The day was coming to an end. The sky darkened and the sun was nowhere to be found as the moon was slowly making its way.

Orario looked quite alive even at night as the lights were illuminating the main streets and many stores were still open but it was the taverns that were filled to the brim with many patrons.

Meanwhile in Fimbulvetr, most of the plot was dark with the exception of the mead hall which was now illuminated with a few more candles.

Noel was the only person on the main room, he was by the table with a few open books nearby while he was writing on an empty journal. The sound of the quill writing on paper was soothing for the boy's ears while he eyed the books around him and wrote down more information.

But that was not the only thing he heard at the moment, the sound of the shrine moving and then footsteps is what prompted him to look up at the source.

"You look good in that outfit, captain." He smiled.

"Are you sure? I feel quite the opposite…" Ragnar raised his arms, looked at his body and legs and sighed.

He was wearing a black two-piece suit along with a bowtie that Skadi gifted to him. At first he was met with confusion but it was later that she explained to him that they would attend a party that another Familia was hosting, although he was not given that much explanation other than to be prepared for the night.

"I feel weird in this, I'm supposed to be out there training in the Dungeon not just… attending some party! I wish it was you who had to go there."

"Think of it as a different activity rather than the usual and besides, it was the goddess who chose you to accompany her. If anything, I doubt there will be many parties like this in the future."

"I just wish I could've said no to Skadi…" Ragnar grunted and sat in front of the other Familia member. He then looked at all the books and at what Noel was writing. "What are you working on? "

"I decided to keep track of what we've been finding in the Dungeon. What monsters we killed, what weak points do they have along with strategies on how to fight them."

"So what you're doing is Esther's job…"

Noel felt embarrassed, not because he was taking the Guild member's job but because the captain was not wrong in his assessment. "Yeah…" But he shook his head, "but that is not all that I am doing on my free time! I've been training my magic for two weeks now and study more about what we might find beyond our training grounds. It is never too wrong to be prepared! "

"I suppose… just don't put the Guild out of commission, okay? "

Noel let out a quiet laugh in response before he focused on another person getting closer to the table. "Good evening, goddess. You look fantastic tonight."

The captain turned around and saw that rather than the cloak that Skadi usually wears to hide herself, she was now wearing a more elegant dress in gray and a transparent veil that had a winter-like motif over her head.

"Goddess, I-..." He cleared his throat. In reality he was dazed, he never expected Skadi to wear something like that, much less not having her cloak. "You look… different." He wanted to come up with a different word but he couldn't at the moment.

The goddess smiled in return. "Thank you Ragnar, you look different too." Unlike the captain's response which felt odd, this one was taking with a bit more grace. "Noel, what will you be doing tonight? "

"Not much, probably continue with my studies in my room. I can lock everything once you're gone. "

"Thank you, " she smiled at the silver haired and then focused on the other boy. "Ragnar, shall we go? " The captain just grunted and stood up. The two of them bid farewell to Noel and they left the mead hall and headed to the entrance of Fimbulvetr.

"So Skadi, you never told me in detail what is this party about or where we're going exactly. This is… not some kind of ambush, right? "

"No." She chuckled. "Perhaps going to a party hosted by the Freya Familia might be an ambush to some but we are in relatively good terms. But do bear in mind, while we are there you should be respectful, Freya can be… a good goddess, but she might set her eyes on a lot of people."

"So I should be wary around her, got it."

"No, no, no." The goddess waved her hands and repeated "Just… ignore me." She sighed.

By the time they reached the main gate there was a chariot waiting for them. Ragnar opened the door and was ready to enter but halted; if he was needed to act respectful then he might as well start now. He turned around and extended his hand at Skadi.

"Goddess, you first."

Skadi was more than surprised and Ragnar could see that. She lowly moved her hand to grab his but the moment their fingers touched both recoiled.
The captain felt a very cold touch, even colder than other times while Skadi just held that hand with the other.

"I apologize…" She quietly spoke and climbed into the chariot without the help of the adventurer.

Ragnar looked at his hand and clenched it; the cold feeling at the tip of his fingers was strangely gone. He wanted to question it but he couldn't delay their transport so he climbed in and seated opposite of the goddess and closed the door.

The chariot started moving away from Fimbulvetr and continued down the street. Inside, there was silence between the two of them. Skadi was looking to the side while Ragnar was trying to `fix´ his bowtie.

Amidst the silence, the captain sighed. "Skadi, mind if I ask you something? "

"Oh? " She turned at Ragnar and nodded "S-sure… if it's about what happened before…"

"No, this is different. I just wanted to know more about what happened to the Familia before I arrived. Mister Thom and Heimdall alluded to something but I wanted to know more from the source."

The goddess looked down and the captain noticed that it was not a question that she was happy with. "Ragnar… I am willing to give you an answer if you in turn answer something for me."

"Huh? Sure, no problem."

"Very well…" She took a deep breath. "I hope you understand it is not a topic that I like to talk about but given that you are the captain, I suppose you at least deserve to know some of it." Skadi remained silent, clinging to the dress as her hands clenched "My Familia used to be big, perhaps not to rival with the ones that you see nowadays but we were almost a hundred members."

"A hundred?! I find it hard to believe everyone would fit in Fimbulvetr…"

"The home has been repurposed over the years. You see…" But the words wouldn't come out at first, like a knot on her throat that didn't let her speak.

She cleared her throat and took another deep breath. "What happened was that… well, call it carelessness or just being overpowered. You know how dangerous the life of an adventurer can be."

"So… everyone who was before me… died? "

"Not all of them, but a good bunch. As a result people decided to leave, whether abandon the Familia to join another or just to drop the adventuring job."

"But that must've been a while ago if Fimbulvetr is in the state that we know."

"Eighteen years ago to be precise. That's when it happened. Many more joined but… well, you can imagine the rest…"

Ragnar remained silent, taking in the new information. He knew that there were probably more details that she decided to omit but he could understand as to how his new home ended the way it did or how the Familia ended up inactive.

"I'm sorry, goddess. I understand why you don't want to talk about it."

"No, it's alright. But now, it's my turn. I want to ask you the same thing. Who were you before arriving at Orario? "

He feared that question might come at some point and while he wanted to dodge it, it was his goddess who was right in front of him. It would be impossible, and lying to her not only would it feel wrong to the captain but he didn't know what kind of consequences would be if he lied.

"Mh…" He mused at first on how he could start, "I come from a small village on the north. There's snow everywhere and the nearest village was half a day away. If it weren't for some strangers that helped me, I would've taken two or even three weeks to reach Orario. But who was I? I guess I was just a normal kid who chopped trees and fished on a small frozen lake; living off stories that I heard from other adults."

"Tell me more about your village." Skadi showed some interest.

"Eh, what's there else to say? It's pretty quiet and not a lot of things happen every year. I didn't know much about the outside world other than stories from other villagers or the occasional trader that would arrive. They would mention kingdoms, towns and other stories they could find around. Of course, Orario would be a big topic of conversation."

"So why did you leave your village? "

"I already said it many times, goddess." He smiled. "And that reason hasn't changed."

Skadi felt satisfied with the answer but knew that there was more to it. A sentiment that both agreed to each other's stories.

The trip on the chariot took a few more minutes before they stopped at the Freya Familia home.

For Skadi it was another visit, she opened the door and climbed out of the chariot; Ragnar followed from behind but he was surprised with every step he took.

The entrance to Folkvangr was elegant, completely different to Fimbulvetr. With a small set of stairs and a stone path leading decorated with columns, flowers, vases and a fountain near the middle. Even further was the home of the Freya Familia, although the captain could not stop thinking that the entire place could be categorized as a manor or even a temple dedicated to the goddess of the strongest Familia in Orario.

"This is… impressive…"

"Freya's home, it has been a while since I came here but I can see that nothing changed." She looked at Ragnar whose eyes were going everywhere to each new detail he could find. "I find it a bit… too regal to my tastes. But I suppose that rather than just a display, it is a statement to everyone else."

"Oh? Uh… yeah, I agree." He heard about the Freya Familia and how it bolsters a large amount of adventurers and considered the strongest one. The idea of training or serving under them really came to him but he wouldn't betray Skadi nor turn her down.

The captain already saw many attendees to this party but no signs of the host. He could see gods and goddesses along with adventurers, the one thing that stood out to him was that not everyone was dressed as elegantly as him or Skadi.

He tried to look for any familiar faces and while he could recognize one or two adventurers amidst all the people that was invited to this party, they were nothing but people he saw on his way in or out of the Dungeon.

"Skadi! " A familiar voice called out the goddess and both turned around to find the source.

Two people were approaching them, a man dressed in a black suit, shorts and sandals while the other was shorter but wore a proper suit just like Ragnar.

"Heimdall, I am glad you decided to come."

"No, I am glad you joined. It has been a while since you've been to one of these meetings, haven't you." The god smiled and looked at Ragnar. "And what about you? Are you enjoying it? "

"Can't say I been here that long, Lord Heimdall." Ragnar replied. "Nice seeing you here, Mister Thom."

"Likewise, boy. Unfortunately, my role tonight is not just attending along Lord Heimdall but to act as a chaperone."

"Is it? " He huffed, "I'll have you know that my tolerance of alcohol has increased ever since and I have better control for quite a long time now. Besides, I don't think I could miss one of Freya's parties, " the god fixed his jacket, "me and Freya have a long history from way up there. You see, there was this one time that she needed me to find something, and it's a very fun story, let me tell you."

While Heimdall continued talking, Ragnar felt a little tug on his arm, pulling him away. He looked to his side and noticed that Skadi was slightly walking back, still looking at the talking god. The dwarf was also slowly backing away but the deity kept his story without noticing that all of the three listeners were taking a few steps back.

At first Ragnar did not know why they were doing it but then he noticed that from behind Heimdall there were two people approaching, one faster than the other. A devil wearing a red dress to match the scarlet hair tied in a bun. A look of mischief on her face was the best first impression that the captain could get to know that this goddess was definitely bad news.

Or at the very least for Heimdall.

By the time he noticed that Skadi, Ragnar and Thom were slightly far away from him, it was already too late. "Huh, why did you walk aw-"

But his sentence was cut short when this devil tackled him. A woman with red hair who put one arm around Heimdall's neck to keep him locked and the other curled into a fist, rubbing the top of his head with her knuckles.

"Ow ow ow Loki stop… stop! " He pleaded but to no avail, if anything the goddess increased the speed.

"Nice seeing you again, Heimdall. For a moment I thought you were someone else but those sandals give away who you are." Her mocking tone was definitely noticeable as she kept bullying him.

"Skadi… what is happening? " Ragnar whispered as he leaned closer to his goddess.

"Loki and Heimdall have their history too, they were pretty belligerent to each other back in the Upper World, but down here Heimdall became more relaxed while Loki..." She didn't need to finish her sentence, the demonstration was more than enough.

"It doesn't help that the Loki Familia is stronger than ours, and by a large margin that is." Thom added.

As they continued with the struggle, Loki noticed the three people that were looking at them and released Heimdall who fell to the ground. "Hey, Skadi! It is nice seeing you here at parties like this again. I feared you might be a recluse who only attends to godly businesses."

Perhaps to more than one that felt very rude. Especially Ragnar who took a step forward but was halted when Loki was focused on him.

"Huh? And who is he? " The goddess was closer to him, inspecting his face like some kind of animal. She used her hands to pull the captain's cheeks.

"Ow, stop it! "

"Loki, this is one of my children, he's the new captain of my Familia."

With surprise, the goddess turned back at Skadi before going back at Ragnar. "Oh! " She released the warrior's cheeks. "So you are the one person leading? I expected you to be… different. Are you Level 1? "

"Yes, hi. My name is Ragnar." The captain rubbed his cheeks. "I became an adventurer about a month ago." For him it was still slightly surprising he has been in Orario for almost a month, yet he felt that despite all this time he still needed to train more.

"That's impressive. But let me present to you something that will surprise you! " Loki stepped to the side and gestured at someone who was walking towards them.

A young girl around the same age as Ragnar but slightly taller. She had long gold hair and golden eyes and wore a short dark yellow dress, a stark difference from her goddess. Her expression felt neutral, or rather it didn't show anything, just looking back at the goddess and the two adventurers that were looking back at her.

However, it sparked some attention from the captain as this was the first adventurer from the Loki Familia that he has seen up close and so far his first impressions were pretty vague, yet it still got his interest.

"Never thought I'd get the chance to meet the Sword Princess in person." Said Skadi and the only response she got from the blonde was a silent bow.

"Watch as she will become Level 6 any time soon. My beautiful Ai-" Without even moving a single strand of her hair, the Sword Princess raised a fist that stopped her goddess in the tracks as the hand slightly sunk into Loki's face who was ready to grab the adventurer.

From behind the two of them, Heimdall stood up wiping any dust that he had on his clothes. The first thing he saw was Loki being stopped by her child. "That is something nice to see…" The god smiled only to receive a glare from the red haired.

"Heh, I should… just go- Hey, is that someone that I know? What a coincidence! You'll have to excuse me! "

Without a second thought, Heimdall left the scene and the dwarf sighed, having to follow behind to make sure his god would not get into more trouble.

"We better get moving too." Loki rubbed her nose and both her and the adventurer left.

"That… was weird, " Ragnar called out, "Is it always like this in all of these parties? "

"Not quite, " Said Skadi, "but it all depends on who you're talking to. Heimdall and Loki is one of those examples. Other gods can be eccentric, or very quiet. In other cases they like to show off."

"And what about Freya? "

"She can be… quite the goddess, depending on where you are standing. Come on, let's get inside."

Skadi and Ragnar walked to the big manor, hearing other deities and adventurers talk. The most usual topics were the gods and goddesses flaunting their children like they were some products which gave the captain a strange feeling about it. Skadi was definitely not acting like that, even though she was a deity.

"Skadi, mind if I ask you something? " The lady nodded. "I've seen Heimdall still vouching for his captain and now Loki being too happy about hers is… well, strange."

"How so? "

"The point is, why don't you do it too? "

This made the goddess think for a moment "There was a time in which I did, perhaps not like other of my kind but over time I found that it might create some problems within the Familia. If you ought to know, I love you as much as I love Noel so there is no competition."

"I… I see…" This left the captain curious, wondering how Skadi used to be before he joined.

The inside of the manor was no different from the outside. A big demonstration of the Freya Familia's wealth and power. There was a stark difference between this and Fimbulvetr. With more columns, hanging plants, a chandelier, a carpet that extended to a long staircase in the middle of the room and even statues.
And that was only the main room! It would be a lie to say that Ragnar was not impressed, if not dazzled at this.

The rest of the night went by slightly uneventful, at least for the adventurer. He would spend most of the time with Skadi, asking her question and in turn informing himself even more about events such as these. He would often see amidst the attendees Heimdall, always with a glass of alcohol in his hands while Thommerlum did not fall behind when it came to ale. Loki kept flaunting the Sword Princess to other adventurers and deities

However, everyone's attention shifted when they saw two people on the top of the stairs. One of them was a giant, or rather he looked like one compared to Ragnar who accompanied a lady right next to him.

She was a beautiful woman, who exuded a very powerful regal aura. Her skin white as snow and her silver hair were attractive, the purple eyes were captivating similar to her white dress.

The Goddess of Beauty, that's what many people called her, but to others they referred to that woman as Freya.

Some voices were talking about her beauty, others about the power she had thanks to her Familia while others were slightly envious.

And truth be told they were all right. If someone was as powerful as her then there would be no reason not to flaunt it. Powerful adventurers under her thumb, a lot of wealth and perhaps even recognized as currently the most powerful Familia on Orario? She had them all to back that up.

The goddess greeted the many attendees but her eyes focused on a duo that was looking back at her. She smiled but Skadi on the other hand did not.

"I can see why she's so important…" Ragnar muttered. He felt attracted to that figure, imagining things like what anyone would be able to do with such power. He was enthralled, charmed even by that goddess.

"Ragnar."

"Huh? " He immediately turned to Skadi and that feeling that erupted in him suddenly vanished. "What? "

"Just… don't focus too much on her."

"Skadi! " The many eyes of the people at the party were focused on the goddess as she approached them. "I am so happy to see you again, dear. I was worried that I would not see you again in a party."

"I thought I could approach things differently." Ragnar noticed that Skadi felt slightly uneasy, not because of what Freya said but having the attention of that much people directed at her. "I haven't heard much about you Freya, even at the Denatus I don't get to talk much about you."

"Please, I want to hear more about you." Her eyes slowly shifted to the boy next to her. "And who is this? " Freya smiled at Ragnar.

He could see his own reflection in those purple eyes of hers and that gentle smile that clearly had more behind it. That feeling from before came back, a warm yet inviting feeling coming from the goddess; was it magic? Was it her natural beauty? Maybe it was the power she had? The captain could not understand.

"I'm…" He gave an unnatural smile and opened his mouth to speak again but someone stood in his way, his goddess, who blocked the vision between him and Freya.

"He is the new captain of my Familia. I believe I mentioned that to you…" The response felt cold, something odd for Skadi, or rather different from what Ragnar has been seen so far.

"I see. I am glad that you decided to rebuild your Familia."

"Yes, I wanted to talk about that. Do you mind if we can take this conversation elsewhere? " Now it was Freya's time to be surprised, but that lasted briefly as her smile returned.

"Fine by me, dear. But I hope it will be a brief talk, there's more guests here that want attention too…"

"Ragnar, I'll be gone for a moment. Go ahead and enjoy the party. I'll be back shortly." Skadi smiled walked alongside Freya. They would eventually stop to talk with someone before continuing until the captain had no vision of them, the only way to pin point them was the giant bodyguard that followed the Goddess of Beauty.

Ragnar was alone, he barely knew anyone in this party and got some glances from some other people. Like a stranger plunged into a place he didn't want to be at all. Even before this he was not the most excited about parties, even those organized back at his village were not of his interest.

He wanted to go back to Fimbulvetr and rest so he could go to the Dungeon again. This was not the life he envisioned when he arrived at Orario.

But there was nothing he could do but to `enjoy´ the party. He needed some fresh air and decided to walk outside to one of the gardens that were next to the main room.

Much like before, this place felt quite the display; a big garden full of statues, hedges, benches and even a fountain made of marble with the emblem of a woman with a winged helmet engraved in the stone.

Ragnar sat on the edge of the fountain, looking at the crystalline water.

"Enjoying the party, boy? " The blond looked back and saw that his friend dwarf was approaching him.

"Eh… maybe I'm not cut for this party life or whatever. I feel like I'm more of a dangerous type of life, you know? This is the complete opposite." He gestured at the people inside of the main hall.

"Perhaps not for us but this is also a great place to hear rumors and to meet people. Who knows who will be fighting on your side, or even against you should certain situations come? " Thom stroked his beard, "But do not be discouraged. These parties are not that often, and think about it, maybe you'll get one in your honor."

"Speaking from experience? "

The dwarf let out a funny noise after being accused, "Lord Heimdall thought about doing a small party to celebrate my rank up. I don't know if it a matter of celebration or he needed an excuse to drink a lot."

Ragnar laughed and looked again at the people in the main hall, however, in between all the attendees he noticed someone he already saw before. The golden-haired girl who was a focus of attention for so many.

"Something wrong? "

"Not exactly but I am curious. What do you know about that Sword Princess? "

The dwarf turned and looked in the same direction as the blond and chuckled "Ais Wallenstein, probably the brightest star in the Loki Familia and to some one of the strongest adventurers of her class. Did you know she also got the leap from Level 1 to 2 in just a year? You already know my stance with that Familia but I know when to give credit."

"So she's good…"

"Better than good. In a way it reminds me of you, determined to get stronger and to fight monsters." He noticed that the young one was still looking at her; his eyes showed something more than curiosity and that worried the dwarf, or rather somewhat angered him. "Hey, don't tell me you fell for her."

"What?! No! I… well, I admit that she is pretty but… that's not what I was thinking." He remained silent for a moment. "I wonder if she would help me train… but I doubt she would even notice someone as weak as me."

"You would be right" He placed a hand on the blond's shoulder. "But if you want some free advice, have some confidence in yourself. Maybe that way even the Sword Princess might notice you."

The two of them heard the sound of a plate breaking and all of the attention shifted to a certain black haired who was too happy with a glass of wine in his hand.

The dwarf grunted. "You'll have to excuse me, there is a drunkard that I need to take care of…"

Thom walked away and Ragnar was alone once again.

He sighed, reflecting on the words of his friend. Yet he daydreamed again, having someone as strong as the Sword Princess training him, and on top of that a pretty girl so it would have even more benefits.

He already heard that Loki recruited pretty people into their Familia but there was probably more to it given their standing in Orario.

"A year to level up…" He hummed. It would be a long trip, perhaps a dangerous one but in order to get stronger and perhaps even becoming a hero in the process. It even made him wonder how long it would take for people to reach higher levels or even since when do some people even train? There were many questions floating his head at the moment.

He was ready to return to the main hall, probably to get something to eat and drink when he heard another conversation nearby.

"Hey, have you heard about the expedition? "

"You mean the one those miners are organizing? "

They were two men talking on the opposite side of the fountain, Ragnar kept minding his own business while overhearing the conversation.

"Call it however you like, but they need some bodyguards for the job."

"You mean no other Familia is willing to accompany them? "

"Given that they plan to be in the first few floors for some cheap minerals of course no one is willing to bore themselves to death. But they are accepting any adventurer at the moment, they don't care about the level as long as they can keep their workers safe."

"Heh, might tell a few people that I know about it, they could earn some good Valis out of it."

"They will be by the tower next week. It is an easy job and a simple pay but it beats going to these parties."

When the conversation ended, Ragnar looked back and saw the two guests walking away to another part of the manor.

This was an opportunity for him. An expedition and also in the first floors of the Dungeon? It was an easy job for some easy money.

Ragnar knew what to look up for in the coming week. If he were to achieve his goals he would need to try everything and even if training under stronger adventurers was not an option just yet, he would attempt his best to reach that level.

With Noel helping and Skadi supporting him, the Captain was determined.

Having a smile in his face, he stood up from the fountain and walked back inside after he heard his stomach craving for something to eat.

From the balcony of the second floor, there was someone overlooking the garden. He saw the blonde adventurer walking back to the main hall.

Behind were two guests who approached him.

"Sir." They bowed their heads.

"I take the message was clear? " The observer took a sip from his glass.

"Loud and clear, he thought we didn't notice him." The other guest spoke. "What's next? "

"Now, you two will enjoy the rest of the party, I will take it from here." The guests bowed and left the observer alone.


Well, I did promise some familiar faces but there's more to this chapter. It sets up the expedition with dangers far more different than the monsters themselves. But of course, it will be revealed in due time.

Hope you all enjoy the chapter and thanks to everyone who's been following the story!

For me, it's time to actually take a rest over the weekend as I look into the notes for the next chapter.

Have a nice weekend and as always, see you in the next chapter.