The sun slowly sank on the western horizon, replacing the canvas of Orario's sky with a purplish-orange hue signaling the coming of night.
Venti stood near the main entrance, wearing his signature green cloak that had been neatened. He retied the ends of his dark, twin-braided hair, preparing to face the political storm in the city center tonight.
However, before turning the doorknob, Venti looked toward the living room. Alfia was sitting cross-legged on a wooden bench, sipping herbal tea while reading an old book.
"Alfia," called Venti with a casual tone, breaking the silence of the room.
Alfia's heterochromatic eyes shifted from the pages of her book, staring at the god with one eyebrow raised. "What is it? Are you leaving for that Denatus already?"
"In a moment," Venti gave a small smile, then looked around the dull church, its cracked stone walls, and the cobweb-filled ceilings in the corners. "I was just thinking. This headquarters is indeed safe enough for a temporary residence, but its condition is far from suitable to live in long-term."
Alfia snorted softly, setting down her teacup. "I can tolerate dust as long as Meteria is safe. Besides, we can't just carelessly move to a luxury house in the central district."
"Not moving, but renovating," corrected Venti, raising his index finger. He started counting on his fingers. "Think about it. Right now, there's me, you, Meteria, Aria, and little Ais. That's already five people. Before long, the Elves from the Far East will gradually arrive in Orario. Dina, Vena, and two warrior Elves named Hedin and Hogni."
Hearing that string of foreign names mentioned, Alfia massaged the bridge of her nose gently.
"The point is, that means there will be nine people living under this roof. Plus, in a few months, Meteria will give birth. A baby needs a warm, clean, and comfortable space. This windy and dusty old church will feel very cramped and unhealthy. Since you are the only person in the Barbatos Familia who has the most abundant savings, I want to suggest that you fund a total overhaul of this place."
Alfia fell silent. Her gaze unconsciously shifted toward where Meteria's room was located. Venti was right. She might be able to sleep on a hard rock, but Meteria, and her soon-to-be-born nephew, needed a much better place. She wanted her nephew to be born in a clean place that felt like a proper home.
"Makes sense," said Alfia finally, her tone of voice softening. She looked back at Venti. "Make this place a comfortable fortress. Meet whoever you need to meet, design the repairs, and agree on the price. Whatever the cost, I will pay it in full when the workers arrive later."
"Leave it to me," Venti laughed cheerfully, satisfied that his proposal was approved without argument. "Tonight at the Denatus, I will meet God Goibniu. His Familia are the best architects and blacksmiths in Orario. I will negotiate the design and the cost tonight as well to start this covert renovation immediately."
Alfia nodded in satisfaction. "Go. And remember, Venti. Don't let your tongue slip."
"A bard's tongue always knows what tune to play," Venti winked.
With an elegant spin of his step, the God of Wind turned the doorknob, stepped out under the Orario night sky, and disappeared behind a gust of cool street wind.
..........................
Floor 30 of the Tower of Babel, the Gods' Meeting Room.
Usually, the sacred circular hall where the Denatus was held was always filled with boisterous laughter, cheap gossip, and silly debates among the gods regarding the titles of their children. But tonight, the atmosphere on the 30th floor felt a little different, not because of fear, but because of crazy enthusiasm and chaos.
The air didn't feel tense; rather, it was filled with wild energy and a buzz of overlapping voices. The gods—immortal beings who descended to the lower world purely seeking entertainment—were now buzzing with explosive curiosity and absurd speculation. Most of them looked annoyed because last night's earthquake had disturbed their sleep, while others argued fiercely with sparkling eyes about what "new surprise" was happening in this world.
As Venti stepped out of the crystal elevator and walked down the marble corridor toward the main hall doors, an elegant silhouette blocked his path.
Her silver hair gleamed like moonlit threads, and a pair of captivating yet sharply swooping silver eyes stared directly at him. Her elegant black dress accentuated the curves of the Goddess of Beauty, unmatched throughout Orario.
Freya smiled, a curve of lips filled with hidden meaning.
"Good evening, Venti," greeted Freya, her voice flowing like intoxicating honey. She took a step closer, her pair of silver eyes staring intently at the God of Wind. "You look... very relaxed. And somehow, behind your gust of wind, I feel like I can see the reflection of a familiar 'soul' that should have faded long ago, but is now shining even more blindingly."
Venti stopped in his tracks. Behind the innocent smile he instantly put on, Venti's brain was working at maximum speed. Freya's sharp instincts and soul-assessing eyes were indeed always troublesome. This goddess of beauty must have seen the brilliant color of Alfia's soul during the Hera Familia's glory days. Freya smiled meaningfully because she realized the awakening of Alfia's soul from the brink of death, and she knew this wind god before her was hiding that 'miracle'.
"Ah, Freya! Good evening!" exclaimed Venti with an intentionally exaggerated cheerful and lively tone, typical of a wandering bard. He bowed slightly in respect. "The night wind always brings many miracles indeed! Besides, who wouldn't look relaxed if they were previously busy playing the lyre outside the city? I only just found out there was an Emergency Denatus when I read the Guild's invitation letter this morning!"
Freya maintained her smile, her eyes narrowing slightly searching for a gap to pierce the lie on the young man's face. However, Venti's aura was completely sealed by the illusion of absolute freedom like an intangible wind, leaving no gap whatsoever for the goddess of beauty's eyes to read his mind.
"Is that so?" murmured Freya softly, her voice lowering teasingly. "I heard you are indeed looking for new children for your Familia outside the city walls. Did your journey bear fruit? I hope you take good care of that newly bloomed 'silver flower'."
"Ah, you know yourself how difficult it is to find suitable recruits out there," Venti sighed dramatically, shrugging his shoulders in resignation, ignoring the goddess's subtle bait. "I found one or two sweet kids, but they are still very raw. It takes time to teach them how to survive in a city as big as Orario."
Freya's smile returned to normal. Even though she knew Venti was hiding something extraordinary, this little god was too slippery to trap. "Work hard, God of Wind. It seems there will be many interesting performances inside tonight."
Freya turned and stepped elegantly into the main hall, leaving Venti who sighed with relief inwardly.
Freya is truly troublesome, thought Venti. He then put his cheerful face back on and stepped into the Denatus room.
.......................
The circular room surrounded by a giant round table was already filled with dozens of gods and goddesses. Sounds of murmurs and objections answered each other, discussing various conspiracy theories about the recent string of events.
Venti walked casually down the rows of chairs, his eyes sweeping around looking for his main target. Once he saw the burly old god with a thick beard sitting with his arms crossed, grumbling in annoyance, Venti immediately smiled.
He took an empty seat that happened to be on the left of a short-red-haired goddess wearing a black eyepatch. Hephaestus. While the male blacksmith he was looking for, Goibniu, sat right across from both of them.
"Quite a noisy night for an emergency meeting, wouldn't you say, Hephaestus?" greeted Venti amiably, leaning back in his chair.
Hephaestus turned her head, her one red eye staring at Venti with a tired sigh. "You just don't know, Venti. That damn tremor last night happened right when my children were in the critical stage of forging high-level swords and armor. Their concentration broke, the rhythm of their hammers was ruined, and dozens of those half-finished masterpieces were shattered into scrap metal. All my children went on a rampage and had to start everything from scratch today."
"Yeah, yeah, my wine bottle also became a victim because it fell off the table," complained Venti, pretending to be sad. He glanced briefly at Goibniu, who was also grumbling to himself about his scattered metal materials, making sure the god wasn't going anywhere until this meeting was over.
However, before their chat could continue, the sound of unfamiliar footsteps from the direction of the main entrance stopped all murmurs inside the hall instantly.
Loki, who had been sitting lazily propping her chin up with a bored face, immediately straightened her back in surprise. Hermes, who was busy twirling his hat, suddenly froze. Even the other gossiping gods and goddesses turned in unison with expressions of disbelief.
Three figures stepped into the Denatus hall with slow steps yet drew absolute attention.
In front, walked a blue-haired goddess whose hair was elegantly tied with holy ornaments, paired with a pair of green eyes radiating an aura of absolute purity. Her face was beautiful yet very stern, wearing an elegant white dress with gold and blue accents that highlighted formal grace, without a single piece of hunting gear she usually carried. It was Artemis, the Goddess of Chastity and the Hunt, famous for being very anti-crowds of Orario and almost never seen at a Denatus because she was always wandering outside the city walls.
On her right, a goddess with wavy blonde hair and captivating green eyes walked with a slightly forced smile. She wore a very fashionable and trendy high-cut evening gown; elegantly wrapping her curves while still exuding a captivating sensual charm without looking cheap. She truly embodied the form of Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love, who usually always refused to return to Orario in search of pleasure. Her presence here was very out of the ordinary.
And the one who surprised the entire audience the most was the god figure walking on Artemis's left. He was a golden-blonde-haired man with beautiful light blue eyes. His face possessed an extraordinary androgynous beauty, transcending masculine and feminine boundaries. Wearing a pristine white uniform and radiating an incredibly soothing aura, he was Baldr, the God of Light.
Venti's eyes widened slightly. His reincarnator brain immediately processed the information at full speed.
Artemis and Aphrodite... I can still understand if they were suddenly pulled back to Orario because of an anomaly outside the city. But Baldr? Isn't that god the ruler of the School District (Gaku-ku)?! Venti thought in amazement.
The School District was a giant seafaring city aboard a super-massive ship, constantly moving across the oceans and very rarely docking in Orario except during certain cycles every few years. Baldr's presence here meant the giant fleet had specifically docked back on Orario's mainland to respond to the Guild's emergency call.
The main doors of the hall were shut tight from the outside by Guild guards. The room that had previously been filled with the buzz of gossip was now silent.
All the major gods from all corners of the world had now truly gathered. Except for the radical Evilus group and gods from enemy nations like Ares, almost all holy entities allied with Orario were now sitting around the same round table.
Venti rested his chin on the back of his hand. His clear eyes swept the familiar faces in the room.
The roar from the north which they believe to be the One-Eyed Black Dragon. The sudden repatriation of a God to Tenkai. And the earthquake from the bottom of the labyrinth that nearly split the city, Venti summarized the string of events in his mind. These three events have successfully brought the entertainment world of these gods to a momentary halt. They are forced to be serious, because their game in the lower world is truly threatened.
At the far end of the main room, the place where Ouranos—the first god to rule Orario from his underground throne—usually sat, a large Divine Mirror had been placed by Guild staff. The magic mirror glowed softly, reflecting the faint image of Ouranos sitting in his underground prayer room, directly connecting his presence into the meeting.
"Gathered gods," Ouranos's voice echoed from behind the Divine Mirror, heavy and filled with absolute authority that vibrated the wooden table. "Your routine entertainment must be set aside. Tonight's Emergency Denatus... has officially begun."
Venti smirked, hiding his mischievous grin behind the shadow of his bangs.
The biggest theatrical stage tonight had finally opened. And the bard was very ready to play his most beautiful melody of lies.
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