Cycle of Life

The stone corridors closed in on him as his vision grew hazier. His eyes focused on the vague silhouette of a large bull monster, swinging his weapon before him.

"I am dying?"

The young man with bright white hair mumbled as his body lost energy before the beast.

The axe dropped as a scarlet red covered his vision, his body going limp.

The next thing he knew, he was in a pitch black room, nothing could be seen or heard.

It wasn't long before the nothingness was broken with what seemed to be an infinite number of flooding images, each one different from the other, flooding directly into the boys vision. His mind screamed, but the boy had no time to contemplate why he still felt pain. 

The images rushing into his mind were strangely familiar, the scenery and atmosphere rang deep in his soul.

The dungeon.

Every image seemed to be set within the dungeon, some with adventurers fighting for their lives, while others were of monsters he had never encountered before patrolling their territory.

This continued for what felt like hours as the boys mind began to turn numb, focusing on nothing as he was forced to watch these scene.

Suddenly, the world went dark once more before a sudden painful jolt shook his very soul.

The boy screamed in agony.

His scream startling the girl in front of him slightly.

"Are you okay?"

A simple question floated into his ears as his eyes began to adjust once more, the sight before him more horrifying than before.

The large minotaur monsters was falling forward as its bisected body parted from its legs. Behind the monster stood an ethereal looking girl, donning light armour whilst her golden hair illuminated the musty corridors of the dungeons Upper Floors.

Her eyes betrayed her shock from the boys scream.

Noticing her gaze, the boy looked down as he noticed the odd wet sensation seeping into his clothes.

Blood. A lot of it.

His formerly brown clothes were dyed a deep crimson spreading along his face and limbs as well.

The boy could not tell if it was his own or the Minotaurs', all he knew was this was embarrassing.

With the initial fright over, his mind finally processed the situation as he sat curled up in the corner of the dungeon covered in blood after being saved.

Before the girl could speak once more, a wind blew past her as the blood soaked boy ran off screaming.

Later that night, the boy laid atop the bed with his bare back exposed.

"Bell, you idiot! Don't go running off to your death!"

A very angry lady will large breasts and a small frame sat atop the boy named Bells' back. Her hand running along a sheet of paper that had been pressed against him.

As her hands settled, a faint blue light enveloped the paper.

"Bell, being eager is good, but if you are not careful, you wont come back from the dungeon"

Bell listened as his Goddess' voice quivered.

"Please don't leave me alone... Please make sure to come home"

Bell bit his lip as he realised the unease his actions had caused.

'I made my Goddess worry... I need to get stronger, otherwise I will never leave that corner'

His mind flashed back to him cowering in a corner as his heart began to race thinking about his saviour.

'Ais Wallenstein... I need to surpass her...'

Noticing he had not replied in a while, Bell hastily opened his mouth.

"I'm sorry Goddess, I won't leave my family alone again"

A small smile sat upon his lips as he noticed her face slightly teary.

"Exactly! I am your family and you are mine! Not this Wallenwhats-it... but she did save my Bell... ughhhh!"

Hestia tossed and turned on top of Bell until her eyes suddenly widened as she looked down at the paper.

Bell heard a faint whisper come from his Goddess' lips but could not make out its contents.

The Status updating finished with Bell receiving the paper that had been pressed against his back, with the recorded details of his new status.

"Level 1..."

His eyes focused on the top of his status before they eventually arrived at the around for skills. Normally, this should have been empty, yet surprisingly there was two smudge marks unlike before.

"Hey, Goddess, what are these two marks?"

Bell enquired as his hopes quickly built.

"Ah those? I slipped when lecturing you"

His Goddess took a brief looking before turning her uninterested gaze away from his status.

'I suppose if it was that easy, the dungeon wouldn't be an issue for anyone'

Though his thoughts may have sounded defeated, his gaze belied his burning desire for strength.

Bell had gone to the public bath leaving his Goddess, Hestia alone in their abode.

"What happened in that dungeon..."

Hestia stared intently at the paper she had previously passed Bell, her gaze pinpointing the two smudge marks at the bottom of the page.

"Not one, but two skills from a single dungeon trip..."

Her thoughts mulled over as she murmured to herself.

"I guess that isn't too hard to believe since some people acquire them easier than other, but what on earth are these skills?"

First off was a skill Hestia had never seen before, nor heard of. Liaris Freese, it grants the user enhanced growth and immunity to charm based on their feelings of love.

This was an outrageous skill that could allow someone to surpass their limits simply by being in love with someone or people.

"Bell... You Cheater!"

Hestia flopped onto the bed as she rubbed her face in the pillow Bell had been laid on before.

Her cheeks flushed red slightly as she caught Bells scent from the bedding, before her eyes narrowing once more.

"It seems Ms Wallenwhats-it triggered this skill but it doesn't necessarily mean the feelings have to remain attached to her"

Hestia contemplated as she a series of devious ploys floated in her mind. A creepy laugh escaped her lips while her eyes turned predatory.

Eventually, Hestia returned to normal as she thought of the bigger issue on Bells Status.

His second skill.

Rather, the supposed second skill that even Hestia could not see.

It was simply unheard of for a child of a familia to have a status which their own god could not see. Not unless a being of equal or greater power was involved.

"Something is hiding Bells second skill... but who?"

Figures of notable gods floated into her mind but she quickly dismissed them, after all, for a deity to do such a thing, they would have to use their divinity. The consequences of this action would far outweigh the possible rewards.

"Besides, the only one possible of putting such a strong interference protection on Bell would be Ouranos, but even he would need a decent amount of time to cast it. Not to mention Bell would have immediately noticed."

The seeds of worry sprouted in Hestia as she envisioned her only family member.

"Bell... What have you gotten mixed up in?"

Something not even a god could foresee, that was the new fate of the white haired boy who yearned for the Dungeon.