For a long beat the three women and one man just stared at one another. Only after several dozen seconds did Hestia burst into a squeal of delight.
"Eh!? Y-you really said yes? I'm not dreaming, right!?"
She threw herself into Takumi's arms—petite and youthful, yet… endowed enough to hit with a thump.
Duang~~
Because of her height, the collision landed squarely on his most vulnerable point. It didn't hurt, but the springy impact was very… hard to handle. Realizing what she'd just pressed against—so hot and so firm—Hestia's face flared scarlet and she hurriedly let go, though she kept fidgeting with her hem and stealing side glances his way.
Takumi drew a long breath. "I was already planning to join a Familia, and I prefer a freer setup. Even if it's our first time meeting, since you took the initiative to invite me, I had no reason to refuse."
Hestia beamed. It felt like finding money in the street for free—what luck!
Hephaestus, meanwhile, regretted not making the first move. If she'd known his thinking was that straightforward, she would have asked him on the way over. As for Meteria, she simply approved from the heart. She would never force Takumi's choices—only help him quietly from behind.
"Mm~ It's been so long, Takumi-kun. Want some jagamarukun? Hestia-sama brought them for me." Meteria sat gracefully and shared the snacks.
Hestia eagerly leaned in. "Heh-heh~ I made them myself. If you like them, I can make more for you."
"As a goddess, you should be useful for something besides frying potato balls." Hephaestus rapped Hestia on the head, looking utterly done. Gifts for a new child… and she brought jagamarukun. How miserly could you get?
Hestia puffed her cheeks, eyes misting. "I can't help it… I don't have anything else right now~."
She'd only recently descended—unlike the many who had settled down a millennium ago—and had no foundation whatsoever. Without Hephaestus as a best friend, she might have been sleeping on the streets.
Hephaestus turned aside, helpless. There really wasn't much she could offer Hestia at the moment. Maybe she could… help a little more? The thought made her fidget; her eyes slid toward Takumi as he munched a jagamarukun. This kind of help should really be requested, offering unprompted would feel awkward and contrived.
While Hephaestus was still pondering how to nudge Hestia, the latter suddenly hopped up onto Takumi's back.
"Takumi-kun, take off your shirt and lie down! I'll grant you the Falna."
If you didn't know better, you'd think she was about to do something indecent right on the spot.
Meteria couldn't help reminding her. "Hestia-sama, normally a tiny bit of divine power is enough to awaken it, isn't it?"
"This is the first blessing I'm giving my first child. I'm going all-out!"
Righteous and serious, Hestia shut Meteria up with her conviction. Only Hephaestus read the truth clearly: her bestie was thirsty.
"Your desires are awakening fast for someone who barely knows the lower world," Hephaestus muttered.
"I don't know either. Maybe it's because this child is too perfect. I really, really like him~~ hehehe~"
Listening to that airheaded giggle, Hephaestus felt five flavors at once. Takumi heard the subtext too, but he still didn't quite get it. Lying on Meteria's bed, breathing in her faint scent, he asked, "What do you mean by desire awakening?"
"Oh~ just some trivia about us." Seeing his interest, Hestia squeezed out a bead of divine blood onto his back to grant the blessing and explained as she worked.
In the beginning, gods were born without even self-awareness. Eons passed; drawing from the people below, they shaped bodies for themselves. Only after the earliest descent did the gods gain "humanity." That was when they learned to cry, to laugh, to love, to hate—emotions belonging to mortals. With emotion came the need for matching desires. Some gods love battle, some farming, some forging… Only a god who finds their innate desire becomes truly whole and grows accordingly.
For goddesses in particular, "love" is the hardest emotion to master. The journey from mere curiosity to human, romantic love is very long. The core problem is the gulf between human and god. From a human view, gods seem similar to one another—especially with their power sealed—but from a god's view, the gap is vast. Never mind bodily impurities; the soul's dross is even starker. Most humans look like useless trash—unable to stir even a flicker of interest. Apart from someone like Ishtar, who has abandoned restraint entirely, nearly all goddesses are very controlled.
But in Hephaestus' and Hestia's eyes, Takumi's body and soul were crystal-clear, like a flawless gem. What goddess wouldn't covet such luxury? For those with scruples and cleanliness, the usual obstacles simply… vanished upon seeing him.
"So that's how I look to you… There was also this factor behind your descent." Takumi sighed, oddly moved.
The whole situation felt startlingly real now. Gods who sleep around are the rare exception; most simply can't be bothered with humans and treat them as amusement.
By that logic, Freya's attitude toward her own Familia made sense too—others were pets, while he… was an equal and an object of love. And compared to a cherished equal, pets are obviously lesser. Judging from the present, this Freya also differed greatly from the one in his memories.
While he came to terms with that, Hestia let the ichor drip onto his back—then her expression turned odd.
"Is… is this what a blessing is supposed to look like? It's my first time, so I'm not sure. Hephaestus, help me check."
Hephaestus wanted to be exasperated. It's a Falna, how do you mess that up? Goddess, please. But when she looked down—her face froze.
...
For every 50 Power Stones → +1 extra chapter.
Read 50+ chapters ahead on Patreon! [patreon.com/METARLN]
Use code SANTA for 50% OFF!