Chapter 5 part 3

P/N let me know if there's any mistakes and I will try to fix them

I'll show you Hestia's secret technique, something even you've

never known."

It was her trump card, a ritual that only the deities of her homeland

knew of.

The ultimate divine mystery, it was a miracle far below the level of

arcanum.

Asfi fell silent as she watched the goddess quietly wave her right arm

horizontally.

"Dios Aedes Vesta."

An enormous magic power swelled. A tremendous, different divine

might roared.

" !!!"

Being so close to the manifestation of that power bent Asfi's body

backward as far as it would go.

An all-purifying light was born.

A cleansing flame.

A crackling fire that rang in the ears of all who had fallen under

Freya's charm, but also a warmth rumbling deep from within them.

The power of the goddess dispersed, engulfing the city in a scorching

wave.

The ritual flames rose.

The fire of blessing sang a song of purification.

It spread like a wildfire through all points of the city, but its blaze did

not burn anyone.

It was not an inferno that destroyed enemies but a protecting flame

to save supplicants.

Like a gentle bonfire lighting the darkness, like the kind crackling fire

in a hearth, it provided a warm comfort and divine blessing to those

who were suffering.

It was the crackle of flames signaling the end of a nightmare.

A divine fire the scorched away all binding spells.

On the streets, in the bars, in homes, and towers. The path of the

flame that consumed buildings touched mortals and deities alike.

The messenger god, the smithing goddess, the god of medicine, the

god of war, the trickster goddess.

A prum supporter, a young blacksmith, a girl from the Far East, a

renart sorceress.

And a princess of the blade.

The raging flame gently engulfed deities and followers who had

fallen to the floor or the ground with their eyes shut.

The flame of the hearth resembled a spirit's miracle and spread

without end, sending scarlet sparks flying up into the air—and finally,

it disappeared.

The city fell silent, as if it had all been an illusion.

"…What was that light?"

Hegni murmured.

Around him, the other members of Freya Familia were struggling to

understand as well.

Their eyes looked up, outside their home, searching for traces of the

scarlet blaze that had lit the night sky, their attention directed above

them.

Ghh…Not good, something isn't right!

An unease that was difficult to describe quickly took root in his heart.

The blaze that had been entrapped by the great city walls had not

infringed on Folkvangr. The countless sparks flying through the air

had shrouded his body entirely, but there was no abnormality. But

Hegni's cowardly heart was afflicted by an urgency he could not put

into words.

Gripping his black sword in one hand, the dark elf glared straight

ahead.

Before him was the battered and bruised fellow elf who was down

on one knee with her back to the wall that separated Freya Familia's

home from the city.

"…Surrender. Lay down your weapon slowly and without struggling.

Else I shall sever one of your limbs."

"Ghh…!"

Lyu was surrounded by members of Freya Familia, including Hegni.

all around the home, had reached its end once Hegni joined the fray.

Just like when she had been overpowered in the battle during the

Goddess Festival, she was forced into an unfavorable position by the

strength of a Level 6, and she had been eventually cornered on the

edge of the field far removed from the main building.

She was surrounded by a semicircle that would not let even the

smallest insect through.

Lyu put the fist gripping her sword on the ground as her face twisted.

"Khh…Bell…"

Her eyes focused on the mansion atop the hill where the boy was

surely still being held. She brushed aside the thought that she had

only reached that far and hardened her heart, which was on the

verge of breaking as she stood back up and steadied her blade.

Hegni felt a great respect for his proud fellow elf, who did not lose

her battle spirit even in such a hopeless situation, and as such, he

immediately cast aside all mercy.

"If you would choose honor, then you shall have it in your death!"

He stepped in silently, his figure disappearing from view before

appearing right before Lyu's eyes, swinging down his pitch-black

blade.

However—

—Shiiing!

""?!""

There was a shrill metallic screech and a spray of sparks as the dark

elf's slash was parried.

"Wh…?!"

Was it Hegni whose eyes widened in shock, or Lyu who was

dumbfounded by the sight, or was it the others of Freya Familia who

could not believe their eyes?

All of them beheld a beautiful golden-eyed, blond-haired girl.

"…Sword Princess…?"

Aiz swung her slender silver blade as Lyu murmured behind her.

All of Freya Familia there save Hegni recoiled at her golden gaze.

"I remember everything."

The girl who rarely displayed obvious emotion had a clear,

unmistakable anger in her voice.

"Bell isn't part of Freya Familia at all."

She pointed her sword straight at Hegni, whose eyes widened as she

placed her left hand on her chest.

"Lady Hestia's fire…reached me, too."

A warm light like a hearth had been lit inside her.

Even though she was not bound by oath, though she served a

different mistress, she was still a retainer of the goddess of the

hearth in that moment, and there was surety in her voice as she

declared:

"She scorched away the power of the charm."

As if that statement had been the trigger, a crowd began stirring

outside the walls.

"Eh…what…?"

"Why is Rabbit Foot with Freya Familia…?!"

"Hold up, what is this weird memory?!"

The voices of people returning to their senses in the shopping

district, no, everywhere at once all around the city gave birth to a

rising tempest.

It was proof that the domain of the hearth had broken through the

domain of beauty.

Sensing on his skin the rising tide of chaos and turbulent confusion,

Hegni stood still for just a brief moment before two more figures

leaped over the wall and descended from above.

"Argggh, I said something terrible to Argonaut, didn't I?!"

"Bewitching all of us like that was a pretty shitty thing to do, you

know…You're going to explain yourselves now, right?"

Tiona had her Urga at the ready while Tione seethed as she leveled

her twin kukri blades at Freya Familia alongside Aiz.

"Loki Familia…! It can't be…Lady Freya's charm has really been…?!"

That sight was enough to make even Hegni shudder.

Freya Familia, who had been so sure of their mistress's absolute

dominance, were thrust into confusion.

Disregarding their panic, Lyu somehow managed to regain her calm.

Facing the back of the swordswoman still covering her, she spoke.

"Sword Princess…to think I would be saved by you…"

Hearing that, Aiz suddenly turned around.

"Umm…where is Bell?"

"Wha?! Wh-why is the first question out of your mouth regarding

Bell's whereabouts?!"

"…? Should I not have?"

"I-I wouldn't say that, but…actually, no, you shouldn't have! I don't

know why, but you shouldn't!"

"Why are you getting into it with each other now?!"

Aiz cocked her head in confusion as Lyu struggled to respond, and in

the end, her calm went out the window with a red-faced shout,

forcing Tione to be the voice of reason.

Hegni had frozen at the farce unfolding before him before his eyes

flared.

"Be it truth or fiction, you have set foot in the goddess's realm!

Those who would barbarically disrupt it will be cut down!"

"All right, let's do it, then! I'm reallllly pissed, too!"

Tiona spun her weapon over her head as she howled back at Hegni.

In an instant, the dark elf's and Amazon's weapons met with a crash

while Aiz, Tione, and Lyu faced forward and began to engage the rest

of Freya Familia, who raised a battle cry.

"

—Tch?!"

A tremendous kick smashed into Allen's silver spear.

"You really did a number on us, kitty cat…You can save us both the

excuses 'cause I'm gonna murder you right now."

"…Werewolf son of a bitch…"

Bete Loga was brimming with a savage ferocity with the moon at his

back.

The location was the fifth district in the south of the city.

The force that Allen had been pulling back to the home had been

stopped in their path with Folkvangr in sight by the other biggest

faction in the city that could stand against them.

"Sheesh, Bete. Just like Aiz and the girls, not listenin' to a thing I say.

But just this once, I suppose I won't just wait and watch."

The single dwarf grumbled, but his eyes quickly narrowed.

"Aye, I won't be satisfied if I don't pummel your faces in before the

Guild can stop us."

"Elgarm…!"

"How was the goddess's will repelled?!"

"That mysterious blaze just now must've been the cause."

"Washed-up old dwarf!"

Right next to Allen and Bete, Gareth Landrock and the Gulliver

brothers were staring each other down.

The dwarf was not holding a weapon, but his boulder-like fists

rumbled heavily as the prum quadruplets expressed both shock and

animosity.

As Van and the others gasped, the most hotheaded members of Loki

Familia appeared one after the other, following Bete's lead.

The fact that they had been manipulated lit a fire in the ferocious

werewolf and the great dwarven warrior.

There was a furious clash of arms as a second battle opened.

The residents of Orario who had not yet recovered from the shock

cried out in terror at the scene of a full-on conflict between familias

exploding into the open.

"…No way…"

A single prum girl's voice fell weakly, as if her heart had been ripped

from her breast.

"No way, no way—no! It can't be! Lilly, Lilly hurt him, hurt Mr.

Bell…Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

ooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!"

"L-Lady Lilly?!"

An earsplitting scream rocked Hearthstone Manor to its foundations.

Mere moments had passed since the purifying flames appeared and

burned away all the restraints binding them.

The shock of how she had treated the boy who'd saved her, whom

she had fallen for and sworn never to betray again, was too great to

bear. Remembering everything in a spew of memories flashing

through her mind, Lilly collapsed onto the floor and screamed in a

voice resembling a broken music instrument.

Mikoto grew pale as she recalled her own actions even as she rushed

over to Lilly's side…when there was another thud.

The sound of knees collapsing to the ground in another location.

"What…what did I…why…That's…I'm…so terrible…"

"L…Lady Haruhime…"

The renart girl had slumped down to her knees, sitting on her heels,

as tears overflowed from her empty eyes.

The opposite of Lilly, she was consumed by a quiet grief and slipped

into a hell of self-deprecation as a chill gripped her heart so tightly as

to freeze time in its tracks. Caught between two impossible despairs,

Mikoto froze, unable to do anything.

"…Ghh."

Beside them, Welf, who had been standing in dumbfounded shock,

clenched his fists.

He was gripped by a nausea and self-loathing that did not pale in

comparison to any of the others, but he turned the flames of that

inward to force himself into action.

He walked over to Lilly, who was holding her small head in both

hands and pressing her forehead to the floor as she kept apologizing

over and over and over, and he grabbed both of her arms.

"Wake up, Li'l E! If you want someone to curse you, then I'll give you

all you want afterward!"

And as tears filled her chestnut-colored eyes, he hit her with it:

"If we don't go save Bell now, he will be swallowed whole by that

goddess!"

"

—Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

ooooooooooooooooooooooo!!"

The next instant, her eyes widened beyond all limits, and a new high-

frequency wave emanated from her.

Mikoto and Haruhime both twitched at the sign that the serious time

was over.

"No, no, noooooooooooo! Corrupting a child like Mr. Bell with such

extreme seduction! Lilly will protect Mr. Bell's chastity—!!!"

"Then let's go!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Mr. Beeeeeeeeeeell!!!"

Welf's timely anti-magic fire countered Lilly's despair, setting her off

with a screech as she immediately leaped from the room. Welf

shouted at Haruhime and Mikoto, who were watching slack-jawed.

"You two, hurry it up! We're a familia! We're gonna go get him!"

"Ghh…Right!"

Haruhime wiped away her tears roughly and stood up on her own

before running out as fast as she could, too.

Mikoto snapped out of it and frantically continued after Welf.

Lilly and Haruhime took up the vanguard while Welf and Mikoto left

the home close behind them.

The Eastern girl could not tell whether she was moping in regret or

overcome with emotion as she flashed a clumsy smile at the

blacksmith she was running alongside.

And as if she could not restrain herself, she slapped Welf's back and

accelerated.

Welf smiled back and shouted as he swung his arms:

"Just you wait for us, Bell!"

"Uwaaaa…How many times is it now that I've caused Bell trouble…?"

In a mostly empty drugstore.

A listless chienthrope girl's voice fell.

"I seriously want to just die…"

"Don't say stupid things like that! We have no choice but to repay

what we owe now!"

Nahza was utterly aghast with herself as Daphne grabbed her by the

prosthetic hand and pulled her outside.

Miach chased after the two of them as well as they ran toward the

obvious place.

"Even a god committed such a folly. Do not avert your eyes, we must

act now!"

"Uwaaah, the prophecy was trueeeee! I saw it in my dream, so why

didn't I stand by him?!"

Cassandra clutched her staff to her chest and ran even as their

patron god, who so rarely raised his voice, shouted.

The tragic seer was crying for a different reason from everyone else

as Miach Familia embarked on the same mission as Hestia Familia.

"He was cornered in such a precarious position again…! Just being his

shield won't be enough to make up for this!"

"Even so, let's go! To help Bell!"

Ouka and Chigusa ran down Main Street while readying their

weapons.

The rest of Takemikazuchi Familia continued after them.

"Well now, I've experienced my share of shameful lows since coming

down to the mortal realm, but…this takes it to a new level!"

Despite having only the same physical abilities as an average person,

Takemikazuchi was sprinting at incredible speed across the roofs of

buildings like a ninja.

"S-stop! Stop all of the familias running wild!"

Inside Guild Headquarters, which was stirring as everyone regained

their memories, the Guild head, Royman, was screaming frantically.

"Protect Freya Familia!!! Send out the order to halt all fighting!"

"What?! But, sir, surely, we can't forgive what Freya Familia did. I

mean, what if it happens again after we let them off this time…?"

"That's all secondary! If powerful factions, particularly Loki Familia

and Freya Familia, butt heads in the city, Orario will be swallowed in

a sea of fire!"

"Eeeep?!"

Misha interjected on hearing the order she could barely believe, but

she shrieked at the furious shout that Royman fired right back at her.

Royman had plenty to say about being manipulated by Freya's

charm, too, but he was calmer than anyone else and more worried

than anyone else. More precisely, he sensed the all-out clash

brewing between Loki and Freya that would be more dangerous than

anything Orario had ever witnessed, and he was trembling in fear

because it seemed to be getting more likely with every passing

moment.

He leaped into action to extinguish the fuse on an explosive situation

that made the Orario destruction plot, which they could remember

now that the charm had been broken, mild in comparison. Realizing

the gravity of the situation, the rest of the Guild employees paled

and started moving.

"We have to stop them…! If not, I'm going to need even more

medicine for my stomach…!"

Grabbing his stomach with one hand, Royman staggered.

As the Guild master, he was desperately trying to remain calm.

And on top of that, he knew better than almost anyone just how

impossible it was to stop rough and wild adventurers in a situation

like that.

"E-Eina! I'm not sure how to feel about it, but we should probably do

what he…!"

Misha's peach hair swayed as she turned around.

"Ah, she's gone…"

Her half-elf colleague and friend had long since disappeared, rushing

out of the headquarters.

Rage, fear, shock, panic.

While all the people and deities living in the giant Labyrinth City were

consumed by various emotions, by coincidence, they ended up in the

same situation as Freya Familia.

In other words, by being charmed and then having it released, they

were aware of the false input and could grasp the situation without

having it explained to them.

"The only one who could do this is Goddess Freya! On the last day of

the Goddess Festival, she charmed all of us…!"

Her memories from around when the charm had been applied were

unclear. But just as the deities and the more perceptive people had

realized, Eina immediately realized that there was only one suspect

who could perform such an act.

Running down Main Street, which was stirring with confusion,

leaving behind the people of the city still struggling to figure out

what had happened to them, Eina shouted as her breathing grew

ragged.

"I won't forgive her! I won't forgive the goddess who made this

happen! Who did this to Bell, and to me!"

Her emerald eyes filled with water, which glimmered as it spilled

over.

"I'm gonna kill those bastards!"

"W-wait, Aisha! Calm down!"

"I'm begging you, don't go picking a fight with Freya Familia!"

"No! They don't get to get away with this!!!"

The Amazon's eyes were bloodshot, and waves of rage were

billowing off her as Falgar and Lulune tried to stop her.

Not only had she been manipulated, but the renart who was like a

little sister to her had been wounded before her eyes. She shook off

their hands and dashed off.

From different directions, the half-elf and the Amazon both set their

sights on the same place.

"Folkvangr!"

Eina and Aisha and all the adventurers from Aiz onward had acted

almost immediately.

Pushed by rage or by a desire to protect their bond with a certain

boy, they gathered at the home of the strongest faction in the south

of the city.

Banners were waving in the wind.

Dozens of familia banners were fluttering in the wind surrounding

Folkvangr.

"Is this really okay, Milady? Taking positions before Freya Familia's

castle with the full familia?"

"It is. We have more than sufficient cause to merit it."

The master smith Tsubaki Collbrande's question was answered by a

Hephaistos whose voice was filled with wrath.

They stood atop the wall that surrounded the great field, at the head

of Hephaistos Familia, which had deployed almost all their members,

including the master smiths, who were a match for upper-tier

adventurers.

Hephaistos was glaring at the manor built at the top of the hill in the

center of the field, as if she fully intended to siege it.

"This cannot be allowed to stand. Even setting aside standing with

Hestia and all of that…you're going to have to pay for this, Freya."

Tsubaki's expression showed just a little bit of fear at seeing her

patron goddess so infuriated—the wrath of the goddess of the forge

that had made countless goddesses cry in the heavens—before she

shrugged in acceptance.

"Serves you damn right, Freyaaaaaaaaaaa! This is what ya get for

actin' all high and mighty! Time for a super-ultra burst storm of

destruction that'll blow you away, you sex-crazed idiot!"

"Calm down please, Loki…"

While Hephaistos Familia surrounded the south and the west, Loki

Familia had deployed along the eastern and northern perimeter. As

their patron goddess stood atop the wall and roared with laughter,

her eyes gleaming in rage, Finn pressed his small hand to his

forehead.

"Why did you have to make me go all goggle-eyed and babbling

while I did everything you wanted, you piece of shit?! Even after I

warned you to never use that while we were in the heavens, ya

damned fool!"

Looking askance at his patron goddess, who was ultimately just

enraged at the humiliation of being ensnared by Freya's charm, Finn

tapped the haft of his spear on his shoulder, holding back an

aggrieved sigh.

"I suppose one silver lining is at least Riveria was with the group that

went into the Dungeon…If it became known a high elf could be

controlled like this, it wouldn't end in this city; no elf in the world

would be able to look the other way at that."

With that frightening thought, he looked around.

In addition to Loki Familia and Hephaistos Familia, there were also

Miach, Takemikazuchi, and many other familias that had strong

connections with Hestia Familia, all joining the ring around

Folkvangr, a show of force and popular demonstration.

"Hey, Mord. Is this really okay? Getting mixed up in something like

this…?"

"D-don't get scared! Loki Familia's here, too. Even if it's Freya

Familia, they'll get their asses handed to them when they're up

against numbers like this! If that happens, we can just slip away in

the chaos and swipe whatever money they've got hidden there…!"

There were even crooked adventurers with a keen sense for profit

looking to turn a valis.

Shouting back at the adventurer who had come with him, Mord

stared at the home.

"Better hurry up and give that kid back, or else we'll all come

crashing in!"

"Captain?!"

In a room in the manor.

Heith's troubled voice rang out as she worked to heal Hörn.

"It can't be…"

Ottar's eyes widened at the scene outside the window.

"Lady Freya's charm was broken…?"

Atop the hill.

Hedin, who was protecting the mansion, was struck by a true

surprise.

The panicked gaze of all the other members turned to him when he

took command.

It was not just the main gate, every wall was being overwhelmed,

and the number of adventurers staring down at them undeniably

outnumbered Freya Familia's full forces.

"…I suppose it would be ridiculous to berate the ignorant masses.

We were the first to trample dignity underfoot for the sake of

fulfilling the goddess's will."

However, Hedin did not sweat a drop as he adjusted his glasses and

struck the hill with the butt of his rhomphaia.

"But that will not change what must be done. My body is the

goddess's spear and shield. I will protect her from malice and scatter

the enemy!"

The wise white elf's face was filled with determination to fight, which

quickly spread to the rest of the familia as well.

They were still einherjar.

As Hegni's and Aiz's groups continued to fight, their morale did not

flag, and the explosive staring contest continued.

And—

""Ahnya!""

Voices rang out in The Benevolent Mistress.

"What's going on meow?! I was just feeling annoyed at not being

able to go after that boy with the nice butt because he was Freya

Familia, but it was actually some kind of mind control, and he was a

regular here and part of Hestia Familia! So then who does his butt

belong to, meow?!"

"Just shut up, you! I can hardly believe I forgot everything after

getting my ass kicked by Freya Familia…! Damn it!"

"Chloe, Runoa…you remember…?"

Ahnya was haggard as Chloe and Runoa burst into her room. Her two

friends were seething with confusion and anger as they pressed in on

her, but finally, there was unease and shock in their eyes as they

asked.

"Syr…what happened to Syr?"

In the setting that the goddess had created, the blue-gray-haired girl

did not exist.

Ahnya's eyes slowly filled with tears at Runoa's questions.

Her face warped as she buried her head in Runoa's chest.

"H-hey! What are you doing?!"

"…Ahnya…?"

Ahnya cried out as she clung to Runoa.

Runoa was stunned and stood there weakly before slowly moving

her arms, which had frozen awkwardly, holding Ahnya's trembling

back.

Chloe had a chastened look on her face as she moved closer to

Ahnya, like an older sister licking a kitten.

Ahnya continued to sob silently.

"...…"

Outside the open door.

Directly beside it, where the light from the room would not reach,

Mia was leaning against the wall in the shadows, her arms crossed as

she looked out the window.

"You really are a foolish woman…"

Her words and gaze were directed toward the goddess's castle.

The adventurers' fervor and the sounds of furious battle were

obvious even from the goddess's chamber on the highest floor.

Bell and Freya were stunned as they stood there frozen, looking out

the enormous window that filled the whole wall.

"My charm was broken…? …If it were possible, then—

"

The goddess's stunned expression shifted as her brow furrowed in

annoyance.

While Bell could not comprehend what was happening at all, just as

Freya guessed what was going on—the enormous window shattered.

"Whaaaaaat?!"

Bell gasped in surprise as fragments of glass scattered all around.

And in the middle of that rain of glass, as Bell and Freya both covered

their faces with their arms, he saw it.

The needle with a spiral engraved in it that had been fired at high

speed to break the window.

And, of course—

"

—Beeeeeeeeeeeell!!!"

"G-Goddess—ghagh?!"

The goddess was charging through the night sky, carried by four

flapping wings.

Forcibly leaping from the arms of Asfi, who was controlling the

talaria, Hestia dove head-first into Bell's arms.

He reflexively caught her, but he was sent rolling by the force of her

charge. And rolling. And rolling.

Asfi flew through overhead, flustered by the goddess who had just

leaped from her arms while Freya stared in shock, and Bell held on

firmly to her small body.

He finally came to a stop after exactly ten rolls across the floor, then

he slowly sat up.

"…Goddess…?"

Hestia snapped her head up when she heard Bell's quivering voice.

"

—I'bm zo zorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry, Beeeeeeeeell! I acted so horribly to

you! I'm a failure of a patron goddessssss! Please forgive me for

being so powerless!"

The teary-eyed, sniffly goddess wrapped her arms around Bell's neck,

hugging him tight. While Hestia sobbed like a child, Asfi's face

twitched at the gap between how she had looked while unleashing

the full force of her divinity and how she looked now.

That was when Bell realized it.

It must have been Hestia who had undone the charm afflicting the

whole city, and she had always been trying to rescue him.

His eyes watered at the warmth of her hug, and he started to sniffle,

too.

His face became as much of a mess as hers as he looked into her

eyes and smiled from the depths of his heart.

"Thank you so much, Goddess!…I love you!"

"…Yeah, I love you, too!"

The follower and the goddess shared both tears and smiles.

Hugging one more time, they both stood up together.

They turned their gazes to the goddess of beauty, who was watching

with a grim look.

"And with that, Freya! I will be taking my Bell back! Not yours! Mine!

My beloved Bell with whom I have the deepest bond of anyone and

with whom I share a mutual love!"

"G-Goddess…"

Bell looked forward and broke into a cold sweat as Hestia decided

there of all places to assert her supremacy.

The empress, who had just had mud thrown in her face, looked

clearly displeased.

She did not do something so clichéd as bite her nails, but she twirled

her hair as she stared at Hestia and Bell holding hands.

"Unleashing your divine might to the full limit…using ichor and

flames, you summoned your temple from the heavens…no, re-

created it. So you still had a move to make, Hestia."

Freya swiftly analyzed the information she had available to her,

neither detesting Hestia for destroying her sandbox nor resenting

her followers, who had allowed the situation to happen.

Her anger and disappointment were directed only at herself.

For allowing her heart to be so shaken by the boy's trivial words and

actions, for being so absorbed in her internal thoughts, for being so

lax in her attention. If she had been her usual self, she would have

noticed Hestia's actions and Hermes's vain struggle, and she would

surely have stopped them in their tracks.

"Yeah, the full strength of my divine blessing that only the gods of

Olympus know! It's usually not any help at all and almost unusable to

boot! But it's just perfect for someone willing to try every trick in the

book like you!"

Hestia accepted Freya's grim gaze head-on.

"It's all due to your halfheartedness, or rather, your kindness in not

just sending me back to the heavens! You won't be getting thanks

from me, though!"

Hestia was definitely still upset because she was being more

aggressive and cynical than usual.

Stuck on the outside looking in at the carnage of two goddesses

fighting, Bell began twitching awkwardly. In fact, he was cowering.

And Asfi, whom Hestia had gotten down on her knees to beg to bring

her there, was laughing hoarsely. "Ha…ha-ha-ha…breaking into Freya

Familia's home…and smashing a goddess's window to boot…I'm

done for…"

Half out of her mind, she arrived at the same sort of despair, self-

abandonment, and a sense that what will be will be that her patron

god Hermes had achieved earlier.

"So…what now, Freya? No matter what you say, this is your loss. The

spell you cast on Orario is broken, and Bell won't become yours!"

With her charm failing to work on Bell, altering the rest of the world

was the sort of last-ditch effort that could work only once.

Even if everyone around him rejected him because of Freya's

manipulations, Bell would not lose sight of himself again, and Hestia

as the vestal goddess would not allow it to happen, either.

Having such an oppressive board state turned about and placed in

check herself, Freya was expressionless.

Her arms hung limply.

"Where do you suppose the point of compromise should be, Loki?"

Atop the wall surrounding the palatial estate.

While Bete's group and Allen's force were fighting behind them and

Hegni's forces and Aiz's group were clashing before them, Finn

looked ahead as he questioned his patron goddess.

Standing beside him, Loki eyed Mord and the other adventurers

sparked by Aiz, who might start pouring in at any moment.

"It really pisses me off…but the Guild won't stand for a war that

would rock Orario to its core. Even if we go wild right now, we won't

be able to reach any decisive conclusion."

She could barely hear the Guild members, who had finally arrived

from South Main Street and were desperately trying to order a halt

to hostilities.

"But it's impossible for adventurers to just set aside their pent-up

anger."

Finn spoke as if it was none of his business.

While he maintained the encirclement, his eyes were trained on the

uppermost floor of the manor, where Perseus and what looked like a

child-sized goddess had invaded Freya's chambers.

"Then there's only one thing to do."

Looking in the same direction as her follower, Loki's scarlet eyes

opened slightly.

"A war game."

"Hestia—I challenge you to a war game."

""!!!""

Hestia's and Bell's eyes widened at that declaration.

Even Asfi looked up, forgetting herself as Freya continued calmly.

"If I lose, then I'll do whatever you say. I'll even accept being sent

back to the heavens…And if I win, I will take Bell."

"…Don't screw with me, Freya. You really think I'll accept a challenge

in a situation like this? You've already lost, and you're going to be

judged for what happened."

Hestia's voice was low, and her eyes narrowed angrily, but the

goddess of beauty was ever the arrogant empress.

"We will suffer a heavy penalty from the Guild. But that's all."

"Wh…!"

"Orario must accomplish the three great quests. They cannot afford

to let us go to waste or forcibly break us up. You can bet on it. And

once the heat of the moment has cooled sufficiently…my hand might

slip again. I might just play another trick."

"Ghh…!"

"Can you really live in peace with that thought always looming over

you?"

Even while being right where Hestia wanted her, Freya still had her

cornered, and Hestia was agitated even though she should have

been in command. Bell was just as stunned.

Asfi's silence spoke to the truth of what Freya was saying.

Everything slowed to a crawl.

However, they did not have any time to think.

There was a loud noise below, and the familia members who noticed

the intruders were closing in.

"That is the true strength of my familia. The status that I have built

up all this time."

Her manner of speaking was haughty and shameless, but…

"And I will wager all of it. My wealth, fame, honor, and even myself."

The three of them were struck by a second shock.

Freya was willing to bet it all, putting everything on the line in a war

game.

If she lost, she would lose everything, becoming nothing more than a

naked queen.

"You may have as many cooperators as you wish. You can even ally

with all of the familias in the city. I will face everything you bring to

bear with only my familia."

She would even provide a handicap, demonstrating the extent of her

resolve.

Casting down her crown, the goddess was looking at one person and

one person alone.

"Let's duel, Hestia…and Bell."

Silence fell.

Their three gazes crossed and interlocked.

Asfi watched as an observer, gulping hard.

The first to speak was Hestia.

"Freya…I really do hate you. This just made it clear. I can't

sympathize with your way of doing things, and I can't empathize with

you."

"...…"

"Holding my followers hostage, hurting Bell…I resent you, and I will

scorn you for eternity."

"...…"

"…But why are you so hung up on Bell? Why would you go so far?"

Hestia's eyes flared with malice and contempt.

"Because you are a goddess of love? Is it really just that you've taken

a shine to him? What has made you so desperate about this?"

Her gaze shifted from scorn to clarity. Hestia set aside her position

and her dominion and was asking as a fellow goddess.

"Freya…what did you really want?"

There was no answer forthcoming.

The cool breeze from the broken window and the pale moonlight lit

her profile as the silver-haired goddess looked downward ever so

slightly.

To Bell, she looked almost like a lost child who did not know herself

what it was that she wanted.

Sensing that the silence would never be broken, Hestia quietly

sighed, and clenched the hand she was holding as she looked up to

the boy beside her.

"Bell…what do you want to do?"

He was the greatest victim of all in this situation, as well as the goal

that would be fought over in the coming days, so she left the

decision to him.

Her eyes saying that she believed he was best suited to decide this.

Bell slowly released her hand and took a step forward.

"…If we win, will you also listen to my request?"

"…Very well. What do you want?" the goddess asked indifferently.

"Allow me to meet Syr once more. No." He shook his head. "Please

let me know the true you."

" "

Her silver eyes widened, and she was speechless before finally

averting her gaze.

Her hair quivered, and her expression became blank for a moment

before she stared back at him.

"As you wish. I know not what truth it is that you are seeking,

though."

Mutual acceptance.

All the terms had been met.

And Perseus was the witness.

With the testimony of Hermes's follower, the decision reached that

day would become the city's consensus.

"Lady Freya!"

The members of Freya Familia that had rushed up the stairs burst

through the door at that same moment.

Freya quietly unleashed her divinity.

Her power shook the room like a wind, stopping the flood of

adventurers pouring in in their tracks and causing them to drop their

weapons. Even Hegni and the rest fighting outside paused in shock

and looked up to the top floor of the home.

A stillness filled Orario, and combat ceased everywhere.

Aiz's eyes widened; Lyu stood in shock; Hestia Familia, Loki Familia,

and everyone else who had gathered all turned their gaze to the

chamber where the goddesses were facing each other.

"Okay…then it's a duel, Freya."

Bell's will.

And Freya's resolve.

Accepting both of those, Hestia spoke in a voice that reached many

ears.

"It's a war game!"

Her shout reached the sky.

It was a proclamation.

Orario's greatest ever war game.

The bell had rung, signaling the opening of what would later come to

be called the Familia War