Chapter 22: Lili's Divine Power, the Shocked Gods
The white long tables placed at the center of the banquet were laden with precious jade platters and delicacies, the fresh fruits radiating a mouth-watering luster.
Melodious music gradually drifted through the venue; it was a band specially invited by Ganesha, using their pleasing tunes as the background for this Banquet of the Gods.
Glancing around this wide hall, basically all the deities residing in Orario had arrived.
The number of invitations to the Banquet of the Gods was judged based on the size and headcount of their [Familia].
After all, if the venue were too small, even if all the gods were willing to attend, once everyone arrived and felt cramped, it would only bring shame to the host deity of the Familia.
And an oversized Familia that could be counted on one hand even within Orario like the [Ganesha Familia] naturally invited every single deity in Orario.
Of course, a "god" like Shirou who did not belong to the native world was invited by Loki, who was somewhat familiar with him.
However, when Shirou arrived at the entrance of Babel, someone blocked his path.
"Um... Kami-sama, this Banquet of the Gods does not allow Familia members to enter..."
The staff member responsible for hosting the banquet said respectfully.
Naturally, the other party wouldn't dare show disrespect in front of a god; he was merely strictly following the rules to block Lili, who in his eyes did not belong to the deities.
Lili's figure could be considered quite curvaceous, but she was as petite as a young girl, making it very easy for someone to distinguish whether she was a demi-human or not.
Hearing the staff member's words, Shirou let out a light sigh and then looked at Lili beside him.
"Release your divine power."
Lili nodded, and golden radiance immediately emanated from her body. That brilliance, dazzling like the solar wheel, instantly dispelled all the darkness and enveloped the entire [Orario] in golden light.
Seeing this scene, the gods one by one widened their eyes.
"What happened?"
"Divine power! Someone actually released divine power!?"
"Which deity is it?"
Among them, the one who was most surprised was none other than the "Goddess of Beauty," Freya.
Her divine eyes could easily see through people of the Lower World, and as for beings who were fellow deities, although she couldn't see through them completely, she could still perceive the hazy color of their divine power.
Right now, the golden light released at this very moment by the Pallum girl standing beside the red-haired youth was undoubtedly divine power, and it was a divine power on par with any deity present.
However, compared to Lili, Freya's gaze quickly shifted back to the red-haired youth.
The other gods couldn't perceive it, but Freya could see that blindingly bright golden radiance as if it were the brightest light in the world. Even with the gods standing before him, they all appeared pale and eclipsed by comparison.
In Freya's eyes, only this single figure remained. Her slender, white-porcelain-like arms propped up her cheeks as she gazed longingly and infatuatedly in that direction, even her purple twin pupils blooming with heart shapes.
Shirou naturally discovered that Freya was staring at him. As for this "Goddess of Beauty," he also knew a thing or two.
Compared to Ishtar over in the Pleasure District—who ate men without spitting out their bones and played with them in the palm of her hand—Freya didn't seem particularly promiscuous; back in Heaven, she had also dizzied a crowd of male gods by making them dream of her.
Although he knew all this, Shirou didn't plan on having too much contact with her.
The number of people back at the house in Fuyuki was already close to bursting; if there were a few more, goodness knows what it would turn into.
"Say, Orihara... come to think of it, there's something I'm a bit curious about."
Loki sidled up next to Shirou and whispered in his ear.
"What is it?" Shirou looked at her in confusion.
Loki pointed at Lili beside Shirou.
"When did she become your... Familia?"
Because Lili possessed divine power, Loki wasn't quite sure whether she could still be called Shirou's Familia at this point.
"Met her in the dungeon this morning. Brought her back and had her become my Familia right after."
Shirou recalled as he spoke.
"O-One day—!?"
Not just Loki, even the gods nearby opened their mouths wide and let out such exclamations.
"So all you guys were eavesdropping the whole time!"
Shirou looked speechlessly at the group of gods who loved watching the chaos without making it too big.
As for the deities, in all the years since coming to the Lower World, it was their first time encountering such a bizarre and fresh event, so naturally, they all crowded around in excitement, vividly illustrating what it meant to be pure onlookers for the lulz.
This state didn't last long; the banquet still had to go on. Everyone dispersed again to chat amongst themselves, though the center of conversation remained Shirou, the "deity" from another world.
Shirou brought Lili over to the table laden with food at the banquet and tasted some of the delicacies.
"Mmh, tastes pretty good."
"I-If you're satisfied, that's all that matters!"
A member of the [Ganesha Familia] serving as a waiter at this Banquet of the Gods looked somewhat nervous facing this deity who had come from another world.
"Is the food over here to your liking?"
Miach walked over with a bright smile and struck up a conversation with Shirou.
"Not bad."
Shirou nodded and returned a gentle smile to the other man.
"Speaking of which, Miach, your Familia runs a medicine shop, right?"
"That's right. If your Familia needs any, I can provide them here, and there's a discount for wholesale orders."
Seemingly thinking that Shirou wouldn't bring this up for no reason, Miach impatiently recommended the shop run by his own Familia.
"Wholesale will do, my Familia hasn't grown to the point where we need large quantities of potions just yet."
Shirou chuckled and shrugged.
"Ah-la, I wonder who the lucky person will be to join your Familia."
Miach said with considerable interest.
"Well... she's a very cute child."
Shirou replied.
"Is that so? Then I congratulate you." Miach smiled.
"Hehe, and I wish your apothecary a booming business."
Shirou chuckled twice and replied to him.
At that moment, the sound of discussion suddenly broke out from the center of the banquet, and both Shirou and Miach's gazes were drawn over.
Amidst the bustling crowd of voices, Hestia was engaged in a fierce battle with various dishes in front of a food table, because with her stature, she couldn't reach the food in the middle of the table.
"Damn it!"
Hestia packed the dishes she could see one after another into the thermal lunch box she had brought.
"That way, I won't have to cook for myself for several days!"
At this point, everyone could notice that Hestia was the only one not wearing luxurious attire or a formal gown, but instead scraping by in a relatively formal casual outfit.
"Waa, it's that loli god!"
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