Ganesha Familia Premise Chapter 3 (Patreon)

Hello friends and fans, Kairomaru is bringing you another new chapter! Bell continues to work hard and push himself towards his dreams and goals. Having gotten his stats to ‘G’ Rank, he’ll be cleared to go down to the Fifth Floor by his Advisor. Just what will Bell encounter in this new area of the Dungeon? Because of how things have changed early on, he’s managed to earn his way down to the Fifth Floor earlier than in Canon. One change leads to another as Bell continues to work towards his own betterment.

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So, without further delay, please enjoy.

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Chapter 3 – Inspiration and Dharma

Bell looked around as he set foot on the Fifth Floor for the first time. The walls had changed to a light green color, compared to the light blue-grey of the first four Floors, and the structure of the Dungeon was definitely more complex as Bell already saw multiple corridors branching off in various directions. “It really does change on the Fifth Floor.” He mumbled to himself as he briefly looked at his map and chose the path that he’d take.

“Grrrrr!” A Kobold growled at Bell after only walking down the corridor for a short time.

A quick swing of Banryū was all it took to brutally remove the Kobold’s head from its shoulders.

“Hmm, I didn’t notice that Kobold being any stronger than the ones on the Fourth Floor.” Bell said with a puzzled look as he leaned Banryū against the wall and pulled out his knife to harvest the Kobold’s Magic Stone. “It’s a little bigger than the others…but that’s about it.”

Bell hoped that the Fifth Floor would be more of a challenge once he got further away from the well-traveled areas.

-Later-

“Gero!” A Frog Shooter croaked and opened its mouth, launching its long tongue at Bell.

“Gotcha!” Bell caught the long muscle and jerked the Frog Shooter towards him with one arm.

“Kero?!” The Frog Shooter seemed shocked that it was suddenly flying through the air.

The amphibian Monster was quickly split in two by Bell’s massive blade and hit the floor with a wet splat.

“Gero!”

“Gero!”

“Gero!”

“Gero!”

More Frog Shooters croaked aggressively as they surrounded Bell in a small group. Their large, singular eyes locked onto Bell as they all opened their mouths.

“Like I’d let you!” Bell swung Banryū and cleaved through three of the Frog Shooters closest to him. He moved the huge weapon to his right, using the wide flat side of the blade to block two lashing tongues. With a shove he knocked the tongues back and then hacked them off with a quick swing. Bell was given no reprieve as three more lashing tongues came at him from behind. “Hup!” He sidestepped the attacks and closed the distance with strong kick off the ground.

Woosh

Banryū’s massive blade hacked all three Frog Shooters apart in a shower of blood.

The two Frog Shooters that had lost their tongues earlier came hopping straight at Bell, looking to tackle him to the ground. It was their only other means of attack now that their tongues had been cut off.

Bell stabbed the Frog Shooter on the left clean through with Banryū. In a blur, his leg came up in a near-perfect vertical split, before he dropped his heel in a devastating axe kick that splattered the last Frog Shooter’s head in shower of blood.

“Not too bad.” Bell grinned at the quick fight and the number of Monsters. “Counting these guys… That puts me at one-hundred-twenty-six, so far.” He pulled out his knife and started harvesting the Magic Stones as quickly as he could.

-Guild Exchange ~ Late Afternoon-

Bell smiled as he emptied his pouch and backpack of all the Magic Stones that he’d collected today. The man behind the glass had pushed the drawer on the side out to him, rather than the tray, just to make things a bit faster. The last thing Bell had placed in the drawer were his Drop Items: two Kobold Nails, leaving them sitting atop a pile of small, purple Magic Stones.

A minute or so later and the Guild employee finished his work. “Your Magic Stones were worth 24,583 Valis and your Kobold Nails were worth 1,800 Valis. Your total exchange today is 26,383 Valis. Please, have a nice day.” The man nodded to Bell as the Adventurer added the coins to his hip pouch.

“Thank you, sir.” Bell returned the nod with his own before heading over to give his report to one of the Ganesha Familia Advisors.

-IamGanesha ~ Evening-

Ardee smiled at Bell as he stood up from the table they were eating dinner at. “Going to get a Status Update, Bell?”

Bell picked up his tray with all of his dishware on it and gave Ardee a nod. “Yeah, since today was my first day on the Fifth Floor, I want to see my progress.”

“I’m gonna finish my dessert.” Ardee said with a cute smile as she put her spoon into the frozen custard, called Kulfi, that she had saved for the end of her meal.

‘Cute…’ Bell thought to himself as he watched Ardee enjoy her dessert for a second. He took his tray over to the washing area and handed it over so that his used dishware could be cleaned. With that done, Bell made his way up the stairs towards Ganesha’s office.

“Bell,” Ganesha stood up from his desk with a bright grin. “Have you come for a Status Update?” He posed and flexed his muscles, clearly happy for a brief distraction from his paperwork.

“Yes, Lord Ganesha.” Bell said with a small chuckle at Ganesha’s antics.

In a short time, Bell was sitting with his back to Ganesha as the familiar blue-white glow shone from his back. As Ganesha watched Bell’s Excelia for the day, he noticed how well Bell had done for being on the Fifth Floor for the first time. It was rather impressive, given Bell’s overall time as an Adventurer, and the God of the Masses made sure that Bell knew it.

“Another day and another goal completed, Bell.” Ganesha said as he moved the Excelia over and watched the numbers of Bell’s Basic Abilities increase as the Falna grew stronger. “Ganesha is pleased that you continue to strive for self-betterment each day.”

Bell appreciated the praise that Ganesha often gave him during Status Updates. “Thank you, Lord Ganesha. I’m completing small goals each day, like you advised me to.” Coming home each day was always the first goal, of course. But increasing the number of Monsters he slayed in the Dungeon each day was a personal goal that he was often able to complete as well.

Ganesha smiled at Bell for taking his words to heart. “Step by step and day by day, small accomplishments build up over time. The path to betterment is a long one and there are no shortcuts. One must always remove whatever obstacles that life throws in their path, lest they stop and stagnate, never to reach the goals and dreams that they most wish for.”

“Yes, Lord Ganesha.” Bell mulled over his God’s words in his mind as he felt the blank paper pressed to his back for a moment. Outside of his boisterous and somewhat silly antics, Ganesha had a wisdom that only those who paid attention would benefit from.

“Here you are, Bell.” Ganesha handed the new Update over to Bell with a smile.

-Status-

Bell Cranel

Level 1

Strength – G 201 > G 233

Endurance – H 199 > G 230

Dexterity – G 200 > G 232

Agility – H 193 > G 225

Magic – I 0

-Magic-

-

-Skills-

Life Vigor – Raises Strength by a large amount and promotes healing. Effect rises based on the user’s Level.

Vitality – Raises Endurance by a large amount, reduces the effects of and disperses all status ailments over time. Effect rises based on the user’s Level.

-Status-

Bell hummed thoughtfully as he looked over his growth. “If I keep up my current method, I might be able to reach ‘F’ Rank in some of my stats within a week or so.” He knew it would only get harder to raise his stats as he grew stronger, but he definitely wanted to grow as much as possible before he ran into his first wall as an Adventurer. “I’ll make conquering the Fifth Floor my goal for now.”

“An excellent goal to set after your first day on a new Floor. Ganesha approves!” Ganesha gave Bell a smile and a thumbs up.

“Thank you, Lord Ganesha.” Bell stood up and bowed to his God. “Sorry to have interrupted your work.”

Ganesha looked at his desk with small stacks of paperwork on it. “I am Ganesha!” He declared brightly, posing once more. “And Ganesha has paperwork to do…” He almost seemed to deflate a little as he sat down behind his desk again.

-Two Days Later ~ Dungeon ~ Fifth Floor-

“Gugugu!” A War Shadow made it’s odd, artificial sound as it lashed at Bell with its knife-like claws.

Bell blocked with Banryū, using the massive blade like a shield. With a pivot of his feet, he knocked the claws aside and slammed his foot into the side of the War Shadow’s head, shattering it’s circular, almost glass-like, ‘face’ and killing the Monster known as a ‘Newbie Killer’.

“Gugu-” A second War Shadow was cut off by being cut down, Banryū’s blade tearing through it easily.

But the great swordstaff didn’t stop there as Bell swung it through another three War Shadows in one large spin.

Before the bodies even hit the ground, Bell’s foot smashed a Frog Shooter’s head, splattering blood everywhere. He freely wielded Banryū one handed and spun it through two more Frog Shooters and two Kobolds. The hacked apart Monsters fell to pieces across the ground, but Bell continued to move. A backfist smashed the jaws of a snarling Kobold, and swing of Banryū bisected another War Shadow, a roundhouse kicked the tongue of a Frog Shooter aside and Bell threw Banryū like a spear, bisecting the amphibian Monster from the sheer size of his weapon.

Crack

Bell quickly looked around for where the sound of the Dungeon wall breaking had come from, but not seeing anything, he quickly looked up. “There you are!”

A Purple Moth pulled itself from the ceiling and flapped its wings a few times to get airborne. Faint sparkling purple dust began to fall from its wings and fill the air.

“Got you!” Bell didn’t even need to retrieve Banryū; merely leaping into the air and punching the Purple Moth to the ground, crushing its head in the process. He landed easily, ignoring the toxic dust on him for now, as he looked around for any other Monsters and listened for the telltale sound of the walls cracking again.

There was nothing to be heard or seen in the cavern.

Bell let out a breath and set Banryū against the nearest wall (after pulling it from the remains of the Frog Shooter it had practically torn in two) and pulled out his knife. “Fourteen more in this group. Added to what I already have…that’s one-hundred-sixty-seven, so far, today!”

As Bell worked to harvest all the Magic Stones, he couldn’t help but wonder if he’d get to the Sixth Floor in the next day or two, thereby accomplishing his goal of conquering the Fifth Floor.

-Orario ~ Late Afternoon-

Bell had just left the Guild Building and was making his way home when he crossed paths with his Captain and Vice-Captain.

“Bell.” Shakti gave Bell a small smile when she saw him. “Coming back from the Dungeon?”

“Hey, newbie.” Ilta Farna, the Vice-Captain of Ganesha Familia, waved at Bell from Shakti’s side.

The Amazon, like the rest of her kin, had bronze skin and wore revealing clothing: a leather and white fur bikini top that was tied at the front covered her breasts, her forearms were covered by leather and fur wraps acting as vambraces, she had a white fur skirt around her hips, her bikini bottom straps coming over her hips, and unlike other Amazons, she wore maroon and yellow boots on her feet instead of going barefoot. Her long, wild scarlet hair was quite eye-catching, she had three red dots tattooed below each of her brown eyes, and she wore golden hoop earrings to finish off her look.

“Captain, Vice-Captain,” Bell greeted them both with a short bow before answering Shakti’s question. “I’m returning home from my day in the Dungeon.”

The three started walking together as they were headed in the same direction.

“You look like you had a good day, Bell.” Shakti said as she looked him over, seeing blood on his clothing and armor, though none of it seemed to be Bell’s.

“I did a little better than yesterday.” Bell said with a grin. “I hope your work has gone well today.” He gave Shakti and Ilta a small smile.

Ilta shrugged. “Not too bad. We didn’t have to mobilize a force against anyone, at least.” The fact that she almost sounded disappointed about that just reaffirmed the fight-loving nature of their Vice-Captain that Ardee had told him about.

Shakti gave Ilta a small look. “It’s a good thing when we have a slow day.”

“I know… Doesn’t mean it’s not boring, big sister.” Ilta grinned at Shakti, using her nickname for the Captain that had beaten her by force back in the day when she’d been a wild outlaw within Orario. Having been shown the error of her ways by Shakti had earned the Captain all of Ilta’s respect and she’d taken to calling her ‘big sister’ ever since.

The Captain and Vice-Captain then turned their attention to Bell again and proceeded to ask him about his progress in the Dungeon. Bell told them how he was almost done with the Fifth Floor and would be dropping down to the Sixth Floor soon enough.

It was a peaceful walk through Orario and back home between the three Familia members. A nice way to wind down from their day of work as the sun began to head towards the horizon.

-Ganesha’s Office ~ Evening-

“I AM GANESHA!!!” Ganesha proclaimed loudly, standing on his desk and throwing his hands wide. The fact that he had no paperwork to do had clearly lifted his spirits tonight.

“Yes, Lord Ganesha.” Bell chuckled as he pulled off his shirt while Ganesha stepped off his desk and landed lightly on the ground. Bell sat on the stool set up for Status Updates and looked over his shoulder. “I’m getting close to the stairs leading down to Floor Six.”

Ganesha pricked his finger and let a single drop of his blood touch Bell’s bare back. “You’re making quick work of the Fifth Floor. Your progress is going to be inspiring to others in the Familia soon enough.” The God of the Masses laughed, already knowing that many in his Familia were talking about their newest member.

Bell smiled a little at Ganesha’s words. “Heroes are supposed to inspire people.”

“Indeed, they are.” Ganesha said as he watched Bell’s Excelia, seeing how much Bell had already improved as an Adventurer as he built up more experience every day that he went into the Dungeon. “You’ll soon reach your next small goal on your path.”

“When I get to the Sixth Floor, then conquering it and reaching the Seventh Floor will be next.” Bell confirmed with a small nod.

Ganesha placed a blank paper against Bell’s back. “One Floor at a time, Bell.”

“Yes, Lord Ganesha.” Bell accepted his God’s simple reminder not to get ahead of himself as he took the paper handed to him.

-Status-

Bell Cranel

Level 1

Strength – G 265 > G 296

Endurance – G 262 > G 293

Dexterity – G 267 > G 298

Agility – G 258 > G 290

Magic – I 0

-Magic-

-

-Skills-

Life Vigor – Raises Strength by a large amount and promotes healing. Effect rises based on the user’s Level.

Vitality – Raises Endurance by a large amount, reduces the effects of and disperses all status ailments over time. Effect rises based on the user’s Level.

-Status-

“I’ll reach ‘F’ Rank soon.” Bell said with a bright smile at seeing his continued growth.

Ganesha stood and flexed his muscles. “Yes, Bell! Your growth is incredible! Ganesha is proud of your diligence and hard work!”

Bell stood and gave a bow to Ganesha. “Thank you very much, Lord Ganesha.”

“Of course! I AM GANESHA!!!” Ganesha smiled brightly as Bell left his office.

Once Bell was outside of Ganesha’s office, he nearly ran into Ardee.

“Sorry about that!” Bell quickly apologized.

“Don’t worry about it, Bell.” Ardee said with a cute smile. In her hands was a book that had a Title Bell recognized. “Sir Galliard’s Tale?”

Ardee looked down at the book in her hands. “Oh, yes… I liked this one quite a bit growing up since Sir Galliard slayed the Monster to save his princess.” She admitted with a faint hint of pink on her cheeks.

Bell smiled at the memory of reading that particular tale when he was younger. “I liked that too. He helped a lot of people in his pursuit of saving the one he loved.”

“Do… Do you want to read it…together?” Ardee took her chance to ask as she looked at Bell with a hopeful smile.

“Sure.” Bell agreed with a smile of his own. “Whoa!” He wasn’t expecting Ardee to grab his hand and nearly drag him to her room to read together! Not that he was complaining or anything. Sitting side by side with Ardee, their shoulders touching, while they both enjoyed the hobby they shared together…. ‘This is a good way to spend the evening.’

Ardee agreed with Bell’s thoughts as she leaned against him a bit more the longer they read together. ‘Maybe this could become a regular thing for us?’ Her cheeks turned red as she thought about cuddling up with Bell to read Heroic Tales often.

-Two Days Later ~ Dungeon ~ Sixth Floor-

Thud

Thud

Thud

Thud

Bell perked up as he heard a loud, rhythmic sound getting closer. “What is that?” He readied Banryū as the loud sound got closer and closer. ‘This might be a bad time to be in a dead end cavern.’

“MOOOOAAARRRGGGHHHH!!!” A Minotaur bellowed as it charged into the cavern.

“MINOTAUR?!” Bell yelled in shock at seeing the infamous Level 2 Monster for the first time. ‘But they’re supposed to only be in the Middle Floors!’

The Minotaur, seeing only a single human in front of it, panted for a second, before charging at Bell head first, it’s cloven hooves shattering the ground it stepped on.

“Shit!” Bell pivoted to get out of the line of the charge and brought Banryū around for a powerful swing.

The instant the Minotaur stopped after missing it’s charge, Banryū slammed into its back.

“Moooaagh?!” The Minotaur staggered forward a single step from the impact. It seemed more confused at being hit than actually injured. “MOOOAARRRGGGHH!!!” It spun into a wild backfist that Bell managed to backstep out of the path of before bringing Banryū down on the Minotaur when it was off-balance.

Bam

The heavy blade of the great swordstaff smashed into the Minotaur’s collarbone and sent it to the ground with a thud.

“MOOOAAARRGGHHH!!!” The Minotaur’s howl nearly deafened Bell as it knocked Banryū’s blade to the side with its fist. It lunged at Bell with a punch, but the move was so telegraphed that a well-trained fighter like Bell easily avoided it. “MOOORRGGHH!!!” The Minotaur became angrier as it swung at Bell again with its opposite fist as it stood up.

Bell ducked low and swung Banryū into the Minotaur’s side with another thud of metal meeting fur and flesh. “Damn, you’re tough!” He cursed at the out-of-place Minotaur. He was barely breaking the Monster’s skin with each strike, but he was at least able to predict its hugely telegraphed punches.

The Minotaur tried to stomp on Bell’s leg, but the Adventurer leapt backwards, the cloven hoof shattered the stone floor like it was spun sugar. “MOOOAAARRGGHH!!!” The Minotaur bellowed, only to take another overhead swing from Bell, the heavy Banryū slamming down onto its opposite collarbone and splitting the skin enough to make it bleed some more.

But the bleeding wasn’t the real danger to the Minotaur. The sheer strength of Bell’s swings, combined with the weight of Banryū, was actually doing more blunt force damage to the Minotaur than slashing damage.

“Hyah!” Bell spun Banryū around to buildup speed and threw all of the torque and force his body could generate behind his next swing. Banryū slashed open the Minotaur’s chest and sent blood flying through the air.

“MOOAAAUUGGHH!!!” The Minotaur actually retreated two steps from the burst of pain. The cut wasn’t very deep, but it was large as it went from one side of the Minotaur’s chest to the other in a straight line.

Bell gave the Monster no time to counterattack. He launched himself at the Minotaur with another powerful overhead swing. The Minotaur guarded, placing both arms over its head, and Banryū slammed into the limbs and stopped as some blood painted its edge again.

“MOOOAAAGGGHHH!!!” The Minotaur let out a bellowing howl as it threw its arms wide, knocking Bell backwards as Banryū’s weight was roughly thrown in the opposite direction, upsetting his balance.

“Shit!” Bell saw the charge coming, the two horns of the Minotaur aimed right at him. He only had once option if he wanted to dodge.

He let go of Banryū.

The Minotaur’s right horn screeched as it torn a line across Bell’s cuirass. Metal was sheared by the incredibly hard horn a split-second before Bell was throw to the side and bounced off the ground twice. The Minotaur stopped its clove hooves against the ground, cracking the stone floor, as it put itself between Bell and Banryū. “MOOOAARRGGHHH!!!” It bellowed out its battle cry loudly.

Bell jumped back up to his feet and faced the Minotaur again. “You think that’s enough to beat me?!” He yelled at the Monster. Bell wiped the blood from his lip and took up his stance. “I’m not dying today!” He stomped powerfully on the ground, leaving a crack of his own on the floor. “I REFUSE TO DIE HERE!!! NOT UNTIL I’VE ACCOMPLISHED MY DREAMS!!!”

Bell shot forward swiftly, appearing in the Minotaur’s guard faster than the Monster expected. It cocked back its fist for a punch, but its collarbone, shoulder, and arm throbbed in pain, slowing it down just enough for Bell to attack.

“Meitei: Hōshō Ken!” Bell bellowed as he twisted is body while rotating his fist and arm into a powerful straight punch that slammed into the Minotaur’s strong abdominal muscles.

“MOOAAAHH!” The Minotaur staggered a step backwards. There was a visible bruise forming on its skin, but it didn’t look serious. A bit of blood escaping the Minotaur’s mouth hinted that internal damage had been done though. “MOOAARRGGHH!!!” The Minotaur threw a punch again, this time with its opposite arm, though the damage previously done by Banryū slowed it down.

Bell pivoted outside the line of the attack and then kept spinning, faster and faster before leaping into the air to come even with the Minotaur’s head. “Meitei: Kūryū Ken!” A punch slammed into the side of the Minotaur’s face. An elbow crashed into its eye. It’s jaw was rattled by a punch. A reverse elbow slammed into its thick neck. Over and over and over, Bell continued to rain down punches and elbows onto the Minotaur’s head, neck, collarbone, shoulder, and chest while maintaining the intense momentum of his spin with the barrage of strikes.

“MOOOAARRGGHH!!!” The Minotaur threw a wild slap at the airborne Bell.

“Hup!” Bell saw it coming and kicked off the swinging arm, backflipping through the air to land on the ground.

The Minotaur was furious as it shook its head. It’s left eye was swollen shut and some blood leaked from it. Any part of its body that wasn’t covered by its fur was covered in visible bruises.

But it wasn’t the only one injured.

‘I’m pretty sure I just cracked a few of the bones in my hands.’ Bell grimaced at the pain that he could just barely feel through the adrenaline pumping through his veins. The tough body of the Minotaur was quite the wall to overcome for a Level 1 Adventurer.

“MOOAARRGGHH!!!” The Minotaur charged forward in a blinding rage; its head lowered to gore Bell to death with its powerful horns.

Bell used his footwork to dodge the horns, but barely had time to raise his guard as the Minotaur’s right arm swung out and slammed into him with a lariat. “GAH!!!” Bell hacked out some blood as he was hit and then carried to the back of the cavern and slammed into the wall.

“MOOaaa…haaa…” The Minotaur backed up a few steps as it used its one good eye to look at the human. Just as it was about to bellow out its victory, Bell forced himself to his feet, despite the blood on his face and the pain throughout his body.

“NOT YET!!!” Bell roared out as he slammed his left foot onto the ground so hard that it left a spiderweb of cracks beneath it. He stomped forward with his left foot, making another cracked footprint on the stone. Another step, and another, each stomp getting stronger and stronger as Bell swiftly closed the distance between him and the injured Minotaur.

“MOOAAA-” The Minotaur’s bellow was cut off as Bell’s final stomp shattered the stone floor directly in front of the Raging Bull Monster.

“MEITEI: SHIN KOKEN!!!” Bell slammed his right fist into the Minotaur’s powerful abs in a devastating uppercut. The Minotaur was actually lifted off its cloven hooves by a few inches, even as an audible snap was heard from Bell’s arm.

“GUAKH!!!” The Minotaur spat out a mouthful of blood from the force of the blow. As it’s feet touched the ground again, it staggered backwards, holding its damaged stomach. Blood continued to leak from its mouth as it turned its one good eye on Bell.

Bell stood in his stance still, his right arm hung limply, but his left arm was raised and ready. Sweat poured down his face from a combination of exertion and pain, but he refused to fall, even as his vision began to develop black spots.

Two blurs appeared before either Bell or the Minotaur could move.

The first blur slammed into the Minotaur and sent it slamming into the wall, shattering the stone.

The second blur had twin streaks of silver that passed through the Minotaur’s neck.

Bell’s vision began to fade entirely as he saw the Minotaur’s head fall to the floor a second before its body collapsed.

The two blurs turned out to be two women; and once the Minotaur was dead, they quickly turned their attention to Bell.

“Are you okay?” The woman on the left asked Bell, but got no response.

The woman on the right got closer to Bell and looked at his eyes. “No way… He’s unconscious…but he’s still standing.”

“He’s still holding his stance though!” The other woman exclaimed as she saw Bell’s stance hadn’t dropped even while he’d blacked out.

Bell knew nothing. He was fairly certain he’d been fighting a Minotaur though. His awareness was completely shot as he saw nothing, heard nothing, and felt nothing. That is, until something brought him slowly back to reality.

“Hey… Hey…” A voice called out to Bell as liquid coated his tongue and then went down his throat. “Come on…”

Bell’s eyes opened slowly, his vision fuzzy, as he saw someone looking at him.

“Hey.” The person turned out to be two people, both young women, Amazons. One with semi-short black hair and two bangs framing her face, each held together with golden bronze hair ornaments. Her dark green eyes brightened up as they met Bell’s rubellite gaze. The other was very similar, but with longer hair, braided bangs framing her face and held at the ends with silver hair ornaments. Her eyes were the same shade of green as the other Amazon’s too.

“Beautiful…” Bell said without a thought.

The smile that the Amazon woman on the left gave Bell was like the warmest sunshine. “Thanks!” She giggled at Bell’s compliment brightly.

“That’s an interesting first thing to say for someone that was in such bad shape.” The Amazon on the right said with a grin.

With a little help from the two Amazons, Bell managed to sit up, only realizing now that he must’ve been laid down at some point by his rescuers. Now that he was fully cognizant Bell quickly realized who had saved him.

The Amazon on his left had multiple golden-colored neckbands around her slim neck, the largest of which sported three blue gems. Her chest was covered by a white breast wrap that left just enough to the imagination. She wasn’t very busty, but it certainly didn’t detract from her beauty at all. Her smooth and toned stomach was left fully on display like many Amazons preferred. She wore a golden armband on each forearm and had golden anklets similar to her neckbands adorned her ankles. The pareo around her waist was a dark-yellow color with a thick band of green along the hem. The garment partially covered her legs and the brown loincloth that hung down to her shins. A thick, brown and white belt with a golden buckle that had a stylized sun on it sat around her hips, over the tied-off pareo. This was one of Orario’s top Adventurers; Tiona Hyrute of Loki Familia, a Level 5, and known by her Title The Slasher.

The Amazon on his right wore blue earrings and a rather revealing outfit. A red bikini-like top that was tied behind her neck and kept secure by a round, silver charm depicting the crescent moon just above her large breasts. She had a yellow pareo with green lines along the hem that was folded and tied around her waist, matching Tiona’s. Beneath that was a red bikini bottom and a matching red garter belt holding up solid red leggings. Around her neck and ankles were rings of silver, and on her wrists were silver armbands. She had two braided locks of her hair on either side of her face, held together by a small silver band near the ends. She was also a well-known Adventurer of the Loki Familia, this was Tione Hyrute, older twin sister of Tiona, and widely known by her Title Jörmungandr.

“Th-Thank you for saving me.” Bell bowed his head to the two women. “I’m Bell Cranel, a new member of Ganesha Familia.”

“You didn’t really need much saving.” Tiona smiled at Bell. “You were doing pretty great against that Minotaur!” She cheered a little at the awesome fight that Bell had shown them.

“Not bad at all, especially after you got disarmed.” Tione said with a nod. “We were about to jump in when you got slammed into the wall, but you got back to your feet so fast and then landed that punch…” She looked at Bell with approving eyes. “You really fucked up that Minotaur’s insides.” She praised him, letting a little crass language slip out.

Tiona nodded with a laugh. “The way it was hacking up blood, there’s no way it was going to get very far before it died!”

Bell blinked at the praise from the two famous (or infamous depending on who you asked) first-class Adventurers. “Thank you.”

Tione helped Bell to his feet while Tiona went to retrieve Banryū.

“This thing is awesome!” Tiona’s eyes were practically sparkling as she carried Banryū with one hand. “It doesn’t feel as good in my hand as my Urga, but it’s still crazy huge! The way you swing this around so freely is cool!”

Bell accepted Banryū from Tiona and gave her a small smile. “Thank you, that means a lot coming from a first-class Adventurer like you, Miss Hyrute.”

Tione handed Bell his black backpack. “We kind of had to use up all of your Low Potions to heal you completely, sorry about that.” She apologized with a bow of her head.

“It’s fine.” Bell slipped his backpack back on, noticing that it had survived the battle with the Minotaur mostly unscathed. “That’s probably why my stomach feels a little weird.”

“Yeah, drinking too many potions in a row will do that. Give it a minute or two and it’ll go away.” Tione assured him with a little smile.

Tiona’s finger traced over the torn out section of Bell’s cuirass. “You dodged that charge by the skin of your teeth, huh?”

Bell agreed with a nod. “Yeah. I’m gonna need to replace my armor.” He was glad that he’d been making a good amount of money each day and the expense wouldn’t be too much of an issue.

“I’ll get the Magic Stone for you.” Tione offered after a moment of silence had fallen over the group. In a flash of silver, one of the kukri knives was unsheathed and sliced the Minotaur’s chest open. Tione deftly snatched the fist-sized Magic Stone out of its chest with ease before presenting it to Bell.

“Sh-Shouldn’t you keep it?” Bell asked, confused as to why Tione would give it to him.

“Nah, you did all the work, it’s yours!” Tiona said with a bright smile.

Bell let Tiona put the Magic Stone into his backpack without arguing. He wasn’t expecting what happened next though.

Tione and Tiona both bowed at the waist to him.

“We’re sorry that you got caught up in our Familia’s mistake.” Tiona and Tione said at the same time.

“Huh?” Bell responded in confusion.

Tione and Tione quickly explained that the Loki Familia’s expedition had been returning to the surface when the Dungeon had spawned a massive horde of Minotaurs on the Seventeenth Floor. After beating a few of them easily, the rest of the horde had panicked and fled, reaching the stairs to the higher Floors while spreading out. But with the sheer number of the Raging Bull Type Monsters all escaping in so many directions and further and further up the Floors, a few of them had managed to get this far, thereby putting Bell’s life in danger.

“Ais and Bete went after the last two Minotaurs that were heading in the direction of the stairs to the Fifth Floor. I’m sure they’ve already handled them.” Tione said as she looked at the pile of white ashes on the floor where the Minotaur’s body had been.

“Thanks for practically taking care of this one for us, Bell!” Tiona smiled brightly at him. “Wouldn’t expect anything less from Ganesha Familia!”

Tione nodded in agreement with her twin sister. “Can always count on members of the Ganesha Familia.”

Bell rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. “Th-thank you, but I’m just a new member.”

Tiona waved that off with a giggle. “That doesn’t matter. Even if you converted recently, you’re still from Ganesha Familia now.”

“Converted?” Bell tilted his head a little. “I’ve never converted…I just joined Ganesha Familia three weeks ago. I’m still Level 1.”

Both Tione and Tiona froze in place as their minds tried to process what Bell had just said. “Huh?”

Bell looked between the sisters. “I got to Orario three weeks ago and joined Ganesha Familia on my first day. Today was my first day on the Sixth Floor.”

The next instant and Bell found himself VERY close to both Tiona and Tione. Two pairs of dark green eyes stared into Bell’s rubellite with intensity, the space between them so small that he could practically feel the heat from their skin.

‘They smell nice.’ Bell thought to himself before he quickly shoved that out of his head. It certainly wasn’t the best time for such thoughts.

“You’re really not a Level 2?” Tiona asked as she stared into Bell’s eyes.

“No ma’am.” Bell answered promptly as he leaned back a little, only for Tione and Tiona to lean forward the same amount to keep his eyes locked with theirs.

Tione leaned back, standing upright again as she looked at Bell in surprise. “You’re not lying…” Most Adventurers developed a knack for spotting liars after a few years, given that the Dungeon was a place where anything could happen, it was a necessary skill to develop. To Tione’s eyes, Bell was not only honest, she wasn’t sure that he’d be able to lie convincingly if he tried.

Bell nodded in agreement with Tione’s words. “I swear. My stats are still ‘F’ Rank and everything.” Technically he shouldn’t be revealing anything of his Status to them, since they were from a different Familia, but he was just thankful for their help when he’d been on his last legs.

Tiona and Tione both looked at each other after hearing that. A silent conversation passed between the twin sisters with just their eyes.

“Basic Abilities at F-Rank in just three weeks?”

“Doesn’t it usually take two weeks for most Adventurers to get their most used stat to H-Rank?”

“That’s what everyone says.”

“But he’s two Ranks higher in EVERYTHING already?”

Tiona sidled up to Bell with a sunshine smile that made Bell smile back reflexively. “How about we take you back to the surface, Bell?”

Tione agreed with a cute smile of her own. “We’d like to help you out, since you got caught up in our mess.”

“Sure.” Bell agreed without thinking. He wasn’t entirely sure why he agreed so fast, but with Tione and Tiona suddenly walking so close to him, he wasn’t complaining.

Tione smiled, her eyes looking at Bell approvingly again. “Just follow us, Bell.” She took point and began to lead the way.

“Let’s go!” Tiona pointed to the only exit in the cavern with a bubbly laugh that made Bell smile.

“Thank you both.” Bell thanked them both for their kindness. He was trying to take his mind off of how nice the sway of Tione’s hips was as she walked in front of him and how nice Tiona felt with her arms wrapped around his left arm, pressing his limb against her body. He managed to take his mind off of both as he went over his fight against the Minotaur. ‘I threw everything I had at the Minotaur…but if Tiona and Tione weren’t there… I want the kind of strength that Tione and Tiona have. I want to stand where they’re standing…and then I want to go even further! I want to get stronger… Stronger than I am now! Stronger than the two that saved me! I want to be a Hero that can save others when they need me!’ A star of desire and determination exploded into life within Bell’s chest right then and there. His already powerful desire to reach his dreams and his goals, became an all-encompassing drive that wouldn’t be held back by anything!

His Falna reacted to such a powerful abnormality, a desire so strong and pure that it could affect the Divinity that resided within the Blessing upon his back.

A new possibility was born from Bell Cranel’s sheer determination and desire.

-Surface-

On the walk back to the surface, conversation had flowed freely between Bell and the Hyrute Sisters. Tiona and Tione learned more about Bell. He told them of how he’d joined Ganesha Familia. He mentioned Ardee and was surprised that Tiona and Tione knew her, the twins being the friends that Ardee had mentioned as being busy preparing for an expedition two weeks ago. Eventually the topic shifted to the sisters, and Bell showed such genuine interest in getting to know about them that Tione and Tiona found themselves smiling without realizing it.

Bell got to learn about each of the sisters, learning their likes and dislikes, such as how Tione liked to try new things that caught her attention such as cooking or music, or that Tiona was a fan of Heroic Tales, like he was. It was what Ardee and Tiona had initially bonded over as well, since Argonaut was their favorite tale. The conversation only came to a halt when the rest of Loki Familia came out of Babel Tower and the Hyrute Sisters had to go meet with their Familia.

Bell almost felt sad to part with Tiona and Tione, but he knew that he had to. “Thank you very much, Miss Tione, Miss Tiona.” Bell smiled as he thanked the Amazons for their help one more time.

“Tione is fine.” Tione grinned at him as the three were about to split up.

“Yeah, just Tiona, Bell.” Tiona agreed with her sister, a bright smile on her face.

Bell chuckled and agreed to the sisters’ offer of casual address. “Right, I’ll remember.”

“We’ll see you again soon, Bell.” Tiona giggled, hugging his left arm and pressing it against her chest.

Tione pressed her large tits against his chest with a grin on her lips. “Try not to get into anymore situations like that one, alright, Bell? We definitely want to see you again.” The slight change in her tone near the end made a feeling, like a thrumming in his heart, pass through his body. Bell could only chalk it up to instinct for why he felt that way.

With a wave, Tiona and Tione headed off to meet up with their Familia. Bell headed towards the Guild to give his report and cash in the Minotaur’s Magic Stone.

-IamGanesha ~ Midday-

“A MINOTAUR?!” Ardee’s sudden shout got the attention of almost everyone in the large communal area.

Bell was being looked over by his worried friend before he could say anything.

“You look okay…” Ardee almost seemed to be debating whether she should pull Bell’s clothes off to be sure. “What happened?”

“Well…” Bell began to tell Ardee what had happened on the Sixth Floor.

Once Bell got to the part where Tione and Tiona showed up and saved him, Ardee let out a breath and a bright smile covered her face.

“I’ll have to thank Tiona and Tione for saving you, Bell.” Ardee said with a happy smile that her friends had helped Bell when he’d pushed FAR beyond the limits of what any Level 1 could be expected to do against a Minotaur.

“Why didn’t you attempt to escape, Bell?” Shakti’s voice came from behind where Bell and Ardee were sitting on one of the many couches in the large common area on the ground floor.

Bell turned to face Shakti (as did Ardee), but whatever he was going to say died in his throat as he saw the look in the Captain’s eyes. “I… I couldn’t, at first… By the time I might’ve been able to…I was too focused on the fight.” He hung his head a little. Now that he said it out loud, it sounded absolutely stupid.

Shakti walked around the couch and sat on Bell’s opposite side. “What is your first goal every day that you enter the Dungeon?”

“To come back home at the end of the day.” Bell answered, knowing that he’d tossed that aside today like an idiot.

“Exactly.” Shakti’s hand gently rested atop Bell’s. “Your life is far more important than fighting a Monster in the Dungeon, Bell.” She looked into his rubellite eyes and held his gaze. “You can fight to protect others, put your life on the line for it even…but in a situation like that, your first goal should be to flee as soon as you’re able.”

Ardee’s hand came to rest on Bell’s free hand as she agreed with her big sister.

Bell nodded quietly, taking the light chastisement to heart. It came from a place of concern for him from two of his Familia members that meant so much to Bell. “You’re right… I should’ve escaped as soon as I saw an opening.” He slowly turned his hands until they were palm up and gently held Ardee and Shakti’s hands.

The three sat quietly together for quite a while, both Ardee and Shakti showing their care and concern for Bell as they held his hands and spoke softly.

It truly opened Bell’s eyes to just how much Ardee and Shakti cared about him, and another goal was added to the blazing star that still burned within him now.

‘I’ll never make Ardee and Shakti sad like this again!’

-Ganesha’s Office ~ Afternoon-

Bell noticed that Ganesha’s normal energetic attitude had practically disappeared as he watched Bell’s Excelia. He knew why, and he could only prepare himself for whatever his God might want to say about it.

Ganesha saw the end of Bell’s battle with the Minotaur and stopped watching the Excelia to speak. “Bell… I believe you’ve already heard what needs to be said from Shakti and Ardee. However, I will say that I’m glad you made it back safely.” Bell felt some weight leave his shoulders at Ganesha’s kindness and concern. “That being said; the path to betterment in this life ends when you pass away. Overcoming the obstacles in one’s path through life is necessary, of course, but violence and force are not always the answer to every obstacle.” Ganesha finished watching the last of Bell’s Excelia and saw something manifest within the Falna. After taking a moment to translate it to hieroglyphs, Ganesha smiled a bit. “Now that you’ve experienced this great obstacle, know that you’ll face more in the future. But you can always count on our Familia to be there to help support you when you need it.”

“Yes, Lord Ganesha.” Bell looked over his shoulder with a smile. “I won’t forget.”

“I am ‘The Remover of Obstacles’, Bell.” Ganesha said with a fond smile for his newest ‘child’. “In that, however, it seems we share a Dharma.”

Bell blinked, not knowing what a Dharma was.

Ganesha wrote in Bell’s new acquisition and then moved the Excelia into the Basic Abilities to make the Falna stronger. Thanks to his elephant mask, Bell didn’t see Ganesha’s eyes widen in shock. A blank paper was placed on Bell’s back and the Update copied over with a swipe of Ganesha’s fingertip.

Bell took the paper, still a little confused, and looked at his new Status.

-Status-

Bell Cranel

Level 1

Strength – F 328 > E 433

Endurance – F 326 > E 432

Dexterity – F 331 > E 436

Agility – F 322 > E 423

Magic – I 0

-Magic-

-

-Skills-

Life Vigor – Raises Strength by a large amount and promotes healing. Effect rises based on the user’s Level.

Vitality – Raises Endurance by a large amount, reduces the effects of and disperses all status ailments over time. Effect rises based on the user’s Level.

Dharma Ganesha – Removal of limits of growth. Stronger desire results in faster growth. Greater effort results in larger growth. Removes obstacles that would hinder growth, such as Charms.

-Status-

Bell gaped at what he saw on the paper in his hands. “L-Lord Ganesha… My stats… So much…” His eyes drifted down to the Skills section and he shot to his feet in surprise. “I HAVE A NEW SKILL!!!”

Ganesha laughed brightly at Bell’s exclamation. “Indeed, you do, Bell! Everything that you desire and dream of, all of your goals, everything that you’ve put all of your hard work and effort into, has manifested as that Skill!”

“Faster growth… Larger growth… Desire and effort…” Bell read over his new Skill again. “This is why I jumped so much, isn’t it?”

Ganesha nodded at Bell’s question. “Everything that you do in pursuit of your goals and desires will now be maximized in your Excelia. However, you must be the one to overcome and remove the obstacles that appear to hinder you. If you do not put in the work and effort, then nothing will change. But if you continue to strive for your goals and your dreams, to pursue the path of self-betterment, you will overcome all obstacles and reach those heights that seem so far away right now!”

“I WILL!!!” Bell declared with absolute belief as the star of determination and desire flared within him powerfully. “I’ll follow the path to my goals and dreams until the end! I’ll remove whatever obstacles that try to stop me! I WILL BE A HERO!!!”

“GANESHA IS PROUD TO WELCOME ANOTHER REMOVER OF OBSTACLES!!!” Ganesha shot to his feet and threw his arms wide in cheer. “THAT YOU SO CLOSELY MATCH MY OWN DHARMA FILLS GANESHA WITH GREAT JOY, BELL!!!” He flexed and posed, light appearing to shine off of him.

“Thank you, Lord Ganesha!” Bell bowed to his God.

“I AM GANESHA!!!” Ganesha cheered, once more throwing his hands upward.

Bell couldn’t wait to tell Ardee and Shakti about his new Skill!

-End Chapter-

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

WOO!!!

Bell had one hell of a fight against the Minotaur! Even at Level 1 with just ‘F’ Rank stats, he managed to bring the big cow to the brink of death!

That certainly shows Bell’s natural strength, fortitude, and martial skill!

It also gets him some interest from Tiona and Tione! Hehehe~

Bell and Ardee cuddle while reading Heroic Tales together! Adorable!

Shakti reminds Bell that his first goal every time that he goes into the Dungeon is to come back home alive.

Getting TOO caught up in your desires, dreams, and goals can be an obstacle in and of itself.

Bell develops his Growth Hack Skill! Just like Ganesha is a Remover of Obstacles, the Skill removes obstacles to Bell’s growth!

GANESHA IS PLEASED BY BELL’S SKILL BEING SO SIMILAR TO HIM!!!

Kek!

Bell was already growing incredibly well through his great strength, skill, and hard work. Just how much will this Physical Beast grow now?

Keep reading to find out!

Let me know what you thought!

Until next time, later!