Chapter 58 - Apollo's Banquet 02.

Chapter Size: 1854 Words.]

Third Person POV

Orario, Apollo's Mansion.

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The banquet continued, and while Lucius was drinking alone, he spotted Bell in a corner outside the hall. Determined, he headed towards the Little Rookie.

On the way, he passed one of the tables and picked up two glasses of drink to accompany them and continued his way. He calmly walked up to the official commander of his family, as Lucius was never entirely interested in forming a team or taking on that responsibility. He always believed that Bell would have that role with the family, while he pursued his dives practically alone, adopting more of a lone wolf style.

The first thing he noticed when he left the hall for the balcony was the starry sky. This world always intrigued him, despite being in the busiest city on the planet; there were many parts with breathtaking views of the Genkai.

"I see you're here alone..." Lucius said, putting a smile on his face as he approached the solitary Bell on the mansion's balcony.

"Lord Lucius?! You're here too..." Bell commented.

"I came when I spotted you. Why are you here alone? I thought you might want to talk to the young Aiz... since we're at a social gathering," the older man teased.

"What?! Of course not! I mean, yes, no, not really!" Bell stumbled over his words as his face turned redder with embarrassment.

"Take this drink, it will help you deal with it." Lucius handed an extra glass to Bell.

Bell, who was so nervous and didn't know how to hide his face after that question and his current embarrassment, quickly took Lucius's glass and drank without realizing the contents.

When he realized he was drinking whiskey, his face turned green from the strong drink, and he spit out everything in his mouth quickly.

"WHAT THE DEVIL IS THIS!" Bell cursed.

"Hey, that's a good drink, don't spit it out like that!" Lucius scolded.

"But I don't even drink!!" The small adventurer protested.

"I think you're right... Listen, Bell, don't tell this to the goddess Hestia, understood?" Lucius quickly said, not wanting to hear that loli reprimanding him for giving alcoholic drinks to Bell.

"Hm? Why?"

"Just don't tell her, under any circumstances!" Lucius almost threatened him with an intense look.

"Yes, sir!" He said quickly, and Lucius smiled amusedly right after.

"Hm?! Look there, Bell, our newest friend." Lucius changed the subject as soon as he saw Hyakinthos meeting Soma in the garden as in the anime, but he wanted to make a show here.

"That..." Bell let slip.

"Hey, Bell, don't be like that. Isn't he a great friend?"

"Huh???!!!"

"Listen... HEY, HYAKINTHOS!!!" The sudden shout made Bell quickly cover his ears, while both Hyakinthos and Soma looked quickly to the balcony at the sudden shout. There, they saw Lucius on the balcony, which made the captain of the Apollo family look at him with hatred. Since he saw Lucius in the hall, his first instinct was to make him pay for all that humiliation he suffered a few days ago, but he held back following Apollo-Sama's plans.

"LONG TIME NO SEE, HOW ARE YOU? THE LAST TIME I SAW YOU, YOU LOOKED LIKE A STRAY DOG IN A DIRTY ALLEY, YOUR FACE SEEMED UGLIER THAN A RIEKLING, WHICH IS A GOBLIN, NOT TO MENTION YOUR PATHETIC SHOW OF STRENGTH THAT..."

"SHUT UP!!!! SAY ONE MORE THING AND I'LL KICK YOU OUT OF HERE BY FORCE!" Hyakinthos, unable to bear it any longer as his name along with these insults were heard throughout the mansion's courtyard. Perhaps inside the party, it could be drowned out with the bards' band, but all the gods and adventurers who were outdoors heard it and began to whisper and laugh at those words, wondering who that man on the balcony was talking like that to the host's banquet captain.

Even with the threat and the tone of hatred, the other party seemed to ignore it and continue to mock.

"DON'T TALK LIKE THAT, WE'RE FRIENDS NOW. WE DIDN'T HAVE OUR FUN TIME A FEW DAYS AGO. WE PLAYED THAT QUITE ENTERTAINING GAME, WHILE YOU WERE THE STRAY DOG AND I WAS YOUR OWNER WHO LEFT YOU IN THE ALLEY!" The voice echoed again through the mansion's entrance, making many look stunned while others covered their mouths to avoid laughing out loud.

"YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS, I'M TELLING YOU, I SWEAR YOU WILL REGRET THIS, DAMN YOU!!!" Hyakinthos shouted with fury and stormed out, ignoring Soma and the others' stares.

"Hey, what the hell was that?!" Bell commented stunned, not believing what he had just done.

"Didn't I say we were friends? That's how friends are! Maybe I can teach you how to make friends too, since I'm the older brother here," Lucius said, smiling, making Bell sweat at that statement. He didn't think he would learn anything good or anything that matched his character from Lucius.

"He clearly isn't your friend!" Bell exclaimed, unable to bear that absurdity any longer.

"You're too young to understand, lad. When you grow up, you'll learn," Lucius said as if he were a wise man, but Bell didn't seem to believe him.

"Hey, what was that shouting? It even drowned out the bards' music inside the hall!" A new character arrived, and unsurprisingly, it was Hermes again, while scratching one of his ears with his pinky finger, feigning pain, at the same time he approached us.

"Well..." Bell was about to give an excuse, but Hermes silenced him before he could say anything.

"First of all, young Bell, aren't you going to dance?" Hermes said with a mischievous smile.

"I... I've never tried." Bell said timidly, a bit lost with the sudden question.

"You're at a party, a place full of beautiful women; you have a chance to get to know them."

"But..."

"If you're not going to dance, I will!" Hermes said, stunning the young man in front of him, as he began to move away from Bell and Lucius.

Lucius looked amused at this, despite knowing the manipulative side of this god, he knew Hermes had a good sense of humor in the end.

Bell was stunned when Hermes stopped in front of Aiz, who was alone in a corner near them. Riveria should have been with her, but she was trying to get Loki and Hestia to stop fighting, as another commotion started again when they bumped into each other at the banquet.

As in the show, Hermes made up an excuse and asked Bell to dance with the sword princess, while the boy was too nervous to speak to Aiz. Hermes pushed him to face the sword princess and returned to Lucius's side.

"They make a beautiful couple, don't you think?" He asked, trying to start a conversation.

"They remind me of the story of the Argonauts..." Lucius couldn't help but comment.

"Hm? A hero, his princess, and a minotaur in...?" Hermes seemed to like the idea as he put his hand on his chin, commenting.

"But what about you, Lucius-kun? I don't think you're so shy about asking a certain elf to join you on the dance floor." Hermes insinuated with a mischievous smile.

"I could try, but elves already have aversions to physical contact. Imagine a high elf with royal status; I doubt she would agree. It would only end up being an undignified act on my part..." Lucius said calmly.

"She doesn't seem to be averse to you, from what I could see." He said with amusement and continued.

"Anyway, I have to take care of two goddesses so they don't disrupt the dances of the younger ones... This will also free up your elf, giving you a chance. Now, whether you'll take advantage of it or not, that's up to you..." He said smiling as he walked to intercept the two loud goddesses as soon as they noticed Aiz and Bell dancing.

Lucius remained silent as Hermes walked away. After a while, while Bell danced with Aiz, the young mage of Hestia saw the result of Hermes's machinations.

"This guy is a manipulator, but sometimes he gives you great opportunities, I can't deny that," Lucius thought as he looked at Asfi holding Hestia and Loki in each of her arms around her waist, while Riveria stood slightly lost on the side. Lucius sighed and, after gathering some courage, finally took the initiative to approach her. He noticed that the hall was even more crowded than before, but he kept his eyes fixed on the emerald elf, no longer caring about the people around him.

"Hello, I see you've been quite busy," Lucius commented as he reached the side of the elf and looked at the goddesses being held by Asfi, who seemed to ignore the protests of the divine beings in her arms while giving a disapproving look to her own god, Hermes, who had asked her to perform this quite embarrassing task.

"It's true, it's not easy when the goddess Loki and the goddess Hestia are together... it's always like this," she calmly commented, but seemed frustrated with the immature personalities of those goddesses.

"Now that the situation is under control, why don't we enjoy a dance?" Lucius, wasting no more time, smiled with his best smile at those words. He went straight to the point since if she questioned him again about the recommended books, she would become an impenetrable ice wall in teacher mode, where Lucius would have less than zero chances of flirting or inviting her to dance. Even now, he didn't have much hope that she would accept.

"Do you want to dance with me after what happened on the eighteenth floor?" She asked in a questioning tone, narrowing her eyes.

"Come on, it wasn't that bad. I never hid my intentions, and I don't regret anything that happened," Lucius grinned shamelessly at the elf. Riveria blushed and stared at Lucius for a while, thinking about how bold this human was, but deep down, she liked his presence, and he had proven himself intelligent and diligent with the task she assigned him.

"Okay, but just one dance!" She finally said, which pleasantly surprised Lucius.

"That's good," Lucius smiled radiantly and knelt before his lady, making a classic gesture of an invitation to dance.

"Would you give me the honor of this dance, milady?" He gave a playful look to the elf as he extended his hand to her, waiting for Riveria to take it. With a touch of blush on her face, Riveria extended her fingers and delicately touched his hand in response.

"I would be flattered," she said with a shy tone. Feeling the lady's hand, Lucius slowly stood up and led her to the center of the hall. Once they reached a good spot, he turned gently to face the lady in the emerald dress, matching her natural colors. Lucius admired her beauty for a few seconds before raising the hand connected with hers next to their bodies, while slowly placing his free hand on her waist, ready to start their dance.

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