Danmachi - Infinite Mana System! - Chapter 177 - The Charm Over Orario.

[Chapter Size: 2100 Words.]
Third Person POV
Altena.

...

...

Lucius and Riveria continued flying over the dwarf kingdom. They didn't get too close to the main city, only observing the way the race lived. Their economy and primary activity revolved around mining.

The kingdom was situated in the mountains below the Valley of Dragons. The kingdom itself was also made up of mountains, while the great capital lay within a vast valley. However, they chose not to enter the city.

After all, it was populated solely by dwarves, and they could potentially run into some trouble with them. Riveria personally disliked the kingdom, as the dwarves had been in conflict with the elves throughout history—mainly because the dwarves had been trying to seize elven territory, while the more magically talented race had only been defending what rightfully belonged to them.

Riveria ended up explaining how the elves didn't think too highly of the gods. This was because, after their arrival, the dwarves began receiving falna, growing stronger and finally able to contest the elves. Up until then, being the most powerful race in the mortal world in terms of magic, the elves had been able to prevent any dwarf advancement. But now, the war had escalated to the point where many elves had lost their lives over the centuries. Too proud to seek the gods themselves, there were no deities within the elven forest.

"I see... I think it's better if we leave the mountains. Let's head to the plains in the south. What do you say?" Lucius said, knowing they wouldn't be welcomed here—him being human, and Riveria being an elf. She agreed.

They headed south, traveling for the next few hours toward lower areas, though mining activities were still prevalent.

"Let's go to that town," Lucius said, spotting a small village near a few low mountains, clearly another mining site. He knew they might not face as much prejudice toward other races there. After all, the closer you got to the capital in this kingdom, the more openly the dwarves expressed their bias against other races.

"We could just keep traveling, Lucius," Riveria murmured. Though they had left the Valley of Dragons the day before, they had been exploring the kingdom ever since. It was still mid-afternoon, and Lucius usually only stopped at nightfall.

"Something tells me we should go there," he said. She nodded, despite not sharing his feeling.

They flew down toward the village, landing at the entrance unnoticed. Unsurprisingly, it was a mining village—no surprises there.

Upon entering, they quickly found a peculiar bar.

"Mama Mia’s Bar?" Riveria murmured, recognizing the familiar name.

"That's strange... Why is it named after that dwarf... What a coincidence," Lucius muttered as they proceeded inside, some dwarves giving them curious and wary glances.

The town was not poor; it seemed quite cozy. There were many dwarf women around—probably because the men were working in the mines during the day. Life here didn’t seem particularly harsh.

Upon entering the bar, a dwarf woman eyed them from behind a small counter, her gaze narrowing due to her short stature.

"Another human and an elf. What a weird day..." she murmured. Lucius and Riveria made no effort to hide their appearance.

Lucius raised an eyebrow but quickly shifted his attention to someone rising from a corner of the bar upon seeing them.

"Lucius!"

It was none other than Ryuu Lion, pulling down her hood to reveal herself.

"Ryuu?" Lucius grimaced in surprise upon seeing her. He approached, Riveria also visibly surprised.

Another figure stood next to Ryuu—it was Asfi, recognizable by her blue hair and glasses. She also stood, surprised to see them. Both parties seemed equally shocked to meet here of all places.

"It's good we found you," Ryuu commented.

"What do you mean? You were looking for us?" Riveria asked.

"We just left Orario a few weeks ago. We’ve been traveling north across the continent after hearing you were in Altena... It seems we were right to come this way after learning you'd traveled through the entire southern region... We expected you to head toward the Empire after Altena. But it looks like you arrived here faster than we thought," Asfi explained.

"Did something happen?" Lucius narrowed his eyes as he stepped closer to their table.

"Yes... but we need to talk in private," Ryuu said, glancing at a few dwarves seated at nearby tables who were watching them with curiosity. They couldn’t really blame them—after all, they were drawing attention just by being from two different races.

Lucius and Riveria quietly took the two vacant chairs, while Ryuu and Asfi also sat back down in their places.

"So, what will you be having?" A dwarf woman quickly approached, offering them the menu.

"The special of the day with beers," Lucius said, and the woman stepped away from them.

"So..." Lucius turned back to the other two. "What’s so urgent that you came looking for us?" he asked.

"Orario... the entire city is being manipulated," Asfi stated bluntly.

Lucius and Riveria couldn’t help but widen their eyes at this revelation.

"What do you mean...?" Lucius asked.

"All the mortals and even the gods are in some kind of trance... Their memories have been tampered with for some reason, and they are all acting like puppets—without even realizing it," Asfi said with a serious tone.

"Even the gods?!" Lucius raised an eyebrow. "How could this happen just because we left Orario a few months ago?" He questioned both them and the air around him.

"My familia is in this state too?! How is that possible?!" Riveria couldn't believe that the Loki Familia could be affected as well.

"Yes... all the familias are in this state. And from what we’ve discovered, only Hestia is free from it. We don’t know of anyone else. She’s being watched by the entire city," Asfi explained, leaving Riveria speechless.

"But what exactly are they manipulating?" Lucius asked.

"It’s about your familia member, Bell Cranel. They’re manipulating him to become a member of another familia," Ryuu said, looking directly at Lucius.

"Freya..." Lucius murmured with a dark expression. There was only one person who would be interested in doing that—someone capable of manipulating an entire city.

"Exactly..." Asfi confirmed.

At that moment, the dwarf woman returned, carrying a plate of meat and their drinks. She was the same one Lucius had placed the order with earlier.

"Hey, I hope you’re not speaking ill of Lady Freya!" she immediately said, seemingly having heard Lucius mention the name. Everyone turned to look at her as she set the food down on the table.

"Lady Freya came here a long time ago when we were in a terrible situation. The mines were drying up, our men were struggling to make enough money to support their families, and hunger began to take over this place. Miss Mia opened this restaurant back then so we could have something to eat during that difficult time. Then, one day, she met the goddess while searching for ingredients," she said, as if she had recited this speech hundreds of times. She paused briefly before continuing.

"The goddess Freya helped us back then, and Miss Mia went with her to travel the world as a way to repay the goddess. We owe a lot to her, and I didn’t like the tone you used when saying her name. If you’re going to speak ill of her, I suggest you leave this town unless you want trouble," the dwarf woman said with a grumpy tone. All four of them raised their eyebrows as they listened.

"..."
No one responded. They simply watched as she turned around and left.

"I think we’d better continue this conversation somewhere else. This place most likely used to belong to Mama Mia, judging by what we just heard," Lucius commented, and everyone agreed.

They ate in silence while Lucius drank the dwarf beer, enjoying its flavor. In the end, they paid for the meal and left the bar, with the dwarf woman still glaring at them as though they were enemies.

Leaving the town, they prepared to camp outside for the night—or rather, they stayed in a house that Lucius created with magic.

The conversation stretched on into the night as Asfi and Ryuu elaborated on the situation in Orario. They explained that when they returned to the city after completing a mission outside, they realized they hadn’t been affected by Freya’s charm.

"They couldn’t have fallen into this so easily... could they?" Riveria was stunned, unable to believe that her familia had also been manipulated. After all, they were the strongest in the city. How could they succumb to something like this?

"Don't be so surprised. Freya’s charm is something that not even the gods are immune to... And Hestia was probably unaffected because she’s a virgin goddess," Lucius commented, crossing his arms in a corner of the room, reflecting on what he had just heard.

"Can we change this?" Riveria thought aloud. She couldn’t quite formulate a proper question, her gaze somewhat lost as she spoke.

"We’ll be dealing with an entire city full of adventurers... It won’t be easy..." Lucius admitted, unsure of how to alter the situation.

"You mean...?" Ryuu murmured.

"If what you’re saying is true... we’ll have to deal with Freya. After all, her charm has influenced the entire city, and I have no idea how to reverse that—neither do you. You came all the way here without a plan, other than seeking more people unaffected..." Lucius said with a sigh, before looking seriously at the three of them.

"I believe an attack against Freya will be our best option. But we’ll have to face the entire city if we truly wish to defeat her..." Lucius spoke. He was still Level 4—although one of the strongest in Orario at that level, fighting the whole city was pure madness.

"Can we do that?" Ryuu asked.

"I’m the one with the best chance. I know you have flying artifacts," Lucius said, turning to Asfi. "I possess the greatest destructive power for an attack from the sky. We might have a chance," he declared.

"..."
Ryuu seemed somewhat lost hearing that.

"So, you know that Freya is Syr Flova, don’t you?" Lucius asked upon noticing Ryuu’s expression.

"You know?!" Ryuu questioned him in shock.

"Yes... I’ve always known. That’s why I avoided getting too involved with the waitress," Lucius said, pausing for a moment. "You know that what Freya is doing is unforgivable... No one there will allow this to continue. That’s why I believe we need to do this. We have to expel Freya from this world to free the city. That’s why I plan to launch a direct attack on her mansion. I can do it from the sky. Freya won’t survive and will have her spirit sent back to heaven," Lucius said with a serious tone.

All three of them seemed deep in thought upon hearing this.

"There’s no other way?" Ryuu murmured.

"Do you know another way?" Lucius countered, as even he wasn’t certain if there could be another solution.

"..."
Ryuu remained silent, clearly not wanting Syr to disappear.

"You can meet her in heaven... if that’s what concerns you," Lucius said in the end.

The conversation continued, with Asfi requesting more details about the strategy. Their discussion stretched until the middle of the night.

"I think that’s enough for today. First, Riveria and I will head south to handle something in the elven kingdom. Then, we’ll meet on the road to Orario, and you two will go ahead without me for the next few days. I’ll return to the southern continent," Lucius said.

"You think Goddess Athena will help?" Asfi asked.

"Yes... she needs Orario for the magic stones," Lucius replied. "I’m certain that once I inform her of the situation, she’ll give me what I need..." he added.

His plan was to return to Altena, speak with the goddess, and gain access to the region’s magic stone reserves. That would give him a massive amount of points in the system—which meant he could obtain more spells from it, properly preparing himself to face the entire city of Orario.

That was Lucius’s plan.
And so, they all went to sleep, ready to part ways the next day.