Zongman: The wrong person on the ground, double Shenwei at the beginning

"If you promise to keep it a secret, and then reduce the fee a tiny bit, I can tell you~"

"..."

Hephaestus glared helplessly at the goddess of justice, who was chuckling like a fox, and said irritably.

"So this is where I was waiting..."

"And what's your answer?"

"Hmph, don't you know what kind of creatures we are? But if your answer doesn't satisfy me, I won't let you off so easily!"

Then Astraea chuckled softly and began to recount how Rhodes was unable to remember the favor.

Since the divine craftsman is to be commissioned to forge a special weapon for Rhodes, this matter cannot be kept secret no matter what. It's better to reveal it now and secure more benefits for Rhodes.

Moreover, Hephaestus is a god who can be trusted.

Dragging her into the mess would also provide Roddo with some protection.

There are many types of love that gods have for their children. Some are distorted, some are indulgent, but most of them have a certain degree of possessiveness towards their children.

Astraea was no exception.

Although she could not form a divine bond with Rhodes, she had long regarded him as her family.

However... Rhodes's unique circumstances meant she couldn't secretly keep the gem.

After a brief period of distress and hesitation, the goddess of integrity and justice, suppressing a slight reluctance in her heart, decided to share the gem with her divine friends who could help Rhodes.

Even if it's Astraea, perhaps only Rhode could make a god overcome his selfish desires.

After listening to Astraea's story, Hephaestus's eyes also sparkled with barely suppressed excitement and agitation.

"Hehehe, someone whose potential cannot be activated by grace... There are actually such people! I see, I see, no wonder you're taking this so seriously!"

"Hey, Astraea, please let me see that child!"

"I want to observe him personally, and then tailor-make a set of equipment specifically for him!"

Hephaestus paced back and forth in the room excitedly, her left eye gleaming with eager anticipation.

"Without the assistance of immortals or the blessing of gods, how could he still accomplish feats comparable to heroes? I'm incredibly curious about him!"

Chapter 27 Hestia: Will any child accept me? (Seeking flowers and votes)

Hephaestus was looking forward to meeting Rhodes, wanting to see for herself what he was like, and couldn't help but blurt it out.

"If you had told me earlier that this child was like this, I wouldn't have haggled with you. I would have agreed to whatever your request was!"

Astraea's eyes lit up, and she quickly stood up and took Hephaestus's hand.

"Really?!"

"Thank you so much, Hephaestus!"

"Hehehe, speaking of which, besides that, that kid does need your help with something, and only you can help him!"

Looking at the smiling Astrea before her, Hephaestus's smile gradually froze.

For the first time, she realized that even the goddess of justice could smile so wickedly...

Sensing something was wrong, she forced a straight face and coldly shook off the goddess of justice's hand.

"It's better not to say anything! You're bound to bring up something that sounds like a real hassle, and I absolutely will not agree to it!"

.....

after a while.

"Hey, can you hear me, Hestia?"

Hephaestus carefully adjusted the huge crystal ball on the table with a small hammer, deliberately ignoring the teasing gaze of the goddess lying on the table beside her.

While gods are indeed not allowed to use their divine power in the mortal realm, they have their own ways of exploiting glitches to display extraordinary abilities in the mortal world without actually using their divine power.

For the god of blacksmiths, these are various tools that he specially forged before descending to the mortal realm.

After a burst of noise, the crystal ball suddenly emitted a clear sound that seemed untouched by the pollution of knowledge.

"Huh? Why did this thing suddenly make a sound? It startled me. Watch me use the Sacred Flame..."

"Wait, Hestia, it's me! Hephaestus!"

"Hmph, the voice imitation is indeed spot on. This mere oddity won't disturb my intelligent mind!"

"I suddenly remembered that when we were in the heavens, Apollo seemed to..."

"Ahhhh-"

A strange cry from the crystal ball interrupted Hephaestus's quiet speech.

"Hehehe, of course I recognized your voice long ago, Hephaestus~ my dearest friend~"

Hephaestus pinched the bridge of her nose. Hearing her friend's energetic voice again after so long made her happy, but after chatting for a few minutes, she suddenly felt a little tired.

"Is there something you need my help with that you're contacting me all of a sudden? Don't hesitate to ask me for your help!"

"However... it would be even better if you could tell me more about things in the lower realm before that!"

Hestia's speech suddenly quickened, and a torrent of complaints poured out like a flood breaking through a dam—

"The Heavenly Realm is so boring! Staying in the palace all day with nothing to do makes me feel like I'm going to get moldy! There are more and more gods in the mortal realm, and everyone is dragging their feet and refusing to come back, which makes the work of every god in the Heavenly Realm increasingly busy. Even I, who am respected by my juniors, have to come out and work overtime. It's simply exploitation!"

"Waaaaah... I used to be able to fool those juniors just by sitting in a chair and pretending to be aloof, but now I'm being dragged out by them in tears to become a tool god to help with their work, and I'm so busy every day that I'm dizzy... My god life (choking up), what will the future hold for me...."

Hephaestus turned to look at Astraea with a wry smile. Astraea gave him a sympathetic look and then coughed lightly.

"In that case, why doesn't Hestia try going down to the mortal realm and living a book-reading life with the children?"

"Huh? That voice is... Astraea!"

Astraea's suggestion excited Hestia, but this was quickly followed by a wave of fear and tension.

"I...I've thought about it...but would any child really want to be my family? Would they really accept me, a completely incompetent fool, after my divine power was sealed away...?"

Astraea narrowed her eyes slightly and chuckled softly.

"Although I like Hestia very much, children have different personalities, and I can't guarantee that they will welcome you."

Hestia's dejected voice came from the crystal ball.

"That's what I said..."

“But I’m sure there’s one child who will accept you, or rather, it’s because of his request that I asked Hephaestus to contact you.”

"R-Really? There are actually such idiots. Wait, you're not talking about that handsome guy... Uh, I didn't say anything! I didn't secretly use my divine power to spy on the lower realm!"

Astraea remained silent for a long time, pretending not to hear Hestia's attempt to cover up her lies.

"In short, human lifespan is very short, and you wouldn't want that child to die with regrets, would you?"

Hestia felt a pang of sadness upon hearing this and was eager to agree immediately, but then hesitated, considering the current situation.

"Hmm... But even if I have a high status, it will still take a long time for it to be my turn in order..."

Just then, Hephaestus mentioned something else, seemingly unintentionally.

"Do you remember how your nemesis descended to the mortal realm?"

"Huh? Why are you suddenly bringing up Loki, that flat-chested god!"

"Isn't the point how she managed to descend to the lower realm ahead of time?!"

"Um... don't be angry, Hephaestus. Hehe, let me think... ah, I remember now, she seems to have killed all the gods ranked ahead of her..."

Astraea looked at Hephaestus expressionlessly, her eyes seeming to say, "I never expected that someone as kind as you would come up with such a method."

Hephaestus forced herself to remain calm, but was actually a little nervous.

After all, Hephaestus admired her own courage to utter such an evil act in front of the goddess of justice!

But such an opportunity is too good to miss. If he waits for the normal work schedule, his friend will probably have to wait at least five or six years!

In the end, Astraea did not speak.

Ultimately, she is not a stubborn and inhuman deity; she also has her own joys, sorrows, preferences, and inclinations.

Furthermore, since she holds the power to define justice, she doesn't necessarily believe that this kind of thing is unjust.

Hestia is a better choice than having those troublesome gods from the heavens descend to the mortal realm and cause chaos.

Flexible justice is still justice...

Chapter 28: A Million-Dollar Evacuation, A-Rank Critical Hit Reward! (Please give me flowers and votes!)

As she walked out of the guild building, thinking of the shocked faces of the staff at the gold exchange when they saw the exaggerated number of magic stones they were carrying, Nize couldn't help but wag her tail happily.

"I never imagined that just magic stones and regular drops could earn us such an outrageous amount of mana! With Rhodes around, I feel like we could even transform into an exploration-oriented clan!"

Leila walked at the front, her hands behind her head.

"Well, after all, it's just a routine exploration, yet it yields benefits comparable to a large-scale clan expedition. Anyone would be tempted."

“Even considering that our main job is to patrol the labyrinth city on a daily basis, we still need to arm ourselves with sufficient funds because we are in danger.”

"I'll have a good talk with Alexandra when I get back, and we'll try to let Rhodes explore with different members as much as possible in the future."

This is both to ensure the rotation of combat forces and to give Rhodes the opportunity to better replicate everyone's abilities and magic.

Although the unspoken message was clear, the girls all nodded silently in unison.

Rod listened with a smile to the girls' pleasant chatter, his attention focused on the system in front of him.

[Level C wish completed.]

[Reward level determination complete.]

[All members survived without taking damage, obtained a large number of valuable dropped items, achieved a total profit of over eight million Fali, and accumulated experience for all members is limited...]

[Task completion rate exceeded expectations; petitioner satisfaction was perfect.]

A C-level reward critical hit is equivalent to an A-level reward.

Congratulations! You have received 800 Wishing Points. Your current balance is 1200 points.

[Congratulations! You have acquired the skill "Fairy Star Song" from one of the Prayerers, Ryu.]

[Effect: Enhances magical effects; enhanced effect at night!]

Rhodes looked satisfied.

Ryu's skills... Not bad!

He can spend time replicating moves and spells, but he can't replicate the skills that provide the main bonus.

The system's reward was exactly what he wanted!

Rhodes even began to fantasize about copying all those bug-level skills from the DanMachi world onto himself, and what kind of terrifying boost he would receive then?

Can a magic spell that casually produces a flame cause a catastrophe?

Lost in thought, Rhodes followed the others to a fork in the road.

Leila stopped and turned around.

"Alright, Maru and Asta are in charge of going to the Dean Kecht Familia to trade Blue Swallowtail Butterfly Powder with Amid."

Maru swung her mace with great flair and winked at Rhodes earnestly.

"Don't worry, I won't let everyone down, especially Rhodes!"

"Despite our good personal relationship, I will still argue with Amid and demand that she give us priority in exchanging the Panacea if there is a shortage in its stock!"

Maru, known as the "Starlight Mother," always exudes maternal love within her clan, but she is not the type to hide behind others.

She chose a mace instead of a staff as her equipment because of her excessive love for her clan members. Rather than healing the wounded, she wanted to smash the heads of all enemies before anyone else got hurt!

She wasn't worried that having a large supply of panacea would lead to her losing her job; on the contrary, she was happy to be able to fight alongside her companions more often!