"Oh. Then yeah, I have something like that." Like Authorities, then. But he couldn't outright say that he was a Campione now, could he? Loki was a goddess; they were natural enemies, and bad things always happened when people found out he was a Godslayer.
"Oh! So whose Familia are you in?" Loki asked excitedly. At seeing his confused look, she explained, "a Falna is given by a God to an adventurer, and said adventurer normally joins that God's Familia. A Familia is a group of people who follow the same God."
Ah. So it was like the various magical organizations that existed in the world he knew. He frowned. Was this even the same world? He was suddenly having doubts. He looked up at Loki, who was still waiting for a response. "I... don't have a Familia. The God that gave me my Falna..." he paused. Could Gods even get slayed here?
He could see a pained expression cross over Loki's features when he stopped. "I see. I'm sorry. The loss of a Familia is a painful experience to those unfortunate enough to go through it. It's not as rare as you think. Any surviving companions?"
He winced. "Gone," he said. They all were. Erica, Ena, Lili, Yuri, each and every single one of them had passed in his arms.
"That is sad."
Godou turned his head in surprise when the characteristically quiet Aiz chose to speak.
Godou smiled weakly. "It was. But I've gotten over it already."
A predatory gleam shined in Loki's eye. "You have? That's great! Then what say you join my Familia? I promise that I'm a thousand times better than uh... which God gave you their blessing?"
"I don't want to join a Familia," Godou said. If he'd learnt anything from his three hundred years alive, it was that mixing with gods was always a disaster waiting to happen. "And I can't tell you who gave me their power," he added. He had Authorities from a whole bunch of Gods, and the last thing he wanted was to give their names to Loki and have them appear before him seeking revenge or something along that line.
Loki looked more annoyed than disappointed. A sweet smile graced her lips. "You know, as a God, I can compel you to tell me the truth."
Godou didn't know why he expected something else when he had first seen that smile. Still, it seemed like an empty threat to him, and he shrugged listlessly in response.
"Try me," Loki dared. "Tell me any lie."
"I'm actually a pineapple wearing the skin of a human being called Kusanagi Godou," he said flatly. To his surprise, he had felt some resistance when uttering those words, but he'd been able to overcome it with minimal difficulty. So Loki wasn't all talk, after all.
The goddess blinked at him in surprise. Then she started to poke him with a finger. "You're... not really a pineapple... are you?"
"No," he said flatly. He resisted the urge to laugh at the small amount of disbelief Loki had on her face.
Her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Excuse me," she said. And then Loki left.
Godou turned to Aiz, who was still seated as impassively as ever, but her hand gripped the handle of her blade even tighter when she caught him looking.
"Um... are all Gods like this, or is Loki just particularly weird?"
Aiz shrugged.
Loki returned quickly, but not alone. She'd brought with her three more women, each ridiculously good-looking, and then told him to lie to their faces. Godou knew they were goddesses, and being in the room with so many of them at once made him feel... twitchy.
When he managed to do so, all of them had bewildered looks on their faces, except Loki, who sported a triumphant 'I-told-you-so' expression.
"You're all goddesses, aren't you?" he asked.
They nodded.
"I'm Lady Hestia," the one with pigtails and oversized breasts for her short body said.
"Hephaestus." The one with the eyepatch and short red hair gave a small nod.
Perhaps only the last one, who introduced herself as Freya, actually looked the part of a goddess, with her scandalous outfit and the subtle divine charm rolling off from her body.
"Can I ask why you all descended into the Lower Realm?" he asked. They didn't seem to be like the Heretic Gods he'd met in the past. Those deities only seemed driven by their desire to fight and wreak havoc.
"I wanted to make a Familia!" Hestia supplied excitedly.
"I wanted to forge items that people would actually use," Hephaestus drawled out.
"Heaven's boring. And there's so much less work to do here!" Loki grinned.
"I wanted to see the potential of mortals with my own eyes," Freya said, exuding an aura of serenity.
"So... you're not here to fight?" he asked. Their reasons all seemed pretty tame compared to what he was used to. He had trouble believing a God would actually lower themselves into the mortal world for something as unremarkable as skiving off work.
Loki stifled a laugh. The rest just seemed to be confused.