Bell's Choice Remains The Same!

Chapter 3 - Bell's Choice Remains The Same!

Bell didn't waste any time; he was heading straight for Orario.

Honestly, Bell thought he'd run into some monsters on the way, but there wasn't a single one in sight.

Not that he was complaining—it let him pick up the pace.

After getting through the plains and hills, he hit a main road.

He noticed some wheel marks on the ground. They were old, probably from a while back.

Realizing this, Bell decided not to stick to the road.

Yeah, he was broke, but getting robbed wasn't his concern.

But trouble isn't just about getting robbed; sometimes, it's just about seeing too much shit.

Bell knew better than to invite unnecessary drama, so he only pulled out his notebook to jot down some thoughts when he stopped for lunch, just to clear his head and avoid getting too wound up on the road.

Luckily, he wasn't much of a talker anyway, and sometimes the silence made the trip easier.

Bell slowed down when he saw those wheel marks, just to avoid running into anyone.

Even though he was moving slower, he still covered a lot of ground each day, but now he had to be more careful.

After a few days of walking cautiously, by the fourth day, Bell noticed his body was getting used to it. He felt stronger, and his pace picked up.

Bell took another look at the "Mystic Code." It seemed like fighting was the key to gaining experience, but the way his body was improving so quickly was weird.

He hadn't been in any fights, so where were these experience points coming from?

After thinking it over, Bell figured out it had to do with "Combat Judgement."

"Adapt" was a broad term—it included training and just getting stronger. So, any effort to improve himself counted as a "adapt."

Once he understood that, Bell realized how badass this skill could be.

This wasn't something you could get just by working hard. This skill would be a game-changer for gaining experience when he pushed his limits.

Even with this knowledge, Bell wasn't about to go all out and waste his energy. He needed to save his strength, energy, and time until he reached Orario.

Bell remembered something an old guy said in an anime: "Living in the forest is tough; just surviving takes everything you've got."

Traveling while watching out for other people was exhausting enough.

Adding extra training on top of that would only slow him down on his way to Orario.

As he adjusted his travel schedule, the closer he got to Orario, the fresher the wheel marks and footprints on the road became.

That meant more people were passing by.

At this point, Bell decided to travel at night.

It was risky, but so was traveling during the day.

After a few nights of travel, Bell's eyes got used to the dark, and he could see under the moonlight.

This wasn't some skill upgrade; it was just his eyes adjusting to the darkness, like some kind of nocturnal animal.

With his night vision kicking in, Bell started traveling more at night, getting closer to Orario.

Being careful sharpened his senses—his eyesight and hearing got better.

Finally, after fifteen days and nights, Bell found himself less than ten kilometers from Orario.

The city, built over a dungeon, was now in sight. But there were more people around.

"Orario is just around the corner. The next step is to get into the city, register as an adventurer at the guild, and find a familia."

Bell started thinking about which familia to join. Picking the right one was key to leveling up fast.

A strong familia could give him a solid boost early on.

But getting into a famous familia wasn't easy.

He'd need to show what he could do.

With his abilities, just showing his spatial skills would probably be enough to get into the "Loki Familia."

Skills like that, which mess with space, were rare and valuable, especially for familias that did a lot of expeditions. Being able to carry a ton of stuff without limits would make dungeon crawling way easier.

But Bell also thought about the "Hestia Familia."

Hestia was a kind goddess who really cared about her familia, especially the "Bell" in the original story.

"Choosing between a loving, supportive goddess and a powerful one is seriously tough."

Bell was stuck on this decision.

Picking a familia wasn't easy. If he went with the "Loki Familia," he'd grow fast and get a lot of resources, but it'd expose his unique skill or maybe the Mystic Code, "Combat Judgement."

On the flip side, joining the "Hestia Familia" meant he wouldn't get much help at first and would have to build everything from scratch.

But he'd have a sweet, adorable goddess and could keep his special skills hidden.

Bell pictured "Goddess Loki" and "Goddess Hestia."

In this world, Loki wasn't some male god like in other myths, but a red-haired, squinty-eyed girl with a petite body. She might seem careless sometimes, but she was reliable when it counted.

Hestia, the hearth goddess, one of the twelve Olympian gods from his original world, and sister to Demeter, Hera, Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, was a big deal.

She had the "inextinguishable" power to keep the sacred fire burning forever, putting her high on the godly ranks.

Standing at just 140 cm, she had a curvy figure despite her "loli" appearance, making her irresistibly cute.

"Alright! I'm going with the 'Hestia Familia,'" Bell decided, just like in the original story.

I mean, who could resist a goddess like Hestia?

With a cute loli goddess on offer for free, what more could you want?

It's like in FGO with Tiamat—if she called you "my child," you'd be all in, no questions asked.

Who wouldn't want to bask in her maternal embrace?

Bell wasn't hiding any shady intentions; he just wanted to get to his lovely goddess ASAP.

Meeting other girls could wait. Hestia was clearly the best choice.

With that decision made, Bell stopped stressing about which familia to choose.

But then, another issue popped up: the goddess Freya.

Freya could see right through people, understanding their true qualities. Bell wondered if she could see through him.

But given that his mind wasn't as pure as a fourteen-year-old Bell, he wasn't too worried. He didn't stand out. If Freya looked at him, she'd just see an ordinary person.

Freya wasn't interested in ordinary people.

"Time to head into the city and gather some info."

After packing up his stuff, Bell threw on a trench coat and walked down the road, blending in as just another traveler.

It turned out that ordinary folks rarely ran into trouble. As long as he looked like a regular guy and didn't carry too much, he wouldn't be a target.

Bell was especially cautious during the last ten kilometers.

It's easy to pretend to be ordinary, but he had to look like a broke, ordinary guy... which he actually was.

Besides his trench coat, he didn't even have a backpack. He was the definition of poor.

Bell saw a bunch of carriages on the main road ahead.

Curious, he glanced at the roadside. Carriages loaded with goods kept passing by, their wheels sinking into the dirt from the weight.

"Looks like there's a lot of stuff heading into Orario."

Bell was pumped about the potential for business. Trading wasn't nearly as dangerous.

"If I'm smart, maybe I could make a name for myself in business."

But Bell quickly ditched that idea. He didn't have the brains or resources for business. His straightforward nature wasn't cut out for the bullshit of commerce.

Accepting that, Bell pulled down his hood to stay under the radar. He didn't want to draw any attention or get seen as a threat before he got stronger.

Bell walked carefully along the roadside, avoiding the main path and catching bits of conversation.

"This delivery was a bitch. We even ran into a wyvern," one guy said.

"Yeah, if our hired team hadn't been tough, our goods would've been toast," another replied.

Wait, isn't that a type of dragon!?

Bell frowned. Anything involving "dragon" was bad news.

He listened closely.

"Good thing it wasn't a real dragon. We'd all be dead."

"Right! Running into a wyvern was bad enough."

Bell sighed and looked at the mercenary team ahead.

"Wyverns... this world is full of danger."

"Without strength, you're screwed. Even running into monsters outside can be a death sentence."

They were bandaged up, their gear stripped down to the basics, showing they'd been through a brutal fight.

Bell didn't know how strong they were, but the damage from one earth dragon was pretty damn serious.

"As expected, dragons are legendary beasts. Dealing with them is never easy."

"Compared to the uncertainty outside, the dungeon is definitely the best bet for me."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nevermind...

....

[IMG of Bell]