The sheer amount of experience he had just gained… Su Mo from the Danmachi world couldn't even begin to imagine how much it would boost his stats and level.
Even looking back across the entire history of Orario, it was unlikely that any adventurer at Level 1 had ever received experience points from slaying a monster on par with a god.
And yet—he had done it.
This absurd haul of experience? All thanks to himself… well, versions of himself.
Thinking about it made him feel incredibly proud.
"As expected of me!" he praised himself once again.
"..."
"..."
"..."
The other three Su Mos simultaneously gave him a silent, deadpan look.
How had they never noticed that they were capable of being this shameless?
Thinking of how much stronger he had become thanks to himself—literally—Danmachi Su Mo felt more convinced than ever.
"I really am amazing!"
He couldn't help but praise himself again.
"…They were obviously monsters I defeated," Ultraman Su Mo muttered, rolling his eyes. "Even if we are technically the same person."
"By the way," asked Campione Su Mo, curious, "which Familia did you end up joining?"
"Of course I joined Hestia Familia," DanMachi Su Mo replied matter-of-factly.
"Why not Loki Familia though?" Campione Su Mo asked. "Sure, Hestia's adorable, but for development and support, Loki's group has way more resources."
"Yeah, I was wondering that too," said Fairy Tail Su Mo, chiming in. "Even if the divine blessings are the same, the environment makes a big difference. A major Familia like Loki's would be way safer and probably have veterans who can help rookies train. From any logical angle, joining Loki Familia makes more sense, right?"
If he had already awakened his cheat ability, it wouldn't matter much which Familia he joined. But before getting that power, Loki Familia seemed like the smart choice.
Not to mention, besides Loki herself, they had beauties like Ais and Lefiya. For a beginner adventurer, it was practically paradise.
"You're all making valid points," DanMachi Su Mo said, raising his hands in surrender. "But you're forgetting something important."
"There are tons of people who want to join Loki Familia. I was just a complete nobody who hadn't even killed a chicken. No way they were going to accept me."
"I did try, you know. I went to try out, but I didn't even make it past the first screening."
"Ah, I see." Campione Su Mo nodded. "Makes sense. They are the top Familia in Orario—it's not like they'll let just anyone walk in."
"Yeah, and from what I remember, most of Loki's top members were raised from childhood," Ultraman Su Mo added. "That would make getting in even harder."
No wonder Bell in the original story struggled so much—joining a Familia wasn't as simple as it seemed.
After listening to the reasoning, Fairy Tail Su Mo went quiet for a few seconds.
Then, with a mischievous grin, he looked at DanMachi Su Mo.
"So basically… you only chose Hestia because Loki rejected you, right? Hestia was your backup plan?"
"Pfft! Hestia is not a backup!" DanMachi Su Mo immediately shot back.
"My heart belongs only to the Blue-Ribbon Goddess!"
"Oh?" Campione Su Mo raised an eyebrow, clearly amused.
"And by 'only,' you mean… you're not planning to flirt with any other girls? You're not even thinking about building a harem?"
The other two Su Mos looked at him in awe.
Was their alternate self really this… pure-hearted?
"…Ahem."
Clearing his throat dramatically, DanMachi Su Mo pretended not to hear that last part.
"What are you even saying! Of course I'm not some kind of playboy!"
Then, with a quick shift in tone, he added, "But, you know... if others happen to notice my excellent character and dazzling soul, and insist on sticking close to me, I can't exactly reject them outright, right? I mean, I wouldn't want to break a beautiful girl's heart."
"Tch—" All the other Su Mo versions immediately shot him a look of contempt.
Saying it so nicely, but all he really wants is to build a harem.
"What's with those looks?" Su Mo from the DanMachi world was clearly unwilling to be looked down upon like that. "We're all the same person! If I'm a hopeless flirt, then so are you. Don't pretend you don't have the same thoughts!"
"Wait a minute! Can you not go around spreading lies that ruin my image?!" Su Mo from the Campione world interrupted immediately, clearly unable to bear such accusations.
"I want to make this absolutely clear: I am not old enough."
"So you're just not old yet, but still a pervert?" The Su Mo from the Fairy Tail world covered his face in disbelief.
"Every time I see you people being this shameless, I can't help but feel ashamed that we're technically the same person." Then he paused and added with a shrug, "Though, thankfully, I'm a degenerate too, so at least I'm immune to your corruption… a silver lining, I guess."
"…" The Su Mo from the Tiga world looked at the bickering group, visibly speechless.
"Alright, that's enough. Let's get back to the actual topic."
He forcibly steered the conversation back on track.
"Looking at it now, joining Hestia Familia might actually have been the better choice. At the very least, with Hestia's personality, no matter what sort of bizarre things happen to you, she'll stand by your side unconditionally. Loki is good to her Familia too, but she's not as blindly supportive as Hestia."
Such a massive boost in experience points was bound to attract the gods' attention during level-up.
Thankfully, Hestia was someone you could truly trust.
"Well, of course." At the mention of this, Su Mo from the DanMachi world nodded confidently.
"Hestia may seem a bit useless on the surface, but when it comes to trust and loyalty, she's rock solid!"
None of the other Su Mos had any objections to that.
After discussing things a bit more, Su Mo from the DanMachi world waved farewell to the others and left the Misty Space, returning to his world—ready to continue the journey ahead.