Asuna almost laughed out loud at Ren's words, but she managed to hold it in. Although she didn't know exactly what Ren was playing at or why he said that, she decided to play along.
After all, if it was truly as Ren had said—that the higher-ups had decided to send them to another world—they definitely wouldn't leave them to worry about such basic problems.
They would likely provide funds and resources as needed. It wouldn't devolve to the point of just tossing them over without any support.
"I feel like... that might actually work?" Asuna suppressed her laughter, cooperating perfectly as she spoke. She turned her head away so Hestia wouldn't see her expression.
She was afraid she wouldn't be able to hold back her laughter, so it was best to hide her face. Her words instantly made Hestia tremble even more.
"I don't want to sell my blood!! I'm a goddess, for crying out loud! How could I possibly do something like that?!" Hestia was going crazy. Did she really have no dignity left?
"If you don't sell your blood, then how do you plan to handle so many people? We have over forty students in our class. When that many people go over there, they'll need a place to stay, right?" Ren's expression turned serious.
Aided by his `[Body Control]` talent, Ren looked incredibly earnest. His imposing manner caused Hestia's momentum to instantly deflate.
"That... ah... I... I never thought about that..." Hestia stammered, at a loss for words because she genuinely hadn't considered such issues.
"You wanted to build a Familia without even thinking about it? Then let me ask you: when all those people go over, where will they live? What will they eat? What will they use? How will we get all the supplies needed to explore the Dungeon? Answer me!" Ren pressed her step by step, firing off a barrage of questions.
These words left Hestia completely dumbfounded. Thinking about it carefully... he was right. If that many people went over... with no place to live, no food to eat, and not even any weapons... Just imagining it made Hestia's brain short-circuit.
She had no idea. She carefully counted on her fingers, her face growing paler by the second. Over forty people... how much food would they need to eat every day? And buying equipment... how much money would that cost?
Moreover, exploring the Dungeon required all sorts of supplies, right? How could they explore without them? Just a simple calculation revealed an astronomical expense.
"What do I do?! Do I really have no choice but to sell my blood?" Hestia's face turned ashen. Although exploring the Dungeon could earn money, the prerequisite was having the initial funds to explore in the first place.
She didn't have a single Valis to her name. Originally, when she descended to the lower world, she planned to seek help from her good friend and just eat, drink, and play for a while.
But plans couldn't keep up with changes. She was directly tossed into this world, and upon seeing Ren, she excitedly tried to pull him into her Familia without thinking too much about it.
According to Ren, if she wanted to build up her Familia, she really needed a massive amount of money. Where would the money come from? It seemed... she really might have to sell her blood.
"Sigh... It looks like you clamored to create a Familia without thinking anything through. Is it too late for me to quit? I'm starting to regret agreeing to your request," Ren said, looking somewhat helpless at her state.
Sure enough, this girl really hadn't thought about any of this. There was a reason she ended up as a freeloader in the anime, to the point where when others stopped providing for her, she had to rely on part-time jobs just to survive.
"No... please don't quit!! I finally found such an amazing Captain like you, you can't run away!" Hearing Ren say he wanted to quit, Hestia instantly couldn't sit still.
She lunged forward and hugged Ren's neck tightly, refusing to let go, terrified that he would actually run away. If that happened, wouldn't all her efforts be for nothing?
"Let go, let go of me!!" Ren was left speechless by Hestia suddenly hanging off him. But... they really were huge, and so round. However, Asuna was still right here!!
Ren hurriedly grabbed the girl to pry her off. Unfortunately, Hestia was currently in an unsealed state, and the disparity in their strength was massive. Ren couldn't break free from her iron grip and could only passively endure the... squeezing!
Asuna was also speechless watching this scene. Why did she feel like this goddess was a bit useless? A few words from Ren had completely disoriented her. Was this normal?
At the same time, she finally understood why Ren was doing this. If this was truly the situation, and they let her lead everyone... they might actually starve to death in the other world.
So Ren was establishing his dominance right now to prevent this somewhat useless goddess from giving reckless orders later. Asuna instantly grasped Ren's intentions.
She frowned as she looked at Hestia hanging off Ren. *Dammit... she's so small, yet she has such a massive pair.* Although hers weren't small either...
But who would mind theirs being a bit bigger? *If Yukino Yukinoshita saw this, she'd probably go mad with envy,* Asuna thought, recalling her good friend.
Seeing Ren continuously trying to push Hestia away, she somehow felt compelled to step forward and help. "Hestia, let go of Ren first!!"
"No, if I let go, he'll run away! Please don't quit! At worst, I'll go sell my blood!!" Hestia was truly desperate now, even blurting out such words.
No matter what, Ren couldn't quit. Even if it meant selling her blood, she wouldn't hesitate. As long as Ren didn't leave her Familia, Hestia was willing to do anything!!
"Alright, I won't quit, but from now on, you have to listen to me!" Hearing Hestia say this, Ren instantly knew the matter was settled.
Hearing his promise, Hestia finally felt reassured. The strength in her arms loosened, and Asuna immediately peeled her off.
Asuna quietly stepped in front of Ren, blocking Hestia's path. *Don't even think about hanging onto him again. That kind of behavior is bad, it's far too unladylike!*
Hestia looked at Asuna and Ren pitifully, like a child terrified of being abandoned, afraid they would suddenly say they weren't joining her Familia anymore.
Ren stood up and looked at Hestia. "I'll figure out a way to handle the funding for creating the Familia, but on one condition: you cannot give random orders!"
Hearing Ren's words, Hestia hurriedly nodded and promised, "No problem! You're the Captain, I'll listen to you from now on, as long as you guys don't quit!!"
She didn't have to give orders? That was wonderful! As long as Ren promised not to quit, there was no problem. From now on, Ren had the final say in the Familia.
"Also, when we get over there, you need to use your connections to help us meet some skilled blacksmiths. After all, weapons and equipment are essential for exploring the Dungeon," Ren proposed another condition.
Hestia's eyes instantly lit up. She patted her chest and guaranteed, "No problem! Let me tell you, the God of Forging in Heaven, Hephaestus, is my bestie! I'll introduce you to her when the time comes!"
Hestia eagerly made the promise. This was too easy! The God of Forging was her best friend, and she had originally planned to go freeload off her in the lower world anyway.
Now that she was bringing a Familia back with her, Hephaestus would definitely be stunned, right? Just thinking about it made Hestia giggle foolishly.
Hearing Hestia say the God of Forging was her bestie, Asuna couldn't help but exchange a glance with Ren. At this moment, Asuna was also incredibly pleasantly surprised.
*Well done, Ren.* The value of a God of Forging went without saying. In the future, they might be able to ask her to forge some top-tier weapons for them.
"Then that's all for now. Since you've agreed, I'll promise you as well: unless there's a problem, we won't leave the Hestia Familia," Ren said, deciding to give Hestia some peace of mind.
As for what constituted a "problem"? Well, a problem was a problem. But what kind of problem? That depended on what the problem was. Anyway, it was just a word game.
When the time came, Ren could quit whenever he wanted. If he said there was a problem, then there was a problem. There was absolutely nothing wrong with this logic.
"Mhm, mhm, that's wonderful!!" Hestia instantly beamed with joy. This couldn't be better. At the same time, she breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed she wouldn't have to go out and sell her blood!
"Now that we're done talking, please leave, Hestia. You can just go straight to the school tomorrow," Ren said, seeing that it was getting late and promptly asking her to leave.
"Ah? But I don't have anywhere to go! Can't I stay here tonight? I'll go to school with you guys tomorrow." Hestia was stunned by Ren's words.
Where... could she go? Shouldn't she be staying at Ren's place right now? It would serve as her initial base, and since Ren was her Familia Captain, shouldn't he take care of her?
"No!" However, Asuna was the first to object. *Good grief, you still want to stay over? You've revealed your true colors! This goddess really is unreliable!*
"Tch, you ran over here without even having a place to stay? Didn't the higher-ups arrange anything for you?" Ren was also a bit frustrated. Did the higher-ups not arrange anything at all?
Did they really just leave her to fend for herself? Just letting her run around freely, huh? Did it not matter even if she slept under a bridge? Or did they plan for her to stay at Ren's place from the very beginning?
"Well... they said they were going to arrange something for me... but I was in such a hurry to come find you..." As she spoke, Hestia grew embarrassed.
After finishing the negotiations, she couldn't wait to find Ren. When they said they would arrange accommodation for her, she had outright refused... Now things were incredibly awkward.
Asuna and Ren exchanged a helpless glance. Asuna sighed and said, "In that case, you can stay at my place for now!"
What else could she do? She couldn't exactly let her stay with Ren, so she could only have Hestia stay at her place for the night and figure things out at school tomorrow.
"Okay, sorry for the trouble!" Hestia felt a bit embarrassed. This was just too awkward. She suddenly realized she was quite useless, and the thought made her blush.
"Forget it, I'll go make dinner. You guys can head upstairs after we eat. Stay at Asuna's place tonight, and when you get to the school tomorrow, go find Director Ken to arrange a place to stay." Ren couldn't even be bothered to roast Hestia anymore.
He suggested they eat here before leaving, then headed to the fridge to prepare the ingredients for dinner. Seeing this, Asuna quickly stepped forward to help. "Are there enough ingredients? If not, I can go upstairs and grab some."
The two began bustling about in the kitchen, leaving Hestia standing in the living room, watching them at a loss. After hesitating for a moment, she walked over, wanting to help.
However, Ren refused her. After all, he knew her situation very well. Although she was the Goddess of the Hearth, she didn't know how to cook normal food.
Any food she made was created using Divine Power, which was completely unnecessary here. So it was best if Ren and Asuna handled it themselves, and Hestia just waited to eat.
With nothing to do, Hestia ran to the balcony and looked around. She was still very curious about this world. In her eyes, everything here was full of novelty.
After Ren and Asuna finished preparing dinner, they called out to Hestia, who was admiring the view on the balcony. Hearing Ren's call, she came pattering inside.
It was only then that Asuna noticed Hestia wasn't even wearing shoes. *Good grief.* She hadn't paid much attention before, but now she noticed.
Muttering to herself, Asuna didn't say anything. Hestia's eyes lit up when she saw the food Ren had made. She took a sniff and said in pleasant surprise, "Your cooking skills are really good!"
Ren shrugged at her words. "Thank you for the approval from the Goddess of the Hearth, but I feel my cooking still has a lot of room for improvement. Let's eat first!"
With that, Ren served the rice and placed it in front of Hestia and Asuna. Hestia eagerly sat down, picked up her bowl and chopsticks, and began to dig in, tasting the delicacies of this other world.
Mhm, this was her first meal since arriving in this world. After all, she hadn't eaten anything during the negotiations, so this was her first proper meal.
"It tastes so good! I love this flavor." After just one bite, Hestia's eyes sparkled, instantly transforming into a glutton.
Although at her level, it didn't matter whether she ate or not—with her Divine Power unsealed, she would be fine even if she didn't eat a single thing—she still had an appetite for good food.
Eating these delicacies now was purely to satisfy her taste buds. Moreover, this girl ate quite a lot. Watching Hestia's eating speed, Ren and Asuna silently sped up their own movements.
If this kept up, they wouldn't even have any dishes left. The trio battled it out at the dining table. After eating and drinking her fill, Hestia looked completely satisfied.
She had thoroughly enjoyed this meal and was now completely in love with the food of this world. Seeing that everyone was finished, Asuna immediately helped Ren clear the bowls and chopsticks.
After the two finished cleaning up, Ren spoke up. "Asuna, I'll leave this girl in your care tonight. She's somewhat useless... please take good care of her."
Hearing Ren's words, Asuna nodded. Hestia, who was on the other side, also heard him and retorted with great dissatisfaction, "I'm not useless! Dammit, you're spreading rumors!!"
However, her retort had no effect whatsoever. The two completely ignored her. After all, who would care about a useless goddess? Neither of them did.
Seeing that it was getting late, Asuna said her goodbyes. She turned to Hestia and said, "Follow me. My room is upstairs. You'll have to make do with me for tonight!"
Hestia nodded. She glanced at Ren, then waved goodbye. "Then I'll see you tomorrow. I'm leaving now."
With that, she followed Asuna out of Ren's apartment and headed upstairs to Asuna's place. She would be staying there for the night.
After seeing the two off, Ren went to wash up. Once he finished his personal hygiene, he climbed into bed and began to study the divine blood that had merged into his body.
His upcoming plans might have to change. Ren was actually quite looking forward to going to Orario. And then there was the matter of the God Slayer... The tip of the iceberg of this world was slowly revealing itself to him!