Chapter 15 - Hestia Knife. (Patreon)

When he woke up the next day, the first thing Kael did was wash his face. He then opened his status to take a look at his stats. He hadn't done so the previous day because he had forgotten.

Name: Kael

Title: Teleporter

Familia: Hestia

Level: 2 (250/500,000)

Strength (STR): I 10

Endurance (END): I 10

Dexterity (DEX): I 10

Agility (AGI): I 10

Magic (MAG): I 10

Abilities: Teleportation (EX) LV3 / Swordsmanship LV3

When he saw "Level 2" in his status, Kael smiled with satisfaction. However, when he saw how much EXP he needed to level up, he let out a disappointed sigh.

"That's quite a high number."

However, when he remembered how much EXP he received for each monster on the ninth floor, and that the amount would increase on the tenth floor, he calmed down.

"Each monster I kill on the tenth floor will probably give me more than a thousand EXP."

And the amount of EXP he gained would continue to increase as he descended to lower floors.

"I guess I'll have to kill around 300 to 400 monsters to level up if I focus on the tenth and eleventh floors. But I can go even deeper. Let's see how strong I am now."

Kael couldn't feel the difference yet. He would only notice it when he fought a monster.

Kael put on his armor and used his Teleportation ability. Within seconds, he was inside the church's main room.

As soon as he appeared out of nowhere, Hestia screamed, "Ah! You scared me! Please, never do that again!"

"It's faster than walking all the way here and coming in through the front door." Kael smiled. "Where's Bella?"

"Hm? She's still sleeping."

"I thought she'd already be awake."

"Have you had breakfast yet?" Hestia asked.

"Not yet," Kael replied. "I'll grab something to eat on the way."

Hestia then disappeared, only to reappear moments later carrying a tray with tea and a few sandwiches for Kael.

"Eat. I bought these with the money you brought me earlier. I'll go wake Bella up."

"Thank you, Goddess."

"You don't need to thank me."

Kael ate, and shortly afterward, Bella appeared in the room wearing her basic armor, with a knife at her waist.

'She's using a knife, just like in the original story.'

However, besides the knife, she also had a sword on the other side of her waist.

She used two weapons.

"What's your main weapon?" Kael asked as they made their way toward the Tower of Babel.

"Oh, I usually use my knife."

It was a short knife with a black handle decorated with ornamental details that made it look quite beautiful. Its blade was equally dark. It was a beautiful knife.

'It's the knife Hestia gave Bell... The knife Hephaestus made...'

Kael's eyes lit up. Bella noticed and said, "You can't have this."

She put the knife away.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to steal it. But just as you're jealous of my ability, I'm jealous of your knife." Kael was being honest.

"Well, you might be able to get a knife like this someday."

Kael laughed and said, "I doubt it. Something like that must be incredibly expensive."

####

As soon as Bella and Kael entered the Dungeon, Kael immediately noticed that the aura surrounding Bella had changed. She was shorter than him, so he had to look slightly downward to see her face.

He glanced at Bella's profile and thought, 'She's serious. Really serious. Her entire aura has changed.'

Bella was extremely focused, even though they were only on the first floor of the Dungeon. She didn't like taking risks, unlike Kael, who usually took things rather lightly.

Bella knew how treacherous the Dungeon could be, as she had nearly died inside it once before.

Someone had saved her. Someone who had never left her thoughts, yet she had never managed to get close to them. She wanted to become friends with that person, but she had never succeeded.

"Pay attention to what's in front of you," Bella said without taking her eyes off the path ahead. She had noticed Kael looking at her.

"Sorry."

"..." After walking for a few minutes, the first monsters appeared.

Bella didn't move. Instead, she looked at Kael, silently telling him with her eyes, 'Come on, do it.'

Kael drew his sword and disappeared.

A gust of wind brushed against Bella's face as Kael vanished, only to reappear several meters ahead.

The heads of the two Goblins flew into the air, and before their bodies disappeared, Kael was already back beside Bella, sliding his sword into its sheath.

"Why are you trying so hard to look cool? You didn't even collect the magic stones." Bella sighed and stepped forward, picking up the stones and putting them in her bag.

"But I have to admit, that was pretty cool," Bella said before continuing onward.

Kael smiled and followed her.

####

Time passed, and Bella didn't make a single move throughout their exploration of the first and second floors. Kael made sure to kill every monster that crossed their path.

Every time, he used his Teleportation ability, and Bella was impressed on each occasion.

It was strange that she couldn't even follow an adventurer much weaker than herself with her eyes.

'His sword skills isn't bad either. He moves his body very well. He said he trained alone, right? He must have trained hard.'

Bella was confident that she had more skill than Kael, but the two of them were almost on the same level.

Because of his Teleportation ability, Bella wasn't confident that she could defeat Kael in a fight if they both fought seriously.

As they walked side by side, Bella said, "Want to train together starting tomorrow? I'd like to try fighting you."

Hearing Bella's words, Kael smiled at her and replied calmly, "Sure."

Some more time passed, and they eventually reached the tenth floor.

Kael's goal was to reach Rivira with Bella's support.