"What did you do?!"
Seeing his clansmen, his father, and his grandfather pierced through by the blue bars of light, Welf was badly frightened.
Like a stray cat with its fur standing on end, he bared his teeth at Rayleigh.
Rayleigh ignored him. He simply looked at the goddess Phobos.
The goddess nodded, then stepped forward, grabbed Welf by the shoulder, and explained, "Welf, this person is a member of Hephaestus Familia, the Familia of my friend in Orario. He accepted my request and came here to rescue us."
"Orario? Rescue us?"
Welf froze.
And Hephaestus...
Wasn't that the legendary goddess of the forge?!
As long as someone was a smith, there was no way they would not yearn for that goddess.
'That goddess is willing to help us?'
If that was true, then it was wonderful.
Rayleigh said, "Don't worry. I didn't injure them. This magic causes pain, but it won't create wounds or make them bleed."
After hearing his explanation, Welf looked toward his family and found that they indeed were not bleeding.
Their expressions were only somewhat twisted in pain.
The old man glared fiercely at Welf and at Phobos and Rayleigh as well.
"So it was thieves from Orario! Wretched goddess, are you trying to help Orario steal away the hope of our Crozzo family?!"
"NO!"
Welf shouted, "This is my decision! It has nothing to do with Lady Phobos!"
"Grandfather, you said it yourself, didn't you? A weapon is a warrior's life! A Magic Sword is fated to break, which means it abandons its owner on its own! Even if we lost the power to forge Magic Swords, you said we could still create the finest weapons!"
Welf clenched his fists so tightly that his whole body trembled.
"You said that was the pride and glory of a smith!"
"I admired that version of you more than anyone."
"But that was just my own wishful thinking. After you found out I could forge Magic Swords, you changed. You threw away the craft of smithing and filled your head with nothing but Crozzo Magic Swords. The pride of a smith? What a load of crap! You—no, all of you—were the ones who trampled the pride of smiths beneath your own feet until it was worth nothing!"
In his agitation, Welf's nails dug into his palms, and blood flowed from between his fingers.
"Shallow fool! Compared to Crozzo Magic Swords, every other weapon is worthless!"
The old man did not listen at all to Welf's heartfelt words.
He only roared at the boy.
Rayleigh frowned, even Sakanade at his waist trembled with him.
He gently stroked the hilt.
Then he said, "How pitiful."
"What?!"
"Who are you calling pitiful? Me?!"
"Stop spouting nonsense, you brat! You know nothing of how great Crozzo Magic Swords truly are!"
The corners of Rayleigh's mouth lifted slightly.
The pity in his eyes as he looked at the old man was completely undisguised.
A frog at the bottom of a well knew nothing of the vast sky, let alone the universe beyond it.
True, Crozzo Magic Swords were powerful.
According to legend, a fire Magic Sword could evaporate the sea with a single strike.
But in the end, they merely borrowed the power of a Spirit.
Before the gods descended to the Lower World, Spirits were the main force and reliance that humans and demi-humans had used to resist monsters.
Spirits, under the guidance of the gods, aided the lives on the surface.
They were the avatars of the gods.
But compared to the power of Zanka no Tachi, which could destroy the world, even a Spirit itself could only be afraid.
"All right, no more wasting time. Let's leave quickly."
As Rayleigh spoke, he prepared to take the goddess and Welf away.
But just then, a burst of laughter suddenly rang out.
It was Welf's grandfather.
At that moment, he laughed smugly and said, "Do you really think you can escape?"
Seeing how certain of victory he looked, Rayleigh asked, "What do you mean?"
The old man's eyes shone with malice.
He did not bother hiding anything and spoke directly, "Did you think I wouldn't guard against that goddess? Before coming in here, I already sent someone to inform Lord Ares!"
"Counting the time, that lord should already be... Hahaha!"
Phobos's expression sank.
Welf instantly broke out in cold sweat as well.
He was afraid.
Afraid that he would be captured.
He looked toward the goddess beside him, only to discover that there was no fear in her eyes, only worry.
The goddess lowered her head and looked at Welf.
When their gazes met, Welf suddenly understood.
From beginning to end, Lady Phobos had been thinking of him.
Beyond that, even if she herself was placed in danger, she did not care.
In that instant, Welf felt the goddess's affection with extraordinary clarity.
Rayleigh no longer paid any attention to the old man as he released his Reiraku senses.
Then he discovered that quite a few people had indeed arrived outside.
By a rough estimate, there were likely more than four hundred warriors with Falna.
"That is quite the grand lineup." Rayleigh muttered.
But it was easy to understand.
Ares was the Father of Rakia Kingdom, its most important figure.
Following Ares meant power and status.
But if one thought about it from the opposite direction, it was also the people with excellent skills who had gathered around him.
Both sides depended on each other and could not afford to lose the other.
That was why Ares's movements were always heavily protected.
After all, once Ares was sent back to Heaven, all of them would instantly become fish on the chopping block.
Everything they currently possessed would vanish like smoke.
"Lady Goddess, can you ride a horse?"
"No, I can't."
"Fine."
Rayleigh vanished from where he stood.
Not long after, a carriage came racing over.
He stood atop the carriage and brought it skidding to a stop in front of the two of them.
"Get in."
Phobos lifted Welf up and sent him into the carriage, then climbed in herself.
Rayleigh flicked the reins, and the carriage shot forward as though launched from a spring.
...
At that moment, in front of the mansion gates, Ares was happily preparing to enter the estate.
He had wanted Crozzo Magic Swords for a long time, but the Crozzo family had disappointed him again and again.
He had never expected a new hope to be born now!
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
Clatter, clatter, clatter!
"Lord Ares!"
A knight reacted quickly and rushed forward, pushing Ares aside.
He himself was knocked flying by the carriage!
Watching the carriage speed away, the members of Ares Familia at the gate stood stunned for several seconds.
"Hey, are you all right?!"
Ares hurried to the knight who had been struck by the carriage and checked his injuries.
Only to find that the man was coughing blood and could no longer speak!
Ares flew into a rage.
"Damn it! To think they dared hurt my warrior! Send out our forces and stop that carriage!"
The war god roared out his order.
Nearly a hundred people immediately sprang into action.
One after another, they began gathering their subordinates and launching the pursuit.
"Uwaaaaaah!"
Welf screamed nonstop, frightened by the carriage's wild speed.
For a child his age, that was unavoidable.
Although he would grow into a loyal, dependable man one day, right now he was still only a little brat.
The carriage rampaged through the streets.
Before long, it charged into the upper district and began rushing straight toward the middle district.