Back at the Babel tower, the Denatus had not yet officially begun, as some of the majods had not arrived yet.
Bahamut, made her way around the room, searg for her friends to find a fortable spot to sit during the upiing.
Most gods teo keep their distance from Bahamut, her from afar, rather than approag her directly.
Uerred, she sed the room, hoping to find a familiar face.
Firstly, she spotted her frieer, but the goddess of the harvest was currently occupied with dealing with a group of rather persistent and lecherous gods.
Bahamut decided it was best to steer clear, lest she be tempted to unleash her wrath upon them for their untoward behaviour.
‘One would think that after having had their way with tless goddesses for eons, they would have grown tired of it,’ Bahamut poo herself, gng briefly at the overly eager group.
‘But here they are, still desperately trying their luck.’ she thought.
She couldn't help but he irony, as she khat some goddesses were guilty of a simir behaviour.
Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, rime example. She was currently funting her charms and attrag the attention of nearly every male god in the room.
tinuing her search, Bahamut soon spotted her friend Hephaestus, the goddess of the fe, sitting alone in a er, lost in thought.
Hephaestus was a rather unusual sight, with her sharp features, medium-length red hair, and ach c her right eye – a defect that had long since scared away most people.
"Thinking about skipping the meeting aurning to your fe, huh, Hephi?" Bahamut said as she took a seat o the goddess.
Hephaestus, startled by the sudden iion, turo face the dragon goddess.
"Oh, Baa-, it's been a while," she greeted, her expression softening.
"I told you to stop callihat," Bahamut protested, "It makes it sound like I am some old dy." she tinued.
"Then you should stop calling me 'Hephi'," Hephaestus retorted, a pyful smile tugging at the ers of her mouth.
The two goddesses stared at each other for a moment before breaking out into ughter.
Bahamut was gd to see her friend in good spirits, despite her somewhat withdrawn demeanour.
"By the way, I like the new look," Hephaestus ented, her gaze sweeping over Bahamut's transformed appearanbsp;
"What happened?" she asked.
"Well, let's just say that many things have been happening," Bahamut replied cryptically.
"You, oher hand, should put in a little more effort." she said while gesturing at Hephaestus' disheveled appearaill covered in soot from her ret work in the fe.
"Sigh, I don't see the point," Hephaestus murmured, her expression beied as she subsciously grasped her eye patbsp;
"There's no oo look pretty for." she said.
Bahamut's heart ached for her friend, uanding the struggle she faced with her perceived fws.
"Still ed about that, huh?" she said softly, reag out to wipe the soot from Hephaestus' face with her handkerchief.
Hephaestus quickly bounced back, aware of the curious eyes of the ods in the room.
"Ahem, anyway, what have you been up to these days?" she asked, eager to ge the subject.
"Nothing much, just getting used to my new responsibilities," Bahamut replied. "My children are quite the handful, especially Draco, the captain." she said.
"Ah, yes, you did say they were all young kids," Hephaestus recalled.
"But from what I heard from Demeter, Draco sounds like he's quite mature for his age." she ented.
Before Bahamut could respond, Demeter suddenly approached them, interrupting their versation.
"What are you two whispering about?" the goddess of the harvest inquired, her curiosity piqued.
Bahamut and Hephaestus exged a knowing gnce, a silent uanding passiween them.
"Oh, just catg up on old times," Bahamut replied smoothly, fshier a reassuring smile.
Hephaestus nodded in agreement, her posture rexing as she weled Demeter into their little circle.
As the three goddesses settled into a fortable versation, the Babel tower tio fill with the presence of the Pantheon, the air thick with anticipation for the upius.
While Bahamut, Hephaestus, aer were engrossed in their discussion, the grand doors of the meeting room suddenly burst open, drawing all eyes to the newer.
Freya, the goddess of beauty aility, strode into the chamber, her radiant presence immediately captivating the male deities present.
To Ishtar's evident displeasure, the focus of the room shifted almost eo the alluring Vanir goddess.
Her mere entrance had mao derail the proceedings, as the distracted male gods found themselves helplessly drawn to Freya's captivating aura.
"Ah, there she is - Freya, the eternal attention-seeker," Bahamut remarked dryly, her pierg gaze following the goddess as she moved gracefully through the room.
"Her passive divine charm is truly a force to be reed with." she added.
Demeter nodded in agreement, "Indeed, but I would argue that your own passive divinity is far more dangerous, my friend." she said.
"Let's not make this about me," Bahamut quickly interjected, unwilling to have the spotlight turned on her own divine abilities.
"Rex, Bahamut. You weren't ed about Freya's antics before - why the sudden ge of heart?" Hephaestus asked.
Bahamut's expression darkened as she pondered on Hephaestus words a bit.
"Well, now I have some very special children in my Familia. Freya's habit of entig young adveo join her own Familia has bee a source of for me." she replied.
Demeter nodded in uanding, "I see. Dealing with Freya's influen the mortal world is indeed a delicate matter." she said.
"Just keep your familia members away from her for now," Hephaestus advised, "and try not to do anything too...crazy." she added.
"Hey, are you two ily agreeing that I am crazy?" Bahamut asked, her eyes narrowing.
Hephaestus aer exged a knowing gnce, choosing to remain silent rather than provoke the votile goddess further.
"What did you two just say to each other?" Bahamut asked, clearly seeing that they were unig through subtle gestures.
Oblivious to the discussion, Freya was busy charming a group of eager male gods, her iious ughter ringing out across the chamber.
Suddenly, her gaze locked onto Bahamut, and she offered her a ile and a slight nod of aowledgement.
"Did you both see that?" Bahamut excimed, her eyes widening.
"What did I do to warratention?" she asked.
Hephaestus raised an eyebrow, "Hmm, did you do something to catch her eye?" she asked.
"Not that I recall," Bahamut replied, visibly uled by Freya's ued gesture.
"Well, if things with her get out of hand, you know we've got your back," Demeter assured her, with Hephaestus nodding in agreement.
Before the versation could tinue, a anding voice echoed through the chamber, sileng the rowdy gathering.
"Order!" Ouranos, the lord of the heavens, had arrived, and the meeting was about to ence.
Freya, being the st of the major powers to joihering, took her seat as Ouranos called the Denatus to order.
Just as the proceedings were about to begin, anure stepped into the room, drawing the attention of all present.
"Am I perhaps te?" Astraea the goddess of justice asked, surveying the assembled gods.
"No, take a seat," Ouranos replied, his authoritative tone brooking nument.
Bahamut, eager to have Astraea sit by her side, stood on her chair and waved enthusiastically.
"Over here, Astraea!" she called out.
Demeter and Hephaestus exged a mildly embarrassed gnce, but maintaiheir posure as Astraea, a hint of relu her face, made her the stairs to sit beside Bahamut.
Loki, ever the mischievous one, barely suppressed a snort of amusement, only to be silenced by a stern gre from Ouranus.
The meeting enced with discussions of various ongois withiy - taxes, pnned expeditions to collect scarce materials, and the slowly rising Evilus problem, which proved to be a ing topic with no clear solutioed.
As the gods debated these weighty matters, the air in the chamber remained charged, the ever-present tensioween the pantheons palpable.
The Denatus was shaping up to be another eventful gathering, with the gods' personal agendas and divine powers threatening to overshadow the pressing issues at hand.
