The unfinished workshop stood silent.
Half-built furnaces lined the walls, their metal frames rising like exposed ribs. Tools and crates of machinery parts lay scattered where construction had temporarily halted.
Near the center of the room stood a large industrial drum filled with a dark chemical liquid. Thin fumes drifted slowly upward, sharp enough to sting the nose.
A man hung suspended from a chain above one of the barrels, his feet barely touching the ground. Every time he shifted even slightly, the chain creaked and the liquid below him rippled.
He tried very hard not to look down.
Across from him, Liliruca Arde sat casually on a wooden crate, swinging one leg slowly as if she was not bothered by the current atmosphere.
"Where is Apollo?" she asked.
"I… I told you already. I don't know." The man spoke.
Lili tilted her head slightly.
"You said that the first three times too."
She glanced at the barrel beneath him, then back at his face.
"Maybe the fourth answer will be more interesting."
Behind her, Elna stood near the doorway, watching quietly.
Lili reached into a small bag and pulled out a grilled meat stick.
Elna's eyes immediately followed it.
"Wait—"
Lili tossed it into the barrel.
The moment the meat touched the liquid, it dissolved with a violent hiss.
Elna stared in horror as the food was destroyed.
"…You could just explain it to him. No need to waste food," she whispered sadly.
Lili ignored the comment and leaned a little closer to the captive.
"That was just meat," she said calmly. "Now imagine what happens if someone goes in… a little at a time."
The man swallowed hard.
"So I'll ask again," she continued. "Where is Apollo?"
"I don't know!" he blurted out. "After you people surrounded Apollo's place everything fell apart! People started disappearing. They might have left the city. Even the captain is missing!"
"So most of the members just disappeared?" she asked.
"Yes! I swear!"
Lili stared at him for several seconds, studying his expression for any sign of a lie. After finding nothing, she clicked her tongue and stood up.
"Useless."
She turned and walked toward the exit.
Elna followed, though she glanced once more at the barrel with visible regret.
Outside, Lili noticed Elna still looked troubled.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
Elna hesitated. "I was thinking about the shop."
"The shop?"
"Yes. If it doesn't open soon, I won't be able to work."
Lili frowned. "You are working right now."
Elna shook her head. "No. This is different."
"How?"
"This work doesn't pay," Elna said plainly. "If I don't get paid, I can't buy food."
Lili stared at her for a moment.
"…You get paid at that shop?"
"Yes."
"How much?"
Elna told her.
For a moment Lili didn't move. Then she pulled a small notebook from her pouch and opened it.
"…Unbelievable," she muttered under her breath.
She quickly scribbled something across the page, tore the sheet free, and pushed it into Elna's hands.
"From now on, you're not working at that shop."
Elna blinked in confusion. "What?"
"You're joining us," Lili said flatly. "No more worrying about salary."
"But if I don't work, how will—"
"Don't worry. Food and lodging are provided," Lili interrupted. "And maybe in the future you can request some extra arms or legs. That is enough."
She grabbed Elna's sleeve and started dragging her down the corridor.
Elna stumbled behind her, heart filled with the same feeling as someone who had been sold into slavery.
Without sparing the man another glance, Lili led Elna out of the workshop. With Luthar gone, Lili had no authority to make any serious decisions, but that didn't mean she couldn't make small ones.
After returning to the church, Lili stepped into the main hall with Elna following quietly behind her. Raised voices immediately reached her ears.
In the middle of the hall stood Hephaestus, clearly trying to head toward the corridor that led to the underground laboratory.
Unfortunately, Loki had wrapped both arms around her from behind and was stubbornly refusing to let go.
"I said I want to come too," Loki insisted, clinging to her like a child refusing to let go.
Hephaestus exhaled slowly, her patience visibly thinning. She was already regretting letting Loki into the church.
"For the last time," she said, "you are not going down there. Go back."
Loki tightened her arms around her.
"But I also want to see," she replied brightly. "The place where you guys make new stuff."
Hephaestus tried to separate herself from Loki.
"For that, you should wait for Luthar to come back. At that time, I could ask him to show you around."
Loki immediately shook her head.
"But I want to see it now."
At that moment Hephaestus noticed Lili. Relief crossed her face.
"Lili," she said, "good timing. Can you take care of her for a moment?"
Lili looked at Loki and considered that for a second.
"…Just knock her unconscious and throw her outside. There is no need to take care of her."
Loki slowly turned her head toward Lili.
Her smile sharpened slightly.
"Little girl," she said, her tone dripping with mild amusement, "don't get too cocky just because you're with Hephaestus. That doesn't mean I won't beat you."
Lili ignored the threat and looked at Hephaestus.
"So," she asked calmly, "why is she here?"
Hephaestus sighed.
"She wants to join the group."
Lili frowned slightly.
"Which one? The one with the gate or the one without?"
Hephaestus answered immediately.
"The one without."
At that, Loki raised an eyebrow.
"Wait," she said, looking between them. "You have more than one group?"
Her smile widened.
"So which one is where you're all gathering to conquer the city?"
Silence followed as everyone stared at her.
Loki simply shrugged.
"You can't blame me for thinking like that. Besides, conquering the world is the only reason I can imagine for you and Freya getting this close."
Hephaestus stared at her for a moment, her brows slowly knitting together as something clicked.
"…So that's why you've been bothering me for the past few days?" she asked.
Loki tilted her head slightly, as if the answer were obvious.
"Well… a group of gods secretly gathering in one place usually means something dramatic."
Hephaestus opened her mouth to dismiss the idea, but the image of Mars surfaced in her mind instead—the barren planet slowly being transformed.
Her expression shifted.
From a certain point of view, it really wasn't that different from conquering a world.
Loki noticed the change immediately. Her playful smile faded as her eyes narrowed with sudden interest.
"…Wait," she said slowly.
Hephaestus looked back at her.
"You're seriously not doing that?"
Her voice held clear disbelief, with a hint of tension creeping in as her mind immediately began assembling a series of increasingly ridiculous possibilities.
Two goddesses secretly gathering resources.
Weapons being produced underground.
She could easily imagine the two of them marching into the city with an army behind them.
Hephaestus handing out enchanted weapons like festival prizes to soldiers.
Freya standing nearby with that dangerous smile of hers while half of Orario qui feelingly surrendered.
Even Ais, her precious Ais, being lured away with a strange sword.
"Here, take this. With it you can defeat that evil dragon."
Loki's expression immediately darkened.
"Absolutely not."
Lili frowned. "What are you talking about now?"
Loki pointed accusingly between them.
"You're plotting something ridiculous," she declared. "You're not stealing my familia members with fancy weapons. I'm joining you so I can keep an eye on you."
Lili stared at her for a moment.
Then she snorted.
"We don't need another goddess trying to crawl under Luthar's robes."
Loki blinked.
Hephaestus pressed her fingers to her temple.
"That metaphor is extremely wrong," she said tiredly.
Lili crossed her arms.
"Either way," she said, "we're not recruiting random goddesses who wander in because they're bored."
Loki looked between them, her smile slowly returning.
"I am more than a bored god. If I join, I can solve many of your problems, including some you may not even be aware of."
Hephaestus sighed.
"If you want to join anything," she said, "you can ask Luthar when he comes back."
Loki's eyes gleamed with interest.
"Oh?"
She clasped her hands behind her back.
"Then let me stay here until he returns."
Hephaestus shook her head.
Before Loki could respond, Hephaestus freed herself, grabbed the girl by the wrist, and pulled her toward the door.
"No chance. We're already short on rooms."
She pushed the door open, led the Loki outside.
Inside, Elna hesitated. "Do I need to leave too?" she asked quietly.
Lili waved a hand dismissively.
"Don't worry. We have plenty of storerooms. I'll arrange one for you."
Elna blinked. "…A storeroom?"
"It has enough space for a bed," Lili replied. "That should be enough."
Elna followed her slowly.
"…I feel like we're forgetting something."
Lili ignored the comment and kept walking.
Author's Note: support me on p.a.t.r.e.n and you can get 47 chapters Plus 23 from TBFW 25 from new evil making around 90 chapters and I also have new special draft which I plan to refine for 1 year before releasing .
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