Chapter 129: The Gods Also Reap the Benefits

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Loki Familia Headquarters: Twilight Manor.

Main Conference Hall.

Finn Deimne, Riveria Ljos Alf, and Gareth Landrock sat together.

Across from them sat several men in extravagant noble clothing. They came from kingdoms outside Orario, but they also held a much darker title: the current leaders of Orario's assassin syndicate.

"PLEASE, Braver, you have to help us. We are out of options!!"

The nobles wiped the sweat from their foreheads, staring at Finn with desperate, pleading eyes. They needed the legendary hero to step in and mediate.

August had already leveled two of their bases in rapid succession.

Their Orario headquarters? Gone.

A branch that tried to put up a fight? Erased.

Now, nobody wanted to cross him. Not a single person was stepping up to point fingers at the Hestia Familia. The reason was obvious.

"..." Loki sat nearby, lazily drinking her wine. She watched the groveling nobles like they were circus clowns, a mocking grin plastered across her face.

But she didn't interrupt Finn. She left the decision entirely in his hands. He was her prized hero—he wasn't stupid enough to fall for this.

Finn considered the pros and cons of intervening. Honestly, the math didn't add up.

"Why come to me?" Finn asked smoothly. "If I recall, shouldn't you be crawling to Ottar and the Freya Familia?"

It made more sense for the syndicate leaders to ask Freya for protection. Her group had a significant influence on Orario.

"Finn, they know that's a dead end," Loki chimed in.

"These assassins screwed over the Freya Familia plenty of times in the past."

"Freya not actively kicking them while they're down is already a massive favor."

Loki explained the situation. She knew these men had probably thought about going to Freya, but aside from Ottar's generation, the rest of Freya's old guard had been wiped out back in the day—and this syndicate had a hand in the sabotage.

The Freya Familia wasn't dumb enough to fight August for these men. No one knew how strong he really was. Nobody wanted to mess with a ruthless captain who looked ready to drag his enemies to hell with him.

"Is that so?" Finn understood Loki's warning. Stay out of it.

"To be frank, I don't pity you," Finn said. "With your resources, isn't it highly unusual for you to reject a hit on the Daedalus family?"

Finn wasn't blind.

He saw right through August's strategy. The assassins refused to take the contract against Daedalus, so August was exterminating them instead. Making an example out of them.

Finn shifted his gaze, locking onto one specific noble in the group.

"Am I right... member of the Daedalus family?"

He studied the man. Finn was sure this person was a key member of the Daedalus family. Coming to the Loki Familia was just a desperate attempt to save himself.

With the Daedalus member's identity exposed, the other nobles fell into a tense silence.

"I can't help you," Finn delivered the final rejection.

"..." Their faces drained of color.

They hadn't anticipated the Braver reading them so easily.

"Right this way, gents." Bete Loga stood up, hands stuffed in his pockets, gesturing toward the door.

The nobles kept stiff expressions, but their eyes showed panic. They didn't want to accept this, but they had no choice.

Loki watched their faces twist in despair, immensely enjoying the show.

"Nice work, Finn." Once the heavy doors closed shut, she flashed him a thumbs-up. Her hero always delivered.

"Still..." Finn sighed.

"Is it really wise to let August run wild like this?"

"Massacring people in broad daylight. It won't end well for him."

Truthfully, a part of Finn wanted to mobilize against August. But August himself seemed too unpredictable. After thinking it over, Finn decided to stay out of the conflict.

"Can't be helped. Everyone wants a slice of that cake," Loki said, leaning back.

"The syndicate was built by a few old assassin kingdoms. Back in the day, their Orario headquarters got crushed by Gale Wind from the Astraea Familia."

"When it was rebuilt, a few Gods moved in and took over. Now those Gods have been sent back to Heaven. To the other deities here, this organization is a prime cut of meat."

Loki stretched her arms out.

"They have a strong group of Level 1 and Level 2 killers. The Gods without a Familia are eager for a chance to recruit those kids."

Loki explained the underground politics Finn hadn't thought about. Orario wasn't only controlled by big groups. There were many minor Gods, some without any followers. To make a name for themselves, they needed to recruit talented kids first.

If they could absorb those trained assassins, their Familias would skyrocket in power overnight.

Riveria Ljos Alf listened quietly. To her, it sounded like the city's underworld was about to change completely.

"So August's rampage is a blessing in disguise for those Gods..." Riveria noted.

"The minor Gods get to play savior, taking in the displaced orphans to build their ranks. They're using August as a scalpel to carve up the untouchable syndicate so they can pick up the pieces."

They were getting all the benefits without doing any of the work.

Gareth Landrock grunted, catching on.

"An organization that loses its divine backing needs a new Patron fast. Or a syndicate that size just dissolves."

"But if they scatter, they might bleed right into the remnants of Evilus."

That was Gareth's main concern: the dark factions might take in the survivors.

Finn shook his head.

"They won't. August's targets are the syndicate and the Daedalus family."

"The assassins know a Daedalus member is pulling the strings. Why would they enrage a psychotic Adventurer to protect a noble? Throwing their lives away for a sponsor isn't worth it."

Finn guessed the assassins already knew why Daedalus was off-limits. A little digging would show the Daedalus bloodline co-ran the syndicate. They couldn't accept a hit on their own brass. It was a dead end.

"Still, the kid is ruthless," Loki muttered as she lounged on her side. "Are all people from his world this crazy? Does he not care about his reputation at all?"

She had never seen anyone operate with this level of brutality.

He wasn't shackled by Orario's morals. If someone crossed the line, he hunted them down to the last man. No monologues or hesitation—just action. The Gods found this trait very appealing.

"I actually love his personality," Loki grinned. "Too bad I didn't snatch him up first."

"THAT DAMN SHRIMP HIT THE JACKPOT." Loki ground her teeth. Just thinking about Hestia showing off her new recruit made Loki feel jealous.

How did that freeloader get so lucky?

Everyone in Orario knew the story by now—August approached the Hephaestus Familia specifically to get an introduction to Hestia. That level of targeted loyalty already put him above 99% of the Adventurers in the city.

Gods were petty by nature. They all wondered what made Hestia different from them.

Finn and the other executives smartly ignored Loki's rant.

"We're back!"

Right on cue, Tiona Hiryute burst into the room at just the right moment, her face bright with excitement.

Lefiya, Ais Wallenstein, and Tione followed close behind.

"Oh, Tiona! How was the city?" Loki greeted her energetic child.

"It was great! But guess what we saw?"

Tiona could hardly contain her excitement. She quickly shared what she saw outside: Goddess Hestia was leading a group of women into Orario to make Falna contracts.

Loki's cheerful mood disappeared right away.

"WHAT?? SHE DID WHAT?"

"That damn Shrimp! What else is she hiding from me?" Loki gritted her teeth, feeling her anger rise.

"If she had premium recruits, why didn't she bring them to me?"

"I run the top Familia in the city! And she bypasses me for Demeter and Hephaestus??"

Loki was seething. She never thought Hestia would leave her out of such a good opportunity. Her jealousy quickly turned into strong resentment.

"Loki, what's wrong?"

Ais tilted her head. It was unusual to see her Goddess get upset over something as simple as recruitment. From Ais's perspective, partnering with Demeter and Hephaestus seemed normal.

"You don't get it," Loki groaned. "The Shrimp probably went to Demeter first. But Hephaestus? She's smart."

"She definitely demanded a cut of the pie."

"You might not see the angle now, but think about the future. If Demeter or Hephaestus ever asks August for a favor—like visiting his dimension to 'check on their kids'—he won't say no. Hephaestus doesn't make investments without a massive payout."

Loki understood that Demeter was kind, but Hephaestus was a skilled businesswoman who had built her forge into a worldwide business. She would never miss a chance at an interdimensional trade route.

"That does fit Lady Hephaestus's modus operandi," Riveria mused, rubbing her chin.

"Besides, when we were drinking at the Hostess of Fertility... I could tell. Lady Hephaestus is in love with August."

As a High Elf, she had sharp intuition. She noticed the Forge Goddess often watching August with a gentle, happy look.

"WAIT, REALLY?"

"LADY HEPHAESTUS IN LOVE WITH AUGUST? I DIDN'T NOTICE!"

Tiona's eyes lit up, eager for good gossip. Even Loki was surprised. She never thought the serious blacksmith would fall for the newcomer.

"It's just a feeling," Riveria said, waving a hand. "I don't know for sure, and I'm certainly not going to ask her."

"But that gentle look... it wasn't the way a Patron looks at a child. It was the way a woman looks at a man. At first, I thought I was imagining it, but it seems the Goddess of Forging really is smitten."

"Damn. He actually caught Hephaestus's eye?"

Loki was shocked. In the divine realm, people often teased Hephaestus about her eyepatch and scars. Because of her tough image, romance was rare for her.

For someone like her to fall in love was headline news.

'Oho... so that's why you support him so hard.' Loki practically tasted the drama. 'Does this kid really have some hidden charm?'

She made a mental note to inspect August more closely next time.

But for now, she wanted to spend time with her favorite child.

"AIS-TAN!"

Loki launched herself at Ais. Ais smoothly sidestepped, letting the Goddess crash into the floor.

Still, the chatter about August continued.

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At the same time, on the other side of the city.

August was heading toward the fifth assassin stronghold when he suddenly started sneezing.

"Achoo!"

He rubbed his nose and frowned. "Who is talking behind my back?"

August shook his head and glanced down at the fresh intel in his hand. "Well, that explains a lot."

He received the note while heading to the third base. A random God had 'accidentally' tripped in front of him. When August helped him up, the deity handed him a piece of paper that explained how the syndicate worked.

The God had smiled, waved, and strolled off.

August understood what was going on. The minor Gods wanted the syndicate destroyed so they could recruit the skilled assassins for their own Familias.

Thanks to Hestia's translation module, August read the note clearly.

"No wonder they refused the contract," August muttered.

"The Daedalus family funded and founded the syndicate. You can't put a hit out on your own boss."

That was the core conflict.

"But these assassins aren't idiots, either," August noted.

"When we hit the fourth base, it was completely empty."

"They aren't going to just sit around waiting to get slaughtered."

Lili agreed. After the first raids, the survivors scattered. Assassins were still human, and they didn't want to die for nothing. As for fighting back, if they could really defeat August, they wouldn't be hiding.

"If this intel is accurate, let's call it here," August said. There was no point in hitting the fifth location.

"They've already gone to ground. Hitting empty buildings is a waste of stamina."

"Right," Lili nodded. "Let's head back. Lady Hestia has probably been waiting for a while anyway."

"Chasing ghosts isn't going to get us anywhere."

They both agreed to end the hunt early and started heading home.

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