Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

What is the operational strategy for the "Family"?

"Uh, well—I guess they hope you can go to the dungeons and earn some money..."

Hestia tried to cover up her lack of planning with a dry laugh, but was met with a decisive, sub-zero glare from the other elf.

Without even saying goodbye or a greeting, the elf turned his back to the little goddess sister who had no dignity whatsoever.

waste time.

Just as if leaving behind those words, the child's figure gradually disappeared into the distance.

"The way she looked at me...it was like she was looking at me like I was a piece of paper...!?"

"I'm a goddess...!" Hestia was greatly shocked.

As a new immigrant from the lower realm, Hestia had no idea that, generally speaking, exploration-oriented [Familia] would prepare themselves outside of the city before venturing into the labyrinth city. Without a certain level of manpower or assets, it was difficult to make labyrinth exploration a faction's livelihood. At the very least, it was conceivable that it would be a difficult path.

Those who volunteer to become adventurers are also risking their lives.

They would naturally hope to join a slightly better environment—a family with abundant resources.

"What's the big deal! I've only just begun. As long as I keep persuading people, I should at least find one person...!"

Not to mention that the goddess alone couldn't possibly gather everything from adventurers to other resources locally (Orario). It would be completely pointless for the children; it's obvious they'd suffer.

Besides, everyone knows that Orario—no, the entire Netherworld—is full of terrible gods that are beyond human comprehension, and the consensus is that we must never fall into their trap.

The little goddess who can't even articulate a factional outlook has already been lumped together with those comedic gods.

In other words, they are "not trustworthy".

She continued her persuasive efforts until sunset—all of which ended in failure.

"Total... total annihilation...!? Is this what surviving in the lower realm is like...!?"

To gain faith... Correction, gaining trust is not an easy thing.

This was the first time Hestia had witnessed the harsh conditions of the lower realms.

*

"Waaah, Hephaestus~..."

"You... I only kicked you out a day ago."

After experiencing the feeling of sleeping on the streets for the first time upon arriving in the mortal realm, Hestia could only run to her divine friend and beg for help.

Having experienced the baptism of the lower realm, Hestia abandoned her pride and bowed to Hephaestus—and then for several days in a row, she reached out to him for money.

"Hephaestus..."

Suddenly start complaining about being poor.

"Hephaestus... "

She suddenly burst into tears, complaining that she couldn't find a job to earn a daily wage.

"Hephaestus...!"

They were soaked to the bone again and came begging for shelter from the rain.

Hephaestus was extremely annoyed to see that Hestia was completely helpless without her "divine power".

She couldn't let her friend waste her days, but she also couldn't let her die in the streets. The red-haired, red-eyed goddess, at a loss for what to do, sighed deeply.

"...This is a one-time exception, okay?"

Then, knowing she was being too soft-hearted, she made a deal with Hestia and gave her a place to stay.

It is a "hidden chamber" located deep in a forgotten back alley, beneath a dilapidated church.

"Thank you, Hephaestus...!"

"Seriously, I mean it. This is a one-time thing! I've even found you a part-time job. From now on, you'll have to find your own way!"

Hestia, who was led to the church door by her caring friend, nodded and said "Hmm!"

After saying goodbye to Hephaestus, who was leaving with a sigh, she stepped into the half-ruined basement of the church—the headquarters that would soon become her stronghold.

"Good heavens! Why did you give me a house like this, Hephaestus..."

Seeing the horrific state of the church's basement, Hestia couldn't help but groan.

It was so dilapidated that it was incomparable to the guest rooms I used to stay in.

The paint on the walls was peeling off, and there were even cracks in some places.

There was only one magic stone lamp, the one that hung from the ceiling.

Hephaestus thoughtfully moved a bed and a sofa into the room, but they were all old items.

"No, no, we can't expect too much... We'll settle in eventually!"

She practically shouted it to herself before checking and tidying the room, and then she started cleaning.

Hestia checked the room for any magic stone products, such as running water, and then adjusted the position and height of the furniture to suit her petite frame. By the time she finished, it was late at night. She sighed and stood in the center of the room, surveying the entire space.

"...It feels so empty..."

she blurted out.

A murmur escaped from her delicate lips.

Despite the fact that the basement, which should have been a very small space and a place where one person could be alone, appeared empty to Hestia.

"Although I'm used to living alone in the Celestial Realm... it seems so lively over there with Loki and Hephaestus."

She recalled the expressions on the faces of her fellow villagers, surrounded by their children and families.

Loki, though annoyed by the children, wore a natural, beaming smile. Hephaestus, admired by her companions, also interacted with them with a smile. Not only them, but all the gods Hestia had encountered so far seemed happy and content.

She saw many expressions she had never seen in the celestial realm.

"...Damn it~ I don't feel lonely at all!"

The words, which even sounded like bravado to myself, echoed in the cold basement.

After standing there for a while, Hestia turned off the magic stone lamp and crawled into bed.

"...What kind of children will my family members have?"

What kind of child would be willing to hold your hand?

Hestia let down her hair, which was tied up with rough rope, and lay back on the bed, thinking to herself.

With a touch of loneliness and unease, and a hint of anticipation.

This is the feeling that all the people of the lower realm have experienced regarding the future.

It's a mix of emotions, a complex feeling, about imagining one's future.

Hestia, being a goddess, felt the same way and closed her eyes.

*

Then Hestia's toil—her true life in the underworld—began.

Self-sufficiency is fundamental; one must rely on oneself to earn a living.

She wanted to recruit members of her "familia" who were willing to support her, but her persuasion efforts were repeatedly unsuccessful, and she spent every day in frustration and defeat.

With her omnipotent "divine power" sealed away, Hestia, who suffers every day, recalls the words her divine friend once said about the "harshness of the lower realm."

There's entertainment, excitement, and fun here. But Hestia truly felt that life on Earth was incredibly difficult for a god. When she misused the ignition device at the potato ball stall where she worked, blowing up the entire shop in just two days and ending up with a mountain of debt, she even cried her eyes out.

However, even in such a difficult life, she was fortunate to meet kind people.

"Hestia, you've had a hard day's work. Here, take this potion."

"Oh...! Thank you so much for being so generous every time, Mich!"

"Mihe God, you're randomly handing out elixirs again... and it's pointless to give them to a [Family] that doesn't even have an adventurer..."

This refers to Mih, a kind-hearted male god who runs a small-scale "Family," and his canine servant Naza. In this mortal realm, they meet a new god and his "Family," who form a poverty alliance with Hestia and frequently offer her assistance.

"Isn't that Hestia!? Your appearance in a place like this...?!"

"You're Ah Jian!? Hey, dressed like that, could it be...!"

"A laborer at a potato ball stand?!"

Moreover, her reunion with her old friend Takemikazuchi from the Celestial Realm in Orario—coupled with his own poverty and hard work—became Hestia's motivation to continue striving. Her fellow workers (children) at the stalls also loved and admired the youthful-looking Hestia.

Then, six months after she settled down in Orario.

About three months after she was kicked out of headquarters by Hephaestus, it was a sunny day.

"Rejected again..."

No more, no less, today's fiftieth member of the [Family] failed to persuade her, causing Hestia to slump her shoulders in dejection.

If you count from when she arrived in Orario, she's probably talked to countless children. Loki deliberately came over to laugh at her while she was working at the potato ball shop, but she was too cowardly to say a word back.

Another fruitless day~ Just as she was walking listlessly down the road, a boy came into her view.

(Is that a human child...? They look so miserable, even more pathetic than me.)

The boy walked down the street with the same slumped shoulders and listless demeanor as Hestia.

Her hair was as white as fresh snow, or as pure and clean as a white rabbit.

Her eyes were a vibrant deep red, and her body was slender.

His silhouette inexplicably caught Hestia's attention, and she decided to follow him to see what was going on. Partly it was the atmosphere between them that gave her a sense of closeness, but the bigger reason was that she couldn't ignore the boy's gloomy profile.

Hestia sometimes trotted after him, sometimes dodged into the shadows, swiftly weaving left and right. As she clumsily used her tracking skills, enduring the astonished stares of passersby, she discovered that the boy actually wanted to join a [Family]. He searched everywhere for faction headquarters, knocking on doors, but was always immediately turned away. It seemed he wanted to become an adventurer, but couldn't even get a chance to meet the main god, seemingly because his country bumpkin appearance led people to believe he had no future.

This fact made Hestia think, "Could this be...?"

This seemed like a good opportunity for her to recruit talent, which made her look forward to it.

Even from a distance, you could tell that the boy met Hestia's requirements: he was a simple, introverted person, and most importantly, he seemed to have a pure heart.

She couldn't help but think that the boy's soul must be as pure white as his hair.

Hestia couldn't calm down and, unbecoming of a goddess, secretly observed his movements.

"But that's not what I wanted to say..."

He looks so lonely.

Hestia had this feeling as she watched the boy's bewildered figure, like a lost child, wandering through the crowd.

Unlike himself, who felt anxious and expectant about whether he could find the partner he had longed for.

He is decisively different from the gods who live in the long past; he is a real child.

Hestia stared intently at his profile, which was filled with unease and a sense of searching for a place to belong.

(It's a real headache. Seeing that expression... how could I possibly just abandon it?)

Hestia is in charge of fire, and the lamp left in the house.

It is like an inextinguishable flame, reaching out to those who lament, welcoming the wounded and lost child.

Just then, Hestia spotted a lost child and spoke to the figure from behind:

"Hey there, you over there, kid!"

This seemingly ordinary conversation became the beginning of everything.

At this point, the goddess was completely unaware.

It's unknown what her "encounter" with the boy will bring her or what it will give rise to.

At this point, she was still completely unaware.

Interlude in Volume 15: Will Cinderella Dream of Happiness?

"Congratulations, Miss Supporter. You have leveled up."

The day after completing the Bell [Ability Value] update task.

Hestia didn't tell Lily the update results, but instead made it public in front of everyone.

"what?"

Lily didn't understand what she had heard and remained motionless for a long time.