Shock.
So much shock that some had to read the parchment again just to make sure their eyes weren't playing tricks.
"Ottar."
"What now?"
When Ottar suddenly spoke, Allen met him with a look that said The hell are you staring at? But Ottar's voice was deep, serious:
"The content of that file, everyone here must know it and remember it. This is Freya-sama's direct command."
The room fell silent.
Allen, after a pause, clicked his tongue.
"Tch."
Clearly displeased, he nonetheless handed the parchment to the next person.
It went to Hedin Selland, who began reviewing it together with his partner, Hogni Ragnar.
The Gulliver Brothers Warriors were deliberately made to wait until last, Allen's little act of petty revenge. Predictably, the Gulliver brothers glared daggers at him, their expressions promising a fresh round of verbal assault,
Until suddenly,
"Holy shit!!!"
The outburst came from Hogni himself. Normally prone to cryptic mutterings, the dark elf instead blurted a very un-elflike expletive, something far more common among humans.
Even Hedin, usually calm and sharp-tongued, was left staring in disbelief. His hand shook as he held the parchment.
Seeing the usually unflappable Black-and-White duo so rattled only fanned the brothers' curiosity.
At once,
"Are you two done gasping yet? What's on there?"
The hot-tempered second brother, Dvalinn, hopped onto the table and yanked the parchment from Hedin's trembling hands.
Under normal circumstances, a Level 5 Pallum couldn't simply snatch something from a Level 6 elf. But Hedin, still digesting the information, didn't resist.
And so, the Gulliver brothers finally read it for themselves.
Moments later,
"What the?"
"Freya-sama is… adopting two people as her younger siblings?!"
"Where the hell did they come from?"
"What game is our goddess playing now?"
The four brothers were instantly unsettled. Especially when they saw the entry labeled [Name:Aether] / Gender: Male.
Their faces practically screamed, Who the hell is this guy?!
On the other side of the table,
"I don't care where those rats crawled out from," Allen spat, his face dark. "Some greenhorns fresh to Orario, and they think they're worthy of Freya-sama's love?"
"Ha… haha… My blade thirsts for the blood of these vermin… ha… hahahaha…"
"Shut up, Hogni," Hedin snapped this time, eyes cold. "Better to just kill them outright."
The Gulliver brothers exchanged a look,
"Take him out."
"Tonight?"
"Yeah. Tonight."
"River job, or dig a hole?"
"Either works."
"What about the girl?"
"Watch her a few days first."
"Deal."
The plan was set. The girl, Lumine, could be observed for now. After all, Freya's interests had rarely leaned toward women; maybe she simply wanted a "sister" for novelty.
But the boy, Aether, his very existence was a mistake. He could not be allowed to see the sunrise.
The four were already rising to leave when,
"Freya-sama's command," Ottar's voice cut through, heavy as steel, "is that we protect Aether and Lumine within our spheres of influence. Are you planning to openly defy the goddess's will?"
The pressure of the Level 7's presence crashed down like a mountain.
The four Pallum froze in their tracks. Not out of fear, but rage. Their eyes burned with the unspoken promise of a fight to the death if pushed further.
Ottar was silent for a moment. He knew more than the rest of them, of course. But he disliked sharing information, why give his rivals anything for free?
Yet if he didn't explain at least a little, Freya's designs might unravel before they began. Reluctantly, he spoke:
"You misunderstand."
Meeting the glares of the Gulliver Brothers, then glancing to Allen and the Black-and-White knights, Ottar continued in a low, deliberate tone:
"This time, Freya-sama is not simply chasing her so-called destiny."
Allen frowned.
"What the hell do you mean, Ottar?"
Everyone here knew of Freya's pursuit of destiny. Just as Artemis once sought her Orion, Freya, though infamous as the Goddess of Desire, opposite in purity, also had one whom she called her destined partner: Odr.
Every one of them sought to be that Odr. Only Odr could receive her undivided love.
Which was exactly why the Gulliver brothers were so wary of Kū's existence. After so many years of this struggle, many of them practically had male PTSD.
Now, hearing Ottar's words,
"…You know something, don't you?" Alfrigg, the eldest Gulliver, asked quietly.
Ottar's gaze was cold.
"I'll say this once."
"The two named in that file are the only ones in all of Orario to receive divine blessing, without undergoing Freya-sama's Baptism. You understand what that means."
The room went still.
Then,
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Notes
Freya's "Destiny" aka Vanadis Odr – In myth, Freya's true love. Within this world, her Familia's officers all compete for this role, as only Odr receives Freya's undivided affection.
Baptism – In Freya Familia, all members normally undergo a unique ritual to receive her blessing. The fact that Aether and Lumine received a god's grace without it is unheard of.
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