In the courtyard.
A faint floral fragrance drifted through the air, but before the silver-haired goddess's breathtaking beauty, even the graceful scenery became nothing more than decoration.
The atmosphere was calm and refreshing, and no one came to disturb the goddesses' idle conversation.
"Speaking of which, Freya, some Gods have a terrible relationship with you. Is that really all right?"
Hestia asked while eating a pastry.
Although Freya herself had no intention of stirring up trouble, her Charm Authority was a major threat in and of itself. Because of that, Freya had quite a few "enemies."
"It is a little troublesome. One day, it might even affect my [Odr]."
Freya gazed thoughtfully into the distance.
The silver divine will spilling from those beautiful cherry lips seemed to carry the bearing of a queen resolved to sweep away every obstacle.
The subject troubling Freya was not Loki Familia, as the Adventurers of Orario believed. In fact, her relationship with the goddess Loki could be described as that of old friends.
The real problem lay with the other Gods.
As the goddess of [Beauty] and [Love], Freya actively rejected the power of Charm and kept herself pure like a Virgin Goddess. Naturally, that way of doing things drew disdain from the other goddesses of beauty. The most fanatical among them was the Goddess Ishtar.
Back in Tenkai, Ishtar had already been consumed by jealousy and caused Freya no end of trouble. Now that they had descended to the Lower World, there was still no sign of their relationship improving.
"Freya, this may sound strange coming from me, but you'd better not go too far. Before I came down here, I spoke with Athena once. She's wary of you too, just like Odin."
Hestia gave the silver-haired goddess a warning.
As a Virgin Goddess, she and Freya should have stood on opposite sides, but Hestia had already decided that Freya was a friend worth keeping close, so she told her about Athena.
"That exceedingly clever goddess, huh? She's just as troublesome as Odin."
Freya murmured softly.
The Charm of a Goddess of Beauty was powerful enough to destroy divine order. Normally, a Virgin Goddess would be placed beside such a goddess as a safeguard.
The precautions against Freya were even more meticulous.
Odin had deep ties to [Yggdrasil]. Even if he was not present in person, he could still intervene in the timeline and prevent the War of the Gods from arriving. Thus, the great God had arranged his residence far away from Freya's temple. If anything went wrong, he would hurl his divine spear from afar and kill Freya.
On the other side, Athena, who governed war and wisdom, was also constantly on guard against Freya. Because of their personalities and their positions in the divine realm, these two goddesses did not interact as often as Aphrodite and Artemis. They were more like outright enemies. If Freya ever crossed the line, Athena would thrust her Spear of Judgment at her.
"It's fine. If anything happens, I'll put in a good word for you. Athena may look like that, but she's actually very reasonable."
Remembering her divine friend, Hestia patted her chest with complete confidence.
"How reliable. Don't worry. As long as it doesn't involve my Odr, I won't do anything too extreme."
Freya wore a peaceful, detached expression.
"Hmm... From the way you're talking, don't tell me you really found a partner?!"
Hestia swallowed her pastry and asked in a panic.
"I told you it's a secret. But since you reminded me about Athena just now, Hestia, I can make an exception and tell you."
A mysterious smile flickered across Freya's lips.
Hestia's eyes shone as she eagerly awaited news shocking enough to send ripples through Tenkai.
Under her expectant gaze, Freya spoke softly.
"Actually, I've fallen in [Love] with a human boy, and we have already joined together in body and soul. Every time his existence seeps into my body, I feel true happiness. Exchanging love, melting into each other, even the impurity I once thought went against [Beauty] has become unbearably enticing. Without a doubt, [he] is the Odr I have been searching for. And..."
Freya poured out the love that had been brewing in her heart all at once.
"..."
Hestia listened in a daze, and her face instantly flushed bright red.
She hurriedly waved her hand and interrupted, "I-I get it, Freya. Don't say any more!"
"Really? I was just about to tell you his name."
Freya replied with a smile.
"You don't need to! I'm not interested in that sort of thing!"
Hestia took a sip of black tea to hide her fluster.
She pursed her lips, and only after the heat in her face faded a little did she sigh. "Freya really is a Goddess of Beauty after all. Even though you never had a partner in Tenkai, you still ended up doing that kind of thing..."
Although Hestia was shocked by it, that was all. Unless the matter involved Bell, she would not interfere in the love affairs of other goddesses the way Athena did.
"If you don't want to hear it, then never mind."
Freya's lips curved slightly as she added, "Hestia, love is a wondrous thing. Once that tide rises in your chest, you can't help crossing the line and doing things your past self never could have imagined."
"..."
Hestia instinctively thought of Bell.
Holding hands, living together, sleeping in the same room without a curtain between them, even saying she liked him in front of other Gods. For a Virgin Goddess, each of those experiences was unquestionably crossing the line.
"I would never do the kind of thing Freya is talking about... ?!!!"
Hestia was about to defend herself, but she suddenly let go of her teacup and clutched her chest tightly.
In that brief instant, cold sweat poured down Hestia's face.
"What's wrong? Did something happen to Bell?!"
Freya also lost her earlier composure. She quickly stood up and rushed to Hestia's side.
Silver divine will poured out, seemingly mixed with the power of Charm.
"Ugh... haah..."
Hestia whimpered for a moment, then began gasping for breath.
With Freya supporting her, Hestia barely managed to stand and sit back down.
"I-it was just my imagination..."
Hestia brushed it off with a bitter smile.
What she did not notice was that the silver-haired goddess beside her had not only called the boy by name just now, but her face had also been filled with anxiety and concern.
"Is that so..."
Freya slowly sat back down.
She looked thoughtfully at Hestia, who was still shaken, and said, "Hestia, I'll prepare pastries and black tea again tomorrow. May I invite you to have some with me?"
"Mm..."
Hestia's mind no longer seemed to be on the pastries, and she answered absentmindedly.
In the silence that followed, the two goddesses turned their gazes toward the Tower of Babel at the same time.
Their blessings seemed to have fallen into a deep, distant abyss.