Kapitel 46: "Chapter 46: Two Gods for the Price of One"
While Alex's group was busy kidnapping and interrogating the trash god, Ishtar was losing her mind from the lack of reliable information. Everything she received were just exaggerated rumors, so distorted that she couldn't tell truth from lies. Ishtar even tried to use her charm to question adventurers but learned nothing useful. She found out more about some new cult than about the Hestia Familia, which was hidden behind exaggerated rumors.
At this time, Ishtar sat on her throne, glaring angrily at the members of her Familia, who had failed at such a simple task as gathering information.
"Is this all you managed to gather in the time I was away?" Ishtar shouted, smashing a glass on the floor. The shards flew and grazed the members of her Familia, who were kneeling and afraid to look at their goddess.
"Ishtar-sama, we are doing our best. But all the information we get seems terribly absurd," said one of the members of Ishtar's Familia.
"Then you are not trying hard enough! How hard is it to find out something about a small Familia that just recently appeared?" Ishtar screamed, and her Familia members flinched.
"Ishtar-sama, those with good stealth tried to spy on the Hestia Familia, but they couldn't penetrate the house due to a strange barrier. This barrier even prevents eavesdropping on what's happening inside the house," another member of Ishtar's Familia tried to explain.
"How can a mortal have such abilities?" Ishtar asked herself, biting her nail.
"Were you at least able to find out where this guy is from?" Ishtar asked irritably, wanting any clue.
"Ishtar-sama, we found out that he is from the far east. He traveled all his life before deciding to come to Orario," answered a third member of Ishtar's Familia.
"Did you manage to find out which Familia he belonged to and other details?" Ishtar asked, trying to calm down.
"Everything related to his life before arriving in Orario is also full of various rumors. Some say he is a member of an ancient family, others that he is a lost prince who fled from his country. Some claim he is a humanoid monster escaped from another dungeon. There are many rumors, but the only sure thing is that he is from the far east," said another member of Ishtar's Familia, responsible for gathering information about Alex.
"You mean to say that all you found out is that he's from the east, and nothing more?" Ishtar asked, her anger rising again.
"Ishtar-sama, we are doing everything we can. We've threatened, bribed, and tried various ways to extract information from adventurers, but we still can't learn anything reliable," another member of Ishtar's Familia tried to explain.
"Then try to capture someone from his circle," Ishtar said, wanting to resort to drastic measures.
"Please reconsider, Ishtar-sama!" Aisha shouted, fearing the consequences of such a step.
"How dare you contradict me!" Ishtar shouted at Aisha, who had interrupted her.
"Ishtar-sama, I beg you to reconsider. When members of Apollo's Familia said something to Alex during the War Game, he made their lives worse than death. If we try to capture someone from his circle, I dread to think what he might do," Aisha said, trying to calm her goddess so she wouldn't take a reckless step.
"Hahaha. Aisha, since when did you become so cowardly? Isn't it just a small family? We can handle them easily," Frina laughed arrogantly, trying to belittle Aisha.
"It's not cowardice. I'm just worried about Ishtar-sama. The captain of the Hestia Familia attacked Apollo after the War Game ended. Do you think he won't be able to do it again? When he attacked Apollo, there were other gods and adventurers present, and no one stopped him. Do you really think he won't dare to attack Ishtar-sama after we capture a member of his Familia?" Aisha said, ignoring Frina.
Ishtar pondered these words, recalling the rumors that the captain of the Hestia Familia attacked a god without any consequences.
"Then continue monitoring the Hestia Familia, and if the opportunity arises, capture Haruhime. Once she is in our hands, we'll see if this person dares to attack our Familia or not," Ishtar ordered and went to her quarters.
Ishtar couldn't imagine that all these rumors were deliberately spread by Alex, mixing them with the truth to prevent those trying to learn more about him from discerning reality. How can rumors be spread in a world without the internet and television? It's quite simple: a little help from the waitress girls, and it's done. Everyone comes to drink at the "Hostess of Fertility," and a few words here and there — and ridiculous rumors mix with the truth. If Ishtar had thought about it, she might have realized that someone was deliberately interfering, but her rationality was impaired due to the goddess's wounded pride. How could Ishtar not be furious that someone was kidnapped from her home, the perpetrator suffered no consequences, and she could do nothing about it?
While Ishtar was destroying her room in a fit of rage, Alex returned to his workshop to prepare some items for the Loki Familia and Allen.
"I see you haven't gone anywhere. I'm glad you're such a good prisoner," Alex said, entering the workshop and addressing Thanatos, who did not respond to his words. "You're such a good prisoner. You don't make noise, you don't threaten. I'm proud of you."
Alex walked past Thanatos and sat at his workbench.
"But you understand that silence is not an option either," he said, turning to Thanatos, who still didn't react. "Have you ever been told that you're a terrible conversationalist?"
Alex noticed that Thanatos continued to ignore him and simply gave up, looking at him with disdain. The great god of death turned out to be not so great, just a loudly barking mutt who didn't know its place. Turning back to his workbench, Alex began creating an item to help detect mutated monsters. After spending enough time on trial and error, he found the right combination of runes and magic to ensure the item worked properly and did not explode.
Having created enough items to place them in the dungeon up to the 60th floor and cover all of Orario, Alex stretched wearily and decided it was time to do something with Thanatos, who was still in the workshop.
"Well, I'm done with my work, and now it's just you, my new friend," Alex said, standing up from the table. "So what should I do with you? Kill you outright, or just erase your memory and put you back in place?"
Alex approached Thanatos, who still did not react.
"I see all your confidence and pride were shattered in just a few minutes," Alex said, wanting to see if Thanatos still had any personality left or if he was just an empty shell. "Looking at you, I'm disgusted. You used to scream so arrogantly, but now, after a bit of torture and having your memories ripped out, you've become like this."
Alex looked at the god bound to the chair with disgust.
"Even if I release you and erase your memories, your soul and body will still remember, and eventually, you will break," Alex mused aloud. "So there's only one option left: I'll destroy your essence, and perhaps in the future, another god of death will be born, as your place will be vacant."
Alex's fingers were covered in dark flames. Thanatos shuddered, realizing the inevitable death.
"Surprising. Even if you're not reacting now, your soul and body understand what awaits you," Alex said, striking Thanatos in the stomach. "If you were a normal god, you wouldn't be sitting in this chair and ending up with complete erasure."
Alex destroyed Thanatos's essence, and he began to turn to ashes, leaving only memories behind. At the moment Alex destroyed Thanatos, all the members of his Familia felt that their blessing had disappeared. They began to check their backs, trying to understand why this happened, and discovered that the emblem of Thanatos's Familia had vanished. This caused confusion, and they ran to the guild to find out what had happened.
Alex didn't care about Thanatos. All he cared about now was going to sleep and cuddling with his goddess. It didn't matter who it was—Hephaestus or Hestia, as both goddesses had started sneaking into his room one after the other to sleep beside him.
Waking up the next morning, Alex felt that his arm was numb from someone lying on it. Turning his head, he saw Hephaestus cuddling his arm and sleeping soundly. Their fingers were entwined, and deciding to hug the sweet goddess, Alex turned towards her and pulled her into his embrace, wanting to lie there a little longer. Hephaestus felt the embrace and snuggled even closer, continuing to sleep, oblivious to the time.
While Alex stroked Hephaestus's head, his thoughts were occupied with how to catch these gods without scaring off others. He was sure that they had already received information about Thanatos's disappearance or death, as, by destroying the core of Thanatos, Alex felt that the blessing given to the members of his Familia had vanished with the god's life. Alex decided that he needed to start capturing these gods so that Erebus would not get any help and began making reckless moves.
Hephaestus woke up, feeling the embrace, and lifted her sleepy eyes to see Alex's thoughtful expression lost in his thoughts. She looked at Alex and thought that her life had become more colorful since his arrival. Hephaestus didn't know how to thank him, and even when she tried, Alex always said it wasn't necessary. At that moment, looking at his face, desire took over, and she reached out to kiss him.
"Hmm... Good morning, it's nice to receive a morning kiss," Alex said, snapping out of his thoughts from Hephaestus's kiss.
"Good morning. Why are you so thoughtful this early?" Hephaestus asked, enjoying the pleasant sensation of the kiss that she liked very much.
"I was just thinking that I need to speed up my plans to avoid putting you in danger," Alex replied, holding Hephaestus close as she hugged him and began breathing on his neck, causing a slight tickle.
"I know you'll handle it," Hephaestus said, sinking into Alex's embrace, wanting to be closer to him.
"And what about those frowns yesterday when you thought I wanted to sacrifice myself?" Alex asked, recalling the frowning faces of the goddesses who thought he intended to sacrifice himself.
"I know you're strong, but I'll still worry about you," Hephaestus replied, biting Alex's neck, making him laugh.
"I just don't want to lose the happiness I've found," Hephaestus continued, stopping her bites.
"Don't worry, I have plans for every possible situation. And if those plans fail, I have plans for those cases too," Alex said, nodding.
"So you're prepared for everything?" Hephaestus asked.
"Of course! I follow the principle 'Prepared means armed.' It's my paranoia that keeps me from doing anything halfway," Alex said, rubbing his cheek against Hephaestus's head, making her giggle.
"Even if you've prepared everything, I'll still worry about you," Hephaestus said, lifting her gaze to Alex and looking into his eyes.
"In the worst case, I'll summon my castle. If the enemy is strong enough, I'll use that trump card," Alex said, causing Hephaestus's eyes to widen.
"You have a castle? Where is it? Why haven't you summoned it before?" a stunned Hephaestus asked, not understanding how this was possible.
"The Demon King's Castle is the primary source of his power. Fighting in his castle, the Demon King becomes almost invincible," Alex said. Something resonated in his soul but then quieted, like a small ripple in the ocean.
"But where is your castle?" Hephaestus asked, not understanding how a castle could be summoned.
"It's here," Alex said, pointing to his chest.
"I don't understand," Hephaestus said, tilting her head to the side.
"My castle is in my soul. I've only recently begun to sense it. The more I become myself, the more I feel my powers," Alex explained, understanding that when he came to this world, he didn't possess all of Anos's power, only a part of it. The more he explored this power, the deeper he delved into this ocean. If before he could use only a drop of this entire ocean, over time he would be able to use the whole ocean.
"Don't think too much about it, I'll explain everything in time," Alex said, kissing Hephaestus on the lips, making her stop pondering and decide to wait until Alex explained everything himself.
After spending some romantic time in the room with Hephaestus, Alex realized it was time to get up since he still had plans for the day. He needed to wait for Finn and Allen to arrive to give them the "Alarm System," which would help detect strange monsters in the dungeon or in the city if a group of idiots decided to make a desperate move. After hugging Hephaestus a little more, Alex and his embarrassed goddess went downstairs to the dining hall where they were already expected. Alex noticed that not only members of Hestia's Familia were present but also Loki with Finn and Freya with Allen.
"How did Loki manage to get up so early? Or did you just come for a free meal?" Alex joked, approaching the table and kissing Hestia.
"You think I always come to eat for free?" Loki said, watching as Alex approached and kissed Freya. Allen, who saw this, could only scowl.
"If it weren't for your kids, you'd probably have drunk yourself into oblivion or be starving by now," Alex said, passing by Loki and giving her a kiss on the head to cheer her up.
"Hmm," Loki huffed, unwilling to look at Alex.
"Freya, I'm glad you came too, because I was supposed to give this to you yesterday," Alex said, sitting at the table and focusing on Freya, who was drinking tea.
"Really? And what did you forget to give me yesterday?" Freya asked, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
"This," Alex replied, placing a small cube on the table.
"What's this?" Freya asked, examining the cube, which was covered in runes and shimmered with a strange color.
"This is a protective cube. Place it in the center of your apartment or estate, and it will merge with the place and act as a shield," Alex said, and Freya's eyes sparkled at the gift.
"A precious gift. Thank you," Freya said, smiling sweetly and wanting to kiss Alex again.
"Why the thanks? We're in love and all that. Isn't it my duty to protect you?" Alex said, brushing off Freya's words.
"Why does Freya get such a thing and I don't?" Loki began to shout, feeling neglected. Finn could only sigh tiredly.
"Your home has been protected for a long time, or were you listening with a different part of your body?" Alex asked, looking at Loki, who stopped making noise and started thinking. Loki was trying so hard to remember that it seemed like smoke was coming out of her head.
"Ha-ha, I probably drank too much and can't remember," Loki awkwardly laughed, making everyone roll their eyes at the carefree goddess. Finn sighed once again, earning sympathetic looks from those around him.
"Heh. Not only do you lack brains, but you also lack... well, brains," Hestia said disdainfully, looking at Loki.
"What did you say, shrimp with buckets?" Loki yelled, wanting to attack Hestia.
While the two goddesses were arguing, Alex decided to talk to Finn and Allen to hand over the items and explain how to use them.
"Allen, Finn, let's step aside so we won't be interrupted," Alex said, getting up from the table and leading the two guys away.
"Here are the things I made," Alex said, handing two bags to the guys.
"And what are we supposed to do with these?" Allen asked irritably, not forgetting how Alex had kissed Freya right in front of him.
"First listen before you open your mouth," Alex said, hitting Allen on the head. Allen, receiving the blow, crouched down, holding the sore spot and glaring at Alex.
"And don't look at me like that. It's your own fault for being so impatient," Alex said, ignoring his glare. Finn could only give a crooked smile as he looked at Allen.
"Anyway. There's a lot of space in these bags, and they're completely filled with tracking items," Alex said, pulling an item out of the bag. "Finn, your task is to place them on every floor of the dungeon, up to the floors your team can reach. Distribute these items to your team members, and have them place them on each floor to cover every corner," Alex said, handing the bag to Finn, who nodded seriously, understanding the responsibility of the task.
"Allen, your task is to place these around the city," Alex continued, handing a bag to Allen, who roughly grabbed it. "Each item has a range of about 50 meters. I could have made them better, but there was only time for this," Alex said, giving a rough idea of how the items worked. "And Allen, in addition to placing these items around the city, you'll need to search for the locations of Ereb, Nyx, and Indra's homes. It's very important," Alex said, looking at Allen with serious eyes.
"Hmm, I'm only doing this to protect my goddess. You're not involved," Allen said gruffly, to which Alex just shook his head, realizing that Allen was a tsundere.
"Alright, you can go now. If anything happens, you can contact me through this item," Alex said, handing them a strange device that resembled an old cell phone. "This task is very important, so it's best to act promptly," Alex added. The guys nodded with serious faces and left the house.
Alex watched as the guys set off to complete their tasks and decided it was time to move on to the next job—eliminating Ishtar. He headed to Haruhime's room, knocked on the door, and asked if she was ready. Haruhime quickly opened the door and said she was ready.
Alex transformed into a fox cub resembling Haruhime, and they left the house, strolling through the streets of Orario to spread rumors about a fox with a child. But little did they know, Ishtar wasn't planning to act for another week. Their walks with Haruhime extended over the course of a week, waiting for Ishtar to decide to send her children to capture Haruhime.
One day, while Alex and Haruhime were walking through the city, he sensed they were being followed, so they turned into an empty alley, hoping to lure out their pursuers.
"I see you're living well after leaving Ishtar's family," a voice came from behind them.
"Aisha! Long time no see," Haruhime said, turning around and recognizing an old friend who had always supported her.
"I didn't expect you to move so quickly that you'd have a child already," Aisha said, looking at the child who resembled Haruhime. "So your captain is capable of such things. I'm not surprised after all the rumors I've heard."
"Long time no see, Aisha," Alex said, catching her attention.
"Do we know each other, little one?" Aisha asked in surprise, not understanding how the child knew her.
"Of course, we do. We met when I kidnapped Haruhime," Alex replied, and immediately Aisha and her companions found themselves bound in mana chains.
"What? How?" Aisha asked, ignoring the chains that restrained them.
"Well, you know, magic," Alex replied, waving his hands, and rose petals began to fall through the air. Aisha and her companions gaped, not understanding what was happening.
"I was waiting for Ishtar to decide to capture Haruhime. But why hasn't she done it earlier?" Alex asked, using a sealing spell to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.
"Ishtar didn't know which rumors about you were true and which weren't," Aisha responded, realizing she had little chance of escaping.
"I see. Don't worry, I won't do anything to you or your companions. We'll just talk and decide what to do," Alex said, causing a sigh of relief from the group of captured girls.
"I'll ask a few questions, and you just answer them," Alex continued, and Aisha nodded in agreement.
"First question: Do you want to leave Ishtar's family?" Alex asked.
"Yes, I do," Aisha answered immediately without hesitation, and her companions nodded as well, indicating that they also wanted to leave Ishtar's family.
"Then the next question: Which gods has Ishtar been meeting with recently?" Alex inquired.
"Over the past week, Ishtar has been frequently visited by the god Indra," Aisha replied. Upon hearing this, Alex's smile grew wildly, realizing he had found another enemy.
"Final question: How often did Indra come by?" Alex asked.
"Indra came every day and often stayed for a long time. He was with Ishtar when we left to capture Haruhime," Aisha said, looking at Alex, whose smile was becoming increasingly deranged.
"Ha-ha-ha-ha, I found him," Alex began to laugh, anticipating the encounter with a new enemy.
"Listen, Aisha, I can free you from Ishtar's influence, but I'll need your help," Alex said, continuing to smile.
"W-What can I do to help?" Aisha asked, stuttering.
"It's simple. You'll bring me and Haruhime to Ishtar and say you captured us. After that, you just need to stay out of it," Alex said, freeing the girls.
Aisha thought it over and decided that if the child before her was indeed as strong as the rumors claimed, he would be able to protect Haruhime. A big bonus was the freedom she would gain. Aisha agreed and led Alex and Haruhime to Ishtar.
Aisha brought them to the house where Ishtar's family usually gathered. All the family members were already assembled. As Alex entered, he began to look around and count the number of Ishtar's family members. When they entered the main hall, Alex noticed a woman with sun-kissed caramel skin and shiny black hair sitting on a throne. She was dressed in scant clothing and looked at Haruhime with a scowl. Standing next to Ishtar was a tall, tanned man with white hair and brown eyes, his expression showing complete indifference.
"Did you think you could escape from me, Haruhime?" Ishtar said, looking at Haruhime, who did not react to her words.
"Ishtar-sama, if she doesn't want to talk, give me the child, and she will definitely start talking," said Phryne, drooling as she looked at the child.
"Hmm... What do you think, Haruhime? Should I give this child to Frena?" Ishtar asked, hoping to elicit some reaction from Haruhime.
"Pfff, I can't take it anymore, this is fucking hilarious," Alex started laughing, unable to endure the serious atmosphere any longer.
"How dare you interrupt Ishtar-sama! Children need to be punished!" Phryne shouted, but Alex made a gun shape with his hand and pointed it at her.
"Bang!" Alex said, and Phryne turned into a bloody mist. Ishtar grabbed the armrest of her throne, while Indra began to look at the child seriously.
"Oh, sorry, I went a bit too far. Ingal," Alex said innocently, resurrecting the hideous toad.
"What now..." Phryne started to say, but her body was pierced by multiple swords.
"Oh, I did something bad again. But her ugly face scared me, so I accidentally killed her again," Alex said innocently, killing the toad once more. Phryne, having been killed and resurrected again, couldn't understand what was happening.
"Oh, your face is still as ugly even after I resurrected you. Let's fix that," Alex said, crushing the toad's head with his hand. "I think that's enough for her. And now you two," he continued, looking at Ishtar and Indra.
"Haruhime, go home and tell Hestia that I found another idiot. She'll understand," Alex said, teleporting Haruhime home.
"And now you two. Who would have thought that today I'd get two gods for the price of one. Right, Indra? How's that loser club of yours that wants to create chaos in the city?" Alex said, transforming back into his previous form.
"How dare you..." Indra began to yell, but his voice disappeared.
"Shh. Don't make a noise; we'll talk later," Alex said, placing a finger to his lips, signaling that Indra should be quiet.
"And now you, Ishtar. Didn't Freya tell you not to go through with your plans? Or is your head filled with sperm from all your suitors?" Alex said, pacing the hall and looking at Ishtar's family members, who had lost consciousness from the spell. "And now you've teamed up with Indra, who is part of a loser club trying to cause chaos. What should I do with you? Treat you like Thanatos? Or just send you back to the realm of the gods?" Alex said, summoning his throne and sitting on it.
"What do you mean?" Ishtar asked, trying to use her powers, but nothing worked.
"Don't bother trying; your powers won't work. I've sealed this entire room," Alex said, watching as Ishtar began to tremble with fear. "I'll give you two choices. First: you tell me everything you talked about with Indra, and maybe I won't kill you. Second: I'll force it out of you, and you'll end up like Thanatos, dead forever," Alex said, showing two fingers.
Ishtar pondered, trying to find a way out of this terrible situation. Her intuition told her that the person before her was capable of killing her. She found herself in this situation due to her desire to get Haruhime back and her connection with Indra, who promised to help after she joined their club. All she knew about this club was that the gods in it aimed to achieve some great goal. Realizing she didn't want to die, Ishtar decided to choose the first option.
To be continued...
AUTORENGEDANKEN 
GreedHunter
GreedHunter "Finally, we’re starting to eliminate the unnecessary villains, and then the final arc in DanMachi will begin. I’m still thinking about how to pull it all off, but I’ll do my best to make it great. In the meantime, enjoy the reading!"
(Feed the fire with gasoline
Liar liar, you go haywire
Feed the fire with gasoline
Let it out, paint the town
With all of my negativity
Burn 'em all before I'm gone
Who said you can't fight fire with gasoline?
I don't care much anymore
So fuck the easily offended
Burn 'em all before I'm gone
Who said you can't fight fire
You can't fight fire with gasoline?)
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein