Perhaps because she was too nervous,
or perhaps because she hadn't recovered from the blow just now,
when Ryu was pouring water, her hand trembled slightly.
"Splash."
The water splashed out,
landing on the pristine white tablecloth.
Ryu's face instantly turned pale.
"I... I'm extremely sorry!!!"
She hurriedly tried to wipe it,
resulting in knocking over the jar beside it.
"..."
"S-Sorry!"
"It's alright, Miss Elf."
"I understand."
"You guys sit down and eat together too."
Heimer helplessly took the kettle from Ryu's hand and gestured to the other empty seats.
"This..."
Ryu was stunned,
looking at those empty seats with some hesitation.
"This isn't proper, is it..."
"There's nothing proper or improper about it."
Heimer took a bite of bread.
The taste was okay.
Although it couldn't compare to what master chefs outside made, it at least filled the stomach.
"This is my home, and since it's my home, we go by my rules."
Heimer swallowed the food in his mouth and looked at Ryu.
"This isn't the shop where you work, there's no need to be so restrained."
And besides,
"after all, don't you guys have to rush back to work?"
"I see that it's getting late."
"If you drag it out like this and end up late,"
"knowing Mia's temper, she'll definitely get angry."
"!!!"
Hearing the four words "Mia",
Chloe and Lunoire, who were originally standing aside sneering and watching the show, instantly changed their expressions.
"Ah! I almost forgot, nya!"
Chloe let out a startled cry, the fur on her tail instantly standing on end like steel needles, her cat face filled with terror.
"If we go back now, we'll definitely be killed, nya!"
"Mama Mia's iron fist... Nya doesn't want to experience it a second time!"
Lunoire also wore a terrified expression, her face turning pale.
"Should we hurry back?"
Lunoire said,
and turned her head,
only to discover that Chloe, who was screaming just a moment ago, had already rushed to the dining table at an astonishing speed.
Disregarding all modesty, she grabbed a piece of bread and shoved it straight into her mouth.
"Mm! Mm! Mm!"
Her cheeks were bulging like a hamster's.
"Hey!"
"Aren't you going back?"
"Go back, my ass, nya!"
"Nya wants to eat more! Maybe this time will be nya's last meal!"
"Even if I die, I'll have no regrets, nya!"
"Eat up!"
Thus,
it instantly turned into a food-grabbing battle.
Chloe's posture,
it truly looked like a last meal before execution.
"..."
So much so that Hestia, who had just returned after washing her face, saw this scene and immediately let out a loud shout.
"Wah! You're not allowed to snatch the last bottle of milk!"
"That's mine!"
Hestia couldn't care less about her goddess image anymore, lunging directly to the dining table and joining the battlefield.
The dining table instantly fell into chaos.
The sound of cutlery clashing, shouts of grabbing food, and chewing sounds intertwined together,
leaving Rin and the others, who hadn't even started eating yet, completely stunned.
Holding their forks in hand, they didn't even know where to take a bite.
Is... Is this the daily life of Orario locals?
So... So intense.
Ultimately,
after a sweeping, whirlwind-like cleanup,
breakfast was over.
It was even twice as fast as usual.
Lunoire and Chloe swept away the tableware quickly like a green whirlwind,
and after washing them at a jaw-dropping professional speed,
they hurriedly prepared to take their leave.
"D-Divine Lord..."
Before leaving,
Ryu stood at the entrance hallway of the mansion,
her hands tightly gripped the hem of her clothes, looking somewhat awkward.
That pair of sky-blue eyes looked at Heimer, hesitating to speak.
She very much wanted to say something,
for instance...
When the members of this deity's Familia entered the Dungeon next time, should she follow along to help?
After all,
as the signature waitress of [The Hostess of Fertility], her usual work was really busy.
Moreover, the fact that an acquaintance saw her arrive at this mansion dressed as a maid today... had already caused her shame to explode.
What if Shier saw her too?
Ryu Rion no longer knew how she could continue living in this city.
Therefore, Ryu desperately wanted to resolve the wager that required her to come and help every morning as quickly as possible.
But, the words reached her lips, yet Ryu swallowed them back.
After all, today she had personally witnessed how this God refused the proposal from Ganesha, the main God of the Ganesha Familia—one of the biggest Familias in Orario—to transfer a Lv. 4 Adventurer to his Familia.
The reason given was: 'Birth in hardship, death in comfort.'
In order to let the children of his Familia grow independently.
Since this God had even rejected Ganesha's kind offer, then for her, an outsider Elf... proposing this request to end the wager without joining this God's Familia was clearly even less likely to be accepted.
Thinking of this, the light in Ryu's eyes dimmed slightly, and she shook her head, swallowing the words she wanted to say back into her stomach.
"...It's nothing."
Ryu raised her head again, returning to her usual composure.
"Thank you, Lord God, for helping them out today."
Seeing Ryu's hesitant look just now, Heimer could somewhat guess that what she wanted to say was not this.
But since she didn't say it out loud, there was no need for him to point it out.
"It's fine."
"Hurry back."
"If Madam Mia blames you, you can tell me, and I will explain."
"Yes!"
Ryu nodded heavily.
"Then... see you tomorrow, Lord God."
"See you tomorrow."
With that, Ryu turned and quickly caught up with Chloe and the others, who were already urging her on.
The three figures soon disappeared at the end of the street.
Watching their receding backs, Heimer turned and returned indoors.
Inside the first-floor hall, everyone who had eaten their fill was sitting on the sofa, digesting their food with satisfied expressions.
"Alright."
Heimer clapped his hands to attract everyone's attention.
"Since everyone is full, just as I said, the rest of the day is free activity time."
"You can do whatever you want."
"However..."
Heimer paused, a mysterious smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
"Considering your efforts and results these past few days, they truly exceeded my expectations."
"So... tonight, I will prepare a surprise for you."
"Surprise?!"
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