Chapter 4: Socialisation
Bell's arrival in the familia was not without its effects on many people. Especially the Berberas, who didn't really know what to do. Their goddess was spending too much time with this kid, to the point where she was almost starting to neglect her most important plans.
Some of them wanted to have a little fun with him, especially since Lena had started to put the idea in everyone's head that he was hiding a real beast behind his cute look. The young amazoness had even attracted some jealousy now that she could get close to him in order to train him.
Samira hated the way he was distracting their goddess from her true purpose.
Aisha was simply lost and instead focused on protecting Haruhime.
As for Phryne, she had very specific ideas in mind.
Thus, a small group of amazoness were gathered in the hall of Belit Babili, under the leadership of the toad monster.
"Well, girls, here's the plan, when the kid comes back tonight, you'll make sure to distract Ishtar enough. As for me, I'll take advantage of the opportunity to take him away and bring him where she won't find him." She said, punctuating her sentence with her sadistic, uneasy laugh.
"It pains me to help you, but it's about time we got rid of this kid who's distracting her too much." Samira told her.
"Are you... Are you sure that's such a good idea?" Said another amazoness. "She seems really fond of that boy, she could take it really badly."
"Bullshit! It's just a toy that fascinates her a little more than usual, she'll eventually get bored of him anyway, she'll soon forget about him once I take him away."
"You're playing with fire Phryne." Aisha said to her, who had caught them off guard. "You underestimate the anger Ishtar can show."
"What? Are you jealous, Aisha? Well, I guess there won't be much left for you after I'm done having fun with him." She concluded with her disturbing laugh.
"Hooooooo? This is a most interesting conversation. Please girls, continue."
All heads now turned to the staircase where Ishtar now stood. The goddess was no fool, she knew very well that sooner or later someone would try to disobey her, so she was careful and kept everyone in sight.
The berberas in the room suddenly became frightened as they met the gaze of their goddess. It was imperious, overwhelming, as if she was subduing them with one look. The goddess' purple eyes even seemed to glow.
"Well? You're quiet all of a sudden."
The goddess walked slowly down the stairs, her steps slow, calculated. With each step she took, the women below felt like a weight was being added.
"I thought I made one thing very clear though, no one messes with Bell."
Once downstairs, the goddess took a long breath of her kiseru as she approached Phryne.
"Do you have such a poor memory, Phryne?" said Ishtar as she placed the tip of her pipe on the amazoness' forehead. The object was hot, but with her status, Phryne wasn't likely to be burned by so little. However, the mere touch made her feel crushed.
"Have you forgotten who is in charge here?" As she spoke, Ishtar used her pipe to press Phryne's forehead and make her kneel down. Even though the goddess was no stronger than a normal person, the grotesque amazoness felt as if she was being forced to her knees.
"Have you all forgotten who your goddess is?" she said in a loud voice to all the women present.
All the berberas knelt down to the ground without even thinking about it, under the effect of her presence. It wasn't a conscious gesture, their bodies seemed to submit naturally to the goddess.
"I am listening! Who is the goddess of this familia?"
"""You, Lady Ishtar!"""
The berberas shouted in unison, drawing a smile of satisfaction from the goddess.
"In that case, you know my orders and you will obey. As for you toad, another idea like that, I'll rip your falna off and then I guarantee that the punishment I have in mind for you would make what I'm doing to Aisha look like a soft touch."
Phryne felt herself sweating profusely, this was indeed the first time she had seen Ishtar like this and felt crushed by her presence, so much so that she was unable to utter a single word.
"Am I clear?"
"""Yes my goddess!"""
The goddess turned away from Phryne, who felt like she could breathe normally again, and headed for the stairs.
"Let this be the last time you have these kinds of rebellious thoughts or I will be much less kind." She said as she withdrew.
Unconsciously, the berberas remained kneeling for a while. The first to get up was Phryne, who left without a word, as frustrated as she was scared.
"Are you still so sure she's going soft?" Asked an amazoness to Samira.
"Even though I feel like I'm swallowing crushed glass every time I say that, Phryne is our best asset in battle. And she'd be willing to get rid of her for that useless kid. So yes, I still think there's a problem."
But even so, Ishtar had asserted her authority and the Berberas would be forced to keep quiet.
Once she was sure she had pacified the berberas, Ishtar went back to her daily business, before joining Bell at the end of the day at the Astral Mansion. It was the same as usual, a meaningless stats increase, some teasing and a good time together. Then the goddess noticed that Bell seemed to be preparing to spend the evening elsewhere.
"Oh, you're going out tonight? Are you finally going to have a little fun?" She asked, pleased to see him finally listening to her advice.
"Let's just say I made a promise this morning and I'd feel bad about not keeping it."
"Really? Now I'm curious, tell me about it."
Bell then simply explained his encounter with Syr, the lunchbox she had offered him and his promise to compensate her by coming to eat at the tavern where she worked. All this made Ishtar laugh.
"Ha ha! Bell, I think that girl fooled you."
"How so?"
"The way she approached you, the trick with the magic stone, which was probably hers, but which she 'accidentally' picked up behind you, the lunchbox so generously gifted. It was a calculated move and it works very well on sweet, innocent boys like you." She made as she patted Bell's nose.
"R-Really?"
"I'll remind you that I'm the head of a neighborhood that runs dozens of brothels, so all the methods to bait the customer, I know them very well."
"But she seemed so kind."
Bell had a disappointed look on his face. Ishtar was sending him a cold reality, but the goddess felt it was necessary to make him grow up.
"Bell, not everyone is as pure and innocent as you. It's not a flaw, but it's rare. We all wear masks depending on the circumstances. And don't forget that for a woman, a smile can be a powerful weapon."
The poor boy now looked like a beaten dog. Perhaps she had overdone it. No matter how much she thought it was necessary to protect him, seeing his unhappy little face like that made her strangely sad. Was this kid ever going to stop playing with her emotions so much?
"Look Bell, it's not that bad, I'm sure this girl wasn't thinking so badly. It was teasing from her, but not mean. Besides, maybe she wanted to approach you because you caught her eye."
" Come on, Goddess." Bell replied with a small smile.
Though the boy had no idea that his goddess had hit the nail on the head.
"What's the name of the place you have to go?"
"The Hostess of Fertility, if I remember well."
"I haven't heard anything specific about this place, it probably isn't a shady establishment. I guess it was just a little aggressive advertising, nothing more. Besides, now that you've promised to go. A man of honour has to keep his word. And if there's a problem, I'll have your back, so don't worry."
"I know, thank you goddess."
She doubted Bell would learn the lesson so easily, but it was part of the experiences necessary for him to gain maturity.
"Just remember to take your weapon with you, an adventurer should always be ready for anything, even when he goes out to have fun."
"Understood goddess." replied Bell while attaching one of his daggers to the back of his belt.
"And let me know if I need to add that cute waitress to your harem list."
"Goddess!"
There were some things that would never change.
Bell and Ishtar left the Astral Mansion at the same time, but before they had time to part, a voice was heard.
" Well, Well, the beautiful Ishtar herself, what a surprise to find you here."
The voice belonged to a blond man wearing a traveller's hat. Beside him was a woman with azure hair, wearing a white cloak and glasses that gave her that stern teacher look. Which suited her rather well as she looked at the man with a certain sternness.
"Hermes. What do I owe this pleasure?" Ishtar answered him a little coldly.
"I was just passing by. I was planning to come and see you, and how fortunate for me to run into you here."
The god looked at the young man at the goddess' side and had to work hard to contain his surprise.
"Oh? Is this a new 'friend' of yours?" Asked the god with the same tone that always gave the impression that he wasn't taking anything seriously. Ishtar sighed and answered him.
"This boy is called Bell, he is a new member of my familia. Bell, I present to you the god Hermes. You may see him around the neighborhood sometimes, we do business from time to time... when he's not just coming to have fun."
"Nice to meet you god Hermes." Bell answered him very politely.
"Here is a polite and friendly young man. Nice to meet you too Bell." Said the god, holding out his hand. Bell shook it in return for his courtesy. "Oh, and this is Asfi, the captain of my familia and..."
"And also her nanny, by the way." The young woman added a little sternly before politely greeting Bell, who returned her greeting.
"A nanny would at least give me hugs!" chimed in Hermes with sadness and indignation. "Joking aside, as Ishtar said, we do business from time to time, my familia specializes in out-of-town trade. Also, if you have mail for people outside or need to acquire something that can't be found here, feel free to let us know."
"That's kind of you god Hermes, but I'm afraid I won't be needing your services, I unfortunately don't have any family left outside the city."
So Hermes thought to himself that it was as Zeus had told him. The god of thunder had faked his death to get Bell to come here.
"I am very sorry to hear that. By the way, Ishtar, speaking of doing business, I wanted to talk to you about your last request..."
"Not here Hermes!" she cut him off curtly. The Killing stone was the last subject she wanted to discuss in Bell's presence. Her answer surprised Hermes a little, but he was able to bounce back from it.
"Of course, what was I thinking? Forgive me Ishtar, your captivating presence sometimes makes my head spin."
This god could have been an excellent actor. But his manner sometimes irritated the goddess.
" You're not the first man to say that to me." The goddess chose to turn her attention back to her child, she felt he had already spent too much time with an idiot like Hermes. "You may go Bell, have a nice evening."
"You too goddess."
The young man greeted his goddess with a smile, before politely saying goodbye to Hermes and Asfi, who in turn excused themselves before leaving. Once out of sight, Hermes put on a much more serious expression.
"Bell ended up at Ishtar's? That wasn't in our plans at all! But it's strange, he doesn't seem charmed. And Ishtar? I've never seen her able to look at someone with such tenderness in her eyes... Almost as if she was in love. No, that's not possible! She's Ishtar after all. There must be something fishy going on, I'll have to investigate. But first, how do I tell Zeus? The old man is going to shit bricks when he learns about that..."
Night had just fallen when Bell finally arrived at the tavern where he had promised to meet Syr. The place looked lively and noisy. There was laughter and loud voices, but also the delicious smell of food. On the face of it, it didn't look like a suspicious establishment. Without further hesitation, he entered the premises, to be greeted by the big smile of the young woman he had met in the morning.
"You came!" she said cheerfully.
"Of course, I promised after all." He replied a little embarrassed.
"It really makes me happy that you're here."
"Me too. However, the magic stone from this morning, was that mine?" Now that Ishtar had explained the little ploy he had been the victim of, there was no harm in teasing her a little by asking the question. It seemed that by being teased by the goddess, he was beginning to display the same tendencies.
"Oh, was it?" said Syr, looking away. She may have been pretending to think, but her little act was obvious.
"So it was indeed a ploy."
"Who knows? But just so you know, I don't give a lunchbox to just anyone."
"Really?" He asked with a somewhat inquisitive look.
"Absolutely! Come on Bell, you've come for dinner, so don't stand in the hall. Table for one!" shouted the young woman, obviously trying to end the awkward conversation.
Since he was alone, he was seated directly at the counter. Behind it, a heavy-set woman, probably a dwarf, was working. And when she noticed his presence, she went towards him.
"So my boy, you're the famous customer with an ogre's appetite that Syr told me about? So, I hear you're going to raid my kitchen?" she said in her big voice.
Bell then remembered what Ishtar had said. Syr was obviously the kind of person who could give a big, cute smile and be ruthless at the same time. Because in addition to finding an excuse to make him come, she also intended to make him pay full price.
"I think I may be the customer she told you about, but I don't remember having an ogre's appetite or being able to raid your kitchens. I'd like to walk away with a little money in the purse."
"That, kid, is out of the question." She said with amusement. Bell soon realised that the owner of the place seemed the gruff, loud, but friendly type. Only, after the gift he had given to his goddess, his finances were rather low.
"Please spare me, I'm not earning much in the Dungeon yet."
"I thought you looked like a beginner. How long have you been in the job?"
"About two weeks."
"Which familia?"
"Lady Ishtar's."
"You're in Ishtar familia nya?!" then shouted in amazement a waitress who was just passing by. A lovely brunette Cat People.
Immediately there was a great silence in the tavern as all eyes turned to him. Bell felt extremely embarrassed at this point, so much so that he didn't know where to put himself.
Fortunately, the customers soon returned to their meals. However, other waitresses came to make their curiosity known. There was another black-haired cat people, a brown-haired human and a green-haired elf.
"But... You don't seem to be cut out for this job at all!" Said the human.
"I never thought that such a sweet face could hide so much lust." The elf added with his impassive air.
"So, how much does an evening in the company of this charming little butt cost nya?" asked the second cat people while putting her hand on his buttocks. This obviously made him panic and jump on the spot.
"Nothing at all! That's not for hire first!" he shouted in panic.
"Girls, that's enough, get back to work! Chloe, if it's forbidden for customers to put their hands on the waitresses' butts, the reverse is also true!"
Chloe, Lunoire and Anya returned to their job, only Syr and Ryuu remaining, suddenly feeling like she had to stay to protect her friend's innocence.
"Sorry about that boy, they get a little silly sometimes."
"I-it's nothing."
"Ishtar familia, by the way? Damn, I never would have believed it. And then, are you sure you don't have too much to spend tonight? I mean, I don't want to be a cougar, but with a pretty face like yours, you've got to earn a lot."
"I'm not a gigolo! I'm just exploring the Dungeon on my own."
"R-Really?" Asked Syr, who had remained silent until then. Which was somewhat normal considering that behind the mask, Freya was busy recovering from the shock of this revelation.
"Yes, really, I swear I'm not doing THAT job."
"Even without that, the goddess Ishtar is known to be... voracious. She must have trained you in... a lot of things..."
"No, she just gave me her blessing and a home. She is very kind to me, though often teasing."
"I see, she's teasing..."
"And when she gets going, it's hard to stop her."
"I can imagine."
"Just the other day..."
And Bell began to tell them about the teasing Ishtar was doing to him and how it made her laugh. All the while, Ryuu just blinked often, as if she wasn't sure she was in reality anymore, while Syr seemed completely lost.
"I-I see, indeed, she is really teasing..."
But... since when was Ishtar just teasing? It was already a surprise to learn that he was in her familia. Freya had only discovered Bell and his beautiful soul early that morning, which had forced her to improvise her little scheme on short notice, so she hadn't had time to find out about him.
But everything he told her made no sense. Was he sure he had the wrong goddess? Ishtar was, in Freya's eyes, a voracious, jealous, classless slut. A slut who gave in to her every impulse. But what Bell described to her was a kindly goddess, a bit playful and even... cute.
Ishtar had had him under her thumb for a couple of weeks and she still hadn't devoured him? Taking a bath and sleeping together in the same bed were the most erotic things they had ever done? It was illogical! It didn't make sense! A break in the very fabric of reality!
Freya .exe stopped working
Taking advantage of the calm and the sudden silence of the two waitresses, Bell began to eat the dish that the boss had put in front of him. And that he hadn't even ordered, by the way. Something told him that his purse would suffer. But at least the food was really delicious, much better than what he was doing on his side at the Astral Mansion.
Everyone's attention was suddenly caught by Anya announcing the arrival of important customers. Curious, Bell also looked and saw her, the beautiful blonde swordswoman who had saved his life. Beautiful, but also a little cold and distant. As Ishtar had told him, she seemed like the kind of person who was very difficult to approach. The boy also noticed how much lighter her outfit seemed without armour. Her short dress left her back bare and showed so much of her slender form that it left little to the imagination. Fortunately, living with an exhibitionist goddess was beginning to make him immune.
Seeing that Bell was looking at them curiously, Syr snapped out of her thoughts and leaned over to him to speak quietly.
"That's Loki's familia, regulars and very good customers. I think they've just returned from a big expedition."
"I see." He replied simply as he continued to watch them. Bell obviously knew this familia, the most powerful in the city along with Freya's. To him, they represented an ideal of strength, even heroism. They symbolized what he wanted to become, someone strong enough to inspire others.
But unfortunately, he would soon discover that strength did not necessarily mean honour or kindness. In their group, there was a grey-haired, sharp-tongued werewolf. The man then began to ask Aiz to tell the story of the 'tomato boy' she had saved from a minotaur and how he had run away like a loser, covered in monster blood.
The tone was mocking, and despite the admonitions of a beautiful green-haired elf, it continued. It was aggressive, mean, totally unnecessary.
And yet, in Bell's eyes, he wasn't wrong.
He had been unable to defend himself, he had had to wait for someone to come and save his life and then he had run away without even thanking his saviour, like a dirty coward. The wolf was right, he was weak and unworthy of a woman like Aiz.
He had allowed himself to be seduced by the gentleness and kindness of his goddess, by ease, by his own complacency.
What was the point of having a growth skill if he didn't train and push his limits?
What was the point of telling him to build a harem if he wasn't even strong enough to protect himself?
Ishtar had been right when she told him that without strength, he would be nothing but a smooth talker.
Bell clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, his frustration growing. And the wolf didn't stop, sparing him nothing at all.
Then he reached the breaking point. He leapt from his seat and left the place in a hurry. He had barely touched half his meal. And incidentally, he hadn't paid for it.
"Bell, wait!" Syr tried, but it was too late.
Naturally, his escape attracted attention, including that of the redheaded goddess, who allowed herself a comment as her loud-mouthed wolf became the guinea pig for the high elf's new shibari techniques.
"Well, dine and dash at mama's place? Either the kid's a moron or he's got balls of steel!"
Without a word, Aiz also left the establishment. She hadn't paid any attention to the people in the tavern, too busy ignoring Bete's words, so she hadn't seen the boy until he had run off. She had recognized him, she wanted to apologize for the whole minotaur thing, but again he had run away.
As for Bell, he had not returned home. His frustration, his anger at himself, had led him to the only logical place: the Dungeon.
Caught up in his rage, without armour, with only his dagger, he sliced and stabbed everything that came near him. He didn't care about the wounds, he didn't care about the blood, he just wanted to get stronger and he found no other method than to rush at the throat of every monster he came across.
In his anger and blindness, he didn't pay attention to where he was going. And when he came face to face with the dark silhouettes of War shadows, he realised that he had gone down rather deep. Such monsters only appeared at the seventh floor. It was fortunate that he had taken Eina's classes seriously.
Common sense and caution would have dictated that he run away and climb back up.
But in his current state, he didn't want to run away anymore, he wanted to become strong. Now he would no longer be a scared prey, it was his turn to be the hunter...
The first person to realise that Bell was missing was Lena. She had planned to come by early in the morning to train Bell before he left for the Dungeon. So she was quite surprised to find the Astral Mansion silent. Bell was a very early riser, though.
At first she thought that the boy was probably just hanging around in bed, probably after enjoying his evening. But when she looked around his room, she found it empty. The bed even showed that no one had slept in it last night.
Moreover, all of Bell's equipment was still there, which made things worrying. To be sure, she went around the local establishments, in case Bell felt like unleashing the beast inside him. But no, no one had seen him since he had left the district the previous evening.
The amazoness preferred to go and warn her goddess anyway.
Ishtar became very worried. With someone other than Bell, she would have been reassured, but the boy was so innocent and naive sometimes. Was it a mistake to let him go to that place, considering the way that waitress had lured him there? Bell was still very prudish, so she doubted very much that he had slept over to spend the night with another woman.
The goddess chose to follow Lena to the Astral Mansion to see what was going on.
No sooner had they arrived in front of the house than they saw a figure approaching.
To the goddess' horror, it was Bell returning, wounded, limping, bleeding.
"Bell!"
Ishtar lunged at him and took him in her arms.
"What happened to you Bell? Who did this to you?"
For her part, although she was worried, Lena was mostly shocked by Ishtar's attitude. She had never seen her goddess show such concern for anyone. She had rushed over to him and didn't seem to care about the blood that stained her skin and the few clothes she was wearing.
"Goddess... I want... I want to get stronger."
Ishtar was speechless for a moment at the look on Bell's face. He didn't seem to care about the pain, she could only see determination and will in his eyes.
"I know Bell... and I will help you, I promise. It still doesn't tell me who put you in this state though. It was a trap by that waitress, wasn't it? Did she have accomplices? Don't worry about it! I swear I'm gonna find that bitch! I'll make her and all her accomplices pay! Then I'm going to burn her place to the ground!"
Bell quickly began to panic as she saw her goddess starting to get excited on her own and get a whole lot of bad ideas.
"Goddess, wait! It's not what you think!"
"Don't worry Bell, I'll make them all pay!"
"But listen to meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
"May I suggest we start by treating him?" said Lena then, trying to calm things down as best she could.
Lena felt privileged because she had witnessed two extraordinary sights. First, she had seen Ishtar worry and get upset over someone. And now she saw the goddess flushed with shame, completely embarrassed that she had lost her temper. In a panic, Bell had managed to explain to her that he had gone into the Dungeon on a whim and everything he had done.
In response, the goddess tugged at his cheeks in anger at the scare he had just given her.
"Youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu! Don't ever do that to me again!"
"Yes goddess! Sorry goddess!"
"And on top of that, you ran away from the tavern without paying?"
"Sorry!"
"You bet you are! You're not to move from here all day! Rest and that's an order!"
"Yes goddess!"
Anyway, Bell would be unable to return to the Dungeon, after his all-nighter and the pressure fallout, fatigue was catching up with him and he just wanted to sleep. Ishtar let him rest and spoke to Lena privately.
"Lena, I have a feeling that Bell hasn't told me everything about what happened last night. Dig up some information on your end."
"I'm on it." The amazoness replied before leaving the scene.
Lena too had been worried when she saw Bell come home in this state. Unlike most other berberas, she liked him. She was still convinced that he had a beast inside him, but she appreciated his temper and his kindness. By dint of training him, she had ended up becoming attached to him. As a result, she was also curious to know what could have happened to make Bell commit such a madness.
But she wasn't the only one investigating. After the previous day's revelations, Freya also wanted answers. It was pure chance that had put Bell in her path. But she had only needed a brief moment to see the beauty of his soul. A pure, immaculate soul. The most beautiful soul she had ever seen.
She had been searching for her Odr for so long that she was beginning to despair. Part of her was even beginning to think that Idunn had only told her nonsense out of her own naivety. But as soon as she saw Bell, she knew that her quest made sense. So she approached him in her role as Syr, in order to get to know him better while remaining discreet. The trick with the magic stone and the promise had worked.
All this only for her to discover that he was a child of Ishtar. But how could he be so pure? There was no logic to what she had discovered. Ishtar was behaving in a way she did not know.
At first she had thought of attacking the entertainment district without further delay to get the boy back. Then she changed her mind, it would be too bad a move to make. Although it was common knowledge that Ishtar hated Freya, the reverse was not considered true. For many people, Ishtar's hatred was one-sided and Freya didn't care about her. So she could not justify a rivalry to attack.
And even if Ishtar had plans to attack her, as long as she did nothing and Freya had no concrete evidence of any plan to attack her, she could not justify either self-defence or even a pre-emptive strike.
No, it would be an unjustified aggression and it would only give Loki an opening. Even if she was sure that her familia would decimate Ishtar's, there would probably be a little bit of damage and the Trickster would not hesitate to take advantage of it.
So she came to the conclusion that she needed more information and she knew how to do it.
The person who was going to help her was Allen and the cat people didn't wait when she summoned him.
"At your service my goddess." he said as he knelt before her.
"Allen, I will need your services."
"Whatever you desire my goddess."
"I know that you occasionally visit a girl in the entertainment district."
"Only to occasionally watch what happens there, I never touched her despite her attempts."
As long as he paid, he could satisfy himself with her company without doing anything else. It wasn't his problem if this girl thought he was waiting for the right moment to make a move.
"I thought you promised to buy out her contract to make her yours." She said to him in a slightly teasing way. To which he replied with the utmost seriousness.
"A stupid idea that girl got into her head all by herself. You're the only one who matters to me."
"I'm glad to hear that, but I've never forbidden you to have a love life."
Which was true, but also a bit hypocritical of her, considering she knew well the effect she had on people, let alone her own children. In the face of the cat's silence, she preferred to get back to business.
"I want you to ask this girl about something. A new member has recently joined the Ishtar familia. A young man, white hair and red eyes. Find out all you can about him and his role in this familia."
"Understood my goddess."
"Allen, I just want you to find out information, no rash actions and I want maximum discretion."
"As you wish."
It was best to be careful with Allen. She knew how passionate and jealous he could be when it came to her. He was no fool and must have suspected why she was interested in this new child of Ishtar's. That was why she felt it necessary to remind him not to overdo it.
And while one goddess of beauty was thinking about it, another one was taking care of her child who was a bit too troublesome. After nursing Bell back to health and getting him to sleep a little to recover from his restless night, Ishtar had decided to punish him a little, in her own way.
"G-Goddess... can you get my face off your breast?"
"No, this is your punishment, you bad boy."
Indeed, Ishtar was currently busy hugging Bell in such a way that he had his face stuffed into her perfectly shaped chest. For anyone else, it would be a supreme reward and a rare privilege to have his face there. But since Bell was still very prudish and shy, it was driving him crazy.
Ishtar knew this and that was why she was giving him this 'terrible punishment'. It was also part of her long-term strategy to try and make Bell make a move on her by himself.
This went on for an hour before the embarrassment finally made Bell pass out. Was there a limit to this boy's innocence?
Of course, the fact that Ishtar was still spending a good part of the day with Bell once again made a mess of the familia's organisation.
The day was beginning to draw to a close when Aisha was finally finished with the extra work this had imposed on her. Tired, she decided to relax with the one person whose presence really made her feel good. A pretty, blonde, shy fox girl.
When Haruhime saw Aisha come in, she knew she was tired and immediately made her some tea. As she handed her the cup, the amazoness took it, offering her one of her rare sincere and tender smiles, so different from the proud and carnivorous smile she usually adorned herself with.
"Thank you Haruhime."
"You're welcome. You look really tired, anything wrong?"
"I had to make some of Ishtar's work, she spent her time with that kid again." Aisha replied with a weary sigh.
"You mean the young man who arrived recently? Lena told me a little about him. She also mentioned something about a hidden beast, but I didn't get the whole story."
"Don't mind Lena's nonsense, but yes, he is different from the others. He doesn't seem to fit in with us. And Ishtar is so... strange with him.
"That's what the rumours say. A lot of girls are curious about him."
"And you? Aren't you, even a little?"
"Maybe a little, yes."
"Don't you want to meet him?"
"Honestly, I don't know..."
"Maybe you should... Ishtar seems to really like him. Maybe she even listens to him. If we went through him, we could probably..."
"Aisha!"
The amazoness was surprised that Haruhime would raise her voice like that and even cut her off.
"Let's not get our hopes up, please."
In the fox's eyes, the amazoness saw only resignation, combined with a small hint of despair. Haruhime had already given up all hope of being saved. She accepted her sad fate of being sacrificed and having her soul scattered in a magical rock. This was also why she made no effort to befriend anyone. She didn't want to make friends that she would be sad to leave.
Aisha and Lena were the only ones who talked to her and were interested in her. The amazoness didn't know why she had taken a liking to this girl who was the complete opposite of her, but that was the way it was. To her, Haruhime was her little sister and she wanted to protect her. She had already paid a high price for delaying Ishtar's plans, but all she had to do was look into the fox's face and her regrets would vanish.
She hadn't given up. There had to be a way, a solution to prevent all this without having to disobey Ishtar directly.
She wanted to believe that Bell might be the key, but he looked so weak. For a proud amazoness like herself who valued strength, how could she trust him?
After having punished Bell enough for his stupidity and having been certain that the boy would remain quiet for the evening, the goddess finally returned to her huge home to get back to her business.
Business that just happened to involve her current favourite. Sitting on her throne, the goddess listened to Lena's report, to whom she had asked to investigate that morning what had happened to Bell the night before.
"I see. Good work Lena."
The amazoness had struggled a bit, but Ishtar had a strong intelligence network. It didn't give her the answer to everything, but for something like this, it wasn't hard for her to find information. All the amazoness had to do was ask the right informants.
Basically, Bell hadn't put up with a whole series of taunts and hadn't found anything better to do than to go and take out his frustration in the Dungeon. It was still better than breaking down crying or picking a fight with a level 6, but it wasn't the best idea either.
"So what now?" The goddess asked herself.
The situation was very complicated. Bell had spent the evening in a tavern whose owner was no more than Mia Grande, ex-level 6 adventurer and by the way, Freya's former captain.
As for the person who had started this whole mess, Bete Loga, it was impossible to teach him a lesson in the traditional way. Attacking one of Loki's children would risk attracting unwanted attention, not to mention the fact that she did not have the firepower for such an action. Even her best asset, Phryne, was going to kick the bucket if she try.
"Well, so be it! Violence isn't the best solution in some cases, let's be more subtle... and meaner."
"What do you mean?"
"Lena, make use of the courtesan's network. I want the rumour to circulate throughout the city that Bete Loga's bad temper is due to strong impotence problems."
"Ouch! That's really mean." The amazoness said to her.
"I know. Do you like it?"
"I love it!" replied Lena, thumbs up, in a very rare moment of complicity with her goddess.
The courtesan network, as the name implied, gathered everything the hundreds of courtesans in the various brothels could hear from the hundreds of clients they received every night, but with a little manipulation, what they could tell them as well.
It was extremely easy for them to spread a rumour in town. People tended to like gossip and juicy stories. A rumour about a well-known high-ranking adventurer would quickly attract a lot of curious people.
And unfortunately for Bete, the events in Melen had not yet happened. As a result, Lena still had no feelings for him. Worse, she had taken a liking to Bell, so she would have no mercy on the one who had dared to make fun of her little rabbit so badly.
As Lena went out to carry out her orders, another servant of the goddess came to her with a letter.
The letter bore the seal of Ganesha and was written in divine runes. A message from one god only to another. But the content was nothing special, Ganesha was hosting a new divine banquet and she was invited.
Ishtar rarely showed up at this kind of event, except when she felt like flattering her ego by watching other gods lick her feet to obtain her favours, but she wasn't in the mood for that right now. So she was ready to burn this invitation without giving it any more importance, before suddenly holding back.
No, this banquet was an excellent opportunity. She needed to meet someone specific and it would be easier to approach her at this kind of event.
The goddess therefore called on her servants and ordered them to have one of her slightly more presentable evening outfits ready for the next day. For once, she should avoid something too daring.
The next morning, Bell was not too surprised to receive a visit from his goddess before leaving for the Dungeon.
"Do you understand? This time, no foolishness."
"I promise, Goddess."
"Bell, I really don't want anything to happen to you. I understand your desire to get stronger, but I want you to come home alive. Don't let your... special abilities make you feel like you can do anything."
"I understand goddess. Don't worry, considering all the parts of my body that were hurting yesterday, I've assimilated that there are things to avoid for now."
His voice betrayed a little disappointment, he wanted to make progress. Ishtar understood that she could not keep him safe if she tried to mother him too much. On the contrary, he would risk doing more. It was better for her to try to channel his desire to progress in an effective way.
"Bell, I know you want to improve and believe me, I will help you to do so."
"I know, thank you goddess."
"By the way, don't wait for me tonight, I have to go away. I'm going to the divine banquet hosted by Ganesha and who knows how long it will last."
"No problem, have fun tonight goddess. I am going!"
And the young man strode off, leaving Ishtar to contemplate his departure silently. With each passing day, she became more and more aware of the affection she had for him.
A little further away, hidden in the corner of a wall, Tammuz was watching the scene, clenching his fist in frustration. There were fewer men in Ishtar's familia, and of these, he had been the privileged one for a long time. Ishtar's henchman, her most loyal servant, the one who had worked hard to get his level 4, the one who had the honour of sharing her bed most often.
And this kid out of nowhere was stealing all that from him. He couldn't do anything about it, not yet, but sooner or later he'd find a way to put that snotty, upstart kid where he belonged.
He would just have to be more subtle than Phryne... or find outside help.
Before heading to the Dungeon, Bell did what he thought was most important, and hurried to the Hostess of Fertility to apologise and pay his bill.
When he arrived, he was greeted by a cold looking elf and a cat girl visibly offended by his behavior.
"Nya... But this is the deadbeat gigolo from the other night."
"You finally have the guts to come back?" Ryuu continued.
Faced with this pair of dark looks, the boy instinctively bowed 90 degrees and spoke in an insecure voice.
"I am truly sorry! Is... is Syr here please?"
"I'll get her." The elf finally replied after an agonizing silence.
Putting her money where her mouth was, she grabbed Anya by the collar and headed inside, before emerging with the grey-haired young woman.
"Bell! Are you all right? I was so worried!" the young woman came over to him.
" I'm so sorry!" he said, bowing again. "Um... I came back to pay. If that's not enough..."
As he spoke, he presented a purse with, he hoped, enough to pay for his meal and compensation for his bad behaviour.
"No, it'll be more than enough, don't worry. I'm just glad you're okay."
He'd been worried she'd be angry, but she seemed the forgiving type, so part of him felt reassured. Once the awkwardness had subsided, the conversation flowed a little more naturally and Bell began to relax.
"Are you off to the Dungeon?"
"Yes, new day at work for me too. Contrary to what the other girls think, I'm really not a gigolo, so this is my only source of income."
The remark made Syr laugh. And inwardly, it reassured her every time Bell specified that. Freya was always afraid that he would finally take up this job at the behest of his goddess.
"In that case, here..." she gestured, handing him a lunchbox.
"This is generous, I can't accept it."
"Please, it's my pleasure, really."
"In that case... thank you." He replied as he took the lunchbox.
As his grandfather had taught him, one should never turn down a sincere gift from a woman. One of the few pieces of advice he followed. As they talked, a massive figure appeared behind the young woman, that of the dwarf boss.
"Are you sure you want to give him your lunch Syr?"
"Yes, don't worry, mama, I'll be fine."
"If you say so, go back to work then, you have plenty to do."
"Right away mama, see you later Bell." She waved him off and went back inside, leaving the boy alone with the very intimidating presence of the boss.
"I see you got the guts to come back. Good for you."
"I'm really sorry." He said again.
"And you did the right thing. Syr ran after you the other night, but she couldn't catch you, she went home sad. After that, Ryuu was even ready to go turn the whole entertainment district upside down to get her hands on you."
Bell felt herself suddenly blush as she realized what his stupidity might have caused.
"Good thing I stopped her, I don't want to get in trouble with Ishtar."
"I assure you, my goddess has also severely scolded me for my behavior."
"Ho? I didn't expect that from her reputation, but it's good to hear. Look kid, don't pay attention to everything that's said. Being an adventurer isn't about showing off. The only winner is the one who comes back safe and sound. Especially to enjoy a beer at my place."
"I... Thanks, mama."
"So, now you're bound to become a regular, you hear."
"I promise, with pleasure."
"Good boy. Come on, you've got work to do too I think."
"Yes, I'm going."
And after a final goodbye, Bell headed back to the Dungeon, his heart lightened by the fact that he had been able to make amends for his huge mistake.