After digesting everything Hestia had just said, Hephaestus needed quite a bit of time—mainly because the amount of information was simply overwhelming.
The so-called fastest in the world legend aside for now…
Just imagining that Liang Yue still hasn't even pushed his talent to its limits, and yet is continuing to temper himself in the Dungeon—it was hard for her to even picture what kind of terrifying stats that would mean.
Could this really be enough for Liang Yue to defeat a Level 2 adventurer while under-leveled?
If it weren't for the privacy surrounding personal stats, she'd honestly love to ask exactly what this so-called "stat limit" actually means.
Anyway—more importantly right now was the situation with the Hestia Familia. They were in absolutely no condition to carry out a Familia expedition.
Even if Hephaestus wanted to help, there wasn't much of an opportunity.
The Guild would never allow strong adventurers to join in such an expedition—it would be treated more like a punishment mission. At best, she could offer money.
Hephaestus's expression gradually grew serious as she asked:
"So, who are you planning to ask for help?"
While she hadn't outright promised to help, it was basically a given. Hestia replied without hesitation:
"I'm planning to ask Take-Mikazuchi."
"He's a fellow god who works the fried potato stand with me, and his Familia has two Level 2 adventurers. We get along pretty well sometimes."
"It's just… I'd feel bad asking him for help out of nowhere, so…" She trailed off, her voice growing softer, closely watching her friend's reaction.
"?"
"So instead, you're fine just coming to ask me!"
Hephaestus nearly laughed out of sheer exasperation. The worst part was that she couldn't even think of a proper excuse to refuse. She took a deep breath and looked at Hestia with a distinctly unimpressed gaze.
Standing up from the couch, she waved her hand:
"Fine, contact me once you've arranged things."
"Oh, and—could you give me a peek at Liang Yue's stats before his Level-Up?" she asked, as if collecting interest in exchange for her help.
Her curious eyes fixed on Hestia.
"Mm… there's actually not much to it—other than his Magic stat, all the rest of his stats had reached the theoretical limit of the system."
"I have no idea why. Liang Yue-kun has only spent ten days exploring the Dungeon in total."
The moment she mentioned Liang Yue, Hestia's face unconsciously softened into a smile, even her tone gaining an odd confidence as she spoke earnestly.
She didn't notice that Hephaestus's face had gone completely dark.
Before she could even reach the chair, Hephaestus turned around and pointed to the office door, speaking in a calm voice:
"Now kindly get out."
For crying out loud…
Was that something a god should even be saying?
The Benevolent Mistress
Adventurers finishing up a day in the Dungeon often chose to eat here, even the conversations over drinks following a familiar formula—
Mostly centered around the Soma Familia, godly wine, and the "Butcher."
Being the subject of discussion for the first time, Liang Yue couldn't shake a certain strange feeling, even if no one yet knew they were talking about him. It was something he'd have to get used to.
Once the Divine Gathering took place and word spread among the gods about breaking Orario's speed record, it'd mean nearly every adventurer in the city would hear about it too.
For now, though, it was just talk—no concrete suspects.
"Let's try something different today…"
Finding an empty seat at the bar during the evening rush, Liang Yue scanned the day's recommended dishes.
After deciding on his choice, he settled in to wait.
It didn't take too long before a waitress came over—one whose face Liang Yue wasn't as familiar with.
Chloe Lolo.
She wore the same leafy green maid uniform as the others, but her black shoulder-length hair and delicate features weren't what stood out—
It was the pair of cat ears peeking out from behind her white frilly headband.
A catgirl.
Her long, slender black tail swayed with easy rhythm.
Chloe's eyes lingered on Liang Yue's clean-cut face before she tilted her head slightly and asked:
"What'll it be, kid?"
"These, and one order of today's special."
Liang Yue pulled his gaze back—he had simply found the "catgirl" adorable. Besides, Chloe was no simple waitress.
Before working at The Benevolent Mistress, her more famous title had been Level 4 bounty hunter "Black Cat."
"Alrighty. Might be a bit of a wait—customers are packed tonight and the kitchen's swamped, nya." She jotted it down quickly.
Before she could even linger, a loud voice bellowed from the kitchen:
"Chloe! Quit slacking! Get in here and run food!"
"Busted, nya."
The girl winked at Liang Yue before bouncing off toward the kitchen, leaving behind a lively, playful impression.
Being served here was like opening a mystery box—short as the interaction was, the energetic, slightly silly catgirl's mood was infectious.
The wait for food wasn't long, and, in a way, overhearing the gossip almost worked as an appetizer.
Once his stomach was full, Liang Yue packed up a dinner for Hestia before leaving.
The night sky was clear, moonlight spilling cold and bright over Orario's streets.
Standing in front of The Benevolent Mistress, Liang Yue shook his head.
"Time to head back and rest. Tomorrow I'll start a new round in the Dungeon."
But before he could even walk a few steps down West Main Street, a familiar figure in a maid uniform came running out of the tavern.
"Kid, wait up."
He didn't even need to turn around to know who it was—still, out of courtesy, he stopped and looked back.
There stood Chloe Lolo, holding a gray-brown book.
The scene felt strangely familiar—like déjà vu.
With a puzzled look, he asked:
"Miss waitress, is there something you need from me?"
"I just found this book where you were sitting—did you drop it, nya?" Chloe lazily stretched as she walked over.
It was exactly as she said—while clearing his dishes, she'd spotted it lying on the counter next to his seat.
After confirming with Syr that no one else had been sitting there, she decided to bring it to him—also taking the chance to sneak away from the busy restaurant.
Without waiting for his response, she shoved the book into his hands.
"Don't go leaving stuff here on purpose. Even if it's worth a lot, Mama Mia's not gonna compensate you, nya~"
As she said this, Chloe glanced toward the tavern door to make sure no one had noticed her slipping out.
Then she turned to head into the nearby alley, tossing back:
"Even if it's not yours, just deal with it for me, okay?"
"…"
Watching her disappear, Liang Yue lowered his gaze to the heavy gray-brown book now in his hands.
It radiated an air of mystery and the unknown.
If his guess was right, this was a single-use item—a grimoire, capable of letting him grasp and shape his own magic.
Talk about a meal bonus.
A faint smile crossed his lips as he glanced around. The situation was clear—someone had just fed him exactly the kind of thing that could patch his weak Magic stat.
"Nice."
"Well, no one's claiming it, so I'll just take it."