“So did you just…
eat something, not wash your hands, and use me as a napkin?”
“I’m not that kind of person!”
“…”
Looking at how righteous Renn sounded, Lili had her doubts, but she couldn’t find any solid proof, so she changed the subject.
Was Enman strong?
To Lili he was, at least.
With her size and her age working against her, there was no other way to deal with the bullying.
On top of that, he had plenty of lackeys.
Renn was another story.
She knew he’d only been an adventurer for a few days.
Where exactly was he getting the nerve to say things like that?
“That guy…
his strength might not actually be anything special, but the problem is numbers.
And exploring the Dungeon and fighting other adventurers are two completely different things.”
“So what?”
They were all Lv1 adventurers, and those guys barely went into the Dungeon.
They spent their days eating, drinking, and messing around in Orario.
Honestly, Renn didn’t think he was worse than them.
If anything, all that seniority just meant they were ordinary people who’d been born in an era before him.
That wasn’t something he could say out loud, obviously.
He knew what his own strength was.
Considering that those guys needed a crowd just to bully someone, a line from his past life felt about right.
“Beasts always walk alone.
It’s cattle and sheep that move in herds.”
“?”
Hm…
Renn’s confidence probably came from his familia, and from that goddess who’d come to pick him up in the central plaza yesterday evening.
Lili hadn’t recognized her, but Orario had more gods than you could count, so running into a familia she didn’t know was perfectly normal.
Besides, he’d gotten equipment that good while still being a rookie adventurer.
That meant his familia definitely wasn’t weak.
She hesitated for a moment, then decided to warn him anyway.
“Just to be safe, I still think you should explain the situation to the seniors in your familia.”
“I’m not doubting you or anything.
It’s just that you became an adventurer pretty recently, and you don’t have much real combat experience yet.”
“There really are a lot of them.”
“…”
Renn turned his head and gave her the exact same answer.
“Beasts always walk alone.
It’s cattle and sheep that move in herds.”
“?”
You’re not saying that about yourself, are you?!
Lili was starting to feel like Renn wasn’t quite as reliable as she’d imagined, but for now all she could do was go along with it.
The reason was simple.
Enman wanted her to steal Renn’s weapon, so staying on as his supporter was the perfect cover.
She’d make excuses and drag it out as long as she could.
“Phew~”
Lili took a deep breath to steady herself.
She actually envied Renn for the choice he’d dared to make when facing bullying.
It was just that being bullied for so long had made her pessimistic.
That doubt was still sitting in her chest, and as she looked at the side of his face, she found herself asking, “Um…
can we win?”
“We’ll win!”
*
“Lately…”
“Renn’s really been working hard.
He heads into the Dungeon before it’s even light out, no wonder his status is going up so fast!”
The goddess was lying lazily on the bed.
Even flat on her back, Hestia’s generous chest hadn’t shrunk in the slightest from the position.
Hero Raising Plan
Thanks to that semi-transparent screen, she’d gradually developed the habit of checking it every morning when she woke up.
…
[Daily Quests (In Progress)]
[Renn has just become an adventurer, and his primary goal is to explore the Dungeon.
This is a repeatable quest with a chance to increase potential.]
…
Through the quest progress, Hestia could tell what Renn was up to, and once he finished exploring, the daily quest status would switch to complete.
That was exactly how she managed to catch him in the central plaza every single day.
“Now that he’s started exploring, does that mean the exploration log lets me see what he’s actually going through down there?”
Curious, Hestia opened the new feature, Renn’s Exploration Log, and what she found was no different from what she’d guessed.
[After last night’s rest, Renn’s energy has fully recovered.
He is quite satisfied with his current circumstances and his desire to explore is high.]
What a good boy!
The way she saw it, becoming a proper adventurer wasn’t something you could pull off in a short stretch of time.
It took constant persistence.
As for willpower, Renn’s energy stat every day said it all.
He really did want to repay her help with hard work.
Full marks!
[Before heading to the Dungeon, Renn plans to fill his stomach with cheap, tasty jagamarukun and start today’s exploration.]
Good taste.
Even his favorite food was exactly the same as hers.
Hestia had no idea where else she’d ever find a follower this perfect.
“Heheh~”
[At the jagamarukun stall, Renn and Takemikazuchi had a pleasant conversation.
Takemikazuchi, who thinks highly of Renn, has decided to offer his help.]
[They’ve agreed that whenever both are free, he can teach Renn more advanced combat techniques.]
“Looks like our Renn is pretty popular with the gods!”
Takemikazuchi was only her friend, and his willingness to give Renn basic combat training came entirely down to that relationship.
And Renn?
He’d earned a god’s approval through his effort and his humble attitude.
To Hestia, that just proved what a sharp eye she’d had when recruiting a follower.
She’d seen his potential right away!
Except when she kept reading through the log, the next message caught her completely off guard.
[Through the girl supporter, Renn has realized the danger of his current situation, because the expensive adventurer equipment he carries has been targeted.]
[So.]
[Wanting to protect this gift that came from his goddess’s heart, he has chosen to work twice as hard in the face of bullying that could come at any time.]
“This…”
“This isn’t right!!”
Hestia shot upright, staring at the semi-transparent screen and reading it over and over so she wouldn’t miss anything.
Adventurers bullying other adventurers.
Honestly, she’d never once considered the possibility.
There were a lot of reasons for that, mainly that adventurers wouldn’t dare threaten a god.
And when she’d given Renn that weapon, she’d only been thinking of doing what she could for her familia’s child.
It had never occurred to her that Renn would end up in danger because of the very weapon she’d given him.
“…”
Guilt.
Especially after seeing in the exploration log that Renn wanted to protect her gift, and was pushing himself twice as hard for it.
She realized she had to do something for him.