Today was a special day. A day of jubilation and ecstasy.
After all, today they would hunt the last calamity of Genkai:
The one-eyed black dragon.
— "Everything is ready," — said a woman, her brown hair tied in a ponytail, wearing light armor that only covered vital areas, specialized for mobility and speed.
This woman was well-known in Orario, feared and admired by many.
"Empress," they called her when she surpassed Level 8 and ascended to Level 9.
Unique in her class and captain of the Hera Familia.
— "On our side, yes...but on the Zeus Familia's side…" — another woman replied, dressed in heavy, full-body armor, ready to withstand the most powerful attacks from enemies.
"Heracles," they called her—a name she found absurd and unflattering. She was a Level 8 adventurer and the vice-captain of the Hera Familia.
— "Those idiots, don't they know what day it is today?" — the Empress complained, annoyed by the Zeus Familia's lack of concern.
— "Well...at least Zald is here," — Heracles responded, pointing to the enormous man chatting with another companion.
Well, or at least trying, as Zald's every word seemed to irritate his companion, not for nothing nicknamed "Silence," and she certainly lived up to her name.
— "Zald is a different case; how is it possible that he, not even a captain or vice-captain, is more responsible than the rest of those fools?" — said the Empress, her complaints resembling those of a boss tired of lazy employees.
— "Ma, ma, ma, don't be like that, Kirin-chan; that's why you don't have a boyfriend," — another companion teased her captain.
"Iris," they called her, named in memory of a loyal companion of her goddess. She was also Hera's personal messenger.
— "Empress! You're supposed to call me 'Empress!'" — she scolded her companion. — "And I don't have a boyfriend because no one is worthy of my hand."
— "Or because you scare all the men with your tomboyish antics," — Iris teased again.
— "T-That's not true; it's a conspiracy created by the Guild!"
— "Do I really need to remind you what happened with your 'first suitor'?"
— "Ugh! J-Just go see if that idiot Maxim has arrived already," — she said, unwilling to relive those embarrassing memories.
A story I might tell you another day.
— "GOOD, GOOD! Hope we're not late!" — a man announced his arrival along with his Familia. He was tall and muscular, wearing only simple clothes, except for a pair of metal gloves covering his arms.
Maxim, captain of the Zeus Familia and a Level 8 adventurer.
— "Look who decided to show up," — the Empress crossed her arms, annoyed by the tardiness of the man and his Familia.
— "Well, sorry, we got lost on the way of the drink," — Maxim laughed without shame or guilt. — "Besides, we had to stop Hera from killing old Zeus."
— "Let me guess, Hera-sama caught Zeus spying on the baths...again," — she said, predicting the reason for the attempted murder.
— "Yeah, well, you know how he is. And together with Cranel, well, it's hard to handle both," — Maxim laughed, finding his god and the Familia's rookie's antics amusing.
— "That guy is hopeless. I don't know what Meteria-chan saw in him to take interest," — she said bitterly.
— "No idea. I guess it's what they call 'Cranel's charm' or whatever that means," — Maxim doubted his response. Cranel wasn't well-loved by the women of Orario but had strangely won the heart of someone as beautiful as Meteria.
I guess that's another of Genkai's mysteries.
Their conversation was interrupted by a rather well-known duo.
A beautiful woman with brown hair dressed in the most expensive clothes you could imagine, adorned with countless jewels, dragged an old man full of scratches and bruises.
— "For once, just once in your eternal existence, can't you put aside your perversities?" — she scolded the old man she dragged along the ground.
This woman was a goddess—Hera, to be precise—and the old man was the god Zeus.
— "I-It's my way of dealing with my worries, woman," — the old man objected.
— "You dirty old pervert! I'll deal with you later," — she stopped dragging the old man and turned to her Familia, who simply watched the scene with indifference.
In contrast, the Zeus Familia looked at their god with pity, and a few complained about losing bets.
— "Poor man. How does he keep putting up with her?" — a dwarf exclaimed. Even after six years in the Familia, he never got used to the brutal beatings Hera gave Zeus.
Sometimes, he thought their god might secretly be a masochist.
— "Zeus-sama, are you okay?" — another Familia member asked, helping the god to his feet.
— "Yes, thank you, Alceus," — he said, grateful for the assistance.
— "...Where's Cranel?" — Maxim asked, noticing his absence.
— "Mmm, over there, hiding from Alfia," — another member, a beastman, pointed at the black-haired, red-eyed young man cautiously peeking from around a corner.
— "Still scared of her?" — Maxim asked.
— "Yes, ever since Alfia chased him for seven days and nights without rest, he's been very wary of her," — came the reply.
— "Oh, right, because he got her sister pregnant, didn't he?" — Maxim recalled.
— "Exactly."
— "Well...tough luck for him."
Meanwhile, Cranel watched Alfia warily, feeling nervous and terrified in her presence.
He hadn't yet taken responsibility for his actions, and this woman already wanted to send him to the afterlife.
He could be a pervert, but he was a responsible one.
Although somewhat cowardly.
He still remembered that night—he and Meteria, alone, resting in some abandoned church, gazing at the stars together.
And, well, what had to happen, happened.
He got Meteria pregnant.
And when he was ready to take responsibility for his actions in front of Goddess Hera, that woman chased him for seven days and seven nights. Only thanks to his escape skills and sheer luck did he survive those days of hell.
Later, Meteria found out and got angry with Alfia, who stopped her hostile actions but still looked at him with murderous intentions.
How terrifying.
— "Ugh, I think I'm going to puke," — Cranel muttered to himself, unable to bear the pressure Alfia was putting on him.
— "Hey Cranel! You'd better bring your ass over here, or I'll send Jason to fetch you!" — Maxim called out to Cranel from a distance. The latter shivered at the mention of the blonde man with questionable sexual preferences.
— "C-Coming, Captain!" — With no other choice, Cranel swallowed his nausea and walked toward his Familia.
Let's ignore the fact that a certain silver-haired woman wanted to kill him the moment she saw him.
**Tap, tap, tap.**
Clapping drew the attention of both groups.
Standing before the two Familias were their patron gods, Zeus and Hera, side by side.
— "...As you all know, today is a great day," — Zeus began.
— "After the two previous victories, both Familias have taken a tremendous leap in strength and ability," — Hera continued.
— "The Behemoth," — Zeus named the colossal beast, as large as mountains and so dangerous it cost one of his children their longevity.
— "The Leviathan," — Hera named the enormous sea beast, so vast and elusive that both Familias needed help from outside groups just to locate it.
Not to mention worsening the illness of one of her girls.
— "Both beasts, believing themselves invincible, fell before our Familias, before you who have surpassed the limits of ordinary mortals," — Zeus declared, his voice growing with every word.
— "Be proud of what you have become. You are the 'heroes' of this era," — Hera added.
— "And now, this one-eyed lizard will feel the power of the Zeus Familia!" — Zeus rallied.
— "And it will be annihilated by the beauty of my daughters! Make your goddess proud; honor the name of the Hera Familia!" — Hera didn't fall behind in her rallying cries.
— "Go and complete this final mission; destroy the last calamity!" — both gods shouted in unison. Their sons and daughters responded with a spirited war cry, except for one who already wanted to send everyone flying because of the noise.
After this speech, both Familias set off in the direction of the black dragon—or at least, where it was rumored to have been last seen.
And when they returned, all of Orario, and indeed the whole world, would praise each of their names.
A fitting ending for those called heroes...right?
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
They were too arrogant.
The difference between the black dragon and both Familias was as vast as the sky and the earth.
They found it.
Or rather, that thing found them.
They had to act quickly.
The massive beast charged at them the moment it saw them.
Its enormous body crushed several adventurers ranging from Level 4 to Level 5.
Even so, their numbers remained acceptable.
They began their attack.
The mages chanted their spells, and the warriors, with fierce war cries, lunged at the dragon.
Only for their magic to be nullified and their swords and axes repelled by the dragon's thick scales.
The battle lasted several days.
They thought they had the strength to at least hold it off.
But the dragon was merely toying with them.
It never saw the two Familias as a threat; it only saw them as toys.
And what do you do with a new toy? You avoid breaking it too quickly.
Each day, more and more adventurers fell—eaten, crushed, sliced, mutilated, incinerated, and so on.
The Zeus Familia fell first.
Maxim, their captain, died saving "Gluttony."
The Empress realized they couldn't defeat the dragon.
She ordered a retreat.
But the dragon wouldn't let them go so easily—not when it had found new toys.
It became a game of cat and mouse.
The remnants of the Hera Familia and the sole surviving member of the Zeus Familia fled.
They hid, desperately trying to escape the beast's sight.
And by a miracle, they succeeded.
But it came at a great cost.
The Zeus Familia was left with only one surviving member.
The Hera Familia was reduced to a dozen women barely clinging to life.
Their defeat reached all of Orario.
People mourned the dead.
The gods had to leave Orario—not out of shame, but out of fear. They had too many enemies, and their Familias were too fragile.
It was either flee or die.
Thus, the remnants of the Familias reached a distant village hidden in the mountains.
Hera stayed there with some of her daughters who remained loyal. Others retired from adventuring.
Her most fragile daughter, Meteria, gave birth to a son but succumbed to her illness shortly after.
Zeus distanced himself from civilization.
Zald and Alfia left for Orario sometime later, accompanied by a god named Erebus.
There was a great uproar, with pillars of light rising into the sky in Orario.
Only Alfia returned, wounded and with little time left to live.
And so, with this final act, the story of these two Familias came to an end.
And the story of a new one began.