Chapter 21: Family setbacks

When Thor's battle cry rang out, all the gods felt it, and some reacted more than others. The mysterious white-veiled goddess also felt it. When Thor's battle cry reached her soul, what she felt was an immense pleasure, sending shivers of ecstasy verging on orgasm.

Oh yes Thor! Get angry! Your anger means suffering. You and your damned children exterminated my familia, so I hope you'll appreciate it when I return the favour.

Vengeance called for vengeance and the vicious cycle continued.


In the depths of the Dungeon, a small group of peculiar beings moved about trying to remain discreet. Misunderstood by mortals, hunted by other monsters, the Xenos tried as usual to survive by dreaming of the day when they could live on the surface.

During the incident with the Ikelos familia, some had been able to see the sky and longed for its infinite beauty. But they would not enjoy it today. The xenos had many hiding places in the Dungeon, but caution forced them to change locations regularly and move in small groups.

This was a dangerous time for them, as they were much more vulnerable during these migrations, but they were necessary and they could not rely on their new adventurer friends all the time.

The small group currently moving through the lower floors was led by Lyd, the lizard man, assisted by Ray, the siren. The group was composed of a small dozen individuals, including a certain vouivre with a lovely face.

Every day spent away from Bell was heartbreaking for Wiene, yet she knew now that it was necessary and that the world was not ready to let her live next to this big brother. And she also knew that she had to become stronger to stop being a burden. So she started training with Lyd and began a diet of magic stones, the only way for monsters to become stronger, even xenos.

Suddenly, Lyd stopped and raised her fist, signaling everyone to stop in turn. The small group of xenos obeyed directly and everyone stood to attention, watching the surroundings for any danger. Ray then approached the lizard-man, while remaining cautious.

A problem?

The lizard-man did not answer her, remaining uncomfortably silent as his senses continued to scan the area. Yet, even with his 240 degree field of vision, he couldn't detect anything.

No... I must have been dreaming. Let's get moving.

Still, Lyd couldn't shake the bad feeling that nagged at him.


You've gotta be kidding me!

Thor was shocked by the revelation Hestia had just made to him.

What do you mean, 'you all know'? Ouranos, Ganesha, Hermes, Loki, you and even the other bitch! And what's more, Ouranos is doing everything to help them!

Hestia suspected that the subject of Xenos would be complicated to discuss with Thor, but she hadn't expected it to be this way.

Damn it! To think that Ekkrit spent sleepless nights trying to figure out how to contact them, how to get them out of the Dungeon and the city, when all he had to do was ask!

The god let out a grunt of discontent, then sighed and sank back into his chair. There was no point in grumbling about what had already been done. Once again he realised that his lack of confidence and openness were the only things that had caused this situation. If he had told Hestia earlier, things might have been very different.

Thor, you also know how hot this topic is, your distrust was justified. Hestia then tried to calm him down a little.

Probably...

Well, let's start again from the beginning, from where did you learn about xenos?

The god of thunder remained silent for a few moments, seeming to gather his thoughts and spoke.


It goes back many years. As you know, my familia used to focus on monster hunting. In doing so, we sometimes came across some rather strange things. For example, idiots who would become monster tamers or nobles with too much money and free time who thought that a monster as a pet was nice.

And that's when you came across something weirder than usual, I bet. Then the little goddess did it, showing that she could deal perfectly well with serious subjects when the situation required it.

Exactly, one day we infiltrated the house of some nobleman who had boasted in certain circles of having a pet arachne of rare quality. When we found the creature, it was crying and begging us not to kill it.

I was the one who found it first, so I must tell you that it was a shock. Mei said. It was hard for her not to remember this spider-woman who was so miserable that she immediately took away any desire to hurt her.

When I met Wiene, I went through the same thing, so I know how weird it feels. Said Bell, for whom the encounter with the little vouivre remained a significant episode in his life.

At first we thought it was a hallucination or a new defence mechanism of the creature, but very soon we realised that there was no aggression in her, that she was intelligent and had full consciousness. Not having the heart to kill her, we took her away and hid her. Then we asked her about her history, she explained that she was born in the Dungeon, but didn't know why she was different. Adventurers had captured her, taken her out and sold her. Listening to her story, we deduced that she was not an individual case and that there may have been some kind of trafficking.

Bell and the other members of Hestia's familia knew this only too well. Thor was probably talking about the shenanigans of the Ikelos familia. They had cut off the source of the traffic by shutting down Dix and his gang, but there were still xenos being sold outside.

A lot of things happened, but the bottom line is that my children put an end to this traffic. Hestia added.

Yes, Ekkrit's investigation led us to that conclusion, which is one of the reasons I came to town. But before that, we also searched for more of these intelligent monsters. In the end, we found about twenty of them. Even though... some times it didn't go well.

Mei then resumed the story.

Sometimes we were too late to save anyone. But there was also a time when we discovered that we couldn't necessarily save someone from themselves.

What... happened? Bell asked hesitantly, afraid of the shivati's answer.

Once we found... a siren. She had been abused for years, condemned to be used as a sex toy at the kind of parties sane people don't attend. We rescued her, tried to reassure her. But as soon as she could, her first instinct was to grab a dagger and... destroy her magic stone.

Everyone was silent at this revelation, for a monster to destroy his magic stone was simply to kill himself. Thor then resumed the story.

That's when we realised how different they were from ordinary monsters and how much closer to mortals they were than we thought. Monsters can be clever, cunning, but they are never intelligent. Only a being with a conscience has the capacity to commit suicide out of desperation or self-disgust.

From the looks on Thor's and most of his children's faces, the members of Hestia's familia understood that this episode must have been quite painful.

By searching for them between two more ordinary monster hunts, we ended up with about twenty of them to protect. It was starting to get complicated when it came to discretion. But four years ago, we found a solution.

It's this famous island, I suppose? Hestia asked.

That's right.

So it was the xenos on the island that the attackers wanted? Bell asked, trying to understand what was really going on.

I don't think so. You see, they're not just on any island. It's a particular place that we found thanks to an old map that Yga's mother took out of the Crystal City archives.

So what's so valuable about this island then?

It is the home of Elenarda, the great Spirit of the Mists. One of the last major spirits living in the Gekai, the cousin of Aria, the great Spirit of the Wind.

Hestia stood speechless for a moment. Since the arrival of the gods in the mortal world, the spirits had become much more discreet. Certainly, there were some spirits living among mortals, gnomes in particular, but no one had seen the great spirits for a long time.

I managed to convince Elenarda to let me settle the xenos on her island, along with a few people who were sympathetic to the cause. They built a small village and live there in peace, protected by the mists of the Spirit.

And you think they want her?

Yes, Ekkrit did his investigation and heard rumours that the Evilus were experimenting to turn them into war monsters. If they manage to get their hands on a great spirit... Anyway, for me it's the only logical conclusion. According to your information, there are more xenos in the Dungeon than on my island, so it's not worth it, unless you want Elenarda.

That makes sense to me. Hestia concluded.

Lord Thor. Bell said. The xenos from the Dungeon, you want to bring them to your island?

That was my original plan. It's not perfect freedom, but it's a much safer place for them than the Dungeon where everyone and everything wants to kill them.

In that case, I'll gladly take you to them! replied a cheerful Bell. Sure, it wasn't as if they were accepted by society, but living on this island did seem a better environment than the Dungeon. If he could keep them safe, keep Wiene safe, he'd like nothing better.

I can see that this is a cause close to your heart, my boy. But first I must... claim the debts I am owed.

The atmosphere became very heavy again. The xeno issue had been more or less settled, but three of Thor's children had been murdered in the process, and he was determined to get revenge.


The god of thunder urged Hestia and Astraea not to interfere further. The two goddesses reluctantly agreed and Hestia returned home with her children, as well as Astraea and Ryuu, whom Thor preferred to keep away from him for a while, while he sorted out this matter. It was his fault that his children were dead, this burden to carry and this revenge to accomplish was only his and his familia's burden, he didn't want to drag the other two goddesses into it.

Unfortunately, he knew that he would have to call upon the other daughter of his heart. He had learned that Loki had had several run-ins with the Sons of the Night, and in order to find the killers of his sons, he was going to have to ask her help.


The goddess of mischief was not surprised that day when, through her office window, she saw Thor coming towards her home, accompanied by Mei, Ygannea and Thargar. Finn was at her side and seemed as thoughtful as she was.

Just as you predicted Loki.

Yep...

What do you want to do?

I'm gonna talk to him, try to see if I can manage him. Thor's not a bad guy, but when he's pissed off, he's hard to control.

I don't like it any more than you do, but given our latest news, I think it's in our best interest to work with them. It would at least give us a chance to keep an eye on them.

Yeah, it's probably better than letting them run wild.

Still, Finn couldn't shake off his bad feeling. There was something disturbing about this. The actions of the Evilus had suddenly changed, there was another mastermind, he was sure, but it remained an elusive presence. And Thor's visit itself did not comfort him much either.


The atmosphere at Twilight Manor was heavy, Loki's children had befriended Thor's at the party, but despite the events and Loki's plans, the two familias had not yet had the opportunity to fight together. As a result, no one was sure how to handle them, especially since Thor had lost three of his children. The Loki familia had also suffered losses in their battles against the Evilus, but the familia was larger, so only the relatives of the dead were really sad.

They all saw the difference. The Thor they remembered was a cheerful, good-natured person. This time, they saw a man with hard features arrive who said nothing more to Loki than that they should just talk. The Trickster beckoned him to follow her into her office. Thor's children were invited to wait in a small lounge. The redheaded goddess liked to receive her divine counterpart with only Finn present. The fewer people there were, the more successful she would be in reasoning with him without letting feelings get the better of her.


While Thor talked with their goddess, and the other three guests waited in another room, other important members of the familia were having tea in the room next door. Riveria was enjoying her cup of tea, sitting on a couch, Tione and Tiona were also present, worried, as was Aiz, silent, worried for Mei. Even though she was not always very good at judging other people's moods, she could see that her new friend was not well at all. Gareth was also there, calm and silent, as well as Bete, leaning against a wall, making an angry face, as usual.

Tss! I don't see why we bother with them. said the werewolf with his usual good mood.

Bete! Riveria, who was in no mood to put up with the wolfman's behaviour, said curtly.

It's just a second-rate familia putting on airs and having a fit because they've suffered a setback.

Three of their own were murdered, you could make an effort. Tiona, who had never liked it when the wolf went on this kind of rant.

Weak level 1s, we're not going to cry for three losers who can't even...

He didn't have time to finish his sentence when a gigantic hand reached through the wall behind him to grab his head. The hand belonged to Thargar, the dwarf of the Thor familia, who was clearly in the grip of his skill, Rsende Hjerte, as his size and strength attested.

Bete, without any consideration, had not even noticed that the guests were in the room next to theirs and had been spouting his usual trash without thinking that he could be heard. And unfortunately, they had heard him.

With a cry of rage, Thargar kept his grip, went through the door of the room using Bete as a ram, and once in the hallway, jumped to the ground floor while smashing Bete's face into the floor. The beast-man, although surprised, finally managed to get out of the way and move away.

Damn it! Isn't this one supposed to be level 4? Bete mentally asked himself, surprised by Thargar's strength.

What he didn't know was that his Rsende Hjerte skill gave him a power proportional to his anger and rage. And right now, that was not what he lacked. The werewolf then felt blood coming from his nose, attesting that the dwarf had slightly injured him, which in turn made him particularly angry.

Fucking dwarf, I'll kill you!

Bete dashed forward with the idea of making Thargar pay for this affront, but he suddenly had to leap back to avoid Mei's blade, which had just arrived at his companion's side. On the first floor, Riveria saw the situation that had exploded in a few moments.

Damn it! It's getting out of hand. Aiz!

The blonde swordswoman jumped up and intercepted the shivati's blade with her sword.

Mei... stop. she said, trying to calm her friend down, before noticing that tears were running down the cheeks of Thor's captain.

I'm sorry Aiz... Some things are forgivable and some things are not!

Mei pushed her opponent back with a pressure of her blade and the two duos found themselves face to face again. Only they didn't have to face each other, because the mess had attracted quite a few people.

Stop it! Ygannea shouted as she threw one of her crystals to trap Mei and Thargar's legs in ice. The elf herself was on the verge of tears to see her companions reduced to letting their anger take them away.

At the same time, Finn appeared and ordered in a firm and impetuous voice.

Enough of this!

Quickly, the Amazon sisters stood in front of Aiz to block her way, although the blonde swordswoman was not particularly vehement. As for Bete, he was girdled by Gareth who held him firmly in place. Of course, Loki and Thor soon joined in.

That's enough! Thor said in an imperious voice. Thargar, Mei, calm down now!

The two said nothing, but obeying their god, the shivat girl sheathed her weapon and the dwarf resumed his normal size, while the ice of the elf freed their legs. Loki was joined by Riveria, who whispered a few words in her ear. The goddess' annoyance became visible and she began to walk towards her counterpart.

I'm sorry Thor, but if you're just here to blow off steam, you might as well go home. I don't want to work with crazy people who can't control their anger!

The god of thunder said nothing and simply took a deep breath to calm himself. He could not deny that she was right. Whatever the reasons, Thargar had overreacted, and it was partly his fault for keeping their desire for revenge alive.

We're leaving. he said simply. Without another word, his three children followed him. The meeting with Loki ended in disaster, not only had they not gotten her help, but they had probably alienated her familia. But it was still out of the question to apologize, not after insulting their fallen brothers in arms.


After Thor's departure, the tension remained palpable in Loki's house. Gareth had released Bete, who seemed to be ranting through his teeth. The goddess of mischief approached him without a word. Yet there was something very different about her. She did not smile and there was something terrifying in her eyes.

Loki always had this playful, almost carefree side, usually hiding what she was really thinking. But on the spot, her anger was perfectly visible, reminding us that she was a goddess and that there was a limit to her patience too. Without a word, she brutally slapped Bete. Despite his level 6, he felt the slap very painfully and surprised, he fell on his buttocks, unable to get up before the black look of Loki, who spoke in a cold tone that nobody knew.

You... That' s the last time you'll do that to me. One more joke like that, I'll rip your falna off and you'll be out of my familia.

She concluded by turning on her heels to return to her office. Many were shocked, it was the first time they had seen Loki like this, or that she had made such a threat. He stood there, completely shocked by what had just happened.

While some thought it was an idle threat, many of them, especially among the older members, understood that Loki was extremely serious. But this was the first time she had ever talked about firing anyone. Especially an experienced level 6 adventurer, a valuable asset to the familia.

Moreover, although she was the deity of this familia, in practice, all matters of management and discipline were the responsibility of Finn, her captain. By making such a threat, she was stepping directly on his toes and undermining his authority, which could damage their relationship.

But in reality, it wasn't that simple. While it was true that Finn had his own plans and would abandon Loki if she proved to be an obstacle, the reality was that he couldn't leave so easily. It was his work with Riveria and Gareth that had made Loki familia the powerful organisation it was today, but it hadn't been done in one day, it had been the result of many years of work and sacrifice.

If he left Loki tomorrow, he would have to start all over again somewhere else, none of the currently powerful familia would be able to accommodate him under favourable conditions, he would have to make an agreement with the god of a minor familia and start all over again. Especially since the clock was ticking and he was still a mortal. Although pallums had a good longevity and the falna increased the life expectancy, he was still past forty, if he delayed too long, he would become too old to continue his project and he was well aware of that.


Loki had retreated to her office where she was slumped over the precious furniture, holding her head in both hands and completely depressed. Finn soon joined her, to see what to do next.

Damn it! It wasn't supposed to be like this. said the goddess with a depressed voice.

I know... Her captain answered soberly. I don't condone the behavior of Thor's children, but I can understand their anger.

Loki said nothing more, she had also let her anger get the better of her, otherwise she would never have slapped and threatened Bete.

About Bete... I think you were right.

These words surprised the goddess a little, who had already expected to hear her complain that she had perhaps overdone it a little on this occasion.

It's been too long that he's been passed around too much and allowed to fill everyone with his bad temper. It will do him good to be put in his place a little.

You bet, I'm sure he's ranting whit fury.

No, I don't think so. Riveria pretty much agrees with me, so he doesn't have time to rant, he's too busy taking whatever punishment she's made up for him.

You're even worse than I am, damn it.

The former elf princess may have looked refined, composed and elegant, but when it came to punishing naughty children, she could be terribly imaginative. It was not for nothing that Aiz still couldn't swim.

What about Thor? the captain asked in a more serious tone.

We'll let him calm down a bit. Everybody's pissed off, we're not doing anything right now. Anyway, if he wants to track down the Evilus, he'll have to enter Knossos. And for that...

He needs a key. Concluded Finn.

Right. Even if he knows what to look for, without a key, he can't do anything. We'll let him calm down for a few days and when he's calmer, I'll go back and see him.

Let's hope, the xenos also have a key, if he went through Hestia, which is linked to them, he could very well double-cross us.

Yeah, it's a risk. But before everything goes wrong, he told me he didn't want to involve Hestia and Astraea in his business. I think the risks are limited on that side.

Let's hope so. The captain, who could not get rid of the bad feeling that haunted him, said.


If some of Loki's children were shocked or angry, Aiz was depressed. She had to raise her sword against someone she considered a dear friend. She hadn't known Mei for that long, but a bond had quickly developed between them, just as it had with Bell. And just like with him, she had found herself raising her weapon against her. Why? She no longer understood. So she just sat in her room, depressed. She would ask Riveria for advice later, when she had finished punishing Bete, for whom, strangely enough, no one had any compassion.


Ekkrit was still unaware of the disaster that was the meeting between his god and Loki. After this incident, he had put his recovery aside to concentrate on his investigation. His deductions had led him to understand that the Evilus were at work. Farg Galleon was a decoy and they had been duped.

Someone was pulling the strings and even he couldn't identify it. It didn't look like any of the known leaders of the organisation, the person seemed more vicious. But he must have been particularly well informed, the details of the Isle of Mists were very secret. Of course, the risk of information leakage was never zero, but it was still low. Once this matter was settled, he would also have to investigate how the secret had been leaked.

For the moment, the nezu was discreetly hanging around in the sewers of Deadalus, until he came across what he was looking for, a large door that had absolutely no business being there. So his information was correct, there was indeed another man-made underground structure beneath the city. He ran his hand over the metal of the door and found that it was unbreakable.

Orichalque and Adamantium. They've done a hell of a job...

After his comment, he pushed his inspection further. No lock, no apparent mechanism, this door was certainly opened in a particular way, probably a magic key, but it was difficult for the rat to know more at the moment.

In a reflex gesture, he drew one of his daggers, turned and intercepted an arrow coming straight for him. Three men in white robes were threatening him with their weapons.

Evilus... So the trail is good.

Die, you rat! shouted one of them as they launched their attack.

Ekkrit killed the first one with a surprise throwing dagger, but when he tried to initiate the movement to throw another, he felt a violent pain that blocked him for a moment too long. His body was not yet recovered and was making him pay for his lack of rehabilitation.

He intercepted the sword of the man who had come to attack him and despite the pain, he managed to feint it and then, with a smooth and precise movement, he slid his blade along that of his opponent and made a graceful movement that opened his throat.

Unfortunately, the third, an archer, was about to aim at him and the assassin's reflexes were not at their best. But a figure fell from the ceiling and a silver flash impaled the attacker.

Allen had just arrived and pinned the last remaining Evilus to the ground, killing him with a clean strike of his silver spear. Ekkrit didn't really know how to interpret all this. Their familia was supposedly at peace with Freya. A relative peace, but the goddess was supposed to respect the rules of the holmgang. So had the cat-man decided to come and take his revenge despite the orders?

But to his surprise, Allen did not seem aggressive. He pulled his spear away from the corpse of the man in white and simply pointed it at Ekkrit.

You, nezu, don't you dare get killed by this kind of losers, you still owe me a rematch. He said in a strangely calm tone before turning and leaving as he had come, leaving the rat rather doubtful.

Well, this is... unexpected.


Hestia was worried. Somehow Thor couldn't help turning her around. On the one hand, she wanted to follow her father's advice and keep her familia out of this kind of trouble. Bell was strong enough to get into trouble on his own. But on the other hand, she didn't want to abandon him either, not when their two familias had developed a bond.

So she sighed, not really knowing what to do, not even feeling like reading the book in her hand. Astraea was sitting nearby, lost in some paperwork the Guild was asking her to do. She and Ryuu had come to live here temporarily, while Thor sorted out his affairs.

The elf was helping Haruhime and Mikoto in the kitchen and with daily chores, Welf was working in his workshop and Bell was training, but without much motivation. Lili was out for a walk in the garden when a moving shape in the air caught her eye. It was a bird, an owl. And owls don't come out in the middle of the day, so she easily recognised Fels' familiar, which came to rest on the arm she held out to him.

The prum noticed the message on the bird's leg and took the letter, opening it and reading it, before suddenly turning pale. The young woman rushed inside, passing Bell on the way, who followed her when he saw her panicked expression. The supporter arrived in the living room, under the worried eyes of the two goddesses who were wondering what all the fuss was about.

You are quite agitated, little supporter, is something wrong? Hestia asked.

Lady Hestia, an urgent message from Master Fels! The xenos have contacted him, they were attacked while traveling and... Wiene has been kidnapped!