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The sun was already setting when Elias, Dee, and Bell finally walked out of the giant Tower of Babel.
Bell stretched his tired arms.
He had a few small dirt smudges on his cheeks, but he was smiling broadly. He felt incredibly proud of himself.
They had spent the entire day strictly on the upper floors of the Dungeon.
Elias and Dee were incredibly powerful. If they wanted to, they could have easily run all the way down to the deepest, most dangerous levels of the endless maze.
But they did not want to rush. They stayed behind Bell the whole time.
They wanted to make sure Bell was completely safe so he could learn at his own pace.
"You did a really great job today, Captain Bell,"
Elias praised him, walking calmly by his side.
"Your footwork is getting much better. You did not trip even once during that last goblin fight."
"Thank you, Elias-san!"
Bell beamed, his red eyes shining with happiness.
"Having you and Dee-san watching my back made me feel so much braver. I didn't panic at all!"
They walked down the busy main street and entered the Adventurer's Guild.
They went straight to the exchange counter. The beautiful half-elf girl with glasses, Eina, gave them a polite, friendly smile.
"Welcome back, Bell-kun,"
Eina greeted him warmly.
"I see you brought your new Familia members with you into the Dungeon today. How did it go?"
"It went great, Eina-san!"
Bell nodded proudly. He placed his small leather bag on the wooden desk and opened it.
A small pile of glowing purple magic stones tumbled out.
It was a very normal, small amount for a beginner Level 1 adventurer. It was absolutely nothing compared to the massive mountain of stones Elias had dropped on the counter yesterday.
Eina quickly counted the small stones. She handed Bell a few silver coins.
Bell looked down at the few coins resting in his palm.
His bright smile slowly faded away.
He suddenly felt a little embarrassed and guilty.
"I am sorry,"
Bell muttered, his shoulders dropping slightly.
"You two are so incredibly strong. If you went into the Dungeon without me today, you would have made a hundred times more money. I am just holding you back."
Before Bell could get too sad, Dee suddenly snatched the silver coins right out of his hand.
She held the coins up to the glowing lamps of the Guild. Her dark eyes sparkled with pure, absolute joy.
"Are you kidding?!"
Dee cheered loudly, spinning around in a happy circle.
"This is the best money ever!"
Bell blinked, looking completely confused.
"It is?"
Bell asked.
"Of course it is!"
Dee smiled sweetly. She stepped closer and gently patted Bell's white hair.
"Yesterday, Eli just punched some monsters really hard so we could buy dinner. That was easy. But today is completely different. This is the very first reward we earned together, as a real team!"
Elias crossed his arms and nodded in complete agreement.
"She is right, Bell,"
Elias said in a warm, deep voice.
"Money is just metal. Anyone can punch a monster and get a rock. But the memory of fighting side-by-side with our little brother is worth way more to us than a giant pile of gold."
Bell's red eyes grew wide. A warm, happy feeling completely filled his chest.
All of his guilt and worry washed away instantly.
He wiped a small, happy tear from his eye and gave them both a massive smile.
"You are right!"
Bell agreed happily.
"We earned this together! Let's go buy some warm potato snacks on the way home to celebrate!"
"Yay! Snacks!"
Dee cheered, happily grabbing Elias's hand and pulling him toward the door.
Elias just laughed softly, letting his girlfriend pull him along.
They did not have much money in their pockets today, but to Elias and Dee, it was the best date they had ever been on.
The smell of hot, salty fried potatoes filled the cool evening air.
Bell happily bit into his snack. Dee was holding two potato sticks at once, chewing with a massive smile on her pale face.
Elias just carried the paper bag, enjoying the peaceful walk down the stone street.
Suddenly, Elias stopped walking.
Standing perfectly still under the light of a street lamp was a beautiful girl with long golden hair and bright golden eyes.
She was wearing light armor and carrying a silver sword at her hip.
It was Aiz Wallenstein, the Sword Princess.
Bell almost choked on his potato. His face turned bright red.
"A-Aiz Wallenstein?"
Bell whispered, his voice squeaking with pure shock.
Aiz did not look at Bell.
Her golden eyes were locked entirely on Elias.
She slowly stepped forward, her face completely serious and quiet.
Elias calmly handed the paper bag of snacks to Dee and stepped in front of his family.
"Hello,"
Elias said.
"Can I help you?"
Aiz stopped a few feet away. She gave them a small, very polite bow.
"I came to apologize,"
Aiz said in her quiet, smooth voice.
"Yesterday, at the restaurant... My Familia was very rude to your white-haired friend. It was wrong. I am sorry."
Bell's jaw dropped. The strongest, most famous girl in the city was actually bowing to him.
Elias smiled softly. He could tell she was being completely honest.
"Thank you,"
Elias answered.
"I appreciate your apology. But you didn't wait for us in the cold just to say sorry, did you?"
Aiz looked up. Her golden eyes were full of deep, burning curiosity.
"No,"
Aiz admitted honestly.
"I came to ask you a question."
"Go ahead,"
Elias nodded.
Aiz gripped the handle of her sword tightly, though she did not draw it.
She was remembering the terrifying, freezing cold she felt the night before.
"I have trained my entire life to be strong,"
Aiz explained softly.
"I swing my sword a thousand times a day. But yesterday, you didn't use a weapon. You didn't use a magic spell. You just looked at us, and my soul felt like it was going to die. How did you do that?"
Elias looked at the golden-haired girl.
He saw a lot of pain and desperation hiding behind her quiet face.
She was someone who only knew how to fight.
"You are looking for a secret,"
Elias said calmly.
"But there is no secret spell. It is just about the weight of existence."
Aiz tilted her head, looking confused.
"The weight of existence?"
"Yes,"
Elias told her.
"You swing your sword because you want to destroy your enemies. That makes you a very sharp blade. But a blade can easily be broken."
Elias reached out and rested his hand on Bell's shoulder.
"I do not fight to destroy,"
Elias continued.
"I fight to protect. When you completely attach your life to the people you love, your soul becomes heavier. Your presence becomes stronger. The terrifying feeling you felt yesterday was not magic. It was just the natural rule of my world: if you threaten my family, you have chosen to die."
Aiz stood completely still. Her mind was racing.
For her whole life, she thought getting stronger meant getting faster, learning new skills, and killing bigger monsters.
She never thought about the deep connection between love, the soul, and true strength.
Dee peeked out from behind Elias, happily chewing on her snack.
"Eli is actually a huge softie!"
Dee giggled sweetly.
"He is the nicest guy in the whole universe. But he is a very scary monster if you make him mad. You just have to be nice, and everything will be fine!"
Aiz blinked.
She looked at the happy, pale girl, then at the nervous white-haired boy, and finally back at Elias.
She slowly let go of her sword.
"I fight to destroy,"
Aiz repeated his words in a quiet whisper.
"I need to learn how to protect..."
Aiz gave Elias one more deep, respectful bow.
"Thank you for answering my question,"
Aiz said softly.
"You have given me a lot to think about. I hope we can meet again."
"Maybe, have a good night, Aiz,"
Elias smiled.
Aiz turned around and quietly walked away into the dark street.
Bell stared at her back until she disappeared.
He took a deep breath, totally amazed.
"Wow,"
Bell breathed out.
"Elias-san, you are so cool. You just gave advice to the Sword Princess!"
Elias just chuckled and took the paper bag back from Dee.
"She is just a kid trying to find her way,"
Elias smiled.
"Now, let's hurry home. Hestia is probably waiting for us."