Danmachi – Card Wizard

"Baby. In the future, we won't be able to accompany you anymore. I'm sorry." Said the woman as she teared up, looking at Aidan. However, a moment later, she kept her tears as she and the men turned towards the location where Loki and Aidan were looking. "Baby, I see you've found your goddess. Do you trust her?" She asked as she stared at Aidan and Loki directly, which made the goddess widen her eyes as she understood the implication of being able to see through time and space.

Looking at Loki, who was stunned next to him, he smiled at his two parents and nodded while answering his past mother and father. "I wouldn't have been able to see those memories had it not been for her. I'm also joining her familia after this."​​

"I see." She nodded before continuing in a calm and enchanting voice. "In that case, we'll tell you a few things we always wanted but never could say to you because you were too young. First is your heritage. You are what we call a high human. The last one in existence since, by the time we talk, your father and I will already be dead. It doesn't do anything extraordinary except allowing you to go over the limit of the parameters and reach a total of 1500 stats in each of them. It is a mutual benefit high humans have with the spirit race. As a second effect, it increases your understanding of skills, which allows you to understand everything more smoothly. Finally, it increases your lifespan and gives you a near-perfect abnormal status resistance.

As she stopped speaking, his father continued. "The second thing has a relation with the words: 'Become stronger, never stop growing stronger' that we left you. What we mean by that is that we hope you can grow to become a strong man in the future so you won't have to bow down to people you don't want to. Of course, that doesn't include your goddess, as you should always remember who helped you. That's what a man is. Also, I hope you don't try to become a hero. Your mother and I are known as such, and as you can see, there is only one end to heroes, that is to die." His father said with a more resonant voice.

Seeing Aidan nodding to them, they both smiled before his mother continued. "Now, about your sealed memories. They are memories we gave you about using my card magic and your father's swordsmanship and footwork. As you can see, both are extremely strong, and I have no doubt you will become as strong in the future. However, it will take a lot of work to master both of our strengths. We sealed our combat methods in your memories, and every time you break through a level, you will gain a part of my magic and your father's swordsmanship and footwork technique. The memories which you will unlock will be the techniques you can use. We also sealed a few memories of our past together for you to have the drive to become stronger. Finally, considering you are joining a familia, I will gift you something useful for both you and your familia when you do an expedition in the future. Consider this a gift to both you and your familia." She said while pointing at his head with a mysterious smile.

Finally, his father talked again. "It is important for you to know that the only way to reach the strongest level is by maxing your stats as much as possible before levelling up. The best is to max them all. It will be hard, and it will hurt a lot. However, if you don't do so, you won't unlock some memories because you are not strong enough. So, work hard and don't take shortcuts, alright? We left you our weapons, so it won't be acceptable if you're weak. We also linked our weapons and your clothes to you. As such, even if you leave them somewhere, you can summon them simply by thinking about it. Finally, I'll also leave you with a gift. I wouldn't want to be inferior to your mother now." He said while laughing and embracing Aidan's mother as he pointed his finger at Aiden's forehead.

"Now, we hope you can become a strong man of which we can be proud. Don't betray your allies and friends. Find a girl to marry. Or a few." His father added with a grin, only to receive a punch from his mother. "And remember forever that we love you with all our hearts." They said together as the memory disappeared into fragments as both Loki and Aidan were forced back out of his memories.

Waking up, the two looked at each other, seeing the shock in one's eyes and the happiness in knowing who his parents were in the others. As Aidan showed a bright smile for knowing who his parents were, he got up from the couch and went back on the other one to sit next to Ais.

"Ais, how long have we been in Aidan's memories?" Asked Loki has she had no idea how long they had been there.

"Fifteen minutes, Loki-sama." Answered Ais while looking at Aidan. Giving a smile at Ais, which promised some explanation, Aidan looked at Loki and asked. "Loki-sama. Thank you for your help." The young man said while bowing his head a little towards the goddess.

"It's nothing. Alright, let's do the crest ceremony for the both of you. Ais comes first, Aidan, turn around." She said as she ignored his thanks and decided to give the two children their crests.

The both of them nodded as they did as told. "Alright, Ais. Please show me your back. It will sting a little bit while I give you my crest. It won't take long, so endure it, alright?" She asked as Ais once again nodded.

With his back turned on the two girls, Aidan thought back to the two gifts his mother and father gave him. His father gave him some information about the dungeon. It was continually growing, and the last time he had been in the depths, which was almost a thousand years prior, only a little bit after they sealed the dungeon with the tower of Babel, it already had 137 floors. It was the gift he had given him as it seemed that his father hoped he would be able to dive down far into the dungeon.

As for his mother's gift, it was a bit more helpful as it transformed one of his 54 magical cards into a magical dungeon map. According to the information he had from his mother, it would record the dungeon wherever he went, and when the owner of the card went down a floor, the dungeon map on his card would change to show the map on the floor he was on. However, this wasn't the best as, according to the information she gave him with the card, the dungeon in the lower floors changed from time to time. However, the magical dungeon map card would directly record the walls, ceiling and floor wherever he went. As such, even if the dungeon floor changed, his card would still map the dungeon correctly. The downside of this map was that he would have to record as much as the dungeon as he possibly could so that whenever the floor changed, he still had the right road to go to the next level or climb back up. However, that would be for the future as he had never even entered the dungeon yet.

As he stopped thinking about the two gifts his parents left him, he began to think about his parents. He did not doubt that they were fantastic. However, now that he knew that they were dead, he didn't feel sad as he never really knew them since they sealed his memory. He believed that it might be one reason they locked his memory not to feel sad about their death and learn to know them as he unlocked his memories when he became powerful.

As Aidan was feeling confused about this whole thing, Ais, who had already put back her dress, walked to Aidan's side and tapped him on the shoulder. "Are you alright?" She asked as she saw that he seemed confused. They might not have known each other for a long time, but how they understood each other made her feel close to him and seeing him this way made her concerned.

"Ah? Yeah, I'm alright. I was feeling confused about my parents sealing my memories and not knowing how to feel after knowing that they are both dead." Aidan showed a smile at Ais to reassure her as she smiled back. "It's your turn to get your crest." She said while pointing at the waiting goddess.

As Aidan looked at her hand, pointing at the goddess, he saw that she was holding a paper. "This is my status. I'll show you after." She said, and Aiden was surprised at seeing her talk so much, but he liked hearing her soft voice as he smiled at her.

"Ah. I see. I'll show you mine as well." Aidan said as he smiled at her and lay on his stomach on the couch next to the prankster goddess.