The first piece (SC 15&16)

(If you have the time, make sure to leave a review or a like in the Scribblehub page for this Novel, thanks)

Here it is, the last side chapter before we move on.

Also, I went through the other side chapters we posted over the days, which is why this is SC 15-16, it means side chapters 15 and 16 because its double size.

The last time I did was during side chapters 9-10, do you remember? The day Silver went to the bathhouse...

Yeah... That never happened.

I am unsure if this is precise, there may have been one side chapter that fled my search, but that's not a problem anyway, its just a way to properly see how many we did.

Around 16 chapters of side chapters in a 210 chapter-long Novel, well, it would be more appropriate to say 9 chapters or something like that since many of these side chapters were double or even triple the length of the usual chapter.

These side chapters main objectives were to expand the world in a fun way while also exploring other characters and situations in ways we don't usually see in the main story.

Anyway, I'll be going now.

Make sure to check the end of the chapter for images, I made more.

If they are not there, give it a few minutes, in the meantime, you can think about ideas for images.

That is all, peace.

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/Let's go back into the past…/

'On the morning right after Silver's and Loiju's adventure into the Entertainment District…'

(The day they ripped off all Casinos Lol)

/Chatter…/

/Chatter…/

'Inside the Guild, the traffic slowly increased as more and more adventurers woke up, making their way to the Dungeon, and stopping by to gather up their commissions and also to hear the latest news of the Dungeon.'

'Being up to date with all sorts of occurrences such as, if there was any Expedition from the big Familias, or if there were any signs of an Irregular.'

'Though, as per usual, there was nothing out of the ordinary.'

"Yawn..."

'Amidst them was a man with silver eyes, waiting patiently by the counter, striking a wink at a busy half-elf, who was too absent-minded to react to his actions as she approached him with a tired expression.'

"Another all-nighter?" Silver asked, noticing that Eina was holding a large coffee mug, clearly full of steaming black goodie, bitter to the end, but that was how she 'liked' it

'Although that was a lie, she only drank such strong coffee because it kept her awake, it wasn't for the taste, much less the smell as some might say.'

'Her eyelids were heavy, and dark circles stained her pretty face, the usual Eina as many may point out.'

"Is it that obvious?" She asked in a tired and slow voice as she stared at her reflection in the coffee

"Well… Your face says it all, you should splash some water in it when you have the chance."

'Eina frowned.'

"Rude."

'But Silver shrugged.'

"Being flowery won't recover your energy, nor your mood, will it?" He said dismissively as he rested his hands on the counter

Would you even appreciate it?

"Or would you like me to say my pick-up lines?" He said with a slight smile

I have several good lines...

"... Siiiigh."

/Slurp…/

'Silently drinking her coffee, Eina looked rather pitiful.'

"Despite it all, it's rare seeing you not doing work, something happened?"

"Well…"

'But before she could answer, Silver raised his hands to interrupt her, saying:'

"Let me guess, you were literally kicked out of your chair and told to relax despite not finishing your work, and being the serious person you are, you refused, this caused some trouble, and your superior came to see what was going on, and this resulted in your current situation?"

/Silence.../

"... Did you read my mind perchance?" She asked with a frown

He's like Misha in this sense… But he's an overachiever like his advisor.

Not that I can complain given my position…

"Eina… It's not like this is the first time this has ever happened." Silver pointed out with a smirk as he looked around

"You talk as if it was common."

"The fact it has happened more than once is already strange…"

"I… Fine, you win."

/Slurp/

'Drinking her coffee, she turned to him.'

"What about you?"

"I'm waiting for that Elf of course, as per usual, it seems he isn't here in the front, not a problem anyway, as I can wait."

"Loiju huh… Do you know what happened to him?"

"Hm? What do you mean?"

The only thing that could've happened to him is an upset stomach, he didn't really drink, much less eat a lot, though he tried some different things…

And the aphrodisiac of course, although he isn't intoxicated anymore, it might've caused some indigestion.

If it's just that, I can help him with that, it's the least I can do after dragging him around.

"Well… He's been a bit distracted today."

"Distracted? How so?"

"It's like… He's always thinking of something to the point he's neglecting his surroundings…"

'Silver scratched his chin.'

"So he's pensive and overly distracted?"

"Pretty much."

"Hum… I think I know what's happening." Silver said with a smile

"You do?"

"It isn't really much, he must be thinking of what we did yesterday."

"Yesterday?"

"I brought him to the Cassinos."

"What?!"

'Her coffee mug trembled, almost spilling, which surprised Silver a little, he didn't expect such a reaction coming from her.'

"Is there something wrong with it? The Casinos are very famous, and I never went to one in my life… so I wanted to see how it looked."

"I invited him as well, nothing really happened after, so you can stop thinking about that, I'm not that kind of 'customer' of the Entertainment District."

"Ah… /Clears Throat/… I never said that." She replied with a slightly flushed expression

"It's written on your face, don't try to lie." He said with a smug face

"..."

'Eina turned to the side, she gave one last gulp of her coffee before saying with her usual poker expression:'

"Loiju should be on the archives, I'll call him for you."

"Will you? Thanks."

'He raised his left hand.'

"Let me do you a favor as well."

/Glow…/

'His hand glowed, and smooth green mist covered Eina, her complexion and energy returned to her by the second.'

'She felt as if nature itself had breathed into her, the calmest wind clowning against her skin… It was even a tad nostalgic.'

'But midway through her recovery, her tired disposition changed to a focused one.'

"Hey… Magic is forbidden inside the Guildhall."

"What Magic? Have you seen any magic circle?" Silver said as he played dumb, removing his hand from her shoulder

At least she isn't like those Elves...

"You… Don't you think you can escape with those lousy…"

'Eina suddenly stopped, noticing she was going out of line.'

"Thank you."

He's a weird kind of adventurer, he seems reliable, but he'll commit the most childish of things…

Going to the Casino… Just who would go to such a deplorable place?...

Sigh.

'She then left without saying a word more, only a nod to reassure him she would call Loiju.'

"..."

'He watched her in silence before shaking his head.'

I guess Loiju is truly an oddball amidst them.

In this place, most of the Advisors will stay away from their students, and sometimes, any adventurers for that matter.

It's fear.

Fear of losing loved ones.

Adventurers are very likely to die within a year or two, and that's normally the time someone will advise someone else.

It's very common for an advisor to guide multiple adventurers simultaneously due to a shortage of personnel.

Imagine a 15-year-old coming to advise someone… But they die after getting to know each other a little, sometimes even close... It's too much for a young mind to take.

No, for anyone even.

That is why it's sort of a hidden rule not to form tight bonds, something all veteran advisors try to pass down…

Even so, normally, the newbies will take their superiors' advice half-heartedly… Until they suffer for themselves.

One dies, two die… Several die.

And once you've been in this line of work long enough, you'll end up like that red-haired beastwoman over there.

It's not like they are the only ones at fault here, adventurers are also very good at killing themselves over stupid reasons.

Most mistakes happen in the Dungeon, yes, but I say the very first mistake a newbie adventurer can make is choosing the wrong advisor…

Some will go only for a certain race, it's not rare to see Elves choosing to be guided by only their kin… For many reasons.

Or just choosing their guides based on stupid presets such as appearance over capability.

Luck is also an important factor, sometimes, you may choose looks, but then, you fall with someone like Eina, she'll make sure you survive, the question is how far you can stand her.

No one lasted through her advising ever since she took it upon herself to control every aspect of her trainees, and if they can't take that, she'll throw them aside.

This is a way for her to protect herself too, she must feel that this is the only way she can guarantee someone she knows won't die… At least under her watch.

And if they can't follow her demands, then it's best if they just never meet again.

After experiencing the Dungeon for myself and hearing the tales from several sources, I find that apart from sudden Dungeon shifts and severe streaks of bad luck, it's hard to fail on the Upper floors.

Monsters will appear individually or at most in groups of 3 unless it's some rare exception like the Killer Ants.

As long as they are trained to deal with monsters like War shadows that are particularly good at singular combat while also having enough awareness to not just corner themselves in a small wave of Killer ants, they'll be fine for the most part.

Advisers know that too, and they warn them… But you can imagine how it goes.

It rarely goes out of their expectations… Even so, there's a person like Bell every once in a while, a wimpy villager with big dreams and no ability to back that up…

The expectation is for such a person to perish very quickly… But some do survive if they become something after that… Now's that another question.

'Silver looked at Rose, the beautiful mature beast girl, silent and composed… Like ice, writing something in the corner of the Guild, atop her table, under the faint light of her desk lamp.'

That's how they'll end… Dull, like a block of ice.

Even if little by little we get close, because I am an adventurer, they'll always treat me as a stranger that they'll wave at every day.

It's kind of frustrating to be treated like this, it makes me feel as if they are underestimating me, expecting me to just die in that endless pit like all others.

But there is no point in complaining, it would only be making fun of everything they suffered over the years, they deserve some form of respite, even if it's only going to send them further down into hell.

Their current emotions would be the pinnacle of the futile resistance they built up to preserve their waning sanity and sense of morality.

Such is working in this place, where someone you meet one day will end up inside a black sac the next.

It may seem like a simple job at first, perhaps even a dream job for some, but the truth is heavy.

Unless you fully commit to never dealing with adventurers… Though is that even possible?

It doesn't help Orario is still recovering from the Dark ages, if the Dungeon is one thing, seeing your close ones die on the surface at the hand of others is...

Of course, not all are like this.

I was impressed that she actually approached me today, that rarely ever happens.

Her lack of work helped this, as she was likely bored...

But I can tell I'm not a stranger anymore, albeit neither am I a friend, it must be very hard to go that far with these people… Aside from Loiju.

Though I wonder, what made them approach me?

Perhaps they saw me as someone that wouldn't die anytime soon?

But to them, what am I if not another promising adventurer? They saw dozens of those over the past 5 or so years.

Wasn't Ais, Bete, the Amazon Twins all such adventurers?

What about all the other prospects that would grow to become Level 5 eventually?

The Astrea Familia that vanished within a single day just like that...

"I do know that Eina in particular fears this type of people." He mumbled as he looked at the ceiling

I know, it seems strange, but Eina has a certain aversion for normal, everyday adventurers, the type that doesn't die within a few years and actually compose most of the '%'.

Misha, one of the more cheerful advisors, spilled the beans once for me and said that Eina is Intimidated by reliable people…

She finds it more comfortable to be around people that she can mold and see grow, rather than people that are already mature.

Everything comes around in the end, this fear of reliability… Stems from putting your trust in someone else, only to not have it returned when their cold body resurfaces from the Dungeon, if ever, at all.

To prefer someone weak and fragile, someone that has the desire to improve but is unreliable, this is the type of person her current mentality can accept.

Loiju once told me that all Advisors have some kind of game going on in the background…

They ask themselves how long each adventurer is going to last, sometimes they even bet on it, though he isn't very fond of it, and neither is Eina.

Is it because they have Elven blood in their veins?...

I wonder, how long did they think I was going to last?... And how much money did they lose or win?...

"That would be fun to find out…"

'He looked around, Loiju was still nowhere to be seen, so he focused on the rest.'

You'll see that there are 3 kinds of people in this place:

Silent and Depressed workers, people that work under a mask because of some reason, normally advisors.

Tired workaholics that never seem to get a break, most of the time, they are the old people that already gotten used to the daily life of the Guild.

Hardworking oddballs that are relatively positive compared to their surroundings, generally young.

You can fit 90% of all Guild workers in these 3 guidelines.

"..."

Sometimes, I would like to say that living like that won't really take them anywhere… But that would be too cruel, neither am I someone they should care about.

To maintain a positive personality… If you were an advisor to your mother, and then she died, then your father, then your brother, then your wife, then your child…

Corroding your sense of self…

That is why, most advisors will grow close to only one adventurer, the first one they ever taught because that is usually how they learn their biggest lesson.

There will be advisors that will grow close, and most of those that do will end up so hurt they'll stop working to do something else.

Eina herself is an odd one because she chose to become 'close' by getting hands-on with every aspect of her student, but after they die, she'll brush it aside, though she'll likely not sleep for a few days…

Yet, the cogs of society move, and next day, she'll be free for a new one… Perhaps after a few weeks of rest, people aren't that cruel after all.

…

/A few minutes later/

"... I told you already, I don't want "my part" of the money we made yesterday…" Loiju replied with a frown as he scratched his head

'He looked around, just to make sure no one heard that.'

"Why not?"

"Isn't it all your money? I didn't bet anything."

"Exactly, I never saw someone so averted into accepting free stuff." Silver questioned with a smirk

"It's exactly because it's free that I'm so pessimistic about it!... Though…"

"Siiiigh..."

"Jokes aside, I cast away gambling, it was fun, yes, but I'm afraid…"

At least in a Cassino...

'His expression was now serious as he looked at his hands with some lingering regret.'

"I don't want to have any excuses to go back there, and getting a few Million Valis would certainly… Well, you know… I'm not a steel-minded adventurer like you, I'm just an average Elf working in an average place..."

"You call the Guild your average place?"

'Loiju's expression twisted.'

"You are insufferable! Listen to me man, you get what I'm saying yeah?"

"Yeah… I do."

"If you do, piss off with this money and don't speak about it ever again…" He said as he waved his hands

"Though I had fun, for now, I have no intentions of returning there on my own…"

"On your own?..." Silver asked as he raised an eyebrow

"Oh no…"

…

/Chuckles…/

'The two laughed a little before they proceeded.'

"Though, you'll be paying for all food from now on." Loiju replied as he adjusted his glasses, making them sparkle light onto Silver's face

"..."

'Silver stared at him with an emotionless gaze.'

"Care to repeat that?"

"You heard me fully Mr. Millionaire, 'food', 'you'… I'll give you a discount and go with a decade."

"... A decade you say?..."

This son of a… He's a failure to Elven kind.

'Silver was about to refuse, but he thought of something before smiling genuinely.'

"Sure."

"You will?... You know that was a joke…"

"I'm being serious…"

'Silver turned around, saying:'

"For the next decade, all food on me."

"Just to make sure, I won't allow any extensions, 10 years and that's it, make sure to mark it on your calendar."

'He got up from his chair.'

"Although it'll be impossible to eat every day, whenever you want, we'll go grab a bite somewhere, so research a few good places so we can hit it up after work."

'With a slight smile, Silver left the Guild waving his arm in a carefree way.'

"10 years…"

'Loiju looked at the outside through a window.'

"How much will everything change by then…"

'Loiju grabbed the papers on top of the table and organized them quickly before shoving them beneath his arm, turning around to leave the counter.'

'He understood the meaning of his words now.'

'It wasn't a bet anymore.'

'It was a promise.'

'On this exact same day, they would be there, somewhere, eating food, and on that day, he would pay him lunch.'

'Until then...'

"Loiju…"

"Hm?"

'Someone called for him, it was a man with a heavy and serious voice.'

'Turning around, he saw that it was a Chienthrope with brown hair and ears, it was Rehmer, one of the superiors of the Guild, a veteran worker.'

'Don't let his appearance fool you, Rehmer has been working in the guild for close to 3 decades, he may look to be in his mid-thirties, but that is only due to how kind time was with him.'

'Had he actually chosen a more simple and carefree job, he might've looked even younger as stress had its hand on him.'

'A good example of how stress can affect you is by comparing the 100-year-old Riveria with the 150-year-old Guild Head, one looks to be in their Mid-20s and the other in the late 60s.'

"Are you still not going to listen?" Rehmer asked with a worried frown

'Loiju, however, brushed his hand off as he replied with a small smile.'

"I understand your concerns, but this is how I wish to be."

"Just... Don't be so cruel to yourself." Rehmer said as he touched his shoulder

"Cruel?... Cruel is how you all live."

"..."

'Rehmer didn't deny it, but neither did he agree.'

'Seeing the conversation had awkwardly stopped, Loiju looked at the entrance of the Guild and said:'

"Honestly, I'm more concerned about just what sort of creature would be able to take that guy down than in anything else."

"?"

'Passing by him, Loiju smiled.'

"You'll understand one day."

…

/Outside, half an hour later…/

"Well, here I am again."

'Silver raised his head to look at the faint smoke rising into the skies.'

/Clang… Clang…/

'The faint sounds of hammers in the background and the thin smell of burning…'

"This place is the same as ever."

Hammers and more hammers… You can kind of understand why there aren't any houses around.

Even if there once were, Hephaestus likely bought all the property around her workshops to make her small corner here in this city.

"Regardless… She should be available?"

'Silver had been planning to meet her for a few days, he even sent a letter, though it was one of those "I'll pass by tomorrow" kind of notes.'

'He didn't want to cause a fuss, so he teleported inside.'

'Not many people knew the details of the relationship between Hephaestus and him, much less their contract.'

'Even if there are some rumors going around, those are better than flat-out truths circulating, as Silver wished to maintain secrecy.'

'An open "secret" is better than a hidden one.'

'Besides, no one would ever overthink their interactions, they would need to have a screw loose for that.'

'Above all, he did this mostly for her rather than himself.'

'As someone who values her reputation not because of herself, but because of her children, he needed to thread lightly since she's putting herself on the line for her friendship with Hestia.'

'He greatly respected her for that and was more than happy to exchange some words with her, something that was nearly impossible for most.'

'Even so, if it weren't for him meeting her several times throughout Hestia's 'working days' in the past, he wouldn't feel comfortable invading her privacy like that.'

'At the end of the day, she was still a Goddess that oversaw one of the biggest craftsmanship Familias in the world, a true business woman.'

'He didn't want to sound arrogant and say he was close enough to see her true side, but neither did he want to be distant and treat her like his Boss.'

'It wasn't his first time doing this though, he had to meet her at least twice ever since the War game to fix his Halberd, and he would surely do it many other times in the future.'

'Today he wasn't there to fix it, so he needed another excuse… Otherwise, she would just kick him out or receive him with a frown, even if they are somewhat of acquaintances.'

'He wanted a nice and warm atmosphere, not an awkward one.'

…

/Knock knock/

"Again? Someone just came in… Sigh."

"Fine, enter." Hephaestus said tiredly from within her office

/Creak…/

"How can I… Huh?... Oh, it's you." She said with a small sigh

I thought when he would arrive, as always, he has a perfect sense of time…

Always arriving whenever I have some time to breathe in peace…

'She gestured from him to get inside, and also to close the door.'

/Clack/

'Silver closed the door and walked inside with a helpless smile as he scratched the back of his head.'

"How are you doing?" He asked as he waved his hands...

'It was rather awkward.'

"... Look at you." She said with a slight smile as she dropped her head slightly

"You're normally so talkative, now you're like this…"

"Don't beat around the bush, just tell me what you want and we'll talk from there."

'Silver raised his head awkwardly, smiling a little as well.'

"Phew… Was I too obvious?"

'He walked to a couch nearby a sat slowly.'

"I've been thinking about my conduct recently, so that's that."

"..."

Don't you think it's a tad late for that?

'Hephaestus looked at him with a serious expression.'

"You're so serious…" He commented as he waited for her to sit opposite to him

"I'm just a bit tired, that's all." She replied dismissively as she rubbed her temples a little

"Here, at least I brought something with me." Silver said as he pointed at the table

"Hm?"

'In there, a small round cake appeared, it looked really pretty with its red strawberry on top.'

"You didn't have to…"

I can tell it's expensive, can he really afford such things when he's already so much in debt?

Or is he like one of those guys?...

"It's just a small cake, I'm particularly fond of this taste, so give it a try."

'He snapped his fingers, and a small plate followed by some cutlery materialized in the air.'

"Would you like some tea as well?" He asked seriously

"I… Have my own…"

He's trying to butter me up... Keep up, I want to see what you have to offer, haha...

"Then excuse me a little."

'Without him moving, several of her drawers on the side opened, and several porcelain items floated to the table, where water magically powered onto the kettle together with some of the tea leaves.'

"Hm?..."

As always, it's all so bizarre, no matter how many times I see it.

Hestia looked very used to it… Guess he doesn't really hold his powers back at their home.

Besides, are those…

"It's done."

'Silver opened his arms slightly, inviting her to relax a little and just enjoy some lunch.'

"... Sigh."

'In the end, she gave in, having a small bite of the cake followed by drinking her tea slightly, it was warm, just the way she liked it.'

'Against all expectations, she didn't like her tea to be too hot, and in fact, she enjoyed cold tea more than the others.'

"..."

It's tasty and sweet… And this tea…

Isn't this my favorite? I thought I was out of it… Wait, did he bring some?

I don't remember telling him this... Did he learn it from Hestia?

Why isn't he saying anything about it though?

"It's good." She said with an awkward smile

'In the end, they just enjoyed some slight free time.'

...

"… Phew… I really needed some time off." She said as she rested her head on the couch

"Rough day?"

"Don't even get me started… The same things as always…"

"Having to review my children's work, resolving conflicts between them, having to approve a pile of papers, fulfilling the commissions, and more… I barely even have time to brew tea for myself."

"Tomorrow will be update day, so I was afraid you would arrive at a bad time… But your timing was quite great as ever."

'Silver nodded proudly.'

"Of course, I came today exactly because I knew you wouldn't have time tomorrow."

"Oh? You did?" She asked surprised

"It's not that difficult to keep track of such things… And oh, here's another small present, I know you like this type of tea so I bought a pack on my way here."

'A small tea box appeared atop the table, it gave Hephaestus a strange feeling, she knew of his abilities, he had trusted her with them, but it was always so… Bizarre.'

"I just hope it's up to your taste, tea taste can be quite a difficult topic, and I'm not exactly aware of where you buy yours, so I ended up buying one from a nearby tea shop."

"This is too much… Thank you." She said with a small smile

I was wondering when he was going to talk about it...

Looks like I won't be needing to worry Tsubaki about that.

…

'For the next 20 minutes, Silver just acted as a listener, asking her about a myriad of things related to her work and letting her talk, offering his own opinion about her troubles and so on.'

'It was usually how things went when he visited her, and without knowing, she enjoyed it, just talking away… Just like how she did with Tsubaki.'

'But in her case, Tsubaki was usually as busy as her, so she tended to hold herself a little when talking about her problems, due to fearing she would end up overworking her.'

'She didn't want to trouble others with herself, but at the same time, she wanted to keep appearances as the Goddess of blacksmiths…'

'Silver knew she wouldn't be able to keep this up for long, even with the Gods incredible resilience.'

'With her ways, she would end up breaking, even if that takes another 100 years.'

'Thankfully, it seemed everyone was very supportive of her, even Hestia would try to help her out, in her own way of course…'

'But even then, her children will one day die, and she'll have to carry that with her for eternity.'

'Even when she meets them again when they reincarnate.'

…

/Clock!/

'The large tower clock on the wall hit 10 am, ringing a slight bell and making Hephaestus wake up.'

"It's already 10?... How quickly time passes."

I've talked so much I didn't realize.

"We should stop here for today…" She said as she put her hands down

'Silver was disappointed.'

"Are you really going to stop there? What about the rest of your story?"

"How did you fix that sword?" Silver asked in disapproval

She stopped her story in the middle, that's a no-no.

'Hephaestus looked at him with open eyes… And smiled.'

"It's just a small story, don't let it bore you."

"Bore me? On the contrary, I was very entertained by it, so please, tell me how you fixed that damn sword!"

"Hum… Perhaps next time." She said with a teasing smile

I'm… Am I anticipating it?...

No… I must be mistaking it.

"... I'll hold you onto that."

At least now I have a reason, whatever little it may be.

Though I really wanted to know how that story went...

Gods have the weirdest and most fascinating stories.

For them, they may narrate an entire Epic that happened 10000 years ago as if it was yesterday.

It's fun, and also a bit eye-opening in some senses, especially the way they treat such knowledge.

'Silver clapped his hands, and all of the cutlery flew into the skies before water mixed in, cleaning it all before they were all sent back into place as if they had never been taken out.'

"Have you ever considered being a butler? I'm sure someone would pay you big money for your abilities." She said with a slight chuckle

And looks...

"I do help in some menial activities back home, though I'll have to refuse the offer of being a butler... Albeit I'm sure I would've done very well." He said smugly

'She rolled her eyes.'

"Don't have any shame admitting to that so confidently?"

"I only speak the truth."

'Hephaestus closed her eyes as she crossed her legs.'

"That may be up for some questioning…"

"But since you speak only the truth, tell me, what brings you to me this time?"

'Silver looked a bit hurt.'

"Can't I just come here to visit you?"

"..."

'Hephaestus went silent for a moment, clearing her throat awkwardly.'

"If that's the case, I appreciate the visit, but next time, do warn me beforehand…"

"And I say at least 2 weeks prior to that so I can free some time in my schedule."

"Then it wouldn't be a surprise."

"I'm someone that enjoys stability over inconsistencies." She replied with a smile as she moved her hair a little

'They looked at each other for a few moments until Silver let out a sigh.'

"Okay, you win."

"I did come here for an extra reason apart from seeing you."

"..."

'Hephaestus blushed a little, thankfully Silver was looking at the side, giving her some time to recompose.'

How can he say such a thing with that straight face of his?...

'Silver pulled up a small stack of papers from his inventory.'

"This is how much I owe you, right?"

And the contract.

"Hm?... Indeed it is, are you keeping track of it?"

I think I do have the official papers in one of my drawers... But having it like this is convenient.

"Of course I am, I need to know how much I owe else I wouldn't be able to sleep well at night."

"Are you going to pull out another large chunk of money again?"

'Silver nodded.'

"You sure are something, I constantly see many adventurers struggling to make money but you just pull it out of thin air… Wait, you aren't making them out of air are you?"

/CHUCKLE!/

'Silver laughed loudly before calming down.'

"Although I could do something similar, it wouldn't last long…"

Later on, I could turn Air into Gold too, not that it's useful.

"So you can?"

He's soo cheeky.

"That's not the point here." Silver said with a helpless expression

/Fwoosh…/

'A dark sphere appeared in the middle of the room, it stood there for a few moments before it vanished, leaving behind several boxes.'

'Hephaestus got up with his help, and they moved to the boxes, opening them.'

"!!"

How much is that?...

'Boxes full of shimmering gold and gems…'

"It's about what I owe, I made the calculations… About 230 Million Valis, isn't that right?"

"If it's beyond that, then keep it, if it's less than that, then hit me up later." Silver said as he scratched the back of his head

Though I doubt it, still, its a lot of money, if one Valis is missing...

Hehe...

"..."

'Hephaestus swallowed dry, even for her, it wasn't every day she could hear such a massive number being pronounced so casually.'

"Where did so much…"

"That's a long story, but don't worry, it's all legal money, I even have the papers here…" Silver said as he pulled something from his pocket

Although the money is legal, the way I got these papers isn't.

The Casinos weren't that happy with both Loiju and me winning time and time again, in a normal scenario, they would just wait and see as the more one plays, the higher the chances of one losing...

But as time passed and we kept winning, they started to resort to other means to get us to either lose or...

Some politely asked us to change games or leave, to those, I let my pity and reason take over and followed with their requests.

If they were polite enough...

Though in the first place, I don't feel bad at all as I choose to hit mostly 'shady' Casinos, the type that doesn't follow the rules in the first place, so they don't deserve to be protected by it.

As for the rest... I had to be a bit more... Coersive.

'It was a thick stack of papers full of signatures.'

'They were the receipts of his time in the Casinos, of course, he would never use them in normal circumstances since it would be pretty much admitting he was the thief that 'stole' all of this from the Casinos.'

'As for using them to pay for Hephaestus services, there were two reasons for that, one good, and one... A tad bad.'

'The first was that he trusted her, it couldn't be simpler than that.'

'The second one was that... He was pretty much using her for money laundering.'

'In the first place, the money wasn't illegal, but Silver didn't want the money to be traced to him, so by using Hephaestus's big name, if the Casinos tried to trace the money, they would arrive at the massive wall that was her Familia.'

'And unless they had a screw loose, that would be enough to stop right in their tracks, they may try to investigate further, but as long as this deal was done directly with Hephaestus, the chances of them finding anything is close to 0.'

'Unless they start speculating, even then, Silver can change his appearance at any time.'

'And second of all, he doesn't need to participate in the Casino, he can always have someone play for him as he controls the results, so it didn't really matter in the end even if they found his identity.'

"Receipts?... Hum? These are... WHAT?! YOU… Cough…"

"You made all of this in the Casinos?!" She asked as she clutched onto the papers tightly

"Yup, I'm great aren't I?..."

"You cheated didn't you?" She asked as she looked at him with her singular eye as if she could read his Soul

'Perhaps she could.'

"It's not cheating when some of the dealers are also playing tricks with their higher stats…"

'She looked at him without saying anything…'

"Come on, those Casinos weren't exactly following Orario's rules."

"..."

'Her eye stared at him, motionless...'

'Silver's expression did not change.'

"I also only played against those high rollers from High society, they aren't worth the pity… Neither will they feel the loss."

The money some of those Nobles and Merchants outside of Orario have can't be underestimated, it wouldn't be surprising if they had more money than the Guild.

The Guild has a monopoly, but they also expend a lot of money.

Some merchants may control entire trading routes inland, and a lot of money flows into their coffers, but little leaves it.

There are many such rich people that come to Orario to have fun and experience the city of adventurers for themselves, bringing tens of millions as pocket change.

I'm not interested in stealing money from a naive princess, but I won't hesitate in making some money out of a tyrant fucker's pockets.

"... Sigh!"

'Hephaestus closed her eye and face palmed.'

"You truly are something… The way you make money is… Unbelievable."

And with such a face too...

I still remember when I gave Hestia years to resolve her debt, even then, I thought it was little...

I was very wrong.

"Will you accept it?" Silver asked with puppy eyes, somehow, they made Hephaestus uncomfortable, he didn't go well with those

"Yes, I will… But take your receipts, I don't need them." She said as she brushed him aside

They'll only bring me trouble.

"Yay!" Silver said with a smile as he went back to looking serious

"But look, only this time, I'm not keen on being used to do money laundering." She said seriously as she pointed at his chest

I've grown soft... Sigh.

I'll do it, this time... For Hestia.

"... I understand." Silver replied seriously

Looks like next time, I'll have to launder the money elsewhere...

I have some ideas.

'She looked at him with an awkward expression before shaking his head.'

'Though she felt oddly regretful.'

"With this, our contract can be said to be…"

"Wait." Silver said as he moved to the money pile

"?"

'He crouched down and took a single coin, putting it in his pocket.'

"What are you doing?" She asked with a frown

'But Silver did not reply immediately.'

"Damn!... I used all of my money… Looks like I still owe you… 1 Valis." He said dramatically as he clutched onto his chest

"... Oh no you didn't…" She said as she realized what he was doing

"Don't worry! I'll work hard and pay you this huge sum of… 1 Valis… In the future, I swear it!"

"Considering what I paid so far and the contract... I have... Barely 30 years to pay you!"

"..."

'Hephaestus face palmed again.'

"You sure like to give me work, give me a break."

'Jokes aside, Silver stopped playing around as he looked at her, speaking seriously:'

"Unfortunately, it would be foolish of me to just discard our connection so quickly, what excuse I'll have to visit you in the future?"

Only unofficial ones, and albeit it's good to have them, I still would like to visit her due to official means.

'She rolled her eyes.'

"Just keep working hard and become a first Class adventurer, then we won't need to do it like this anymore."

'Silver shrugged.'

"That would be boring, I like these surprise visits."

"But my schedule doesn't!" Hephaestus exclaimed

'Silver nodded understandingly.'

"I'm sure it'll understand if we talk with it nicely."

"..."

'Hephaestus' eye twitched.'

This guy… He won't give up, will he?

"Sigh… Alright, since you can't pay me, I guess we can't close the contract." She said with a tired smile as she conceded

This isn't bad anyway, I was planning on having another contract once we closed this one...

Albeit it would've taken some time, I guess this clears me of the trouble.

'She looked at Silver, but the little brat was only smiling from ear to ear…'

'It seemed he had no intention of turning back, and it's not like she couldn't understand.'

'The Hestia Familia was growing, and it benefited greatly from their support…'

'Although the specifics behind their contract were a mystery for others, they understood somewhat what it was about since it wasn't strange for a craftsmanship Familia to show some support for growing Familias.'

'To sponsor them.'

'But due to Silver's actions, the Hestia Familia technically never had to worry about the debt and instead only benefited from the contract.'

'Of course, what most didn't know was that it was a deal where the Hephaestus Familia lost more than it gained.'

'But that was under the pretense of the debt… And now that the debt was pretty much paid, this was simply an unequal exclusivity contract... If you ignore how much profit Hephaestus made.'

'One where the Hestia Familia was completely tied to them, but currently, they could offer very little, and in exchange, they got their services…'

'While they could pull out of this deal whenever they wished.'

'Hephaestus was truly troubled as to how she would fix this situation, after all, she never expected them to pay up so soon, the contract said they had to pay a certain fee every month, but that was over several decades…'

'She knew he wouldn't just leave, but she also didn't know how to confront this in a way that could benefit both sides… Where both her Reputation and theirs remain untouched.'

'As always, the biggest problem was how weak the Hestia Familia was in the eyes of the world, and until they were 'worthy' of their services…'

"I won't make you wait for long." Silver said suddenly

"Hm?"

'But for her confusion, Silver did not reply.'

"There are still two more things I would like to go over quickly, if possible."

"There's more?"

"You're a busy woman, and I can't overgrow my stay by interrupting you every so often."

"At least you're aware of that…"

"Alright then, I'm all ears."

'Silver nodded.'

"First, I would like you to see if a little project of mine is even feasible, I have been working on it for a very long time, but honestly, I just kind of left it behind as I focused on my growth as an adventurer."

One of the first things I asked Hephaestus was related to this, and although I was extremely busy in the last few months, I have no intention of leaving this project behind.

Because the more I learned about magic and the world of adventurers, the more I realized my project had some weight.

"A project?"

"Do you remember how I asked you about Magical swords in the past?"

"I've been working on something similar… My own take on such weapons."

"Oh? It would be an honor to see then." She replied with a small smile

So this is what he wanted... To have my view on his work.

How cute, he should've been more direct.

'Hephaestus loved to see the work of others, especially when it involved new things she had never seen before.'

'Although due to her job, unlike when she started, she couldn't personally observe her children's growth anymore.'

'She only needs to see their work every once in a while, since she needs to rate it as suitable for whatever they are aiming towards.'

'That normally being prestige as a smith, to be recognized by Hephaestus and become a ranked smith.'

'Normally, It takes a very long time for a smith to apply for one such test...'

'But the sheer number of people working under her meant that she always had a few to appraise.'

'Also… Although it's a bit of a stretch, the way man courted her throughout the ages tended to be through the making of weapons…'

'And despite the fact none have succeeded, she kind of accepted it as a tradition.'

'That she'll accept the man that can impress her with a tool he himself made…'

'Would that be applicable to this situation?' She wondered for a small moment

"Lastly… I want to request your hammer one more time."

"..."

'She didn't say anything, so Silver continued as he raised his hands.'

"A pair of gloves, ones that I can use without the fear of breaking or losing."

"Mostly importantly, gloves that can fit my magic."

/Burn.../

'His hands started to burn, startling her.'

"Do you think it's possible?" He asked as the fire extinguished, leaving only a small trail of smoke that dissipated in the wind

"Hm? Why wouldn't it be?" She asked, focused

'Silver's expression turned dark.'

"My abilities are extreme, to say the least…"

'As he said that, his arms turned into smoke, then fire, then water, then they turned into wood… Vanished…'

'And finally, they returned to their normal looks.'

'With his point laid across the table, he said:'

"A normal pair of gloves won't cut, and most armor will just end up limiting me."

"Worst, I would have to worry more about my armor falling off from my arms rather than relying on it for protection..."

'If that wasn't enough, Silver used one of his trump cards.'

"Materials are not a problem, I can fetch you anything, even if it's from the Deep floors, I'll go there and grab it for you."

"You can also ask me as much as you want, I'll pay for it, no matter how many decades it may take."

"I ask you if it's possible because, in all honesty, I myself find it difficult to think of anyone that could make something like this…"

Perhaps Tsubaki, but convincing her is something else...

Hum... Thinking about it, it may be simpler than I thought, still, she has her own pride and policies.

"So why are you asking, especially if you think it's an impossible endeavor?"

"Because… I know that Tsubaki made Bete's boots, you know him, right? Loki's Wolf."

"And I am aware of how she made it resembling his Magic as well… Sorry if I overstepped the boundaries by saying this…"

'She shook her head.'

"I wanted to see if it was possible for you to make something similar, but for me."

'He looked straight into her eyes, asking one more time:'

"Do you think it's possible?"

"..."

'Hephaestus opened her mouth to reply...'

…

.

.

.

Notes

I liked this chapter, it wasn't really focused much on the romance aspect of Hephaestus and Mc, but it still showed a bit of a dynamic if I am allowed to say that.

Hephaestus is a very busy person and this was shown in the original, the way I'm paving for a possible relationship between them is similar to the way Welf did in the original.

He didn't frown at her eye and then he made a good weapon when he resolved his blacksmith will while asking her out, I'm not saying the mc will do that, but at the very least he'll pass through all of her "challenges" before anything conclusive happens.

There are other aspects such as Hestia herself.

In any case, I'm not saying there will be romance, I'm just stating what has to happen and what will happen anyway, if that makes any sense.

I'm writing this as I hear heavy music, not really the most efficient way to write a text for other people to read.

There will be more Hephaestus in the future as the mc will request more armor and items from her while also improving his own smithing techniques.

The things he makes may not be useful to him but they'll hopefully appear in the next recruitment arc as planned by me.

That was all, as far as I remember.

(If you have the time, make sure to leave a review or a like in the Scribblehub page for this Novel, thanks)

*Lowkey shameless but okay...*

Anyway, after all of that was said, here are the images.

They were the images I mentioned last time I posted on Patreon, not all of course as posted more than 200 images there and if I were to post everything here I would die, so please, some understanding.

Anyway, peace!

(Images below, it may take a while to add all)

Here, I'm using the newest update to Midjourney, Version 5!

This version was literally made last week (2 weeks now), and the one I use was specifically made for anime art and the like, so it's a bit better than usual.

It's cool to see how much things have improved, but still, there are many problems with the art, such as how hard it is to have the AI make specific art styles.

Regardless, this sort of problem can be resolved by being good with the AI itself, in any case, let's go to the art.

The overall theme of these arts was testing the new version, so I selected the original images you can find on the web to see if the AI could make a version of the image with the commands I gave it, and I am pretty satisfied with most of the results.

First few sets of images belong to goddesses! I want to add more Gods, but as I said before, there are many Goddesses already.

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Goddesses

1st -> Hestia

2nd -> Artemis

3rd -> Loki

4th -> Leto

5th -> Freya

6th -> Demeter (Mommy Goddess? I liked her images)

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Main Side Characters

1st -> Ais (I should've made more images on her, I did too little)

2nd -> Cassandra (Do I really need to say how incredible those images were?)

3rd -> Daphne (Daphne didn't come as I wanted, almost looked like a completely different character, perhaps we can use this to our advantage?)

4th -> Lili (I loved most of the images)

5th -> Tiona (Most of her images came a bit different, and considering how her character is a bit unique amidst Amazons, the ones that are a bit too different can be considered other characters at this point)

7th -> Ryuu (She has a unique look, one that was hard to replicate, because of this, most of her images came as other Elves, same problem as many others in this list, that doesn't mean they were bad though...)

8th -> Chloe (I liked them, albeit her facial features are sharper instead of cute)

9th -> Lunoire (Similar problems as before, most of her images were a bit too far from what she looks like)

10th -> Anya (I loved them)

11th -> Syr (For some reason, most of her images turned her into some sort of beast person or had her hair wrong, its details but hey, I liked most of them)

12th -> Mia Grand (I have mixed feelings about this one, having her proportions and age right at the same time was a hard thing to do, some images would make sense if you were to return a few decades ago when she was younger)

13th -> Possible Workers for the Pub (Could be used, mostly for fun that I did when one of the images came too bad)

14th -> Asfi (I made a mistake and forgot to specify her skin color, so many images came with her as brown-skinned, not really a problem but not really ideal when I wanted to make art of her)

15th -> Eina (I liked a few of them, but most came too different for me to even call that Eina)

16th -> Rose (Rose has a single image on the web so there weren't many options for me to base myself on...)

17th ->Ottar (For some reason, Ottar became Furry bait...)

18th -> Yilfi (Just a few, but enough for now)

19th -> Mc (I tried giving him a new look, but no matter how much I tried, it was hard for the AI to make anything that wasn't some sort of stance, like... I just wanted a normal sitting pose, why make him stance like a Jojo character?)

.

Phewwwww... That was tense, posting one bucketload of images took a strain on my wrists.

Anyway, if you liked the images, make sure to drop your power stones in loads.

Even if you didn't, you can still do it for another reason...

Ideas? Opinions? Suggestions? As always, I make the questions, you just need to give me the answers.

I was planning on making every floor of the Dungeon for visualization, so if you have any description for each floor for me to use, the more detailed the better, then happy I will be!

I can even fuse all of your descriptions to make something truly incredible XD.

Goodbye everyone, have a nice day.