'Looks like I can regain my original strength sooner than expected.'
Judas thought as the corner of his lips curled upward.
Ever since he lost access to his magic core, Judas had felt as though his body was bound tightly by chains, leaving him with a subtle but constant sense of discomfort.
While he was immersed in assessing the state of his body, Artemis dropped a shocking piece of news on her familia.
"Ah! Did I hear that right, Artemis-sama?! Are we really finally going to stay in Orario?"
Lante exclaimed excitedly.
"Am I hearing things? You're coming back to Orario with us, Artemis?"
"Like staying there for good?"
Hestia spoke with sparkles in her eyes.
Looking at their expressions, Artemis gave a gentle smile.
"That's right... I've been thinking about this for a while now, but the Artemis Familia will be moving to Orario."
Artemis said, giving a brief glance toward Judas.
Hestia caught the direction of that glance, and the gears in her head immediately started turning.
"I get it now... you want to move to Orario because you want to get closer to Judas, right?"
Hestia said with a cheeky grin while pointing her finger, seeing straight through her friend's thoughts.
Artemis let out a few fake coughs, neither confirming nor denying it.
"To have an entire familia move to the city, I bet the Guild's headmaster would be thrilled. Which means our reward will probably increase."
Hermes said with a playful smile.
"Tch... another strong rival has appeared."
Lili clicked her tongue, black lines appearing on her forehead.
Judas remained in meditation for a while until the sound of approaching footsteps reached his side.
"Judas... everyone is about to head back to Orario."
Artemis said as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, a faint blush present on her cheeks.
Hearing this, Judas opened his eyes and rose to his feet, stretching his back.
"You're really planning to stay in Orario, huh?"
Judas asked, to which Artemis responded with a nod.
"Yes, although I imagine finding a place to serve as our familia's base won't be easy. And it will be expensive."
Artemis replied.
"You don't have to worry about that. I can help you out if you want."
Judas said. As a billionaire, he had more than enough capital to buy out an entire district in Orario if he wanted to.
"I appreciate the offer... but I don't want to be in your debt any more than I already am. Besides, we're used to camping out in the middle of forests all the time. We don't mind being homeless for a while."
"Well, my familia and I are technically homeless right now, but you get my point, right?"
Artemis said, meeting his gaze.
"Alright. But if you change your mind later, you can talk to me."
Judas said as he and Artemis walked toward the group.
"There's not enough room for everyone to ride these wyverns. I guess the others will have to travel back on foot."
"At most, they can only carry five people each, which means only fifteen can hitch a ride."
Asfi remarked as she assessed the wyverns' carrying capacity.
"You don't have to worry about that. I got this."
Judas said as he walked past her and summoned a magic circle beneath his feet.
『Shadow Bird』
A dark mass suddenly rose from the ground, growing rapidly until it began to morph into the shape of a giant bird.
Seeing this, Artemis' eyes shone with familiarity.
But Judas didn't summon just one.
He summoned more, taking into account the total number of members from both the Hermes Familia and the Artemis Familia.
"With this, we shouldn't have any more problems, right?"
Judas said as a small army of shadow birds appeared before them.
"Wooah... that is so cool!"
Lante exclaimed as she ran toward one and began patting it.
Artemis slowly walked over as one of the shadow birds nudged its head toward her.
The goddess let out a faint smile and began rubbing its head as well.
"Well, now that that's taken care of... let's head back home."
Hermes clapped his hands together and announced loudly.
After everyone got on, they took off into the sky.
"Hehe... this is nice..."
Lili giggled to herself as she shifted slightly, feeling Judas' abs against her back.
'His smell... it's so addicting...'
Laurier thought to herself as her nose twitched, taking in Judas' scent from behind.
At the moment, Judas found himself seated between Lili and the elf girl from the Hermes Familia, Laurier.
Originally, Artemis wanted to ride with him, but Lili was quick to object and even managed to get Laurier to side with her.
In the end, Artemis could only back down and ride with her captain and Lante.
"Hey..."
Hestia suddenly spoke up just as they finally flew beyond the Great Forest.
"Why do I feel like we're forgetting something?"
The Goddess of the Hearth said while tapping her chin.
Judas subtly shifted his gaze toward her but said nothing.
He knew exactly what she was talking about.
'The Dis Sisters...'
He hadn't forgotten about those two psycho elf twins and had searched the entire Great Forest for them earlier, using every detection spell in his arsenal.
But it was as if they had vanished into thin air.
He couldn't find them anywhere.
In the end, Judas could only conclude that they had gotten away.
'I'd better retract my magic.'
He blinked once, and the faint glow in his eyes faded.
...
Meanwhile, back at the Elsos Ruins, in the chamber where Antares had been kept...
"Hmm... they really made a huge mess."
A deep, unfamiliar voice rang out.
Heavy footsteps echoed through the halls of the nearly destroyed temple as a man's silhouette walked forward with a steady gait.
Behind him were the Dis Sisters, their heads lowered, their expressions filled with shame.
"Boss... we apologize for our failure. Not only were we defeated, but Antares was killed as well."
Dina Dis said quietly.
"It can't be helped... the situation spiraled out of control, and before we knew it, Antares and Judas had suddenly become so strong..."
Vena offered an excuse, only for her sister to cover her mouth.
"We have no excuses. Please punish us as you see fit."
Dina said as she knelt on the ground, giving her sister a glance that clearly told her to follow along.
"It's fine... I only wanted to study Antares' unique ability to absorb Arcanum."
The silhouetted man said as he picked up a blue shard from the ground.
"Getting Antares as a pet was only a bonus."
Hearing this, the Dis Sisters' eyes lit up with joy.
"Thank you for your mercy!"
It was then that the man suddenly turned his head in a certain direction and smiled.
The invisible pair of eyes that had been watching the area like a hawk had vanished.
'It seems he finally stopped searching.'
'He can be meticulous when his guard is up.'
The man thought as he swiped his arm through the air, removing the stealth magic he had placed over the area.
The barrier around them faded away.
'It won't be long until I fully recover.'
Coincidentally, a ray of sunlight filtered through a crack in the ceiling, revealing the man's face.
If Judas were here right now, he would have recognized that face in an instant.
Silver hair.
Blue eyes.
And ears like an elf.
A perfect copy of Estelon's appearance.
"Dina. Vena. Return to Orario. It seems Valleta and her forces took a significant hit after repeatedly clashing with the Loki Familia. Your duties here are over."
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