Chapter 190

Chapter 191: Loki: Ize and Artemis Might Be Having a Thing

Lingering by the entrance of Twilight Manor, Ize exchanged a few words with the Familial Group members on guard duty to catch up.

His personality is usually pretty laid-back; as long as there’s an appropriate topic, he can chat with anyone.

This makes him well-liked by everyone in the Familial Group.

However, they didn’t chat for too long before Ize bid farewell to the guards and entered Twilight Manor.

The base looked unchanged compared to before.

The front courtyard was empty at this moment, not a soul around, and it was eerily quiet.

Upon entering the courtyard, he tilted his head back and could just make out the Central Tower standing tall in the northern part of Twilight Manor.

By an open window on one of the higher floors of the Central Tower, Ize immediately spotted a red-haired Goddess leisurely sipping her wine.

“That should be Finn’s office…”

Meaning… Loki had once again gone to relax near Finn while he worked.

She always seemed to have this mischievous streak, showing up when the three heads of the Familial Group were hard at work.

She wouldn’t disturb or cause trouble, but rather loiter idly around them, doing nothing, enjoying the sight of the trio diligently working or looking exasperated at her presence.

Just like those upperclassmen who show up during freshmen military training to spectate.

Staring at Loki for a few seconds, she seemed to notice him, looked down, saw the familiar figure in the courtyard, and couldn’t help but narrow her eyes into a smile.

Then she waved lightly to greet Ize, seemingly saying “welcome back”?

She didn’t shout or scream like she would after a grand expedition. After all, Ize isn’t some cute girl.

Because Loki, you see, is a female Deity with a preference for women! (puffed chest, hands on hips.jpg)

“It’s been two months, that kid Ize has finally come back!?”

Upon catching sight of Ize waving at her, then walking towards the Mansion, Loki smiled and drained her glass of red wine.

“Oh? Has Ize returned?” Instantly, upon hearing her statement, Finn lifted his head from a small stack of documents, his tone slightly joyful.

“Yes, he just greeted me. This mission took him away for two whole months, honestly, quite a long time～”

“Emmm… But there were quite a few incidents over there in the Great Tree Sea, you know. Ize’s journey wasn’t as easy as it seems.”

If others didn’t know, surely the two main Deities and leaders of the largest Familial Group in Orario would?

The ancient Monster sealed within the ruins of the Great Tree Sea, Scorpio Andarius.

The previous Dungeon uprising was caused by this monster breaking its seal.

But now the uprising has been quelled, and Ize has returned safely, indicating that the matter has been peacefully resolved.

“Finn, did you know? I have a feeling… that kid’s trip wasn’t so simple!”

“Hmm… Like what?”

“My intuition tells me that there might be something going on between him and Artemis.”

It’s merely a baseless guess without any evidence, and Loki herself knows her thought doesn’t hold much water.

But considering how Ize first appeared in Orario and the events surrounding the Great Tree Sea, she inexplicably has this feeling.

This “something” isn’t about betrayal; Loki refers to a romantic “something.”

It’s… her divine intuition!

Hearing Loki’s words, Finn chuckled dryly twice, unsure of how to respond.

Though he appears youthful and is popular among certain female Adventurers, his experience in matters of the heart is practically nonexistent.

The topic Loki brought up indeed touched upon his blind spot.

…

Unaware that he’s being slandered by a Deity, after greeting Loki, Ize prepared to return to his room.

On the way, he encountered many companions from the Familial Group. After two months apart, they warmly greeted Ize, who reciprocated each one.

He didn’t see the likes of Ais and other core members of the Familial Group.

Then Ize realized.

It was morning…

Calculating the timing, that group was probably deep inside the Dungeon training.

With the gear crafted by Ize aiding them, these individuals always dived into the Dungeon every morning without fail, only returning home when it was time to eat.

Ize had unintentionally overlooked this fact when buying fried potato balls earlier.

“So, my plan to feed Ais failed…” Shrugging, Ize grumpily stuffed the specially reserved red bean cream-flavored fried potato ball into his mouth.

Surprisingly, it tasted pretty good~

After returning to his room, Ize carefully placed the souvenirs from his travels and the items from his personal space, then headed to the Familial Group Bathhouse with fresh clothes.

In the morning, the Bathhouse was occupied only by him. After washing himself, Ize arrogantly plunged into the bath pool, soaking his body.

While bathing, Ize roughly planned out what he would do for the rest of the day.

Take a bath, change clothes, reminisce about the feel of his long-absent bed, then find time to update his Ability Values with Loki.

Today’s tasks are more or less done. The free time would mostly involve catching up with everyone.

After a long soak, as Ize returned to his room, he suddenly received a communication.

Among the bunch of marble-sized crystals carelessly placed in a box on his desk, one suddenly emitted a faint light.

“Can you hear me, Ize Alward?”

Immediately, the crystal’s surface reflected a shadowy altar-like space and the image of the Sage.

“Fels? Didn’t expect you to contact me voluntarily, huh? That’s rare.” Surprised, Ize, who had just returned to his room, walked over to the desk and picked up the eye crystal.

“… ” Fels remained silent for a moment on the other side of the crystal before speaking again, “This time, I want to discuss the reward for the Great Tree Sea commission with you.”

“Because the nature of this commission involves an ancient Monster, the Guild supervisor couldn’t decide, so they consulted Uranus.”

“And this time, we’re asking if you have any preferences regarding the commission’s reward. Uranus says as long as it’s not excessive, we’ll try our best to accommodate your requests.”

Good grief, they kicked the problem right into his lap?

Oh, this might not be a problem but a benefit.

But…

“Are you being so generous?” Ize was slightly surprised. Was everything entirely up to his decision?

It’s like a simplified version of an explosive machine.

Fels seemed to predict Ize’s reaction and said, “Naturally, it wouldn’t apply to others, but since it’s you… let’s say, we’re kind of allies?”

The “we” he referred to also included Uranus.

The three of them knew certain secrets that weren’t publicly disclosed.

Saying it this way seemed reasonable.

Sharing the same secret and standing on the same ground effectively fosters relationships between people.

In other words, Ize, Fels, and Uranus have reached some consensus to a certain extent, making them insiders.

Providing benefits for insiders and being generous to them is very logical!