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Not by taking part in a direct contest of strength.
A wave of indecision hit him.
The Minotaur lowered its head, aiming its signature weaponāits hornsāat Bell Cranel, before launching into a charge of its own.
Save the boy?
Bell Cranel let out a shout as he raised his sword into the air.
Or let himā
"He's won," Kusanagi Godou declared.
Even Aiz tore herself away from the battle for a split second to stare at the man in wonder.
Finn, who was used to fighting monsters bigger, faster, and stronger than Minotaurs, had up to this point watched the battle in almost slow-motion.
But now it seemed as if time itself had slowed to a pathetic crawl before him.
The Minotaur moved first. It tilted its head so that its horns were now inches away from Bell's chest.
Just before it could even scratch Bell's armor, a Landform sword struck it, blocking its path.
The Minotaur twisted its head even more, and the curved bone snapped the blade into two.
But that was all the opportunity Bell had needed.
An opening had been created, and he slid below the Minotaur on his knees, and stabbed his dagger straight into its gut, becoming so deeply entrenched in the belly of the monster that only the hilt, wrapped in his gauntleted hands, could be seen.
The Minotaur roared and brought a muscled arm up.
"Firebolt!"
The hand stayed up, but plumes of smoke and flecks of blood were spat out by the Minotaur.
"Firebolt!"
This time, it gurgled out a fountain of ichor, and Finn could see its piercing bovine eyes begin to boil.
But still, the hand stayed up. Fingers wrapped in leather hide and tipped with razor claws clenched into a furious fist.
It swung down.
"FIREBOLT!"
The Minotaur's hand disappeared, as did its head and the entirety of its upper torso, into a vortex of flame that erupted and spun violently into the air.
And then what little remained of it disintegrated into familiar, glittery dust.
Bell Cranel stood in the center of the sparkling rain, his armor charred black, arms hanging limply to his side.
His dagger dropped to the floor.
His body followed next, but was timely caught by a pair of arms.
Finn blinked. He hadn't even noticed Kusanagi Godou leaving his side.
"He's just passed out," Godou announced, laying the boy gently on the ground. "He'll live."
"Well, shit," Bete said hoarsely. "He actually did it."
"I can't believe it," Tione added.
Finn glanced at the unconscious boy. He'd seen the boy just a few weeks ago. For a newly-minted adventurer to take down a Minotaur after such a short period of timeā¦there was only one other person who might have been able to achieve that feat.
He turned his gaze to Aiz, who was now walking towards the prone Bell Cranel cautiously.
Loki walked up and stopped next to him, in the silent and wary manner that Finn recognized as her being serious.
"That boy," she said. "That's Hestia's child, isn't it?"
Finn nodded. "Bell Cranel."
"His back!" Bete said, suddenly marching up. "Show me his back. Riveria, you can read his Status, right? There's no way this brat's a Level One."
Finn saw doubt soften Loki's face. But it hardened back instantly.
"Bete, stop," she commanded. "It's rude to look at other people's Statuses without their permission."
The Werewolf stopped and stared at Loki incredulously. "Are you kidding me? Loki, do you even know what we just saw?"
"Yes," she said evenly. "We saw a boy go on his first adventure."
And then her eyes narrowed, and Finn wondered why Loki sounded so upset until she added, "and I was very impressed by it."
He bit back a gasp. It couldn't be. But he kept his thoughts to himself first.
Godou, getting up from where he'd been kneeling by Bell's side, asked, "what do we do now?"
"Aiz, Riveria," Loki said, in a stately tone that befitted the leader of the Familia, "bring Bell and his Supporter out of the
Dungeon and back to Hestia. The rest of us will push on. Meet us back on the 18th Floor."
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Want to read more?
The next 10+ chapters are already available on my Patreon!
By joining, you'll get:
š Early access to future chapters
š³ļø Polls to shape the story
š Exclusive content for Patrons
š„ Bonus scenes & content you won't find anywhere else
š Don't fall behindāothers are already ahead!
š patreon.com/FanfictionTakashi
(If link doesn't show, just search on Google: FanfictionTakashi Patreon)