Our little group had a third member who would be sleeping with us now!
His name was Heir and he was my best friend sword! Finally, you have returned to me, and you even have a cool new name! I had to keep him sheathed though, otherwise someone might get poked by a sharp object!
After sparring with Belle and Welf earlier in the day, I was feeling awesome, but I was also pretty tired.
It's a lot of work holding back that much! But their exhausted faces having so much improvement was worth it!
It was now Day 7 of the Dungeonless Week and we had final preparations to do before we set off. I reviewed Rose's advice in my head as I slowly peeled Belle and Hestia off of my body while making sure they still stayed asleep.
Alas Belle seemed to wake up and pressed her face into my side distracting me for the moment. Belle, you may be with me physically, both Rose is with me in spirit! I won't be distracted so easily!
I imagined Rose's voice in my head with each bullet point, as though she was watching over me!
No Dungeon for a Week
Well we've got that settled! It was agonizing waiting this long, but we do it with my next sleep and wake cycle! Awesome!
Get a new Party Member
The amazing Isabelle is part of the team! She truly was a fateful encounter! The rabbit has fangs . . . though that's a good thing! I love it when my friends can protect themselves!
Get a new Best Friend Sword
I clutched Heir closer to my body, nearly bonking Belle on the head but I managed to avoid doing so with a quick push to the side causing Belle to let out a yelp as she flopped over. So I leaned down and whispered softly in her ear.
"Belle are you alright?" Her arms wrapped around me and she stared up with a soft smile and a weird look.
"As long as you're here."
Whew! She was alright!
"Oh ok, cool." My tone was relieved as a response causing her to slightly sigh before pressing into me again.
I still had a few things to review with SPIRIT ROSE before I engaged with Belle!
Get more Supplies (Especially Potions)
Wait a second. We ran out of healing potions! I used them all on training injuries! Dang it. Thank you SPIRIT ROSE! She flashed me a thumbs up (which was very out of character for Rose but I didn't dismiss it!) Instead I gave a thumbs up back with my free hand! Which caused Hestia to flop over, but she still didn't awaken much to my relief.
The Sun still needs fifteen minutes to rise, therefore Hestia still sleeps. It's obviously quite simple.
Train my new party member if possible
"Hey Belle, did you feel that you benefited from our training?"
She perked up slightly at that, and stared up at me with light concern.
"Of course I did, what's bringing this sort of question on? I thought it was obvious?"
"I just wanted to make sure, Rose wanted my new party member to be reliable, so I'm glad you feel that it helped you." I gave her a smile, and she returned the smile tenfold!
"I see. Well I'm certain Rose won't have any qualms with me, so let's move onto the rest of our day. Shall we?"
Spirit Rose gave a wave goodbye as she disappeared into the ether before giving me one last message.
Go find yourself a toothbrush, seriously
Spirit Rose was even looking out for my hygiene. Truly she was a reliable advisor!
"Belle. We have two very important things to do today." I gently picked her up as I crawled out of the bed and hefted my sword alongside her. Writing a quick note for Hestia with some of the paper she had lying around we made our way up the ladder and I set her down.
"So what are we doing today?"
"Well, we need extra sets of clothes, we need potions, and we definitely need toothbrushes."
She blinked in confusion while staring at me and slightly recoiling.
". . . you don't have a toothbrush?" I blinked at her in even more confusion.
You do?
"You do?"
She silently pulled the toothbrush out from somewhere with a smile. I also noticed it had a hidden blade inside of it which was pretty cool!
"You can use mine!" She kept smiling with her perfect smile and my heart nearly skipped a beat. The near skippage occurred due to the traumatic memory of back when my fellow four apprentices tried to convince me that even though my toothbrush had mysteriously disappeared I didn't need a new one.
Instead I should just borrow the four of their toothbrushes on rotation! I couldn't resist their kindness and I accepted, but seeing our Master give them a stern beating before buying me a new one was scary! I still remember their bruised faces as we drove off into the distance . . . Master was strong! Though for some reason she didn't seem as strong when she was fighting me, even though I could tell she wasn't holding back.
Master was weird, but most importantly Master was scary!
For a moment I was even tempted to stop her from beating her grandkids, but for some reason they told me that if I interfered Master would tell me a lie about them, and I didn't want Master to lie to me! Though I wasn't sure if they were just hiding the fact that they did something bad and were getting a beating for whatever that bad thing was.
Damn I miss those four weirdos.
Master really valued hygiene, even down to the last detail! She was amazing like that.
"Belle . . . I would love that!" I was about to say no, but she looked as if she was going to turn to dust at my tone! I couldn't resist her powers of adorableness! I then softly cleared my throat and held out my hand awkwardly, however Belle seemed to stumble forward into it. However I was quick on the draw and caught her with ease before setting her back on her feet.
She didn't even trip on anything, truly we would have to work on Belle's footwork today. We can't have mistakes like that in the Dungeon! In her confusion however I managed to snag the toothbrush from her hands with a gentle pull before holding it to the sky.
"Belle I'm going to brush my teeth, and by the time I get back you should start your parkour drills!" Belle had learned a bit of freerunning from me, so I knew she would be fine on her own. Honestly I think she just made a one in a million mistake due to being at ease and feeling safe in the church . . . but such a thing couldn't be tolerated! Especially when it was almost falling over and slamming your chest into my hand!
What if my hand was a sword Belle!? What then? I let out a sigh as I entered our little restroom and then frowned as I stared at the small container adjacent to me. Was this toothpaste? I thought it was just some kind of special soap with how expensive it looked . . .
Maybe I'm just too used to everything being made of plastic. Wait! Wait one second! Does this mean I'm the only one in this world with plastic in my brain? I pray to Goddess Hestia that no one else must suffer such a fate.
I stared menacingly in the mirror as a new goal was formed in my heart.
As long as I breathed, plastic would not exist in this world. I wouldn't let it happen! The Great Sage told me that basically every human on Earth had plastic in their brains . . . to the point where we couldn't even test what it did to us! No 'control group' whatever that meant.
The Great Sage was super cool despite being plastic brained though, all my friends were!
I dipped my finger in the soft substance and lightly licked it. Minty! Alright, this was definitely toothpaste!
All right then, let's get to work!
. . .
Alright, there we go! Two minutes just about, now the real question is how do I floss? Wait a second, can't I just use thread as long as it's clean? Cracking open the cabinet I opened the little surgical kit and removed the spool of thread before tearing some off and getting to work. My gums didn't bleed luckily, whether that was a benefit of my blessing or just good hygiene in the past I wasn't sure.
Either way my mouth was clean and I was ready to check on Belle!
Heading outside I spotted the rising sun as well as Belle doing a backflip and land with ease before turning to me with a smile. She softly pressed some of her hair away with a blush, and I remembered something critically important that I'd forgotten about.
"Belle I have a very serious crossroads for you, you must choose your path." She raised an eyebrow as she moved closer, looking concerned as she questioned me.
"Alright . . . what is it?"
"You need to either cut your hair or-"
"If you'd like it short I can do that."
". . . or we can tie it in a bun so it doesn't get in the way of your movements when fighting."
I didn't expect her to change her haircut just for me! Hair was a crucial part of your appearance, that helped dictate the vibe you emitted. It was one of the few parts of your appearance you could choose for yourself, so it mattered a lot!
"Belle, do you like your hair?"
She blinked confusedly, and took a moment to ponder the question before giving me a nothing answer.
"Of course I do, but the style doesn't matter to me. Why don't you choose it?"
Foolish, foolish, foolish! I ignored the last half of her sentence in exchange for giving a shounen monologue.
"Belle! My treasured companion! How could you say such a thing! Hair is one of the few parts of who we are that we can dictate, not something to be improved upon, but something to be chosen! From hairstyles reflecting deep cultural roots and a connection to family, or hairstyles distancing you from that! Hair represents aspects of your profession, to the vibes you choose to emit!"
I took a breath and pointed straight at her.
"Belle, your hair has to be what you want it to be!" I bit my lip for a moment and let out a small sigh. "Not everyone gets to have their hair forever, so it's good to value it while you still have it." A friend of mine had gone through chemo, so I grew my hair super long for her to have a wig. A lot of my friends had me cross dress though which was pretty silly, when I was growing it out for such a serious reason! She really appreciated me giving her my hair, and I couldn't be more grateful that it made her happy.
"A-alright . . . well I've never gotten to pick this sort of thing before, but I think I'd like it a little bit shorter instead of cascading down my back. It really does get in the way . . ."
"Then we have a hair stylist to find!" If only Marcus was here . . . that man was the best hair stylist ever! Actually, I wonder if Hestia can do hair? As a Goddess of Family, Home she'd definitely be able to give Marcus a run for his money!
I picked up the rabbit and flew indoors and shouted for Hestia with fervor!
"HESTIA, BELLE NEEDS HELP!" I heard scrambling down below before she popped up with a panicked look while I held out the rabbit to her with my eyes stretched wide.
"She needs a haircut!"
"I- what?" She looked half asleep, but the gleam in her eyes told me more than enough.
I knew she could style Belle's hair perfectly!
. . .
Thirty minutes later and Belle's hair was now just beyond shoulder length, and she was looking great! She stared at herself in the mirror near expressionless for a moment as Hestia removed the blindfold, and then genuine tears started to pool in the corners of her eyes as she smiled.
Causing me to hug her, quickly followed by Hestia who wrapped her arms around the girl.
"Thank you." She whispered, and I could feel relief in her voice. As though this action was not only us acknowledging her choices, but allowing her to pursue her own goals.
Belle lived in an oppressive home, I was sure Hestia figured that out too, so her making her own choices was super important!
"My opinion shouldn't matter on something like this but I just have to say it, Belle you look amazing!" She blushed at the words and . . . Hestia was holding up her hair as well?
"You look amazing too Hestia!" I gave her a reassuring pat on the back, Hestia was very beautiful! As we cleaned up Belle's headband got ready to throw it out Belle stood up and hugged Hestia from behind, surprising the shorter Goddess from the sudden attack!
I gave them a smile and allowed them their special moment while I took out the trash . . . literally! I came back in after a little bit, but Hestia seemed to just be brushing Belle's hair while they chatted together.
They looked happy.
I smiled at them and silently snagged some money and allowed them to have their mother and daughter moment! They were so cute together! I loved helping people find those they cared about, there was something special about finding a family.
I slipped away with a wistful sigh.
I loved my Familia!
It's our duty to watch each other's backs though, so it's time for me to get some potions! I knew I could only buy one potion with the money I had, but that was alright. One Naaza potion would be enough, she was just awesome like that!
I made my way over to the Blue Pharmacy, but as I approached a man blocked my path causing me to frown. I was right outside the door as he stared down at me with a 'friendly' smile and a bag of gold in his hand.
https://i.postimg.cc/3wNK4gWR/Dian-Cecht.webp
"You looking to shop here? I can recommend a way better place for an adventurer like you." I gave the old man a friendly smile in return and moved his hand off of my shoulder.
"Oh I'm alright, but thank you." I moved to walk past him but he let out a sigh and shook his head. As though I was a Fool walking into a place that couldn't compare to what he could offer.
"How about this, I'll give you a look at my extra special potions, and if you don't like them, you can leave without an issue." I lightly scratched the back of my head as I stared up at him, and made a confused expression.
"I don't even know who you are." Something was off about this guy, though I wasn't really sure what. The Great Sage said it's bad to judge people on a gut feeling, but the way he left Naaza and Miach's shop with a bag of money while trying to sell me on his product just rubbed me the wrong way.
He let out a barking laugh at that, a near shocked expression crossing his features for a moment.
"Damn kids these days can't even recognize Dian Cecht, God of Healing!" I didn't know who that even was! But I did recognize the God part causing me to frown lightly, before letting out a small chuckle.
"While I'd be honored to buy from a God of Healing, I like this place."
He rolled his eyes, his expression turning down in a frown.
"Look brat, I'm doing you a favor here." Then he grumbled under his breath before pausing and turning towards me with a wicked smile. "Why don't I tell you a secret?" I do like secrets from mysterious old people . . . Once I met this old guy who told me about the secret code to the End of the World. I never did get to the End of the World (if that was even a literal thing and not metaphorical) but it was still cool to know!
So I leaned in and his wrinkled face twisted as he leaned down and gently pulled me away from the entrance.
"Blue Pharmacy, they dilute their potions." I tilted my head in confusion. I wasn't really sure what that meant. He frowned as he stood back up to his full height.
"They sell you a shitty product for a mark up fee, tell me brat, how much have you been paying for potions here?"
I gave a small shrug.
"20,000 Valis for a high grade." He let out a boisterous laugh .
"You're getting scammed, what they consider 'High Grade' here only costs 10,000 Vali's for the average customer. Little ignorant brat like you though? Easy markup. Truth be told if I didn't hate that bastard Miach so much I'd probably try the same thing! But consider this some friendly advice from someone who shares the same hatred you do now."
"But I don't hate him."
That caused him to pause.
"Brat. He scammed you out of a lot of Valis. He practically robbed you."
I shook my head.
"No, if anyone was doing that it was Naaza, and even then I don't hate her."
"Oh, so you're delusional then. Damn brat, not even I have a potion for that."
"Thanks for the advice . . ." My gaze sharpened like daggers, and for a moment the man's eyes turned into pin pricks as I let out a breath full of malice. "But I can sense it."
Staunch -> Dauntless
"I can sense when someone is trying to weasel their way through my jaws and worm hatred into my heart. I can feel your passions, your desires, and while you may speak true, you haven't told me the crux of the issue." I took a deep breath and recalled whatever the hell I was leaking out. "You aren't telling me the whole truth."
"You're a freak. Have fun dying in the Dungeon with shitty potions, you won't be missed." The man's teeth grit, and he stormed off with his bag clutched tightly in hand.
With a sigh I entered the shop, a light smile on my face as I greeted the shopkeeper who seemed slightly surprised by my presence.
"Who was that mean old man outside?"
She stopped tapping her fingers on the desk, and she even seemed to fold in on herself slightly as she spoke.
"Doesn't matter . . . you going to buy something or not?" The way she said that last part was as though she were afraid I was going to leave.
"That old man said some pretty bad things about you, but I think I'll still shop here." She let out a small breath as she looked at me over, her expression turning more neutral, but something still lurked in her eyes.
Empathic -> Selfless
Could it be a fragment of guilt?
"Anyways, I've got my Vali's here today, so lets trade!"
She cleared her throat lightly, and muttered something that I managed to catch.
". . . how much are you working with?"
"Well, my Familia has a total of 38,500 Valis, but I'm willing to spend up to 30,000 Valis in total!" My tone was chipper, and even if she still charged me 20,000 Valis I knew she had a good reason for it. She didn't emit that stench of hate like that old man after all.
"I'll give you three high quality potions if you give me that amount . . ." Her voice was tired, but I sensed some remorse behind it.
I knew she'd come around!
"Thanks!" The trade was made and I gave her a casual smile.
"So how have things been going?"
"They've been going." It would seem my broody friend here IS in a bit of a pickle! So I leaned against the counter slightly and threw her a winning smile!
"If you need someone to hear you out, then I'm willing to lend an ear." I tapped lightly on the side of my head causing her to snort, then pause, and finally settle in a frown.
"No, just . . . we appreciate your business is all." Naaza wasn't a bad person. She was just . . . in a bad spot. I don't know why she cares about this business so much, but I'm sure I'll find out eventually.
Rank 2: Secure Glassware - Increases durability of potion containers
At least that was what my heart chose to believe, whether the truth would contradict that I would just have to find out in the future.
So with that I went on my journey to buy some new clothes, and I was sure I would look ready for an adventure when I greeted my companions once more.
Tomorrow was going to be crazy, so I had to look my best!