"Well then, can you tell us where those guys are hiding now? Don't tell me, you sly fox, that you haven't even found that out."
Loki squinted her eyes, but in reality, she was staring intently at the goddess Freya's face as she asked.
"Of course, although the two ruffians who kidnapped my child are very high-level and hid themselves very cleverly, they ultimately exposed a flaw by bringing another person along. According to my child's reconnaissance, their destination should be the Kingdom of Rakia!"
Freya's expression was full of confidence, clearly having great faith in her familia's capabilities.
"Really!? If I remember correctly, the one controlling that kingdom from behind the scenes is none other than Ares, one of Zeus's sons!"
"I am very certain. Based on my child's investigation, although the two ruffians deliberately took a detour and left many false trails, they inadvertently exposed their real destination."
"Oh~ the evidence is conclusive. It looks like we can confirm that this was done by those guys from Olympus."
Dangerous glints shone in Loki's squinted eyes, like a hibernating viper being disturbed, filled with aggression.
"Based on their route, if we act quickly enough, we should be able to intercept them at the Shreme Old Castle Ruins!"
The usual graceful and reserved smile on Goddess Freya's face was replaced with an expression as cold and sharp as an ice-capped mountain.
"Additionally, I think the two of us should stay together and gather our remaining children to defend together. This way, we can prevent the other side from launching a surprise attack on our base while we are weakened."
Loki then proposed a more secure plan.
"Then let's choose my stronghold in the Tower of Babel. Once we seal the entrance, it will be an impregnable fortress. Even the guys from Olympus wouldn't dare make trouble in the Tower of Babel unless they want to become enemies of all the gods."
Freya immediately agreed and added to the plan.
Loki stroked his chin, pondering the pros and cons.
"Indeed, it would be easier to defend if we stay there. My place, though a castle, would be easier to breach without my highest-level children."
After thinking for a while, Loki agreed with Freya's suggestion.
This is a reflection of the harsh reality of this world.
High-level, powerful adventurers can single-handedly take on a thousand enemies. Each level represents a qualitative change for an adventurer.
Ares controls the Kingdom of Rakia and has sent tens of thousands of troops to attack Orario multiple times, only to be easily repelled by adventurers each time. The reason lies here.
The highest level among his troops is only LV3, with most being LV2 or even LV1, levels that are plentiful in Orario.
Orario doesn't even need to mobilize its army; just gathering a large number of LV4 and LV5 adventurers can easily crush Ares's tens of thousands of troops.
If LV6 adventurers are mobilized, it would be like a real-life version of a one-man army, capable of cutting through the enemy's ranks seven times over without a scratch.
In the world of Danmachi, individual strength is the cornerstone of power.
With their plans settled, the two goddesses prepared to return to the Tower of Babel under heavy protection.
"I thought you wouldn't agree to stay at my place~"
While walking, Freya, cloaked in a hooded cape that concealed her perfect beauty and shapely figure, suddenly leaned over to Loki.
"No choice, we're in the same boat now. Just so you know, I don't completely trust you."
Loki immediately retorted righteously.
Freya's lips curved into a beautiful smile from within the shadow of her hood.
Her relationship with Loki was very complicated. They would mercilessly scheme against each other when competing, but when faced with external enemies, they would seamlessly cooperate.
The best word to describe them would be "frenemies."
"With you in the lower world, I will never be bored."
Freya suddenly sighed.
"Hah! Spare me, you're not my type."
Loki immediately showed a look of disgust and exaggeratedly waved her hand.
Freya smiled slightly. She knew that with their level of understanding, Loki had already grasped the meaning behind her words but was unwilling to admit it, so she deliberately changed the subject.
After entering Freya's main base, the floor where the Familia resided was completely sealed off, with the guarding duties jointly undertaken by the personnel left behind from the two major Familias.
On the other side, an elite squad comprising most of Orario's LV6 adventurers and its only LV7 instantly set out, speeding towards the Kingdom of Rakia.
Naturally, the joint action of the Loki and Freya Familias couldn't be hidden from those with a keen eye. Thus, almost all major forces in Orario, both in the open and in the shadows, received the news. Everyone speculated about what had happened that could prompt a collective action from the twin kings of Orario, causing a tempest in the city.
The only place in Orario unaffected by this was the Gudako Hotel.
Thanks to the strong foundation left by Nguyen Ryou, the development momentum of the hotel had ceased but had become increasingly stable, with its fame spreading throughout the world.
Even in some extremely remote areas, such as the Forest of Elves and the new land across the sea, the name Gudako Hotel was known.
It's said that its cuisine rivals the divine creations in taste, and its decor and attire allow you to experience the bliss only gods can enjoy.
It's not that no one tried to imitate it.
Merchants are driven by profit, and this world has no concept of patents.
However, for various reasons, they couldn't replicate the level of the hotel, not even to the next lower tier, which was extremely rare.
These merchants only knew how to imitate blindly, without analyzing how the hotel stood unshaken.
Relying on strong backing is fundamental. Some imitators, lacking a background, either got annexed or suppressed as soon as they showed promise.
Special management and unique operational modes are core aspects.
In the real world, hotel management has become a specialized field of study, illustrating its complexity.
Running a small restaurant is simple, but building a large hotel becomes exponentially difficult as the area increases.
Although Ryou hadn't systematically studied hotel management, he had a system.
For such miscellaneous skills, it only took a mere 100 energy points for the system to imprint the operational management model and experience of an internationally certified six-star hotel into his brain, making the hotel manager game simulation ridiculously easy.
It was 9 a.m., and the Gudako Hotel was making the final preparations before opening.
Syr, recently promoted to head pastry chef, sat idly by the window. Her usually lively eyes were now blankly staring at the outside scenery.
"As the head chef, if you slack off here, be careful of Mama Mia's scolding."
A green-haired elf girl in a well-fitted white chef's uniform stood behind Syr.
"What does it matter~ everyone is here anyway."
Syr lazily turned around.
"And isn't Ryuu slacking off here too?"
"I'm not like you; I finished my preparations long ago."
Ryuu lightly knocked on Syr's head, annoyed.
"Ouch!"
Syr immediately pretended to be in pain, holding her head with both hands, tears welling up in her eyes, making her look like a wounded little animal, evoking pity. Her acting skills had skyrocketed.
However, to her good friend Ryuu, this acting was terrible.
She shook her head helplessly.
"Time flies," Syr suddenly sighed.
Without waiting for Ryuu's response, Syr continued speaking to herself.
"In the blink of an eye, he's been gone for a month... Ryuu, do you think he has forgotten about the hotel and us...?"
Seeing the hint of sorrow and longing in Syr's eyes, Ryuu sighed.
Just as she was about to speak, a strange voice suddenly echoed.
"Eh~ is this the person the mistress is looking for? Doesn't seem like much~ We might as well break her for fun~"
Suddenly, four figures, who were previously absent except for Syr and Ryuu, appeared silently in the hall.
The speaker was a cute loli dressed in a black, lace-trimmed, Lolita-style outfit, holding a small white bear, with an exceptionally cruel smile on her adorable face.
"No way~ she's the mistress's target, so we can't touch her~"
Responding to her was another loli, identical in appearance, attire, and accessories, but in white. She held a black bear, her smile sweet.
These peculiar lolis were twins.
Standing beside them was a woman holding a massive shield, exuding a serious and stern aura.
"Gemini, do not act rashly. Our goddess places great importance on this plan, and nothing can be allowed to go wrong."
The last figure was a very eye-catching girl. She had long, straight hair that reached down to her ankles, resembling a shimmering silver veil. From the moment she appeared and her companions began arguing, she neither expressed any opinions nor showed any change in her facial expression, making her a typical emotionless girl.
"Tch~ We were just joking. Sister Libra, you're such a washy-washy person~"
The black-haired loli puffed out her cheeks in anger.
However, the woman named Libra seemed to be a very rigid and serious person, completely unaffected by the cute Loli's act of selling cuteness.
"The mistress said that if we complete this task well, she will reward us."
The white-haired loli quickly tried to persuade the black-haired loli.
"That's great! We love the mistress's rewards! Let's do our best!"
The black-haired loli, who had been pouting just now, instantly beamed with joy.
These twin lolis had peculiar personalities and a very unique way of speaking.
After listening for a while, one would realize that their 'I' referred to 'we,' meaning these twin lolis.
However, neither Ryuu nor Syr had the time to care about these trivial details.
The four people had appeared silently in front of them, clearly not with good intentions.
Ryuu's hand swiftly brushed over her body, and a sharp chef's knife appeared in her hand as if by magic.
An excellent chef should always carry their tools.
This was something Ryou had once said casually, and Ryuu had taken it to heart, albeit with her interpretation.
She held the knife horizontally in front of her chest, shielding Syr behind her, and looked at the other side warily, coldly questioning them.
"It's not opening time yet. What's your business here, barging in like this?"
"She points a weapon at us. Shouldn't we kill this elf?"
The black-haired loli suggested with a cruel smile.
"She can't hurt us."
The white-haired loli then turned to Ryuu, sincerely advising.
"Miss Elf, to avoid getting hurt, you should put down your weapon."
Facing Ryuu, who had drawn her weapon and was ready for battle, neither the twin lolis, the shield-bearing woman, nor the emotionless girl showed any sign of alertness.
They looked at her as if she were a cute pet baring its teeth at them.
This was the strong confidence brought by their strength.
Ryuu understood this confidence and deeply realized from the start that she couldn't win.
They had completely masked their presence from her perception, and up until now, she couldn't gauge the strength of these four people at all.
Even when facing the LV6 members of the Loki Familia, Ryuu could somewhat perceive their strength.
But against these people, she felt nothing, which meant they were either extremely weak or unimaginably strong.
Ryuu hoped it was the former, but unfortunately, all signs pointed to the latter.
Moreover, she had to protect Syr, making this a desperate situation.
Now was not the time to worry about pride. Understanding this, Ryuu suddenly took a deep breath and shouted.
"Intruder!"
However, the opponents' reaction made Ryuu's heart sink.
They didn't stop her warning at all.
People who did this were either fools or had absolute confidence in their strength, ensuring that even if the enemy camp was alarmed, they could easily retreat unscathed.
"Such a futile struggle."
After Ryuu finished her warning, the black-haired loli spoke, gently tossing the white bear she was holding into the air.
Then, in almost a second, she crossed tens of meters to appear in front of Ryuu.
Ryuu was startled and instinctively swung her chef's knife at the black-haired loli.
Bang!
Ryuu spat out bile, bending over like a shrimp and kneeling on the ground.
In just one encounter, the once LV4 adventurer, famous for her revenge killings of high-level adventurers and known as the Gale, was knocked to the ground.
The black-haired loli leisurely turned around, lightly stepping back to her original position, and caught the small bear that fell from the sky.
"No! You're here for me, aren't you? I'll go with you! Just don't hurt her!"
Syr hurriedly ran in front of Ryuu, spreading her arms to protect her.
"That's good. We don't want to harm the innocent either."
The woman with the giant shield, Libra, stepped forward.
"Please come with us. Our goddess wants to see you."
Syr bit her lip, about to step forward.
"Don't go!"
Ryuu, clutching her abdomen, trembled as she stood up.
"Syr, I forbid you to go!"
"But!"
Syr's face showed reluctance.
Even a fool could see that Ryuu was no match for any of them.
"Such a troublesome elf lady. Should we just break her limbs so she can't stand up?"
The black-haired Loli suggested cruelly.
"Tell me! Whose limbs do you want to break?"
Just then, a furious voice rang out.