Haimo spoke up proactively, interrupting Eina, who was trying to wipe the ink off the floor with her hand.
"Ah... Yes! Yes!"
Eina snapped back to attention.
She glanced at the ring of onlookers who looked ready to swarm them, their gazes so eager they looked like they wanted to devour Haimo whole.
Indeed.
If news of this caliber were announced openly in the main hall like this, the entire Guild would probably explode in the next second.
"Then... please... please follow me, Lord Heimdall!"
"To the VIP reception room on the second floor!"
Thinking this, Eina quickly tidied her messy hair.
Although a lingering blush remained on her face, her eyes were gradually regaining clarity. Ignoring the mess on the floor entirely, she quickly moved out from behind the counter, then shouted towards another window where a female human staff member with pink hair stood.
"Misha! Please help me clean this up! I'm counting on you!"
— — The girl named Misha was staring blankly in Haimo's direction with her mouth agape, holding a seal suspended in mid-air, un-stamped.
Hearing Eina's voice, she was suddenly startled back to awareness and reacted.
"Huh? Oh! Okay, okay!"
...
Thus,
Under the gaze of countless eyes mixed with shock, jealousy, awe, and curiosity,
Haimo, accompanied by Hestia who followed behind after recovering, walked past Eina, whose steps were still a bit shaky, through the hall, and ascended the stairs leading to the second floor.
Passing through the aisle formed by the crowd automatically parting, they climbed the stairs leading to the second floor.
Hestia walked up the stairs with her head held high and chest puffed out.
She even deliberately slowed her pace, savoring the moment of being the center of attention.
Her two black pigtails swung back and forth with her steps.
Even though she wasn't the one who leveled up,
This matter had nothing to do with her whatsoever.
But that didn't prevent her from enjoying this feeling of being the focus of everyone's attention, as if she were the protagonist who had created the miracle.
When passing by a few dumbfounded Adventurers,
This girl even deliberately snorted heavily through her nostrils at them.
"Hmph!"
So much so that Haimo, walking ahead, couldn't help but want to turn back and pinch her little round face.
...
Just as Haimo was causing such a huge sensation in the Guild,
On the other side of Orario.
In the commercial district where North Street and West Street intersected.
This was also one of the most prosperous areas of Orario.
The streets were wide, lined with shops on both sides.
Weapon shops, armor shops, item shops, magic stone exchange centers, taverns, restaurants... everything was available.
Signs of all kinds glittered under the sun.
Merchants and Adventurers from all over the world gathered here, the sounds of haggling, the sound of wheels rolling over the flagstones, and the sound of blacksmithing from a distant workshop intertwined to form a vibrant urban symphony.
The sun was just right.
The breeze was gentle.
This was definitely a rare moment of relaxation.
"Wow—! So many people!"
And so, a vibrant cry of surprise rang out.
Behold.
Hanasaka Warabi was riding on the back of the Kyoujin, holding a large roast meat skewer just bought from a roadside stall, her mouth stuffed full, her cheeks puffed out like a greedy squirrel.
Her bright eyes continuously swept across the shops lining the streets, full of curiosity.
"Mmmph!"
Hanasaka Warabi let out a satisfied sound.
"This meat skewer tastes really good! Although it can't compare to what Mama Mia makes at that tavern, it has its own unique flavor!"
"Kyoujin! Have a bite too!"
Saying that,
Hanasaka Warabi offered the half-eaten skewer to the giant bear head below her.
"Awooo~"
The Kyoujin snatched the skewer, chewing it with relish, and walked slowly along the flagstone road with steady steps.
Besides Hanasaka Warabi sitting on its back,
On the Kyoujin's back,
a little bear was also clinging.
The little fellow was nestled on his mother's spine, bouncing gently with the steady steps of the Kyoujin.
He was sleeping so soundly.
A snot bubble, constantly growing and shrinking, even formed on the tip of his nose, expanding and contracting with his breath, making him look comical yet adorable.
However,
this scene, which looked exceptionally heartwarming to Hanasaka Warabi,
was terrifying to the passersby around them.
"Hey... is that..."
A human Adventurer, just about to cross the road, suddenly stopped in his tracks, pointing ahead, his voice trembling.
"A bear, right?"
"It's... it's definitely a bear! And a black one! So big?!"
"What a huge bear, it must be five or six meters tall when standing up! Wouldn't one slap turn a person into meat paste!"
"What kind of monster is this, running out from somewhere! Did monsters come up from the Dungeon?!"
"Where are the guards? Where is the military police? Where are the people from the Ganesha Familia? Why is a monster like this allowed to roam the streets?!"
After all,
in Orario,
except during specific festivals like the [Monster Festival], such large beasts were strictly forbidden from walking freely on the streets.
Especially a monster that looked like it could swallow a child in one gulp.
Who knew if it would suddenly go berserk?
The shop owners along the street also poked their heads out, tightly gripping defensive weapons in their hands, staring nervously at the giant beast currently sampling street food.
Fearing it might suddenly rampage and tear down their small, independently run shops.
The crowd parted like waves being pushed aside, fearfully creating an exaggeratedly wide path.
Passersby pressed themselves against the walls, holding their breath, watching in terror as the behemoth, which was already significantly taller than an ordinary person even while on all fours, walked past them.
However,
what was even stranger was that,
even though the commotion here caused considerable panic,
at the street corner,
a patrol team, originally dressed in the Ganesha Familia's signature reddish-brown uniforms and wearing elephant masks, was marching in perfect formation.
They held spears, clearly an elite force responsible for maintaining security in the area.
But upon seeing the scene,
the Squad Leader at the front immediately halted.
According to Article number... well, who knows which article of Orario's 'Public Order Management Regulations',
such a blatant public display, even causing a disturbance...
usually, this constituted a Level One violation.
By all rights and reason, they should intervene.
Even if they didn't arrest it, they should at least question it or order it to leave the busy district.
That was their duty.
But now,
the Squad Leader looked at the large bear, and the little Pallum riding on the bear who looked harmless, and the face beneath his mask twitched violently.
"Captain..."
A rookie team member behind him clearly hadn't grasped the situation yet. Seeing this obvious violation, he instinctively wanted to step forward to perform his duty.
"There's something going on! Shouldn't we..."
"Shut up!"
Before the rookie could finish speaking, the Squad Leader suddenly hissed, cutting him off.
He even reached out and grabbed the shoulder of the idiot who was trying to draw his sword, the force so great that it made the rookie wince.
"Don't move! Don't look! Don't speak!"
The Squad Leader gritted his teeth and squeezed these words out from between them.
What a joke.
Lady Shakti had issued a death order with Lord Ganesha's explicit permission.
— — "When encountering the Heimdall Familia, as long as they are not harming anyone, treat it as if you saw nothing."
Even their own Captain had to bow his head before that Deity.
If they, a few small fry, went to court trouble, wouldn't that be courting death?
"But... Captain, those citizens..."
The rookie team member looked at the surrounding citizens casting pleading glances, appearing somewhat hesitant.
"What citizens! What citizens!"
"I think the security on this street is quite good."
"Nothing happened."
"Let's go! Patrol the next street!"
...
...
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