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

"This has also caused Hestia trouble. She actually tried to swindle money from you all..."

"Well, it's all in the past, there's no point in dwelling on it. I just hope you can take responsibility and prevent this from happening again. Mihe has always helped me a lot, so let's call it even."

"Okay, I promise you..."

Lily reprimanded Miss Nazha mercilessly. We then held an informal apology meeting at the headquarters of the [Mih Familia], along with the gods and the Mih God, for all members of the faction.

Mihe God seems unaware of Ms. Nazha's... well, shady dealings to date, and has repeatedly apologized to us.

Miss Nazha's head was held down and she was not allowed to lift her head yet.

"But speaking of which, Miss Supporter, it's really great that you were able to spot this problem. It seems you've taken good care of Belle, so I'm relieved. Thank you."

"Not at all. It's Lily's honor to be able to help Lord Bell and Goddess Hestia."

Take care of...?

Looking at the gracefully nodding deity and the respectfully bowing Lily, I broke out in a cold sweat. How could it be that without my knowledge, the two of them had entered into some kind of contract concerning me...?

"...Nazha, why did you do this! Answer me!"

Mih God roared angrily.

Miss Nazha's head was freed again. She stood up straight and turned her head to the side.

The strands of hair tied in a princess style danced in the air.

"The Familia's accounts have always been in deficit... The clueless rabbit is just the fat sheep delivered to our door."

Mih and I both twitched simultaneously. And it's rabbits and fat sheep again...

With her eyes half-closed and her tone lacking inflection, she looked no different from the usual Ms. Nazha... but the tail growing from her waist was trembling as if out of fear.

"How could you be so foolish! What's the big deal about swindling a little money! Nazha, in the lower realm, everything relies on credit and trust, which is especially important for doing business. You almost lost these people's trust for a pittance!"

"How utterly foolish!" Mih said, emphasizing his words and raising his gaze.

Miss Nazha lowered her head slightly, gritted her teeth, and glared at God Mihe with fierce eyes.

This was the first time I'd ever seen Ms. Nazha make that expression.

"Mihe God only knows how to say nice things! You don't discriminate between people, always smiling and handing out free elixirs everywhere! Because of you, we can't recoup any of our costs! And you don't even know how many girls you've seduced with your sweet words, causing misunderstandings... You have no idea how many messes I've had to clean up for you...!"

"What are you saying?! What kidnapping? Don't say things that will be misunderstood!"

Mih was taken aback by Miss Nazha's unexpected counterattack. The gazes of the gods and Lily turned somewhat cold.

Mih God seems to often make girls blush with his noble smile... but he himself seems completely unaware of it, and is currently looking confused.

"I'm so sorry to Belle... but if this continues, not only will the debt never be paid off, it will only keep piling up...!"

Huh? My eyes widened.

I couldn't help but shift my gaze to the side, where the goddess Hestia also had her eyebrows furrowed, looking quite surprised.

Debt...?

Caught between Mihe's awkward expression and Miss Nazha's frustrated look, I felt completely at a loss. Did Mihe and the others have some unspeakable secret?

—Just as I was thinking that.

"Hahahaha, I'm here to bother you—!"

The door of the shop was kicked in, accompanied by a laugh that hit the eardrums directly.

"!"

"I'm here to collect this month's debts, Mi-H-ah!"

The newcomer was a handsome man with gray hair and beard, who looked like he had just entered middle age.

Although you can sense the signs of aging, he still has a handsome appearance... It's just a pity that the overall atmosphere he exudes seems to ruin all of that.

A malicious, wicked smile and an arrogant gaze. His attire was a luxurious robe embroidered with gold and silver; it was hard to describe, but it gave the impression of a lavish version of the god Mihe's costume…

"Dean...!"

"I waited for ages and you still didn't show up, so I had to come myself. You should thank me, you poor folks, hahahahahahahaha!"

...I think I understand this deity's personality now.

"This shop is still the same, incredibly dusty! Staying here will make me sick, so I'll keep it short! Besides, there are even more poor people here today than usual!"

Miss Nazha's eyes seemed to be fixed on a murderer, and Mihe looked like she was suffering in silence. Hestia, who had been given a sarcastic remark, was so shocked that she exclaimed, "What?!"

"That is Dean Kate."

"Lily..."

"He leads a [Family] specializing in healing and medicine, and enjoys a reputation among adventurers. For the god Mihe who sells elixirs... he's probably a business rival."

After hearing the information Lily whispered to me, I nodded in sudden understanding. The Mih gods were showing obvious hostility, while Deankat's words and actions were always provocative; this must be because of the complex entanglement between the two sides.

"So, is this month's payment ready, Mich—?"

"this……!"

"Hmph, I bet you're unprepared, not ready yet, right? Hahahaha! You eternal debtors who never pay back your debts!"

—Whew, Mihe God and Miss Nazha clenched their teeth in unison, to the point where they couldn't be tighter.

"I've already forgiven you countless times out of compassion, but your fickle attitude has become unbearable. If you don't pay this month's bill by tomorrow, I'm going to kick you out of this store and sell this run-down headquarters! You better watch out!"

Dean Kate spat and laughed arrogantly.

"Hahahaha! Let's go, Amid!"

"Yes."

The female members who were waiting behind Dean Kate seemed to have been standing in front of the door until now, when they finally made their move.

She was petite and had a face like a delicate porcelain doll. After bowing to us, she left with the main god, who was striding and laughing wildly.

Only the silence after the storm remains among us.

"Deankaite and I didn't get along back in Heaven..."

Mih slowly began to talk about his past.

Now that things have come to this, how can we leave without asking any questions? We listened to the questions from the Mih Family.

"Even after descending to the mortal realm and establishing our [Family], we still clash constantly. Furthermore, the activities of our factions overlap, leading to several battles between us..."

"But I messed it all up."

When Mihe began to hesitate to speak, Miss Nazha interjected:

"I used to be an adventurer too."

“Eh…”

"Just like Bell now, I also went into the dungeon to make money... But one day, I failed. I was beaten to a pulp by the monsters, and my right arm was eaten."

Before I could even ask any questions...

Ms. Nazha was wearing that asymmetrical top, and she had rolled up the unusual sleeve that was only unusually long on her right arm.

The next moment, I was speechless and couldn't help but hold my breath.

"A silver prosthetic limb...?"

"This was prepared by the god Mih for me after I lost my arm... He bowed and begged the [Deankaite Familia] countless times for this hand."

Lily cried out in surprise.

As she said, Ms. Nazha's right arm was made of silver.

It has a smooth, metallic luster, like a sharpened sword. Although its shape is very similar to a human arm, gemstones are embedded in the joints, revealing its internal structure.

When I took off the glove on my right hand, I saw that it was made of silver all the way to the fingertips.

"The Deankaite Familia is a healing and medicine-making family. In addition to selling elixirs, they also provide specialized treatments or items according to the needs of adventurers. This 'Silver Arm (Agateram)' is also one of their products."

She stretched out her left hand and gripped the silver right arm tightly, making a squeaking sound.

"Mih bought this prosthetic leg for me alone, and thus went into debt. At that time, apart from me, the other members of the band could not bear the huge debt and lost faith in Mih... They all left."

...She said that the Mih Familia used to possess a mid-sized and powerful force. In terms of the clinic's Familia, its strength was even comparable to the Deankait Familia.

However, due to an accident involving Miss Nazha, the [Family] collapsed and fell into ruin.

As a result, all that remained around Mihe God were adventurers who could no longer take risks and huge debts, as Miss Nazha calmly asserted.

"I'm too scared to fight monsters now. Luckily, my seniors taught me the knowledge and skills of making medicine, which allowed me to become a pharmacist... but I don't earn much money, and it's not enough to pay off my debts. I'm a useless piece of trash."

"Nazha".

"That's why we borrowed money from those guys. It's all my fault."

"Nazha! Okay, stop talking."

Mihe's calm tone silenced Ms. Nazha, who was about to continue blaming herself.

Then came a heavy silence.

Learning that Miss Nazha was once an adventurer and that her right arm was a prosthetic, the shock of so many unknown facts left me speechless. The goddess Hestia seemed unaware of Mihe's unfortunate past, her arms crossed over her chest, eyes closed in silence. Lily, on the other hand, calmly observed Miss Nazha and the others.

Perhaps Ms. Nazha did indeed cheat me out of my money... but if I were in her shoes, I might have done the same and engaged in some illegal activities.

The gods (deities) would never abandon us in our time of need; they would always lend a helping hand, yet we repay kindness with enmity.

Just thinking about this makes my heart ache.

It hurt so much that I wanted to cry out.

"...So, what should we do now? I understand your situation, Mihe, but the most important thing right now is the immediate problem. Didn't Dean say he wanted to sell this headquarters?"

The deity broke the silence and asked them if they had secured the amount they were supposed to repay tomorrow.

Mihe looked serious at the question and turned his gaze to Miss Nazha.

Ms. Nazha's gaze wandered for a moment, then she lowered her head.

"There is a way..."

Then, in a soft, low voice, say:

"But I alone... with only Mih and me, it's impossible..."

The setting sun reflected off the glass window, shimmering as if it were penetrating.

The hustle and bustle that should have been on the distant avenue seemed to reach this place like a whisper.

Miss Nazha lowered her head, as if she was too ashamed to face anyone. For her, who had been deceiving us all this time, the simple phrase "save us" seemed more unattainable than anything else.

Silence returned. I looked at the faces of others several times, feeling uneasy, and finally looked at the gods with a pleading expression.

The goddess Hestia looked back at me with her mysterious blue eyes, and after a moment of eye contact, she asked me silently: What do you want to do?

The way she did it was as if she was allowing herself to make the decision.

Faced with the gentle gaze of the deity, as if protecting a child, my heart tightened, and I nodded firmly in my heart.

I carefully chose my words, deliberately speaking loudly, trying to dispel the gloomy atmosphere.

"Ah, um... Lily, Lily. Getting back to the topic, wouldn't you like to take on more adventurer quests? Just one isn't enough... Also, it's also for future reference."

I used my clumsy acting skills to pretend to strike up a conversation with Lily.

Lily's eyes widened, as if she sensed my feelings. She smiled wryly, as if to say, "I just can't do anything with you," and then helped me put on an act.

"That's true. Lily and Lady Bell are full of energy right now and really want to find something to do. I wonder if anyone would like to ask us to take on adventurer requests?"

Lily closed her eyes, smiled, and agreed with my opinion. Mihe and Miss Nazha looked quite surprised.

The goddess Hestia smiled gently and looked up at the god Mih.

"That's how it is, Mih. Do you have any work to do? Think of it as helping these two energetic kids. Don't worry, we'll help with anything, whether it's trouble or paying off debts."

"Hestia, you... no, I'm so sorry. I owe you a favor."

Mihe thanked me, while Miss Nazha looked at me as if she were embarrassed.

"Bell, is it really okay...? I..."

"...Because both Lily and I received help from Miss Nazha."

The day we were surrounded by a swarm of killer ants.