21 Chapter 21: Bella's Arrival
Arthur Leywin:
Before we went to sleep, Grandpa wanted to talk to me, so we stood outside observing the night sky. It was a beautiful full moon with thousands of stars shining brightly.
"Arthur, at first, I didn't want to tell you and Bella this, but knowing it would be difficult to hide that something is off, I decided to tell you my secret."
He waited for a bit before continuing.
"I wanted more time watching you and Bella grow, but not everything goes as planned... You going and becoming an adventurer so early, and everything you went through at such a young age."
He stayed silent, looking like he was thinking about what to say next.
"When Bella was born, I promised to protect her, and when I found you in the forest, I took you in so she could have a brother when I'm not here... But, honestly, it was due to my selfish desire at first..."
He looked at the moon with a regretful expression.
"At first, I wanted you and Bella to continue where I failed, but when you were growing up, I realized how selfish I was and tried to support you both the best I could."
After he said that, we stood there in silence, looking at the night sky.
"While you sometimes act like a fool, you were a good grandad to both Bella and me, so you shouldn't think so much about the past." I broke the silence while mentally laughing at how hypocritical I sounded.
Telling an old god not to think about it while thinking about it the whole time myself. Well, it's better to say thinking about the possible future, but still.
"Hmmm... It's good I did something right, at least..." He said, and it seems what I said helped him a bit.
"But I shouldn't have kept this secret from the both of you for so long... Before you both were born, I'd made many enemies, so I hid in this little village where few people visited... So when you leave, I will leave this village, and we won't be able to see each other for a while."
"So they have found where you are?" I asked, wondering if this was the reason he faked his death in the novel.
"Well... Not exactly... They didn't find me, but someone much scarier found me..." He said, slightly sweating while mentioning the scarier person.
"Who is this person?" I decided to ask him so I could avoid them in the future.
"Bella's Grandma... And well, we maybe separated on not-so-good terms..." He said like he was talking about the devil and trying not to look me in the eyes.
"..." I just looked at him with a dumbfounded expression, not saying anything. I quickly deduced who he was talking about, but I couldn't understand for what reason he faked his death just so he wouldn't be found by her...
"Hey, the scariest opponent you can face is a mad woman! Remember this, so you don't make the same mistakes I did." He said, shaking me, and I burst out laughing, completely breaking the serious atmosphere.
"So, what mistake did you make?" I asked after he stopped shaking me while holding back my laughter.
"Ekmmm... I wanted to make a harem..." He said, not looking at me again.
"..." Of course, what else did I expect from this pervert...
We continued discussing different things before I fell asleep in my room. Basically, his plan is to fake his own death after we leave tomorrow, and when we return another time, we will get the news of his passing from the other villagers. And all this because he is scared of Hera...
Can't he just say he is going to explore the world or something?
---
Early morning we said goodbye to Grandpa and left. Due to me being stronger and capable of using magic, I had Bella on my back, running at full speed to Orario. Knowing it was the last time we would visit this village for a long time.
As we ran through the empty roads leading to Orario, Bella had the best time of her life, enjoying traveling this way while Sylvie dug her tiny claws into my head so she wouldn't fall off.
I slowed down when we neared the gate, and Bella jumped off my back. We walked to the gate where Bella needed to follow the same check I did when I first arrived.
Thankfully we were the only ones entering the city from this gate at the moment, so it didn't take us much time, and we entered Orario without any problems.
The registration process at the Guild went smoothly, so I decided to show her around Orario after she got the falna, so we went straight to the Stardust Garden.
As for Hestia... I'm sure she can find someone...
---
I watched as Bella introduced herself to the members of the Astraea Familia, slightly embarrassed due to being the center of attention, while Astraea and I watched from the sidelines. But unfortunately, they decided to say something I wanted to stay hidden from her.
"Don't worry. You are Princess's little sister, so we will protect you!"
I wanted to hide when I heard the nickname. I thought they wouldn't mention it around her.
"Princess?" Bella asked, looking at me, not understanding what they meant.
"That's our nickname for your brother. One time he disguised himself as a..." She didn't have the chance to finish as a small wind bullet hit her forehead at her making her fall off the chairs.
They all turned to look at me.
"What I did nothing..."
"Let's not tease Art in front of his little sister now." Lady Astraea came in to save me, but then I noticed a slight smirk on her face.
"And if we call someone a Princess, it should be Ryuu for..." She couldn't finish her sentence as a completely red Ryuu covered her mouth.
"No, no, Ryuu, we must hear this!" They all said in unison.
Thankfully Lady Astraea didn't say anything and went with Sylv and Bella to get her blessing, and I was now stuck here looking awkwardly at Ryuu, not knowing what to say with everyone looking at us.
"Hey, Ryuu do. Could we talk in private?" I asked so we could at least talk without everyone looking at us.
---
Bella Cranell:
I couldn't hold my excitement as I walked with Lady Astraea to a separate room. I would finally get a blessing and become strong as Brother. He was always strong and could use cool magic. He can even go to the dungeon without a blessing from a god.
When we arrived, Lady Astraea told me to remove my shirt and show my back so she could begin. It didn't take much time, and Lady Astraea gave me a sheet of paper after the glow faded.
Looking at it, I couldn't stop feeling disappointed.
==========
BELLA CRANEL
LVL 1
STR: I0
END: I0
DEX: I0
AGI: I0
MAG: I0
Magic:
Skills:
==========
Even if I got the blessing, I was still weak with all the stats on I0 and no Magic or Skills.
Seeing my sad face, Lady Astraea explained that it was normal for new adventurers to start off at zero and that I would grow stronger.
"Yes, I would grow strong and be like Big Brother!"
After saying that, I left the room to find Big Brother and Miss Ryuu... Holding hands!
Noticing me, they both looked at me without saying anything before they could say anything, Sylvie got a huge grin on her face, "So when do I become a big sister?" she asked before starting to laugh.
For some reason, both brother and Miss Ryuu became completely red after hearing that.
I should ask them later. Deciding to leave them alone, I went to the living hall, where everyone was chatting.
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Authors Note:
Thank you for reading this chapter.
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