Getting a lay of the land

They pet me for like, 10 minutes before the girls were ready to go see Orario. On our way there, none of us wanted to carry our luggage, so we let it trail behind us while we walked and talked. "My lord, what are your restrictions for this world?" Again, they knew of my restrictions, so it was a normal question.

"Down to 'a fourth,' half of my reserves, and no super move in the dungeon... Or at all really, I don't have the reserves to pull it off." Saeko and Saya hummed at that, but Rika gave me a look.

"So... That mean I can kick your ass now?" I grinned at that. "Want to try it sealgair? I don't mind knocking you on your ass." She shot me a smirk, and her aura bullets started shimmering into existence. I counted at least 100, and got ready to strike.

"As much as I would enjoy testing my lord's limits, perhaps we should find somewhere to set our luggage? Preferably the roof of a comfortable building." Rika and I shared a look, and she shrugged. Her bullets de-spawned, and we went back to walking like nothing happened.

The girls were fine with sleeping in any kind of terrain. Other than deserts or humid places, but that was fine. I managed to get them comfortable with everything else back when we were in the HOTD world and Remnant. We still liked to sleep in a good bed, but when you can turn into a wolf, and cuddle with 4 other wolves, you find that the outdoors are nice in their own way.

"Crazy's got a point. Though where should we go? We just got here, and we've got no clue what is what... Other then the fucking tower that is." Point.

"Then in the morning, we get a lay of the land... Before we do, everyone take out your scrolls. I need to see if the improvements I made work here." We all stopped, and followed through with Saya's request. I turned on my scroll, and hummed.

"I mean, it works, but I've got no signal, so I can't really use it. Not a surprise considering we're in another world." Saya clicked her tongue, and put her scroll away.

"I'll need to work on this later. It SHOULD'VE worked, but it doesn't. Another thing to test I guess." We all shrugged, and went back to walking. Though I felt someone grab my tail, which was still a weird thought to have in 'human' form, and looked to see Shizuka. I raised a brow, but she pouted at me.

"It's fluffier than mine. It's not fair." The pout mixed with her ears drooping and tail wagging was a critical hit to my heart. I even gripped the thing when I felt that.

"Good gods... She's too strong." Rika outright started wheezing, while Saya and Saeko started giggling a right mess. Shizuka though blinked, zoned out for a second or two, then grew this massive smile. She had a plan, and I suddenly felt bad for the future me.

"I'm going to be the best girl now. And nothing will stop me! Mwahahaha!" We all looked at the 'maniacally' laughing Shizuka, and just stared. Then as one, we decided to turn away, and just not mention it. "Wait for me!" Shizuka cut out the laughter, and followed along. Though she didn't let go of my tail as we kept walking. Not that I minded.

"So, Silver. Anything else we're supposed to know? Or we just going in sort of blind here?" Eh.

"Not really. There might be rules against killing people, not the normal kind since familia laws or whatever the fuck. I don't know how the rules between familia work, so we'll need to check that out before offing people that annoy or try us." Rika hummed, and Saya decided to chime in.

"If they have a library here, I'll check it out in the morning. Though considering the setting of this world, I'm curious if they even have one of those here." That, was a good point. Danmachi was this weird mix of somewhat modern, and other ages. I didn't even think everyone was literate in this world.

"Hm... Should we split up to get a better understanding of the city's layout?" Saeko had the right idea. "I will already lay claim to the dungeon." Not surprised in the slightest. "What about you girls?" Rika hummed, and just tapped her lips. A very Shizuka like mannerism.

"I'll take the area surrounding the dungeon. We already know smarts is going to go for the library, I'll have to pull you back if you go too wild though." Saeko shrugged, but didn't mind having Rika as her keeper. "Shizuka, whatcha gonna do?" Said woman stopped caressing my tail, and hummed. After a few seconds, she hugged my tail, and smiled.

"I'm going with Silver. I need to keep playing with his new tail." We all grinned at that, and I decided to give her ears a scratch. The way she hummed and the sheer SPEED her tail wagged let me know that she appreciated it.

"I'll check on the familia's I mentioned to you girls. I should be able to find Loki's easily, though I've gotta check to see if Miach is where I think he is. I'll probably meet up with you and Saeko when I go to check on Hephaestus." That got a round of nods, and we were quiet for a bit. But Rika doesn't like quiet.

"Hey smarts."

"Yes Rika?"

"Think these are more sensitive now?" I saw Saya get contemplative, and she started running a hand through her tail. It looked like she was going to say something... Only to be assaulted from behind by Saeko. Saya YIPPED, and we all stopped what we were doing as Saeko played with Saya's ears and tail. Saya was frozen, a fierce blush clear as day, and then Saeko went in for the finisher.

"Why don't you tell us Saya? Does it feel as good for you as it does me?" She whispered that in her new ears, and finished it off by blowing into her inner ear. Saya froze, then just fainted again. Saeko caught her, but sported one of the biggest grins I've ever seen on her outside of torture or fighting.

The bark of laughter that came from both Saeko and Rika was far too good to miss out on. Shizuka and I joined their laughing fit, and we all agreed to use this against her later. But it did answer our question. "This is going to be a weird thing to adjust for the next time we fuck." Rika snorted, but didn't disagree. Though I don't think she COULD'VE disagreed.

"Alright, we can pick on smarts some more later. Let's head into... Orario? Yeah, that's what this place is called. By the way, Silver? Can you get Smart's stuff since she passed out again?" I shrugged. That was easy for me.

After grabbing Saya's stuff, we kept walking towards the walls, and eventually made it. We got a look from the guards, and after telling them that Saya was just sleeping, not sure if they really bought it, they let us in.

And like that, we stepped into the city of adventure.

{Freya's POV as they arrived into Danmachi}

Sitting atop my tower, I continued looking at my city. It was always a wonder, to see the world beneath my feet, the city full of children and gods, all within my sight. There was nothing that could hide from me, no valuable little child or trinket was beneath my notice.

"Hm... Ottar?" My most valuable treasure, the strongest child in all of Orario, my most faithful servant.

"Yes, my goddess?" Always by my side, the precious little thing.

"What has the little rabbit been up to today?" My latest soon to be treasure. The moment my eyes fell on that child, I just knew I needed to make him mine. But, there is no need to be hasty. I still needed to evaluate him. Because while he was a treasure, I needed to know just how much he would be worth. Not all gold shines the brightest after all. He would be mine in due time, but until that time came, I'd keep an eye on him and wait.

My Ottar grunted, and prepared his answer. "The child was observed being rejected by another familia. That makes the 12th familia to do so within the 5 days he has been in Orario. He is still staying at the room he found since his arrival."

"Perfect. My little treasure has yet to be soiled. Hm... Perha...-" I was mid sentence when I felt something shift. I had no doubt some of the other gods and goddesses in my city felt the same, but I was the one who was able to see it all. And with the feeling I had gotten, I HAD to see just what it was. So I got out of my seat, and looked towards the disturbance.

The night view of Orario was always a wonder, but for tonight, I would need to ignore it. The feeling didn't come from Orario, but from beyond its walls. And beyond its walls I searched.

"My goddess?"

"Silence please Ottar, someth...- Now what do we have her...-?" It took a few moments to find the source, but when I did, I couldn't help but stare. My breath was stolen from me, and I for what felt like centuries, stared at the sight before me in honest wonder.

As a goddess of war and one who ferried souls in Tenkai, I had the ability to discern the potential of a soul. It was what helped me lay claim to my treasures, and secure the best and brightest of them. But when I laid my eyes on what I believe caused the disturbance I felt, the sheer brilliance of the souls I saw left me without breath.

"Beautiful." That was what I would sum them up as. Two gorgeous purple treasures, a brilliant gold, a searing pink, and a silver that put all others to shame. I could tell the silver soul had coated the others, giving them all a magnificent sheen to the already stunning souls. But that silver soul had to have been the most beautiful treasure I had ever seen. Not even my Ottar had shone with such a light.

And I knew then and there. "I want it. Ottar, call off the majority of our surveillance on the boy. I have new treasures to lay claim to."

"Yes, my goddess." Ottar turned to leave, but as I watched my new treasures interact with each other, I couldn't help but feel a little hot. And whenever I had an itch, it needed to be scratched.

"Not yet. Ottar, come perform your duties." I heard the door close, and then the footsteps of my current most precious treasure. Seeing him kneel out of the corner of my eye, I went back to my chair, and allowed Ottar to come to me.

Plans to claim the brightest treasure in all of Orario, if not the world, would come later.

{Maccillian's POV}

After getting inside the city, the girls started looking around, and then Saya started ranting after a few minutes of said looking around. "What the hell! Why are there so many cultures just smashed together?! Why's there a fucking Storeyed building on one corner, and then a fucking Greek styled mansion on the other! Who the fuck designed this city!? Did we walk into an arts museum or something!?"

I had no idea how long it's been since she started ranting, but I just left it be. We even passed a fucking middle ages like house, and I zoned out. Rika was on the rooftops with Saeko, looking for a good spot to sleep on and set our luggage down without forest bugs crawling in or over them. Shizuka was still getting pet, so she wasn't listening to a single word Saya was saying.

I was wondering if I could just make us a place to stay, when Rika and Saeko came back. "Hey Smarts! We found a spot!" That made Saya stop her rant, and I looked at Rika like she was the next coming of Christ.

"Fine. Let's go." Saya jumped after Rika and Saeko, and I just let Shizuka latch onto my back when she gave me the eyes.

We followed Rika for a few minutes, and eventually ended up on a nice four story building. Saya decided not to rant at the fact it was styled like one of the real old japanese buildings, just with a flatter roof, and set down her luggage.

The rest of the girls piled their stuff in one corner, and started getting ready to sleep. Rika shifted, and took the spot closest to the corner, Shizuka shifted and laid right next to her, and I went next to her. The moment I did, she put her head onto mine, and then Saeko and Saya took my other side. With everyone ready, we let ourselves curl up into each other, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

{Next day}

Waking up in a pile of fur was common now, and I didn't need a few seconds to realize what we were doing or where we were. (Yay for development.) Per usual, I was the first one up, and I shook a bit to start waking up Shizuka. She was up after another few shakes, and she smiled at me the moment she saw me. It was always like that, and I'd never get sick of it.

Shizuka got up, and after waking up Rika, I woke up Saya and Saeko. The girls all stretched, more like cats then the wolves they were, and we shifted back after they were done. With that done, Saya went over to her, Rika's and Saeko's luggage, and brought them over to me. "Hah... Goddammit." Saya just smirked at me, and I grabbed the suitcases.

"Right. Alright crazy, let's go check out the monster mash." Saeko grinned, gave me one last kiss, and went over to Rika. They gave me and the girls a wave, then jumped off. With them gone, I turned back to Saya, and hummed.

"You wanna go together? Or you going off on your own ceann beag?" Saya hummed, and thought about it.

"I'll go on my own. I'll howl if I need you." I nodded, and watched her go. Now it was just me and Shizuka.

"So mo grá, out of the goddess of trickery, goddess of the forge, the Irish alchemist, the goddess of the hearth, and the japanese god of war, who do you want to check out first?" Shizuka stopped playing with my tail, and blinked. I let her think, and just waited on her answer. I didn't mind the wait, or where we went first, though I was curious on who she would pick. But I was pretty sure I knew who.

After a minute or two of thinking, she nodded to herself, and gave my tail a brush. "Hestia. Family is the most important thing in the world."(Family.) I blinked at how serious she was there. I expected the answer, but not the way she said it. But after realizing that Shizuka saw all of us as family, one that fucks each other while not being related, it made sense.

She was lonely with just Rika and that one teacher back in HOTD. The kids, all of em, and then the rest of the RWBY gang. It gave her people that genuinely talked to her and cared about her. When I put that together, I just hugged her. Isolation was a bitch to deal with, and I knew that. "Then let's go meet the little lady of the hearth." Shizuka nodded, and we broke out of the hug.

Though I made some aura hands to carry our suitcases, because I sure as hell wasn't going too. (Off to find the goddess we go! Now where the fuck is that potato shop?)

{Saya's POV}

It's been 5 minutes since I separated from Zaka and Shizuka. And I've come to the same conclusion I did last night.

This world was brain dead. Zaka explained how there were gods and goddesses of different pantheons here when we first learned of this world, but seeing architecture from Roman, Greek, Chinese and even Norse cultures was so dumb. (It'd be better if these fucking buildings didn't look so out of place! For fucks sake, why is there a library next to an Egyptian... Hello library.)

The building itself resembled something you'd see in Greece, so I decided to check the sign where the name should be, and blinked. The logo was an owl perched on a branch, holding a book in its claws. And above it was the name. "Athena's Epistêmê... Makes sense." I walked up to the doors, pushed them open, and walked in.

And I felt my breath be taken away. Directly in front of me was a librarian, the fact she was sitting at the front desk with a sheet of names on it clued me into that quickly, but it was what was behind her that took my breath away. The entryways by her sides showed me the countless numbers of bookshelves, all filled to the brim. From where I was standing, there looked to be thousands of them. "Holy fuck. I've died and gone to heaven." That's what it had to be. I'd never SEEN such an impressive library.

"Hm, somewhat crude, but I appreciate the sentiment." I blinked, and looked towards the librarian. And now that I was looking at her, I could tell 2 things. First, she was gorgeous. She had flowing brown hair, probably all the way to her backside, glasses that accentuated her gleaming sunset orange eyes, a cute mole under her lip, and an impressive bust. (D at the minimum. Not bigger than me or Shizuka, but still good... I'll be horny later, but the estimation is appreciated.) She was wearing something a secretary would, but instead of all the buttons being put in place, she let the top one out. I couldn't see her legs since she was behind the desk, but I could just walk up to her and see.

The other thing I found out was that she was strong. Like Zaka strong... But weak at the sa...- (Wait a minute. Zaka levels of strength, but weakened just like he is now, thanked me for the compliment about the library, which could mean a few different things, but the first point gets rid of a majority of them... And she's this gorgeous? That might have nothing to do with it, but let's just pretend it might.) There was only one answer. I bowed to her, and spoke in a leveled tone. "My name is Saya Takagi, I greet the goddess Athena." I didn't give a lot of people outside of the pack, my sister mates, Zaka, and the friends we made from Remnant, respect. But when I was speaking to the Goddess of Wisdom? She got my respect the moment I figured who she was.

I went back to normal, and looked at the first goddess I've met. She had a kind smile on her face, and I could see both the amusement, and interest in her eyes. "I greet Saya Takagi. As you've said, I am Athena. Welcome to my library. How may I help you child?" Going up to the counter, and finding out she wore a pencil skirt and heels, I decided to get to the point before my mind thought of anything inappropriate.

"I'm interested in the basics of adventuring, a beastiary of the monsters in the dungeon, anything that would catalog the current familia in Orario, books on basic magic, alchemy, and forging." I knew I was leaving out the book for the laws here, but that could come later. Athena hummed, and started tapping her fingers against the desk. The interest in her eyes only grew as I spoke, and after a few seconds of humming and thinking as she tapped the desk, she nodded.

"It's rare to see literate adventurers. Even more so a Werewolf... How intriguing. Very well. For your first inquiry, the adventurer section will be the first group to your left. Books about adventuring and the latest beastiary shall be in the same section. However, for your next selection, you'll need to report to the guild. They catalog that information for the masses." That made sense. "For the books pertaining to magic, the section in the back left has everything you would need to gain a beginner's understanding of the subject. The alchemy and forging books will be on the second floor to the right." I nodded. "However, may I make a suggestion Ms. Takagi?" Hm? Last name? Interesting.

"Sure. I don't think anyone would say no to a suggestion from you." Athena grinned, and pointed towards the second floor.

"The second floor contains a beastiary of floors 1-40. The one on the first floor only gives the basics and goes to the 20th floor. If I'm reading your strength correctly, you should be more than capable of reaching the Goliath. I don't believe you have the strength to kill it outright, but I think I'll save you the trouble of having to return and pick up a new volume." Hm... There was an opportunity here.

"And how strong do you think I am, Lady Athena?" She gave me a look that I was sure I made whenever I made improvements to my weapon, and I knew that this woman and I would be fast friends.

"From my calculations, you should be at the early stages of level 3. If not that, then the peak of level 2. Would I be correct in assuming so Ms. Takagi?" Now it was my turn to grin. She'd inadvertently given me a way to scale our progress to the natives of this world. For that, I'd take a page out of Zaka's book.

I shot her a grin, and started to walk towards the library. "Oh I wouldn't know. After all, I don't have a falna." Hearing the goddess Athena, choke and almost fall out of her chair, brought me levels of amusement that only the rest of my sister mates and Zaka himself knew of. (So this is why they do it to me. I like it.) I kept walking towards the first section, mainly to get the first book on adventuring, but stopped when I heard Athena coming towards me. I turned to look at her, and raised a brow as I met her. "Yes lady Athena?"

She had to catch her breath, probably since she just started choking a few seconds ago, and then ran immediately after. When she managed to collect herself, she looked at me, I made a note that she was a couple of inches taller than me, and pointed a shaky finger at me. "Y-You WHAT!?" This was going to be fun.

"I don't have a falna, and by proxy, no familia." Athena went through a series of expressions at that. Shocked, surprised, intrigued, and then calculating. Seeing the changes was interesting, but when she got to the last one, I blinked. She stood straighter, the atmosphere around her changed to a more professional job interview kind, and then she spoke.

"Saya Takagi, would you do me the honor of interviewing you to join my familia." I blinked. With the sudden change of Athena, I felt whiplash hit me like a truck.

But even in the face of a surprise like that, I still managed to stay calm and collected. I even gave her the proper response for this situation.

"Huh?"

{Rika's POV}

"This place is kinda cool." Saeko and I were on a roof close to the Tower, and now that the sun was out, and I was way closer to the thing, I had to admit that it looked impressive.

"True. It's interesting to think about the Tower of Babel, and then seeing it with my own eyes. But then again, we DID fight an army of darkness monsters a while ago, so interesting things seem to be what we signed up for."

"Isn't that the truth... I should've won that by the way." Saeko snorted, and sent me an amused smirk.

"Ever the sore loser aren't you Rika?" I rolled my eyes at that.

"Whatever. So, before you go all murder happy, think we should check in with the 'guild' here? Silver's ID thing should work, but it's probably better if we make sure it did." Saeko started humming, then she shrugged.

"You make a good point Rika. Then let's go see this guild." And so we did. We jumped off the roof, made sure not to land on anyone, and made our way to the guild. "Also, if you had won, what WOULD you have done?" I grinned at that.

"You and the rest of the girls would've been eating me out till your tongues went numb." The hum and way her tail, I was still getting used to the fact we had them now, swayed was an easy way to tell she was interested in that. "What about you Crazy?" She hummed again, and gave me a saucy look.

"I would've dominated you all. Shizuka would've let me, Saya has shown that she can be the most adorable bottom, and you would be quite fun to play with." My answer to that was a snort.

"Then I guess you'll just need to wait some other time to 'dominate' me." Saeko went 'fufufu' like a goddamn older sister type, and I saw the excitement on her face.

"Oh Rika, I didn't know you wanted to be toyed with so badly." Oh really?

"Come on crazy, we all know you're the one that likes to be turned into a drooling mess by the end of our fuck sessions."

"Oh so VERY true. But I'm not the only one who loves to drool. Saya learned how to be sloppy from you after all." She had me there, and she knew it. Buuut.

"Maybe you should pick up on it, Silver would probably love it if you did." She just hummed again, and we walked into the guild. "Oh for fucks sake. LINES?! I thought I was free of these fucking things!" Saeko stopped humming and just snorted.

"Patience Rika. This was also YOUR idea." Fuck. "Please keep your tail in check, you almost hit the poor lady behind us." I turned, saw there was a... Elf? Woman in what I assumed was a uniform, with glasses in front of her emerald green eyes and brown hair behind me, who was watching my tail. My tail was a rambunctious little fucker, and I just grabbed the bastard when I couldn't keep it from swinging.

"My bad." She just gave me a weary smile at that.

"It's nothing... Hm... I don't remember hearing about Werewolves aside from Loki familia's Bete in Orario... Are you two new?" That made me and Saeko blink. We knew there were Werewolves in this world, but didn't know much about them. But then this chick just tells us there's only one here? I shared a look with my crazy sister mate, and we both nodded.

"Yes. We came here to check if our adventurer status was still in effect. We had waited for a friend of ours to meet up with us in order to go together. She came in this morning, signed up, and asked us to go ahead and make sure everything was in order on our end." Leave it to Saeko to be smooth like that. A nice on the spot lie.

The elf woman frowned a bit when Saeko said we were adventurers, but just rubbed her head and sighed. "If it's already done, then I can't deter you from going into the dungeon. Would you like me to check if your papers are in order before you go in? Or would you prefer a different guide did so?" Score!

"You're good girl. Crazy and I don't mind if you go for it." Saeko nodded, and the guild lady just sighed again, and walked with us.

After we got ourselves checked in, she sat us down in a booth, and looked at us. "First, I will need your names. Second will be your race, which is either pure Werewolf, or a half. And then the familia you're a part of." Uh oh. That first and second part was easy, the third part not so much.

"Well then. My name is Saeko Busujima, pure Werewolf. And as of right now, no familia." The guild lady...

"Rewind real quick. We never got your name. And I'm Rika Minami by the way. Same as crazy too." The guild lady sighed again, and just took off her glasses so she could rub the bridge of her nose.

"I am Eina Tulle. And I do not regret to inform you that it is necessary to join a familia to brave the dungeon. I can still check to see if your paperwork is in order, but you will need to return later and register a familia before your adventurer status is recognized." Saeko and I nodded at that, and we decided to get some more info out of Eina.

And as we did, we came up on an interesting topic. "What positions are you and your friend filling in for?"

"Hm? There are options?" I didn't spend much time going over the information I got on the world. I just made sure I knew the language, and some of the basics.

Eina's eye twitched when I asked that, but she just let out a steady breath, and looked at us.

"Yes, There is. First, the front liner is the most common choice of profession adventurers pick when they first register with the guild. If they're wearing some form of armor, and they're an adventurer then most likely they are a front liner... Though the armor bit will mostly not extend to Amazons. They are too proud to wear armor... Or battle crazy, I'm still not entirely sure which." I swore I saw Saeko's grin turn predatory for a moment.

"The next profession adventurers can fill in for are Rangers. Mages, archers, anyone that relies more on striking from a distance. Mages are the least common in this category, magic is difficult to learn after all." Made sense, though I did wonder where I fit in that. I could snipe with Triple Tap, or run shit through with her spear/axe form.

"Then we have the supporters, as their name entails, they support front liners by picking up the spare magic stones an adventurer fails to collect, and provide other kinds of assistance. Most supporters can be identified by the obscenely large bags they carry. All supporters are required to take the skill Artel Assist to be recognized as a supporter.

Then we have harvesters, those that specialize in collecting parts of monsters, such as Firebird talons, or Kobold hides. The guild pays these adventurers depending on what they bring, the quality of it, and how much. Some establishments even contract Harvester's to deliver specific parts for their dishes. Also, most harvesters will have an emblem of some kind to show they are harvesters.

Finally, we have contracted members. These include scouts, blacksmiths, alchemists, leather workers, healers and tamers. However that last option is mostly a profession exclusive to the Ganesha familia. You can also sign up to have a poster put up to either send out or take requests from other adventurers to join their parties if you fulfill any of those roles."

Well hello holy exposition. (Damn... Should've brought Saya with me... Note to self, introduce them to each other later.)

"Interesting. Rika, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" I looked at Saeko, who was looking at Eina and also me from the corner of her eye, and nodded.

"Bring Smarts to her?" Saeko smiled and nodded.

"Yes." Eina seemed interested in the byplay, and I saw her blinking at us.

"Who?"

"Friend. Pink haired genius." She nodded, but didn't look like she really understood. But that was whatever. (Speaking of Saya, I wonder what she's doing now.)

{Saya's POV right where we left off}

"Huh?" Maybe not my brightest moment, but again, I was too surprised to formulate a proper response. But she didn't hold it against me.

Like it was a lie, she blinked, and the serious air around her disappeared. Then she gave me a sheepish smile and coughed into her hand. "Ah. I'm sorry child. You presented yourself as the most interesting person since The Sword Princess." She hummed, then looked around. "Would you come sit with me? Humor me for a few moments?" I thought about it, and decided to see where this would go.

We walked over to an empty table, most of the library was empty, though there were a few people here reading on the far end of the first floor.

After we sat down, Athena clasped her hands, and looked at me with the interested and calm smile she had when I had first met her. "Now then. Where would you like us to start?" That was easy.

"I want to talk about you and your familia. If I WAS going to join you, I want to know about you and them." She hummed, then nodded.

"Simple but important. Good question. As I've said, I am Athena, the goddess of wisdom. And currently, I have no familia." I blinked. "Not for a lack of trying or having few try to join me, but because they do not meet my requirements." Ah. "As I have said earlier, literate adventurers are a rarity. And literacy just so happens to be a requirement of mine. Now don't mistake this as me being harsh on the masses, unfair it may be, but not because I choose to be unfair. I've been trying to petition the guild to lend me a property to set up schools to help teach adventurers not only how to read and write, but more." She sighed at this part, but I knew not to interrupt. I grew out of that after all.

"But unfortunately, I have been refused. I could ask a favor from Ouranous to do this, but I doubt it would work. We have all agreed that Ouranous is to remain neutral, and asking for said favor would break that. All I can do is keep up this property given to me by Hephaestus. The other way would be to have children join my familia, but I refuse to let in meatheads and battle maniacs. I've had enough of them back in Tenkai with Ares." I snorted.

"Oh you would hate my bestfriend and lover." That made the goddess pause, and then smile.

"A story for another time then." I nodded, but she kept the smile. "Back to my explanation. In order to choose only the best, I came up with certain criteria that must be met before I allowed anyone to join my familia. The first of which is to be literate." Made sense. I couldn't imagine the goddess of wisdom having a follower that couldn't read or write. "The second of which is dependent on their personality. I do not accept spoiled noble brats, whiny children, battle maniacs and meatheads as I've said earlier, lustful idiots, and I do not accept cruel or malicious people." Again, it made sense. "The last of which is drive. If someone were to join my familia, I want them to have the drive to learn. The drive to grow. I will not have a child that refuses to seek knowledge or to better themselves."

I liked that, but now I had to ask another question. "Why me?" Simple, but again, important. I had no clue about her intentions, so even if I liked what she was saying, I needed more information.

Athena nodded at that, and started tapping the desk. "Firstly, your comment about my library. If someone's ideal of Tenkai is a library, then that is already a plus in my book." Heh. "Secondly, you came for information, knew what you wanted instead of just saying 'Where are the books for adventurers?' Or 'Where's the monster section?' You would not believe the number of times I've had to ask people to be specific. 'What about adventuring do you need? The basics? Tips about keeping weapons and armor in good condition? What equipment should be taken for what floor?' Things like that. But you came in, asked me where the basics of those subjects were, and used the correct term when asking for a beastiary.

Thirdly would be your admittance to not having a falna. Your level of strength, without the guidance of a god or goddess speaks more than you know. Children spend their days seeking only the dungeon. They do not work to prepare themselves in body or mind beforehand. 'The dungeon will make me stronger.' It is an annoying sentiment that I despise. Strength comes from more than just how fast you can break a goblin's face. If there is no mind behind the power, then they are just a meathead.

Then there's you. I can see it from the way you walk. The way you hold yourself when speaking to me. You're confident in yourself, and you have every right to be. But you still came here. Confidence and arrogance. They may come from the same source, but one of those leads to an early grave. You know you're strong, but you still seek knowledge to make up for your shortcomings. I find that VERY commendable."

I looked at the goddess in front of me, taking in her explanation, and after a few seconds, I could tell I had a Saeko like grin on my face. (She's perfect.) I reached a hand out to her, and I saw her mirror my own grin. "Lady Athena, you and I are going to get along great." And we shook on it. "So, when do we do it?" She looked surprised at that, but shook that off to let her excitement show. We both stood up, and she started leading me to a private room.

The room looked comfy, it had a VERY nice atmosphere, perfect for reading in peace, and the couches looked really nice. After she closed the door, Athena turned to me, and looked at a couch. "Would you prefer the couch or the table?" I hummed, then went to the couch.

"Ok, now what?" Athena looked a little sheepish at that, and coughed into her hand, clearly embarrassed.

"Please lay down and remove your Qipao." I blinked, Athena blinked, and I gave her a better response this time.

"What?" Athena just blushed some more, and refused to meet my gaze.

"Ah... To adopt you into a familia, the child is required to show their god or goddess their bare back. It's where the falna goes after all." I just kept staring at the goddess, because apparently, I must've SKIPPED that part of my knowledge. But after a second of thinking, I just shrugged, and decided to just go for it.

"Fuck it, I've got nothing to be ashamed of anyway." I heard Athena choke as I not only said that, but removed my Qipao, after putting my whip on the table. As soon as I did, I saw the goddess staring at me, more specifically, my bare breasts. Out of the four of us, I had the biggest pair besides Shizuka, which I still had a little envy over the fact that she was 3 sizes ahead of me. Then I saw her eyes trail to my muscles, specifically my abs. After working out for months, we all had a very nice looking set of abs and perfectly toned muscles. (Even I'll admit that Saeko's got the thighs of a fucking pornstar. I shouldn't even get started on Rika, or even SHIZUKA.) Though speaking of Saeko, at that moment, I felt myself wanting to channel her as I saw Athena's face.

So I folded my arms under my breasts, crossed my legs, and gave her a wink. "Do you like what you see, Lady Athena?" I watched her face heat up, the blush appear and spread all over, and felt a sense of Deja Vu at what happened next. She pulled an early me, and got a NOSEBLEED... Then she passed out... I just stared at the unconscious goddess, and nodded to myself. "Well damn... I know I'm hot, but that's probably the biggest confidence booster I'll ever get." If making a goddess outright pass out by having your body looked at wasn't a confidence booster, I didn't know what was. I decided to go get her, and lay her on the other couch.

I put my Qipao back on, and decided to go grab the books she mentioned. I could read while she came back from unconsciousness. (Hm... Wonder what Zaka's up to.)

{Hestia's POV}

"Ugh... What do I dooo? Why's a day off have to be so boring? Can't something just happen?" I would've preferred work to the boring morning that was today. I couldn't go bug Hephaestus, she was busy and was still insisting on me finding my own familia and working for that, but it was hard! I didn't have anything, other than the church she let me stay at, and I worked at a food shop that sold potato themed food!

What kind of crazy person would want to join that kind of goddess? (Ugh... This is th...- What's that?) I thought I heard something, and like the nosy goddess I was, I decided to check it out. Cause why not? What was the worst that could happen? (If Hephaestus were here, she'd probably say 'muggings, assaults, blah blah blah, and stuff like that. But again, what's the worst that could happen?) Ok, I DID know that those things were bad, but if worse came to happen, I could just use my Arcanium to protect myself.

With that in mind, I kept on going down the alley, thinking about what it was that made the noise I heard, and eventually found it... Well, him.

I didn't expect to see a sad kid kneeling on the ground. He was crying, and I decided to listen in. "Why? Why won't anyone accept me? Why is it so hard to find a familia?" My ears perked up, and I focused even harder on the kid. "I... I just need to try again... Yeah. That's it. Keep trying, I have to keep trying. I'll find someone to accept me... Someone will help... Someone will..." Seeing the kid crying and just lamenting having been rejected over and over again made something stir inside of me.

He was on his own, just looking for someone to reach out. (Just like I was.) Tenkai may have been the heavenly realm to mortals, but to us gods and goddesses, it wasn't as fun or happy as they thought it was.

Especially for me. I was alone, only had a handful of people I could consider REAL friends, and I hated it. And seeing this child crying before me, I wanted to stop it. To be the person I wanted, and the one he needed.

And before I knew it, I was standing in front of him. Seeing him look up to me, the tears still trailing down his face, I knew what I had to do. "Hello. My name's Hestia, what about you?" The kid blinked at me, wiped away some of his tears, and gave me a shaky smile.

"B-Bell Cranel." He had a nice name.

I smiled at him again, and held out my hand. "Then Bell, would you like to join my familia?" The look he gave me was beautiful. I could see the hope shine through his eyes, and I saw as he slowly reached out to me, then took my hand.

"Yes!" His smile was brilliant, and I wanted to see him smile more.

"Then it's decided. Welcome to the Hestia familia Bell Cranel!" The joy on his face grew, and he steadily got to his feet. I didn't expect to find someone for my familia like this, but I didn't care. The child... No, MY child needed someone. Anyone. And I decided to be that person. That was all that mattered, and it was go...-

"Silver... Can we keep them both?"

"""Huh?""" Bell and I turned to the sudden voice, and then I saw them.

A pair of Werewolves. A man with wild gray hair up in a ponytail, in a gray fur jacket, a pair of oddly high quality pants, and sandals. He had a Silver and Ebony eye, and showed off the claw scars on his well built chest. My eyes suddenly landed on the earring he had, and my senses were going a little haywire. I could tell it was something powerful, but I couldn't recognize it. He towered over me and Bell, and I couldn't help but also notice the way his tail was slowly swaying. It looked cute. I noticed he had some luggage behind him, being held by some weird spectral hands, but that was probably an adventurer thing.

Then there was the woman. She was a blond whose hair flowed down passed her back, earth brown eyes, wea...- "HOLY CRAP! WHAT DID YOU EAT TO GET THEM THAT BIG?!" Her breasts were HUGE! The fine sweater she wore had a boob window that showed so much cleavage that I could probably stuff my head in there and get it enveloped in them! Not even Freya had breasts that big! Then there were the tight pants she wore that accentuated the other curves she had, and then suddenly I felt VERY inadequate. (... Oh... So THIS is what Loki feels whenever we meet up... Damn.)

"I'll address the irony of that later. First, no mo grá, you cannot keep the child or the goddess. BUT!" The woman pouted at him before the but, though my mind focused on the name he called her. As a goddess, we knew and translated any heard language, so I knew he called her his love.

(He's together with HER? Wha? Where'd they even COME FROM?!) I let my surprise stay inside since I now had a child to look good for.

"She's the one we're here for. So in a WAY, we're going to be with them anyway...-" The blond turned to him, and blinked. Her tail was wagging faster than his, and I even saw her ears flapping about. "I'm not sure why you're surprised. I know that tone. You're joining even without me asking aren't you?" Huh? Did that mean what I thought it meant?

The blond looked at him, gave him this smile that I could just FEEL radiated love and joy, then looked to Bell and I. "Yep. They look like they need people... Good people. You gave me everything, so it's my turn to give people the world." The way she said that, and the look in her eyes resonated with me. I understood what was in them. And I felt something in me cry out. Something in me just KNEW.

I wouldn't be alone anymore.

The blond and the man with gray hair walked up to us, and they held out their hands. I instinctively clutched them, and I just looked at them as they smiled down at Bell and I. The way the sun shone on them made this scene something I doubted I would ever forget.

"Name's Maccillian Silver Zaka. Nice meeting you Hestia."

"I'm Shizuka Marikawa, and I'd love to get to know you both."

I knew it. And I felt it.

These people. They were going to change my life. And I embraced it.

[Omake - What the dog doing? Weiss' general POV]

It's been 6 hours since Saya, Maccillian and their pack left.

6 hours of me not knowing what to do with the gift Maccillian bestowed me with... Not to say it was bad, it was just... Strange. I had a 30ft Gray Wolf made of pure aura in the garden, and I just did not know what to do with it... Besides petting it.

For a construct made of aura, he had SURPRISINGLY soft fur. Like, my gods, I could make a bed with his fur as a blanket and sleep like a baby. Even Winter agreed that his fur was immaculate.

Though we did have to explain to mother and annoyingly, father, about why there was a massive wolf in the garden. But where else would he go? He couldn't stay in MY room. Winter couldn't keep him. He sure as hell wasn't staying with WHITLEY.

We had no idea what to do with him! Thankfully he needed no food or water to sustain himself, he just needed some aura from us, and he was fine. But still, it was strange.

Winter and I knew what he was here for. To one day become a part of my semblance.

But that day would not be coming soon. I had a spar against him, we named him Ash, and he demolished me. My Arma Gigas was turned into a chew toy, and I did not know how to feel about that. On one hand, it was mildly terrifying. On the other, it was very adorable.

Ash knew how to regulate his strength, so I came out of it with no wounds... No visible wounds. My ego had taken a massive blow. But then I remembered that Ash was created by a man who destroyed the entire Grimmlands, and my ego was restored.

I tried not to think about THAT news, and just focused on Ash. Mother loved the new... Addition? To our family, and even though father and Whitley didn't, the feeling seemed to be mutual with Ash.

Seeing father try to have Ash removed from the garden, only to be knocked back when Ash BREATHED in his direction, was the most satisfying thing I think I'd ever seen in recent memory. Winter and mother had even asked me for the recording I made of the event.

Ash was shaping up to be a great present... Now if only I knew what to do with him.