On the internet in Levi's past life, there was a saying—when others think you have weapons of mass destruction, you'd better actually have them.
Although Hestia had never heard this saying, she clearly understood a similar principle.
When Levi was Lv.1 and Lv.2, the Familia had to keep a low profile. Now that Levi has reached Lv.4 and was holding a royal flush, did the Familia still need to keep a low profile?
Does that mean all the Valis Levi spent and all the great feats he accomplished were for nothing?
Moreover, the two Familias Hestia needed to worry about most, the Loki Familia and the Freya Familia—especially the latter—had more or less figured out some things about her child.
As for the other gods who just wanted entertainment, some of them also had first-class adventurers under their command.
But among them, Apollo was definitely not included.
Orario was the City of Heroes in the eyes of the gods and the mortals of the lower world, but in essence, the people living here still followed the most basic law of the jungle.
That is—the strong devour the weak.
Powerful Familias could bully weaker ones at will, and the latter had no choice but to accept this unjust fate.
If the one causing trouble today was the patron god of a Familia with a Lv.5, or at least a Lv.4 adventurer, Hestia might have temporarily endured it for safety's sake.
But Apollo...
To use the words Levi had said to comfort her before: "Throw the first punch to avoid a hundred more."
The birth of a new king is always built upon the corpses of the old.
The Apollo Familia was, after all, a mid-tier power in Orario. Since the other side was incapable of peaceful coexistence from the very beginning, Hestia didn't mind making an example of them.
She would use their miserable end to suppress the schemes of the other entertainment-seeking gods.
Apollo had no idea that in just two or three seconds, several thoughts had already raced through Hestia's mind.
Of course, even if he knew, he would only think the girl was bluffing.
Just like right now.
"Heh~" Apollo sneered. "It seems you've decided to make an enemy of me, Hestia?"
"You could say that." Hestia crossed her arms and shrugged, looking completely unafraid.
Seeing the two of them at daggers drawn, the adventurers aside, the gods present grew excited one by one.
There were many grudges among the gods, but for one to spill out into the open like this was a rare sight in the last thousand years.
At that moment, a blond male god wearing a beret and dressed like a ranger stepped out from the crowd.
It was an acquaintance of both parties, the one known as 'Absolutely Neutral,' Hermes.
"Hestia, Apollo, since you two have a conflict, why not resolve it in the way unique to Orario, how about it?"
Hearing his suggestion, Hestia, having only recently descended to the mortal world, didn't quite understand at first.
Apollo, on the other hand, broke into a wicked grin upon hearing this. "Ha, now that's a good idea."
"It's decided, Hestia. Let's have a War Game."
"If you lose, you'll hand over that boy named Levi Bright to me and leave Orario yourself. Conversely, if I lose..."
Hestia cut him off: "One billion Valis."
"What?" Apollo was taken aback.
Hestia pursed her lips: "I said, if you lose, you give me one billion Valis, in cash. And you also have to leave Orario."
She wanted to ask for more money for Levi's sake, but most Familias only had liquid assets ranging from a few million to a few hundred million.
One billion Valis was the most cash the Apollo Familia could scrape together, even if they sold everything they owned.
After all, not everyone was like Hephaestus, who could casually throw down two hundred million.
Hearing the conditions from the girl with the blue ribbons, Apollo's expression grew even more peculiar.
The other gods present also looked surprised.
Hermes couldn't help but ask, "Hestia, when did you become so obsessed with money?"
Hestia glanced at him: "Why do you care so much? Just be a good 'Neutral God'."
Then she looked back at Apollo: "Two conditions for two conditions. It's fair, isn't it?"
Just as Hestia had faith in Levi, Apollo also had complete trust in his own Familia—of course, that might also be because his opponent only had one fighter.
After only a moment's thought, Apollo readily nodded. "Fine."
"So, what about the specific content of the game?" Hermes continued to act as the 'middleman'.
Hestia suggested, "A one-on-one duel?"
Apollo immediately rejected it: "In your dreams. Having only one person in your Familia is the result of your own laziness. I'm not stupid enough to give up my advantage."
The twin-tailed goddess narrowed her eyes at him: "If you're scared, just say so."
"Me? Scared?" Apollo acted as if he'd heard a joke, but didn't fall for the taunt. "Alright, let's just say I'm scared. In any case, a one-on-one duel is out of the question."
"Then let's draw lots," Hermes quickly interjected, seeing they were about to argue again. "Since everyone is here, you can all write down the game content you want to see, and I, as the neutral god, will draw one."
Hestia crossed her arms and gave an indifferent nod.
Apollo also thought drawing lots was the best method.
As for the other entertainment-seeking gods, it went without saying. They cheered as they wrote down all sorts of bizarre game names.
Then, a quarter of an hour later.
Hermes, holding a piece of parchment with 'Legion Capture the Flag' written on it, looked apologetically at the twin-tailed goddess: "Um, sorry about this."
Hestia: "..."
"Fine, Legion Capture the Flag it is." Hestia had considered the worst-case scenario from the start, so after a moment of shock, she nodded and accepted the game type.
Apollo's reaction went without saying. His Familia had over 100 members, although the vast majority were Lv.1.
But his core members included a dozen Lv.2s, and the captain, Hyakinthos, had even reached Lv.3.
There was no way he could lose.
Seeing his two godly friends—mainly Hestia—accept the current wager, Hermes couldn't help but tug at the brim of his hat.
'Oh? Is Hestia really that confident in this Levi Bright?'
'To even agree to a legion battle.'
'Or could it be that Apollo was right, and Levi Bright actually received a Falna before? And just has a problematic background.'
'If that's really the case...'
Having thought of something, he decided to test the waters. He turned and said to the other gods present:
"Although this was the result of the draw, a legion battle is still too disadvantageous for Hestia's side, so I propose..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Hestia's voice rang out again.
"I refuse."
"What?" Hermes was taken aback.
"I said, as one of the parties involved, I refuse your proposal." Hestia didn't know what Hermes was planning, but knowing his true nature as an entertainment-seeking god, she clearly couldn't let the situation slide in an unknown direction.
However...
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