36 King
A.N. Before we start...HERETIC ALERT!
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"There's actually one more thing I forgot to mention." Hephaestus said as Gareth and Finn were about to see themselves out of the door.
"What was it?" The exasperated Finn asked, wanting to be out as he'd had enough revelations for one day.
"It's this." Hephaestus scrunched her eyebrows in confusion as she approached Fleinn'leptr and held out her hand. She flicked the spearhead hard and the glowing parts of the spear suddenly glowed even brighter as echoes of an animalistic roar emanated from the spear.
As the roar reverberated around the office, the adventurers noticed it sounded quite similar to that of some dragons they'd fought before. As the last oscillations of the distant roars faded away and the glow of the spear faded, Gareth looked at Hephaestus.
"That's a dragon roar if I ever heard one." Gareth said. "Anything you want to add about it."
"That's the thing." Hephaestus said disappointedly. "I don't know. I can sense the essence of A dragon in it, but not any dragon whose remains that I've worked with before. There does not seem to be anything in the composition of the spear remotely connected to dragons, and yet it resonates with the dying roars of one. Did he do anything during his forging process of note?"
"It didn't really look like anything special besides the shaping and the diamond cutting." Finn said as he eyed the deadly sharp and pointy gemstone on the end of his spear.
"Some sort of organic matter was used to cast this effect, whatever it may be." Hephaestus said as she leaned downwards. "Come on, think."
"...The only thing I can think of is when he quenched it." Finn said with his finger on his chin. "Do you smiths use water or oil?"
"Oil is better." Tsubaki said. "Any good smith knows that even though water quenching is faster, it risks severe distortions and it cracks the metal. Oil transfers the heat better, so we generally use oil to quench weapons, especially high quality ones."
"But oil is better for quenching alloys." Hephaestus said. "This spear is pure Orichalcum. Still, do you remember what he used as quench?"
"Well I'm sure it was oil." Finn said. "There was no big cloud of steam when he quenched it."
"Was there any sort of smell left behind in the area he quenched your spear in?" Tsubaki asked.
"I don't know." Finn said. "We sat away from him because his hearth was way too hot to sit near. So we sat at a distance, and I was the first person he approached anyway when he was done."
"I smelt something." Gareth said. "It's when I was collecting firewood. There was this sort of earthy, musky smell in the air. And there was a hint of fire to it, though I assumed it was because of the quenching."
Hephaestus shared a look with Tsubaki.
"That sounds like reptile oil." The goddess said. "Must have been extracted from a dragon. But whatever dragon this is, it's no dragon registered."
"Hmmm. Gareth, remember Steve's cape?" The Pallum asked the dwarf.
"Yeah, I do. What about...ooooohhhhhh." Gareth suddenly remembered what Finn was pertaining to.
"What is it?" Tsubaki asked.
"There was an image of a dragon on Steve's cape." Finn explained. "And we noticed back then that it did not have the features of any dragon we saw. It had black scales with grey horns, glowing purple eyes...and purple fire-breath." Finn looked at the purple wisps flowing off his spear.
"Hmmm." Hephaestus hummed. "Looks like I have even more questions for this guy when I meet him. Well, it was good to see you again Loki Familia."
"And you, Goddess." Finn bowed. "Of course I don't think I have to ask when it comes to you, but regardless..."
"Our lips are sealed." Hephaestus said. "Smiths don't blab. It's just how it's gotta be."
"Thanks a lot." Finn said as he and Gareth walked out of the office and closed the door behind them.
Both goddess and her captain waited for a few moments as they heard the men's footsteps fade away before they spoke again.
"I thought I was special." Tsubaki said. "I'm a smith who reached level 5. That was simply unheard of before I stepped into the captain's seat. But now? Now out there is a person who is not only a level 9 whose physical feats seem to eclipse the Empress's from what information we've got on the guy, but he too is a master smith it seems that is able to create heavenly Durandal weapons."
"It makes Welf look like a tiny problem." The goddess said. "Even though he is a large part of the reason why Rakia comes knocking on Orario's doorsteps with an army every year."
"That kid makes waste of his talent." Tsubaki shook her head. "If he pulled his head out of the sand, maybe he'd be as accomplished as this guy."
"...I kind of doubt it." Hephaestus said as she bit her lip. "Welf is talented no doubt, and he's able to create magic weapons stronger than most others due to his Crozzo blood. This stranger however...I highly suspect there is a lot more up his sleeve than just what he gave to Finn."
"What do you mean? What weapon could be better or more powerful than what you just described?"
"Call it a goddess's intuition...something about the way that spear was made...my senses are indicating a deeper potential to this Steve's craft. I think there is more to his abilities than just creating a spear which can call Lightning down from the sky. Something about that magic was not only different but...primordial would be the best way to describe it. It felt like 'old' magic, something extremely ancient and something extremely unfamiliar as well."
"I noticed how you dropped a topic earlier. You were putting a lot of emphasis on 'otherworldly' magic with this super serious look on your face." Tsubaki crossed her tanned arms. "What do you mean by that?"
"Somethings are best left unsaid or unaddressed." Hephaestus said as she walked over to a display of her personal creations. Invaluable things that she thought she would never sell or depart with because they were the more precious pieces in her entire Familia. Why wouldn't they be? They were forged with her own hands.
But now having looked at that abominable yet beautiful spear, the glamour which these weapons once radiated now seemed to have dulled, especially with the intoxicating power imbued in that spear which still made her feel heady every time she thought back on it.
Yes, Ptah had scored the perfect child for himself in her opinion. Both powerful and potent in his craft, he was a reflection of the Egyptian Primordial himself, and the most fitting to be his Firstborn.
She couldn't wait to meet this adventurer at the party tonight.
---
Goliath roared as it smashed face first and its body flat out into the ceiling, dislodging several boulders from the ceiling. After a few moments, it body weight peeled it right back off the ceiling again as gravity worked its magic and the monster rex landed on the floor of its boss room again.
Steve gave it no pause though as he immediately grabbed its large hair strands, and as if the giant monster weighed nothing at, he rag-dolled the brute right across the room and buried it in the very wall it had spawned from. Goliath pulled itself out of the Wall of Grief and tried to find reprieve but only found the adventurer hovering in front of its face.
Steve brought his lifted arms down on the things head, and again the monster rex was body slammed into the ground of the 17th Floor, cracks in the bedrock forming from where its body had impacted which travelled all the way to where the two girls were standing, spitting pebbles at their feet.
"What is he doing again?" Ais asked as she looked to Tiona for the answer.
"He's trying to force that Goliath to become a Variant so we get the opportunity of fighting one." Tiona said in exasperation. "Haven't you been paying attention? Or have you just been obsessing over that thing in your hands?"
Ais raised an eyebrow at Tiona before looking back down at the bunny she was feeding. Albie was nestled in her right palm while he nibbled on a carrot it her left hand that Steve had given her.
"Albie was hungry." Ais said. "I was concentrated on feeding him."
"Why did you bring him into the Dungeon anyway?" Tiona placed her balled fists on her hips. "This is no place for a tiny little animal to be."
"I can protect him." Ais protested. "All the monsters are weak in these floors."
"Yeah but..." Tiona gave up on continuing her point as Ais focused right back on to feeding the bunny. Tiona had to admit though, it was really cute. She'd had no idea that Ais had a liking for tiny little animals like that. "You're still going to have to put him down when fighting Goliath you know."
"That's fine." Ais said as Bathsheba trotted up beside the blonde. Ais lifted Albie and placed the bunny into the Warg's mane as she happily accepted the responsibility of taking care of the little creature. Ais then placed what remained of the carrot into the bunny's paws and fondly stroked Albie's head with a finger and a small smile on her face. She then scratched Bathsheba's chin as thanks, to which the Warg responded by happily licking her new Mama's hand.
"Well I suppose that's one way to deal with it." Tiona conceded as she observed the interaction.
They were both interrupted as Goliath's body smashed down in front of them and it howled as it bounced in the air. A gust of wind suddenly brough Steve underneath the beast and he uppercut it right in its giant abs. The girls watched as ripples from the connection spread throughout the monster rex's body before it launched back in the air, flipping head over heels as its head clipped with the bedrock wall on the other side.
"Urrrrgh." Steve growled frustrated. "It's just not changing, no matter how much I beat it up. At this rate it's going to die if I keep hitting it."
"What did you do last time you made him become a Variant?" Tiona asked.
"I slapped him around."
"...Right." Tiona drawled as Ais drew her sword. "Why don't you keep doing it? Surely it will transform eventually."
"Maybe." Steve said as he took out his axe. "Perhaps its time I started using more cruel methods, force it into despair."
Steve then pulled out his creative menu and inserted a stack of chains into his inventory. He found that instead of staying upright as they did in game for nonsensical reasons, in real life they actually functioned and went limp like real chains. More than that, he could keep placing chains and connecting them up, metre by metre.
He squeezed the axe's grip into one of the chain rings and quickly connected a few more metres of chains to the axe as he began swinging the weapon around on the end of the chain. Discovering this piece of information had been really exciting for him, because it made him wonder if at some point he could create a certain pair of fiery blades swinging around on the end of super long chains.
Hey! Don't judge him. Even a man can still dream.
The girls felt the pressure draughts of wind generated by the 9 tonne axe. It made Tiona wonder again how he was just able to handle weight like that and just swing it around on a chain with no visible signs of effort.
Steve swung the axe around for it to gather even more weight to itself before his system programmed fighting skills kicked in and he suddenly knew every way to use a weapon like this. He swung the axe forward, letting it fly to the monster rex as it stood up and as the chains slipped through his fingers, he added more metres on to them.
The axe lodged into Goliath's shoulder, making it stumble as the heavy axe penetrated the skin and sunk into its flesh. Steve then yanked on the chain which caused the axe to tear through the meat, down Goliath's back before ripping itself out of its body and shower of blood hit the floor with Goliath's screams echoing throughout the dungeon.
The axe returned to Steve's hands and he swung it around above his head before releasing it again. This time he caused the axe to swerve around the giant's leg, making the chain wrap around it. The axe blade then lodged into the hard bone of the giant's ankle and Steve began sprinting away from the girls, while using his new chain-axe method to bury Goliath once more into the bedrock and drag him right through, making boulders and rocks burst out of the rock face everywhere.
"Did he just pull a long chain out of nowhere?" Ais asked.
"Don't question it Ais." Tiona said. "If he can create weapons out of thin air using his special magic, why can he not create chains?"
"It's just...weird."
"Yes Ais. Our man is weird." Tiona said teasingly as she leaned into the blonde's face. "Isn't that one of the things you love about him? That's he's weird and different."
"...I suppose." Ais said, flushing a little red in the cheeks as she lifted her hand to her lips. She could still remember the sensation of her first kiss...and oddly enough, it left her wanting more.
"You're adorable when you're clueless." Tiona said as she reached around and pulled on Ais's cheek. "I'm sure you drive him nuts with it."
"Don't call me dumb." Ais said with a pout.
"I didn't." The Amazon retorted. "And besides, you're the one learning from me remember?"
"Yes...but only because you read books about this sort of thing."
"Indeed. And fear not my apprentice..." Tiona wrapped an arm around Ais's shoulders and waved her other hand through the air. "...when I have taught you all there is to know about the intimacies of man and women, you will make all the men and women in the city jealous of what you and I share with Steve."
"Calm it down!" Steve exclaimed as he landed in front of them while still holding the chain taut as Goliath tried escaping from him. "She's not ready for that kind of information and incentives Tiona. Take it easy!"
"I'm just having a bit of fun Steve. Don't sweat it." Tiona waved the issue off before she followed the chain with her sight up to where it was noosed around Goliath's neck as the brute scrabbled at his throat while kneeling forwards to try and rip the chain out of Steve's hands. The whole floor was almost covered in the monster's blood. "Just end his suffering Steve. I think he's not turning any time soon." She asked.
"Alright." Steve sighed disappointingly. With a yank from one hand, the chain ripped through the monster's neck and decapitated it. The jerk of the monsters dissipating body also made the large core coming sliding back towards them. As it reached them, Steve put his hand on it and sent it to his hotbar along with the chains and the axe. He then turned to his other girlfriend. "Sorry Ais."
"It's okay." Ais said as she sheathed her sword again. "This was fun anyway."
"I'm glad I entertained you." Steve chuckled. "You know what, how about you fight a monster from MY homeland."
"Hm?" Tiona raised her eyebrow. "Your homeland? A native monster?"
"Yes." Steve nodded. "One you've never seen before. I can guide you on how to attack and aggravate it."
"How?" Ais asked. "If the monster is in your homeland, how can we fight it?"
"Simple. I can sum-" Steve suddenly cut off and jerked his head over to the entrance that led down to the 18th floor, narrowing his eyes.
The girls, who were aware that he could sense things at a far greater range than they could, immediately tensed and placed their hands on their weapons and followed his sight. Soon, the source of Steve's sudden alert showed themselves. Heavy footsteps came up the hole, and before long a man's face appeared over floor level.
...
The man was an absolute unit, now that Steve met him face to face. A large Boaz man with a barrel chest, biceps almost as big as basket balls and standing at a staggering height of 6'11. The man towered over even Steve who was a little taller than the average.
Now Steve had no small amount of muscle on him, but he still retained a lean frame built for both speed and strength. This newcomer though was like a solid wall of muscle, and his frame completely overshadowed Steve's.
"Ottar." Ais whispered to Steve. "The 'King' of the current generation of adventurers."
"Before you came along, he was the most powerful adventurer." Tiona added.
"I know girls." Steve said casually, now having identified the newcomer. "I knew this before I even came from the city."
"...You're not taking this seriously are you?" Tiona chided playfully. "Why would you? You're way stronger than he is."
"You got that right." Steve said. "He's no threat. Besides, it looks like he's coming back from a solo dive himself."
...
Ottar's eyes locked on to them as his boots thudded on the rock towards them. Over his shoulder was slung a large sack that rattled with monster cores and drop items. On his back were hung the signature black greatswords.
The Captain of the Freya Familia paused in his tracks as he took in the damage around him. The destroyed Wall of Grief, the cracks in the bedrock floors and ceilings and walls, as well as the pools of blood here and there. His gaze then returned to the three as he began walking again, clearly indicating that he meant to pass by them.
As he approached, he easily recognized the Crusher and the Sword Princess...but Steve was a new face. Ottar was used to a lot of people showing him some degree of nervousness and fear, given his current status. But the boy before him showed no signs of even concern at the very least. More than that, the boy kept a blatant eye contact with him as Ottar passed them.
Steve did not remove his eyes from Ottar's back as the man passed. Predictably, the Boaz stopped again when he passed them, and spoke.
"I have not seen you here before." The level 7 said in a quiet voice you would not expect from a man of his size. It did not take a genius for him to realize who he was talking to.
"And? What's the significance?" Steve asked. "Must I announce my presence aloud to the city before I come into the Dungeon?"
"...Hn." Ottar grunted as he turned his head. "You stand with two infamous adventurers beside you. That would mean you have a standing of some import. And yet, I have not seen you before."
"I suppose you would keep tabs on them." Steve said. "They are part of your rival Familia after all. Perhaps I am just a nobody. Perhaps I may be a friend of theirs you may have missed. Or maybe I am someone who just passed by them and stopped for a lovely chat about the weather?"
"Is that supposed to be-"
"F*ck off with the semantics, boar." Steve's voice became harsh as his eyes hardened. "You KNOW who I am. I can see it in your face, no matter how much you try to emulate a statue."
"Then you understand why I question you." Ottar turned around to face Steve. "You are not what I expected of a person surrounded by the kind of tales I hear, and the tales the Loki Familia swear upon."
"Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgement ye judge, ye shall be judged. And with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you." Steve recited, making both Ottar and the girls do some form of a double-take.
Tiona then giggled and looked at Ottar.
"He has a love for poetry see." She tried to explain.
"Poetry..." Steve rolled his eyes fondly at her before fixing on Ottar. "Point is, we can give each other as many types of first impressions as we want. But what needs to be addressed is..." Steve stepped in front of Ottar and looked up at him in the eye. "...do you have a problem with me? Because every other motherf*cker I've passed in this Dungeon has given me the stink-eye. If they as a whole have a problem with me, who better as a representative than (and I emphasise), the former strongest of them all?"
Both Steve and Ottar held each other's stare, each side not looking away as Steve waited for his answer.
"So you stand by those claims?" Ottar asked.
"Yes, I do. Have you any challenge to those claims?"
"...That remains to be seen." Ottar looked at the girls before returning his gaze to the boy staring up at him. "Had you been a part of their Familia, I would have outright demanded that I be shown the proof of your claims...what do I call you? You don't even possess an alias."
"Steve is good enough." The gamer said. "But what difference does it make that I am not a part of their Familia? Whether or not that is the case, what stops you from issuing your challenge now? I hear you like challenges, King. And I hear you seek out strong opponents. If such a quality is attributed to you, then is not what is before you a potential experience of a lifetime?" Steve expressed while throwing his arms as he lay his point down. "You'll forgive me if you find that I'm a little skeptical and distrustful of your words."
Ottar stared at him a bit more before turning his back on Steve, clearly showing his intent to return to his original path.
"There is a time and place for everything. Now is not the time, nor the place." Ottar said as first started to walk before pausing again. "And for the record, it is ONLY because of the specific god you serve that I cannot demand anything of you now. But make no mistake Stephen Hewer...I will see to it that this matter is resolved at some point."
"I eagerly await." Steve said as the Boaz walked off. The girls held their breath until Ottar was out of sight and earshot.
"That was odd." Tiona said. "Of all people, I would have expected him to be the first one to challenge you."
"He works under the word of another." Steve said. "A leopard does not change it's spots overnight...not unless some higher authority tells him to paint over the spots and be something he's not. This meeting was no coincidence girls."
"What do you mean?" Ais asked as she took Albie from his perch on Bathsheba's head.
"There was nothing he could learn here that he didn't already know." Steve said as he gestured to the Warg. "He didn't even pay Bathsheba a second eye. He was not surprised nor confused to see her. He was expecting it...he's scouting me out just like your captain did. Only he's going about it a different way."
"Then that means you're becoming famous." Tiona said happily, her previous caution fully forgotten by now. "Especially if the King had to come down and check you out himself."
"Things are stirring for sure." Steve said as his super eyesight allowed him to see the Boaz disappear up the bridge into the 16th floor. "Orario is waking up."
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