Danmachi: A Despicable Stranger

Chapter 82: The goddess is trying to steal the man~

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What? Who is having an affair with whom?

In an instant, the loud accusation echoed through the tavern, drawing the attention of everyone inside.

All eyes shifted to the window seat where Izzy and Artemis were seated, and soon, hushed whispers spread like wildfire among the onlookers.

When it came to gossip, adventurers were no less skilled than teenage girls.

Most of the adventurers were already envious of Izzy. There he was, surrounded by a group of beautiful girls, getting along so well with a goddess no less. Their jealousy simmered quietly—until now.

But the sudden arrival of Loki and the Riveria, both clearly agitated and walking toward him, caused a stir that quickly replaced the envy with excitement.

"Hiss… Loki looks like she's about to steal a man!"

"Shh! Are you tired of living? Keep quiet and just watch the show!"

"This wine suddenly tastes amazing!"

"Cha Lemon… Why couldn't that be me sitting there?"

The low murmur of voices filled the room, blending into the background.

Among them, Ryuu, holding a tray and standing nearby, glanced toward Izzy's table. Her expression was calm and collected, as usual. However, her curiosity betrayed her; she, too, wondered how this situation would play out.

By the way, would Mr. Izzy have no place to stay tonight?

The thought crossed her mind. Should she offer him a place to stay?

Yes, she would help him if needed.

Meanwhile, Syr, standing nearby, side-eyed Ryuu, subtly observing her reaction. Surprisingly, Ryuu seemed composed.

But was it just an illusion?

Why did it feel like Ryuu was scheming something?

Was she preparing to jump in? Could this turn into a three-way battle?

Oh my goodness, if it actually came to that, Syr decided she would stand on Ryuu's side without hesitation. Not for any deep reason—just because it would be fun.

---

"Lady Artemis and I were just having a meal together. How does that count as an affair? Loki, why are you acting so neurotic?"

Izzy, who had been calmly reflecting with Letesha moments before, wasn't fazed at all when Loki confronted him. He even appeared nonchalant, as though the situation was entirely normal.

A man of integrity has nothing to fear.

Sure, he had thoughts about Artemis. But nothing had happened yet.

Apart from holding hands and a hug or two, there was nothing improper between them. What was there to panic about?

But Artemis wasn't as composed as he was.

"L-Loki? Why are you here?"

Her voice betrayed her panic, a rare occurrence for the ever-composed goddess.

However, after a moment, Artemis quickly collected herself.

'Wait a minute, why was I panicking?'

'It was just a normal interaction with Izzy—nothing more.'

She had no intention of stealing Loki's child or recruiting Izzy into her own Familia.

So why the fluster?

There was absolutely no need for it!

Reasserting her usual poise, Artemis quickly returned to her cool demeanor. She shot a glance at Loki, waiting for an explanation.

---

Loki, meanwhile, blinked, her lips curving into a faint, mischievous smile.

She had seen Artemis's reaction just now.

It wasn't normal.

These two… were definitely up to something.

Something fishy was going on here.

this is starting to get interesting.

Loki placed her right hand behind her neck, feigning nonchalance as she grinned widely.

"I just happened to see you here, Artemis, and noticed you were with Izzy, so I came over to say hello."

"Say hello?"

Artemis raised an eyebrow, her expression unimpressed. She gave Loki a sharp eye roll.

Haha, as if she'd believe that.

"Does saying hello usually look like catching someone in the act?" Artemis retorted, her tone carrying a hint of mockery.

"What do you mean catching someone in the act? Who's spreading such baseless gossip?" Loki replied with exaggerated indignation. Then, as if realizing something, she added, "Oh, it's Syr. Well, if it's her, I'll let it slide~."

Feeling that her reputation was being slandered, Loki turned around, determined to teach the person speaking ill of her a lesson.

But when she saw that the culprit was Syr, the tavern's hostess, she immediately lost her temper and calmly let the matter go.

Seeing Loki act like this, Syr stuck out her tongue cutely, dragged a few chairs over from the side, and then looked at Artemis.

"Can we sit here?" she asked, referring to herself, Ryuu, Loki, and Riveria.

"Please," Artemis nodded slightly.

"Oh, I won't be polite then. Let's just drink here!" Syr said brightly.

"Excuse me," Ryuu said softly, clearly hesitant.

"Come on, Ryuu, let's sit down," Syr encouraged with a playful smile.

"This isn't a good idea, Syr… I still have to take care of things in the store," Ryuu replied, her tone conflicted.

"It's fine. Mama Mia won't mind. We'll just get some more money from Mr. Izzy later~," Syr said teasingly.

Loki and Riveria sat down one after the other. Ryuu could only smile bitterly at Syr's playful attitude. She raised her head and glanced toward the bar, only to see Mia, the tavern's owner, smiling broadly behind the counter and casually waving her hand.

Was Mia showing her approval of them sitting down, or her support for squeezing more gold coins out of Izzy? It was unclear.

At this moment, Rethusa tactfully pulled Lante, who was still pretending to be dead, away from the scene, leaving more space for the group.

Izzy glanced at the two goddesses beside him, one of the elf royal family, plus Syr and Ryuu, and couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

It's strange… how did things end up like this? Why does it feel like something terrible is brewing in the dark?

"Hey, Artemis," Loki began, casually breaking the silence. "Just now, one of my clan members told me that a blue-haired goddess took Izzy away on the street. That goddess is you, right? Tell us, how did you get to know Izzy?"

Loki grabbed her wine bottle with one hand, poured herself a glass with the other, and tilted her head back, drinking the wine in large gulps. She exhaled with satisfaction, her face slightly flushed, and then turned her attention to Artemis, clearly interested in what was going on between her and Izzy.

"Your clan member? The one with thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a hedgehog haircut?" Artemis asked, her tone suddenly sharp.

It would have been better if she hadn't said anything, but the moment she brought it up, her eyes turned cold.

Seeing this, Loki was stunned for a moment. "Oh yeah? Did Raul do something?"

"Heh, when I met Izzy, I found that your hedgehog-head was dragging him to the Red light district," Artemis snorted, giving her answer. She proceeded to recount the details of how she met Izzy and where they encountered each other earlier.

"Red light district!?"

"Oh my, this is really…"

Hearing this, Syr gasped and covered her mouth in exaggerated surprise. Ryuu, meanwhile, looked at Izzy first, her eyes clearly saying, You are such a Mr. Izzy.

Even Riveria, who had been calmly sipping her glass of juice, subtly twitched her long, pointed ears.

"Don't look at me like that, Ryuu. I didn't go in," Izzy said quickly, as if he understood the meaning in her gaze. "It was Raul, that thick-browed, big-eyed guy, who dragged me there. He was trying to harm me!"

As if to clear his name, Izzy explained briefly, putting all the blame on Raul.

"Well, that's that!"

"Hey~ Raul is still so evil… I'll tell Finn to teach him a lesson later," As she spoke, Loki poured herself another glass of wine.

"I have no objection," Riveria said slowly, offering her support.

"Let's not talk about that for now, Artemis," Loki continued, leaning forward with interest. "You still haven't told me how you and Izzy met, let alone how you two got so close. This isn't like you. You know, you used to…"

"What about me before? Can't I have a friend of the opposite sex!?"

Before Loki could finish, Artemis interrupted her sharply, her tone defensive. It gave the distinct impression that she was trying to hide something.

"Eh~~~"

Loki deliberately dragged out the sound, her mischievous smile widening, clearly enjoying Artemis' reaction. It was enough to make Artemis want to punch her.

"What are you even talking about?" Artemis snapped, glaring at Loki with her chin raised in defiance. Her annoyance was already evident.

"Nothing, nothing," Loki replied innocently, though her expression betrayed her teasing intent. She then turned to Izzy. "Why don't you tell me, Izzy? Look at this 'virgin goddess'—she's getting all worked up."

Izzy glanced at Artemis, who was indeed fuming, but he didn't see worked up.

She's obviously just… really cute.

Also, don't push your nonexistent chest any further in frustration—it's not going to make anything appear.

Izzy sighed internally, thinking that this felt more like a battle between gods and had little to do with mortals like himself.

Still, he decided to answer Loki's question. It wasn't anything embarrassing, after all. Izzy quickly recounted how Artemis had rescued him and how they ended up traveling to Orario together.

"You were brought to Orario by her? How come I didn't know about this!?" Loki exclaimed, looking genuinely surprised.

"Well, you didn't ask, did you?"

Izzy felt a headache coming on as he dealt with Loki, who had suddenly become animated and inquisitive.