You Are My Child Now

Whether by coincidence or not, this world, like the original world, was currently in the midst of summer.

The bustle of the great city added another spark to the summer heat, making it seem a little hotter here than in the original world.

Walking down the crowded street, where vendors all around him constantly called out to attract customers, Riezel strolled leisurely like a traveler, brushing past one native after another.

"It seems language barriers don't exist for me."

Listening to the sounds continuously coming from all around him and looking at the signs hanging outside the shops and stalls, Riezel confirmed this.

Whether it was the original world or this world, the languages and writing systems they used differed from what Riezel had learned in his previous life.

Yet Riezel could naturally understand the language of people from this New World and read its writing, leaving him marveling over it for quite a while.

The original world was one thing. He had inherited the original owner's memories, so it was understandable that he could understand the language and read the writing.

But being able to do the same in this world made one wonder whether there was some reason behind it.

"Is this the Dimensional Cube's influence?"

That was the only possibility Riezel could think of.

The Dimensional Cube could freely convert powers between different worlds. Thinking about it carefully, having it allow its owner to master the languages of different worlds did not seem particularly difficult.

Thanks to that, after taking a brief look around and speaking with several natives, Riezel roughly figured out where he currently was.

"Just as expected, this is Labyrinth City Orario."

The Labyrinth City, Orario.

This was the original work's main stage, as well as a city of exceptionally special and important status.

It had been built above an underground labyrinth, suppressing the maze known as the "Dungeon" beneath it. Like a fortress, like a lid, it prevented the monsters living inside from leaving.

Because of the Dungeon and the monsters, countless races seeking adventure and the unknown gathered here, turning this Labyrinth City into the most prosperous city-state on the surface.

Thus, it was regarded as the center of the world. Whether in adventure, trade, entertainment, or conflict, it was considered the best in the world, drawing numerous powerful people, merchants, and gods.

"This works out perfectly."

Riezel nodded.

"With the Dungeon here and so many monsters to hunt, once I receive Falna, I'll be able to grow stronger as quickly as possible."

What was more, this was the original work's main stage. Many familiar people, events, and things were here, allowing Riezel, who knew the plot well, to gain the advantage of foresight and receive both tangible and intangible help.

"My top priority right now should be finding a familia to join."

Riezel fell into thought.

Familias were organizations and family factions established by gods for their own sake.

The gods bestowed upon mortals the power of "Falna," allowing them to transcend the ordinary and possess abilities far beyond those of normal people.

Those who received Falna would join the familia established by the other party as "the children of the gods," following the familia's policies and providing the strength and resources needed to keep both the familia and its god operating and surviving.

Strictly speaking, the two sides shared a mutually beneficial, interdependent relationship.

Of course, human factions varied in quality and strength, and the families of gods were no exception.

Though it made no fundamental difference which god granted the Falna, differences in management philosophies and operating methods meant that each familia differed in strength, influence, and role.

Some familias had only recently been established or had already fallen into decline. Such familias were inevitably rather weak.

Some familias developed smoothly and had many members. Such familias were much stronger, gathering all kinds of powerful people and resources.

There were also familias founded mainly for business. Their members tended to lack Combat power, while some familias even existed and operated outside Orario directly in the form of nations. It was incredibly fantastical.

And those were merely the most basic differences.

If one truly looked into it, one would also have to consider the personality of the god who founded the familia, the environment within the familia, and whether there were harmful influences of any kind.

If he carelessly joined a familia whose god treated it as a money-making machine, or treated the children who joined as entertainment, then he could basically declare himself finished.

After all, the gods of this world had willingly sealed their divine power and descended to the lower world in order to play among mortals and entertain themselves. Among them were countless gods who delighted in others' misery and had twisted tastes.

Which familia he should join required serious thought and a cautious choice.

"If I remember correctly, the strongest familias in Labyrinth City Orario seem to be the Loki Familia, the Freya Familia, and the Ganesha Familia?"

The prefix of a familia referred to the god who had founded it.

For example, the Loki Familia had been founded by the extremely famous trickster god from Norse mythology—"Loki."

As Riezel recalled the long-unseen original work, he continued strolling down the street.

As he walked, Riezel suddenly realized that he had arrived somewhere that seemed familiar.

Beside a road outside the bustling main street stood a long, massive residence, towering far above the surrounding buildings.

Inside the residence, several high towers overlapped one another, resembling a mountain of swords. A flag stood atop the tallest Central Tower, fluttering in the wind.

A clown was painted on the flag, as though it were flashing a comical grin at the people below, making it especially eye-catching.

The vaguely familiar building and flag made Riezel stop.

"The Loki Familia?"

That clown flag was the symbol of the Loki Familia, hailed as one of Orario's Twin Kings.

Who would have thought that the familia that had just appeared in his memories would become one whose headquarters he happened to walk right up to?

Was this fate?

As the sun set in the west, Orario too was enveloped in the glow of sunset.

People who had finished a day's work and adventurers returning from the Dungeon walked through the streets with slightly weary yet involuntarily relaxed expressions, gradually giving the Labyrinth City its nighttime appearance.

"Hm hm hm~~~"

On a street corner bathed in the sunset's glow, a woman with crimson hair casually tied behind her head walked while humming a tune. Her eyes were narrowed into slits, and although she possessed beautiful features, she gave off a sloppy, disreputable, and unserious air. Her clothing was equally casual.

But after humming for a while, she lost interest.

"Sigh, so boring. I wandered around all day and still couldn't find anything fun."

She muttered in an oddly down-to-earth tone.

"The kids are all out on an expedition. Only a small group stayed behind to guard the house, and every last one of them said they had work and refused to come out and play with me."

"That would be one thing, but not only did I find nothing fun after coming out on my own, those people who are usually bored out of their minds and yell about holding a feast every day seem to have taken the wrong medicine lately. Not one of them showed up today."

"Boring. It's really boring."

"Ahhh, I want to snuggle with cute girls and be lovey-dovey with Ais-tan."

As she walked with her feet turned outward and sighed repeatedly, the woman said things that were hard to praise, causing the surrounding pedestrians to instinctively keep their distance.

Yet she seemed completely unaware of it and continued sighing.

"I should just go home and drink. Come to think of it, everyone should be back soon. I'll just endure for a few more days."

With that, the woman turned onto the road outside the bustling main street and arrived at the sword-mountain-like residence—"Twilight Manor."

Atop the tallest tower standing among the other towers, the flag bearing the image of a clown continued swaying in the wind.

"Hm?"

The unserious woman suddenly stopped.

There was only one reason.

Someone was standing beside the residence's Great Gate.

"A human?"

The woman recognized his race, and her originally narrowed eyes opened slightly.

A glimmer that no mortal should possess flashed within them.

Especially when she saw that he had clearly noticed her as well, yet remained standing beside her family's Great Gate, openly meeting her gaze without the slightest tremor in his posture, her interest was immediately piqued.

"I see. You were waiting here specifically for me."

The woman almost instantly saw through his plan and chuckled.

That smile bore an inexplicable resemblance to the comical grin of the clown on the flag hanging atop Twilight Manor.

"Interesting."

Once that feeling arose in her heart, there was no question of what she would do next.

Wanting to approach anything interesting was a god's nature.

Tired of life in Heaven, they willingly sealed their divine power and descended to the lower world in pursuit of entertainment. They were transcendent beings who did as they pleased—"gods."

The goddess here fully displayed that trait as she walked straight toward the human boy.

"Yo, kid. What are you doing here all by yourself?"

The Norse goddess Loki greeted the traveler who had only arrived in this world today in a careless tone at the entrance to her own headquarters.

In response, the human boy merely revealed a calm, steady smile.

"I have nowhere to go."

That was what the boy said.

Though it was hardly something glorious, he described what others might see as an unfortunate situation with utter calmness.

But the goddess knew that he was not lying.

Though they had sealed their divine power, gods had lived for hundreds of millions of years. Their insight and experience were enough to let them See Through many things that lower-world people believed to be profound.

For that reason, it was almost impossible for the children of the lower world to hide anything before a god.

Therefore—

"You want me to take you in?"

The comical smile on the goddess's face seemed to grow broader and broader.

"Yes."

The boy nodded frankly.

"Alright!" The goddess did not hesitate in the slightest. Laughing merrily, she said with delight, "From today onward, you are my child!"

Was this merely a god's whim, or was there some deeper meaning behind it?

No one knew.

Only one thing was certain.

Riezel had successfully joined the Loki Familia.

All within those few simple exchanges.

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