Chapter 232: Lv.2 Is Fine, but Lv.6 Is a Problem?

After sending off the two troublesome goddesses, Loki felt more relaxed than usual.

"Ran into a Genkai child with divine authority... and two women falling over themselves for him."

She shook her head. She couldn't quite wrap her head around what was going on with those two. Why were they putting on a show like that?

Thinking back, the two had been cooperating all along. Even when the Rune Stone surfaced, Hephaestus backed it without hesitation. Maybe the three of them had already reached some kind of tacit understanding a long time ago.

Still, Loki was just mildly curious.

Digging deeper? That would only make her a target—not just for the shorty, but Hephaestus might come after her too.

Definitely not worth it.

Offending Orario's top blacksmith was no joke. Finn and the others could fight so effectively in the Dungeon only because they had the blacksmiths backing them. Cross one of them, and you could forget about smooth days ahead.

Loki was a little disappointed that she couldn't stir up some trouble for the shorty.

After lingering in the room a while longer, she stepped out.

...

At that moment, all three of Loki Familia's Level 6 adventurers were seated inside Finn's office.

"Finn, what do you think those two gods came along for this time?"

The three were each seated at a different spot. The bold dwarf Gareth was drinking as he mulled over the sudden arrival of the two goddesses.

"Hephaestus came with Hestia, and Hestia came with that kid. So the reason clearly lies with him."

"The real question," Riveria said as she set down her copy of The Argonauts, "is why that kid needed to speak with Loki alone—and why he needed Hestia and Hephaestus to back him up."

She went straight to the point, directly addressing Gareth's question. Finn also lowered his pen, his thoughts focused on Bell's behavior.

'Could it be because of what happened yesterday?'

Riveria and Gareth weren't in the know, but Finn had witnessed everything. He remembered how Hestia had been threatened by Freya.

Now the two goddesses had shown up with Bell—most likely to talk about that very issue.

But was there really a viable solution to this?

Freya wanted Bell, but Hestia wasn't about to hand him over. A deadlock.

The only small relief was that Freya hadn't taken direct action yet.

Still, that didn't change the tight spot Hestia was in.

"Knock Knock Knock!"

Here she comes.

All three of them set down what they were doing as the person outside knocked, then opened the door without waiting.

"Yo~ Hope I'm not interrupting anything?"

As soon as Loki stepped in, the tension in the room visibly eased.

"Whether you're interrupting depends on what terrifying thing you're about to say."

Finn's guess was that Hestia wanted to join forces—to unite their Familia against the pressure from Freya.

"Eh... hahaha..."

Loki understood exactly what Finn meant, but she couldn't hide her unease. Just moments ago, she'd agreed to that ridiculous plan the kid proposed.

She was feeling guilty.

And everyone in the room could tell. But that only made the atmosphere more uneasy.

"It's not that big of a deal. That kid ran into some trouble and just wants to lay low in your expedition team for a while."

Lay low?

Finn's brows knit as he shot Loki a sharp look.

The Freya problem wasn't something you could hide from. Besides, Bell-kun had the ability to cloak himself—and even teleport. Even without joining the expedition, Freya would still have a hard time tracking him down.

So was Loki lying?

The thought slipped out of Finn before he could stop it.

"Loki, are you telling the truth? Or are you lying?"

"Of course I'm telling the truth."

At that moment, Loki was completely serious—she didn't look like she was lying at all.

'She's telling the truth.'

Finn was certain Loki wasn't lying just now.

But if that was true... did Bell-kun really join the expedition team just to lay low?

Finn's instincts immediately flagged that as suspicious.

Even after analyzing it logically, it didn't seem quite right. More likely, some part of the truth was being hidden.

"The shorty's kid has definitely run into some trouble. He's caught the eye of a particularly troublesome woman. From now on, he's going to have to keep a low profile in Orario."

"That's why the shorty and Hephaestus brought him along this time. Of course, that's not the only reason he's joining the expedition."

Loki stopped there.

Riveria and Gareth picked up on the unspoken implication. If there wasn't something hidden behind this, there wouldn't have been a need to speak with Loki privately.

Finn's frown slowly faded. Just laying low wasn't enough of an explanation—whatever else was going on beneath the surface was the real key.

He glanced at Loki.

'So she's not going to say it.'

He sighed quietly to himself. This would've been the best time for Loki to just come out with it. But she definitely wasn't going to talk.

Just the relationship between Hestia and Loki alone was enough to guarantee that Loki wouldn't spill whatever was going on behind the scenes.

...

Even if Loki didn't say anything, Finn already knew this expedition was bound to be full of complications.

"Loki, and Hestia's just okay with letting that kid go on an expedition?"

"Well, this whole situation outside is pretty serious. And besides, you guys really don't need to worry about his safety. Honestly, even if something happens to you all, I doubt anything would happen to him."

So what if the shorty was worried? The Dungeon couldn't possibly be scarier than Freya.

...Though maybe, in her mind, Freya had already surpassed the Dungeon in terms of sheer terror.

That thought amused Loki.

As for what she'd just said, that was her honest impression—she really didn't think that kid would be in any danger.

What kind of trouble could someone with Authority run into in the Dungeon? It'd be absurd if something actually happened.

Besides, that kid was confident enough to control monsters. Ordinary threats probably didn't even register to him.

Riveria and Gareth exchanged puzzled looks.

"Loki, even if that kid's capable, you're giving him way too much credit, aren't you?"

"A Level 2 kid won't be in danger, but us Level 6s might?"

Gareth's words gave Finn pause.

'Wait... is the real reason he's joining this expedition... because of us?'

...

(100 Chapters Ahead)

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