The way back was uneventful. Clearly, with Hestia by his side, no one would act recklessly.
"Ren, it's my fault. I shouldn't have dragged you out," Hestia said, feeling guilty. If she had listened to Ren, they wouldn't have provoked anyone.
"Why are you apologizing, Hestia? It's not even our fault. Why apologize?" Ren asked, a little puzzled.
"But…"
"Lady Hestia, if anyone should be blamed, it's me. I brought this on myself."
"How could it be your fault, Ren? You did nothing wrong," Hestia quickly replied.
"If neither of us did anything wrong, then let's head home. Back to our house," Ren said, picking up the lunchbox and taking Hestia's hand as they left.
"Why bring it back with you?" Hephaestus asked when he saw them return.
"There were some people at the restaurant who ruined the appetite, so we decided to eat here instead," Ren explained with a smile.
"Yeah, those guys were really annoying," Hestia added.
"Hephaestus, let's eat together. It'll be better that way."
"You're not expecting me to pay, right?" Hephaestus asked.
"Do I really seem that unreliable to you?" Ren sighed.
"Haha, of course not," Hephaestus replied.
The three of them had a decent meal. After washing up, they returned to their room. Hestia moved to the bed behind the curtain, while Ren lay down on his side.
He felt like he had figured out this world. With shared abilities and talent and his current strength, even if he reached Lv3, he could quickly advance to Lv4 in a short time.
The only thing troubling him now was the timing of leveling up. Being stuck here wouldn't do. Maybe he could level up without exposing his stats—Hestia surely wouldn't reveal them.
Soon, Ren's thoughts were interrupted by Hestia's voice from behind the curtain.
"Ren, are you going to the dungeon tomorrow?"
"Yes. I've rested for a day, now it's time to work hard again," Ren said with a smile.
Hestia's tone turned serious. "Ren, your stats are very special. Under no circumstances… must anyone else see them."
"I know. I won't show them to anyone," Ren assured her. He didn't want the gods treating him like a monkey.
After a short conversation, they exchanged goodnights and drifted off to sleep.
The next morning, Ren dressed neatly. He wanted to first go to the Adventurers' Guild to register his level-up. Being Lv2 made things much easier than Lv1.
The Adventurers' Guild was bustling with people.
"Ren, what's the update this time?" Eina stepped forward to ask.
"Miss Eina, it's not that this time. I've already reached Lv2," Ren said with a smile.
"Lv2… Hah, Ren, you've reached Lv2?" Eina looked shocked. Her words drew the attention of others in the guild.
Among them were naturally some Loki Familia members who had come to update their own records.
"Ais, do you remember when he first wanted to join our clan?" Tiona quickly asked Ais beside her.
"Five months ago?" Ais tilted her head and answered.
"Did Lady Loki misjudge him?" Tiona muttered, not believing that Loki would let a genius slip by.
"Let's go." Ais led the way, clearly uninterested.
"Wait for me!" Tiona hurried to follow.
Their lack of interest didn't mean others were uninterested. Everyone else quieted down, waiting for the guild to announce the results.
"Yes, Miss Eina. I'm already Lv2," Ren confirmed.
"Ren, congratulations! From Lv1 to Lv2 in just five months. You've even surpassed the Sword Princess's record for the fastest rise to Lv2," Eina said with a smile.
"Really? That's great," Ren said sincerely, feeling a deep sense of satisfaction. Honestly, it felt amazing to show off like this.
"Ren, are you heading to the dungeon now?" Eina asked.
"Yes. I was going to go directly, but I came here to register first. Miss Eina, I'll be off then."
Watching Ren's back as he left, Eina waved. "Take care on your way."
Although he had only reached Lv2, the fact that it took him just five months to level up surpassed even the famed Sword Princess, whose reputation had once been unmatched. Naturally, his name spread throughout all of Orario.
The Twilight Manor.
"Could we really have misjudged him? It shouldn't be possible. He's obviously an ordinary person, so ordinary that… does he naturally possess some hidden ability?" Loki recalled how the boy had begged to join a clan back then. His determination had impressed many within the Familia.
In the end, Ren's talent was considered low. Their Familia wasn't a place where just anyone could join, so he was rejected.
Afterward, Ren went to Freya Familia, deliberately targeting a strong Familia. Unsurprisingly, he was rejected again.
But now, five months later, he had successfully leveled up to Lv2. It was hard to comprehend, but it sparked a rare interest in her. She wanted to see what kind of prodigy he really was.
At the top of the Babel Tower.
The goddess Freya observed every person passing by, examining their souls. If she deemed them worthy, she would claim them.
"That one is like a dark mist. He has never been like this before… I want to understand him, to uncover him, to know the changes within him." The woman, radiant enough to embody every beautiful word, was fixated on a certain man below.
"He is mine. That child is absolutely mine." Freya longed to claim him. Although she had once rejected him as unremarkable when he tried to join, things were different now. She could no longer see his soul—it was shrouded in a black mist, an unknown.
The gods had sealed themselves from the mortal realm out of boredom, seeking amusement among humans.
Whether Ren would belong to her or not did not surprise her. From beginning to end, she had only ever rejected others—no one ever rejected her.
Ah-choo!
Ren sneezed, glancing at the tower's peak with a chill running through him. He had a strong intuition that he was being watched.
If it was indeed the goddess Freya, he decided he would firmly refuse her and reclaim everything he had once lost.
Ren dove straight into the dungeon, daydreaming as he went.
The first floor was relatively open, but the caves were intertwined, filled with many low-level adventurers.
His arrival went unnoticed. There were no monsters on the first floor that caught his attention, so he headed straight to the second floor.
There were noticeably fewer adventurers there, but most of the monsters had already been cleared.
To find monsters, he would either have to go deeper or wait. Clearly, Ren didn't have that kind of patience, so he went straight to the fifth floor, a level he had never visited before.
Feeling slightly tense, he picked up his sword, and his mood immediately calmed. He could sense everything around him, including where the monsters were and where the adventurers were.
Ren avoided the adventurers. In the dungeon, it was forbidden to steal monsters from others, and there was no need for him to break that rule.
A group of dark figures approached him—wolf-like monsters. Ren could clearly see their weak points. One of the wolves lunged at him.
"Too slow," Ren muttered, dodging effortlessly. He realized then just how strong he had become. He used to struggle against a single one of these monsters, let alone a group.
Now, a pack of wolves charged, and he dodged them all with ease. To test his strength, he didn't strike back. These monsters were among the upper floors' stronger ones, with decent speed and power.
**********
Support me on my patreon and read upto 20 early chapters.
patreon.com/PirateKing24