Chapter 71: Hephaestus, I Support You in Pursuing Happiness! (Please Subscribe) (Patreon)

Hephaestus studied the rare-species baby dragon drop laid out before her — more than enough material to custom-make two full sets of armor.

She wasn't surprised, not really.

Because yesterday evening, through the Exploration Log, she'd already learned in full detail about the feat Rozz had pulled off in that desperate situation.

Even in less than peak condition, he'd still managed to kill a baby dragon.

Hephaestus had to admit — when she'd learned Rozz was in danger, she couldn't stop her palms from sweating.

But the outcome had been good.

It matched exactly what the Hero Cloud-Raising Plan had predicted: the seed of a hero was beginning to take shape, its soul-light gradually coming into view.

If Rozz couldn't even get past a baby dragon, what future could he possibly have?

"That's right, that's right."

The red-haired goddess looked thoroughly pleased with herself.

She gazed at the translucent screen floating above Rozz's head — after that desperate battle yesterday, she could see the shifts in his Potential ratings.

[Character: Rozz]

Strength Potential: SSS+

Endurance Potential: SSS+

Dexterity Potential: SSS+

Agility Potential: SSS+

Magic Potential: SS

Overall Assessment: The seed of a hero has begun to take shape. Given time to grow, Rozz's ceiling might... climb even higher?

Special quests are available to further raise this character's final Potential.

Setting aside his Magic for a moment.

Every one of Rozz's other Potential stats had already reached... a peak that even 'the Silent' Alfia, years ago, had never touched.

All SSS+.

If only there were some way to get a look at Rozz's detailed Falna information — Hephaestus genuinely wanted to see just how absurd this kid's stats really were.

The thing was, she still couldn't quite wrap her head around it. By all normal logic, SSS+ should already be the cap. So why had the Hero Cloud-Raising Plan's prompt implied...

Could it be that Rozz's ceiling went even higher than that?

Just thinking about it filled Hephaestus with anticipation. She'd finally understood the appeal of a raising-sim — getting to watch this kid rise faster and faster.

At the same time, her hunger to unlock the brand-new 'Dream Training Plan' feature had, right now, been driven to an absolute peak by Rozz's talent.

'I really am going to max out your Affection meter!!'

Yet not a flicker of that emotion showed on Hephaestus's face as she carefully assessed the overall weight of the baby dragon scales.

Making two full sets of armor to spec would be effortless.

She looked up and asked, in a deliberately casual tone, "Rozz, do you have any particular preferences for the armor's design?"

"Something light, ideally."

Rozz thought it over briefly, then added, "At the very least, I don't want it slowing me down while exploring the lower floors."

"Going light means sacrificing some defensive performance," Hephaestus said, glancing up.

"I can live with that."

Rozz clearly had no complaints, though he did look a bit sheepish. "If there's leftover material, can it go toward covering the cost?"

He meant it, too.

He'd been in Orario for a while now, and he felt he'd worked hard enough during that stretch — he'd even earned help from the gods.

But financially, he was still scraping by.

Having to come rely on Hephaestus's help even now, Rozz admitted honestly, "Truth is, I don't really have much money on me."

"Don't worry about the cost."

Honestly, even if you insisted on paying me, I wouldn't want to take it!

This was too good a chance to raise her Affection to let slip by — Hephaestus wasn't about to waste it. She finished examining the material.

She didn't come at it too directly, though.

The red-haired goddess said, in an offhand tone, "Since you're new to Orario, I'm guessing you don't have a great sense of how valuable rare-species drops are."

"The leftover material alone should more than cover the custom equipment fee."

Well.

Ever since activating Rozz's Hero Cloud-Raising Plan, Hephaestus had noticed her own rate of little white lies had been climbing steadily.

If she'd picked some ordinary blacksmith from within the Familia, this probably wouldn't have been an issue.

But if she asked Tsubaki — 'Orario's Strongest Blacksmith' — to do the work, even charging only the forging fee, it would run at least one million valis.

Openly explaining that, though, would come off as a little too eager to please.

Besides, Hephaestus couldn't quite bring herself to go that far. Better to let Rozz gradually settle into life in Orario, and then one day, when he looked back on his own...

let him feel, on his own, the kindness she'd been quietly hiding underneath it all.

Perfect.

She could already picture it — the moment Rozz found out, his Affection meter maxing out completely, unlocking the brand-new raising feature...

'The finest hunters often present themselves as prey.'

Noticing the surprise flicker across the boy's eyes, Hephaestus smiled softly — quite unlike her usual brisk, straightforward manner.

Gentleness.

Fully, unmistakably manifested in this moment.

She added, with a light laugh, "Besides, you're a member Hestia recruited. However you look at it, I ought to lend a hand."

Who could possibly say no to that? A big-sister goddess who normally acted like a stern teacher, but who let a rare flash of tenderness slip through every once in a while.

Rozz certainly couldn't.

He looked up at the tall, red-haired goddess before him, warmth spreading through his chest. "Thank you, Lady Hephaestus."

"Mm-hm."

"I'll hand the forging material to Tsubaki. It'll probably take about four or five days — I'll have Hestia let you know when it's ready."

Hephaestus waved a hand casually.

"Go on and explore the Dungeon," she added, in that same easy tone. "Just... remember to look after your own safety while you're at it."

"I will."

Not until Rozz's retreating figure had left the weapon shop did Hephaestus finally let her gaze drop away — and the translucent screen of the Hero Cloud-Raising Plan slowly surfaced before her eyes.

[Rozz caught this special favor of yours with a keen sense of awareness. He didn't show it outwardly, but he's tucked it firmly away in his heart.]

[He's resolved to grow as fast as he possibly can, so he'll one day have the strength to repay the goddess's kindness.]

[Seeing the gentle smile break through the goddess's usually stern face, Rozz felt a jolt of contrast — he never expected such a severe goddess capable of an expression like that.]

[His Affection for you has risen. Affection +5.]

...

Was she really that hard to get along with, most days?

Hephaestus lifted a hand and lightly rubbed her cheek, checking her reflection in the shop window glass — no different from usual, as far as she could tell.

Still, she could understand the psychology behind it.

A person who normally never smiled, showing the occasional flash of gentleness — that really was an easy way to boost someone's Affection!

But what truly moved her was the feedback the Hero Cloud-Raising Plan had given her: Rozz didn't take the help she offered him for granted.

In fact...

This kid actually wanted to grow stronger just to repay her — she had to admit, the man Hestia had fallen for really was a good one.

If she could set aside the whole god-and-mortal divide, she might genuinely find herself smitten...

"So that's it..."

"Rozz likes a bit of contrast, does he?"

Recalling that earlier prompt, Hephaestus couldn't help murmuring the thought aloud.

Just as she was about to pack away the baby dragon material to hand off to Tsubaki later, the weapon shop's door swung open again.

She looked up.

There stood Hestia's familiar figure — and Hephaestus immediately noticed the gossip-hungry look in her eyes, as if she were sizing her up.

Thinking back on her exchange with Rozz just now, Hephaestus felt exactly like someone who'd just finished a secret rendezvous, only to get caught red-handed by the wife.

This was, without question, a kind of panic she had never once felt across her long, endless divine existence.

Hephaestus coughed lightly.

She stiffened her expression, trying to reclaim her usual composure. "Hestia, you... did the sun rise in the west today or something?"

"Showing up to check in this fast, huh."

"Hehe."

Hestia giggled.

She'd already spotted the baby dragon drop sitting on the table, and immediately understood the armor situation was completely handled — no need for her to worry about it at all.

Bringing it up too much herself might actually backfire.

The girl goddess waved a hand carelessly, humming with a bit of pride. "Rozz works so hard every day, so I've got to step it up too."

"Can't let him carry every single thing on his own, right?"

"Honestly, finding a member as considerate as Rozz — someone who thinks of his goddess's interests in so many things — really does come down to pure luck."

...

At her closest friend's musing.

Hephaestus recalled the message the Hero Cloud-Raising Plan had given her, and nodded slightly, finding nothing in that statement to argue with.

Honestly speaking, the biggest reason she'd chosen to invest so one-sidedly in Rozz was that, as a goddess, he represented something entirely new to her.

All her investment came down to curiosity, plain and simple.

Hephaestus had never expected anything in return. But compared to the rotten mindset of people who think whatever's given to them is simply owed —

Rozz's constant sense of gratitude, his desire to repay kindness — in an Orario that had long since gone rotten in that regard, it stood out as genuinely rare and precious.

Noticing her friend go quiet.

The girl goddess thought back on the sheer absurdity of Rozz's talent, wondering... whether she'd gone a bit overboard showing it off just now.

This really was flaunting it right to someone's face!

But when Hestia looked up, resolved to bring up Rozz less often around Hephaestus from now on, she noticed something subtle in her friend's expression instead.

Almost as if...

A faint, barely-there smile was tugging at the corner of her good friend's mouth?

A wave of gossip-hunger surged through Hestia at once — it was entirely possible that Rozz's brilliance had reminded Hephaestus of her own partner.

There was definitely something going on here...

And what really got under Hestia's skin was that her friend had clearly gone through some kind of emotional shift, yet had never once mentioned it to her.

Didn't she consider her a real friend, or what?

Not only that.

Hestia's mind drifted back to that day in the office, when she'd volunteered the confession that she wanted to marry Rozz someday.

Back then...

The reluctance Hephaestus had shown at the time really narrowed down the field considerably — the partner she had her heart set on...

Was a god.

Her closest friend, finding a partner.

Hestia was absolutely happy for her — it just felt a little... underwhelming, compared to the forbidden thrill of a goddess-and-member romance!

Looking up again.

The teasing was written all over her childlike face as she couldn't resist poking at it. "Hephaestus, what exactly are you smiling about?"

"I'm not."

"You obviously are, though!"

"I'm not," the red-haired goddess insisted again.

Catching the suspicious look in her friend's eyes, Hephaestus could only shrug helplessly. "I was just... thinking of something that made me happy."

"You understand, right?"

"Of course."

Hestia nodded earnestly.

After all, she supported her own marriage to Rozz — it would make no sense not to support her best friend chasing her own happiness too. "If you like someone, you've got to make the first move."

"As your friend, I'll back you unconditionally in going after the happiness you want!!"

Hephaestus: ?

—

[Hostess of Fertility]

The gray-haired girl in her leaf-green maid uniform was clearly distracted while taking stock of the kitchen's needed ingredients.

Well...

It had been a full two days since she'd last seen Rozz.

Even though the Hero Cloud-Raising Plan gave a minimal daily update on his physical condition and a rough sketch of his exploration progress...

Those updates...

Syr felt her blood boil every time she looked at them — either he was getting forcibly kissed by some Supporter, or getting up close and personal with that Hestia woman.

"Those shameless people, how dare they treat Rozz like that!"

Meanwhile, as for herself...

The Affection points she'd lost that day still hadn't recovered, let alone unlocked any of the Hero Cloud-Raising Plan's new features!

Was she simply not charming enough?

Honestly...

Syr was even starting to doubt herself.

Raising Rozz's Affection shouldn't be hard at all — just do the usual 'friend' things: make him lunch with her own hands, remind him to stay safe.

Or follow Hestia's example and get physically close to him.

The problem was, with absolutely no chance to run into Rozz all this time, even her dream of dragging him into an alley to squeeze him for gold had zero opportunity to happen...

"Maybe..."

"If nothing else works, I could send him a few more grimoires?"

Throw money at the problem!

That was the only simple, blunt method she could think of to raise Rozz's Affection and hopefully unlock the Cloud-Raising Plan's features sooner.

Only that way...

could she have more say in shaping Rozz's growth, turning the boy with that pure, hero-bright soul into the perfect partner she wanted.

The thought sent something almost feverish blooming behind the gray-haired girl's bright eyes. As for the boundary-crossing things Hestia and the others had been doing to Rozz lately...

well,

she'd just have to chalk it up as some kind of trial he had to endure!

"Also,"

"Next time I see Rozz, I should remind him to be the devoted, one-woman type — that's the kind of personality girls actually like..."

Syr murmured softly to herself.

Meanwhile, in the restaurant,

Ryuu Lion, patiently wiping down a table, clearly noticed the gray-haired girl's odd behavior and glanced over at Syr.

To be precise —

This state had persisted for two full days now, and in that time no Adventurer had tried to hit on her, so that clearly wasn't the reason.

So what was actually causing it?

The elf girl found herself picturing Rozz's somewhat unfamiliar face — she'd noticed that every time he showed up, Syr would break into a smile without even realizing it.

"If I recall correctly."

"Rozz hasn't come to eat here these past couple of days. If he showed up, would Syr's Mood improve?"

The thought settled it.

Deep down, Ryuu made her final decision — protecting her dearest friend's usual sweet smile was a responsibility she couldn't shirk.

"Rozz..."

The elf girl murmured softly, "Well then... I'll ask Mama Mia for the day off, and see if I can run into him down in the Dungeon."

[Author's Note: You all keep calling me a slacker, and well, the author's not exactly proving you wrong. After two days of acupuncture therapy, my tendonitis has eased up a bit, and now I can finally... barely manage to type with two fingers again. There's still one more chapter coming tonight at 12. Starting tomorrow, I'll be grinding through the hours to pay back the bounty-pledged bonus chapters from this stretch — I absolutely won't let you readers' monthly votes go to waste.]