Meanwhile, outside the Hestia Familia's home, Hajime had no idea Ais was planning to come find him tomorrow to apologize.
Even if he had known, he probably wouldn't have cared.
What really mattered to him now was figuring out whether the shared link in the Fog Space also included the experience points from monster kills. That was the key issue.
And on top of that, after becoming so much stronger, he felt the need to share this joy with someone.
There was only one person he trusted enough to share it with.
Taking a deep breath, Hajime knocked on the door.
"Goddess, I'm home!"
"Hajime!" Hestia's cheerful voice rang out from inside.
The door flung open, and the petite goddess in her signature blue ribbons leapt into his arms with a huge grin.
"Welcome home!"
Clinging to him like a koala, Hestia quoted a line she'd clearly picked up from somewhere: "You've had a long day. You deserve a reward. So… do you want dinner, a bath, or…"
Her expression turned mischievous as she teased her only follower, the only family she had.
"I'll choose to eat Goddess first. So, are you ready?" Hajime quipped right back, wrapping his arms around her.
He wasn't the type to pass on a good thing. And he definitely wasn't some bashful little virgin who'd melt from a loli goddess's flirtation.
If anything, Hajime considered himself more of a cunning wolf.
Sure enough, the moment he said that, Hestia panicked.
As one of the three most famously virgin goddesses in heaven, Hestia definitely liked Hajime—but she wasn't mentally prepared for that.
"W-Wait! I'm a goddess, you know! That's sacrilege! Divine punishment awaits!"
"But if the goddess is willing, then it's not sacrilege, right?" Hajime pressed.
In fact, aside from rare cases like Hestia and Artemis, most gods—male or female—had already had relationships. Freya, the goddess of beauty, probably had a body count in the thousands by now.
So as long as the god themselves didn't mind, nobody else cared.
"Well… in theory, that's true, but… but…" Hestia stammered, completely flustered.
She was stuck. If she rejected him too harshly, Hajime might think she didn't like him. But if she rejected too gently and he got carried away… what then?
She wasn't ready for that yet.
As someone who'd spent tens of thousands of years holed up in heaven, her romantic experience was zero. She had no idea how to handle this kind of situation.
Watching her get flustered again, Hajime couldn't help but chuckle.
This loli goddess always tried to tease him—but always got outplayed.
And she never seemed to learn.
Setting her down gently, he patted her head. "Alright, alright, I'll stop messing with you. I already knew you were a scaredy-cat. But I've actually got something serious to do today, so I'll let you off."
"Ugh…" Hestia pouted, rubbing her head with a groan.
She was starting to feel like her divine dignity was dropping fast.
But with a toss of her twin tails, she shrugged it off and looked up at him curiously.
"Something serious? What is it?"
Ever since Hajime became her familia member, Hestia had been satisfied with their life. Sure, it was a little odd that he didn't want to go into the dungeon, but she fully supported his decision.
He was her only follower—she couldn't let him get hurt down there. Even if they just lived an ordinary life together, she wouldn't mind at all.
She knew Hajime sold fried rice in the commercial district, so when he said "serious business," she wondered—did he invent a new dish or something?
"This," Hajime said as he started taking off his shirt.
"W-Wait, hold on!" Hestia immediately panicked and shrieked.
"Is this the serious business you meant? Hajime, isn't it still too early for us? At least let me take a bath and change into something cuter first!"
Covering her eyes—but not really, since she peeked through her fingers—she panicked.
"…"
Now shirtless, Hajime stared at his loli goddess, deadpan.
"I need you to update my status. What were you thinking, you little pervert?"
As soon as he said that, Hestia's face flushed red like a blazing sunset. The color spread all the way down her neck and ears.
Too embarrassing.
She was supposed to be a chaste goddess, so why were her thoughts getting so impure every time she saw Hajime?
If there were a hole nearby, she'd dive right into it.