprised as some gods love to have abit of fun every so often," Issei said while pondering.

As Issei was chatting with the girls, Bell headed towards Hestia when he accidentally bumped into someone and apologised to them. However, Issei noticed some malice coming from the other person, so he looked that way quicker, and so did the girls of the Loki familia.

"Oops. E-excuse me!" Bell said in a panic.

"Huh?!" Shouted the annoyed person

"Well, if it isn't Snot-nosed Rookie from the pub" " replied another person from another person's party by the looks.

"Why, you… How dare you insult us back then!" said the annoyed man bumped into as he grabbed Bell's face.

"H-huh?!" Bell said in shock.

"Hey, Mord!" Said another person at the side as he pats Mord's shoulder, alerting him to us.

"What?!" Mord says, looking at his friend and then going to where he's pointing. "You know the Sword Princess? Let's go." Mord said with sweat going down his face.

"What's their story?" Tione asked out loud, looking at her sister.

"Lame!" Tiona says.

After the confrontation, everyone returned to exploring the town and enjoying themselves. It then came to a point when Issei and Bell admired the clear crystal shining out of the ground.

"Bell! Bell!" shouted Hestia, getting his attention. "Ta-daa! So, how do you like it?" she showed a happy face and sprayed herself with it.

"Oh, that smells nice", Bell said after he smelled her with it and showed a happy smile.

"Doesn't it? I thought you'd like it," Hestia said happily.

"You bought that in this rip-off town? You must have no concept of money," Lily said, staring deadpan at Hestia.

"Oh? You say that after you bought that backpack, Miss Supporter?" Hestia says, staring at Lily in return.

"I need this until we get back to the surface! It couldn't be helped!" Lily retorted at Hestia.

"W-well, I needed this! A girl has to have standards!" Hestia retorted back at Lily. "Bell! You don't want me to be all stinky with sweat, right?!" Hestia shouted towards him, causing Ais to smell herself. 

"Um, I hadn't given it any thought," Bell replied, confused by what was happening.

"Lady Hestia, we were going to bathe later, so…" Tione said why, putting her hand up cheerfully.

"Would you care to join us?" Tiona said after Tione.

"Really?! Let's go! Let's go!" Hestia says with a big smile and stars coming out of her eyes.

"I… I'll go, too!" Lily says in a panic.

"We'd like to go as well," Mikoto said.

"Okay, then! Let's all go together!" Tiona says with her fist in the air.

"What is it, Lord Hermes?" Bell said as Hermes suddenly grabbed him.

"Bell, may I have a moment of your time when we get back to camp?" Hermes whispered to Bell.

"Huh?" Bell replied.

Issei saw Hermes doing this, which made him squint his eyes. He knew he was planning something related to this, so when he got a chance, he alerted Asfi and the others to Hermes' plan. Hearing this now, the girls were alert and planned to punish Hermes if he acted. They thanked Issei for the heads-up.

Back at the camp, you could see Issei relaxing outside a tent while maintaining his weapon and working on Mikoto's katana, which he wanted to look at and give maintenance. In the distance, he could hear the Loki captain welcoming back a couple of his familia after getting supplies.

"Thanks for your hard work, Bete", Loki's captain said happily. 

"Man, hauling a load of antidote down here wasn't such a big deal-" Bete said as he cut off by who he saw in the camp.

"Well, thanks to you, we'll all be able to set out for the surface tomorrow", Loki's captain replied with a big smile. "The plan is to split into two groups, with you in the lead Party-"

"If we don't hurry and get the antidote to them…" Replied a light brown-haired elf quietly as she headed off.

"What's Rabbit Boy doing here?!" Bete said, shocked, while turning the Captain round towards Bell.

"Huh? Oh, that's a long story," Captain said 

"What kind of long story?! Hey!" Bete said while picking the captain up and shaking him in a panic, and the captain laughed it off.

"ssei, hearing and seeing it, couldn't help but laugh abit as he thought it was funny. He then returned to maintaining his weapon when a shadow cast over him, and when he looked up, he saw a busty girl with long hair and an eyepatch covering her eye, staring at him with a grin.

"Well, now this is interesting. I never seen you before. Are you new?" The busty lady said, now curious.

"Yeah, I only joined about a couple of weeks ago and am also part of the Hephaestus familia. My name is Issei Hyoudou. May I ask who you are?" Issei politely asked while replying to her question.

"Oh, lucky me. Well, I'm Tsubaki Collbrande, the Captain of Hephaestus," Tsubaki replied now with an enormous grin.

"Ah yes, Hephaestus mentioned you to me, saying annoying and overworked you can be", Issei said teasingly, which stunned Tsubaki in that reply. "By the way, Captain, a nice weapon you got there", Issei said as he admired the weapon.

"Huh! Wait, what do you mean by what Hephaestus said? And thanks; I made it myself, of course. Also, nice spear. Did you make that?" Tsubaki asked, shocked, then regained her composure and looked at Issei's spear.

"To your question about Hephaestus, I think it's more that she worries about you not taking a break sometimes. Also, thanks. I made it myself. It still has a lot to improve on, but it isn't bad for a start," Issei said with a smile.

"Can I have a look at it?" Tsubaki asked curiously.

"Sure," Issei said as he passed his spear to her, watching her inspect it and make some moves with it.

"Nice. It's made well and very balanced for a second-grade weapon," Tsubaki said as she passed it back to Issei.

"Thank you, but you'll love the spear that will make it once I get the right materials," Issei said with a giant grin.

After the interaction with Tsubaki, Issei put his equipment away and headed to an open field to do some training. He took out his spear while waiting for Ais to come for a spar. He started the general slashes and stabs he practised before doing more of the stances for the other forms of his breathing style that he usually uses for his swords, not knowing that the Captain of Loki familia was watching him with curiosity and a grin.

"Hi there, up for a spar?" said Loki's Captain 

"Huh? Oh sure, but erm, not to be rude, who are you?" Issei asked curiously.

"Oh, I thought you might know me. Anyway, my name is Finn Deimne, Captain of Loki familia," Finn said while holding hand out for a handshake.

"Nice to meet you, Finn. My name is Issei Hyoudou of the Hephaestus familia, and the only reason I don't know you that well is that I joined the familia a couple of weeks back," Issei said as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Hoh, interesting. So if a level 1 came all the way down here, not many would be capable," Finn said now, very interested.

"Finn-san, not be big-headed. You do know people can be stronger without a falna, right?" Issei said no with an eyebrow raised.

"Hm, well, I've never seen anyone so far apart from the old hero stories. Apart from that, it's normally falna-based," Finn said, now curious about where Issei was going with this.

"Well, Finn-san, this is where some people get misguided. As you know, villagers outside Orario train to defend against the monsters above ground. Granted, they are the weaker variety compared to here, but it also depends on their training. If trained correctly, some could even be high level 1 or low level 2 without a falna." Issei said as he pointed it out.

"Never thought of it like that", Finn said, now thinking about what Issei said.

"Well, to answer your question about sparring, sure, but don't hold back. Fight me with your full strength because if you don't, you will learn the hard way," Issei said, now taking a stance.

"Are you sure? I am a level 6?" Finn asked, wanting to be sure but also curious about how Issei would fare.

"Yeah, trust me, I will show you why I'm not a normal level 1", Issei said, now serious.

A/N: I want to thank everyone for being patient for this long-awaited chapter. I am not only busy in r/l but also have a mind block working out how to make the chapter work well. The next one will cover the spar matches and also the journey back up with the Loki Familia, leaving Bell to do his cannon fight with Goliath.