The Cloud-Raised Brave Man's Travels

"Um, um, husband."

"Yeah! It sounds much better. Give me some of your clothes."

It's not breakfast time yet, but Haruhime has already started her day's work. She started her maid job the day after being brought back by Koya. Of course, Hestia is still in charge of the three meals, and Haruhime only needs to clean up and wash clothes for the three goddesses, Koya, Hatsune, and herself. In some cases, she is also responsible for washing bed sheets, sofa covers, etc.

Haruhime was holding the clothes from last night, including Koya, Hatsune, and herself. They weren't covered in the strange sugar, but they had been thrown on the floor, so they still needed to be washed. And when Hatsune woke up, the sheets and blankets would need to be tied.

"No, no need! This is my duty. How can I trouble my husband..."

"That's not the way it is in my house. Let's go."

Keya reached out and grabbed half of the pile of clothes in the cage. Speaking of which, how could there be so many clothes in there? Keya looked at it with some surprise... Well, there were a lot of 'interesting' clothes, clothes that made Keya instantly excited at the mere sight of them.

"These?"

"Husband, do you like them? These are some clothes that Lady Aphrodite ordered from the God of Tailors. They were delivered last night, so I washed them all."

"Yeah, I like it very much."

Looking at the special black semi-transparent lace clothing in his hand, Keya nodded with satisfaction. Could this be the legendary killer underwear? This was the first time he had seen it. He didn't know how beautiful it would look on Haruhime and the others. Just thinking about it made Keya excited.

But just be patient for now, and think about this period at night.

"By the way, Haruhime, have you gotten used to life here?"

"Yes. Lady Hestia and the others are very nice. Sister Hatsune often sings to me. Sister Helen and the others are also very friendly. I like this place very much."

A very cute smile appeared on Chunji's little face. It was no longer the illusory smile she had on Fengyue Street, but a comfortable smile bathed in the warm sunshine.

"The most important thing is that my husband is here too. I really like the Hestia family."

Koya really likes the smile on Chunji's face. If he wasn't holding some clothes in his hands, he would definitely hold Chunji in his arms and rub her head, because Chunji is so cute now!

"But... I'm clumsy and always cause trouble for you..."

"I don't think anyone cares about that. Even clumsy Haruhime is cute."

"My dear husband, this is all I can do for you. I must do more and work harder... otherwise, how can I repay your kindness?"

Before they knew it, the two of them walked out of the house and into the courtyard. Haruhime lowered her head dejectedly. She touched her black maid outfit, and her thick tail drooped as depressed as her mood.

"You've given yourself to me. Haven't you already repaid this favor? It's what's called giving yourself in return."

Koya quickly hung the clothes in his hands on the hemp rope for drying clothes, and then held Chunji in his arms. Chunji's body was soft and very comfortable to hold. She had a faint scent of cherry blossoms on her body, but you could only smell it when you got close to her.

"Mmm~~~~ Husband, please don't tease me."

I have to say that the fox does have some talent. Although she was refusing, her voice was extremely charming, giving people a feeling of wanting to refuse but actually wanting to accept. It's a pity that they are now in the courtyard. If they were in the room, Koya would have to subdue this fox.

Haruhime, who was held in Koya's arms, gradually lost the ability to resist. Although she had had several intimate contacts with Koya, Haruhime's heartbeat still accelerated involuntarily when she was held in Koya's arms and felt the warmth from his body. Soon her face turned red.

"——What are you doing? Koya~Haruhime~"

Chapter 193: The Goddess’s Love Troubles

Hestia suddenly appeared in the courtyard, then with a run-up and a jump, she came to Koya's back. Now Koya was holding Haruhime in front and there was a koala behind him.

"Hestia, what did you and Ishtar and the others talk about?"

"We talked about power. Ishtar and Ereshkigal also exist in this world. For example, Ishtar is the Ishtar of this world. We are curious about the difference in power between the gods of other worlds and our own gods."

Koya gently let go of Qingji, and when Qingji went to hang out the clothes, he carried Hestia to the small pavilion in the courtyard, let Hestia sit in his arms and continued to talk about this topic.

"So what's the conclusion?"

"They possess more powers than we do. Take Ishtar as an example. Her most proficient powers are the Sovereignty of Heaven and the Sovereignty of Venus, but she also possesses a range of powers, including Beauty, War, and Exuberance. However, they aren't as skilled in wielding these powers as we are. That's understandable, after all. We've been playing with powers for hundreds of millions of years, and even when we were in the Upper Realm, we were constantly engaged in war games out of boredom. Our use of divine authority has long since reached its limits."

"Speaking of which, Hestia, how powerful are you gods at full strength?"

"Hahaha, never mind. You'll encounter it sooner or later anyway. Let me put it this way. When we played war games in the upper realm, we would create a world and then fight within it. Sometimes, even after a world was shattered, the gods still couldn't decide the winner. You should understand that the earth beneath your feet is just one star in the universe, and the worlds created by the war games in the upper realm... the largest world encompassed hundreds of millions of such stars. In that world, our Greek pantheon fought against the Norse pantheon, and in the end, hundreds of millions of stars were destroyed."

"This……"

Koya has used his imagination to the best of his ability. After all, hundreds of millions of years really left Koya with no idea of the time. He only knew that he had lived for more than 20 years, Ishtar and Ere probably lived for thousands of years, and Tiamat's age was still unknown... but the ages of these people added together were not even a fraction of Hestia's lifespan. This was terrifying.

"Don't overthink it, Koya. Your future is unknown, but I am certain that you will accomplish feats never before accomplished by your predecessors. You will surely ignite the divine fire and gain power and authority."

"Since it's Hestia who said it, then naturally I have no choice but to believe you~ I'm heading to the dungeon for an expedition tomorrow, and Hatsune and Haruhime will be going with me."

"You, being too anxious will only lead to half the result with twice the effort. I agree, but it's only thirty floors at most, okay?"

"Yeah. It can't be helped. We still owe the Dean Kate clan a large sum of money. After paying off this debt, we can buy some new equipment."

For large families, such as the Loki family, expeditions are a very troublesome thing. Food and weapon maintenance along the way are big problems. But for Koya, who has a portable warehouse, it is never too late to go on an expedition.

Also, if Koya just wanted to make money, there were many ways. The simplest one was to go to the Doomsday World to collect some rare items and sell them in Orario as a dealer. With the superiority of modern items, he could quickly pay off the loan and make a lot of money, but there was no need... It was too troublesome, and Koya didn't want to be a businessman. What's more, even with the income from the three stores on Happy Street and the rent from some stores in Orario, the Hestia family could pay off the debt in at most two months, so there was no need to be a dealer.

Speaking of the apocalypse...it's been a while since we last met. How about going to spend this afternoon with Manfuyu and the others? Okay, that's a happy decision!

·Dividing line·

In the afternoon, because of Koya's departure, Hestia took her good friends to Hephaestus to play. Hephaestus looked at the six goddesses in front of him and was so confused. She asked them uncertainly.

"So... you all did that with Koya?"

"Hmm? Hefei-chan, you're actually interested in this? Is there a man you're interested in? Tell me about it."

Being harassed by Hestia like this, Hephaestus had no choice but to tell her about his troubles. There was a blacksmith in Hephaestus's family who had made advances on her, but she did not give up even after being clearly rejected by him. Recently, Hephaestus was annoyed by the blacksmith and ran to his own forge to hide.

"Yeah, so Hefie, do you have feelings for that kid?"

This is the problem of Hestia, who is a little love-minded.

"Hey, why bother with so much trouble? If Hephaestus likes it, he can agree. If he doesn't like it, he can refuse. If you insist on asking me, I will expel you from the family."

This is the answer given by Aphrodite, who dares to love and hate.

"The love between gods and humans is too short. To mortals, a hundred years of life is extremely long, but to us, a hundred years is just a blink of an eye. The emotional satisfaction gained from love is far too insignificant compared to the endless loneliness that follows. Hephaestus, you must consider this carefully."

This was the advice given by the calm and rational Artemis.

The three completely different answers made Hephaestus even more confused. In fact, judging from her current behavior, it was clear that Hephaestus at least had some feelings for the blacksmith who was pursuing him, otherwise, as a god, she would not bother about such a trivial matter. The three goddesses also saw clearly what Hephaestus was thinking, so the answers of the three people were actually telling her their experiences from their own perspectives.

"So, why are you guys so careless with Koya?"

Hephaestus was not a stubborn person. As a god who had lived for hundreds of millions of years, he was very clear-headed and naturally would not be shy about matters of the heart. However, she was a little confused about whether she really liked Welf or not.

"Because we believe that Koya is the one who can accompany us forever. He will become stronger, become the first Lv.10 in history, and then ignite the divine fire to stay by our side forever!"

"You guys really have confidence in him."

"But when I handed myself over to Koya, I didn't really think that much. After all, he was only Level 2 at the time. Although he was leveling up quickly, I didn't think he had the potential to become a god at that time."

"What about Hestia?"

"Because I like him. That's enough reason. I thought about it at that time. When Koya is about to die, I will lift the seal and let him become my servant god. That way, we can still stay together forever."

Hephaestus shook his head. Hestia must have loved that man so much that she could give up everything in the lower world and return to the empty upper world for a man. So... could Welf be the man that would make her willing to give up everything in the lower world and return to the upper world? Hephaestus didn't know.

"If you're so hesitant, why not set some tests for the blacksmith? If he wants to win the goddess's favor, he must have some skills."

"Hestia, who is this?"

"She's Ishtar, the goddess Koya brought back. She's similar to Aphrodite and the others. But what Ishtar said is quite right. Why don't you test the blacksmith?"

Ishtar? Hephaestus didn't recognize this goddess, but she felt a familiar feeling about her. Was she related to Ishtar? Hephaestus didn't care. After all, there were many gods with the same godhood, such as Zeus and Jupiter, Aphrodite and Venus. Ishtar's situation was not uncommon. It was more reasonable to say that Ishtar's reappearance after Ishtar's exile was just as logical.

"A test?... Then what kind of test should I set?"

Hephaestus had no experience in this and could only seek help from Hestia and the others. These seven goddesses plus the leader of Hephaestus's family, Chun, a total of eight people gathered in this forge and began to discuss what kind of test would be most suitable.

"First of all, what is the current level of the child that He Fei is pursuing? How strong is he? We are just setting a test, not sending him to his death."

"I reached Level 2 two days ago. My strength is pretty good, and I have a magic spell. Although I'm a blacksmith, my strength is not inferior to that of an adventurer."

Hephaestus briefly introduced the boy who was pursuing her to the other gods, Welf Clozo, a man with the same flaming red hair as Hephaestus. However, Hestia was not interested in the blacksmith's situation. After a brief understanding of him, she continued to discuss how to set up the test.

"This is not easy to do. The strength of Level 2 is neither high nor low, it's very delicate..."

"From another perspective, since Hephaestus is the god of forging and a blacksmith, how about the first test be to have him forge a weapon that Hephaestus is satisfied with? After all, people who share a common interest can go further."

"Ellie's suggestion is good, what do you think, Hephaestus?"

"I think it's okay."

"Okay, the first test is confirmed. This proves his 'strength'. So, the next test is his character."

Aphrodite naturally took over the lead in the discussion. After all, she was the only one present who had been in love. Although the person she was talking about was a woman, overall her experience was greater than that of everyone present combined.

"Character? How do you test that?"

"It's simple. Just let the goddess you're friends with seduce him."

"Isn't this...not good?"

"If he only likes you then that's fine!"

After repeated persuasion from several people, Hephaestus finally agreed to this request. However, in the end, the person she chose to ask for help was not the goddess, but a male god with a female appearance. As long as he did not lift up his clothes, this male god would be a peerless goddess. After Hephaestus promised to make a first-level weapon for his child, the male god agreed without hesitation.

"Then let's set up a final test of combat prowess. This is customary, after all. However, Lv. 2 strength... well, how about having him hunt a few fire-breathing wolves in the middle level of the dungeon?"

"The guild named that monster Hell Wolf. Letting Welf go to the middle level alone would be like sending him to his death. No way."

"Hey! I thought of something. Hephaestus, do you know the Lakia outside the city?"

"I know, what's wrong?"

"During dinner yesterday, Koya seemed to have told me that Ares's purpose in sending troops this time was to obtain the blacksmith of the Clozo family who could forge the magic sword. The child you like is this Clozo, right?"

Aphrodite's eyes lit up, and a good idea suddenly popped into her mind.

"Yes."

"That's easy. You go to Ares' camp and stay there for two days. Then Hestia will reveal this news to Clozo and see what he will do. Will he gather his friends and rush into Ares's base to rescue you, or will he sacrifice himself in exchange for your safety? What do you think of this method?"

"What if Welf is really captured by Ares? He won't trust Hephaestus. Maybe that barbarian will take Hephaestus back to Lakia with him."

Artemis asked calmly.

"That's easy. Just let Koya watch. Lakia's strongest general is only Lv. 4. Koya is more than enough to deal with him."

"Wait Aphrodite, Koya will be heading to the underground city on an expedition starting tomorrow."

"Hey... Goddess, have you forgotten me? I'm a Level 5 leader."

"Ah-I'm sorry Tsubaki, since you were quiet I thought you weren't interested in these tests."

"My Lady Goddess, if you can truly find happiness, I believe all of us in the Hephaestus clan will be delighted. To us, you are our Master and our Mother. We will never refuse anything you need us to do! But why did you insist on going to the Lakia base camp, Lady Hephaestus? You could have simply hidden in the basement of the forge. He would have believed us even if we had said you were kidnapped by the Lakia Kingdom."

"It seems so!"

In this way, all three tests were confirmed. Hephaestus adopted Chun's suggestion. She would hide in the basement of the forge, and then Chun sent several blacksmiths to Welf to spread false news. Although it was a bit bad to say so, Chun knew very well that with Welf's character; if he really liked Hephaestus, then the moment he heard the news, he would not think about how Hephaestus was kidnapped, but would just rush into Ares' base camp.

Only if Welf successfully passed this test would the next two tests proceed. Furthermore, this test had been upgraded. For example, the materials for crafting weapons had to be obtained in the dungeon, though buying them directly was also possible. Financial resources were also part of strength, weren't they?

After everything was finalized, Hephaestus went into the basement, while Hestia and the others returned to the clan. Hephaestus, who had calmed down while sitting on the sofa in the basement, suddenly figured it out... She seemed to have made this decision because of the emotions of Hestia and the others, but now she understood that she really only had family affection for the child.

"Forget it, I'll explain it to that kid when the time comes."

Chapter 194: Abnormal Situation

The eighteenth floor is a safe floor. After experiencing a monster outbreak, the "safety" of the safe floor has become questionable, but nothing has changed much here. The town of Rivera is still trapping passing adventurers on this floor. Koya and his two companions quickly conquered this floor in one day, but they didn't know the way forward, so Koya prepared himself mentally and planned to buy a map that recorded the middle level.

It is not known whether Koya and his friends were lucky or unlucky, but in Rivera Town they received a joint commission from the shops in the town. Of course, this commission was not only sent to Koya and his friends, but they also called every adventurer who came to the eighteenth floor.

Dungeons occasionally experience sudden increases in the number of certain monsters, considered abnormalities. The Firebird, confirmed this time, is one of the rare species that appears starting on the 19th floor. As its name suggests, it's a bird-shaped monster that attacks with flames. The large number of such rare monsters is naturally a boon for powerful players, as Firebird materials are quite valuable.

However, this same monster repeatedly turned the Great Tree Labyrinth, below the 19th floor, into a sea of fire. It was a troublesome monster. After entering the safe 18th floor, it soared through the sky, causing damage even to the lakeside town of Rivera. The high-ranking adventurers who ran inns and towns within the labyrinth were unwilling to sit idly by and watch their businesses burn, so they jointly issued this somewhat informal request.

The reason why Koya accepted this commission was naturally because the reward was very generous, and they were originally planning to explore the nineteenth-floor tree maze, so taking this commission would not delay their journey. The most important thing was that as long as they accepted the commission, the merchants would provide a map from the nineteenth to the twenty-fifth floors, which just met Koya's needs.

Because Hatsune Miku's songs have a fire resistance effect, the three of them did not buy any fire elf cloth in the town, but instead looked at the map and rushed directly to the nineteenth floor.

The dungeon is really a mysterious place. Starting from the 19th floor, the maze turns into a forest. Huge trees that are hundreds of meters high and several meters thick grow in the dungeon without sunlight. The tangled roots of the trees earn it the name of the Big Tree Maze. From this floor on, a flat road becomes a luxury. Fortunately, Hatsune Miku's music also has the effect of increasing agility, otherwise it would be difficult for her and Haruhime to move in this big tree maze.

Koya opened the divine domain and actively searched for monsters around him. As his sword flashed, the three firebirds turned into ashes, leaving only three magic stones and three materials, the firebird's flame bag, the firebird's feathers, and the firebird's claws. Another 30,000 faris were used to buy them. Koya also found that after returning from Uruk, every monster he killed in the dungeon would leave behind a material. He didn't know which skill worked. In short, this situation was very abnormal, but it was naturally a good thing for Koya.

As Koya searched for the next wave of prey, a strange creature suddenly appeared in his perception. From the feedback, this creature seemed to be a monster from the dungeon, but it was indeed the same size as a human, even the size of a little human girl. This amazing feedback made Koya pull Hatsune and Haruhime and run towards the place.

"Koya, is this 'Weiweir'?"

Although there was no map, Koya and the other two did a good job of gathering intelligence about the monsters in the lower levels. The moment Hatsune saw the creature in front of her, she immediately thought of a monster that existed in the middle level in her memory.

【Weiweier】