kekka

Chapter Fifteen: Kekka

The first thing Hestia realized was that updating so many children's status was exhausting, especially after a day of work. Still, their own reactions and results were worth it; she was pretty shocked herself. They had skipped updating the others the day before, but even so, the gains that Lili, Welf, Mikoto, and Haruhime made were astounding, and Bell was growing as fast as ever.

The girls we even more impressive after having had only a day. There were no huge jumps like Bell had from time to time, but some of them had nearly one hundred points total! Leo had over 110, at that. However, most notable of all, "Haruhime, look at this!" she cheered, which was taken up by the others, even as the girl herself took on a surprised look, "Here is what things look like if you want to go through with it now"

Sanjouno Haruhime

Level: 1} 2

Strength: I-55} G-201

Endurance: I-99} G-217

Dexterity: I-99} H-190

Agility: H-111} G-200

Magic: D-582} D-590

Magic Spell Slots:

1.) Uchide no Kozuchi: Level boost magic that can be used on a single target other than the caster; an interval occurs before it can be cast again.

Chant: Grow. That power and that vessel,

Breadth of wealth and breadth of wishes,

Until the bell tolls, bring forth glory and illusion.

-Grow. Confine divine offerings within this body,

This golden light bestowed from above,

Into the hammer and into the ground,

May it bestow good fortune upon you. –Grow!

-Uchide no Kozuchi-

2.) Kokonoe: A special enchant magic that creates a maximum of nine tails on the user depending on their limit. The user adds the effects of a second magic they chant connect to each of the tails to multiply its effects, such as increasing the number of people Uchide no Kozuchi or Kitsune no Hi can be used on.

Chant: Kokonoe, beloved snow, beloved crimson,

Beloved white light, please let me be beside you.

- This love I have found at the end of two thousand nights.

My name is Magic Fox, Former destroyer,

My name is Ancient Song, Former dreamer,

For you who beat your wings like a bird,

I shall allow the nine spirits to dwell in me.

Echo, song of gold, sacred poem of Tamamo.

White face, golden fur, king of nine tails,

Oh, tails of the auspicious beast,

Consume all, grant all wishes

- (second spell in between) Dance!

-Kokonoe-

*New Magic*

Kitsune no Hi: Enchantment magic that coats the target in fox-fire. This protects the target and boosts their stats, dealing damage to any foes who come close enough to touch the flames. (The target may sacrifice the enchantment to channel the power into a single explosive attack by chanting: Chōshinsei)

Chant: Shine, light of Hope,

Banish all shadow and despair,

Become my shield and spear,

Fortify the body and entrench the mind,

Forge the soul into a sound vessel,

Bathed in a sacrament of baptismal fire,

Strengthen through the Crucible!

-Kitsune no Hi-

Skills:

[Mikuzumenohou]: increases the effects of Haruhime's magic and improves mind usage.

Development Abilities:

Mage I

Magic Resistance I

Spirit Healing I

Haruhime stared at the paper, not registering the reality until she looked back up at her Goddess, tears of happiness in her eyes, "Goddess, this is amazing, my status went up so much! I even have a new magic, too, my third one!" she let out a happy squeal as fresh congratulations poured in all around. When things eventually calmed down, she realized she had to make a decision, remembering their new ally's words from before, "Although, I'm not even close to where master Aedan said I should be before I level up…"

She narrowed her brow as everyone focused on the man, "That's true; while it is very good that you have the right to level up and improved so much, I would wait a bit longer before going through with it. With your new magic, you can train your Mind while working on the frontline; especially so mixing it with your Kokonoe.

"Keep building up excellia until the mapping is closer to being finished, then see where you sit; regardless of your other stats, you want your magic to be A or S rank, considering your specialty. This should still leave enough time that you won't fall behind the others, too. At this rate, waiting another month won't hold you back, and it will be worth it to ensure that your level up is a high quality one" Nodding, Haruhime decided in a moment to go with the man's advice.

"Master Aedan, what do you mean by a high quality level up?" Lili asked him, though most of the others were interested, too.

"Well, like in gaining excellia, I have a good deal of knowledge on leveling up itself, too. One thing to note is that every person can optimize a level up based on a few factors: the first is completing your great feat to level up as soon as possible, in terms of your status.

"This will overflow your excellia at your current level, which you have done, Haruhime" he smiled as the renard beamed happily, "Continuing to raise your status without levelling after this has two effects: it increases the stats of your current level in your excellia log, and it improves the quality of your level up itself, meaning that the improvement to your stats by levelling up- when they are reset to zero- is even greater than it would be otherwise.

"Suppose I grew all of my stats to 500" he continued, having their full attention, "then went and completed a feat like slaying an Infant Dragon or Minotaur on my own; if I could level after that adventure, my status as a level 2 would have my stats locked at what they were in addition to the level up. For that level, I'll say ten percent. So if my stats were 500 before levelling, and I went through with it immediately, my stats would be boosted another 50 points by this situation, making my 'zero' baseline at level two about 550, understand?

"Now, if I didn't immediately go through with that level up, and instead worked to get all of my stats to 800 instead, things would look different. Sure, I might be a level two and well into my status at that level by this time otherwise, but by waiting, I could improve my baseline and the level improvement to it. In this case, I might improve the level up modifier from ten to fifteen percent, or even twenty if I got my stats closer to their max; let's stay with 800 and fifteen percent.

If I levelled up then, my baseline as a fresh level 2 would be about 920. You can see how this would present a difference to the other situation with baselines at 550. Even if the other case had allowed you to grow enough to match the latter in terms of pure status, the latter situation sets you up to have the greater potential.

"Maxing stats, though? That is a difficult but tempting proposition. Suppose you busted tail for two years or so and maxed yourself at all 999 for your stats, and improved you level up to a twenty to twenty-five percent modifier. Do you follow the appeal?"

His lesson sunk in quickly for the whole group, especially Bell who had gotten some previous education on the subject, "Your potential would be much greater than any of your peers…" he muttered, thinking privately to how his own stats often exceeded S rank before his own level ups, and his silent thought that Aedan had also demonstrated that same quality on his last level up that Bell witnessed himself.

"Quite so; in a perfect level up, all stats would be maxed, and the modification would be twenty percent or greater. In that case, the baseline for that fresh level 2 would be about 1198; you would essentially be zero as a level two, but on par with a level two approaching G rank in all of their stats"

"Wow… I didn't even know about any of that" Oriana hummed quietly.

"Not many do, it's something I spent a long time pestering my first god about before my first level up, and further researching since then. Of course, since there isn't a limit on level up modification, it can be even greater than that"

"Wait, what precisely do you mean that there isn't a limit? That just sounds preposterous" Karen grumbled.

"I mean what I say; the more defiant to the expectation of failure your feat is, the greater the feat and its modification. The more quality excellia you gain after completing that adventure, the more you can improve that modifier.

"Instead of killing an Infant Dragon at level 1, perhaps you slay a monster party of Minotaur instead, and complete what would be considered a level 3 threat. That might start off as a thirty percent modifier; combine that with continuing to grow? You could reach a fifty percent modifier or more. In some cases, people have even been known to grow a stat or two beyond the limit of 999, making this effect even more pronounced"

"So wait…" Emma stuttered, "If you managed to max your stats and then beyond to 1000, and had a fifty percent modifier, then…"

"Then as a fresh level 2, you would be on par with someone on that level with all D rank stats, in terms of status, at least. This effect compounds as you go up levels, too, since each level baseline is rolled into the next. Take that last case, and say you start at level two with a 'zero' of 1500 in each stat; repeat the process on your way to level 3. You will have grown your stats to 2499 or beyond, possibly. Throw another thirty or fifty percent modifier onto that, and you will surpass most veteran level 3's as a new one. Go on to do the same as a level 4, and you will be a step into first-class status as a new level 4, ahead of even veterans of that level"

"I… I can see how there might be a great deal of variance in the power of higher levelled people, now" Primo said lowly, with a stark look in her eyes.

"Most of the difference comes in the early levels, too" he regained their attention, "Anyone that rises to level 2 is capable of continuous growth, but many stagnate, for a number of reasons: trauma, satisfaction, retirement, what have you. For those that do continue, though, the higher their level gets, the more time they spend in it usually, and the more they grow their stats. In the early stages, though, most people tend to level as soon as they can; for adventurers, this is almost the same as handicapping your potential"

Soon after the news and impromptu lesson, the whole Familia delved into a celebration. The past two days saw them pull in quite a lot of money: Bell and his group had earned nearly 180 thousand alone, and the girls had pulled 170 thousand after their first day of training; all of that was considering that they decided to hold onto most all of the drop items for Welf to pick though before selling them. So- given that their large debt had been subverted- Lili agreed to an in-home party.

In the midst of the festivities, Bell approached Aedan, "Haroeris, could I talk to you for a second?"

"Of course, captain" they stepped out for a bit of peace, "So was there something specific you wanted to talk about?"

"It's actually about this" he handed the man his status sheet. He looked at it, ignoring the smudge in the first skill slot, having been told the situation by Lady Hestia, "I thought it would max out at some point, but it doesn't seem like it's going to…" indeed, the boy's stats were well beyond the limit; not only did they all go above 999, but with the recent update, his agility had gone above 1500, which was just… ridiculous to think about! In two of his own level ups only did any of his stats exceed the normal limit, with his most recent being the most extreme case. Before, when he was a level 8, he had a similar experience after waiting nearly 100 years before he allowed Zeus to update his status…

"I wanted to ask what you thought about it; I mean, if it doesn't stop, is there a reason for me to level up still?"

"Without a doubt" his immediate reply seemed to catch Bell off guard, so he continued, "Don't get me wrong, your ability to grow past the normal limit is a great boon, regardless of whether you have a higher limit than everyone else, or if you simply grow without limit; however, that means that levelling up is especially important for you"

"Really?"

"That's right. You remember my lesson from earlier, right?"

"Yeah, your max stats are saved in your excellia log, then added to the base stats of your next level, which are reset to zero"

"True, but don't forget the level up itself also boosts your stats on its own with a modifier"

"That's right… how do you determine the value of that, exactly?"

"Well… it's hard to describe, but you think of the modifier as a unique quality of your level up that makes you stronger. Remember how you move and fight after each level; it's more drastic than just a little boost to your stats, right?" Bell nodded along, thinking about what the man was saying, "I mean it when I say modifiers are unique; each person from each level to another has unique modifiers, and they depend on the excellia gained during the feat completed to earn the right to level up.

"You- for example- fought an enhanced Minotaur species for your first level up, what was probably something bordering on a level 3 threat; compared to someone slaying an Infant Dragon, your level 2 modifier will be the greater of the two without a doubt.

"So not all level ups are equal across different people. The other thing to bear in mind is that the only consistency with modifiers is that they always get greater the higher the level. So the gap between level 5 and level 6 is much greater than that between 1 and 2, understand?"

"I do! So basically, it's good to grow as much as I can, at least to the max, but since my modifiers are probably on the larger side, it is just as important to keep leveling up, and it gets more important the higher my level gets"

Aedan smiled and nodded, rubbing Bell's hair and messing it up just a bit, "You're precisely correct. Given your leveling history, you will need quite a feat to level up again... I don't think the mapping will come close, and you're more than ready now; hmmm… with your arsenal, and with the right preparation, you could solo a floor boss, but Goliath won't cut it, and Amphisbaena is a fifty-fifty chance at leveling you or just overfilling your stats; it could work, but might not be the best fit for your style in the first place...

"Well, do you want me to take you to Udaeus and take a crack at him?" at the question, Bell's mind first went to his idol, and how she did that very feat to grow to level 6; could he really replicate something she had done so recently? Then he remembered where Udaeus spawned, and he froze up, beginning to shake.

He grabbed his arm with his hand; it was still there. He still had his arm. What about Ryu!? Where was she, was she safe? Where were they!? What had happened…?

"~ell… Bell!"

'A voice?' his mind was muddled, but something was breaking through to him. His hands… they could feel something, it was strong, rhythmic, constant, and steady. His eyes were closed.

'When did that happen?'

He breathed, keeping to the same pace as the beat running into his fingertips, the voice continued to coax him along. He just repeated that; he couldn't tell how many times or how long, but eventually he opened his eyes.

He was standing right in front of Mr. Aedan, who was holding his hands against his own bare chest, still guiding him to breath in time with… his heartbeat, "That's it Bell, you're fine; it's safe here, okay? You're at home, with your Familia" they stayed like that until he was breathing easily, his own heartbeat calm.

"What… what happened?" his voice was slightly dry, and he realized his eyes had teared up. He couldn't help himself and openly started to cry, frustrated that he didn't know what had happened at all. He felt the man pull him gently into a hug, one hand smoothing out his hair in gentle motions.

"It's alright, Bell, there's nothing to be ashamed of; you've witnessed a harsher hell than most have ever had to taste in this life. Never doubt the strength you have in continuing to face it"

'Ah…' he realized it now, he'd thought about the 37th floor. Why exactly, he wasn't sure, but something must have made him… remember and relive those memories.

It was awful.

"I'm sorry, Bell, I wasn't thinking much about my words; let me assure you that wherever you go and choose to do, I will be beside you to see it through. I know you will face those fears at some point, and I won't let you do it alone, understand? If you want to go down and confront Udaeus, I'll be with you every step of the way"

"I don't… I'm not sure if I'm ready, or if I'm even strong enough to do that"

"Well, I can't tell you when you're ready, but I have faced down that bag of bones for one of my own feats; you have what it takes. All you need to do is plan out your strategy, and I'll help you with that" he stayed like that for a moment, before slowly pulling back, and Aedan let him go easily until he held his shoulders at arm's length, he gave him a gentle smile, patting his shoulders before pulling his hands back.

"We… we'll come back a little early tomorrow, then talk about it; does that sound okay?"

"That sounds great, Bell" after a short time, they discreetly went back inside, and rejoined the others, who were still in celebration mode. Bell, feeling pretty worn out, was tempted to go ahead and retire to his room, but decided to doze on a couch to be around the rest of the Familia a little bit longer. He was pretty out of it, so when Primo sat next to him and slumped against him- just as worn out as he was- he simply wrapped an arm around her as she instantly fell asleep against him. In scarce few minutes he drifted off, too.

The next day was much a repeat of the previous, with a longer time spent in the Dungeon, and a good deal earlier in the day; after all, they didn't need have any delays like training at home or status updates. Aedan took the girls to go through their paces on floor 15, while they continued to floor 12 with their mapping. Haruhime had switched out with Welf as the primary fighter, and he trained his mind by supporting her with his magic sword.

The level of multitasking she had to maintain was strenuous, even against the weaker monsters they had faced before, but using her new magic helped to offset the burden. Kitsune no Hi was extremely useful, and the meditation that Mr. Aedan had shown them before- along with her skill- really helped her to conserve her Mind.

They ploughed their way through a horde of Hard Armored, Silverback, Bad Bats, Wyverns, Imps, Orcs, and two Infant Dragons as the day ran by. In as many days, they fully canvassed three floors from 10 to 12; they found pantries on the first two floors, and two more on floor 12. Knowing that the floors were only going to get more complicated, they knew that this was the last time they would complete one in a day, so they stayed long enough for Lili to compile everything they had so far, so that very little work remained until they made their submissions to the guild to continue the process for those floors.

Down below, Haroeris was hard at work drilling the girls against carefully controlled battles with Minotaurs and Ligerfangs, as well as larger groups of Crystal Mantis, Almiraj, and Hellhounds; he kept them on the main path of the floor to avoid the difficulty that exploration would bring to the other group when they made it to the 15th floor. After going and showing them the whole route to the entrance to floor 16, they turned back to continue training. By the end of the day, they were even more worn down than the day before. They had taken down less monsters than before, but given they were all stronger types, that was understandable.

In the end, they rejoined the mapping group just like the day before, and slowly returned across the 12th floor with them before making their way together back to the surface. Progress all around had been good, and everyone was in high spirits; this was made especially so when they turned in their stones for the biggest haul yet: they netted over 380 thousand combined in that one day!

They returned and discussed that things would go differently for the next couple of days. Lili was going to make the data presentable to turn over to the guild before they went further down, since the time to wait on the paperwork was considerable; she would also plan out the methodology for tackling the middle floors. Welf was going to spend some time back in his forge, which had been neglected in favor of Dungeon work. That left Haruhime and Mikoto to join Emma and the others as they continued their training, with Alfia planning to rest at home. Bell had made an announcement regarding what he and Aedan would be doing.

"Actually, I'm at the point that I'm ready to level up now; I just have to complete my adventure" at his admission, whoops and cheers went up, since everyone now knew that he was getting ready to make the jump to level 5 and become a first-class adventurer, "It may take a couple of days, but Haroeris and I will be heading down into the Dungeon to get a fight that will push me over the edge" they smiled and agreed to be careful and make sure they were prepared, and took on all of the good luck and well-wishes sent their way. Hestia was a bit worried, but pride assuaged it, and Haroeris going with Bell practically extinguished it.

She didn't want to get too comfy and overconfident with her new child's power, but it was reassuring. With business out of the way, they had another feast of a dinner. This time, Bell drifted off in a plush recliner, Lili- who had worked overtime in the Dungeon on their mapping work- on one side of him, and Primo on the other, once again exhausted from their day training. Absentmindedly, he had pulled Lili against himself while he carded the other hand through Primo's hair as she slept. That was how he found his own eyes shutting themselves as he slipped into slumber