Prelude: Level up

Sorry for the delay, I was editing and finishing a few chapters...

There is still one chapter to finish and my goal is to at least finish it before going to sleep.

So yeah that's about it see ya.

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/Back at Ishtar's manor…/

/BAM!/

"URRRG AHHHHH!" Screamed Ishtar in anger as she kicked her throne aside

"IT'S BEEN OVER A WEEK! 1 WEEK! The month is already ending, and I got NOTHING FROM YOU USELESS ASSES!" Screamed Ishtar in rage towards her children

'She was currently in her throne room, with her children below her like always, it was just that the atmosphere was much tenser than a few weeks ago...'

'The girls looked tired, and the man behind Ishtar had clear signs of being beaten up...'

'For a frail Goddess like Ishtar to provoke such injuries on a Level 4 like him...'

'A lot had changed since last week, first, there was no carpet on the ground, it happened that after Ishtar lost most of her fortune at once, she was forced to withdraw money from several of her official and legal bank accounts and even collect the debts of many people she once held by the neck...'

'And it was obvious that these people weren't so pleased with the past, now that they are free...'

'But even with money in hand, there was a lot of damage to fix, and that required more money and time...'

'Both were things she had a lack of, and it just so happened that every time she got into a fit of anger, Ishtar would throw a bottle of a wine on the ground to quench her anger.'

'And every time, she would ruin the carpet...'

'Better than being punched in the face at least... Although the girls knew this wasn't the end of it, and this was shown by the bruises on their bodies...'

'They were so tight on money that they couldn't buy potions to heal themselves from Ishtar's outbursts...'

'Worse, after spending a lot on her expensive carpets, they decided to just remove all of them altogether…'

"When did it all go wrong… WHEN?!" She screamed as she pointed at them in anger

'Her makeup was completely worn out... She was so tense she stopped taking care of herself, even applying her makeup was hard for her.'

'Ishtar started to bite her nails, but there weren't any to bite anymore, she had already gone to her flesh… Her fingers were now bleeding…'

"URRRG AHHH!"

/SLAP!/

'She slapped her male slave and calmed down a little.'

3 weeks ago… It was after the recruitment of… What was her name again? Hestia… Oh yeah, I remember that Loli now…

These idiots failed to gather info on her and her boy, and instead, were ambushed, then I brought forward my plan because I didn't want Freya to find out about it, making many compromises in the process...

But in the end, they failed yet again after preparing for 2 weeks! Being ambushed by a third party!

AND THEY LOST HARUHIME IN THE CHAOS OF ALL THINGS!

WORSE, THERE IS NO NEWS OF HER WHEREABOUTS!

At this point, I need to proceed with the information that whoever my enemy may be, he has already full knowledge of what Haruhime is capable of and her worth...

'Ishtar almost pulled her hair, and if you took a closer look at it, you would see that a portion of her hair actually fell… She was losing hair due to stress!'

'Ishtar was slowly collapsing due to Silver's sabotage and her own plans and overthinking...'

I already researched, but there are absolutely no signs that the Hestia Familia is connected with the ambushers.

All of the investigations show that they remained within the premises of their Manor for almost all of the time, and the few times they left were to nearby places.

Their Captain... The boy leaves for the Dungeon daily but there is no sign of him being in contact with this or any group whatsoever...

Meaning he simply is not related to this at all...

There is a faint possibility he collaborated with them so he could escape as everything happened way too suddenly, but ever since then...

And I can't even investigate them, my forces are too spread out, and sending Level 3's won't work unless I do it in high numbers...

But if I do so the Manor will become too empty and our forces scattered.

Worse! During these 2 weeks, a lot of minor problems happened, slowing down our actions by a lot!

At first, I didn't pay attention to them, but when they are added together, it becomes a massive problem!

Especially the rumors on the black market… My reputation has gone into shambles, my money was stolen, and now… Everyone is comparing me to Freya!

I CAN'T STAND IT!

"AND I STILL DON'T KNOW WHO DID IT!!!"

'She looked at the people below her, and then she spared a glance at Phryne.'

'They found evidence of her being a possible traitor, but Ishtar didn't want to believe it, however, no matter how much they searched, they didn't find anything else at all!'

'Still, as time passed, she had no other choice but to suspect her!'

'It's true Phryne doesn't see her as a Goddess, Ishtar had long understood that.'

'But it's also true that Phryne has nowhere else to go as she is the only one willing to hide her crimes and there is also the fact that Phryne is too lazy to seek another God as she is very comfortable with her life, so much so she has completely stopped growing as an adventurer.'

'No one would accept this prideful frog, even if she wanted to join a new Familia, she would be refused within a few hours!'

'In the end what was happening?! Who was after her? Who did this?! Where did she fail?!'

'Who is plotting behind her back?!'

"..."

I have little to no money, my forces are demoralized and weakened, a third party is foiling my plans, people are laughing at my name, my strongest child is a possible traitor...

And Freya is surely watching my back now!

'She wasn't... At least in the way she believes...'

I... It's over, there isn't anymore that I can do...

I'll have to rethink my plans...

'Under the gazes of everyone in the hall, Ishtar declared:'

"... Scrap down the War preparations…"

"?!"

'When she said that, her children just looked at her with wide eyes. Not believing her words.'

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! I SAID OUR PLANS ARE CANCELED! GET OUT AND FIX OUR FAMILIA!"

'As they ran outside in silence, she continued to scream:'

"I WANT EVERYTHING FIXED! OUR REPUTATION! OUR INFLUENCE IN THE DISTRICT! OUR MONEY! EVERYTHING!"

"AND WHEN YOU ARE DONE WITH THAT, I WANT YOU TO FIND OUT THE FUCKERS THAT DID ALL OF THIS AND BRING THEM TO ME SO I CAN RIP THEIR LIMBS OUT!"

'Her screams rang in the night, but it was unknown to her that her target had just heard everything and was now smiling widely…'

…

/The next day…/

"ONE!... TWO!... ONE!... TWO!... Okay! This is enough for today!" Said Cassandra as she looked at the recruits

"HA!"

"Finally!"

"Do you want to study together Fi?" Asked one of the girls to another one

"Yes!... What about you?..."

/Whispers…/

'Another morning, another day of training for the Hestia Familia.'

'3 weeks ago they had started... They were nothing but a group of aspiring people, new and slightly experienced adventurers...'

'But now, one week away from their deadline, they weren't the same as they once were.'

'They proficiently run for an hour, fight with some level of decency, and they could somehow cooperate… At least most of them.'

'Not much changed for the ones who were already adventurers, but it was true that they improved somewhat.'

'Everyone knew each other already, and thanks to it they were also very close. The brutal training made them grow closer to each other and stronger, even if by only a few dozen stats.'

(N1)

'Each of them had already found their own positions, be it as an archer, or as a supporter, a frontline, or even a mage!'

'The Hestia Familia had a total of 4 mages including Cassandra.'

'One that was already a proficient adventurer, but she was kicked out of her Familia for being too weak and useless...'

'A surprising thing for a mage since they are in such a high demand most of the time.'

'Because of this event, this girl tried her best ever since she entered into the Hestia Familia, becoming a well-respected senior.'

'And the other 2 awakened their own forms of magic as soon as they received Hestia's blessing, and they immediately decided to become mages since those magics were good enough for them to invest in it.'

'After all, even if an adventurer awakens magic, it doesn't mean they will become a mage and train it.'

'It greatly depends on their fighting preference, time, and the Magic itself.'

'As for the rest, most of them were ordinary, without any skills or magic, and that was... Well, normal. But in no way was that a bad thing, since many adventurers started just like that, without anything special at all.'

'However, there were a few outstanding ones like the triples who awakened a skill that allowed them to always know how their brothers felt.'

'As long as the 3 of them wished, they could always feel each other's emotions and physical condition, but only in a short-range and it was a bit hard for them to keep the skill active.'

'But they were an exception, the rest would have to train day in and day out and eventually, awaken their own Skill or Magic. And if they couldn't, it doesn't mean they won't be able to continue as adventurers, but progressing further may become hard.'

'After all, for a normal person, keeping up with the constant increase in the difficulty of the Dungeon is almost impossible purely by stats...'

'It is already an impossibility to do it with High stats, Magic, and Skills, much less with only one.'

'And worse comes to worst, they can always buy a grimoire... Although those are very expensive and rare, especially the ones that match their fighting style.'

'The girls also arranged themselves into their own groups, and in total, out of the 40 or so members of the Hestia Familia, an average of 8 groups of 5 were formed, although not all groups had 5 members…'

'Cassandra and Daphne made their own group with the triplets, while Nicc joined another group of 5, those 2 were the most promising groups out of the 8, but it didn't mean that the other groups were bad…'

'Haruhime did not join any group and would instead continue to train at home or wait for Silver to go to the Dungeon with her since her condition is still unique and as such, they can't risk her leaving outside…'

'Not until they make sure Ishtar is out for good...'

"You know… I haven't seen the Captain lately." Asked one of the girls on the training grounds

"Now that you say… Vice-Captain Daphne! What is the Captain doing?" Asked another girl

'Daphne turned around and said:'

"I already said I am not the Vice-captain… Besides, it's been a week since I've seen that guy… He's probably in the Dungeon like always... Fighting all day long."

That is a bit of an exaggeration, but the last time I saw him was with a glance as he walked down the corridors...

He seems to be in a constant hurry recently...

'The girls started to gather around them as they heard the conversation. Some even joined…'

"I heard he was gathering money… I feel bad for leaving everything at his hands." Said a girl with thick glasses, it was Celia, one of the 2 newbie mages!

'When they heard what she said, the others also nodded dejectedly…'

"I heard he was trying his best everyday for it…" Said someone else, a young Elf with pink hair

"I also heard that he…" Said another girl

"I also…"

"..."

'Daphne frowned as she saw the girls gossiping between themselves, some of those were true but how did they distort so much about the truth?!'

"Don't worry everyone, he is fine… The problem is that he was supposed to be here since he was meant to start training with you all in the Dungeon…"

/Ding ding!/

'Everyone turned around to see Haruhime pushing a metallic cart filled with all sorts of things in it. She had a small bell on her hand, shaking it to gather their attention.'

'She looked very cute...'

'This made everyone jump in joy and rush towards her!'

"It's our goddess!"

"I really needed something sweet!"

"Let me pet your tail!"

'The girls crowded Haruhime, some of the younger ones were bolder while the oldest of them tried to make them behave…'

/CLAP!/

'Daphne suddenly clapped loudly, making the energetic girls behave and letting Haruhime breath for the first time in peace.'

"Everyone, give her some space else she can't give you all the food, also! Remember that you are all sweaty! So leave her be!… Sorry, Haruhime." She said apologetically

'But Haruhime just smiled, saying:'

"It's my pleasure to help!"

'She continued to push the metal cart towards the center of the training ground but…'

"AHH!"

"NOO!"

'Haruhime tripped on a rock and pulled the cart down, making it tilt and sending everything flying!'

"?!"

"What is…"

'But suddenly, everything stopped mid-flight… A disaster was averted and the tea and sweets were saved.'

"I see you are still a bit clumsy…" Said a voice from behind them

I was planning on watching them talk a bit more about me to see their opinion of me but I ended up seeing her clumsiness...

I'll make sure the ground is completely smooth next time...

'Everyone turned around, but their surprise soon changed to worry as they saw who it was, or better put, how he looked...'

"You…" Said Daphne as she frowned

That blood...

"How are you all doing?" Said Silver in a gentle tone as he looked around

Why are they so gloomy?

"Did you come, all the way from the Dungeon looking like that?" She asked as she pointed at his body

'Daphne knew he could move long distances with his teleportation, she just didn't know he could use it in the Dungeon to leave…'

'Of course, even if she knew, apart from Cassandra and Haruhime, everyone here didn't know that, so she had to play a bit…'

"Hm?... Oh… Shit..." Silver remarked surprised

Oh fuck, I came back with teleportation because I had a big fight and I forgot I looked like crap…

Those damn hornets... They made short work of me and my clothes...

I made a mistake due to being in a hurry.

"Haha… I was just eager to have my status checked and I… Forgot…"

'Of course, it was none other than Silver, wearing his normal light armor and with his halberd on his back. Normally, this wouldn't be frowned upon, the problem was his current state.'

'There were bloodstains everywhere on his body, and his clothes were tattered, his armor was in shambles, and it was clear some of the blood was his due to the holes on his clothes and the different colors of blood painted on the fragments of his clothes...'

'It was hard to even discern what used to be the original color of his clothes.'

"M-Master Silver?!" Screamed Haruhime as she ran to him to check his injuries

'She was so worried her tail shot up and then down, almost completely between her legs.'

"Ahaha… No need to check me I'm fine… This blood isn't mine…"

Mostly...

'Silver tried to comfort the worried Haruhime, but she did not stop as she continued to check his body… She looked all around trying to check for injuries and other things...'

"Do you need my help?" Asked Cassandra as she approached Silver with a worried expression

"I…"

'He was about to refuse her, but since everyone was looking at him with worry, he just accepted and said:'

"Show me how much you improved." He said with a smile, making Cassandra smile as well

'It was the first time someone apart from Daphne had actually cared about her progress like this… Not exactly…'

'Ever since she joined this Familia, she realized this was completely different from Apolo's. In here, everyone was like a big family…'

'She concentrated and cast her spell on him, healing him…'

/SPLASH!/

'Just as she healed him, a ball of water fell on top of his head, making Silver frown.'

'He turned to the side and saw what had happened.'

"Good one… You two got me." He said with a smile as he looked at Daphne

'She had a smile on her face while Celia tried to hide a small wand behind her back…'

'He looked at the girls and said with a smile:'

"I am impressed… You all improved so much…"

/Splash!/

'Just as Silver praised them, another ball of water fell on his head, it was then he realized there was a small cloud of water above him, releasing these water balls on him.'

'He shook his head and tried to give her an honest assessment:'

"It's an interesting spell, although it will take some time to make it viable in combat…"

/Splash!/

"!"

'Before the last splash of water fell on him, Silver removed his tattered shirt and armor, receiving the water ball on his bare chest and back…'

"Oh my…" Said one of the girls as she looked at his figure

"..."

'Silver was now without his shirt, water was slowly dripping from his muscular body, he pulled his wet black hair backward and tied it with a string, this situation was too stimulating to these girls… Seeing his bare wet body under the sunlight.'

"My hair is getting out of hand..." He said as he scratched his head

I'll have to cut it again...

'Cassandra averted her gaze and blocked her face with her fingers, making sure to leave enough space to take a peek.'

'Haruhime fell unconscious as she couldn't stand seeing a man naked while Daphne let out a sigh as she dropped her head, still, she did take a peak before she shook her head in embarrassment.'

'The other girls had similar reactions, some of the younger girls were completely red and some of the older and more experienced averted their eyes slightly. Although there were a few that just deadbeat stared at him, ogling his body fully.'

'Silver on the other hand proudly displayed his upper body with a smile.'

'What was there to fear?'

/Fwush!/

'He moved his hand and made the floating food go back into the metal cart and said:'

"Sorry for being late, everyone, You will all have a day off today, tomorrow, I'll start going to the Dungeon with you all, starting from groups 1 to 4 and after that, 5 to 8, and we'll switch until the end of the first week of April."

Time passed fast huh... The best I can do is make sure they are fine on the Upper floors... And they should be with all of this training.

Together with the Guild and a bit more... Everything should be fine.

'But while everyone was confused, he said again:'

"I know it was supposed to be today, however, I delayed it since we have something else to do today!"

'Silver raised his hands and black words started to form in the air.'

'They read: Ganesha's Spring event!'

"Today we'll be taking a visit to Ganesha's famous and renowned Colosseum! There is a big event today and what better way to learn more about the Dungeon than seeing adventurers fight against big monsters!"

'Daphne's expression twisted.'

"Why didn't you tell me any of this?"

'But Silver scoffed:'

"It was meant to be a surprise…"

'She shook her head and said:'

"Fine, but first, put on some clothes… And go rest as well."

Although there were no injuries, this can be easily done with some expensive potions...

And I am sure some of those tears on his clothes were meant to leave injuries... Just look at his armor... Or complete lack of.

'But Daphne stopped mid-way as she saw a pair of girls running in their direction.'

"WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?!" Screamed Hestia with a massive frown on her face, her hair that was almost floating, ready to burst...

"..."

'Silver turned around and saw Hestia in her working clothes, running towards him, next to her was a seemingly pissed Nicc.'

'During these 3 weeks, the bored Hestia went back to her work with Hephaestus, even if she didn't need it, she just felt better doing it instead of staying home doing nothing.'

"Nice timing, I was just about to explain…"

'But Hestia stopped, pointing towards Silver.'

"Why are you half-naked?!"

'Her face was a bit red, and her eyes darted around a bit before they focused on his eyes again.'

'Silver looked at his chest and said:'

"Oh, this?... It's terrible! Sniff Sniff… Those girls were assaulting me!" Cried Silver dramatically as he pointed at the girls behind him

/Bonk!/

'Nicc immediately knocked on his head, but instead of making him flinch, she only felt pain in her hand… She looked at him as if he had wronged her.'

"Oi, I didn't tell you to hit me…"

"Humph!" She said as she turned around and pouted

Did I knock on stone or something?!

"..."

'Hestia turned to Daphne who proceeded to explain what happened…'

…

"I see it now… You! Take better care of your image next time! And go take a shower, now!"

(You too)

Just leave this place before you cause suspicion... And I don't like seeing those girls ogling your body!

'But despite her aggressiveness, Silver just smiled and gave her a head pat, saying:'

"I was going to do that, well then, I'll see you all soon." He said as he waved at the other girls, making Nicc and Hestia frown even more

'As Silver entered the manor, the girls looked at his back with many expressions…'

'They were already used to this carefree attitude of their Captain, and it wasn't that rare to see him like this.'

'Many times did they see their Captain training, and most of the time his appearance wouldn't be that different, seeing his body was already a normal thing...'

'And his attitude towards being seen was so normal and calm that they started to take it for granted...'

"That guy… Sigh… Anyway! You heard what he said, everyone, you are all free to go!" Said Cassandra with a smile

"Yay!"

"I needed this…"

"How about we go and…"

'While the girls smiled and laughed, drinking and eating, Cassandra went to Daphne and said:'

"I like it here."

'This made Daphne's eyes open in surprise, but after a small while, she smiled again and said:'

"It isn't a bad place…" She said as her face became a bit red from embarrassment

'Cassandra looked at her and smiled, she did not snitch on her friend since it was clear she thought like her, after all, in one day, Daphne smiled more than probably her entire time with Apollo…'

'And while they talked, Hestia turned around to go after Silver while Nicc went to help Haruhime…'

...

"..."

"They forgot about us again didn't they brothers?" Asked Piro, the oldest

"Sure thing, it's as if we are air." Replied Firo

"I think this is better than being attacked by them..." Said Biro, the youngest

""You're boring Biro."" Replied the two oldest at the same time

"..."

'Biro looked at his brothers with a conflicted expression...'

…

'But while everyone enjoyed themselves, Silver sat on the ground of his room and said:'

"I wonder… If this is enough… I should be ready to Level up now… Right?"

I trained very very hard, and today's event was a reflection of it.

I should be... I have to be...

/Knock knock!/

"Speak of the devil…"

'Hearing Hestia's knocks on the door, Silver smiled as he got up…'

…

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Notes

N1

At this level range, with one month of intense training, they would only grow by a few points to a dozen…

You have to remember that an Elite/Genious like Ais would grow at a speed of 1 Level up per year until they reach Level 4.

And considering the amount of stats, it would be something around 50 for the lowest stat to 75 for the highest stat every month for 12 months.

This is just an estimation because not everyone can be like Ais and have her highest stat at 900 and lowest at 500 or so.

But still, I think it's very possible for a well-trained person to grow to Level 3 within 2 years.

Although as said before by Loki, its normally impossible to Level up faster than within a single year since the Falna within a person's body has to settle down and their body has to adapt, so there is no time for them to Level up else their body wouldn't be able to take it.

The same thing applied to Ottar, at least, that is what we were told...