Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

After all, even if they invent such amazing magic items, they are just going from paddling to having their "magic" extracted.

"Does your merchant guild also employ slaves?"

"It's not so much me, but the entire Chaos Desert region does this. This land is different from Orario, where you live, sir. It's a desolate and cruel desert world, so slavery is recognized here."

Although Freya was a goddess, she had no intention of criticizing this action as inhumane; however, Boffman understood that there was no "slave system" in Orario, so he was particularly cautious in his response to this matter.

In the Nether, besides the Chaos Desert, there are many other regions where slavery is deeply entrenched.

Orario, known as the city of adventurers, is quite unique because it prohibits the slave trade. Although Orario has a more thorough background in managing its "familia" (familia) compared to other countries or cities, the main reason is that the city's founding god (Uranus) and the gods who assist him share the same idea.

In order to make Orario the "Promised Land" where "heroes" are born, the gods strongly reject any unjust laws.

"I forgot to ask you something in detail: is your chamber of commerce's business mainly trade?"

"As expected of the Goddess Freya! Your insightful observation of seeing through the truth at a glance is truly admirable! You're right, it was my trading company that first introduced this 'Desert Ship,' responsible for trade in a portion of this desert!"

Freya had only asked casually, but Boffman launched into a lengthy explanation.

"The Caios Desert may be vast, but only a handful of merchant guilds possess 'Desert Ships'! Therefore, if anyone can guarantee you, Goddess Freya, a comfortable journey, our Fazil Merchant Guild is more than qualified!"

Seeing Bofman rubbing his hands so hard that he almost wore down the lines on his palms, Freya quickly realized that he was exaggerating, but she also understood that what he said was true.

Looking out, there were no other sand barges in sight in the vast desert world.

Those black dots in the distance must be traveling merchants riding camels.

Therefore, people who own a "Desert ship" must be quite rare.

While trading by boat in the desert has a wonderful feel to it, it doesn’t seem strange to replace the desert with the “ocean”.

Sea routes were considered precious in trade—because ships carrying large quantities of goods relied on them—so it's quite reasonable that those who owned ships that "sailed across the desert" could rise to prominence. After all, history has proven the importance of ships in trade.

For traders, the "desert ship," capable of navigating the desert, was the preferred choice.

Based on this alone, Boffman can be considered a very capable businessman.

"This outfit I prepared for you suits you perfectly!"

However, this person talks a lot and often makes statements that seem like he's trying to curry favor with others.

While feeling helpless about this, Freya looked down at her own body.

She was wearing a white short-sleeved top, a red hoodie for sun protection, and a loincloth.

In addition, she wore a black tulle dress that covered her slender figure, fastened with round buttons in several places.

Clothing suitable for the desert, meant to shield them from the blazing sun, would be rather inappropriate, but adding an outer jacket would suffice. Furthermore, since the gods' appearance doesn't change in principle, they naturally wouldn't get tanned.

Due to the long journey, this new outfit was also provided by Boffman.

The goddess appeared in this sexy outfit, and as soon as she stepped onto the deck, she quickly attracted the attention of all the crew members.

After all, Freya, the "Goddess of Beauty," was standing here, so it was only natural that this situation would occur; but now she couldn't help but worry that if things continued like this, the helmsman might accidentally lose control of the ship.

"Hehehe..."

In contrast, Boffman made no attempt to hide his lecherous gaze.

At first glance, he seemed to have a very rational self-discipline, but his eyes were fixed on Freya, constantly darting back and forth.

"Hehe, Goddess Freya, I've already spent a considerable amount of your travel expenses. When you achieve your travel goals, I hope to receive your 'favor'..."

"..."

With an almost voyeuristic gaze, Boffman observed Freya's legs through her sheer skirt—legs so perfect they seemed almost supernatural.

Can you say he was loyal to his desires? He was clearly only thinking about receiving "favor".

To put it bluntly, he just wanted Freya to invite him into her boudoir.

Putting aside the possibility of soaring to the top in the business world, if one were fortunate enough to share a bed with the "Goddess of Beauty," it would be the ultimate honor and pleasure in the mortal realm.

Even if it meant giving away all his wealth, he still wanted to spend a night with his goddess.

There are countless people like this.

The "goddesses" have absolutely no interest in such vulgar people and will treat them like air.

(He is lustful and greedy by nature. Even if he retains the bare minimum of good character, he is still someone you can't afford to be careless about... In some ways, he is more like a businessman than anyone else.)

Freya saw through Boffman's true nature with her silver divine eye, finding him, like the other "goddesses of beauty," to be "uninterested."

Freya was well aware of the "value" of her body and soul, so even when faced with such lustful gazes, she felt no displeasure. Instead, she thought indifferently, "Thank goodness Otto and the others aren't here."

If those self-proclaimed Freya's personal guards were standing here, they would have instantly slaughtered those lecherous-looking men and destroyed the ship. Boffman was incredibly lucky.

Mysterious incidents of people who offended the goddess dying tragically on the roadside occurred frequently, so it could be said that no one in Orario dared to offend Freya.

As a "goddess of beauty," such troubles, or rather, "unpleasant things," will always follow her like a shadow.

In addition, there is jealousy, envy, and jealousy from other goddesses.

Therefore, Freya had long since reached a state of detachment from this and would not react with any dissatisfaction.

With an extremely natural movement, she gently brushed the hair behind her ear aside.

And—

"There seems to be some sound."

"What?"

"It's an unpopular 'voice'."

She closed her eyes and reminded herself of this.

While Boffman was still dumbfounded and hadn't quite grasped the situation, the "strange sound" that only the goddess could hear was approaching.

That couldn't be the sound of sandstorms or birdsong from the desert.

After all, there are no big waves or eddies here.

Since this sound came from a desert where there were no sandstorms and it was quieter than a calm ocean—

"--Goo ...

That must be the work of a monster.

The ship sprayed out a large amount of sand and dust from its side as if a landmine had been detonated, and then a huge "worm" sprang out from the ground.

It has a skin the same color as yellow sand, and a huge body whose wriggling motion would cause a physiological repulsion.

This creature has no part that can be called a face; the only features on its head are a round, enormous mouth and ugly, sharp teeth.

The enormous creature, its head bowed and fixed on its prey, was almost touching the "Desert ship."

"That's a 'desert worm'!? And it's enormous!"

Boffman, who was gripping the top edge of the ship's gunwale with both hands, was quite panicked.

Monsters that have entered and exited the earth's surface through the "Great Cave" since ancient times have long since expanded their territory to various fields such as land, sea, and air.

The Caios Desert is no exception.

"Desert worms" are creatures that travel underground and only emerge from the ground when they detect prey.

The "strange sound" Freya heard was the sound of it burrowing through the sand.

"Quickly, quickly, drop the copper from the boat! Hurry!!"

While the merchants riding camels in the distance were fleeing in panic, Boffman, despite biting his tongue, still managed to give orders at the top of his lungs.

The pale-faced guards on deck frantically tried to control the ship's cannons or prepare to unleash "magic," but it was too late. Messengers urged the slaves to provide a large amount of "magic" to accelerate the ship, but they too had lost the initiative.

Completely caught off guard by the monsters. Unable to detect the enemy immediately. The two sides were too close together.

The monster will likely soon use its gaping maw to bite through the mast and break the ship in half.

"There's no need to turn around."

"What?"

At this time──

The goddess spoke calmly.

"It's a pity—"

This is not a declaration of giving up on survival.

As if continuing Freya's words, the "Desert Worm's" head was instantly chopped off.

"Gah────!?"

The monster's screams before its death were drowned out by the sound of blood splattering everywhere.

Just now, a silver streak appeared, large enough to reflect sunlight back.

The commotion ended as soon as it was seen slicing across the giant insect's body.

"………………ah?"

Boffman and his crew stopped moving as if time had stood still.

As the monster spat out blood, its body slowly collapsed. Countless grains of sand, unable to withstand the enormous creature, trembled and flew into the air, creating a dust storm, accompanied by a deafening roar.

Freya stood beside Boffman and the others who were standing there dumbfounded, smiled, and continued to finish what she had just said.

"—They seem to have caught up."

On the other side of the swirling sandstorm—

Eight figures could be seen.

They consisted of four dwarves, two elves, and a warrior carrying a greatsword on his shoulder.

There's also the cat-man who swiftly beheads monsters.

Their heroic figures truly befit the warriors who protected the goddess from hideous monsters.

"...!!"

Boffman glanced at Freya, who remained completely unmoved and calm in the face of the monster's attack, and his expression instantly froze.

Those once lecherous eyes are now filled with fear.

Only now did he finally realize who the goddess standing before him truly was—a goddess who led the strongest clan and represented love and war.

At the same time, he was shocked to realize how rude he had been and was terrified that he would be executed.

Not only Boffman, but Freya, surrounded by terrified gazes, simply uttered a calm "Let's go."

He urged the ship to set sail in a relaxed tone.

The crew members shuddered as if time had been unfrozen, and quickly obeyed the goddess's will.

The ship then moved away from the monster's carcass and sailed forward along the sandy sea.

"I've finally caught up with you..."

Allen, who had added a hooded jacket to his usual attire, swung his silver spear with a dashing air.

The smacking sound, born of frustration and irritability caused by its owner's excessive freedom, drifted away on the hot, dry wind.

As he flicked the monster blood off his gun, Oota spoke:

"Let's go."

Without waiting for his order, the four Jariba brothers, Hegney, Hedin, and Allen had already rushed out.

Their speed was so great that the merchants who had been preparing to take refuge thought it was all a pipe dream. The group of eight disappeared without a trace, leaving only the faint dust kicked up by their footsteps in the desert.

To avoid losing their master, the goddess's retinue took off in pursuit of the receding ship.

*

Freya and her group arrived at a town called "Leod City".

This town, which expands outward from its center as a tranquil oasis, resembles an isolated island floating on the sea.

On the south side of the town is a "port" dedicated to "Desert ships." Ships move slowly into the harbor along the outer walls, which are three meters high and built to defend against monster attacks. Since this is a desert, anchors are not used; instead, ships are secured to mooring posts with chains.

This desert port, built with stone paving, looks just like a seaport.

The surrounding ships were busy unloading cargo, which was then transported to other places.

Although there are only a few expensive and rare "Desert ships" here, at first glance, the number of crew members shuttling back and forth is no less than that of a typical seaport. Besides the strong men, there are also quite a few children who appear to be attendants. In terms of race, the dwarves, skilled in manual labor, are the majority.