Chapter 28 : The Calm Before The Storm

"Hiaaaaaaaaa!!!!!"

Bell charged at the orc standing in front of him.

"AAACKKKKK!!"

Bell easily defeated the orc on his own. By now, he and Aiz had already reached the 10th floor of the dungeon. Throughout their journey, Aiz rarely needed to help Bell unless they encountered large groups of monsters. For the most part, Bell could handle every monster he faced without needing Aiz's help.

"Haaaahh... Haaaaaaah!"

"That was the last orc..."

Bell was breathing heavily, inhaling and exhaling rapidly. He was completely exhausted, as this was his first time reaching the 10th floor of the dungeon.

"Bell… I think we've come far enough. Let's go back."

"Just a moment, Aiz-san. I can still fight! Let's go to the 11th floor, and then we can head home."

"Well… all right, then."

Initially, Aiz tried to refuse and bring Bell back, but she was curious about his progress.

She thought of Bell as a weak and beginner adventurer. She had seen it firsthand when she first encountered Bell, running in fear as he was chased by a minotaur.

But all the assumptions in Aiz's mind vanished by now. At first, Bell's movements were erratic and full of openings. Yet, the deeper they ventured into the dungeon, the more his fighting skills improved.

As a veteran adventurer, Aiz knew that such progress wasn't something that could be achieved in just a day.

Is this what Kazuma call "the power of friendship"? she wondered. Could I experience it too? Should I consider Bell a friend and fight alongside him?

Aiz's mind swirled with countless questions, but unfortunately, there was no one who could give her an answer.

Upon reaching the 11th floor, they were greeted by a massive, orange-colored monster. Its body resembled a komodo dragon, but with a long neck and a face like a dragon's. The creature standing before them was an Infant Dragon.

"Ahh… It's huge… What kind of monster is that?" Bell's eyes widened in shock as he look at the Infant Dragon, the largest monster he had ever seen.

"That's an Infant Dragon!" Aiz explained briefly.

"All right… Haaaaa!!!!"

Bell instinctively grabbed his dagger and pointed it at the Infant Dragon, ready to attack. Just as he prepared to strike, Aiz stopped him before he could take another step.

"Stop, Bell!"

"A-Aiz-san? Why are you stopping me?"

"Bell, it's not that I doubt your abilities, but take a look at your equipment."

Following Aiz's advice, Bell glanced over all the gear he was wearing. He quickly realized that everything was in terrible condition. Even the dagger he held was already dull.

"Aaah…"

Bell let out a small sound, finally realizing his current condition. He had ventured all the way from the 1st to the 10th floor using such worn-out equipment, yet somehow managed to survive. If that wasn't a miracle, then what could it be called?

"Stay here. Leave this Infant Dragon to me."

"Tempest!"

Aiz activated the only magic she could use—wind magic.

A powerful gust emerged from within her, enveloping her and her sword, boosting her strength and speed.

Aiz leaped high toward the Infant Dragon. With a single swing of her sword, she split the infant dragon. Aiz decided it was time to end their adventure here. Bell, not wanting to be stubborn, agreed with Aiz's suggestion to return to the surface. Once they reached the surface, Bell planned to head straight to the guild.

"Aiz-san, let's go to the guild together to exchange the magic stones we collected!"

"Sorry, Bell, but I can't join you. Besides, I didn't collect any magic stones at all."

"B-but... the magic stones from the Infant Dragon you defeated are right here…"

Bell struggled to accept Aiz's reasoning. It was true that she hadn't collected any magic stones from the monsters she had defeated—simply because that wasn't her job. She was used to adventuring with Loki familia's member, where the task of collecting magic stones fell to the supporters.

"I don't need it... just take it for yourself."

"Aiz-san, are you serious?"

"Ummmmm…" Aiz nodded and answered briefly.

"Thank you so much!"

Bell bowed his head at a 90-degree angle to express his gratitude to Aiz. He was surprised that Aiz was such a generous person.

"Well then, see you tomorrow!"

"Yeah, see you tomorrow, Aiz-san!"

Bell left Aiz, happily waving his hand. Aiz also waving her hand to Bell.

Bell's heart was blooming with joy from his experience in the dungeon with Aiz. With a cheerful heart, he hopped his way to the guild, ignoring the strange looks from the people around him.

"Einaaaaaaa-san!"

Bell called out to his advisor as he arrived at the guild.

"Oh, Bell-kun! Just back from the dungeon? Great job!"

"Hehe… take a look at this, Eina-san!"

Bell showed Eina all the magic stones he had collected. As a knowledgeable guild employee, Eina immediately noticed something odd about the number of magic stones Bell was carrying. She quickly led him away from the guild lobby to interrogate him.

"W-wait… Eina-san, what's going on?"

Bell felt a bit panicked as he saw Eina pulling his hand without saying anything. Eina only spoke once they reached an empty room.

"Bell-kun... where did you get all these magic stones?"

"Where? Of course, I got them by defeating monsters in the dungeon... hehehe... Eina-san, why are you asking such a silly question?"

"That's not what I meant! The number of magic stones you have is very strange for low level adventurer like you, and what's up with the magic stones from the Infant Dragon?"

"Oh, that? Well, it's because I went adventuring in the dungeon with Aiz-san today, and it was Aiz-san who defeated the Infant Dragon!"

"HUUUUUUUUH????!!!!"

Eina's mouth dropped open when she heard Bell say he had been adventuring with Aiz. She couldn't imagine how Bell had managed to team up with Aiz.

"Wait... wait... wait... I don't understand. How did you end up adventuring with Aiz from the Loki Familia?"

Bell then explained how he met Kazuma and Aiz in front of the Babel Tower, and how Kazuma managed to persuade Aiz to accompany him.

"So that's how it is... for the next two weeks, I'll be adventuring in the dungeon with Aiz-san."

"Haaah... I still can't believe it, even after hearing it directly. Bell-kun, you're so lucky to be adventuring in the dungeon under the watch of the Sword Princess for two weeks!"

"Ahahaha... yeah... I guess I should thank Kazuma-san."

"BUT WHY DID YOU GO TO THE 11TH FLOOR? DIDN'T I TELL YOU NOT TO GO TOO FAR? YOU'RE STILL A LOW-LEVEL ADVENTURER! EVEN THOUGH YOU WERE WITH THE SWORD PRINCESS, THAT'S NO EXCUSE TO EXPLORE DEEPER FLOORS SO RECKLESSLY!"

"Ah, I'm sorry... please don't pull my ear, Eina-san!"

After Eina was satisfied with scolding Bell and easing her suspicions, she took him back to the guild lobby to exchange all the magic stones he had. Today, he earned 40,000 Valis. That was a pretty good income compared to what Bell had earned when adventuring alone; it was so dismal that he once only made 1,200 Valis in a day, which was barely enough for three meals.

Bell headed straight home to the Hestia Familia base after getting his money. He didn't stop anywhere since he had no friends to hang out with or places he usually visited. His life had become completely flat—going to the dungeon, then to the guild, and back home, repeating the same cycle every day.

"Hestia-sama..."

"Oh... Bell-kun, great job! Do you want to update your status?"

The first thing Hestia asked Bell was whether he wanted to update his status. She was really curious about Bell's status, especially since just yesterday he had acquired a new skill called Liaris Freese, which could accelerate his development based on his feelings. While Hestia was happy, she also felt a twinge of annoyance in her heart because Bell had gained this skill thanks to Aiz Wallenstein.

Bell Cranel

Level : 1

Strength : F 310

Endurance : F 312

Dexterity : E 456

Agility : E478

Magic : H 0

Skill :

Liaris Freese : Fast growth as long as the user is in love. The strength of the effects corresponds with the level of the user's feelings. As a side effect it makes the user immune to charms

The Power Of Friendship: While the user fights alongside their friends, protects them, or makes sacrifices for them, the user will experience fast growth as long as their bond of friendship is genuine. In times of adversity, the user will receive a power boost in every aspect to tackle any challenges they face.

"WA-WAIT... WAIT... WHAT IS THIS?!!!"

Hestia exclaimed, unable to contain her shock when she saw that Bell had acquired a new skill, and it was just as strange as the one he had gotten yesterday.

"What's wrong, Hestia-sama?"

"Ah... actually, you've gained a new skill."

Hestia decided to be honest with Bell and revealed the skill The Power Of Friendship, though she still kept the skill Liaris Freese a secret from him because of her jealousy toward Aiz.

"OOOOH!!! IS THIS REAL? THIS IS REAL!!"

Bell was just as shocked when he received the status paper from Hestia. The paper stated that the skill he had acquired was The Power Of Friendship.

"Bell-kun, I know you're happy about getting a new skill, but why is your reaction so over the top?"

Then Bell recounted everything he had experienced throughout the day.

"Hoo... Hooo... Bell, it seems we should stop by the Aqua Familia's house to say thank you!"

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Meanwhile, at Twilight Manor.

The daily life of the Aqua Familia in Twilight Manor was quite ordinary. The four of them isolated themselves and rarely left the manor, except for when Kazuma would teleport Megumin to the walls of Orario for her explosion magic training. Other than that, they hardly ever revealed themselves to the public.

Aqua was focused on her plants, which were starting to grow. Among all the plants Aqua had cultivated, the most striking one resembled a baby girl buried in the ground, with only its upper half visible. On top of the plant's head were leaf stems, indicating that it was indeed a plant and not a baby buried alive.

Kazuma isolated himself to play around and experiment with his new skill, creating various magical tools—both useful ones and some that were utterly pointless and foolish.

Megumin had no other reason to leave the manor except to practice her explosion magic. Meanwhile, Darkness always kept an eye on Kazuma, accompanying him as he crafted different magical tools.

Two weeks flew by quickly.

At first, Kazuma could only make a magic ring for explosion magic that could be used once before it shattered. However, after going through hundreds of trials and errors, Kazuma finally succeeded in creating a magic ring for explosion magic that could be used three times before it shattered away.

Currently, Kazuma was at the southern wall of Orario with Megumin. He deliberately chose this spot because he had previously run into Shakti at the northern wall. By picking this location, he hoped to avoid encountering her again.

In front of Kazuma, Megumin was asking him for something completely outrageous.

"Kazuma, give me 10 magic rings: explosion magic!"

"W-wait... what are you planning to do with that? That's way too many!"

"Eiii... stop talking so much, just give them to me! What's the point of making so many if you're not going to try them out?"

Megumin clutched Kazuma's hand, pleading for the 10 magic rings: explosion magic.

"Alright, alright... but let go of my hand first."

Megumin grinned with satisfaction after successfully getting the 10 rings. Without a second thought, she slipped them onto all 10 of her fingers.

"HAHAHAHA... IT BURNS... MY SOUL IS BURNING TODAY!!!!"

Megumin aimed both of her hands towards the outskirts of Orario and began to activate her favorite explosion magic. On her left, five magic circles lined up in a row, soaring high into the sky. Meanwhile, on her right, six magic circles were neatly arranged at a considerable distance from each other. The 11 explosion magic circles were enough to cover a quarter of the Orario wall.

"EXPLOSION!!!!"

The explosion magic tonight was more intense than usual. The guild, initially just disturbed by the explosions, quickly became alarmed. Before this, they only asked Ganesha Familia with investigating the culprit behind this incident, but now they publicly announced a bounty quest for anyone willing to take it, offering a reward of 500 million Valis to catch the culprit behind this incident.

Of course, the Aqua Familia, who were currently in seclusion, had no access to this information and were very likely to remain unaware of it until it was too late.

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"Aaah... the explosion magic from earlier was amazing!" Megumin smiled as she recalled what she had just done. It was the first time she had unleashed 11 explosion spells at once, and she was truly in awe of the spectacle caused by those spells.

"What's so great about it? My ears are almost deaf from the noise!" Kazuma, who was carrying Megumin to her bedroom, replied with a hint of annoyance.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... Kazuma, I thought you and I were fellow explosion magic enthusiasts, but it seems you still have a lot to learn," Megumin teased.

"Stop talking. we've arrived,"

Kazuma opened the door to Megumin's room and tossed her onto the bed.

"Ow... Kazuma, you're so rough! I'm not Darkness, why don't you treat me gently?" she pouted.

"Just... be quiet and go to sleep. It's late," Kazuma replied, a bit flustered.

Ignoring Kazuma's words, Megumin continued to speak. "

Kazuma... Kazuma..."

"Yes, I am Kazuma," he answered, rolling his eyes slightly.

"Aren't you going to do something?" Megumin teased, winking at Kazuma with a playful glint in her eye.

"Huh? Do what?" Kazuma replied, confusion etched on his face.

"You know... there's a helpless woman in front of you who can't move. Don't you want to do something about it?" she said with a suggestive tone.

"Yo-you idiot! What are you even talking about?! Good night!" Kazuma stammered, flustered. Despite knowing Megumin was just teasing him, he still couldn't maintain a poker face. He quickly closed Megumin's door and ran away as fast as possible.

(To Be Continued)

(A/N: Wow, I wrote 2.4K words today, I didn't believe it. It seems like I got too excited because I'm about to reach my favorite chapter, which is the main reason I started writing this fanfic. Can you guess what this chapter is about?)