Chapter 42: The Amazons' Pursuit
"Wow, they actually sell dried fish snacks in Orario?"
"Then please give me a box. I want the spicy flavor~"
Since arriving in the City of Orario, they had first treated adventurers in public, and were subsequently summoned by Ouranos to the Underground Altar.
After joining the Loki Familia, they had secretly sneaked into the Dungeon to fight monsters, only to be caught and brought back...
They finally had an Expedition, but then the business with the red-haired Creature and the Spirit cropped up.
Today, however, there shouldn't be any trouble. After all, Finn, the captain of the Loki Familia, had left early in the morning; he seemingly intended to discuss the matter of the Creature and the Spirit with the Familia's allies and the Guild to see if they could find any useful intelligence.
Consequently, the Loki Familia naturally found themselves at leisure.
It was estimated that they wouldn't be able to enter the Dungeon on a large scale for several days.
After updating their Status in the morning, Hyacine and Barbara took Ais and Lefiya along to Orario's snack street, leading to the scene described above.
Barbara quickly found a delicacy that suited her palate...
Spicy dried fish!
"Eh? Are you really going to eat that?"
Before Ais could speak, a trace of awkwardness appeared on Lefiya's face; after all, she wasn't good with spicy food.
However, facing the snack Barbara handed over, Ais didn't hesitate for a second and stuffed it directly into her mouth.
"Awoo, mumu..."
To Ais, Barbara was just like Hyacine. Although they hadn't been here long, the aura around them definitely couldn't be faked. They were gentle people, just like her mother!
Therefore, it was impossible for Barbara to poison her, much less harm her in any way, so Ais just ate it.
At first, there was no problem, but as Ais's little mouth chewed faster and faster, the calm on her face gradually began to crumble, and even her cheeks turned a deep crimson.
"Miss Ais, are you alright?"
Lefiya became anxious when she saw Ais undergo such a change, but she had no way to stop it.
"Don't worry, Lefiya~"
"Ais is a Level 5 Adventurer. How could she possibly lose to spicy dried fish? Let's just cheer her on!"
"Do you want a piece too? The taste is quite good!"
The smile on Hyacine's face was like sunlight falling from the sky, instantly illuminating Lefiya's face.
Only, did the sunlight seem a bit too enthusiastic?
Lefiya couldn't help but swallow hard. She looked at the sweating, red-faced Ais beside her, then at the dried fish in Barbara's hand, and finally made up her mind.
"Since Miss Ais has already eaten it, I absolutely cannot fall behind!"
Although Lefiya was only Level 3, she could unleash firepower no less than a Level 5, making her part of the next generation of talent being cultivated by the Familia.
Moreover, Lefiya's idol was Ais. Since her idol had already personally braved the danger, how could she be willing to lag behind?
It's just a mere spicy dried fish—I'll just defeat you!
She grabbed a large handful of spicy dried fish and stuffed them directly into her mouth, followed by vigorous chewing.
This scene plunged the two watching girls into silence. They had seen people eat spicy food, but never like this.
Eating so much at once was a bit much even for Barbara. Surely one should eat it one small piece at a time like Ais, right?
"Ugh... ah! So spicy..."
At that moment, Ais couldn't take the heat in her mouth anymore. She swallowed the remaining fish and began to pant heavily.
Just one piece of dried fish had left Ais covered in sweat with an unnaturally red face, so there was no need to even mention Lefiya.
"Wuuuuuuu!!!"
Because there were simply too many dried fish in her mouth, the girl couldn't even swallow. Eventually, the spiciness of the fish completely overwhelmed her tongue, and Lefiya fainted entirely from the heat.
Is that it?
Lefiya is a bit too weak, isn't she?
It seems she should eat less of this in the future... After all, Lefiya hasn't reached adulthood among the Elves; she should stick to the kids' table for now.
Helplessly, the girls had no choice but to take the unconscious Lefiya to find a drink, hoping to alleviate her condition.
However, as they helped the unconscious girl up, Hyacine and Barbara narrowed their eyes almost simultaneously.
The two of them were facing each other while supporting Lefiya from both sides, so they could naturally see what was happening behind one another...
Both Hyacine and Barbara saw several women behind each other. The clothes they wore couldn't even be called clothes; they were essentially just draped in scraps of cloth.
With such distinct clothing characteristics, the only race that came to mind was the Amazon. After all, there were several Amazons in the Loki Familia as well.
But if one were to ask which Familia in the City had the closest ties to the Amazons, everyone would likely give the same answer...
The Ishtar Familia!
'The Ishtar Familia... why are they watching me?'
Initially, the two girls thought the target might be Ais, but that intense gaze and sense of crisis constantly fell on Barbara alone—not even Hyacine.
'Do they... really intend to make a move?'
With such thoughts in mind, the four girls left the snack street together, but the several tails behind them refused to let go...
—
"That's them. The Deliverers Lord Ouranos spoke of, the ones Lady Ishtar reminded us to watch out for."
Several Amazons hid among the crowd, occasionally glancing toward Barbara's location, the intent in their eyes couldn't be clearer.
"There seem to be two 'Deliverers'. What should we do?"
"Lady Ishtar said to seize one while they aren't paying attention. As long as no one knows it was us, the Loki Familia won't be able to come knocking on our door."
"As for the other one... it doesn't really matter if we get her or not."
Although Ishtar didn't know how much weight the title of 'Deliverer' carried, in order to avoid the Loki Familia going insane, she didn't plan to capture both of them. Instead, she set her sights on Barbara first.
This was unavoidable. After all, Hyacine looked very dazzling and had a rainbow pony by her side; capturing that girl would easily be seen by those around them. Barbara was much more plain; as long as they threw a sack over her, she wouldn't be easily discovered.
"Lady Ishtar has given strict orders. The Loki Familia was just struck by powerful monsters and currently doesn't have the energy to focus on the Deliverers. We must take this opportunity..."
"To take that girl for ourselves!"
The surrounding Amazons nodded in agreement one after another, then followed after the four departing girls.
"Once she's dragged into our Familia, will she still worry about not wanting to join?"
The Ishtar Familia was best at staining pure white sheets of paper black, making it so you could never return to where you came from, eventually leaving you only in Orario's Pleasure Quarter...
That eternal place of filth!
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T/N: If you spot mistranslation, do tell me.
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Shilling time!
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