Sorry if the chapter has many spelling errors or clear signs of AI; in the final stretch I rushed to send it quickly and didn't do that final proofreading to fix those mistakes. This chapter ended up being extra long to finish quickly with these two scenes, more than four thousand three hundred words, the longest I've ever written. In the next chapter, the protagonist will return to the scene.
— — — — — — — — — — —
Hestia blinked again, her eyes moving slowly from one exhausted face to another.
— Eh?
Only after a few good moments, just standing there staring blankly into space with a dumbfounded look on her face, did she realize the situation.
In front of him was a large group of adventurers, several dozen but not nearly a hundred. But they were all in varying degrees of distress.
Most of them were just pale with a look of astonishment; considering their battered equipment and everything else, they must have faced several enemies on their way here or simply fled for their lives.
However, a considerable number of them were also injured, some quite seriously with open wounds still gushing blood.
Hestia's eyes widened.
— W-What?!
She hurried forward without thinking, skirts brushing against the stone floor as she weaved between them.
— Are you okay?! What happened up there?! — she asked, her voice tight with worry.
Several heads turned toward her, slow and confused.
— A… goddess…? — someone muttered, barely audible.
Hestia dropped to her knees beside one of the injured, hands hovering uncertainly, afraid to touch and make it worse.
— It's alright. You're safe now. Just… just tell me what happened. — she said quickly.
The adventurer tried to answer but immediately hissed in pain.
— We were... we were passing by the seventeenth- Gh! — his body tensed as his fingers pressed harder against his side.
Hestia's breath caught.
She leaned closer, carefully easing his hand away just enough to see the wound.
'Oh no… this is bad.'
The flesh had been torn open rather than cut cleanly, the edges ragged and uneven. Blood kept spilling out despite the pressure he'd been applying, soaking his clothes and the stone beneath him.
Maybe a vein was hit or some other important biological thing.
Either way, it wasn't stopping.
He wouldn't last long eithout a potion or immediate medical treatment…
— D-Don't move too much… It's fine. I've got you. I'll take care of it. — Hestia said quickly, forcing her voice to stay calm.
She placed both hands over the wound.
The adventurer hissed sharply, his whole body flinching at the contact, the exposed flesh painfully sensitive.
— Ngh…!
Hestia winced, whether out of fear, disgust, or anxiety
'If I don't do something… he's going to die.'
The Dungeon was merciless. Stepping inside it was no different from signing a death warrant. Even the strongest heroes of the past had never claimed true safety within these walls.
Still, that didn't mean giving up you life. And it certainly didn't mean she would stand by and do nothing.
'Okay… okay. Calm down, Hestia. You've done this many times before. Just be careful, very careful, a little at a time.'
Her brows knit together as she closed her eyes, focusing.
'Slow… slow… just a little…' She pushed gently, warmth seeped from her palms.
The blood gradually stopped flowing, slowing down, until it stopped completely, but it hadn't clotted, so it was difficult to understand what was happening.
Then, as if going back in time, the blood began to draw back into the wound, and torn flesh started to knit together at an agonizingly slow pace.
A faint glow spread from her hands, a soft, multicolored sheen like a rainbow. So weak it was almost invisible.
— Ugh…! — the adventurer groaned, his face twisting in pain. It wasn't sharp anymore, but uncomfortable, the sensation shouldn't be very pleasant.
— That's it… that's it… — Hestia whispered, her hands shook as she kept the power in check.
Using her divine power like this wasn't hard or anything. But certainly was dangerous in this situation.
As everyone should know, Dungeon doesn't have much of a liking for the gods.
Which was funny... considering that half a minute ago a CertainSomeone was jumping for joy at the idea of saying "fuck it" to that.
A few moments later, the blood on the floor had returned to its proper place, probably cleaned up and all, and the wound had already closed completely.
The now unharmed man, realizing he was in no pain, widened his eyes in surprise and sat up slightly, propping himself up on his elbows to see better.
The man, now unharmed, seemed to realize only then that the pain was gone.
His eyes widened in disbelief as he shifted, then slowly pushed himself up, resting on his elbows so he could look at himself properly.
— What… Am I saved...? — he muttered, his voice unsteady.
Seeing that the situation was under control, Hestia relaxed a little and wiped the nervous sweat from her brow.
She was about to satisfy her doubts but...
— Phew… everything went well. Now explain to me what-
— YAHOO! I'M SAVED! OH MY GOD, I'M SAVED! — he suddenly shouted, sitting up straight, his voice echoing far more than it reasonably should have.
— Wha-wha-what?! — Hestia jumped back in surprise, almost losing her balance.
— OH MY GOD, I'M SAVED! I never thought I'd see the light of day again! Oh my god, oh my god! — he kept rambling, his voice growing louder with each word.
— After this, I'll never hold back my desires for something as stupid as respect ever again… WHEN I GET HOME, I'M GOING TO EAT MY WIFE AND MY NINE SECRET MISTRESSES ALL TOGETHER!
— WHAAAAT?!!! — Hestia screamed, her mind plunging into complete chaos.
If someone could look inside her head at that moment, they would see nothing but a blue screen.
In all my years in this vital industry, this was the first time this had ever happened.
Hestia began to wonder if she had somehow messed something up, if her divine power had done something strange to the man's mind or some other shit.
But before she could even begin to process that thought...
BAM!
A hand slammed straight into the man's face with brutal force. The impact lifted him clean off the ground, sending him flying several meters away before he hit the floor and went completely still.
— You idiot, acting like that in front of a goddess! — a woman snapped, standing where the man had been moments earlier, her fist still clenched from the strike.
Hestia stood there, frozen, staring at the scene in front of her.
Her operating system had long since crashed.
— Hestia-sama, please ignore that man. There are others who still need help right now! — the woman said, her tone shifting entirely as she turned toward Hestia, suddenly sounding like a kind and earnest young woman genuinely worried about her companions.
'Freya two?' Hestia thought unconsciously.
...
After that… initial shock, the situation unfolded as expected.
Those who were still in good condition helped line up the wounded to receive Hestia's treatment. She worked with full concentration, carefully controlling her powers so she could heal as quickly as possible while remaining as discreet as she could.
However, this soon proved not to be the best choice.
There were simply too many people.
While she tended to one adventurer, another's condition worsened. She was forced to change her approach, taking measures that merely reduced the severity of the injuries instead of fully healing them, leaving everyone stable enough to survive until proper help arrived.
The adventurers were all but satisfied with the situation. But even that wasn't enough in Hestia's eyes…
She adjusted a strand of her bangs that had fallen over her eyes, and during a brief pause between patients, she let her gaze wander over the group gathered around her.
What she saw made her compassionate, sympathetic heart ache.
She saw suffering, anguish, and quiet resignation. Even with a divine being at their side, many of them showed no hope in their eyes that this would be enough, perhaps out of disbelief or because they were so mentally shaken that not even a miracle could truly reach them anymore.
Faced with that heartbreaking sight, Hestia couldn't help but feel pity, helplessness, and above all… anger.
Not at the world or at them but at herself.
She was a goddess, for gods' sake. A near-omnipotent being who was supposed to bring faith, love, and hope into the hearts of others, to guide them toward a better future.
Yet, because she chose to live like a mortal, because she restrained herself to the bare minimum of her divine power, she felt useless, incapable of truly doing anything.
Damn it. Her only Child, and also her lover, had been missing for months, and all she could do was wait?!
— If it were me, I would do it with my own hands.
Freya's words echoed in her mind. A childish, irresponsible goddess who cared little for laws or notions, as long as she could get what she wanted, she would do anything. All that, hidden behind the mask of a gentle and understanding woman.
— After all… it must be terribly painful to realize that devotion alone isn't always enough.
Was she right?
Was doing the right thing not always the right way to do things?
Would Hestia, in her right mind, listen to that diabolical whisper in her thoughts, give in to temptation, and commit that sin, just to save a group of people she didn't even know?
— A question, hypothetically speaking. If I were about to do something incredibly stupid… like, really stupid… what would you do?
— I would hit you hard on the head. Then I would help you.
The memory of the conversation she had moments earlier with her friend resurfaced. How she had been overwhelmed by the urge to do something she knew was wrong by every standard, and how, without hesitation, her good friend had said she would help her anyway.
A realization came into Hestia's mind.
'All I want is to truly live. To leave home is to discover the wonderland that mortals call life, to wear the same smile they do every day, even knowing that their time is limited, that it could end at any moment.'
But…
'Is living like this really worth it, when I can't even help someone I care about because of an unspoken agreement?'
After a few miserable moments of thought,which could be summed up as her mentally throwing all her problems out the window and deciding to follow her heart. Hestia reached her conclusion.
No. It wasn't worth it!
So what was she going to do?
Well… first, curse the Dungeon. Obviously.
— Fucking Dungeon… — she muttered with a mischievous grin as she slowly stood up, brushing the dust from her clothes.
Second, she was going to save some children.
Shine!
…
— Hestia-sama, this one is next! His right arm was devoured, and a normal potion isn't working. He must be cursed! — Bell said frantically, struggling to support a man whose arm ended in a bandaged stump. The cloth was soaked in red, a clear sign that the bleeding hadn't fully stopped.
The man groaned weakly, his face pale and slick with sweat.
What a day, huh?
Ignoring all the crap that had happened earlier… to think that now, of all things, she would be directly receiving help from a goddess.
At first, she was still reeling from the shock of having indirectly abandoned her captain to what was supposed to be his certain death… quotation marks included.
She didn't even have the mental capacity to absorb the exotic atmosphere of the eighteenth floor. Instead, she sat there dejectedly, like a depressed and hopeless young woman, staring into nothing.
But then, one thing led to another.
A short girl with twin ponytails appeared and started healing people.
Just because of that, Bell would probably say she was some kind of angel or priestess, like those who follow a hero's party to fight demons. But then someone casually dropped the information that she was actually a goddess.
Like, a real goddess!
In a way, she shouldn't even be that impressed. Bell knew she had probably walked past dozens of gods on the streets of Orario without ever realizing it.
Still, the only one she had truly interacted with was the goddess of her Familia, Loki.
And let's just say… it hadn't been a very pleasant experience.
For a brief moment, she found herself wondering if all gods were like that. A bunch of clueless perverts, just like her grandfather.
Although, let's be honest... if her grandfather were an actual god, then all the women in the world would be in serious danger.
No. Absolutely not. Please, no.
Yet, as she looked at the diminutive figure in front of her, childlike in appearance but wearing a serious expression while doing everything she could to help the injured, she couldn't help but feel relieved.
It wasn't how she had imagined helping a goddess would be, no grand quest to save her family or anything like that.
It wasn't how she had imagined helping a goddess would be, no grand quest to save her family or anything like that.
But still, It was something!
Anyway…
— Hestia-sama…? — Bell called out, puzzled by the goddess's sudden quietness.
Was she tired? That would make sense. After healing so many people without stopping, anyone would be exhausted. Apparently, the gods sealed most of their powers, and in situations like this, they weren't all that different from mortals.
Bell was about to call her again when she was startled by an intense light.
Shine!
— Wah! — she gasped in surprise, instinctively raising her arm to shield her eyes.
Right in front of her, something incredible happened.
Hestia, who until then had been standing still, gazing into the distance as if lost in thought, suddenly began to glow.
A powerful, unfamiliar pressure spread from her small frame, accompanied by a seven-colored light that filled the area. It made everyone nearby feel an instinctive urge to bow, to lower their heads, to venerate her existence.
The small elastic hair ties holding her hairstyle slipped free and floated gently in the air, never touching the ground, as her long black hair spilled down her bare back, swaying as if caught in an unseen current.
In that moment, any trace of innocence or naivete vanished from her face. In its place was a calm, serious expression, cold and composed.
A goddess.
— Hestia-sama…? — Bell called out again, completely dumbfounded by the sudden change.
But Hestia didn't answer her. She simply raised one hand.
SHINE!!!
A blinding light erupted, flooding the entire area in an instant. Like the very own sun suddenly decided to descend upon them.
Instinctively, everyone shut their eyes.
And then… just as suddenly as it had begun, the light faded.
Silence returned.
Slowly, hesitantly, people began to open their eyes.
— …Huh?
Someone flexed their fingers, staring at their hands in disbelief.
— My arm… it was... — a man murmured, twisting his shoulder, then laughing softly as if afraid the sound might break the moment.
— It doesn't hurt… — another whispered, touching where a deep wound had been only moments ago.
A woman who had been leaning against the wall stood up straight, blinking repeatedly, her breath coming easily now.
— I… I can breathe… that monster's poison is gone?
Confusion spread, followed quickly by realization.
— We're… healed?
— All of us…?
— Even me… I wasn't hurt, but I feel… amazing…
Murmurs rose, disbelief mixing with awe. Some laughed, others cried, and a few simply stood there in stunned silence, hands trembling as they tried to understand what had just happened.
Bell remained frozen, staring ahead.
Her chest felt light. Her body felt strong. For the first time since reaching the eighteenth floor, the weight pressing down on her heart was gone.
Steps
Suddenly, she heard the sound of footsteps behind her and instinctively turned to look. It was Hestia, calmly looking at her.
— Little girl, what's your name? — completely disregarding the fact that she was the shortest.
— Be-Bell, Bell Cranel! — She answered nervously, she had never felt anything like this before, it wasn't fear or anything, but it was as if she didn't have the courage to look her in the eyes.
— Uhm... so, Bell-chan, could you explain to me what happened to you two?
Bell swallowed hard; for some reason, she had a feeling that something really bad was about to happen.
...
[Meanwhile, on the seventeenth floor.]
The white crystal floor was already slick.
Finn moved through the open field like a living blade, bare hands soaked red, boots grinding shards of crystal and bone alike. Without his spear, he fought closer than ever before, like a professional gladiator.
A monster lunged from his left.
Finn caught it by the head mid-leap and smashed it into the ground, the impact bursting its skull like overripe fruit.
CRASH!
SPLASH!
But he didn't stop there. Finn grabbed the corpse by the leg and swung it in a wide arc, using its broken body as a club to crush two more charging shapes.
SKREEEEE!
Something screeched overhead, a flying monster.
Finn bent his legs and jumped high, a small crater forming beneath his feet from the sheer force of the leap.
VUSH!
He cut through the air like an arrow, nothing more than a yellow blur. To him, everything else seemed to slow down, well... not completely, but close enough.
In midair, he seized the creature by both wings, not even bothering to identify it.
RIP!
Flesh tore. Blood sprayed downward like rain as the body was ripped apart, falling in pieces, twitching before it hit the floor.
He landed hard, using the remains as a cushion, splashing blood and gore in every direction.
Without pause, a large monster approached from behind, a towering humanoid formed of stone and earth.
— WANNNNNN!!!
An earth golem. A creature immune to non-magical attacks; strike it, and it would simply reassemble itself.
Finn didn't care.
FUSH! A massive fist tore through the air toward him.
FUSH! Finn stepped into the attack, narrowly slipping past the blow instead of retreating.
FUSH! He twisted his body, arm drawing back, muscles tightening for a devastating counter.
His small fist, utterly mismatched to the monster's massive form, struck its midsection. In the next instant...
BOOOOOM!!!!!
A crater exploded outward from the point of impact, completely disproportionate to the size of the blow and the golem was hurled backward, plowing through several monsters in its path like a runaway train.
When the momentum finally died, the mighty earth golem was nothing more than a pile of dust and shattered debris, scattered among blood and broken bones.
It would take a long time to recover.
'Are they endless? Where is Riveria when I need her?' He thought, frustrated by the sheer number of the enemies.
But he never stopped.
He ducked, weaved, tore, crushed, used bodies as shields, slammed one monster into another until both stopped moving, stomped heads into paste, ripped arms free and beat their former owners with them.
Blood painted his clothes. Crystal reflected carnage.
And yet, Finn Deimne never lost control of the fight.
After a frenetic, merciless struggle, he slaughtered the monsters surrounding him, leaving only corpses and silence in his wake.
— Hah... hah... hah... — Finn breathed heavily after a good warm-up.
Yes… just a warm-up.
Without any fear or concern for his surroundings, Finn ran a hand through his hair, wiping away the blood that had splattered over him.
— Ugh… I'm going to stink of iron until tomorrow.
Funny guy, wasn't he?
Then, with a new glint in his eyes, he turned to face the cause of all this, the monster responsible for the loss of a few lives he had sworn to protect.
It trembled.
— So… are we going to do this the easy way, or the hard way? — Finn said, his voice low and menacing.
— Ihhh! — the Goliath growled, fear unmistakable in its voice.
It now stood fully healed, Finn's spear clutched tightly in its massive hands, its entire being shaken by the sight of the death and destruction it had just witnessed.
Never in its short existence had it imagined that the small adventurer standing before it could annihilate its entire army.
The Goliath hesitated.
It was absurd, an elephant afraid of an ant, yet that was exactly how it felt. Every instinct screamed danger. For a brief, shameful moment, the idea of turning around and fleeing felt overwhelmingly tempting.
Truth be told… it wondered why it hadn't done so earlier, while that monster had been busy slaughtering its servants.
Finn took a single step forward.
The Goliath took five steps back, its massive face twisting into a perfect caricature of fear.
Then...
Something changed.
A pressure descended upon it, immense and suffocating, yet strangely cold… and comforting. It wrapped around its body and soul alike, sinking deep, pressing from all directions.
From everywhere at once, a voice echoed inside its mind, ancient, profound, and unmistakably feminine.
Divine enemy, receive my gift… and fulfill your role.
The words resonated like a decree carved into the world itself.
And then, suddenly...
Power.
Raw, overflowing power surged through the Goliath's veins, flooding its limbs, hardening its flesh, igniting something violent and unnatural within its core.
The it didn't stay contained.
— GRAAAAAAAAAH!!! — the Goliath roared, throwing its arms wide as if challenging the world itself.
The ground screamed.
CRRRRACK!
Black veins crawled across its grey body, like spreading ink on a canvas.
Its flesh expanded, swelling and hardening, muscles piling atop muscles as its frame grew larger, broader and heavier, growing into nearly ten meters high.
The air spiraled upward around it, a violent updraft of dust, mana, and debris.
Finn narrowed his eyes, watching calmly.
'Is it... getting stronger?'
The Goliath's roar deepened, distorting, no longer just sound but pressure, a declaration of dominance and unrivaled power that shook the cavern walls.
CRASH, CRACK, CRASH!
Its heartbeat thundered like a war drum as the transformation reached its peak.
When the storm settled, what stood there was no longer the same creature.
A Black Goliath.
Taller. Thicker. Its presence alone crushed the air, radiating overwhelming force. Red light burned within its veins, pulsing beneath obsidian flesh. Its eyes snapped open, glowing crimson, filled with confidence, madness, hunger for destruction.
He felt unstoppable, Invincible.
Every wound, every fear, every shred of hesitation had been drowned beneath an ocean of power. All that remained was an unbearable thirst for blood.
It stared back at Finn.
Not with fear but with certainty. As if victory was already clenched in its massive hands.
Finn exhaled slowly.
'Yeah… this is definitely new. But not bad... when I get back I will have a lot of work to do.' He admitted internally, rolling his shoulders once.
The Black Goliath threw its head back and screamed again, a true war cry.
— GRAAAAAAAHHHH!!!
A massive wave of magic exploded outward.
The white crystal floor was stained red once more. Rifts tore open across the ground, countless cracks spreading like spiderwebs, and from them, monsters surged forth, drawn by the roar.
The Black Goliath stood tall amid the chaos, staring down at Finn as if he were already dead.
Finn, however, didn't looked afraid.
— …Okay, after that you at least must be at my level. Now I'm fired up. You're gonna give me a really good amount of Excelia. — He smiled, eyes sharp with excitement.
The cavern erupted in sound.
— GRAAAAH!!
— SHRRRRAAA!!
— KRRRRSSHHH!!!
— GYAAAAH!!
— RRRRAAAAA!!
The monsters screamed, roared, howled as one, a wall of fangs, claws and hatred surging forward. Crystal shattered under their feet as the horde advanced, eyes glowing.
Finn stepped forward.
His boots echoed calmly against the crystal floor, completely out of sync with the chaos rushing toward him.
The monsters charged faster.
— KIIIEEEH!!
— SHAAARRGH!!
Finn's walk turned into a steady pace, from walk to a jog them to full on running.
His gaze locked ahead. The distance vanished rapidly.
They were about to collide.
Then-
SNAP...
A single, dry sound.
Fingers snapping.
SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH
SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH
Blood exploded mid-roar.
A violent yet impossibly selective wave swept through the battlefield. Wherever it passed, monsters were annihilated, bodies torn apart, shredded, crushed into nothing but mist and mangled flesh.
— GRA-
— SH-
Their voices were cut short.
Red flooded the air.
A massive crimson stain spread across the cavern, viscera and fragments of bone raining down as the entire horde vanished in less than a heartbeat.
Finn slid to a stop, eyes widening despite himself.
'WHAT THE HELL?!!!'
The Black Goliath also stiffened.
— G… GRAAAH…?
But he also wasn't spared.
BOOM!
The Black Goliath was struck.
— GRAAAAA!!
Its massive body folded violently, bent into a grotesque U-shape as if smashed by an invisible force. The Monster Rex was launched backward.
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
Crystal columns shattered one after another as its body was hurled across the chamber, until...
BAM!
It slammed into a distant pillar, the crystal cracking outward in a star-like pattern before the giant form slid down and collapsed heavily onto the floor.
The battlefield froze.
The epic clash that was about to begin, ended before it ever truly started.
Finn slowly straightened, staring at the fallen Black Goliath, his pulse racing.
'…You've got to be kidding me.'
He looked back, naturally fearful and apprehensive after that overwhelming display of power; if it had been aimed at him… he didn't even want to imagine.
When he looked again, he saw an image he would never forget for the rest of his life.
A goddess.
Not in a mortal form, but a goddess in all her magnitude and majesty, emanating a sacred aura that filled him with nothing but immense respect.
— Hestia…? — he said, recognizing the goddess's face.
She was slowly walking across the crystal floor of the seventeenth floor.
Ahead of her, the blood was fading away and the broken ground was miraculously repairing itself, returning to its clean, shining state, as if the world itself were bending to her will.
And right behind her… Bell?
— Looks like I arrived in time; this would have been a difficult fight for him.
— Captain Finn!