Leo was cracking her knuckles while showing a provocatively challenging expression to everyone. Cancer, on the other hand, seemed to be affectionately draping her arm around the neck of a young girl, but the poisoned curved blade in her hand was never far from the girl's vital points, clearly indicating the girl was being coerced.
This girl was none other than the coalition's target, or rather, the more important target in the hearts of both the Freya Familia and Ryou: Syr.
The coalition had not anticipated Athena to play such a card at the end.
This sequence of interlocking plans and strategies had completely surpassed everyone's imagination.
First, using the principle of hiding in plain sight, the hostage was secretly brought back to Orario and traps were set in the ruins. Then, the two hostages were separated and imprisoned.
Every time the coalition thought they were about to succeed, this goddess would present them with another surprise.
Can we win against such an opponent? Many Familia members couldn't help but have this thought cross their minds.
Aside from that arrogant and brainless remark earlier, Athena was fully displaying her prowess in strategizing and controlling the situation.
No, perhaps that earlier remark was her true nature. She genuinely did not regard them as significant, which is why she issued commands so condescendingly.
"Although it pains me to use a pure and beautiful girl as a hostage, you are simply too presumptuous."
Athena's face showed a confident expression of victory.
"Alright, you should obediently retreat now. And leave Bell Cranel behind. He is an important piece. Once the conversion ceremony is completed and he joins our pantheon, I will naturally release her unharmed."
Of course, before releasing her, I will train her into a loyal dog.
Athena added this silently in her mind.
Hearing her threat, the coalition members were immediately thrown into turmoil.
The members of the Loki Familia instinctively looked towards Finn. After all, the Loki Familia had no direct conflict with Athena Familia; their involvement this time was more to follow the alliance agreement between the two major Familias.
In essence, the Loki Familia was in a supporting role.
Finn made a gesture to calm down and then signaled to Ottar with his eyes, indicating for him to make the decision.
Ottar's face was equally grim at this moment.
However, he didn't dare to act rashly.
As Freya's loyal servant, the goddess's alter ego was also his half-master, and he absolutely could not allow her to be harmed.
But abandoning the rescue would make it impossible for him to face the goddess.
For a moment, this man, as resolute as steel, showed a look of hesitation.
"Pfft~ Hahaha!"
At this moment, Ryou suddenly burst into wild laughter.
"What are you laughing at?"
The proud and haughty goddess, who was enjoying Ottar's conflicted expression, filled with the pleasure of controlling others, was suddenly interrupted by his laughter, causing her mood to sour, and she showed a look of annoyance.
"As expected of the Goddess of Wisdom, this move is indeed quite clever."
Ryou sincerely praised.
Athena immediately raised her head slightly, like a proud swan.
"Your wisdom is indeed quite impressive among mortals."
The goddess's implication was clear—unfortunately, as a mere mortal, you are still no match for me, a goddess.
"To achieve victory, making just one preparation isn't enough. The more preparations you make, the higher your chances of success."
Perhaps feeling confident in her victory, Athena spoke with great satisfaction, educating him as if he were a student.
Unexpectedly, Ryou nodded in agreement.
"You are right. So, to secure this victory, I also made more than one preparation."
Hearing his words, Athena immediately sensed something was wrong, but before she could react...
Ryou's eyes suddenly glowed with a golden light, and he unleashed a Brahmastra at a certain figure.
Sizzle!
The sound of burning flesh filled the air as the intense solar beam pierced through the figure's chest.
The force lifted the body into the air. Everything seemed like a slow-motion scene, and it wasn't until the body crashed heavily to the ground that time resumed its normal pace.
Everyone was stunned, including Leo and Cancer, who were holding Syr hostage.
Because the person Ryou attacked was none other than Bell Cranel, one of the hostages.
Bell's face showed a look of bewilderment, but soon he lost all signs of life.
Did the protagonist just die like that!?
"You!"
Athena's smile froze, and her calm demeanor vanished without a trace.
Her pale face turned crimson with rage, displaying the shame and anger of being toyed with.
The goddess, losing her composure, pointed at Syr and screamed.
"Kill her!"
Cancer, snapping back to reality, showed a vicious expression.
"I'm sorry, young lady!"
With that, she swung her ten curved blades toward Syr.
Unfortunately, she was a step too slow.
While everyone was shocked by Bell's death, Ryou had already sent a mental command to a backup he had arranged beforehand.
Just as Syr was about to be sliced into pieces by the ten curved blades, twelve golden beams of light descended from the sky, precisely hitting all the blades in Cancer's hands, as well as the chests of both Cancer and Leo.
Under the scorching light of Venus, the blades melted instantly, and Cancer and Leo were pierced through, their bodies helplessly thrown back.
Time rewound a few seconds.
High in the sky, Ishtar was idly watching the oddly shaped clouds.
Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and a charming smile appeared on her lips.
"Finally, it's time to get to work."
As she spoke, Ishtar leaped down from Maanna, floating in the air, and mimicked a gun with her fingers, pointing at the ground.
With her motion, the heavenly bow seemed to have an invisible hand slowly drawing its string.
Her pupils radiated golden divine light, her gaze piercing through the thick clouds and landing clearly on Cancer, who was holding Syr.
"Bang!"
Ishtar softly mimicked the sound of a gunshot.
The heavenly bow instantly shot out twelve beams infused with Venus energy, descending from the sky.
In less than 0.1 seconds, they destroyed Cancer's weapons and severely injured both Cancer and Leo.
Everything happened in an instant.
In the blink of an eye, the situation reversed completely.
Seemingly unable to accept the sudden shift from victor to vanquished, the goddess Athena showed a rare expression of panic.
"This is impossible. How could this be? I... Did I lose? Lost to a human!?"
After sending Jeanne to protect Syr, Ryou leisurely said, "See, I made several preparations too."
His calm tone sounded like an immense insult in the goddess's ears. She suddenly raised her head and stared intently at him, especially his face, as if she wanted to engrave it deeply into her memory.
"Nguen Ryou! Very well, I will remember you!"
"Spare me! It wouldn't be good if people misunderstood and thought you fell in love with me. I already have a partner, and to be honest, you're not my type."
Ryou deliberately put on a defensive look.
'What kind of expression is that?!?'
Athena suddenly felt an urge to hit someone.
Her teeth clenched tightly together, making a grinding sound.
Suppressing the volcano-like anger in her heart, Athena shouted.
"Let's go!"
"Who allowed you to leave? Everything of the defeated, including yourselves, is our spoils of war. Everyone, isn't that right?"
Ryou asked loudly, directing his question to the coalition adventurers.
"Yes!"
"You hurt many of our comrades and think you can just leave? No way!"
"Confiscate all the property of their familia and expel that goddess!"
"Sell the female adventurers of their familia to the Pleasure District!"
The adventurers of the Loki Familia were a bit more restrained, but the members of the Freya Familia, who were ruled solely by the goddess's charm and Ottar's strength, immediately came up with various vicious suggestions.
Hearing these filthy remarks, Athena trembled with anger, almost losing her composure. She took a deep breath, forcing down her fury. Her stunning face once again radiated with dazzling brilliance, causing everyone to pause.
Seeing the goddess regain her confidence, Ryou's internal alarms went off.
Athena spoke in a proud tone.
"I originally set up this safeguard just in case, but I truly need to use it."
Then Athena turned her gaze to Ryou, her expression extremely serious, clearly viewing him as an equal opponent.
"To push me to this extent, as a mortal, you have something to be proud of. But I'm sorry, today I will walk out of here unharmed. Do you believe it?"
The goddess's tone was calm but filled with absolute confidence.
Although Ryou's vigilance was at its peak, he showed a challenging expression, ready to retort.
At that moment, the sound of synchronized footsteps echoed.
A troop of about two hundred, wearing red and black armor, slowly marched from the street corner.
Seeing the emblem on this strange unit's armor, Ryou's eyes narrowed slightly, and his brow furrowed.
Such a coincidental timing, yet not his arranged backup; this was Athena's reinforcements.
This goddess truly was troublesome.
Ryou had managed to scheme against her this time by exploiting his hidden advantage.
He was sure there wouldn't be such a good opportunity again. The other side had marked him as a significant threat.
Though she had the flaw of being overly arrogant, once she regarded him as a true enemy...
It was like comparing a half-hearted Gilgamesh to a fully serious Gilgamesh; the combat power would multiply.
Being considered a true enemy by this goddess, he couldn't decide if he should feel honored or unfortunate.
While Ryou was pondering, the unit had already approached the battlefield.
The coalition adventurers began to stir.
"Hey! That looks like the Guild's Guard, doesn't it?"
An adventurer recognized the insignia of the troop and couldn't help but call out.
Hearing this shout, Ryou instantly understood. He glanced at Athena, and sure enough, as the troop approached, the expression on the goddess's face gradually relaxed.
Similarly, the few members of the Zodiac Twelve guarding her also showed relieved expressions.
Ryou fully extended his perception and immediately sensed the extraordinary nature of this troop.
The entire troop's uniformity could be attributed to rigorous training, but the thick scent of blood surrounding them was unmistakably genuine.
This was a battle-hardened elite force.
According to his assessment, the average level of this troop was at least LV4 or higher.
Now it made sense; this was the true reason the Guild remained unshakable and could suppress all unrest in Orario.
Ryou had been curious about how the Guild maintained its lucrative monopoly on magic stone transactions—it was not just due to reputation.
Adventurers are powerful individuals, each with their pride. To completely subdue these unruly characters, absolute strength was necessary.
Ryou had his suspicions while watching the anime, and this sudden appearance of the Guard confirmed his guess.
Ouranos, that old fox, had truly set up an extensive plan.
Ryou couldn't help but secretly smirk coldly.
At this moment, a woman in a formal business suit, with her blonde hair tied back, exuding the aura of a strong, urban woman, stepped out from the troop. In a nearly commanding tone, she loudly said,
"Both sides, cease fighting immediately!"
This woman's sudden and forceful attitude, coupled with the battle-hardened elite behind her, caused the coalition adventurers to halt their actions.
"Hey, isn't that the Guild's Chief Administrator, Ms. Kelly?'"
An adventurer recognized the woman and couldn't help but call out.
"No way! Kelly, the Iron Lady of the Guild? Wasn't she assigned by Ouranos to handle affairs outside Orario because of her overly tough style?"
The adventurer beside him exclaimed in surprise.
With Ryou's keen hearing, he caught every word. It seemed his actions had changed the world of DanMachi so much that even hidden quests had emerged.
This was getting interesting.
Ouranos hadn't sent a smooth leader but instead dispatched this woman known for her tough stance.
It was clear that Ouranos had made his position known, obviously siding with the Olympian pantheon behind Athena.
It seemed this goddess was extremely important to them—important enough to break the Guild's neutrality and risk alerting the gods to protect her.
The Guild's blatant favoritism caused the two major familias to be wary.
Especially the Loki Familia. After Kelly spoke, Finn hesitated slightly before leading his familia members to step aside.
Standing beside Ryou, Ais watched this scene, her indifferent golden eyes revealing a hint of disappointment.
This time, however, the Freya Familia stood by Ryou's side.
After all, not only had the Athena Familia kidnapped important members of their familia, but they had also abducted the goddess's alter ego.
Publicly, this act of aggression towards the Freya Familia. Privately, it was an unforgivable offense against their most beloved goddess.
With the other side's clear stance, Ryou wouldn't be polite either. He loudly ordered right in front of Kelly.
"Except Athena, shoot all the others!"