Finally comprehending that wealth was strength, Su Mo didn't linger in the Truth's realm and returned to reality. To gather the massive number of Philosopher's Stones required, he would have to hunt a lot of monsters. As he was calculating how long it would take to accumulate enough resources, Hestia returned home.
However, the adorable twin-tailed goddess was clearly in a bad mood. She didn't even greet him with her usual cheerful "I'm home." Instead, she plopped down right in front of him, puffing up her cheeks, pouting, and looking thoroughly aggrieved. Her cute little face practically screamed, Come comfort me! She showed none of the divine dignity she occasionally tried to maintain for appearances. Today, she didn't even bother pretending.
Something had clearly upset her, though it didn't seem too serious. Judging by her expression, she was frustrated but not genuinely angry. Honestly, her mood was a bit hard to decipher—typical of the complicated emotions of a little goddess. Su Mo guessed she probably had a falling out with a friend.
Still, even if he could roughly guess the cause, he couldn't just leave her stewing. If left alone for too long, this little fool might actually start crying. Feeling oddly like a concerned father, Su Mo sighed and gently asked, "What's wrong, Hestia?"
The blue-ribboned goddess had clearly been waiting for him to ask. The moment Su Mo showed concern, her eyes lit up with joy, though she quickly tried to suppress the expression and maintain her sulky act. Clinging to Su Mo's arm like a spoiled child, she began her grievances. "Su Mo, listen to me! Hephaestus was being so mean to me!"
With great indignation, she launched into her tirade against her best friend. Su Mo couldn't help but think, Ah, so this is that famous 'frenemy' bond between goddesses? Gotta love it. As expected, his guess was spot on—it was just a little spat between friends.
"What did Hephaestus do?" Su Mo asked at just the right moment to keep her talking.
"She was too much!" Hestia instantly grew animated. "She said I was dreaming and being completely delusional! Can you believe that? That dummy actually refused to believe that you're my Familia member! She said I've read too many fairy tales and started daydreaming!"
As she recounted the incident, Hestia flailed her arms dramatically, clearly fuming at having her pride trampled. Su Mo listened carefully but found her storytelling so chaotic that he couldn't quite piece it together. So, he asked her to explain everything from the beginning.
Without holding anything back, the blue-ribboned goddess spilled the entire story like beans from a jar. Only then did Su Mo fully understand what had happened.
In short, Hestia had gone to see Hephaestus and started showing off, bragging about how she finally had a Familia member now and singing Su Mo's praises endlessly. At first, Hephaestus had offered her blessings and congratulations. But as Hestia continued to exaggerate, claiming Su Mo had reached Level 2 in less than half a month...
Of course, Hephaestus didn't believe her. After all, even the fastest to ever reach Level 2—Ais Wallenstein—had taken a full year to achieve it. Reaching Level 2 in just half a month was simply absurd, completely beyond belief. Moreover, it was already strange enough that lazy, reclusive Hestia suddenly managed to form a Familia out of nowhere. The combination of these two unlikely events led the forging goddess to conclude that Hestia had been reading too many fantasy novels and had lost touch with reality. She figured that Hestia had simply fabricated an imaginary Familia member named Su Mo in her delusions.
With a look full of pity, Hephaestus tried to comfort her, even suggesting she visit Miach, the god of medicine, to get checked out. Naturally, Hestia exploded at being treated like this, furiously swearing up and down that she was telling the truth. Hephaestus didn't outright accuse her of lying; on the contrary, she nodded repeatedly, claiming that she completely trusted Hestia—on the condition that Hestia first visit Miach and take some medicine to stabilize her mind.
Having never suffered such indignity before, Hestia threw a tantrum and then stomped her way back home, seeking comfort in Su Mo's arms. After listening to Hestia's recounting, Su Mo immediately understood. This was practically the classic scene of a little girl bragging about her father, getting mocked for it, and then running home in tears to complain to dad. Gazing at the pouting goddess nestled in his embrace, Su Mo was even tempted to tease her: When are you going to call me 'Daddy'? The thought was quite... appealing. Definitely something to try someday. But now was not the time.
"So, Hestia, what do you want to do?" Su Mo asked as he gently patted her small head. "Should I go meet this forging goddess and prove your words?"
In truth, Su Mo had never met Hephaestus before. Previously, when he hadn't planned to become an adventurer, he had no need for weapons. And during the past month, Hestia had been so absorbed in their new life together that she had essentially forgotten about her old friend. Even now, there was no particular need for them to meet. But if it would help his goddess save face, then verifying his existence wasn't a big deal.
Hearing his suggestion, Hestia wavered for a moment before shaking her head firmly. "No need!"
"Hm?" Su Mo raised an eyebrow in surprise. Hestia wasn't the type to take such insults lying down without planning some kind of payback.
"Hmph!" she pouted, noticing Su Mo's confusion while still enjoying his head pats. With a little triumphant shake of her head, she announced proudly, "The Denatus is happening next week! Instead of going now to convince that stubborn woman, I'll shock her properly at the assembly. I want to see Hephaestus's jaw drop with my own eyes!"
Hearing this, Su Mo couldn't help but think: As expected of a goddess—when it comes to her bestie, she's absolutely ruthless. Still, he had no objections to her plan. Instead, his mind drifted to another matter. "The Denatus, huh?"
Once a month, the gods of Orario gathered for the Denatus. It was an opportunity for them to socialize, but more importantly, it was also when newly advanced adventurers received their official aliases. Typically, any adventurer who reached Level 2 would be granted a title. Originally, Hestia hadn't planned to attend the gathering—she was a homebody who disliked socializing, and aside from a handful of close friends, she didn't have much reason to show up.
But this time was different—because of Su Mo. Sooner or later, his strength would be exposed. Rather than keeping it secret indefinitely, they decided it would be better to gradually reveal his abilities at a controlled pace. That's why Su Mo and Hestia had agreed to publicly report his level as 2 for now. This was also why Hestia hadn't mentioned Su Mo's true Level 3 status during her argument with Hephaestus—to avoid raising suspicion among the other gods.
Since an adventurer's level was reported directly to the Guild by their Familia's god or goddess, there was always room for manipulation. However, underreporting levels carried heavy penalties if exposed, as adventurers often took on Guild-assigned missions crucial to maintaining Orario's safety. Only a few Familias dared to quietly fudge the numbers, and even then, they did so discreetly. Overreporting one's level, on the other hand, was even rarer—practically unheard of. There was no advantage to exaggerating your strength, and if assigned missions beyond your real capabilities, it could lead to deadly consequences. Very few gods would risk their children's lives like that.
After much discussion, Su Mo and Hestia had settled on a strategy: for the early stages, they would update his level monthly, then extend the reporting intervals as needed later on. The plan was for Su Mo to quietly level up to 6 before drawing much attention. This way, they wouldn't stand out too much but would still maintain enough deterrence that no one would dare provoke them.
The Denatus next week would mark Su Mo's public debut in front of the gods.
"Wait, aren't titles decided at the assembly?" Su Mo suddenly recalled.
"Yup!" Hestia nodded, then looked at him curiously. "Do you have any particular title you want? I'll try my best to get it for you."
She wasn't very confident though. Titles had to be approved by the majority of gods present—it was basically a popularity contest. Unfortunately, poor Hestia had no real connections to speak of. Aside from charming others with her twin blue ribbons, her social network was essentially nonexistent. Getting Su Mo a good title would be quite a challenge.