The arrival of the silver comet to the city of heroes and his encounter with the sky and the guardian of the flames

Narrator POV:

Orario.

The story surrounding this city began long, long ago; in a time before the gods descended from the heaven to bestow their blessings or Falna.

A time filled with darkness where sadness was palpable and despair was in the air. All of that caused by the attacks of cruel and irrational creatures: monsters.

Mortals soon faced unimaginable odds against those beings who only craved the destruction of all living things. Whether it was because their overwhelming numbers or their sharp claws.

Yet, amidst the wails of the survivors, amidst the destruction of their homes, amidst the loss of hope; they emerged among the normal mortals.

They were miraculous mortals.

They had bodies that continued to fight even if they collapsed, voices that cried out for hope even if their vocal cords broke, and indomitable spirits that seemed to embody the fury of mortals

They were the ancient heroes.

It was absurd for the gods who had a hard time changing. Even if the lives of those ancient heroes were extinguished fighting to save just one more life, from among those same lives, another one of them would almost inevitably emerge.

It was like a contagious infection, among the mortals who had been cornered something was transmitted between their hearts, that was a furious spirit that cried out to live.

Mountains of bones were broken, thousands of tears were shed, rivers of blood flowed, and corpses piled up... But after so many years of continuous and tireless effort, countless sacrifices and a titanic struggle.

Life won against death, mortals won against nature and hope won against despair. The mortals united as never before, pushed the ugly heads of the monsters right back into the hole from which they came.

Sealing the abyss that caused so much destruction for so long, the mortals had no time to celebrate before that beings fell right out of the sky, almost destroying that seal.

Eternal beings who knew no fear of death, those who fell in love with the shining mortal spirit, those who helped them in their struggles by sending spirits, their own incarnations, as well as those who seek their own entertainment.

Gods.

Offering their blessings to the mortals, the gods apologized to them by creating the current Orario on the seal of the abyss, the dungeon itself. As well as some took the matter seriously, becoming the guardians of Orario.

Ouranos and the guild formed by him to administer Orario.

The mortals received the blessings of the gods that allowed them to become stronger much more easily: Falna. They and the gods thus created factions that fought each other: Familia.

Thus, the era of heroes finally ended, giving way to the beginning of the era of the gods that lasted until today.

Since then, mortals have been accustomed to receiving the blessings of the gods to venture floor by floor into the hidden depths of that mysterious structure.

The dungeon, the mother of monsters with a completely unknown depth as well as all kinds of dangers and opportunities for those foolish or brave who ventured into what seemed like the jaws of the earth itself.

A place that was called both heaven and hell for its floors, which ranged from beautiful green paradises to floors filled with fire and lava where a mistake would mean death.

Above such a dangerous structure, the city developed, full of all kinds of races and people. Those who came for benefits or dreams as well as those who came for promises.

Divided by the 8 main streets as if it were a pizza, Orario had 8 different districts such as industrial, commercial, entertainment, and pleasure among others.

In the center of such a megalopolis, which had an endless number of places as well as being surrounded by a gigantic stone wall. There stood an imposing tower as if trying to pierce the heavens, that was the cover of the dungeon, Babel.

All of that was Orario, the first and last front of battle, the last line of defense, the city and cradle of heroes, the center of the world as well as the dungeon full of mysteries.

Such was the spectacle that was recorded by Mikhael's blue eyes as he quickly reviewed the information he had available in his mind about Orario and all of its history.

(Ah, damn! My soul almost feels violated just by that gaze! ) Mikhael wrinkled his face as he felt a clearly extremely hot gaze focused on him. (Freya, I'm only going to forgive this because you're fucking hot... )

Shaking his head slightly as he tried to stop thinking about both the goddess and her gaze coming from the top of Babel, Mikhael headed straight to his final destination.

His steps were heading to the guild where Ouranos was, the first divine being to whom he had to give one of Artemis's letters. His body was wrapped in a cloak to remain discreet as he walked among the population of the labyrinth city.

Even after spending a night in Artemis's temporary camp, he still couldn't quite get used to the sight of the multiple races that inhabited this world.

Beautiful elves with long, biteable ears, amazons with noticeable muscles, beast humans with ears and tails of different animals, dwarves, humans, and even the Pallums.

Hell, Mikhael even managed to see a female beast human with cow ears wearing a damn bell on her neck. He had to admit that these gods had good taste...

The young man continued walking while ignoring the noise of the merchants offering their products as well as the chatter of the adventurers passing by, so he quickly arrived there.

The guild, an organization that managed most things in Orario as well as tried to maintain peace in it to promote its development. At the same time, it provided help to the adventurers in the form of knowledgeable advisors.

Entering the pantheon, as the main building of the guild located in the tower of Babel was called, Mikhael quickly went to one of the counters where there was an employee.

"Good morning, how can I help you?" The employee dressed in the standard guild uniform looked at him, she seemed accustomed to those who came dressed in a hidden manner.

"Good morning" Mikhael took out of his cloak one of the two letters that Artemis gave him a few days ago. Placing it on the table, he replied, "I am a messenger with a letter to Ouranos-sama."

The employee looked strangely at the symbol on the letter, an arc pointing to a moon. She seemed to recognize who the symbol belonged to after a few moments of recollection.

"I'm sorry, but I'll have to report this to the guild leader, please wait a moment." The employee quickly left right after the young man's nod.

Waiting for a few moments, Mikhael didn't take long to hear a loud voice that carried annoyance and arrogance. The owner, an elf entered shortly after that.

Mikhael watched as the short, fat elf, the guild leader, Royman Mardeel approached before taking the letter and trying to open it, only for the young man's voice to stop him.

"That's a letter from the goddess Artemis to the god Ouranos, I wouldn't recommend you read it." Mikhael shrugged at the elf's gaze before saying something that froze him. "I heard that even Hermes-sama once received an arrow from her."

The elf gulped as he probably imagined being chased by an angry goddess because he snooped on her secrets, then came back to himself and nodded with fake dignity.

"You are right, young man, it would be rude of me. Follow me, I'll take you to Ouranos-sama." The elf nodded seriously, but to Mikhael, he looked more like someone who had a hot potato in his hands and couldn't wait to pass it to someone else.

Under the surprised gaze of some people, Mikhael was led to the hallway that led to the center of the guild, where normally only several employees or gods entered.

After a few moments, they both found themselves going down a spiral staircase made of stone. Upon reaching the bottom, the guild leader was about to enter just when an old but powerful voice worthy of a great God like Ouranos was heard.

"Let him pass, Royman, you may leave for now."

Nodding his head in farewell to the now more relaxed elf, Mikhael placed his hand on the door before opening it and entering the prayer room where Ouranos resided.

Mikhael's eyes met those of the god, who looked at him sitting from a throne on a platform. Amidst the illumination of the torches, the god seemed to watch him closely before speaking again.

"I heard you have a letter from Artemis for me, young man."

To what extent could Ouranos sense what was happening in Orario? Mikhael wondered, but he concluded that it was probably only in the guild.

Since the Prayer Room was right below the guild and next to the entrance of the dungeon, the prayers that prevented the monsters in the dungeon from leaving it worked properly, thus maintaining the current peace.

"Exactly, here is the letter in question, Ouranos-sama."

Mikhael nodded before taking out the letter that the guild leader returned to him, which floated before reaching the hands of the only god who was allowed to use his Arcanum.

The letter fell into the god's hands naturally like a feather. The stoic god opened it while reading the words of Artemis written on it. No special reaction at all.

Mikhael stood there silently throughout the entire process. Even if the god wouldn't notice that he was from outside this world thanks to the deep concealment of the system.

It was still deeply uncomfortable to interact with gods like him who took matters of the lower world seriously as well as one that Mikhael doubted he could fool.

Unlike Artemis who was not only a simpler-minded hunter but was also probably confused by her feelings towards her new Orion.

The great god Ouranos had been the true leader of the guild for 1000 years, watching from behind the scenes the rise and fall of numerous Familias as well he keeping an eye on the dungeon.

"I understand, it is certainly a worrying situation, it is imperative to prevent Antares from absorbing any god." Ouranos said in a calm voice without any ups and downs. "From now on you will have the support of the guild, as long as you do not do anything that threatens the stability of Orario or its population."

"Of course not, Ouranos-sama," What Mikhael said no doubt that was the truth in the god's ears. At least for now, no plan or goal would make such things happen.

"Which Familia are you planning to join? Loki or Freya?" Ouranos looked at the young man with an inscrutable expression, not seeming really interested in the answer. "Neither of them actually..."

"I'm planning to join the Hestia Familia." Mikhael could finally see a change in the god's expression as a bit of surprise momentarily appeared in his eyes after that.

"I see... You can tell Hestia about your mission if you wish, she is one of the few trustworthy goddesses." Yes, Mikhael knew that, it was precisely one of the reasons for joining her. She was the only one he could trust with his secrets here.

Because he knew that according to her personality, instead of seeing him as a source of entertainment, Hestia would try with all her heart to help him keep the secret, only because of being Familia.

"You must hurry up and level up as much as you can young man, I don't know if you will succeed, but mortals never cease to surprise us gods," Uranus said reminiscently. "I will be looking forward to your achievements, hero of the goddesses."

Hero of the goddesses? What the heck was going on with that sudden title? It was one thing to be called a hero of Artemis or something like that, but Mikhael certainly didn't expect those words.

With doubts still plaguing his mind, Mikhael briefly said goodbye to the god. His sky-blue eyes looked at him, seeming to see something he couldn't see at all.

Perhaps it had to do with the thing he devoured when he fell into this world. Mikhael didn't know, but putting that aside for the moment, he left the guild in search of his cute and voluptuous current target. Where could Hestia be?

***

Hestia found herself sighing again, it had already been a few times during that day. More exactly, that happened every time she failed to invite someone suitable to her Familia.

Hestia was a beautiful, petite goddess with a youthful appearance. She had blue eyes and mid-thigh-length black hair tied in two ponytails that reach mid-thigh.

While she could be called small because her stature was somewhat short, nothing about her body shape could be called small in terms of voluptuousness.

It had been a little over three months since Hestia came down from heaven in search of fulfilling her dream of obtaining a real Familia. Unfortunately, she soon realized how naive she had been shortly after arriving in Orario.

The children of the lower world ran away from her as soon as they heard of her newly founded Familia's status as well as the Familia's utter poverty or lack of almost any resources.

Most of them hoped to join a Familia with great promise or at least something to start with, such as the skills of some gods like her best friend Hephaestus with her forge or that recluse of Soma with his divine wine.

Unfortunately, although Hestia was the guardian of the sacred flame as well as the goddess of the hearth, she couldn't do anything that would attract potential members to her Familia.

She couldn't really just go to Olympia to take the divine flame and give it to her new children, right? So, the situation remained like this until the present.

Hestia was not proud to admit that she had been discouraged by the coldness of the children of the lower world.

Thus locking herself away to procrastinate in the room given to her by her friend Hephaestus, who saw her state and decided to pressure her.

Now, Hestia lived in the basement of a ruined church that belonged to Hephaestus. Honestly, she didn't think it was so bad, she could get used to it if only she had some company.

But such a thing only increased the intensity of the rejections of her invitations. Today was respectively the 25th and 26th attempt.

A bit of shame arose in her heart as she thought of how she declared to Loki that she would have a better Familia than her.

The truth is that a bit of envy had appeared in her chest upon seeing her sworn rival on her first day in Orario, Loki was surrounded by so many wonderful children: a good Familia.

But leaving that aside, Hestia patted her own cheeks as she stood up from the bench to leave. She could still make the most of what was left of her day off from work.

Amid her hopes of finally meeting someone to join her Familia, it was there that she met him, Mikhael.

"Excuse me for bothering you, but are you by any chance the goddess Hestia?" Hestia turned around to see who was speaking to her. A cloaked person stood before her, staring at her.

"Yes, it's me. Why exactly are you looking for me?"

He was probably young if she were to guess based on his youthful yet mature voice. Bewilderment filled her before giving way to deep joy.

Had someone read the announcement she put up at the guild or come to join her Familia? "I've come to deliver a letter." It seemed not. Hestia sighed again at the event.

Reaching out a hand covered by the white gloves of her signature outfit, Hestia received the letter with curiosity caused by the symbol of Artemis on it.

Artemis was, along with Hephaestus, one of the two goddesses close to her. Although she could be really hard-headed at times, she was actually a nice and good person.

Well, upon reading the words written in the letter, Hestia really couldn't help but twist her face in strangeness.

This caused the young man in front of her to laugh but she couldn't think about that at that moment, because...

Artemis was basically asking her to accept the young man in front of her into her Familia, she told him that he was her predestined partner but that she had no intentions of accepting him.

Therefore, it would be best for him to go separately. That's why she asked Hestia to do her a favor and take care of the young man whose feelings she flatly rejected.

Likewise, she informed her that he had a special mission to fulfill, one of defeating a certain monster that the young man would tell her about if he wanted or if it was possible now.

Hestia's blue eyes looked at the young man in front of her with a bit of pity. She had never been in love before but she could imagine it would be painful to be rejected and pushed away like that.

"Goddess Hestia, you really don't need to look at me like that, you're making my hair stand on end." The young man said with amusement in his voice as he pulled off the hood that covered his entire face. "So, would you let me join your Familia? Goddess Hestia."

Fool. At least, from Hestia's point of view right now, there was no other way to call Artemis but foolish. That was her thought as she looked at that face.

The face of the young man named Mikhael was certainly attractive, nothing to complain about if he was your destined partner. Golden blonde hair, sea-blue eyes, and a certain smile.

There was deep pride hidden deep within his sea-blue eyes, as well as a certain cruelty behind that charming smile that felt carefully practiced.

But Hestia could see beyond that thanks to her divine intuition. The essence of the young man in front of her contained kindness, sadness, loneliness, firmness, tranquility, diligence, and charity.

While the amount of lust in his heart was worrying, beyond that he was undoubtedly a good young man as well as an attractive man and an excellent partner prospect.

Hestia didn't know what Artemis was thinking when she left him in her hands, for now, she had to answer. "Are you sure you want to join my Familia? The state of it is not good..."

"Don't worry, goddess Hestia, I know about that." The young man's smile changed from a charming one to a comforting and warm one. "I wouldn't mind helping you to start from scratch."

Indeed, Artemis' brain had rotted or something from hunting monsters for so long. While Hestia understood that she had her beliefs, they were just that, cold, they were nothing compared to sentimental warmth.

Hestia's eyes were a little wet as she walked over and comfortingly patted the poor young man whose love was rejected by the airheaded goddess of the hunt and the moon.

"Goddess Hestia...?" Mikhael blinked, looking at her with a little bewilderment at her sudden actions. Hestia smiled gently, standing on her tiptoes so she could reach him.

"Since you say that, let's be a Familia from now on, Mikhael."

The rational cold within his eyes flickered for another moment, before softening as he looked at her. Mikhael then smiled sincerely in a blinding display that stunned her.

"Familia, huh?..." Mikhael said as if savoring the word between his lips. "Alright, from now on I'll be in your care, goddess Hestia." Hestia smiled from the bottom of her heart at this too, after all, it had been a great day.

"You can just call me Hestia, Mikhael."

For now, leaving aside other things, Hestia would only be grateful for Artemis' gift; this meeting. And she would enjoy the happy beat of her heart as she took the young man to her home.

"Is that so? Then I won't be polite, Hestia~"

From now on it would be the home of both of them, a Familia. All under the watchful eye of a beautiful silver-haired goddess.

***

"Um... Well, this is what we have for now." Hestia smiled stiffly as she led the young man into the basement of the church where she was staying. He took off the hood he had pulled up before making his way there.

"It will take some restoration, but it's not bad for a start, Hestia." Mikhael looked around before nodding in satisfaction with ambition flickering in his eyes. "In the future, we will surely get a larger home."

Hestia agreed, any gloominess from the morning was erased by the presence of the young man who seemed to exude some sort of attractive force. She then set about giving him Falna by leading him to the only room there.

"Mikhael, take off the clothes on your upper body, I need your back free to engrave the Falna on it." Hestia looked at who she saw as her first child, of course, that wasn't possible anymore when he took off everything on his torso as she told him.

Artemis. Oh, my dear friend Artemis. What kind of test are you giving me here? Hestia blushed intensely at the sight of his broad, muscled back. She became very aware that although Mikhael only looked to be about 18 years old.

He was a handsome man full of youthful vigor, as attested by the chiseled muscles of his seemingly hard-trained body. Hestia coughed just before suppressing everything and wiping away the drool that fell from the corner of her mouth.

She walked over to the bed where the young man lay down and carefully climbed on top of his waist. Perhaps, it hadn't been a good idea, or perhaps it was. Since now she could feel everything.

"Hestia?"

'cough'

"Right now, right now, I got distracted by something for a moment. I will proceed to bestow my Falna upon you right now, Mikhael."

Putting aside how firm her son's body felt and how blind Artemis was for not taking advantage when she could, Hestia took a drop of blood and let it fall on him.

As the drop fell into the ritual, the miracle known as Falna occurred. Hestia could almost see a connection to his soul being created before a symbol emerged.

The symbol of the torch of the goddess of the hearth, Hestia.

Hestia felt a deep satisfaction and joy seeing her symbol on him. She finally had her first. Maybe she could take some time to recruit, just Mikhael was enough for her for now. It was just because of the little space, nothing more, okay?

Falna, that was the blessing of the gods to mortals.

Through it, they could strengthen themselves by getting closer to divinity with each level. Just as Falna materialized and gave shape to dreams, potential, ideals, and even destinies as Hestia had once heard.

But it was the moment she saw her Falna that a stupid expression caused by surprise appeared on her face. Honestly, if Mikhael didn't have talent, it wouldn't matter.

But for what seemed like the tenth time that day, Hestia asked herself a question, this time with much more inner strength as she thought of that friend of hers so dear to her...

ARTEMIS, WHY THE HELL DID YOU LET GO OF THIS GIFT FROM THE HEAVENS THEMSELVES?!

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Mikhael Eden Ascart

Lv. 1

strength: I 0

Endurance: I 0

Dexterity: I 0

Agility: I 0

Magic: I 0

Magic:

[Artemis Agnós: The innocent love of the goddess of the moon]

•Dramatically and temporarily strengthens the user in exchange for a great strain on the user's body equivalent to the overall power obtained through this magic.

Incantation: «Goddess of the moon, my destiny, I beg you to guide me. Strengthen my body... calm my mind. And then seal my fate. Artemis Agnós.»

[ ]

[ ]

Skills:

[Orion]

•Greatly increases the user's overall attack power and dexterity when facing giant monsters.

•Totally decreases the chances of a projectile from the user missing if it had even a slight chance of hitting from the beginning.

•Allows the user to walk perfectly in all types of bodies of water as if walking on land itself.

«The pinnacle of human excellence in hunting, with an archery that never fails and feet that walk on water.»

[Vanadis Odr]

•The user's defensive power increases equivalent to the intensity of his loved ones' sincere feelings for him, but only in certain special situations.

•Causes the user's mere presence to gradually diminish any negative feelings of the people such as stress, tiredness, sadness, or the like of them.

•Allows the user to create multiple relationships with sincere and true love that will not fade with time.

«The very symbol and embodiment of passion, devotion, and love that will never fade, wither, or wear out.»

[Völsunga King]

•Prevents the user from experiencing any kind of fear or intimidation in any type of battle regardless of the cause.

•Massively increases the user's overall stats, attack power and defense when facing any dragon-type enemies.

•Greatly accelerates the learning of sword-related skills and makes mastery of the sword easier.

«The future brave king who knows no fear, the one who hunts dragons as well as the wielder of the demonic sword.»

[Future Sight]

•Allows the user to see the future in varying degrees.

«The one who bears the responsibility of knowledge.»

[Mark of the Outsider]

•Allows the user to heal almost any wound, ailment, or negative status of a single target each time other than himself.

•Allows the user to swap positions with other people, but only if they are in some sort of danger.

•Allows the user to create a large shield that resembles a flower but only if he has someone to protect behind it.

«The fool who chooses to take all the pain upon himself this time.»

[Mimicry]

•Allows the user to imitate and master any fighting style, technique, or martial art but he must see what he is going to imitate once and must be able to reproduce it with his current strength.

«The one who is like a mirror that can break.»

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Hestia didn't know how she should react to what she saw. Yes, Mikhael was someone chosen by Artemis and accepted by Ouranos to deal with a truly dangerous monster.

But wasn't this an exaggeration? An absolutely monstrous talent as well as skills and magic that left her thinking very deeply about them.

For now, she had to show this to her son and have a heart-to-heart with him. Anything could be put aside, but that masochism in that skill is absolutely not!!!