The morning air carried a faint chill.
The two of them walked eastward along the street.
This was the high-end commercial district. Most of the shops along the road were still making their preparations before opening.
"Seriously, though."
Loki dropped her usual grin. Her gaze slid sideways, settling on Haimer's profile.
"Those new faces you dragged back last night — where exactly did you dig them up?"
"Found them on the road," Haimer said, eyes forward, watching the streets at the far end of the avenue grow steadily more lively.
"Don't give me that."
Loki rolled her eyes.
"You think Orario's got promising talent just lying around everywhere?"
"Especially that girl in the black clothes. The killing aura on her — my people could feel it from several streets away last night. You don't build something like that just from cutting down low-level monsters. That's the unmistakable stench of someone who's taken real human lives, and plenty of them."
At those words, an image surfaced unbidden in Haimer's mind: Tendou Kisara inside the Holy Residence, demon blade in hand, cleaving Tendou Kazumitsu in two, slitting Tendou Kikunojou's throat, and cutting down every last member of the Tendou clan.
Indeed.
After everything Tendou Kisara had been through, the demon had taken root in her very bones.
"She has her past," Haimer said evenly. "But now, she's a swordswoman in my Familia."
"Yeah, yeah, fine~"
Loki could tell Haimer had no intention of saying more, and was savvy enough not to push.
As the goddess of schemes, she knew when to let things lie.
"Alright, forget it. If you're not talking, then drop it."
Loki stretched her arms above her head in an exaggerated yawn.
"Still, you're growing your Familia at an absolutely ridiculous pace. That girl with the blade, and that tiny blind one — in just a few days they hit Level Up to Lv.2 and headed to the middle floors to rip monsters apart with their bare hands."
"They went and shattered our little Ais's record for the fastest Level Up ever. Hurt her feelings quite a bit, I'll tell you."
"That's just their own talent, and how hard they're willing to push themselves," Haimer said, watching the intersection ahead.
As they spoke.
The two of them rounded a corner and arrived at the most bustling stretch of North Main Street.
Here, shops catering to gods and the upper crust lined the road on both sides.
Loki came to a stop and looked up at the sign in front of them.
"Here we go. This is the place."
Haimer followed her gaze.
A three-story building done in a classical style. The outer walls were inlaid with polished marble, and the display windows were made of pure crystal glass.
Inside, several garments of obviously extravagant craftsmanship were on display.
Loki stepped forward and pushed open the ornately carved wooden door.
A copper bell above the door chimed out a crisp, clear note.
"Welcome—"
Behind the counter, a slightly pudgy half-dwarf shopkeeper had his head bowed over an abacus.
At the sound, he looked up with a practiced smile already spreading across his face.
When he recognized the unmistakable flame-red hair of the goddess who had just walked in, his smile bloomed even wider — warm enough to border on outright fawning.
"Oh my, Lady Loki! What an honour to have you visit today — you truly grace this humble establishment!"
However.
The moment the shopkeeper's gaze moved past Loki and landed on the black-haired man walking in behind her.
His voice cut off.
The flesh on the shopkeeper's face gave a faint tremble.
Haimer was dressed casually — a silk sleep shirt with a coat thrown on over it. Yet the aura of absolute authority that seeped through from somewhere deep within him was impossible to conceal.
Combined with the black hair and black eyes that had been the talk of every street corner in Orario these past few days.
The shopkeeper guessed the man's identity in an instant.
"Th... this is..." The shopkeeper swallowed hard.
"Alright, alright, stop stammering."
Loki sauntered to the leather sofa in the middle of the shop and dropped into it, crossing one leg over the other.
"Bring out everything in this shop — top of the line, the kind of thing you'd wear to a God Meeting. This one here is impossibly picky, so don't even think about pawning off second-rate goods on him. Try it and I'll have this place torn down around your ears."
The shopkeeper looked as though a death sentence had been commuted. He frantically wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, then half-scrambled, half-ran toward the stockroom in the back.
Within a few minutes.
The shopkeeper and two assistants came wheeling out a rolling rack of clothes.
Hanging from it were over a dozen formalwear pieces of exceptionally meticulous craftsmanship.
Loki leapt up from the sofa and moved in close, flicking through the garments with her fingers.
"This one! This one's perfect!"
She pulled out a long crimson formal coat — gold thread embroidered along the collar and cuffs, and an elaborate pattern of layered designs stitched across the entire back.
"Put this on and you'll absolutely be the center of attention at the God Meeting!" Loki held the coat up in front of Haimer and gestured.
Haimer dropped his gaze to the red coat that looked capable of blinding someone at close range.
"If there's still any water left rattling around in that head of yours, shut your mouth."
Without a shred of ceremony, Haimer pushed Loki aside — coat and all — and walked up to the rack himself.
His gaze moved across the garments, sweeping over the varied colors.
Finally.
His eyes came to rest on a piece at the far end of the rack — a pure black formal coat.
The fabric was clearly something unusual. It wasn't ordinary silk or linen. Under the light, it gave off a deep, restrained matte sheen.
No flashy ornamentation. The cut was sharply precise.
Haimer reached out. His fingertips touched the cloth, and an impression came through — extraordinarily tough, but smooth.
"That's woven from the black silk of the mutant spider-type monsters on the 37th Floor of the Dungeon," the shopkeeper said, hanging back a few steps and choosing his words carefully. "Fireproof, waterproof, and exceptionally breathable."
"This one."
Haimer took the coat down from the rack and headed toward the fitting room in the back.
A moment later.
The curtain was pulled open in one sweep.
Haimer stepped out.
The black slim-cut dress trousers were immaculately pressed. The collar of the pure white shirt beneath was open just slightly — no tie — beneath the long pure-black formal coat worn on top.
The cut conformed perfectly to a frame that was already tall and well-built.
Broad shoulders, narrow waist.
He made no particular effort — simply stood there at ease, one hand raised to fasten the dark button at his cuff.
The quality that belonged to a god — the kind that only comes from being worn smooth by countless ages — showed itself plainly, set off by the clothes.
The two female shop assistants stared, unable to look away, their cheeks flushing red as they clutched at their aprons.
Loki had been sitting on the sofa sipping tea the whole time. When Haimer walked out, her hand holding the teacup paused for just a fraction of a second.
Something flashed through those red eyes of hers.
But.
The feeling lasted less than half a second.
Loki snapped back to her usual expression immediately, and set the teacup down on the table with a sharp clack.
"Tch. You lucky bastard — you've got the kind of face that makes even a plain rag look like high fashion."
Haimer ignored Loki's commentary, walked over to the full-length mirror, and gave himself a look.
Satisfied that everything was in order, he turned to the shopkeeper standing nearby.
"How much?"
The shopkeeper rubbed his hands together, held up eight fingers, and spoke with a somewhat uncertain voice.
"That would be... eight hundred thousand Valis, if you please."
Eight hundred thousand for a single garment.
For an ordinary adventurer, that was enough to keep them hacking Goblins on the first floor for several months.
Haimer had no intention of reaching for his own wallet.
Instead, he turned his head, and fixed his gaze squarely on Loki.
"Take it. No need for change."
Loki dug a Guild-issued banknote out of her pocket and slapped it onto the counter.
The shopkeeper hastily tucked it away, his face breaking into a beaming smile.
"Many thanks for your patronage, Lady Loki!"
They pushed open the shop door.
The two of them stepped back out onto North Main Street.
By now, the foot traffic was noticeably heavier than before.
Adventurers out shopping, horse-drawn carts hauling goods, a whole assortment of demi-human races — the street hummed with life.
Having just taken a significant financial hit, Loki looked somewhat sulky, kicking at the stone pavement with each step.
But her temperament had never been the type to hold onto bad moods.
They hadn't gone far.
When Loki bounced back with full energy.
She quickened her pace, falling into step beside Haimer.
Then, with the easy familiarity of an old friend, she rose up on her tiptoes, stretched out one arm, and slung it around Haimer's shoulders.
She leaned her face in close.
"Alright! Clothes done — mission accomplished!"
The red eyes sparkled with a gleam of excitement, like someone who had just spotted something delightfully interesting.
"It's still early, too."
"So where do we go for fun next?"
Loki pointed in the direction of Southeast Avenue.
"How about we swing by the Pleasure Quarter? Word is Ishtar's been putting together some new entertainment in there lately — could be worth a look. Or we could find somewhere to grab a drink? What do you say to Flamebee Tavern?"
Faced with Loki's rapid-fire suggestions.
Haimer tilted his head to the side and glanced at the hand draped over his shoulder.
Then.
Without the slightest hesitation, he reached up, pinched her wrist, and lifted that arm off his shoulder.
"We're going to your Familia."
"The Twilight Manor."
At those words.
The excitement on Loki's face froze.
Watching Haimer show absolutely no sign of stopping, she let out a helpless sigh and scratched at that red hair of hers.
"Fine, fine."
"Like I owe you from a past life or something."
Loki muttered and grumbled under her breath, but jogged ahead to catch up all the same.
"But let me say this upfront! Those high-purity ores and the deep-floor monster drops — Finn and the others risked their lives to bring those back. If you waste a single scrap of it, you rotten scoundrel, I will march over to your house and throw a tantrum on your floor!"
They walked on down the broad avenue.
Gradually, the architectural style of the surrounding buildings began to change.
The refined, luxurious commercial atmosphere of North Main Street gave way, bit by bit, to the rough-hewn pragmatism of the adventurers' quarter.
"Come to think of it."
"If you need equipment forged, why not go to Hephaestus?"
Loki turned her head to look at Haimer.
"A small favour like this — she definitely wouldn't say no to you."
Haimer's gaze drifted over a smithy at the roadside, the rhythmic clang of hammer on metal ringing out from within.
"Hephaestus's materials are certainly excellent."
Haimer pulled his gaze back.
"But."
"More importantly."
Haimer paused, then turned his head to look at Loki.
"I hear your Loki Familia just completed a large-scale expedition not long ago."
"The monster drops from down below, and those rare ores."
"Even Hephaestus's high-grade stock might not be as complete as what you have."
At that.
Loki's eyes went wide in an instant.
"Oh, you — you've been playing me this whole time!"
Loki jabbed a finger at Haimer's nose, jumping up and down in outrage.
"You had your eyes on my stockpile from the very beginning, didn't you!"
"Don't be so stingy."
Haimer flicked her pointing finger out of his face and kept walking.
"The materials are just sitting in your storeroom going to waste anyway. Once I'm done, if there are any offcuts left over, I'll touch up your weapons with them — consider it payment."
"You rotten — who says scraps count as payment?! You're practically robbing me in broad daylight!"
Loki kept up behind him, a steady stream of complaints flowing from her lips.
At last.
The two of them, one slightly ahead of the other, made their way through several more streets.
At the far end of North Main Street, an enormous complex of buildings spanning a vast stretch of land came into view.
It was none other than one of Orario's two supreme Familias — the headquarters of the [Loki Familia].
— The Twilight Manor.
The towering outer walls were built from blocks of hard red stone, their surfaces draped in climbing vines.
The main gate was immensely wide.
On either side of the gate stood two fully armed Familia members.
Judging by their equipment and the aura they gave off, their levels were nothing to scoff at.
The moment they spotted Loki approaching, both guards snapped to attention, right fists raised to their chests.
"Lady Loki!"
However.
When the corner of their eyes caught the black-haired god in the black formal coat walking just behind her.
Both guards' hands moved involuntarily to grip the hilts of their weapons. Their bodies went rigid in an instant, and their eyes betrayed undisguised tension.
Loki waved a dismissive hand.
"Alright, alright — relax, both of you. He's a friend of mine, here to take care of some business. No need to make a scene."
With Loki's word given, the two guards relaxed their muscles somewhat — though their eyes still kept drifting back toward Haimer.
Haimer paid the stares no mind, stepped through the gate, and walked into the interior of the [Twilight Manor].
The moment he was inside.
His view opened up dramatically.
The first thing that greeted him was a training ground of absurd proportions.
The hard stone floor was riddled with deep gouges and charred marks left behind by sword strikes and magical bombardments.
At that moment.
In the center of the grounds.
A sharp rush of compressed air was tearing violently through the atmosphere.
Blue-green wind elements spiraled through the air, forming a miniature cyclone.
At the eye of this raging storm, a slender figure was moving at extraordinary speed. The velocity was such that the eye could only catch a dazzling blur of gold.
— The absolute cornerstone of the [Loki Familia]'s first-line forces.
— Lv.5, the "Sword Princess" — Ais Wallenstein.
To avoid being caught in the shockwaves of the wind pressure, two figures stood at the edge of the training ground.
One was a small-statured young man with blond hair, dressed in a yellow sleeveless jerkin — he stood watching the ongoing practice with unblinking focus.
Beside him stood a tall elven woman in a green robe trimmed with yellow, long emerald hair flowing down her back.
The [Loki Familia]'s captain.
The "Brave" — Finn Deimne.
And the [Loki Familia]'s vice-captain.
The "Nine Hell" — Riveria Lios Alf.
Finn Deimne — Lv.6 — Brave.
The powerful residual wind sent the hem of Riveria's robe billowing with a sharp flutter.
She furrowed her brow slightly, raising a hand to hold back the green hair the wind was tossing around, her gaze fixed on Ais, who kept accelerating the speed of her sword strikes.
"Is Ais's training intensity these past couple of days not a little excessive?"
Riveria spoke, her voice carrying a note of unmistakable concern.
"Since yesterday, she's even cut the time she allows herself to rest down to an absolute minimum."
"If she keeps grinding herself down at this intensity, even with high-grade recovery potions sustaining her body, her mind will break first."
Finn gave a quiet shake of his head in response, the expression on his boyish face settling into a kind of deeply mature resignation.
"There's nothing to be done about it. You know better than anyone just how deep Ais's obsession with getting stronger runs."
"The news the Guild officially published sent shockwaves through all of Orario."
Riveria fell silent.
She understood perfectly well what Finn was referring to.
The Guild's verified announcement.
The [Haimer Familia] had, in just a matter of days, accomplished a feat that would ordinarily take years — or even a decade or more. Every single member had achieved a Level Up to Lv.2.
It shattered the record that Ais herself had held — having gone from Lv.1 to Lv.2 in a single year — which had stood as the fastest Level Up in the world.
"Ais doesn't say anything about it on the surface, but inside, she's probably feeling the pressure more than anyone."
Finn's eyes stayed on Ais as she unleashed another heavy slash inside the storm.
"Faced with that kind of monstrous growth rate, it would be strange if she didn't feel threatened."
"If we try to tell her to stop right now, she won't listen anyway. Better to let her work it out of her system first."
Hearing Finn's words, Riveria pressed her lips together, and in the end could only let it all out in a long, quiet exhale.
"I suppose you're right..."
Just as Riveria was nodding softly at that and drawing breath to say something more.
Suddenly.
A thunderously loud voice — utterly at odds with the solemn atmosphere of the moment — rang out from the entrance to the training ground behind them.
"Yo——! Finn! Riveria! Everyone!!"
That unmistakable, one-of-a-kind voice — who else could it possibly be but their own irreverent patron goddess.
Finn and Riveria turned around at the same moment.
There was Loki, in her usual skimpy swimsuit-top-and-hot-pants ensemble, swaggering toward them with her arms swinging wide.
The moment Riveria registered Loki's outfit, her expression darkened visibly.
As a member of the high elven nobility, with an upbringing to match, Riveria was especially unable to stand her patron goddess parading around in public in such shameless attire — she was half tempted to raise her staff and rap her over the head with it.
However.
Before Riveria could open her mouth to scold her, Finn was faster.
The moment those blue eyes of Finn's caught Loki's figure, his gaze shifted quickly to the figure walking a half-step behind her — the black-haired god.
Black hair. Black eyes.
The two features that had been the talk of the entire city for days now. There wasn't a second person in all of the Labyrinth City who matched them.
"Lady Loki."
"That must be Lord Haimer."
"A pleasure to meet you, Lord Haimer."
"I am the captain of the [Loki Familia] — Finn Deimne."
"And this is the vice-captain of the [Loki Familia] — Riveria Lios Alf."
Finn led Riveria in bowing together.
Then both sets of eyes turned as one to Haimer.
Haimer stood a few steps away.
His gaze swept over the two in front of him, and he gave a short nod.
To finally lay eyes on the patron god of a Familia whose record for the fastest Level Up was documented in the Guild's archives.
Something flickered through Finn's eyes as well, unbidden.
Just at that moment.
The commotion at the center of the training ground finally died down, if only somewhat.
Everyone turned their heads to look.
____
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