Anime: Passive Inheritance System

In the safety zone on the 18th floor of the dungeon, inside the temporary camp of the Loki Familia.

Inside a tent, Kai's upper body was bare, revealing a lean and muscular frame. But beneath his pale yellow skin, there were visible distortions and uneven bumps all over.

During the battle with the strengthened Goliath, the bones throughout his body had been severely compressed—many had fractured or broken outright. He had been clenching his muscles tightly to hold those fragments in place just to keep moving. But now that he had relaxed, those broken bones scattered messily inside him.

On top of that, he was covered in bruises and swelling from head to toe. His stamina was completely exhausted.

"I'm really… truly sorry, Lady Hestia."

Lying face-down on the bed, Kai kept apologizing to the goddess sitting behind him. This incident was largely due to his own overconfidence. Goliath, being a floor boss, was never a monster to take lightly. But he had insisted on pushing into the 17th floor, completely overestimating his own ability. That was why the situation had turned so dire.

"Lady Hestia, I—"

Just as Kai was about to continue apologizing, Hestia suddenly threw herself onto his back. Her small body trembled.

"Lady… Hestia…?"

Turning his head slightly to look behind him, Kai's gaze met a pair of watery, tear-filled sapphire eyes.

"Kai-kun… I'm so glad you're okay!"

After Kai had used [Light of Resolve] to slay the strengthened Goliath, his body had reached its limit. He collapsed on the ground, unable to move. Others had brought him to the safe zone on the 18th floor. He had only just fallen asleep in the tent when Hestia burst in. In just a few moments, she had stripped him and was now sitting on his back.

Kai had already braced himself for scolding or reprimand. But none came. There was no anger, no blame—only the deep affection of a loli goddess who cherished him dearly.

Hestia looked at Kai as if he were a precious treasure lost and now recovered. She buried her face in his back and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Uuu… I'm so, so glad you're safe…"

"..."

Feeling the wetness spreading across his back, Kai was momentarily stunned.

Was she… crying?

Hestia had lived for over a Millions of years as a true god in the heavens. After such an unimaginably long time, even the purest heart should have become cunning… no, divine cunning… actually, that doesn't sound right either… Anyway, the point is: with all her experience, why was Hestia crying?

Was this a genuine emotional outburst… or a test?

Several thoughts raced through Kai's mind in an instant, some even bordering on the worst assumptions about human nature. But the moment he saw Hestia clinging to his back, sobbing like a child, all suspicion evaporated. He sighed and spoke in a comforting tone.

"Lady Hestia, I'm okay, aren't I? If anything, this time I brought it on myself. I underestimated how dangerous the dungeon is… Even though I've suffered several times before, I still made such a rookie mistake. Honestly, I'm hopeless."

The first time he entered the dungeon, he nearly lost his life to a low-level goblin because he underestimated real combat.

Later, relying on his superior stats, he fought down to the third floor, only to get swarmed by a horde of monsters. If not for the [Black Swordsman] class granted by the system, he would have died then and there.

He had faced near-death several times, all because of overconfidence. He thought he'd matured after more than a month of reflection, but even now, he was making the same mistakes.

Humans were sometimes irredeemable—prone to pride after temporary advantage, forgetting every painful lesson learned.

Thinking back on his actions, Kai felt disappointed in himself.

Useless… never learning from mistakes.

But instead of reproach, the goddess offered warmth and kindness.

"Kai-kun, it's natural for children of the lower world to make mistakes. Don't blame yourself too much. In fact, it's exactly because of this unpredictable variety that life in the lower world is so much more colorful than the heavens. That's why we gods willingly seal our divine powers to come live with you."

He turned to glance at the tiny girl leaning against his back, teary-eyed and looking up at him… This was a real goddess.

They say the grace of a beauty is deep. Now, receiving compassion from a goddess, Kai couldn't help but feel a strange warmth in his heart.

Still…

"Lady Hestia… could you loosen your grip just a little? It's… really painful…"

Overcome with emotion, Hestia had been tightly hugging his lower back since earlier. Admittedly, this kind of close contact came with its perks—but only under normal circumstances. Right now, Kai could feel his fractured bones groaning under the strength of a the hug.

"Ah! S-Sorry!"

Hestia quickly let go and sat up behind him, pulling out several intricately designed glass vials.

As Kai watched the pale purple liquid inside one of them shimmer, he licked his lips. He was suddenly very thirsty.

"Lady Hestia, this is…?"

"Hmm hmm, you better be grateful, Kai-kun! This is some pretty high-grade potion!"

She waved the vial proudly between her fingers, then popped the cork. A sweet scent filled the tent.

"Potion…"

Hearing her boast, Kai swallowed hard.

A real potion… What would it taste like?

Honestly, after fighting non-stop since last night, he was parched.

Before he could think further, Hestia poured the pale purple potion directly onto his back and gently spread it with her hands, making sure every inch was covered.

"Tss…"

Feeling the cool sensation on his back and her soft hands rubbing it in, Kai involuntarily sucked in a breath, his face turning a bit red.

As a goddess, Hestia was unimaginably ancient. There was no reason to feel shy having an elder apply medicine. Still, with her petite form sitting on his lower back, her warmth and softness were hard to ignore, and Kai found it difficult to stay calm.

But the embarrassment quickly vanished.

The potion she applied was clearly top-tier. Within moments, it had been absorbed through his pores. Torn muscles mended rapidly, damaged tissue began to regenerate, and dislocated bones shifted back into place as if guided by invisible hands.

Such an effect was unheard of. He'd only ever used low-level potions before—good for minor fatigue, maybe. Nothing like this.

"Lady Hestia… what is this… really?"

Feeling the tingly, numbing sensation of his body recovering so quickly, Kai couldn't help but ask.

"It's something made by a friend of mine. For people from the lower world like you, it's absolutely first-class."

After pouring the entire purple potion, Hestia uncorked another bottle of pale green potion and spoke seriously.

"Kai-kun, I don't know what that power you used earlier was, but don't ever use it lightly again."

"Huh?"

Kai blinked.

That power… did she mean the Light of Resolve?

"That red wind or whatever it was that flared up around you."

Red wind, my ass. That was sword aura!

Realizing she was referring to the sword aura from his Bloodlust state, Kai immediately understood her concern.

In Bloodlust, the stronger the aura you want, the more life force you pay. While life force isn't as hard to replenish as lifespan, draining it too often could still ruin someone's foundation.

As Hestia spread the green potion over his back, Kai could feel his depleted energy and blood slowly recovering, and he let out a long sigh.

"Lady Hestia… thank you."

…

With Hestia's potions, Kai fully recovered in half a day.

He dressed, picked up the borrowed green rapier from beside the bed, and stepped out of the tent.

His black sword had been shattered by the enhanced Goliath, and this sword had been taken—well, borrowed—from someone else. Now he needed to return it and properly thank its owner.

Though… come to think of it, he never got permission to borrow it. He'd just taken it.

Hopefully the owner wouldn't mind. If she did, he'd have to sincerely apologize.

Outside the tent was a camp set up in a clearing beside the forest.

Adventurers passed by chatting casually, weapons stowed, seemingly unaware they were in the heart of a dangerous dungeon.

But this was still the dungeon's middle level. Fortunately, this particular floor was a safe zone.

No monsters appeared here. The environment was relatively pleasant—a good place for adventurers to rest and regroup.

Scanning the area, Kai was about to ask someone about the camp's layout when a faint green light floated down in front of him.

Focusing on the glowing speck, Kai frowned slightly.

"What's this…?"