Tiger in sheep's clothing

.

.

.

------------

/Half an hour of walking later…/

'Silver and company finally arrived at the plaza near the Ganesha Familia's house.'

'It wasn't difficult to miss it, being one of the tallest buildings in Orario, it was a massive statue of Ganesha sitting cross-legged in the middle of an open plaza…'

'A massive statue where hundreds of people could live inside with no problem…'

"Wow." Said Hestia as she looked around, surprised by the scale of the festivity

'The people, the decorations, the smells of all kinds of food, and the many things being sold in the stalls on the sides of the streets, this was all novel for Hestia.'

"This is your first time here, right?" Asked Nicc

'Hestia nodded, raising her head to look at Ganesha's statue.'

"This guy didn't change at all even when he descended huh…"

"Speaking of which, this is also your first time here right, Silver?" She asked as she looked at the side

"I've been here before to sightsee, but it's true that this is the first event I've participated in one such event here in Orario."

'As he said that, he looked behind him to see everyone looking around and enjoying themselves.'

'Thankfully, the amount of attention on them had decreased due to people being focused on other things.'

"So far so good…"

I feel like a tourist guide… Just hold it in… It isn't that bad at all… All of this is for the future…

One day, I won't have to do a thing...

'This training, his actions, and today's event. All of it was so he could minimize potential casualties in the future. So that the Hestia Familia could grow and become an entity.'

'But why was he trying to stop something that is inevitable? It's normal for someone to die in a Familia, especially one with dozens of members, and Silver knew that very well, but his objective was to drag this as much as possible.'

'He wanted to prevent Hestia and the others from feeling down during this sensible period… If he could drag it for a year or two, that would be more than enough for the Familia to become stable and not be super affected if someone were to die.'

'The first few months are the easiest since everyone will be on the Upper floors, and it's pretty hard to die there, only after a few months and their stats increase will they go a bit deeper and start meeting with the first 'killers' of the Dungeon…'

'The famed War Shadows and Killer Ants.'

"As long as they aren't reckless…"

'He shook his head, ready to call everyone so they could go to the coliseum and enjoy the show…'

'But Silver noticed that Haruhime seemed confused and even a bit overwhelmed by this situation. She didn't know what to do and was almost spinning in the same place as she looked around.'

"..."

'Letting out a small sigh, Silver went to her and said:'

"First time as well?"

"Ah!... Y-Yes… I only ever heard and read of such things so all of this is..."

"I know how it can be, so let's go one step at a time." He said as he grabbed her hands, making her blush a little

'Silver brought her to an Ice cream shop and gave her a chocolate cone. She gave it a lick and immediately fell in love with it.'

'Seeing her smile also made Silver a bit better, so he turned around, ready to call everyone…'

"... What is it?" He asked as he looked at Hestia and Nicc

"Nooothinnng." Said Hestia in a sarcastic tone

"Ok then, let's go." Said Silver in a serious tone as he went past her and Nicc

"#!"

'The two girls became a bit pissed, but when they looked at each other and noticed each other's expressions, their anger vanished as it was switched for caution…'

"..."

I knew it! There was something wrong with this girl…

"..."

She too huh… Tsk.

'The two looked at each other with suspicion, but when they looked around they realized everyone was already far away…'

"HEY!"

"Wait for me!"

…

/Somewhere near the colosseum…/

"Hermes-Sama, can I ask again why are we doing this?" Asked Asfi

"Asfi! I told you to be patient…"

"We've been waiting here for almost an hour…" She said with a bit of resentment

"Haha…" Laughed Hermes awkwardly

'Hermes and Asfi were currently inside a house near the colosseum, observing the streets through a window.'

"I still don't understand why… I know a lot has happened around that boy, but that doesn't mean something will happen again."

We can't keep watching him every once in a while…

Not only is it a bother, but I can tell the boy himself is growing stronger every day, and one day we will be completely unable to watch him like this…

'Hermes took his eyes out of the binoculars and said:'

"I know Asfi… Call it a gut feeling I have but I think things aren't going to remain so calm for long."

"Besides, if nothing happens, we can still enjoy the rest of the festival!"

"... Sigh…"

'Hermes went back to watching the streets.'

"Treat it as overtime from our previous job, weren't we because of that initially?" Asked Hermes

"Overtime? Weren't we on overtime already? Is this the overtime of the overtime?" She asked with a frown

"..."

'Hermes shut up as he sweated slightly, opting to ignore her rather than continue to dig his grave further…'

"Ha! Look who we have here..." He said as he looked at a small crowd walking together

He arrived faster than I expected...

…

/Sometime later in the arena…/

'The entire Hestia Familia could be seen sitting on the bleachers surrounding the Arena of the Amphitheatron, the biggest stadium in Orario.'

"We arrived at the right time, it's starting to get really crowdy." Said Hestia as she looked around

But why...

'Their sitting positions were as follows: Silver on the center, Haruhime on his left and Nicc on his right, and the unfortunate Hestia sitting in the seat in front of them with a grumpy face.'

Why?!

"What will we be seeing here today?" Asked Nicc with a smile

"The usual, magic demonstration, fighting and combat demonstrations… Monsters from the Dungeon…" Said Silver as he listed several things

This all has to do with Ganesha's mission…

'Several years ago, a bit after the intelligent monsters, the Xenos, were discovered, Ouranos convinced Ganesha to make the people of the surface used to monsters in general.'

'This was in order to prepare the people for the eventual contact with the Xenos.'

'Although this plan didn't work... And it's most likely due to the fact that Ganesha had been doing this for a bit over a decade so there wasn't enough time for people to grow used to monsters…'

'And also because people would never grow used to monsters in general. Living with creatures that could rip you apart in half at any moment isn't something most can accept, even when they already live with such monsters… AKA, adventurers.'

'Such is the hypocrisy of men...'

'Besides, history is also a major point of this fear of monsters, for thousands of years all races had been under a constant clash with the denizens of the Dungeon, how could they accept coexistence with them after everything they passed through?'

'Nevertheless, this plan was only a small effort from Ouranos, he wanted the Xenos and the people of the surface to live in peace and coexistence, but he himself knew that would never happen without sacrifices from each side, something he didn't wish to see.'

'So he never acted deeply and kept this project in the back of his mind, making sure the Xenos lived a good life in the underground far from the surface… Although that didn't go well.'

"Yawwn…"

"Are you tired? Already?" Asked Nicc to Silver

"A little."

"So why don't you take a nap? It's still a bit far from the start."

"And leave you guys unattended? No thanks."

'She rolled her eyes, saying:'

"We aren't kids…"

"I know, and this is why I am afraid. Kids are pretty simple to manage, but unpredictable adults?..."

'Before he could finish, she pinched his waist with a smile.'

"You know that doesn't hurt right?"

"I know, but I feel better doing it."

'Silver felt that Nicc was getting more and more brazen as time went on, ignoring his wishes and even his personal space, but he didn't find it annoying, instead, he felt it was good that the once silent and icy girl had become playful and full of smiles.'

"Alright, you win, I'll take a nap, wake me up if something interesting happens…"

"Sure."

'Silver rested his back on the stone chair and closed his eyes, sleeping soon after…'

…

/A few hours later…/

"THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE TODAY! AND WITH THIS INCREDIBLE FINAL PERFORMANCE, WE CLOSE THE DAY FOR THE LITTLE MONSTERPHILIA!" Screamed a man holding a microphone in the middle of the arena

"WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS GANESHA-SAMA?!" He asked towards the buffed man on the side

"I… AM… GANESHAAAAAAA!" Screamed Ganesha in excitement as he flexed his muscles

"Indeed! Once again, thank you all! And we shall see each other again during the Monsterphilia!"

/Cheers!/

While everyone cheered, Hestia raised her arms and stretched.

"Finally, this is over… Shall we go home?" She asked Silver

"That isn't up to me but to everyone else. As I said before, this is sort of a holiday, so everyone can enjoy it the way they want to…"

'Silver got up from his chair and said to everyone:'

"From here on out you are all free to do what you wish, I will return home and everyone that wishes to go back can come with me, as for the rest, the night has barely started and there is still a lot to do."

"If you wish to stay, make sure to do so with a group of at least 3 people especially if you plan to drink, aside from that, make sure to have fun!"

'With a smile on his face, Silver helped Haruhime and Nicc get up from their seats and led everyone out of the arena where he was surprised to realize no one wanted to stay behind.'

'It seemed that everyone had enough, or perhaps this was the effect of staying with a big group, people just tend to follow the majority.'

'Silver was fine with either result, so with a carefree expression, he led everyone back.'

'Today was pretty fulfilling, not only was his objective fulfilled perfectly and that everyone managed to see several of the many monsters of the Dungeon and how to deal with them.'

'But he also managed to have a bit of fun and enjoy such a festival for the first time in his life.'

'From here on out, he only needs to help them with their first steps in the Dungeon, and the rest would be up to them.'

'After that, he would resume his daily life, going to Dungeon and improving himself, to become Level 4 as fast as possible…'

'If he can become Level 4, together with Haruhime Level boost magic, Silver would be able to become Level 5, and with his overwhelming stats, it may not be impossible to fight against Level 6's.'

'This isn't even considering his Plasmids, that with his colossal magic stat, are starting to show their true power.'

'From that moment on, he could be considered to be at the top of the world in terms of power, and few would be able to pose a threat to him and his Familia.'

'However, even then, he would be far from his dream, and never once did Silver forget his desire to explore the Dungeon.'

'All of these recent activities are only part of the process of building his Familia.'

'Because he now lives a life that isn't solely about himself, but about a few others as well, so he needs to step aside and take care of their needs as well.'

'This is how he sees life…'

…

/A few more hours later…/

'After leading everyone back to the Manor, and saying farewell to Nicc, Silver led Hestia to his office and teleported to the old Church…'

'In there, the two finally had a bit of alone time, where Hestia let everything she had been holding back.'

'And Silver complied, pampering her a lot…'

'It wasn't anything perverted, just the two of them enjoying each other's presence.'

…

"Now that we are alone, I remembered something rather important…"

"What is it?" Asked the sleepy Hestia

"Let's delay my Level up announcement." Said Silver out of the blue

"Ha?! Why?"

"Because I leveled up too fast."

"..."

So blunt...

"Let's have an overview of what happened."

"It took one month and three weeks for me to level up to Level 2, and from that day till now, one month and one week have passed."

"Do you know what this means? From an already unimaginable record to another. Common sense dictates I should've taken longer but instead, I became faster."

"This will make people realize something is wrong, and from that, people would start snooping around."

"To be honest, I wouldn't mind sharing the reasons behind it… If we were strong enough to handle the consequences..."

"Silver…"

"Listen to me. Our Familia has just formed, and I can't put such a heavyweight on everyone, having a famous member is not always good…"

"..."

"You noticed didn't you? How everyone feels pressure whenever I talk with them, some even felt fear at the start, and this is just a minor side effect..."

"The current Hestia Familia, from the eyes of Orario is… Mellios Silver. Be it good or bad, everyone will think of me when they hear the name of our Familia."

"And because of that, their expectations for us are bound to get higher and higher due to my accomplishments, and I can only hope such weight won't be too much for the recruits."

"So the easiest path, albeit illegal, is to simply not inform the Guild of my Level up, for now, no one will think anything of it."

"Even if I get stronger, people will still believe I am Level 2 and that it will take longer for me to Level up again."

"I don't know for how long, but a few months should be enough to make people accept my Level up more naturally…"

"But by that time, won't you be much stronger than now?" Asked Hestia

"... Hopefully yes."

"And isn't that a problem?"

"Well, we never know. I may have leveled up fast, but for the next few levels, I may get stuck in them for a considerable amount of time. That is normal, and if that happens everything will just fall into place."

"My strength is already abnormal, and as long as I don't do something way out of the line, people will just think I got a bit stronger and not that I leveled up."

"... Alright, I am with you on this." She said as she dropped her head onto the bed

'Silver smiled and pulled Hestia closer, surprising her a bit.'

'A few minutes of silence passed until she said:'

"You know… I've been thinking… What we… You know…" Said Hestia in a low tone as she laid on Silver's arms

'She raised her head and looked at Silver's cheeky smile, making her embarrassed.'

"Be serious!"

"I am. Very much so."

"So stop making that face…"

I'm trying to talk!

"Alright alright, go on, what were you talking about?" He asked Hestia as he hugged her

"... I just wanted to say that… I am okay with this… Being this carefree, without much seriousness and formal procedures… At least for now." She said with a smile as she hugged Silver

It hasn't been long since we became like this, and as he said before, our previous relationship wasn't that far from what we currently have…

But that doesn't mean I wouldn't like to be able to show affection publicly… And one day…

"I can understand how you feel… Hey! You're drooling!" Said Silver when he realized Hestia was in deep thought

"?! No, I am not! Stop saying these nasty things!" She said after she checked her mouth, realizing Silver was joking with her

'The two continued to play throughout the night, and once Hestia slept, Silver teleported back to the Manor, where he laid her in her bed.'

'After doing so, he went around the Manor, and after making sure everyone was fine and dandy, he went to sleep.'

"There is a lot to do…"

Ishtar… I still need to beat her up.

"ZZZzzz…"

…

.

.

.

Notes

For those who didn't understand the Title, its just a reference for those martial arts novels where the Mc hides his power from others.

Also, what Silver said is correct, once he reaches Level 4 he can be considered to be at the top in terms of power.

If he continues maxing his stats, by the time he reaches Level 4, his single Stat value would be at 4500.

We don't know how Haruhime's Level booster works, but I say it increases someone's stats by one full Level based on the average of their Stat gain per Level.

So in Silver's case, it would increase his stats by 1500 again...

So this would send him from the start of Level 4 to the start of Level 5.

And for 15 minutes(the duration of Harhume's magic) Silver would have a stat count of 6000.

This is equivalent to Ottar's Level 6 peak stats.

Or better put, this is equivalent to one of the Loki Familia's Top executives.

No, Silver would be better than them since they only max a single Stat with the exception of Gareth who has Strength and Vitality maxed.

In terms of Physical strength capabilities... We can say silver is strong enough to crush things like Adamantite pretty easily, and he should be even able to cut Babel down.

I claim this is possible since Phryne did considerable damage to Ishatar's manor with a slash and she is Level 5, so a Level 6 Gareth who is on a league of his own should deal considerably more damage to it if not straight demolish it with a single strike.

Power levels are always a bit vague in Damnachi, and I hope to make things more clear in the future.