Speaking of this, Hestia actually felt a little guilty herself.
However, apart from secretly paying attention to Rhode, she hadn't done anything else out of line.
Thinking of this, she straightened her chest with renewed confidence, glaring at Wira.
Wira was speechless but quickly came up with a suitable answer, proudly raising a fair finger.
"But! If it's [aftermath] caused by an argument between gods, then it doesn't count as a violation, you know!"
"I just happened to be fighting with Bridget back then, and that's how my winter staff [accidentally] fell into the Lower World!"
Hestia was speechless.
"Ah, this... Although that reason sounds really far-fetched, it's not entirely impossible."
Everyone cast curious glances, clearly quite interested in the gods' gossip.
Hestia reluctantly briefly explained what happened back then, roughly over a thousand years ago, before Uranus descended to the Lower World.
She had a rather troublesome divine friend, Bridget, who rushed into her secluded temple, shouting.
"Hestia! Please, please snatch the winter staff from that bastard Wira! Please!"
Hestia found it very troublesome and didn't want to move, but Bridget kept explaining, being stubborn, and then making false accusations first.
"You're still asking why you have to do such a thing? Isn't it precisely because I and you are the closest of friends?!"
"You hide in the temple all day doing nothing, you should come and help a little, right?! Okay?!"
"I can't do it! Everyone knows Wira and I have bad compatibility! It's, it's not that I can't win against her in an argument and refuse to admit defeat, okay?"
"It's simply because I am a gentle and benevolent goddess who dislikes conflict and won't engage in dangerous things like fighting and brawling!"
"Eh, you say I called you shorty, made fun of you, and then we pulled each other's hair? Really, really talkative—! Alright, please help me, I'm really begging you!!"
Hestia ultimately couldn't refuse her request, and though reluctant, she slowly got up.
The gods who presided over the seasons certainly loved their own season the most.
Bridget, while presiding over fertility, also had the aspect of the Goddess of Summer, and thus she was furious, stamping her feet and beating her chest, at Winter (Wira) who refused to give up her season.
Such seasonal disputes were common among the gods.
"Just for a little while, can you put it down?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Is that a question? Is it a question? Then there's no choice. I'll answer you, 02 because winter is more convenient for me."
After Wira answered, she prepared for Hestia to forcefully snatch her winter staff, already intending to fight her.
However, after Hestia heard the other party's answer, she swept away the accumulated snow on the ground and simply lay down.
"You are malicious, but not evil. So, there must be a reason."
"I will not fight you; I will wait until you are satisfied and hand that staff over to the arbiter (me)."
-
After Hestia finished recounting this past event, Wira recalled her bewildered self at the time and frowned in displeasure.
"That's why I said I hate you."
Completely opposite to Wira, who brought harsh winter.
The protector of petitioners who bestows warmth and blessings with unquenchable flames.
Although she seemed unconventional and lazy, unlike the gods plagued by [boredom], she watched over everything like a burning sacred fire.
This was Hestia, the Eternal Sacred Fire.
Belden and the others, who had gathered nearby, were utterly confused.
Uskali frowned deeply.
"Wait... what are you talking about? How is our country's Spring of Life connected to a Chief God?"
The benevolent smile on Rhode's face vanished without a trace.
Although the time they spent together was brief, he had already allowed the girls on his side to form a certain bond with Taruvi.
If it were merely taking her as a subordinate, he wouldn't need to put in so much effort, but he felt pity for this girl.
Perhaps it was a regret not to have the deep friendship between the grown-up Chun Ji and her in the original work.
But his lineup included Alise, Ryu, A Di, Ais, Metria, Riveria...
Damn it, such a group of people, each one a walking succubus.
Plus himself, he didn't believe he couldn't change Taruvi's mind.
Let him show you what true caring friends should be like.
His indifferent gaze swept over Belden and the others, his eyes so cold they lacked any warmth, instantly making them shiver and filling their hearts with a strong sense of unease.
"How interesting, the benefactor who saved your lives is right before you, yet you remain completely unaware."
Wira slightly turned her head away, clicking her tongue in displeasure.
"Tsk... I really don't know how you know these things."
"Even everyone in this country believes in the Spring of Life more than me, who bestowed Grace upon them..."
Taruvi also showed an expression of disbelief at these words.
"Wira, did you really..."
Belden's people also looked in utter disbelief.
The Chief God who usually loved to tease people was actually their true savior?!
Rhode glanced at Alfia not far away, his voice not loud, but clearly reaching everyone's ears.
"These people suffer from a similar illness to what you once had; they have an incurable disease in their bloodline."
"Only by being in a bitterly cold environment can their chronic illness be slightly suppressed."
"To make these people in the Lower World, who have no relation to her, feel a little better, Wira [selfishly] wielded her winter staff, almost causing a war with Bridget."
Alfia showed a surprised expression, and at the same time, her gaze for the first time seriously turned towards this unfamiliar goddess.
So, she was a loving goddess who said one thing but meant another... She was certainly more pleasing to the eye than Hera.
Wira's face was somewhat flushed, looking embarrassed.
"Ah, ah, please stop talking! This feeling of being exposed face-to-face makes me very self-conscious."
Ignoring Wira, who was scratching her head, Rhode sneered, glancing at Uskali and the others.
"And not only that, just when that group of people was about to despair, they suddenly discovered something like the Spring of Life that could suppress their disease—what a coincidence~"
Uskali looked at Wira with a complex expression.
"There was such a thing... After we return to the country, I will definitely let everyone know of your achievements."
Before Wira could respond, Rhode interrupted his next words with a cold tone.
"And then, with so-called guilt in your hearts, you will continue to comfortably enjoy the gods' sacrifices, just as you did in the past with those sacrifices you called princesses?"
"What?!"
At these words, all the girls' faces instantly changed drastically!
Ryu's expression became incredibly sharp, her hand already on the hilt of her sword at her waist.
"Sacrifices? Please explain what exactly is going on?"
A Di, meanwhile, pulled Taruvi, who was stunned by the flood of information, behind her.
"Taruvi, come here quickly!"
Rhode lowered his gaze slightly, his voice full of undisguised sarcasm and disdain.
"Their ancestors regarded the Spring of Life as their faith and once swore a solemn oath to protect it well."
"Alfia, if you had known of the existence of such a thing, what would you have done?"
Alfia looked at her sister beside her, who was now healthy and lively, but who had once suffered from illness.
If her former self had known about the Spring of Life, she would have definitely taken her there, and no one could have stopped her!
A suffocatingly strong aura emanated from her, and she answered without hesitation.
"Anyone who tries to approach or destroy the Spring of Life will be mercilessly cut down!"
Rhode chuckled lightly, shrugging his shoulders.
"Yet, these very people, who swore such solemn oaths, their ancestors allowed a highly poisonous slime monster to break in and contaminate the entire Spring of Life."
"Not only did they completely destroy the goddess's intention, which she cast down at the risk of violating regulations, but they also personally created a troublesome monster that even a LV.5 adventurer would find difficult to defeat."
Lidali, the blind swordsman, clenched his fists, an intense surge of anger erupting from him, but he couldn't refute a single word.
"However, even facing such idiots, our two-faced Goddess still didn't give up."
"So, not long after the Spring of Life turned into a poisonous spring, this annoying Goddess 'conveniently' appeared before them and proposed an annoying suggestion."
The expressions on the girls' faces gradually turned to anger; clearly, they had already guessed what this so-called suggestion was.
"Centered on beastmen, mixed with thirty different bloodlines, without a single mistake in the concentration of any blood or the sequence of mating, it would take several generations to create a perfect sacrifice with a specific skill."
"If the skill obtained at such a great cost could truly eliminate the Swamp King in one go, that would be fine. Unfortunately, it could at most only severely injure him."
"Therefore, this kind of sacrifice had to be made every few decades. The history of the Belden nation is built upon blood and stench."
Taruvi lowered her head, her shoulders trembling uncontrollably.
"Mr. Rhode…"
Uskali's face was twisted with rage, and he screamed hysterically.
"Enough!"
"If only the Princess could happily enjoy this day, then everything would be perfect… But you inexplicable outsiders just have to jump in and mess things up!"
"What right do you, who know nothing, have to stand here and point fingers from above?!"
"All of our citizens and the Princess have known everything for a long time, and we are doing this with the resolve to die!"
Uskali clasped his hands in the air, gritting his teeth.
"Transform into swords, the loyal heart of steel!"
"—Sword of Faith!"
Two gusts of wind instantly materialized in his hands, transforming into two incredibly sharp longswords.
Rhode instantly copied this magic.
"Imbued magic… no, it's the materialization of weapons, turning wind into swords."
"Ais, wind doesn't deserve to be held by such a person. Hypocritical villains are no different from monsters. Deal with him."
Ais nodded in response to Rhode's words, a rare look of anger appearing in her usually calm eyes.
"To offer one's sovereign as a sacrifice… unworthy of being called a Sword of Faith… I will break them."
Uskali roared in anger, charging towards Rhode.
"To send a mere little girl to deal with me, don't underestimate people too much!"
"We are the Swords of Belden, tempered through arduous mountains and cruel poisons, refined a thousand times over!!"
In response, Ais merely spoke softly.
"Awaken—"
She activated her magic using a super-short incantation as a trigger.
"Wind Spirit Run."
The visible flow of air danced like spirits, swirling around Ais.
Her golden hair, sparkling like gold dust, billowed and surged with the fierce wind.
She lightly pushed off the ground with her tiptoes.
A thunderous roar like an explosion and a cloud of dust rose into the air.
Ais's figure instantly vanished!
By adding the power of wind to her entire body, she gained a fierce acceleration capable of tearing through the sound barrier!
Ais, literally, transformed into a golden gust of wind, instantly rushing before Uskali!
Uskali's face showed astonishment. He crossed his two swords in front of his chest, gritting his teeth, and barely managed to withstand this unimaginable blow, his feet plowing two deep furrows in the ground.
"She's just a little girl, yet…"
Ais narrowed her golden eyes.
"You're the one… who shouldn't underestimate me."
Possessing a more obsessive resolve than anyone else, embracing a determination to die, she had fought countless times against monsters in the Dungeon until exhaustion.
Rather than a sword master, she should be called an Asura.
Whether it was the opponent's self-pitying tragedy or their so-called training and cultivation, none of it was worth mentioning before this Doll Princess.
Lidali sighed, and an astonishing aura began to condense around his body.
"What boring noise… It makes us seem like the villains, but the Princess must return to her country."
Although he couldn't see, he accurately faced Rhode directly and slowly took a step forward.
"The distance between you and me is seven steps. Seven minus three equals four, it's extremely simple."
"These three steps are your last chance to regret rashly interfering in my country's internal affairs, and also your time for a final statement."
"If you just leave like this, nothing will happen, and nothing will be cut down."
Hearing this, the girls, who had been furious, suddenly felt a bit like laughing.
Even the kind-hearted A Di couldn't help but retort speechlessly.
"Don't you know this is Orario, the center of the world? Don't you know that one of the strongest people in Orario is standing in front of you right now?"
Lidali took a step with an expressionless face.
"It doesn't matter, stop chattering. How could you foreigners understand the feelings and power of us who were born and raised in Belden and have shared hundreds of years with this country?"
"Two more steps."
Alfia took a deep breath.
Whether it was the opponent's tone towards Rhode, his pretentious, profound attitude, or even his strangely similar catchphrase to her own from before.
All of it made Alfia barely able to suppress the rage in her heart.
She turned to look at Ryu beside her, her tone unfriendly.
"Hey, idiot, can't you tell this guy is left for you by Rhode?"
"If you can't take him down in five minutes, I'll break your limbs first, then blast him into smithereens until nothing is left!"
Ryu was naturally a bit angry to hear her say that, but compared to arguing with her, that man opposite was indeed more detestable to him!
"To make people mate to create lives that exist only to die! Such an act is a blasphemy against life, unforgivable by heaven!"
"As long as the name of the Goddess of Justice remains behind me, I will absolutely not forgive your actions!"
Lidali lowered his stance, assuming a side-draw posture, with his weight on his right foot.
Alfia's tone was so indifferent it was as if she was discussing a trivial, everyday matter, saying casually.
"Listen up, junior."
"The sword technique this guy uses has no school; it's a draw technique he conceived and created himself."
"Such moves are basically preemptive, relying on super-perception, which he developed after losing his eyes, to predict and counter. The first strike will definitely be a killing blow."
"Even if you survive the first strike, the second strike, delivered at divine speed, will also be fatal."
"This sword technique was created for close-quarters combat with monsters, a type of counter- and pursuit-style swordsmanship with a yin-yang advance-and-retreat movement."
Lidali's mouth hung open in astonishment.
"You saw through it completely… both the killing characteristic and the process of creating this move!"
"How did you do it?"
Alfia's tone was indifferent, saying casually.
"Is that so difficult? One look is enough to know everything clearly. The guy watching the show next to us also saw through it long ago."
"If it weren't to leave experience for that idiot next to me to level up, with his personality, he would have killed you with your own sword technique the moment you spoke."
Ignoring the shocked Lidali, Alfia continued to speak to Ryu.
"To cultivate a skill comparable to the techniques of the Far East through one's own efforts, it's barely passable."