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

Instead of reaching an agreement with the goddess, he agreed to become a statue that remained unresponsive.

"Heh...you really are a formidable god."

Freya gave a faint smile and then turned around.

As if she had foreseen this outcome, she left the underground altar with a leisurely air.

Only four torches remained at the scene, along with the old god with his eyes closed.

"...It's unbelievable."

Some time after the goddess left.

The darkness in the corner of the hall seemed to tremble with fear, and then a magician (mage) appeared from it.

"Was everything we just talked about true? Uranus... It wasn't just me, everyone in the city was 'bewitched'..."

Fels, unable to hide his inner turmoil, walked forward and came to the bottom of the steps leading to the throne, where he stood before the altar.

The black-clad magician, who was Uranus's right-hand man and also his bodyguard, had been listening from the sidelines.

However, he was "unable to grasp the current situation for a long time".

"Even after hearing the whole story, I still couldn't feel anything was wrong with myself, and even wanted to take what I just heard as nonsense... No, it's that I couldn't objectively recognize that I had become the 'slave' of the goddess Freya."

"This is the 'Goddess of Beauty,' and also Freya's power."

"Twisting and creating false perceptions... Have I become your enemy, Uranus?"

Fels' magical artifact (the robe) could block all "abnormal states," including "curses," but it couldn't withstand Freya's "charm." Magicians already affected by its rules were thus reduced to "monitors," immediately reporting any suspicious activity by Uranus to Freya. Therefore, to uphold his promise to Freya, Uranus silently kept his eyes closed.

Fels couldn't help but tremble all over.

He can no longer distinguish between self-awareness and unconsciousness.

"Lacking a conscious sense of obedience."

Freya's "magic" on the entire city did not harm anyone, and it was so gentle that it did not hinder anyone, but at the same time it was an extremely vicious "binding".

"As Freya said, she hasn't directly harmed the city, and for now, there's nothing we can do but wait and see. As for whether this situation will continue indefinitely... that all depends on Bell Craney's fate."

The old god, whose mind was filled with the image of a certain boy, sat quietly on his stone throne.

*

As the sun sets and its afterglow fades, the azure night sky blankets the city.

The dark clouds in the sky had dispersed, but the stars seemed inexplicably distant, and a thin veil of clouds draped the moon in a veil.

Today has been an exceptionally long day for me.

Night has finally broken.

"Goddess Freya has returned to her bedroom, come here."

I had no idea the door had been pushed open, my master said to me.

I, who was sitting on the bed in a daze, silently climbed off the bed.

Like a prisoner unable to resist, I followed closely behind the figure in front of me.

“…………”

“…………”

My master remained silent, and I did not utter a word either.

We walked along the long corridor, bathed in moonlight that tinged it with blue and white, without exchanging a single word.

The palatial mansion was completely silent.

Indoors—no, the entire headquarters was like that.

The vast "battlefield" is surrounded by towering walls, which shut out all the noise from the streets, even though it is located on the south side of the city, in the bustling area of ​​the fifth district.

Even though it's said to be the illusory atmosphere after the Goddess Festival ends, it feels almost like being isolated from the outside world.

Am I overthinking it? I have this feeling that this place is like a "giant prison".

"...Master...Mr. Hedin..."

When I, unsure of how to address him, changed my form of address, my master responded without turning his head.

"What's up?"

"...Do you know a woman named Seele?"

The master, who had not stopped for a moment, finally stopped here.

He slowly turned around, still standing in place.

"……who is she?"

"She is a human woman...working at a tavern called the Abundant Mistress..."

"..."

"She seems to have some connection with the city's largest faction (the Freya Familia)... I wonder if she's here...?"

Even amidst this bizarre situation where no one remembers me, there are still a few things that keep me on my mind.

For example, when I asked Miss Ryu this morning if she was safe, the first-level adventurers (Alfred and the others) seemed to have no recollection of her.

And what about Miss Seele?

Is she alright, the one I broke her heart and who has since disappeared?

After I asked my question as if seeking help, my master replied with an expression that revealed no one's true thoughts:

"There are no girls like that here, only a goddess."

The expected answer immediately shattered my last remaining hope.

Unable to even respond, I silently lowered my eyes. I gradually became disheartened by this "world" so different from my own memories, and at the same time, a feeling of disgust arose in me for who I was.

The moment I realized that my master seemed to be watching me, he had already taken another step.

After arriving at the grand dining hall we had spent the day in—the main hall on the first floor in the center of the building—we headed towards the long corridor leading to the north. This covered corridor passed through a magnificent atrium with views comparable to heaven, leading all the way to the depths of the headquarters.

As I was bewildered by this vast and unfamiliar landscape, I arrived at the top floor of the building.

"Goddess Freya, I have brought the person."

"Come in."

A clear and pleasant voice came from the other side of the closed door.

As my heart pounded with anxiety, two female members of the group, armed with long guns... who were on guard duty, pushed open the double doors.

Urged on by my master's eyes, only I, filled with nervousness, was allowed to enter the goddess's chamber.

"You're here, Belle."

There was no throne inside the room.

However, she was sitting in an elegant chaise lounge in the center of the room.

She had silver eyes and long, flowing silver hair.

Those eyes sparkled like jewels, and her beautiful hair shone as brightly as the stars in the sky.

Bathed in the moonlight streaming through the window, her figure was so beautiful that it was impossible to find any other adjective to describe her.

This solemn and sacred appearance made me forget all my emotions and desires, while the goddess stared straight at me.

"...Goddess Freya".

I managed to squeeze out a few words from my dry lips.

The shrine of the leader of the largest faction in the city was much simpler than I had imagined.

Perhaps due to the spacious interior, all that comes into view is a canopy bed, a bookcase, and an exquisitely decorated full-length mirror. Part of the white-and-blue stone floor is carpeted, and there are several pillars matching the ceiling color. Overall, it looks like a bedroom converted from a former audience chamber.

The large magic stone chandelier hanging high on the ceiling was not turned on, only the magic stone lamp on the low table next to the recliner emitted a faint light.

The entire room was thus dyed the color of the pale moon.

"I'm sorry, but we still have a lot of things to take care of after the Goddess Festival, so we can't find time to see you sooner."

"..."

"I've learned the situation from Hedin and the others. You seem to remember nothing about us, don't you?"

"..."

"And they even thought they were servants of other gods."

Compared to the goddess Freya, who took the initiative to strike up a conversation, I remained silent throughout.

After the goddess rose, she slowly walked towards me, who was standing in the shrine chamber.

The sound of high heels echoed across the carpet, and I saw the goddess, who was slightly taller than me, reach out her right hand toward my cheek.

I couldn't help but shudder and quickly backed away to create some distance.

"...At first I thought it was a joke, but it turns out it's all true."

Seeing my tightly closed lips, the goddess smiled gently, seemingly troubled.

Although we had met several times at the "Feast of the Gods," she had always been quite open-minded, but she had never spoken to me with such a friendly attitude and gentle tone.

Faced with the reaction that seemed to be that of a "god" treating his subordinates, I took a deep breath.

"Am I... really a member of the Freya Familia...?"

"Yes, I fell for you at first sight."

"So... I've been fighting under your command all along, is that right?"

"That's right, whether in the courtyard of the headquarters or in the underground city, you're like a tireless little rabbit, always working hard. Because you're always so reckless... it makes me worry about you a lot."

After I asked my question in a nervous tone, the goddess Freya answered frankly.

Moreover, the last sentence was spoken in a particularly soft voice, as if revealing a little secret in one's heart.

I was secretly flustered by the "Goddess's" attitude, but I quickly calmed down. At first glance, she seemed to be speaking without a trace of falsehood. However, she was a goddess, and her words might contain lies that mortals couldn't see through, or she might have mixed falsehoods into the facts.

So I decided to temporarily suppress my guilt about offending the goddess and make my request.

"Then please provide the 'evidence'."

It's time to end this situation where your mind is constantly swayed by your inner turmoil, leading to mental chaos.

No one remembers "me, a member of the Hearth Goddess's Familia (Hestia's Familia)," they all say I have a bad memory. After I was locked in that room with nowhere to go, I kept thinking alone, desperately trying to sort out the situation.

To affirm my own "memory," this is the answer I came to.

Please update my [Ability Values].

This is a key element proving the relationship between God and His retinue, and it is irrefutable evidence.

"God's Grace" is a blood pact, and all the followers have [ability values] branded on their backs with divine blood, which only the chief god can update.

I am Bell Crane, a servant of the goddess Hestia.

The time I spent with the immortals could not possibly have been fake.

To prove this, I have been waiting for an opportunity to be alone with the goddess Freya.

"Please update it for me now...!"

Other gods cannot help update my [ability stats]. Once it is confirmed that the goddess Hestia bestowed her "blessing" upon my back, even if it cannot explain why my memories differ from others, it will ultimately be able to reverse the situation I am in.

I uphold the spirit of an adventurer, and even when trapped in endless darkness, I hold tightly to the lantern called hope and forge ahead.

"—If you insist, I don't mind, okay?"

In comparison—

The goddess Freya showed no panic and readily agreed to my request.

"...?"

"Haici, bring me a needle."

The goddess Freya picked up the bell and shook it, and Miss Heizi, the healer who had examined me earlier, walked in.

After bowing respectfully, she followed the instructions of the divine authority and presented an expensive tray inlaid with gold and silver.