Promise me

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"Mellios Silver…"

"We've finally met." Fels said slowly

'Silver wasn't surprised by this. He already expected this person to know him.'

'But he had to keep some level of an act, else they would suspect some things...'

"You know me?" He asked

"How can I not, ever since the attack against the Loki Familia, your presence has been seen in many minor and bigger events across Orario…"

"As time passes, your influence keeps spreading as the record holder for the fastest Level up. Many are expectant in regards to how long you'll take to Level up once more."

"Your strength is also very impressive, being Level 2, you fended off and defeated the Green Dragon, I was very surprised when I heard about it."

'Silver scratched the back of his head and said:'

"I merely won because I won the battle of attrition, and in the end, I sacrificed a portion of myself to deal the killing blow... That's not optimal."

"Yet you defeated it, few could repeat what you did, regardless of their accomplishments."

"Speaking of which, you're also probably the one behind the recent unrest on the 24th floor right?"

"..."

'Silver looked at the cloaked figure with a calm expression, it seemed that his past recent actions weren't glossed over and that his indiscriminate fighting has attracted some level of attention...'

'But with that in mind, he really wanted to know how much Fels and the Guild respectively knew about him.'

"What do you mean?" He asked, keeping on the act

"There is no need to act defensively, I am not your enemy, nor I'm I here to punish you."

"For the last 2 or so weeks, every day there would be a period where the monsters would go into considerable unrest within the 24th floor."

"Prior investigation points to the use of a certain illegal item… The same one you used."

"And you think it was me?"

"Initially, I didn't even consider you, but now, I am certain."

"As you must've heard, recently, everyone is on edge due to recent attacks from a group of illegal poachers, and they are known to use similar illegal items during their operations."

"I had great difficulty trying to tie their movements to this recent unrest, but now it's explained… It was you." Fels said

'Silver smiled slightly.'

"That's right."

'Fels nodded, before replying:'

"Please, don't treat this as an interrogation, I just wanted to make things clear… But if I am allowed to ask, why were you using this Powder?"

"Why? Because it's part of my daily training."

"Tr-Training you say?... Daily training?"

'Fels seemed considerably surprised.'

"Yes, hunting monsters the normal way is a waste of time. With my set of abilities and Skills, I've come to the conclusion that fighting off large numbers of enemies is the most ideal for my growth."

"But I can't just go after large groups, those aren't common, so I came to the conclusion that it would be easier if they came to me rather than me to them…"

'Even the Xenos seemed surprised to hear this...'

"Silver-chi, isn't that pretty dangerous?" Lyd asked confused

"Yes, it is."

"So why do you do it?" Ray asked

'Silver raised his eyebrow in wonder.'

"An adventurer is meant to brave the unknown and challenge higher and higher risks..."

"If I was afraid of danger I wouldn't have become an adventurer in the first place."

"Because I also have my own dream."

"..."

'They all remained silent until Fels opened her mouth to ask:'

"But even so, isn't it too much to use luring powder on the 24th floor?"

All adventurers, without exception, would always choose to preserve their strength at all times, those that didn't are already dead or retired.

But he is saying that he prefers to fight everything at once? And the more the better?

Never have I seen someone like him who risks himself to such a degree in the name of self-training.

Would that even be effective?

'While Fels thought, Silver said:'

"It depends, for everyone? Probably so."

"However, I am very aware of how dangerous my actions are to other adventurers."

"I have the means to flee in case things go bad, and to clean up afterward, but I always make sure to stick to all safety measures." Silver said with a straight face

"I always check to see if there is any group nearby, and I always do it far away from the main paths and even side paths, sticking to wild regions during my training…"

"Although today was a bit much and something unexpected happened… I didn't expect there to be such a creature nearby."

"It was my first time meeting a Green Dragon, although I am disappointed that I failed to find its treasure tree."

'Fels was a bit shocked.'

'Even Lyd, Ray, and the others were also considerably mouth opened.'

"So you're saying that… Every day… You enter the Dungeon alone, go to the 24th floor, spread luring powder, and fight whatever comes your way?" Fels asked speechlessly

"That's correct."

"Silver-chi..." Lyd said

Just thinking about it... About his state when I first found him...

So he fought against that entire army of monsters and then proceeded to engage with the Dragon...

Just thinking about it makes my blood boil.

'Fels remained silent for a long time.'

"It makes more sense now." She said as she shook her head

"What does?"

"Your reports… I always found it strange for a Level 2 lone adventurer to bring back loot that not even large groups from big Familia would be able to gather."

"There was even a request for a private investigation, but the results were inconclusive since you did spend most of your time in the Dungeon. And the Guild was unwilling to send personnel to investigate deeper."

"My apologies if it offends you in any way, that wasn't the intention."

'Silver shrugged.'

"I fully understand what the Guild thinks."

"There's a lot more than I actually don't sell exactly for that reason, for example, today, I should've killed a hundred monsters at the very least."

"In a normal scenario, I would've just stashed part of it away and sold it over time..."

"I don't doubt it, seeing the massive pile of drop items stashed nearby."

"But… I'm not here to reprimand you for your actions, or to discuss how you train."

"Although I will ask you to be more careful next time."

"There is a reason this powder is considered illegal, so I hope you don't misuse it."

"Why trust me?"

"You've already given me a reason."

'Silver remained silent.'

"Although our first encounter was rather unusual, I would still like to extend my greeting to you and an offer."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm called Fels, and I am currently representing Ouranos in helping the Xenos achieve their dream."

"And also to make sure they remain safe and hidden in order to reduce possible chaos and further repercussions."

"Ouranos?" Silver asked

"That is correct."

"13 years ago was when I first made contact with the Xenos by chance, and since then we've been working on pushing forward their dream."

"Ouranos and I believe that coexistence is more than just a dream, but we always lacked the means to push this dream forward."

"And that is also the reason why I am here."

"Adventurer Melios Silver, do you believe it's possible for Humans and Xenos to live in harmony?"

"..."

'Silver raised his head, looking at all of the Xenos that were now looking at him, waiting for his reply.'

"My short answer is yes, but my true answer is, it depends."

/Whispers…/

'The Xenos started to become worried as they talked.'

"Oh? Would you mind elaborating?"

"Of course not, although its a bit long..."

"Time is the thing I have most." Fels said ironically

'Silver nodded, understand the hidden meaning within it.'

'Fells also had a lot of secrets hidden beneath those robes...'

"To explain why my answer is like that, we need to determine the time frame for this dream."

"Because I can't see this being possible within a short period of time, much less on a medium-term, and even on a long term as well…"

"Perhaps this may only be done after I die of old age…"

"Why do you think so Silver-chi?" Lyd asked, a bit depressed

"Lyd, just like each Xenos is different from each other, each individual up there is different from each other."

"People have been in War against monsters for too long… They won't accept your existence so easily."

"Even me... I grew up in a village in the countryside, and although I never lost a family member to a monster, I heard of people that did lose someone to a roaming monster."

"I am a curious person, and although I consider myself open-minded, this doesn't mean I can fully see you all as friends."

"My hard training, my vocation as an adventurer has taught me to be wary of those claws and fangs you have..."

"I see..." Lyd said as he looked at his claws

"But Lyd, don't get me wrong, I still believe you are all much more than simply intelligent monsters."

"Silver-chi..."

'Silver turned his head and looked back at Fels.'

"People are selfish, even if they understand you are all capable of thinking and are completely unlike monsters, they'll simply ignore it as that is easier."

"People don't want to make the hard decisions, they'll wait for those on top to make them first, or for someone braver to act first, it has always been like that."

"Elves were just like that, weren't they? Completely isolated from everyone, and extremely racist. It wouldn't be uncommon for them to kill travelers on sight."

'Fels remained silent, understand where he was going with this.'

"The Elves' situation is different yet similar to this one."

"Why were the Elves accepted?"

"Because of many reasons, but the most important was that they didn't have that many grudges with everyone else…"

"They were also very similar to other races, almost put on a pedestal due to their beauty and grace by them."

"However, the Xenos are very similar to everyone's Number 1 enemy, and second of all, it's much easier to pin a Goblin as dangerous than a pretty Level 6 adventurer."

"A mother would be much safer putting her child next to dubious adventurer than an inoffensive Xenos, just because he or she looks like a monster."

"This is the hypocrisy of men."

"Introducing Ray to the surface world would be much easier than you Lyd. But it would still be an incomparably difficult task."

"Do you understand where I'm getting at?" Silver asked as he looked at Fels

"I do."

"How long do you think it would take to make this mother comfortable with leaving her child with the Xenos? How long would it take to make her trust them?"

"This isn't something that can be done just like that, but it isn't impossible."

"That is why I said yes, but that it depends."

'The Xenos looked at each other, discussing what he had just said.'

"Even so, we've always known that coexistence would be a hard task, and with that in mind I ask again:"

"Are you willing to help us?" Fels said

"..."

'Silver looked at the Xenos, but he didn't smile.'

"Yes, I'm willing to help."

/Roar!/

'The Xenos roared in excitement, but silver didn't smile, instead, he continued after they calmed down slightly:'

"Humans, Elves, Beast people, and more are all community species."

"This means that it's impossible or at least, very hard to live alone or in isolation."

"If I choose to openly support something the majority refuses, this will affect my standing and of those around me in the eyes of everyone else."

"So yes, I am willing to help, but my mother? My father? My friends? What would they think of my actions? Most importantly, what would the people think of them?"

"I can stand being pushed out because I live my own life, but can my friends and family do the same?"

'But Fels simply said:'

"There is no need to openly reveal your support because we are already aware of everything you've said."

"That is why we've been working hard to make people more used to monsters slowly, but what we needed was someone like you."

"Someone who can act as a bridge."

'Silver remained pensive.'

"There are several things I would like to talk about before we advance."

"First being, what sort of cooperation do you seek?"

"What do you mean Silver-chi?" Lyd asked

"There are many ways I can think of to introduce you all to the surface world."

"We could go with this extremely and painful process you've all been following of slowly trying to communicate."

"It may work once in a while, but what about when it fails?"

"If you wish to walk outside then you'll eventually need to reveal yourselves."

"It isn't an easy path, but a path is a path."

"But you could also aim for something else… Simply announcing your existence."

"What?! That is..." Fels said

"That would make things too chaotic!"

If they were suddenly revealed to the world...

"I'm not saying for you all to simply reveal yourselves, but instead, to prove to the entire world that what they think does not matter."

"What do you mean Mr.Silver?" Ray asked frowning

"How does a nation sustain itself? Through power. A powerless nation will only fade away from history."

"If you are all strong enough, then what about their opinion? You could easily climb the Dungeon and take a portion of the surface to live in."

"And slowly from there, you could start talking and negotiating, and make people deal with your existence."

"Even if this generation doesn't tolerate you, and the next one is the same, one day, they'll simply adjust."

"Of course, deeming you all last long enough."

'What Silver said made them all silent.'

"That's too extreme." Fels said

"I know, but it was just a suggestion."

"What I'm trying to say is that, no matter what you all do, it's impossible to achieve complete harmony within this lifetime, but depending on how you all act, perhaps those that will come after you will be able to enjoy the morning sun without a shred of worry."

"..."

'Fels was feeling extremely conflicted.'

'Because what he said was technically right...'

He isn't wrong, but those words are filled with violence and they point out a grim future...

If such a path is chosen, casualties from either side will be inevitable.

But he is also saying that our original course of action is also not without flaws.

And the result of it is already showing itself.

A long and arduous path where many sacrifices will have to make... It's just that the sacrifices are made over time instead of at once.

No matter what path we choose, casualties will happen from both sides…

'Looking at their expression, Silver let out a sigh.'

"Looks like my words were too much, I'm sorry everyone, I spoiled the mood."

"This was merely a suggestion, so don't take it too seriously."

"Such a problem wasn't so simple to resolve in the first place."

'But Lyd said with a firm tone:'

"No, you're correct. We are weak."

"We have to be strong so we can follow our dream, and fight for it."

"Because of our weakness, we lost some of our friends because we couldn't protect them..."

"We were fooled by their lies, blinded by a promise of coexistence, and this light burned us."

"However, I am unwilling to let go of our dream like this, else their sacrifices would've been meaningless."

'He looked at Silver and said:'

"I want to see the fabled sun. Would you help us?" He asked as he stretched his arm once more

'It meant something completely different.'

"..."

Although things happened suddenly, what I wanted has not changed.

'Silver grabbed Lyd's hand.'

"Only if you help me achieve mine as well." He said with a smile

'Lyd smiled.'

'Previously, it was a light-hearted greeting, now, it was a promise.'

/ROAR!/

'The Xenos cried loudly in cheers...'

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Notes