Right after the expedition ended was a peculiar window of time—especially because this expedition had been unusual in every respect, with far more that could be inferred and leaked than usual.
Plenty of gods already had their eyes on the Loki Familia.
"Did the Dungeon's 'abnormality' from the other day reach the 'Town of Rivira' as well?"
On the day after he sent his own captain to gather intelligence, Hermes received a report back from Rivira.
A monster riot had struck the town, throwing Rivira into utter chaos.
That surge coincided exactly with the dates of the Dungeon's recent "abnormality."
"In addition to the riot battering Rivira, Amphisbaena refreshed early. Looks like this anomaly is beyond what we imagined."
"But what truly surprises me isn't that." Hermes's eyes narrowed. "What's truly strange is Loki's kids cutting their expedition short—and the Astraea Familia returning alongside them."
He could smell that something didn't add up.
"The Dungeon's abnormality, Loki's children ending the expedition early, and the Astraea Familia traveling home with them—those lines connect neatly."
"And the variable tying those lines together is obvious."
"The Evilus remnants that weren't wiped out three years ago."
It would take someone with reach to shake the whole Dungeon, force the Loki Familia to withdraw early, and even pull the Astraea Familia into the same retreat. There weren't many in Orario capable of that. At this stage, the only ones likely to do it—individual or organization—were Evilus.
"If their initial target was Astraea's children and Loki just got pulled in, everything makes sense."
Asfi accepted that most of Hermes's reasoning tracked, but one point remained unclear.
"Lord Hermes, if Evilus was mostly destroyed three years ago, how would the leftovers take on the Astraea Familia?"
"Astraea may lack first-tier adventurers, but they have at least nine second-tier ones. If Evilus really lost continuity, talking about ambushing them is a fantasy."
Hermes tapped the report with a fingertip.
"That part is easier to explain than you think."
"Asfi, who do you think caused the Dungeon's 'abnormality'? Those lunatics wouldn't spring an ambush on Astraea's children without preparation."
"The remnants found something in the Dungeon—a method that let them set up an ambush on Astraea's group. But that same method triggered the chain of recent anomalies."
Asfi nodded slightly. Following that line did make sense. Still, she had a second question.
"Then why did every last member of the Astraea Familia return alive?"
"It can't just be dumb luck that Loki's kids 'happened' to intersect them at the perfect time and rescue them too, can it?"
"…That is a little too neat."
Hermes stalled like a jammed gun. Any hypothesis needed proof, and Asfi's question couldn't be answered with what they had. In other words, what Hermes had offered was a possibility—not a fact.
"We don't have enough to predict the full picture yet."
"But some things are clear. Evilus almost certainly tried to stop the Astraea Familia. Otherwise, how do we explain a week of Dungeon anomalies?"
Asfi didn't argue. What remained murky was why the remnants chose to trigger something so extreme—and how Astraea's group returned unscathed from an ambush.
"There's also this: how did Loki learn the Dungeon's situation so early?"
"Without letters or a courier, how did she get timely intelligence?"
"And Astraea's immediate acceptance of Loki's offer—she clearly knew Loki's kids had crossed paths with her own. Otherwise, Astraea wouldn't have accepted so readily…"
"So the real focus isn't on Astraea or on Evilus," Hermes concluded after a brief analysis. "All of it piles up on Loki's children."
If the Astraea Familia returned safely, odds were the Loki Familia had something to do with it.
His fingertip drummed the desk, then he made a decision.
"Asfi—shadow the 'Extraordinary Man.'"
"Loki's expedition came back much earlier than planned. I expect that 'Extraordinary Man' will head to the Pleasure Quarter to blow off steam."
"Put eyes on him. We'll be there to listen when he talks."
Asfi dipped her head. The "Extraordinary Man" and his leaks weren't exactly a secret among information brokers. Sometimes his "tips" were impressively detailed—especially when he was distracted by beauty.
As for whether he might spout something inaccurate—Asfi wasn't concerned. Mortals couldn't lie to gods. With Lord Hermes present, any falsehood would be caught easily.
And even if Hermes's eyes "failed" him, the goddess Ishtar's certainly wouldn't.
Surely two gods wouldn't both be wrong.
Asfi felt confident.
"Raul, if you pull this off today, I'll ignore your past… entanglements."
"But if you botch it, I'll smash half of your future happiness."
A cool smile curved Loki's lips. Raul, on the receiving end of her orders, was sweating cold.
He knew Loki wouldn't joke about this. The punishment was absolutely real.
Even with his nerves steeled, dread crawled through him. His entire future was on the line. If half of it were crushed, the other half wouldn't function so well either.
"I will succeed, Lady Loki!"
Raul's voice was firmer than it had ever been. He had never been more determined.
(End of Chapter)
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