Adama stared stonily into the charred ruins of the house; his expression so stoic it gave away absolutely nothing. Yet, by his side, he gripped Hearthblade’s hilt so hard that his knuckles turned the same milky white as the sword. Emi let out a gasp of horror nearby as she stared at the destruction, eyes wide with sadness. Behind them, Riveria was the first to speak, “Fear not. Hestia, Theresa, and your prum companion are safe. I found them on the run from several Amazons, but by the time I managed to escort them to safety, the house was already lost. They have been residing in Loki Familia’s residence for now.”

  “Do they know about our home’s destruction?” Adama’s voice was emotionless, his body going stock still as he took in these new developments.

  “They fear the worst. However, I haven’t let them leave their shelter since you were incarcerated.”

  “…Bring them here.”

  Adama could stand to be a bit more polite with the person who’d saved his Familia members, but for now, he couldn’t be bothered. A part of him was irrationally angry that Riveria hadn’t managed to save the home. Another part was angry at himself for his own inadequacies. But Adama stuffed both parts down as he stepped forward into the ruins, eyes coldly scanning the ground. Riveria wasn’t a productive target for his anger, and neither was he.

  That honor resided elsewhere.

  Adama stooped and began digging through a specific pile of rubble, and as he did, Emi began to cry. It was a soft thing, like she didn’t want to bother anyone with her tears, but Adama’s enhanced senses heard it clear as day. He could have gone over to comfort her. Probably should have. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Instead, he continued rooting around in the dirt, tossing aside a scorched wooden beam to reveal a rectangular trapdoor. Adama flung it open to reveal stone stairs, which he descended. The swordsman soon gained some measure of relief to see that his basement lab had gone unmolested. He’d actually built the lab in the basement for precisely this sort of reason, though the ventilation had been a pain to figure out.

  Adama cleared his work desks of all his tools and devices. He shoved them and whatever materials he had into a large burlap backpack he’d stashed in the corner. Adama then hunted down his finished potions and stuffed them into the pouches on his belt, before his attention turned to the basement’s stone floor. The swordsman knelt, jabbed his hands into the rock, and lifted a cubic portion of the floor upward to reveal a large cubby hole. Inside was a sack filled with coins and the most valuable ingredients Adama owned, including the Amphisbaena Bile and the Sun Dragon’s Fang. Adama retrieved it all, then walked back upstairs. As he ascended, he saw that the others had arrived.

  Lilli was comforting Emi, though the little prum looked pretty dour herself. Theresa stood alone, looking distinctly awkward, but Adama only had eyes for one of the ladies right now. He met Hestia’s saffron gaze with as solid a projection of emotion as he could, Adama trying to portray contrition, fortitude, and anger all at once. Contrition because this whole scenario was technically his fault. He’d decided to help Take Familia. Even if it’d been the right thing to do, it had put them all in danger. Fortitude for obvious reasons. And anger to show that he shared her frustrations. This evil would not go unpunished.

  She met his gaze with an unusual coolness. Hestia was always burning with one emotion or another, usually kindness or amusement. Now, she gave nothing away, her face completely inscrutable. Adama waited for her to do something with bated breath. He watched as she took a slow step forward, then another, Hestia slowly gliding over the home’s remains. Adama froze as she approached, watching solemnly as the goddess drew within an arm’s breadth. They stood there like that for several pregnant moments. The silence was deafening.

  Then Hestia threw her arms around him.

  Adama stiffened further, somewhat uncomfortable at the contact, but eventually he overcame his surprise and embarrassment and returned the hug. The silence continued for a few breaths longer, then she whispered in his ear, “We’ll build it back, Tim. Better than ever before.”

  Adama didn’t say anything. He merely swore in his heart that he would make those words a reality. That was enough.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  …

  Ishtar, Goddess of Beauty, stared down at Orario from her high tower with thoughtful eyes, the gears of her mind steadily turning. Behind her crouched a high-level Amazon warrior, a beautiful woman in a skimpy outfit. Ishtar’s own good looks vastly overshadowed the warrior, as one would expect from a goddess of seduction, but she wouldn’t allow anything other than the most beautiful humans in her direct presence if she could avoid it. The warrior had come to deliver a vital message, one that Ishtar could hardly believe, so the goddess barked out, “Repeat yourself, woman. Be careful with your words, but leave nothing out.”

  The warrior’s head bowed deeper, her body growing rigid with fear, “I beg your forgiveness, my lady. Haruhime has been taken from us, and Alura is in prison. We tracked the renart into the Dungeon, yet our warriors searched it fruitlessly before being forced to retreat. We do not know how she is surviving and hiding from us.”

  The goddess huffed in displeasure, “Who took her?”

  “We believe that Hestia and Takemikazuchi Familias are the primary culprits, and we have exacted reprisals on both. However, both deities have evaded capture. The god of war evaded us with his own sword, but the goddess of the hearth was protected by Nine Hell.”

  Ishtar turned, scrutinizing the warrior fiercely, “Riveria llos Alf protected Hestia? Has Loki Familia thrown its weight behind our enemies?”

  The warrior squirmed slightly, uncomfortable with the goddess’s full attention, “We do not believe so, my lady. Loki Familia placed both Alura and the Sword Saint in prison. If they had wished to play favorites, they likely would have allowed the latter to go free. We suspect that Nine Hell intervened as a result of the Sword Saint’s connections to her homeland. He recently saved the Royal Alf Forest, so she may have felt she owed him a debt.”

  Ishtat nodded, “Do you believe that Nine Hell will continue to be involved?”

  The warrior hesitated, then continued, “No, my lady, we do not. Loki Familia’s public stance on this subject is neutral, and Nine Hell won’t jeopardize that. She could pass off defending the hearth goddess as an act of preserving order in the city. More overt involvement would spoil her Familia’s neutral position, however, something that the responsible elf mage likely will not do.”

  Ishtar’s eyes flashed, a plan beginning to coalesce in her devious mind. A sultry smile slowly formed on her face, “When is Alura leaving prison? And the Sword Saint?”

  “We will be able to bail Alura out this afternoon. The Sword Saint has already left.”

  “Good. Notify me the moment Alura’s released. Until then, triple my guard. Then, begin drafting letters to Kali and Ouranos. Tell them…”

  Ishtar specified what she wanted written in both letters as she further contemplated the situation. The loss of Haruhime was inconvenient, but the more Ishtar thought it through, the more convinced she became that this situation could be turned to her advantage. Freya, Ishtar’s most hated rival, clearly had a soft spot for Hestia. Ishtar had a legitimate grievance against the amber-eyed goddess, something that could be leveraged for her benefit. Ishtar had always believed in one, simple strategy.

  Grab your enemy where she’s vulnerable. And squeeze.

  …

  After Hestia Familia had spent some time mourning the loss of their home, they took some time to regroup. They met up with Takemikazuchi, who reported that his own Familia home had been destroyed as well. He’d been assaulted by one Level 5 and two Level 4 Amazons, a hefty enough force to make even the war god retreat. Their group took up residence in a nondescript inn on the far side of Orario, and Adama went to pick up the rest of Take Familia.

  It took a bit of running around before he managed to link up with one of the Xenos, and they led him to where they’d stashed the rest of the gang. Soon, there was a pleasant reunion. Take Familia was overjoyed to see Adama alive after his confrontation with Alura, and the rest of the Xenos were happy to meet Wiene’s savior.

  “Nice to meet ya’, Mr. Swordsman.” Lido the lizardman belted out, shaking Adama’s hand vigorously in his massive paw. The swordsman in question was vaguely uncomfortable with all the attention, and eventually, Adama waved everyone off, “All right, it’s nice to meet you too, but let’s get back to business.”

  He turned to Take Familia, “I’d bet my soul against a rat’s tail you kids are ready to get back topside. We need to regroup and make plans.”

  They decided to leave Haruhime with the Xenos, and Mikoto volunteered to stay behind and keep her company. The rest of Take Familia followed Adama back out of the Dungeon and to the inn where the rest of the group had been hiding. The adventurers of Take Familia were pleased to find their lord safe and sound, though that happiness turned to distress when they learned of their home’s destruction. The whole group commiserated for a while before their minds turned to how to deal with their current predicament.

  “We can’t fight them head-on.” Ouka rumbled, observing the obvious yet going on to offer a productive solution, “I say we wear them down with guerrilla warfare. Get a written statement from Haruhime that she wants to leave and petition Ouranos or Loki for help. Eventually, we’ll be able to get Ishtar to leave us alone. Maybe we could even get some concessions, like money to rebuild our homes.”

  It wasn’t a terrible plan, though there were still a few problems. As Adama opened his mouth to point them out, Riveria stuck her head into the room, “Apologies if I’m interrupting, but I have a letter for Hestia. From Loki. She says it’s urgent.”

  The mage stepped in and handed the letter off to Hestia. Everyone watched in silence as the divinity opened it, calmly surveyed its contents, then gave it to Adama. As he began to read, she announced its contents:

  “I have been summoned. To a Council of the Gods.”