The night passed peacefully.
The first rays of morning light rose over the city walls and fell upon the Hestia Familia's mansion.
Banners fluttered in the breeze. On the Familia crest, flowers surrounded a bell and flames.
"A-r-t-e-m-i-s!!!!"
Hestia stood in front of Bell's door, chest thrust out proudly, brimming with an aggressive aura.
Relying on her position as the Familia Goddess, she ignored whether anyone inside had answered and shoved the door open.
What greeted her was a sleeping boy, and the Moon Goddess clinging to his arm.
"You perverted goddess! What part of you has anything to do with chastity?!!"
Hestia shouted at the top of her lungs, mercilessly accusing her former best friend.
"Mm... Hestia?"
Artemis blinked sleepily, as if she still had not fully returned from her dream.
She blinked again and looked at the boy beside her.
"Huh? Huh?!!!"
Artemis hurriedly let go of the boy's arm and instantly backed several steps away.
The white rabbit from her dream had turned into her real-life lover. That realization struck the Moon Goddess with a devastating blow.
And along with that shock came her best friend's interrogation.
"Artemis, I misjudged you all this time. You're just a vixen!"
Hestia folded her arms and glared fiercely at the Moon Goddess.
"T-there's a reason for this! I sacrificed myself so Orion could rest properly without being disturbed by those other two girls!"
Artemis quickly tried to defend herself.
After finishing their moonlit dance and parting with Bell, she had gone to the bath alone and overheard Laurier and Airmid talking.
The two girls had been discussing that, although Bell was supposed to spend tonight with Artemis according to the schedule, the Moon Goddess would absolutely never do anything in that direction, which gave them their chance.
To stop the two of them from sneaking into Bell's room and doing something indecent, Artemis had slept in Bell's bed.
Those two girls were definitely going to come anyway, so all she had to do was sleep on the edge.
That was what Artemis had thought, but reality had turned out very differently.
"No matter how I look at it, Artemis is the one hogging Bell all to herself, isn't she?"
"Ugh..."
"And Airmid and the others you mentioned are still sleeping obediently in their rooms right now."
"Ugh..."
"You actually used Bell like a body pillow. I'm so jealous... no, I mean, it's unforgivable! Impure, filthy, liar, vixen!"
"Waaah..."
Under Hestia's barrage of accusations, Artemis had no way to answer.
Laurier and the others must have set her up...
Artemis's face flushed bright red. She wanted to wake Bell and have him say something for her, but this situation was simply too embarrassing.
If the boy saw her looking so disheveled, she would only become even more flustered.
After all, Artemis trusted the boy completely. She believed Bell would never do anything to hurt a girl, and that was why she had slept in this bed.
But in reality, because of her dream, she had clung to the boy's arm like a girl in love.
"Uuu..."
A bashful sound slipped from Artemis's lips, her embarrassment rising like steam.
"Artemis, you traitor!!!"
With tears in her eyes, Hestia shouted those final words.
That day, the morning at the Hestia Familia was as lively as ever.
...
Bell let out a soft sigh and finished washing up.
The world was always full of hardships and challenges. Sometimes, pretending to be asleep was very important.
Also, whether it was Artemis's adorable appearance in her pajamas or the sweet way she had clung to him like a little kitten while mumbling in her sleep, he had actually remembered all of it.
There were now a few more secrets he needed to bury deep in his heart...
"Good morning, Bell-dono."
Mikoto greeted him. She was wearing a pale pink apron, clearly having prepared breakfast for everyone.
The Hestia Familia's meals had originally been made in rotation, but Mikoto had taken on the responsibility in the name of learning.
Of course, out of consideration for the girl's earnestness, everyone else would take the initiative to help.
"Good morning, Mikoto. That outfit looks lovely on you. It suits you very well."
Bell praised her softly.
"Lovely... That word has nothing to do with me..."
Mikoto's cheeks visibly turned faintly red.
"You're too modest, Mikoto. Not only are you good at cooking, you're beautiful too. Seeing you like this in the morning makes my whole day feel brighter."
Bell spoke his thoughts honestly.
Unlike Hestia's liveliness, Mikoto always gave off a gentle, reliable impression.
If he had to compare it to something, she was like a caring wife.
"Bell-dono!"
Mikoto's face turned bright red, and she unconsciously pinched the hem of her skirt. "I'll go change first... Oh, and Hestia-sama is very energetic today, so you had best be careful, Bell-dono."
After leaving that warning behind, Mikoto hurried back to her room.
"..."
Bell stood there, puzzled.
As he was thinking about what Mikoto's warning meant, a petite girl picked up the conversation.
"Bell-sama, Mikoto is right. Hestia-sama is acting very strange today."
Lili gestured to Bell, signaling him to come closer.
"What exactly happened?"
Bell bent down and lowered his voice, playing along with her secretive attitude.
"Didn't we agree to go out and have fun together today?"
Lili explained quietly, "I don't know whether Hestia-sama is too excited or if Artemis-sama provoked her, but she's been incredibly worked up."
"..."
Bell was momentarily speechless.
Hestia was probably just like a child, full of anticipation for an outing.
As for being provoked by Artemis...
Bell recalled what had happened that morning and suddenly felt that might make some sense too.
"In any case, Lili is on Bell-sama's side! If Bell-sama and Artemis-sama do something naughty, Lili is willing to help hold Hestia-sama back!"
Lili stated her position with firm resolve.
"Lili, you really can't judge people by appearances..."
Bell murmured in admiration.
Anyone who saw this tiny, adorable Pallum would think she was an innocent, kind-hearted little girl.
Only Bell knew that, in terms of age, she was probably one or two years older than him.
"Ugh... Bell-sama, you definitely just treated Lili like a child, didn't you?"
Lili puffed out her cheeks and complained.
"You noticed?"
Bell openly admitted it.
"Since you said that, Lili is definitely going to pick out a nice outfit and show Bell-sama that Lili is not a child!"
Lili ran off toward her room in high spirits.
It seemed one more person was looking forward to this date.
Bell slowly walked toward the dining hall.
Unexpectedly, what greeted the young man there was Hestia's [Judgment] and [Rules].
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