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Outside the door, Lili paced back and forth anxiously.
She tried to listen in.
Tried to make sense of what was happening inside.
But no matter how long she listened, she heard nothing.
Of course, she didn't.
Anos had already set up a soundproof barrier inside.
Click!
The door opened.
Thud!
A small body bumped into it.
"Liliruca."
The calm voice of Soma rang out.
"A girl who has lived under the Soma Familia… from today onward, you are no longer one of us."
His tone was flat, but beneath that flatness, there was a faint trace of emotion.
He could not understand it.
Why would someone like Anos want a person with so little apparent value?
Still, he didn't ask.
Didn't question it.
If Anos wanted her, then so be it.
"…."
Lili froze.
No words came out.
Just like that…
Had she left the Soma Familia?
It felt unreal.
Like a dream.
And if it was a dream…
She didn't want to wake up.
"Hey, what are you waiting for? Let's go."
A familiar hand rested on her head.
Without thinking, she followed the motion she had already grown used to today.
She looked up.
Of course.
It was Anos.
"…Mm."
She wiped the tears from her eyes and nodded firmly.
Anos chuckled softly.
He had a feeling she was misunderstanding something.
But honestly…
It didn't matter.
The familia would grow soon anyway.
---
Hestia Familia
The door opened.
"This is… the Hestia Familia…"
Soma muttered.
As a shut-in god, his reaction was half genuine, half forced.
He hadn't even paid attention to how recently this familia had been established.
Still, even by divine standards, this place looked quite decent for the mortal world.
"Anos!~~~"
Before anything else could happen—
A girl with blue ribbons rushed forward and jumped straight into Anos's arms.
"Anos, Anos, Anos~~"
Hestia clung to him, rubbing against him affectionately.
"You're okay, right? Bell told me you fought a boss today! And it was the 37th floor boss?!"
Her twin tails swayed as she spoke, clearly worried.
"I'm fine... Don't worry."
Anos smiled and gently signaled her to calm down.
There were guests present, after all.
"Hestia, this is Soma, the god of wine."
"Ah—!"
Hestia froze for a moment, realizing another god had just witnessed her clingy behavior.
But she quickly recovered.
"Soma? The wine god from the Indian pantheon, right? I'm Hestia."
She straightened herself and spoke with proper composure.
To outsiders, she remained a goddess of dignity.
"Well… usually."
"…Hestia."
Soma nodded.
Internally, he just wanted this over with so he could go back to brewing.
"So, what brings you here?"
Hestia asked directly.
"I'm here for that child."
Soma pointed at Lili.
"She will be joining your familia."
"…Huh??!!"
Hestia immediately turned to Anos.
You went out ONE day and came back with a new girl??
"…."
Anos just smiled calmly.
Clearly saying: We'll talk later.
Hestia puffed her cheeks.
In her mind, the situation was already classified, Anos went out and picked up another girl.
Still…
She wasn't overly threatened.
Compared to her, this small girl didn't seem like competition at all.
The real threat was still Ais.
Tall.
Elegant.
Beautiful enough to rival a goddess.
That one is dangerous.
"Since this is your decision, Anos…"
Hestia accepted it for now.
She would interrogate him later.
In private.
---
Transfer Complete
Before Lili could even fully process what was happening…
The transfer ritual was finished.
She stared at the status sheet in her hands.
Still stunned.
"Hey~ Anos! Explain this!"
Hestia immediately turned to him in full interrogation mode.
Her tone sounded exactly like a wife catching her husband cheating.
"I'll explain."
Anos calmly told Lili's story.
Hestia listened carefully.
She knew about his predictive ability, so she didn't question how he knew all of this.
"I see…"
She nodded slowly.
The reasoning made sense.
Everything he did matched his personality.
But still…
She was annoyed.
Not at Lili.
Not even truly at Anos.
Just at the fact that he brought someone in without telling her first.
Even if he was technically the captain…
It still felt unfair.
"Only this once. Got it, Anos?"
She tapped his shoulder firmly.
Then paused.
…Wait.
Had he gotten taller again?
"…If that's what you say, Hestia."
Anos smiled gently and patted her head instead.
There was no need for a second time anyway.
Soon enough, people would start coming to them on their own.
"Ah! Right!"
Hestia suddenly remembered something.
"Tomorrow is the Denatus. There's going to be a banquet. Will you come with me?"
"Of course."
Anos smiled.
"Who else would be more suitable?"
"Hmph! Don't get too full of yourself!"
She huffed.
"If you go around flirting again, I'll take Bell instead!"
Then she added quickly:
"Also, you need proper formal wear. Go buy it tomorrow. And get something for Bell too!"
This was their familia's first public appearance.
She wanted Anos to look perfect.
To show everyone—
Her Anos was the strongest.
And the most handsome.
"Alright, alright. I'll go."
Anos nodded.
He already had plenty of formal wear.
But Hestia didn't know that.
And honestly…
A trip through Orario didn't sound bad.
Especially with Lili as a guide.
Not everything needed to be solved with calculations, Sometimes, it was better to just experience things normally.
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~Support with 300 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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For early access to advanced chapters on P-atreon:
P-atreon/iamxeno
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