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The banquet didn't last long after that.
The musicians tried to play their beautiful music again, but nobody wanted to listen.
Nobody wanted to dance on the smooth floor.
Nobody wanted to drink the fine wine.
The heavy cold in the air stayed for a long time.
Apollo sat back in his golden chair.
He didn't smile anymore.
He didn't say another word to the Hestia Familia.
He just stared down at his frozen cup of wine.
He was still shivering.
Hestia turned around.
"Let's go,"
Hestia said to her family.
"We are done here. The food got cold anyway."
They walked together toward the large wooden doors at the front of the hall.
But before they could leave the building, two women stepped out from the crowd. They blocked the path to the door.
It was Hephaestus and Freya.
Hephaestus crossed her arms over her chest. She looked at Hestia with a serious face.
"You always jump right into deep water, Hestia,"
Hephaestus said.
Hestia stopped walking. She looked up at her old friend.
"I didn't start this fight,"
Hestia said firmly.
"Apollo pushed us. He wanted to trap us."
"I know he did,"
Hephaestus replied.
"But a War Game is not a simple street fight. It has strict rules. It has a huge battlefield. Apollo has over a hundred strong children. You only have five people."
Freya smiled a very soft smile. She stood right next to Hephaestus.
"It is very dangerous,"
Freya said. Her voice was as smooth as honey.
"Apollo is a fool, yes. But his captain is Level 3. His magic users are very strong. You will need a miracle to win this game."
"We have a miracle,"
Hestia said proudly. She pointed a thumb at Elias and Dee.
Hephaestus sighed quietly.
"I saw what they did just now,"
Hephaestus said.
"But two strong fighters cannot beat a whole army if the rules are against them. You need more people. You need much better gear."
Hephaestus reached into her dark pocket.
"I can lend you a hand,"
Hephaestus offered.
"I can forge new weapons. I can give you strong armor that will not break easily. I will not ask for money right now. You can pay me back later."
Freya took a slow step closer.
"I can help, too,"
Freya said gently.
"I can pull some strings behind the scenes. I can make sure Apollo does not cheat before the game starts. I can lend you some magic items from my family."
Hestia looked very surprised.
Hephaestus was a good friend, but Freya rarely offered free help to anyone.
Hestia didn't answer them right away. She turned her head and looked at Bell.
Bell was the captain of the Hestia Familia.
"What do you think, Bell?"
Hestia asked him.
Bell looked at the two powerful Goddesses.
He knew their help would be amazing.
Good weapons could easily save their lives in a big battle.
But Bell didn't make the choice himself.
Instead, Bell turned his head. He looked right at Elias.
Even though Bell wore the captain's badge, he knew the truth.
Elias was the strongest.
Elias saw things they could not see.
Elias was the real shield of their family.
Bell nodded at Elias.
He wanted Elias to decide this important thing.
Elias stepped forward. He stood in front of Bell and Hestia.
He looked at Hephaestus. Then he looked at Freya.
"No,"
Elias said simply.
Hephaestus raised an eyebrow.
"No?"
Hephaestus asked.
"Are you too proud to take a thick shield when someone throws sharp stones at you?"
"We are not too proud,"
Elias answered.
"We just don't need it."
"You are facing an entire army,"
Hephaestus reminded him again.
"An army of ants is still just an army of ants,"
Elias said.
His voice was completely flat.
"They can bring a hundred people. They can bring a thousand people. It changes absolutely nothing. If I swing my weapon, they will fall down. If Dee wishes. They are dead."
Elias looked straight at Freya.
"We don't need borrowed swords,"
Elias said.
"We don't need favors from other Gods. If we take your help, Apollo will cry. He will say we cheated. He will tell the city we only won because Hephaestus made our weapons. We will win this game with our own hands."
Freya looked deep into Elias's eyes.
She felt a sudden, cold shiver run all the way down her back.
She was the Goddess of Beauty.
She had special eyes. She could see the true colors of people's souls.
Most souls were bright, colorful, or shaped like beautiful flames.
But Elias's soul was a terrifying void.
It was like looking into a bottomless pit.
She was genuinely afraid of him.
She was also afraid of the quiet girl standing right next to him.
Dee walked past Elias. She stopped right in front of Freya.
Freya tried to keep her calm smile, but her hands shook a little bit.
Dee didn't look angry. She didn't show any hostility at all. She just looked at Freya with bored, empty eyes.
"You like the white rabbit,"
Dee said to Freya. She pointed a finger back at Bell.
Freya blinked. She didn't expect Dee to speak so directly in front of everyone.
"He is very interesting to watch,"
Freya admitted softly.
"You want him to be strong,"
Dee said.
"You want him to shine brightly. But you like to play secret games to make that happen. You like to send giant monsters to test him in the dungeon."
Freya didn't say anything. Her quiet silence was her answer.
Dee leaned a bit closer to the Goddess.
"You don't need to use dirty methods anymore,"
Dee told her.
Freya looked confused.
"What do you mean by that?"
Freya asked.
"You want him to be a hero,"
Dee explained slowly.
"You can just woo him normally. A real hero grows by fighting his own battles. With Elias and me standing here, Bell will reach the very top. He will face true danger, and we will make sure he survives it. He will become a hero one hundred percent."
Dee stared deep into Freya's purple eyes.
"So stop playing your little tricks,"
Dee said.
"Just watch him grow on his own. If you try to hurt him with your games, Elias will just cut you. Do we understand each other?"
Freya swallowed hard. The threat was very real.
But strangely, Freya also felt a deep relief.
If Dee and Elias were truly protecting Bell, then Bell's soul would shine brighter than ever before.
He would become the greatest hero without her having to force it with dangerous tricks.
Freya nodded her head slowly.
"I understand,"
Freya said.
"I will just watch. I will not interfere with him."
Dee smiled a small, genuine smile.
"Good,"
Dee said.
She turned around and walked back to Elias.
Hephaestus let out a very long breath.
"You have a very scary family, Hestia,"
Hephaestus said.
Hestia puffed out her chest. She looked very proud.
"I know,"
Hestia smiled widely.
"They are the absolute best."
Hestia bowed her head slightly to her old friend.
"Thank you for the kind offer, Hephaestus,"
Hestia said.
"But Elias is right. We have to do this on our own. We have to show the city who we are."
Hephaestus smiled back at her.
"Don't die out there,"
Hephaestus told them.
"We will not,"
Bell promised loudly.
The Hestia Familia turned their backs on the two Goddesses.
They pushed the heavy wooden doors open and stepped out into the cool night air.
The city streets were empty now.
The moon was high and bright in the dark sky.
They walked away from the bright mansion.
They headed back to their old, broken church.
Welf stretched his arms high above his head.
He let out a loud groan.
"Well,"
Welf said.
"That was a very stressful party. I didn't even get to eat the good meat."
Lili nodded.
She rubbed her small arms to get warm.
"Lili thought she was going to turn into a block of ice,"
Lili said.
"Dee, your magic is very cold."
"It is not magic,"
Dee said lightly.
"It is just a feeling."
Bell walked next to Elias. He looked back over his shoulder at the giant mansion on the hill.
"A War Game,"
Bell said quietly. The words felt very heavy in his mouth.
"We are really going to war."
"Are you scared?"
Elias asked him.
Bell thought about it for a second.
He remembered Apollo's cruel smile.
He remembered how Apollo wanted to take him away and make Elias a slave forever.
Bell shook his head hard.
"No,"
Bell answered. His voice was steady and strong.
"I am not scared. I want to beat them. I want to protect our home."
Elias patted Bell's back.
"That is the right answer,"
Elias said.
Hestia skipped ahead of them. She turned around and walked backward so she could look at all her children.
"So, we challenged them,"
Hestia said cheerfully.
"Apollo accepted it in front of everyone. The Guild will set the official rules tomorrow morning. What do we do now? Do we go to the dungeon? Do we train all night long?"
"No,"
Elias said.
"We go home and sleep. Rest is very important."
Welf laughed out loud.
"Sleep?"
Welf asked in disbelief.
"You just declared war on a massive family, and your big plan is to go to bed?"
"Yes,"
Elias said simply.
Elias looked up at the bright moon.
"We don't need to panic,"
Elias explained.
"But we do need a plan. Tomorrow, we will sit down at the table. We will look at the rules the Guild gives us."
"And then what?"
Lili asked.
"And then we make a simple plan,"
Elias said.
"How simple?"
Bell asked.
"Very simple,"
Elias answered.
"We will find out where Apollo hides his flag. We will walk there together. We will knock down anyone who stands in our way. And we will take his flag. That is all."
Welf grinned a wide, happy grin.
"I really like that plan,"
Welf said.
Lili sighed and shook her head, but she was smiling too.
"It is a very foolish plan,"
Lili said.
"But Lili thinks it might actually work for us."
Dee held Elias's hand. She swung their arms back and forth as they walked down the street.
"It will work,"
Dee said confidently.
"Because they don't know what is coming for them. They think it is just a fun game."
Elias looked straight ahead. The roof of their old church was finally in sight.
"It is a war for them,"
Elias said. His voice was calm and quiet in the dark night.
"But for us, it is just a chore. We will finish it quickly."