Power Corrupts: Small Worries (ch.18) (Patreon)

I strode forward staring at Canoe as I approached, tossing the corpse to the side. Their lips moved, shouting something as they drew their weapons, but I didn’t hear it. I couldn’t. It was like my head was underwater, or the red mist that descended was so dense it blocked all sound. But, at the same time, my mind was perfectly clear. If anything, I was experiencing a clarity that I had never experienced before. 

All because only one thought ran through my mind as I reached into my inventory and pulled my weapon from it. I saw their faces morph into ones of surprise, but I didn’t care. They would all be dead soon. I was going to kill them. All of them. 

What would have happened if I had arrived any later? What if the line was a little longer? What if I had stayed around to talk with Ais? What would have happened if I wasn’t here?

Lili would have died. Hestia...she might not have died, but if she suffered a fatal wound, or used her godly powers then she would have been sent back to Heaven. I would never be able to see her again. Ever. All because I wanted to get some breakfast or chat with Ais before we trained later today. 

My heart thundered in my ears as Canoe shouted something out me, holding his sword out while the other flanked out. They weren’t wearing armor, telling me that they didn’t have time to put it on before they gave chase, but they did have their weapons. One carried a hammer and a shield, Canoe and another carried a simple long sword while another in the back had a bow. She flinched when my gaze landed on her, shifting nervously. 

I gripped my weapon with white knuckles, Canoe’s mouth still moving, taking a step back for every step I took forward. The other two had flanked me completely, shifting nervously as they stood ready to rush me. I took in a deep breath, sparing a wish that I had my chest armor on, but I didn’t need it. I was topped up on health, I had my sword, and none of them had armor. 

I was going to hack them to pieces. 

With that thought in mind, I moved. I raised my blade high, acting like I was going to bring it down on Canoe, only to throw myself to the side when an arrow rushed where my right eye had been moments before. The one with the hammer rushed to meet me, his shield up and his hammer swinging at me. Unfortunately for him, I had learned something from my fight with the minotaurs. 

I blocked the swing with my arm, barely feeling it when it snapped and only because I expected it, I felt the bone shift back into place like it was never broken in the first place. As he completed the swing, I grabbed his arm, his eyes having just enough time to go wide before I slammed my pommel into the top of his head. I was so much stronger than I was before, the only thing I could compare it to was a tomato being hit by a hammer. 

Still gripping the corpse, I pivoted, turning on my heel as I heaved the corpse. Canoe and the other swordsman rushed at me, a slow panic creeping on their faces. I felt my face twist into a snarl as I flung the corpse at them, knocking them both- ah, was that another arrow sticking out of the corpse? I think I blocked another shot on accident. 

That gave me my next target, I decided as I turned towards the archer. Our gazes met and she flinched, her hand pausing ever so slightly as she went for another arrow. It cost her a second at most, but I learned that a second could be the difference between life and death. That second, I decided, would cost her her life. I crouched down, feeling the powerful muscles in my legs bunch up and tense before I launched myself into the air. 

I weighed a lot, I learned over the weeks. Chairs groaned when I sat in them, there was a permanent indentation in the bed from where I laid and the same for the couch. I didn’t know the exact amount, but if I had to guess it was somewhere between three-fifty to four hundred pounds. Nearly a quarter of a ton and every single ounce of it was pure muscle. 

I leaped over several broken and old pews, easily clearing them as I jumped towards the archer, my sword in hand. Whoever she was, she didn’t let her nerves get to her too much because once I cleared the three pews that separated us, she fired off an arrow. This time there was nothing to block it with and I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder, an arrow sticking out of it. She made to retreat as I neared the ground some feet away from her, but she completely misjudged just how huge my reach was. 

With a five-foot sword, my long arms, there was no escaping me when I took a swing. The girl threw herself back, only to slam into a wall as I brought my sword down. My blade bit into one of her legs, carving through it as she threw her head back and screamed, blood pouring from the wound. I still couldn’t hear a single thing over my heartbeat in my ears. But, I knew that wasn’t going to be the case for everyone else. 

The others scrambled to their feet, so I couldn’t use my sword to finish her off. That was a problem. If she kept screaming then people would investigate, or they could have other members of the Soma familia nearby to reinforce them. So, I raised my boot and like I did with so many monsters before, I raised it over her head, her hands trying to ward me off for a split second before I stomped on her head. It gave way underfoot, my sock getting drenched with blood but that was fine. With me, that was practically normal at this point. 

There were only two left, and now our positioning was reversed. I was blocking their exit, and if they turned their backs to me to go after Hestia or Lili...gods might walk the earth, but not even they would be able to undo what I was going to do to them if they tried that. They would die, and they would die screaming. I would make sure of it. 

They were cautious now, their weapons poised to strike as they slowly advanced. I’m guessing that they were used to working together, but I didn’t recognize the other guy. It didn’t matter, I suppose. Teamwork wasn’t going to save them.

I took a slow step forward, blood and brain matter squishing in my boot as I held out my sword in front of me. I wish I could have gotten a lesson in with Ais or Tiona so I could actually call myself a swordsman, but it should be fine. The Skill Swordsman increased my stats when wielding a sword, it didn’t specify by how much, but I’m guessing a bit. Enough to close whatever stat gap there was between us. 

My gaze landed heavily on Canoe, his generic brown eyes narrowed, his face puffy and red while sweat dripped down his brow. He was nervous. Scared, even. Good. Throwing myself forward, I moved in a blur, but Canoe was just as fast. Sparks flew where our weapons clashed, his sword warping where the edge of mine bit into. Welf really did do good work. And, unfortunately for him, I had learned other lessons from my previous fights. 

My sword was hardly my only weapon. 

I lashed out with a knee, driving it into his gut and knocking the breath from his lungs. The second Soma member lashed out with his weapon, and I narrowly dodged a thrust to my throat. Twisting my blade while Canoe backed off, I took a wild swing at the man but he managed to block my blade. Only this time, the blade folded around mine as he tried to stop my attack. The adventurer managed to dodge the swing that would have taken his head off, but he was weaponless. 

I turned to him to kill him so I could focus on Canoe, only for the middle-aged man to tackle me. His shoulder hit my hips, trying to knock me to the ground, but he couldn’t. Not with my Perks, it was practically impossible for me to lose my balance. I brought the hilt of my sword down onto his back, feeling a rib give way to me before I took another wild swipe at the other adventurer, driving him away long enough that I could throw Canoe off of me. I was saving him for last. 

The other adventurer pulled out a dagger about the size of his forearm. Or was it a short sword? I couldn’t tell the difference. Didn’t care either. He glanced at Canoe to realize that he wouldn't get any help from him before lunging at me, realizing that unless he got in close then he didn't stand a chance. We both knew that, unfortunately for him. I lashed out with a fist that caught him in the side of the head even though he tried to dodge it. He went down like the sack of shit that he was as he slammed into a pew, the rotting wood giving way and showering him with splinters. 

I've gotten a lot stronger, I noted as I saw teeth flying. The last time I was in a situation like this, I had to completely rely on the element of surprise, and even then I nearly lost. Now, I was winning through brute force. It was a refreshing feeling, in a weird way, I mused as I raised my sword high before plunging it down into the adventurer's chest. Crimson blood erupted from the wound when I yanked my blade out, my chest expanding as I took in a slow breath. Almost absentmindedly, I grabbed the arrow sticking out of my shoulder and yanked it out. 

Now, there was only one. 

Slowly, I turned around to face Canoe to find him on a knee, one hand clutching his ribs as he wore an expression of naked fear on his face. I almost laughed at how small he was. How weak. For weeks, I had been shitting myself over what he was planning, how he was going to get me and...now, he was on his knees before me, limply pointing a sword at me as he looked about ready to soil himself. It'd be a lie to say that it didn't feel good. An enemy that I struggled against for weeks getting swept up like this. 

All of a sudden, the trope of villains monologuing when they thought they defeated the hero suddenly made so much sense. I wanted to gloat. I wanted to mock him. I wanted him to know that he was nothing compared to me. Only I was the hero and he was the villain. I took a step forward, unable to keep the small grin tugging at my cheeks away, as I approached, resting a bloodied blade on my shoulder. I couldn't help but wonder what was going through his head as he looked up at me in defeat. 

His sword shook in his hand, trembling in pain, fear, and exertion, jerking upwards when I took another step forward. Then another, and another and another until I was standing just outside of his range. Then, slowly, mockingly, I hefted my blade off my shoulder, before lowering it down until it pressed against his neck. Canoe flinched at the feeling of steel against his throat, swallowing thickly. He stared up at me, fear gleaming in his eyes before he did something I didn't expect. 

He dropped his sword. Impossibly, the sharp sound of metal clanging against hard stone was the first thing that I heard over the sound of my heartbeat thundering in my ears. The sound was enough to make me hesitate, buying Canoe enough time to throw his hands up in surrender, one hand higher than the other because of the ribs I broke. He...was giving up. He was surrendering. I...I didn't expect that. 

I expected a...fateful clash, or something. I expected him to fight through the pain, to throw himself at me in revenge for his dead friends. For weeks, ever since I let him walk away in the Dungeon despite knowing that he knew I had killed someone, I dreaded this moment. I feared that he was going to make a move and I wouldn't be able to do anything about it. I feared that I was going to be stuck underneath someone's thumb, practically an indentured servant and this new paradise I found myself in would turn into a hellscape. 

"You…" I started, my voice was low and rough to my own ears as I gripped my weapon that much tighter. I wanted to murder him, I realized with some faint surprise. The others -- I killed them in defense of my home, or I finished a fight they had started. I knew I wanted Canoe dead, I regretted letting him walk away that day, but looking down at the pathetic sight before me, I wanted to take his head off. Or stomp on it until it cracked open like an egg. Like something deep and primal in me wouldn't be satisfied until all my enemies were rotting in the dirt. 

"Don't kill me," Canoe begged, looking up at me with wide eyes filled with fear. He was shaking like a leaf, fat drops of nervous sweat running down his face. "Please, just don't kill me! I'll do whatever you want!" 

...this was the man that I was afraid of for weeks. This is the man who I was convinced that would rain hell on my second lease on life, and ruin it. My growing rage must have shown on my face because Canoe flinched so badly that you'd think I had hit him. 

"What," I heard myself say, my voice a low growl as I gripped my weapon with white knuckles, "happened to Lili?" 

Canoe didn't answer for a moment, likely knowing I wasn't going to like anything that he had to say. He quickly realized that staying silent was going to land him the same brutal fate though, so he began in a shaky voice. "She tried to go around Captain Zanis' back and leave the familia!" 

That much I had learned from Lili, and I wasn't going to learn why she tried to do so from Canoe. Even still, I had to take in a deep breath to calm myself from lashing out. "And why is she in my home bleeding out?" 

Canoe swallowed thickly, eyeing me nervously before he continued, obviously choosing his words with care. "Captain Zanis' wanted to make an example out of her. You know, make a big show of how you couldn't leave the familia without paying an exit fee, and going around his back was a bad idea." Canoe swallowed thickly and looked away from me ask clenched my jaw so hard I'm pretty sure my teeth were about to crack. 

"What. Happened." It wasn't a question. 

Canoe licked his lips nervously before he took in a shaky breath, "he had a bunch of our guys rough her up a little-! That's all! Just a couple of punches and kicks, is all! Nothing like that!" He said and it must have been really obvious what my mind immediately went to. "It went on for a bit, but Captain Zanis' decided that wasn't enough. He's the one that stabbed her! Not any of us!" He added, as if that was going to help his case. 

"Did you hit her?" I asked softly, my tone sharp. 

"I…" Canoe hesitated and that was answer enough for me. My foot lashed out before I could stop it, my blood-covered boot slammed into his face hard enough to send him skidding back a couple of feet. His nose was flattened and he spit up a few teeth, groaning in agony as he clutched at his ribs. He practically whimpered when I slowly approached, my mind a mess of emotions. 

I wasn't nearly too late now, but I was too late to save Lili. I wonder what was going through her head when she was being beaten within an inch of her life or when Zanis' stabbed her? Did she expect me to kick down the door and rescue her? Where was I when that was happening? Chatting with Welf? Getting a blowjob from Eina? Drinking with the Loki familia? Have a great fucking time when my friend was dying, wishing that someone would save her? 

There weren't words to describe what I felt at that moment. The only ones that came close were anguish, wrath, and malice.

"What happened after he stabbed her? How did she get here?" I had to stay focused. If I didn’t, I was going to stomp on him until he was a red smear on the ground. I don’t recall being this...violent...in my last life. I guess being an adventurer affected me more than I thought it had. 

Canoe spat out another mouthful of blood and teeth, it poured from his nose like a broken faucet. It soaked his disgusting beard that clung to his jawline, dripping from his face and leaving a long streak mark on his forearm when he tried to wipe it away. It took him a couple of seconds to answer, and he only did when I nearly kicked him again. 

“She crawled away,” he spat out, revealing that he was missing his front teeth. “We didn’t notice until she was out of the door, and we were sent to finish her off. We followed the blood trail here- we didn’t know this was the home of your familia-” I lashed out again, kicking him in the ribs before I could stop myself. Canoe let out a choked scream as I held myself back from kicking him again. My blood felt hot in my veins, burning me up from the inside out. 

“Is there anyone else after her?” I asked sharply, rage making it hard to think but I managed it. Somehow. If other groups showed up, then things were going to get very messy very fast. 

Canoe didn’t answer me, coughing up blood. I guess one of his ribs pierced a lung. He didn’t need to. He looked up at me with something beyond fear. He looked like a man that knew he was lost, that his life was forfeit and the last seconds of life he had left were of pain and despair. There was no one coming for him. That was good. That gave me time. 

“I...I answered- urk...your questions,” Canoe gasped out between coughs as I looked coldly down at him. His words were desperate but hopeless. He knew that this was only going to end one way, and yet he still clung to that faint chance that he could walk away from this. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. They saw me use my inventory. Maybe it would lead to nothing, but I was done taking dumb risks like that. Especially when there was so much at stake. 

“Please…” He trailed off before falling silent, that faint hope dying a dog's death as I lowered my sword so that the tip was pointed at his throat. 

“I think we both know how it is,” I stated flatly, staring into his eyes. I saw the fear, pain and despair melt away in them, leaving only a haggard exhaustion behind. I guess it was better than screaming, crying and begging for his life. I wouldn’t have lost my nerve, but Hestia didn’t need to hear that.

“...Yeah,” Canoe spoke his final word before my sword moved. A flick of the wrist was all it took, and his head parted from his shoulders. He was dead. His body slumping, blood rapidly pooling underneath his corpse. I stared at his corpse for a moment -- I don't know what I expected to feel when I killed him. Society said I was supposed to feel guilty because all life has inherent value, while I almost expected to feel overjoyed. 

Instead, I felt...satisfied. I won. He was dead. And that was the end of that.

Now, it was time to move on to more important things.

I ran down the stairs, rounding the corner and...Hestia was hovering over Lili protectively, a knife in her hands pointed at the door, the fierce image undercut by the naked fear in her eyes. When she saw it was me, relief flooded her expressive blue eyes as she dropped the knife, nearly sagging on top of Lili. 

“Are they…?” Hestia asked, almost afraid of the answer. I spared her a look as I crossed the threshold.

“They’re dead,” I answered shortly. There was no time to sugar coat it. I reached into my inventory to pull out another potion. I poured some of it onto her stomach, but it barely slowed the bleeding, and I was worried about internal injuries already. I pressed the vial to her bloodied lips, and she was aware enough to part them ever so slightly so I could pour what was left down her throat. 

“Jericho...what do we do?” Hestia asked, her gaze drifting to the first man she had seen me kill. I followed her gaze, the corpse propped up by the wall, but bright red blood coated the wall, dripping downward. I looked away, turning my attention to Lili as she looked like she was struggling to open her eyes. 

That, I had to admit, was a very good question. This...had escalated to a point that it couldn’t be swept underneath the rug. If they had attacked in the Dungeon, everyone would have shrugged their shoulders, but they had broken into my home after trying to kill my friend, and instead, I killed them. We needed advice on how to get ahead of this, and there was only one place that came to mind. 

“We need to go see Eina,” I said, wishing I had more potions so I could pour some on Lili’s face so the swelling would go down. Or do something for her injured hand. She was so battered, I didn’t know where to touch her so that she would know I was there. “We need to get our story in first before the Soma familia realizes what happened. Then it’s their word versus ours, rather than our word against theirs.” I guess acting out in highschool taught me something after all. 

“R-right,” Hestia agreed with a shaky nod, swallowing thickly as she took in a calming breath. Despite it all, I thought she was holding it together rather well. “When-”

“Mr...Jericho…?” Lili muttered weakly, turning her head to look up at me. Both of our attention snapped to her to see that she was weakly reaching out. Tentatively, I took her hand in mine, the rage and hate gone like smoke in the wind. Replaced by a sense of helplessness I haven’t felt since I watched my mom waste away in a hospital bed. 

“Lili? Are…” I was about to fucking ask if she was okay. “Is there anything I can do?” I asked, feeling lost and uncertain. No. Not uncertain. I needed more health potions. 

“Lili’s sorry...she...went to see Soma...but…” Lili trailed off, a stray tear dripping out of her swollen eyes. “He...looked at Lili but...didn’t say anything. He...he didn’t do anything…”

I was going to fucking kill him. There was a certain clarity that thought brought as my heart squeezed in my chest. It didn’t matter if he was a god or not. In that moment, I don’t think I cared about the consequences at all. I just wanted him dead, and I wanted to be the one that killed him. That was it. 

“Lili...why?” I couldn’t stop myself from asking as Hestia sniffled. We had a plan, why would she try to leave the familia now? 

“Lili...Lili didn’t want to trouble Mr. Jericho. He...he was going to fight the entire Soma familia. I didn’t want Mr. Jericho to get hurt for Lili,” Lili explained weakly. I closed my eyes, picturing what had happened. She was nervous about telling me the amount that Zanis had asked for. And after the minotaru had attacked...fuck. It was clear that something was bothering her, but I hadn’t picked up on the signs. I just assumed it was about the money.

So she tried to do something about it on her own, where I wouldn’t have to challenge the Soma familia for her to be released from them. She went to Soma, begged to be released much like she had in the anime, only for her pleas to fall on deaf ears. Then she was caught, beaten within an inch of her life and stabbed. She crawled away, likely using her magic to make it to my home where she collapsed, hoping to be found by me. And I…

I’m going to kill Soma. I’m going to kill Zanis. If I did nothing else in the world, I was going to murder both of them with my bare hands. 

“It’s okay Lili,” I said, gently sliding my hands underneath her body. “It’s all going to be okay, and you know why?” I asked, sending a look at Hestia. Or, rather, her gloves. She seemed to realize what I was getting at because she tore off her clothes, any thought of modesty gone and quickly started getting changed. “It’s all going to be okay because I’m going to make it okay. We’re going to pump you full of potions and they’ll fix you right up.”

Lili didn’t say anything as I began walking up the steps, and the silence made my heart go still in my chest. “Lili, want to know something? I was saving it as a surprise, but I was going to get some armor made for you,” I said, trying to give her focus on something as we reached the ruined church. I heard Hestia gasp at the sight of corpses and...I couldn’t blame her for that, I thought as my gaze landed on the girl who’s head I crushed. 

I performed that action so many times on monsters, but now, looking at my handiwork, using it on a person was…

“Jericho,” Hestia said, and I braced myself for...something. Shouting, horror, disgust. I hadn’t just killed some of them, but I straight-up butchered them. I- “I’m going to run by Miach’s to get potions, you go ahead to the Guild, okay?” 

I...I didn’t want to let Hestia out of my sight. Not when there was even the slightest possibility that there were other Soma familia members that could stumble upon her. The chance was slim that they would in the time it would take for them to realize that we had killed their hunting party, but that slim chance was too much for me. But, she wasn’t wrong to want to split up, especially when time was of the essence.

Lili needed potions. Maybe...maybe bringing Lili battered and wounded into the Guild was a bad idea. First of all, she needed rest. Secondly, it was going to bring a lot of attention our way and, from what I could gather from Canoe, it sounded like we had some time before Zanis started to wonder if anything was wrong. 

The question was where could I bring Lili? Where would she be safe at?

“I’m taking Lili to the Hostess of Fertility. Everyone that works there is at least a level 3, and I know they’ll protect her,” I informed, desperately wishing that to be the truth. Hestia looked like she had a lot of questions about that, but nodded firmly. “They’ll have potions there. I...I don’t want to split up,” I admitted when Hestia looked like she was about to argue. 

“Okay, but if they don't, I'm running to Miach’s,” Hestia swore, her gaze drifting down to Lili. I nodded in acceptance, that way she wouldn’t be able to pick up the lie that I would let that happen. Even if I had to drop down to my hands and knees and beg, I would ask one of the ex-adventurers that worked at the Hostess get the potions while keeping Hestia underwatch. I picked her up with ease and felt her hands grip my shoulders for stability.

“Hold on,” I told her before I started running with both of them in my arms. I looked down at Lili-- it felt like I was carrying a child, and that thought just pissed me off more. At the Soma, his familia and every single one of them that had hurt her. However, I swallowed it down and threw a smile on my face even as I barreled through a group of hungover punks. “Did you hear that Lili?”

“Hmmm…?” So she was awake. That was good. That was really good. 

“I’m getting some armor made for you. It’s made of adamantine from the minotaur horn I had. I actually had this really elaborate plan of how I was going to get your measurements, but…” I trailed off, not sure what else to say.

“Hmmm…” Lili hummed to show that she was listening. Her chest rose and fell at a steady rate, but the silence from her was pure torture. I pushed myself that much faster, knocking over a couple holding hands as I sprinted towards the Hostess of Fertility. Having walked the main road so often, I knew the way there by heart and now that I wasn’t stopping for anything, it didn’t take me long to reach the Hostess, and, luckily, I saw Ryuu standing outside tidying up. 

She must have heard my steps as I ran towards her since she turned around. Her expression didn't change until her gaze landed on Lili, her dark red blood that drenched her cloak clear to all to see. 

"We need help," I told her bluntly, her gaze snapping up to me. "She tried to leave her familia, and they did this to her." I explained before she could ask. Ryuu's gaze narrowed while her lips pressed into a thin line as she nodded. 

"Come inside, we have a room that she can stay in," Ryuu decided, rushing inside as I followed after her -- from the look of it, the party had only ended a short while ago and everyone was busying themselves with cleaning up the aftermath. And there was a lot of aftermath to clean up, so all hands were on deck. Perfect. Lili and Hestia would be protected by several level 3s and 4s and one level 6. The Soma familia wouldn't be able to do a damn thing to them even if they knew they were here. "Mama Mia, we have an emergency." 

Mama Mia looked up, her gaze landing on Lili before they hardened. "Get here upstairs, and get her some potions," she barked at me, making the others glance in my direction. She didn't ask what had happened, or who did it. Mama Mia just decided to help. Bringing her here was the right choice. 

I rushed to obey her order, sprinting up the steps, slamming my feet down hard enough I spared a worry that they were going to snap underneath my weight. Ryuu lead me to the same room that we stayed in last time, tossing open the door and gesturing to the bed as she opened the drawer next to the bed, revealing potions of all kinds. 

I laid Lili down, Hestia dropping off me to cling to Lili’s bedside as Ryuu began to dump potion after potion onto Lili, and every third she made her drink. It was hardly the most efficient healthcare I had ever seen, but high potions were literatllly bulshit magic, so I don’t think it mattered too much. 

“What happened?” Mama Mia questioned, having followed us up the stairs. From my view, I saw that everyone else were peeking by the stairs, all curious. I told her what I knew, which wasn’t much, and slowly Mama Mia’s expression transformed into a grinmance. Though, I couldn’t tell if it was over what happened to Lili, or for the problem that I had brought to their doorstep. 

“I’m sorry for bringing her here, but I had no idea where else-” I started, just in case but Mama Mia cut me off with a dismissive gesture. 

“Don’t bother apologizing,” Mama Mia said with a frown, turning her attention to Lili, who already looked better after getting more than a few potions in her. Even still, I had to convince myself that she was simple sleeping when she laid on the bed motionless, likely because of just how much blood soaked into her coat. “Tell me what you’re going to do about it?”

I nodded, feeling no small amount of relief. If she had turned us away, then I had absolutely no idea what I would do. My only other option would be the Loki familia, but I was less than certain that they would be able to help. Being one of the most powerful familias granted them a lot of freedom, but it restricted them in just as many ways.

“I’m going to the Guild and see what can be done-”

“I’m not talking about that,” Mama Mia cut me off, glancing at me, or more pointedly, my shoes...ah. There was a bit of brain on my shoe. That was...really different than having monster brains on my shoes. “What are you going to do about this? Because I’ll tell you right now, the Guild won’t be able to protect you from any kind of retribution, and they’re not going to be able to make this go away if the Soma familia wants to push the issue.”

Her gaze was as sharp as a knife when she looked up at me, “So, what are you going to do about it? How far are you willing to take this?” She asked, and I didn’t even have to think about my answer. Lili...was my friend. Maybe at the start, it was all about me wanting to stick my dick inside her, but it wasn’t that anymore. She was my friend that got dealt a bad hand by life and kept getting bad cards from it.

“As far as it takes,” I answered, clenching my jaw. “If I have to challenge them to a War Games, then I will.” At that, Mama Mia rose an eyebrow and I couldn’t blame her for that. I’ve been an adventurer for only a couple of weeks while the Soma familia had two level 2s and a lot of members. Maybe hundreds. But that didn’t matter. 

The rage I had felt faded somewhat, but I meant every single word that I had said. This wasn’t over until I killed Soma and Zanis. 

“I know,” I continued, knowing exactly what she was going to say. “But I don’t care how stupid or impossible it is. I’m doing it anyway.”

Mama Mia chuckled at that, her severe frown tugged into a smile. “Hm. In that case, you can stay here,” she stated, casting a look at Hestia and Lili. I did the same and saw Hestia sag with relief. She turned to Mama Mia before bowing her head to the level 6 adventurer until she was nearly folded in half. 

“Thank you,” Hestia said, her voice thick with emotion as her hands curled into fists that shook at her side. I couldn’t even begin to guess what was going through her head but as much as I wanted to hold her and never let go, this simply wasn’t the time for it. We had to get ahead of the situation before we could take a moment to decompress. “I promise, I’m going to make it up to you.” 

“This place,” surprisingly, it was Ryuu who answered Hestia, “is for those that have no where else to go.” Her voice was quite, but her expression and voice were kind. 

“But…!” Hestia started, tears welling up in her eyes and I heard Mama Mia let out a soft sigh. 

“If you want to make it up to us, then I’ll put you to work. You did a good job last night despite how crazy it was,” Mama Mia said, offering a way for Hestia to salvage her pride. I was grateful for it, even if I didn’t like the idea of Hestia being out in the open. But, I guess with so many high level adventurers, she and Lili would be safe even if the Soma familia knew where they were. 

Hestia gave Mama Mia a watery smile as she bowed again, sniffling. 

I nodded, “thank you. I’ll be back as soon as I can,” I said, wanting to leave as soon as I could now that things were settled here. With any luck, Lili would be awake and able to give me more details and testify to the Guild. Mama Mia was probably right when she said going to the Guild wasn’t going to solve anything, but if we could be in the right in this situation, then that would help our case in the long run. 

“Jericho?” Hestia said, looking at me as she wiped a tear from her eye. “Please be careful.”

I offered her a half smile that I hoped conveyed a lot more confidence than I felt. 

“When am I not?”