That evening, Orion made sure—very deliberately—not to show up in battered armor and blood-stained boots. He had learned his lesson by now.
After Marika's merciless nagging the last time he had committed that particular sin, he changed into something far more presentable: a dark shirt fitted cleanly to his frame, pants for contrast, and boots that had never seen dungeon slime. He bought them in Axel, one of Darkness's shopping tyrannies. No matter what, the girl was still a bloody noblewoman who loved shopping, and he sure had the coffers for it.
He unfortunately had the fortune of being her luggage carrier that day. It was annoying, but the rich girl gifted him something in return at least. Apparently, the shoes were worth the equivalent of a single night's stay in one of the more reputable inns in Orario. Needless to say, he had to thank her later as well.
'At least rate, my time here will be spent taking girls out.' He rolled his eyes internally.
It might have appealed to him at one time, when he used to get jealous seeing guys his age handling multiple chicks at their side, but now… no.
Just no.
It was more troublesome than it was worth.
He checked himself once more, sighed, and muttered, "This better be worth it."
Eina was already waiting when he arrived.
She wasn't in her advisor uniform. No neat jacket, no papers clutched to her chest. Instead, she wore a simple but elegant dress, soft colors that matched her hair, her ears unobstructed, her posture relaxed in a way Orion had never seen before. The glasses were, as usual, adorning her face, but this felt far more refreshing than her usual all-professional outfit in the Guild.
For a second, his brain stalled. She looked beautiful—not Marika-like beautiful or goddess-like beautiful, but let's be honest, no one came near her level of beauty. Perhaps Freya, but he had yet to see her in person to tell.
If Marika's beauty was something that made him stiffen in place, like a higher being was looking at him, then this was much more down-to-earth.
Something far more approachable and comfortable.
"…Wow," he said, then immediately winced. "I mean—sorry—that sounded dumb. You look really nice."
Eina blinked, then smiled, a faint pink touching her cheeks. "Thank you. You look… different too. In a good way."
Marika's voice murmured in his head, dry and amused.
[At least you remembered to compliment her. Progress.]
'What can I say, I learned my lesson…' Orion gave a helpless smile.
"So, where are you taking me?" Eina asked, a sweet smile on her face as she leaned slightly closer to him, making him stiffen for just a second before he relaxed.
Indeed, spending time with literal goddesses had improved his resistance to beauty.
"Honestly, I'm not sure. I'm not used to taking girls out to dinner, so I don't really know what to do. Should we go directly for dinner, or should we walk around a bit? Hmm, of course, if you want to." He half said, half asked.
Eina just giggled at that. "We walk first, okay?"
"Yes."
They walked together through the lantern-lit streets, Orion carefully keeping pace with her. From looking at wares to talking about the dungeon and work, time passed.
It was an enjoyable evening, until the question of where to eat came up. Eina didn't hesitate.
"Hostess of Fertility? That's the best place. Don't tell me you didn't like the food there the last time we ate there."
Orion froze mid-step.
'That place…'
Of all places.
His mind immediately supplied one name he would rather not deal with tonight. He hesitated just long enough for Eina to notice.
"…Is something wrong?" she asked.
"No," he said quickly. "Just—crowded. But that's fine. Let's go."
Marika hummed. [Hmmm, that place, huh.]
The Hostess of Fertility was, as expected, packed. Adventurers filled every table, laughter and shouting bouncing off the walls. The smell of food and alcohol hung thick in the air.
Mama Mia spotted him instantly.
"Well, well," she boomed, arms crossed. "You vanish for a week and now you show up again with Eina, huh."
Orion smiled politely. "Good evening, Mama Mia."
Eina looked like she wanted to crawl under the floor.
Before Mama Mia could say more, Orion's eyes landed on the one person he had hoped to avoid.
Syr.
He had no idea why people in the fanfiction he read always avoided her. But he knew that without a proper reason, being so cautious wasn't right. He wouldn't be able to live if he kept avoiding everything like that. Still, he wouldn't avoid her, nor would he try to interact with her on his own.
She stood behind the counter, serene smile firmly in place, eyes already on him.
"…Seat for two, please." He smiled as he asked.
They were seated quickly, but things only escalated from there.
"Welcome," Syr said sweetly as she took their order. "It's nice to see you. Are you new here?"
Marika's eyes sharpened instantly.
[There is something strange about this girl.]
'She thinks so too…'
[Avoid her. Don't get entangled with her too much.]
"I plan to," he whispered back.
Eina noticed his tension. "Do you… know her?"
"Nope," Orion said. "This is literally the second time I've come to this place, both times with you."
Before the conversation could continue, a loud crash echoed from the other side of the tavern.
"HEY! MORE ALE!"
Orion looked around and almost instantly recognized the group.
The Loki Familia.
Finn was a dead giveaway, sitting calmly at the center of the table, Riveria beside him, Gareth laughing loudly. Tiona and Tione were arm-wrestling, Bete was scowling, Lefiya sat stiffly with her staff clutched close, and Ais quietly observed everything.
"The place sure is lively at this time of day," Orion muttered as he quickly handed over the decision of what to order to Eina. He had zero idea what was good on the menu anyway, and since it was his treat, it was better if she ordered.
This cut off his interaction with Syr, and he shifted his attention back to the boisterous crowd nearby.
He didn't look at most of the Loki members. He only cared about the top brass, specifically watching the higher levels and trying to measure the gap.
Even the lowest level there was Level 3—Lefiya—who was an entire level above him.
'Damn, a bunch of monsters,' he cursed under his breath.
The Loki Familia themselves didn't care about Orion's gaze. They were the strongest Familia in the city, alongside the Freya Familia, of course.
It was natural that people would look up to them.
However, that was when Loki—their goddess, who honestly looked more like a skinny man than a woman with her physique—squinted her eyes even further than seemed remotely possible.
'If not for that otherworldly beauty every god of this world possesses, I might have really considered her a man role-playing a woman.' Orion's lips pursed tighter.
His eyes reflexively darted to Marika's bombshell figure, and that seemed to make him draw in more oxygen for some reason.
'As a certain fool said, praise the goddess.' He internally recalled a certain seer and relished his luck.
"…Oi," Loki suddenly said, almost jolting Orion when he realized she had caught him peeking.
"That aura—"
Her gaze snapped to a small, hooded figure trying very hard to look invisible. She got up, grabbed the hood, and yanked it off suddenly.
Rude, but she was a goddess—one of the strongest in Orario currently. Might made right, after all.
But that wasn't what shocked Orion. What was under the hood did.
"Hestia?!"
The hood came off in an instant. "Loki! You idiot!"
The entire tavern went silent for exactly half a second.
"You flat billboard!" Hestia snapped.
"You said it first!" Loki shot back. "Still compensating with ribbons, I see!"
Eina stared. Orion slowly turned his face away. He wasn't there. He didn't know who she was.
'How is she even here? Does her budget even allow her to come to this place? And even if it does, since I'm paying her rent now, why the hell is she in disguise?' Orion's mouth twitched.
Marika, on the side, just chuckled, amusement clear in her tone.
"Loki, stop that," Riveria sighed from the side. Babysitting this goddess was tiring.
The Loki Familia groaned collectively.
"Why are gods like this?" Bete muttered. Riveria wished to ask the same.
Then Riveria's eyes darted to the other side, toward Orion. She first recognized Eina and was about to greet her fellow elf when her eyes fell on him. And as if magic had affected her, her gaze refused to move.
There was something about that boy that attracted her—something familiar yet different that she couldn't quite place.
'Who is he?' Once her mind latched onto the thought, it refused to settle. That familiar feeling the boy gave off made her want to understand it.
She frowned faintly, thinking to ask Eina directly, but that would be rude. It was clear the young couple were together on a date.
Her apprentice, Lefiya, felt the strange emotion from her master and followed her gaze, only to fall into the same trap—eyes locked onto the boy with the handsome face and silvery-white hair.
Her ears twitched as she stared outright.
"…Why does he feel like the forest?" Lefiya whispered.
Ais, sitting next to her, tilted her head. "Who?"
Eina seemed to notice the glances from her fellow elf. Her eyes met Riveria's, and they communicated silently.
Which mostly meant they would talk later. That was enough—at least it didn't attract too much attention to the boy, and it didn't disturb their supposed date.
Orion himself was mostly unaware of it all. While he knew his presence had a certain attraction for elves, he didn't realize just how much.
Being an introvert, he truly lacked awareness of his broader social surroundings. He was content with people he already knew; spending even a little time with them was more than enough to fulfill his daily social quota.
So he didn't notice. In fact, he mostly ignored Syr's presence so he wouldn't have to interact with her. Eina handled everything else. He was there to pay.
Marika, however, noticed the slanted eyes directed his way. She also noticed the silent conversation between Riveria and Eina.
[Foolish boy…]
She muttered to herself, and Orion heard her clearly. After all, he was the only one who could hear her unless she wished otherwise.
[Hmph… just ignore.]
She snorted, making him blink in confusion. Clearly, a month or two wasn't enough for him to leave his introverted shell—definitely not enough to develop the acute social awareness needed to survive alone in a place like Orario.
Meanwhile, Hestia and Loki were halfway to flipping tables. Well, it wasn't that bad—at least they were drawing attention away from Orion.
"You followed him on a date?!" Loki cackled.
"Shush! What part of this being a secret mission do you not understand?"
"Oh? Then do tell why you're even bothering with this mortal boy. He's your child, no? Just order him not to go around with other women if you like him that much," Loki huffed, clearly not understanding what being a god in Orario meant.
"He's my—!" Hestia stopped herself, then pointed accusingly.
Loki's slanted eyes seemed to slant even further.
"He's not your child, is he?" Her voice took on a sly tone, mischief practically dripping from it.
"And what's wrong with that?!" Hestia immediately snapped back, and that was all the confirmation Loki needed.
And while all of this was happening, a little farther away, Syr's eyes never left Orion for even a moment.
xXx
A/N : This chapter is gonna be a gate way to many of the other characters in Danmachi to enter into the story. I wanted to do it early, however, it was harder since he was so weak back then that even after introducing other characters, any sort of interactions between MC and those characters would have sounded forced. Level two might be just what he needed to have a footing against stronger characters.
Of course, I also wished to make him stronger faster to progress the story. Hopefully you guys like the story so far.
Consider sending some stones over guys, surely gonna need those if we wish for this story to progress well in the future.
Peace…
Please Consider Donating Power Stones if you like the Chapter.
First Bonus Chapter - 250 Power Stones
Second Bonus Chapter - 500 Power Stones
Third Bonus Chapter - 1000 Power Stones
And keep doubling the power stone for more. (Why ? Cause I fingers Hurts)
"Thank you Very Much for All Your Support"
If you want to read up to 20+ Chapters in advance, check my Patreon on
Patreon.com/Kamidemond