Questioning a God! Taking the Little Hedgehog Home! The Goddess of Beauty's Thoughts?

The moonlight was hazy, and the empty streets lay silent.

Kashu arrived before a spire-shaped building and shoved the doors open.

Creak—!

The poorly maintained doors let out a teeth-grinding squeal, shattering the night's silence.

A bleary-eyed guard barely propped himself up and complained irritably.

"Who is it?! Coming here in the middle of the night? Everything's sold out today! If you want a drink, come back tomorrow!"

Kashu shot him a cold glance and pointed casually.

In an instant, a pitch-black void opened beneath the man's feet, its terrifying suction locking him firmly in place.

Kashu continued inside with steady strides. Anyone who showed their face along the way received an enthusiastic welcome from his simulated black holes.

Before long, Kashu arrived at the hall used by the Soma Familia for meetings.

A rich, faint scent of wine hung in the air. Adventurers sprawled everywhere, sitting or lying about with intoxicated expressions.

They were utterly unaware of the commotion outside, as though they had entered another paradise.

Among this crowd enslaved by divine wine, the man with gold-rimmed glasses standing in the center was exceptionally sober.

Yet that very sobriety proved that he was more despicable than those adventurers who had passively fallen into depravity.

As the only person who had noticed Kashu's arrival, the man's face darkened slightly as he asked in a low voice.

"Who are you? How did you get in here?"

Kashu looked him over from head to toe without slowing his steps.

"Zanis Lustra? Captain of the Soma Familia?"

Hearing Kashu accurately call his name, Zanis's expression grew even stranger. His hand unconsciously moved toward the sword at his waist as he said warily, "Who exactly are you? If you don't state your business, then I won't be so poli—"

Kashu stomped through the floor. His body shot forward like lightning, and a sharp, wind-tearing front kick slammed into Zanis's chest.

The overwhelming impact sent Zanis crashing through clutter before he slammed hard against the wall.

The sudden blow instantly curled Zanis into a shrimp. His face twisted in agony as he struggled to lift his head and roar, "You... do you know what you're doing?! Private fights... between Familias will be severely punished by the Guild!"

Kashu sneered, his eyes brimming with mockery.

"What, does the Soma Familia give everyone the same training in begging for mercy?"

"If you can win, you rob people. If you can't, you drag out the Guild to threaten them?"

He strolled over to Zanis, seized him tightly by the throat, and lifted him into the air.

"You think the rules are there to restrain me? Wrong. The rules are what protect trash like you."

Zanis dangled in midair, his breathing growing increasingly difficult. His face turned purple, and the strength drained from his struggling hands as he neared suffocation.

Seeing this, Kashu released him. Then he kicked the "drowsy" Zanis lying on the floor and ordered, "Lead the way. I want to see Soma!"

At the very top of the spire was an exceptionally spacious private room.

Kashu entered while dragging the half-dead Zanis. The first thing he saw was a massive display case wide enough for ten people to stand shoulder to shoulder.

Inside were all kinds of plant seedlings, along with raw wine awaiting a second round of purification.

Soma, dressed in a loose robe, was busy at a long table beside the display case.

Hearing the noise, the god of wine glanced toward the door.

Soma's slightly messy, long bangs obscured his face, but Kashu could still keenly sense the indifference and despondency in his gaze.

Clearly, even seeing Kashu drag in the captain of the Soma Familia failed to stir the god in the slightest.

Kashu frowned deeply and demanded bluntly, "Tell me, do you really count as a god?"

At those words, Soma's hands paused slightly as he mixed the wine. Then they resumed their usual motions as he continued focusing on his brewing.

Kashu casually threw Zanis aside, leaving him to cling to life in the corner.

Then he strode to the long table and snatched the extraction vessel from Soma's hands.

That excessive action finally provoked a reaction from the indifferent god of wine. Soma's voice carried a trace of suppressed anger.

"Give it back, rude human."

Kashu shook the extraction vessel wildly, turning the originally clear, crystalline liquid murky. He smiled mockingly.

"You think I'm rude? From where I'm standing, you're utterly incompetent and not worth respecting at all."

"As the god of wine, you possess extraordinary brewing skills, yet you complain that your children become hopelessly addicted to it?"

Kashu hurled the extraction vessel at Soma's feet. Glass shattered, and wine splashed everywhere.

He angrily pointed straight at the utterly inactive god and shouted, "Is it shameful that mortals can't resist the temptation of divine wine?"

"Then can I say that you use divine wine to toy with people's hearts, then put on this damn act of being utterly disappointed in humanity afterward?!"

After hearing Kashu's accusations, Soma—who had always been indifferent to everything outside brewing—slowly raised his head. A rare trace of sadness entered his voice.

"The children only ever easily succumb to the temptation of divine wine. I have nothing to say to you."

Kashu narrowed his eyes, concealing a cold gleam within them.

He turned to look at the sealed jars of wine nearby and asked, "These are all wines you brewed, right?"

Without waiting for Soma's reply, Kashu picked up a jar and tore off its seal.

At once, a rich, intoxicating aroma flooded the room. Even Zanis, half-dead on the floor, could not help twitching his nose.

Kashu turned back to the expressionless Soma and smiled proudly.

"Compared to gods, human will may not be steadfast enough. Humans make mistakes and may even fall so far they cannot rise again. But—"

"Gods who never extend a hand to help the good have no right to judge humanity's evil!"

With that, Kashu tilted his head back and began drinking the divine wine.

Soma stood there blankly, watching Kashu drain jar after jar of divine wine while his eyes remained clear and bright. For a moment, he did not know what to do.

The next morning.

Babel Tower Plaza was bustling with activity, filled with adventurers shouting to one another and exchanging banter.

Lily stood beside an artificial fountain with a huge backpack on her back, quietly waiting.

Every so often, she raised her head to look around, only to abruptly lower it again and silently curse herself for being an idiot.

Why was she obediently waiting here?

Hadn't she always hated adventurers?

Just because someone treated her a little better, was she going to wag her tail like some puppy, desperate for help?

When had she become this naive?

"...I've completely lost my mind."

"Why are you picking a fight with yourself so early in the morning?"

The sudden voice made Lily's entire body jolt. She quickly turned toward it and saw Kashu, wearing that easy smile.

Kashu walked over to Lily, grabbed her hand without explanation, and headed toward the Guild hall.

"Come with me. There's something you need to decide for yourself."

"What? Where is Lord Kashu taking Lily?"

The small Lily stumbled under Kashu's firm pull and could only follow closely behind him until they reached a room specially reserved by the Guild for negotiations.

Inside, the taciturn Soma sat in one corner of a sofa. Across from him was Loki, shamelessly trying to buy some divine wine on credit.

Seeing this strange scene, clever Lily's expression changed drastically. She looked up at Kashu in disbelief, seeming to realize something.

Kashu stepped forward and stood between Loki and Soma. Spreading his hands, he explained, "Simply put, I can pay the cost of your conversion and transfer you from the Soma Familia to the Loki Familia. What do you think?"

"...Why?"

Lily looked lost. She truly could not understand why Kashu was willing to help her, or why he had even arranged everything for her in secret.

A faint smile appeared on Kashu's lips as he answered casually, "You're not the only one who has suffered because of your birth. I didn't have a choice before. Now, you do."

After hearing that, Lily took a deep breath, doing her best to suppress the tears welling in her eyes. Then she nodded firmly.

Not long afterward, in a lavish suite at the top of Babel Tower.

Freya had shed her usual calm elegance. Her stunningly beautiful face was creased with tightly furrowed brows, revealing an anxious, restless charm of a different kind.

On the low table behind her lay the latest intelligence report that her Familia members had just compiled.

[Kashu Animusphere, formerly a Level 4 adventurer of the Thor Familia, converted to the Loki Familia two weeks ago.]

[He once explored the Deep Levels alone for six days. It is estimated that his status is already nearing the upper limit of Level 4.]

[Last night, he went alone to the Soma Familia's headquarters. This morning, he invited Loki and Soma to discuss matters at the Guild, apparently for a member's conversion.]

Standing before the floor-to-ceiling window, Freya's gaze tightly followed the fading starlight. She cupped her cheeks in both hands and smiled dreamily.

"She doesn't care who that child clashes with... so does that mean I can too...?"

As she spoke, the goddess of beauty unconsciously pressed her long, voluptuous legs together, her breathing growing heavier and heavier.