Morning sunlight came through the cracked stained glass of the ruined church, casting colorful patterns across the dusty floor.
In the basement, Hestia let out a contented sigh on her lumpy old bed. Wrapped in a thin blanket, she was halfway between sleep and waking when she felt a sudden, heavy weight shift across her waist. It was thick, warm, and slithering slowly up her side.
A blush-filled smile spread across Hestia's face.
'Oh my,' she thought, her divine heart fluttering. 'Is it Bell? Is my adorable little rabbit finally making his move? So bold!'
She kept her eyes closed and let her ears be on alert, waiting for the boy's awkward morning greeting.
Instead, a raspy, gurgling voice spoke right next to her ear.
"Mom...my."
Hestia's eyes snapped open.
It wasn't her Bell.
Resting on her chest, staring at her with bulging eyes and a disgusting mouth that smelled like raw sewage, was a purple-fleshed worm. It blinked at her, regurgitating a small puddle of smelling saliva onto her favorite white dress.
For a full second, the Goddess of the Hearth simply stopped functioning.
Then, she screamed. It was a high-pitched, glass-shattering shriek of absolute terror.
"GET IT OFF ME! GET IT OFF ME!"
Hestia thrashed wildly, throwing her blanket into the air and scrambling backward. She hit the floor with a thud and immediately began violently kicking the creature with her bare feet.
"DIE! EVIL SLIME MONSTER! DIE!"
The commotion instantly woke Bell, who scrambled out of his bedroll on the other side of the room, wide-eyed and panicked.
"Goddess?! What's wrong?! Are we under attack?!"
He grabbed his knife, frantically scanning the room, but his eyes passed right over the spot Hestia was aggressively stomping on. To Bell's unawakened senses, Hestia was screaming at empty space.
"Kill it, Bell! It's hideous! It called me mommy! Kill it!!!" she shrieked, kicking the squishy entity again.
Before Bell could even process the absurdity of the situation, a heavy sigh echoed from the sofa.
Toji pushed himself up into a sitting position, scratching his messy hair and glaring at the goddess with lazy, annoyed eyes. "Stop kicking my bag, shortstack."
Hestia froze, her foot hovering in mid-air. She slowly turned her head toward her delinquent child. "Your...your what?"
"My pet," Toji grunted, standing up. He casually walked over, ignoring the confused Bell entirely, and picked the Inventory Curse up by its neck. The creature purred, wrapping itself happily around Toji's torso.
Hestia looked like she was going to vomit. As a deity, her divine eyes allowed her to perceive things normal mortals couldn't, and while she didn't know what a cursed spirit was, she still felt a profound wrongness emitting from the creature.
"Where...where did you even get that thing?!" she demanded, pointing a trembling finger at the worm. "You didn't have it yesterday!"
"I've had it since the day I joined," Toji replied flatly, yawning.
Hestia's eyes widened in horror. "Then where the hell have you been hiding it?!"
Toji stared at her blankly. Then, with absolute casualness, he pointed a thumb at his own abdomen. "My stomach."
Hestia's face drained of all color. She clamped both hands over her mouth, her divine composure suddenly feeling very, very mortal as her stomach churned. She turned and sprinted toward the church's broken bathroom, gagging loudly.
Bell stood perfectly still, his knife lowered, looking completely lost.
"Toji-san...what are you two talking about? Did a rat get in?"
Toji didn't even bother explaining. He just patted the invisible worm on its head.
"Don't worry about it, kid."
Bell decided to take that advice.
༻❁༺
Later that morning, Bell was strapping on his light armor and checking the edges of the combat knife Toji had given him. It had been over a week since his first dive, and despite the brutal beatdowns in the courtyard, Toji hadn't accompanied him into the Dungeon even once.
Bell didn't want to sound pathetic, but navigating down those dark tunnels alone had a terrifying feel to it. He would have liked the company of a familiar face, even one as intimidating as Toji.
'But at least he trains me every day,' Bell thought cheerfully, trying to find a positive note about this arrangement. 'He's a good person deep down!'
As Bell headed for the door, Toji spoke up from the couch, not even bothering to look at him as he read the newspaper.
"By the way, kid."
Bell stopped, turning around with a bright, hopeful smile. "Yes, Toji-san? Are you coming with me today?"
"Fuck no," Toji said, flipping a page. "Just letting you know the free trial is over. If you want me to keep kicking your ass, it's fifty thousand Valis per session. Payable upfront."
Bell's bright smile shattered. He stood there, completely flabbergasted, his brain struggling to process the words. "F-Fifty...fifty thousand?!"
Toji didn't glance back. "Don't be late on payments."
༻❁༺
The entertainment district of Orario was as bright as ever, even at this early hour, an obnoxiously loud place filled with lust and greed. It was Toji Fushiguro's current favorite place in the world.
Right now, however, he was profoundly irritated.
"Rigged," Toji muttered to himself, swirling the ice in his whiskey glass. "The dealer bottom-dealt on that last hand. Absolute bullshit."
To the high-end casino owners, Toji was their absolute favorite loser. Every time he emptied his bank account, he miraculously returned a few days later with a sack of Valis heavy enough to break a table, ready to lose it all over again.
He glanced down at the single stack of chips sitting in front of him. Two hundred thousand Valis. That's all he had left.
Sitting alone at a high-stakes table, Toji leaned back and stared at the ornate ceiling.
'Maybe I should cash out,' he thought idly. 'Take the two hundred grand, hire some guys to fix the roof of the church so the shortstack stops whining every time it rains...'
He stared at the chips.
'Nah.'
He reached forward to push the stack forward when someone suddenly sat down in the chair directly across from him.
Toji looked up, his eyes narrowing in mild annoyance, which quickly morphed into surprise.
The man sitting across from him was wearing a sharp, tailored suit. He had slicked-back hair, a thin mustache, and a calculating smile.
It was Kong. His old broker from Tokyo. Same look, same age.
Toji blinked once. It was a massive, statistically impossible coincidence. For a brief second, the sheer cosmic absurdity of it made him pause.
Then, Toji simply ignored it and took a sip of his drink. He didn't care.
"Name's Shiu Kong," the man said smoothly, shuffling a deck of cards with practiced flow. "Care for a hand?"
"Toji Fushiguro," he replied with mild interest. "Have we met before?"
Kong chuckled. "I don't think we have."
He sounded sincere and Toji couldn't be fooled easily, so he must not be his world's Kong.
"Throw me."
Kong obliged.
They both played in relative silence for a few minutes. Kong was good, slipping cards with the kind of slickness that would fool even a high-level adventurer. Toji saw every movement, but he didn't call him out. He was just waiting for the pitch.
"I have seen you around these gambling dens and casinos quite a lot, Fushiguro," Kong said smoothly, laying down a pair. "And I have heard from good friends that you blow through a fortune in only a few games, and then always come back with full bags the next day. Makes a man wonder. You're either an undercover prince or an incredibly strong adventurer with a very...specific set of priorities."
Toji hummed, tossing a useless card onto the table. "You're looking for muscle, huh." It wasn't a question.
The blunt, immediate read took Kong by surprise. The broker's slick smile faltered for a fraction of a second before returning.
"Straight to the point. I like that," Kong admitted, leaning forward slightly. "You look like the kind of guy who'd be interested in high-paying jobs to support...well, all this spending. The Guild pays well for magic stones, but the real money is in private contracts. Acquisitions. Removals. Influences."
Toji kept his face perfectly impassive, but he was listening.
"Tsk." He clicked his tongue as Kong laid down his final cards. A winning hand. He casually swept Toji's remaining chips toward his side of the table.
"Consider this a test," Kong said, his voice dropping low as he slid a folded piece of paper toward him. "If you are actually serious about this line of work, and you have the strength to back up your spending habits, come see me at Daedalus Fairy Night."
Kong stood up, adjusted his cuffs, and walked away into the bustling crowd without turning back.
Left alone at the table, Toji picked up the paper, flipping it open with his thumb.
༻❁༺
Target: The Monster Rex, 'Goliath'. 17th Floor.
Goal: The boss spawn rate is due soon. Kill it before a party does.
Reward: Let's talk business.
༻❁༺
The crystal-lit cavern of the 18th Floor, the Under Resort, was anything but quiet. The usually calm safe haven was currently dominated by the exhausted, battered Loki Familia expedition force.
Having been forced to retreat before reaching the 59th floor after an unexpected, grueling battle with a new monster species, the top tier adventurers were taking a much needed rest.
Near the center of their camp, the first tier executives were scattered. Tione and Tiona were nursing mild burns, Bete was aggressively chewing on a ration bar while complaining about the taste, and Lefiya was slumped against a tree.
Finn Deimne, the Pallum captain, stood over a mapped out parchment in the command tent, his thumb resting thoughtfully against his chin. "We'll rest here for a few more hours before making the final push to the surface," Finn announced to his two companions, Riveria and Gareth.
"However, the 17th floor boss, Goliath, should be due for a respawn shortly. I want to leave it for Raul and the second tier members. Taking down a Monster Rex will provide them with an excellent boost in excelia. It's a low risk opportunity we shouldn't waste."
Riveria nodded in agreement from her seated position. "A logical plan. But we have no scouts left to verify if it has spawned yet."
"Send in one of the brats, they seem full of energy," Gareth suggested, stroking his beard.
Finn scanned the camp from his tent, his eyes landing on the closest executive.
"Ais should do," he said.
༻❁༺
"You still have plenty of stamina for a quick run. Head up the stairs, verify if Goliath has respawned, and report back. Don't engage."
Ais heard the captain's words echo over her thoughts. The Sword Princess quietly made her way toward the path leading to the 17th floor.
It wasn't a long journey. The way to the 17th floor was merely steps past the tunnel leading down to the 18th. But just as Ais reached the entrance, the entire cavern shook violently.
Ais widened her stance, maintaining her balance as dust fell from the rocky ceiling. 'An earthquake? No...Goliath has respawned. And someone is already fighting it.'
She frowned slightly. If another Familia or party was already engaging the boss, it would ruin Finn's plan for the second tier members. She quickened her pace, stepping out into the massive, open crystal chamber of the 17th floor to see who had beaten them to the punch.
What she saw made her golden eyes widen.
"Roaaggh!"
Goliath, the towering, seven-meter-tall giant boasting skin as hard as metal, was bleeding and howling in pain.
But there was no vanguard taking the assault, no rear guard chanting magic, no supporters running potions. There was just a blur.
A man in a tight black shirt was toying with the Monster Rex with overwhelming violence.
Ais watched, completely engrossed and slightly curious. The man was wielding a bizarre, three sectioned staff painted a deep crimson red. He swung the weapon with a monstrous physical strength that defied logic.
The heavy red staff cracked Goliath's massive knee easily. The sound of shattering bone echoed like a blast through the cavern. Goliath let out a deafening roar of agony, its massive trunk of a leg buckling inward.
The man didn't stop. Using the momentum of his own swing, he launched himself into the air, bouncing off the cavern wall like a bullet. To Ais's highly trained eyes, his speed was incredibly impressive, almost equal to her base speed without Ariel.
However, when Ais used her wind magic Ariel, to achieve high speeds, the air violently displaced around her. But this man? He moved like a ghost. There was almost no wind resistance, nor any magical aura to sense.
"Ghaarrr!"
Goliath swung a massive, desperate fist downward.
The man simply sidestepped, the giant fist cracking the bedrock inches from his boots. With a fluid motion, the man sprinted up Goliath's arm faster than the monster could react. Then, with a brutal twist, he swung the three section staff upward.
The red weapon connected with Goliath's jaw. The impact was so severe that the Monster Rex's massive head snapped back, its jaw completely unhinging in a spray of blood and broken teeth.
Ais's eyes narrowed as the man landed. Wrapped around his waist and neck was a disgusting looking, purple worm monster.
"A tamer?" she mused in curiosity.
Toji clicked his tongue, annoyance flashing across his face. He could feel the blonde girl watching him from the tunnel entrance. He wasn't running a circus and he didn't care for an audience.
"Ghaarr..."
Goliath moaned in pathetic agony, its massive body trembling as it tried to rise.
"Stay down, meatbag," Toji grunted.
He gripped the two outer sections of Playful Cloud, pulling them up, and delivered a devastating, two sided slam directly onto Goliath's skull.
The cavern shook again from the attack. The Monster Rex's skull caved in with a sickening crunch. Its eyes rolled back, and the massive giant collapsed to the floor, its heavily damaged body immediately beginning to dissolve into ash.
Toji didn't even watch it die. He let Playful Cloud slip from his hands into his Inventory Curse, which happily swallowed the special-grade tool.
He turned his head, locking eyes with the Sword Princess standing near the 18th floor entrance. His eyes narrowed. He didn't say a word, but his intent projected a crystal clear message:
"Leave."
Ais didn't know why, but her body turned. She took a step back. This wasn't her fight. The man had gotten here first, soloed the floor boss in less than ten minutes, and claimed his prize.
She needed to report back to the captain, and maybe ask if he knew of this Adventurer. Not many in Orario were able to solo Goliath, considering it was a Level 4 monster.
Finn wouldn't appreciate losing the excelia, but there was nothing they could do about it. "Finders keepers" was the Dungeon's ultimate rule.
Once she was out of sight, Toji turned back to the massive pile of meat that was dissolving. Left behind in the ash was a large Magic Stone and many of the Goliath teeth, its drop items.
"Big meatbag with no tricks," Toji scoffed, kicking the ash off his boots. "At least you were stronger than the fodder upstairs."
He picked up the drops, casually feeding them to his worm.
"I'm cashing out," Toji said with a yawn. This contract was easy.
༻❁༺
Just as Toji left for the surface, the Loki Familia finally broke camp and began their ascent.
When Ais reported what had happened on the 17th floor, Finn simply nodded.
"A shame we couldn't use the opportunity for excelia farming, but it's alright. I want you and the others to start clearing the way for us to reach the surface," were his exact words.
Now, as they marched up the stairs to the Middle Floors, Tiona crossed her arms, pouting aggressively. "Man, what a load of crap! Whoever that guy was, Ais, he totally robbed our juniors of some cool action!"
Bete scoffed, kicking a loose rock down the tunnel.
"Tch. Don't make it sound like a big deal flat board. Goliath is a weakling. Any of us could solo that overgrown rock in our sleep."
Lefiya clutched her staff, looking slightly unsettled. She was deeply insecure about her worth and her strength, and hearing this story about a single man defeating Goliath so easily...was quite the bummer on her mood.
Ais remained silent, her thoughts on other matters.
"Focus, all of you," Riveria commanded from the center of the formation. "We are still in the Dungeon. Do not let your guard down just because we are heading home."
As they breached the 15th floor, a massive, uncoordinated ambush of Minotaurs caught their vanguard off guard. While the executives easily dispatched the beasts in front of them, a handful of the terrified Minotaurs slipped past their flanks, fleeing in absolute panic up the tunnels toward the Upper Floors.
"They're heading up!" Riveria shouted. "Bete! Ais! Tione! Tiona! Hunt them down before they reach the rookie floors!"
Due to their misstep, the rabid Minotaurs scattered, terrorizing the upper levels.
On the 5th floor, Bell Cranel was having a very bad day.
He had heard the thundering footsteps before he saw it. A massive, bloodthirsty Minotaur had dropped down from a connecting tunnel and immediately locked its bloodshot eyes onto him.
First, sheer disbelief washed over the boy. 'A Minotaur?! On the 5th floor?!'
He screamed briefly for help, turning on his heel and sprinting as fast as his Level 1 legs could carry him. But he took a wrong turn, finding himself boxed into a dead end.
The Minotaur roared, raising its massive fist to crush the boy into paste.
Bell cowered, throwing his arms up. But as the shadow of the beast fell over him, a bored voice echoed in his memory.
"You broadcast your swings by tensing your shoulders and screaming like an idiot. If I was a Minotaur, you'd be paste."
Bell's eyes snapped open.
In a split second decision fueled by a little over two weeks of brutal, inescapable beatdowns in the church courtyard, Bell didn't freeze. He dropped his center of gravity, fixing the garbage footing Toji constantly kicked him for, and rolled forward, right between the Minotaur's thick legs, his slim body giving him the advantage to succeed.
The beast's fist smashed into the wall where Bell had just been, raining debris down on them.
Bell sprang up behind it. He gripped the combat knife Toji had tossed him and slashed wildly at the back of the Minotaur's knee. 'Aim for the joints!'
The blade was sharp enough to bite into the thick hide, drawing a spray of crimson blood. The Minotaur bellowed in pain and spun around, backhanding Bell with terrifying force.
Bell flew across the cavern, slamming into the rocky wall. He coughed up blood, his vision blurring. For any other rookie, that hit would have shattered their ribs and ended the fight. But Toji had kicked Bell into stone pillars harder than that.
Bell forced himself to his feet, gripping the knife tighter. He dodged another wild swing, managing to score a thin cut across the beast's forearm, but he was losing stamina fast.
The Minotaur charged. Bell tried to sidestep, but the beast's horn clipped his shoulder, sending him spinning to the ground. The combat knife flew from his grip, clattering across the stone floor.
The Minotaur loomed over him, raising its hooves to stomp his skull in.
Bell trembled, closing his eyes. 'I'm sorry, Goddess...Toji-san...'
CLING!
A flash of silver light illuminated the cavern. A violent gust of wind tore through the chamber, carrying salvation for the rookie.
Bell opened his eyes. The Minotaur was frozen above him. A second later, the beast's upper torso slid smoothly off its lower half, a fountain of blood erupting into the air and showering down on Bell, painting him red like a potato.
Standing behind the falling corpse, bathed in the shimmering light, was Ais Wallenstein. Her golden hair flowed in the magical wind, her silver armor gleaming, her rapier dripping with monster blood.
To Bell, sitting on the floor covered in gore, she looked like an actual angel descending from the heavens. His heart, previously pounding with terror, suddenly skipped a beat for an entirely different reason.
Ais slowly turned her head to check on the rookie she had just saved.
Bell's face flushed burning red under the blood. The sheer embarrassment of being saved while looking like a trembling, pathetically weak mess in front of this flawless, beautiful savior broke his mind.
Before Ais could ask if he was okay, Bell scrambled to his feet. Letting out a high pitched yell, he turned and bolted out of the cavern, running faster than he ever had in his life, leaving his dropped weapon behind.
Ais stood in silence, her hand slightly outstretched. She lowered it, a subtle sting of hurt flashing in her chest.
"Did I scare him? she wondered. "Was I too late? Is he mad at me?"
"Bwahaha! Look at that tomato run!" Bete's loud, obnoxious laughter echoed into the cavern as the werewolf jogged in. "Pathetic trash! Couldn't even fight back! He probably wet his pants!"
Ais didn't laugh. She didn't even acknowledge Bete.
She walked forward, her eyes catching the glint of metal on the rocky floor. She bent down, picking up the combat knife the boy had dropped.
Ais analyzed the blade. The edge was sharp, the balance was good, and the metal was not common trash, it could stand a fight against a Minotaur if one was careful.
And to her surprise, there was fresh Minotaur blood coating the edge.
'He wasn't crying for help,' Ais thought, recalling the cut on the back of the Minotaur's knee.
She wiped the blade clean and quietly sheathed it at her side, deciding to keep it until she crossed paths with the boy again to return it.
Hopefully, it would be soon...
༻❁༺
The Daedalus Street slums were a labyrinth of all kinds. Deep within its twisting alleyways sat the Fairy Night Club, a high-end, heavily guarded speakeasy where the Orario underworld came to drink, deal, and disappear without a trace.
Inside, the air was thick with expensive cigar smoke and the heavy scent of perfume. Dim magical lamps cast long shadows over poles occupied by female performers of all races.
In a private, velvet lined booth in the back, Kong sat while drinking a glass of elven wine. He was tapping his fingers on the table to the beat of the faint tavern music.
Suddenly, the heavy curtain to the booth was pushed aside. Kong looked up, a slick smile already forming on his lips as Toji Fushiguro sat down in the seat across from him.
"Ah, Toji," Kong greeted smoothly, leaning back and resting his arms on the back of the plush couch. "Glad you could find the place without getting lost in the alleys. I'll admit, seeing you walk through that curtain was not a surprise for me."
Toji said nothing. He just crossed his arms, staring at the broker with bored eyes.
Kong chuckled, waving a hand dismissively. "Look, I'll be straight with you. That contract I slid you at the casino? It was a test of character, not a literal expectation. I was half-joking. Sending a guy with no history to solo Goliath is basically a death sentence. I just wanted to see if you had the guts to accept the card without flinching, or if you'd come crawling back here asking for something easier."
He chuckled again, perhaps thinking he was right.
"Need another work? I have a debt collection job down in the Pleasure Quarter that might actually be—"
THUD
Kong's words died in his throat.
Toji hadn't said a word. He had simply reached into his shirt, let his invisible curse regurgitate its contents, and tossed two items onto the polished oak table.
The first was a tooth, big and sharp enough to be turned into a high quality dagger: it was a prized drop item from Goliath itself.
The second item was a neatly folded piece of parchment. It bore the official wax seal of the Adventurer's Guild.
Kong stared at the table. He slowly leaned forward, his slick demeanor cracking. He reached out with a trembling hand, picking up the heavy tooth. He put it down and picked up the parchment, his eyes scanning the ink.
It was a Guild receipt. An official appraisal and exchange slip for a fully intact 17th floor Monster Rex core. Converted into Valis. Issued less than an hour ago.
Kong read it once. Then he read it again. He slowly looked up from the paper, staring at the man sitting across from him.
"You...you actually did it." Kong's voice was a breathless whisper, completely devoid of its usual silver tongued confidence.
Toji yawned, scratching the side of his neck. "Boss was weak. It was easy."
Kong sat frozen for another three seconds. Then, a disbelieving chuckle bubbled up from his chest. The chuckle turned into a laugh, and the laugh erupted into maniacal cackling.
"Haha...HAHAHA! You absolute monster!" Kong slammed a hand onto the table, his eyes shining with pure greed and excitement. "I thought I was hiring a competent thug, but I just stumbled onto a monster!"
Kong grabbed an untouched crystal bottle of high-end liquor from an ice bucket beside the table. He popped the cork with his thumb and quickly poured two generous glasses, sliding one across to Toji.
"You are a surprising fellow, Toji Fushiguro," Kong said, raising his glass, his predatory smile returning sharper and wider than ever before. "With your strength and my connections, we are going to bleed this city dry."
Toji stared at the glass for a moment before picking it up. "Just make sure the checks clear,"
They clinked their glasses. Kong drank to the birth of an underworld empire. Toji drank because it was free booze.
༻❁༺
It was well past sunset when Toji finally kicked open the wooden doors of the ruined church.
The moment his heavy boots hit the basement floor, a tiny, furious hurricane in a white dress intercepted him.
"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!" Hestia shrieked, her voice further inducing Toji's annoyance. She pointed an accusing finger directly at his chest, her face red with fury. "Do you have any idea what happened today?! Bell almost died!"
Toji stopped, looking down at the fuming Goddess with mild irritation. "He's breathing, isn't he?"
"No thanks to you!" Hestia yelled, practically jumping up and down. "A Minotaur attacked him! On the fifth floor! If that blondie hadn't shown up and saved him, my adorable little Bell would be paste right now! And where was his senior Familia member?! His 'Captain'?! Out gambling again like a stray dog!"
"Not this time," Toji corrected lazily, brushing past her toward the couch. "I was working. I made money."
"I don't care!" Hestia huffed, crossing her arms. "Look at him! The poor boy is traumatized!"
Toji glanced over at the corner of the room.
Bell Cranel was lying flat on his back on his worn bedroll. He looked completely unharmed, though his armor was dented and stained with dried blood. But he wasn't trembling in fear, nor was he crying from the trauma of his supposed near death experience.
Bell was staring blankly at the basement ceiling, his face burning with a massive, goofy blush. His eyes were glued over a deeply profound, starstruck daze. He was entirely lost in the memory of golden hair, silver armor, and wind.
Toji stared at the spaced out kid for a few seconds.
'Traumatized, right,' Toji thought flatly.
His sharp eyes scanned the boy's gear and noticed that the sheath strapped to his leg was empty.
Toji walked over, standing directly over the lovesick teenager. His shadow fell across Bell's face, snapping the boy out of his romantic fantasy.
Bell blinked, looking up at the towering man.
"A-Ah! Toji-san! Welcome back. I...I had a really crazy day—"
"Where's the knife?" Toji interrupted.
Bell froze. He looked down at his empty sheath. The memory of the Minotaur charging, the knife slipping from his grasp, and his panicked, humiliating sprint away from Ais rushed back into his mind.
"I...I dropped it," Bell whispered, sweating nervously. "When the Minotaur hit me, it fell, and I...I ran away before I could pick it up."
Toji didn't look angry, which was a mixed sign in Bell's books regarding his senior.
"You're paying for that, brat." Toji stated flatly, turning around and walking toward his sofa. He collapsed onto the cushions, tossing his arm over his eyes to block out the lantern light.
...
"Eh?" Bell was taken aback by that reply.
༻❁༺
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