Back on Renjiro's homeworld of Earth, in the context of ancient Greek mythology, Apollo wasn't merely the widely-known Sun God.
Strictly speaking, within the pantheon of Olympus, the being who was on par with—or even more suitable for—this divine position was Helios.
As for Apollo himself…
He was, at his core, the God of Light, God of Prophecy, God of Medicine and Law, and…
God of Music and Poetry!
Of course, Renjiro knew that the gods in the DanMachi world couldn't be perfectly mapped onto the mythologies of Earth.
Otherwise, Loki—the red-eyed, flat-chested goddess—and Hephaestus, the one-eyed goddess of craftsmanship, would have to star in a "Type-Moon version of the Arthurian legends."
Not to mention Prometheus, the fire-stealer of Greek myth, was a goddess in this world, while his brother Epimetheus wasn't even a god. Instead, he survived for over three thousand years, went mad, and became the original Flame Sword Hero, intent on destroying the world…
In short, in this current fantasy world—still in the age of gods—Apollo and Artemis were not actually siblings.
Even Hestia and Zeus were in a similar situation.
One could say…
"The gods of this world have existed for billions of years. At their core, they are essentially the personifications of concepts."
"With such a backdrop, how could any 'family ties' actually exist?"
If one were to speculate…
"Perhaps these gods have lived so long that they've grown bored and, on a whim, started playing 'house' with each other?"
"No wonder the CP relationships around Zeus are completely tangled."
"And…"
"Loki really knows how to stir things up—Ragnarok, anyone?"
These were Renjiro's musings after some idle time, partly analyzed and partly imagined,
Highly plausible.
Because one day, when Renjiro was playing with the children at his familia's base—the Maria Orphanage—he had overheard Syr say:
"Rye's personality is really similar to that brat Odin."
Just that short sentence conveyed so much information.
Now, setting aside all the backstory, for the moment, the situation at hand…
"Uh~"
Artemis and Hestia, the two virgin goddesses, quickly arrived one after the other at the door of the small cooking room Lumine had temporarily rented.
Artemis hadn't even knocked when Apollo and his familia captain, Hyakinthos, hurried up behind them.
At first glance, Artemis furrowed her brow, while Hestia emitted a disgusted sound as if about to vomit.
Upon their first meeting…
"Ah, Hestia, Artemis."
The flashy male god greeted first. "It's been so long."
"If possible, I'd rather never see you again."
Artemis said nothing, but Hestia didn't hold back:
"Sticking too close to you never ends well."
Even though this was a conversation between high gods, and Hestia was being rude, Hyakinthos—ever loyal to his god—did not interject.
Unnoticed by all…
Around the corner, the hungry white-haired rabbit boy quietly peeked out, craning his neck toward them.
This place was far too enticing for him.
The soft, novel melody aside, the scent of delicious food wafted even from afar…
"Ugh~"
The boy swallowed pitifully.
========
Inside the small cooking room, oblivious to the outside world, Lumine, Airmid, and Barbara were fully focused on the changes on the small wooden table before them.
By the end of the brief song…
Barbara—uh—
She had conjured a palm-sized loaf of bread from thin air.
Yes, the legendary—the true French-style bread made by a mage's hand.
At this moment, Lumine pointed at the simple, magically-produced food on the table and began explaining to a stunned Airmid:
"That song was one of the least dynamic pieces Barbara has learned so far."
"The miracle effect it triggers is varied."
"This bread might look ordinary, but in essence, it's a special food called a Holy Meal."
"Even ordinary people, if they eat it daily, can gradually increase their resistance to poisons and curses, eventually gaining an extremely rare constitution immune to deadly toxins and curses."
No doubt, Renjiro had been eating this almost every day recently.
He had also shared it with the orphanage children and Maria.
Even though the Holy Meal improves constitution slowly, eating some daily is comparable to a high-nutrition dish.
It's particularly nourishing—and without the risk of over-supplementation.
At this moment…
"Holy Meal? Gradually becoming immune to deadly poisons and curses?"
As a young pharmacist and Orario's strongest healer, Airmid naturally understood the immense value of such a special food.
Her eyes gleamed as she looked at Lumine and Barbara.
"Perhaps it's impolite to say this, but if possible…"
"You want to take samples for research, right?"
Lumine smiled warmly and exchanged a glance with Barbara.
Barbara added, "No problem. We're both looking forward to seeing what unexpected results you can uncover, Miss Airmid."
Upon hearing this…
"Thank you so much."
Airmid said sincerely.
Lumine waved her hand.
"No need to be so formal. Friends help each other."
"Miss Airmid, you aren't hiding even your exclusive magic. If Barbara and I were to fuss over it, we'd be laughed at, right?"
"Just take it easy…"
"Knock knock~"
The door rapped.
The three, engrossed in conversation, were interrupted.
Lumine shrugged and went to open it.
Then…
"Ah, isn't this the cute constellation—"
"BOOM~"
The airheaded little sister slammed the door, thinking she had opened it the wrong way upon seeing a flashy male god's face.
Outside…
"Waaah~"
Apollo clutched his nose, crouching on the ground and whining.
Seeing their patron god injured…
"Damn, utterly rude…"
Hyakinthos nearly drew his sword to break the door down.
But he was fortunate—at the crucial moment, his patron lifted a hand to stop him.
"Stand down, Hyakinthos. You would be the truly rude one. Don't embarrass me."
Apollo stood, serious.
"We arrived abruptly and have already disturbed them. The fault is ours; act accordingly."
"Yes, Apollo-sama."
The twenty-two-year-old brown-haired youth replied respectfully.
But…
"Apollo, although it's rare to see you serious…"
Hestia's eyebrows twitched and her mouth twitched.
"Can you wipe the nosebleed before speaking?"
"Disgusting."
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100 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter
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