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

“Ugh…”

Loki cleverly tricked Hestia into revealing information, thus cutting off her escape route.

At this moment, all the participants (members) of the Assembly of Gods were paying attention to them.

Everyone looked on with great interest, and the surroundings were completely silent. No one spoke up for Hestia, including a bewildered Hephaestus.

Even disregarding his personal feelings, Loki wanted to get to the bottom of the main reason for his "growth".

"Oh, what's the big deal?"

Then, the next moment.

As if stepping between the two, a beautiful soprano voice filled the surroundings.

“…Huh?”

"What did you say?"

Hestia, Loki, and the other gods all turned their gaze toward the source of the sound.

The silver-haired "goddess" seemed somewhat uninterested, but a smile played on her alluring lips as she continued:

"Since Hestia says there's no violation, there's no need to force her to say it, right? We agreed not to interfere in the internal affairs of other [Familia], especially the [ability values] of the members, which is the biggest taboo."

Hearing Freya, who had maintained a karmic relationship with Loki since the Celestial Realm, speak so nonchalantly, Loki looked at her with a suspicious gaze.

"...Only a month? Do you even understand the significance of this number, you infatuated goddess?"

"Heh, why are you so stubborn, Loki? I find your current attitude rather puzzling."

"You're the one who broke the taboo?" Freya hinted at this, then pretended to notice something and gave a smiling look.

"Could it be jealousy? Because Hestia's child surpassed your precious daughter's record?"

"No, that's not true at all."

Loki inwardly groaned, realizing she'd hit a nerve, and immediately retorted, "Really?" Freya smiled provocatively at him.

Loki was furious and about to argue with her when he saw the goddess of beauty staring intently at him, so he stopped.

(This infatuated goddess, could it be...?)

Loki originally thought that if Freya wanted to trick her into saying the wrong thing or find fault with her words, she would speak bluntly until Freya couldn't retaliate.

However, Loki sensed her divine will and knew that no matter what he said next, he would be persuaded.

Loki couldn't help but click his tongue, and Freya smiled.

"Indeed, just hearing numbers can make you doubt that you heard correctly."

"But didn't this child overturn the Lv. difference and miraculously defeat the Minotaur?"

"If I were to make a rough deduction, perhaps the Minotaur monster had some connection with this child, and therefore the experience points gained would be of great significance to him."

"Perhaps that's why it was able to [upgrade]... That's what I think, what do you think?"

Freya's repeated speeches swayed the tone of the Assembly of Gods.

Her statement, as the largest faction in the city on par with Loki, carried considerable weight. Most importantly, her "charm," hailed as the embodiment of beauty, automatically garnered a large number of supporters. Hermes, completely captivated, even declared, "I also support Miss Freya!" causing Dionysus to sigh in disbelief.

(So ​​that's what she meant back then. That infatuated girl's prey this time is the short guy...)

As the gods begin to lean toward agreeing with Athena's opinion, memories of a certain day resurface in Loki's mind.

On the night of the monster festival, she had a private conversation with Freya at a high-class tavern in the bustling city.

"If you just turn a blind eye to my actions from now on... I'll give you that feather robe, how about it?"

This is the contract between Freya and Loki.

Loki saw through Freya's use of "charm" to cause a disturbance at the Monster Festival and tried to threaten her, but instead, he was caught red-handed and had no choice but to reluctantly make a deal with her.

"My actions from now on"—that is, everything Freya does for the children she takes a liking to.

Loki must ignore all of this, both now and in the future.

Upon seeing Freya's bewitching eyes, Loki realized that the person she had taken a liking to was actually Hestia's familiar.

(So, the "Minotaur" incident that Ishtar brought up again... was also this guy's doing?)

Although it's unclear whether Freya saw through the boy's "potential for growth" from the beginning, she must have been paying attention to Hestia's familiars for a long time. And now that she sees the boy about to become a plaything of the gods, Freya steps in to protect him.

Having grasped everything, Loki really wanted to spit out a mouthful of saliva.

Just as the silver gaze had whispered to him, "Don't get in the way," he would still have to accept Freya's actions toward the boy, Bell Crane, no matter what dissatisfaction or displeasure he might have.

As a result, the meeting proceeded as Freya wished, and the issue of Bell Crane's development was left unresolved.

(Does this mean the kids on the little dwarf's side are really that talented, enough to catch Freya's eye? That's why she wrote such a stupid record... No, that infatuated girl did say some nonsensical things, like unreliable, a crybaby, transparent and clear... Ugh! Anyway, it's pretty annoying!)

Unbeknownst to them, the male gods, under Freya's instructions, began discussing Bell Crane's nickname—the goddesses looked disappointed—Loki ignored them, his heart filled with rage.

Despite the contract, Loki couldn't stand being ignored. He pushed aside his chair, stood up, and walked over to Hestia, who was looking completely bewildered.

"...Loki?"

Hestia noticed Loki, looked up, and said in a low voice with a sour expression:

"...You'd better watch out, little dwarf."

"what?"

"I'm telling you to watch your step. Although I never wanted to give you this advice... but now that I'm letting that idiot run rampant is what annoys me even more."

How dare they look down on me?

Loki looked up in disgust, averting his gaze from Hestia.

In the direction she was looking, she saw Freya about to leave the Assembly of the Gods alone.

With her back to the two of them, her beautiful long silver hair disappeared behind the hall doors.

"Wait, wait a minute. You said I should be careful, but what exactly are you talking about?"

Loki frowned at Hestia's panic and suddenly moved his face close to hers.

"You idiot, have some awareness! That goddess is protecting the child!"

"...?"

I'm talking about Freya, you know. Loki emphasized.

Hestia was still in a state of shock, her blue eyes filled with panic.

Loki straightened his bent back and snorted.

"Ha, you really don't understand. So carefree... Okay, whatever, it's none of my business anyway."

After saying that, Loki returned to his seat.

Loki was reluctant to give Hestia advice, but being played by Freya was not in her nature, so she had to at least retaliate.

"Tch!" Loki grumbled, giving a warning to the goddess he disliked the most.

At last.

"It's decided—!!"

The last adventurer's nickname was decided, and the "naming ceremony" concluded.

✉

After the successful conclusion of the Conference of the Gods.

One by one, the gods emerged from the hall. In order to convey the results of this "naming ceremony" to the official announcement, some of the gods went triumphantly to the guild headquarters.

The floor became empty, with only Loki, Dionysus, and Hermes remaining.

"So, did you see any suspicious individuals?"

"I noticed a few gods... but their attitudes suggest they just wanted to cause trouble for fun, hoping for a disturbance."

"It's about the same on my end."

Today, Dionysus, dressed in fine clothes like an aristocrat, and Hermes, dressed in light traveler's attire, reported less than ideal results.

Loki, sitting alone at a round table, stares at the two gods with whom he has formed a strange cooperative relationship.

(No results... Oh well, I wasn't expecting much anyway.)

Upon closer examination, it's highly unlikely that the mastermind behind this event would attend this grand gathering of gods. Even if they were bold enough to attend, they probably wouldn't be foolish enough to expose themselves in such a setting.

Loki felt that if any god knew anything about it, he would have gained something, so he was neither disappointed nor frustrated, and he made a few perfunctory complaints to Dionysus and the others.

"Honestly, they always dump trouble on me."

But she added in her mind: Anyway, Ais and the others aren't here, so I'm pretty free.

Loki glanced at Dionysus as if he had been wronged, and said with a wry smile, "I will send you more fine wine," which made her feel a little better.

"Well then, I'm off."

Suddenly.

Hermes began by saying this.

"Huh?"

"I have some errands to run and need to leave the city immediately. All the travel preparations are complete."

Seeing Loki turn around, Hermes returned the smile with a handsome man's grin.

Then he looked down at the parchment in his hand—the register of adventurers who had been upgraded this time.

"Besides, I've also gotten my hands on some interesting sights and sounds."

He whispered, his narrow eyes squinting.

"I'll be leaving Orario for a while. I'll leave things to you all. Don't worry, I'll be back soon. I'll continue to have the kids gather information about that matter. I'm off now."

After saying what he wanted to say, Hermes quickly put on his feathered travel hat.

He waved with a smile and then really left.

"That spineless coward, he was the one who said we were all victims..."

"Hormes was that kind of god."

Loki frowned, and Dionysus beside him also frowned.

"By the way, you and that spineless coward are from the same hometown in the Heavenly Realm, right?"

"Yes, unfortunately, our territories are close together."

By the way, so is Hestia, whom you suspect. Dionysus sighed, as if he were exhausted.

Loki and the others looked on with inexplicable annoyance as their god departed like a capricious gust of wind.

✿

"Ten days have passed since then..."

Loki lay on the soft sofa, talking to himself.

This is the reception room of the "Twilight Mansion," the headquarters of the Loki Familia.

The orange-toned interior is filled with antique items such as music boxes, and dolls (dwarves) move a clock to indicate the morning time.

Loki remained looking up at the ceiling, recalling the gathering of the gods ten days ago, and what had happened behind that comedic feast... He slumped onto the sofa.

"I'm still so bored~ I want to do something but I can't~"

She clasped her hands behind her head and swung her legs, which were hanging off the edge of the sofa.

Loki shifted his posture, grabbed a glass from the small round table beside him—the wine that Dionysus had arranged for his group to bring after the Great Assembly of the Gods—and took a large gulp.

The group members who stayed behind in the reception room all gave the goddess, who was drinking early in the morning, unbearable looks.

"I really hope Ais and the others come back soon~"

Looking around the room, which seemed unusually empty without the girls, Loki casually blurted out.

Judging from her tone, she had no doubt that the family members who went on the "expedition" would return safely.

"—Loki! Mr. Bert is back!"

"Oh?"