"Who told you to pick a fight so early in the morning?"
Hestia looked annoyed, her chubby cheeks puffing out.
"I don't think there's anything wrong with your ties to Evilus. If you act in Genkai, you take responsibility for it. If relationships get messed up, it's all because of your own actions."
"But making me stay here with you? That's on you~!"
She might as well have said, 'I don't want to waste my time with you.' Her reluctance couldn't be clearer.
Loki's face darkened, but when it came to Hestia, there wasn't much she could do.
After all, she knew better than anyone that the others might be pawns of Evilus—but not this little runt.
"Hephaestus hasn't gone back. Why are you in such a hurry to leave?"
That almost made Loki blurt out, 'What's your rush, you freeloader?'
Hearing that, Hestia nearly flared up, her nose twitching with anger.
Did she really think Hestia wouldn't catch the hidden barb? Did she take her for an idiot?
Yet instead of exploding, Hestia forced down her temper with a sweet smile.
"Hmph, I'm not the same as before. My child is very good at making money."
That drew the gods' attention immediately.
The words "good at making money" made them all think of the rune stones that had recently become popular in Orario.
Everyone could tell there was something unusual about them. They carried traces of Authority, yet what they exercised was still the power of Magic.
Perhaps it was the awakening of some very special ability?
As for that child's origin, everyone had already investigated, and all fingers pointed to Hestia. Now, hearing her claim her child was raking in wealth, the answer seemed obvious.
But children with this kind of magical power usually didn't excel in direct combat. Otherwise, with Hestia's personality, she would have shown them off long ago.
Still, Dionysus gave Hestia a longer look, a faint unease stirring in him.
'She's kept this hidden all this time. Why bring it up now?'
It seemed to him Hestia was deliberately concealing something, though this wasn't the moment to call her out.
"A child that's been kept hidden—why bring them out now? Wouldn't it be better to keep them out of sight?"
"Hmph! My child needs to grow too."
"...I see."
Loki's expression said it all—"No wonder." Hestia's child had stayed hidden for so long. They wouldn't just appear without a reason.
So that's it—leveling up.
Dionysus understood.
For a growing adventurer, leveling up was a necessary step. Only through it could they gain greater strength.
Of course, the process was an enormous challenge for most. Otherwise, more than half of Orario's adventurers wouldn't still be stuck at Lv.1.
The other gods began to look more understanding as well.
They still cared about Hestia's child. Even if the child wasn't exceptionally gifted, to already be thinking of leveling up after just half a year as an adventurer smacked of impatience.
In Orario, an adventurer's talent and potential were judged in part by how quickly they reached Lv.2. The shorter the time, the greater the talent.
But that was only true for the truly gifted.
Most adventurers with ambition could meet the conditions to reach Lv.2 quickly—especially those supported by large Familia. But doing so inevitably ate away at their potential. Advancing too early was nothing more than vanity, a bid to claim the title of Orario's "earliest upgrade."
The "Strongest" of Freya Familia and the "Sword Princess" of Loki Familia both undoubtedly had the ability to push any single stat past 500 points. Yet it still took them more than a year to reach Lv.2. Why?
Because it came down to how they managed their own talent, gifts, and latent potential.
Adventurers who only chase after quick leveling usually don't have much of a future.
But for adventurers with production skills, that's another matter entirely.
For them, leveling up is often done to gain a suitable Development Ability. This is especially common among artisan Familia such as the Goibniu Familia and the Hephaestus Familia.
For a craftsman, leveling up to acquire "Blacksmith" as a Development Ability is practically routine.
So if Hestia's child was rushing to level up this soon, it was most likely to secure "Mystery" as their Development Ability.
Just the mention of rune stones immediately calls "Mystery" to mind.
If Hestia's child was already producing rune stones of that quality, and if they truly managed to obtain "Mystery," then the standard of rune stone crafting might be raised even further.
That was something the gods could not simply ignore.
"Hestia, are you sure your child's growth is on track?"
"If there's a problem, I can help!"
One after another, the gods, all seeing the profit to be made, began trying to cozy up to her.
If they lent a hand now, they might later get their hands on even higher-grade rune stones. It was a deal with nothing but upside.
...
"...Your intentions couldn't be more obvious. I'd never trust my child in your hands."
Hestia rolled her eyes, not taking their so-called offers of help seriously in the slightest.
"Besides, some of you might even be those rats. If something happened to my child, who would take responsibility?"
That silenced the gods.
Claiming there were no Evilus deities among them? Even they wouldn't believe that themselves.
Those vermin were definitely hiding in their ranks—why else would Loki be restricting their actions?
The Evilus gods hidden within the assembly all rolled their eyes together.
'Do we look that stupid?'
Rune stones were a resource you could buy with money, one that could even narrow the gap between weak and strong to some degree. With resources that easy to acquire, they had no need for underhanded methods.
And with tensions with the Guild now flaring, the last thing they wanted was to lose the advantage rune stones provided at such a critical moment.
The faster Hestia's child grew, the better it was for them.
So, they would never target a child with weak combat power but exceptional production ability.
Not unless they were left with no way at all to get rune stones.