Contents
Volume 19[ ]
Prologue[ ]
Five days had passed since the War Game between Hestia Familia and Freya Familia. Misha was still excitedly talking about it and believed that Bell's recent accomplishment would cause Eina, who was in charge of him, to get a raise. Eina, however, didn't share her enthusiasm and still felt it was all a dream as she had been worried for Bell throughout the War Game. Misha then said that Eina must love Bell a lot and so they should celebrate his victory. Eina hadn't seen Bell after the War Game since the Guild was busy dealing with the aftermath. She wondered what she would say to him the next time they met, and became embarrassed when she thought up the words "I love you". Misha then mentioned they were going to get busy again when the School District arrived. Eina realized winter was about to come and "that child" was coming to Orario. Elsewhere, a girl on a huge ship sees the Babel tower in the distance from the ocean, and calls out her older sister.
Chapter 1[ ]
At night, Hestia Familia and others who are close to them were celebrating at the Hostess of Fertility. Mord and his group, Bors and several Rivira residents, Dormul, Luvis, and others who helped during the War Game were among the people there. Freya Familia's assets were distributed and everyone celebrating there had received a lot of money. Since there were a lot of people, they were having a buffet style, which gave them more space.
Bell was thanking the members of Takemikazuchi and Miach Familias for their help during the War Game. The reward money Miach got was enough to pay for Naaza's new prosthetic arm, but not enough to also clear their debt. Many people also ranked up after the War Game, including Naaza, and mainly the Berbera such as Samira and Lena. Takemikazuchi, Hephaestus, and Tsubaki told Bell that he doesn't have to go around greeting people since he was the one who fought until the end, but Bell insisted on thanking everyone who helped him. The ones that didn't attend the party included Eina, who was busying working for the Guild, Fels, and those who didn't participate in the War Game such as Hermes Familia and Loki Familia. Bell was told that Ais' throat had become hoarse from cheering him so much and she was too embarrassed to see him.
After greeting everyone, Bell was with his Familia members. Mikoto still couldn't believe they won and felt like it was all a dream. Lili, who had nightmares after the War Game, didn't want to do it again. Welf then pointed out the Freya Familia members present in the tavern even though they were the losers. The Gulliver Brothers, who were wearing their usual armors but with a white apron, replied they were just doing their duty as waiters. The entire Freya Familia was forced by Mia to serve the customers there as punishment for the trouble they caused. The women were wearing the tavern uniform, but the men were wearing their usual clothes. Some were scared of the Freya Familia being there, while some others were happy to have beautiful female members serving them.
While Bell was looking at the sight, Horn suddenly appeared behind him with a killing intent. Horn thought Bell was enjoying staring at the female Freya Familia members and called him a sex fiend, which Bell denied. Bell felt pressured and with a clumsy smile said that Horn looks good wearing the tavern uniform. Hearing this caused Horn to blush so much and call Bell a "lewd beast" for enjoying seeing her in such an outfit that doesn't suit her. Heith followed saying this only happened because of Horn's betrayal. Horn seemed to have been forgiven by the other Freya Familia members as requested by Freya. She rarely appeared in public before, so she had been receiving curious looks since she started working there, with the male Gods calling her a cool, beautiful yandere. Horn, with slight tears, said that this is all Bell's fault before being dragged away by Heith.
Welf then says how the Freya Familia members had been helpful in other things such as protecting Haruhime. Ever since Haruhime's level boost had been exposed during the War Game, she had become a target of kidnappings, dealings, and other kinds of malice. Bell, Mikoto, Aisha and other Berbera, had been protecting her from assassins. Hogni said fighting Freya Familia was what led to Haruhime's current situation, so they would take responsibility by protecting her. Hogni alone had protected Haruhime from dangerous situations over 70 times. After Bell thanked him for protecting her, Hogni became embarrassed and said Bell should be thanking Syr who asked for it.
Syr was serving the Gods in the party. Not many people of the lower world still retained memories of the time Freya charmed Orario, and so only few people know about Syr and Freya. Syr's true identity however is now known to the other Gods. Though Hestia, who was the leader of the faction alliance, had allowed Syr's existence, the Gods had come to tease and bully her. Syr had been apologizing to many people and she accepted her punishments, such as listening to people's complaints and received slaps to her cheek. Part of the reason Freya Familia were working at the tavern was to ease Syr's burden. Anya headed to the tavern's roof in order to have a proper talk with Allen, who was performing a lookout for unwanted people. Allen was then chased by Anya along the roof of the buildings while telling her not to come closer and hug him.
Bell offered to help Syr but she refused, because Bell had promised to keep an eye on her, who is now working hard. Hestia also told Bell that he shouldn't spoil Syr because he might get taken away again. Syr then snapped her finger and Ottar appeared immediately after bringing more dishes to Bell's group. The moment Ottar appeared, Bell immediately fell unconscious with white eyes and bubbles in his mouth. Syr said she will perform mouth to mouth resuscitation on him, which Hestia angrily replies that she hasn't learned her lesson. Horn said a sinner like her should do it instead, and Heith added a healer like her should. Lili was irritated by all this and asked Welf to turn the women into ashes.
While Bell was unconscious, Hedin, who was deemed most neutral, had looked after him. Bell woke up after Hedin kicked him for napping too long. Bell then noticed wounds on Hedin's face; he had accepted punishment by allowing the other Freya Familia members to attack him once, but he fought back after because he refused to accept a second attack. The fight escalated to near death with the Gulliver Brothers receiving serious injuries, which were hidden by the armors they were wearing now. Bell thanked Hedin for his help during the War Game, but Hedin claimed he was just using Bell and the others. Hedin then headed for the kitchen while telling Bell not to break the promise he made to Syr.
Ryuu showed up and asked Bell if they could talk alone outside the tavern. Ryuu had just escorted Astraea and her new Familia members back to Solingen. She had left Astraea's place for real since she has now found a new place to live. Her decision to move forward was shown by her golden hair that was no longer dyed and reached her back. Ryuu said this is not a farewell since she will still write letters to Astraea and can visit her. Bell welcomed her back and Ryuu replied that she's home.
Ryuu then said she wanted to talk about "the main thing". Bell was reminded of her words of confession she said during the War Game, and thought she was going to confess again. He then remembered how he rejected Syr, which caused him to panic because he already has feelings for Ais, and worried rejecting another girl would cause serious damage like what happened last time, unsure of what to do. As Ryuu was about to tell him, he was not mentally prepared, expecting another confession. But instead, Ryuu said she wanted to join Hestia Familia, which hearing it caused Bell to be surprised, and feel stupid.
The next morning at Hestia Familia's home, Ryuu was telling the entire Familia her intent to join them. Mia had told Ryuu before to leave the Hostess of Fertility if she had found a new place to go to, and the tavern now had enough people thanks to the Andhrimnir, who are better at the job than Ryuu was. Everyone was very accepting of Ryuu joining, though Lili was a bit hesitant because having a Level 5 and a Level 6 in the Familia would cause their faction rank to go up, and thus, their tax as well. Hestia believed Ryuu to be a good person, unlike "a thieving cat" like Lili who would try to get ahead, and Haruhime who would do so naturally.
In order for Ryuu to join a Familia, the Guild demanded that she be registered under a different name, since "Gale Wind" was considered officially dead. Ryuu would be seen as a newcomer adventurer with an unknown background, which Lili thought was absurd for a Level 6; Ryuu's real name would not change and this was all just for paperwork. Changing the familiy name would be enough and Hestia asked Ryuu what she had in mind. Ryuu glanced at Bell and, while blushing, she shyly answered "Ryuu Cranel". Hestia immediately hit Ryuu's head with her sandal and angrily said that she thought Ryuu was the only one who was not like that. Ryuu tried to defend herself claiming using her current God's name would be discourteous, so she thought she should go with the captain's name, but Hestia easily saw through the lie. Lili was siding with Hestia and Mikoto tried to help Ryuu, who was on the verge of being kicked out, while Haruhime was unsure what to do. Seeing all this made Bell feel that the elegant, cool, and beautiful Ryuu somehow looked like such a useless person now. Welf, meanwhile, thought she was fitting in fast, which Bell agreed.
Later, Bell visited Eina and gave her Ryuu's documents. Ryuu's registered name is "Ryuu Astraea", named after her first patron Goddess. Eina thought it was hardly worth the effort of hiding Ryuu's true identity, and then told Bell that Hestia Familia now had been promoted to B rank. Even though they still only had 6 members, it would have been impossible for their rank to be any lower since they now had two first-tier adventurers, with one of them being Level 6; there were also opinions that Hestia Familia should be promoted to A rank instead. Hestia Familia now had the status of a "super-small elite faction", but their taxes had gone up to the point Bell could imagine Lili crying in despair, and the reward from the War Game had been shared among the faction alliance, so they still had a huge debt.
The biggest reason for Hestia Familia's new status was that Freya became a subordinate god to Hestia. Officially, Freya Familia was disbanded, but the city couldn't afford to lose many strong warriors so Freya, or rather Syr, was put under the control of a virgin Goddess as a safety measure. This kept Ottar and the other Einherjar from leaving the city. Their current official status included store employees and waiting to be scouted by other Familias. Hestia Familia's official rank was B, but they were treated as S rank by the upper management of the Guild. The exact relationship between the two Familias was that they won't go to the Dungeon together, but Freya Familia will often help by giving protection to Hestia Familia's home and members. Now that the Folkvangr couldn't be used anymore, the Dungeon is where Van and the others would train. The Hestia Familia home was probably the safest place in the world now that the strongest bodyguards were taking turns protecting it.
Bell and Eina then talked about Hestia Familia's next move. The party's formation and strength had largely changed since the last time they went into the Dungeon, and so they will spend time in the Middle Floors to review their tactics and coordination first. Ryuu would fill any position in the party when it's lacking, including a healer now that she has wide-area healing magic. Hestia Familia now has improved long-range attack and healing capabilities, though Lili preferred that they have a full-time mage and healer to give Ryuu more freedom of movement.
Bell thought the party could go beyond the 27th floor, as using level boost would make the party members be at least Level 3, which would make them strong enough to reach the 36th floor. They will progress through the Dungeon carefully so that it still won't be very dangerous for Lili and the others. Eina agreed the party's strength is more than enough to get past the 28th floor safety point and advance through the 29th floor, which is the start of the Dense Forest Ravine. The region is a jungle, different from the Great Tree Labyrinth, and dinosaur-type monsters such as Bloodsaurus start to appear there, so it is absolutely required to be Level 3 to fight there.
Eina then mentioned how many things have happened to Bell since the time he was chased by that minotaur on the 5th floor. She thought he no longer needed her advice and could make his own decision. Her advice "adventurers shouldn't go on adventurers", which she gives to low-level adventurers, was no longer applicable to high-level adventurers. Eina, who is not an adventurer, and Bell, who is now a first-tier adventurer, see things differently now. Eina also told Bell that he should take a break from being an adventurer a bit and try doing something new. Hestia Familia will be given many expedition missions from now on, and so before that happens, Eina wanted Bell to broaden his horizon. It's still a fact that Bell had only been an adventurer for about half a year and still had a lot of things to learn to catch up with the other first-tier adventurers. Bell would still follow Eina's advice, but he's not sure what new things to do.
Bell, who now has the hearing of a first-tier adventurer, then heard a faint sound that he had never heard before, and saw many people leaving the Guild building in a hurry. Eina told Bell the School District had returned and told him to come with her. Access to the upper part of the city wall is not open to public (though Bell and Ais were able to train in the northwest side since she knew which entrance was not blocked), so Bell and Eina headed towards the upper part of the city wall's southwest side, which was now open to the public. Many people gathered there to see a floating city that was so huge, they could see it coming from the ocean located far from Orario.
It was actually a ship consisting of three huge metal discs stacked on top of each other. It had buildings and towers at the top of the disc, and blue feather-like structures that gave the ship the appearance of a city built on the back of a sea dragon. The sound Bell heard before was the ship's whistle. It was the largest ship in the world named the "Hringhorni", and the official name was "Maritime Academic Institutions Special District", commonly known as the School District. The people in Orario were cheering at the sight of the ship that had returned after three years. Bell also felt very excited at the unknown world heading towards him.
Chapter 2[ ]
Many ships from all over the world come to Melen in order to transport many people and goods headed for Orario, the center of the world. Most ships leaving Melen are loaded with magic stone products since the main transportation route for the magic stone products trade monopolized by Orario is through the sea. Bell, Eina, and many people from Orario came to the port town to welcome the School District that had returned. Bell had been to Melen before, but every time he went there it felt like he was in a foreign country, largely due to Orario being surrounded by tall city walls, isolated from the outside world.
Eina explained to Bell that the School District is a mobile education institution that recruit children of the age of six to eighteen from all over the world. Orario doesn't have an academic type Familia, but some places around the world have these types of Familias which their home serve as schools. Normally, tuition fee is the condition for being accepted and talented individuals that act as instructors are needed, so this type of Familia is difficult to operate, and where emerging Familias are more likely to fail. The School District, however, is sponsored by the Guild, which are seeking outstanding talents to come to Orario, and it is run by multiple Gods that formed a faction alliance. The only condition to be accepted into the School District is the will to learn, regardless of race, wealth, or experience.
As everyone there was cheering for the School District's return, Bell was suddenly pulled away by Hermes, separating him from Eina. Hermes and many other Gods from Orario were there in order to recruit students from the School District, where talented individuals gathered. The School District is not as good as Orario in producing high-levelled people, but it is common for the talented individuals there to reach Level 2, and some to even reach Level 3. Many high-level adventurers were originally students of the School District, including the "Thousand Elf" (hearing that name caused Bell's head to hurt).
There were procedures in place to ensure no God could get a head start in obtaining recruits and interns, but Hermes wanted to get ahead and asked Bell to help him in sneaking into the School District. Asfi and the other Hermes Familia members couldn't help him since they were on vacation after working so hard since the incident caused by Freya. Hermes also argued that Bell was the cause of the incident and his wish of wanting Syr to stay in Orario was made possible thanks to Hermes convincing the other Gods who were hostile against Freya, so Bell was unable to reject the request.
It was difficult to sneak in since the School District has heavy security to protect secrets such as Orichalcum production and other unique technical knowledge, added with Ganesha Familia members being present. Hermes then decided that he and Bell should infiltrate from the sky. Bell wore a spare Talaria that Hermes stole from Asfi's room, while Hermes was holding onto him. They were also wearing Hades Head which enabled them to fly while invisible. But because Bell couldn't use Talaria well, they ended up crashing on one corner of the School District. Though they survived the fall, the large noise sounded the alarm. The School District also developed a magic tool that could see through invisible people after Hermes had infiltrated the School District in the past, so Hermes took off Bell's helmet and boots, leaving him as bait while escaped.
Hermes had made Bell wear a student uniform before arriving, and Bell had just put his own shoes back on, so the students that came mistook him for another student. Bell pointed the students in the wrong direction Hermes went, as they suspected the culprit this time was Hermes again. The uniform Bell wore was tailor-made so he assumed Hermes had planned on involving him from the start. Bell then left the crashed site and walked through various places while admiring the buildings in the School District. He eventually arrived at a high place where he could see many buildings, realizing the School District is structurally similar to Orario, but smaller and more pretty.
Bell then noticed a group of girls walking on a road below him, with one of them being a half-elf named Nina. Her long hair is brown, but one of her bangs is green, as well as also having green eyes which indicate a noble bloodline. Despite not having similar appearance, for some reason this girl reminded Bell of Eina. He unconsciously called out "Eina", making Nina turn back to look up at him. As their eyes met each other, magic stone speakers broadcast an alert regarding intruders; a God and a Familia member wearing a student uniform alongside the description of Bell's appearance. The description of Bell was like a slander, saying his eyes were bloodshot red like a pervert's, and he had hair white like a crazy rabbit.
Bell ran after many students who saw him and noticed that he fit the description, shouting that the intruder was found. The students had many who were at least Level 2 and were working together so well that they posed a threat. But since Bell was now a Level 5, he had his Escape ability, as well as all of his experience being chased by Apollo Familia, Ishtar Familia, and even Allen, so he wouldn't be caught. Bell did a very high acrobatic jump, passing over the roof of a 10-meder tall building, and landed on the building's other side. The students lost sight of Bell for some time, but he is so famous his identity was exposed very fast. His spirit became weak after hearing the students making disappointing comments about him, likening back to how hurt he was over the feelings of the kids at Maria's Orphanage during the Xenos incident. Eventually, Bell was found again and he escaped to the tower in the center of the School District. He climbed the spiral stairs to the top floor and entered a room at the end of a corridor.
Inside the room was a male God who was beautiful like a goddess. He could see Bell despite his eyes being closed all the time, and his noble appearance made him look like he was a God associated with "light". A girl named Alisa entered the room and asked the God, known as Baldr, if Bell was there, but the God told her no one came. After Alisa left, Bell came out behind a desk and Baldr said it was a pleasure to meet "Orario's new hope". Baldr helped Bell because before the alarm went off, he had already talked about him with Hermes, who just then made himself visible in front of Bell.
After separating from Bell, Hermes went straight to the Breiðablik, the temple tower that is the ship's bridge, in order to talk to Baldr. Hermes and Baldr had been friends for a long time, but it would take a month for Hermes to talk to the headmaster by going through proper channels. The School District is an alliance of academic type Familias and all the Gods there have equal rights, but Baldr, who is the founder and headmaster, is the top person in charge. Hermes had come to ask Baldr to allow Bell to become a student in the School District. After being asked if he was interested, Bell became shocked.
Bell later came back home and informed his Familia about what happened in the dining hall. Familias would typically send their members to stay in the School District as recruitment officers for the purpose of finding students interested in joining the Familia, or having an internship, but Bell was invited to become a student instead. Going there as an adventurer was not possible because the news of Bell's infiltration had spread. Bell apologized if this caused Hestia Familia any problems of being unable to recruit, but Lili said that after talking with Hestia, they decided not to do any recruitment.
Hestia Familia had become so famous after the War Game, so they would be considered as a nuisance by other Familias if they continued to expand their power right after Ryuu joined. Even if they are protected by Freya Familia, they could still face some kind of harassment. They intend to let other Familias know that since they had just obtained a Level 6, they won't be competing with other Familias in recruiting students who are at least Level 2, but also asked for tolerance if a student wishes to join on their own.
Mikoto and Ryuu were in charge of today's cooking, with Mikoto cooking but with Haruhime's help. Ryuu, whose cooking skill is bad and only slightly better than Syr's, was in charge of putting the dishes on the table. Even though she is a part of Hestia Familia now, Ryuu said when they are not doing any Familia activity, she would temporarily help at the Hostess of Fertility since she still felt indebted to Mia and Syr. Ryuu, who was placing dinner on the table, commented on how such a huge commotion had already occurred soon after she joined, and that it must be Bell's destiny to get into such situations. Once everyone was seated, they asked Bell what he intended to do since there had never been an adventurer becoming a student at School District, and this was something Hermes brought up without permission.
While Bell was giving his answer to the Familia members in the dining hall, Hestia and Hermes were sitting in another room. Hestia was upset at Hermes for causing them trouble again, but he argued this was a good opportunity for Bell to get to know the outside world using knowledge from the School District. Bell is now a "hero candidate" after becoming a Level 5, and Hestia Familia are now considered part of the surge of times that sweeps the Lower World, and so Hestia Familia had been urged by the Guild and Ouranos to explore the Dungeon more actively than before after a short break. Hermes also said Bell will definitely be sent to fight the One Eyed Black Dragon, and so he wanted him to pay attention to not just the Dungeon, but also outside of Orario.
He believes going to the School District will help Bell understand better the situations in the outside world, and give him the opportunity to meet the Level 7 other than Ottar. Hestia was surprised that there was another Level 7, and Hermes said meeting this person, who is known as the "Hero of the Current Era" will motivate Bell; he also said this could be the last time Bell takes a time off. Bell had talked to Hestia earlier and told her he would like to go see the School District in order to follow Eina's advice of seeking new things besides the Dungeon. Baldr's condition for letting Bell enroll secretly was for him to take care of the problematic students. Hestia also believed Bell needed as much rest as possible, so she allowed Bell to enroll at the School District.
After obtaining permission from his Familia, Bell went to the School District three days after receiving the invitation. Bell was in the same room he met Baldr before, which was the headmaster's room. Bell was wearing a brown haired Hume Bunny costume suit given by Hermes because of the commotion from few days ago. The wig has bangs that cover most of his eyes and is a cursed item with mild cognitive impairment made by Asfi so that other students won't recognize him as Bell Cranel. According to his fake background, Bell's name was Rapi Flemish. Rapi passed the entrance exam in the city of Berula, the School District's previous stop, but due to family circumstances he had to board the ship in Melen. A man in his late twenties, dressed in a black teacher uniform, then entered the room. He looked strong and like a knight to Bell, and had been informed about Bell's secret enrollment, introducing himself as Leon Vardenburg.
Chapter 3[ ]
While on the way to the classroom, Leon told the nervous "Rapi" that he will become a good student. Hearing Leon say it sincerely with a smile caused Bell to blush and relieve his nerves. The surrounding students, who saw a new student being captivated, said it was as expected of Leon, the "Ultra-Page" (a knight despite being a page). Leon then explained about the School District's system, in which the students were not considered members of a "Familia" but rather part of a "Class". The School District ran in a similar way as nation-type Familias, but instead of having a main God and subordinate Gods, all the Gods in the School District had equal rights and Baldr was just their representative. There were thousands of students in the School District and they were divided into ten Classes. Each student had a badge on their left chest that showed their Class' emblem. Bell, who was in Baldr Class, was wearing a "light and ship" badge.
After they arrived in their classroom, Leon introduced Bell as "Rapi Flemis" to the over fifty teens in the room; Bell was so nervous that he almost said his real name. After his introduction, he sat on an empty seat next to the half-elf girl he met when he infiltrated the School District before. The girl introduced herself as Nina Tulle, and her last name confirmed Bell's suspicion of who this girl was, especially with her gentle and kind attitude, and face resembling Eina. An elf girl named Mili, who was sitting close, told Bell that Nina was an honors student, and treated everyone this way. The students in the room were part of the Combat Skills Department, where they learned things related to combat. Many students in this department were aiming to have combat professions such as Empire knights, Dizara marine forces, Altena court mages, Orario adventurers, etc. They will also get to experience the Dungeon, one of the "Three Greatest Unexplored Areas in the World".
Students of the School District will be allowed to enter Orario three days later and many internships will be open from that day. For the Combat Skills Department students, the most important thing will be the Dungeon Practice. The students will be divided into squads, and each squad will bring back designated drop items and write reports in order to receive credits. Since they were students and not adventurers, those with lower Level 1 status will only be allowed to go as far as 5th floor, and the ones with upper Level 1 status will be allowed to go as far as 9th floor. Only Level 2 students will be allowed to go to 10th floor and beyond, but the 15th floor is the limit.
Leon then asked "Rapi", who was aiming to be an adventurer, for his opinion on how the Dungeon Practice can teach him in accomplishing his goal. Bell answered "adventurers must not adventure", which was what he learned from Eina. Most of the students didn't understand, but Leon said it was a great answer and explained that bravery is not encouraged and that "cowardice" helps you become more cautious, which is important for adventurers in the Dungeon. Bell felt embarrassed, but also excited after everyone gave him an applause. He thought Leon was amazing to have explained his answer in a way that made all students able to understand, as well as using this opportunity to make the other students more acquainted with the new student.
When the current class was over, Leon asked Nina to show Bell around the school, before he left the room. Bell was then surrounded by some students asking more about "Rapi". He told them that he was doing farmer's work before coming here, was Level 1, and other things that were a mix of truths and lies. But then, a dwarf student named Iglin showed contempt because the new student looked weak and would hold back everyone in the Combat Skills Department during their Dungeon Practice. Nina defended Bell before everyone left the room, and she went with him to show him around the school.
The School District has a structure in which three huge metal discs called "layers" are connected together. The Control Layer at the bottom, which can be called the heart of the ship, is where the engine area and research facilities are located, and it has many large-size magic stone devices which generated buoyancy like the ones used for Babel's elevator. The Life Layer at the middle is where the living quarters for students and teachers are located. The Academic Layer at the top is where the school buildings, training grounds, and other facilities for classes are located. Because of how it's structured, the ship has a few nicknames, such as "three-layer extra-large pancakes", "clock with protruding long needles", and "majestic dragon's back". Including the crew operating the ship, there are over ten thousand people in the School District.
Since the School District is too big, Nina and Bell were touring only the Academic Layer for the day. After passing through some streets, they arrived at a street where a lot of shops were located. Any student can run a shop as long as they have certain credits in the Business Department and pass the qualification exam. Vacancy for tenants is limited, so students usually start by working part-time at stores owned by senior students. This is also a rehearsal for those aiming for business-type Familias or other business-related careers, and serves as part of their class. They will be given rewards by their Gods according to their monthly sales ranking, and so there would be many new products released every month. Most shops opened in the evening after classes are over, but there was a Jyagamaru-kun shop currently open. Nina said that Jyagamaru-kun, which originated in Orario, is also popular in the School District, and hearing this reminded Bell of what Hestia had mentioned in the past about Jyagamaru-kun being worldwide.
They went inside the shop with Nina ordering a "Jyagamaru-kun Grande Chocolate Chip Extra Coffee Non-Fat Milk Caramel Frappuccino with Chocolate Sauce". Nina's order looked more like a drink which had a lot syrup and cream filled with Jyagamaru-kun, and thought about how if Hestia and Ais were to see this they would be furious. Bell on the other hand ordered a normal Jyagamaru-kun. He wanted to pay but the School District uses banknotes called Lagnars, and money in valis currency must be exchanged at the school bank. Nina ended up paying, with Bell imagining Hedin punishing him with Caelus Hildr for letting this happen. She then took Bell's hand and dragged him while running as they left the store. They headed to the park with their food where they had a small party to celebrate Bell's enrollment. Though Nina looked mature like Eina, she was also carefree like a child.
During lunch period, Bell and Nina were in the Sky Lounge located in the middle of the Breiðablik. Shops run by students charge a fee, but school cafeterias managed by the School District staff or Gods are basically free. Among the school cafeterias, the Sky Lounge is the most popular, but also very difficult to eat there. Only the food in the Sky Lounge are cooked by the Gods in the School District, but they are on a first come, first served basis. Nina was so happy they could eat there which made Bell wonder if she likes eating. The Sky Lounge was the last major facility in their tour for the day, and Bell thanked Nina for her help. Bell had been referring Nina as "Tulle-san" so she asked him to call her "Nina" since she had been calling him "Rapi-kun" and they were classmates from now on. He had thought she was older than him, but she then said she was thirteen years old. Nina became angry because Bell was shocked upon hearing this, just like the others who initially think she is older. He said it was because she was very mature and beautiful, and so she forgave him. Bell then called her "Nina" from now on.
After they finished eating, Bell and Nina talked about which courses Bell will take. For the Combat Skills Department, compulsory courses include Military Arts, Fieldwork, Battle Volunteer, etc., and some like Fieldwork are replaced by Dungeon Practice when the School District is in Orario. The students in the department also have to complete a minimum of six electives to get enough credits for graduation. There were so many electives to choose from and Nina told Bell that he should choose what he's interested in. Bell was interested in Comprehensive Theology which is a study related to Gods, including how to read Hieroglyphs, but Nina wouldn't recommend it since the passing rate was only 10%, and even fewer could end up reading Hieroglyphs. Bell could only decide on Heroes History and had trouble deciding on what other courses to take, so Nina gave him a list of courses she recommended for him, who had enrolled during winter term and needed to catch up with other students. She also said while embarrassed that some of the listed courses were the ones she was taking, so she could help him if they took the same classes.
Bell asked Nina why she would go this far for him, and she replied that she also didn't understand a lot of things when she first came to the School District, but she came to like it after other students like Mili helped her, so she wanted to do the same for a new student. Bell then asked Nina if she could help him study, which she happily agreed. She asked him to wait in the classroom they were in before, while she went to the library to get some reference books.
At the room where Bell and Nina were going to have their study group, she came with more than ten books that she brought from the library. She said that the amount of books was a bit small, but enough for Bell to study for five hours before taking a test with questions made by her. She also said Bell will be fine since he had enough will to learn to get into the School District, and that she will teach him properly even if studying was not her strong point. Nina said all of this with an innocent smile and without any trace of malice, which caused Bell to think the smile of a young girl is scary, and that she really was Eina's sister. Bell could only accept his fate while sweating a lot, but in the end, he was able to answer half of the questions on subjects that he never learned before, which impressed Nina. It was all due to Bell's experience with Eina and his habit of absorbing any information he obtained to help him as an adventurer.
After Nina left to return the books to the library, Leon came into the room; he had been watching Bell and Nina and didn't want to interrupt them. He forgot about Nina's studying habit so he didn't expect the study group to last until the sky became dark. Leon asked how Bell's first day of school was, and he replied he had gotten used to being called "Rapi" and learned a lot about the School District. Leon noted that Bell was able to blend in without anyone noticing that he was a first-tier adventurer. Many students who ranked up should be able to see through someone else's strength and not judge by appearance, but Bell was able to make them believe he was weak by doing the opposite of everything that was taught to him as an adventurer.
Bell and Leon then had a conversation about being adventurers. Bell said before that "adventurers must not adventure", but Leon also believed there will be a day when they must adventure. Bell also agreed there was no escaping it and everyone should continuously cultivate themselves in order to be prepared. Leon then asked to see Bell's course registration form, and he added Contemporary History and Apocalypse Debate to the form. He said it would be better for Bell to take these courses too and that it is true that they all need to be prepared when facing the "end". Leon also said that Bell will join the 3rd squad, which Nina was in, and asked him to guide the members.
Chapter 4[ ]
Eina was alongside the top brass of the Guild during their meeting, as she was a candidate to join their ranks due to producing a first-tier adventurer in a short time. The meeting was about building an elevator that connected the ground to the Deep Floors to help high-ranking adventurers and Familias save time. They would use the Orichalcum from the Student District to build it so that it didn't get destroyed. Eina questioned the safety of the elevator, but Royman dismissed it as Ouranos had already agreed. They had Knossos, which Eina didn't know about, as proof it could be built. They would reuse materials from it and would be able to build in the open with much more manpower than Evilus had. They also had the technological capabilities of the School District, so they could complete it much sooner. They would start with the Upper Floors, next the Middle Floors, then the 18th floor, and so on until they reached the Deep Floors. Eina was still doubtful about the plan, same as Fels, but Ouranos still thought it was needed for the times ahead. Fels was using a part of Knossos as his workshop, making something in preparation for the One Eyed Black Dragon.
In his second day as a student, Bell went with Nina to his Ancient History class, which was being taught by Idunn. As soon as the class started, she asked a question to Bell which he needed Nina's help to answer. The next class was Apocalypse Debate, which was about the consequences of the One Eyed Black Dragon to the world, and images of the cities devastated by dragon-type monsters were shown.
During the practical class Combined Battle, Bell and Nina changed to their battle uniforms. Bell still had the Hestia Knife hidden away, but most of his equipment was not with him. Bell was asked if he could use any magic. Leon tried to make him deny it, but Bell said yes without really thinking. Iglin told him to shoot his best at his barrier and Bell tried to lower the amount of mind in the attack. When they asked for a chant, the only one he could think of was Welf's. It ended up causing an Ignis Fatuus and Nina had to heal him up. Bell became the first person in history to suffer an Ignis Fatuus despite his magic needing no chant.
Leon then announced he was to join the 3rd squad, causing three Demi Humans to protest. The other members of his party included Nina, a Dwarf guy called Iglin Mars, a Dark Elf girl called Legi Gigi, and a Pallum guy called Christia Elvia, all Level 2. Unable to make Leon take back his decision, Iglin declared that Bell would be their supporter. Christia was overconfident, and Iglin and Legi each believed all the others were getting in their way. Despite Nina's pleas, the other squad members didn't want to train together.
Days later, the 3rd squad was in Orario to do their Dungeon practice. While the other squad members were excited about Orario, Bell was taken aback by how different Orario was now with its festive mood. All the shops in the street were offering things that would interest the students. They needed to follow the procedures at the Guild before they entered the Dungeon, but Nina didn't want to do it so she left it for Bell to do.
In the Dungeon, they were following a weird "T" formation with three people at the front side by side, one in the middle, and one at the back. Nina tried giving orders, but the three in the front just ignored her and kept pushing forward, ending up going all the way to the 7th floor. Iglin ordered Bell to finish his report instead of him because they took so much time there was none left to study. Legi had finished her report, but Christia hadn't so he begged Nina to help him.
Bell went to deliver his report to Leon, but Baldr was also there. When asked how he felt, Bell answered that he was having trouble keeping up but that he was excited to learn new things. Leon noticed at a glance that Iglin's report was written by Bell and asked him to call Iglin to come in the morning. They then talked about the 3rd squad. The reason Bell was put there was because they would be decimated in the Dungeon. They were originally from different squads but caused problems and ended up put together. The teachers couldn't stay with the squad due to various problems so they allowed Bell to study there in exchange for him looking after it. Besides that, they also asked that Bell helped Nina with her problem. They didn't say what the her problem was, and asked Bell to hear it from her as a fellow student.
On another day, the 3rd squad was on 12th floor, having difficulty there as Bell expected. Bell suggested they retreated and Nina agreed, while the others tried to object until more monsters came which forced them to do so. Bell asked Legi to use magic to plant mines while he distracted them with a poison bomb. The 3rd squad had to defeat an Infant Dragon to clear their mission, but they had failed 4 times. The 3rd squad was the first one to reach 12th floor alongside the elite 7th squad, but now they had been overtaken by other squads. The 3rd squad could easily go past the 12th floor, but they wasted too much stamina to defeat the Infant Dragon.
Nina suggested they returned to the surface, but Bell's instinct told him they had to do it now. Bell thought the 3rd squad could only change if they were pushed to their limits. Bell had a strategy to do it, which he thought of since he was at the rearguard where he could see more than the vanguard he was usually at, but Iglin didn't trust him enough to go with his strategy. Legi trusted him since he gave a good order when they were retreating, and Christia trusted him just because he had fluffy ears and tail so it had to be a good plan. Nina also trusted him so Iglin begrudgingly accepted.
Nina and Christia baited the Infant Dragon, Legi's mine magic was used to blow away the Imps and Orcs, leaving only the injured Infant Dragon. The dragon tried to call for help, but the walls were already destroyed by Bell and Iglin. The party then ganged up on the dragon to defeat it. The success caused them to agree to fight together from now on. The squad wanted to exchange the magic stones for money at the Guild instead of at Babel to party. Nina didn't want to go, but had to stay with the squad.
At the Guild, Eina called out to Nina, but she ran away and Bell followed her. Wanting to help, Bell without his disguise met with Eina in a restaurant and asked about Nina, while keeping his identity as Rapi a secret. Eina left for the School District right after Nina was born to help their sick mother. She initially chose to join the Guild for the high salary to send money back home. She only remembered Nina as a baby since by the time she visited her hometown again, Nina had already left. She had only talked to Nina through awkward letters, but one day the replies to her letters stopped coming, so Eina started believing her sister hated her. Bell told Eina that Nina couldn't possibly hate her since she had a hurt expression when she saw her. Eina thanked Bell but that was when Lili and Hestia called out to Bell from outside the window.
Horn had delivered a letter from Syr to Hestia Familia with a cold face. In the letter, Hogni warned of a seductress near the white rabbit with a map and a location. After delivering the letter, Horn had tried to bring a knife from Mia's place but got knocked out. This was also when Ryuu demanded an answer to her confession which surprised the rest. It all turned into a mess with Eina demanding an explanation about the confession, Ryuu becoming shocked after realizing her confession was broadcasted live, Hogni apologizing for not stopping them at the end, and Hestia and Lili being loud.
When Bell got back to the Student District, Nina was waiting for him, blaming herself for making him late, but Bell said it was not her fault. The students didn't need to go to the Dungeon the next day, but Bell told Nina he was going to go to an Internship, planning in reality to go back to the Hestia Familia for a while. Nina was surprised he already had his future decided and became a tad depressed.
The Hestia Familia went to the 22nd floor to test their coordination, while Bell and Ryuu were still blushing when they met each other's eyes. Due to his experience working in the rear, Bell was able to advise Mikoto on how to better position herself before Lili could do the same. Lili got worried that her position as the strategist was being taken by Bell, but Ryuu reassured her that tactics and strategy were different. When the familia was returning from the Dungeon, they found adventurers quarrelling with students. The adventurers left when Bell called them out. The students thanked Bell but still acted rudely because of his invasion to the Student District. Bell then had a bad premonition when he heard one of the adventurers saying he would teach the students a lesson.
Chapter 5[ ]
Nina was groaning while looking at textbooks, and Mililia was surprised at her having difficulty studying. Nina clarified that she was actually making materials for teaching Rapi. She was amazed at how he could keep up with her teaching, thinking her relationship with him was a bit different from just good friends, also noting he was similar to her dad. She was further amazed that Rapi could make the 3rd squad work together despite them not being in the same squad for that long, causing them to be among the top graders thanks to his occasional advice.
There were some students from the other classes that kept getting rejected by Goibniu despite the sword they made which was empowered by a magic item. While the others were just impressed, Rapi pointed out that the part of the sword that had the magic item was more easily broken, making the entire sword unreliable for adventurers who tended to favor swords that last long.
Nina's friends tried to convince her to aim for the Guild again, but since her grades for the Guild weren't very good, she refused, feeling miserable thinking that Rapi already had decided on his future plans. The 3rd squad had already went through the 14th floor, and so decided to aim for the 15th floor. While he was checking the info in the Guild, Bell noticed the spawn date for the Goliath was different from what he expected.
The party was doing well on 15th floor, but Bell noticed the Dungeon was different than usual. At that moment, Bad Bats started spawning en masse. The floor collapsed and Bell used all his strength to help his squad escape. Hestia was alerted of the collapse by Lili, and was reminded of the last time Bell was in trouble on the 15th floor. The 3rd squad ended up trapped on the floor with no way out.
While all the squad members turned to Nina to decide what to do, Bell was reminded of when the same thing happened to him. He acted like Ryuu to calm Nina down, and then proposed they descended to the 18th floor which was a safety point, with Nina accepting his idea. On the surface, Leon heard some adventurers saying they only wanted to scare the students by lying about the spawn time for the Goliath, but it might cause more people to suffer. Idunn asked Leon to save the students. The elite 7th squad aside, she was worried for the 3rd squad but Leon told her not to worry since "he" was there.
While abusing magic swords and Nina's healing magic, the squad managed to get to the 16th floor barely holding up, but then multiple Minotaurs appeared. The magic sword reached its limit and they were cornered from both sides. The attackers were holding the monsters at the front while the ones in the back attacked Bell. Nina yelled at him to run, but he said it was alright and took two short swords from his backpack, obliterating the minotaurs really fast. After the fight was over, the others asked how he did that, and he answered that he attacked their magic stones. When questioned about his physical ability, he said he had recently ranked up. Nina was still worried about Bell but he told them to use that time to rest.
After resting, they quickly found a hole which allowed them to reach the 17th floor. The 3rd squad reached the boss room right as the Goliath was being born. They started running but Christia fell so Bell grabbed him and kept running. However, since Nina and the others had also stopped when Christia fell, they weren't going to make it in time. Bell used a one second Argonaut charge to jump really fast and pushed all of them to the 18th floor.
The squad wasn't able to get an inn in Rivira due to the expensive costs. Bell revealed his identity to Bors and tried to get a place, but none were available due to all the fleeing adventurers, so instead Bell got camping equipment from him. Bell was going to go back to defeat the Goliath, but Bors told him he heard from Mord that other students had already defeated it. The passage to the 17th floor had collapsed and wouldn't be restored in a while so they had to wait in Rivira. Bell bought food from Bors, and then he met with Fels, who spoke to him while invisible. The other students were saved by Leon and were being taken care of in Knossos while unconscious. Fels didn't want other students to know about Knossos so Bell had to stay with the 3rd squad in Rivira for a while.
Bell came back with camping equipments and the squad all praised him. They asked what his future plans were and Bell answered to become a member of Loki Familia, since he couldn't say Hestia Familia. Iglin wanted to become a blacksmith like Tsubaki. Legi wanted to become an assassin, as she was waiting for the Dark Elf royalty to defeat the White Elf royalty, but she had realized she couldn't do anything by herself in the Dungeon so she thanked Bell for it and decided to train soldiers. Christia wanted to become a knight and change the corrupt ones from the inside, as he wanted to surpass Finn. Nina still didn't know what she wanted to do.
Later that night, Bell went out to talk with Nina. She revealed that she had no dream and only came to the School District on a whim. She had an older sister that she and everyone else were proud of. Nina only entered the School District because her sister had done so, and didn't think much else about it, so she was regretting it now. The first class Nina entered was the one that taught about Hieroglyphs. Very few people were able to understand it, and Eina was one of the few that graduated from the class, but Nina couldn't understand it at all. She tried the Guild exam, same as her sister again, but she didn't succeed no matter how much she studied, so she ran away again. She kept following the same path as her sister but wasn't able to become like her. She only transferred to the combat skills department because Leon gave her a staff and told her to use it which made her get a new magic. She was also better at moving her body than she initially thought.
Bell said that even if Nina didn't like her current self, he had fun because of her. He learned the joys of learning and Nina also helped the others in the party. He said that just like her sister, many people had been saved by her. Nina said he was unexpectedly a womanizer, and thanked him. She said that people who had an objective like Rapi were much more wonderful than someone that just kept going with the flow. Bell kept her company even as she fell asleep on his lap.
The next morning, Legi woke up and greeted Bell. Bell invited her to an adventure which she accepted and let her carry Nina back to their camp. Bell asked Bors to be their bodyguard for a school trip to the floors below. The 3rd squad were initially scared after what they went through, but Bell said that an adventurer going down had agreed to take them and if they got something it would count as credits. They went along with Bors and over 20 other adventurers.
The 3rd squad was then surrounded by adventurers on the 24th floor. Bell wanted to show them the mystics and wonders of the Dungeon. Just as Bell planned, the squad members were amazed at the Dungeon and the knowledge of the adventurers. Bell told Nina that what she actually wanted to become was different from her sister. She thought she just wanted to become the same but was actually jealous and admired Eina very much, so she wanted to become even better to show people how great she could be. Bell told her she should be proud of the parts of her that were different from Eina. The party then arrived to the 25th floor and the squad was amazed of the Great Fall. Bell thought that view was their reward for having worked hard. He believed that when people were deeply moved, their actions felt rewarded, which motivated them to do more.
A rare monster called Blue Dragon then appeared. It swam in the air and the trail it left formed an aurora. As they were taken aback by the view, a Blue Crab attacked Iglin, but he was able to defeat it. However, the Blue Dragon noticed them and started attacking with its Aurora breath, which had all sorts of stats debuffs. Bell wanted to run, but Bors said they had to defeat it since it could chase them wherever they went, and if they got attacked with the breath in a closed space, it would be worse. The only way to defeat it was with arrows or magic. This was outside the quest parameters so Bors escaped from there and told Bell to defeat it.
Bell tried to attack it with a fake magic chant, but it missed. The breath was going to hit Iglin so Bell pushed him away and got hit instead, which decomposed his equipment but didn't affect his skin thanks to his high Abnormal Resistance. Nina and the others were worried about Bell, but Bors held them back saying he was fine. Nina ignored him and chanted Lagriel Krisheim, a powerful purifying magic field which could detoxify anything. She got a new objective to protect the person important to her. Bell thanked her and pulled out the Hestia Knife to perform a four second charge Argo Vesta to kill the dragon.
At that point, Nina was reminded of Leon's words that they wouldn't tell her to do anything, but instead she should search for it herself and, when she found something that made her heart tremble, she should embrace it as that was her dream. Bell was worried about her, but she ignored it and said she wanted to become an adventurer by his side to see many different sceneries. Bell's wig then fell and they all realized his true identity.
Epilogue[ ]
Despite his cover being blown, the 3rd squad didn't spread the news about him. Back at the School District, Leon said that Bell helped with Nina's problems as he had predicted, but he had also surpassed his expectations. Leon then said he wanted to adventure with him now and called Bell by his first name for the first time. When Baldr asked if Bell had spoken with Nina since then, Bell said that things were awkward between them but she had excitedly told him that she was going to meet her sister.
Winter had arrived and Eina was leaving the Guild when Nina called out to her. Nina didn't remember Eina so she introduced as if it was the first time they met, and Eina did the same. Nina said she was sorry for not writing back to Eina's letters, explaining that she did it because she was hurt since she was always following her sister. Nevertheless, now in the School District she had been taught a lot of important things by a person important to her. Eina asked if that person was a classmate, but Nina answered it was Bell Cranel, which shocked Eina. Nina said Bell was an incredible adventurer and that she was saved a lot by him. Eina was about to ask if Nina had fallen for Bell, when Nina declared she was going to join the Hestia Familia, surprising her even more. Nina completely ignored Eina's reaction and her saying that Bell already had Ais, who he admired. Nina made a promise that Eina should be the one to register her as an adventurer, and then said that she would see a lot of new sceneries by his side, and that she would become an amazing adventurer.
