"Goddess-sama, there's no need to worry about that right now. I don't think we're at that point yet. Leveling up is important, sure—but I don't want to take the path where everyone notices. I'd rather level up quietly, out of sight. Even if I do level up, I think it's best to rely on my own strength."
Bell had made that decision from the start. If he ever needed to hide his level, it wouldn't be to exaggerate it—he would underreport it.
There was also the matter of favors.
Favors were one of the hardest debts to repay. If Goddess-sama owed Loki a favor, the entire Familia would risk falling under the influence of Loki Familia. And to owe that kind of debt just to advance from Lv.1 to Lv.2? Bell didn't think it was worth it. It would also jeopardize his desire to stay hidden, which made it even more unacceptable.
"But Bell-kun, it's dangerous to take on stronger monsters by yourself. If we had someone from Loki Familia watching over you, it would at least be safer."
"Maybe so, but everything that shouldn't be revealed would be exposed. And next time, Goddess-sama would have to repay that favor. Otherwise, she wouldn't be able to face Loki-sama with her head held high."
"Ugh..."
Hestia could already picture it—herself bowing to Loki. Just imagining it made her shudder. Honestly, she didn't want to ask that annoying flat-chested pest for anything. She was the great Hestia, and yet she'd have to lower her head to her? Unthinkable. She was only willing to do it for Bell's safety. Otherwise, bowing to that flat-chested nuisance? Hah!
Still, Bell had a point. Asking Loki for help would mean exposing everything about his situation. Considering what was at stake, it was better to avoid that. At least until Bell had fully grown, he shouldn't be standing in front of too many gods.
Seeing that Hestia had calmed down, Bell continued from where he left off.
"Goddess-sama, I'm still in the middle of building myself up. Thinking about breaking past my limits now is just too soon. Besides, there's something else I noticed in the Dungeon today—something about the monsters, aside from their intelligence."
"Something else?"
"Yes. Actually, for some reason, my luck was unusually good today. Most of the monsters on the first floor were Goblins, and I was only there to get a feel for the Dungeon's atmosphere. But as I was defeating them, I realized something: they weren't just dropping Magic Stones—they were also dropping Goblin Daggers."
Hestia immediately understood what Bell was getting at. She had just seen it during the status update: his second skill, "Heaven's Luck," a skill that boosts luck. So it wasn't all that surprising. Since the skill had manifested, a few Goblins dropping weapons was within expectations.
Hestia was also familiar with Goblin Daggers. Having stayed with Hephaestus before, she had a decent sense for weapons. Goblins on the first floor wielded sharp daggers, posing a real threat to Adventurers. If one dropped, it was considered a solid early-game weapon.
"Goblin Daggers are rare drops, if I remember right. But if one does drop, you wouldn't need to switch weapons for a while. For a beginner Adventurer, they're incredibly useful—you could use one all the way until the Middle Floors."
Bell of course knew this was a great development. For early Adventurers, weapons and potions were the biggest expenses, and necessary for progress. But he wasn't talking about just a few. Goddess-sama clearly hadn't grasped the scale yet, so he emphasized it.
"Goddess-sama, there's something you should know. When I said Goblin Daggers dropped, I didn't mean just a couple."
Hestia paused slightly. 'Wait... does he mean there were a lot of Goblin Daggers?' She couldn't help but wonder. Weren't Goblin Daggers supposed to be extremely rare? But seeing Bell's serious expression and the way he emphasized it, Hestia began to grow curious.
"Bell-kun, how many did you say dropped?"
"Two hundred eighty-four."
"..."
Hestia fell silent. She instinctively covered her face, wondering if she'd misheard. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to let the number slide and asked again just to be sure.
"Bell-kun, what was that number again?"
"Two hundred eighty-four."
"Goblin daggers?"
Bell gave a slight nod.
After confirming she hadn't misheard, Hestia couldn't hold back her reaction. "Ah!" she cried out, completely stunned. It was a number that would shock anyone—her outburst was only natural. But as the surprise settled, she slowly pulled herself back together.
"That many? And they were all Goblin daggers? Bell-kun, what exactly did you do in the Dungeon today?"
The number 284 was outrageous. Hestia couldn't help but wonder what on earth Bell had done down there to get so many Goblin daggers to drop.
Truth be told, Bell hadn't understood it himself, even as he left the Dungeon. He hadn't gone in with any special plan—just to get a feel for the atmosphere, prepare for deeper floors like the second or third. He only fought Goblins because they happened to be in his way, and he figured it would be good training.
As for the sheer number of drops... Bell couldn't really explain it either. He tried to kill as many Goblins as he could while conserving stamina. Part of it was testing the limits of "Personal Training"; the other part was trying to save up enough to pull in the gacha. Somehow, he ended up slaying so many Goblins in a single day, and they just kept dropping Goblin daggers.
So when Hestia asked what he'd done, Bell could only give an innocent reply.
"Goddess-sama, I really didn't do anything special. I just wanted to kill a few Goblins to get used to the Dungeon, maybe collect some Magic Stones to make a little money. Before I realized it, I'd killed a whole lot of them... and they dropped a bunch of Goblin daggers."
Hestia rested her chin in her hand. She might still be a relatively new goddess in Orario, but she knew plenty about the Dungeon. Two hundred eighty-four Goblin daggers meant at least that many Goblins—and that was no small number. But how could there have been that many Goblins just on the first floor?
The number of drops was one thing. The number of Goblins was another.
Still, Hestia soon pushed those questions aside. No matter what, Bell had made it back safely. Even if he'd faced an unusual number of Goblins, in the end, he was fine.
"Let's not dwell on it, Bell-kun. More drops are always a good thing, after all."