After finishing dinner, Rowan called over the catgirl from earlier, took out a piece of gold, and asked,
"Can I use this to pay?"
The catgirl picked up the gold and bit it. After confirming that it was genuine, she smiled brightly.
"Of course, meow. Were you satisfied with our service, sir?"
"Very satisfied."
"And the food, meow?"
"It was alright," Rowan answered honestly.
The catgirl's expression froze for a second before her radiant smile returned.
"Alright" was hardly a good review.
It sounded more like he had barely found the food acceptable.
She asked curiously,
"Was there something about our food that you weren't satisfied with?"
Rowan shook his head.
"It's not your fault. It's mine. I've eaten quite a lot of higher-grade food recently, so when I eat ordinary food like this, it inevitably feels a little…"
He trailed off before adding,
"Actually, your cooking is still pretty good."
The corner of the catgirl's eye twitched.
From "alright" to "pretty good."
Why did his praise sound so reluctant?
Had this guy come here specifically to cause trouble?
"You… didn't come here just to pick a fight with us, did you?"
At that moment, a cool voice sounded nearby.
Rowan turned his head.
A female elf dressed in the Hostess of Fertility's uniform was staring coldly at him.
Rowan knew who she was.
Ryuu Lion.
Ten years ago, when Ryuu was eleven, she fled her elven homeland and came to Orario, where she was rescued by Alise Lovell, captain of the Astraea Familia, and joined the Familia.
At twelve, she advanced to Level 2.
At fourteen, she reached Level 4 and became an adventurer mentioned alongside Ais Wallenstein.
Five years ago, when sixteen-year-old Ryuu encountered the Juggernaut in the Dungeon, her entire Familia was annihilated. During that tragedy, she was forced to use magic that ultimately killed her closest friend, Alise Lovell, causing her to suffer a complete emotional breakdown.
Two years ago, while heavily wounded and on the verge of death, she was rescued by Syr Flova and began living under an assumed identity while working at this tavern.
In the future, she would undergo consecutive level-ups and reach Level 6, learn the magic Astraea Record and the skill Justice Succession, and eventually transfer to the Hestia Familia.
She could also be considered one of the heroines of this world.
Faced with the female elf's suspicion, Rowan rolled his eyes.
"I have no grudge against your tavern. Why would I come here just to cause trouble? I was only telling the truth."
However, Ryuu clearly did not believe him and continued staring at him quietly.
"Now, now."
Seeing the atmosphere become tense, the catgirl suddenly hugged Ryuu and said with a smile,
"Don't be so suspicious, Ryuu. Maybe our guest really just isn't used to the food here."
"It's not that I'm not used to it," Rowan corrected.
"I already said it isn't your fault. I've simply been eating a lot of high-level ingredients recently, so my tastes have become picky."
"Your tavern's food really is quite good. Seriously."
Seeing how straightforward Rowan looked, Ryuu realized that he did not seem to be lying.
She gave him a slight bow.
"My apologies. I misunderstood you."
"It's fine."
Rowan waved his hand.
"Your food really is good. I like it. I'll probably come back when I get the chance."
With that, Rowan turned and left.
Afterward, he found a decent inn and spent his first night in the world of DanMachi peacefully.
The next morning, Rowan discovered that Esdeath and the others still had not returned.
Apparently, they had become addicted to slaughtering monsters in the Dungeon.
After resting on the eighteenth floor for the night, they had continued heading deeper that morning.
Rowan was rather speechless.
How should he put it?
Adventurers entered the Dungeon to kill monsters and level up.
But those three did not possess Falna and could not level up at all.
So why were they so obsessed with fighting monsters?
Were they simply relieving stress and enjoying the thrill of battle?
Tsk.
He could not understand it.
Rowan sighed, threw those messy thoughts out of his mind, washed up, and left the inn to continue exploring Orario.
While he was at it, he planned to grab some breakfast.
However, after walking around for a while, Rowan was surprised to discover that Orario did not seem to have any proper breakfast shops.
There were no dumplings.
No instant noodles.
Not even flatbread stuffed with skewers.
All he could find were sandwiches, milk, hot dogs, and similar foods.
Still, considering this was another world, having those things at all was already fairly impressive.
Rowan bought a sandwich and a hot dog and tried them.
The taste was merely average.
So Rowan returned to his own world, bought several baskets of xiaolongbao and steamed dumplings, along with a multigrain jianbing, then returned to Orario and continued wandering around.
Perhaps because he had woken up too early, there were not many people on the streets.
Even many of the shops on either side had yet to open.
Just as Rowan was considering going back to sleep for a while, he encountered a group of adventurers at a street corner.
At the front was a red-haired goddess.
Not Hephaestus.
It was Loki—
whose figure was practically a sheer cliff, the complete opposite of Hestia.
Behind Loki were members of her Familia.
The Sword Princess, Ais Wallenstein.
And the Nine Hell, Riveria Ljos Alf.
"Huh?"
The instant Loki saw Rowan, her eyes lit up.
She pointed at him.
"You! Yeah, you! You're a god, aren't you? How come I've never seen you in Heaven before?"
Ais and Riveria looked at Rowan in surprise.
They had not expected to run into a god first thing in the morning.
Rowan, on the other hand, could not help complaining,
"That's the third time I've heard that line."
Loki chuckled.
"Oh? Who were the first two?"
"Hestia and Hephaestus."
"The shrimp and the one-eye?"
Loki tilted her head.
"You know them? No, wait. If you actually knew them, they wouldn't have said that to you."
"So what's your deal? Why doesn't any of us recognize you?"
"Don't tell me you're a newly born god?"
"There hasn't been a new god born in Heaven for ages."
Loki stared suspiciously at Rowan, her eyes filled with excitement.
She had a strong feeling that this unfamiliar god was hiding some enormous secret.
And if she uncovered it, she might discover something extremely entertaining.
Rowan looked at Loki in mild surprise.
"You're pretty sharp."
Hearing his praise, Loki proudly thrust out the chest she did not have.
"Well, of course. I'm Loki."
Rowan could not resist commenting,
"If there's nothing there, don't imitate Hestia and puff out your chest. It only makes you look even more pitiful, Goddess Loki."
Loki: "…"
Wait.
Were they even close enough for him to start with a personal attack like that?
At that moment, Loki felt as though ten thousand arrows had pierced her heart.
Her entire body stiffened like a statue.
"Alright, that's enough for today. See you around, Goddess Loki."
Rowan walked around her and continued forward.
But just then, Loki snapped back to reality and grabbed the back of his clothes.
"Don't even think about escaping, you bastard! You almost slipped past me."
"What exactly is your deal? Spill it."
"Spill what?" Rowan asked.
"Your origins, obviously!"
Loki leaned closer and stared intently at his face.
"You're suspicious, unfamiliar god."
"Me, that little shrimp Hestia, and Hephaestus have all never seen you in Heaven."
"That isn't normal."
"What's abnormal about it?"
Rowan countered,
"There are tons of gods in Heaven. Have you met every single one?"
"Of course."
Loki released Rowan and proudly placed her hands on her hips.
"Forget a shut-in like Hestia. I, Loki, was famous in Heaven."
"What god in Heaven hasn't been the victim of one of my pranks?"
"So yeah, I basically know every god up there."
Rowan looked at her speechlessly.
"And you're proud of that?"
"Of course!"
Loki became even more smug.
"I've pranked that many gods and still haven't been beaten to death. Instead, I've only gotten more successful."
"Isn't that something worth being proud of?"
Ais and Riveria stared at their goddess, who had become increasingly pleased with herself, and temporarily had no idea how to respond.
Still, it only made them more curious.
Just who was this god whom even Loki did not recognize?
"When you put it that way, I suppose it really is something worth bragging about."
Rowan nodded approvingly.
"As expected of the God of Trickery."
Loki looked at Rowan with a half-smile.
"And that's exactly why I'm suspicious of you."
"You're obviously a god, but I don't recognize you."
"And you don't seem like some newly born deity either."
"Hey…"
"You're not one of those old bastards wearing a disguise, are you?"
"Zeus?"
"Hera?"
"Or maybe some god from the Evilus?"
The so-called Evilus was a general term for adventurer organizations led by evil gods that engaged in criminal activities or acts that seriously violated Orario's laws and ethics.
These organizations were generally regarded as cancers within the Labyrinth City and stood in direct opposition to the mainstream Familias that maintained order.
One of the most typical examples was the Rudra Familia.
Rudra was a deity from ancient Indian mythology associated with both destruction and healing. His name carried the meaning of violence or ferocity, and he was regarded as a precursor to Shiva in the Vedic tradition, bearing titles such as Lord of Beasts and Great God.
Although the Rudra Familia had already been destroyed by the beginning of the original story, it had committed several major atrocities.
For example, Astraea, the Goddess of Justice and Order, had once led a Familia of her own.
That Familia was lured into a trap laid by the Evilus faction, specifically the Rudra Familia.
This led to the incident in the deep forest canyon on the thirtieth floor of the Dungeon, where the Juggernaut was spawned.
Every member of the Astraea Familia except Ryuu was killed.
Eventually, at Ryuu's urging, Astraea left Orario.
Ryuu later carried out a brutal campaign of revenge against the Rudra Familia, killing nearly all of its members, including its captain.
Even Rudra himself was eventually forced to return to Heaven.
Therefore, Loki accusing Rowan of being some hidden identity used by a god from Evilus was an extremely serious accusation.
Yet Rowan was not nervous in the slightest.
Instead, he looked completely speechless.
"Zeus and Evilus I can understand…"
"But why the hell would you think I'm Hera in disguise?"