With the day's haul in hand, Bell returned to the ruined church. The moment he saw someone standing outside, he picked up his pace and ran over.
"Bell!"
Waiting for him, of course, was Hestia, who had been worrying nonstop. Ever since Bell left that morning, she had been fretting at home—this was her child's first time entering the Dungeon, and she'd been terrified something might happen. Seeing him return safe and sound, her anxiety finally eased.
Relieved, she ran straight toward him and hugged him before he could even react.
Two soft impacts landed squarely against Bell's stomach. The sensation was unmistakable—so clear that even through his clothes, he could feel their shape. Even calm and composed Bell couldn't completely hold his expression together for a moment. Not because he lacked self-control around women, but because this particular goddess was... overwhelming.
"Mmm~ It really is Bell, not a ghost."
That firm, real feeling reassured Hestia that her worry hadn't been for nothing. She instinctively placed her hands over her chest—finally, her heart could rest.
"Goddess-sama, I told you I'd come back from the Dungeon. Plus, it was just the first floor. I can handle that much."
"Hmph, Bell, that's not the point. Even if I know you can handle it, I'm still going to worry."
She shot him a glance, but now that her anxiety had subsided, she felt much better. As long as Bell came back, that was all that mattered.
"So, Bell, how did your first trip into the Dungeon go?"
Listening to her Familia's first Dungeon experience was important. As a god, she was barred from entering the Dungeon and would never have that kind of experience herself. Hestia was curious—she wanted to hear about it through Bell's eyes.
"It felt like... the monsters were way stronger than I expected."
The first thing that came to Bell's mind when thinking of the Dungeon was the goblins he'd fought all day. Those creatures had intelligence—they knew when they couldn't win in a head-on fight and would try to gang up instead. Once they saw a move, they wouldn't fall for it again. They were quick to catch on.
"The goblins on the first floor... they're faster and more agile than regular people, and surprisingly strong too. If a normal short sword couldn't cut through their hide, killing them would've been really hard."
"And they definitely showed signs of intelligence. Once you used a trick on them, it was tough to fool them with the same one again."
Intelligence?
Hestia's eyes widened. She couldn't believe what she was hearing—Bell had actually said goblins possessed a certain degree of intelligence. She stared at him intently, asking him again and again just to be sure.
"Bell, are you sure you weren't just imagining it?"
"I don't think so. During the fight, I used the same move more than once, but the goblins that had seen it before reacted immediately and countered. I think that's a sign they possess some degree of intelligence."
Bell wasn't entirely certain, but based on how the goblins behaved, he believed they did. They definitely showed signs of intelligence. What he wasn't sure of was whether that intelligence was temporary—just a byproduct of combat—or if all Dungeon-born monsters had a certain level of awareness.
Hestia fell silent after hearing that. If what Bell said was true, then goblins really did possess a level of intelligence. But how could that be? Monsters were supposed to be mindless creatures. If they were intelligent... wouldn't that make them no different from humans?
Adventurers could freely slaughter Dungeon monsters because they were considered soulless threats. Monsters endangered the lives of innocent people on the surface—if not destroyed, it was the civilians who would suffer.
But if monsters possessed intelligence, if they could eventually think like people... then could killing them still be called justice?
Hestia didn't have an answer.
And she didn't dare keep thinking down that path.
Even she couldn't say for sure whether something like that could really happen in the Dungeon. But what if it did?
She stared intently at Bell.
"Bell, what if the monsters in the Dungeon someday gain the same intelligence as humans?"
Bell shook his head slightly. Whether or not that future existed, he didn't see it as something he couldn't handle.
"Goddess-sama, I made up my mind the moment I became an Adventurer. If something doesn't stand in my way, I won't bother with it. But if it does, I'll overcome it—sooner or later."
It was a simple truth.
The world Bell had come from had long since abandoned the idea of morality. The phrase 'if you didn't knock them down, why bother helping them up' had already torn down the values he was taught as a child. He'd discarded those elementary school ideals, like helping the elderly across the street. Those with morality were the ones morality came back to punish—so Bell had learned long ago to stay indifferent.
An old man collapsed on the road? What did that have to do with him? If it wasn't his problem, why get involved?
"If intelligent monsters really do appear, I'll treat them just like any other threat an Adventurer would face. If they come at me, I won't hold back."
"But if they help me... then even if people whisper behind my back, I'll return the favor."
Seeing Hestia stunned by his words, Bell scratched his cheek, unsure if he'd said something wrong.
"Goddess-sama, was there something wrong with my answer?"
Hestia snapped out of it and smiled, full of relief. 'As I thought... Bell really is a good kid.'
With that thought, her heart settled. She didn't know whether the Dungeon held such secrets, but one thing was clear—Bell had already made up his mind.
"No, there's nothing wrong, Bell. You're a good boy, and the choice you've made is the right one. Good and evil can't be rigidly defined—they're just perspectives. Bell, as long as you follow what you believe is right, that's enough."