Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

"Oh, right. Bell has already reached Lv.2."

"Development capabilities" are the abilities that can be learned in addition to existing "basic capabilities".

The best time to learn this is when you level up. Each time your level increases, you may add "Development Ability" to your Ability Values. This ability differs from basic abilities; it allows special or professional abilities to be further developed and strengthened.

"So, does that mean there are several abilities to choose from?"

"Yes. I've already spoken with the fairy, but she said it would be best to ask Miss Eina for her opinion before making a careful choice..."

"I see," Eina nodded.

Whether one can learn and develop abilities depends on the accumulated experience points. As for what kind of abilities will be developed, it depends on the actions taken by the person who received "God's grace (Pharna)".

If you don't gain any significant experience points, even if you level up, you might not learn any development abilities. Conversely, if you gain a moderate amount of experience points, multiple abilities may become available for you to choose from. You can only acquire one ability each time you level up, and which one you choose to learn is entirely up to you.

Development capabilities will appear in [Ability Value] through [Upgrade].

Therefore, strictly speaking, Bell has not yet reached Lv.2.

Now is the time to hesitate about choosing abilities. The final ability update is over, and all that's left is for Hestia to personally rewrite the [ability values]. In other words, it means we can postpone it for a few more days.

"How many abilities can you choose?"

"Three. I don't quite understand the meaning of one of the abilities..."

"Yes, yes," Eina nodded as she meticulously recorded Bell's developmental abilities on the parchment.

The first is "Abnormal Resistance," which can resist symptoms such as "poisoning." Although this ability seems insignificant, it is quite useful because adventurers are frequently attacked by abnormal effects (accidents) in dungeons. Adventurers in Orario are often baptized by the poisonous scales of "Purple Moths" in the upper levels of dungeons, making it easier for them to acquire this ability at a relatively early stage.

Next is the "Hunter" ability, specifically designed for dealing with monsters. This ability is enhanced when encountering the same type of monster with which you have previously fought and gained experience points. It can only be learned upon reaching Lv.2, and the condition for achieving this is defeating a large number of monsters in a short period, making it extremely difficult to obtain and a highly valuable ability. It is welcomed not only by adventurers but also by the gods.

As for the third type, it is...

"……"Lucky"?"

"Yes……"

Eina stopped using her quill pen to take notes and blinked a few times.

Due to the nature of her work, she was proficient in all aspects of [ability values], but she had never heard of this particular ability.

The effect is roughly predictable. It should be as the name suggests: "Your luck will improve."

The question is: what are the effects of improved luck?

"Hmm...didn't the goddess Hestia say anything?"

She said she wasn't quite sure either...

"Of course," Eina murmured to herself.

To this day, all the information about [ability values] that everyone knows is the result of testing and analysis since the gods descended to the mortal realm in ancient times.

Even the gods who trigger [Ability Values] cannot foresee what abilities the children who receive their "blessings" will possess. Aside from initial abilities, how [Ability Values] grow depends entirely on [Experience Values], which, in other words, is like a symbol of the potential of people in the mortal realm. The gods' mindset is like that of parents caring for their own children; this is the only aspect of the mysterious world that even the gods cannot fathom.

That's why even the gods get incredibly excited when they hear about rare skills. For most gods, the "unknown" is an irreplaceable "delicacy."

This is a real headache, Eina really thought.

An ability I've never logged into the guild and have never heard of before.

In other words, this is a truly "rare ability".

Bell was probably the pioneer of this development capability.

If it were just "abnormal patience" or "hunter", she could add her own thoughts and offer suggestions; but when faced with an ability she knew nothing about, she could only make guesses.

“Ah, but…”

As she wandered through the dense forest, deep in thought, Bell seemed to remember something and spoke up:

"The deity said it was just her intuition, but... she said it might be similar to a kind of 'blessing' ability."

Regardless of the type of divine object, the insight of a god should not be underestimated. If Hestia said this after seeing Bell's abilities, then she might be very close to the core.

"Blessing"... In other words, it is an extraordinary protection that is activated without the person's knowledge. It may be a kind of divine power that protects the target from external threats.

Although it's just speculation, thinking about it this way might actually be worthwhile.

"Hmm," Eina quickly organized her thoughts. In short, she decided not to report to the higher-ups (the guild) for now, in order to avoid drawing more attention to Bell.

"Hmm—, let me think. If we're considering other possibilities, since it's called 'Luck,' for adventurers... could it mean an ability that makes it easier to obtain dropped items?"

"Ah, that makes sense."

"However, that seems a bit too realistic. I'm sorry, I don't think I can be of any help."

"No, no way!"

Bell raised his hands to his chest and waved them repeatedly.

While feeling guilty for not being able to help much, Eina also asked the members of the Hestia Familia what they thought.

"What about Bell's and the goddess Hestia's wishes?"

"The deity advised me to choose 'luck.' Like this, clenching my fist and saying, 'You need this ability!'"

That's right, he's so worrying. Eina stared straight at the boy in front of her, thinking:

It was only at this point that she began to have a strong curiosity about the origin of this ability.

Stared at like that by Eina, Bell inexplicably dared not utter a sound.

"...And you, Bell?"

"I think 'Hunter' is cooler... well, not exactly, but I just feel like it can't be ignored, or rather..."

"Heh. Hmm, I understand what you're trying to say. So?"

"Uh, yes. But the gods are right, 'luck' is also very tempting..."

Although Bell's attitude was indecisive, she roughly understood his thoughts.

In terms of effectiveness, "Hunter" is a very powerful ability. For adventurers who experience the threat of dungeons every day, learning this ability is something they would greatly desire.

As for the word "luck," it might sound unpleasant to use since there's no precedent, but it always feels like its origin is unclear. However, seeing rare abilities inevitably makes people sensitive—that's human nature. If it's the only one of its kind in the world, then it's even more attractive.

"Abnormal Resistance" might be learned next time, so it's not worth considering this time. Bell seems to be leaning towards choosing "Hunter".

If I were to speak his mind, he would probably want both.

While it's true that you can't have your cake and eat it too, Bell's feelings are easy to understand. Eina couldn't help but smile wryly.

"I'll reiterate what I've always said: the final decision rests with Bell, so I don't want you to be swayed by my thoughts. Therefore, let me talk about my thought process when choosing abilities."

"Okay, okay."

After Bell sat up straight, Eina finally spoke:

"I think the simplest way is to think through the lens of goals."

"Target?"

"Yes. If you want to conquer the dungeon step by step, the 'Hunter' ability will definitely be a great help to Bell. If Bell says he wants to proceed slowly, I would strongly recommend that you choose it."

She paused for a moment, then looked into those deep red eyes and earnestly admonished them:

"However, if Bell has a higher goal, almost unattainable... perhaps one day on that path, you will need 'luck' on your side, which has nothing to do with strength."

"..."

"In that case, I also think that you might need the ability of 'luck'."

At this point, a moment of silence fell between the two.

Bell opened his eyes slightly, his gaze falling on his palms.

Seeing him clench his fist, Eina felt that her advice had worked.

"Choosing either ability is not wrong. So, Bell, just make your decision with confidence. The ability you choose will definitely be the power you need right now."

"...Yes! Thank you."

Bell raised his chin and nodded with a look of sudden enlightenment.

Even after the boy reached Lv.2, he was still struggling and stumbling around trying to find the answer.

Eina felt a surge of joy at the thought that she might have to help him for a while longer.

○

"I'm back, God!"

I opened the door to the hidden room in the headquarters—the church.

I greeted him loudly, and the immortal who was reading on the sofa looked up and smiled slightly.

She came over to greet me as I returned home with small, skipping steps.

"You're back, Bell. Have you decided which ability you want to choose?"

"Yes. I want to choose the 'Luck' ability."

After listening to Miss Eina's words, I made my decision.

I chose to move forward, rather than maintain the status quo.

Although I don't know if "luck" is really something I need, I've accepted Ms. Eina's suggestion and decided to trust my gut feeling.

Seeing that I had made my decision, the dignified eyes of the deity softened, and he said softly, "I see."

"Then I'll upgrade you right away."

The deity looked up at me, and I nervously agreed.

The two arrived at their designated spot, which was the god's bed, and began updating their [ability values].

"Bell has finally reached Lv.2... Normally I would say that, but your situation is so surprising that it's almost overwhelming."

“Is that so?”

"Yes. It feels like just yesterday that you joined my 'Family' and ran back excitedly to say you'd defeated a goblin. It's still so vivid in my memory... It's unbelievable..."

Although the deity spoke to me as usual, I could only vaguely reply with "uh, um" or "um, yeah," etc.

I'm about to level up to Lv.2.

The trembling sounds transmitted through my skin to the sheets sounded strangely annoying. Even though I was lying in bed, my body felt lightheaded; I had to admit my excitement was ridiculously high. And this was just the beginning.

My mind was blank, unable to think; on the contrary, the area below my neck was burning red with heat.

It wasn't that I was itching to get closer, nor was I nervous; I was just quietly unsettled by the sound of my heart pounding. And then... that ordinary moment arrived.

The deity's hand stopped.

"!"

"...Okay."

The immortal climbed down from my waist, and I followed suit, propping myself up.

I remained kneeling on the bed, slowly lowering my head to look down at my hands.

The deity was watching me from the side. I clenched my fists, then opened them again, repeating this several times.

"...Nothing has changed much."

"'Power, power is surging forth...!'...Did you think something like this would happen?"

The fairy first pretended to tremble all over, then smiled at me. I felt a little rude, thinking she was quite the actress, and nodded honestly.

After the upgrade was completed, my body did not undergo any significant changes.

My body didn't feel lighter, the world didn't change, and there were no such phenomena. I was exactly the same as I was a few minutes ago, and I didn't feel any actual progress to Lv.2.

It's not that it's a bit disappointing... but I still feel like my expectations have been somewhat dashed.

"Upgrading won't change your body structure. If I've accidentally given you the expectation that there will be some drastic changes, then I have to apologize."

"Oh, no, that's not what I meant..."

"Hehe, but you know what? Your [ability stats] have indeed improved. Your 'capacity' has reached a higher level. Perhaps it's easier to understand if we say you've become closer to the gods (us)? Bell, you just haven't realized that once you enter combat mode, your agility should be even greater than before?"

The deity finished speaking with a pleasant smile, and as usual, rewrote the [ability value] in Koine and wrote it down on the record paper.

After the upgrade, basic abilities and proficiency will be reset to their initial values, starting from I0 again. All accumulated ability values ​​will not disappear but will be reflected in your ability stats as potential points. The gods seem to call this "hidden ability parameters."

Since I already knew beforehand that my [ability stats] would reset to zero after leveling up, even reading the translation into common language didn't seem to make much sense... Maybe the gods wanted me to confirm it with my own eyes?