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

My eyes widened as Mr. Cam recounted his past in detail.

"I admire that person, and that person is willing to love me. We once made a vow to love each other."

“Eh…”

He and the goddess had made a vow of love.

Mr. Cam said something that shocked me, at which point his gaze lowered slightly.

"However, I failed to protect that lady. As her only remaining member of her family, I swore to protect her, but the monster's claws tore her body apart..."

"...!"

"On the contrary, it was she who saved my life... and that lord was thus sent back to the Heavenly Realm."

"That was fifty years ago," Mr. Cam said, his gaze drifting upwards as if recalling a memory from that time.

Mr. Kam said that they were attacked by a group of ferocious monsters during their journey, and thus lost their chief god. The goddess pushed him off a cliff, saving his life, but he fell into an abyss of despair.

Having lost all hope of living, Mr. Cam contemplated suicide and ended up in the "Bio Mountains"...

"...I came to this village by chance, and I cannot abandon the life that the great man saved."

Mr. Kam said that he had a chance encounter with a group of people in the same situation, and was warmly accepted. He was moved to tears and decided to spend the rest of his life there. In the end, he said that he only had the power of grace that was sealed away when the main god was sent back to heaven—the bond with the goddess. He devoted himself to the village and eventually became the village chief.

"...So, what about Miss Lina and the others?"

"They are adopted children, children who lost their parents due to the epidemic, abandoned children... I took in these helpless children."

He told me that he was not related to his children by blood.

Mr. Cam, who swore to the Goddess that his love would never fade... no, he was unable to marry and find happiness because he failed to protect the Goddess.

"Mr. Bell... please protect that lady, protect your goddess."

"Perhaps I need not say more," Mr. Cam said, and then began to cough again.

As I was getting worried when I saw him coughing so hard while covering his mouth, he gave me a kind smile.

"Don't end up like me, filled with regret."

I finally understand why this person was so selfless in taking care of the goddess Hestia and cared so much about me.

He superimposes us with them when they were young, helping us not to lose each other.

Mr. Cam's smile and words are deeply etched in my heart.

*

"...Ugh—"

Looking up at the ceiling, Hestia let out a slouching cry.

"I've had a good night's sleep..."

As the sun completely set, the maroon afterglow faded, and twilight gradually enveloped the view outside the window.

Hestia, who was lying on her back on the bed, suddenly sat up.

"I feel a little weak all over... but I should be better by now."

The feeling of weakness was more of a side effect of lying in bed for three days; she looked down at her body.

She wasn't sick and had a good appetite, so Hestia felt she no longer needed to be so careful and rested.

"Hoo—" She tugged at the linen clothes that were soaked with sweat and stretched taut across her chest—the ones that the village chief Kam's daughter had lent her—and her long, soft, black hair, disheveled from sleeping, swayed as she moved.

At this time, there was a knock on the door.

"Excuse me..."

"Miss Hua, Miss Hua Lun...!?"

The one who walked in was Ais, carrying a tray.

She walked straight toward Hestia and placed the tray with the soup bowl on it beside the bed.

"How are you feeling...?"

"Very good... Where's Belle?"

"It seems like they're talking to the village chief..."

Hestia asked her why it wasn't Bell who came to see her, and Ais answered quietly.

It seems that the soup was cooked by Cam's daughter. She was called out by the villagers and asked Ais to bring the soup over.

Hestia, who had been cowering, was startled when she noticed Ais's attire for the first time.

"Miss Hua, what's with your outfit?!"

"Miss Lina, you lent it to me...?"

"You...you want to seduce Bell...!?"

Seeing Hestia trembling uncontrollably, Ais, dressed as a country girl, tilted her head.

The goddess Hestia understood that the boy preferred clothing with a pastoral or family-like feel.

The beautiful female swordsman before him had undoubtedly made Bell blush countless times today alone!

Hestia, blurring the lines between public and private matters, groaned incoherently. She made up her mind that it was about time to get to the bottom of things.

"Come here, Miss Warren."

"?"

Hestia beckoned, and at her urging, Ais sat down on the chair by the bed.

"First of all... thank you for saving me. I'm so sorry to have troubled you."

"Won't……"

"—So, let's get down to business. What are your thoughts on my Bell?"

"What were you thinking...?"

"There must be some thoughts! For example, uh... how should I put it, impressions or something!"

Hestia couldn't ask her directly if she had feelings for the boy, so she blushed and asked vaguely.

No matter how expressionless the girl before him was, like a doll, she could not lie before the gods.

I want to see through your true intentions! Hestia narrowed her divine eyes and stared intently at her.

Ais, under her gaze, tilted her delicate chin slightly towards the ceiling, thought for a moment, and then answered:

"……rabbit?"

Hearing her answer, Hestia closed her eyes and nodded calmly.

"I knew I could trust you."

"...?"

Hestia patted Ais on the shoulder.

Although Ais had tricked her a bit, Hestia's mood improved instantly after realizing that Ais didn't see the boy as a girl at all.

"However, please don't spoil him too much. Rabbits are indeed cute, but if you pamper them too much, they'll become arrogant and overconfident, and that's the problem."

"I see……?"

Ais was patted on the shoulder and tilted her head in disbelief.

"Ah, my goddess, are you feeling better?"

Just then, Cam's daughter entered the room. She returned to check on her, and Hestia thanked her, saying, "Thanks to your care, I've fully recovered, thank you," and smiled.

"You seem to be covered in sweat. Would you like me to get you some clothes to change into?"

"Hmm... well..."

The girl said she wanted to prepare some clean water and a towel. Hestia was about to accept her kindness when she suddenly had an idea.

She stared at Ais's outfit, then suddenly looked up as if she had just remembered something.

"Excuse me! Can I ask you for one more favor?"

*

"The festival is about to begin..."

I unexpectedly talked with Mr. Cam for a long time, and the view from the corridor window made me stop and stare.

As darkness fell completely, the villagers gathered in the square, which had been set up as a festival venue, and began to celebrate. A thick log was erected in the center of the square, ready to be lit as a bonfire.

For some reason, I recalled the scene of my hometown village, squinted my eyes, and headed to the room where the immortals rested.

"Bell!"

"Huh! A deity—this is…"

I was startled when I saw the fairy walking down the corridor, and I was startled again when I saw her attire.

She was dressed almost identically to Miss Ais, both in country-style clothing. While Miss Ais's outfit was predominantly red, the fairy's was based on blue. However, the clothes didn't quite fit her height; the chest area seemed a bit tight…

Standing next to Miss Ais, they looked like sisters.

"Hehe! How is it? Does it look good?"

"Wow, that looks great, but... are you alright now!?"

It was very cute, and it almost stunned me, but my surprise and worry outweighed my reaction. Seeing my reaction, the fairy smiled and said, "I'm fine!" She said that she had impulsively asked Mr. Cam's daughter to prepare it for her.

Mr. Cam's daughter stood beside Miss Ais and smiled like a fairy.

"The goddess looks much better. It's a rare opportunity, shall we go and visit the festival?"

Upon hearing her suggestion, the deity immediately became interested.

Perhaps she was bored from lying in bed for too long, because she exclaimed, "I have to go!" I was worried about her health and tried to persuade her to rest more, but it was no use; the three of us, along with Miss Ais, left Mr. Cam's house together.

"Um, are you really alright, sir? Perhaps you shouldn't push yourself too hard..."

"I'm fine! Belle, you all took such good care of me, how could I not be better!"

The fairy jumped around and said that lying in bed all the time would actually make me uncomfortable, which terrified me.

She did look very energetic... but having just heard Mr. Cam's words, I couldn't help but become a little overprotective. Soon, we arrived at the square in the center of the village.

"...!"

"Oh, that's pretty good!"

"...So beautiful."

Seeing the large bonfire already lit, I, the fairy, and Miss Ais all reacted. Food was laid out around the bonfire to entertain everyone, and the villagers held drinks in one hand and laughed and joked.

Seeing the joyful and heartwarming festival scene, not only the gods and Miss Ais, but even I, who was originally a little hesitant, couldn't help but squint my eyes.

"Ah, my goddess!"

"Has your body fully recovered!?"

At this point, the villagers noticed us and gathered around.

They were constantly worried about the gods who had been bedridden for several days. At first, the goddess Hestia was taken aback by their imposing manner, but upon experiencing the villagers' sincerity, she smiled and said, "Thank you."

Upon hearing the good news that the goddess had recovered her health, the villagers became even more jubilant, dragging Miss Ais and me into the commotion, laughing and joking around.

"By the way, Goddess, how did you end up in the deep mountains of Bio?"

"I heard you were involved in a mountain accident?"

The villagers asked us for details.

The three of us were surrounded by a boisterous crowd, and I suddenly realized that the Kingdom's army might discover our location. Although we were in a ravine surrounded by cliffs, the noise and the fire... I stole a glance at Miss Ais; she seemed to have only just realized this as well, her gaze shifting slightly from side to side. I couldn't help but break out in a sweat.

The city of Orario may have already discovered the Kingdom's army's location. I don't think they would stay on the mountain for three days, but...

"Actually, some idiot god messed with me. Sigh, to be honest, I shouldn't have run away from headquarters without permission—"

The immortal stopped speaking at this point. "Ah," I said, "I remember now."

Yes, we're arguing—though that's not quite the right way to put it—

The deity's expression immediately turned displeased, and he turned his face away, no longer looking at me, who was cowering in fear.