Driven by that gnawing curiosity, Hephaestus made her way alone into Twilight Manor.
Even for a goddess, curiosity about the unknown was something impossible to suppress.
And what sat before her this time—it was far too strange, far too tempting to ignore.
"It's been a while."
Her voice echoed lightly through the familiar halls as she stepped deeper into the Loki Familia's home. Her gaze wandered across the corridors. It really had been ages since she'd last come here.
Ever since the Great Feud, she and Loki hadn't had many one-on-one meetings.
And yet today, here she was—because of one wild, nagging suspicion.
"Lady Hephaestus."
"Is Loki in?"
She didn't bother with pleasantries when one of Loki's children appeared before her. Straight to the point—as always.
"Lady Loki and Lady Astraea are in the tearoom."
Astraea too, huh?
Hephaestus wasn't surprised. She'd heard that Loki and Astraea had been unusually close lately.
That bond seemed to have formed after Loki Familia's return from their last Expedition—apparently, it had something to do with Astraea's own children.
Judging by the current situation, that rumor wasn't wrong.
"I see," Hephaestus murmured, nodding slightly.
She didn't need anyone to guide her; she already knew exactly where the tearoom was.
On the first floor, sunlight streamed through a window beside a certain door. Hephaestus reached it, pushed it open—
Click!
The sudden brightness made her eyes sting for a moment. When her vision adjusted, she saw Loki and Astraea sitting across from each other at a low table.
Three teacups sat between them. Steam still curled up from the third. Clearly, it had been prepared for her.
"Well, well. You left something on my desk to catch my attention, Loki. I didn't know you'd picked up such an odd habit."
The goddess of smithing stepped inside, voice laced with thinly veiled irritation.
She had every reason to be annoyed. If it hadn't been Loki who placed that mysterious stone and red cloth in her workshop, then she'd have to consider the possibility that the Dark Faction had marked her.
Facing her glare, Loki raised both hands in mock surrender, smiling sheepishly.
"Sorry about that, Hephaestus."
"My kid's the cautious type. He prefers to stay hidden and uses Puppets to move around outside. So… he might've gotten a little too careful when he wanted to send you those things."
"I'll accept your apology," Hephaestus said evenly, crossing her arms. "But since I'm already here, are you still going to keep that child of yours hiding in the shadows?"
Loki nodded with a sly grin. "Tsuna."
A pale, translucent barrier shimmered into existence. Within it stood a boy—young, unfamiliar, and definitely new to her eyes.
Hephaestus tilted her head, studying him. "So Ishtar's information was real after all. I thought it was one of your fabricated rumors."
And she couldn't be blamed for that assumption.
Ishtar investigating Loki? That made no sense. The goddess of beauty was many things, but reckless wasn't usually one of them—not after being burned by Loki before.
If anyone should've known better than to fall for Loki's traps twice, it was her.
Still, Hephaestus had to admit—if Ishtar had been so certain, then Loki must've wanted her to believe it. The intelligence Ishtar "discovered" was clearly something Loki had allowed to leak.
"Puppets, spatial techniques… you really don't mind tossing your kid's secrets out there for everyone to drool over, huh?"
Hephaestus exhaled slowly. If it were her, she'd have locked a child like that away in a vault.
Showing off an ability like his was practically inviting trouble.
Loki only laughed. "It's not without reason."
"His power's absurdly strong—beyond what anyone in Orario can imagine. Hell, maybe even beyond this whole world."
"That's exactly why I had to tone down the rest of his abilities. I let one small part show, so it could act as bait—to hide what really matters."
Hephaestus's sharp eyes shifted toward Tsuna.
So that's it. Reveal a fragment to distract the world's attention… and bury the rest where no one can see.
But what could possibly be so powerful that even Loki felt the need to hide it?
The goddess of smithing's curiosity flared again, but she forced it down. Reaching into her coat, she pulled out the crimson cloth and the strange ring.
"Well then, since you've dragged me into this already—mind telling me what these are made of?"
Loki's grin widened. "I can, but… you'll want to sit down for this one."
That smile instantly made Hephaestus suspicious.
Still, curiosity won out—just as Loki had known it would.
Fifteen minutes later, Hephaestus sat frozen, one hand covering her face.
"…I really shouldn't have sat down."
Now that she understood the full picture, regret hit her like a hammer.
She'd learned far too much.
"Damn it, why couldn't I just ignore it for once?" she muttered under her breath. "Curiosity really is a curse."
Loki, of course, burst out laughing and clapped her on the shoulder.
"Come on, it's fine! Just think of it as me tricking you into joining the fun."
"And hey, it's not like you don't get anything out of it. Tsuna's power can do a lot of crazy stuff. If you put a little faith—and resources—into him, he can make things. Literally."
Hephaestus swatted Loki's hand away, glaring. The nerve of this woman—to rope her into something like this and still talk like it was a favor.
In the end, she could only sigh.
"Fine. Like you said, there are some things even I can't turn away from."
"If the world really is heading toward its end… I can't just sit in my forge pretending it isn't happening."
Her gaze shifted to Tsuna, disbelief flickering across her usually composed features.
"Still, your child's power… that's even more unbelievable than the world ending."
To think—he could imagine monsters into existence.
Creatures that not only took shape, but could define their own nature and abilities.
It was ridiculous.
It was terrifying.
And to a goddess of creation like Hephaestus—
—it was fascinating beyond words.
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P.S. Extra chapter goal: 1000 powerstones!