CHAPTER 95: CHAPTER 95: OTTAR THE BODYGUARD, FREYA’S FURY!

Staring at that beaming, increasingly suspicious smile, Ryota’s brain short-circuited for a solid few seconds.

"...A stud horse?"

He repeated the phrase like he was double-checking whether he’d heard wrong.

But the Goddess Kali just tilted her head expectantly, clearly waiting for him to nod.

Ryota’s mouth twitched. Instinctively, he sifted through fragments of memory:

In the original story, the Kali Familia had indeed made contact and carried out secret dealings with the Ishtar Familia.

The day before the War Game, the Freya Familia had been ambushed by Kali’s forces.

But now, long before any of that could unfold, he himself had already crushed the Freya Familia. Their entire power structure had been wiped from Orario by his own hand.

And yet—these lunatics were suddenly appearing on the streets of Orario.

And by some cosmic joke, the one they stopped... was him, Ryota.

While he was on his way back to Twilight Manor, no less.

The timing, the target, the method—everything about this reeked of trouble.

"Could it be... with the Freya Familia gone, they’ve turned their eyes toward the Loki Familia now?"

"...Tch."

Ryota clicked his tongue inwardly.

"But the problem is..."

He glanced at the two Amazonian girls behind the goddess, their clefts of cleavage so deep they looked like natural chasms.

Two Level 6s—not exactly overwhelming.

Then again, considering Telskyura was a remote, isolationist country with a near total lockout policy, it stood to reason that intel about them was scarce.

Probably went both ways—their knowledge of the outside world must be just as limited.

What really baffled Ryota, though, was how Ishtar had even managed to find such a deranged Familia and rope them into some kind of alliance.

He sighed. There was a hint of helplessness in his breath.

He hadn’t planned to get dragged into any of this chaotic nonsense.

His main quest wasn’t done yet. The side quest was only halfway through. The expedition planning was at a critical stage...

All things considered, he was the busiest one here!

Unfortunately, reality didn’t care about his schedule. Those battle-crazed maniacs were already standing in his way.

"Of course. Orario can’t go one damn day without chaos."

Ryota tilted his head slightly, eyeing the two girls closing in on him, then glanced at the lust-drenched gaze of the tilted-headed Kali.

He muttered under his breath,

"Screw it. Not worth explaining anything."

"Not worth explaining?"

The Goddess Kali chuckled softly when she heard that.

"You’re what now... Level 4, right?"

"Argana and Bache aren’t just your average Level 6s. I personally pulled them from blood-soaked arenas—they’re my finest warriors!"

"You stand no chance against them."

From her perspective, a Level 4 up against two elite Level 6s was just asking for death.

"The only thing you’ve got going for you... is your brute strength."

Ryota’s patience had run out. His pupils constricted sharply as the Mangekyō Sharingan began to whirl.

Just as he was about to cast Tsukuyomi and package the two Amazons into an illusionary hell—

Boom!

The ground behind him suddenly quaked.

A towering black figure shot past him in an instant.

Ottar!

With a single step, the very air exploded around him as he lunged toward Bache on the left.

BANG!

The Amazonian girl didn’t even have time to react before she was sent flying into a stone pillar at the edge of the street, instantly knocked out.

On the right, Argana barely had time to flinch before a massive iron grip clamped down on her shoulder.

The next second—another thunderous slam.

Ottar crushed her straight into the stone-paved street.

It all happened in less than a second.

Two elite Level 6 Amazons, utterly demolished.

Silence fell across the street.

The Goddess Kali blinked. Her once-predatory smile slowly stiffened.

Ottar, still silent, walked back to Ryota’s side and resumed his statue-like stance.

Under the flickering light of a magic stone lamp, Kali finally saw the man clearly.

Her pupils shrank. Her voice trembled with a hint of panic.

"Ottar... you’re—Ottar of the Freya Familia!"

"What are you doing with this kid?!"

Obviously, Ottar had zero interest in answering her.

Ryota, meanwhile, glanced at the two girls now lying unconscious and foaming at the mouth, and sighed.

"Tch. That was a bit much, don’t you think..."

He looked toward the stunned Goddess Kali, unsure how to proceed.

In Orario, attacking a god—or even just laying a hand on one—was a serious crime.

Especially now that he was representing the Loki Familia. Everything he did could impact more than just himself.

So, Ryota kept it simple.

"Take your two girls and go home."

"I’ll chalk this up to cultural ignorance—your first visit to a foreign country."

He had just taken a few steps when familiar footsteps echoed from the end of the street.

He turned, and sure enough—it was Freya.

Under the night sky and the soft glow of lights, she stood before him with that signature, seductive smile.

"Ryota, are you alright?"

Ryota shrugged at her.

"I didn’t even get a chance to lift a finger."

"Ottar handled both Level 6s before I could do anything. How could I be hurt?"

Freya chuckled. Her gaze burned like she was admiring a finely crafted sculpture of her own making.

"That’s good."

She turned.

But the moment she did, the warmth of the love goddess vanished.

In its place surged a divine pressure that made the blood freeze in one’s veins.

She stepped toward Kali, who still stood frozen. Her ash-gray eyes turned glacial, seething with rage.

"Did Ishtar send you?"

Kali’s lips moved, but she was still stunned by what had just happened.

Snapping back to her senses, she averted her gaze and murmured,

"...Yes."

Freya didn’t spare her another glance.

"Ottar. Get Hedin and the others. We’re paying a visit to the Pleasure Quarter."

"Anyone who dares attack Ryota has to pay the price."

Ottar nodded and vanished.

Ryota stood frozen for half a second.

Pleasure Quarter? Isn’t that Ishtar Familia territory?

Just as he took a step forward, Freya stopped and turned, her world-shaking beauty once again softened by a warm smile.

"Loki’s probably been waiting for you inside for ages. Go on back."

"As for Ishtar... leave her to me."

Ryota blinked, a dozen question marks popping into his head.

What kind of bossy CEO script was this? "I’ll take you home while I personally handle your problems"?

He couldn’t help twitching his mouth, but in the end, he just shook his head.

"That woman’s insane..."

Still, Ryota didn’t ask any more questions.

He had his own mission, an expedition to prepare for, and objectives to move forward.

Whatever Freya planned to do in the Pleasure Quarter was her business.

It wasn’t like he ordered her to raze the Ishtar Familia. Even if she did, it had nothing to do with him.

Shrugging, Ryota turned and walked quickly toward Twilight Manor.

The street was now deserted—save for the two collapsed girls twitching on either side, and the stone-stiff Goddess Kali standing in place.

Unlike the tense atmosphere outside, Twilight Manor was buzzing with its usual energy.

Familia members moved supplies in the lobby or clustered around information boards in animated discussions. Footsteps and chatter filled the air.

Ryota weaved through the crowd, nodding in greeting to passing comrades.

Soon, he climbed the stairs to the second floor, walked through the corridor, and stopped in front of a very familiar door.

This was where Loki and the high-ranking members usually gathered.

He raised his hand and knocked.

Knock knock.

A pause, then Loki’s unmistakable voice called out.

"Ryota? That you? Come in, come in—we were just talking about you!"

Ryota smiled and opened the door.

Inside were the usual three executives and Loki herself—plus one additional presence: Ais, staring blankly from the sofa.

The rest of the core members were nowhere to be seen.

When she spotted Ryota, a spark lit in Ais’s eyes and she gave him a small nod.

He nodded back before his eyes fell on the stack of documents on the table. The top pages bore a clear title:

[Freya Familia High-Level Combat Power Summary]

Level 3 and above

Combat Orientation, Party Compatibility...

He was about to speak, but Loki beat him to it.

"You know what that crazy woman did today?"

"You mean Goddess Freya? She was waiting at my door this morning—with Ottar, no less."

"Ha! I knew you’d know something!"

Loki slapped her thigh with a scowl.

"Her face was smiling so hard it gave me goosebumps! You know what she said? She said she wants to give us some of Freya Familia’s combat power."

"Said it was to help us with our expedition."

Loki narrowed her eyes.

"Can you believe that?"

Ryota just chuckled, not answering.

"Look at him—!"

Loki pouted and tossed a sheet of paper at him.

He caught it instinctively. It was a detailed profile:

[Hogni Ragnar]

Level: 6

Race: Dark Elf

Weapon: Victim Abyss

The same edgy elf who’d once shouted battle cries atop the city wall—only to be instantly frozen in place by Ryota’s Tsukuyomi.

"...Seriously, what’s Freya up to?"

Loki scratched her head.

"She disbanded her Familia, and now she’s hovering around us?"

Finn gnawed at his thumb, looking conflicted.

"Plenty on this list have expedition experience. If she’s sincere, they could fill some gaps."

"But..."

The Pallum turned to Ryota.

Not just him—everyone in the room: Loki, Riveria, Gareth, even Ais on the sofa, were now looking at him.

With Ryota’s monstrous growth rate, his status in the Familia was far beyond ordinary.

Even Loki often consulted him before making big decisions.

Ryota didn’t rush to speak. He placed Hogni’s profile back on the table, paused for a few seconds, and said,

"I think we should be cautious."

"The Freya Familia is strong, yes—but inside, it’s a mess. Everyone knows their members regularly backstab each other."

He paused again.

"Besides, these Level 6 elites... they’re not loyal to the Familia. They’re loyal to Freya herself."

"Even if they follow orders now, one word from her, and they’ll flip in an instant."

Silence followed.

Ryota stared at the documents. Freya’s words echoed in his head: "Not for Loki—for you."

A chill crawled up his spine.

That woman... was dangerously obsessed.

"Tch."

Loki leaned back in her chair, kicking her legs.

"Unless—"

"Unless what?" Ryota asked instinctively.

Loki’s grin turned mischievous. Her Trickster Goddess mode had activated.

"Unless you offer yourself to Freya. Make her listen to you."

"Then we’d get a bunch of Level 6s for free! Perfect ending, right?"

"..."

Ryota’s mouth twitched. His whole face darkened.

"Lady Loki, you’re... a damn genius."

"Ahem."

Finn cleared his throat, holding back laughter as he pretended to flip through papers.

Riveria and Gareth tried not to laugh too. Only Ais tilted her head, as if she wanted to say something.

...Wait, did the puppet princess actually take that seriously?

"Alright, alright, enough jokes," Loki said, waving her hand. She stacked the Freya Familia files and tossed them straight into the wastebasket.

"Tell the Guild—we’re not taking any of them."

"With Ryota alone, we’ve already got more than enough power. Why bring in unstable elements?"

Finn chuckled and nodded. Riveria followed suit.

"That is a safer choice."

The mood returned to normal. Loki turned to Ryota, eyes gleaming with interest.

"Alright, alright—spill it. You’ve been out all day. What kind of test were you up to?"

"I’ve been dying to see your so-called surprise!"

Ryota smirked. With a flick of his wrist, a kunai appeared in his palm.

Only this one glowed faintly gold at the hilt.

He waved it in front of them, lips curling into a mysterious smile.

"You’ll find out soon enough."

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