Chapter 108 108: [BONUS] - Familia Melee, Ganesha Intervenes

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Two identical Goddesses!!

Hestia stood with her arms crossed, looking smug. August had summoned her projection again. A translucent energy construct bearing her exact likeness manifested next to him.

Ishtar blinked at the projection.

August gave a command. The floating avatar rushed forward and punched Ishtar hard in the face.

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMM!!"

The Goddess crashed onto the stones.

"..." She sat there, stunned.

No mortal had ever hit her before...

Mortals with a Falna were never allowed to attack a god. Even if a god started it, fighting back meant certain death. Fanatics would hunt down anyone who tried. But August didn't care. He hit her in front of everyone. It was a real slap in the face.

"YOU HIT ME." Ishtar boiled with rage.

She was the Goddess of Beauty, and a human had just attacked her. Even worse, her charm didn't work. She knew August could resist Freya's allure, but having her own power fail hurt.

"Because you lack manners," August said. He lowered his fist.

The Hestia projection floated back to his side. August crossed his arms and mocked her.

"I don't like you. Stop trying to force your cheap tricks on me... You call yourself a Goddess—yet you doubt your own allure. If you can't capture a man with your supposed beauty, I have to ask: are you really Ishtar?"

He criticized her right in front of her own Familia.

"What do you mean??" Ishtar snapped. It was the first time anyone had ever denied her beauty.

"He means you're an idiot," Hestia said.

She stepped forward and looked down at Ishtar. "You knew August could resist charms, and you still tried it right in front of me. You didn't even respect me as a Goddess."

Hestia puffed out her chest. Trying a charm trick when everyone knew it wouldn't work was just plain stupid.

"Dammit." Ishtar looked at the floating avatar.

Even a fool could put the pieces together. Hestia was controlling the projection.

"Fine. If that's how it is," Ishtar snarled. "PHRYNE! ALL OF YOU! GET HIM! DRAG THAT MAN TO ME!"

Now, the fight was serious.

The combat courtesans surged forward at their Goddess's command.

"Let's go, rookie."

None of them took him lightly. They knew his reputation as the Monster Rookie. Adventurers from all over talked about his strength. Trying to beat him with normal skills was pointless. He made a name for himself in the Dungeon with pure power.

The Amazons drew their weapons and charged—

"Gehehe. Since Lady Ishtar gave the order, I won't hold back." Phryne Jamil gripped her double-bladed axe.

As soon as she spoke, August moved.

"Rider Kick."

August launched himself into the air, driving a brutal flying kick straight into her chest.

The hit sent Phryne flying backward like a cannonball. The other Amazons stared in shock. Phryne was Level 5, and he knocked her away with one blow. The strength needed for that was unreal.

Aisha Belka and the other Amazons grew even more interested. In Amazon culture, power was everything. Meeting a man this strong aroused something deep inside them.

"Get him!" Aisha ordered, leading the charge.

Several warriors rushed at August at once.

He didn't hold back and met them head-on. The combat courtesans surrounded him, attacking and forcing August to dodge a storm of blades.

'These Amazons sure are relentless...' August thought.

Their entire culture revolved around securing strong partners, so they trained all the time to prove themselves. For the first time, August felt real pressure in close combat.

Aisha Belka gripped her massive broadsword and began her chant.

"O scorching flames, let my sword be the fangs of the inferno. Gather, red blade of destruction!"

She knew this man was a monster. As a Level 3, she wanted to see what he could really do.

"..." August didn't even turn his head.

Aisha utilized concurrent chanting, focusing her magical energy into the blade.

"Hell Kaios!"

The other Amazons moved aside so Aisha had a clear shot. The focused magic formed a wild shell and shot through the air at August.

"Gehehehe, nice shot, Aisha!" Phryne yelled, pulling herself out of the rubble.

When she saw the magic blast heading for August, she took her chance. She rushed forward, swinging her axe in a deadly arc meant to cut him in half.

August didn't blink.

Just before the magic shell hit, a spatial distortion appeared in front of him. The void consumed the blast whole.

"What?" Aisha froze. Her attack vanished.

But the real surprise happened a moment later.

"O scorching flames, let my sword be the fangs of the inferno. Gather, red blade of destruction—Hell Kaios."

August repeated her chant word for word. Magic gathered around his fist.

"THAT'S MY MAGIC," Aisha gasped.

He did more than just copy it. A ghostly projection resembling Aisha appeared beside him.

Ishtar watched as he took control of her follower's spell.

"IMPOSSIBLE. You analyze and replicate magic through projections?" Ishtar was stunned.

Now she understood how he had summoned Hestia. He used the projections to copy and perform the needed effects.

"I'm not done," August said. "Double Hell Kaios!"

He used the spell he had just learned with his Invocation magic, mixing it with the raw energy stored in his spatial void. It became a two-layered magic attack—

The power grew exponentially.

He didn't aim at Aisha and the others, focusing on the biggest threat: Phryne Jamil.

August let the blast loose. The two magical shockwaves hit Phryne's axe and sent her flying in a burst of force.

"..." Aisha watched Phryne get sent flying.

She didn't care if the toad-like woman survived. Seeing her own magic defeat a higher-ranking officer gave her an odd feeling of satisfaction.

"You keep surprising me, rookie." Aisha gripped her broadsword tighter and let go of her magic. She wanted to fight him with swords.

Only a real, physical battle would satisfy her urge to fight.

August dismissed the projection and shifted his stance. The hardest part was over. Now, only Aisha and a few Level 2 and Level 3 Amazons were left.

The Amazons changed their attitude. Now they wanted to fight him and test their strength against his. The brawl started up again.

Ishtar saw her side losing ground. Phryne, her Level 5 captain, was down, and the other Level 4 leaders were away. Aisha was the only strong fighter left.

Ishtar realized her mistake. She had delayed Aisha's promotion to Level 4 as punishment, refusing to update her status for half a year. Now, that small act of discipline was costing her the battle.

"DAMMIT." Ishtar cursed her luck.

Hestia had no intention of letting her get away with it.

"Ishtar," Hestia smiled, walking up to her rival.

August's projection hovered next to her. Hestia took control of it.

"W-What are you doing?" Ishtar panicked. She had forgotten about the angry Goddess standing right there.

"Grit your teeth, Ishtar."

The projection copied Hestia's wicked grin. It cracked its knuckles and lunged forward with a strong right hook.

"GET HER, LADY HESTIA!" Lili cheered.

She pulled Yui and Ui over to make a cheerleading squad. The Amazons ignored them, keeping their eyes on August. Since the girls couldn't join the fight, they cheered for their Goddess instead.

The lower-ranking courtesans stood off to the side, not sure what to do. They were basically slaves in the Familia, but stepping into a fight between gods was dangerous.

Hitting a God would mark them as God-slayers and ruin their lives.

Since they couldn't fight, they joined in with Lili's group instead.

"Get up, Lady Ishtar! Hit her back!" The Pleasure Quarter belonged to Ishtar. The voices of the working girls quickly overpowered Lili, Yui, and Ui.

"Hey, no fair! We're outnumbered!" Yui complained.

"Leave it to us."

Street fights always attract a crowd. The gods watching forgot about staying neutral and turned into loud fans.

"Come on, Hestia! Take her down!"

"Yeah! Pin her to the ground!"

"Left hook! Right hook! Give it to her!"

Hephaestus, Artemis, Miach, Takemikazuchi, and Demeter had come along to watch August deal with the assassins. They never expected a turf war with the Ishtar Familia. Ishtar tried to charm August, got punched, and now two Goddesses were wrestling in the dirt. It was more entertaining than they could have imagined.

They were Hestia's friends and cheered her on. With the VIP cheering squad joining in, their voices matched the local courtesans. The street was filled with competing chants.

The fight got more intense. Hestia's projection grabbed Ishtar's hair and landed two strong punches. Ishtar screamed and fought back wildly. Being beaten by a rival Goddess on her own turf was too much to ignore.

"Die, you shrimp!" Ishtar raked her manicured nails across the avatar. Even if she couldn't hit the real Hestia, she refused to lose to a fake.

"Ha," Hestia sneered.

She controlled the projection and pinned Ishtar to the ground.

August kept up with the Amazons. He dodged blades and traded blows, falling into a tough rhythm. Both fights continued.

Hashana Dorlia watched the chaos. At last, he saw his Familia members coming, led by his Patron God.

"Lord Ganesha." Hashana ran over and saluted.

Ganesha had hurried over from headquarters after hearing Hashana's report about the assassins. He hadn't expected to find Hestia and Ishtar fighting in the street.

"What the hell is going on here?" Ganesha asked.

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