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Freya laced her fingers on the table, leaning her body slightly forward. Her smile was soft, but her gaze was piercing like a dagger wrapped in velvet. "Then, Hestia..." Her voice sounded sweet yet carried a subtle pressure. "Can you tell us about him? About that 'Mr. Skull'?"
Hestia immediately tensed up. Her shoulders rose and fell slowly, her lips pulled back nervously. "I-I... I only saw him, I don't... don't know him well!" she stammered, her eyes darting left and right seeking help.
Freya just stared at her without blinking, her expression unchanged. In her mind, she was already assessing—unlike other gods who were skilled at hiding their emotions behind masks, Hestia was completely open like a book. Every tremor in her voice, every blink of her eyes, was an honesty that couldn't be hidden.
From the side of the table, Loki crossed her arms and sneered. "Heeh... looks like you're close, huh? So much so that you have a special nickname for him— 'Mr. Skull', right? How cute."
Hestia's face instantly turned bright red. "N-no! That's a misunderstanding! I just... just repeated what Lili called him that time!" she said quickly, her voice rising in pitch from panic.
Loki looked even more amused. She leaned back, relaxed in her chair, her wide grin stretching even wider. "Oh, so Lili was the first? Wow, this gets more and more interesting. Small as you are, it seems your Familia has a lot of secrets, Hestia."
"Loki! Don't just say things like that!" Hestia protested, glaring at her with puffed-up cheeks in annoyance. "Lili only said that when she was calling out to her savior! We have absolutely no connection to him!"
The atmosphere at the gods' table grew noisy with soft laughter and teasing whispers. Hermes chuckled lightly. "Heh, this is starting to get more exciting than the discussion about Ares earlier."
Meanwhile, Freya remained silent, just watching Hestia from behind her ever-present smile. Silently, her eyes reflected a growing curiosity. Liliruca's savior... a skull mask... and the reaction of a little goddess who is far too honest.
Hestia quickly raised both hands, trying to look convincing in front of the gods, now focused on her. "I really don't know, I swear! After he saved Lili that time, the masked figure just vanished. We only even got a glimpse of his back before he disappeared into the shadows."
The room, which had been noisy, fell silent for a moment. Freya closed her eyes briefly, trying to absorb those words. In her heart, she affirmed Hestia's statement—indeed, since that incident, she had tasked Ottar, Hedin, and some of the best executives of the Freya Familia to spy on the Hestia Familia. But the results were nil. There were no signs of a black-robed figure or any strange, powerful aura approaching them.
Hermes, who was sitting with his legs crossed, leaning back in his chair, stroked his chin and spoke casually, "In that case, the question is... why did he help them? No one does something that big without a reason, especially if it involves clashing with the Soma Familia."
His casual tone turned serious, his gaze glancing towards Soma, who sat in the corner of the room with his usual blank expression.
"Hmph," Hestia snorted while glaring at Soma with an annoyed look, "Because he knew we were a good Familia being cornered. Not like a certain liquor Familia that enslaves its own children!"
Her voice rose an octave, causing some gods to chuckle softly while others tried to suppress their smiles. Hestia stared sharply at Soma, her lips pursed in honest anger.
Soma, as usual, did not refute it. He just stared towards the table, his voice flat but softer than expected. "At that time... I didn't care. I was only making liquor."
Hestia clenched her fists, but before she could continue, Soma glanced briefly at Hestia and continued in a heavier tone, "However, after that girl—Liliruca—resisted the effects of my divine liquor and begged me to let her go... for some reason, I couldn't refuse. Perhaps... that's where I began to realize how narrow my perspective was."
Some of the gods fell silent. Even Freya, who was usually untouched by emotion, looked at him a little longer than usual. In her heart, she could feel a faint echo of emotion from that story—about a mortal trying to rise from despair.
But Freya quickly brushed that feeling aside, returning to the main topic. "Then," she said softly, "what do you know about the masked man, Soma? Did you see anything... or hear anything suspicious?"
Soma shook his head slowly. "No. Based on reports from my children who were on night watch at that time, they didn't even get a chance to see his face. They were all struck from behind, quickly, precisely, without fatal injuries."
The room buzzed softly. Hermes let out a low whistle. "Hm... so he didn't kill anyone? Interesting. That's not the style of an assassin, nor a shadow soldier. It sounds... like a hero."
A few gods began to murmur in agreement. "Yes, a hero," said one goddess in a gentle tone. "One who acts without expecting reward."
Hestia clapped her hands loudly, her face shining with pride. "See, I told you! I said so too! Mr. Skull must be a hero! A mysterious hero who protects the weak!"
Cheers and light laughter echoed throughout the Denatus chamber. Even Hephaestus, who rarely laughed along, just smiled slightly, seeing Hestia's innocent enthusiasm.
But among the gods who were starting to argue, only Loki chuckled softly in her seat. She leaned back relaxedly, one hand propping up her chin, her wide grin giving the impression that she was amused by the foolishness of the situation.
"A hero, huh? Hahaha, well, whoever he is, that guy has good taste in style. Skull mask, mysterious shadows, rescued girl—so classic."
Hermes glanced at her with a teasing tone. "Heeh, sounds like you know more than you're letting on, Loki."
Loki just shrugged, chuckling softly. "Me? Nah, I'm just guessing. But at least he's not the type to make the world more boring."
The other gods laughed lightly along, thinking Loki was just being mischievous as usual. No one suspected that behind her casual laughter, the goddess of mischief was hiding something far deeper.
Freya, sitting across from her, only glanced briefly, assessing with the calm of a goddess already bored with such petty intrigues. There was nothing suspicious about Loki's tone this time—just her habit of teasing anyone who could be made into a laughingstock.
She shifted her gaze, taking another sip of the red wine in her hand. In her mind, the name Mr. Skull still echoed faintly. That figure remained a mystery—unreachable, yet leaving a trail that tantalized her curiosity.
Whoever you are, masked adventurer... I will find you someday.
Freya's smile curved softly, as if she was merely enjoying the taste of her wine, while a purple light glinted slowly in her eyes. Amidst the laughter of the gods, no one realized that a small seed of obsession was beginning to grow in the heart of the goddess of beauty.
The bell marking the end of Denatus chimed, and the room slowly grew noisy again. The gods joked and bantered, but among them, two very different goddesses sat quietly in their own thoughts—one hiding the truth with light laughter, the other beginning to weave the threads of fate to find the masked shadow that had captured her attention.
One by one, the gods and goddesses filed out of the magnificent Denatus meeting hall. The sound of clinking sandals and laughter echoed in the long, white-marble-lined corridor. As usual, Ganesha was the loudest, his voice booming loudly.
"I am Ganesha and Ganesha bids farewell!!" he shouted, raising his hand high with a broad laugh. Other gods just shook their heads, accustomed to the commotion.
As the crowd subsided, the atmosphere in the meeting hall slowly quieted. Only three figures remained—Dionysus, Hermes, and Loki. Three gods who had formed an unofficial alliance in the past, a thin cooperation more often marked by intrigue than trust.
Hermes sat relaxed on the table, his legs swinging lazily, playing with his hat. "So, Loki," he said in a teasing tone, "Aren't you curious about that 'masked hero' Freya was asking about?"
Loki, who was rolling up her Denatus invitation, answered without looking back, her voice casual. "Meh~ He'll show up on his own eventually. This world is small, especially Orario. If he's caught Freya's attention, sooner or later, he'll appear before me himself."
She glanced at Hermes with a grin, showing a small fang at the corner of her smile. "Besides, the fun part isn't guessing... It's waiting for the moment he reveals his mask himself."
Hermes chuckled softly, patting his knee. "You really always trust in coincidence, huh. But indeed, he's not an ordinary person. Freya wouldn't be interested if he was just a regular adventurer."
Dionysus, who had been silent until now, chimed in with a calm tone, "Hm, speaking of adventurers, I'm more curious about the Loki Familia's next expedition. When do you plan to go down to Knossos again, Loki?"
"Seems like we have to wait until this Ares business is settled first," Loki answered lazily. "That god of war is really annoying. Not dangerous, but irritating—always showing up at the wrong time."
Hermes slapped the table with a chuckle. "Heh, typical Ares. All bark, no bite. But yeah, disturbances like that are still a hassle. I had to change my scouting schedule too."
Dionysus looked at the two of them with sharp eyes. "You two... always treat war like a game. But if Ares truly loses control, Orario could get chaotic too."
Loki rolled her eyes indifferently, then leaned her head back on the chair. "By the way, Hermes," she said then, her tone turning slightly more serious, "Did you get the info I asked for the other time?"
"Info?" Dionysus looked at the two of them, his eyes narrowing with curiosity.
Hermes smiled, spinning a coin on his finger before answering. "About Nidhogg—the dragon carved on the mural in Knossos. The old painting that the Loki Familia found on the previous expedition."
The atmosphere in the room grew a little heavier. Even Loki, who was usually relaxed, put her feet down from the table and looked at Hermes with narrowed eyes.
"And?" Loki finally asked. "Did you find something?"
Hermes sighed, his expression no longer playful this time. "I looked for info in the Babel Archives and some ancient records, but... It's a real shame, the results were nil." He shrugged. "No texts, no matching legends. It's as if that name only appeared in that one place."
Dionysus stared blankly at his glass, muttering softly, "Nidhogg... the dragon from beneath the world. A name that should only exist in myth, but if it truly is in Knossos..."
Loki tapped her fingers on the table, her eyes narrowed. "Heh... more and more mysterious. But yeah, more dangerous too."
Dionysus looked at her from over his wine glass, his smile blurred by the shadow of the cup. "Mystery, danger, and ancient secrets... sounds like something only the Genkai could produce."
Hermes chuckled. "Or something we should bury before it comes to the surface."
The air in the room grew heavy for a moment, and only the soft sound of Dionysus's glass being placed back on the table broke the silence.
Dionysus put his wine glass down slowly, and a soft click was heard on the stone table. His usually relaxed expression now looked more serious, almost gentle—yet also containing something hard to decipher.
"Loki," he said calmly, yet his voice was pressing, as if trying to pierce the space between them. "For the next expedition to Knossos... allow me and my Familia to join."
Loki, who had just been about to stand up, quickly turned her head with an expression half-lazy, half-amused. "Heeh? Are you serious, Dio? Isn't your Familia more suited to fermenting wine than fighting underground monsters?"
Her tone was light, but the glint in her eyes was sharp—she knew an expedition to Knossos wasn't for the weak.
Dionysus smiled faintly, not offended in the least. "You don't need to worry about that," he said softly. "I've already spoken with my members. They are willing to act as supporters for the Loki Familia. And wouldn't Lefiya be more motivated if Filvis joined? Haven't they gotten quite close lately?"
Loki let out a soft snort, scratching her head even though it didn't itch. "Tch, you cunning god... You know exactly where the weak spot is. If you bring up Lefiya, Riveria will probably give in too."
Hermes, who had been leaning back relaxedly in his chair, now leaned slightly forward. "But I'm curious, Dionysus," he said in a tone more serious than usual. "You're not the type who likes to go directly into dangerous places. Why the sudden interest in joining an expedition?"
A moment of silence. Dionysus looked at the two gods before him with his deep emerald eyes—a gaze usually gentle, now carried a faint sorrow.
"Because Knossos isn't just a labyrinth to me," he said slowly. "It's the headquarters of Enyo — the killer of my Familia members. I will repay Enyo and the remnants of Evilus for their deeds."
He paused for a moment, his fingers gripping the now half-empty wine cup. "I want to make sure that no one else will lose everything like they did. If that means I have to descend into that darkness myself... then so be it."
Hermes looked at Dionysus for a long time, his smile fading, replaced by a look of respect. "You are truly admirable, Dionysus," he said softly, "but if you're sure... then I hope you are truly careful."
Loki, who usually loved to tease, just sighed. "Hmph... fine. But don't blame me if you get lost halfway, okay."
Dionysus looked at Loki and smiled, this time sincerely—whether from genuine sincerity, or a mask too fine to distinguish.
"It's fine," he said softly, raising his last glass of wine. "As long as our goal is the same... to clear away the remaining darkness."
The sound of clinking from their wine cups touching echoed among the three of them, and for a moment, the empty Denatus chamber felt warm.