Pardoned, a new Beginning

Well, I committed a slight mistake.

I thought this chapter was another big one, but it is not, it should've been posted two days ago.

So after this one, I'll post one more chap, and that one, on the other hand, is big.

Just a reminder since most of the last 4-5 chaps have been like this, just chunky boys.

Peace.

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/Later…/

'As the minutes passed, Silver asked Hestia about everything she knew about Emma, while he also told her his own story and how he met Lili.'

'He took her story rather well, nodding in understanding as he kept a professional face.'

'But that wasn't the case for her...'

'She frowned multiple times as she heard his story, but she kept for herself whatever she was thinking, even though it was obvious to him what she was bothered about.'

'Nevertheless, after a while of making sure Emma's condition did not worsen, Silver carried her to a proper bed so she could rest while Hestia went to calm everyone down.'

'The procedure wasn't anything complex or flamboyant, it ended very quickly but the results were more than satisfactory.'

'Meanwhile, the Hestia Familia slowly went back to normal as it didn't seem like a conflict would happen again anytime soon.'

'It seemed the trespassers were acting on their own, though if they did possess a group, they might realize they wouldn't be coming back soon.'

'And it would be for the best if they found out their origins before that happened... But that would be left for Silver to dig up.'

'Regardless, some people were left to scout the perimeter while a few others went outside to gather their missing members just in case things went awry.'

'This wasn't for the protection of the Manor, for that they had Silver.'

'This was meant to protect them more than anything, as just like they tried to have a girl hostage, they could do the same to those outside.'

'Of course, that wouldn't be a problem with Silver around, he had one in a million ways to save someone or to fool someone into thinking they won.'

'As for the three trespassers, they were led to an improvised Jail Cell somewhere in the basement of the Manor for questioning.'

'Meanwhile, the tired Cassandra and Hestia relaxed their tense moods with a nice cup of tea somewhere in the side hall next to the kitchen while Haruhime returned to what she was doing before...'

'Cleaning.'

...

'As such, as the dust settled down and everyone started to relax again, they were given time to process everything that had just happened.'

""...""

'And this led to the current situation…'

"..."

Uh… Why is she looking at me like that?

'Sitting on a chair somewhere in the Main Hall next to the kitchen, Lili silently stared at the girls around her as she drank a little bit of tea given to her by a very kind and rare Renard.'

'It had been Lili's first time seeing one of her kind so close to her.'

'She had seen other members of her race here and there, but she couldn't quite remember where, this was how rare they were.'

'However, she couldn't make sense of the weird feeling she was having… And it all came from a single person… Goddess sitting on the corner of the room with a blue-haired lady next to her.'

/Jiiiii…/

'Hestia silently stared at Lili with a sharp gaze as the latter drank her tea, trying to calm down as her hands trembled…'

The atmosphere in this place is so lively... Even after such an incident...

It's completely different from that place.

But why... Why is she staring at me like that?!

THIS IS DRIVING ME NUTS!

'Lili couldn't calm down, it was already hard enough being somewhere she had never been before surrounded by people she didn't know after what she just experienced in the Dungeon...'

'But now she was being stared at intently by a Goddess… Not just any Goddess.'

'Just by hearing her name once she already understood where she was…'

'This was the Hestia Familia, the one that had been rising recently like the morning sky, she had never expected to get entangled with them in this life...'

'Obviously, it wasn't difficult for Lili to fit all of the missing pieces together and for her to come up with the reasons why "Antony" had approached her in the first place.'

'He said it before, he wanted to 'relax' in the Dungeon because he couldn't take the boredom of resting at home…'

'Antony, or better put, Silver, was someone that had overturned Orario, even if for a moment.'

'He who should've been spending time resting was… Raiding the Upper floors with an unknown Supporter… The same one that she had tried to swindle multiple times over...'

'This made her drop her head when she thought just how would they react when they realized what they went through in the Dungeon…'

'Would they scorn her, would they pity her?...'

'She didn't know, she…'

"Are you okay?" Hestia asked slowly as she approached Lili

'Her expression was mixed, but Lili could tell she was being sincere, she seemed like a nice person, even if before she had been staring intently at her.'

"Eh?"

"I… Don't know how the two of you met, but given you're here, he must trust you quite a bit."

"Sorry for the state of things, I can see you're confused, but you can relax now... I'm Hestia, though that's pretty obvious... What's your name?"

"L-Lili... Liliruca Arde." She replied as she raised her head to look at Hestia

I thought she didn't like me, but she's acting like this...

She's strange...

'Hestia smiled.'

"Why do you look so down? Raise your head with pride! Be it Human or Cat, everyone must smile in the Hearth Manor!"

"..."

'Lili was stunned, but after a few moments, she said as she dropped her head:'

"I'm... Not a Cat... I'm a Pallum..."

"EH?!"

'It was Hestia's turn to be stunned.'

"Echoing message of midnight..." Lili said in a low tone as she looked at the ground

/Shine.../

'Lili's cat ears and tail started to shine as they vanished, leaving only an agape Hestia behind.'

"That's... Cool..."

'Hestia was embarrassed, she didn't know how to react.'

"Even if you're Pallum?... Uh... It didn't sound as good as it did in my head..."

"..."

'Lili looked at Hestia, and she couldn't help but think this goddess was extremely silly.'

'But that wasn't a bad thing.'

"COUGH!... I saw the state of your clothes… Take these for now." She said as she gave Lili a small change of clothes

"Still... Don't take it for granted though!"

"?!"

Did she notice it?

"I want to hear what happened from the beginning… After you rest of course."

She must have had a reason for hiding who she was.

I don't feel very well for knowing she was lying to Silver, but she seems as confused as me, so I'll cut her some slack.

'Her tone changing to a more light one, she said:'

"It may be a bit late and rude, but welcome to the Hestia Familia."

"..."

'Seeing everyone smile as they looked at her, Lili's head dropped to the ground.'

'She wasn't sad or anything, on the contrary.'

'She was just too embarrassed to say anything.'

…

/Back at Silver…/

"Hum..."

"... So far, no allergic reactions." He mumbled to himself as he stared at Emma with his arms crossed

I've supplied her with a Blood substitute, so she should be good enough to return to her normal life without any problems.

But that isn't a safe option as she could end up developing an adverse side effect later on.

For now, she should stay in bed, by tomorrow…

We can think about that later.

'He looked at a small table on the side, it was full of potion bottles, and one of them was empty.'

"I already feed her one potion, it should be enough for now."

With the help of potions to slowly recover her lost blood volume, she'll recover within a week, though giving her body another week or two of rest to make sure no problems arise shouldn't be a problem.

If only she were an adventurer… This makes me remember the difference between a normal person and someone that has received a blessing.

Such an injury would take at most a week for them to recover from, though I would have to save them still.

The problem is the Blood substitute in her veins, hopefully, her body will consume it all as her Blood Volume recovers without any adverse effects.

"Her name was Emma Flores, right?" He asked himself as he looked at her

You're a tough lady, being able to maintain consciousness for so long.

Though consider yourself lucky…

'His eyes sharpened.'

Still, this isn't over yet.

'His expression sharpened.'

I want to see just who were the bastards that had the gal to hunt someone down just a few streets from my home.

If they have the courage to do that in broad daylight, then they may try again or intercept someone in the future.

It may be someone that would join our Familia, or it may be someone that already belongs to ours.

I want people to fell at ease when they are around us not the contrary.

"Had it not been for Hestia finding her and dragging her here…" Silver said as he remembered the story Hestia told him as he stabilized Emma

'He shook his head as his gaze softened.'

"I'll be back after I take care of the rest."

She doesn't need a full-grown man taking care of her all time, she might even get scared if my handsome face is the first thing she sees after waking up...

'Silver turned around and left the room with a small smile, talking with someone outside the corridor before leaving for the entrance Hall.'

'In his place, a few people entered the room…'

"So…? Our job is to make sure no one touches her?" A bald kid asked as he looked around

"Don't be rude, speak in a lower tone around the injured." Piro, the eldest said as he touched Firo's shoulder

"I know I know… I'm just a tad bored, that's all…"

"Still, couldn't they have found someone else for the job? I was in the middle of my rest time." He said in an annoyed tone

"You're one to talk... This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't pissed off Igva with your snappy comments." Piro replied as he shook his head

"Tsk! She was asking for it… Though it's not my fault her ears are better than a dog's…"

/Fwoosh!/

'He looked around just in case she was hiding somewhere near, and after confirming she wasn't, he let out a sigh of relief.'

"... She's pretty." Biro, the youngest said as he looked at Emma sleeping on the bed

Emma was a young and pretty girl with unusual pink hair and eyes, though they couldn't see those right now.

(Image?)

"Biro! Don't stare at her, you're being creepy."

"Sorry… I couldn't help it."

"I heard she wasn't an adventurer... Do you think she'll join us?" Firo asked as he put his hands on his chin

"And why would that be the case?" Piro retorted as he shook his head

"She seems to have the qualifications to become one, she even carried around a sword, and although it's unsettling to welcome someone with an unknown past into our ranks, even if she has enemies, it's not like they can do anything to us." He said with a smug smile as he sat on a chair, crossing his legs as he did so

"It would be hypocritical of us to deny her just for that in the first place."

"Although I agree, you're being too cocky..."

"Yes, the Captain will trash anyone he sees, but that doesn't mean he can do the same if we're ambushed in the Dungeon." The eldest replied as he shook his head again

"Albeit unlikely... Though we're not in a position to say that… Since that did happen once in the Dungeon." Firo replied with a helpless expression

/Nod/

'The three brothers nodded at the same time.'

…

/Sometime later at Silver's Office…/

'Silver, Hestia, and Lili could be seen discussing something…'

'Though things didn't look well…'

'Hestia was currently sitting on Silver's office chair looking down on him who "willingly" had been asked to sit on the ground.'

"... So? Let's go through it all again." She said as she tapped on his office table

"You went against my orders and still dived into the Dungeon… Despite promising me you would take some time and rest…"

"Well, I stuck to the Upper…"

"And by 'REST' I mean staying at home, enjoying a nice book by the fireplace…"

Going on a date with me... Cough!

"And NOT staying inside a forge all day or in your 'Lab' making potions." Hestia said as she interrupted Silver

"..."

'Silver didn't say anything, letting Hestia voice her complaints.'

'He had indeed let her and the others down a little in that regard…'

'He promised he would rest, but instead, he spent all of his time going on and about everywhere.'

'Testing his ideas in his improvised alchemy lab and inside the recently built Manor's forge, Silver would always be sweating due to hard work.'

'If not that, then he would be seen teaching others, be it helping the girls train, helping Haruhime clean, or doing something else like playing around with some of the younger members as they went around pranking others.'

'Not to say what he did outside of the Manor, he seemed to always be somewhere doing who knew what…'

'Hestia did not want to complain, she was more than glad by having someone as hardworking as he around, but… There were times when someone should just lay down and rest, even if his actions often induce happiness in others.'

"You also got yourself meddled in some other Familia's problem… Again." She said as she looked at Lili

"Sorry..." Lili replied as her head fell

"Sigh, just what is Soma doing?…" Hestia thought to herself as she face palmed

"Anyway, Silver, as long as you take it easy and promise me you'll focus on resting, then I won't complain."

'She then looked at Silver and shooed him away, leaving only the girls behind.'

'Silver felt a bit odd to be thrown out of his own Office, but he knew that if he were to complain Hestia would throw a fit somewhere down the line when they were alone.'

'He liked to tease her and play around with her but he knew when to stop, because right now just like she asked him, he wanted to take it easy.'

'Sometimes you pull, sometimes you give, that's how a relationship must be.'

'And he didn't mind at all, only suckers would complain about such a minor thing.'

'Though, if it happened frequently and he allowed it, then he would be the sucker...'

"As for you…"

'Hestia smiled.'

"Despite what ended up happening, it's clearly not your fault."

"Though I still can't pardon you for your intentions."

"..."

'Lili looked at the ground.'

"... Still, if you wish to remain with us, then do so for as long as you like."

"Our Familia still lacks competent people, someone like you would be welcomed here."

"Some of the girls are unfortunately too young to fend for themselves, so having someone capable to guide them wouldn't be that bad." She said with a small smile as she got up from her seat

"I'm aware of some of the things Silver told you, and I won't stop you two at all."

"Silver is the Captain of the Hestia Familia, and if he told you he would make a contract with you… Then I'll welcome you with open arms!"

'Lili was about to reply when...'

/Brrr…/

'Lili's stomach rumbled… Making her face go beet red.'

"Huh, well… You two did just come from the Dungeon… Guess some food is a must."

'She raised her arms up high for a stretch, though it made Lili agape as she saw the full extent of her "assets".'

'It almost felt like a provocation!'

"It's almost time for dinner, so I guess it wouldn't be a problem to make it a bit ahead of time today."

'She went to the door, opening it and grabbing Silver's arm.'

"Let's go make some food, Silver." She said with a smile before she looked back at Lili with a smug look

'Silver obviously noticed this but he kept quiet, it was for the best...'

/THUNDER!/

'Lili's expression twisted as she looked at Hestia's blatant display of "power".'

'So she got up from her seat and followed them as she prepared her own counterattack…'

…

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Notes

In this chapter, we saw the end of the entire Lili Arc and also an introduction to the next member of the Hestia Familia, Emma, a strong-willed girl that will appear frequently as a main side character similar to Daphne and Cassandra, she may even appear more then them as she... Well, let's stop at that.

We'll likely be seeing another time skip soon directly into the recruitment ceremony after a few POVs that need to be shown first... No, we will soon because I already wrote it.

Also, don't forget we still have some people to cover, such as the Xenos, Evlius, Ishtar, and so on.

There are several plots that weren't given a close, though I think it's about time for us to give this inter Arc a close and start the Recruitment Arc so we can jump straight into the next one.

Sometimes, not everything needs to be explained even if it leaves holes in the story.

What do you all think of that?

Peace.