A warm breeze carried the scent of flowers.
"So, in the end, we're still just wandering around Orario..."
Daphne looked at the others and sighed softly.
"Bell-sama, this bouquet is for you!"
Lili accepted the beautiful bouquet from the girl at the flower shop and handed it to the young man with a smile.
"What are you doing while I'm not paying attention? Confiscated! Confiscated!"
Hestia stepped in front of Bell and snatched the bouquet without mercy.
"That's too much! The one you should be keeping in line is Artemis-sama, who's lying in Bell-sama's bed, not us!"
Lili frowned and shot back.
None of the girls were in a romantic relationship with the young man, and their actions had stayed firmly within the bounds of friendship.
Just when the atmosphere had finally turned a little sweet, Hestia had gone and ruined it completely.
"I've already convinced Artemis. She knows she was wrong, and I'm sure she'll never do anything improper again..."
Hestia's reply held no confidence whatsoever.
"Hestia-sama, you really aren't good at lying. Even I can tell..."
Mikoto exposed the goddess's lie.
"After all, she's the goddess who hugged Bell-sama the moment they first met... No matter how you look at it, I don't think Hestia-sama could convince her..."
Lili murmured in agreement.
"In that case, isn't the title Goddess of Chastity a little questionable? Artemis-sama has already fallen, and Hestia-sama is like this. If anything, Goddess Freya seems more like the one who presides over chastity. The Captain really is sinful..."
Daphne thoughtfully analyzed the situation.
"What do you mean, 'like this'? I haven't done anything that violates chastity! Besides, Artemis never would have done those things before!"
Hestia argued with all her might.
It was all Bell's fault.
That was what she wanted to say, but the moment she looked at the young man's handsome face, all her anger drained away.
Bell slowly stepped forward, lowered himself, and whispered into the goddess's ear.
"Goddess-sama, when Artemis brought her lips close, I really did think about how you would feel. But she was just..."
"Ah! I don't want to hear it! I don't want to hear it!"
Hestia covered her ears, defeated by the young man's teasing.
"You womanizer, Bell! You vixen, Artemis!"
Hestia clung to Bell's side, venting the tangled emotions in her heart.
For the first time, she had found someone who stirred her heart, and she had also saved her dearest friend from Tenkai, the one she could talk to about anything.
Those two joys piled together had somehow become a source of torment that haunted her day and night.
"I'm Bell's Familia Goddess. I was here first..."
Thanks to Bell's teasing, Hestia finally let out the frustration she had been holding in.
"Hestia-sama... let's keep having fun..."
Mikoto put on the air of an older sister and changed the subject.
"Mm..."
Hestia took the chance to grab Bell's hand.
Lili badly wanted to object, but in the end, she held her tongue.
Let it be the goddess's little selfish whim...
With that thought in mind, everyone started the date again.
Hestia soon recovered her spirits. She seemed to cast everything else aside, following nothing but the fondness in her heart as she cheerfully pulled Bell along.
Lili and the others, just like Bell, tacitly spoiled the goddess.
At times, Hestia acted like a child, competing to see who could swing higher.
At other times, she acted like a mature woman, scooping up dessert with a spoon and offering it to the young man.
The blue sky gathered their laughter, and the bustling city bore witness to their date.
Before she realized it, Hestia had completely forgotten the rules she had set earlier and lost herself entirely in the joyful atmosphere.
"Is there anywhere... that no other girl has been before?"
As they passed a huge building, Lili recalled the goddess's words and fell into thought.
Perhaps [luck] had blessed them, because the group soon saw something strange.
"Bell-dono, what is the layout inside this place?"
Mikoto asked curiously.
Before their eyes, the building's interior looked like a set of mechanisms installed over a pool, filled with all kinds of bizarre traps.
"I don't know either. Judging by the location, this should be Ganesha Familia's territory."
Bell looked at the goddess beside him, and Hestia shook her head in equal confusion.
"Good question! This is the secret weapon that brings joy to the people!"
A muscular male god wearing an elephant mask suddenly appeared.
"Ganesha... don't be so loud..."
Hestia complained softly.
"That's right! I am Ganesha!"
The god flexed his muscles and struck an entrance pose.
"So... Ganesha-sama, what exactly are the facilities inside?"
Bell was also quite curious about what was inside the building.
To him, the huge swinging pendulums and rotating discs looked more like a training course.
But that guess seemed worlds apart from the "joy" the god had mentioned.
"These are entertainment facilities our Familia is currently developing. They're still in the testing phase."
Ganesha flashed his white teeth and laughed loudly. "You are the lucky first visitors, so you can play for free. Care to give it a try?"
"Try it? If that giant pendulum hits you, it's definitely going to hurt!"
Lili stared at the trap, which was far larger than she was, and simply could not imagine it being used for entertainment.
The gods really do have something wrong with their heads...
"Don't worry! It's only meant to knock people into the pool. The materials were carefully chosen, so you absolutely won't get hurt!"
Ganesha patted his chest.
"But... if we fall in, won't we get soaked? People will see everything..."
Mikoto voiced her concern.
"You can rest easy on that point too. When the facility is running, this door will be closed, and only the referee, Shakti, and the female members responsible for rescuing anyone who falls in will remain!"
Ganesha struck another inexplicable bodybuilder pose and patiently added, "On top of that, we've partnered with a clothing shop to prepare brand-new outfits and a place to dry your clothes!"
"...They went that far?"
Hestia had not really understood, but she could tell that Ganesha's preparations were extremely thorough.
"This is obviously some kind of scam, Hestia-sama. We should leave right now."
Lili urged the group to get away from the suspicious place.
"I forgot to mention, the prizes for reaching the finish line are incredibly generous!"
"A huge sum of money!"
"A year's worth of dessert vouchers!"
"An invitation ticket to the Temple Bath!"
"And a love sculpture made by a top-class craftsman, with any pose of your choice!"
With every line Ganesha spoke, he changed poses.
"..."
Bell and Daphne fell silent.
The other girls, however, stood where they were, their eyes gleaming.
"Lili thinks we could try it..."
"I-I was thinking the same thing..."
"A goddess's bath? I would like to try that too!"
"Good, then let's go in! Our goal is a statue of [me] and Bell!"