In Flames I

Some things, first, my vacation is about to start.

Some people have already started their vacation however, mine only starts next week, after my calculus exam...

In any case, with this vacation, I plan to continue my other novel, the one that had been on pause for around a month.

My first plan was to rewrite the entirety of the first volume, not in the way you are thinking.

I just want to change the way I mark Speach, thoughts, and narration to the way it is now while also fixing some grammar.

However, that would mean losing all of the precious images and lore. So I wonder if it's worth it.

In order to do this, I was planning on removing the third chapter from next week in order to give me some leverage.

Also, I plan to eventually add 5 more advanced chapters to patr3on, making it 10.

If you are interested, go take a look at the novel description.

Apart from all of that, we are now going towards the events that will lead towards the end of Volume 2.

Good reading, I hope you enjoy it.

Oh yeah, I will be going to the gym now, so I won't have time to upload the new chapters on the Patreon page, however, I will do it after I come back in one to two hours.

This also includes images, however, I will try to add them now if possible.

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"What?!" Screamed Hestia as she looked at the burning castle.

What is that flat board doing now?!

"..."

'Silver also gazed at the castle, he was curious, but…'

"Let's go back home." He said

'It wasn't his problem.'

"What?... Are we going to ignore it?" Replied Hestia in surprise

It just feels...

"You talk as if we were obliged to do something in the first place… It's clear that something is happening but we are not Orario's police force."

"And this might not even be an attack, perhaps it was just an accident, it's against the law to attack another Familia upfront, although the law can bend a little from time to time."

Like that time when the Apollo Familia destroyed the Church to force the Hestia Familia into a War game… If I am not mistaken, they would receive a fine, but that's all.

The Guild didn't even fine them because they knew it was useless, they wouldn't stop harassing the Hestia Familia just because of such a thing.

Things are normally resolved via War games.

But of course, if a Familia was eliminated by another in the middle of the night via assassination, this Familia would be quickly eliminated out of Orario.

I am not that versed in Orario's politics … Nor will I ever care…

Until it affects me.... For that, I at least know the basics.

"But... I don't know Silver. I just feel bad about it."

Although I hate that Flat board, seeing her house burn down doesn't bring me any joy…

"..."

'Silver looked at his Goddess and decided…'

"Sigh. Fine, I will go take a look."

The mood was already destroyed with this event, so nothing good will happen by staying here in ignorance.

'He took out a small pouch from his inventory and gave it to Hestia.'

"I will go take a look and make sure everything is fine, in case something is not fine, well… Pay up with the money on the pouch and make sure to stay safe until I am back."

"Otherwise, I will just be back in a jiffy, so we can enjoy our food."

"I will say it right now, but I will only protect Loki, that is if I can. The others will have to fend off for themselves."

'And with that, Silver jumped from the balcony into a dark alley.'

"Silver…"

'Hestia looked at the moon as she saw many adventurers rushing across the streets and some even on the rooftops.'

Be safe…

…

'Silver ran across the alleys like an agile jaguar.'

'He passed by an alley with his formal clothes and when he left it, he was wearing full-body, silver, plate armor, with some dark details and red cloths on his waist.'

'Although he removed those together with the cape since they got in the way of fighting. However…'

(Image)

'So why did he add those in the first place?'

'... Just to look cool. Do you know the term… Fashion Souls?'

"Hm?"

'Silver noticed a piece of white fabric strapped to the armor neck plates.'

"Shit, O forgot I had left my scarf in the armor when I was forging… Oh well, guess you are sticking with me this time as well."

'Fate can be quite strange.'

…

'Silver used Cloud walk and invisibility in order to sneakily run in the sky.'

'With his speed, and considering the fact he was flying and didn't have any obstructions, he arrived in the Loki Familia house within a few minutes...'

'From the sky, Silver started to piece out what was going on.'

"I can see some people fighting. Something is definitely going on."

Did the Loki Familia get attacked?

If that's the case. Are the attackers suicidal?

Courting death?...

Once the Loki Familia main force comes back, it's over… Only the Freya Familia can fight against them… And it wouldn't be easy.

"If Loki dies… Orario will be filled with war."

Even if she doesn't die, conflict will still happen since Loki isn't someone to receive a beating and stop just because of some political stability.

I wouldn't doubt if she invaded a country because someone did something to her children. Much less if someone burned her house.

…

'Silver finally arrived in the plaza near the Loki Familia home.'

"This is worse than I thought"

'It was a pandemonium.'

'Silver could see dozens of people fighting on the streets and some were even fighting inside of the castle.'

'People wearing dark masks and cloaks.'

"What a shitty situation."

The Loki Familia was definitely being attacked...

And the attacker has the intention to bring the Familia down… Or should I say, back to heaven?

"But things are slowly returning to order as more and more adventurers arrive to help."

I can even see some members from the Artemis Familia… Were they close by?

Oh yeah, I think today they patrol this area...

"Do I even need to help?"

"... From what I can see, the weakest among the attackers is Level 2, they move in groups of 5 being commanded by at least one Level 3."

And I can see several of these groups… What sort of organization is this?

To have multiple well-coordinated groups of level 2 adventurers being led by one Level 3 each…

It's enough to be called a medium-sized Familia.

"If they have so many Level 3, there is bound to be at least one Level 4… I found him… Them."

'Silver soon found the leaders after searching for a while, he only had to look at the least populated area.'

'Since the fights between high ranked adventurers tend to get more destructive, lower Leveled adventurers will make sure to stay away so they aren't affected by it.'

'In some places across the area, he could see groups of Level 3's fighting against one single person, in order for that to be possible the person has to be Level 4.'

"And this is only what I can see, meaning there might be more."

A criminal and hidden organization that has this many Level 4's…

This means they have at least one Level 5… Alright, something terrible is happening right now!

"These forces are enough to fight even the Ishtar Familia… They are definitely a high-Level Familia."

Who are they? How did they manage to stay hidden all of this time?

'Silver shook his head.'

"That doesn't matter right now."

I can't help them in fending off against the attackers, but I can at least save Loki if she gets in danger.

'Silver noticed the casualties on both sides were still rather low.'

"What are they doing?"

The attackers… They aren't killing anyone, they attack and retreat... They are focusing on defense.

Why?

Are they dragging time? But for what?...

"STOP RIGHT THERE CRIMINAL SCUM!" Screamed a domineering female voice.

'From the top of one of the houses near the plaza, a girl around 170 Cm with blue hair appeared.'

'She had a bow on her hands. And a full quiver of arrows on her back.'

'It was none other than…'

"Artemis herself…"

/Swush!/

'Being faithful to her name, she pulled her bow and shot 5 arrows at once.'

"AHH!"

'Like a flash, all 5 arrows hit their targets almost instantly, showing off their speed and precision, however, she only aimed at their legs.'

"Put your weapons down and prepare for judgment!"

'Artemis jumped into the fray, unafraid of the enemies.'

"..."

'Silver observed Artemis movements.'

"Even though she is a God, being restricted from using her Arcanum. Her body is still comparable to a Level 3 adventurer while her archery is… Impeccable."

If her skill was to be graded as a DA, then it would definitely be A or above…

Not like I can grade it since I never saw anything near that…

"Things should get more balanced."

"However, the current Artemis Familia is much weaker compared to what it would be in two years. They do have one Level 3 captain… No, she is definitely a high Level 2 however, she is proficient enough to hold her own against a Level 3."

"But this isn't enough…"

'Silver used his Plasmids to seek Loki's current position. He soon found her to be inside the topmost floor inside some sort of hidden room.'

'She was completely alone, meaning that the door in front of her is her last defense.'

"Ouch… I hate doing this to my eyes… They are now irritated…"

'Silver had to use something beyond simple infrared vision, he had to go the X-Ray route.'

'And that was not only taxing but also unhealthy, his eyes could even get damaged.'

"If Loki is safe then there isn't much to fear."

'Silver sat on the top of one of the houses and waited.'

"So this is the situation... I doubt I would need to intervene."

'The situation was pretty chaotic, pretty much, a group of cloaked assassins had taken over the entrance and walls of the Loki Familia Manor and they were simultaneously defending from reinforcements while a small group infiltrated the Manor.'

'The target was most likely Loki...'

…

"AHHHRG!" Screamed one of the adventurers as he slashed his sword to the side

/CLANG!/

'But his cloaked enemy easily parried it…'

'The battle raged on as Silver observed from his vantage point.'

"The enemies are slowly making their way up the castle, although the losses are minimal on both sides, the Loki Familia is playing the safe game, probably trying to buy time for help to come."

They should also be doing this in order to minimize their losses.

After all, they have a territorial advantage, who knows the inside of the Manor? Them of course!

Even if those terrorists aren't really trying, it doesn't mean everyone is fine, some people suffered severe injuries, and some may even die.

"I wonder what the invaders want this time? They bought so much time that I wouldn't be surprised if the Loki Familia main group suddenly appeared."

For real now, they had two weeks to attack the Loki Familia, but they chose the last day of the excursion?

The frontline members may return at any minute!

"Is their target the Loki Familia main group? If that's the case, I can only give them my condolences again."

If they actually succeeded in taking them out, no matter who the enemy is, they would certainly be left with similarly big losses.

But that isn't really cost-effective. So they must have another objective...

"I can think about this later, I need to focus on this."

'Although the Artemis Familia was low Level, their cooperation was flawless as they managed to take on even a few Level 3 adventurers with the support from their Goddess.'

"DO NOT FRET AS I HAVE ARRIVED!" Said a man with an overbearing deep voice.

'Silver looked at the source and saw a 2,3M tall hunk of a man in nothing but trousers…'

'Behind him, a group of semi-naked guys appeared, they were pretty strong as they started to push back the assassins, however, they were too numerous so they just helped in stabilizing a single area...'

'The tall guy carried a large metal bat on his back that only seemed to intensify his barbaric nature.'

'His hair was golden and long, like Goku's hair, and his eyes were red… This was…'

"I guess he is being faithful to his name, Hercules…"

"He's even taller than Ottar… And more buffed…"

And this guy likes Loki? No wonder she doesn't reply… It wouldn't fit at all.

She is literally, almost half his size…

/BAM!/

'With a single swing of his club, Hercules knocked out a Level 1 adventurer.'

"Looks like he is more than just talk, although he seems weaker than Artemis... Level 2?"

I wonder why. Is it because of their influence? Many people pray for Artemis, as she is one of the Gods with the most importance in Orario.

In a cultural way.

Freya may have the strongest Familia, but she isn't the most revered one…

Ganesha is certainly more revered than her.

"Perhaps that gives strength to a God? I can't see it any other way."

"Although... I do remember Freya managed to evade the attack of a Level 4 captain and charm him... So she is at least that agile."

So she is definitely not just a weak and frail woman... Since she can take on Ottar's Meat, I guess she has a lot of vitality yeah?

'Hercules tried his best to rush inside the castle and save his 'princess' as he put it. But he failed miserably due to the blockage of the cloaked man.'

"GET OUT OF MY WAY!" Screamed Hercules as he tried to charge through the cloaked men.

…

"Sheesh, that guy is fucking nuts." Said Silver as he looked at Hercules display

At least he knows how to fight... I guess it was obvious since he is Hercules.

(Not every God has to act as his real-life mythology counterpart)

"... But something's wrong. A lot of time has passed yet nothing happened so far…"

Is this all a distraction? Perhaps, Loki wasn't their target at all?…

'Silver thought of Hestia for some reason.'

"No no… I can't be so overprotective… Hm?"

'While he thought, Silver noticed a guy from the reinforcements picking up a knife, it seemed natural at first, but the problem was the person he was looking at.'

"Is that…"

'The shady guy slowly made his way across the battlefield, minute after minute, he got closer to his target.'

'He was really easy to see since, in that part of the battlefield, only girls of the Artemis Familia fought.'

"I see, nice try but I can't let you do that."

'He also noticed the guys inside the Loki Familia increasing their pace.'

I think I understand what they are trying to do…

"However, my goal was to protect Loki and only her… But... I can't allow such a person to die this early in the storyline…"

"Does that even matter after all of this?"

'Silver looked at the chaos below him.'

People that were supposed to exist only in separate stories have shown themselves, and I can't grasp how that would affect the main storyline.

Things have long started to follow their own path, one that I do not know.

"In the end, it boils down to my own wishes. Do I want to just stay here and watch as those fuckers get what they want?

When I could've easily changed that?

Am I so afraid of the consequences?

"... "

'Silver got up and looked at the assassin.'

"... Artemis..."

If they eliminate the Artemis Familia, criminal activities will spike, and doing covert activities will become easier.

Although the Artemis Familia is small, they grew up fast and their reputation is already very high.

Their main focus is on the city of Orario itself and not the Dungeon.

While most Familia's ignore Orario as a whole, the Artemis Familia actively seeks out criminals to punish them.

Since their Goddess is very strong, they can take on stronger criminals and after a few years, Orario has become safer. This will only improve over time.

"They are classified as a Hunting Familia, killing monsters and helping people threatened by them. However, that's why the Level of their members is so low despite them being talented and well managed."

"They are trying to remove the Artemis Familia out of the game while also trying to kill Loki? Was that why they were buying time?"

The perfect opportunity to assassinate a God… This might be the reason why they started at night since this is the time when the Artemis Familia patrols this place.

"Not only that, people may start to look down on the Gods and adventurer Familias. Worse, they might panic or get cocky."

Most mortals don't even think about this… After all, it's killing a God. Even the toughest of hoodlums would feel pressured by the mere gaze of a God.

"The impact of this event would be… Terrific."

If people started to think that killing Gods was no big deal…

So in the end, stopping this also helps me.

"Time to act, it's about time as well since the killing party has started to accelerate their invasion inside the Loki Familia castle."

'Silver got up from the ceiling and picked up a large sword from his inventory.'

"... Too big, I won't be fighting anyway. I only need to protect the Goddess."

If I failed here, even more so to Artemis, another big friend of Hestia, she would certainly be devastated for a very long time…

'Silver took out a large-sized white spear and several sharp circles.'

'They looked odd yet simple. They were nothing but a bunch of sharp black plates.'

'However, those of profound knowledge may call them Chakrams or Chalikar… If these black plates can be called these anyway.'

"2 should be enough for now, it would be hard for me if there were any more."

'Like magic, the two black plates started to orbit Silver, as if they were shields.'

"Time to act!"

'Silently, Silver started to levitate and fly to his target. He had to get to Artemis before the assassin.'

…

/It has been 5 minutes since Artemis arrived and around 20 minutes ever since the conflict started./

"Tsk!"

'A red-haired girl with a long sword had just defeated another Level 2 adventurer, but it was clear she was very tired and injured'

Although it seems as if we are getting control of the situation, the enemy still has a solid defense.

Just what is that they aim?

The others are also being worn out, if this continues I might not be able to save everyone!

Much less if those stronger enemies decide to intervene… Am I still too weak?

/Fwush!/

'From the side, a blue-haired girl appeared and cut the woman's thoughts short.'

"Rethusa. Retreat with the others, the situation has gone into an impasse and we can't do anything right now."

'It was none other than Artemis, she had blood on her body, it certainly wasn't hers, but she was visibly tired.'

'The captain of her Familia, Rethusa, knew her Goddess was about to fall to the ground due to exhaustion.'

'However, she knew that she wasn't going to back down from this...'

'It might not have been long since they arrived, but everyone, including Artemis, has performed more than 100% of their capabilities in order to save as many people as possible.'

'Artemis might have pushed herself beyond that…'

'But that cost her stamina...'

"Artemis-Sama…"

'Although Rethusa was anguished with the thought of fleeing, she knew Artemis was right, this wasn't a fight they could partake in anymore, the best they can do is secure order and help the civilians around the place.'

"Understood, what about you? You also need to rest!"

"Don't worry about me. I still have quite a lot of gas in me!"

'That was a lie.'

"..."

'Rethusa knew that was a lie, but Artemis was very stubborn when the matter was about saving others, ever since she descended, Artemis has always thought about others even at the cost of her free time.'

'So she just nodded and ordered a retreat as a way to lessen the burden on her Goddess…'

/FWUSH!/

'However, it was at that time when both of their guards were down that the traitor struck!'

/PIERCE!/

/Splurge…/

'Out of the shadows, he threw a knife that penetrated into Rethusa's arm even when she tried to avoid it, and at the same time he ran towards Artemis.'

'He was clearly at least a Level 2 considering his speed, and Artemis is tired, she wouldn't be able to defend herself!'

'Time seemed to slow down as Artemis gazed at the knife slowly making its way towards her heart.'

"..."

'She looked at the assassin, then at her Familia members, then, at herself.'

Is that it?... But I barely had enough time to enjoy it…

'She bit her lips.'

After everything I did…

I wanted to eat good food, laugh, and buy those cute clothes I heard the others talk about…

/Pierce!/

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Notes

N1

As I was saying…

(LOL)

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/Pierce!/

"... Wh-What?"

'Artemis didn't know what to think, in a moment, she felt as if all of her efforts would have been in vain, but in the other, a knight suddenly fell from the sky in her time of need.'

'In front of her, stepping on top of the assassin's body, was a tall white knight with his spear penetrating the man's body.'

'His pure white armor seemed to shine under the fire of the mansion. His white cape floated in the wind...'

"... Are you alright?" Asked the white knight

'As he asked that, he removed the spear impaled on the traitor as if it was nothing, dirtying his impeccable boots with the filthy blood of the assassins. However, Artemis didn't seem to care about that at all.'

'Her attention was elsewhere…'

'She had to raise her head to look straight into the knight. He was tall enough to cast a shadow into her. For a moment, she forgot she was on a battlefield as all that covered her vision was that man.'

'Although she couldn't see his face, she, for a moment, managed to see a pair of resplendent Pale moons gazing at her.'

'Although that might've been something from her imagination due to the stress.'

"..."

'She remained entranced before she was taken out of her trance by a scream!'

"SHIT! Snake Fang has been terminated! Initiate plan Berserk!" Screamed one of the cloaked Level 4's

'All of the cloaked figures suddenly became aggressive, trading blows and wasting more stamina as they furiously attacked all of the adventures.'

'The scream also woke up the other girls, who were similarly entranced and confused by the situation.'

'The Level 4's banded together and rushed towards Artemis' position while eliminating all adventures in their path.'

'However, those adventures bought more than enough time for the knight.'

"We need to leave." Said the knight

"Their objective is most likely to eliminate the Artemis and the Loki Familias at the same time, however, their priority is both Loki and Artemis themselves." He commented

"!" x2

'The two girls were surprised, although they both seemed to have their own suspicions, this was by far the most likely scenario. However unbelievable it may be.'

"They might have other plans in mind, but that doesn't matter… I will go save Loki. Red-haired girl, can you have the other adventurers retreat? Thanks."

'He didn't even wait for her reply as he started his next action.'

"I will help you a little…" Said the knight as he pointed his right hand forward.

'Mist started to form around his arm, leaving from the gaps inside of his armor and from the air itself, it gathered at a fast rate until it turned into a meter wide gym ball.'

"This should be enough."

/Fwush…/

"EVADE IT!" Screamed one of the Level 4's

'The ball flew at high speed towards the assassins, they evaded to the side, thinking it was an attack, but the ball suddenly exploded on their face!'

/POOF!/

'Large amounts of thick mist started to cover that part of the plaza.'

"Arg!"

'The compressed mist was released with such force that it blew most of the assassins across the place.'

(They might be Level 4, but if they are hit with enough force, they will be blown up, even if they don't take any damage, momentum, and force my guy…)

"Time to go, you should also take your leave." He said towards the red-haired girl

'And as he said that, he grabbed Artemis by the hands and held her tight under his arm.'

'She didn't even have the strength to resist... Or perhaps, she didn't even try to.'

"..."

'Her face was completely red, but it was hard to notice that under the night and the fire of the manor.'

"Sorry for this, but I need you to hold tight… As for you all, I wish you good luck."

/FLASH!/

'With a flash of light, the white platinum knight disappeared into the mist.'

'Like a myth, it can be heard but not seen.'

"..."

The Platinum knight… Stole my Goddess?!

…

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Notes

None for now