Changes

After going home for the night, Shay had told his familia the details about his past. Také familia had always known there was something Shay was trying to hide, but by the will of their God, they let him hide it freely. After this most recent incident however, Shay decided there was no longer a valid reason to hide anything. So, for hours into the night, he had talked with his familia and answered their questions.

Upon waking up the next day, Shay got his status updated, and to nobody's surprise, he was ready to move on to Level Three. Since he'd earned enough specific excelia for two different Development Abilities, he'd decided to wait and ask for advice. That was why he now found himself in a private consulting room with his advisor Amelia.

"wh… w-...you… what!? That's ridiculous!"

Amelia had become significantly more comfortable around Shay over the past nine or so months, and was now able to say what was on her mind with something almost approximating ease. That was why, when Shay had told her about his Level up, she had given her unvarnished opinion.

"Y-you..? Are you serious?"

"Yep. It's a long story, but I'm really about to Level up. That's why I came to you for advice."

"..."

Shay had been coming to the Pantheon far more often than his familia members, mostly due to his quicker pace through the Dungeon, although Amelia wasn't exactly clued in to that part yet. Shay had been able to convince her that due to his encounter with the wyvern, he was paranoid about the monsters on lower Floors. This let him get information about the floors far quicker than would normally be allowed, since Amelia was too kind an advisor to turn down her worried advisee.

"It's …only been five months, right?"

"Close to that, yeah."

"You Leveled up, in five months? From two to three?"

"Yes."

"...you know that would cut the previous record in half, yes?"

"...I suppose it would."

"..."

"..."

Across the table, Shay could see the cogs in his advisor's head turning in real time. Her expression was a mix of anxiety and bewilderment, as the elf adjusted her glasses repeatedly while tilting her head in different directions. Finally, she seemed to come to a nerve wracking conclusion as her face became noticeably flushed.

"I—I hope you understand, but I'll have to take something like this seriously. I can't risk a false report on something so outrageous, so…"

"...Yes?"

"Um… p—Please remove your shirt!"

The poor girl was squirming as she spat the words out, returning to her old habits. Shay was surprised for a moment, but he chuckled and decided it wouldn't be a big deal to humor her. As the elf's face became redder by the second, Shay removed his shirt as he made things clear.

"If you could, please avoid including anything more than the bare minimum in your report."

"Y-yes, of course…"

"By the way, what specifically will you be looking at? I haven't gone through with the Level up, so I'm still technically at Level Two right now."

"I'll check your a—Ability scores…"

"...Oh. In that case, I'll have to ask again. Please, promise me that under no circumstances will you share what you see without my permission."

"...? I suppose I can promise that…? But… What are you worried about?"

Satisfied with the confirmation, Shay turned around and motioned for the girl to come forward. Now even more curious, Amelia timidly approached Shay's back. The elf slowly brought her face close enough to read clearly, nervously adjusting her glasses until uttering what sounded like a sigh.

—thud.

Shay's eyes opened wide as his advisor's delicate face crashed into his back, time slowing as he turned to catch her. Holding his advisor up, Shay quickly realized the situation wasn't nearly as dire as he'd first assumed.

"...pfft. Hahaha…!"

The tension leaving his body, Shay let out a heartfelt laugh as he gently laid his advisor on the couch he had been using. After spending a few minutes considering how to deal with this, he saw Amelia start to open her eyes. Getting up slowly and seemingly remembering how she got there, Amelia quickly turned red again before she was hit with the gravity of the situation.

"...so, that's what you were worried about… Is that real? Triple S…?"

"Yes. It's real… so, about your report–"

"Wait! You can't just brush past that! How did this happen!?"

After telling his advisor a little about his unique skill, Shay also talked about his path to Leveling up. Hearing the danger he had faced, Amelia had been holding her hand to her head to steady herself.

"Uh… I can't include this in my report. Doing that would be like telling adventurers to go and die… Everyone would go picking life or death fights to Level up…"

"...Well… I leave it to you. If you could, please avoid mentioning the ability scores, and the rest can be your judgment."

"Ugh, why did I get such a crazy one? At first, I thought you were normal… But then you went and fought a wyvern, now it's some Level Three…"

As Amelia let her actual thoughts slip out, Shay decided to move on to other topics.

"Haha… I'm sorry about that, I really don't want to make your job difficult. I actually wanted to ask about something else, though. I need to pick a Development Ability. I have two options, Duelist and Magic Control."

"...right…of course…Duelist is extremely rare…and…Magic Control is… less rare… "

"...okay, what do they do?"

Shaking herself out of her shock induced stupor, Amelia got back to business.

"Duelist improves your status by a decent amount when you fight one on one against humanoid opponents. Magic Control simply improves your ability to control magic."

"Hmm…"

After discussing for some time, Shay eventually decided to choose Magic Control, seeing as his enchantment had saved him many times, and because Duelist was only usable in specific situations against humanoids, it wasn't nearly as practical. Concluding the lengthy visit with his advisor, Shay asked one last question.

"Thanks for all your help today, I promise this is the last question. I was just wondering, what can you tell me about Freya familia?"

Amelia had been writing parts of her report while explaining to Shay, and at Freya familia's mention her expression suddenly became more serious as she got her papers together.

"They're Loki familia's rival in terms of power, boasting more than half Orario's Level Sixes and the city's only Level Seven… Did you get involved with them somehow?"

After waking up at the Hostess of Fertility the day before, Shay had been caught up on the events after he passed out. When he asked about Syr's friend that saved him, Syr only said that she was part of Freya familia and that he probably wouldn't be seeing her. Being curious about not only the healer but also Syr's connections, Shay couldn't help but ask his advisor for information.

"I was just curious about someone I ran into. Do you know of any healers, or even any non-combatant members that may or may not be working at a pub?"

"At a pub…? I don't think I can help with the second part, but Freya familia is famous for having a huge brigade of healers. They're known as the Andhrímnir, and they help facilitate the Einherjar's daily training. There's a lot of them, so it would be difficult to find the one you're looking for unless you have a name or alias."

"I see… I don't have anything like that, but thank you for the information, as always. I really appreciate it."

With a smile, Amelia finally brought their meeting to a close.

"You're welcome. I suppose I should thank you for making my job… um, interesting. Anyway, Don't worry. Like I said, it's my job. Is there anything else you would like to ask?"

"Well… I guess there's one last thing on my mind. What kind of treatment should I expect as the new record holder?"

~

Heading back from the visit with his advisor, it was midday as Shay made his way East through Orario's northwestern backroads. He was giddy the entire trip as he walked back to his home to get his status updated and try out his new Level Three strength. Walking out onto Northeast Main, Shay couldn't help but notice a couple of demi humans stopping and staring in awe at something to his left. Turning towards his familia's home, he noticed a hooded person heading in his direction. Even with robes and a hood covering every inch of skin, they had an obviously feminine figure, and as he looked closer he felt himself being sucked in, as if he'd been entranced. As Shay was about to join the others in their stupor, something pulled him back from within.

Seemingly noticing Shay, the woman walked a little faster his way and shifted towards the middle of the road as they were about to pass. Now within talking distance, Shay was able to make out the face of an exceedingly beautiful woman from under the hood. As he made eye contact with her, he recognized the aura of a goddess. She smiled intently at him, nearly melting Shay where he stood, but yet again he was brought back by something within. Watching him recover and clumsily return her smile, the goddess's eyes slightly widened as she stopped for a moment, reminding Shay of when he first met Syr at the pub. The goddess's features quickly returned to a smile after a small laugh, this time seemingly giddy as she passed by Shay and continued southwest.

As Shay neared the Temporary Residence Townhouse, he couldn't help but notice some whispering among the people on the street. Knocking on the door, he was greeted by Ouka, who betrayed a mix of solemnity and jealousy.

Not really sure what that's about… Oh, everyone's at the dining table, they must be having a meeting? Please let it be about someone else this time. But… everyone looks either solemn or concerned…? This can't be good.

Before Shay could ask the obvious question, Také spoke up.

"Shay, Let's update your status."

Back in his room with the god, Shay looked at his new status while waiting for his god to broach the issue.

-

Level 3

Str 0 I End 0 I Dex 0 I Agl 0 I Mag 0 I

•Immunity H -•Magic Control I

•MAGIC

[Raijin]

lightning enchantment, Swift chant

•SKILLS

[Greater Will]

Greatly increases the user's potential

[Ichneuo]

Improves dexterity when using throwing weapons

-

No skill this time, huh? Well, I shouldn't be greedy, I guess. Level Three and Magic Control's enough for one update. More importantly, what's got everyone in this somber mood?

"Shay, we had a visitor just before you returned."

Také's voice was heavy as he continued with a somber look.

"Basically, you've been recruited."

"...Recruited? Is that why everyone's in a funk? Who was it?"

"...Well, that's just it. A normal offer would've sparked a little jealousy and that would've been it. It's only natural that you'd get offers outside your tiny familia, being the new record holder. But… this wasn't a normal offer."

"...?"

"You know Freya Familia, yes?"

…No way… Then that goddess…?

"...Yeah. One of their healers actually saved me two days ago. So they've had their eye on me?"

"More than that. You've surely heard the stories of Lady Freya going to great lengths to secure adventurers who catch her eye. This time, it's you."

…How did that happen? Was it Syr's friend?

"...Freya visited herself, right? What did she say? Did she lay out terms? What's the penalty for refusal?"

Také was surprised at Shay's knowledge of the situation, but he continued nevertheless.

"...penalty for refusal? I'm afraid you've overestimated our say in this. There is no refusal."

"..."

…I guess I should've expected that. They overpower us to an absolutely ridiculous degree. Not just that, Freya's a goddess of beauty. I've heard of her charming scores of men to join her familia. I even saw it, and felt it, on my way here.

As the reality of his situation sunk in, Shay thought Freya must've waited for an opportune time like this to make her move. Not only was he outgrowing his familia in terms of status, but he had just been made aware of the threat of assassination. Even more, the offer came right before the announcement of Shay's ascension to Level Three and subsequent Record Holder status. There couldn't have been a better time for him to receive an offer to transfer to one of the strongest familias in the world.

So, that pretty much confirms it, then. Freya's known about me since before the assassin… But, how did she find me in the first place… was Syr just watching me on her behalf? Oh! …oh. I owe them my life too, don't I?

Thinking back to his fight with the assassin, Shay could now see the full story. Had the assassin's first crossbow bolt not been deflected, he wouldn't have survived the encounter. He now had no doubt that this was due to the assistance of somebody in Freya familia. Realizing just how complete Freya's control over his situation was, Shay saw he had no choice.

"...What are the terms, then?"

"...We got very lucky… She must really see something incredible in you Shay, because the terms are honestly fair. She could've just called for your transfer under the threat of force and we wouldn't have had a choice. Instead, you keep all the reasonable freedom you could as a member of her familia, and we even get compensated for the transfer."

'Something incredible'? Does Freya know something about the spirit?

"It's ridiculous for me to say, but it seems like she really wants to make a good impression… I knew things would change when you broke the Level up record, but I thought you'd at least stay in the familia."

"Me too… this is quickly getting complicated."

~

After getting the details of his transfer and talking with the rest of his familia, Shay went to go and meet Chloe at their usual training spot. They'd promised to spar after he'd gotten his status updated, but he'd been sidetracked by the chaos involving Freya familia.

As he reached a secluded spot on the fifth floor, Shay saw Chloe leaning against the wall. This would be wildly irresponsible, since monsters could spawn from that very same wall with no notice, but nothing on this floor posed a significant threat to her. Seeing Shay again for the first time after their talk two days ago, Chloe's face lit up for a moment before she began her normal routine.

"Finally, meow! Who do you think mew are, making me wait like this!? You may have gotten stronger, but I can still kick that nice butt of yours, meow!"

"Eheh… sorry about that. Some stuff came up back home."

Noticing that Shay was far less excited to be Second Tier than he should've been, Chloe toned down her animated demeanor as she parted with the wall.

"Oh? Like what?"

"Well… Seems like I've been recruited."

"Already!? You've only just Leveled up!"

"Yeah, apparently they've had their eye on me for a while…"

"You… don't seem too excited about it. Is your familia jealous or something, meow?"

"No, no, nothing like that. Even if a good familia gave me an offer, I might not accept it. This is different."

"What do you mean, meow?"

"There's no refusing this one. It's from Freya familia."

In her bewilderment, Chloe abandoned her usual cat-people vernacular.

"F–…!? …What? Freya familia!?"

"Yeah. It's… really an insane situation. She's even paying Také familia a ton of valis for the transfer."

"..."

As he watched the news sink in, Shay noticed a hint of worry begin to color Chloe's features. Briefly overcoming it, she timidly asked an important question.

"...Have you met her yet?"

Why is she…? Oh, that.

"I haven't talked to her, but I did see her on the way back from my advisor. It was surreal how everyone around me stopped and stared."

Tilting her head like she was unsure whether or not to despair yet, Chloe carefully kept prodding.

"...and…?"

"...I…was actually about to, but I was pulled back by something. I think it might have something to do with the spirit, honestly."

After taking a moment to let that sink in, Chloe seemed overwhelmed by relief before recovering and beginning a more casual questioning.

"Hmm… so the spirit can't even speak but it can still stop a goddess's charm? That seems kind of backwards, doesn't it? I mean, Freya is rumored to charm even the gods themselves, right? A weak spirit should be nothing to her."

In their discussion after the assassination attempt, Shay had explained what he knew about the spirit accompanying him. In short, this 'spirit' hadn't explicitly spoken to Shay even once. It was a reasonable assumption that it was the cause of his incredible growth, but Shay couldn't say for certain it was even guiding him down any specific path. Not that it had to though, considering the only reasonable thing to do for Shay to do at this point was to get stronger and take on the Dungeon anyway.

"I.. don't think she actually tried to charm me… I think that was just her normal aura. I doubt anyone could resist the real thing..."

"..."

With those heavy words in the air, he made an attempt to change the mood.

"I'm also not sure what relation the spirit even has to this. I might just be that special, you know."

As Shay forced a cocky smile, Chloe allowed herself a small chuckle and continued light heartedly.

"Yeah, and I might actually win fairly at the casino."

"Right. …the casino?"

"—So! This actually kind of fixes some major purroblems you were having, right? You won't be stuck babysitting your party in the Dungeon anymeowre! Surely you'll have a ton of strong party members to choose from, right?"

Eheh, I guess we're just cruising past that one…

"...Well, probably. I haven't met anybody from the familia, and they do have a reputation for being… somewhat unfriendly, so we'll just have to see."

"Huh… Well, will you be allowed out?"

"'Allowed out?' I doubt it'll be anywhere near that strict… Well, I hope not, anyway. It's only been put to me vaguely, but apparently I'll have a lot of freedom. I should be 'allowed out' basically whenever."

"Well good. If you skipped out on our training, I'd have to take some drastic measures. Oh, speaking of training, doesn't that familia have some crazy regimen?"

"You've probably heard more than I have about that. All I know is they fight each other most days."

"Yeah, that's basically what I've heard, too. Well, at least you'll probably grow way faster now. Maybe the spirit will finally speak up if you get strong enough?"

"I wouldn't bet on it. But, like you said, I'll be able to grow much faster in that familia, so maybe this is a good thing. At the very least, things are changing."

Having dried up the more casual topics they could cover, it was a bit of an awkward silence before Chloe spoke up.

"...I guess we've been strung along by the Gods again, huh?"

"...Yeah. This time though, I'm taking full advantage. I'll get much, much stronger. I'll just… have to figure out what to do after that."

Ending with a less than confident chuckle, Shay realized he really was lost without his ambitions in Eluria.

"Hey, don't forget about me! Since I'm the brains here, I'll just figure it out for you! I hope you're not gonna just forget your poor teacher after all we've been through together, meow."

Bearing a refreshed smile, Shay nodded as he continued.

"Yeah, yeah, you're right. Here's hoping you're smart enough to steer the ship, then."

"I'm plenty smart! And, if for some ungodly reason you need advice from someone other than me, you'll still have Také familia. Oh, that reminds me, how long do you have with them?"

"...Freya's coming by tomorrow to formally induct me into her familia, so, about a day…"

Unsure of what tact to take, Chloe decided to try and cheer him up.

"In that case, you should probably spend the day with them. Well, after just one thing..."

As Shay looked somewhat confused, Chloe's mouth bent upward in a sly smile.

"There's something only I can do for you right now, right? You're Level Three now. Someone's gotta test just how ready you are to train with your new familia. Come at me, meow."

~

After being thoroughly beaten while breaking in his new strength, Shay returned home to his familia. It had only been an hour or so, but he was already pretty exhausted. With his new Level Three strength, he had actually been able to somewhat compete with Chloe, but only when pushing his enchantment to the maximum. It turned out that his new Magic Control ability was surprisingly helpful, and he felt like he now had a much greater command over his enchantment.

Shay spent the rest of the day with Také familia, mostly chatting about their journey so far in the Labyrinth City. It had been about 9 months since they had arrived in Orario, and they were generally seeing great success. While still only roaming the Upper Floors, the party led by Ouka had been bringing in a respectable amount each month, enough to buy everyone decent equipment and send a substantial amount back to the shrine. The days when Shay joined them were extremely profitable, earning easily double their usual hauls, with enough time for a second trip if they were up for it. They reflected on their current situation, and how it was a far cry from those first couple of months spent barely scraping by.

After reminiscing with his comrades, Shay headed to bed more or less at peace with his situation. He glanced at the notes he'd started taking in an attempt to calculate the growth in his strength and speed, and began to puzzle through his ambitions. He knew that all he would accomplish by returning to Eluria right now would be pointless conflict, but he wasn't ready to completely give up on it yet. In his wildest dreams, Shay could see a future where he ruled as the new King of Eluria, and was strong enough to ward off any malice with the threat of personal retribution. This was shallow however, and he knew the problem was bigger than just Eluria. Shay knew he was special, or at least lucky, but he wasn't so arrogant to believe he would be the strongest. Plus, even if he could stand at the top, order through force wouldn't last anyway, no matter how benevolent the dictator thought they were.

So, what? It has to be ideological, then? That's not gonna stop any bad actors… And, if I just have to convince people, then what's strength even good for? …Well, maybe I could become a symbol? I doubt I'd have the ego to keep that up for long...

Brought out of his thoughts, Shay was interrupted by a solid knock on the door.

"It's me. I'd like you to humor me a little."

"...Také? Sure, come in."

The door opened slowly, revealing the deity that had become like a second father figure to him over the past seven years. The deity made his way to Shay's desk, sitting down comfortably but wearing a somewhat solemn expression. Shay had just turned off his magic stone lamp before the god knocked, the room now lit by the faint moonlight. Sighing before he started, Také reminded Shay of the fathers he'd seen sending their sons off to battle.

"You've matured quite a bit over all these years, Shay. When I first met you, I invited you to the shrine because I sensed a desperation in you. I thought you needed a place to belong, and after you bonded with the other orphans and softened up, I thought I'd been right."

"..."

"When you Leveled up for the first time though, I got worried. As a deity, and someone who's been watching over you for all this time, I'd sensed you doubling down on whatever darkness had been driving you. I didn't know the specifics until recently, but even then I could've guessed something like revenge. I thought you'd head to a dangerous place, but… even as you outgrew your party, you still had comrades to keep you away from that darkness. I'd left it to them, and seeing you after you'd hit Level Three I could tell it was the right decision."

Shay had grown accustomed to Také's monologuing, especially given their extensive history, but he did find it somewhat comforting. He'd managed to struggle all the way to where he was now, and his patron deity was giving his approval.

"But I'm afraid without something equally powerful driving you forward, you'll fall back into that same darkness. I'm sure you've thought about it already, but if you're going to be participating in those combat rituals, you'll need something to fight for."

"..."

"So I'm here to ask… have you found it?"

As the moonlight trickled down through the window, Shay was reminded yet again of that night in the forest. When he was first chosen by the spirit, it had channeled all his anger and regret towards a mission of revenge. When he fought the wyvern, he doubled down on that mission, and eventually extended it to carving out a section of the world for his new family. Finding out about Chloe, and more importantly forgiving her, had thrown him off course somewhat. Now, Shay didn't want revenge. He didn't want to cause more conflict. He'd even give up Eluria. Shay had come to recognize the inherent complexity of it all, even doubting the utility of his efforts in the face of it. With this he had become resigned, with nothing to sustain him moving forward.

"I'm… really not sure…"

With a soft sigh, Také gave his follower an understanding smile. After thinking for a bit, he gave a brief response.

"Maybe that's fine for now."

Getting up slowly, the God of War made his way to the door before pausing briefly.

"If you're ever in a pinch, pay attention to where your mind goes. I'm confident you'll find your reason there."