Hephaestus's weapon shop.
The armor that had been pierced with nearly ten holes by a halberd had already been repaired—so exquisitely that not a single trace could be seen. As for the cost?
At the very least, the smith responsible for the repairs had already started a wager…
On how long it would be before this piece of armor was sent back for repairs again.
This put Hephaestus in a difficult position as well. Even as the deity of the familia, who personally taught her children the craft of forging, this was something she had never expected.
That Ron fellow would have such an extraordinarily high battle damage rate!
Looking once more at the refined-looking youth before her, she had heard from Hestia that his talent was exceptional—so much so that he might even break Sword Princess Ais's record for the fastest breakthrough.
Yet all she felt was helplessness.
'So it turns out the joys and sorrows of gods are not shared; I only find her noisy.'
Hephaestus raised a hand to rub her brow. As she looked at Ron, safe and sound, she even felt a hint of relief.
"Your armor has already been repaired."
"Thank you, Lady Hephaestus."
Ron expressed his gratitude from the bottom of his heart. Without the equipment she provided and the repair services she offered, his Dungeon exploration would absolutely not have gone so smoothly.
Where else could one find such a good angel investor?
Not charging for a full set of equipment was one thing; the key point was that even with the frequent damage to gear inherent to Soulslike Dungeon exploration, she was still willing to continue providing him with repair services.
"This isn't free of charge."
Hephaestus made a brief calculation.
In the end, she tugged lightly at the corner of her mouth and sighed helplessly.
"Your familia's goddess will still need to work in my weapon shop for another half year. But to be honest—"
"Whether I take this money or not doesn't really matter."
"If she could do some other kind of work, I wouldn't want to listen to her chattering in my ear every day, going on about how Ron will soon be able to stand on his own…"
So his evaluation in Hestia's eyes was actually that high?
All one could say was—having a cute, petite goddess who could help update ability values every day, earn money to support the household, and even give compliments was proof that he had absolutely chosen the right familia.
Ron nodded, feeling a little embarrassed.
He knew full well that Hephaestus, the true wealthy woman of Orario, was not short on money, but he still maintained a polite stance on the surface.
"I've already saved up a sum of Valis."
"…Forget it."
A god could discern lies from truth.
Compared to such a small amount of money, Hephaestus found it even harder to imagine what would happen if Ron were truly allowed to help repay the debt—how her utterly unreliable close friend would definitely find all sorts of ways…
To fleece Ron right out of the weapon shop!
Her gaze turned complicated as she looked at the armor. Shaking her head, she said, "Compared to that, what I'm actually more curious about is why the equipment gets damaged so badly…"
"And yet you can still, every single time, come bouncing around and stand in front of me like this?"
"Of course."
"This is your secret. I'm just curious," Hephaestus said lightly, waving her hand, without any intention of digging relentlessly to the bottom of it.
The unknown represents change.
Compared to that, what she actually looked forward to more was—within what could barely be counted as her own firsthand witness—just how far Ron could ultimately grow!
Did this fellow possess the potential to become a "hero" seed?
"It's not convenient to explain the specifics."
"It's probably something like having a 'near-death recovery' ability," Ron answered vaguely, but explaining it this way posed no problem at all.
The Revival skill.
The effect it possessed was exactly that: as long as the usage limit was not exceeded, the so-called concept of death would not truly appear on him.
Besides...
He did not think that Hephaestus, as a god, would be unable to guess this much.
"Truly…"
"An unprecedented miracle." Even though she had a rough guess, upon truly hearing Ron admit it himself, Hephaestus still could not hide the astonishment in her heart.
That a familia could develop to its current scale.
Naturally, it was because it had come to Orario relatively early—but when viewed across the long sweep of history, this kind of miracle was still something unprecedented to her!
Her deep crimson eyes fixed on the refined-looking youth before her.
After a moment, a smile called anticipation appeared on the valiant face of this goddess whose every gesture carried elegance and solemnity.
"So..."
"Will you be the hero from the prophecy?"
"No."
Ron shook his head frankly.
It was not due to a lack of confidence in himself. More precisely—once he truly set foot on the path of the Tarnished, he did not believe in any so-called endpoint.
It was just the so-called "hero"!
Even if the world of DanMachi offered no guidance at all, he still wanted—here, amid the Dungeon's endless oppression—to carve out a Lord of Cinder path that belonged solely to himself.
'Without the conviction to become a king, can mere power really carry one to the far shore?'
The answer was:
Absolutely not!
"Why?"
Faced with the question, Ron wore a relaxed smile, yet his tone left no room for doubt. "Because I think that an ordinary hero feels a bit… small-minded?"
Immediately after...
Just as expected, Hephaestus let out a relieved smile.
There was no particular reason.
She was simply annoyed.
...
Walking side by side along Adventurer Street, the girl was extremely petite—her height only reaching Ron's shoulder—yet she possessed a proud figure wholly at odds with her youthful-looking face.
And the weapon shop uniform, being relatively form-fitting, perfectly outlined Hestia's body curves.
A youthful face with a voluptuous figure—nothing described it better than that.
She linked her arm through Ron's, softly humming a tune she had picked up from who knew where, her joyful mood nearly overflowing from her azure-blue eyes.
Part-time work was exhausting.
But when Hestia saw Ron—who had safely returned from the Dungeon to Orario and even came specifically to the weapon shop to escort her home—she instantly felt that the work had been worth it.
"Ron."
"Have your recent Dungeon explorations been going well… You head out before dawn every time, and about your safety, I… I'm actually quite worried…"
"Very smoothly."
He had smoothly cleared the Floor Boss, the Goblin Guard, and explored an entirely new area.
Most importantly—
Not even the Revival charges he had exchanged had been consumed in the Dungeon.
Based on the current situation, Ron analyzed that until he encountered a new Floor Boss, the issue of pushing deeper into the Dungeon would be effectively alleviated by the Tarnished's new combat style.
And that was without any increase in ability values.
In the DanMachi system, updating ability values was essentially equivalent to consolidating the experience gained during this period into one's own body, and as his strength continued to grow.
He was confident that even if the future Dungeon environment became even more hellish, he would only become harder and harder to kill.
Those that could not kill him would only make him stronger!
After a brief consideration, Ron answered honestly: "I've already accumulated quite a lot of Soul Shards, and I've also mastered magic and more combat methods. Even if I run into danger, I can deal with it effectively!"
"That's good, then."
Hearing the boy's firm answer, Hestia's anxious heart finally settled. Aside from these trivial worries, she did not think that—
She herself could provide Ron with much help in his Dungeon exploration.
It was purely granting Falna, and helping him routinely update his ability values.
Thinking of this...
The girl lifted her head. Her bright, waterlike eyes were filled with excitement as she proposed, "After dinner, when we get home, let me help you update your ability values?"
"I'm looking forward to it as well."
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