A long time ago, a god stole the great fire of heaven.
Whoosh!!
Rumble!!
The thunder of the heavens tried to stop it, but in the end, the celestial flame fell below.
"It is the god's karma, and heaven's sin."
The lower world seemed to be saved for a moment, but soon the flame was defiled.
The hateful lightning tried to erase a part of the lower world along with the flames, but a god stopped it.
"Only a god can atone."
When the deferred death and the deferred sin reappeared before the gods.
The celestial flame would finally be purified.
"The priestess who was neither recognized nor forgiven as a living sacrifice is not here. Therefore, I shall offer this body as the wick."
The Goddess of the Sacred Flame lay down within the massive blaze.
"I am Vesta, the eternal Sacred Flame."
"The deity of the altar who upholds the flame to burn everything away. The time is near."
"In the end..."
The Sacred Flame would burn even itself to save the world.
"[Do not come.]"
Whoosh!!
"Until my role is fulfilled, no one, not even a god, shall enter this [Aedes Vesta]."
Her figure, lying alone amidst the flames, was...
"There is no need for a [Hero]..."
There was no reason not to save her.
"There is no need for a [Hero]!!!!!!"
Snap!!
A man opened his eyes, eyes like those of a dragon.
"I will make it so that no one can fail or succeed under the name of a hero anymore...!!"
Epimetheus's red eyes had already stained both of his own.
"That alone...!! Is the salvation for this world!!"
His arm was patched with a darkness beyond black, wrapping Eton in purple flames.
"Ggggh...!!!"
He suppressed the flames consuming him, offering himself as the wick.
"Divine Commander..."
"Rhea... what on earth is that..."
Tremble!
The priestesses shook in terror at the sight, and the soldiers, though paralyzed by fear, had no choice but to raise their swords.
"...For the sake of peace."
Swallowing those words, Rhea recalled a single battle.
"Pour everything in!!!!!!"
Those who fought for peace, for their own happiness, and for the happiness of everyone.
"..."
Clearly, they had the same goal. No, even though they were the ones being unreasonable.
Why did they have such bright expressions?
Such questions shook the priestess's mind as she opened her eyes, which had lost their light.
Rumble—
There was no reason not to save her.
"The enemy?"
"North, all clear."
"South and the coast are also clear. Not even a sign of them since the last ambush."
Despite the thorough search by the scouts and the reconnaissance team, all traces of the fire had vanished after the massive dragon was slain.
"...The roars of the [Flame Men] and the explosions of fire that echoed incessantly through the night have gone quiet."
"A night this peaceful in an Olympia turned into another world..."
Even Hyakinthos Clio grew sentimental on this first quiet night since they had stepped onto this land.
Step, step—
"Thank you for your hard work on guard duty. We've brought water and provisions."
As they soaked in the silence, Yamato Mikoto and Sanjouno Haruhime arrived with supplies.
"Thank you, this is a lifesaver."
Asfi Al Andromeda, who was on guard duty along with Aisha Belka, Ryu Lion, and Hedin Selland, expressed her gratitude.
"So... what's the situation since we took down that dragon?"
"We haven't seen any [Flame Men], and even [The Order] is nowhere to be found..."
In response to Welf Crozzo's questioning look, Haruhime described the current anomaly.
"The Order must have taken heavy damage as well... I suppose that's expected after facing such a dragon."
"How disappointing. Between them and this silence, it feels like nothing else is going to happen."
"As if. The altar is still burning."
Point—
In response to Aisha's joke, Hedin immediately pointed toward the altar, showing them Olympia burning in purple light.
"Then this silence is..."
"It's hard to see it as a good omen, regardless."
It was like being in the eye of the storm.
Ryu and Hedin were wary of this quiet, believing they needed to move as soon as possible.
"Come to think of it, I don't see Akumo or Bell... where are they now?"
They should have been resting like everyone else after the battle.
Squelch!!
"...Are you even human?"
"I am, actually..."
Akumo's wounds had healed in an instant, and Bell was also fully rested after his Status was reactivated.
Ryu wondered where they could possibly be.
"I'm not sure either. Hermes and his group haven't come out of the room. They won't even let us see their faces, even though we had such a great victory..."
"Lili, you just want to be stuck to Bell's side..."
"Who are you calling a beast who wants to have a secret tryst with a rabbit!?"
"I didn't go that far... Lilliluka."
Watching them in that atmosphere, Asfi eventually let out a small smile.
"It just means Bell Cranel has accomplished something significant enough for Hermes and the others to keep him close."
Smile—
"It is truly an unprecedented [Great Feat]."
Of course, it was an unprecedented feat they had all achieved together.
Rustle!
"There's no mistake... his Status has definitely been restored."
Hephaestus was looking intently at Bell's back.
Not only her, but Freya and Artemis were also staring at his back.
More accurately, they were looking at the Status engraved there.
"To actually break a god's seal... you never cease to amaze me..."
"I agree, Hephaestus."
I've watched him since he was a kid, but what is he made of?
Beside her, Akumo was also admiring Bell's restored Status as he read it.
"Um, excuse me... Hephaestus? Can I put my clothes back on now...? It's a bit embarrassing with everyone staring..."
Apparently, the attention was quite burdensome for Bell.
"Oh? You show it to Hestia all the time, but you don't want to show me?"
"It's not that... but my Patron Deity is my Patron Deity, and showing one's Status so casually is..."
"Hephaestus, what are you saying to the boy..."
"Even you, Akumo? You're so mean~"
A Status was top-secret personal information.
Of course, Hephaestus wasn't the type of goddess to leak such information anywhere.
Stare!
"Freya, you should stop staring too."
"Oh? Are you saying I'm not as trustworthy as Hephaestus?"
"That's not it..."
*Even if Hestia tried to hide it... [Liariis Freese] must have been completely exposed...*
The brothers were troubled by the whims of the goddesses.
Amidst them, Artemis's voice cut through, changing the atmosphere.
"By the way, what about Akumo?"
"...Huh?"
The sudden demand to reveal his own Status.
Stare!
"""..."""
"M-mine is truly confidential information...!?"
However, they had no intention of looking away.
"Brother... are you really okay...?"
"B-Bell!?"
If you look at me with those eyes...
Among the information relayed by Hermes was the state of Akumo's condition, so at the sight of Bell's eyes filled with genuine worry, he finally gave in.
Strip!
"Sigh... I'm my own worst enemy..."
Akumo took off his uniform and revealed his back, drawing everyone's gaze to his Status.
"Oh... this is..."
"It's incredible in a different way from Bell's..."
Unlike Bell's, Akumo's back was covered in scars and solid with hard muscle.
"Just how have you lived your life?"
"I've... lived a bit roughly, ahaha!"
"...Don't try to laugh it off."
Regardless, the goddesses immediately checked Akumo's Status.
It was a Status even more broken than when Loki had last updated it.
It was so mangled that even the gods couldn't decipher it, and it was now doubtful if this was even the result of a Falna.
"And yet, you still..."
He had fought Epimetheus, used a Divine Weapon, and once again triumphed over an avatar of the Black Dragon.
"What is it~~ Let me see too!!!!!!"
Behind the admiring goddesses, the shout of the tied-up Hermes rang out.
"Isn't this too much, everyone? I'm not Asfi, so why leave me tied up and neglected like this!"
"Be quiet. Who knows how you'd exploit the information if we told you."
"To be so mistrusted, how sorrowful~ I didn't see anything, so please just untie me now..."
"Yes, yes."
As Akumo put his uniform back on and looked for his shirt to go untie Hermes.
"...?"
Fumble, fumble—
Where did it go...?
Realizing his uniform had disappeared, he immediately turned his head toward the goddesses.
"Seriously, are you really going to go this far!?"
"""Just a little longer!"""
"Oh, please..."
In the end, it was a full five minutes later before Hermes was finally released.
Thud!
"Phew! Finally free!"
"Sigh... I feel like a jewel on display..."
"Hahaha! Isn't being looked at like that by goddesses a first in history?"
"Just die, seriously."
As Akumo hung his head in inexplicable embarrassment, Hermes asked Bell for his thoughts on the matter.
"By the way, Bell. How do you feel? Your impressions on being the first in history to break a [Status] seal."
"I don't really feel like I did anything... my brother's condition is much more of a shock..."
"Hmm~ Well, the two of you are walking similar paths, after all."
At that moment, the words that came out of Hermes's mouth...
"...Pardon?"
Those words sparked deep curiosity in Bell, and he immediately questioned Hermes.
"You know it too, don't you? The ancient heroes surpassed their limits even without a [Falna]."
"That worst of eras, and their will, awakened the vessels of those children."
Just as they had taken a step forward in the face of a vast despair that seemed insurmountable.
"Your resolve within that vicious hell. Your resolve to willingly choose to be a hero to save everyone."
He had succeeded in awakening his own true vessel.
""...""
"Coincidentally, the current Olympia is recreating the ancient era, so you both have surpassed your own limits."
At Hermes's words, Akumo placed a hand over his heart and sank into thought.
"..."
Certainly, as much as my Status is broken... it's impossible to use magic anymore.
Clench!
"But you know? I have a question..."
Though he had lost the magic that relied on the memories within him and had found his original beginner's heart.
"Unlike Bell, why is my Falna still in this broken state?"