Bonded Summoner - Book 5. Chapter 42: Hestia - Ascension

“On the tip.”

“O-On the cheek!”

Fhesiah grinned and Ophelia blushed, as everyone accepted the tease as normal and instead turned and focused on Ophelia’s minor sign of jealousy, looking at her in question.

Hestia smiled impassively in response. She loved how much fun this family had together.

“W-What, since she’s a goddess…it’s like, different to me somehow!” Ophelia turned to Fhesiah with a scowl. “A-And, don’t you think your joke was too rude? To everyone?”

Fhesiah shrugged. “I was half-joking, and I know Hestia is no blushing maiden. If we get to pick, I’m going all out. That’s just how I am. If she got mad at me for it, it’s like being mad at water for being wet. She hears our thoughts, there’s about ten more each minute where that one came from.”

Tanda laughed, and It seemed Ophelia and Fhesiah were about to devolve into an argument at this point. Berri was about to throw more fuel on the fire by asking what the big deal was, but Jake cleared his throat and smiled, tapping on his forehead.

“Here please, Hestia. I appreciate your help.”

Her champion knew how to cut to the heart of it, making most parties satisfied. It appeared Jake was in fact interested in experiencing a kiss from a goddess, but if Ophelia was worried about it, he was fine with missing out on it. Then, it wasn’t like Hestia needed to kiss him–her fingers would work just as well for transferring essence.

She smiled at him. “It is my pleasure, my Champion. Of course, I asked my question knowing just what kind of response I might receive, and knew it would be fun. Now, this will affect you all, and you will be out for a few days–except Fhesiah. She can handle finishing up your plans.”

Worry blossomed in the family, a deep concern for her being left out of their ascension. Hestia decided to head off these concerns.

“Not to worry, she is still joining you for this special moment. It’s just that her benefit will have her waking up much before you, as she will receive the rest of it when she Tiers up. Now, huddle up around your dear husband and sit on the ground.”

The family mollified, each girl and Jake gave happy or resolute smiles to Hestia as they joined around him.

Hestia began, by returning to her Origin.

Her body blazed with golden flames, as she became living fire. The Divine Hearth of the Refuge swelled along with her, matching her, being drawn to her. Tampering down and shielding the family from her Presence, she floated over to her Champion.

Hestia then cradled his head with her flaming hands, her lips forming within the flame.

Kissing Jake’s forehead, she sent a portion of her Eternal Essence into him, along with all her care and sincerity, gratitude, hope, and compassion for this young man. Her spark of Origin joined along with it, entering through his body and into his Divine Hearth.

The loss was miniscule for Hestia, but she was still lesser now. She had just now spent a portion of her eternal essence. Her love would continue to live on within her people forever, and now, along with Jake and his wonderful family.

Jake and his wives would now be true Hearthians, having reached the necessary threshold for ascending their race to the third Tier. A unique set of circumstances allowed them to start with a mana core or hearth vines, upgrade them with divine sparks or by becoming clergy and gathering enough faith, and then upgrade them a final time before they even fully reached the second Tier. And of course, their powerful hearth was a significant portion of what made this possible, fueling the powerful requirements of their higher race.

Fhesiah had her own set of special circumstances, but thanks to the Divine’s influence, she would also be well beyond what a normal cultivator of her Tier could achieve.

Normally, this achievement would be impossible for anyone but those borne from a unique race, or those with immense knowledge. In the Core Sectors this knowledge was supposed to be common, but Frontier Sector 87 was young, with many of the higher Tier worlds lacking capability in accomplishing this.

Few Hearthians existed now, but the Hart family would join them, their Origins combined in a unique way.

Jake’s divine hearth blazed as it burned brighter, the golden light spreading through his body and soul as it was purified in a plume of flames at Hestia’s direction.

Already having a divine hearth, Jake’s flame had been working to purify his body and soul all this time, and his soul was now pure. A man with a clear soul, the good-hearted orphan lacked any major taint of character.

Ensconced in the void, his soul should find no resonance, show no heroic strength of spirit.

And yet, a noble desire to be better, to seek knowledge, love, and connections, persisted despite an unhappy upbringing. Instead of being angry at the world, he sought to rise above. An intrinsic desire to be needed and wanted, a need to be loved.

And loved he was. The golden flame spread down his bonds, as Hestia baptized the family in the Hearthian Origin. Using her skill of Hearth Forging, she would apply their reward up to the limits the Framework would allow. They had earned one minute minus the five seconds she used to create Jake’s weapon, and she would use it.

Not every Divine created their own Origin, but many dabbled. The cost was significant, and many believed it not worth it, even doubly so ever since the Framework became involved.

Many would share their Origin with others for creating races that fit in their image, to reduce the cost. This had its ups and downs, creating a people who resonated with multiple Divine. But Hestia being one of the eldest, she had long since created her Race of Origin, combining hers with the Olympian Origin of her ancestry.

The golden light of the Framework joined hers, and Hestia smiled as Jake and the rest of the girls fell unconscious from the immense amount of energy assaulting their bodies and minds. All except for Fhesiah, who watched as her spiritual temple was filled with the same.

Fhesiah’s hearth within was baptized in the golden flames within her spiritual temple. Her divine scripts lit up and shifted, growing Hestia’s influence on her vessel.

Holding on with her powerful will, Fhesiah used her Divine Sense to track all the changes, seeking any sort of enlightenment for keeping both her bloodlines once more as she formed her core.

Bastet and Hestia had planned and worked hard in their simulations and predictions, and they thought they had given the dragon the best chance she could have. It was all in Fhesiah’s hands now, for her to grasp her fate.

Fhesiah would either ascend beyond even her own origins and become more, or she must make sacrifices for her failure. Either way, she would be cradled in the love of her family, and she would heal, and find acceptance and greatness.

It was better to suffer the failure early, should it come to pass.

Since joining one another, the Hart Family were undefeated. Unbroken and untainted, the family’s bond was strong. Their pasts all filled with loss and pain, they rose above it with selflessness and compassion. Forged in the crucible of conflict, their bonds filled to the brim with love and affection.

Their connections shifted from golden flames, to forming a crystalline substance. It started from Jake’s hearth, as if freezing and following lines through the air. A gem-like cocoon formed around each of them where they lay on the ground unconscious, the material similar to the orb within Jake’s Champion Vestments.

Fhesiah’s draconic eyes gleamed, defiantly watching Hestia as she reached for Jake’s chest. Her eyes held a threat, an unspoken promise. That at any sight of harm or wrongdoing to her lover and friends at their weakest moment, and she would shatter her prison and defend them at any cost to herself.

Hestia knew that Fhesiah trusted her, that this was merely a verification, an instinct overwhelming her thoughts as her senses were bombarded. Likely, she barely understood which way was up, at the moment.

Hestia froze in her approach, and gave Fhesiah a motherly smile. “Hold on to that feeling. A dragon’s superiority is evident, but that instinct will serve you much better than pride and arrogance. Rest assured, I would defend your family with just as much fervor.”

Assured, Fhesiah’s eyes closed as she continued monitoring with her divine sense. Barely holding on to her consciousness, unfortunately, this is where it would be lost. It was time for Hestia to insert their hard-won Divine Sparks.

Rights won from the clash of champions, they would benefit from earning additional potential. The divine sparks from their respective deities shot through her finger and into Jake’s core, before branching out and entering each of the girls, including Fhesiah’s.

Fhesiah’s hearth shifted ever so slightly, as her divine spark lied in wait within. She passed out as the energies within her temple overwhelmed her spirit, the mysterious scripts from the meddling divine and demonic runes from Jake’s Hearth Enchantments within brightening. Her hearth bond would increase and evolve, but she would not become a true Hearthian until she achieved the next Tier.

The remaining cores of Jake and each shifted much more significantly, taking on or enhancing the things that made them special. The Hearth Enchantments of the Hart family were filled with brilliance, a genius and instinct that could not be taught.

While a child of the Core Sector could have done better, all too often they ended up entitled and disconnected from duty and purpose. Then, like a greenhouse flower, they would wither at any signs of struggle and conflict.

When it would be time to forge their connections, their advanced bonds, their weakness in character among them and their bonds would create cracks. Blemishes would mar their surface, their doubts in themselves and one another creating imperfections.

That Jake had intuitively reinforced what made them special and better without any instruction was a miracle of epic proportions. If he hadn’t done this sooner, her one minute simply wouldn’t have been enough to finish such a special advancement.

Their souls would have cracked from the strain, of too many changes happening to their very souls all at once. Instead, their souls had been tempered in the flames of conflict, and facing such terrifying battles in solidarity.

Using Hearth Forging, Hestia enhanced his runes and scripts with divine script as she infused it with divine energy, filling in the lines and fixing any imperfections. These bonds and their enchantments were filled with love, their desires and dreams, and a beautiful symphony of virtues and values.

Their bodies shifted, as their races ascended to the third Tier, their cores completing their evolution. Only Fhesiah would have to fully wait, but bound to Jake, the seed was effectively planted.

Hestia observed each girl in turn, as they shifted and were enhanced, both by the sparks provided by the Divine to enhance their Race and Hearth, but also the enhancements from the Framework for their Merits–for completing the Fortress Assault and more.

A child of the Norse, Ophelia embodied the valkyrie warrior women of Odin and Freyja. Despite evil destroying her past and casting a shadow over her childhood, she held on to the love she experienced until it could be found and returned once more.

Driven by the responsibility and loyalty to her ideals, she continued until she found her chosen. Her body shifted, as the Olympian Origin entered her, Athena’s spark tempering the valkyrie. The enchantments within her Hearth were extended and improved, as Hestia’s flame of life energy and the lightning of Guan Yu’s righteousness formed a more perfect balance.

Guan Yu did not yet have an Origin of his own, and accepted this tampering for the good of their plans and for Ophelia’s best interests. Athena traded her spark to Hestia willingly, happy to aid with improving Ophelia’s balance using her Origin.

Ophelia’s wings and hair took on a somewhat golden hue, as her feathers and hair took on the appearance of a golden owl. Her body grew, her form shifting to become an even more statuesque amazonian beauty.

Hestia smiled as feathers grew out of Ophelia’s tailbone, knowing the forthcoming teasing would be something the family would enjoy. Otherwise, the bird-like tail feathers would not impede her in any significant way, as she became a Hearthian Valkyrie.

Ophelia became a strange meshing of Athenian, Nordic battle angel, and Hestia’s Hearthian Race. It was only the valkyrie’s strong compatibility with the divine and all the proper preparations that led to this amalgamation being possible.

Her Divine Vajrafire core crackled with righteous lightning and the flames of life, the level of faith and divine energy within her core shocking. Countless warriors had observed her on the battlefield and in the arena, the stalwart guardian facing off against many powerful foes. An inspiration to all true warriors, all who witnessed her courage desired to test their mettle against the Nordic battle angel.

Hestia then turned her attention to the Dark Lamia. As children of chaos and born with the light of a dead goddess, Blood and Berri suffered terrible injustice. Through their sisterly love of each other and their luck and cunning both, they survived a cruel fate and found their happiness.

Bloodberri’s body grew further, their already epic-scaled body becoming even more breathtaking as Echidna’s Origin from her divine spark entered their hearth. A new race was born, the unique circumstances leading to a birth of something never before seen.

Their hair, eyes, and scales shifted to gold, as their albinism was removed. Their skin remained mostly pale, as she became an Echidna.

The chaos of the dark gods stirred, the balance of the brand new Echidna Race once again becoming unbalanced. Her flesh began to twist, her hearth core of light and dark at conflict.

But Hestia stirred her essence within Bloodberri. As Hestia’s priestess, they had taken on a small fraction of it and grew it over time. Eirene’s ancient divinity awakened within the core of her spirit, a calming energy being released as peace and order was once again brought to the chaos.

Draconic horns grew out of their head, and scales grew along their hands. Claws tipped their fingers, as their body continued to shift. Their odd thighs transformed as the tail widened, but their pale elven flesh remained in the center.

Golden scales covered the outside of her hips, a beautiful tattoo of reptilian pattern. Otherwise, her womanly areas remained human, or dark elf enough, just as their lover preferred.

Monstrous essence joined the light and dark hearth, becoming Divine hearth flames. Their hearth before had barely qualified as one, having just a small percentage of Hestia’s flames mixed in with the holy light and dark.

Berri drew the faith of many children and mothers all over Highlands, watching as she inspired many to hope and dream, while also helping others. Blood and Berri both drew the faith of both the spriggons and the many reptilian beastkin, them feeling resonance down to their blood and heritage.

Echidna’s monstrous essence combined, and a spark ignited. A fusion of monstrous and divine energies, the holy light and darkness entered into the hearth from the void, mixing with the monstrous essence in their body. Their core was like a prism, scattering that light and darkness into the flame. Together, they now had a Divine Monstrous Hearthlight core.

Hestia once again enhanced Jake’s hearth enchantments on them, reinforcing who Blood and Berri were and empowering their values and virtues, dreams and desires with divine scripts. She now became a Hearthian Echidna, becoming even more unique.

One might think that being the only Echidna and then shifting into a Hearthian would be a problem. However, now that the template existed outside of Echidna herself–she could much more easily propagate the race as intended elsewhere. It was as if creating the race successfully allowed her to claim the blueprint.

Last was Tanda. The beastkin woman was a prodigy of auril with a happy, harmonious childhood and early adulthood, suffering only from her own talent–until tragedy struck, when Tartarus attacked her world.

When her family’s many songs were lost, some permanently, she drove herself to the point of breaking for her people. Filled with compassion and courage, the younger girl was an unwavering brightness with endless love.

Cernunnos’ Origin was enhanced with the divine spark, and her auril heart choice was processed. Her body was bathed in the flames, Brigid’s essence shifted to the cyclical auril heart from the vines, and her hearthivy shifted to embody death. The vines hardened as they wrapped tightly around her heart, the divine deathly flames igniting.

Tanda’s body grew taller, and fur grew out all over her body, covering her tanned flesh…before it receded back to normal.

Beastification was an ability many beastkin would find themselves being able to use when they reached the second Tier. Those with heavy beast blood especially would be able to enhance themselves with the power and essence of beasts, and this would be a tactic used heavily by those that chose the auril storage option.

Few would, but those that did would even be offered classes related to this.

Tanda’s appearance changed the least of the girls on the outside besides her size, only her hair and fur becoming lusher and fluffier than before, her wings larger and stronger.

On the inside, her organs changed extensively, making her able to handle the need to eat other things besides Highlands fauna and flora, and still extract viable life energy from them to create a meaningful amount of auril.

Then, if she still ate from Highlands, her growth would be substantial.

Finally, her auril heart and hearthvines became more in sync, as hearthvines aided the auril heart’s beating. It created the same powerful flame as the other Hearthians in her chest, as her auril heart beat.

The powers of life flowed through her body, and her spirit was filled with the deathly hunt. The hearthvines regulated this cycle, giving off deathly flames from within her chest–without harming her high vitality body. The Divine Cyclical Auril Hearth was now a completed system, her body sculpted with divine influence and the Framework’s guidance.

Hestia once again finished enhancing Jake’s hearth enchantments on Tanda, adding her divine scripts to her hearthvines. Everything she embodied as Jake’s empathetic avenger was enhanced, purifying her hearth and soul. A pure spirit to begin with, there was little room for darkness in this one’s heart.

Tanda became the first Hearthian Beastkin, but Hestia knew she would be the first of many. The Hart family would build a dynasty, so raising many heroic children would be an excellent start.

As Hestia finished her hearth forging of the family, she was running out of time. The five sparks glimmered in their hearths as they became one with the family, their bodies taking on the divine’s essences. Jake was their Hearth Nexus, and his connection to them was nigh unbreakable.

They had all taken one additional step toward godhood, but all was not well.

Golden hexagons of the Framework surrounded the Refuge, as terrible darkness railed against it. Tartarus could sense something important was happening here, and it would tamper and cheat in this special moment if it could, harming her efforts.

A heaviness weighed down on Hestia from the Framework, nudging her that her time was nearly up.

Every action from her had a Price, especially in this Frontier Sector with the rules so strictly regulated, and the Hart family had given up pure ownership of several worlds just for this moment.

The crystalline structure solidified further as the cocoons were finished forming, then began to twist. An almost liquid, it didn’t crack, but her concerns became real. Despite all her efforts to try balancing the Hart family, for them to find perfect synchronicity and harmony among one another, it all was not enough.

Balancing six entirely different people, each having unique energies, was a near impossible task. Each person moved at their own pace, forming a natural imbalance. Perhaps if Fhesiah had created her core, things would be a little closer now, but Hestia doubted even that would be enough.

Ophelia’s vajrafire core was more developed than Tanda’s hearthvines. Despite being twins, even Blood and Berri had a slight imbalance between them and their magics and minds. Fhesiah’s Draconic flames and her holy kitsune flames were not yet balanced, and as she gained proficiency with both that could change further.

Even which form the demoness was in at a given moment influenced the balance ever so slightly, and balance in such a powerful connection was necessary.

Each imperfection would result in a reduction in their ultimate potential, and they would need every bit of help they could get.

Tanda’s heart beat powerfully, drawing auril from the Heart of the World. To Hestia’s surprise, the connection to the Heart improved, as her race continued to evolve. Her connection choice was applied, and auril and nethril were dragged into the bond, to equalize all the energies.

The Heart of the World was helping, aiding them with correcting the energy imbalance. Her song caused the energy to swirl, to establish a proper cycle within their bodies. Once again, the luck of the Celts could not be underestimated.

But the structures twisted further, and Hestia moved on to the next part of her plan. At her direction, Ira, within Jake’s cocoon, stirred Jake’s void energy along with its own. The blackish-purple energy ran along the crystalline structure and enveloped each of the hearths, as Jake’s void lungs drew in more energy from the void.

The terror railing against the Refuge’s barrier receded, unsure of what it was looking for. The void had hidden the family once again from its sight, protecting them from even more terrible plots.

Hestia’s Hearthians were often targeted and slain. Tartarus hated her golden flames and special connection, and would cheat and find many ways to ensure her people suffered torment and agony.

When the Hart family reached the dungeon proper, the void would continue to serve them well in protecting them from these dangers. Hestia knew Tartarus was already frustrated with its inability to predict what they were doing, or measure their capabilities properly.

The imbalance of energies was mediated by the void, helping maintain the balance between them. Like a glue that held everything together, the void was everything and nothing at the same time, allowing it to mesh the energies in a harmonious balance.

Hestia had almost called her Hearth Forging complete, when an ancient stillness enveloped her and the rest of the room. A noble air was exuded from Jake, as his bloodline stirred further. Odin’s second seal began to fray, and Hestia was worried. This was catastrophic because she was nearly out of time.

The void drew all the energy in the room, thirsting for all the exotic energies of the Refuge. A gaslike void grew as tentacle-like limbs grew from Jake’s chest, reaching and consuming portions of the crystalline structure. It even drew on all the bonds, and if Hestia did nothing, the family would be harmed at this critical moment.

Just as Hestia was about to pay a Price to aid, Jake’s voidwyrm familiar roared, and wrapped around the seal. Drawing all of its void energy, Ira restricted and shoved the bloodline back into its prison, before any more harm to its family could be done.

The bloodline railed against the voidwyrm, its tentacles raking against it painfully. Ira cried out, and Hestia forced herself to hurry.

Using her final moments of Hearth Forging, she added onto Odin’s seal, restricting the bloodline once again with additional divine script. The gaslike tentacles receded, and the feeling of ancient nobility disappeared.

She wasn’t sure it would last through the entirety of the next Tier, but perhaps they could find a way to add onto it secretly.

It was far too early. It seems they had either underestimated the void, or underestimated their…dual cultivation technique. The dao and heavenly energy were mysterious, a profound purity and power that was capable of things well beyond its Tier.

Then, all the chaotic energies contained in their method produced results difficult to measure and predict, even for the Divine.

Ira whimpered, utterly exhausted and hurt. Hestia gave the creature a sad smile, but one filled with gratitude. “Thank you, little one. You are truly a wonderful guardian, risking yourself like that. You spared me a significant Price. For that, you deserve a lot more than the reward you are about to receive. I’ll do my best to make it up to you, in the future.”

Using the Hart Family’s remaining RP, she purchased another treasure. For those finding the strange object in the list, it didn’t seem like something the creature needed, but it would help. Hestia shifted some of the Hart family’s remaining Merit, enabling her to choose this reward on their behalf.

The Divine’s machinations had a cost, the right words at the right time or the right reward causing a butterfly effect that must always be paid for.

[Chunk of Netherite – 567 RP]

Hestia sent the chunk into the Hearth of the Refuge where it began to melt, and aided the voidwyrm into it. Forming a crystal around itself once more, Ira entered a deep slumber to heal and consume the treasure.

The voidwyrm taken care of, Hestia returned her gaze back to the Hart family. She looked on with satisfaction, seeing no cracks or blemishes on the surface of the crystalline structure. The void bloodline had consumed some energy, but what remained was more than sufficient–thanks to the Divine Hearth of the Refuge, truly infusing this room with more than enough energies to spare. Then, Ira had acted just in time.

The lack of taint in their spirit, combined with their impossible set of circumstances for a Frontier Sector, blossomed into something bordering perfection. The bonds bent, but they didn’t break. She couldn’t be happier with the results.

The Hart family had fears, and they had doubts. Each of them had troubled pasts, but this, along with their trials and tribulations suffered together, had helped forge them toward their strong characters.

Any weaknesses were overwhelmed with faith in each other, a pervasive love that resonated deeply in their spirits. Their love for one another meshed their connections and energies together just as the void did, making this moment possible.

Looking over their cocoons, she had just barely succeeded in time. She should be happy, but instead, her heart wavered. Would her actions be enough for the dangers that come? Ownership of this Sector was beyond important. It was crucial to their survival.

Tartarus was slowly dismantling the Framework, fraying the Divine’s authority over it. It had not been able to accomplish what it did during the Highlands Raid Prime Instance, when the war first began.

But it targeted the eldest of gods along with some of the younger or weaker ones, unraveling their hold over the Framework. Divine of Order, Dominion, Authority, Justice, and Law were heavily targeted, some being outright killed and consumed, others just being weakened.

Tyr was now in dire straights, being attacked from both sides–from Alliance idiots and terrible Tartarus plots. Themis was targeted and consumed, Mitra and Ammit are near the point of breaking as well.

And with Tartarus driving hard on this Sector, its investment in going after Athena was obvious. Her authority over Wisdom and Strategy aided the Framework in its war decisions, along with its intelligence in advancing many warriors of varying paths. It was as if by consuming her, Tartarus would be strengthening itself, but also reducing the Framework’s capability.

If the Alliance’s win percentage was just under fifty percent before she was weakened or consumed, Hestia dreaded what it would be once that happened.

Their loss would be inevitable, a near certainty as one by one, each Sector was lost and Tartarus was strengthened, and even more Divine were consumed. Its intelligence had only increased since the game began, its plots becoming more successful.

Things already weren’t looking good. The multiverse would be full of darkness and despair if they lost her dear friend.

The Framework gave strict limitations on Core Sectors influencing the Frontier Sector’s meta game, and the Divine did what they could to push the boundaries. Unfortunately, for each winning strategy Hestia and her pantheon came up with, the infighting of Alliance members ruined any advantage they had gained.

But all wasn’t lost. There was a shining beacon of hope in Highlands. Through luck and genius both, a special set of circumstances had aligned for what she knew was a successful strategy. A culture for a people that were not just warriors–they were paragons of strength and heroism.

With her Champion leading them, they would be the tide that raises all ships. Any of those from the Core Sectors that tried to interfere would be crushed by insurmountable strength, and instead just fuel their ascension.

Those from Core Sectors could come to the Frontier Sector, but they were heavily limited. They must earn their own equipment and resources, and their challenges were heavily balanced by Tartarus getting many advantages. They would be forced to face challenges like Greater Rifts, requiring a powerful party and many allies.

People from Core Sectors were stronger with advanced races, skills, techniques, and perfect builds, but they faced strict rules on empowering allies with their knowledge. Often, their lack of numbers would result in them not having enough effective allies for their difficulty increase–after all, even entering the Frontier Sector to participate in the battle for its ownership had a Price.

Hestia had every confidence that Jake could stand up to any of them, not limited by the circumstances of his birth. He had fought and sacrificed for everything he ever earned, and while they had bent the rules with him discovering Fhesiah, the rules were not broken.

If Jake defeated some child from the Core Sectors, the Sector Councils would likely complain he lacked the same restrictions–but find nothing amiss in their investigation.

Hestia turned her gaze to the Yggdrasil, as she dispersed her avatar and returned to her home. Battles waged across the multiverse, the suffering of people at the hands of Tartarus endless. She would continue to prepare her pieces, to ease the suffering and create a chance for victory.

The Hart family was just one of many. While the need for victory within Frontier Sector 87 was significant, it would only be a minor victory in the overall conflict, staving off inevitable failure. But it would hardly change the overall flow of the war, by itself.

Hestia contacted her clergy in Frontier Sector 87, providing subtle hints to look into Hearthtribe by sharing the information readily available about their victory. After all, each Dungeon Raid Prime Instance was recorded for viewing, and this would be a double-edged sword.

Enemies like War, Glory, and Profit would be able to see this recording, and gain information about their inevitable enemy. They will want to crush it in its infancy, before it can grow into something that can challenge them. Fortunately, Hestia had already set them up for success–Highlands was already a Tier 2 world, and the two Tier 1 worlds she grabbed were both close enough that they might as well be. Then, she had confidence in Jake and his people to have already gotten past the point of no return.

She wasn’t able to outright tell her people to copy or join Hearthtribe. But if they came to that conclusion on their own, Hestia wouldn’t have broken any rules or be forced to pay for knowledge she gave out as a divine.

After all, she had only told the Hart family to make their guild like themselves, not how to accomplish it. She couldn’t have been happier with what they built.

If she was lucky, her clergy from many worlds could eventually meet with Hearthtribe. Just what could they accomplish then?