After agreeing that he would travel together with the Artemis Familia from then on, Ize and Artemis began chatting with each other in a somewhat intermittent manner.
During that time, Ize also gave a proper self-introduction, although that self-introduction came a little late…
At that moment, Rethusa also returned to camp with the girls of the Familia who had finished washing up and began preparing dinner.
Before long, when the girls saw Artemis and Ize walking out one after another from the tent at the edge of the camp, their expressions could no longer be described with something as simple as “interesting.”
Perhaps there was something wrong with their eyes?
Their Lady Goddess, Artemis, the goddess who governed chastity and did not even understand what “love” was, had actually walked out of a tent belonging to someone of the opposite sex!?
Oh my heavens!
This world was far too insane!
They had merely gone to take a bath.
What on earth had happened during that time?
“Huh?
Huh, huh, huh!?
Lady Artemis!
Have you finally awakened to love!?
To think you would actually do something like secretly meeting a member of the opposite sex at night…
Are we finally going to be set free!?”
The moment Artemis came out of the tent, she was met with strange looks from twenty people.
Before she even had time to say anything, a sudden cry of surprise had already reached everyone’s ears.
That lively and jumpy way of speaking, that subtle topic one truly did not dare compliment, and even the faint sense of joy contained in the tone…
The person who dared to speak so openly and brazenly like this inside her Artemis Familia was…
“Lante!
Tonight, you’re coming to my tent together with Chloe!!!”
In an instant, Lady Goddess’s cheeks flushed red with anger as she shouted, her appearance resembling a Medusa ready to devour someone alive.
Perhaps it was just an illusion, but Ize felt as though he had seen Artemis’s hair float up just now.
However, the scene vanished in a flash.
And when Artemis’s voice fell, Lante, who had been as joyful as a bird freed from its cage only a second earlier, instantly collapsed in expression.
“S-Sorry…”
It was over…
She had gotten too carried away…
Something like Lady Artemis secretly meeting a man should have been discussed in private!
The companions beside Lante all gave her helpless looks.
A few girls even looked at her as if they were gazing at a brave warrior.
However, she had no time to care about how her companions were reacting.
The half-elf girl’s entire mind was already focused on how to deal with the lecture that would arrive tonight.
Chloe, on the other hand, looked somewhat pleased by another’s misfortune, because now someone would be joining her tonight~
Hehe~
Seeing that Lante had obediently admitted her mistake, Artemis let out a long breath after a while.
Looking at the girls around her, each of whom was staring at her and Ize with curiosity, the corner of her eye twitched almost imperceptibly.
What was with those suspicious and gossip-filled looks?
Had they actually believed Lante’s nonsense?
Surely they did not truly think that something would definitely happen just because she had been alone with a member of the opposite sex, right?
“Rethusa.”
“I’m here, Lady Goddess.”
The captain, who had also been secretly curious in her heart, immediately collected herself and stepped forward as soon as she heard the goddess call her.
“Ize will be traveling with us for a while after this, until we reach Orario.
Tell everyone about this.
And do not overthink it!”
Artemis explained the situation to her concisely, even adding a specific warning at the end not to overthink things.
However, it did not seem to be very effective.
On the surface, Rethusa showed nothing unusual, but in her heart, gossiping little thoughts had already begun to bubble up.
Lady Goddess, it has only been such a short time, and you are already calling him by name.
Yet you still say there is nothing going on?
Although, as a goddess, there was nothing particularly strange about Artemis directly calling a mortal by name.
But that did not prevent Rethusa from gossiping, did it?
Unable to notice that her own captain was also gossiping about her internally, Artemis gave a few more brief instructions before returning alone to her own tent.
She needed to calm herself down.
Whether because she had been angered by the girls of the Familia, or because of something else.
The moment Artemis left, the girls who had been obediently quiet earlier immediately burst into an uproar.
In the blink of an eye, they surrounded Rethusa and Ize in the middle, gazing at them and asking questions like a group of curious babies.
For example, why he had been chased by a pack of gray wolves, what it felt like to be alone with the goddess, how far his relationship with the goddess had developed, and then from his age to his hobbies, from his height to his family…
It felt even more detailed than a household registration check.
By the way, wasn’t the person asking how far things had developed going a bit too far?
Ize himself quite liked getting along with girls.
After all, girls were soft and fragrant.
What was there not to like?
But judging from the current formation, perhaps…
this was a bit too much for him to handle…
Fortunately, as the captain, Rethusa still held considerable prestige in the hearts of the girls.
As she continued speaking up and explaining things, the girls’ commotion slowly subsided, and they became relatively well-behaved.
Yes, relatively.
After all, dinner still had to be prepared next.
If they kept making a fuss like this, were they still going to eat or not?
Adventurers needed to eat too~
And it was not just them.
The same was true for Artemis.
Gods whose divine power had been sealed were no different from mortals.
Eating was also necessary for them.
During dinner, Artemis came out of her tent and ate with everyone around the campfire, just as she always did.
However, tonight, Ize’s presence had been added to the Familia.
Even though he sat in a corner to avoid suspicion, quite a few girls still came over to him, wanting to talk.
Artemis, unable to keep watching this, spoke up and warned them, but the effect was minimal.
The goddess did not want to speak too harshly either.
After all, they were eating, and doing that would be inappropriate.
In the end, she hardened her heart and directly sat beside Ize.
Every time someone tried to approach, she would stare them back with a death glare.
…
After dinner was finished, time gradually moved into the depths of the night.
The camp also grew quiet.
The girls had all squeezed into their tents to whisper among themselves, and outside, only the sound of the campfire could be heard.
Considering the special circumstances, Ize had been assigned a tent of his own.
However, because he had slept for quite a while while unconscious in the afternoon, even now that night had fallen, he did not feel particularly sleepy.
Since he could not sleep, Ize simply slipped quietly out of his tent and went to sit on a large rock at the edge of the camp.
It was not yet time for the night watch, so there seemed to be only Ize outside.
Usually, those responsible for keeping watch would also sleep lightly for a while, only waking up in the middle of the night to stand guard.
Besides, the monsters around the camp had mostly been cleared out during the day.
Unless something unexpected happened, they normally would not encounter an attack at night.
The situation Ize currently found himself in was this:
He could not sleep, so he had gone outside to look at the stars.