Chương 13: Sword Skill: Starburst Stream

"Mm? It is hard to breathe. Something heavy is on me." Half-awake, Cael tried to push away the weight pressing down on him. Something was wrapped around his neck too, and something fluffy and slightly ticklish covered his nose. It was uncomfortable. But it smelled really good. What? Right. I think I already left the Dungeon. The last thing I saw was Hestia running toward me. Then she hugged me. After that, I think I said something without thinking. What did I say?

Since I made it out of the Dungeon and my goddess caught me, I should be... If that is true, then what is on me right now... Cael's eyes snapped open. An unfamiliar ceiling. No, a familiar ceiling. Or rather, not quite a ceiling. It was a roof built from neatly stacked stone. Green moss crept through the corners, and sunlight slipped through the gaps. This was the basement of the abandoned church. The first thing he saw was an adorable face that looked unfairly cute. Loose hair fell onto his face.

A pair of pale arms hugged his neck. And his own hand... Thump. Thump. Thump. His heartbeat pounded like a drum. Cael's face heated immediately. It was definitely red. He slowly withdrew the guilty hand and feared waking this absurdly cute goddess. If she woke up now, explaining would be impossible.

"Slowly. Slowly..." Cael held his breath and carefully removed Hestia's arms from his neck. He gently placed her beside him, then jumped down to the floor and patted his burning cheeks.

"I have no courage. Absolutely no courage." He should have hugged her, and then... Cough. No. He could not think about that. Fine, his imagination was shameless, but he did not have the courage to act on it. Cael looked at the sleeping goddess with distracting thoughts in his head, then took a deep breath and shook them away. Only then did he notice that his wounds had completely disappeared. Not even a mark remained. His clothes had also been changed into clothes from this world.

"My injuries are completely healed. Not even a trace is left. Did they use a healing potion?" Cael was surprised, but soon thought of Hestia's divine friend, the god of medicine who was poor himself but famously generous. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Miach. He had probably given Hestia a healing potion after seeing Cael's injuries. But these clothes... Did Lady Hestia change them for me? If that was true, then how much had she seen? Pfft. What am I thinking?

That is impossible. Someone else must have changed me. Cael left the basement. Morning sunlight was bright outside, and Orario's prosperity in the distance formed a sharp contrast with the slums. A new day. He took a deep breath and clenched his fist. So much strength. Every part of his body felt filled with explosive power. His Basic Abilities must have risen dramatically. Unfortunately, all his equipment had broken.

Then his mind returned to what he had comprehended before the Dungeon stopped spawning monsters....

"Eleven wolf-headed monsters." Cael, whose strength had already run dry, looked at the monsters surrounding him. His body had reached its limit. He could not raise his arms properly anymore. The reinforcement effect from Projection Magecraft had faded completely, and the two swords had returned to their original state. Is this the end? I do not want to die. I will not die. I finally reached this world. My dream is finally within reach. I have not fulfilled it yet. There are still so many worlds I have not visited.

His unwillingness to die like this, his fear of death, his desire to live, and the sorrow of having never even begun the ridiculous dream in his mind all transformed into anger.

"Ahhh!" Facing the pack of wolf-headed monsters, Cael rushed forward like he had lost his mind. Airflow? Wind? Something brushed across his face. His sword cut through the air, and the current split apart. At that moment, time seemed to slow. The wolf-headed monsters moved as if someone had pressed a slow-motion button. Did they slow down? No. I became faster. I can feel the wind. I can feel the motion of the air. He had kept swinging his swords, seeking only speed and sharpness.

If he was fast enough, he could strike before monsters reached him. If the blades were sharp enough, they could cut through. All his Magic poured into both swords. One strike flashed out. Violent airflow followed the sword. A wolf-headed monster was split in two, and its corpse was shredded apart by the fierce wind. One strike after another. Rampaging air currents accompanied his rapid swings. Wolf-headed monsters were torn apart one by one. The lingering wind from each strike also shredded the goblins nearby.

Crack. Crack. The two swords screamed under the strain. After the final strike landed, they shattered completely. Every monster around him vanished. The labyrinth stopped spawning new monsters.... Cael returned from the memory. He quickly closed his eyes and looked at the Infinite Skill Tree. The leaf for Clear Sword Mind had changed. It had transformed from a round leaf into a maple leaf, and one corner of the maple leaf now bore words. Sword Skill: Starburst Stream"As expected.

Comprehension is just a flash of inspiration crossing the mind." Cael folded his arms and burst into delighted laughter.

"Hahaha! I am not a blank slate anymore. And it is such a flashy sword skill. In Orario, this should rank pretty highly, right?" The only pity was that he no longer had a single sword. He had cut down so many monsters, but in the end, he had only brought back that one small backpack. He did not know how much money it would exchange for. It should be enough to buy a decent sword, right?

"Cael!" An anxious voice came from behind him. Cael quickly turned around. A blue ribbon rushed toward him, and a light body threw itself onto him, hanging from his neck as if he were a pole.

"Ah! Lady Hestia! Wh-what happened? You scared me!" Hestia's sudden arrival left Cael stammering. It had happened too quickly for him to react.

"I woke up and you were gone. I was so afraid you had run into the Dungeon again without telling me." Hestia hugged his head anxiously, her blue eyes locked onto his as her lips fired words like a barrage.

"You are my only child. If you die, I will be all alone again."

"Do you understand?"

"I understand. I understand. I will not abandon Lady Hestia and die on my own. That would be far too unfair to the contract I made with you." Cael's expression was solemn, though his heart wandered a little. Hestia suddenly realized how close they were. Her face flushed bright red, and she quickly jumped down from him.

"Cael, having a good child like you makes me so happy to be your goddess." Then she raised her fist, suddenly full of energy again.

"Then, for the future of Hestia Familia, let us update your Status."

"You survived that dangerous situation alone. You must have earned an amazing amount of Excelia."

"Heh, I think so too. The situation back then was dangerous. I had to go all out just to survive. That should count as a feat worthy of a god's praise, right?"

"Of course. I was very impressed."