◉◉◉◉◉
At the same time, far from Kuoh—
Anos knew nothing of the people thinking about him.
All he could feel was… warmth.
He existed in a place saturated with divine power, wrapped in it completely.
A god's origin was cleansing his soul and reshaping his body. Every second, he could feel himself changing.
The refined and amplified divine essence processed by the Ark Sphere surged into him.
He was evolving.
At a terrifying speed.
…
Hephaestus Familia.
After finishing her daily forging session, Hephaestus returned to her quarters.
The moment she opened the door, she sensed something was off.
"Where's Hestia? She's always here eating my snacks."
She blinked in surprise. Every time she returned, she expected to see Hestia sprawled somewhere in the room.
The sudden absence felt strangely wrong.
"It's not a Denatus day either. Where could she have gone?"
Hephaestus looked around the quiet room, a faint sense of unease creeping in.
She and Hestia shared a complicated bond one of those relationships built over centuries of familiarity. She had always ended up taking care of Hestia, like an exasperated older sister.
There was a reason for that.
Hephaestus wore an eyepatch.
The face beneath it had once been mocked by the other gods. Even her own children had flinched from it.
Hestia had been the only one who accepted her without hesitation.
That was likely why Hephaestus had allowed Hestia to freeload off her familia for so long after descending to the Lower World.
And now that same freeloader had vanished without warning.
Strangely, it felt like being abandoned.
"…Hm?"
Then she noticed something else.
A letter sat on the table.
Usually, it would have been crumbs or one of Hestia's books.
A letter was new.
Her heartbeat quickened.
Hestia was gone.
And she had left a letter behind.
Did that mean… she had left without saying goodbye?
Had something happened?
Had she done something wrong?
Hephaestus quickly tore the letter open.
---
Dear Hephaestus,
It's me, Hestia!
I'm setting out today to build my own familia!
Just wait. In one year, I'll stand before you with the greatest familia in Orario!
— Hestia
( ｀Д´)
---
Hephaestus let out a helpless laugh.
"Bold words."
She knew exactly how hard it was to establish a new familia now.
It wasn't like the early days, when all the gods had descended and everyone started from scratch.
Now? Why would anyone join a familia with no resources, no reputation, and no strong adventurers?
Joining her would mean building everything from nothing.
No veteran to lead you safely into the Dungeon.
No financial backing.
Every expedition would be a true gamble with your life.
Adventurers might be named for adventure, but very few actually wanted to risk everything.
Hephaestus understood clearly.
Hestia had chosen the hardest possible path.
Still, she wasn't overly worried.
Knowing Hestia, she would come running back within a few days, asking for food and a place to sleep.
And when she did, Hephaestus would accept her back.
After scolding her first, of course.
That was what she believed.
…
Several days passed.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Hephaestus hammered molten steel with far more force than necessary.
"She still hasn't come back? Not yet?!"
Each strike grew heavier.
She was worried.
Deeply worried.
"Where is she?"
Despite her confident words earlier, she had already mobilized her familia and her own connections to search for Hestia.
The result was simple.
They found nothing.
Which made sense.
Because Hestia was no longer in Orario.
"Honestly… couldn't she have talked to me first?"
Hephaestus sighed.
Hestia hadn't just left.
She had taken one of Hephaestus's forged weapons with her.
A weapon personally crafted by her.
It could fetch a fortune.
Whether used by a talented new recruit or sold to fund a growing family, it would have been invaluable.
Hephaestus wasn't angry about the weapon.
She was upset that Hestia hadn't said a word.
"When I see her again, I'm going to pinch her cheeks until they puff up."
She made up her mind.
What she didn't know—
Was that Hestia's reason for taking the weapon had nothing to do with building a familia.
The truth ran deeper.
…
Hestia herself was panicking.
Because the real reason she had left without telling Hephaestus wasn't what she'd written in the letter.
The truth was something she absolutely could not say aloud.
A few days earlier, she had noticed something strange.
Inside her body—
There was a small golden light.
In her lower abdomen.
She could feel its presence.
Its shape.
And more than that—
She could feel it drawing nourishment from her.
Which meant only one thing.
She might be pregnant.
For a virgin goddess, that should have been impossible.
And yet—
It had happened.
◉◉◉◉◉
~Support with 300 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
◉◉◉◉◉
For early access to advanced chapters on P-atreon:
P-atreon/iamxeno
(Just remove the - hyphen to access Patreon normally)
Thank you so much for your support and for reading!