"...and then, before I could fight the bad guy, Ryuu from the restaurant appeared and chased him away. But the small girl also ran away." Bell told his story with grand gestures. Quite the hero, our white rabbit.

"Ryuu, you say? Is she pretty enough for your harem?" I asked the white-haired boy while Lisa choked on her tea.

Bell thought for a moment, then nodded.

I bet he did. What level was Ryuu? Level 5 or something? Very strong anyways.

"Good, I approve then. But she'll need to join our Familia before you sleep with her. Actually, I enshrine this as a law for the Hestia Familia members. No sleeping with anyone unless they are part of the Familia. Right, Captain?" I declared with a glance to a red-faced Lisa.

She nodded slowly, and Hestia nodded in turn. Much safer that way, for everyone.

"Same for the petite girl that you saved. I am certain she'll come back soon to thank you. Find out what Familia she has, and if she's willing to join ours. If she does, then you can also sleep with her." I told a blushing Bell.

"...Is that really fine?" Hestia asked in a confused voice.

"Of course. People can change their Familia if they want to. We aren't slaves. But I am thinking a step farther, should the copulation result in kids and such. The child needs a stable family, not some feud between Gods than makes the parents kill each other." I continued in a warning voice.

Bell's eyes became a bit colder and grave. "You make a good point, Vice-Captain."

I nodded. Of course I did.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Now lay down and let Hestia update your Falna. Fighting a Minotaur should have given you a boost in stats." I demanded with a wry voice.

As Hestia printed the Falna on paper, I noticed the hidden Skill. G rank in Agility. Damn kid was still growing faster than me, if not equally on all stats.

"As expected, you increased your Strength and Agility the most, and neglected Endurance and Dexterity. No Magic either." I commented in a disappointed voice.

Lisa took off her choker and tied it to Bell's neck instead. Then passed her finger over his forehead, possibly deleting the choker from his mind.

"You don't need to dodge every attack. You will use a shield and club tomorrow, and just counter after the monster strikes. Dodging is for the Floor Bosses and that kind of monsters, not the small fries." Lisa demanded with a knowing glance towards me.

Well, yeah. I didn't expect the Goliath to simply shatter my shield. Adamantite was supposed to be strong.

Bell equipped his new shield and club, basically my old gear from level 1. "They feel a bit heavy..." he uttered in dismay.

"That's kinda the point, Bell. Durable metal is heavy, but it also absorbs damage much better. And can crush through skin and bones with ease. Even crumple armor." I advised the new guy.

"So I just need to get stronger?" Bell realized a minute later.

"Well, reaching SSS ranks will not be easy, but even Sarah managed that. You're a man, aren't you? Man up!" I said in a careless tone, then began eating my dinner.

Bell rushed to drop his equipment in his room, then joined us at the table. Hestia was becoming a great cook, with all the free time since she stopped working for pennies.

"Even Sarah?" Lisa asked in a mild voice.

"This is a medieval planet, my dear companion. Adventurers and Gods have their powers, but for regular humans like Bell was until yesterday, things work much like they used to back home." I said in a casual voice, and Lisa just nodded slowly.

"So, you know who the small girl was?" Hestia asked me instead. Divine intuition? Let's say so.

"Lilly from the Soma Familia. Tragic story and all that. She can sleep with Bell all she wants, once the problem is fixed." I answered with a careless shrug.

The meat was lamb, probably. Tasted good, so I didn't care too much. Gods always butchered the lambs first, for some reason. Holy is the piglet would have made a poor song, possibly.

Bell glanced between me and Lisa, then blushed as some stupid thoughts crossed his mind.

He was also a lamb, for now. But maybe I could make his story a bit better.