Chapter 3: It's Really Warm and Cozy, Goddess

"Gulp~"

Kiyo swallowed nervously, his eyes instinctively looking away from the goddess in front of him. 

The adorable and innocent face, moist lips, delicate and perfect collarbones, and the deep marks on her back from the blue ribbons holding her hands behind her...

He could even smell a sweet, refreshing, intoxicating scent at the tip of his nose.

'Oh my god!'

Even though he has already spent a whole month traveling in this world, Kiyo is still that same anime otaku.

It's hard not to feel nervous and shy when the real-life goddess looks at him so closely.

"I'm Kiyo. I'm seeking to join a Familia and hoping to become part of your Familia, um..."

'Ah~ I had my lines prepared, but I messed up. That was such an awkward introduction…'

Kiyo wailed internally, feeling utterly hopeless.

The moment Hestia heard the long-awaited words, her blue eyes instantly sparkled with a moist glow. 

Hestia heard what she had been waiting for, and her blue eyes lit up with a shiny, happy glow. She jumped up, grabbed his hand, and cheered joyfully like a kid.

"Yay, yay! Finally, someone is willing to join the Hestia Familia!"

'Finally, a human is willing to become my family! This is amazing—now those fellow gods won't mock me anymore, especially that one with the small chest...'

"I'm also very happy to be your first Familia member, Goddess Hestia." 

Kiyo said sincerely as he watched Hestia joyfully jumping around in excitement. 

Hestia had always been rejected by humans, and she longed to have her first Familia member. Because of this, she felt really special about the first one to join.

'And now, it was time for my special power to show up.'

"Goddess, I know this is a moment worth celebrating, but… the blessing, the blessing."

Kiyo gently reminded her. 

A god's blessing was the key to unlocking a human's potential, and his cheat ability could only fully activate once his potential was unlocked.

"Kiyo-kun is really eager, huh? I'm excited to become Familia with you too! Come with me!"

Hestia proudly put her hands on her hips and nodded, then quickly grabbed his hand and ran off, leaving the fried potato ball stand behind. 

They headed toward the outer part of the poor neighborhood, while behind them, the voice of the stand owner rang out, complaining or saying she was going to cut Hestia's pay for the day.

"Is it really okay to just abandon your job like this, Goddess?" 

He asked as he ran alongside her, pulled along by a goddess who was even shorter than him. He couldn't believe he was being kindly pulled along by a real goddess and even given a cute nickname.

"It's fine, it's fine! I'm a goddess, so I won't get in trouble!" 

Hestia said cheerfully, patting her chest with excitement. 

Who cares about work? 

She finally had her first Familia member, so of course, she needed to bestow him her blessing and form the bond of family. 

She turned her gaze toward him, wanting to memorize every detail of his face, but when she noticed he was blushing and avoiding eye contact, Hestia's lips curved into a smug smile as she spoke proudly.

"Ohh~! Kiyo-kun, you keep blushing and too shy to look at me because I'm just too cute? Hehe, you're so cute!"

"I-It's not like I'm blushing because you're too cute, Goddess! There are… various reasons!" 

Kiyo hurriedly tried to cover up his flustered feelings after being called out. 

'Ahhh, I totally can't control myself…'

"Kuku~ You're lying, aren't you? A goddess can see right through lies, you know." 

Hestia giggled mischievously before adding, "But still, I'm really happy that Kiyo-kun has joined my Hestia Familia."

Even though Hestia knew he was lying, she was so happy. She might not be capable of many things as a goddess, but she was definitely confident about her looks.

"Alright… to be honest, the moment I saw you, I already liked you, Goddess." 

He admitted awkwardly, scratching the back of his head while avoiding her gaze. He had forgotten that gods could see through lies.

"Hehe, I just got confessed to! And by my very first Familia member..."

Hestia giggled, suddenly feeling a little shy herself. A faint blush spread across her cheeks, but she still confidently placed her hands on her hips with a proud expression.

'I've finally had some good luck too! I always wondered what it would be like to meet the first person who would join my poor goddess famillia, but I didn't expect it to be like this. It's really great.'

As they were chatting, the places around them started to look more lonely. They had reached the abandoned part of the poor neighborhood where no one lived. 

Talking with the goddess had eased Kiyo's nervousness, and his initial shyness slowly faded.

'Seriously… I had already mentally prepared myself, so why am I blushing like a kid? After watching so many animes and reading fan fiction, did I forget everything? Damn it…'

"Ta-da! This is the home of the Hestia Familia!"

Hestia bounced excitedly like a kid, leading the way to an abandoned, broken church. She then eagerly pushed open a stone door embedded in the wall.

"It might look pretty bad from the outside, but the inside is actually quite nice! I spent a long time setting it up." 

Hestia said proudly.

Kiyo followed her through the stone door and watched Hestia happily jump up the stone steps.

The stone staircase was short, leading into a rather small room that used to be a basement.

Inside was only an old wooden table, a broken couch, a mostly intact wardrobe, and some neatly folded blankets on a small wooden bed.

The only source of light came from a magic stone lamp hanging on the stone wall.

"From today onward, Kiyo-kun, you'll be living here with me!" 

Hestia enthusiastically declared, "It might be a little hard at first, but it will definitely get easier soon as long as we work hard and save up bit by bit."

She paused in embarrassment as her slender fingers nervously twisted around each other, and she carefully looked into Kiyo's eyes.

Originally, there had been adventurers who considered joining the Hestia Familia, but they all declined without hesitation after seeing her situation. 

After all, no one wanted to endure hardship by following her. She didn't want to be rejected again because it would make her feel really unhappy.

"It's really cozy, Goddess. Living here will definitely be happy. And once I make a name for myself in the Dungeon, I'll make sure we get to live in the best house in Orario!" 

Kiyo said, trying to comfort her with a warm smile.

He noticed a brief flicker of nervousness in her eyes, which had been as joyful as a child, but she quickly hid it with a happy and gentle smile. 

He really liked it here, not because he expected it to be like this, but because his favorite "waifu" from anime, Hestia, was here.

Hestia was deeply moved and her sky-blue eyes sparkled with a light gleam as she gazed at him.