"I am Superman!"
Leon straightened his collar, glanced at the unconscious Kureha, and flashed a crooked, action-hero grin.
"Heh. Trying to sneak in some extra training? You should've asked me first."
With that, he slipped quietly out of the room.
"Tsss…!"
Pressing a hand to his aching back, Leon sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth, the corner of his eye twitching wildly.
"No good. These old bones can barely keep these minxes in line anymore. If this keeps up, the head of this household is gonna end up in serious trouble!"
The image of Rose's smile flashed through his mind, that gentle expression with a hint of cunning hidden underneath, and Leon pushed down the faint unease rising in his chest.
"Train, train!"
…
Changing into a light set of training clothes, Leon began his focused morning workout, determined to master the new skills he'd picked up as quickly as possible and boost his future combat (read: monster-grinding) efficiency in the Dungeon.
But as he worked up a sweat, he overlooked one crucial problem.
That was this… the harder he worked to tame these minxes, the higher his intimacy with Jeanne, Rose, and the others climbed; and the higher that intimacy climbed, the tighter the link between his Beloved's Blessing and Beloved's Crest grew. As a result, the speed at which their potential developed and their strength rose became more and more terrifying. You could say he was bootstrapping himself straight into the stratosphere.
Someday, when Leon finally caught on to this horrifying fact, it would probably be too late. Rose and the others would be the ones running the show!
Jeanne and the others had been itching for ages to turn the tables on that scumbag Leon and play queen for once.
Unfortunately, he had no idea any of it was coming.
…
As morning arrived, the sleeping Orario slowly stirred awake in the embrace of falling snow.
Citizens bundled in thick winter clothes took to the streets, beginning the bustle of a new day.
The avenues and alleys gradually filled with people, and the shops and stalls were soon bustling with customers. After passing strict inspections, vendors from the city outskirts poured in one after another, setting out everything from novel goods to fresh fruit and vegetables, while their overlapping cries added a touch of warmth to the winter day.
Orario hadn't looked this alive in a long while.
As far as the eye could see, merchants and peddlers, ordinary citizens, noble officials, and Adventurers all wore smiles. Even gods left frowning over their familias' failing fortunes were busy preparing for the annual Christmas Festival.
By nine o'clock, the Guild's staff and the craftsmen they'd hired had begun decorating the city for the holidays.
Christmas trees, ribbons, balloons, gift boxes, crests, and familia banners were arranged according to a careful plan, gradually dressing the city in its finest.
The commotion they stirred up drew plenty of passersby to stop and watch, murmuring among themselves.
"The Guild folks and Ganesha Familia are starting to decorate the district."
"Tch, before you know it, it's that time of year again."
"Yeah, a whole year goes by in the blink of an eye. This time last year feels like it was just yesterday."
"Look… it's Astraea Familia. They seem to be in a good mood?"
"Probably. That pickpocket kid just now got caught by Gale, and she only scolded him a bit before letting him go. Any other day, you wouldn't even dare imagine it."
"Haha, looks like these champions of justice aren't always rigid by the book. Now and then they'll cut you some slack too."
"What, you know all about it?"
"Of course. Not gonna lie to you, I've been inside the military police holding cells a few times myself. Tch… aside from the plain surroundings, I had no complaints about anything else, especially the food. It was great."
"Huh? Why'd you all suddenly back away so far?"
"Hey! Don't run off!"
…
Gazing at the long-missed lively streets, the blond god narrowed his eyes slightly, spread his arms as if to embrace the whole sky, and took a deep, intoxicated breath.
"Ah! The city of heroes I've longed for!"
"Ah! My beloved goddesses!"
"Lady Freya! Lady Astraea! Lady Demeter! Lady Artemis!"
"I, Hermes, have finally… returned to my loyal Orario!"
"I missed you all so much!!!!"
The blue-haired girl following at his side silently took two steps back, ducking her head as low as it would go in an attempt to distance herself from her patron god.
Catching the strange looks from passersby in the corner of her eye, she felt her cheeks burning, and the cute toes inside her boots curled with embarrassment hard enough to dig out a whole Traveler's Lodging.
So humiliating! Just way too humiliating!
Hermes's attention-seeking song and dance successfully drew the eyes of countless people.
Even Ryuu, Kaguya, and Alise, on duty not far off, wore odd expressions.
"Hermes, huh… He fits Lady Astraea's description perfectly."
"Attention hog!"
"…"
Just as everyone was chuckling quietly among themselves, suddenly an unfriendly female voice came from the other side.
"Hermes, is your old bad habit acting up again? If you think Dian Cecht's treatment fees are too steep, why not go see Miach? For an old friend from back home, he might even knock a whole one percent off."
The woman's sharp words struck straight at Hermes's heart, freezing his expression, leaving him no choice but to sheepishly pack away his over-the-top performance.
"Oh, my dear Artemis! Your beauty is still as moving as the bright moon in the sky. One gaze into your eyes, and my heart can't help but throb for you!"
"Go die!"
"Whoosh!"
A sharp arrow tore through the air, mercilessly streaking toward the flippant blond god!
Though the sudden attack startled him, the battle-hardened god expertly ducked his head, dropped into a crouch with his arms over his head, and at the last possible second calmly dodged the lethal strike that could have punched a hole in his forehead.
"Whoa~~~!"
This brilliant performance drew gasps from the delighted onlookers, who then gave the brave god an admiring round of applause!
"Insane, that's Lord Hermes for you! He even dares to flirt with the goddess Artemis!"
"He's a model for brave men everywhere!"
"Admirable!"
Asfi Al Andromeda stared hard at the ground and slowly backed away, using the crowd as a shield.
"Hehe, Asfi!"
Just then, as the girl was shrinking back, someone suddenly patted her shoulder. She looked up to find none other than the friends she hadn't seen in a long while, Alise, Ryuu, and Kaguya.
"What is wrong with your patron god?"
"Uuu…"
Asfi shut her eyes in agony, letting out a cute little whimper of despair!
......
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