Some time earlier, at Welf's workshop, Ethan was working on his new sword after having just finished forging another one. He was sweaty and exhausted, but he decided not to take a break and placed another piece of iron into the forge to heat up.
Then it happened.
BOOM!
A loud bang. It sounded like a small explosion, but it was only a punch. Ethan, who still didn't understand what was happening, called out, "Welf, is that you?!"
No one answered.
Ethan wasn't an idiot. He moved away from the fire and hid while gripping his sword. He positioned himself where anyone entering the room wouldn't see him immediately.
Then the forge door was suddenly forced open. Whether it was kicked or punched open, Ethan couldn't tell. A man stepped inside. He wasn't very tall, but he had a muscular build and an unpleasant appearance.
Staring seriously at the man's back, Ethan swung his sword, severing the man's arm with surprising ease. The severed arm hit the floor alongside the man's sword, and he screamed in agony.
The forge quickly began to stain with blood.
"Arrggh! Damn it! My arm!"
"What? Where is he?!"
Ethan noticed the man wasn't alone, so he kicked the man whose arm he had just cut off. The man wasn't very strong, which Ethan found rather amusing. Why would they send weak men after him after what he had done in the forge?
But that worked in his favor.
He would be able to deal with this problem easily.
The man was sent flying, and Ethan slammed the door shut, smashing it directly into the second man's face.
While the second man was still recovering from the blow, Ethan rushed toward the first man, who had crashed into the wall of the forge. The man didn't have time to react before Ethan drove his sword straight through him.
Ethan aimed for his chest, where he believed the man's heart was.
"You... son of a bitch. You're dead once those sisters find you."
The man didn't die instantly, so he had enough time to utter those words. Ethan heard him and thought,
'Sisters? Who is he talking about?'
Without much knowledge of the original story, he had no idea who the "Dis Sisters" were.
Ethan didn't pay much attention to the man's words and pulled his sword from the man's chest. Blood dripped from the blade as he turned to face the second man. Blood was running from his nose.
"It seems to be hurting," Ethan said mockingly.
The man clicked his tongue before throwing something toward Ethan.
'Knives?'
Ethan barely avoided being hit, so he decided to be a little more careful.
Staring at Ethan with a serious expression, the man said, "You're dead."
Then he charged straight at Ethan, knocking a table aside. He destroyed everything in his path like a truck barreling forward.
Ethan didn't feel particularly threatened. Although the man was strong, he was far too slow.
He could easily keep up with the man's movements.
And because the man was so slow, he couldn't keep up with Ethan's movements.
Ethan began swinging his sword.
First, he cut off the man's hand. Then he sliced away several of his fingers. The man could no longer hold a sword. Without showing the slightest bit of remorse, Ethan then slashed across the man's neck.
The cut wasn't deep enough to kill him instantly, however, as the man managed to avoid immediate death.
But he was bleeding heavily.
The man clutched at his neck, desperately trying to stop the bleeding. While he struggled to stay alive, Ethan suddenly moved forward at high speed and kicked him toward the furnace. The man immediately began to feel his skin burning.
"Wait, wait! Please!"
He screamed, begging for his life.
Ethan ignored the cries and shoved the man into the fire.
The man's screams didn't last very long.
Ethan looked at the mess he had made and then walked out of Welf's workshop as though nothing had happened.
####
Welf left his workshop and ran to the Hephaestus Familia's home to inform the goddess about what had happened. He needed help covering up those deaths and also finding Ethan.
Welf knew very little about Ethan.
He knew Ethan was staying at an inn, but that was all.
As soon as Welf arrived, asking to speak with the goddess, the other members of the Familia were surprised by how frantic he looked.
"I need to speak with the Goddess. It's about what we were talking about earlier. It's very important."
"All right, I'll let her know."
Less than a minute later, Welf was standing before Hephaestus, explaining everything that had happened.
Listening to Welf's account, Hephaestus didn't panic or anything of the sort. She remained remarkably calm. The first thing she asked was,
"Do you have any idea where he might have gone?"
"He told me he was staying at an inn, but he never said which one. It's probably somewhere near the area where the workshops are."
"I see. Then go find him."
"And the bodies in my workshop? What if someone finds them?"
"It's fine. I'll take care of that. Go look for that boy. You can take a few members of the Familia with you. Bring him to me."
"And what if he doesn't want to come?"
"Convince him somehow," Hephaestus said.
Welf let out a sigh before replying,
"All right. I'll try."
Even as he said that, he wasn't confident he could actually do it.
Welf then left the Hephaestus Familia's home together with several Familia members. Shortly afterward, someone else entered Hephaestus's room.
Tsubaki, the captain of the Familia.
"You called for me?"
"Yes. I want you to take care of something for me."
Hephaestus explained the situation to Tsubaki.
"So you're asking me to get rid of two bodies. I've never done anything like that before, but I can try."
Tsubaki accepted the "mission" without hesitation.
She then left Hephaestus's room to take care of the matter.
As soon as she was gone, Hephaestus thought,
'What am I doing? I shouldn't be getting involved in this.'
But her curiosity was stronger.
She wanted to see that ability.
Besides, she felt that helping this boy named Ethan was the right choice.