Is It Wrong To Skitter In A Dungeon? Chapter 45: Prelude to Invasion

Chapter 45: Prelude to Invasion

The next day dawned dull and grey, with lots of overcast and rain-filled clouds threatening to pour down onto Orario.

As unpleasant as it was, Taylor knew there wasn’t much chance of avoiding going outside. For one thing, she had that meeting at ten a.m. with the other captains. Secondly, there were a lot of different chores she had to do for the Familia.

To prepare for the day, she ate breakfast with Bell and the others who were awake, and then showered. She made sure she was wearing some good clothing as well. Dress to impress, and all that.

Afterwards, she bid everyone farewell and left the manor, making her way to the Guildhall. There weren’t many people out and about due to the threat of rain, and she wished she’d brought Chris with her. But having a monster hang around a bunch of random adventurers just didn’t seem smart.

“Welcome,” Misha greeted Taylor when the parahuman entered the building. The pink-haired Guild employee looked frazzled as gave directions for the place Taylor needed to go.

Making her way to one of the meeting rooms within the Guildhall where the captains were gathering, Taylor sensed the tension in the air. The staff weren’t quite running around, but they were definitely busy and Eina barely had time to greet the parahuman.

Reaching the gathering place, she opened the door without a shred of hesitation after nodding in greeting to the Ganesha Familia guards protecting the area.

“Hope I’m not too late,” Taylor said somewhat apologetically as she entered. Her swarm had scanned the room before she’d set foot in the Guildhall, though, and she knew she wasn’t the last one there.

Finn and Ottar were there, the former taking a seat at the head of the table while the latter leaned against the wall nearby so he could watch everyone who entered.

Aside from the Level 7s, Taylor recognized a few others who’d arrived. Asfi, Shakti, and Naaza were looking her way while Tsubaki spoke with the captain of the Goibniu Familia, a male elf Taylor hadn’t had the chance to meet yet. Airmid of Dian Cecht was sitting next to Persephone, captain of the Demeter Familia, who was happily chatting away. Nearby, Dionysus’ captain, Filvis, looked uncomfortable being surrounded by so many other people.

“No, no, you’re fine,” Finn said, the pallum nodding at her as she stepped inside the room. Ottar just inclined his head at her as she took her seat in between Shakti and Naaza, both of whom flashed Taylor smiles.

“Hello, Taylor,” Shakti said, sounding exhausted.

“Been busy, huh?” she guessed, and Shakti nodded, bags under her eyes.

“We’ve been running around doing our best to keep Orario in some semblance of order ever since the news arrived about Rakia,” the Captain of the Ganesha Familia replied.

“And I’ve been trying to fill a bunch of orders. Everyone wants to stockpile medicine since violence is looming over the city,” Naaza added. “Thank the gods we got that moth and butterfly farm up and running.”

“Yes, the conservatory has been a lifesaver,” Shakti agreed. “Taylor, I’m going to want to hire you against later to bring back more of them. The few we have right now aren’t enough to cover demand.”

“Just let me know when you want to do so,” Taylor said, agreeing to the idea.

“Good. Oh, and you should stop by after the meeting at some point,” the captain of the Ganesha Familia suggested. Anne’s egg is about ready to hatch.”

“Really? That’s excellent news,” Taylor said, happy to hear it. She hadn’t had much time to check on the egg left behind by her Killer Ant, but things seemed to be going well.

Taylor had left it with Shakti because the Ganesha Familia simply had better facilities to care for an unusual item like a monster egg, and she trusted the blue-haired Tamer.

Further small talk was made while the rest of the captains filed in, and when the last one stepped inside, the doors slammed shut and were sealed with a barrier produced by a magic tool. As everyone went to their seats, Taylor took the time to examine everyone.

There were over a hundred Familias in Orario, and just below a hundred thousand adventurers. An exact number of adventurers and deities wasn’t possible due to a couple factors. Some gods, like those in Evilus, had gone underground with their Familias. One deity didn’t even have a Familia and lived like a vagabond in the slums of Daedalus Street. And a few Familias hid their exact numbers and level of strength.

Regardless of the actual number of deities, adventurers, and Familias within the city, most of them were… weak. Half of the captains that had assembled were Level 1. These Familias didn’t focus solely on the adventuring lifestyle. The Sobek Familia’s captain, Enna, was a tour guide for newcomers, and the Familia itself was very small.

For the dozen or so Familias that had Level 2 captains, the Dian Cecht Familia was easily the strongest of the bunch. Airmid was the greatest healer in Orario, and the Familia itself was the largest Support Familia in the city, with half the Supporters and three-fourths of all potions being supplied by them alone.

After that, there were the rest that varied in size and were mostly kept in power by one or two extremely strong adventurers. The Serket Familia, for instance, had seventy-three members but less than a dozen people were above Level 1, with a single Level 4 that acted as the main deterrent.

In Taylor’s opinion, the strongest Familias in Orario were Freya, Loki, Ganesha, Demeter, Hephaestus, and Dian Cecht, in that order. Dian Cecht and Hephaestus tied for fourth place, due to how vital both of their services were for the city.

Freya and Loki were tied for first place, and had less than a hundred adventurers each, but they relied on quality over quantity, their members easily the strongest in the city.

Ganesha had nearly three hundred Familia members with a Falna, and twice that number in terms of regular people who helped with various tasks around the compound and their businesses. They patrolled the streets and kept the peace, especially after the Astraea Familia fell. They firmly had the second place in terms of power.

Demeters' Familia was the largest in Orario. Over five hundred people with Falnas, but most were only Level 1. The highest Level was 3, and that belonged to the captain, Persephone. However, there were nearly seven thousand people who worked directly for the goddess but lacked a Falna, and thousands more indirectly helping her, with plenty of other Familias subordinate to the Harvest Goddess, all of whom worked on the farms and ranches that fed the city. For this alone they were the third most powerful Familia.

Regarding the two 4th place Familias, Hephaestus was stronger thanks to the higher Level members like Tsubaki. They had about a hundred members and their craftsmanship was suburb.

Dian Cecht maintained his Familia's rank thanks to nearly two hundred Familia members, almost half of them Level 2 and able to use Healing Spells like Airmid (albeit weaker ones), and create potions. There were no members above Level 2, though. The God of Medicine also had hundreds or regular people who were basically ordinary doctors and nurses who worked in the hospitals in the city.

There were other powerful Familias, like Aphrodite, who'd basically taken over the Entertainment District in the wake of Ishtar's fall, and Tyche, who was like Ares and ruled her own nation, the city-state of Santorio Vega, and who spent her time bouncing between the two locations, but none could compare to the raw power the six top-ranked Familias could bring to bear.

‘Having all these people gathered in this room certainly shows how seriously everyone is taking the threat of Rakia’s invasion,’ Taylor mused. ‘But I can tell that there will be issues.’

It made sense to her. Back on Earth Bet, when parahumans worked together in groups, there was friction. Powerful people had large egos and those could grate against each other, making it difficult to find common ground.

‘The adventurers here will work together, but many of them won’t like it,’ Taylor thought to herself, her swarm’s attention focused on some of the more problematic captains. Zanis of the Soma Familia being the biggest problem child she’d identified so far. She didn’t have to look at him to know the glasses-wearing captain was glaring at her.

“Thank you all for coming!” Finn said, a smile on his face as he greeted everyone.

“Let’s get on with this,” the dwarf who spoke was the captain of the Modi Familia, and he looked annoyed at having been dragged away from whatever he’d been doing.

“Of course,” Finn said, his smile never leaving him. “We’re here today in order to discuss what to do about Rakia.”

“What about the gods?” someone asked.

“The gods trust us to handle these matters on our own,” Finn replied.

“More like they trust the Braver to make all the tactical decisions for them,” somebody grumbled under their breath. Taylor agreed. She wouldn’t trust any god to issue military commands. Not even the war gods.

“What do we know about the approaching Rakian forces?” Serket’s captain and Emma’s older sister, Sophia Flores, inquired.

“Based on what we know thanks to our spies, Rakia’s army has been gathering in different camps across the country for ‘war games’ for the last three months. At some point two weeks ago, they began to convene in a single location before marching off. At the current rate of movement, they will reach Orario within five to ten days.”

“Why didn’t anyone bring this up until now?” the captain of the Ogma Familia demanded.

“And how many of them are there?” somebody else asked.

“To answer the first question, Rakia was able to hide their destination thanks to counter-intelligence operations making it seem like their actual target was somewhere in the west, possibly Altena or the Empire. As for the second question, the current number is approximately fifty thousand troops, a tenth of which possess a Falna,” Finn replied, revealing what the scouts had reported.

“Forty-five thousand regular soldier with five thousand adventurers?! That’s most of their damned military!” Somebody exclaimed.

“Yes, it’s estimated that Rakia can bring to bear eighty thousand trained soldiers, ten thousand of which are part of the Ares Familia,” Finn nodded. “They left the rest to guard the capital and borders, but brought their entire Siege Corp. with them. It looks like it is going to be a siege.”

“Are we going to conduct hit-and-run raids before they reach here to whittle their numbers down?” Taylor asked, and everyone turned to look at her.

“Pardon?” the captain of the Loki Familia asked.

“You know, guerilla tactics. Damage their morale before they even reach the city by destroying their supply train or launching night attacks to disrupt their formations? Even just long-ranged bombardment of their forces would work.”

“We don’t have anything like that planned,” the Level 7 pallum replied.

“You’re simply letting them walk up to the walls without fighting back?” Taylor demanded incredulously.

“There are rules that state only certain Familias can leave Orario at will,” Zanis said, pushing his glasses up as he looked condescending at Taylor. “Perhaps being a newcomer, you might not be aware of them, but…”

“I am aware. Chapter 4, article twelve, paragraph eight of the Guild Contract,” Taylor replied, reciting the exact passage he was referring to. “But of those Familias, one of them is the Ganesha Familia. And if I’m not mistaken, they have enough high-ranked adventurers to be able to pull off plenty of attacks on the Rakian army.”

“That is a good point,” Shakti spoke up. “Why isn’t my Familia doing that?”

Everyone turned to Finn for answers, and he held up his hands in a placating gesture. “I understand that this may seem odd, but there are political conditions to consider. Orario is home to the largest concentration of high-level individuals in the world. Self-defense is acceptable, but leaving the city to attack another force, even an invading army like Rakia, could be seen badly. Ares could claim that he was simply conducting military training and we attacked him unjustly.”

“And there are other nations who have long envied Orario’s position and prestige,” the Braver continued, ignoring the scoffs and snorts from some adventurers. “They could side with Rakia over our ‘unjust attack’ and impose economic sanctions on the city in an attempt to knock us down a peg. It would not last long or work that well, as the world relies on the Magic Stones and other resources the Dungeon provides, but it could still hurt us and other countries. That is why we have to let Ares and the Rakian army make the first move against us.”

“That is pathetic,” Taylor scoffed in disgust. “What if Rakia decides to pillage the countryside on their way here? What happens to the towns and villages and people outside the walls that rely on us for support? Are we just going to abandon them because it would be the politically safe option?”

There were disquieted murmurs amongst the captains at her words, and Finn frowned. “And what exactly do you want us to do about it, Miss Hebert?”

“Wipe them out before they reach the city,” Taylor replied. “Or at the very least, attack them repeatedly until they surrender and leave.”

She waved a hand dismissively. “Who cares what the other nations think? We have all the power, here. Like you said, they need the Magic Stones. We have the Magic Stones. If they refuse to play ball, we can just not sell to them. See how long it takes before they crack. Rakia is not a threat to us, but they are to other people, and besides, we have a duty to protect the towns and villages near us that provide us with food and other materials! Is that not why Orario exists? That is why we must teach Ares and Rakia a lesson they won’t forget by refusing to allow them to even see the walls of the city!”

“That is not how we do things in Orario,” Finn replied calmly.

“Then maybe you’ve just been doing it wrong the whole time,” Taylor retorted.

The two stared each other down for a few tense moments, and several captains shifted nervously as the tension in the room rose.

Ottar broke the silence by clapping his hands loudly, causing everyone to turn to look at him.

“Both of you raise valid points,” the King stated. “Braver, the farms and villages that fall within the influence of Orario in Rakia’s path should be evacuated. Or at the very least have the Guild raise their banners and send warnings to the oncoming army that any action against the innocent will not be tolerated.”

The Boaz turned to Taylor next. “Weaver, if Rakia attacks the people outside of the walls, we shall petition the Guild to allow the Ganesha Familia to conduct punitive strikes against them. Can we all accept this compromise?”

He looked between the two captains, who eventually both nodded.

“I do not like it, but fine. I can live with that,” Taylor replied.

“Same,” Finn agreed.

“Good. Let us continue the meeting, then,” Ottar suggested, and the talk between the Familias resumed.

It was mostly about what to do about supplies, where civilians were to take shelter in the event of combat, and who was in charge of which sections of the city.

As expected, Freya’s Familia would handle the south of the city while Loki would guard the north. Ganesha was ordered to oversee the west, where the Rakian army was mostly likely to set up their siege-camp, and the east was to be protected by a coalition of multiple smaller Familias.

Beyond that, it was business as usual in Orario. Magic Stones had to be harvested and monsters needed culling. Hence, after an hour of intense discussion, everything was more or less hammered out.

“I think that’s everything, then,” Finn said with a nod. “Any questions or concerns?”

“Why don’t we just hand over Welf Crozzo to the Rakians?” Zanis asked, and the room fell deathly silent.

“You want to say that again?” Tsubaki demanded angrily, the captain of the Hesphestus Familia glaring at the Soma Familia’s captain.

“I’m just saying, we all know why Rakia is here,” Zannis replied, pushing his glasses up. “It’d solve our problems.”

“No,” Taylor said darkly, glaring at the Level 2. “That will not happen.”

“Be reasonable,” Zannis said. “One adventurer for in exchange for the safety of the city…”

“I said NO,” Taylor uttered, her voice echoed by thousands of insects buzzing in unison throughout the room.

Zannis and several other adventurers flinched fearfully, not having expected that at all.

“Anything else?” the Level 7 pallum inquired with a strained smile, looking around. When nobody spoke up, he clapped his hands. “In that case, have a good day, everyone.”

People began to rise, chatting softly amongst themselves. Yet when Taylor stood up from her seat, the pallum raised a hand.

“Miss Taylor, do you mind staying behind for a bit?” Finn requested, and the parahuman raised an eyebrow but nodded.

As the rest of the captains filed out, some shooting curious looks over their shoulders at the two of them, the Braver resumed his seat, and motioned for Taylor to join him.

“How can I help you?” she asked when the last person was gone and she’d confirmed with her swarm there was nobody nearby trying to eavesdrop.

Well, nobody with ordinary or Level 1 or 2 hearing. A few individuals whose hum was stronger and whose ears were sharper were lingering nearby. A couple bugs were enough to scare them off, though.

“How far does your ability to control insects extend?” Finn inquired.

“Why do you want to know?” she asked.

“Because depending on your answer, I might have a job for you.”

“Everything from annelids to arthropods falls under my Skill’s dominion,” Taylor replied after a moment. “The full extent is technically anything that is an invertebrate. Even monsters are not exempt.”

“Spineless creatures, huh? A lot more extensive than I thought, but it makes sense,” Finn hummed. “What about creatures that are half and half? That is to say, part invertebrate, but also possessing internal skeletal structures?”

“I recently encountered an Arachne, and I can confirm my Skill worked on it,” Taylor informed him. “Also, I recently learned that Dark Fungi and plant monsters, like the Venenthes, can be controlled if I want as well.”

His eyes glinted at that and he grinned. “Wonderful,” he said softly.

“What exactly does this mission of yours entail? What do you want my power for?” Taylor inquired.

“We want your help with an assault on the underground fortress of Knossos,” Finn told her.

“Knossos?” Taylor asked, blinking.

“You recognize the name?” Finn demanded.

“It’s from a myth in my home town,” Taylor replied evasively. “Knossos, the city where a labyrinth was built to contain a monster.”

“Huh,” Finn muttered. “What an odd coincidence… or perhaps not.”

He then shook his head. “Regardless, the Loki, Hermes, and Dionysus Familias have discovered it is being used by the Evilus remnants as a hiding spot. They’ve infested it with Violas, Virgas, and other monsters, many of which would be able to be controlled by your Skill.”

“Evilus? Like the Thanatos Familia?” Taylor asked, and it was Finn’s turn to blink in surprise.

“How did you…?”

“We discovered a massive door made of orichalcum on the 18th Floor earlier,” Taylor explained. “A pair of adventurers from the Thanatos Familia tried to blow us up when we discovered it.”

“Where are they now?” Finn asked sharply.

“Bors of Rivira has them in his custody. I don’t know if the Guild has dispatched anyone to retrieve them yet,” she said.

“I will speak with the Guild about interrogating them,” Finn declared.

“Knock yourself out,” Taylor shrugged. “Is that all?”

“One more thing,” Finn said. “When Tammuz joined your Familia, did he have anything with him?”

“Huh? What do you mean?” the parahuman asked.

“Did he have a red, crystal orb? Big enough to fit in the palm of your hand?” the pallum inquired.

“Not that I’m aware of,” Taylor admitted.

“Are you sure?” Finn pressed.

“It hasn’t even been a week since I woke up from my coma,” Taylor retorted. “There’s still some things I’m working on to catch up with, after all.”

“Of course, my apologies,” Finn said. “But, if you could ask him about that? It could be important for the invasion of Knossos.”

“Alright, I’ll ask,” Taylor replied. “But don’t expect the Hestia Familia to get involved with the war against Rakia. We’ll help defend the city, of course, but don’t try asking Welf for any Magic Swords, or forcing us to face them head on.”

“Don’t worry, as powerful as your Familia has become, the duty of Orario’s defense will primarily fall to the Loki, Freya and Ganesha Familias,” Finn assured her with a chuckle.

“Good. I’m… tired of war,” Taylor admitted, emotions flashing through her eyes. “So very tired of fighting and killing people, and having to lead others into battles they will not survive.”

Finn stared into her face for a moment before nodding. “Of course,” he replied. “As I said, the Hestia Familia doesn’t have to concern themselves with this at all. And honestly? I doubt Rakia’s invasion will last more than a month.”

“Fair enough,” Taylor said.

She’d heard a rumor that the entire Freya Familia had wiped out an army ten thousand strong in the Kaios Desert. Hundreds of Level 1s with plenty of Level 2s and 3s had not stood a chance against several dozen high-class adventurers. The parahuman doubted the Ares Familia would be able to touch Orario with the full might of the city arrayed against them.

“And one last thing. While your desire to protect people is admirable, Orario does not, in fact, exist to do so. Our duty is to protect the world from the Dungeon,” Finn said. “The affairs of kings and countries are not our business.”

“The gods only descended from Tenkai because of the Dungeon,” Taylor responded. “And Rakia is ruled by a god. Therefore, it seems to me that the gods and what they do to the world are indeed Orario’s problems.”

Finn stared at her in disbelief, and she rolled her eyes. “Nobody seems to believe that the gods should be held accountable for their actions. It takes atrocities like what Evilus has done to get somebody to curb their excesses. I see that as foolish and short-sighted.”

“We need the gods,” Finn replied only to be cut off by a snort.

“The world survived two thousand years without the gods or their ‘help.’ Humans – and pallums, dwarves, elves, and every other race on this world – are far stronger than you give them credit for,” Taylor retorted to the Loki Familia captain before standing up. “I will discuss with Hestia and Tammuz about what you mentioned to me. Be sure to send a message when it’s time to launch the attack on this ‘Knossos’ place.”

With that, she walked out of the meeting room, leaving Finn – and a hidden Fels – alone to think about her words.

It was only when she returned to Hearth Manor did Taylor allow herself to relax slightly. But then she squared her shoulders, feeling a flicker of annoyance run through her.

“Hestia?” Taylor called out as she entered the foyer.

“Uh-oh, Lili recognizes that tone of voice,” Lili muttered, the parahuman’s swarm picking it up.

“Um, yes?” the tiny goddess asked nervously as she came out from the living room.

“Did Tammuz give you something when he joined the Familia?” the captain inquired.

“Huh? Oh!” Hestia gasped. “Right! I completely forgot about that!”

She then paled as Taylor folded her arms and glared. “Meet me in my office,” the parahuman ordered. “And bring Tammuz with you.”

“U-um, don’t you mean my office?”

“No,” Taylor said. And just like that, the warlord claimed the room as her own.

“Okay!” Hestia squeaked before running off to find the Level 4.

Taylor sighed before walking off to the office where she’d meet with them. She had a feeling this meeting was going to be an exhausting one.

Taking a seat at the desk, Taylor didn’t have to wait long before Hestia burst in with Tammuz in tow.

“I brought him!” the goddess declared.

“Captain,” Tammuz said, bowing towards Taylor.

“Enough of that,” the parahuman ordered. “I want to know about this orb.”

To emphasis the point, she took it out of the desk where her swarm had found it when she’d entered the room earlier.

It was a sinister looking thing: crimson like frozen blood with a smaller orb resting within it that eerily resembled an eyeball. Said eye had odd markings within the pupil and Taylor could still see where the nerve-endings had been.

“That is a key that opens a door hidden beneath the entertainment district that led to a secret underground base,” Tammuz said.

“And it belonged to Evilus?” Taylor demanded.

“Yes,” Tammuz confirmed. “It was given to Lady Ishtar after she provided several tons of Magic Stones as a show of commitment to Lord Thanatos.”

“So, he is involved,” Taylor uttered with a grimace and Hestia blanched.

“Him? The workaholic?” the Goddess of the Hearth exclaimed. “Why is he working with Evilus?!”

“Don’t know. But several of his Familia members tried to blow us up down in the Dungeon earlier,” Taylor replied. “What do you know of this god, Hestia?”

“Thanatos’ job was to scrub souls and prep them for reincarnation and assimilation into the greater Sea of Souls within Tenkai,” Hestia replied. “He descended two and a half decades ago. Not sure why. He disliked adventurers and had no interests in living mortals. Beyond that, I don’t know. Didn’t really have a lot of interactions with Thanatos.”

“Whatever his reasons, he’s a criminal, and working with Evilus. From what it seems, he might be one of the ringleaders,” Taylor stated.

She then leveled a glare at Hestia. “Why didn’t you tell me about this when I woke up?”

“I forgot! I really did!” Hestia whimpered.

“Not a good enough excuse,” Taylor retorted.

“Are you mad?” Hestia asked, flinching under her glare.

“Yes,” Taylor confirmed. “But mostly because this paints a target on our backs. Evilus will likely come after us if this orb really is that important.”

“Y-you really think they’d do that?” Hestia wondered nervously.

“Evilus attacked Familias and civilians throughout the ‘dark days’ so yes, them striking at us here in our home is definitely within the realm of possibility,” Taylor admitted. “I want to believe they’d wait until the situation with Rakia is handled, but these are insane zealots so we’ll have to keep our guard up.”

She raised a finger. “First, nobody goes anywhere without a partner. I’ll also be hiding special bugs on everybody which will help me find you in case anything happens. After that, some training in disabling opponents before they have the chance to use their bomb vests or any other sort of suicide tools. And finally, I’ll be keeping this orb on me at all times.”

Taylor then looked at Tammuz. “As for you, you will be providing me everything you know about Evilus, including the places you went to visit them with Ishtar, the locations of their bases, and any identities that might have been revealed. I want this report done and on my desk by evening. And I’ll want three copies so I can share with the Guild and Loki Familia.”

“Loki? Why her?” Hestia asked while Tammuz bowed in acceptance of his captain’s orders before departing.

“Apparently, her Familia has been working to track down Evilus after they got involved somehow,” Taylor replied. “Which reminds me: they wanted to hire me for an assault on the enemy’s main base some time in the future. They apparently use monsters that I can likely control, making it easier.”

“Really? You’re going to accept?” Hestia grimaced.

“If it helps bring down Evilus, then yes, I am,” Taylor confirmed. “I know you have beef with Loki, but this is bigger than a cross-dressing deity.”

“Ooo, ‘cross-dresser!’ That’s a great insult! I’ll have to remember it for next time,” Hestia muttered to herself, rubbing her hands together evilly.

“One more thing,” Taylor said. She held out her hand, and summoned the mote of energy she’d ripped from Jura the other day, causing Hestia to flinch back.

“Taylor!” Hestia shrieked. “What is that?!”

“This is the Falna of an Evilus member who tried to frame Ryuu for murder,” Taylor replied. She held it out to the leader of the Familia. “Can you tell which god it belongs to?”

“I- what? Why would you think I could do that?” Hestia demanded in annoyance.

“Honestly, this was a spur of the moment thing. I had to act quickly as the Dungeon was getting too active,” Taylor admitted, with a smidge of bashfulness in her voice. “But can you? Tell whose god this energy belongs to?”

Hestia sighed but took the tiny ember from Taylor and stared at it intently.

“Sorry,” she said after a minute. “I can’t tell much. It might have belonged to a minor god. I didn’t exactly get to know most of them, honestly. I know the big names, but that’s mostly because it was kinda hard not to.”

“Ah. A shut-in goddess,” Taylor hummed, causing Hestia to pout.

“I was not a shut-in! I had a very important job to guard the Divine Flame and that meant I had to stay near it!” Hestia protested. She then frowned. “But I can tell you that whomever it belongs to, they are from my pantheon. I can tell by the way it feels. Taylor, can you sense anything from it?”

“Screaming,” Taylor said. “I hear screaming.”

“So do I,” Hestia muttered. “I’m trying to think of any gods who might have an Authority like that.”

“Phobos or Deimos would have been my first guess,” Taylor stated. “Both of them are deities of fear, though different aspects of it.”

“Yes, Phobos was the goddess of panic experienced in the heat of battle, while Deimos was the god of terror felt before a clash,” Hestia agreed. “But they descended a while ago and only Deimos is left on Genkei. If he left Rakia, we’d have heard of it.”

“Could it be that Jura was one of his adventurers who was something like a spy?” Taylor asked. “That’s what Deimos' role in Rakia is, according to Welf.”

“That’s not impossible, I suppose, but it doesn’t seem likely. If this Jura was a spy, why bother trying to frame Ryuu?”

Taylor shrugged. She didn’t have an answer for that aside from revenge, but to be honest, she didn’t feel like he was a spy.

“Hmm… what about Ikelos?” Hestia mused.

“Who?” Taylor asked.

“A minor god whose domain was nightmares,” she replied. “Nightmares are scary, right? And screams would fit in.”

“I thought Morpheus was the god of dreams,” Taylor said.

“He is, but Ikelos is one of his subordinates,” Hestia explained. “I don’t recall if he descended or not… but if this really is his energy, then it’s very likely he’s working with Thanatos. They were close friends in Tenkai.”

“If either of them try to hurt this Familia, they will face the same fate as Ishtar,” Taylor vowed, taking the mote of energy back, and Hestia grimaced but didn’t disagree. She was the Goddess of the Home as well, after all. And protecting it was her duty.

“God, mortal, or monster! It doesn’t matter who! If they try to hurt my beloved children they will know my wrath!” Hestia vowed.

It was rare for the goddess and her captain to agree on anything. On this matter, though? Both of them were of the same mind.