In truth, the reason Freya had requested all core members to gather at the Round Table today wasn't just to formally introduce the members to the Twin Stars.
There was also…
"Soon… or in the near future, a major event will occur."
After a few rounds of wine, the eight veteran adventurers of the Freya familia all praised the deliciousness of the Genshin dishes.
Though their expressions differed.
For instance, Ota, Hedin, and the four Gulliver Brothers simply voiced their compliments plainly.
Hogni, however, rambled on with his usual overly dramatic, hard-to-parse lines. In the end, Hedin had to translate.
As for Allen…
"Thank you for the meal."
He had eaten the Grilled Tiger fish and Dry-braised salted fish cleanly.
Though his prideful nature prevented him from verbal praise, the spotless plates spoke volumes.
Taking advantage of the moment…
"Aether and I believe this matter is critical, so we must inform the brothers as well… at least so you know the gravity of the situation."
Lumine spoke directly, relaying what had—strictly speaking—been arranged by Renjiro (the original) in terms of near-future plans.
This naturally included…
"The Flame of Heaven cast to the lower world three thousand years ago by a certain deity has been severely corrupted over the long course of history?"
"The power that was meant to save lives is now about to destroy the world?"
"The incident is happening inside the overseas Divine Realm?"
"If this crisis becomes irreversible, the first to bear the brunt will be Orario, located on the far western continent?"
…
Lumine and Aether tried to explain these matters concisely to Ottar and the others.
Instantly…
"Currently, it can be confirmed that this is even more difficult than the previous Antares Incident," Lumine said seriously.
"A few days ago, when I noticed the signs, I immediately reported them to Goddess Freya."
"The instruction from the Goddess was: this matter is to be handled entirely by me."
"Moreover, this is the first priority that Aether and I must handle as promoted 'executives'."
At this moment, Lumine's previously relaxed demeanor shifted; her speech and actions became precise and formal.
Ota and the others didn't object.
After all, these core members, though often at odds with each other in the past, shared two key traits:
They respected strength.
Any matter threatening their Goddess united them immediately.
The current situation with the Flame of Heaven and Freya's directive perfectly fit these two points.
So…
"What's the plan?"
Allen, the vice captain, was the first to speak.
Hearing this, Lumine and Aether exchanged a glance, and Aether finally explained:
"Next, I will leave Orario for a time, going alone to the 'Opera Country—Meilstora' to find another Goddess, Aphrodite."
"She most likely knows how to access the overseas… that is—Olympia."
"In short, the first step is to confirm the exact coordinates of the incident."
"This way, we won't be completely on the defensive."
After listening…
"Understood."
Allen nodded, then asked, "And what do we need to do?"
"Three things."
Now it was Lumine's turn.
"First, we must always ensure the Goddess's safety… I don't need to explain this; you all know what to do."
"Of course, if necessary, I will also engage in combat."
As she said this last sentence, Lumine deliberately turned her head toward Ottar.
Because only this Lv.7 current leader knew the secret connection between the Twin Stars and "Higashikata Renjiro."
However, with Renjiro recently appearing in person and even taking a small familia with the Goddess to play, Ottar had subconsciously started separating Renjiro from the Twins.
After all, as a pig-man warrior, he didn't like dealing with convoluted matters.
Not knowing Renjiro's exact stats, he suspected Aether and Lumine might also be Genshin.
But their relationship with Renjiro seemed akin to that of Goddess Freya and her attendant Horn.
Thus…
"Hmm, if Durandal can be deployed when necessary, with the strongest valkyrie there, nothing should be able to harm Freya-sama."
Aside from Ottar, the others—including Hedin—assumed Lumine was referring to a secret trump card.
Clearly, only Ottar could understand the true meaning behind her words.
The pig-man nodded, signaling he fully grasped the situation.
So…
"What about the other two tasks?"
Alfrigg Gulliver, eldest of the Gulliver Brothers, asked, "This time, we're not working with the Loki familia, right?"
"Not at all."
Lumine shook her head, smiling.
She knew the people present still had grudges against past rivals. Only Ottar and Hedin could calmly view the current situation strategically.
In this context…
"I need everyone to carry out surveillance and combat readiness."
With just a few words, Lumine instantly made the atmosphere at the Round Table solemn.
"Tell me, who do we exterminate?"
Berling's eyes glinted with killing intent, his expression saying I know this game.
The others were similarly tense.
Even Ottar and Hedin radiated alertness.
Seeing this…
"I think, while handling external issues, we must also clean up Orario internally."
"Otherwise, at a critical moment, someone could take advantage and ruin everything."
"Based on this…,"
Lumine raised her right hand, spreading five fingers.
"The temporary targets are four familias and one fugitive."
"I want all of you to monitor these five targets carefully during this period."
"Do not act rashly."
"Because…"
She looked around the table.
"Each of these targets is connected to the hidden development of the 'evilus'' faction in recent years."
"Any premature action could render the crucial intelligence I've painstakingly collected completely useless."
"So remember this."
Lumine summoned Paimon, who remained in hidden mode, ensuring no eavesdropping, and spoke formally:
"After leaving this room, none of this information is to be discussed in any way."
"Keep it firmly in your minds."
"In the future, information exchange is only to be done within this Round Table."
Seeing her seriousness, the Eight Heroes all nodded in acknowledgment.
Then…
"First, the targets we need to monitor are…"
Lumine took a deep breath.
"The Ishtar familia, Ikelos familia, Dionysus familia, Thanatos familia…"
"And one fugitive, named Jura Halmer, a one-armed cat-person with only one ear left."