Loki sighed.
expeditions are such a pain...Finn has to do paperwork, Riveria has to do paperwork, and after all that paperwork there was still more paperwork for Loki! The goddess was tired.
"This is the last one Lady Loki." Eina said as she passed the last document for Loki to fill out.
"I wish that we can just destroy this dungeon already!" The trickster growled. "shatter its heart and go out into the world to help with smaller dungeons that don't require paperwork, or maybe destroy some monster nests!" She ranted.
"One of the 4 great dungeons falling...I wonder if I could live long enough to see it happen." The half-elf wondered as she tried to imagine the dungeon of Orario being conquered.
"Ouranos said that the dungeon has 78 floors" Loki began as she took a pen and started to fill up the last document. Freedom is close! She can feel it! " We managed to reach the 56th floor. And the deeper you are, the more desperate the dungeon gets, pushing everything it has to protect itself...we would need a large group of level 10 adventurers to do have a fighting chance against the dungeon core once we reach the bottom." Hearing that Eina sighed.
"So I'll be long dead before it gets conquered" She stated but didn't seem disappointed. She didn't hold any hope in the first place. "Sometimes I wonder..." Eina had a glint of hope and curiosity in her eyes. Loki rolled her eyes as she knew exactly what the half-elf is gonna say. "...how exactly are dungeons created?"
Eina was not the first mortal attempting to learn this mystery, and she will not be the last. Loki can't tell her. The heavenly pact didn't allow her to tell anyone about this, except other gods.
But she can answer without saying what exactly the dungeon is. The only problem with that answer, however, is that it's incredibly vague.
"It's in the name. " Dungeon. A dungeon is a prison "And they pop out because she refuses to stay down there."
Eina was lost. She had no idea what Loki was talking about.
Meanwhile, Loki herself was recalling a bad memory. Something that happened so long ago that only the old Gods remember it.
"Forget it." Loki sighed and finished filling out the paper. She passed it to the confused Eina and stood up, stretching her legs. "Alright! All done!" The Goddess yelled happily and run for the door.
But when she opened it...
"I AM HERE EXCITEDLY!"
Loki slammed the door shut.
She would rather try and solo Evilus at their peak while armed with just a stick than deal with Hercules.
"I'll use the window." She said as she eyed one of the three windows in the room and prepared to jump out of it.
"Loki my friend!" The walking mountain of Muscle that was Hercules yelled as he kicked the door open and hugged Loki who released a long wail.
She did not want to deal with this...not at all.
Not ever!
Eina looked like she was ready to rip her clothes off and pounce at the new God in the room if her face is anything to go by.
"what do ya' want!? And let me go yah muscle-head!" Loki yelled out as she tried her best to wiggle out of the man-made good grip. "I'm nuking this place. is one...two...T h r e e !" fortunately Hercules released her before Loki decided to honor her threat and unleash a nuke in Orario. A heavy sigh escaped her as she hid her face behind her hands. "Eina...leave us."
The half-elf came back to reality when she heard Loki voice. She stood up with a healthy blush on her face, and fantasied about the Male God as she walked out of the room.
"what do you want?" The trickster questioned once she was sure that they are truly alone.
"Thank you, Loki!" The goddess felt a headache coming. "For you to adopt my nephew Bell Cranell, I'm truly thankful!" the headache was worse than she thought it would be.
"Bell is the child of a member of the Zeus familia isn't he?" That was the only explanation that came to her mind. Bell didn't have a Falna when she gave him her own, she would have felt it. but since Hercules is Zeus son (legitimate Son,), and refers to Bell as his nephew...
"from the Hera familia too." The hulking man said, making Loki massage her temples.
Well...ain't that a shocking revelation?
While Hercules was yapping something, Loki was slowly absorbing the new info and realized that there are some...inconsistencies.
"Who raised Bell?"
"It truly shames me that I believed-" Hercules stopped, he realized that he was asked something while he was telling his story. "Who raised him?" he questioned to confirm if he heard Loki correctly. She nodded. "Zeus. I know not what happened to his parents, my father didn't mention them and I didn't press on him too much."
"Do you know who taught Bell magic?" Hercules blinked.
"He is a mage? Zeus never mentioned this...he told me that he doesn't have high hopes for the boy and that he will probably be stuck as a level 1 adventurer." Hercules revealed causing Loki to frown.
Something doesn't add up here, there is something fishy going on.
"Bell has told me that he has been taught magic by a man named Ainz Oowl Gown, that also goes by Momonga." She informed the God, who tried to recall anything about an Ainz or Momonga when he talked to Zeus. He shook his head.
"I don't recall anything. Maybe he was taught somewhere after he left for Orario?" he offered. Loki doubted that.
"How much of a walk would that be? from wherever Bell came from to Orario?"
"I passed that village, it's probably a month of walking for mortals. Maybe a month and a half."
Loki sat on the couch in the room. Bell learning the runic language of her pantheon to the point where he is able to utilize it in a magic circle...in a month!? That's too far-fetched. Something is missing!
And why did Zeus never notice Bell's potential as a mage! As a God, Zeus should have noticed it easily.
Something is missing, but what?
She recalled what Bell said when she questioned him some days ago. When he came in hopes to be recruited. "I was lucky enough to get this magic from a very powerful Magic caster who took pity on me."...I was lucky to get...get...
GET!
'He GOT his magic, not LEARN his magic!' Loki smiled. " clever boy." she whispered and felt pride in her child for using such clever wordplay.
He tricked her. He tricked the Goddess of mischief!
Yup! Momma Loki is proud!
But she will have her revenge... that's something she will do later, more important stuff needs to be addressed at this moment.
"No matter, I think I understand now." Loli said and dismissively waved her hands, signaling that she is done with the subject of Bell being a mage. "Tell me why are you here? Surely not only to congratulate me and visit Bell, right?"
Hercules scratched the back of his head. "That IS why I decided to visit you, but I admit it was not my initial intention." The God of might confessed. "After I learned about Bell, I decided to venture into Orario in order to get my nephew into my familia since I knew that nobody would take him in without any combat experience...or so I thought. If I had known that he was a mage I would not worry so much." he said happily.
'if only you knew...' Loki thought and recalled everything weird that happened around her child recently.
The Necronomicon somehow materializes in Bell room.
His use of Nordic magic.
And that weird abyss demon lord that took the form of a rock with a drawn face on it.
That last one is something she noticed only after she saw the rock for the second time, but when she stared into its dark and cold eyes she understood that the demon meant no harm toward Bell. A silent deal was made. Loki doesn't bother Bob, and Bob doesn't bother Loki.
"Welp, if that's all...Bye-aghh!" as Loki tried to escape, Hercules grabbed her and laughed cheerfully.
"Come on my friend, we haven't seen each other in years! We should go on a drink together!" Loki protested, but it fell to deaf ears. Hercules wanted a drink with Loki and he wouldn't take no for an answer.
It was a long night for the trickster Goddess.