Chapter 135: Isn't This Bullying Honest People?

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For once, Hestia didn't let anger cloud her judgment.

She crossed her arms and scoffed. "Hmph. This has Apollo's fingerprints all over it. That jerk, sneaking a coordinated attack on my base while I was out. I am definitely crushing him at the Denatus tomorrow."

The other Gods stared at her in disbelief. Was she really blaming him so openly? Apollo was a scumbag, sure, but pinning an assassination run on him out of nowhere was a stretch.

"Whatever makes you happy."

They stayed quiet and watched the drama unfold. No one really knew who was behind it, so blaming Apollo worked well enough. And honestly, if Apollo Familia really had a Level 7, they wouldn't still be a mid-tier group.

August, however, knew exactly who had come knocking.

'Dionysus Familia? Or hired outside help?'

'They're after the Xenos to cover their tracks. People like this always seem to show up when you least expect it.'

It was clear the attack was meant to silence witnesses. Other than him, only the Xenos knew the layout of the Artificial Labyrinth, and Evilus wanted to keep that hidden. The tunnels probably still had members of those dark groups lurking around.

'One problem at a time. I'll handle things my way and on my own time.'

August had no intention of picking a fight with the Dionysus Familia tonight. With the Loki Familia acting as the city's vanguard, he didn't need to jump into the fray just yet—

Once August finished treating the Xenos, Loki and Ganesha withdrew with their squads, leaving Hestia Familia to secure its own base. Both Familias increased their patrols throughout the city.

With a Level 7 on the loose, everyone had to take it seriously.

Miach, Hephaestus, and Artemis soon departed the ruined church as well.

The Xenos who stayed behind tried to get some rest. Hestia found a sturdy piece of debris and sat on it, making the wood creak beneath her.

"What's the plan with the Xenos, August?"

If the monsters stayed, it was only a matter of time before another attack happened. No cover-up could change that, and fighting off assassins every night just wasn't realistic.

Lili looked over at the monsters resting nearby. Keeping them here made the Familia an obvious target.

"I say we send them back to the Main Xenos community in the Dungeon," she said. "They have a few Level 5s down there who can actually protect them, and they have Fels backing them."

It made sense. If they wanted to keep the Xenos safe, sending them back to the labyrinth was the best option. They had a much better chance of surviving there.

"I was thinking the same thing," August admitted.

He didn't see himself as a hero, and he didn't want to be anyone's babysitter. Still, the whole situation made him angry.

"Tch..." He clicked his tongue. "It just rubs me the wrong way. Why am I the one who has to back down?"

He wasn't upset with Hestia or Lili. What bothered him was the idea that he was supposed to be the good guy and just ignore the problem to keep things quiet. Backing down wouldn't stop Evilus from targeting them anyway.

Hestia and Lili were just repeating the practical advice from Hephaestus and the others. If they kept sheltering monsters out in the open, the city would eventually order the Hestia Familia to be wiped out. August hated being pushed into a corner like that.

"Ah." Lili blinked, surprised by his frustration.

She looked to Hestia, hoping the Goddess would be reasonable. But Hestia just crossed her arms and agreed.

"Exactly. I'm annoyed too. Why should we be the ones packing up and running when someone else broke the rules?"

"We're constantly on the defensive," August grumbled. "First the Ikelos Familia, now the remnants of Evilus. They picked the fight, but the second we hit back, we're the ones who have to compromise. Isn't this just bullying honest people?"

He had not gone looking for trouble. They were the ones who had brought the fight to him. None of it sat right with him, and the longer he thought about it, the more it gnawed at him.

Lili saw the flaws in his argument, but she had to admit it was convincing. She glanced at the Xenos. They looked lost. After finally experiencing life on the surface, sending them back into the darkness of the Dungeon would be hard for them.

"Screw it," she said. "If they want to back us into a corner, fine. We stop playing nice."

Now she was getting angry too. When she was weak, she had put up with every insult, hoping for a better life. Now that she had finally made it, was she supposed to keep backing down? What was the point of getting stronger if she still had to accept defeat?

"Lady Hestia. Captain. Let's double down. Let's drag the entire Xenos community up to the surface. In for a penny, in for a pound. Let's see how Evilus likes dealing with a heavily armed monster syndicate sitting on our front lawn." Lili flashed a wicked grin.

Things had already gone this far, so there was no reason to hold back. No more compromises. The two mortals and the Goddess were on the same page—they weren't going to just accept this. If someone wanted to force the Xenos underground, they'd have to deal with the consequences.

"LET'S DO IT." Hestia fully endorsed the chaos. She raised both hands in agreement, then pointed at the Siren. "You guys are going to the Dungeon with August tomorrow. Find the main Xenos settlement and lure them all up here."

They planned to bring up the rest of the monsters, even if it meant dragging them along against their will.

"Eh? Us?" The Siren blinked and pointed at herself.

"Obviously. Did you really think we were just going to roll over and accept a bad ending? If we're doing this, we go all out." Hestia grinned. If she didn't strike back hard, the rest of Orario would write the Hestia Familia off as pushovers.

"Yes, ma'am."

The Siren didn't fully understand Hestia's reasoning, but it felt right. They were already involved, and backing down now would go against everything they stood for. The other monsters agreed. Deep down, they knew Hestia truly meant them no harm.

Hephaestus, Artemis, and Miach fully expected Hestia to quietly sweep the monsters back into the Dungeon and avoid the conflict.

Hestia was already prepping a counteroffensive that would blindside them all.

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The next morning, Lili told the bigger Xenos to clear away the rubble and set up the defenses again. They reloaded the automated weapons used during the raid and added even more firepower this time. Now, the base was ready for any new attacks.

The next goal was to head down to the twentieth floor and meet with the main Xenos group.

"Alright, move out. Don't come back until you've recruited the whole lot of them," Hestia ordered.

"Yeah," August said, then gestured for the Siren to follow. "Let's go."

"Yes, Lord August." The Siren fell into step beside him.

Because she could fly, the Siren was great at dodging attacks and wouldn't hold August back in a fight. She kept her features hidden under a heavy cloak and followed closely as they stepped onto the street.

The locals avoided them completely, stepping aside as they passed. No one tried to greet them. Word of last night's violence had already gotten around.

"Is that one of the monsters?"

"Why are they still hanging around here?"

"This is really scaring me."

"Is that August, the Captain of the Hestia Familia?"

People in the West District didn't bother hiding their worry, and street vendors quickly packed up their stalls. Still, with August ahead, the fear only surfaced in whispers. Tension hung in the air.

The Siren heard every word. It was her first time facing such open hostility from the surface people, and she drew her cloak tighter around herself. Unsure how to respond, she looked to August.

"Lord August."

He noticed her distress.

"Ignore them. It's just Evilus playing games."

He understood what was happening. The sudden rise in hostility was no accident—Evilus was using rumors to turn people against the Hestia Familia or even make them look like they supported the dark factions. In this world, humans and monsters had fought for centuries. Just one rumor could cause chaos.

But August just crossed his arms and called out the whole thing as a cheap Evilus trick, right in front of everyone. The crowd was shocked.

Some Adventurers walking by heard him and exchanged glances. Accusing the public of being used by Evilus was a bold move. But when they realized who he was, they quickly looked away and hurried off.

August had a reputation—everyone knew he had wiped out the assassin syndicate in broad daylight just days ago, without any hesitation.

"Captain, it's August."

"He's strolling around like he didn't just wage a turf war. Guy's a monster."

"He literally made Goddess Ishtar cry. Of course he's strong."

Civilians feared the Xenos following August. Adventurers, however, were more interested in the man leading them.

No one doubted his strength. Even Loki Familia and Ganesha Familia had little interest in provoking him. August had already crushed several factions, humiliated Ishtar Familia single-handedly, and wiped out Ikelos Familia. By himself, he possessed enough power to rival an entire B-class Familia, perhaps even an A-class one.

In Orario, strength was everything. If you couldn't back up your words, you stayed quiet. The scariest thing was that August was only Level 2. He had reached that level in less than a month, breaking every city record. No wonder people had such mixed opinions about him.

August and the Siren eventually reached the Hostess of Fertility.

"Oho, heading out, kid?" Mia Grand called.

She was impressed by how calm he seemed. She'd heard about the attack, and the way he acted as if nothing had happened showed he was tough—almost like a god.

"Yes. Heading down to the twentieth floor," August replied, crossing his arms.

He wasn't keeping anything secret. He openly shared where he was going, since no one in the city could stop him anyway.

"A deep dive, huh?" Mia nodded. "Right, here are your rations."

Lili had placed a massive catering order with the pub to supply the expedition. A descent to the twentieth floor demanded serious logistics.

"Thanks," August said, waving a hand and storing the stacked crates of food directly into his [Spatial Backpack].

"Such a convenient trick. Time stops inside that void. A premium spatial inventory," Mia sighed, openly envious.

If her old raid team had a skill like that, they never would have had to give up on deep expeditions because of hunger. Going hungry in the Dungeon was why she cared so much about food and hospitality. Having a bottomless, time-frozen pantry was every raider's dream.

"That's right. With enough supplies, I could probably fit all of Orario in here," August said.

He checked the time and cut the chatter short. "I'm off. We've got important business down in the Labyrinth today."

He waved goodbye and signaled for the Siren to come along. Together, they headed toward Babel.

Watching them go, Anya Fromel sighed in awe.

"So cool, meow. As expected of Mr. August, meow. He's literally parading a monster through the streets and doesn't care at all. Is this what it means to be a reliable adult, meow?"

The moment the words left her mouth, Mia's fist came down on her head.

"Watch your mouth," Mia glared at her.

"Sorry, meow!" Anya quickly apologized. "I forgot Mama Mia is still here."

Mia was, after all, considerably older than August.

"But is it really going to be okay, meow? People are saying terrible things." Anya watched them walk away. She honestly couldn't understand August's thinking. Showing off a monster in public was just asking for trouble.

Ryuu Lion paused her sweeping nearby and stared at August's silhouette.

"He doesn't care about his reputation. If he cared about saving face, he wouldn't pick fights in broad daylight. Don't try to judge him by normal logic."

Ryuu already knew that August never backed down. For him, giving in to public pressure was the same as losing.

She remembered his words: 'Who told you I was a good person?'

He was driven by a mix of harsh justice and strong revenge. Ryuu could tell he wasn't going to let the harassment slide. He was getting ready to strike back at the whole city.

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