Soma Familia.
"Why did the Apollo Familia lose..."
After receiving a request from Hyakinthos, Zanis immediately began taking corresponding action, which included dispatching adventurer members into the Dungeon to monitor Ron.
No direct conflict occurred.
But he knew clearly that, judging from Ron's ruthless personality, if he won the War Game, what awaited him next would definitely not be good.
Then, things began developing in a direction completely beyond Zanis's expectations. Apollo, who could casually crush the Soma Familia, had been utterly unable to fight back in the War Game.
"How is that possible..."
He collapsed onto the ground in a daze.
Why could Ron, who had only become an adventurer not long ago, become such a powerful adventurer? Zanis did not believe that the strength he possessed... would allow him to survive if he faced Ron.
"Run!"
"I must run!"
Taking advantage of the moment after the War Game ended—when Ron would be at his busiest—he quickly liquidated all the Soma Familia's fixed assets in Orario and prepared to leave the city with the money.
Trust the god?
Zanis did not believe that the god Soma, who never interfered in the Familia's affairs, would care whether he lived or died. At most, he would simply replace the captain with another adventurer.
Seek protection from the Adventurers Guild?
Don't make Ron laugh.
Their conflict and grudges were already there. Compared with Orario's rising star, even if Ron killed him right in front of them, the Guild would probably pretend not to see it.
Investigation result: Multiple stab wounds to the back — death ruled a suicide.
"Even if I leave Orario, I'll squeeze every last Valis out of these useless trash. As long as I move to the City of Crime, no matter how strong you are…"
"Ron, you won't be able to do anything to me!"
And just as Zanis convened another full Familia meeting, Lili used the magic Cinder Ella to disguise herself as a prum and joined the meeting.
She was carefully recording every strange action of the captain.
...
After the War Game ended, Apollo was temporarily absent due to illness. His former Familia commanders Daphne and Cassandra cooperated with the Adventurers Guild to carry out the financial settlement.
Excluding the personal assets of the Familia members, the final gains of the Hestia Familia were the former "Apollo Familia" manor—worth nearly 200 million Valis—as well as a large amount of liquid funds.
37 million Valis.
"At last, we don't need to worry about money anymore..."
If the useless equipment and materials of the Apollo Familia were sold, and the fifty million Valis earned from the Hephaestus wager were added in, the sense of fulfillment brought by money was enough for Ron to forget all his worries—though in truth, he did not have any to begin with.
"Confirm the accounts."
"If the amount is correct, then sign."
Handing the Familia property transfer documents to Ron, Daphne felt complicated emotions as she looked at the handsome young man before her who had completely overturned the Apollo Familia.
The gap in strength had already been clearly recognized earlier.
And also, that eye-searing victory declaration.
She had never imagined—there would actually be an adventurer who dared to lay hands on a god, and that strange method was enough to leave a deep impression on Apollo.
"No problem."
Ron quickly glanced through the transfer documents.
After confirming there were no issues, he signed decisively. There were still quite a few things left to do, such as erasing all traces of the Apollo Familia inside the manor.
He had no intention of staying.
But just as he was about to leave, the girl with light red short hair found that the curiosity deep within her mind had ultimately overcome the psychological shadow Ron had left on her.
Daphne hesitated for a moment before asking: "Mr. Ron, could you spare a little time to talk?"
"What do you want to talk about?"
The reason Ron had a deep impression of Daphne was probably that she had waited for him in front of the Dungeon's "Ancient Ruins." If she had not shown hostility at the time, then otherwise, at the very least during the War Game he would have had to test what she was made of!
"Mr. Ron, regarding the current scale of your Familia, have you considered expanding it? As you know, after the Apollo Familia disbanded in Orario, my friend Cassandra and I are now free adventurers."
While saying this, Daphne also watched Ron's expression. After noticing there was no obvious rejection, she finally revealed the thought in her heart: "I wonder… whether we could join the Familia you belong to?"
This was her sincere wish.
The powerful Familias in Orario would definitely not care about two Lv.2 adventurers, while the ordinary Familias offered very little opportunity for growth.
By contrast, the Hestia Familia—just having Ron alone meant it was destined to become a powerful Familia in the future, not to mention there was also the equally strong Lv.3 adventurer Mikoto.
"…"
Exploring the Dungeon was not an individual endeavor.
Sooner or later they would inevitably need to explore the middle floors, and with the current number of members it would probably be difficult to sustain that. The development of the Familia was extremely important.
And the magic "Raumure" that Daphne possessed...
And Cassandra, who as a healer could foresee future dreams and avoid risks in advance, was also a very high-quality adventurer resource.
Reason told Ron that agreeing to let them join the Familia would only benefit its future development.
Since she had not received an answer from Ron, Daphne felt that this outcome was reasonable. After all, not long ago they had been opposing targets.
"Sorry."
"It's fine if it's inconvenient."
Just before the girl prepared to leave, she remembered how Ron had accomplished something she had been unable to do when she was weak—resisting the Apollo Familia's forced recruitment.
Daphne stopped in her tracks.
Even if revealing the secret behind it might cause him to resent her, she still reminded him: "About the recent Dungeon anomalies…"
"I hope you'll be careful. I feel there's another adventurer behind the scenes investigating the secrets on your body. They might have ill intentions toward you."
"Of course, no matter what, I won't reveal anything about what's going on with you."
'Another expert?'
When he had met Daphne outside the Fog Gate, combined with the occasionally normal Dungeon environment, it actually wasn't difficult to guess that the true cause of the Dungeon anomalies was himself.
What truly surprised Ron was the information revealed in her words, as well as her frank attitude. At the very least, her character was not bad.
"The adventurer who's secretly following me—do you remember anything about them?"
"No."
"But they were definitely a stranger who appeared at the Ancient Ruins after we left that day." Daphne gently shook her head and told him everything.
However, when she noticed her close friend Cassandra hugging a pillow and the trace of reluctance in her eyes, she had just reached out to drag this girl away by force—when she heard Ron's reply: "If you want to join the Hestia Familia… at the very least you'll need the god's approval. But you'd better be mentally prepared to be used at will."
"…?"
It sounded a little strange.
But Daphne knew that the Hestia Familia was the best choice for herself and Cassandra. Looking at Ron's calm expression, she spoke with gratitude: "Thank you."
"Then should we go find Lady Hestia now?"
"That won't work."
The boy shrugged lightly, even his tone carrying a trace of nonchalance.
"If sweeping through the Apollo Familia in the War Game counts as a great feat, then no matter what, it has to be after I get my level up first."
"Only then will Lady Hestia have time to handle your application to join."
"???"
Daphne: Are you even speaking human language?!
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