Charles glanced at the lackey who was still spouting provocations and casually pulled Stella—who was about to stand up—back down.
"Don't you see it yet? He's doing it on purpose."
Charles' words didn't just calm Stella down; they also made the others around the table start thinking about why the Apollo Familia was picking a fight.
It was obvious that the center of their mockery was Bell. But Bell had been keeping a low profile lately—he hadn't done anything to offend the Apollo Familia.
Seeing their confused expressions, Charles could only shake his head. So young, so naïve. This world had no shortage of malice that needed no reason.
When the provocation didn't get the desired reaction, one of the Apollo Familia adventurers boldly walked over and reached his hand out to the group.
"Hey! Are you looking down on the Apollo Familia or something?"
Their group was seated at a round table near the wall, with Bell, Welf, and Lili on the inside, and Charles and Stella sitting on the outer side.
The thug reached straight for Stella's shoulder.
Since regaining his center thanks to Igneel's guidance, Charles wasn't as aggressive as before. Otherwise, he wouldn't have tolerated this idiot's noise for so long.
But that didn't mean he had no temper.
He was raised by Igneel, the Fire Dragon King. That alone should say enough about his disposition.
Charles had become calmer, yes—but like a dormant volcano, that only meant the more violent energy was buried deeper.
And right now? That volcano had started to emit thick, ominous smoke.
Before the thug's hand could even touch Stella, Charles grabbed it—and the fool immediately put on the mask of pain.
"Did your god never teach you what it means to know your limits?"
The man dropped to his knees with a miserable scream.
The entire tavern went silent. All eyes were now fixed on the suddenly explosive confrontation. It didn't take long before someone recognized the parties involved.
"Those emblems… that's the Apollo Familia!"
"Who cares about them—look at who they're messing with!"
"Isn't that the Dragon Furnace? I heard he left Orario, but he's back already?"
"The Apollo guys are screwed…"
Charles had first made a name for himself after fighting Ottar from the Freya Familia. Everyone in Orario knew that the Dragon Furnace of the Hephaestus Familia was a warrior with power rivaling the city's top adventurer.
And the Apollo Familia had a terrible reputation—always trying to poach other Familias' members. Seeing them pick a fight with Charles made the bystanders feel nothing but schadenfreude.
"That's enough."
Hyakinthos knew he couldn't sit this one out any longer. If he let things go on, the Apollo Familia's dignity would be completely destroyed.
But to his surprise, Charles didn't let go of the lackey. Instead, he simply turned to look at Hyakinthos.
"Maybe your god also forgot to teach you something else—watch who you run your mouth to."
Hyakinthos had always doubted the rumors about Charles. According to the Guild's records, Charles was just a Level 2 adventurer. How could someone at that level rival Ottar?
A Spirit Contractor? An ancient hero? Please, all lies. He must've just used a ton of magic swords—after all, the Hephaestus Familia had no shortage of those.
But now, just from looking into Charles' eyes, all his assumptions were shattered.
What he saw wasn't a calm pair of black eyes—it was a raging inferno. A pair of regal dragon-like pupils burned in the depths of that fire, staring directly at him.
In a single moment, Hyakinthos froze mid-step. Sweat soaked his temples. All his previous arrogance evaporated.
And then, a loud slap on the bar counter pulled him out of the suffocating atmosphere.
"You damn brats! If you wanna fight, take it outside! This is a place to enjoy good food and drink!"
Mia had slammed her hand down and shouted at the troublemakers.
Charles released the man's wrist, withdrawing the pressure he had been exerting on Hyakinthos at the same time.
The lackey clutched his injured wrist and crawled over to Hyakinthos.
"Captain, I—!"
Hyakinthos cut him off coldly. "We're leaving."
The rest of the Apollo Familia didn't object—if anything, they looked relieved. No one wanted to clash with someone who could wipe out their entire squad.
After the clowns were dealt with, Charles turned back to his group.
"The flies are gone. Don't let them ruin the mood."
But despite Charles' words, aside from Stella, everyone else looked visibly less relaxed than before.
The Apollo Familia had clearly set their sights on Bell. Today they didn't succeed only because Charles had been present. But it was obvious they wouldn't give up so easily. More trouble was coming.
And so, the festive evening ended on a somber note. Seeing how down Bell and the others were, Charles quickly called it a night and suggested everyone return home.
He and Stella also returned to the Hephaestus Familia manor.
—
The next morning, Charles had planned to take Stella back into the Dungeon.
But before they could even leave, they ran into Hephaestus in the hallway.
She handed Charles an ornate invitation.
"Take a look at this—it's from the Apollo Familia, delivered especially to us."
Charles accepted the extravagant envelope. The emblem of a golden bow and sun was stamped prominently on the front.
Hephaestus sighed. "Word's already gotten around that you clashed with Apollo's people yesterday, huh?
"I heard one of Hestia's kids was involved too, so I figured I knew what happened. But I didn't expect Apollo himself to send a formal invitation for a divine banquet."
She pointed at the inscription at the bottom. "It even specifies that attendees should bring their children with them. That bastard is definitely planning something."
Charles had attended a divine banquet before—back when Loki's Familia had exposed his powers and Hephaestus had taken him to a Ganesha-hosted banquet to show her stance.
Usually, divine banquets were for the gods' entertainment only, and adventurers didn't get involved. But this time, Apollo was explicitly calling for Familia members to be present as well. That alone screamed "trap."
Charles flipped the envelope in his hand and asked, "So, what do you plan to do, Lady Hephaestus?"
Hephaestus rubbed her chin. "Honestly, there's no reason for us to get involved in this pointless drama. Apollo wouldn't dare target us anyway."
Charles knew exactly what was coming next—and sure enough…
"But since it's clearly about Hestia, I can't sit back and do nothing. I'm worried about that girl."
Charles replied, "Then please leave the protection detail to Stella and me."
Hephaestus gave his shoulder a firm pat. "I'm counting on you two."
But Charles couldn't shake the feeling… Why did Hephaestus seem so eager all of a sudden?
Could it be… is my goddess secretly one of those chaos-loving troublemakers too?
If things escalated and she told him to beat Apollo into the ground, should he use his left hand… or his right?
What a troubling dilemma.
(End of Chapter)
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