Returning to Orario from the Dungeon went smoothly. They didn't encounter any large groups of monsters along the way. At the Safe Floor, Liang Yue and Lili parted ways.
They exited the Dungeon together—just the last remaining supporter of Soma Familia and Liang Yue.
Liang Yue knew he didn't have time to find Hestia for a status update or perform a Level-Up ritual. Even if Lili were to be questioned by Ganesha Familia…
As long as it wasn't a god doing the interrogation, there was no way they'd pin anything on him.
"I can win this."
He wasn't nervous at all. Even if not all of his stats had hit their upper limits, with all of them at an S-rank average, he could break through to Level 2 at record speed.
And compared to the value of the now-defunct Soma Familia, a Level-Up before the final battle with the Black Dragon…
Was worth far more.
What he really looked forward to was seeing the results of the high-intensity dungeon grind he'd just gone through.
Just how far had his stats pushed against the bottleneck?
"…"
Can we really win?
Lili didn't have a clear answer. All she could do now was trust him. She pulled out all the loot they'd acquired during their expedition and handed it to Liang Yue.
Her eyes were serious as she looked up at him.
"Just like you said… if I'm questioned by the guards, I keep quiet. If a god asks, that's when I tell the truth?"
"Of course."
"Then we'll hold off on selling the Dungeon loot until this blows over."
They didn't know what time it was outside. There was no point exchanging items if the Guild wasn't even open yet. The top priority now was updating his status.
Liang Yue didn't take the bag of materials from her hands.
Not because his opinion of Lili had completely changed—but the growth she'd shown in this short time was obvious to anyone. And this "Soma Familia Collapse Incident" had, in a way, forged a bond between them.
Compared to a haul valued at maybe 100,000 valis…
A trustworthy supporter was far more valuable.
Holding the bundled monster materials in her arms, Lili watched Liang Yue's back as he walked away. The weight on her young, innocent face faded—and a complicated emotion gradually filled her eyes.
She thought of how guarded she'd once been, how suspicious she'd felt…
Yet he had still helped her out of pure kindness. He'd even saved her without hesitation when she was in danger.
So this is what it feels like… to be trusted?
She'd never imagined something like that would ever happen to her. The materials weren't even that valuable, but for Lili…
They felt incredibly heavy.
"I need to work harder too… at the very least, I shouldn't drag him down."
After packing up and waiting long enough for Liang Yue to be well ahead, Lili shouldered her support bag and began climbing the spiral staircase out of the Dungeon.
Normally, tagging along with an adventurer party would let her slip out easily.
But the Soma Familia Collapse Incident had caused Ganesha Familia to enforce strict ID checks on all adventurers.
When it was her turn in line…
They carried out a thorough background inspection.
And when they discovered the Pallum supporter in front of them was the sole survivor of Soma Familia, the entire atmosphere froze.
A Ganesha adventurer in an elephant mask—his face unreadable—approached politely.
"Are you Liliruca Arde of Soma Familia?"
"We'd like to ask for your cooperation in an investigation."
Lili said nothing, simply staying silent.
There wasn't much she could do—but at the very least, she could buy Liang Yue more time.
And her silence said more than any words could.
If she didn't know anything about the destruction of her Familia, she'd have asked why. But the subtle shift in her expression was enough to tell the guards—
She knew.
One guard exchanged a glance with his companion, then spoke again, this time in a gentler tone:
"It won't take too long. Just a few questions."
"Captain Shakti will be handling the inquiry, so please don't worry."
Meanwhile, to Hestia…
Last night had been agony.
As the goddess of Liang Yue's Familia, the last thing she wanted was to be a burden on her only child.
She knew full well that Liang Yue didn't want her working side jobs.
Still, while he explored the Dungeon, she'd taken up shifts frying potato balls at a stall—just until Liang Yue could reach Level 2 and they could celebrate.
She'd even thought about getting him a gift. If she explained things to Hephaestus, maybe she could get something on credit…
But knowing Liang Yue, if he learned she was in debt again, he'd just try to take responsibility for it all.
That's the bittersweet part of it.
As his Familia deity, Hestia's feelings toward Liang Yue had long since gone beyond mere family.
He was far too mature. Far too responsible.
The part-time shift at the fried snack stall was long over.
All Hestia could do now was wait at home. From the moment she woke up yesterday, she hadn't seen Liang Yue once.
There were some valis left on the table—proof that he'd returned briefly.
But the fact he hadn't come home all night had her worried sick.
Then came the news of the Soma Familia collapse this morning, shaking the city.
Her anxiety only deepened.
Sitting on the church's front steps, she hugged her knees and rested her chin on them, watching the golden sunset spill across the street.
"Liang Yue-kun… when will you come back?"
"Your growth's been so fast… you shouldn't be in any danger, right?"
The usual cheer was gone from Hestia's face.
For some reason, her mind wandered back to what she'd said during Liang Yue's last status update.
She'd refused to initiate his Level-Up, saying she didn't want him to waste his talent…
But what she'd failed to consider back then—was the method Liang Yue used to gain experience.
"A newbie adventurer fighting off a swarm of rare Blue Moths solo—and winning easily."
"Clearing out an entire Monster Party, giving it his all."
Put that on anyone else, and you'd call it impossible.
Yet that's how Liang Yue trained.
The realization hit her like a bolt of lightning.
She couldn't just sit here and wait anymore.
"No—I have to do something!"
Her only source of support was Hephaestus. If that didn't work, she'd even swallow her pride and ask Loki for help.
Anything to find Liang Yue—just to confirm he was safe.
She acted immediately, no hesitation in her steps.
Because the longer she waited…
The more danger he might be in.
A storm of guilt churned in her heart as she hurried down the overgrown, abandoned streets.
"I really… haven't been a very good goddess, have I?"
As she climbed the stairs back to the Familia's makeshift home, that guilt hit her even harder.
But the moment she saw a familiar figure walking toward her in the orange glow of the setting sun…
Her mind went blank.
Then—pure joy.
She didn't care that her slippers flew off as she ran.
Overwhelmed by emotion—relief, happiness, everything—Hestia threw herself at Liang Yue and hugged him tight, her arms wrapping around his neck.
Liang Yue could feel something was off with her.
Normally, she'd be firing off questions about the Dungeon the moment she saw him.
But today, she was different.
He hesitated for a second…
Then gently hugged her back.
He smiled, relaxed for once, and teased her softly:
"Hestia-sama, good thing I ran into you here. Otherwise…"
"I wouldn't have known how to update my status!"
After all—
The time he had left… was running out.
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