Synopsis |
Volume 8[]
Prologue: The Advancing War God[]
30 kilometers east of Orario, Ares and his men marched to the city to start another war, but despite this the citizens of the city weren't concerned at all as there was nothing to worry about. As Orario had a dungeon, their adventurers were far stronger, and therefore they were used to easily clear out the enemy. Taking advantage of this, merchants, including Gods like Dian Cecht, swarmed the enemy camp, eager to sell them what they could manage to forcefully sell them. This included prostitutes like Aisha and Samira who scoured the battlefield for good men that they could enjoy.
At Ares' tent, a soldier reported that people from Orario were causing problems across the battlefield, prompting the God to curse the city for their actions. Elsewhere, Asfi asked Hermes if he was going to do anything, causing him to consider having Bell fight Rakia, nevertheless he dismissed the idea since he was scared of what Freya would do to him. Asfi didn't like the thought of their Familia being destroyed, though he assured her by revealing that he had negotiated with the Guild to not have the Hestia Familia be a part of the war. In another part of the battlefield, the presence of Ais, Riveria, and Bete made the ambush party run in fear, and Ais looked back at the city for a moment before giving chase.
Chapter 1: A Love Song To A Certain War God[]
One night, Mikoto dreamt of a memory of her past. She was sitting at the base of a tree during a cold day when Takemikazuchi came over and asked if she was hungry. She ignored him for a few seconds before she asked him, without raising her head, why she didn't have any parents. It wasn't that uncommon to be an orphan in the Far East due to wars, disease, and monsters. The God answered by saying that her parents left her with him and left for heaven. She asked if she'd never see them again to which he told her that she probably wouldn't while she was still alive and asked her if she was lonely. He crouched down next to her, lifted her up, and asked for her to become his daughter, promising to give her his falna in a few years, making the two a family. The thought brought warmth to her and cheered her up.
Takemikazuchi asked Mikoto what she would've liked her parents to do and she told him that she would've wanted her parents to give her a piggyback ride, sleep with her so she wouldn't become lonely, and eat some of the konpeitou that she saw in the capital the other day. He grimaced at the konpeitou request due to them being poor, however he kept his promise and took her, Ouka, Chigusa, and the others to eat it a couple days later. Takemikazuchi told Mikoto that if she didn't like him she could always join Tsukuyomi or some other God's Familia but she adamantly declared that she wanted to be with him. He smiled and gave her a piggyback ride back to where Ouka, Chigusa, and the others were looking for her. From that day Takemikazuchi became her father and she felt feelings of familial love which would eventually turn into feelings of romantic love.
Mikoto awoke from her dream and turned to see Haruhime still sleeping next to her. Mikoto and Haruhime shared a room on the 3rd floor of the Hestia Familia home. The room had no beds and instead contained various furnishings that were from the Far East. After seeing the sleeping face of her friend, Mikoto looked out the window for a moment before completely waking. That morning, Mikoto made breakfast for everyone. While each member made breakfast in turn, Mikoto's breakfast was one that was well liked by everyone. Haruhime, wearing a maid outfit, also helped her, as she had volunteered to do the work around the Hestia Familia home while also being a supporter. While Mikoto normally made foods native to Orario such as bread, that morning she also made miso soup. Bell complimented her cooking and Hestia added that she would make a good wife. Embarrassed, Mikoto swung her hands to try and hide her embarrassment only to forget that she was holding a kitchen knife in her hand, scaring the others.
Later that day, the members of the Hestia Familia went down to the 15th floor of the dungeon. Lili taught Haruhime the various things about exploring the dungeon and being a supporter. Haruhime wore a Far Eastern style battle cloth, a small backpack, and Salamander Wool.
After spending some time in the dungeon, the Hestia Familia returned to greet Takemikazuchi at their home, they had employed the Takemikazuchi Familia to guard their home in case other Familia tried to break in. As the others left for their duties, Mikoto stayed behind and tried to give Takemikazuchi a bag of money to send back to the shrine back in the Far East. However, he refused the money and stated that Mikoto was currently a member of Hestia's Familia so she had no need to worry about it. This saddened her, however he reminded her that the falna that he gave her before hadn't disappeared and that she was always his daughter and family member. He added that Chigusa and Asuka had risen to Level 2 which gave them more stability. As he left to find Ouka, Chigusa called out to Mikoto and revealed that she had heard their conversation. Embarrassed, Mikoto asked her to keep it a secret. The annual celebration for Takemikazuchi was coming up and Chigusa wanted to discuss what gift to give him this year. Mikoto thought about it before she came up with the perfect solution.
Two days later, Mikoto took Bell and Welf shopping in order to get their opinions on what to get for Takemikazuchi. The three debated on it for a while until they decided on making a cake instead. They made their way to the Hostess of Fertility and negotiated with the employees there to have the recipe taught to them. The employees agreed because of the amusing situation and Mia relented as long as they ate lunch there. Once they finished their business, they returned to the Hestia Familia home only to see Takemikazuchi and Demeter talking. Demeter looked tired and he pulled her close, connecting foreheads in the process, to check her temperature. She left somewhat happy and Takemikazuchi continued to interact with women, unconsciously making them blush. This made Mikoto unhappy, causing her to begin taking her stress out on the cakes she had bought. She finally lost it when Takemikazuchi wiped some bean paste from around Haruhime's mouth and ate it, also telling her that he would've wanted her if he wasn't a God. Mikoto ran over to Takemikazuchi and smashed a cake in his face while she accused him of being a natural gigolo. This caused several Gods to shout words of praise and encouragement to her while she ran off.
Later on, Takemikazuchi visited the Miach Familia home to discuss Mikoto's "strange behavior" with Miach, causing Naaza, Daphne, and Cassandra to be astonished when the male Gods had no clue why she acted that way. Nevertheless, Naaza gave Takemikazuchi some advice to help him.
The following day, Mikoto had calmed down and created another cake to give to Takemikazuchi. She made her way to the Takemikazuchi Familia home which was an old apartment located in a narrow area in northwest Orario. She was surprised to see the other members of the Takemikazuchi Familia and Haruhime already there, with Ouka revealing that it was not only Takemikazuchi's celebration but also a send off party for Mikoto. After apologizing, Takemikazuchi promised to listen to anything Mikoto had to say, prompting her to confess her feelings to him, but he interrupted her by saying that he had a gift for her and left. He returned with a pair of short swords in his hands, and gave the black Chizan to her and told her that she would receive the other one, Tenka, when she came back to the Takemikazuchi Familia. Mikoto decided to confess to him again when she rejoined the Takemikazuchi Familia. With the matter settled, Takemikazuchi told everyone to continue the party.
Several days later, Mikoto was training in the central lawn of the Hestia Familia home with Chizan while Bell, Welf, and Naaza watched her. Naaza was pleased that Takemikazuchi did something but commented that the twin short swords would create a misunderstanding as it was similar to an engagement ring. The others agreed and Mikoto invited them to come train with her.
Chapter 2: Pallum's Marriage Proposal[]
50 kilometers east of Orario, at the temporary Loki Familia camp, Loki and Finn discussed their options. Loki wanted to hurry up and go home, as it had already been five days since the start of the war, and the Rakia army was still trying to prolong the outcome of the war. After hearing Raul's report, Finn realized that Rakia was trying to accomplish something in Orario, and ordered for the Familia to retreat while leaving behind their flag in order to pretend that they were still there. During their trip back, he left his orders with Riveria and Gareth, as he had something he wanted to take care of.
One morning, Lili visited Bom Cornwall's shop to help him prepare. She had stayed at the shop while she was hiding from the Soma Familia and often came by to help even after she converted to the Hestia Familia. Bom thanked her and asked if she was heading to the dungeon that day. She told him that she was heading to the 16th Floor that day and gave him a couple reminders before she left. He watched her as she left, remarking to himself that she was able to laugh more now. He knew that she had been disguising herself using Cinder Ella as he was able to see through it as a Spirit.
That night, Lili had her status updated and was somewhat disappointed in the lack of rise. Noticing her reflection in the mirror, she noticed that her status was visible and asked Hestia why she didn't lock their statuses. The others aside from Bell expressed their agreement about the lock. The Goddess was surprised that such a thing existed and promised to learn it from Hephaestus and the others sometime soon. Lili asked to see everyone's status sheets and looked through them, noticing Bell's difference in growth. The other Familia members also became interested and made up excuses to make him take his bath first; Welf claimed that he had smithing work, Mikoto claimed that she had to prepare for tomorrow's breakfast, Haruhime claimed that she had to take care of her tail, and Lili claimed that she needed to talk with Hestia. Although slightly confused, Bell agreed to take a bath and left.
Hestia, pressured by the other members of the Hestia Familia, revealed Bell's skill Liaris Freese to the others. Each of them were shocked that he had such a skill. Lili was especially shocked that he had feelings for Ais Wallenstein. She asked Hestia and Haruhime about it and Hestia vowed to make him fall for her one day while Haruhime said that she would be perfectly fine as his mistress due to her former experience as a prostitute.
Lili woke up early the next morning and spotted Bell practicing in the inner garden, making her recall that he was in love with Ais. The thought troubled her throughout their dungeon exploration that day, causing her to consider to not teaching Haruhime properly, though she decided to forget about it after she became disappointed with herself for being a small minded person. Finishing up their dungeon exploration, Bell went to report to Eina while the rest of the Familia returned home. As he moved to leave, Finn stopped him, wanting to talk to him about an important matter. They had their meeting at Café Wishe to avoid anyone overhearing their conversation, where the Pallum informed him that he had a marriage proposal for Lili, explaining the history of the Pallum and Fianna in the process. Hours later, Bell informed Lili about Braver's desire to meet her and discuss his marriage proposal. She asked him what he thought of it but quickly became annoyed by his indecisiveness and ran out of the room, spending the night at Bom's shop.
Around the same time, in the Loki Familia captain's office, Finn informed Riveria that he would be gone the following day as well. She was surprised by his sudden desire to find a wife, pointing out that he hadn't been that aggressive about it until now, to which he answered that he'd decided to spend some time on it, and brought up the fact that he might die before he could accomplish his goal, which was something he'd been made to think about recently. He quickly added that he wouldn't die that easily, mentioning that he'd found a good girl, and wondered if she would come meet him.
The next day, Lili met with Finn at the Pallum's Hidden Tavern. She asked him why he was interested to which he answered that he fell in love with her bravery, bringing up the incident when she ran to ask the Loki Familia to help Bell against the minotaur. She argued by revealing that she had robbed adventurers, nevertheless he wasn't disturbed by her claim, pointing out that she didn't kill anyone because there had been reports about her. He told her that his alias Braver was something he asked Loki for to push himself to represent the Pallum race. She asked him if he had anyone he was interested in and he mentioned that there was a troublesome girl that respected him, however he had no intention of returning her feelings. This made Lili remember her feelings for Bell and reject Finn's offer, telling him that she would help Bell as much as she could. Finn gracefully accepted her rejection and was grateful that Lili promised to introduce him to someone if such a person ever appeared.
At the Loki Familia home, Tiona informed Ais that Finn was headed to a marriage meeting, and wondered who he was going to bring back. Unfortunately, Tione overheard their conversation and demanded to know what she was talking about.
At that moment, Bell appeared, having been encouraged by Hestia's words, and asked Finn to not take Lili away. Finn decided to have a little fun and asked Bell if he was going to bother them even after they agreed to be married. Bell said that he would and Finn mocked him for not having a strong enough determination. Lili realized that Finn was drawing out Bell's feelings for Lili and showing her how much the boy cared about her. Finn ultimately decided on a duel over Lili which Bell agreed to. However, before they could begin, Tione appeared and interrupted the mood. She seemed to have a black aura that scared the Pallums near her. She asked what Finn meant by his words about Lili and revealed that she had followed his scent to the tavern. Finn ran out of the tavern as fast as he could and Tione rushed out after him.
On the way home, Bell and Lili apologized to each other for their behavior. Bell added that Lili was like his little sister which gave her an idea. She asked him to lean down and whispered in his ear in a captivating way and with a style of speaking different from her usual one that she is actually older than Bell. He instantly went red and she walked off, glad to learn that he was weak to older women.
Chapter 3: A Love Song To A Certain Smithing God[]
In a small dark room, two men met to discuss the mission given to them by Ares. The older man seemed hesitant to go along with their orders, however the younger man was eager to fulfill their mission, stating that they would be able to reclaim their old glory by taking Welf back with them.
At the Hephaestus Familia branch store, Hephaestus was busy working on a sword when Tsubaki Collbrande walked in, asking her why she wasn't smithing properly, then added that she seemed to think a lot ever since Welf left their Familia. Hephaestus simply answered that she would be sad if anyone left her Familia, and had Tsubaki move on to the business at hand, ordering her to obey the Guild's orders.
Sometime later, Welf was at his forge. He was in the process of creating a new katana for Mikoto after her former katana had been destroyed during the battle with the Ishtar Familia. Every since he had acquired the Blacksmith Development Ability with his rise to Level 2, his quality of work had improved greatly. However, he still knew that he had to listen to the metal and imbue the feelings of the hammer into it.
Eventually, Welf completed the katana and gave it to Mikoto. He decided to name the katana Kotetsu but quickly changed his mind and renamed it as Shimajirou, causing her to vehemently protest his decision. Haruhime thought that Shimajirou was cute but Mikoto told her to keep quiet about the matter just this once. The katana ended up as Kotetsu after Mikoto did a dogeza in front of Welf while crying. After the matter of Kotetsu was settled, Welf handed the Goliath Robes he prepared to Lili and Haruhime. The two tried the robes and were satisfied with its effects. Lili asked Welf why he didn't provide the Goliath Robe to Bell and he told her that he wanted to create Bell's armor on his own instead of relying on some monster's drop item.
A day later, the Hestia Familia and the Takemikazuchi Familia went on a small expedition down to the 17th Floor. Starting from the 20th Floor, there wouldn't be enough time to properly explore the dungeon and return by the same day, so in preparation they decided to get used to spending the night there. However, their expedition party got caught up in the battle between the Goliath and the adventurers from Rivira. In addition, the Goliath that spawned this time was stronger than usual, and so the members of the expedition decided to help them fight. The adventurers struggled against the Goliath and the monsters that helped it. Haruhime used Uchide no Kozuchi on Mikoto and she used the power to deal a deep wound to the Goliath's left leg. Tsubaki also arrived to help and cut the Goliath's right arm off. The appearance of a Level 5 adventurer like Tsubaki quickly raised their morale and the Monster Rex was soon defeated.
After the battle, the expedition members took the opportunity to visit Rivira. Unfortunately, Bors and several others asked Bell if he could introduce them to Welf so they could request magic swords, though he refused them immediately and forced them to leave. Tsubaki arrived soon after and Welf demanded to know why she was here. She answered by saying that she wanted to run wild in the dungeon again and also wanted to tease him. She asked why he didn't use his magic sword against the Monster Rex, wondering if he still had the foolish thought of not making them. He argued that he would reach Hephaestus through his own ways which she quickly rejected by telling him that he would never reach her at the rate he was going. To prove her point, she took a sword he made from Bell before he could react and easily destroyed it. She mocked him again and told him that he would die of old age long before he could ever reach Hephaestus' level. She promised to replace the sword she destroyed and left. The members of the expedition spent the night at Villy's inn before returning to the surface the next day.
The expedition members separated to go about their business, leaving Welf alone. As he walked around, he heard a cloaked person call out to him with a familiar voice and run. He quickly chased after the cloaked person and confronted him in a deserted area. The person removed their cloak and revealed that he was Vil Crozzo, his father. Vil told Welf to come back to Rakia and threatened that if he didn't he and his companions would unleash the power of the Crozzo Magic Swords across Orario. Welf couldn't refuse as he knew how powerful Crozzo's Magic Swords were. Vil then instructed him to bring himself and all the magic swords he had to an abandoned warehouse in southwest Orario that night. The two separated and Welf returned to his forge. He thought about it but ultimately decided to go, though he promised Bell that he wouldn't leave them.
Bell ended up following Welf to the warehouse, nonetheless Welf claimed that he didn't know that he'd been followed. Vil called his fifty companions to try and get rid of Bell but were surprised when they realized that they were surrounded by the Hephaestus Familia. Welf correctly guessed that Vil only had one magic sword, which was the one he currently had, shocking him. He theorized that even if some of the magic swords escaped destruction from the Spirits, there was no way that Rakia would let go of all of them at once. Backed into a corner, Vil pulled out his magic sword and threatened to unleash its power. Welf dared him to try and the two unleashed the power of their magic Swords at once, creating a massive fire blast that canceled each other out and a shockwave that hit almost everyone.
At that point, Vil demanded to know why Welf wouldn't make magic swords and the two argued before starting a fist fight. A few punches later, both sides stopped and a cloaked person appeared from the fifty companions and revealed himself to be Garon Crozzo, Welf's grandfather. Garon revealed that he had also been tasked with bringing him back to Rakia but decided to go against the order. He continued on, mentioning that he'd been troubled by his decision to force Welf to make magic swords back when he was a child and now regretted that decision. He asked Welf once again if he was determined to not make magic swords, to which Welf stated that he was. Garon declared that the Crozzo family would start over as blacksmiths and surrendered to Hephaestus. Garon, Vil, and the fifty companions were captured by the Hephaestus Familia and taken away.
Later that night, Welf sat on the roof of the warehouse while Bell stood a few feet behind him. Hephaestus arrived soon after and asked Bell if he would leave Welf to her. He agreed and left the two alone. Welf asked her if his methods were wrong and she answered that it was up to him. He declared that he would eventually surpass her, causing her to smile and stroke his hair, making him blush and brush her hand away. He mentioned that Tsubaki told him that she had been sad ever since he left, which she confirmed as she felt sad every time any Familia member left. She even mentioned that she would've rewarded him if he created a weapon that could satisfy her. He asked if that promise was still in effect and asked if she would become his lover if he did.
Hephaestus was shocked for a second but then started laughing. She told him that many smiths had asked the same thing before him but none of them ever made it. However, she told him that he should find a wife instead, telling him that she wouldn't be able to create a family and her face under her eyepatch was disfigured. She had been hated by Gods and Goddesses in heaven, even laughed at, and had been feared by her own Familia members. After telling him to find a different woman, Hephaestus got up and tried to leave only to have Welf grab her shoulder. He forced her to face him and quickly removed her eyepatch. A few seconds passed before he told her that she needed to try better than that to distance herself and that his passion that she trained wouldn't cool down by something like that. Hephaestus put her eyepatch back on and he told her that they were even.
Days later, Hephaestus was busy forcing Tsubaki to listen to her speak fondly of Welf which she had heard many times before. At the next Denatus, due to Hephaestus spilling the incident to Hestia, Welf's declaration became common knowledge among the Gods and was laughed at as being cheesy, resulting in him receiving the alias of Ignis.
Chapter 4: The Lovely Bodyguard[]
One day, Eina was at the Guild handling the quest completion for a female adventurer. Later that day, Misha Flott invited her out to lunch at a place in western Orario. Eina asked if they would be back by the end of their break time to which Misha answered that they might, causing Eina to be worried. Nonetheless, the two still left for the place that Misha suggested they go to.
The two left through the back door of the Guild and went the opposite way from the main street. On the way there, they were stopped by Dormul. He was an adventurer that Eina was formerly in charge of and was in love with her. Unlike other adventurers who had ulterior motives, Dormul had sincere feelings so it was hard to turn him down like the others. Even if she turned him down the roundabout way his feelings didn't change. Dormul asked Eina out to lunch and Eina tried to turn him down since Misha was there. However, Misha became interested in the situation and offered to leave the two alone. Eina was struggling to find a way out of the situation when Luvis appeared. Luvis was also an adventurer that Eina formerly was in charge of and also in love with her. Luvis mocked Dormul and a fight broke out between them. Eina took advantage of this and quickly left the scene with Misha.
Several days later, Eina taught a dungeon class to Bell. She oftentimes called an adventurer she was in charge of and taught them information one on one about the dungeon in the classes. However, contrary to her looks, the classes were extremely rigorous and many adventurers gave up including Dormul and Luvis. Bell was the only one that was able to stand the classes due to his goal of catching up to Ais. After the class Eina made her way to the break room to rest.
That night Eina left around midnight to her apartment in northern Orario. On the way there, she felt someone staring at her but looked around and saw no one. She walked a little further and turned around again to see a person wearing a cloak quickly hide behind a building. The person was a relative distance behind her but she knew that the person was stalking her. Scared, Eina started running and made it to her apartment as fast as she could. Eina checked again once she reached her apartment but didn't see anyone.
The following morning, Eina told Misha about her encounter with the stalker. Misha worried about her but also starting rambling on about rumors that she'd heard about. Eina ignored Misha's baseless rumors and tried to think of something. At that moment, her thoughts were interrupted by Bell, who'd come by with business with the Guild. She contemplated on asking Bell to guard her but quickly rejected the idea. However, Bell became concerned for her and offered to be her bodyguard. Eina tried to decline by claiming it was her work and Bell told her that he would return the favor for the Jade Protector that she bought him. She couldn't reject his offer and hired him as her bodyguard.
Three nights later, it turned out that the stalker that was scaring Eina was Dormul and Luvis. They had asked their respective God on what to do with their feelings, and it turn the Gods had used them for their own personal entertainment. Once they realized the truth, both of them became angry at their Gods. In desperation both Dormul and Luvis confessed their feelings to Eina. However, Eina rejected both of them by lying that she was dating Bell, using the phrase he'd used when he first asked about Ais. Dormul and Luvis were shocked and left depressed.
The following morning, Eina was worried about meeting Bell after lying that she was dating him. Bell arrived at the Guild to discuss something with Eina and the two returned to their former relationship of Guild employee and adventurer.
Chapter 5: The Town Girl's Secret[]
In a kitchen, Syr was busy cooking, though as usual her dishes looked suspicious with their strange colors and smells. She packed the food in a basket and left the room, wondering if they'd like the food.
One day, Bell visited the Guild. While there, he heard of the rumors about monsters stealing dead adventurers' weapons and other rumors such as black minotaurs. He discussed these rumors with Welf until Lili called for them to come back to the Hestia Familia home.
The next day, Bell went to the Hostess of Fertility as usual to meet Syr only to learn that she wasn't there. A little while before Bell sometimes had Mikoto make lunch for him because he thought it could lessen the amount of work for Syr. However, Ryuu came to their home pleading for him to continue to accept her lunches as apparently they were being forced to taste them in his place. Lunoire mentioned that Syr sometimes disappeared for a period of time and would always come back a while later. Bell suggested that they could ask her directly at her home to which the others realized that they didn't know where Syr lived, let alone her private life. Anya, Chloe, and Lunoire tried to give him a quest to go find her but Ryuu rejected it by telling Bell that he didn't need to take it seriously.
Bell left the Hostess of Fertility and wandered off. As he sat down to rest, he spotted Syr dressed in a white one piece with a basket walking off somewhere. He followed her all the way to a church in the Daedaelus Street. Wondering what she was doing in a place like that, he entered the church and was immediately spotted by a Half Elf, Human, and a Chienthrope child. They were wary of him at first before they recognized him. They immediately became interested in his weapons and Bell tried to keep them away, the commotion causing Maria Martel and Syr to appear. Bell apologized to Syr for following her and Maria explained that the church was an orphanage that took care of children whose parents died in the dungeon. He learned during lunch that Syr had been bringing her cooking to the orphanage and having the children taste test the food before she gave the food to Bell for his lunches. After lunch, Bell and Syr played with the children and one of them flipped Syr's skirt, leaving Bell with a view of her panties. She quickly became embarrassed and forced Bell to give her a lap pillow in exchange, to which the children remarked that she probably purposely let him see her panties just so she could negotiate.
After playing, the children fell asleep and the two of them walked outside. Walking around, Syr tripped on the stairs and Bell saved her, causing her to become red faced and tell him that it wasn't an act. At that moment Bell felt a stare in his direction and saw Allen Fromel staring down at him from the tall building. Syr called his attention back and Allen disappeared seconds later.
Later that day the children woke up and offered Bell a quest to find out the source of a sound. The children led Bell to an entrance to the tunnels under the Daedaelus Street. Within that entrance they encountered a Barbarian, a deep floor monster that was rated by the Guild to be at least Level 3 or 4 in terms of strength. As Bell fought it, he noticed that it was similar to the minotaur that he'd fought before. Bell struggled against the monster with their power difference and was sent back. Rye decided to help Bell by throwing rocks at the Barbarian and it almost attacked Syr and the children before a javelin flew from the entrance and killed it in one hit. Turning around, Bell saw Allen standing at the entrance. Allen retrieved his javelin and insulted Bell for being unable to protect a woman and children. He gave a light nod to Syr before leaving. Bell and Syr safely returned the children back to the orphanage and walked home part of the way together.
The same night, Freya returned to her tent at the Freya Familia camp. Ottar reported that the enemy was starting to break apart and retreat. Allen returned to the tent and Freya asked if he had a good day off. He complained that Syr left the Hostess of Fertility, forcing him to guard her all day. He also requested if Freya could tell her to not wander off that much. Freya asked if Syr was laughing to which he slightly reddened, as if she found out about a girl he secretly had feelings for. Allen immediately realized that Ottar was watching him and told him to get lost. Ottar complied without a word and left the tent, leaving Freya and Allen alone. Freya thought about taking a vacation since she was outside of Orario to which Allen declared that he would be her chariot and take her wherever she would like. She smiled and asked Allen if he'd seen Anya lately. He answered by saying that he had cut all ties with the dullard. She chastised him for that, telling him that Anya was his only sibling and that he should go see her.
Chapter 6: A Certain Goddess' Love Song[]
At the Rakia camp, Ares demanded to know why they were losing, leading to a pointless discussion in which his generals mentioned that they were suffering losses on all sides. Ultimately, the God decided to go to Orario himself, claiming that he would capture Hestia and use her as a hostage to get Welf.
One morning, due to an incident between Bell and Haruhime, which Hestia didn't appreciate because of her own feelings toward the boy, held a meeting. She announced that she was going to put restrictions on romance in the Familia, citing her status as a virgin Goddess, and tried to emphasize love between a God and a child. Unfortunately, her plan backfired when Bell stated that he wouldn't consider being in a relationship with a God, as he believed that they were to be respected, and so while they could be a family, he felt that it wouldn't be right to be anything more than that.
Hestia ran out of the Hestia Familia home and began complaining about the other Gods to the people around her. She was approached by a fellow Jagamarukun stall coworker and asked if she could help them gather herbs for cooking. Hestia wanted to agree but couldn't due to Gods not easily being allowed outside of Orario due to the fear of them becoming an enemy force. However, as the two approached the northern gate, Ganesha appeared. Hestia explained their situation and he allowed them to leave without consulting the Guild. The Ganesha Familia members with him protested but he didn't budge as being the Lord of the Masses he couldn't let something like Jagamarukun running out happen. They thanked him and left through the gate, only to find themselves face to face with Ares and Marius Victrix Rakia who'd disguised themselves using cloaks. Ares captured Hestia and ran off with his men.
After kidnapping Hestia, Ares gloated over his victory within the Beol Mountains. Hestia protested her treatment but was told to be quiet. She told him that forces from Orario would find her in no time but Ares pointed out that they were deep within the mountains making it hard to find them quickly. Rain came down and the Rakia forces thought to find shelter. At that moment they were attacked by Ais and Asfi. Ais and Asfi made quick work of the Rakia forces, causing Ares to want to fight himself. He was easily defeated by Ais and pulled back by Marius. While the others were fighting Bell moved to secure Hestia. However, Hestia was accidentally kicked by a soldier rushing to help Ares and fell off the edge and down to a river. Bell jumped in to save her and Ais followed soon after. They managed to save Hestia farther down the river where they were taken to a nearby village to help Hestia rest.
The village they were taken to was called Edas Village, located deep within the Beol Mountains. Caam allowed the three to use his house to take care of Hestia and to use his daughters if necessary. Ais returned from scouting around the battlefield from the day before and reported that no one was there anymore. Bell decided on staying in Edas Village until Hestia recovered and Ais agreed. To pay the villagers back for allowing them to stay, the two decided to help with the festival preparations. While doing so, they noticed black objects around the outer edge of the village. A lady explained to Bell that they were scales from the One Eyed Black Dragon and they were used to keep monsters away from the village. Bell walked over to Ais and noticed that she was staring at what appeared to be a shrine with a black scale inside. He commented that it was like a God to which Ais quickly rejected with a cold voice that he'd never heard her use before. Bell thought about asking about her change in behavior but ended up not doing anything about it.
Bell and Ais returned to Caam's house after finishing up the preparations. Bell left to speak with Caam while Ais stayed with Hestia. Seizing the opportunity, Hestia asked Ais what she thought about Bell. Ais answered that Bell was like a rabbit to her, much to Hestia's delight. Just in case she also added that Ais should make sure not to dote on "the rabbit" too much or else trouble would start. One of Caam's daughters arrived to check on Hestia and she asked to grant a certain request.
Bell met up with Hestia and Ais at the festival, both dressed in Caam's daughter's clothes. Caam's daughter suggested that they participate in the festival. The three heard a song and saw a group of people dancing. An old man explained that dance invitations to women were like confessions of love and if the woman accepted it they would become a couple. Hestia seized the opportunity and told Bell that as a Goddess, she would forget about their fight earlier if he danced with her. Bell was confused but still asked Hestia and danced with her. After dancing with her, Bell went to find Ais to try and ask her to dance with him. However, Hestia body slammed him before he could finish and took his place.
After the festival, Ais decided that they would leave for Orario the next morning. At that moment, Caam's daughter came running and asked if they would be with her father during his final moments. The three rushed to Caam's house to find him lay dying on his bed. Caam wished for a Goddess to watch over him as he died and revealed that the Goddess of the Familia he formerly belonged to was Brigid. Hestia revealed that she and Brigid were friends back in Heaven. Caam revealed that he was both afraid of seeing and not seeing Brigid again. Suddenly, Brigid seemingly took over Hestia's body to tell Caam that she was thankful that he still loved her and that she still loved him. Relieved, Caam released strength from his body and died.
Hours later, Hestia checked on Bell. He asked her if Caam would meet Brigid in Heaven to which she answered that it would be hard as souls were normally under the jurisdiction of the Gods of the Dead. Hestia asked if he was wondering because of the death of his grandfather. Bell nodded and began thinking deeply about. Hestia promised him that she would stay with him even if he became old, and even if death separated them she would find him again no matter how long it took and ask him to join her Familia again. She added that he shouldn't be afraid of loving the Gods. Bell couldn't hold back his tears by this point and Hestia comforted him.
The following morning, the three departed and were quickly found by Asfi. She offered to carry one of them back but Hestia told her that they would walk back to Orario.
Epilogue: Birthday[]
Wiene was born in the area of the dungeon called the Large Tree Labyrinth. She looked at her surroundings for a short while before wondering where she was.
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