Is It Wrong to Skitter In A Dungeon? Chapter 56: The Power of Fast Food (Patreon)

Chapter 56: The Power of Fast Food

“…and then he said, ‘Well I’ve got a thigh-high right here for ya!’ and pointed at his crotch!” Persephone tittered. “Of course, the hand he gestured with was the one holding his drink, so he spilled all over his pants. It made him look like he’d peed himself. Got laughed out of the bar after that.”

“No way!” Misha gasped, holding back her laughter.

“It’s true! Obviously, he got barred from the establishment after that. But there’s been a lot more of them around that it seems like there’s no end to them!” the captain of the Demeter Familia said, frowning to herself as she folded her arms, unwittingly emphasizing her extremely generous bust.

“I’ve had some annoying guys like that at the Guild recently,” Rose, a Guild clerk who worked with Eina and Misha, grumbled. “Thinking they can do stupid things to show off… and then they get blood all over my paperwork!”

“They always want discounts, too,” Naaza huffed.

“Men can be such boors,” Cupid sighed, shaking his head sadly. The crossdressing captain of the Aphrodite Familia looked a bit out of place at the table, but no one said anything. He, or rather, as they preferred, she, was just another gal looking for some company as they vented about this and that.

Girl’s Night Out had been a reoccurring event that Taylor and the others had happily kept going. It had also grown a bit, with a few other people joining. Aside from a few more girls from the Guild that Eina knew, quite a few more women who were captains in the various Familias had come to the Cyan Pavilion.

Shakti, Naaza, and Asfi were there. But so too were Sophia Flores, captain of the Serket Familia, Persephone of the Demeter Familia, and Cupid of the Aphrodite Familia, to name a few.

The bi-monthly gathering had turned into an unofficial meeting of the most powerful young women in the city, and Taylor appreciated the chance to unwind and relax with people who were not only strong, but fed up with the bullshit of the city at times as well.

“Anyone else notice that the rise in brash, hot-headed men making trouble around the city seems to have coincided with the changes in the Entertainment District?” Sophia pointed out, and everyone turned towards Taylor.

“It’s not my fault,” she protested. “Besides, why would Ishtar being dethroned change how the brothels worked?”

“She ruled the place with an iron fist, but was also a lot more… hands off when it came to how individual establishments ran things,” Cupid claimed. “So long as the tribute was paid to her, Lady Ishtar didn’t care how they did things. Which means a lot of unsavory things could happen to the women and the customers.”

“The Guild had to go over them all with a fine-toothed comb,” Eina complained. “A bunch of establishments were closed down for one reason or another, and now there’s a dearth of places for the adventurers to… relieve themselves.”

“That’s why there have been so many randy men around?” Syr asked, wrinkling her nose. “Gross.”

Taylor raised an eyebrow at that before shrugging. “Agreed. Anyways, it’s no skin off my nose. I don’t regret taking care of things, either. The city will settle down in time.”

“No one’s blaming you… okay, actually, we are, but we get why you did what you did,” Misha assured Taylor.

“Enough depressing talk!” Syr declared loudly. “Let’s change the topic to something better!”

“Hm. Okay, then. What do you suggest?” Shakti asked.

“Well, we’re already talking about boys, aren’t we? So how about love stuff?” the waitress suggested.

“Syr…” Ryuu groaned, running a hand over her face.

“L-Lili doesn’t think that’s a good idea,” Lili mumbled, still a little nervous being around so many important and powerful adventurers.

“Oh~? Why not? Does little Lili have a crush on someone she doesn’t want anybody to know about?” Syr teased, leaning in towards the pallum.

“N-no!” she stammered.

“It’s Bell, isn’t it?” Taylor guessed in a deadpan. When Lili flinched and flushed, the parahuman sighed. “I don’t know what it is that seems to attract women to him.”

“He’s just… nice,” Lili muttered, embarrassed.

“What about Finn?” Ryuu asked, looking at the Supporter.

“What about him?” Sophia asked, curious about what might be going on between the two pallum.

“…Never mind. Not my place,” the elf said when she saw Lili shooting her a betrayed look.

Taylor was confused, and a little intrigued, but she wasn’t like Lisa, so she didn’t bother to ask. Instead, she looked at Naaza.

“How have things been going with Miach?” the parahuman inquired, and the Chienthrope groaned.

“He’s so oblivious!” she whined. “At least I know he’s not interested in the others, but it’s like he doesn’t even notice when I try to get his attention!”

“You’re interested in your god?” Syr asked, seeming remarkably interested in the topic.

“…Yeah,” Naaza admitted.

“Scandalous!” Syr gasped, but it was clear from the grin she just wanted to gossip. “Anybody else?”

“HA!” Shakti snorted, and Asfi nodded demurely in agreement with the sentiment. The other captains all gave various gestures of denial.

“It’s hard to be attracted to somebody, let alone respect them, when you’ve seen them face down in a ditch, dead drunk after a week-long bender,” Asfi declared, an expression of disgust on her face. “Lord Hermes is more like an idiot cousin or little brother I have to keep an eye on so he doesn’t get into trouble.”

“Similar situation for me,” Shakti replied, rubbing her forehead. “Lord Ganesha is too loud.”

“I prefer men over women,” Sophia said. “Not that Lady Serket doesn’t try to get me into her bed. But she’s not exactly… well, like Miss Asfi said, once you’ve seen your god repeatedly do something stupid it’s hard to see them as anything remotely romantic.”

Syr pouted, looking disappointed for some reason, while Naaza and Mikoto looked conflicted.

In the end, romance discussions continued for a bit longer, everyone at the table getting progressively tipsier as the drinks flowed, loosening tongues. Of course, considering just how much alcohol even a Level 1 adventurer had to drink to get buzzed, the girls had likely consumed a whole barrel’s worth of wine.

“I think Syr’s had enough,” Ryuu said, moving the mug away from the silver-haired waitress. She just giggled drunkenly and tried to reach for it.

“Nooo~! Gimme!”

“Hm. It is getting late. We should probably call it a night,” Shakti said, cheeks flushed slightly as she held back a yawn.

“Good idea,” Eina said, helping Misha to her feet who swayed back and forth a little. As regular human, the Guide girl had less alcohol tolerance than a half-elf or werewolf like Eina or Rose.

“Oh, before I forget, Hestia wanted me to pass these out to you all,” Taylor said, remembering something the tiny goddess had asked of her.

The parahuman fished out some coupons from her pocket and passed them around the table, making sure everyone got one.

“What are these?” Rose asked, looking at the colorful square of paper with slightly unfocused eyes.

“Coupons,” Taylor replied. “They’re like sales vouchers for special deals at shops and the like. Buy a meal at the Hearthstone, get a free drink when you hand them in. It encourages repeat customers and sales.”

“Huh, so you’re finally ready to open your restaurant?” Persephone hummed. “My lady has been talking about the orders you’ve been making.”

“That’s right. The grand opening is this weekend,” Taylor informed everyone. “Stop by if you like. Hestia would certainly appreciate it.”

“Trying to muscle in on Mama’s turf, Miss Taylor?” Syr asked in a teasing tone before hiccupping a little.

“Hardly. The Hearthstone will be catering to a different set of clients,” Taylor assured her. “Rather than a sit-down restaurant like the Hostess, Hestia’s will be selling fast food. That is, food to quickly eat there or take out and eat elsewhere and is made in ten to fifteen minutes. Thirty, tops.”

“How can you make something that fast?” Asfi wondered.

“It’s simple food. Not very complicated,” Taylor replied.

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Syr sniffed haughtily. Before immediately keeling over in Ryuu’s arms, snoring loudly.

“I look forward to it,” Taylor said with a chuckle.

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“It’s finally done,” Hestia said, looking up at the restaurant with wide eyes. It had taken weeks, but it was finally up and running!

“Yup. Looks nice,” Taylor commented, before patting Hestia fondly on the head. She grumbled at the action before perking up as the rest of the Familia gathered.

As they did, Taylor turned her attention back to the store. The Hearthstone was located near the Guildhall, and had been an Apollo Familia store before renovations. The parahuman predicted that the location was going to contribute to a lot of sales from Guild employees in the future, as fast, cheap food was always something an office worker valued.

The storefront had big windows to let in plenty of sunlight, and a signboard with a big red flame with a blue bell, the Familia’s emblem, hung over the entrance.

“Let’s check out the inside,” Taylor suggested, and everyone agreed. A bell over the double doors chimed as the group entered.

The restaurant was large enough to easily fit fifty people, with room for up to a hundred if they squeezed in. There were rows of booths for sitting as well as regular tables and chairs in the middle. A counter for customers to approach for ordering food was at the back, and the kitchens could be seen behind it.

The menus were attached to big signs above and on the counter, with hand-drawn images of the food items on them, alongside the written descriptions. The city had a high level of literacy compared to other places in the world, but not everyone could read Koine for one reason or another, so this helped make it easier for customers to know what to get.

And what exactly did the Hearthstone sell? The Holy Trifecta of fast food: Burgers, French Fries, and Pizza. There were variations of them, such as chicken patty burgers alongside beef, or waffle fries and tater tots alongside the usual type of straight cut fries. Jagamarukun, too, was sold here. And naturally, there were six different types of pizza, including classic all-cheese and meat lovers, that were served as personal 6 inch pan pizzas, or in ‘Adventurer’ sized 24-inch diameter pizzas.

Making the food was no issue thanks to some magic tools Hestia and Welf had made with help from Taylor’s memories of fast food on Earth Bet. And besides, burgers were easy. So were French Fries and pizza. And with magic tools to keep food fresh for much longer than anything Earth Bet was capable of short of Tinkertech, and with fewer preservatives, even if the meals were smothered in oil and salt it’d still be healthier than plenty of ‘healthy’ options back in Brockton Bay.

Drinks were trickier, as paper cups weren’t a thing, but they’d found a workaround by having customers return the mugs, or put them in a receptacle near the doors when finished, along with the food trays. No cups for takeout, though. And they didn’t serve alcohol. Just water, juice, and lemonade. No soda, sadly, as Taylor hadn’t found a way to make carbonated water or buy enough sugar.

“Welcome, Lady Hestia!” a young woman working behind the counter said in greeting, bowing politely towards the group as they entered.

“Hello, Tracy!” Hestia said, greeting the server. Ten people had been hired, most of whom were the cooks. They’d work in shifts and hopefully it would be enough to start with.

The restaurant workers all wore the same uniforms, too. They were similar to the Hostess of Fertility outfits, but with blue shirts and red aprons and headbands.

In fact, Hestia had gone with a whole red and blue theme for her restaurant. Red and blue checkerboard floor tiles had been put down, and the tables and chairs alternated between red, blue, black, and white, with the booths painted blue.

The goddess had even made mascots! Sparky the Helpful Flame and Chime the Cheerful Bell. Hestia had taken the idea from Earth Bet, and made cute little anthropomorphic cartoon characters to advertise the Hearthstone and entertain people.

This was a novel approach to sales. Taylor couldn’t think of any other store in Orario that had something like this.

“So, this ‘fast food’ stuff… how does it work?” Welf asked, looking at the menus.

“Like it usually works in other restaurants. Order food. People cook the food. Pay for the food. Eat the food,” Taylor drawled. “It just all happens very fast.”

“So, we order while standing?” Primo asked, looking around at the tables.

“Yes. You order up here at the counter,” Hestia confirmed. She then pointed to the big red arrows on the floor that led from the door to the counter. “Follow the arrows!”

“The meals are quite cheap,” Leo noted. “Can the restaurant sustain itself with such low prices?”

“Yes, I double and triple-checked!” Hestia confirmed. “And it’s not about the money, it’s about the food!”

“And the sizes?” Silva asked.

“Well, adventurers eat more than regular people do,” Hestia pointed out. “So there’s child-sized servings, regular adult sized ones, and the ‘Adventurer’ sized serving, which is more expensive but also contains more food.”

It was basically just small, medium, and large, although the ‘large’ serving size was more like three large meals in one.

“We’ve had pizza before at the manor, and you served us burgers before as well, but fries… what are those?” Oriana wondered.

“Sticks of potatoes fried in oil and covered in salt. Sort of like Jagamarukun except made of whole potato instead of shredded and compacted,” Taylor explained. “Easier to eat, at least in my opinion.”

“That does sound good,” the knight admitted. “I suppose them I shall order an Adventurer sized Number 3. With apple juice.”

With Oriana taking the first step, everyone else began to place orders, and Tracy handled the influx of orders with aplomb.

‘My training once more proves to be useful,’ Taylor thought with a smug little grin.

She’d drilled the ten new hires in the dread art of retail customer service, educating them in the ancient practices of her homeland. With any luck, they’d be able to handle anything that came at them. Except violence. None of them had been given Falnas, since they wouldn’t be heading into the Dungeon with the rest of the Familia.

‘Do they count as being part of the Familia if they’re just employees?’ Taylor wondered. ‘I might need to go over the paperwork and tax codes again.’

As she pondered business stuff, Tracy and the others were hard at work whipping up the food. The kitchens used the assembly line method, taking premade ingredients and then cooking or reheating them as necessary. Magic really helped in that regard, and in ten to fifteen minutes, the meals were served up, hot and ready to eat.

“It’s not bad,” Silva hummed as she ate her burger.

“Mm. It’s greasy, though,” Karen commented.

“Taste’s good to me!” Welf declared.

“The salt is gonna make me thirsty…” Lucia muttered. “Free refills are definitely going to be necessary.”

“I love it!” Iris said with a wide grin.

Everyone chatted amongst each other as they enjoyed their lunch at Hestia’s newest endeavor, and slowly, more people began to trickle in, curious about the new store and drawn in by the smell.

“Good afternoon, Hestia.”

“Oh! Oooh! Miach! Take! Over here!” Hestia called out happily as she spotted two of her godly friends and their Familias.

“It looks like the grand opening is going well,” Miach said, looking around. He then held up a coupon. “And these vouchers… an interesting idea. And they have no expiration date?”

“The grand opening ones don’t. Going forward, though, they’ll be given a limit to be used. Don’t want people to stockpile them,” Hestia replied. “I’m thinking of handing over coupons in a few different ways. Maybe after somebody buys enough? I also have ideas for loyalty rewards! Buy ten meals, get the eleventh, free!”

“Not a bad idea,” Miach said, rubbing his chin, before looking at the menu. “Cute little characters. I wonder if the pharmacy would do better with something like that?”

“Who drew them?” Daphne inquired, the red-head looking over cartoony figures.

“I did,” Taylor informed the former member of Apollo’s Familia.

“Really?” Daphne asked, surprised, and she wasn’t the only one.

“Is it that surprising?” the parahuman wondered.

“You don’t seem like the artistic type. Or, well, not the kind to draw things,” Naaza claimed.

Taylor shrugged at that. To be fair, a lot of her skill was thanks to her power helping out. It was a lot easier to draw perfectly straight lines when you had pinpoint precision with an ant or spider.

“Mikoto, you seem to be doing well,” Takemikazuchi said, giving a fond smile at his former Familia member.

“Ah! T-Takemikazuchi-Sama!” Mikoto stammered, hastily wiping some of the burger grease off her face with a flushed expression.

“Have you been keeping up with your training?” the Far Eastern God of War asked, and she nodded.

“Yes! I have!” Mikoto confirmed.

“Wonderful! Perhaps we can have a spar? I’d love to see how far you’ve come.”

She nodded rapidly at that, unable to respond verbally as a blush overtook her face.

‘Seems like Naaza isn’t the only one with Divine Fever,’ Taylor thought in amusement. And from the grin on Lili’s face, the pallum had had the same thought.

As Mikoto caught up with her former friends and the Miach Familia chatted with the Hestia Familia, Taylor watched it all with a tiny smile. She’d made a change here in Orario. An impact on the city and its people.

It was nice to be able to do something productive, to help others in a way that wasn’t meaningless PR or ruling with an iron fist.

‘And yet someone dares threaten my new home,’ Taylor thought to herself, a flash of anger rising up within her at the thought of Evilus.

In a few days, the Hestia Familia would join the Loki Familia on a trip into the Dungeon to acquire materials to build weapons and armor to take on the mad cultists.

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Taylor knocked a few times on a discreet looking wall of the Dungeon. She was not very deep today, merely on the 15th Floor. But her purpose was not hunting monsters.

After a moment the rock was slid aside, revealing a hidden pantry, much like there had been on the 27th. There were only a few Xenos hiding within, and the one who’d opened the door waved politely at the parahuman.

“Hello, Miss Taylor,” Ray said politely in greeting.

“Hello. And you can just call me ‘Taylor,’ Ray,” she requested as she walked inside.

“Oh. Right, sorry, it’s a habit,” the Siren apologized.

“It’s fine,” Taylor said, before motioning for Chris to approach. When the adventurer and monster were inside, Ray closed the wall back up, and helped Taylor remove the saddlebags from Chris’ back.

“Ranye asked for more sewing supplies, so I included some extra fabric, thread, and needles,” Taylor said as the Siren looked through the goods. “Potions and bandages are in there, as well.”

She then gestured to another bag. “Food is in that one. Salt and other spices, too.”

“This will be a big help,” Ray said with a smile. “How have things been on the surface?”

“Wiene is doing well. There was an… incident, but it was resolved, and it seems to have generated some goodwill towards her,” Taylor revealed.

“She’s unhurt?” Ray pressed, and when the adventurer nodded, she sighed in relief. “Good. Good.”

“I also have a warning,” Taylor said. “In four days, the Loki Familia will be embarking on a journey to the 36th Floor. The Hestia Familia will be tagging along. Let the other Xenos know to stay hidden during that time.”

“Thank you!” Ray said, relieved. “We don’t usually get advance warning of big groups of adventurers! This will help a lot.”

“Stay safe. And before I go, do you have anything else you’d like me to bring down the next time?” Taylor inquired.

“Tools,” Ray said after thinking it over. “Stone working tools. Chisels, hammers, anything that can help us work with stone.”

“Thinking of expanding your hiding places?” Taylor wondered. “Would that even work? I thought the Dungeon regenerated?”

“You are correct, the Dungeon does heal. But it is possible to take pieces of the Dungeon and shape them carefully without triggering the regeneration. What we hope to do is carve things such as tables and benches and shelves. Some minor alterations are also possible to do directly. And of course, Landform Weapons and other objects meant to be detached from the Dungeon can be shaped freely,” Ray explained.

“Interesting. Alright, I’ll get some. And would woodworking tools also help?”

“Yes, I think so,” Ray mused after thinking the offer over.

The Siren then frowned. “Oh, I almost forgot. Lyd wanted me to pass on a warning of our own.”

“Really?” Taylor inquired. “Please, tell me.”

“Yes. We encountered the slavers again,” the Siren said with a dark expression. “On the 29th Floor. And one of them had a strange artifact in their possession that lets him control a Xenos.”

“Control?” Taylor asked sharply.

“Yes. Like you do with your insects,” Ray confirmed. “Lyd saw and experienced it firsthand. It was a collar of some sort, and with it… the slaver was able to order the poor girl to die with but a word.”

“Oh,” Taylor said darkly, eyes narrowing. A magic item capable of controlling people like a puppet… that was bad.

‘And it confirms my theory that Evilus has access to somebody like Asfi. Somebody with the Mystery ability,’ she thought to herself. ‘Only five people in Orario have this rare Development Ability, so it should be easy to track down. But then again, if it’s Evilus, they probably have members the Guild has no record of, just like Revis. Or the entire Ikelos Familia.’

“Thank you for the warning,” Taylor said, grateful for the intel. This would be useful. Ray just inclined her head.

“You have shown us kindness. It’s the least we could do.”

Taylor nodded back at the Xenos, before preparing to leave the hideout. She needed to warn her Familia and allies about this new development. Discreetly, of course. It wouldn’t do to give away where she got this information.

‘What is Evilus planning?’ Taylor wondered as she and Chris returned to the surface. She had a feeling it wasn’t anything good.

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“So much sand,” Emma murmured, staring out at the vast sandy desert that lay before us.

“This sure brings back memories,” Aisha claimed, arms folded as she observed her former home.

The great Kaios Desert spread out in front of a large chunk of the Hestia Familia, who had been brought here by Taylor. Alongside Aisha and Emma, Ryuu, Oriana, Mikoto, Leo, Silva, Gita, Gina, Primo, Karen, Tammuz, and Haruhime were there with her.

Rather than fly everyone over one by one using the swing-harness contraption, the Familia had taken a short trip to the edge of the desert by riding Debbie. Officially, it was to gather resources from the area. Namely, a Sand Worm as their carapace made for a decent material for armor. Light weight, flexible, and able to stand up to Level 1s, it would be used to augment the defenses of the other Level 1s.

That wasn’t the only reason they were here, though. It was just a convenient excuse. After all, aside from Marius, who was notably not there, this was everyone else in the Familia who had yet to receive a Skill from Taylor.

‘I need to protect them,’ Taylor thought to herself as she fondly looked at her family. It had taken a lot of bargaining, giving up some concessions, and a bribe, but finally Ouranos had agreed to her request to grant them Skills.

She wanted her Familia to have them before entering the Dungeon for the joint expedition. This way, they’d be able to get used to their brand-new powers through the best possible way: violence.

Right now, though, the group was far enough away from Orario that any dimensional shocks from Queen Administrator wouldn’t affect the Dungeon’s seals, and the only gods in the region were either weak, cowardly, or criminals who the Sky God hadn’t cared if they ‘mysteriously got sent back to the Heavens’ if they crossed her path.

“Gather around, everyone. I have something to tell you,” Taylor announced, drawing their attention towards her.

“What’s up, boss?” Gina asked, bouncing over to her side.

“Are you finally gonna tell us the secret to your super-duper strength?” Silva wondered.

“Yes, actually,” Taylor said, before smirking when she saw the shocked look on their faces. “Well, sort of.”

“Tease,” the cat-girl huffed.

Taylor reached out and patted Debbie, taking refuge in the simple mind of the giant armored worm as she gathered her thoughts.

“I’m sure you’re all curious about me. About my origins,” Taylor finally said as the silence stretched on. Everyone nodded at that.

“We have a betting pool about it,” Iris admitted.

“Which we weren’t supposed to talk about!” Lucia hissed, slapping her friend’s arm.

“Oh? Oh, right,” the cow-girl coughed awkwardly.

“I already knew about it,” the captain informed them. “Maybe don’t leave the betting sheets out where I can see them next time.”

A few people blushed at that, causing Taylor to smirk. “Well, it’s time for me to reveal where I come from.”

“Why isn’t Marius here?” Oriana asked.

“While he may have joined our Familia, he’s still here as a hostage to keep Rakia in line,” Taylor reminded her. “That does not mean I won’t tell him in the future… but he has to earn my trust a bit more before I do so.”

The others nodded, some more reluctantly than others. It didn’t sit right with them to deny this to somebody who’d fought and bled with them on the training field. But they understood their captain’s worries. Marius may have been a good person, but he was still the heir to the Rakian throne. Until they could be sure he wouldn’t betray the Familia’s secrets, he would be kept in the dark.

“I was not born on this world,” Taylor revealed, ripping off the band-aid in one go. “A few months ago, I was in a fight, and got sent here.”

“Crap, I should have gone with my gut,” Leo grumbled along with a few others sighing in disappointment while Haruhime giggled and shared a cute high-five with Emma.

“Yes! I knew it! She’s a Faller!” the pinkette cheered.

“Indeed! Just like the stories!” the renard agreed.

Chuckling, Taylor watched as the Familia lamented or celebrated the outcome of their bets.

“Yes. I am not from around here in a very literal sense. The same is true for my father, Danny Hebert. Or, as most people around here knew him, “The Strongest Level 1” and vice-captain of the Zeus Familia.”

“And also Bell’s father,” Ryuu piped up, earning a nod.

“That’s right. But Bell was born here, when my father ended up in Orario similar to myself… just vast displaced in time,” Taylor explained.

“That can’t be the only reason we’re this far from the city,” Ryuu claimed.

“Correct. The reason for that ties into why I’m here,” Taylor said, before taking a deep breath. “Let me tell you about Earth Bet… and the day a golden man appeared…”

What followed was a harrowing hour for everyone as Taylor revealed not only her origins, but the origins of her bug controlling power.

  By the time she was done, everyone was staring at her, some with tears in their eyes, other with a mixture of emotions. Hero worship was a common one that shone through the pity and horror, though most unsettling, at least to Taylor, were the ways Haruhime and Tammuz were staring at her with utter reverence, as if gazing at a goddess.

“You did all that to save them… and… and… how could they do that to you?” Emma asked, wiping tears out of her eyes.

“Despicable,” Karen spat out, the knightly Oriana nodding resolutely in agreement.

“Such cruelty and incompetence would be harshly punished back in Albion!”

“So, you want to give us some of these… Shards?” Ryuu asked, bringing up the crux of the matter.

“Yes,” Taylor said with a nod.

“They won’t try to control us, will they?” Gita asked nervously.

“No. They don’t work like that,” Taylor replied. “Most Shards are… dumb. They are passive and care more about collecting data from the way their ‘hosts’ interact with the powers they grant than controlling said hosts. The ones that do are… unique.”

Taylor felt a pulse of affection from her passenger at that, taking it as praise.

“It would take the form of a Skill, then?” Aisha inquired.

“Yes. They seem to be closer to Spells in some ways as they cause the Magic stat to grow after use, but they do not run the risk of suffering Mind Down.”

“And it will make us stronger?” Mikoto pressed, expression stern, but also eager.

“It will,” Taylor confirmed.

“I think… yes, I want this,” the samurai requested.

“Me too,” Oriana requested. The rest of the group all wanted it as well, and Taylor felt a tiny smile creep onto her lips.

“Alright then. This won’t take long.” She raised a hand and tugged on the Godslayer Skill, drawing on Queen Administrator to bestow her Familia with Shards of their own.

Extra-dimensional energy threaded outwards from beyond time and space and ‘touched’ their brains, and the deed was done. No flash of light, or sound effects, or any reaction at all.

“That’s it?” Gina asked, sounding disappointed by the lack of explosions or anything else.

“The process is very subtle… for us mortals. Apparently, gods can feel it when it happens. And the Dungeon doesn’t quite like it much, either,” Taylor replied.

“Does that mean some gods will come looking?” Lucia asked nervously, glancing around.

“Perhaps. But I can’t sense any nearby, so we’re fine,” Taylor said with a shrug. “Now, I know you all just gained them, but I think it’s time to find out what you got. Don't even need Hestia to update them, either, since these aren't Falna related.”

“How?” Aisha asked, squinting at the parahuman suspiciously. She just grinned, and the earth began to shake before a trio of gargantuan Sand Worms exploded out of the ground nearby.

They were massive, sandy brown behemoths, much larger than a Dungeon Worm. And while not as heavily armored, they had spikes Debbie lacked and could swallow a wagon whole.

They weren’t alone. Horse-sized scorpions, wagon-sized spiders, vulture-sized tarantula hawk wasps, and dog-sized ants poured out alongside the super-worms, and the Hestia Familia glared at Taylor.

“Well? What are you waiting for?” Taylor asked as the swarm attacked without mercy.

The Hestia Familia learned what their new Skills were very quickly that day. And ended up with sand in places best left unmentioned.

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List of Shards granted to the Hestia Familia:

Ryuu Lion “The Gale”

Level 5

Vedrfolnir Unlimited: Aerokinesis capable of generating gale force winds, tornadoes, and blades of cutting air. (SHARD)

Mikoto Yamato “Absolute Shadow”

Level 2

Skill –

Severance: Increase the sharpness of any object and cut through the intangible. (SHARD)

Oriana Drake “Purekiki”

Level 2

Skill –

Great Wall: Anchors the user in place. Cannot be moved while Skill is active. Greatly raises Power and Endurance as well as durability of held and worn objects while the Skill is active. (SHARD)

Emma Flores

Level 1

Skills –

Allegiance: Allies who have Skills used on them or Spells cast on them that originate from the user of this Skill recover small amounts of health and stamina and have negative effects reduced or removed if weak enough. (SHARD)

Leo Valdez

Level 1

Skill –

Gigant Varia: Adjust the size of inanimate objects held or worn by the user. Weight increases in accordance with the size. Size and weight return to normal when no longer in contact with the user, or at the discretion of the user. (SHARD)

Love Silva

Level 1

Skill –

Cheshire’s Tail: Charm multiple targets within range of the user. Charmed targets will follow the user's orders until something breaks them out of their trance. Pain or physical interactions with non-Charmed individuals are capable of undoing the Charmed state. (SHARD)

Gita Meyers

Level 1

Skill –

Wandering Eyes: Create multiple autonomous floating orbs that resemble eyeballs. The user can see through these constructs, and manipulate them freely. Can cast Spells or use other Skills through the constructs. (SHARD)

Primo Libera

Level 1

Skill –

Stellar Dust: Create varying amounts of glittering particles that can refract and reflect light as well as lasers. Creating and sustaining large amounts will consume Mind. (SHARD)

Gina Gwen

Level 1

Skill –

True Sound: Control the volume of all sounds made by the user, increasing or decreasing them at will. (SHARD)

Karen Morris

Level 1

Skill –

Ath nGabla: Issue a challenge to an opponent. If accepted – either verbally or through action – the opponent cannot attack anyone else except the challenger. This does not end until surrender or defeat of either target or user. Only works on one target at a time. (SHARD)

Tammuz Belili “Dumuzid”

Level 4

Skill –

Adonis Frame: Temporarily become immune to negative status effects such as poison as well as magic, including Charms and Curses. (SHARD)

Aisha Belka “Antianeira”

Level 4

Skill –

Rage of Astarte: Increase Power stat the more damage is taken. (SHARD)

Sanjouno Haruhime

Level 1

Skill -

Foxfire: Conjure fireballs from the tip of the tail. Size and power can be adjusted upon creation, and controlled at will. (SHARD)