Astrea and Alise walked down Northeast Main Street.
This was Orario's proud hub for magic stone product manufacturing, adjacent to the industrial zone.
Due to the thriving manufacturing industry, most pedestrians were laborers in work clothes, but today there was an unusually high number of people in adventurer attire, hurrying with their heads down.
Alise occasionally glanced at passersby, sometimes showing a puzzled look.
"What's wrong?"
Astrea noticed her Familia member's confusion.
Alise frowned, but ultimately shook her head, still not understanding.
"Is there some festival recently? I feel like the foot traffic here has increased significantly, and there are many new faces."
"Well, after all, this is the heart of Orario, even I can't know everyone!"
"And, more importantly…"
Alise rarely showed a look of worry. Only in front of her Goddess would she shed her armor of pretense and reveal her true self.
"I'm still a bit worried about Rod and the others. Although Rod is special, he's not an adventurer after all. I don't know if he can adapt to life in the Dungeon."
Astrea chuckled, showing her trust in everyone.
"Since we're taking new members to train this time, Lyra and the others probably won't go deep into the Dungeon. And compared to the Familia's funds, I still hope everyone returns safely!"
"But even with reliable Lyra and the others leading, I just have a bad feeling that someone will suddenly get into a conflict and cause a big incident."
"Hmm… Lyra is a very mature child, at most she'll just have an argument. Rod is also a cautious type, and now that he's in his developmental stage, he won't rashly conflict with others… probably."
Alise and Astrea exchanged glances, the atmosphere was silent for a moment, then they tacitly quickened their pace.
From afar, a huge building resembling a volcano could be seen.
That was their destination, the headquarters of the Hephaestus Familia, the Valka Red House.
As the largest forging Familia in the entire Labyrinth City, the base of the God of Blacksmiths occupied almost half of the northern area of East Main Street.
But not all blacksmiths chose to live here.
The reason was simple: if the field most adventurers pursued had no clear end, then the ultimate answer blacksmiths sought throughout their lives was right before their eyes from the start.
No matter how diligently they crafted their tools, the thought that they would be judged by the God who presided over [Forging], from the realm of [Supremacy], would make them feel an unbearable suffocation.
If they were criticized as worthless, they would probably lose the confidence to pick up a hammer again.
After all, in the realm of [Forging], Hephaestus was absolutely correct.
"But still, I feel like it shouldn't be this way…"
In her office, Hephaestus rested her chin on her hand, looking boredly at the rising black smoke from the workshops outside the window, and sighed softly.
The [Unknown] that filled the Lower World was precisely what attracted the Gods.
Unknown things, unknown events, unknown people, often made the Gods rejoice.
However, unfortunately, the domain she presided over was based on rationality.
For her, in the field of forging, there was no unknown.
Although she still loved her children and was moved by their desperate efforts, she secretly felt that something was still missing.
At this point, she began to envy her colleagues who presided over more idealistic domains.
Should she just give up on this idea?
Just then, she suddenly remembered what a divine friend had said in the Celestial World.
[It would be such a waste if Hephaestus didn't become cuter~]
Cute, huh…
Although she had received many praises for her revered name over the years, every one referred to her excellent craftsmanship and fiery temperament, speaking from the side of a Goddess — nothing touched upon [femininity].
Hephaestus suddenly felt a stir in her heart. She quietly got up and looked at her reflection in the mirror, which exuded a cool aura. Then, she made a cute pose.
She placed her index fingers near both sides of her cheeks, tilted her head slightly, and smiled faintly.
"Kira~"
"Hephaestus-sama, there are guests—"
The door suddenly opened.
A tall woman with tied-up black hair and brown skin stared wide-eyed at the scene, her face full of shock and not knowing what to say. After a long pause, she finally gave a thumbs-up.
"I never expected you had such a hobby in private! I will engrave what I just saw in my heart, and I won't forget it even in my next life!"
Having been seen in such an embarrassing state, Hephaestus hastily tried to stop Tsubaki.
"Eh? W-wait! Tsubaki!"
But the Goddess of Justice, who called out "Excuse me" with a smile and walked into the room, coincidentally stopped the teary-eyed God of Blacksmiths.
"Oh my, I didn't expect Hephaestus to be this type. Wouldn't it be better to be honest sooner?"
Alise quietly peeked her head in, trying to enjoy the Goddess's embarrassment, but Tsubaki hooked her arm around her neck.
"Alright, since you're here for a rare visit, I'll take you to see my workshop!"
"But I want to see…"
"Speaking of which, I've recently been forging a crimson battle suit called [Scarlet Knight]."
"Tsubaki, don't waste time, let's go quickly!"
The door closed, and Alise's pleasant urging voice gradually faded away, but a subtle atmosphere still filled the room.
Astrea's deep blue eyes, like a sea of stars, held an ambiguous smile, while Hephaestus glared at her, teary-eyed.
"Y-you're so mean! Are you really a God of Justice? Could you be some wild girl disguised as a gentle Goddess?!"
Astrea thoughtfully took out a handkerchief and handed it over, a playful hint appearing on her proper face.
"Don't say that about Artemis, she tries very hard."
Hephaestus took the handkerchief to wipe away her tears, took a deep breath, and barely managed to regain her usual cool demeanor.
"…You came specifically to see me, is there something you need?"
Although her way of changing the subject was a bit stiff, Astrea chose to let the previous scene pass.
After all, she was here to seek help this time. She could tease her about what happened just now later!
"I wanted to ask you to help forge a set of armor for my new child… though I wanted to say that, he might prefer an offensive type."
Hephaestus paused her movements, squinted her left eye, and took the initiative with a playful smile.
"Oh~ Is it that legendary [Vessel of Heroes] who, on the very day of his fame, topped the list of male adventurers most wanted to assassinate, and was second on the list of female adventurers most wanted to assassinate?"