However, there was also the matter of the probability of success. Once the Monster's corruption of Artemis reached a certain threshold, the only remaining option would be to send her back to Tenkai. There was no guarantee Bell could save her completely. After all, saving Artemis also served some of his own personal goals. If it came to a point where she could no longer be saved, he had to be ready for the worst.
"I understand."
Hestia had already prepared herself for that possibility. "In that case, I'll go get ready."
Bell, who had yet to leave, suddenly turned to look at Loki.
"Loki, you'll be coming along with your 'Sword Princess.'"
"Taking Ais-tan too? Oh~~"
Loki quickly understood his intent and nodded.
"Then we'll bring her. But the place where Artemis was attacked is quite far from Orario. You should go to Hermes first and get the route before we move."
"No problem. I'll head to Hermes and bring someone who knows the way."
Bell left behind a visual capture device, then vanished.
...
Freya and Loki, left in the living room, both looked at Hestia with sour expressions.
"Happy now, Hestia?"
Loki glared at her, clearly annoyed.
"Of course not~"
Hestia knew exactly what Loki meant. She hadn't said a word earlier, yet Bell still took her feelings into account and chose the most troublesome path—saving Artemis.
What else could that be but favoritism?
"'Of course not~'? His favoritism isn't just a little bit."
Loki was practically oozing jealousy. She wasn't even trying to hide it anymore. After admitting her feelings for Bell, her envy was now fully out in the open.
"Bell is my child. Is it wrong for him to favor me a little?"
When it came to her child showing affection toward her, Hestia perked up completely. She was always delighted by such things.
It proved that Bell cared most about her. For a goddess, that was something to be proud of.
"But about Artemis... I hope Bell can let go if it really becomes impossible."
"Oh~ I thought you'd do anything to make Bell save Artemis."
"As if."
Hestia smiled and shook her head at Loki's teasing.
She looked out the window at the sky, as if she could see a moon that wasn't really there.
"Even if Artemis can't be saved, it doesn't mean we'll never see her again. Rather than forcing her to stay, it's better to send her back to Tenkai."
"Artemis must have thought the same. That's why she left fragments of her consciousness and soul within that arrow. If she'd lost awareness, she might instinctively resist other attacks—but not the arrow, because it's part of herself."
"From the start, Artemis made her intentions clear through her actions."
Hestia didn't know what Artemis had gone through to make such a resolute decision, but she must have understood the danger her continued presence would bring to Genkai.
And if Artemis herself had fallen into such despair, what about the children who followed her?
Perhaps that too was why Artemis wanted to be sent back to Tenkai.
Leaving the hall, Bell headed to his basement.
The Divine Core of the god Ikelos had been stored there all along. It served as Bell's research material on gods—after all, he would have to confront them eventually, and studying beforehand would keep him from being unprepared when the time came.
This time, his reason for taking up the Divine Core was simple: to help Artemis hold on a little longer during the rescue.
According to Bell's estimation of the Sword Princess, her strength probably hadn't improved much during this period.
That meant bringing her along this time would truly be a challenge beyond her current level—a chance for her to face a divine beast capable of devouring gods.
She would inevitably need some help during the battle.
However, since the opponent was a creature that had already devoured a god and absorbed divine power, Bell's assistance would hardly make a difference in whether the Sword Princess could gain Excelia. A monster imbued with divine might was simply incomparable to ordinary ones.
Next, Bell's task was to unseal the arrow and bring the consciousness and fragments of the goddess Artemis into his home.
Without the goddess's guidance, finding a precise location would be nearly impossible.
After preparing everything, Bell turned and stepped through a spatial rift toward the Hermes Familia.
...
Hermes was quietly waiting among his Familia when space itself split open before him.
Bell, dressed in a white trench coat, appeared openly in front of the god.
"Well, well, here you are, Bell-kun."
Seeing the ever-casual Hermes, Bell let out a quiet sigh.
"Hermes, I really hope we don't have to meet under circumstances like these every time."
"Well now~ this one wasn't on purpose. I didn't expect Artemis's call for help. She's always been cautious, but who could've thought she'd run into something even her Familia couldn't handle?"
Bell could tell from his tone that Hermes would definitely pull the same stunt again someday, but there was little he could do about the playful god.
"Hermes, from here on, I'll be taking over the rescue operation for Artemis."
"Rescue… Hestia? Don't tell me she looked at you with tearful eyes and you couldn't refuse."
"No. This is simply an experiment—an opportunity to test my theories about the gods. Artemis's situation just happens to be the perfect case for it."
Hermes nearly rolled his eyes at that explanation.
"Sure, whatever you say."
Among the gods, Hermes had interacted with Bell more than most. He knew very well how skilled Bell was at saying exactly what others wanted to hear.
"But tell me, is Artemis still salvageable?"
"There's still a chance. If she sent you a distress signal and continues resisting the Monster's corruption, then before her divine power is completely devoured, her body should remain intact."
"If it's only a matter of replenishing the divine power within her core, we might still be able to bring Artemis back."
"Hmm... there might be some hope then."
Hermes thought over Bell's words carefully. If things hadn't reached the final stage yet, perhaps Artemis really could be pulled back from the brink.
"And if it's already too late?"
"If that happens, we'll have no choice but to focus on sending her back to Tenkai. If a god were to undergo a reversal like the Spirits once did, the human world could very well face total annihilation at Artemis's hands."