The goddess moved so fast; it was only due to his Falna that the captain could even see her. His focus was split between her fast approach and the rain of arrows loosed by her followers, to which the goddess herself seemed to pay no heed. Then, with godly timing, she leaped upon him while drawing her mythril blade. Seven swift cuts to the seams of the armor he wore beneath his robes, and the follower of darkness crumpled. He watched with growing despair as the reinforcements—allies from outside the city—streamed over the walls, until a hard blow from one of the goddess’s followers knocked him unconscious.
“Lady Artemis! We’ve captured the eastern walls!”
“Hold them. We must hold this path into the city. Our enemies have spotted us, and we can no longer rely on the element of surprise. Wait here until Lanta arrives.”
This azure-haired beauty was Artemis, goddess of chastity. Answering her follower without looking back, she instead turned her gaze left, toward the southeastern walls. Far in the distance, an Evils cultist pointed in her direction and started making a ruckus. The goddess loosed an arrow, which sailed through the air and struck the alarm raiser, who promptly exploded.
Artemis frowned. She hadn’t known that would happen.
“Still, it’s a relief to finally be here in Orario,” said her captain. “After marching for five days and five nights, I thought we would collapse!”
“Sorry about that, but we couldn’t just abandon the people here. If Orario falls, the mortal world is done for.”
Artemis continued shooting arrows even while conversing. She struck a brave and awe-inspiring form, her wise eyes constantly scanning the city for movement.
This was Artemis Familia. A familia without a home, who wandered the continent on a perpetual hunt. Though not officially part of Orario, they still counted upper-class adventurers among their number, and even the goddess herself was a formidable fighter to be reckoned with.
Three days prior, in their underground hideout, Valletta and Vito had said the following words:
“How will the other cities have resources to spare when they’re dealing with an unprecedented outbreak of riots all at the same time?”
“Even if one or two of ’em manage to put down the riots and send someone over, they’ll only be Level Two at best. Nothin’ to piss our pants over.”
They had decided that the continent had better things to do than to send aid to Orario.
They were wrong. These brave women put Orario’s needs above their own. Though the strongest of them were only Level 2, no hunt was too dangerous with the divine leadership of their goddess at their backs.
“I can appreciate why it was important to liberate all the towns and villages along our path, but shouldn’t we be out helping other world powers like the empire?”
“We’ll leave that to the School District. Their forces far outclass ours, both in quality and quantity. Plus, they have the Knight of Knights on their side.”
“You mean that brat who helped slay the Leviathan…?”
The actions of Artemis Familia had been swift. The moment she heard news of the Great Conflict, Artemis had made the decision to come here, to Orario, instead of assisting elsewhere. Having scaled the massive walls with a rope, she beheld for the first time just what had become of the inner city.
“Either a return to the ancient times, or a prelude to Makhia… Is this truly this city’s destiny?”
“…Hmm? Lady Artemis?”
“Nothing. Once Lanta returns from exterminating the monsters below, we’ll move out. Rethusa, decide who’ll join the hunting party and who’ll stay here!”
“Yes, my lady!”
Artemis’s captain returned a vigorous nod. A spark-filled wind blew over them, but the goddess tried to ignore it, pulling back her bow and resuming her archery.
“Artemis, you came!” said Hermes, seeing the azure-haired goddess and her all-female band conquering the city walls.
As he watched them proceed clockwise, Hermes felt a sense of relief, knowing the days of the enemy siege were numbered. Alone, atop one of the buildings in the casino area, he turned his gaze to the streets below.
“Things are just about settled up here,” he said. “Our brave adventurers have given too much to lose now.”
It was not a prediction, but a given. The fires of rebellion were lit and already far out of control. It was only a matter of time before evil succumbed.
“The problem now is the Dungeon… I hope you can handle it, girl.”
✦ ✦ ✦
“…Well now. I certainly didn’t expect to see you down here.”
Erebus could hardly conceal his shock. The last of his followers lay beaten at his feet, trounced by the adventurers who accompanied his unexpected guest.
The dark god smiled and lifted his head, meeting her gaze.
“You sure do like surprising me, don’t you, Astrea?”
Standing before him was a goddess clad in purest white, with long, walnut hair that fell about her waist. For the second time, the goddess of justice had come to confront absolute evil in person.