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

Hearing that familiar voice, she was incredulous, but upon seeing the goddess before her, she reflexively called out her name.

"—Goddess Astraea!"

Her walnut-colored hair cascaded down her back, and she wore a pristine white outfit.

Those eyes were even clearer than Ryu's sky-blue eyes; they were a deep blue, like a vast starry sea.

Shakti was stunned when he met Astraea, the "Goddess of Justice" he could never mistake.

Why did you come here...?

"Ryu visited me after she got the answer. Since that's the case, I should do my part for that child, it's that simple."

At the request of her kin (Ryu), who was determined to take revenge, the goddess of justice who left Orario five years ago still has clear and bright eyes and smiles at her familiar old friends.

Behind Astraea followed several girls who appeared to be her new kin.

And among that group of people—

"Thank you for showing me the way, Asphie. I was able to catch up without you."

"You're too kind, Goddess Astraea. I was merely keeping my promise to Leon."

You can see Asifi, who has beautiful light blue hair, among them.

She left halfway through watching the war game with Hermes at the Tower of Babel, actually to welcome Ryu and Astrea, who had traveled all the way from the sword-making city of Thoringen back to Orario.

Everything went exactly as planned.

Once the format and schedule of the war game were finalized, Asphie immediately sent a message to the sword-making city (Solingen). If Ryu and the others missed the competition—that is, if the pair of magical items Asphie gave Ryu before she left the city glowed—Asphie, upon receiving the "signal," would come to greet them in person.

Capable of flying through the "Flying Shoes," she first took Ryu away from the goddess's group, who had already entered the Labyrinth City's field of vision, and dropped her off above the "Osa City Ruins." Then, she immediately returned to guide the newly formed [Asteria Familia] to the Crater Lake.

"We're here too, Shakti."

"I was wondering what had happened since Chloe and the others hadn't shown up yet."

"The goddess Demeter... and also, the god Njord..."

Besides Astraea and her entourage, there was also a goddess and a god beside them.

The two gods are Demeter, who is in charge of Orario's first-tier industry, and Nyord, who runs a fishing business in the port city of Melon.

"The children of 'The Abundant Mistress' have all completed their conversion."

"...!"

"They are already our clan, so if we participate in the war as well, it won't be considered a violation, right?"

Shakti was greatly surprised after hearing the words of the two gods.

At Lunova and Chloe's request, Demeter and the others had already helped all the "Mistress of Abundance" shopkeepers convert before the war game began. As long as the two gods enter the island, it wouldn't be considered a violation of the rules.

"I've heard Ryu's explanation. It's unbelievable that Freya and that girl have such a relationship. But... Ryu told me that she's willing to go against Freya's will to 'fight' and ask her herself about the 'girl' who brought her salvation after she lost Alicia and the others and only wanted to die..."

Astraea gazed into the distance, making no attempt to hide her feelings of wonder.

Then, just like a mother who silently watches her child grow up, she also expressed her determination.

"That child's current 'justice' is 'stopping her confidant.' In that case, I hope to use starlight to light her way forward, so that she can spread her wings and fly freely... Therefore, from this moment on, we officially join the faction alliance."

"Goddess Astraea..."

"Could you let us across this bridge, Shakti?"

Astraea smiled gently, her long walnut-colored hair swaying softly.

Shakti first looked at the goddess, then turned to look at the goddess's retinue.

The [Family] emblem they wear is a sword of justice and wings, shaped like a scale.

That was once regarded as a model by Shakti and others, and now they inherit his will, representing proof of "correctness".

Shakti silently closed her eyes under the watchful eyes of the gods and her tense bandmates.

A moment later, she stepped back from the gods and respectfully made way for them.

"Please proceed; you have the right to cross this bridge."

"—Thank you, Shakti."

Mondaka was stunned by the decision, while Ilta and the others were overjoyed.

Without waiting for the leader to give the order, the members had already prepared "flowers" and handed them to the three gods. With the Ganesha Familia stepping aside to make way, and with Asphie and Shakti, who could not accompany them, watching as the Astrea Familia, Demeter, and Njord finally entered the "Ruins of Osa City".

"I didn't have time to say hello earlier. It's been so long, Astraea. How have you been?"

"I'm doing well, Demeter. It's so good to see that you and Njord are both doing well."

"To be honest, I'd love to organize a colleagues' reunion... but I simply don't have time to discuss that right now."

The three gods, who had known each other since before the "Dark Ages," walked forward chatting and laughing. However, as soon as they crossed the bridge and reached the south side of the ruins, they stopped. The reason was that the moment they arrived on the island, they could hear the sounds of a battle far more intense than those outside the island.

That was the sound of a deadly battle, which no adventurer outside of Orario could intervene in.

"Cersei, everyone, I'm sorry to have troubled you all the way from the sword-making city of Thoringen to get here with me."

"Please don't say that! We are all your kin, Goddess Astraea, and we will protect you no matter what—! Besides, this is of utmost importance to 'senpai'!"

After Astrea left Orario five years ago, the girls who became her familia all wore cheerful smiles.

She couldn't help but smile at Ryu's juniors, then turned her gaze forward.

The direction my gaze was directed toward the western side of the ruins, where the sounds of fighting and shouting still echo to this day.

"Although we have the right to watch, we are not qualified to participate, so let's just stay here for now."

—Stay here and witness the fate of Ryu and the others.

After speaking, the goddess slightly narrowed her deep blue eyes.

"I completely forgot to add a rule: [Familia] from outside the city are prohibited from participating in the battle!!"

"I'm so sorry, Lady Freya!!"

Upon seeing Astrea and her entourage, the male gods who were on Freya's side all let out cries of regret.

The "Resonators," who firmly believed that no other outside help would dare to participate in the war game against the Freya Familia—and even thought that having outside help would further invigorate the atmosphere—were filled with regret. Since the rules had loopholes, Shakti, being an omniscient and powerless god, naturally could not condemn Shakti for agreeing to Astrea and her group joining the battle midway.

In the thirtieth floor of the Tower of Babel, where screams echoed incessantly, a goddess strolled leisurely among the other gods.

"Now the two can finally step into the ring and compete against each other!"

"Hey!" Loki exclaimed in a middle-aged man's voice, plopping down in the empty seat.

The person standing diagonally behind her was Bert, who had been forcibly dragged here.

"Don't be ridiculous, you actually expect me to watch the battle with these noisy gods..." The goddess ignored Bert's dejected complaints and sat cross-legged, looking up at the huge "divine mirror" in mid-air.

Another god walked over and sat down next to Loki.

"Hey~ Clown, what kind of magic did you use to send Mia to the battlefield?"

"How dare you say such a thing, pretty boy. You used all sorts of tricks to throw Astraea in there, didn't you?"

Loki coldly scoffed at Hermes, who raised a hand in greeting.

The true identities of these two deities are "hidden helpers".

They were also the "unsung heroes behind the scenes" who, knowing that the faction alliance's victory was almost hopeless, helped arrange countermeasures until the very end for various reasons, such as wanting to protect the boy or disliking the queen (Freya).

Apart from the two gods, the faction alliance was able to reach this "watershed" thanks to the help of many people, including Finn, who were unable to participate in the war.

"Are there any other hidden trump cards?"

"That's all. What follows is a true head-on confrontation without any underhanded tactics."

He had run out of bullets.

Will they emerge victorious? Or will they suffer defeat? Or will things take a different turn?

The decision can only be made by the adventurers and the gods who stand on the battlefield.

"Actually, I really didn't want to help that big-breasted girl who makes potato balls... but she's at least much better than Freya is now, several times better. So—"

The red-haired goddess looked at the scene reflected in the "divine mirror" and said.

"I've done so much preparation for you... You absolutely have to win, you little dwarf."

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa...!? By the time I came to my senses, the situation had drastically changed...!!"

Hestia, of course, had no idea that Loki was staring intently at her as he uttered these thoughts, which were comparable to those of an incompetent boss.

Within sight, lightning and abundance (meow meow) were rampaging everywhere, and this scene alone completely rewrote the atmosphere of certain defeat.

After fleeing for a while to avoid wasting the sacrifices of Hephaestus and the others, Hestia, who prides herself on being a master of hide-and-seek, successfully escaped the clutches of her pursuers (Allen and the others). To be precise, it was the God of Forging (Hephaestus) and the God of War (Takemikazuchi) who bought her the time to escape the pursuers' detection range.

"Thanks to the deodorizing ball (item) Mih gave me...! It allowed me to escape the orcs' pursuit!"

And the props that Mihe and Nazha made.

After Hestia discovered that most of the enemy troops were orcs who relied on their sense of smell, she simply scattered the substance over their heads. This was largely due to her being separated from the Goddess of Forging (Hephaestus), allowing her to use the item while many gods were being eliminated, which made it incredibly effective. The orcs, who were originally tracking the young goddess (Hestia), were greatly confused by the sudden disappearance of the scent and were forced to change their target.

However, while one can hide their face, one cannot hide their breasts. The young goddess, unaware that her ample breasts are peeking out from behind the ruins, is secretly observing her surroundings—and this "game of finding the god" is about to come to an end.

"...The enemy troops have successively rushed back to the west side...?"

You can see a large amount of dust rising in the distance from the ruins, and at the same time, you can hear the sound of running as loud as the hoofbeats of horses.

After realizing that their headquarters—the main god (Freya)—was in danger, Allen and the others immediately stopped their hunt for the gods.

Hestia finally breathed a sigh of relief as she watched the valiant warriors swiftly traverse the city ruins from east to west with lightning speed.

"That being said, what should I do next...? Should I continue hiding here? Or should I keep moving...? It seems like reinforcements have arrived from the south; would it be safer to go there...?"

Despite possessing battlefield knowledge, Hestia, who had never experienced it firsthand, was troubled.

Although Hestia wanted to seek advice from Lily, Lily was probably currently commanding the entire army with bloodshot eyes and near-madness, and even the goddess would be terrified by her appearance. Moreover, there was no guarantee that activating the Eye Crystal would not result in her being discovered by the enemy due to the loud voices of the little people echoing around.

Just as Hestia was fretting over the fact that almost all the gods except herself had been eliminated and there was no one she could rely on—

"Hestia!"

"Ughhhh!? Huh, Mih! Thank goodness you're alright!"

Hestia was initially startled by the call and her legs went weak, but when she saw the figure of her friend with long, dark blue hair fluttering in the wind as he ran, she was overjoyed and responded.

"Yes, thankfully you're safe and sound too! Naza's deodorizing ball (prop) really helped a lot."

Since even Hestia knew how to use the Deodorant Ball (item), Mich, who also carried one, naturally made good use of it as well. After confirming the "flower" on each other's chests, the two gods rejoiced at their escape.

"Mich, what should we do next? It seems like the Freya children have all rushed back to the west. Maybe we should just go somewhere outside the west and hide—"

"Go to the west side!"

"what?"

"Let's head to the west side too, Hestia!"

“Ehhhhhhh!?”

When Hestia saw Mih's unwavering support for the option she had initially ruled out, she was terrified and her face paled—

"There's no need to continue playing 'hide-and-seek' in this war! If Nazha and Bell fall, the rest of us gods will just have to wait to be killed!"

"...!"

"I've observed the battlefield from this high vantage point! The two armies are currently engaged in full-scale combat on the western side! We must win at all costs! And the only way the powerless gods (we) can help is—"

"—Update [Ability Stats]?"

Hestia instantly understood Mih's divine meaning and smoothly continued the conversation.

"So you're eyeing the experience points your clansmen (Bell and the others) are gaining in this war game, and you want to help them increase their stats as much as possible, is that right?"

"That's right. Of course, we absolutely cannot be eliminated..."

Once the main god is eliminated, his followers will immediately lose their eligibility to participate in the competition.

Because this action also carried the risk of having the "flower" taken away, Mih's face stiffened, but—

"Okay, let's do it this way. We can't keep hiding in safe places like cowards!"

"Hestia..."

"Let's go and help Bell and Nazha! Let them be our goddess of victory! Mih!"

"Yeah! Even though I'm a heartthrob!"