Chapter 347 - Entertainment District
In a secluded corner of Orario, on Southeast Street near one of the eight main avenues, lies the Entertainment District, a notorious night district where men lose themselves in indulgence.
Nearly every shop there caters to courtesans, and its denizens are almost exclusively members of the Ishtar Familia, who claim it as their domain.
"Any word from the Loki Familia?" Ishtar asked, standing on an elevated step in a lavish, palace-like hall, gazing down at her scantily clad Familia members.
Her wheatish skin complemented her striking beauty, though her attire. A sheer skirt and minimal cloth covering her upper body was provocatively sparse, embodying her ethos of unrestrained pleasure.
"No," a member replied. "But we hear they're searching for Ais, and our people are looking too."
"Haruhime must not slip away," Ishtar said, her voice icy with menace. "She's my trump card against Freya's Familia. I want her back, or else…"
"If Phryne hadn't provoked Ais, this wouldn't have happened," a woman below muttered.
"What? You didn't stop that doll-faced Ais when she showed up?" Phryne, a towering, muscular giantess over two meters tall, retorted.
Her toad-like face and bulky frame made her stand out, despite her conservative dress.
"Shut up!" Ishtar snapped. "You're the reason for this mess, Phryne. If Haruhime isn't found, you're the first I'll deal with."
Phryne's massive body quaked, and she fled the hall.
Moments later, another woman burst in, panicked. "The device on Haruhime's neck—it's broken."
Though the device's tracking range was limited, it signaled when destroyed—a magic item meant to keep Haruhime tethered to Ishtar.
"Someone found out about her magic, didn't they?" a member said.
"No, they knew already," another replied. "Phryne forced Haruhime to use her level up magic in the Dungeon yesterday to beat Ais."
" That's why Ais took her, she saw it had no effect on her."
The members dissected the situation.
"Go to the Loki Familia first," Ishtar ordered, her expression grim. "If they don't hand her over, protest to the Guild."
Haruhime's Uchide no Kozuchi was invaluable, and even the Loki Familia's temptation was understandable. Without her, Ishtar's Familia stood no chance against them. Ishtar seethed, wishing she could flay Phryne, her sole Level 5, for her blunder.
Under Ishtar's command, the Level 2 and 3 adventurers streamed out of the hall.
Mahiro, Hestia, and Haruhime roamed Orario's streets, shopping for necessities. Haruhime, taken by Ais with only her red kimono, needed everything from scratch. They hit multiple stores to equip her.
"Lord Mahiro, let me carry those too," Haruhime said, guilt in her voice, reaching for the bags as they neared the Hestia Familia's residence.
Now in a simple dress, she shed the kimono's flashiness, her fox ears and tail lending her a pure, vibrant charm.
"Your hands are full," Mahiro said, noting the bags she already carried.
"We're almost home. Don't worry," he added, shaking his head.
"Huh?" Hestia stopped short, halting the group.
A crowd of over a hundred adventurers encircled their Familia's residence, weapons drawn, the air thick with tension. Leading them were two figures: a god and a man.
The god, Apollo, radiated charm with sunlit blonde hair, a handsome face, and a dazzling smile, crowned with a green laurel.
Beside him stood Hyakinthos, less striking but still handsome, whom Mahiro had thrashed at the Hostess of Fertility.
"That creep Apollo really came," Hestia said, her face twisting in disgust.
(A/N: Hi...)