Chapter 6. Skill - Hero's Apprentice
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"Hey, did you hear? There's a weirdo in the dungeon."
"You know about it too?"
"Of course! The new recruits in the Familia are all talking about it."
"That guy must have some grudge against goblins."
Hestia, who was working part-time, perked up her ears as she eavesdropped on the adventurers' chatter after they returned from the dungeon.
"A weirdo who's been relentlessly hunting goblins."
Hestia awkwardly took off her apron, her face full of confusion.
Goblins are very weak; even a rookie just entering the dungeon can take one down solo if they charge at it. Although goblins usually appear in groups of three to five, the rookies typically team up, and sometimes even an LV2 or LV3 adventurer accompanies them.
There's really no threat—this is the general assessment adventurers have of goblins.
No matter how many goblins you kill, it's nothing to brag about.
Plus, the magic stones that goblins drop aren't great, so no adventurer would be bored enough to keep hunting goblins all the time.
However, now there's someone in the dungeon—wearing a helmet, holding a short sword in the right hand, equipped with a small round shield on the left, with glowing red eyes—who seems to be doing just that.
He has no intention of exploring further and instead camps on the floors where goblins appear, searching for them like a machine. Some rookie adventurers even witnessed a gruesome scene where a goblin was stabbed to death just as it was emerging from the dungeon wall.
"What kind of bored person would do that?" Hestia shrugged, clutching the snacks the shopkeeper gave her as she returned home. "It's not like it's my Bell…"
The door slowly opened, and what appeared before Hestia was Bell, holding a helmet under his arm, with a small round shield on his left arm, a short sword in his right hand, and his red eyes glowing, seemingly because he was in a good mood.
"Plop—"
The bag of snacks slipped from Hestia's arms and fell to the ground.
"Bell has turned into a weirdo!"
"Wait, wait, wait! Goddess, please calm down!"
In a fluster, Bell explained everything.
"To improve my basic stats and defeat the Minotaur, I'm using goblins to repeatedly train my body." Hestia lifted Bell's shirt. "But using goblins for training can't possibly raise… no way!"
Hestia's mouth twitched as she looked at Bell's status on his back.
It wasn't just progress—his stats had leaped.
Speed, strength, endurance—these basic stats can only improve through continuous practice. She knew Bell was working hard, but the numbers were jumping too drastically!
Just how many goblins did you kill?
Wait… when did this skill appear?
Hestia's eyes widened.
"What's wrong, Goddess?" Bell tilted his head.
"Nothing," Hestia shook her head vigorously and covered his back again.
"Don't underestimate goblins," Cyd said as he picked up the bag of snacks from the floor and placed it on the table. "Even though each one is weak, when they swarm together, they can still be overwhelming. And Bell was fighting them all alone."
"But Bell can't keep killing goblins forever," Hestia pouted in displeasure.
The thought of her beloved child being ridiculed as a weirdo made her very upset.
"Bell's foundation isn't solid. You wouldn't want him not to come back one day, would you?" Cyd sighed.
"Uh…" Hestia was momentarily at a loss for words.
She feared more than anything that Bell wouldn't come back, more than people looking down on him.
"It's okay, Goddess," Bell scratched the back of his head, "I can feel myself improving, and I've also learned quite a few techniques."
"You really are my child," Hestia beamed with pride.
"But we're still far from the goal of twenty thousand goblins," Cyd interjected, holding up two fingers.
"Yeah…" Bell sighed.
"Tw-twenty thousand!" Hestia's jaw dropped. "Are you planning to clear the dungeon of all goblins? And are there even that many goblins in the dungeon?"
Wait!
She suddenly remembered hearing about a rookie who witnessed a goblin getting stabbed to death just as it emerged from the dungeon wall.
Could Bell really have done something like that?
"Don't worry, Goddess. Monsters in the dungeon respawn, so after a little while, new goblins will appear. Plus, freshly spawned goblins are pretty easy to deal with," Bell said with a bright smile, giving a thumbs up. "We'll reach the twenty thousand mark in no time!"
He really did it!
Images flashed through Hestia's mind of Bell crouching by the dungeon wall, grinning evilly, stabbing a goblin as soon as it poked its head out, and then crouching down again.
Hestia clutched her forehead and collapsed onto the nearby sofa.
"Leave me alone for a moment…"
"Teacher, what's wrong with Goddess…" Bell asked Cyd, confused.
"Maybe she's just tired," Cyd shrugged, examining the small round shield he had removed from Bell's left arm. "Hmm, though this was your first time using it, the wear and tear is still within acceptable limits."
"Of course!" Bell instinctively puffed out his chest. "I've always remembered what you told me, teacher!"
"But what's this…" Cyd pointed to an obvious notch on the shield's edge.
In an instant, Bell deflated like a balloon, slumping over. "I-I made a mistake… When I was being swarmed by goblins, I instinctively used the shield to block a goblin's slash…"
"And then the edge of the round shield, which you use for attack, got cut open," Cyd tapped Bell on the head. "Bell, you must remember, no matter the situation, a hero should be able to calmly analyze it, because failing to do so means death. This shield isn't unusable for defense, but you have to learn to control the rhythm so that the enemy's attack only hits the middle of the shield."
"I understand, teacher," Bell nodded seriously.
"Of course, Bell, don't be too hasty. I'll be by your side," Cyd said, ruffling Bell's hair. "You will become a great hero. Until then, I'll guide you."
"Yes, sir!"
'So that's… why your skill appeared?'
Lying on the sofa, Hestia lifted her head and stared at Bell with a complicated expression. He was excited because of Cyd's praise.
Special Skill—Hero's Apprentice (Mutable)
This special skill doesn't provide Bell with any stat boosts. All his current stats are the result of his own hard work.
This skill doesn't grant Bell any special abilities either. Bell is still the same Bell—the little boy who dreams of encounters and aspires to be a hero.
This skill is more symbolic, signifying that this boy among the crowd is gradually walking the path to becoming a hero.
Maybe… no, Bell 'will' become the great hero Cyd spoke of!