Half a month later…
"CLANG~ CLANG~ CLANG~"
Recently, the most frequent sound in the Labyrinth City of Orario was the hammering of iron. Led by the Goibniu familia, experts in construction, and joined by Hephaestus' forging familias, countless craftsmen could be seen tirelessly working.
On the streets, carts carrying timber or hauling away rubble passed by incessantly.
Indeed, the apocalyptic disaster triggered by Antares had finally passed intact.
But when the post-disaster losses were tallied, it was clear that not everyone could rejoice.
First…
The Babel had collapsed.
On the night of the decisive battle, this massive structure fell, destroying most buildings and causing countless deaths and injuries.
At the same time, a Scorpion clone invaded, wreaking havoc and claiming many more lives.
Moreover…
The dungeon went into chaos upon sensing the presence of divine power. The adventurers guarding the Tower's lower defenses suffered heavy casualties.
Yet even these numbers paled in comparison to one particularly shocking incident.
===========
The frontier defense.
Originally, thousands of adventurers had gathered there.
The Rakia Kingdom also sent tens of thousands of troops to assist.
But after the battle, fewer than two thousand survived.
Legend has it that an unknown Prayer Priest arrived immediately after the battle, performing another miracle that barely saved those near death.
Of course, many severely injured in Orario were also saved by this Prayer Priest, working alongside Dian Cecht familia's Dea Saint and multiple healers from the Freya familia… all contributing to preserving lives.
Even today, many people praised the birth of a savior hero.
Yet at the same time, some, unaffected or too grief-stricken to recall, subconsciously chose to temporarily forget the painful memories.
Life had to continue.
After drying their tears, they still had to fight for tomorrow, unable to halt their progress.
And today…
"Let's just use it one more time."
The location: Hephaestus' personal residence within the Hephaestus familia headquarters.
Freya, Loki, Artemis… and Hermes were gathered there.
At the center of the gods, on a round table, lay the divine weapon Arrow of Orion.
The top forging god had just given her verdict.
"Such terrifying power… even a divine weapon cannot withstand it."
The mature red-haired goddess, wearing an eyepatch, sighed in awe.
"I never expected that the 'hero' we gods have been waiting for would appear in this form."
Hearing this…
"Can it even 'merge'?"
Loki squinted at Freya.
"You promiscuous goddess, only in 'treasure appraisal' do you cheat this badly."
"Hmm? Didn't I say it before?"
Freya deliberately acted naïve—or perhaps it was just her natural charm. She tilted her head and laughed softly.
"My encounter with those two children was really just… a coincidence~"
"Tch~"
Loki clicked his tongue.
"If what you're saying is true, doesn't that make gods feel even crazier?"
"Already blessed with those eyes, and now even luck favors them?"
"Thank you for the compliment!"
"I'm not complimenting you, silly."
Meanwhile, Hermes and Artemis, who had returned from Elsos Ruins to Orario days earlier, turned their attention to the forging god.
"Hephaestus, now that we're here… can you repair Arrow of Orion?"
The Moon Goddess looked at the divine weapon on the table as she asked.
A careful observation revealed a crack in the dark crystal embedded in the arrow.
This was the reason Hephaestus had said the weapon could only be used once more.
If one had to put it in context…
Even the famed Blade of Two Hundred Million in this world's original trajectory was a divine weapon.
It grew alongside its wielder, evolving continuously from Lv.1.
The Arrow of Orion before them could be seen as the perfected form of the Hestia Blade.
It had reached its peak.
Yet even a weapon of this caliber could not withstand the recoil from the world itself.
At present…
"Without using divine power, it certainly cannot be repaired, right?"
Hephaestus sighed helplessly.
"By the way, Artemis, are you really planning to give this divine weapon to the Twin Stars?"
"This is a weapon capable of truly 'slaying gods'."
Before she finished…
"A hero who achieves greatness deserves the appropriate praise and reward. Otherwise, that's not a 'hero,' that's a slave to public opinion."
Freya cut off Loki's teasing. Squinting, he interrupted defensively:
"Hephaestus, after all these years, don't do anything unnecessary~"
…
The red-haired goddess groaned.
She was good friends with Freya and Loki—though not as close as with Hestia—but she knew Freya's personality.
"Don't get so excited," Hephaestus explained.
"I just think that if these kids are entrusted with it, they might face endless trouble."
"You wouldn't want that sibling pair to be targeted by disgusting people… right?"
Freya fell silent.
Then…
"That's short-sighted of you, Hephaestus."
Hermes, being one of the involved gods, voiced his opinion.
"Since they're 'heroes,' challenges are inevitable. Perhaps this will even allow the Twin Stars to reach greater heights…"
"Shut up," Loki said, clearly displeased.
"If you want fun, just say so, but know your limits."
He gestured at Freya.
"Just a reminder, if you anger this promiscuous goddess, I'd love to see her explode once."
"Ahaha, I'm not that scary~"
Freya habitually cupped her right hand over her cheek, smiling warmly.
Hermes shrank his neck… clearly intimidated.
Then…
"Since Arrow of Orion can only be used once more, let the Twin Stars wield it."
Artemis, the owner of the divine weapon, concluded firmly.
"They are familiar with 'Orion', and honestly… in the entire Lower World, only in their hands can this divine weapon reach its full potential."
"Furthermore, until I return to the Upper World and take the Arrow of Orion with me, it's safest for them to guard it."
Indeed.
As the Moon Goddess said, having the strongest protect this divine weapon was undoubtedly the safest choice.
From another perspective of safety…
Honestly, entrusting it to anyone else might risk the "Slayer becomes the Dragon" scenario.
But those two…
"By the way, are those kids still busy tinkering with 'that thing'?"
Hephaestus, seeing the decision made, moved on to other matters.
"Hmm, 'that thing' has already been approved by the guild," Freya said.
"At this time, with so much to rebuild and heavy hearts everywhere, it's only right to think of ways to comfort those in despair from loss."
"The ideas proposed by Aether and Lumine are meaningful."
"I agree with Freya on this."
Loki shrugged and sighed.
"Things in my familia aren't great either. Finn and the others haven't said much, but it's obvious… they're barely holding on."
"We should find a proper opportunity to vent those negative emotions."
After this round of cryptic discussions…
"Uh… what exactly are you all talking about?"
Hermes suddenly felt out of place.
He had been busy caring for his surviving children, rarely leaving them.
Even his usually sharp intelligence gathering fell behind.
The difference between Hermes and the other evil gods was simple… he still had things he cared about.
Like: a certain tool-wielding lady.
Currently, the Omnipotent Asfi's injuries had stabilized. She even had her damaged body repaired by Barbara… which, cough cough, had saddled the Hermes familia with huge debts.
Clearly, Barbara had no real concept of this, but Renjiro did… and seeing some mischievous god trying to slack off left him annoyed.
So…
"Either pay a hundred million honestly and leave immediately, or… run a small errand for me."
Hermes had no choice but to agree.
He still wanted to maintain good relations with the Twin Stars, and now was not the time to offend anyone.
Moreover, if he repaid kindness with ingratitude, he couldn't justify it to his children either.
In such a situation…
"Huh? You, the most informed one, don't even know this yet?"
Loki said with contempt:
"The sibling pair from Freya's familia are planning a new festival."
"I think it's called…"
"The Lantern Rite Festival!"