Familia Myth: Journey to Hero Chapter 40 (Patreon)
Content
Hey friends and fans, Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of Familia Myth: Journey to Hero! After their overwhelming win against Apollo Familia in a 5 vs 100 War Game, the Hestia Familia has assuredly shown their strength within Orario! Now comes the time to reap the rewards of victory! All of Apollo Familia’s possessions, property, and cash to start…but there are other things to be earned from this victory as well! Plus some wonderful news will be given and a secret told.
If you’d like to become a patron and get access to these chapters earlier, just head on over to Pat re on and add a /Kairomaru after the com.
Make sure to thank the patrons that make these stories possible by checking out the Patron Plaque on my profile!
So, without further delay, please enjoy.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Chapter 40 – Impact of Victory
The day after the War Game against Apollo Familia was rather busy for the victorious Hestia Familia. Bell, Hestia, Lili, Welf, and Mikoto all stood before a large three-floored mansion that had a large iron fence around it. The large (former) Home of the Apollo Familia also had an inner garden, corridors, and a large front garden with flowers and trees.
At the moment the large building was empty of all people, Apollo was currently at Babel Tower being made to remove his Falna from all of his ‘children’ under the watchful eyes of many of the Deities that had been watching the War Game at Babel Tower yesterday. None of them would let the once arrogant and cocky Sun God renege on the agreement made with Hestia.
Several of them even seemed to get a bit of smug satisfaction at seeing Apollo brought low like this.
“This is our biggest acquisition from winning the War Game.” Hestia smiled brightly at her Familia. “And while it’s not too far from the Heart District, I’m considering just auctioning it off or selling it.”
Lili eyed up what they could all see of the large mansion for a long moment. “That might be for the best. There’s no way just the five of us could make use of every room in this place. Not to mention the maintenance needed to keep it clean and running perfectly.”
Mikoto bowed her head to Hestia. “As I’m a new member, I’ll leave the decision to you, Hestia-sama.”
Welf shrugged as he looked up at the three-story mansion. “Doesn’t matter to me either way. It doesn’t have a forge or anything and you already promised that you’ll build me a nice smithy in the Hearth District.”
“We could use the money to help with the debt.” Bell said to Hestia softly, a gentle smile on his face. They’d made great strides in paying off the 200,000,000 Valis they owed to Hephaestus…but selling this huge property might just be enough to get them out of debt, or close to it.
Hestia smiled happily. “Okay, there’s a lot of work to do. But first, this!” She took hold of the large board with the thick parchment on it that she’d brought with her. Taking a charcoal pencil into her right hand, Hestia began to sketch something onto the parchment, the tip of her tongue cutely poking out between her lips a little as she focused.
All of the Familia leaned in to see what Hestia was sketching out.
“Flames?” Bell asked as he saw the design taking shape.
“Hestia-sama’s symbol, the immortal flame, right?” Mikoto tilted her head as she thought she understood the meaning.
Welf held his chin as the next part of the sketch was being drawn.” And a…bell?”
“A bell…?” Lili looked at the design for a second and everything clicked. “A bell…for Bell!” She looked up at Bell with a warm smile. “It’s Lady Hestia and Bell!”
“Hehe!” Hestia giggled as she held up her completed sketch and then showed it to her Familia. “That’s right! From now on, this is our emblem!”
“Ahh!” The sketch of a bell with flames along its right side made Bell’s eyes widened as a smile covered his face and his rubellite eyes lit up.
Hestia’s cheeks turned a cute pink as she saw how much Bell liked the emblem that she’d chosen for their Familia.
Once they’d all agreed that it was a perfect emblem representing Hestia as the Goddess and Bell as the founding member of the Familia, the group made their way inside the former Apollo Familia Home.
Only to stop dead in their tracks at what greeted them in the entryway.
Dozens of statues of Apollo, all made from different materials, but with the same pose of Apollo laughing as he stood with his legs apart and his arms spread wide above his head.
“It certainly reflects Lord Apollo’s…tastes.” Lili deadpanned at the sheer vanity and narcissism on display.
“Like a glimpse into hell…” Mikoto uttered out, seemingly without realizing it.
Hestia’s deadpan look became one of disgust. “What is wrong with that brat?”
Welf coughed lightly, though his own flat expression didn’t change much. “I…don’t think anyone is going to want these.”
Bell nodded once. “We’ve got a lot of work to do.”
-Hearth Household (Hestia Familia Home) ~ Later-
Dinner was a large feast tonight; Hestia having been cooking since just after lunchtime. Many guests were coming over to celebrate with the Hestia Familia over their great victory: Takemikazuchi and his Familia, Miach and Naaza, Hephaestus, Eina, Ais, Tiona, Tione, Ryu, and Hestia had mentioned someone else might show up as well, but hadn’t told anyone who that might be.
As the guests arrived, warm greetings were shared and the levity within the home only increased. Hestia’s Domain Divinity swelled in proportion to the joy of her Familia, and those that gathered around her altar-like hearth in the large living room.
Bell had been hugged and kissed by all of his girlfriends, some of which (Tione and Tiona) had been deepened and held for a long moment. Others were softer and filled with love that Bell had triumphed and was uninjured. The large amount of affection had gotten a few chuckles out of some of the other guests, but Bell couldn’t have cared less as he held each of his girlfriends and lovers close and returned their love with all of his.
Once dinner was about to be served, a knock came from the front door.
Hestia went to answer it before anyone else could with a bright smile on her face. “Glad you could make it.”
Freya entered the Hearth Household wrapped up in her dark purple cloak that she always wore when walking through Orario. “Thank you for inviting me, Hestia.” She motioned behind her to the large figure of Ottar, and the tall figures of two Elf men just behind Ottar. “I’m afraid that I wasn’t allowed to come alone, though.” The Goddess of Beauty giggled at her lovers’ protectiveness over her.
“It’s fine.” Hestia gave the three men a soft and welcoming smile. “The more the merrier.”
All eyes were on the new arrivals as Ottar’s large frame stepped through the door, followed by two other very well-known Freya Familia members.
The Elf on Ottar’s left had white, almost translucent skin, golden hair that fell down his back and coral-colored eyes. He wore a black battle tunic along with a white cape and a white belt, both with gold embroidery, and wore a pair of round glasses. This was Hedin Selland, known throughout Orario by his Title ‘Hildrsleif’, a Level 6 Executive of Freya Familia.
The other Elf that entered the Hearth Household and closed the door behind the Freya Familia group was actually a Dark Elf, as denoted by his darker complexion. He had gray green eyes and silver hair with a hint of pale purple in it. He wore a black cloak that covered his body, and beneath it was a mostly black outfit with the only colors visible being the dark green of his pants beneath the black leg coverings and his dark indigo shirt. This was Hogni Ragnar, though he was better known by his Title of ‘Dainsleif’ within Orario, and he was also a Level 6 Executive of the Freya Familia.
“Well…can’t say I expected that.” Miach said as everyone watched Freya remove her cloak and Hedin gently hung it up on the coat rack near the door.
“No kidding…” Takemikazuchi agreed, his eyes following the movements of Ottar, Hogni, and Hedin. Having such powerful Adventurers suddenly show up was more than unexpected.
Ais, Tione, and Tiona were doing the same as Takemikazuchi, keeping their eyes on the executives of Freya Familia. It was no secret that the top two Familia in Orario were only ‘just’ on peaceful terms with each other at best.
Bell, as Captain of the Hestia Familia, greeted the guests from the Freya Familia. “Lady Freya, it’s nice to see you again.” He said with a short bow. “I hope that you, Mr. Ottar, Mr. Hedin, and Mr. Hogni, will enjoy your time within our home.”
“I’m certain that we will.” Freya gave Bell a small smile. She looked at her three lovers (a small grin playing on her lips as she knew that Hedin would prefer her love all to himself) and looked into each of their eyes. “Be polite this evening.”
“As you request, Goddess.” Ottar, Hedin, and Hogni said in almost perfect unison. Hedin shot Hogni and Ottar a quick glare, but it disappeared before anyone else could notice it.
Hestia clapped her hands once, getting everyone’s attention. “Dinner is ready! Please follow me to the dining room!”
It only took a couple of minutes for everyone to be seated. The dining room was filled to capacity for the first time, every seat at the long table taken as Hestia, Lili, Bell, Welf, and Mikoto brought out the various dishes that Hestia had spent half the day cooking up.
Once Hestia took her seat at the head of the table, she raised her wine glass in a toast. “To our victory in the War Game, the great windfall it has brought us, the bright future of our Familia, and to Bell for becoming his Level Up to Level 3!”
Everyone looked at Bell suddenly, barring the three Adventurers from Freya Familia who only glanced at Bell with a tiny fraction of interest given the incredibly fast Level Up from Level 2 to Level 3.
“You’re Level 3, Bell?!” Lili exclaimed happily, a beautiful smile on her face.
“That’s amazing, Argonaut!” Tiona cheered, her smile lighting up the room like sunshine.
“So fast…” Tione breathed out in amazement. She was absolutely thrilled by Bell’s well-earned Level Up, of course.
Ais could only look at her boyfriend in stunned shock for a moment before a gorgeous smile covered her face. “Congratulations, Bell.”
Ryu’s smile was soft and filled with her love and affection for Bell. “Your dedication to your goals and dreams is still incredible, Bell.”
“We’ll have to update your paperwork at the Guild, Bell.” Eina said with a little giggle, a warm and loving grin on her lips. Beneath the table, her left hand rested on her tummy. ‘I’ll tell him after dinner.’
“Way to go, Bell!” Welf reached over to pat Bell on the back with laugh. “You’re making it hard to keep up though!” He joked about Bell’s insanely fast Level Up after reaching Level 2 just over a month ago.
Bell rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish chuckle at all of the praise. “Thank you very much.” He bowed his head to everyone gathered for the celebration. He could still barely believe it himself as his recalled the Status Update that Hestia had given him just before she’d started cooking earlier.
-Earlier-
Bell lay on his stomach, his shirt off, in the master bedroom. Hestia straddled his hips and let a drop of her blood touch his back. The familiar blue-white glow lit up the room a bit more as Bell’s Falna appeared from his skin.
“You’ve done something incredible again, Bell.” Hestia said softly, her voice warm with love and praise.
“I’ll do whatever it takes to protect our Familia, Hestia.” Bell said as he looked over his shoulder as best he could from his position.
Hestia felt her love for Bell grow at his declaration. “I know you will. I love you so much.”
Bell smiled and returned her declaration of love with his own. “Love you too, Hestia.”
Hestia was already sure that she knew what was going to happen during this update, so she watched Bell’s Excelia from the War Game and moved the gathered Excelia into Bell’s Basic Abilities. As the numbers jumped higher, Hestia smiled as what she thought would happen came to pass. “Just one more second…” She placed a blank paper on Bell’s back and copied the update onto it. “Here you go, Bell.”
Bell, slightly confused that Hestia wasn’t moving off of him as the glow from his Falna disappeared, nevertheless took the paper and looked it over.
-Status-
Bell Cranel
Level 2 (3)
Strength – SSS 1,673 > SSS 1,724
Defense – SSS 1,581 > SSS 1,620
Dexterity – SSS 1,745 > SSS 1,801
Agility – SSS 1,790 > SSS 1,842
Magic – SSS 1,766 > SSS 1,817
-Magic-
Firebolt
Vesta Enhance
Enchant Magic – Incantation: ‘Rise’
(Increases all Basic Abilities for five minutes. Then can’t be cast for five minutes after the increase wears off. Effect rises based on the Magic Stat.)
Thunderbolt
-Skills-
-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-
Dual Wield – Significantly increases Strength and Dexterity when wielding a weapon in each hand.
Argonaut – Executes automatically after charging from active actions.
Heroic Will – Raises Stats when the user refuses to give up in the face of adversity. Those with lower Stats see the user as near unassailable.
Dragon Slayer – Heavily increases all abilities when fighting Reptilian Monsters, massively increases all abilities when fighting Dragon Type Monsters, potentially making the user stronger than their actual Level when fighting them. Passive.
-Developmental Abilities-
Luck – I
Hunter – I
(Anomalous Resistance)
-Status-
Bell stared at his update for a moment after he finished looking it over. “I can Level Up.”
Hestia leaned forward, pressing her body against Bell’s back and kissed his shoulder. “You can.”
“I only have one option for Development Ability.” Bell said as he enjoyed Hestia’s soft body pressed against him.
“I’ve never heard of this one before, but from what I can tell, it acts as protection from both status afflictions and harmful Magic.” Hestia told Bell what she knew of the Developmental Ability that had manifested within his Falna.
Bell turned his head and kissed Hestia’s cheek. “Can we do it now?”
Hestia giggled and kissed Bell’s cheek in return while moving her body against his back. “Double entendre, Bell~” She teased him playfully.
“If you didn’t plan to start cooking soon, we could do both.” Bell managed to tease back with a grin.
“Naughty boy~” Hestia said as she pushed herself upright and straddled Bell’s hips once more. “Alright, here we go.” She let another drop of her blood touch Bell’s back and the glow reappeared as she advanced Bell’s Falna to Level 3 and wrote in the new Developmental Ability. ‘I promised that I’d tell you everything, Bell.’ Hestia thought to herself as she gently ran her finger over the first Skill that Bell had ever obtained, and that she’d hidden out of her concern to keep him safe. As the Basic Abilities reset to start keeping track of Bell’s Level 3 stats and the Level Up was completed, Hestia placed a second blank paper against Bell’s back and copied the update over with a twirl of her fingertip.
Bell sat up as Hestia moved off of him and handed him his first Level 3 Status.
-Status-
Bell Cranel
Level 3
Strength – I 0
Defense – I 0
Dexterity – I 0
Agility – I 0
Magic – I 0
-Magic-
Firebolt
Vesta Enhance
Enchant Magic – Incantation: ‘Rise’
(Increases all Basic Abilities for five minutes. Then can’t be cast for five minutes after the increase wears off. Effect rises based on the Magic Stat.)
Thunderbolt
-Skills-
Liaris Freese – Fast growth as long as feelings last. The strength of the effects corresponds with the level of the user’s feelings.
Dual Wield – Significantly increases Strength and Dexterity when wielding a weapon in each hand.
Argonaut – Executes automatically after charging from active actions.
Heroic Will – Raises Stats when the user refuses to give up in the face of adversity. Those with lower Stats see the user as near unassailable.
Dragon Slayer – Heavily increases all abilities when fighting Reptilian Monsters, massively increases all abilities when fighting Dragon Type Monsters, potentially making the user stronger than their actual Level when fighting them. Passive.
-Developmental Abilities-
Luck – H
Hunter – I
Anomalous Resistance – I
-Status-
“Level 3…” Bell said quietly as he looked at the paper. “Hm?” He looked closer at the Skills section. “Where did this Skill at the top come from?” Bell read it and his eyes widened. “Fast growth… Feelings…”
Hestia felt tears well up in the corners of her eyes. “I’m sorry that I hid it from you Bell.” Bell turned to look at Hestia, his rubellite eyes locked with Hestia’s watery blue. “I didn’t want any other Deities to find out about your unheard of Skill… Because I didn’t want them to try and take you away and treat you like some toy.” She sniffled once, knowing that even with her reasoning, she’d still kept a secret from the one she loved.
Bell took a long moment to process what Hestia had said as his eyes dropped back down to his Status Update and the newly revealed Liaris Freese. ‘Some Deities are already showing interest…though not just for my fast growth.’ Apollo’s desire to take him from Hestia had stemmed from the Sun God’s own passion to have Bell for himself as well as a means to stop Hestia’s rise within Orario. ‘Would more Deities have already come after me…us…if they knew about this Skill?’ It didn’t take a genius to figure out the obvious answer.
The Status Update fell to the floor and Hestia found herself pulled into Bell’s arms as he held her close. The embrace was warm, loving, reassuring, and Hestia completely melted into it as a stray tear fell from each of her eyes to trail down her cheeks. The two didn’t say anything, they didn’t need to, they poured their feelings into their embrace and just held each other for a long while.
“Thank you for looking out for me, Hestia.” Bell said softly as his hand gently ran up and down Hestia’s back.
“Y-You’re not…an-angry that I lied?” Hestia sniffled as she kept her face buried into Bell’s chest.
Bell pulled back so that he could see Hestia’s face. He gently wiped away her tears with his thumbs as he cupped her face in both hands. “You hid the truth out of love and a desire to protect me. I could never be angry with you for that.” He smiled at her and Hestia sniffled once more before smiling back. “I will never leave you, Hestia. I could never hate you.” Bell leaned in and rested his forehead against Hestia’s. “I love you, Hestia.”
“I love you, Bell.” Hestia returned and their lips met a second later.
The two had stayed like that, lying in bed for quite a while, just embracing each other and sharing soft kisses. Bell lightened the mood by softly whispering to Hestia that it was nice to know why his stats could exceed the S 999 limit, and that it wasn’t because he was somehow ‘different’ from everyone else. Hestia had brought Bell’s lips to hers for another soft kiss before teasingly suggesting that perhaps a feature Demi-God child of theirs would be capable of breaking the limit of the Falna too.
That had led to the two of them kissing and cuddling even more as they both very much looked forward to the day that they could welcome a child of their own into the world.
-Present-
The dinner continued after the toast and it only took a single bite before the guests began to shower Hestia with compliments for her cooking.
“Eheh!” Hestia smiled and giggled from all the praise.
Even the three Adventurers from the Freya Familia were enjoying their food. Ottar ate in silence, though the fact that he was on his fourth helping showed his clear enjoyment of the meal. Hogni was eating with less decorum than one might expect from an Elf, but given that he was cleaning his plate each time, it couldn’t be said that the Dark Elf didn’t like the food. Hedin ate with all of the etiquette and grace that one would expect of an Elf. He kept silent as he ate and placed his silverware down properly any time he reached for his drink to take a sip. Not a single bit of food ever escaped Hedin’s plate to fall on the table nor on his clothing. The Elf was the epitome of high class and fine dining etiquette during the meal.
Once dinner was finished, the large group moved back towards the large living room. As everyone took a seat somewhere (Freya being surrounded by her three lovers, of course) Eina remained standing and took Bell’s hands in hers with a warm smile, even as she blushed to the tips of her Elven ears.
“Eina?” Bell looked at Eina softly, curiously.
“Bell…” Eina started, only to stop for a moment as she gathered her nerve. “I have something to tell you.”
Everyone was curious now, given Eina’s words and her clearly warring emotions.
“You can tell me anything, Eina.” Bell assured her with the smile that Eina had fallen in love with.
Eina smiled and she moved Bell’s hand to her tummy. “Bell, I’m pregnant.”
The entire room went silent.
Bell was stunned for a moment, his eyes wide in surprise. He saw Eina’s warm green eyes looking straight at him with love and joy and he gently moved his hand against her tummy. “I’m going to be a father?”
Eina nodded as happy little tears formed in the corners of her eyes. “Yes.”
“YES!!!” Bell surprised everyone with his exclamation of joy. He pulled Eina into a warm hug and even twirled her around once before setting her back on her feet and kissing her lips, pouring all of his love and affection for her into it.
“EEEE!!!” Hestia’s eyes lit up and sparkled at the news while an absolutely divine smile glowed on her face. As the Goddess of Family, the news of a new member of the family being ‘on the way’ thrilled her to no end. Her Domain Divinity swelled even further and filled the air within the Hearth Household with the joy of Family. The overflowing feelings began to fill the Hearth District as well, making many of the residents pull their own families close and express their joy and love for their spouses, children, siblings, parents, and every member of their family that was with them.
Freya smiled, feeling the overwhelming love from the couple wash over her. As one of her Divine Domains, the emotion of love filled her, even more so when it was True Love like what Bell and Eina had for each other. “Congratulations.”
That got the rest of the group to snap out of their surprise and give their own congratulations and cheers to the soon-to-be parents.
“C-Can I…feel?” Ais asked shyly as she looked at Eina’s, still flat, stomach.
“Of course.” Eina allowed with a soft smile.
Ais slowly, carefully, reached out and gently touched Eina’s tummy. It was a strange thing to not physically feel a difference, but to know that a little one was growing within. A warm little smile filled Ais’s face as she briefly looked at Bell and her cheeks went pink.
Ryu was at Eina’s side with a warm smile for her ‘sister’ both in terms of being Elven kin, and being the lovers of the same man. “Congratulations.” She said softly to the Half-Elf. It was always good news to learn of the conception of an Elf child.
The dual applause from Hogni and Hedin got the attention of the group as no one had expected it.
“Congratulations, Miss Eina, on your blessing.” Hogni said in what was clearly some kind of formal congratulations.
“A blessing among our Elven kin, I wish you ease and comfort for the months ahead, may a warm and loving home you bring your child in, and to a healthy life wherever your family tread.” Hedin said, reciting a small poem from his old kingdom for expecting Elven mothers.
Given that Elven couples could take decades to conceive together, the announcement of any pregnancy among the Elven community was always treated as a blessing. While a few traditionalist may have some problems with Half-Elves, the majority of the Elven population did not. The birth of a High Elf was celebrated even in other forests when they happened. The birth of an Elf was always considered a blessing. And the birth of Half-Elves was a blessing that continued the long line of Elven generations.
Tiona, smiling as she got to gently touch Eina’s tummy, looked up at the Half-Elf with a cute and curious smile. “Will the little one be a Quarter-Elf?”
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a Quarter-Elf…” Tione looked thoughtful.
Ryu shook her head once. “Quarter-Elves do not exist. No matter how many generations of marrying humans, a Half-Elf parent will always lead to a Half-Elf child.”
Hedin spoke up. “Some say that even Elven blood holds the pride of our people and will not dilute below half. But it’s the same for any of the other races that humans can mix with. There has never been a Quarter-Prum, nor a Quarter-Dwarf…only Half-Prums and Half-Dwarves. No one is precisely sure why this is so, only that it is.”
“Two High Elves will always produce a High Elf.” Hogni said, even as he seemed to purposefully sink a bit more into his black cloak. “A High Elf and an Elf will always produce a High Elf. An Elf and a Human will always produce a Half-Elf, but a Half-Elf and a Human will also always produce another Half-Elf.” It was a simplified and quick explanation of how Elven blood worked over generations.
Bell hugged Eina close and kissed her cheek softly. “I only want our children to be healthy and happy. They can be Half-Elf or Human or Elf…it doesn’t matter.”
“Bell…” Eina kissed his cheek in return as she leaned into his embrace more.
The get together became even more festive after the announcement of Eina’s pregnancy. Bell was at her side the entire evening while Eina was doted on by Hestia, Lili, Ryu, Tiona, Tione, and Ais as much as they could.
Not one to just receive and not give something back, Eina asked Lili to fetch the small hand harp from Hestia’s office. As soon as Lili returned with the instrument, Eina began to play for everyone. A soft and beautiful tune filled the Hearth Household and brought a smile to almost everyone’s face.
As the music played, Miach surprised several people as he began to sing along with one of Eina’s songs, showing off a bit of talent as his soft voice and accent harmonized beautifully with the harp’s tune.
The gathering became even more cheerful and merry from there until it got late enough that the guests needed to leave.
Once the guests began to leave, Bell and Hestia made sure to thank everyone for coming.
“I hope to see you again soon, Hestia.” Freya smiled at her friend as she put on her dark purple cloak. She was able to breathe a little easier and not hold back as much of her Divine Beauty’s innate ability to capture the hearts of others once she had the cloak on. If she hadn’t been controlling it during the get together, most of the ‘children’ would’ve simply been staring at her the entire time.
“I’ll try and make some time for tea once everything from Apollo Familia has been worked through.” Hestia said with a cute grin.
Freya giggled a little at that. “I’ll look forward to it.”
With that, Freya left the Hearth Household with Ottar, Hedin, and Hogni practically surrounding her in a triangle formation.
“It was a wonderful evening, Hestia.” Miach smiled warmly as he and Naaza headed out.
“If you need any medicine, please let us know, Eina.” Naaza said to the Half-Elf with a soft smile.
Eina bowed a little to the Chienthrope pharmacist. “Thank you very much, Miss Naaza.”
“Ryu…” Bell gave Ryu a warm hug, before gently kissing her lips, making the Elf blush as others were watching.
“Bell…” Ryu’s cute blush never failed to make Bell smile. “I’ll see you soon?”
Bell nodded. “Of course.” He gently rested his forehead against Ryu’s. “We need to go on a date soon.” He said to her softly.
Ryu’s cheeks, face, and even her Elven ears turned a bright red. “D-Date…” She nearly hid her face in Bell’s shoulder. “I’d…like that.” She mumbled out, not able to bring herself to look at Bell with her heart thundering in her chest right now.
Bell just held Ryu until she regained her composure. With loving smiles, the two separated, Ryu disappearing into the night with swift steps as she headed for the Hostess of Fertility.
Takemikazuchi and his Familia all bowed to Hestia after they got through their goodbyes with Mikoto. “Thank you for the invite and the wonderful dinner, Hestia.” The Far East War God said with a friendly smile. “Hopefully we’ll only have more to celebrate in the future.”
“I hope so too, Také.” Hestia agreed with a grin.
“See you soon, Argonaut!” Tiona said before pulling Bell into a deep kiss.
Bell pulled back and squeezed Tiona tight. “See you soon, Tiona. Hopefully without having to prepare for a War Game.”
Tiona giggled. “But that was fun too.”
“She’s not wrong.” Tione shrugged as she hugged Bell next, also kissing him deeply for a long moment.
“Hah…” Bell breathed out from the kiss. “We’ll be a bit busy for a while, but once we’re done, let’s get together again.”
Tione nodded as she rested her forehead against Bell’s. “Absolutely.”
“Thank you for the evening.” Ais bowed to Hestia and Bell properly. “It was…fun.”
“Make sure you three get home safely.” Hestia smiled at the three young women.
“Ais…” Bell said and pulled her gently into a hug.
“Mmm~” Ais hummed happily into their kiss a second later. Everything just seemed so much better when she was with Bell. ‘Love is nice…’ She thought to herself as she rested her head on Bell’s shoulder while they held each other for a little while.
Bell pulled back to look into Ais’s golden eyes. “Let’s have a date soon.”
Ais nodded without even thinking about it. “I’d…like that, Bell.” She gave him that gorgeous smile that he loved to see so much.
The two would need to work out a time when they were both free, but they’d have a date as soon as their schedules lined up.
As the three women from Loki Familia disappeared into the night, Hephaestus was the last one to leave.
“It was quite a night, Hestia.” Hephaestus said as she gave her aunt a hug.
“Thanks for coming, Hephaestus.” Hestia squeezed her niece tightly for a moment.
Hephaestus waved it off. “I enjoyed it and we got to celebrate more than a few things. I’m sure that I’ll be looking forward to a hefty payment on our little agreement soon too…right?” She teased Hestia with a little smirk.
Hestia put her hands on her hips and proudly thrust her chest out, making her girls bounce. “I’ll be paying it off in full if I can!” She had a smug grin on her face that looked adorable.
“I’ll be waiting then.” Hephaestus laughed softly.
“Let me walk you home, Goddess!” Welf offered just as Hephaestus was stepping out the door.
“You don’t need to do that.” Hephaestus said with a small smile.
Welf shook his head. “I want to.” He gave his idol (and not so secret crush) a smile.
Hephaestus felt her cheeks turn pink as she held out her arm. “When did you become such a gentleman?”
“I have my moments, Goddess.” Welf looped his arm with Hephaestus’s as they headed off towards the Hephaestus Familia Home ‘Valka’s Crimson Chamber’ together.
“Told you that Mortal-Deity relationships weren’t uncommon.” Hestia whispered to Bell with a little giggle.
Bell smiled at the retreating forms of Welf and Hephaestus as he closed the front door. “I’m glad.”
“I’ll be heading to bed…right after a quick bath in the large tub.” Mikoto said to Hestia as a small crept across the swordswoman’s face.
“Lili will join you.” Lili wouldn’t mind a bath and Mikoto quickly welcomed her.
In no time at all, the four women of all agreed to get into the bath and help wash each other’s backs.
Bell chuckled as he went to the dining room and began to clean up the large number of dishes. He’d take his bath afterwards.
-Night-
“Mm.” Eina hummed lowly in contentment as she and Bell were sleeping cuddled up together. There wasn’t a stitch of clothing on their bodies as Bell pressed himself against her back, spooning her, with his right hand gently resting on Eina’s tummy. The warmth surrounding her was lulling Eina to sleep as she gently put her hand over Bell’s, both soon-to-be parents smiling softly.
Hestia, also naked, was pressed up against Bell’s back, her soft curves molding against him. Lili had taken Eina’s other side, gently snuggling up with the Half-Elf with Eina’s free arm around her shoulders, and Lili snuggled into the Eina’s breasts.
The bedroom was filled with nothing but love and contentment, all of the work soon to come of figuring out everything about their spoils of war from the Apollo Familia was pushed out of their minds entirely as the four lay together beneath the blankets. That was for tomorrow; now was for family.
-End Chapter-
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
A nice, cool down chapter filled with warm and fluffy moments! YAY!!!
Eina and Bell are gonna be parents! Woo!
Mama Eina and Papa Bell! So cute!
All of the other women are thrilled and Eina is happy as can be. Bell is ecstatic as one of his dreams begins to come true!
Now, how to go about a multi-wedding when the time comes? Kek!
Bell is Level 3!!!
He got a new Developmental Ability! Anomalous Resistance is like Abnormal Resistance and Magic Resistance combined into one! That should prove useful! And Luck went up to ‘H’ Rank, not that much attention was paid to it with the reveal of Liaris Freese to Bell.
But Bell is Bell, and he could never hate Hestia for trying to protect him, even if she had to keep a secret. All of the cuddles and snuggles for Hestia the Bestia!
Speaking of…
Hestia is going to sell or auction off the Apollo Familia’s old home?! That could make some serious money! But will it be enough to pay off the remaining debt BEFORE the huge numbers of people come around trying to join the Hestia Familia?
There’s still a lot of stuff to go through first. They have to keep the good and get rid of whatever they don’t want, of course.
Unleash Lili the Loot Goblin! Hah!
Just what will happen as the Hestia Familia continues to rise from their victory in the War Game? New members? No more debt? Speeding up the completion of the Hearth District?
Keep reading to find out!
Let me know what you thought!
Until next time, later!