DanMachi Universe, Lower World, Orario.
"Damn it!" Hyakinthos exclaimed after receiving the report from the Adventurers he sent to besiege Tatsuo in the Dungeon. "Damn those Ishtar Familia whores! How dare they stick their noses in something that has nothing to do with them?"
After returning from the Dungeon, the Apollo Familia Adventurers immediately returned to the mansion that served as their headquarters, which, despite Apollo's flamboyant nature, did not have a title such as Loki Familia's "Twilight Manor," Freya Familia's "Folkvangr," or Ganesha Familia's "I am Ganesha." And the first thing they did after arriving was to report to their Familia Captain, Hyakinthos in the mansion's main hall.
However, they did not report everything as it happened. For example, while they highlighted the interference from the Ishtar Familia, they conveniently forgot to mention the fact that they were all scared out of their minds by Tatsuo's display of Magic. Nor did they mention the fact that they believed her when Aisha said that Tatsuo would have been enough to take care of all of them alone.
"What should we do now, Hyakinthos?" The man who led the team that went to find Tatsuo asked. "I doubt the Ishtar Familia will ever be too far away from that kid whenever he goes into the Dungeon. A bunch of Level 1s won't be enough to deal with him if they're always around."
"You think I need you to tell me that?" Hyakinthos snapped. "But we need to do something. Otherwise, if Lord Apollo sees him, he'll do anything he can to get him for himself. Then, we'll receive less of his love."
Hearing that, most of the members of the Apollo Familia present had to do everything they could not to frown at what Hyakinthos said. Most of the love Apollo shared with his Familia was of the carnal variety. Despite the fact that most of the men in the Familia were not into men. On top of that, Apollo had a habit of forcing Adventurers he takes a fancy to into his Familia by any means. So, there were quite a few members of the Familia who never wanted to join the Apollo Familia in the first place.
Noticing the other members of the Familia's attempts to hide their displeasure, Hyakinthos frowned. However, he had more important things to worry about than ungrateful fools. So, he dismissively waved his hand, sending the other members of the Familia away.
Getting the message, the other members of the Familia quickly left Hyakinthos alone to stew in his irritation. A few moments later, when he was completely alone, Hyakinthos began showing his true level of irritation, pacing back and forth through the main hall while muttering to himself.
Unfortunately, Hyakinthos was so caught up in his own thoughts that he did not notice the one person he did not want to know what was going on. Nor did he see when that person, his beloved god, Apollo, started walking down the stairs from the mansion's second floor.
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Seeing his Familia Captain, Hyakinthos, pacing back and forth, Apollo smiled radiantly as he descended the steps, only opening his mouth to speak when he reached the bottom of the stairs.
"My dear, Hyakinthos, what has you so... perturbed?" Apollo asked as his foot touched the floor of the main hall.
Apollo's voice snapped Hyakinthos back to the here and now, causing him to quickly turn to face his god with a forced smile.
"It's nothing, Lord Apollo," Hyakinthos said while averting his eyes from Apollo's.
"Come now, my dear Hyakinthos," Apollo said in a slightly hurt tone while an obviously exaggerated expression of pain appeared on his face. "Hearing you lie to me pains me deeply."
Seeing the expression on Apollo's face, Hyakinthos, despite knowing that it was mostly faked, felt a stab in his heart. Seeing any amount of pain on his god's face was too much for the devoted Adventurer to bear.
"I... I came across a new Adventurer that I could not stand," Hyakinthos said in a hesitant tone. "Because of that, I wanted to get rid of him covertly. But... The whores from the Ishtar Familia got in the way of the people I sent after him today."
Hearing that, Apollo's eyebrows rose, and the light of interest started shining in his eyes.
"Oh my..." Apollo said, his tone both amused and curious. "Just what kind of person would make you, my dear, Hyakinthos, feel such a way? Could it be... You wanted to get rid of this young Adventurer before I had a chance to see him in the fear that you would lose my love?"
As he spoke, Apollo stepped closer and closer to Hyakinthos, whose head was lowered in shame. And by the time his words ended, Apollo had placed his right hand on Hyakinthos' left cheek lovingly, causing the Familia Captain to raise his head with tears brimming in his eyes.
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"But you should know..." Apollo said, his smile as bright as ever. "I am a god with more love to give than you can imagine. Even if I were to find a new child to pour my love on, it would never diminish the love I have for you, or any of my current children. You are all more dear to me than you could ever imagine."
By the time Apollo's speech had ended, the flood gates on Hyakinthos' tears had broken, and tears streamed down his face. Then, after letting Apollo's words settle in for a few seconds, he could not help but start crying loudly as he lowered his head with a feeling of immense gratitude. Gratitude for being taken in by such a loving god.
Seeing Hyakinthos' current state, Apollo's smile widened. Then, he pulled the Captain of his Familia into his embrace, causing Hyakinthos to cry even harder.
"I think I'd like to meet this child you spoke of," Apollo said softly. "But that can wait. For now, allow me to comfort you tonight. We can discuss anything else in the morning when your spirits have been lifted."
"Yes, Lord Apollo," Hyakinthos said softly into Apollo's shoulder.
With that, Apollo gently pulled Hyakinthos towards the stairs, heading back to the second floor, before leading him to his private chambers for the evening.
Meanwhile, back at the Dragon's Nest, Aislynn was welcoming a group of uninvited guests.
As she mentioned before, Loki came to visit. And despite her protests, Riveria was brought along, as well. However, they were not the only members of the Loki Familia who came to visit, as Gareth, Ais, Tione, and Tiona were also present.
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"What's taking them so long?" Loki asked impatiently. "I'm so hungry~~~. *Cough* Uh... I mean, we have important things to discuss about your kids' safety."
Hearing that, Aislynn and Riveria both rolled their eyes at the shameless, redheaded goddess. Meanwhile, Tiona and Gareth burst into uproarious laughter while Ais looked on with her usual expressionless gaze.
"You think you can just show up whenever you want, and we'll be ready to receive you at all times?" Aislynn asked in a snarky tone. "How about showing a bit of consideration?"
Loki's response was to look away, let out a hollow laugh, and scratch the back of her head sheepishly.
"I said the same thing." Riveria added in an exasperated tone. "But Loki replied with, and I quote, 'Aislynn and I have been friends for years. There's no way she would have a problem with me just showing up'."
"*Cough* *Cough* *Cough*" Loki coughed violently, surprised that her vice-captain would just reveal her secrets like that. "Hey, Mama! What are you saying?"
"Don't try to cover it up." Aislynn said while rolling her eyes again. "I already know what kind of person you are, Loki. So, even without looking into your dreamscape, I can see the exact scene she was talking about."
"She's got you there, Loki." Gareth said with a hearty laugh.
"Shut up, Dwarf!" Loki shouted back.
"Loki's just like that." Tiona added while laughing just as heartily as Gareth.
"You, too, Tiona?" Loki said in a faux forlorn tone. "*Sigh* It seems that all the effort I put into raising you has been in vain."
Seeing the members of the Loki Familia bickering, Aislynn could not keep a small smile from curling her lips. A moment later, she interrupted the back and forth and addressed Riveria.
"Seeing Loki here doesn't surprise me at all," Aislynn said with a smile. "But seeing the High Elf Princess come back is truly surprising, especially after the way you ran away with one of our plates."
Immediately, Riveria's fair, flawless skin flushed bright red. On top of that, Gareth could not help laughing so hard that the fall off the couch he was sitting on. Loki, Tione, and Tiona also laughed, though not nearly as hard as Gareth. Ais, on the other hand, only tilted her head in confusion, completely unable to recall the incident Aislynn was talking about.
Yet, Aislynn did not let the laughter last too long, as she continued with a smile.
"I'm rather curious to know just how Loki got you to agree to come with her," Aislynn said while cupping her chin in a thinking posture. "Could it be she wanted you to get used to your new home beforehand?"
Immediately, Loki's laughter stopped and she turned to look at Riveria with panic on her face. Tione, Tiona, and Gareth also stopped laughing. Their expressions, however, were completely different.
Tione and Tiona, who were present when Loki made the bet with Aislynn where Riveria would serve as one of the stakes, both turned to look at Riveria with apprehension. Gareth, on the other hand, shifted his gaze between Loki and Riveria with incomprehension.
As for Ais, her expression did not change. She did, however, shift her gaze between Loki and Riveria, unable to understand what was going on. And that made sense. When Aislynn and Loki made that bet, she was in the middle of a sparring match with James. And because of how skilled James was, she did not have the spare attention to focus on the two goddesses' conversation.
Then there was Riveria. As soon as Aislynn's words fell, her eyes widened as an expression of profound confusion appeared on her face. Then, after processing Aislynn's words for a few seconds, she snapped her head in Loki's direction.
"Loki, what is she talking about?" Riveria asked as her staff, which had been nowhere to be seen since she arrived, appeared in her hand. "Your answer will determine how many times after the initial strike you will be hit."
"Doesn't that mean you're gonna hit me at least once no matter what I say?" Loki asked while shrinking back slightly.
"Of course," Riveria replied, her tone and expression turning icy in an instant.
That response caused Loki to cower even more. Then, she put on an enraged expression and pounced toward Aislynn. However, before she could grab the goddess beside her, Aislynn reached out with one hand and caught Loki by the face. Even so, that did not stop Loki from complaining and thrashing around.
"Aislynn!" Loki shouted, her voice muffled by Aislynn's hand. "Why would you say something like that now? Don't you know what Mama is going to do to me? You could have at least waited until I had a chance to tell her."
"It's been more than a week since we made that bet." Aislynn said dispassionately. "I bet you got completely plastered after you got back to the Twilight Manor and completely forgot to inform her yourself. So, don't blame me for your negligence."
Loki immediately froze in place at that. Although Aislynn used the word "probably," she knew that was just saving her a bit of respect. Because of Aislynn's [Dream Walker] ability, Loki knew that Aislynn knew exactly what she had done after leaving the Dragon's Nest a little more than a week ago, and so did she. So, she knew that Aislynn had said exactly what happened that day.
*Bang!*
"Oww!"
However, before Loki could start explaining herself, Riveria's staff mercilessly fell on the back of her head, causing her to cry out in pain.
"I don't want to hear any excuses," Riveria said sternly. "Tell me what this is about. Now."
"Yes, Mama," Loki said, sounding like a scolded child.
*Bang!*
"And don't call me Mama." Riveria snapped after another strike to Loki's head.
With that, Aislynn put Loki back on the couch. Then, Loki started explaining the whole situation with her head lowered and crocodile tears in her eyes. Meanwhile, Riveria stood in front of her while tapping her staff into her other hand repeatedly.
Not long later, Tatsuo and the others came back from the Pantheon. When they finally made their way to the Dragon's Nest's main hall, they all froze at the entrance, the sight in front of them leaving them dumbfounded and on the verge of all-out laughter.
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As the members of the Aislynn Familia entered the room, they saw Aislynn, Ais, Tione, Tiona, and Gareth sitting on couches, all staring at the area between the couches with expressions of schadenfreude. And in the area between the couches, Loki was sitting in the seiza position with her head lowered while Riveria scolded her relentlessly.
"What... is going on here?" Akatsuki asked while trying to hold in her laughter.
"If I had to guess, Miss Riveria found out about the bet Lady Aislynn and Lady Loki made a little over a week ago." Zelretch said while also trying to stifle his laughter.
"Pfft! I never thought I'd see the shameless Lady Loki kneeling and being scolded like a child." Elicia said while covering her mouth with one hand.
"Yeah, it reminds me of that one time you spoiled the end of Persona 5 for me." Alfonzo added with a cheeky smile. "The only difference is there's no one eating my cooking in front of her."
Immediately, Elicia's amused expression disappeared. Then, after remembering the scene Alfonzo was talking about, tears started welling up in her eyes.
"Deserved." Tatsuo said, giving Elicia the feeling that a stake had been driven into her heart before she fell to the floor with an expression of infinite despair on her face.