However, Ottar was akin to a berserker, focusing on strength, whereas Scorpio was an assassin type, unable to match Ottar in direct combat.
Sure enough, after a brief stalemate, Scorpio was swept aside by Ottar's immense strength.
Scorpio deftly flipped in mid-air and landed ten meters away. Rubbing her wrist, she spoke with annoyance.
"I hate you muscle-brained idiots the most, no skill whatsoever."
Then she turned to look at Pisces.
"Your Highness, after watching the show for so long, isn't it time to make a move? I don't mind, but it wouldn't be good to delay the Goddess's grand plan."
Pisces sighed softly and then said to Ottar indifferently.
"If you don't want to get hurt, please give up resisting. You are no match for me. We must take this child away today."
"If you want to take him, you'll have to step over my corpse," Ottar responded in a low voice.
Without turning his head, he shouted to Bell.
"Kid, I'll hold them off with my life. Find a chance to escape!"
"I won't! How can I leave my teacher to face the enemies alone?"
Like a protagonist in a traditional anime, Bell vehemently opposed this idea, his expression full of emotion.
"Hahaha! Did I hear that right? A mere level 7 wants to hold us off!? You pig-man must have a pig's brain."
Scorpio laughed exaggeratedly as if hearing the biggest joke.
Ignoring her mockery, Ottar coldly pointed his greatsword at them.
"Your Highness, it looks like he doesn't take you seriously at all. You should quickly deal with this fool; Our Goddess can't wait," Scorpio said, gloatingly provoking.
Pisces paid no heed to Scorpio's provocations. However, in her heart, the Goddess's orders were supreme, and anyone who obstructed her was her enemy!
Only the Goddess was the most important existence to the indifferent Pisces.
Looking at Ottar, who was ready to fight to the death, Pisces's eyes gradually turned cold.
"As you wish."
Pisces gently raised her right hand, which was like white jade.
With her movement, the previously calm and gentle forest suddenly seemed to come alive, wildly thrashing about.
...
A minute later, Ottar lay on the ground, covered in blood.
The terrifying part was that there were no signs of a fierce battle at the scene.
This could only mean one thing: the so-called strongest on the surface, the only level 7 in Orario, was defeated by Pisces in a single move without any resistance.
"Tch~ What a terrifying woman. You're a complete nemesis to warrior types."
Scorpio complained to Pisces with a look of irritation, but there was a hint of fear in her eyes.
A foe who could stand against her was effortlessly defeated by her feared rival in one move. This was not a pleasant experience for the proud Scorpio.
Pisces, however, looked indifferently at the trembling Bell.
Bell's worldview was greatly shaken, seeing his invincible master defeated in an instant.
If it weren't for his master lying on the ground, Bell would have wanted to turn and run.
"Alright, kid, don't even think about escaping. If you take one step, I'll chop off this stupid pig's pig head."
Scorpio threatened Bell menacingly.
Bell's body shuddered violently, and the greatsword in his hand trembled as well.
As if unable to shed his innate nature, the iron-blooded warrior from moments ago vanished, leaving only a timid boy as weak as a rabbit.
Seeing Bell's timid side, Scorpio immediately looked at Pisces with a face full of doubt.
"Is this the person the Goddess is looking for? Could we have made a mistake?"
Pisces also cast a puzzled glance at Bell.
Could such a seemingly weak and ordinary boy be the key to the resurgence of the Olympian pantheon?
"If... if I go with you, will you spare my master?"
Bell gritted his teeth and suddenly spoke.
"Huh? Are you serious? You know..."
Scorpio immediately looked ready to mock him harshly, but Pisces answered first.
"Yes."
"Tsk tsk~ What a hassle! Why bother? Just knock him out and drag him away."
Saying this, Scorpio looked at Bell's body with ill intentions, as if deciding where to strike.
Bell couldn't help but shrink his neck.
"Pisces quickly intervened.
Our primary mission is to complete the task given by the Goddess. Don't do anything unnecessary."
Then Pisces said to Bell indifferently.
"You can give him some basic treatment and place him on a safe floor."
Bell couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He quickly took out some divine medicine and sprayed it on Ottar's wounds.
The divine medicine, one of Orario's top-tier elixirs, worked wonders.
Ottar's deep, bone-revealing wounds began to heal visibly.
In his unconscious state, Ottar frowned, seemingly about to wake up.
Pisces immediately raised her hand gently.
A colorful flower quickly grew from the ground and sprayed a purple gas at Ottar's face.
"What are you doing?! You're breaking your promise!"
Thinking that they had gone back on their word and poisoned his master, Bell shouted nervously.
"Don't be so tense. It's just to make him sleep a bit longer."
Pisces looked at him coldly, as if reprimanding him for making a fuss over nothing.
Bell carefully checked and confirmed that Ottar showed no signs of poisoning and was indeed just asleep. He finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Then, Bell carried the large Ottar on his back and, under Scorpio's mocking gaze, followed them forward.
...
A day later, Ottar woke up on a safe floor to find that Bell and those two powerful but mysterious women were nowhere to be seen.
He immediately returned to the surface as fast as he could.
Crash!
Glass shards flew everywhere, and the liquor splattered on the ground like crimson blood.
It seemed to symbolize the endless anger in the heart of the hostess.
"What audacity!"
The always elegant Goddess Freya was erupting like a volcano for the first time.
In the decades he had served her, Ottar had never seen this.
His towering body knelt humbly before the goddess.
"I deeply apologize, my Goddess. It was all due to my incompetence."
"Enough."
Freya waved her hand and then angrily sat down on the stone chair.
Seeing Ottar still kneeling, Freya's face showed a look of helplessness.
Ottar was good in every way, but sometimes he was too rigid.
"Stand up. As my most outstanding warrior, what kind of image is this? If you fail, just find a way to win next time!"
"Yes," Ottar obediently stood up.
"You just said that the ones who attacked you were an LV7 and an LV8 and that the LV8 was of Elven royalty?"
As Freya gradually calmed down, her cunning and depth returned with her reason.
Her eyes sparkled with a peculiar gleam as if she were contemplating the identity of this sudden formidable enemy and how to deal with them.
"Children of this level don't just appear out of nowhere. Let me think... It seems the only ones capable of this are the remnants of the Zeus and Hera Familias!"
Freya murmured to herself, suddenly seeming to think of something. Her eyes lit up, and she blurted out a pair of names that had long vanished from Orario.
As it turned out, the wisdom of Goddess Freya, who sat at the pinnacle of the Familia in the labyrinth city of Orario, was not to be underestimated.
Though her guess wasn't entirely accurate, it was close to the truth.
Freya's line of thinking was straightforward.
Ever since she and Loki had teamed up to drive the Zeus and Hera Familias out of Orario, the two of them, though not formally allied, had tacitly suppressed other rapidly growing Familias in secret.
In such circumstances, raising an LV7 was nothing short of a dream.
LV7 adventurers weren't as common as cabbage; it took both the adventurer's innate talent and an enormous amount of Familia resources to produce one, and even then, only under extremely fortunate conditions.
Just look at the Loki Familia: they have a handful of LV6s, but not a single LV7, showing how difficult it is to nurture them.
And let's not even mention an LV8.
Thinking about who could possibly achieve this, Freya could only think of them.
The Olympians were the first to descend to the mortal realm, the first to bestow blessings upon adventurers, and the first to reign over Orario—the Zeus and Hera Familias.
It wouldn't be surprising if they had some hidden means.
"In that case, we can't shoulder this burden alone."
Freya's eyes sparkled with a cunning light.
"Come, Ottar, accompany me to pay a visit to that sly fox."
Freya laughed sweetly, already imagining the expression on Loki's face when she brought her this "good" news.
...
Half an hour later, Freya, accompanied by Ottar, was seated in the reception hall of the Loki Familia.
Besides Loki herself, the three leaders of the Loki Familia were also present.
"So... you sly vixen, you've come to cause me trouble, haven't you!"
Seemingly in a bad mood, Loki's tone was quite rude.
"Ais-tan was taken by that bastard, and things are a mess here, and now you come to add to it!!!"
Suddenly, Loki placed both hands on her head and started scratching furiously, turning her neatly combed hair into a bird's nest.
"Well~ it's because we're such good friends, isn't it?" Freya smiled sweetly.
"Do you believe I'll bite you to death!"
Loki said, pretending to pounce.
"Oh my~ that's truly frightening~"
Freya said it was frightening, but her face showed a teasing expression.
After a bout of playful banter, Freya's smile gradually faded, replaced by an extremely serious expression.
"You understand the gravity of the situation, don't you, Loki?"
Loki's signature squint-eyed look returned, but today, instead of her usual comical impression, she resembled a sharp-edged sword, exuding the intimidating aura of an evil god.
"Of course I understand! It seems that damned old stallion's ghost won't leave us alone and wants to stir up trouble again. This time, we must thoroughly take down that old bastard Zeus!"
Loki practically ground her teeth as she spoke, each word dripping with animosity, as if there was an insurmountable hatred between them.
A stallion and a yuri-obsessed woman—making enemies was incredibly easy for them.
Back in the day, Loki had her eyes on a beautiful and highly talented young girl and was preparing to bring her into her Familia. However, Zeus discovered this and forcibly intercepted them, not only taking the girl first but also toying with her in various ways.
This betrayal was unforgivable!
But the worst was yet to come. When Loki, furious, went to confront him, Zeus, instead of feeling ashamed, tried to have his way with her as well. Loki barely escaped, considering this incident an enormous humiliation.
From that point on, Loki was dead set against Zeus.
Eventually, the Zeus and Hera Familias were nearly wiped out by the One-Eyed Black Dragon, severely weakening them. Seizing the opportunity, Loki was overjoyed and immediately teamed up with Freya and other main gods who were displeased with Zeus, forcibly expelling both the Zeus and Hera Familias from Orario.
As a result of this conflict, Loki and Freya became the biggest winners, and their Familias grew to become the largest factions in Orario.
With aligned interests, the two goddesses quickly reached a consensus.
They sent out elite members of their Familias to investigate, and if it was discovered that the individuals were remnants of the Zeus Familia or related to them, they would immediately be eliminated to prevent future trouble. If not, they would still be harshly punished to make it clear how foolish it was to challenge the authority of the current dual rulers of Orario.
Loki's side naturally included the three leaders, the werewolf, the Amazonian sisters, and a large number of LV4 members for support. Freya's side nearly emptied their ranks, with Ottar leading the charge, along with the Goddess's Chariot, the Four Executives, and many LV4 and LV5 members.
Surprisingly, this time the three leaders of the Loki Familia observed the negotiations between the two goddesses without any objections to the alliance and the direct attack on another Familia.
Though the Loki Familia now focused entirely on conquering the dungeon, they had once fought their way through countless Familias, stepping over others' corpses to ascend to the throne of Orario's Twin kings.
It was a dream to think that Loki's wisdom alone could defeat so many opponents bloodlessly and take over the void left by the Zeus and Hera Familias.
The tactics of the Loki Familia might have been relatively gentler compared to Freya's, but they still involved killing and bloodshed. Otherwise, why would others stand by and watch them ascend to the pinnacle of Orario, controlling vast resources?
This point was subtly revealed in the occasional recollections of the three leaders. When they were still rookies, there were several veteran members in the Familia. However, as time passed, the three rookies rose to leadership positions while the veterans disappeared.
These people couldn't all have died in the dungeon; a significant number must have been killed in wars with other Familias.
The period of greatest loss for the Loki Familia was undoubtedly the time before they expelled the Zeus and Hera Familias and ascended to the throne of Orario's Twin kings.
It can be said that Ais and the others could have such a peaceful environment for their growth thanks to the blood and sacrifices of their predecessors.
It was the iron and blood of the Loki Familia's veterans that built the Familia's current glory.
Now, if anyone threatened the legacy of their predecessors, the three leaders who had experienced that brutal period made it clear:
It was time to show the sharp fangs of the Loki Familia!