Danmachi: The Multiverse Portal

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Inside the Apollo Familia's defensive perimeter.

"Still nothing?"

Daphne Lauros glanced at the clock. It was three in the afternoon—three hours since the War Game began, and still no word from the front lines.

"Daphne, don't panic," Cassandra Ilion urged softly, trying to calm her friend. "If we lose our composure, we play right into the enemy's hands."

"It's been three hours. Aside from the vanguard, we haven't seen a single person."

Daphne looked over the camp. She was now leading a hundred Adventurers, taking over from the more experienced veterans. Lord Apollo had designed this strategy meticulously—yet the silence was gnawing at her nerves.

Waiting for an ambush without any news could wear down even the bravest Adventurer.

But the enemy tactician already understood how the sun moved. By watching its path, they could predict what would happen next.

Cassandra's prophetic gift was always working. She knew the enemy had figured out Apollo's entire plan. Her Familia was heading straight for defeat, and she was sure of it.

"Besides, he's already here," Cassandra murmured, looking toward the street.

This time it wasn't a prophetic dream. Just a glimpse of motion.

"He's here?" Daphne started to ask what she meant.

A split second later, Luan's small figure sprinted frantically into the encampment.

"Luan!"

"Didn't he go out scouting?"

"We haven't seen him for an hour!"

Daphne saw the Pallum run toward the barricades, gasping for air and clearly scared.

"EMERGENCY! EMERGENCY! HE'S COMING!" Luan yelled at the top of his lungs.

"What?" Daphne followed his gaze.

August followed Luan from a distance, walking slowly and calmly. He wore a straw hat and kept one hand resting on his sword as he neared the edge of their camp.

"Move! Protect the vanguard! Raise the defensive barriers! Mages, start your chants! Archers, ready your weapons!"

As soon as Daphne gave her orders, the camp burst into action.

"NO, wait!" Cassandra grabbed Daphne's arm, desperate to stop her.

'Don't save him. You can't let that person in.'

"Now is not the time, Cassandra! The enemy is right outside our gates!"

Daphne ignored the warning, keeping her attention on the danger outside. She pulled away from her friend and rushed to organize the defense.

"All units, get ready!" she called out, her voice steady.

The rest of the Apollo Familia snapped to attention, eyes fixed on August in the distance.

August stopped walking.

Luan slipped past the raised magical barriers, breaching the defensive perimeter and making it into the camp.

A tense standoff settled over the street. Neither side moved.

Once Luan was inside, Daphne stopped paying attention to him. She kept her eyes on August, ready for a fight to break out at any moment.

But behind the front line, Luan started acting differently. He didn't join the defenders. Instead, he wandered through the camp, glancing around and taking note of where everyone was. He spotted the hidden fighters, counted the mages, and saw the archers hiding in the shadows.

He kept track of every Apollo member he could see.

Finally, Luan reached the magical backline and spotted Cassandra standing among the healers.

His eyes locked dead onto her.

Cassandra froze. Her heart sank, and her hands shook as she held her crystal staff tighter.

"Don't come any closer."

Daphne was up front. Everyone else was busy keeping August out. Cassandra was left alone, facing "Luan."

"As expected of the Apollo Familia's healer. With a unique skill like Prophetic Dream, you're easily the most troublesome piece on this board." With no one else in earshot, Luan's voice shifted, dropping the frantic pitch.

"Echoing message of midnight."

Luan's form dissolved in a wisp of ash. The magic deactivated, and Lili stood in his place.

"You came. The one who escaped her fate."

Cassandra looked at Lili in fear, but there was also a hint of understanding in her eyes. Her visions had warned her about this. Still, no one ever believed her warnings. Even when people listened, it was as if a strange curse made them ignore her.

"Oho. So you do know a few things."

Lili didn't care about the Apollo members outside. She was fascinated by Cassandra and her prophetic powers.

If Lili hadn't learned the original story, she wouldn't have understood how special Cassandra's foresight was.

Being called "the one who escaped her fate" was a title that caught her interest.

Lili pulled up a wooden stool and sat down.

When she saw the intruder wasn't attacking, Cassandra looked nervously toward the front lines. Everyone was busy. She felt like a hostage in her own camp, but her curiosity was stronger than her fear.

"Should I call you Little Light? Or Miss Arde?" she asked softly.

"Either is fine," Lili shrugged. She reached into her pack, pulled out a canteen, and poured herself a cup of tea to soothe her throat.

She was curious to find out what kind of person this healer with prophetic powers really was.

"Miss Arde, why did you join the Hestia Familia? In the visions, you were a seeker trapped in despair—waiting for a destined hero to reach out his hand and save you."

Cassandra wanted to know why Lili had changed her fate. Lili was supposed to be a tragic character, rescued by a brave hero.

Before Lili could answer, a huge explosion shook the city. The battle outside had started, and the sounds of magic and clashing steel filled the air as August fought the Apollo front line.

Lili paused, holding her teacup.

"Miss Cassandra."

She didn't answer directly. She knew exactly who the "Destined Hero" of Cassandra's vision was: Bell Cranel.

"..." Lili stared into her cup.

The shockwaves from the magical artillery outside sent ripples across the surface of her tea, and the trembling water pulled her mind back to the very beginning. To the days before she met August.

"I used to be a naive girl. Until I drank Lord Soma's divine wine. After that, I became a slave to it. Unsurprisingly, Lord Soma abandoned me, and I walked the exact same path my parents did. I went from a helpless child to a lowly Supporter. Grinding for Valis every single day. Stealing, scavenging, surviving, all of it just to buy one more sip of that wine. I tried to fight it. I tried to run away. But it never took long for the Familia to drag me back and shackle me to the wine all over again. Poverty. Depravity. I was sinking into the mud like a pathetic wretch."

Lili slowly sipped her tea.

"Because of that, I hurt a lot of people. I stole weapons. I watched Adventurers look at me with betrayal in their eyes. I purposefully triggered traps and left them to die in the Dungeon just to escape."

She kept her cup steady and spoke openly about her past, not trying to defend herself. She let the weight of her actions show.

Cassandra's eyes widened. She had never heard anyone admit to such a hard life. Lili didn't try to hide the pain or guilt. It was the story of a young girl falling apart.

"I was drowning in it. Every single day. Until I met August."

She didn't use any grand titles. She simply called him by his name.

August.

"I tried to play him the exact same way I played everyone else. But then I watched him fight in the Dungeon. He's a fierce fighter, but every move he makes is meticulously calculated. He treated the monsters like weeds, harvesting them with fearsome efficiency. I was in awe. I thought someone with that kind of overwhelming talent had to be a legendary hero. The kind of hero who shines so brightly it blinds you."

Lili remembered the brutal fight she saw on their first trip. At the time, she truly thought she had found a savior.

"But I realized something. August isn't a hero. He uses underhanded tricks and sets ambushes, just like me. He feels pain, he laughs. He just feels like an older brother. A very grounded, gentle person."

She was sure August didn't fit the usual idea of a hero.

Cassandra listened, drawn in by Lili's honesty.

"Then I met Lady Hestia. And she handed me an oracle: drink Lord Soma's wine one last time, survive it, and walk away from the Familia. I was terrified. I wanted to run."

Lili admitted what she feared most. The divine wine had started all her misery.

"Even August didn't offer to help me. He didn't give me a magical artifact to cheat the trial. He just stood there and gave me a few superficial words of encouragement. At the time, I thought he was a fraud. He clearly wasn't the self-sacrificing hero from the fairy tales."

Lili gave a faint smile as she spoke, feeling her past lose some of its hold.

"And it's true. He isn't a hero. So I stopped looking at him like one. August knew my sins. He knew exactly how much I was suffering. I didn't understand it then. So I secretly followed him. I watched him push himself to the brink, looking battered and exhausted despite his overwhelming strength. And then Lady Hestia told me something. That's when everything finally clicked."

Cassandra felt her heart race. The tension was too much. She leaned forward, eyes wide.

"What was it? What did she say?"

She desperately needed to know the answer.

And the suspense spread beyond the battlefield.

...

Across Orario:

"WHAT IS IT?? WHAT DID SHE SAY??"

"SPILL IT ALREADY!"

"WHAT DID LADY HESTIA SAY??"

Ibri Achaa screamed at the Divine Mirror.

The crowd had seen Lili use transformation magic to sneak into the Apollo camp, leaving them speechless. Now, they forgot all about the tactics. They were caught up in her story. What had she faced? What did she hear? What words gave her the strength to break free from her nightmare?

They listened as she confessed her crimes. Lili didn't make excuses. She admitted to extortion, theft, and leaving people behind. Still, the crowd saw she was a victim of her situation. Misfortune and mistakes were mixed in her life, but she accepted it all with honest grace. She didn't hide her scars.

Her honesty made everyone in the city eager to hear the answer. What words helped her change her life?

But just as the story reached its peak, Lili stopped.

—•——•——•——•——•——•—

The Divine Assembly.

As they listened to Lili's story, the Gods grew restless with curiosity.

"Hestia, that child is remarkably sincere. But seriously, what did you tell her??"

Demeter leaned in, eyes wide with curiosity. She wanted to know what Hestia had said to help Lili escape her addiction. August hadn't given Lili an easy way out—he let her find her own strength.

The Gods admired this kind of hard-won redemption. And since Lili hadn't finished her story, their curiosity only grew.

"Yeah, Hestia, what did you say?"

Even Hermes was surprised. Seeing Hestia help someone find hope again caught him off guard, and for once, the clever God of Messengers just wanted to know the story.

"Who knows," Hestia smiled mysteriously, refusing to answer.

She watched Lili on the screen. Seeing the Pallum let go of her past and start fresh made Hestia proud. As for the other Gods asking for details, she liked keeping them guessing. Why should she share her best moments?

"So cheap."

"Yeah, you're being just as stingy as Apollo."

"Wait, actually... compared to Apollo, Hestia is definitely the generous one here."

The Gods quickly went back to teasing Apollo. During the War Game, he had done everything he could to make things hard for August.

Compared to his tricks, Hestia's secret seemed harmless.

"..." Apollo's mouth twitched. The others changed sides so quickly.

...

Meanwhile, in another corner of the city, Soma sat alone in his Familia compound, watching Lili recount her story through the broadcast.

"Arde..."

He felt a deep sense of regret. He knew he was the reason for her pain. He had brought the wine into her life, and she had carried the guilt by herself.

"You've worked hard, Arde."

Soma knew it was too late to apologize. All he could do was sit in the dark and watch his former child make her own way forward—no matter how risky or bright it might be.

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