The morning after the Orc King's death was anything but quiet.
Noah had barely gotten back to the church, his coat still singed and smelling like charred bones, when someone pounded on the chapel door.
Hestia was the one who opened it.
A Guild courier stood outside, panting and pale.
"Message for Noah, of Hestia Familia. Immediate summons. Guild headquarters. Official order."
Hestia blinked. "Summons? Why?"
The courier looked uncomfortable. "The Dungeon's balance has been… affected."
---
Noah arrived at the Guild shortly after, cleaned up and calm, pistols hidden under a long black coat. The moment he walked through the glass doors, every head turned.
Eina was already waiting for him by the stairwell.
Her arms were crossed. Her jaw was tight.
"You didn't mention you'd be taking down a Dungeon boss yesterday."
"I thought it'd ruin the surprise," Noah replied smoothly.
"This isn't funny, Noah," she hissed. "You soloed a Floor 17 boss. That's supposed to take a team of level twos—with support."
"I had two pistols and a dream."
She groaned and rubbed her temples. "The Guild is panicking. Loki Familia just filed a formal request for a briefing. Freya has sent a private inquiry. There's a meeting happening right now, and you are the topic."
Noah tilted his head. "Then I should probably attend."
"No jokes in there. Please."
He gave her a rare, small smile.
"For you? I'll try."
---
The Guild conference chamber was packed.
Gods, advisors, Familia captains. The air buzzed with tension.
Noah stepped through the doors—and the room fell silent.
He didn't need an introduction. Everyone here knew him already.
He met their gazes without flinching. Even when he saw Loki, lounging against her chair with a smirk that said trouble.
"Ohhh, so you're the little flame everyone's talking about," she said, voice lazy but sharp underneath. "You're cuter than I thought."
Noah ignored the compliment. "You asked for me. I'm here."
A high-ranking Guild official cleared his throat. "Noah, the Guild has verified the remains of an Orc Warlord-class monster on floor 17. You claim to have killed it solo?"
"I don't claim. I did."
Murmurs broke out immediately.
"Do you understand what this means?" someone said.
"I understand that I'm strong," Noah replied. "And that I'm getting stronger. Fast."
Loki chuckled. "You're not humble, huh?"
"Would you be, if you earned it?"
Her smile only widened.
Freya wasn't here—but her proxy was. Ottarl stood at the back, silent, observing. His gaze never left Noah.
Another god stood.
Takemikazuchi.
His voice was firm. "A rookie who grows this fast isn't normal. What are you?"
Noah turned his head, calm and cold. "Someone who works for his goddess."
That shut them up for a moment.
And right on cue, the doors burst open again.
Hestia marched in, chin held high, coat fluttering around her like a cape of pride and fury.
"Back off," she said to the room. "All of you."
Loki raised a brow. "The little loli goddess makes her move."
"I don't care what you think," Hestia snapped. "Noah is my child. Mine. He chose me when no one else would. He's earned every bit of power he has—and if you try to take him, I'll burn this city down before I let you."
The room went dead silent.
Even Loki blinked.
Noah smiled, just a little.
She stood next to him and crossed her arms.
"This isn't about balance. You're scared."
"That's enough, Lady Hestia," the Guild official said. "We're not accusing him of any crime."
"Then why are we here?"
"…Because we want to understand."
Loki leaned forward. "What is he? What's making him evolve like this?"
Noah looked up, meeting her eyes without fear.
"I don't know," he said. "But I know what I'm going to do with it."
"Which is?"
He smiled.
"Change the world."
---
They let him go—eventually.
Back outside, under the full blue sky, Hestia walked beside him quietly.
"You didn't have to say all that," he murmured.
"I wanted to."
He glanced at her.
"You meant it?"
She looked up at him, eyes shining. "Every word."
He stopped walking.
"…Thank you," he said softly.
She blushed and shoved his arm. "Don't get sappy on me."
He chuckled. "Not sappy. Just grateful."
As they walked home, neither of them noticed the figure watching from atop a nearby rooftop—cloaked in shadows, blade strapped to her back.
Ais Wallenstein.
She watched Noah's every move with quiet interest.
"…Change the world?" she whispered.
And in the darkness of her own heart, something stirred.
Curiosity.
Rivalry.
And something else she didn't yet have a name for.