Danmachi: Is It Wrong to Be the Main Character in Orario?

Chapter 950: There’s No Way to End This Now

Back home, Bell had barely settled down when Loki suddenly hopped in front of him."This time, our exposure is going to be a real mess to clean up."

Bell already knew exactly what Loki meant.

"I know it’ll be a mess, but Loki, do you want me to clean it up?"

As he said this, Bell leaned in closer to Loki.

"Hmm~ I don’t want you to."

Looking at Bell, mere inches away, Loki let out a small hum but still muttered the words, "I don’t want you to." Though she knew that this exposure would bring trouble, Loki still didn’t want Bell to back out.

Hearing Loki’s response, Bell chuckled softly, then lifted her from the table and placed her on his lap.

"Then why ask me if you don’t want it?"

"I was just giving you a heads-up so you won’t regret it later."

Loki tilted her head adorably, her ’847’ expression clear. Naturally, she didn’t want Bell to back down, but she was also worried he might regret it later.

"Regret?"

Bell couldn’t help but laugh more brightly, pulling Loki closer into his embrace.

"If you regret it, shouldn’t you have said so before I held you? Isn’t a goddess’s love meant to be once in a lifetime? To say you regret it now?"

"Pfft!"

At that, Loki burst into laughter at her own words.

"True. It is a bit late to regret now."

What she wanted, she had. The love she was meant to have, she had. It was indeed a little late to say she regretted it now.

Bell nodded slightly and kissed Loki’s earlobe.

"Actually, I think it’s a bit late to remind you of something."

"Hm?"

"Ever since just now, Hestia and the others have had their eyes fixed on you."

"Hm... Hm???"

Just as Loki relaxed from Bell’s light kiss at her ear, she turned her head and saw four pairs of glowing green eyes locked onto her.

"....."

Oh no!

Even the "fearless" Loki felt uneasy under the beast-like stares of these four, especially while leaning against Bell’s embrace.

It felt like she had just been cuddling with Bell right in front of four she-wolves. The thought made Loki shudder.

She hadn’t realized she could be this bold.

"Ahem, I was just helping everyone perform an appraisal of Bell’s resolve."

"Did we need you to tell us?"

Hestia’s face remained cold as she watched Loki shamelessly cling to Bell, even preempting Bell’s right to be intimate with her.

"Loki, you’d better sit over here yourself. We’re discussing serious business now."

Hestia’s voice left no room for Loki to argue.

"Yes..."

Loki gave an awkward laugh, stood up from Bell’s lap, and sat on the opposite sofa—yes, the spot furthest from Bell.

After dealing with the nuisance that was Loki, Hestia’s gaze turned slightly worried as she looked at Bell.

"Are you sure it’s wise to expose our relationship so openly?"

"Besides Artemis and me, Freya, Loki, and Hephaestus all have their own familia. By openly claiming us goddesses all at once, aren’t you worried they’ll turn against you?"

Well, Hestia’s concern was quite reasonable.

Each god is the center of their familia, and many familia members join precisely because they worship that goddess. For such familias, if an outsider were to lure away their goddess, it would undoubtedly spark a major uproar.

"I’m not afraid."

Bell was well aware of Hestia’s concern, but he had actually thought about this long ago.

"Hephaestus’s familia is predominantly composed of artisans. Even if many genuinely joined to worship Hephaestus, the artisans’ strength ultimately falls far short. Upon sensing the gap between themselves and me, most of the Hephaestus-worshipping artisans will choose to hold back."

"After all, craftsmen and adventurers are fundamentally different. Their immersion lies primarily in forging, not other pursuits. They revere Hephaestus’s craftsmanship, not the deity herself."

"Once they grasp this reality, their devotion remains just that—devotion. They won’t rise up in revolt simply because Hephaestus was abducted."

This analysis made perfect sense. Hephaestus’s familia consisted entirely of craftsmen—essentially a group of tech geeks. They revered the goddess’s skills far more than the goddess herself. Whether she was abducted or not wouldn’t significantly affect them.

"Hmm, my children are certainly like that."

Hephaestus pondered carefully before nodding.

Her children were essentially artisans—or rather, most were drawn to her by her own craftsmanship. Even if she were truly stolen away, her children probably wouldn’t actually rise up in rebellion.

"If that’s the case, doesn’t that make things rather troublesome for Freya?"

"Her children are all powerful and harbor ambitions toward her."

Freya knew this problem would inevitably land on her own plate. Yet while Freya offered no explanation, Bell stepped in to clarify.

"Freya Familia’s members do harbor those feelings toward Freya, but I believe her own thoughts matter most to them."

"That previous test and trial should have made them acutely aware of their own qualifications."

Bell believed they understood this point well, and he trusted Freya just as much.

"Besides, Freya must have already discussed this with everyone in her familia. If they hadn’t reached an agreement, she would have been imprisoned immediately. How could she possibly have the chance to walk around freely?"

"Huh?"

Hephaestus glanced at Freya with slight surprise.

Unbelievable—Freya had prepared for this so early on.

Freya smiled at Bell, who had voiced her unspoken thoughts. She was certain he understood her and trusted her.

"I gave my children the chance to choose anew long ago."

"..."

"But my children possess not only an intense possessiveness toward me, but also unwavering loyalty. Even when given the choice to leave, they never chose to depart. Though, upon realizing there was no chance, they did withdraw into themselves for quite some time."

Recalling the month her children retreated, Freya found herself almost amused. It simply proved how deeply she was cherished in their hearts.

The goddesses all turned to look at Freya. They found it hard to imagine she had already confessed everything to her children and even granted them the right to choose their own clan anew.

What was this? It was practically offering her children the chance to dismantle their own clan! If any of Freya’s children had even a hint of such thoughts, Freya Familia would likely face complete ruin.

"What’s with those looks?"