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

"It's not over yet. However, once he entered the Familia, everyone's opinion of him suddenly became very bad, exactly the opposite of what Hephaestus had said."

"Huh? Why is that?"

Hearing that things had changed, I asked about it. The deity nodded and hummed in agreement.

"Let's start with the conclusion. It's said that he can forge the 'Demon Sword'."

"...!"

"It's not a fake, but the real 'Demon Sword'. I've heard that its quality even surpasses the Demon Swords already made by the Familia... that is, the works of high smiths. It truly lives up to the name 'Krozo's Demon Sword'."

—The Demon Sword, Blacksmith.

Words I had once heard with my own ears began to feel real, repeatedly surfacing in my mind.

"Huh? But... wait a minute. I remember that the Demon Sword needs to have the 'Forging' ability developed before it can be forged, right...?"

Yes. Miss Eina told me that the day I first visited the Hephaestus Familia. She definitely did.

She said that only a small number of blacksmiths who have mastered the "forging" skill can forge the magic sword.

"I'm not sure about this either, but I've heard that he can forge magic swords. Hephaestus has confirmed this."

"...So that means..."

"Yes, he is the real one. He does indeed have the authentic 'Crozo' bloodline."

I felt a powerful sense of awe that I couldn't quite understand myself.

Mr. Welf is a blacksmith's nobleman, though his family has declined, he is still of noble birth.

Moreover, even without the ability to develop "forging" skills, he can still forge magic swords.

……"Skill"?

This idea suddenly occurred to me. Perhaps it was the effect of some special skill that enabled Mr. Welf to create the magic sword.

No, but Lily seemed to have said that everyone in the "Kroszo" family can forge magic swords... Does that mean everyone in the Kroszo family possesses the same skill?

Hmm, that doesn't make sense... I buried my head in my hands and pondered deeply.

No, making wild guesses like this won't work.

I sealed away the questions that welled up in my heart and decided to listen attentively to what the deity had to say.

"But he never forged the Demon Sword."

“…Huh?”

"He just refuses to forge the magic sword, I don't know why. Logically speaking, as long as he makes one, wealth and fame will be his for the taking, but he refuses to forge the magic sword, and even gave up the throne of the lowest-ranking blacksmith. He's very stubborn."

He has the ability to forge a magic sword but refuses to do so.

The magic sword, whose mere swing can unleash effects equivalent to magic, is incredibly powerful. Although its use is somewhat limited, anyone who holds it can enjoy the blessings of magic and easily gain power.

The magic sword that so many people have been searching for.

A mysterious weapon that allows you to easily obtain both customers and money.

Mr. Welf, however, refused to do it...?

"In the store where I work, everyone says he's 'wasting his talent.' The members of the [family] also badmouth him, calling him 'a good-for-nothing Crozo.'"

Because the chief god (Hephaestus) disliked such slander, no one dared to say it openly. The god continued.

...Only things like this can be understood without having to hear the end.

It's one thing for the shopkeepers to say he was wasting his talent, but for fellow blacksmiths like Mr. Welf to speak ill of him like that must be out of jealousy.

They were jealous of his talent—the ability to easily become a master blacksmith if he wanted to, and his bloodline to forge demonic swords without any effort.

I began to understand why Mr. Welf was ostracized within the Familia.

"His skills are top-notch, but there seems to be something going on... That's probably it. The blacksmith you signed the contract with is that kind of person."

"..."

There's something going on, isn't there...?

Is Mr. Welf trying to hide the fact that he can forge a magic sword from me?

Most people wouldn't reveal their private matters to someone they've only known for two days, and besides, Mr. Welf might not actually have intended to hide anything.

I tried to recall his attitude today, and it seems like that's how it is.

"Bell, it's just one or two secrets. You have to accept it with a smile, okay? Even gods have a lot of guilty consciences. I hope you can become a man with a broad mind."

"immortal……"

His tone was gentle, as if he were teaching a child, and his eyes were gentle, as if he were silently protecting someone.

Seeing the immortal resting his face on his elbows on the table, I couldn't help but lower my eyebrows and laugh.

Seeing me smile easily, the immortal smiled gently as well.

"We seem to have been talking for too long. Let's eat something. Or is there something else you want to tell me?"

Looking at the completely cold dish, the deity said this.

Although I hesitated, I decided to speak out now.

Finally, I asked about the power (skill).

"So, you've already activated your skill?"

"Yes……"

I told her that the skill activates when I think of heroes and the existence of those I admire.

She was also told that the area affected by the skill was surrounded by white light particles. Then, the attack emanating from that area... resulted in a leap in the enhancement of proactive actions.

My guess is that the longer the energy is stored up, the greater the effect.

I told the gods everything without hiding anything from them.

"...Bell, could you please stand over there so I can see your [ability stats]?"

"Ah, okay, okay."

Seeing the deity's serious expression, I did as instructed.

The fairy jumped off the chair, and I walked up to her and took off my pajamas.

Her gaze was intently studying the skin marked with [ability values].

"……Um."

A deity placed a hand on my back.

The area where the soft fingers glided seemed to suddenly heat up.

It's like the pitch-black hieroglyphs, invisible to the naked eye, being depicted in the mind.

My eyes started to hallucinate, and I saw four words carved on a stone tablet: "Hero's Wish".

"Okay."

I slowly turned around.

The deity picked up the clothes that were on the chair and handed them to me.

"Let me share my personal perspective. Your skill is the power to reverse things."

"That's what the immortal said."

She maintained the gesture of extending one hand and spoke quietly.

"The power required to defeat an enemy stronger than oneself... the ability to break through any predicament, or to put it bluntly, the qualification."

Mysterious eyes, gleaming with a blue light, looked up at me, seeing only me.

"To enable a foolish child who idolizes heroes to become a hero (skill)."

—The Heroes of the Argonauts.

The story of a young man who dreams of becoming a hero.

He dreamed of becoming a hero, and he truly became a hero.

The road to heroism.

"Put everything on one strike, pour all your power into that one strike. Use this single, insignificant power to fight against the irrationality of overwhelming power."

Just like the heroes did.

The deity then said:

"What you have gained is a 'hero's blow'."

After the deity finished speaking, the room fell into complete silence.

My eyes were unconsciously fixed on the fairy's pupils. We stared at each other for a while, and then she poked my clothes, which made me suddenly realize the situation.

I blushed and quickly put on my clothes, while the deity watched me frantically trying to put them on.

Finally, he smiled calmly.

That wasn't her usual smile; it was a smile from a distant place, a smile from a place that seemed unreachable.

A distant and loving smile, silently watching over a child from the heavens.

At that moment, for the first time, I felt...

Consciousness and heartbeat may have been taken away by the gods.

As I stood there dumbfounded, the deity said to me, "Just keep it in your heart."

●

"Garua ...

The roar echoed through the sky.

With astonishing speed, the kick shattered the monster's dumbfounded face.

The metal boots, stained with blood, have shattered the skulls of hundreds of monsters to date, giving them an appearance as if they had been baptized by lava, yet the faint gleam beneath the blood still shines with undiminished brilliance.

Not designed to protect the legs, but rather focused on weapon performance, these specially made metal boots unleash their full power against the enemy before them.

"Bert, you're in the way! I won't be responsible if you get cut in half!"

"Your slow-moving knife is no match for you!"

"Tione—! Today's food is sliced ​​wolf—! Ugh, it looks awful—!"

"Do you want to die?!"

"……Fool."

Level 44.

It is located in the deep underground area of ​​the city, where the heat is as stifling as a steamer.

Looking around, the entire ground was a fiery red, with oddly shaped rocks scattered everywhere. The walls, clinging to the view, were cracked and blackened in places, as if they had turned to charcoal. A faint red glow emanated from the cracks, creating a terrifying presence against the charcoal-colored walls.

In this environment that makes it seem as if they've been thrown into a volcano, the Loki Familia, on their "expedition," are engaged in a fierce battle with the rock monster group "Flaming Rock."

"Why are those guys so excited?"

"Grace".

A low, seemingly both amused and exasperated voice reached Finn, the leader of the Loki Familia.

A dwarf approached him.

With a long beard and steely muscles visible through the gaps in his armor, his sturdy heavy armor with a cloak, and the large axe he carried with effortless ease, exuded an aura of both majesty and power—the very image of a seasoned veteran of the battlefield.

The dwarf known as Grace stared with half-open eyes at Bert and his men, who were wreaking havoc ahead, and muttered under his breath.

"They've always been like that since the middle ranks. How are they supposed to train others like that? Look, even Raul and the others don't know what to do."

"Hmm—I also think it's not good, but there's nothing I can do to stop them."

At this moment, what surrounded Bert and his companions was not only a large group of monsters, but also members of the Loki Familia, who were among their own. The Level 2 adventurers, centered around the Level 3 members, witnessed the combat style of the Level 1 adventurers, which was far too advanced, and could only break out in a cold sweat and shrink back in fear.

Bert, Tiona, and Tione. Seeing that all the precious experience points in the "Deep Layer" had been snatched away by these three adventurers, Finn, a dwarf standing on the raised rock with his arms crossed in front of his chest, also had an expression of impending sigh on his face.

"Tione is about to reveal his true colors... Finn, did anything happen before I joined you?"