"As long as I'm here, everything will be alright! I swear it!"
The young man's oath echoed in the sky. The stars seemed to shine in response!
--------------------------------
"Twilight Manor", home of the Loki Familia.
The Monster Pheria was already lively enough, and now with the big mess caused by the appearance of Violas and monsters escaping, as one of Orario's top familias, the Loki Familia had an obligation to be concerned about it.
Maintaining Orario's peace and stability wasn't just the Loki Familia's duty, the Freya Familia and Ganesha Familia shared that responsibility as well, because the label on them all was that they belonged to this city of Orario and were the strongest of the city.
At the captain's office atop the tall tower, it was late at night yet still brightly lit.
Captain Finn, vice-captains Riveria and Gareth, and their god Loki were all gathered there.
Seeing their goddess sitting on the sofa pouring herself a drink, Finn rested his chin on his hands, wearing a slightly dangerous smile.
"Loki, did something happen at the Monster Pheria? Not only did you come home so late today, you didn't even eat dinner here, and your mood doesn't seem very good either."
Loki had worked alongside Finn for decades, they knew each other far too well, even just from a glance.
When Finn was ten, his parents were killed by monsters. From then on, he swore to change the plight of the Pallum race and become a hero.
It was also then that he abandoned his original name and began his adventures under the name "Finn Deimne."
At fourteen, in a small town, he encountered the goddess who had just descended from the heavens and thus began leading his own familia.
Now, at forty-two, twenty-eight years had passed. They had spent more time together than with their own families, and with the bonds of the familia... that subtle sense for each other was only natural.
Taking a small sip of red wine, Loki opened her divine eyes.
"A few days ago, I went to meet that lovestruck goddess. Apparently, she took a liking to a certain kid. Just because of that, she secretly released the monsters Ganesha's bunch had captured, causing quite a mess in the city."
Hearing this, Riveria picked up a letter from the Guild she had just received, looking slightly puzzled.
"Chaos from monsters escaping? But the Guild's report says there were zero casualties, sounds like the incident was resolved without much harm."
"That's not really the point. There's something else." Loki put down her glass and sighed.
"Tione and the others also went to the venue and were attacked by monsters, but the difference is... Lefiya took a bit of a hit."
"..." Finn, Riveria, and Gareth exchanged glances, slightly stunned.
Lefiya was still immature in their eyes, but even so, she was level 3. Forget silverbacks, even a level 2 Minotaur from the 17th floor could be taken down with her staff.
What kind of monster could injure Lefiya? They didn't believe for a second that Ganesha's monsters for the show had been level 3.
Loki furrowed her brows and looked up at the three of them.
"It was a new, never-seen-before variant."
"A new... variant?"
Finn leaned back, changed posture, and licked his thumb.
Ding, ding, ding.
?
Under everyone's gaze, he picked up a small bell from the desk and shook it.
"What's that?"
"Well..."
Then, the sound of hurried footsteps came closer, and with a bang, the office door flew open.
"Captain~~~ did you need me for something~?"
Riveria: "..."
Gareth: "..."
Loki: "..."
Looking from Finn, to the large bell on his desk, then to Tione with her lovestruck look... Gareth couldn't help but give a heartfelt remark.
"Sure is useful."
Riveria and Loki nodded in sincere agreement, convinced from the bottom of their hearts.
"Tione, could you give me a detailed account of the new type of monster you fought today?"
At that, Tione put away her fangirl smile and became serious.
"Alright."
...
When Fron returned to the base, the night was already deep.
He didn't see anyone in the courtyard, though the magic stone lamps in the central garden were still lit, it seemed there had been activity not too long ago.
"Guess everyone's tired after a busy day."
Thinking of everyone's daytime schedule and the appearance of the Violas, Fron shook his head.
Back in his room, he tidied up a little before heading down to the underground workshop, ready to fully digest the knowledge he had gained from that dagger and make it his own.
The harvest brought by the "Divine Technique" was enormous.
Those who didn't understand would just think it was a weapon that could grow, but the techniques, craftsmanship, the maker's thought process and experience, all of it was real and tangible.
Especially for a smith of his level, it was nothing short of a treasure trove of insights.
Once he digested this knowledge and combined it with what he already had, an upgrade in his "Blacksmith" DA would be just around the corner.
...
The next morning, before dawn.
In the courtyard, the sound of sword swings cutting through the air rang out as usual.
Fron, who hadn't slept all night but looked energetic, appeared in Ais's field of vision, sitting on a bench under the streetlamp.
"..." Being stared at while practicing sword swings, even Ais, who was normally devoid of strong emotions, began to blush slightly. It felt embarrassing and awkward...
She was usually calm in front of everyone, so why was this happening now...?
The golden-haired swordswoman couldn't focus on swinging her sword anymore, her thoughts were in complete disarray...
"Fron."
"Mm."
"D-don't stare at me like that..."
"What's wrong?"
"It's... it's troubling."
...
"Oh~" The blond youth gave a knowing smile.
In truth, he was just feeling a bit muddled from the sudden flood of knowledge in his head, unable to make sense of it and a little irritated, when he happened to see Ais practicing.
A beautiful swordswoman wasn't exactly unpleasant to look at, and sitting there quietly, Fron's restless mind was oddly calmed by the sight.
That was how this little conversation between them began.
"Yesterday, did you go do something?"
Come to think of it, Ais had been caring about Fron a bit too much lately, beyond the level of an ordinary friend. The fact she got flustered when he watched her train was proof enough.
Now she was even asking about his whereabouts, even more proof.
Placing her wooden sword to the side, Ais sat down next to him with her legs together, brushed her hair back, and softly started the conversation.
Her delicate profile and the faint scent she carried at such close distance made Fron's heart ripple slightly.
'She's really cute.'
"Mm, something related to smithing. How should I put it... I gained a lot, but since I can't digest or understand it yet, I've been a little irritated."
Ais turned slightly to face Fron, a rare look of surprise crossing her otherwise expressionless face.
"Even something Fron can't understand... a technique like that?"
Looking up at the beautiful sky and breathing in the fresh air scented with flowers and soil, the young man let out a sigh.
"Yeah. Even though I can use my skill to forcibly memorize it, it's like information stored in my mind, I can read it, but I can't understand it. Something like that."