It Is Alright To Use Spiral Power In The Dungeon

A Night With Hestia Familia

"And that's how it all works!" Hestia finished, holding up a finger for all to see.

Simon, his arms crossed and right leg over his knee, nodded at Hestia, "Ah, I see. So, if I were to join you guys, I'd get a blessing from you. And I'd be a part of your Familia. Which would let me register at the Guild, make money, and get any other benefits from being in your Familia."

"Pretty much," Bell shrugged, an expecting smile on his face.

Simon nodded to the goddess, "Thanks for the rundown, Hestia."

"Don't mention it," Hestia said with pride. Then she leaned forward, the same expecting smile that Bell had on her face, "Sooooo, what do you think?"

"Think about what?"

"About joining our Familia. Before, you said you wouldn't join because you didn't really get how it worked," Hestia explains, her ponytails pointing toward Simon.

"Right," Simon nodded again.

"Well, now you know. So, are you gonna-"

Simon held up a hand, "Sorry, but my answer's still no."

"What?!" Hestia's hands hit the table, while her ponytails shot toward the ceiling. Her face clearly showed the surprise she felt, "But why?"

"Hmm, two main reasons. The first is that I don't think I'm gonna need it. I'm already plenty tough myself," Simon tap a fist against his chest to emphasize, "and I don't need a God's blessing to get stronger."

"But that was one minotaur. And you caught it off guard. You do know there are stronger monsters in the Dungeon than that, right? Do you really think you can handle them too?" Hestia pointed out, Bell nodding along with all of her words.

Simon's expression turned grateful, "Thanks for worrying about me. But, seriously. I'll be fine. Like I said, I've fought tougher things than that before."

He leaned back in his seat, eyes not leaving Hestia's gaze, "Second, if I got a blessing I would essentially be beholden to the God who gave it to me, right?"

Confusion came over Bell's face while Hestia started to frown. She nodded in response to Simon's question, which made the older man hum in understanding. He stared Hestia down before he spoke again, "Thought so. In which case, I don't think I'll ever get a blessing. I wouldn't accept having a God tell me what I can and can't do with my life."

"What?" Bell shook his head in surprise. Confusion and shock clear on his face, Bell spoke up, "But Hestia's a great Goddess! She'd never make you do anything you didn't want to do."

Simon turned to Bell and shrugged, "I don't doubt that. But it's not about whether the God I get the blessing from is a good one. I've never been one to let others dictate my path in life for me. The only one who gets to decide that is me and me alone."

His words were firm and filled with confidence, but there was no malice to them. Nor any in the kind gaze he gave Bell and Hestia. Bell didn't know what to say to that. He wanted Simon to join their Familia, but he didn't want to seem like he was trying to force him into it. This was Simon's decision to make, after all. But if he didn't have a Familia then what would he do for a living? He looked toward his Goddess and waited for her to say something. She had remained silent and was simply staring at Simon, a frown marring her cute face. A part of him hoped that she would say something that would convince Simon otherwise. That with a few magical words he would see that his worries were unfounded.

But the rest of him knew Hestia. And he knew what she would say.

Instead, Hestia sighed and then fell back into the sofa. Her eyes were closed as she lowered her head, "Fine. If you're certain about it."