When the meeting ended, the executives and gods of each Familia returned to their own camps, preparing for the next decisive battle.
Unlike last time—when the battle had been advanced proactively—this time, the decisive battle had to be fought.
Their largest supply point had been destroyed. The remaining stockpiles simply couldn't keep up with the Dark Faction's rate of consumption.
Merchant sponsorship was also becoming increasingly difficult. If they didn't go all-in soon, their logistics would collapse first.
Watching those "colleagues" hurry away, Erebus's lips curled upward without him even realizing it.
"Orario is far more capable than I expected… to push the Dark Faction—and Valletta—into this state."
In his estimation, against a Dark Faction without Zald and Alfia, Orario would at best hold a slight upper hand.
But judging from the situation now, if the three of them didn't intervene, Orario might simply win outright.
"That little guy has improved a lot. Too bad his fighting style is completely different from mine."
Zald recalled the past.
Whenever he called him that, the little guy would always snap back furiously:
"Who are you calling little?!"
A little man who used to go berserk in battle… had now become Orario's commander.
What an interesting development.
"Has that old elf improved that much? Her magic was never this strong before."
Alfia, too, was revisiting old memories.
That old elf hated people talking about her age.
And in front of Alfia, even the elf's proudest magic wasn't worth mentioning.
That woman had lived roughly four times as long as Alfia… and yet her strength was nowhere near Alfia's.
Every time they met, Alfia only had to provoke her with that fact, and it was an instant kill—straight through the "noble elf's" pride.
After eight years of an Orario without heroes… it was hard to imagine that "noise" could have improved this much.
"Looks like you two are quite fired up. Perfect. Then let us—'The Greatest Evil'—go test how far Loki Familia has grown."
After Erebus said that, he realized the two at his sides didn't react at all—and only then did he understand he hadn't "pitched" it properly.
"Right. Loki Familia alone isn't nearly enough weight. Add Freya Familia—no… we should say: add the entirety of Orario."
This time, the two Overlords deigned to take it seriously.
With the two great Familias gone, Orario had spent eight years in weakness.
To face these two Overlords on equal terms now, you'd have to put the whole city on the scale as the counterweight.
...
Early the next morning, Cid woke up.
More precisely, he was woken up—because Astraea barged into his room and called him up again and again.
"Goddess… isn't this a little early?"
Cid put on a weak, half-dead act.
By his previous life's clock, it wasn't even 5 a.m. yet.
"A visitor who's very important to you is here. If you want to show sincerity, you have to come early."
Astraea answered with a smile, giving him no chance to refuse.
"An important visitor?"
"A goddess."
That, at least, made Cid stop complaining.
To kill time while waiting, Astraea started explaining.
"That goddess is named Hestia…"
Cid listened somewhat seriously. Aside from the most important points, he didn't bother committing anything else to memory.
When the time came, he'd judge the new goddess's personality with his own eyes.
Half an hour passed, and the goddess still hadn't arrived. Cid kept glancing at Astraea.
Just as he was starting to suspect this was some kind of punishment game, the "important visitor" finally arrived.
"Long time no see, Astraea!"
A girl who was somehow both short and imposing waved enthusiastically at Astraea from afar.
"Hello, Hestia. Long time no see. Artemis didn't come?"
Astraea waved back, peering behind Hestia.
Unfortunately, only one goddess had come.
"She's a bit far from Orario, so she can't make it yet. But I heard there's going to be a decisive battle—she's on her way here."
Hestia stepped forward, intending to hug Astraea.
But after noticing Astraea's height, she hesitated and didn't move in.
The height difference was too extreme—if she hugged her, she'd look like Astraea's daughter.
At the same time, Cid was carefully studying this goddess.
If nothing unexpected happened, this Hestia would be his patron goddess in the future.
He had to admit: she was unquestionably a beautiful少女—an authentic "bishoujo" goddess—and one particular detail was exceptionally eye-catching.
Not her "size," even if it could be compared to Astraea's—
But rather, the blue ribbon supporting her from below.
What kind of clothing design even was that?
Too erotic. Too distinctive.
Also, this goddess was really tiny.
Cid did a quick estimate: her height might only be around 140 cm.
Shorter than most dwarves, only a bit taller than a Pallum.
By comparison, Astraea was around 165–170 cm.
When Hestia looked toward him, Cid immediately launched into his performance.
"Y-you… you-you hello, Lady Hestia! M-my name is C-C-Cid!"
His voice was muffled and stuttering; he wouldn't meet her eyes.
In the end, he kept a full 182 cm distance, bowed ninety degrees, and extended his hand.
"Please take care of me!"
This was a plan he'd devised after serious thought: Operation Best Mob Character.
Being so overwhelmed by a god you can't even speak properly—that's what a proper mob should look like!
However, Cid's plan had a massive flaw.
Smack!
Astraea chopped him on the head with a hand-blade.
"Eep!"
Damn goddess!
Cid clutched the back of his head and mourned inwardly.
His "new Familia mob plan" had been cut off at the very first step!
This was exactly like transferring from middle school to high school—no matter how hard you try to reinvent yourself, you can't change your lifestyle…
Because old classmates always end up in the same school.
And if you run into someone with a big mouth, your past reputation follows you like a shadow.
"Hestia, don't mind him. This child isn't shy—he just likes acting… I think people call it chuunibyou?"
Astraea wasn't fully sure.
Cid's unique little "habit" was hard to describe precisely.
She'd heard the term chuunibyou from Freya's side.
"It's fine. He seems like a very interesting kid."
Hestia didn't mind at all—her eyes were full of curiosity.
After living in the divine realm for hundreds of millions of years, she'd seen all kinds of gods.
But as for humans, Cid was the first one she'd ever examined this seriously.
If she chose to accept him…
This boy would become her very first Familia member in the mortal world.
"Hello, Cid-kun. Did Astraea tell you about me?"
Seeing Cid return to "normal," Hestia asked at the right moment.
"I've heard. You're a pure goddess just like Lady Astraea, so you can't possibly be part of the Dark Faction."
Cid nodded.
During the wait, Astraea had told him: Hestia had only just descended after receiving her letter, and currently had zero Familia members.
Starting from scratch was difficult for an ordinary adventurer.
After all, who wouldn't prefer joining a large Familia and enjoying all the benefits?
But for Cid, a Familia that allowed him freedom of movement was ideal.
No other companions meant Shadow could have loads of free time to act independently.
With his "surface" Level 2 strength, supporting a newly-started goddess was more than manageable.
When he explored the Dungeon, he could casually farm materials and sell them—earning a typical Level 2 daily wage on paper.
So Cid was extremely satisfied with Astraea's choice.
On the other side, Hestia's first impression of Cid was also fairly positive.
"Cid-kun—Astraea told me she hopes I can take you outside Orario. Are you ready?"
....
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