Danmachi: A Despicable Stranger

Chapter 8: Inside Orario

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The line in front of the city gate was long, but the guards conducting inspections worked with remarkable speed.

Those who could guard the gate here were undoubtedly strong and highly qualified. Day after day, they performed this task with practiced efficiency, having committed every detail of the process to memory.

The long, snake-like queue in front of the gate steadily disappeared at a pace visible to the naked eye.

Not long after, when Izzy and his four companions arrived at the gate, only a few people remained in line.

"Come here, Izzy."

As her turn for inspection neared, Artemis turned to wave at him.

Izzy immediately understood, stepping forward and handing over the backpack on his shoulders. "If you're looking for the pass and the guild certificate, they should be in the second compartment," he said.

"Got it," Artemis replied.

After more than half a month traveling together, the relationship between Izzy and Artemis had grown in ways that were both unexpected and rapid.

The pace of their closeness, and the way it developed, was far from normal.

It wasn't the kind of relationship one would expect between a goddess and a mortal. Instead, it felt more like...

Ahem, let's just say, it was something one could easily imagine.

Neither of them, however, had explicitly acknowledged it yet. Whether it was because they weren't ready or because they chose not to, the silence remained mutual.

Izzy wasn't clueless; he could feel Artemis treated him differently. This wasn't some illusion conjured by wishful thinking.

Over the past weeks, the entire Familia had noticed. If it were just him misreading things, that might be excusable, but it was impossible for all twenty women in the Familia to be blind to the truth.

Yet Izzy found it puzzling. Why would the Goddess of Chastity take a special interest in him?

The question lingered in his mind. Until he found the answer, Izzy thought it best to keep things as they were, letting their tacit understanding guide them.

Artemis, too, was troubled by the same question.

For some reason she couldn't quite explain, Izzy seemed to draw her in with an inexplicable pull. Though she was wise, even she couldn't figure it out.

Just like Izzy, she chose to leave it unspoken for now, allowing the quiet understanding between them to remain.

Behind them, Rethusa and Lante exchanged knowing looks and sly smiles.

They didn't care how much the two tried to rationalize or delay things. To them, it was clear: the goddess was finally waking up to the concept of love.

Rather than being upset at the thought of Izzy possibly winning Artemis over, Rethusa and Lante were secretly thrilled.

In fact, they hoped Izzy would redouble his efforts to win her heart.

If he succeeded, their goddess might finally stop meddling in their love lives.

Once that happened, the sea would be vast enough for fish to leap, and the sky wide enough for birds to fly.

The entire Artemis Familia would celebrate such a development.

After being under such tight control for so long, they had finally glimpsed a chance at freedom. How could they not be overjoyed?

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With the pass and Adventurer's Guild certificate in hand, the four of them entered Orario without any trouble.

Passing through the long corridor of the city gate, the view suddenly expanded, revealing the full splendor of Orario.

Before Izzy's eyes was a bustling, prosperous cityscape, unlike anything imaginable in the outside world.

The wide, vibrant streets stretched out from the square in front of the gate, the neatly laid stone bricks.

Izzy took in the sight of all the different races around him, though his gaze skipped over the strong dwarves and orcs. His attention was naturally drawn to the elegant elves or the female adventurers passing by.

After all, he was a normal man, and it would be unreasonable for him to fixate on burly men instead.

On both sides of the street, specialty shops of all kinds lined up, each offering unique goods and services. Izzy couldn't help but feel a burst of excitement as he walked, taking in the sights around him.

Some of the beautiful women, scantily clad in bikinis, turned their eyes toward Izzy, sizing him up as though he were prey.

The southern area of Orario was indeed lively. It wasn't just a bustling marketplace but also home to entertainment venues such as casinos and theaters.

Adjacent to it, in the southeast, lay the infamous red-light district. This district also housed the headquarters of the Ishtar Familia, the largest brothel in Orario.

The predatory stares Izzy received came mostly from the women of this red-light district, who eyed him like wolves and tigers.

Feeling overwhelmed, Izzy remembered his current state—barely capable of restraining a chicken with his bare hands.

As a non-adventurer with no Falna to unlock his potential, he immediately suppressed his excitement and moved closer to the goddess for protection.

Artemis noticed his movement, raising her eyebrows slightly and rolling her eyes, but she chose not to say anything.

Izzy couldn't shake off a thought: Orario was rumored to have a dark side involving human trafficking.

It was shameful, but if a helpless civilian with no power was abducted, no one would intervene, even if the perpetrator was punished.

Izzy had every reason to believe that the women eyeing him might act. His own reflection assured him—he was handsome, suave, elegant, graceful, extraordinary, gentle, refined, talented, with sword-like eyebrows, starry eyes, a dignified appearance, and an imposing aura.

Some of these women were even members of the Ishtar Familia, blessed with Falna.

In his current condition, Izzy's slim build stood no chance against their clutches.

Staying closer to the goddess was undoubtedly the safer choice.

Under Izzy's feet stretched a wide road that led directly to the massive chalk-white "Tower of Babel."

Orario, a nearly perfectly circular city, was surrounded by towering walls, with the even taller Tower of Babel standing at its center. Surrounding the tower was a central square large enough to accommodate tens of thousands of people.

Eight main streets radiated outward from the city center, stretching toward the walls in all directions. These streets divided the city into eight districts, named clockwise from the north.

Izzy and his companions were currently on South Street.

Their destination lay on Northwest Street, also called Adventurer Street, where the Pantheon, the headquarters of the Adventurer's Guild, was located.

Artemis intended to take Rethusa and Lante to the guild to submit their commission and receive their reward, while Izzy planned to inquire about joining a Familia.

Despite the growing bond between Izzy and Artemis, it seemed their relationship hadn't progressed enough for the goddess to bend her principles for him.

"A Familia of twenty people is enough. If there are more, I won't be able to take care of them. Besides, it's inconvenient for you to be the only boy in my Familia," Artemis had once said bluntly when they discussed the matter in private.

In simpler terms, she didn't want Izzy to even consider joining her Familia.

After all, how could one man in a family of twenty innocent girls be anything but trouble? A Garden of Eden?

Emotionally and logically, Artemis couldn't accept such a scenario.

For Izzy, this meant that if he wanted to complete his tasks and unlock his hidden potential, he would have to find another path forward.