The morning air was still crisp as I stood before the colossal doors of the Hephaestus Familia Manor, red stone and black metal wound together in layered artistry, like a forge turned palace. In my hand was a folded introduction letter from Rose, who said she knew someone inside that might be a good fit.
I adjusted the strap holding my twin daggers, took a breath, and stepped through the open gate.
I didn't expect to run into her so soon.
Standing just off the main steps was the Goddess Hephaestus herself—scarlet hair tied back, a pipe perched between her lips as she leaned on one hip. Smoke curled from the end of the pipe like a dragon's breath, and beside her stood a red-haired teen with sharp eyes and a scowl that could cut stone. They were clearly arguing, voices hushed but firm.
"I'm not going to waste my time making magic weapons, no matter what they say," the boy said, clearly annoyed. "You're wasting your talent by avoiding it," Hephaestus replied smoothly, exhaling smoke.
"Then I'll keep wasting it my way," he shot back, storming off past me. I blinked, watching his back vanish into the Manor. That's probably Welf Crozzo, I thought. He and Bell will cross paths eventually. I've got other things to handle.
Turning my eyes back to Hephaestus, I saw her expression shift as she noticed me approaching. She was stunning in a way that felt real and grounded. Even with the eye patch covering the left half of her face, she exuded confidence and strength.
"Well, hello there," she said, lowering the pipe. Her voice was smooth, relaxed. "And who might you be?" I gave a respectful nod, offering both my name and the folded introduction letter from the Guild. "Cain Dawnstar from the Nyx Familia. I have a letter of introduction from the guild. I'm hoping to find a new smith I can work with, someone who can grow with me throughout my journey."
Hephaestus took the letter, reading it with a curious glance. "So you're that Cain," she said with a little grin. "The one all the gods are whispering about."
I sighed, scratching the back of my head. "Is it really that serious?" She chuckled, exhaling smoke. "More than you know. It's not just you they're talking about but Nyx as well more in fear though. Your Goddess has the city's Divine gossip network in a frenzy. They want to know how to approach you without ending up dead."
I raised an eyebrow. "What about you? You here to make a bid?" She smirked, one corner of her lips quirking. "Only if you wanted to be a blacksmith I don't chase kid."
I blinked. "Blacksmithing?"
"Relax," she said, waving a hand. "Not trying to recruit you but I'm curious do you have any interest?" "Only enough to learn how to maintain my own weapons and other equipment properly," I replied honestly. "I want to treat my equipment with the same care I give my body. No more no less ."
That earned a genuine smile. "Good answer. An no I won't try to 'claim' you. But I do think I know someone who'd be perfect for you."
I tilted my head. "A blacksmith?" "Yes," she said. "A bit odd and an outlier but talented." She gave a sly grin. "And like you, she stands out. A Dark Elf rare for a smith."
That made me pause. "Most Elves don't forge, do they?" "Exactly," Hephaestus said. "They see it as dirty work. Jewelry, enchanted scrolls, that's their style but this one she's different. Ambitious. driven and Beautiful, too, if that matters."
I gave a dry chuckle. "Only if she knows how to swing a hammer." Hephaestus gestured for me to follow. We passed through corridors lined with flame-powered forges, the clang of hammers echoing in the stone halls. Smiths worked tirelessly, shouting about alloys, temperatures, and durability. Sparks danced like fireflies in the air.
At the very back of the compound was a solitary forge, quieter than the others but burning just as hot. That's when I saw her she was hammering with perfect rhythm strike, rotate, strike focused entirely on the glowing piece of metal on her anvil. A tall, dark-skinned woman around 5'11", her sculpted frame clad in a smith's cropped leather vest and flameproof trousers. Long, golden-blonde hair was tied into a messy ponytail, goggles pressing down on her brow.
Her arms flexed with every motion, corded with lean muscle. Her skin was like polished onyx touched by flame. Even from behind, she radiated control. After thirty minutes of this, she finally stopped then she turned and I saw light.
Clear yellow eyes. High cheekbones. A glistening sheen of sweat across a perfectly cut four-pack. Her chest, barely contained beneath her vest, could have caused traffic accidents. But what struck me wasn't just her body it was her confidence. Like her forge, she burned hot and steady.
She pulled off her goggles, looking first at Hephaestus. "Need something, Goddess?"
"I do," Hephaestus replied. "This is Cain Dawnstar. The one I told you about. Cain meet Chloe Ebon. She joined my Familia about three months ago." (Image here)
Chloe grinned and held out her hand. I met her halfway. Our hands locked. She blinked. "Huh. Nice grip." "You too," I replied.
She smirked, flexing her knuckles. "Good. I hate weak clients." Hephaestus laughed behind us. "Told you she'd be perfect." As our handshake lingered, the sparks from her forge danced behind her, and I knew she was perfect.
As Chloe and I exchanged names and handshakes, Goddess Hephaestus slid her pipe back into her cloak and gave a nod. "Alright, you two seem to be getting along well enough. I've got a meeting with the other gods no doubt more talk about you and your Familia," she said with a knowing glance.
"Of course," I muttered. Hephaestus winked, then turned on her heel, her red hair catching the forge light as she disappeared around the corner with the confident stride of someone who owned everything she touched.
Chloe turned back to me, wiping soot from her cheek with the back of her gloved hand. "So, you ever fight in the Dungeon?"
I nodded. "First floor I went solo." She blinked in surprise, then let out a soft laugh. "That's it? You're just a baby."
I chuckled. "Only in Dungeon terms. You?" "I've been down to the eighth floor," she replied, brushing her fingers through her ponytail. "Didn't stay long though. Mostly tagged along with upper-tier smiths and acted as their assistant. Learned how to observe and fight monsters, and how to track party formation, you know the works."
I tilted my head, impressed. "So besides your forge work, how often do you want to run the Dungeon?"
She thought for a second, lips twitching thoughtfully. "At least three times a week. Gotta keep myself sharp if I want to make quality weapons that don't break the second they hit monster hide and to improve my status."
I nodded. "Three times a week sounds good. We can switch on and off. Test weapons and gear and increase our Falna."
She grinned. "Alright then how about now?" I blinked. "Wait. Now?"
Chloe shrugged, smirking as she took of hear gloves and goggles. "Why not? I just finished a weapon, might as well break it in."
She pulled off her sweat-dampened undershirt and reached for a towel to wipe her face and upper body clean, casually unbothered. I didn't say a word, frozen mid-sentence. I tried not to stare, I really did but damn.
Chloe's body was a work of iron and fire—lean shoulders, powerful arms, the subtle sheen of muscle beneath smooth dark skin. A defined muscular back, from what I could tell a Triple-D chest with perky tits pressing gently against the towel as she moved. Her waist V tapered with strong hips, a big butt to go along with her long legs carried her like it was nothing.
She caught me staring when she turned and raised an eyebrow. "Oh crap. Did I just change in front of you?"
"Uh… yeah," I said, my face burning red. She snorted a laugh. "Sorry. Grew up around dwarves my whole life. Modesty's not exactly a strong point. Lady-like stuff isn't my style." "No complaints here," I muttered before catching myself. "I-I mean, it's fine!"
Still chuckling, she pulled on a fresh black shirt and secured her chest plate and arm bracer's. Then she reached for a long bag and drew out a finely crafted spear, the silver edge gleaming in the forge light.
"A spear?" I asked. "Not my go-to," she replied, inspecting the edge. "But I made this a month ago and haven't tested it yet. I like switching weapons to keep my reflexes sharp. Been training with everything since I was a kid."
"How long have you been smithing?" "Since I could lift a hammer," she said proudly. "Started at seven. So about fifteen years now."
My eyes widened. "Wait so you're what twenty-two?" She gave me a side glance. "Yeah. Why?"
"I thought you were like older." She snorted again. "Rude. What about you, kid?"
" I'm Ten. Eleven in a few months." She stopped and gave me a long, unreadable stare. "You're insane going into the dungeon at ten."
"I get that a lot." Chloe laughed, genuine this time. "Going into the Dungeon at ten that's some guts. "I trained for four months before my mentor even let me in," I said with a shrug. "Had to earn it."
She smirked, tightening the spear strap over her back. "That means someone cares. Training before a dive? Shows you're worth the effort." Her words made me pause. Not many people said things like that. I smiled, quietly.
A short while later, we stood at the Dungeon entrance, the ominous gaping maw in the ground beneath Babel Tower. The air pulsed with energy, and the crowd of adventurers bustled in and out, but Chloe's presence next to me was comforting.
She looked at me sideways, her gaze steady. "Alright, here's how this works. I'll help where needed, but mostly I'm here to watch. See how you move and how you handle your weapons. Then I'll design something tailored to you. Your balance, grip, fighting posture all of it."
I raised an eyebrow, surprised. "You can do all that just by watching?" Chloe's eyes narrowed playfully. "I'm a blacksmith, remember? I see how a weapon sings in your hands or how it doesn't. That tells me everything I need."
I nodded, my twin blades sliding free from their sheaths with a whisper of steel. "Sounds like a plan." She grinned, tapping her spear against the ground. "Then let's see what you've got, Cain Dawnstar."
And with that, we stepped into the Dungeon together.
The cool air of the Dungeon wrapped around us as Chloe and I stepped deeper into the first floor. The low hum of mana, ever-present within the stone halls, vibrated faintly under our feet. The glow of the magic-stone lanterns from adventurers ahead quickly faded behind us. We were on our own now.
Before long, I felt the shift—subtle tremors through the soles of my boots. A dull scrape echoed from the wall ahead, and in a breath's time, four kobolds emerged, crawling free like beasts born from shadow.
I readied my twin blades, falling into my stance. The moment they lunged, I moved—sliding into their blind spot and cutting upward in a clean arc, slicing across the first kobold's throat. It burst into ash and crystal. I pivoted, ducked beneath a claw swipe, and answered with a slash to the ribs. Another gone. I twisted, parried a snap of jaws, then drove a dagger into the creature's chest. The last tried to escape, bad idea. I hurled my off-hand blade into its back before it made it more than a few steps.
Silence returned.
Chloe clapped softly as she approached. "Nice. Efficient for someone your age."
I caught my breath and nodded. "Thanks. I've been training with Ryu for months."
"You've got a solid base," she said, kneeling to scoop up the crystals. "Still green though. Amateurs waste motion, but you're keeping it clean. Your grip's solid, your core stays firm. I've seen worse from level twos."
"Coming from a Hephaestus blacksmith, I'll take that."
"Damn right," she chuckled, slipping the crystals into her pouch.
More kobolds came. Then more. In groups of two, three, five. For the next twenty minutes, we fell into rhythm me cutting them down, Chloe collecting drops and crystal shards with practiced ease. It became a cycle of battle, breath, and movement. And every now and then, I felt her eyes watching not with judgment, but calculation.
Soon we moved to the second floor. The shift was immediate. The walls were darker, the air heavier. And the monsters were faster.
"Goblins," I muttered, seeing the twisted shapes ahead.
"Yup," Chloe nodded. "Welcome to the second floor." We kept going, goblins in twos and threes, sometimes in groups of four. My blades flashed. My body screamed in protest, but I didn't stop. And still… more monster drops than usual. Claws. Teeth. Crystals.
"I've never seen so many drops from one adventurer in a day," Chloe said as we paused after the eighth encounter. "Your luck must be ridiculous."
"Yeah," I answered simply, holding back a smirk. I thought about my "Luck" trait and how I my drop rates are almost unfair it's like a guaranteed a monster eighty percent of the time. I will have to test it one day to see what is the average quality of certain drops. We spent another half-hour on the floor. Then, just as we were about to switch roles.
A chorus of screeches echoed from behind a bend. Chloe and I froze.
"Jack Birds," she muttered. My heart skipped. Jack Birds. Rare monsters known for dropping golden eggs worth massive amounts of valis if you could kill them fast enough.
"I got this," I said, tightening my grip on the blades. "You sure?" Chloe raised a brow, already reaching for her spear. I nodded. "Let me try. Then you can switch in."
She shrugged, stepping back. "Alright, kid. Show me something good."
Six Jack Birds screeched down the corridor. I counted, adjusted my stance, and moved.
They were fast, darting, fluttering, leaping off walls trying to flee. But I was faster. I focused, using the same calm I'd practiced in my morning routines. No wasted motion and no hesitation. One blade stabbed through the first's neck. Another clean slash to the wing of a second. A third dove—my foot met its chest, launching it into a wall before I drove a dagger into its spine.
They scattered, but I cut them down mid-flight with exact speed and precision. When the final bird fell, my breath came heavy, but I was still standing. I picked up the drops and grinned four golden eggs.
Chloe let out a whistle. "Okay, that was impressive."
I grinned. "Thanks." "These eggs? You're looking at a payday on par with a lucky strike past the eleventh floor."
She scooped up the eggs and examined them. "Jackpot." "I think we can head back," I said, wiping sweat from my brow. But before we moved, a group of goblins emerged from the walls four in total.
Chloe smiled. "Mind if I handle these small fries? I want to test this spear properly."
I stepped aside, still catching my breath. "All yours." In truth, I wanted to see what this sexy, busty, dark elven blacksmith could really do.
The goblins growled before they all rushed towards her. but she stood there not even in a proper stance and then it happened. She didn't move until the last moment then in a blur, she was gone. A shimmer of gold from her spear's tip, and four goblins exploded into dust in an instant. The goblins didn't even get close.
I blinked. "What… just happened?" Chloe inspected her spear with a frown. "Hmm. Balance is a still a little off."
"Remind me never to get on your bad side," I muttered. She smirked. " I'm actually a little rusty. Been forging more than fighting lately."
"Chloe," I said seriously, "how would you feel about forming a proper adventuring contract? You become my personal blacksmith and we divide the drops and valis evenly. I'll help you test your weapons as well."
She looked up from her spear with a raised brow. Then, she smiled. "I agree to the terms," she said, extending a hand. "I look forward to working with you and please take care of me."
We shook on it. Together, we left the second floor, back to the first. It was quiet, calm. Until
We say him there waiting. Like a wall of living muscle and silence, Ottar stood near the exit. Arms relaxed at his side. Eyes focused entirely on me.
As Ottar's immense form loomed in the center of the first-floor chamber, I narrowed my eyes.
He's here to train me again probably until I hit Level Two, my heart pounding with a mixture of excitement and dread.
I turned to Chloe and handed her the pouch full of monster drops, crystals, and the four golden eggs.
"Take these to the Guild," I said. She blinked in confusion. "Wait, you're giving me everything? Are you sure?" I nodded. "Divide the earnings evenly. And don't worry I trust you."
She looked at me for a long moment, her eyes flicking from my calm face to the silent mountain of a man in front of us.
"Who is that?" she asked, her voice quiet but wary. I smiled. "He's like a teacher. A very violent one." Chloe gave me a long, assessing look. "Alright. I won't pry. But if you don't show up by tomorrow, I am keeping the money."
"Fair now go." She turned to go, but her gaze lingered warily on Ottar as she passed him. He didn't move. Didn't even blink. As soon as she vanished beyond the threshold, I exhaled slowly and drew my twin blades.
Ottar finally acknowledged me with a tilt of his chin. I took a stance, and focused I didn't care if I couldn't win I wanted to grow stronger.
Then I attacked. I ran at him like a bullet, using every movement Ryu taught me. Tight steps. Measured strikes. Quick pivots. I sliced from the left blocked. Feinted right parried. Ducking low, I tried a rising slash to his side. He barely flicked his blade to deflect them all.
Every motion I made was met with calm perfection. But He moved like a statue yet no opening ever appeared. I sent a flurry of slashes at him but nothing. Whenever I got behind him to attack his back he just moved his blade behind him without even looking. All his blocks were made with his big sword that he was moving all with one had.
He waited until my frustration peaked.
Then his fist came. I barely raised my blades in time to block but the sheer weight behind the blow launched me back. My boots scraped stone, my arms screamed, and my hands were red with split skin.
But I didn't fall. "I'm not done yet." I said
For twenty minutes, we fought or I should said I failed to land any hit on him while dodging or blocking the occasional punch or slash. Goblins appeared from the Dungeon wall halfway through. I was forced to shift between cutting them down and defending against him. It was all in a blur of desperation slicing, spinning, moving on instinct alone.
I turned back to Ottar, panting. He hadn't moved. I could feel the burn in every part of my body. My arms trembled. My knees wobbled. The damn child body was a bad call I should have said at least 12 or 13 years old. I would have more reach and power to fight with. Oh well can't change the past now.
This is where I fell last time I thought tired and bruised on the brink of collapsing. I grit my teeth then I Finn from the Loki Familia. He would never let something like his height get in the way of his goal so why the hell am I bitching about it.
Then I breathed deeply. I want to win so I going fight to win no matter what. As I exhaled I felt it. The surge of power through my body and I could see the whole floor again even a little of the entrance and second floor. Then inner focus doubled on Ottar. My heartbeat slowed and calmed down. My Haki was activating, it wasn't fully awakened not even close to mastery, not yet but it was there and I will remember this feeling.
My arms lifted coating my blades with my will (Armament). I stepped forward blades high, chest low and I attacked.
Ottar's blade rose to meet mine in perfect form, but this time something changed.
Clang!
A ripple ran through his sword. Just a few inches not much but enough to allow me to hit him past his defense.
My blade slipped past his his guard. It was inches from his chest, and then everything went black.
Pain and a lot of pressure and a cold surface. I opened my eyes to find the ceiling of a room. My room. My limbs ached with every twitch. Bandages wrapped my hands. My arms throbbed. But beside me on a small tray was a bowl of soup, fresh bread, and a note.
I reached for it.
> Cain,
Please stop coming home like this. You're making us worry.
Take care of yourself. Eat, rest. Then go be a fool again if you must.
Ryu and Mia
My fingers trembled. They called it home. I chuckled, but the tears came anyway, sliding down my cheek as I raised the spoon to my lips. The soup was warm. Comforting. Filled me with a feeling that went beyond taste.
As I took another bite, my thoughts drifted I didn't really have this back home in my past life but this was my family now. One day, I would stand tall beside them, and protect them. Even if it meant getting beaten into the ground a hundred more times.