"My friends!"
"Thank you all for gracing me with your presence at this banquet."
"I do hope everyone is enjoying themselves so far."
Apollo's gaze shifted away from Alice.
Standing on the raised platform, he spread his arms wide, addressing the entire assembly.
"What are you talking about, Apollo? The party's only just begun! How could we not be enjoying ourselves?"
"If you've got other entertainment, bring it out already!"
"That's right! We came here for a show, not to dance!"
Hearing Apollo's words, the crowd of deities roared back, eager for spectacle.
"Now, now—" Apollo pressed his hands down, gesturing for quiet. "While I've no other performances prepared, I do wish to offer an apology to a certain lovely lady."
Click.
The banquet hall's lights instantly died. Then, as if from nowhere, a single spotlight beam fell directly upon Alice.
"It's starting. Need a hand, Alice?" Loki murmured under her breath.
"Thanks, but no. I can handle this," Alice replied, a serene smile gracing her lips.
Apollo descended from the dais and approached Alice.
"Ahhh, the enchanting Miss Alice. I wish to offer my deepest apologies for the improper actions of my subordinate, Hyakinthos, several days prior."
With that, Apollo bowed deeply to Alice, his posture impeccably graceful and refined.
"However, I beg your understanding. Hyakinthos acted out of an overwhelming jealousy toward your beauty, leading to his discourteous behavior. Although the Guild has already punished my Familia, I feel a single bottle of unfinished divine wine is insufficient to express my remorse."
"Thus, this very banquet was arranged to convey my apologies to you."
"Here and now, I declare that henceforth, the Apollo Familia shall stand as Miss Alice's most steadfast shield. Should anyone set their sights upon her, or dare raise a hand against her, they will be considered an enemy of the Apollo Familia."
Apollo lifted his head, announcing this with a haughty expression.
The Apollo Familia was rated Rank D by the Guild.
While four higher ranks existed above it, in Orario—a city where Level 1 adventurers were the norm—a Familia boasting a Level 3 captain, several Level 2 members, and a host of Level 1s was considered a solidly mid-tier power.
Therefore, Apollo's words carried a certain degree of intimidation.
However, Alice's own strength had been enough to defeat Hyakinthos. While it was unknown if she could withstand the entire Apollo Familia's siege, the fact remained: those who couldn't afford to provoke Apollo's Familia also couldn't afford to provoke Alice.
Conversely, existences that the Apollo Familia dared not provoke were not necessarily beyond Alice's reach.
So, while Apollo's statement held some intimidating weight, for Alice, it was ultimately useless.
"Lord Apollo, regarding Hyakinthos's actions, I have already chosen to forgive him. I thank you for your support, so let us consider this matter closed."
Of course, Alice's words were merely polite formalities.
Even if Alice wanted the matter dropped, Apollo had no intention of letting it end here.
Sure enough, the moment Alice finished speaking, a 'sickening' smile flickered across Apollo's face.
"Heh!!" The grin appeared for only an instant before he suppressed it, but both Alice and Loki, standing close by, saw the disgusting expression clearly.
Apollo then turned to face the crowd of deities and proclaimed loudly.
"Everyone! Although the lovely Miss Alice has accepted my apology."
"As a god! I cannot allow myself to be in debt to a child of the lower world!"
"Due to the improper actions of the Loki Familia, Miss Alice has previously stated she will not join any Familia. Therefore, I will not request that Miss Alice join mine, for even if I did, it would not succeed."
"So I ask you all here to bear witness!"
"I, Apollo, shall hereby propose to Miss Alice! I swear this upon my name as a god!"
At that moment, Hyakinthos, standing beside Apollo, stepped forward and handed him an exquisite small box.
Apollo opened the box, retrieving a sapphire pendant. He dropped to one knee before Alice.
Witnessing Apollo's actions, all the gods were stunned. Even Hyakinthos, who knew Apollo's intentions, felt his face darken.
Apollo presented the sapphire pendant to Alice, looking up at her with a deeply earnest expression.
"For the remainder of Miss Alice's life, I will devote all my love to ensuring her happiness. Please, Miss Alice, accept this humble love from a god."
Apollo's grand gesture sent a thrill of excitement through the deities present, who had been waiting for just such a spectacle.
Romances between gods and mortals were commonplace in the lower world. Whether it was mortals falling for gods, or gods becoming enamored with mortals, such things happened frequently.
But for a god to stage a public marriage proposal, swearing a divine oath, using such methods to essentially 'pressure' a young girl...
Well, no other god present had ever sunk to quite this level.
In unison, the deities marveled at Apollo's shamelessness, but they also grew intensely curious about how this would play out.
Alice's attitude had been clear all along. She clung to Loki's arm, maintained only polite courtesy toward Apollo's earlier advances, and her resistance to him was obvious to everyone.
For them, the most boring outcome would be if Alice actually yielded to the 'pressure' and accepted Apollo's affection.
They were hoping for a real scene.
Most of the gods were intensely curious about what would happen next.
Hestia watched Alice with a worried expression.
She never imagined Apollo would be so brazen as to declare his love publicly. She could easily predict the outcome.
Alice would definitely refuse.
But after such a shameless public proposal, if Apollo were rejected, it would give him and his followers the perfect pretext to take offense and target Alice.
Just as she feared.
However, Alice's actual response still managed to surprise Hestia.
Facing Apollo's declaration, Alice's expression remained cool and detached.
"My apologies, Lord Apollo. I prefer women, not men."
--+--
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