Crack!
"Finally... you're done for."
The final slash across the goblin's throat sent green blood spattering across my cheek and shirt. Disgusting. But this was my life now—there was no point in being squeamish.
I stood there gasping, my trembling hand barely able to grip the sword as my shoulder throbbed with exhaustion. That last goblin had been particularly troublesome, and this was only the second floor. Seriously, why did every monster in this dungeon seem to have a personal vendetta against me?
Thud.
I collapsed onto the cold stone floor, my breathing still ragged. It felt like I'd been running from debt collectors while carrying a refrigerator on my back. Everything ached.
"Same routine... magic stones first."
I crouched down slowly, using my borrowed dagger to cut into the goblin's corpse. My hands had grown accustomed to this grisly work, though the revulsion never fully faded. The small magic stone glowed faintly, like a dying ember clinging to life. I collected them one by one, dropping each into the cloth pouch tied at my waist.
Finished.
I wiped my face with my sleeve—sweat and goblin blood mixed into a cocktail of exhaustion. The smell was rank, nauseating. But this was my job now. I was an adventurer.
∆∆∆
Emerging from the dungeon through Babel's exit, the late afternoon sun greeted me with its characteristic glare. After an hour underground in that cramped, reeking labyrinth, even this harsh light felt like a warm embrace—if your mother's hugs came with demands about marriage prospects.
I stepped out onto Orario's bustling streets, my legs still unsteady.
"Seventeen years now..."
Seventeen years since I died.
No, I wasn't hit by a truck—too cliché. I was shot.
The irony was that it wasn't because I was being heroic or committing a crime. Pure bad luck. I'd been buying chicken noodles when a robbery went wrong, and a stray bullet found me.
Bang! Game over.
Everything went dark, and when I opened my eyes... boom. The world of DanMachi.
At first, I thought it was a dream. But after two weeks of eating raw mushrooms and sleeping in dirt holes, the reality became undeniable: this was real.
I was alive again. In an anime world. A world of dungeons. A world of... goddesses with impossible proportions.
∆∆∆
Today marked my second day in Orario proper. I'd arrived from the north—a small village where I'd spent seventeen years learning the language, training my body, and gathering basic information about this world. But becoming an adventurer in a major city like Orario? That was hell.
I walked leisurely toward Guild headquarters. The Guild building was always crowded with adventurers coming and going, their pouches heavy with magic stones and their bodies bearing fresh wounds. I was no different—except that I was a complete rookie.
"Second floor... and I'm already winded. Pathetic."
But everyone had to start somewhere, right?
Inside the Guild, I exchanged my magic stones for about two thousand valis. Not much, but enough for food and lodging.
As I left the building, the evening breeze caressed my face. I allowed myself a small smile.
"A new life, huh..."
∆∆∆
Oh, right. I'd joined the Hestia Familia. Don't ask why—the answer was obvious: because Hestia was a petite goddess with an impressive figure.
Well, that wasn't the only reason.
I genuinely liked her. She was cheerful, stubborn, and despite being broke, she radiated enthusiasm. There was something in her eyes that was truly *alive*. She wasn't just some unemployed deity who'd descended to the mortal realm for entertainment. She was sincere. I appreciated that quality.
And admittedly, I'd always had a weakness for petite women... I mean, small. Cute. With... well, you know. Maximum visual appeal.
(God, my thoughts.)
Anyway.
I continued walking through the narrow alleys. The sun was setting, the streets growing quieter, but my steps felt lighter. Because I knew that ahead...
...was home.
The old church stood before me—a dilapidated building that somehow radiated warmth. The roof leaked, the walls were cracked, but it was home.
"Hestia-sama, I'm back."
(I thought my new life would begin when I entered the dungeon. But it actually started when I met her.)
As I pushed open the church's worn door, the familiar creak greeted me like always—sharp and grating on the ears.
Creeak...
"Shiiiin~!"
Instantly, a small figure launched toward me like a missile.
Thump!
"Whoa—!"
I nearly fell backward, but somehow managed to stay upright despite now having someone... clinging tightly to me. Two small arms wrapped around my neck, and that beautiful face framed by black hair buried itself against my chest.
"Shin! You took forever! I was worried sick!"
(Inside, I was celebrating. But my expression? Remained neutral. Cool. Calm. Mature.)
"Sorry, Hestia-sama. I only went down to the second floor... not the eighteenth."
"I know that, but still! You just became an adventurer! What if you were attacked by two goblins at once? Or fell into a trap? Or—or—got eaten by a goblin and your clothes dissolved?!"
I suppressed a smile.
"So... you're worried about goblin dissolving my clothes?"
Hestia fell silent. Her face turned red.
"O-of course not! That's just... a possibility! You know goblin... a-ah, never mind!"
I gazed into her bright blue eyes, still held in her embrace.
Thump. My chest fluttered slightly—not from fear, but from happiness.
(Honestly, I don't know how I ended up at this point.)
When I first arrived in Orario, I hadn't gone to the Guild immediately. Instead, I'd wandered the city searching for one name: Hestia. The small goddess with black hair and two blue ribbons that hung like cat tails. Her image was still vivid in my memory.
"Back then, I must have looked like a madman. Asking fruit vendors, weapon shop guards, even bar waitresses."
"And they all gave the same answer..." I murmured with a small smile. "'The unemployed goddess? Oh, you mean the one at the old church?'"
(Thank you, citizens of Orario.)
∆∆∆
After several seconds, Hestia finally released her embrace, her cheeks still flushed. She turned her face away slightly, pretending to pout.
"Hmph. Don't make me worry like that again. I'm a goddess, you know?"
I sat on the worn wooden bench that was barely holding together, setting down my cloth bag of magic stones. Then I looked at her while leaning back.
"A goddess who's adorably fussy. But cute."
"W-what?!" Hestia nearly choked.
I teased her again, with a mischievous smile.
"If you keep worrying like that, people will think you're the adventurer's wife."
"Shin!! Don't say such things!!" Her face grew even redder, her ears turning pink like boiled shrimp.
But she wasn't angry. Instead, she sat beside me, still looking away, though I could see from the corner of my eye—she was grinning slightly. Bashfully.
(So innocent.)
"I learned from my previous life. Women like compliments. And when teased gently, they usually... become even more adorable."
"Shin, were you just talking to yourself?" Hestia looked suspicious.
I played dumb. "Eh? No. That was probably the wind."
"Liar! You were definitely thinking about me again!" She pouted, but her tone held no real anger. Rather, she sounded like a child who couldn't stand being complimented but also didn't want the teasing to stop.
"Ah, Hestia-sama..."
"What now?"
"I'm home."
She fell silent. Her blush deepened. But her smile... was warm.
"Welcome home, Shin."
∆∆∆
That night, we shared a simple meal together. Hard bread, potato soup, and a bit of dried meat. But I'd never felt more satisfied.
Because in this world, I wasn't just alive again. I had purpose. I had a place to return to.
And most importantly... I had Hestia.
(The innocent little goddess... who I might just make fall in love with me, little by little.)