A Hole

"Strange..."

A perplexed murmur echoed softly inside an opulent room, a corner where no one could hear it.

Freya stood by the window, her beautiful eyes wide open, gazing at a corner of the city, filled with confusion in her eyes.

She had witnessed the confrontation between Riezel and Allen—or rather, through some special means, in a manner close to 'clairvoyance', she observed the process of Riezel and Allen's clash.

This was a skill only she could master, beyond the reach of the other gods.

Therefore, even though the place where they clashed was at a considerable distance from her place, she could still 'see' what was happening. But precisely because of this, she was both amazed and puzzled.

"The first time I've seen a soul like that..." Freya's beautiful brows tightly furrowed as she murmured.

The Goddess of Beauty, Freya, possessed a pair of unique eyes.

They were called the 'Discerning Eye', capable of seeing the essence of the souls of those in the lower world. These were eyes one was born with, not falling under the category of Arcanum, which was prohibited for use in the lower world. It was an innate skill, a trait that was practically useless in heaven.

However, in the lower world, with this pair of eyes, she could perceive the potential of mortals more keenly than any other god. As long as she could observe the souls of these mortals, she could judge one's potential based on the brilliance of their soul.

After all, any hero, anyone wielding the power of a hero, would have a soul that shone brilliantly, it was impossible to be as ordinary as a commoner.

In heaven, she used this ability to grasp the colors of the souls of those ascending to heaven (the deceased), selecting favored individuals as her own collectibles and embracing them in her arms.

These so-called 'collectibles' were what mortals called heroes.

Therefore, it was not strange for Freya Familia to become one of the strongest familias in Orario, on par with Loki Familia, and even surpassing them in some aspects. The reason was that the goddess of this familia could recruit children with extraordinary potential ahead of other gods, gradually making her familia stronger.

Freya also had a deep affection for children with extraordinary soul brilliance. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that she loved such children deeply.

In light of this, after Riezel displayed exceptional potential, she immediately set her sights on him.

However, his soul made the Goddess of Beauty, who could see through the soul of every mortal, full of astonishment and suspicion.

"It's not the dazzling brilliance or the extraordinary colors, but the difference in 'shape'?"

The soul seen by her Discerning Eye right now was such an unprecedented thing.

In the past, the souls of those in the lower world, when viewed through her eyes, either had different colors or emitted varying degrees of brilliance. Based on the display of 'color' and 'brilliance', she chose whether to add them to her collection based on her preferences.

Up to now, she had seen various souls of heroes displaying different colors and brilliance.

Some had unique colors.

Some radiated brilliant and dazzling light.

All of these were things she liked and loved.

But Riezel was different.

In her Discerning Eye, his soul had neither extraordinary colors nor brilliant radiance, only twisting like a vortex.

No, it wasn't a vortex.

It was a 'hole'.

A colorless, brilliant-less, completely unclear shape, twisting like a black hole, as if it could engulf everything, ferment, blend, and mix inside.

This 'hole' seemed to be telling her not to expect or see what was inside or casually judge its value, blocking her line of sight completely.

From that 'hole', all she could see or feel was only one emotion.

That was the obsession not to accept interference from anyone.

That was the unwillingness to be scrutinized and judged by anyone.

That was the essence of Riezel's soul. He was rejecting those who were reaching out to him, silently indicating to them that his future could only be decided and chosen by himself.

Indeed, it was a kind of obsession.

If one's existence could be observed and scrutinized casually by others, their future from that moment would have been fixed, confined within the range of what others 'saw'.

Riezel would not accept such a future.

"Fufufu~ very interesting..."

After the initial surprise, Freya became intrigued.

"Unwilling to be seen by me (goddess), unwilling to be judged by anyone (world), persistently and twistedly advancing, what kind of existence do you really want to become?"

Suddenly, she developed a burning desire.

A desire to see what was brewing inside that 'hole'.

"Fufufu... So that's how it is... This is the unknown that various gods have been pursuing all along... Fufufu..." Freya chuckled.

Her laughter was captivating, enough to conquer nations. It was a laughter of unparalleled beauty.

"Looks like I'm really going to have a confrontation with Loki this time..." Freya mused. "Even I, just thinking about getting involved with her, can't help but feel a bit scared."

It was not without reason.

Loki was the Goddess of Mischief who once triggered doomsday in heaven, deceived and tricked various gods several times, causing them to turn against each other, nearly unleashing a true calamity.

Even Freya, at the thought of clashing with this Evil Goddess, couldn't help but have reservations.

"But then again, it's a kind of fun."

"Let's take it slow."

"After all, I'm not in a hurry..."

Freya smiled and walked away.

She still had to go check on her little cat (Allen) who got accidentally injured due to her own mischievous sense of humor.

===

At this moment, night had completely fallen.

Riezel, covered in bloodstains, took advantage of the night and walked into Twilight Manor, under the doubtful gazes of the gatekeepers.

He had intended not to attract anyone's attention and go straight to his room, but unfortunately, he wasn't able to do so.

"Riezel?"

Accompanied by a surprised voice, someone had returned to familia shortly after him.

Riezel stopped, feeling somewhat helpless.

"...What happened to you?"

A swordswoman with dazzling golden hair, fully armed, returned from outside and coincidentally met him as he was about to enter the manor. Seeing his bloodstained appearance, her transparent golden eyes were filled with surprise and seriousness.

Although Riezel felt helpless, he turned to face Ais.

"Ais, did you go to the dungeon?" Riezel asked calmly as he assessed the fully armed Ais.

"Um..." Ais nodded. "After you went out with Captain, I went to the dungeon."

She was still so diligent and progressive, obviously affected by him.

"Then you have to be careful." Riezel smiled slightly. "If Riveria finds out, you're in trouble."

At his words, Ais couldn't help but shrink her head.

She was most afraid of Riveria, who was like a mother figure, always accompanying her, guarding her growth, and taking care of her. Riveria had scolded her many times for not resting properly after an expedition and for excessively diving into the dungeon.

Her progress was good and her effort was also commendable, but Ais's amount of effort far exceeded others. There was a concern that she might overwork herself to the point of exhaustion.

In a sense, Ais and Riezel were indeed similar.

Both were someone willing to risk everything, including their lives, to become stronger as quickly as possible, seizing every opportunity for growth.

From Riezel's usual recklessness, it was apparent that Ais's degree of recklessness was no less.

However, there were some differences between them.

Riezel had self-awareness and insisted on following his own path, regardless of how others perceived him. Meanwhile, Ais was still a bit hesitant and timid, always afraid of being lectured by Riveria.

"Don't change the subject." Ais ignored his words and stared at him with a serious expression. "Are you injured?"

"...I guess so." Riezel pursed his lips. "Just a minor injury though, already healed."

A wound that could be healed with elixir should be considered minor in his perspective.

"You're lying." Ais mercilessly exposed his lie. "Your complexion is terrible; clearly, you've been seriously hurt."

That was where his flaw lies.

While a potion could stop bleeding and heal injuries, it couldn't easily conceal the paleness caused by a significant loss of blood.

Ais was precisely concerned about that.

She couldn't fathom how, with Riezel's current strength, he ended up seriously injured. If he followed the usual routine of entering the dungeon and defeating monsters, it wouldn't have led to this. Unless he delved into the deeper floors below the 37th Floor or encountered an irregular.

However, returning on the same day from the deeper floors below the 37th Floor was impossible. If an irregular appeared, it would be reported to the Guild immediately and spread among adventurers, but she hadn't heard any such news.

In a nutshell...

"You fought someone...?" Ais whispered. "A powerful one?"

"..." Riezel fell silent, then pondered. 'This girl, all cool and aloof, is actually pretty intelligent?'

Seeing her intense stare, he could only nod and answer.

"Don't tell anyone; I want to solve it myself." 

"..."

Ais remained silent for a while, but eventually, nodded her head in agreement.

"...Okay."

However, from her hesitant eyes, he could tell that she was somewhat conflicted and uneasy. Ais, seemingly cold but inexperienced, clearly didn't know how to handle the current situation.

Observing her behavior, Riezel unconsciously extended his hand and gave Ais a headpat. She froze, involuntarily raising her head to look at him.

Meeting her eyes, he only smiled.

"Don't worry. I'm not one to take a loss easily."

Upon hearing his confident words, Ais lowered her head in silence. Her face, partially obscured by her bangs, turned slightly red.