Chapter 466: Chapter 466: A Willful Question
"Freya-sama, welcome."
The one greeting her at the entrance wasn’t Finn, but Raul—the one usually stuck with heavy labor.
Tonight, Raul was also dressed in proper formalwear. After all, the banquet was partly for him too. Advancing from Lv.4 to Lv.5 was no small feat and certainly worth celebrating.
Still riding that excitement, Raul subtly observed the arriving members of Freya Familia.
Most of them were already here. A quick glance was enough to confirm that nearly all of Freya’s most prominent children had shown up.
But Raul knew they definitely weren’t here just for the banquet.
He deliberately avoided looking at Freya herself.
Raul was well aware of Freya-sama’s overwhelming charm. Just a single glance might leave him completely entranced.
That reaction, however, made Freya chuckle softly.
"You’re really too scared to look at me?"
The moment those words left her lips, Raul felt several sharp glares fall upon him all at once. The bloodlust in their eyes nearly made him jump out of his skin.
"N-No! You misunderstood!"
There was no way he’d dare admit it. Otherwise, Freya-sama’s followers would eat him alive. Forcing himself to remain calm, Raul braced himself and cast a glance in her direction.
"...Holy crap."
The instant he saw her, the words slipped out before he could stop them. Only after speaking did Raul realize how inappropriate it was, and he quickly bowed his head in apology.
"I’m very sorry, Freya-sama. I didn’t mean any offense."
Freya, of course, understood he hadn’t intended to insult her. In fact, even her own children had been momentarily stunned by her appearance tonight.
"It’s fine. Don’t worry about it."
She simply smiled and brushed the moment aside.
"Is everyone else here?"
Raul momentarily forgot how to breathe upon seeing that smile, but the stabbing gazes quickly brought him back to his senses. Now he really didn’t dare look at Freya again—he knew he couldn’t trust himself not to lose composure.
Only when he turned away did his wildly pounding heart begin to settle.
"Hermes-sama, Ganesha-sama, and Hephaestus-sama have already arrived."
It wasn’t surprising that Hestia hadn’t shown up yet. Freya expected as much—there was no way that child would be late for no reason.
She didn’t seem to mind. A calm smile played on her lips. Hestia had run out of places to hide. Their meeting tonight was inevitable.
"Well then, I’ll head inside. You’re not going to stop me, are you?"
"N-Not at all."
Seeing Raul bowing his head in panic, Freya smiled again and decided to spare him further teasing.
With her children in tow, she stepped into Twilight Manor.
The banquet hadn’t officially begun yet, but the manor was already filled with guests.
Freya’s eyes swept across the courtyard.
’Hephaestus, Ganesha, and Hermes’ children are all present.’
After scanning the crowd, her gaze landed on one particular person—and the corners of her mouth curved upward.
So that child is here too?
With a soft smile, Freya began walking in that direction.
The moment she saw Freya approaching, Hestia’s expression turned sour.
The last person she wanted to deal with right now was Freya.
Because only this woman knew Bell’s secret—and she’d always kept her sights locked on him.
"Freya..."
Hestia had never been good at dealing with Freya. Just like now, she really didn’t want to come face-to-face with her.
But once she pulled herself out of her aversion, Hestia finally noticed that Freya’s appearance tonight was completely different from what she usually wore at Denatus.
This change in attire made Freya feel like a whole different person.
"Long time no see, Hestia."
"Mm..."
Freya smiled graciously at Hestia, who was clearly on guard, showing not the slightest concern for her wary attitude.
After greeting Hestia, her eyes shifted to the child standing behind her.
"This should be our first proper meeting."
Beneath the hood, a faint look of resignation crossed Bell’s face. Honestly, not meeting now would’ve been much better. That way, he could’ve stayed hidden a little longer.
"Nice to meet you, Freya-sama."
Even under the hood’s shadow, Freya could still catch the subtle helplessness on Bell’s face, which immediately lightened her previously gloomy mood brought on by her lack of progress.
"You’re not planning to avoid me again this time, are you?"
"What are you implying, Freya-sama? As an adventurer, I simply follow a cautious approach in all things. I wasn’t intentionally avoiding you."
Bell’s expression returned to normal, as if this were just another routine conversation, and he replied bluntly with the truth.
People of Genkai couldn’t lie to gods. Every god knew that.
But Freya didn’t let it slide. Instead, she pushed further.
"Really? You’re not like the other children of Genkai. Gods can see through their lies. But your lies—they can’t see through at all."
"I’m not special, Freya-sama. I’m just being honest."
"And do you really think I believe that?"
Freya didn’t buy a single word of it. That so-called "truth" was absolutely a lie. Even if she couldn’t read this child’s heart or judge the truth of his words, she was still absolutely certain.
"Lying to a god is a serious offense. But I’m generous—I’ll overlook your little lie."
Bell let out a helpless sigh, replying with a trace of exasperation.
"Freya-sama, while I’m grateful for your generosity, I really haven’t lied."
Still denying it? Freya began to feel a bit of a headache. The fact that this child’s heart couldn’t be read by gods—that alone was his greatest shield.
But gods had their own privileges too.
And here, Freya decided to wield her divine caprice.
"Then let’s assume you lied. Now, you’ll have to answer a question of mine."
"Of course, you could also consider it the whim of a god."
’That’s seriously capricious.’ Bell couldn’t help but grumble internally.
Still, for Freya to even use the word "whim" showed just how determined she was—though in a slightly more restrained way than usual.
"In that case, please go ahead, Freya-sama."
Freya smiled faintly.
"You’ve been avoiding me all this time... is it because you see me as a fallen woman?"