Chapter 26

In the part of the woods she had used yesterday, Schau and Iselina were waiting. Cecille did not seem to be there, but instead, there was a fresh, new face. And apparently Lyu’s night in the goddess’s room was already common knowledge in the familia. The prum Schau was cheerful, the werewolf Iselina was smirking tauntingly, and the black-haired human girl was…well, something was creepy about her. Lyu struggled for words, but she coughed awkwardly to cover it. Struggling against the heat threatening to spread to her cheeks, for some reason she asked a question. “Why are you here? Are you really…?” “That’s right. Lady Astrea asked us to!” “Well, Cecille is one thing, but…we’ll come along for the ride. You’re the incredible predecessor who overcame Orario’s Dark Age, after all.” Lyu was stunned at Schau’s and Iselina’s answers. “We ended up siding with Cecille in the argument yesterday, but…” “We’ve heard about you from Lady Astrea, too. But it’s been tense from the moment we met you, and you were hard to talk to…and, well, like I said yesterday, we were scared. But we really did want a chance to talk with you this whole time.” Schau, who was half Lyu’s height, moved her arms and gestured to explain herself, and Iselina smiled even as she scratched her cheek. And finally, the black-haired girl said something terrifying. “I…because of you doing this and that with Lady Astrea…my impression of you has sunk low enough I want to curse you to death, though…” “…Ah, and you are?” “Uranda…” Lyu’s question got a muttered response. She had long, wavy hair that covered her eyes. It was perhaps an awkward comparison, but she looked almost like a combination of Chigusa and Cassandra. She was one of the familia members who had been watching the home yesterday. “We heard about your situation from Lady Astrea. We can help you, even if it’s just us.” After distancing herself slightly from the quiet aura emanating from Uranda, Iselina explained why they were there. And with that, Lyu finally understood. Thanks to Astrea, Lyu could now maintain some level of composure. The sharpness, like a bare blade, had disappeared, and her demeanor was gradually softening. Thanks to that, the girls who had found her unapproachable before could now speak more freely. It would be rude and uncouth to say I’ve been dancing in the palm of Lady Astrea’s hand. Astrea may have told them that Lyu would be better tomorrow. That motherly concern for her children made Lyu smile gratefully. Of course she was also grateful to Iselina and the others for taking that final step of actually reaching out. There was still some distance between them, but with Alize and the others gone, the thought of being able to be part of the familia again was like an impossible dream. It was overblown, but it made her think of the word family and made her nostalgic. “Especially with yesterday’s incident, I am sorry for being a careless senior…And I am thankful that you were still willing to meet me halfway.” Putting her left hand on her chest, she said what she needed to, just like an overly serious elf. And while she had not realized it herself, but there was a faint little smile on Lyu’s lips. The boyish Iselina giggled a bit and scratched her head, and the small Schau blushed without bothering to hide it. And Uranda stared. She really was hard to understand. Trying to hide her embarrassment too late, Schau red-facedly changed the topic. “Ah, are you still using that wooden sword?!” Before Lyu could say she was intending to return it, the prum girl smiled innocently. “It was made for you, so I’m sure Cecille will be glad!” “…? For me?” Confusion crossed Lyu’s face. Iselina raised her hand and smacked the prum girl on the head. “Schau, you dummy.” “Ah! S-sorry, please pretend you didn’t hear that, officer!” That was a tall order, but seeing Schau bowing so low she practically touched the ground, Lyu chose not to delve into it for now. Chatting with her juniors like this was nice, but her adjustment was the top priority. There was no time to waste. The amount of growth yesterday, while small compared to the level-up, should reduce the disconnect I’ve been feeling, too…Though I still don’t understand how my abilities could have grown so much so quickly… Thinking back to last night with Astrea, she shifted her thoughts in the face of that question and started to think about her training today, but… “Umm, Lyu! Why don’t we play tag!” “Tag…?” Schau offered that proposal as if to redeem herself. “After getting crushed so quickly yesterday, I’ve been thinking this whole time! About how we can beat you down!” “Our goal isn’t to beat her down, it’s to help her, though.” Ignoring Iselina’s exasperated comment, Schau raised her hands high and hopped around. “And what I came up with was tag! If you catch us while we run around in the woods, you win! If we slip by you and touch you, then we win!” She was Level 1, from what Lyu had heard, but while accepting she could not contribute much in combat, she had apparently put quite a bit of thought into this. Her eyes gleamed like a cute little animal’s as she looked questioningly up at Lyu. While not wanting to let Schau’s efforts go to waste, Lyu gave her an honest answer. “It sounds interesting, but I believe the fundamental difference in strength is too large. I don’t believe it will be a proper match—” “It’s fine! We’ve got a secret weapon on our side!” As if expecting Lyu’s answer, she pulled something out of the small bag on her back. They were three pole-like things wrapped in white cloth. Lyu was not sure what they were, but Schau looked awfully sure of herself. Looking down at her, Lyu then glanced to the side. Uranda was silent still, and Iselina had a wry smile, but there was a sense that she also wanted to try it, too. “We’re definitely gonna surprise you!” Schau was leaning forward, almost snorting in excitement even after seeing the difference in their strengths yesterday. If she was going to go that far, then fine. That was what Lyu thought. “Very well then, I’ll go along with your proposal.” “Thank you so much! All right! Let’s kick her butt!” “Like I said, you’re forgetting the point of this.” Schau grinned in satisfaction as Iselina sighed and then took one of the poles from her. Uranda did the same. “All right, we’re going to hide, so give us one minute please!” With that, they hurriedly disappeared into the forest. Lyu felt almost bemused and wondered if that was how Maryu and Lyana must have felt. But it was a waste just waiting, so she swung her wooden sword while counting the seconds. She had intended to return it, but to avoid injuring them, she was going to use it today, too. “Fifty-nine, sixty…here I come.” Whoosh! The sixtieth swing sliced through the air sharply enough for the girls to hear it, and then Lyu flew forward. The instant acceleration would have terrified any lower-class adventurer who saw it. Following after them into the deep woods, she leaped forward like a gale wind. “Since you asked for this, I’ll be a little bit rough.” Careful not to break any trees, she kicked off their trunks and made a conscious effort to move chaotically. Even though Lyu accounted for her enhanced abilities, her body was like a bucking bronco. But being a little bit over-the-top like this made it easier to adjust. Her goal today was to fully grasp how much of a disconnect there was between her mind and her body. A thudding bambambambam rang out as Lyu darted around at high speed searching for the girls. To test her heightened senses, she carefully listened so she wouldn’t miss anything covered by the sounds of her own movement. This was an impossible feat for Level 2s, never mind Level 1s, and the girls hiding must have found it astonishing, and possibly terrifying. However, Lyu had accepted their challenge, and she had no intention of letting it be a simple game. “Since we’re already here, I’m going to make the most of it.” And that feeling had surely made it through to the others. Almost as if casting aside any doubt, a sudden gust of wind arrived. “?!” The blast of air struck her in the side. Lyu, who had been racing forward like a bullet, was suddenly sent flying, though she quickly righted herself after landing on a tree trunk. A flash of surprise registered in her sky-blue eyes, and then she realized what her juniors were planning. “This is…the work of a magic sword!” The gust of wind had been imbued with magic power, but there was no chance it was actually magic. Lyu had her ears peeled this entire time and never heard any casting. In which case, the only possibility was a magic sword that could be activated with a single slash. Cecille is a Level 2 high smith…If she’s developed the Smithing ability, then she would be able to forge magic swords, too! Those three bundles wrapped in white cloth. Those had to be magic short swords. Most likely, Schau had asked Cecille to borrow them, maybe even telling her it was to kick Lyu’s butt. That she had chosen wind affinity ones in order not to hurt the forest was worth high marks as well. But more than anything, because the wind they created was colorless and translucent, it was difficult to sense. If she could find where the wind was coming from, it would lead her right to them, but the attacks weren’t coming from just one direction—they were coming from three. Schau, Iselina, and Uranda were unleashing a constant barrage from their hiding spots, buffeting Lyu’s body. On top of that, the forest was a natural maze once they ventured this deep. The blasts of wind were flying through gaps between trees and leaves and undergrowth, bouncing off things, making it seem like the attacks were coming from every direction. The wind was completely drowning out other noises. “This is well thought out…!” Squinting her eyes as she endured the magical winds, Lyu complimented the strategy. This area around their home was like the girls’ backyard, where they had lived for many years. When they chose this as the battlefield, they naturally had the advantage. They knew exactly where they should hide and the perfect places to launch their attacks from. Lyu had been caught in a well-constructed plan. But…this is good! Though Schau may not have intended it, the blasts of wind pressing down from all sides demanded excellent balance and control. Even now that Lyu was Level 5, maintaining her posture in this vortex required effort. In other words, enduring these gusting winds was well worth it. Because it continued without end, it was far more useful than training by herself normally. Lyu repeatedly jumped around like she was cutting through the wind that howled in the forest and then facing it straight on. “I’ll answer with my full strength, too!”…is what I’d like to say, but there’s still something else, isn’t there? Lyu was still calm. These magical winds alone were not enough to corner a Level 5 like Lyu. Forget hurting her. Just getting close enough to touch her would be difficult. And the magic swords would break when they reached their limit. This cage of wind could only be maintained for a time. Lyu’s movements were limited in this situation—in other words, they had successfully restrained her for the moment, but the girls were still far from victory. No doubt, they were perfectly aware of this. “…Just to be safe, I should prepare something.” As she mumbled that to herself, Lyu readied a little insurance. In one smooth moment, as Lyu moved swiftly through the torrent of wind, she suddenly caught sight of the green-haired prum. “Whoa?! That’s crazy!!!” Schau, who had been constantly changing her hiding place as she used the magic sword, let out a shriek and turned around. As she tried to catch the girl who was frantically running away, Lyu stored up power in her legs. Not resisting the gust of wind that side, Lyu landed against a tree trunk that was close by, and the moment she leaped off… “Now, Uranda!” She heard Iselina’s voice clearly. The next moment, a dark chant echoed in Lyu’s ears. “Open, my love. Lunus Wolfsbane.” An intense pressure enveloped her body, completely restricting her movements. “…?! A status down! And I can’t move!” Lyu immediately noticed the negative status effects. And the source of it, Uranda, was writhing in the shadow of the tree she had been hiding behind. “Ugh, it hurts…it hurts…but I won’t let you go…hee-hee-hee…” The girl’s hands were gripping a dark shard of magic that looked like a pitch-black stake that was piercing her chest, and she smiled eerily even as she groaned in pain. Once she saw that out of the corner of her eye, Lyu was sure of it. —A curse! From her appearance, she had seemed like someone who fought from the rear rather than standing on the front line, but it turned out that Uranda was a curse-user, of all things. That magic stake tormented her, and in exchange for her pain, she could bind the target of her curse—in this case, Lyu. Lyu was a little surprised to discover a type of person who had never been one of Astrea’s followers before. She was curious how she had come to receive Astrea’s blessing, but…this was not the time. “Nice one, Uranda!” “Got you!” Schau, who had been running around acting as bait, saw her chance and turned back. Iselina had been blocking Lyu’s path with her magic sword and she quickly joined Schau. Seeing the two of them closing in with their hands stretching toward her, Lyu realized it was all a trap. I see—the secret weapon was Uranda. Lyu remembered the smile on Schau’s face when she had let Lyu see the bundled-up magic swords, almost intentionally showing them off. That had been the key to ensnaring Lyu in this trap. While Lyu had not given Uranda’s unique aura much thought to begin with, they had splendidly drawn her attention with the magic swords. Schau was probably the one who acted as the brains of the party, just like Lyra once had. But, that’s still not enough. If it were the prum Lyu knew, there would have been at least another layer or two of traps. Remembering the peach-haired prum girl’s nasty smile, Lyu decided it was time to use her bit of insurance. “Imbue the light of stardust and strike down my enemy—Luminous Wind.” One burst. She fired off just a single green ball of light aimed at her own feet. “Eh?!” “Wha—?!” When the girls were just one step away, she cast her queued up spell. Schau and Iselina both were stunned to see Lyu disappear as the explosion went off. Lyu had anticipated an unexpected and had preemptively performed a concurrent cast in a voice soft enough that they could not hear her while she gave chase. Ironically, the gusts from the magic swords they had relied on for their trap had completely drowned out the chanting. Because it was cast using just a small amount of magic power—just enough for a single orb of light—none of them had even noticed. That was Lyu’s small bit of insurance. “If it had sealed not just my movements but my magic as well, you might have reached me, but…what a shame.” Quickly dodging the Luminous Wind blast at her feet, Lyu leaped backward with a single spin and then planted her boots against the trunk of a tall tree. Now that she was out of range, the effects of the curse went away. Her eyes turned to Uranda, who looked stunned. She couldn’t let that opening go, she leaped. “Kh!” It was an absurd amount of acceleration and movement. The sheer difference between what she expected and what her body actually did made Lyu furrow her brow. She steadied herself as much as she could and closed in. She leaped from trunk to trunk six times. Zigzagging like a lightning bolt, she appeared without warning in front of Uranda. “One.” “Ugh!…Even if you finish me, more will rise to take my place…!” Uranda went down with an odd shout as Lyu landed a carefully controlled strike with her wooden sword. It sounded like she was still muttering something after going down, but Lyu quickly moved on. “Two, and three.” “Damn iiit?!” “Aaaaargh! We lost again!!!” She closed the distance in a flash and the remaining two became fodder for her wooden sword. Unable to fully block the attack, Iselina slammed into a nearby tree while Schau went tumbling and landed on her back as she groaned in frustration. After their game of tag was over, the four gathered for a break. “You’re too strong! And I was so sure of that plan…” Schau slumped to the ground. “So long as you don’t let it go to your head, you can be proud. The follow-through was lacking, but the strategy itself was excellent. That was a much better workout than I expected.” Lyu gave an honest assessment of the game. The training had put Lyu through her paces and had just the right amount of tension. She could already feel an improvement in her ability to rein in her Level 5 strength. And despite already knowing the tricks involved, she was ready to try it again. “Reallyyy? You think so?” Schau started squirming when she heard Lyu’s sincere compliment. “…She said as long as you don’t get let it go to your head…” Iselina could already tell that Schau was on the verge of outright boasting, so she reminded her of Lyu’s warning. “…But you escaped it so easily in the end. When I heard the plan from Schau, I thought it had a real chance…” Iselina smacked her forehead. “Where do you think we went wrong?” “With another two or three layers, you would have had a good chance of catching me off guard,” Lyu answered frankly. “Ugh! Not even one more?! Two or three?!” Schau groaned. And Uranda, who was sitting away from Lyu, started muttering to herself, too. “I think I might start hating Orario adventurers…” Though she had not fully adjusted to her status yet, Lyu laughed a little to herself at her juniors who seriously tried their best to win against a Level 5 adventurer. In Lyu’s mind, being able to think that at all was due to their youth and lack of experience, but she also felt that was just right for them. That impertinence and overreaching was what led to growth, so long as they had comrades to support them. That was what Lyu thought, having fought through and survived the Dark Age. As the three of them began to overlap with the old Astrea Familia she knew, her voice grew warmer. “At the very least, the prum girl I knew would have gathered more information and prepared far more traps.” Hearing that, Schau suddenly shot up. “Is that prum Lyra?!” “…! You knew Lyra?” “No, not at all! But I’ve been so curious after hearing Lady Astrea’s old stories!” Schau seemed almost ready to leap onto Lyu she was so excited. Iselina grabbed her by the collar and warned her she’d get swatted aside, but the prum girl didn’t settle down even when as her arms and legs spun in the air. “When I became Lady Astrea’s follower, I didn’t have any confidence, since I was just a prum…! But when I heard about Lyra, it gave me hope!” “!” “Even though she was weaker, she was smart and came up with lots of plans and was relied on by all of you! Isn’t that incredible?! I thought even if I couldn’t be like the prum’s hero, maybe I could be an ally of justice like Lyra was!” “A-an ally of justice…” “Mmhmm! I don’t know what she looks like, and I won’t be able to meet her, but…I want to be like her!” Thoughts of sly, coarse Lyra and whether she was really a proper ally of justice or if it was a good idea to be like her and all sorts of questions filled Lyu’s head, until she was not sure what sort of face she should make, but…before her mind could catch up… “Schau…have you found your own justice?” “I do! I want to be a prum who helps weak people like me!” Schau answered immediately without any doubt. It was a wonderful goal. When Lyu looked at her, Schau averted her eyes, and Iselina smiled awkwardly. “I don’t yet,” Lyu confessed. “It’s embarrassing to admit as a follower of Lady Astrea…but I am still searching for my justice at her feet.” Lyu thought that was enough for now. “My justice is of course protecting the beautiful, abundant, honorable, and lovely goddess…that is my justice…hee-hee-hee…” Uranda was confusing and sounded a little scary. But it seemed she had her own beliefs as well. “Lyu, for future reference, could you tell us more about our predecessors? Even if it isn’t complicated stuff like what justice meant to them. Even if it’s just something that we could have used in the tag game just now, for example.” “I want to know, too!” “Me too…” Lyu was at a bit of a loss when they asked that, but she was also glad. Glad to be able to talk with the next generation about the comrades who had always helped her. Glad that there were others who wanted to know them. Lyu was aware she was not the best storyteller, and so… “I’m not sure that I can do their story justice, but…” And then, she spoke. About the human captain, Alize Lovell, who was as radiant as the sun. About the human second-in-command, Gojouno Kaguya, ever the wolf in sheep’s clothing. About the prum strategist, Lyra, who was more devious and cunning than anyone. About the human attacker, Noin Unic, who was always deft and tactful. About the dwarf defender, the brave Asta Nox, who protected everyone with her small frame. About the werewolf middle guard, Neze Rankett, who was surely Iselina’s direct predecessor. About the Amazon brawler, Iska Bra, who was the most eccentric and the most fashionable. About the human healer, Maryu Réage, who was a beacon of tolerance and motherliness. About the human wandering mage, Lyana Lietz, who originally came from the distant magical land of Altena. About the elf who was their anchor in the rear, Celty Srowa, who was the only one actually younger than Lyu. There were ten of them, not counting Lyu. She was happy to tell Schau and the others about their great predecessors, who had always teased her, taught her, and guided her, and whom she had always fought alongside. And they were the ones who had asked her to carry on the vow “On the sword and wings of justice.” “…” Breaking into smiles at Lyu’s old stories, the girls pressed her for more and more. And hiding alone in the shadow of a tree, Cecille watched. “Are you not going to join, Cecille?” “…! Lady Astrea…” Astrea had appeared behind her at some point, and when Cecille spun around, she could not hide her initial shock, but she quickly adopted a gruff scowl. “I won’t…I hate that woman.” “I would be happy if you and Lyu could get along. You’re bumping heads right now, but I’m sure you’ll come to like Lyu if you give her a chance.” “…Even if that’s true, I won’t go.” She looked down almost apologetically as a shadow crossed her face. “I can’t even fulfill a single commission…” She trembled as those words slipped past her lips, and then immediately, she excused herself. Astrea watched in silence as she left alone. “…” The only witness to their exchange was Lyu, who sensed Cecille’s presence, even at a distance. “How is your adjustment going?” “Proceeding much better than I expected. It’s all thanks to Schau and them, I suspect.” After spending the day honing her mind and body, night had fallen and the moon sat high in the sky. Lyu and Astrea were alone in Astrea’s room again tonight, sitting around a table and having dinner. She had gotten much closer with the other members of the familia over the course of the day, so it was probably about time for her to start eating with them in the familia’s dining room, but… “I’m sorry, Lyu, but I’d like to keep you for myself today, too.” Astrea had asked, so Lyu of course had to accept. Lyu personally felt that it would be better to eat in the dining room because she could’ve sworn that behind Uranda’s wall of hair, a pair of baleful eyes were skewering her for having the nerve to monopolize Astrea. …Of course, it’s probably more for that girl’s sake than mine. Recalling the exchange between Cecille and Astrea she had seen that morning, Lyu had a feeling that was probably the main reason. It was just instinct, but she felt like if she started eating dinner with the others now, Cecille might lose her own place. And that was perhaps what motivated Astrea to request Lyu’s company again tonight. “If things keep going this smoothly, the adjustment should be done soon.” As Lyu explained the progress of her training, the food adorning her plate steadily disappeared. While she silently thanked her juniors for preparing her portion since she was terrible at cooking, Lyu waited for what felt like the right moment to ask her burning question. “So Lady Astrea, about that magi—” “All right, Lyu, shall we update your status again tonight?” “………” When Astrea spoke over her, Lyu closed her mouth. She didn’t think Astrea was deceiving her. She just suspected it was her way of saying that it was not time yet. Astrea smiled apologetically and started to prepare for the status update. Lyu would have liked to think there was no way an update like yesterday’s would happen again. But in that moment, Lyu already had a feeling. Lyu Leon LEVEL 5 Strength: I50->G200 Endurance: I50->G200 Dexterity: I50->G200 Agility: I50->G200 Magic: I50->G200 It jumped again… All of her abilities had gone up, by a combined 750 points exactly. It was a growth that made last night’s results look small in comparison. Her basic abilities had gone up evenly across the board. Almost like the record holder’s ability growth. Even Lyu had to question it. “Lady Astrea, this is…” “I’m sure it is exactly what you are imagining,” Astrea answered her topless follower. “This is a first for me as well, but I believe this process is necessary, for your sake.” “…” “Once everything is finished, I will give you the magic that is waiting to manifest. So I would like you to come to terms with your five-year journey and make it your own.” Lyu felt like she finally understood what the goddess had seen when she’d unsealed the record of the past five years inscribed in her back. And so, her answer was, of course, “As you wish, Lady Astrea.” 5 The order was for a weapon designed to be used by an elf. A weapon for someone nimble, skilled at magic, and who excels at high-speed combat. Someone who races like the wind, bombards the enemy ranks with magic, and even has the ability to use healing magic. When she first heard the order, it sounded so absurd that her first thought was Are you out of your mind? From that description, the image that came to mind was an agile, lithe fairy using hit-and-run tactics. To put a name to it, the closest category would probably be a magic swordswoman who mostly fought on the front line. In which case, it needed to be a serviceable weapon and also serve as a staff that boosted magic power. If the user raced around the battlefield concurrent casting, Cecille concluded the weapon should be as light as possible. But the weapon would also have to endure serious wear and tear if it would primarily be used on the front lines, so durability was essential. Those two demands were at odds with each other, but that was where a blacksmith could prove herself. The best possible materials would be needed to manifest both of those traits. A branch from an elf village’s great sacred tree was a must to act as a catalyst for an elf’s magic. And with no margin for error, Cecille decided to use Altena-made magic stones ground into a fine powder. As she worked the branch into a suitable shape and embedded the powder in it, she hit on the idea of using the spring water from the Star Cavern to help infuse the powder and increase the baseline magic power. Though she hesitated to sing her own praises, Cecille was proud she had come up with this revolutionary idea. To the extent time allowed, she would keep the branch soaking in a barrel full of water drawn from the sacred spring. If she could just add a bit of spirit material like the goddess suggested, the result would undoubtedly be something incredible. With the materials lined up, the next step was modeling the weapon. If it was a sword or ax for a dwarf to swing around, then she could just focus on the metal and swing her hammer, but this was an elf’s weapon, which demanded delicacy. She had to work to strip away any excess for weight reasons, and also make sure it functioned properly as a staff. That was the domain of mages who specialized in creating staffs. That was distinctly different from the conventional weapon manufacturing she normally did. So until the deadline arrived, she decided to deepen her understanding of staff construction even more than she honed her blacksmithing skills. In the process, as a blacksmith rather than a mage, she hit on the idea of constructing the sword and grip separately. The grip could house all the functions of a magic stuff while the sword served as a melee weapon. Cecille thought that was the answer. This way, it could stand tall as a sword and a staff. The image she had in her mind was a wooden sword imbued with stardust. The next step was turning that idea into reality. A hundred or more test pieces using provisional materials was just natural. She had come up with a thousand different designs, crumpling and discarding many along the way. She messed up. Things didn’t go as planned. And yet in the beginning, it wasn’t so bad. Cecille believed without a shred of doubt that these failures were stepping stones that would eventually lead to success. But almost like it could see the doubts in her heart, that skeletal idea refused to take shape. Cruel reality kept whispering in her ear, telling her that her idea was nothing more than empty theories. She had sleepless nights. A vague dread loomed over her. Her heart ached. Even though she gritted her teeth and pressed on, at some point it became so torturous that she started wishing this was just a nightmare. The suffocating thought that she would never get anywhere grew with each passing day. There’s still time. That was what she told herself over and over, deluding herself…without ever achieving anything. Dozens of branches of the sacred tree soaked in sacred spring water had been wasted. She could not make any more test pieces. There was no going back. It was terrifying to imagine what the client—her own goddess—would think of her. There was no time to be dwelling on that, but she was scared. Her mind raced until she found it impossible to hold her tools or even a pen, and she started spending more time away from the workshop, staring blankly up at the sky… And finally, the deadline arrived. “Ngh……is it morning?” The sun had not risen yet, but she could tell from the dull pain in her head that it was morning. Cecille had passed out at some point on her desk. Still groggy, she raised her head. She was in her workshop built at the back of Stars’ Rest. The blacksmith’s bedroom, the one stone construction in the home, had not been properly cleaned recently, and there were crumpled designs and spent materials scattered all around. The only decorations on the walls and shelves were the weapons she had made with pride, but a close look revealed a thin layer of dust on their sheaths. A furnace was set in the corner, and the anvil beside it had not seen use in a long time. They were all signs of a stagnation so great that the word slump would hardly do it justice, and Cecille found it hard to look at them. Even though she was Level 2 and could be called superhuman, her eyes hurt, and they felt heavy. She wanted to just lie down and not do anything, but she could knew that if she did, sleep wouldn’t come. She listened to her empty stomach growl with a grimace. Fighting the desire to do nothing that refused to leave her, she wobbled to her feet. “…Was I wearing a cape…?” She paused and cocked her head as she noticed something slip from her shoulders. Her throbbing head could not conceive of the possibility that someone—or some goddess—had visited and draped it over her shoulders. In a daze, Cecille picked it up and slowly shuffled to the corner of the room. After removing the basin’s lid, she stuck her face into the water. Lately this had been all she could manage. She was sixteen, a tender age for young girls, and yet she didn’t even bother with a shower. The most she did was wipe herself down with a wet cloth. If her late mother could have seen her now, she was sure she would have gotten a deep sigh and a good smack on the head. This is all because that elf came here… “…Pathetic…” Taking a hammer to her foolish thoughts of wanting to drown to put her out of her misery, as well as her weak heart that wanted to pin the blame on others, Cecille raised her face out of the basin. She scrubbed her face with a nearby cloth, wiping away that peculiar dark mood that came right after waking up. Starting now, she would be the same strong-willed, unyielding Cecille Blackliza as ever. With a long sigh at how her body creaked so loudly from so little movement, she decided to sneak into the dining hall and get some food before heading to the workshop. That was when she noticed a letter placed on a shelf filled with weapons. “‘We’re borrowing the magic swords!’…Schau took all the magic swords I made?! No way!” The familia’s strategic reserve of magic swords that she had painstakingly stocked was missing from the workshop. She wanted to scream and ask if Schau had any idea how much effort and resources went into making a single magic sword as she tried to decide whether she should be angry or exhausted. She staggered forward a couple of steps as concern filled her. Her eyes squeezed shut and her brow knit in frustration, she bumped into the window, and then realized… The faint sounds of a furious battle was coming from deep in the woods. “…Schau and Iselina are helping that elf…” When she opened her eyes, Cecille glared at the forest from the workshop window. She wasn’t sure about Uranda, but Schau and Iselina were absolutely helping Lyu of their own volition. Even after Cecille had complained and shouted so much in front of them and listed all the things that she disliked about Lyu. They were siding with her over their captain, with that terribly serious, cold, unfriendly senior who had been fighting in Orario all this time. “…So damn pathetic…” Caught up in her thoughts, Cecille continued to look toward the forest with a tinge of sadness in her face. “Hurry, Schau! She’s catching up!” “No way! I can’t!!! Carry me, Iselinaaaa!!!” It was her fourth day in Zolingam. Lyu, diligently training in the early morning like she always did, had become a hunter. Iselina and the others continued to liberally use their magic swords and had gone as far as to set up pitfalls and all sorts of other traps, but Lyu crushed everything they threw at her. Now that she had broken through every obstacle put in her way, she was currently hunting down Iselina and Schau, who were desperately fleeing through the forest. My body is finally getting used to my new status…! Her status had gone up significantly again last night, but she was starting to get a feel for it and was starting to move like a true Level 5 adventurer. Sometimes, Lyu asked the girls to attack her with their magic swords and spells at ultra-close range. Other times, she would ignore their protests and leap from dizzying heights in the mines. There were countless trials. Many would have considered this sort of training extreme, or as reckless as possible, but it was all in service of becoming strong enough to call herself a first-tier adventurer. I wonder what they’ll do in today’s game of tag…I’m looking forward to finding out. “If you can’t win by strength, then use your surroundings to your advantage.” “Use anything and everything you can.” What would they come up with after hearing her advice and the stories of Lyra and the others yesterday? In that sense, Lyu found herself enjoying this as something more than training. Of course, she could have already caught Iselina and Schau, but curious about what they might try next, she chose to stay just close enough to keep them on edge as they scrambled to escape. Then the scenery of the forest began to change. The canopy overhead started to block out the sun, casting the forest in an eerie, twilight-like darkness. There was barely any light, yet strangely, the verdant green of the forest seemed to make it possible to still see, almost like an elf village. …It’s…green? That was when Lyu realized something. It was late fall. The forested part of Zolingam—or at least the area around Stars’ Rest—was already dyed in the colors of autumn. And yet all around her was the sort of lush green of summer. The unmistakable, rich scent of plant life filled the air. Rather than putting her on guard, the first thing Lyu thought when she noticed the sudden change in scenery was This illusory, mystical sort of feeling… Before she could finish that thought, she heard a shout from Uranda, who had stayed completely out of sight until now. “Yufie! She’s here! Play all you want with the scandalous fairy who deceives the goddess!” Lyu wanted to lodge a complaint about that uncalled-for description, but this was not the time. As Iselina and Schau quickly split to the left and right while Lyu slid across the grass to slow herself down, she came face-to-face with a massive tree. In front of the giant tree was an incandescent child floating in the air. “Ha-ha-ha-ha! Is it playtime? Is iiit?!” A high-pitched voice that seemed to echo directly in her head rang out, and when Lyu looked up, she was stunned by what she saw. “A spirit…!” There was no mistaking it. Powerful magic emanated from the spirit. The forest was half-visible through an almost translucent body. What looked like a young girl floating in the air was a member of the race often called fragments of the gods. “This is Yufie, the spirit living in the woods of Zolingam (age unknown)!” “Ordinarily, no one comes to their den other than Lady Astrea…! But you said yesterday to use whatever we could!” Schau and Iselina shouted from behind the same trees Uranda had made her hiding place, sounding like cornered bandits. There was a good sheen of sweat on their flushed cheeks. From their obvious fear and the storm of magic power emanating from overhead, Lyu could tell that this spirit was an innocent yet dangerous bundle of power. “A lesser spirit…no, an intermediate spirit! Even if she isn’t a great spirit, she’s still a powerful miracle bearer!” Yufie had been leaning back like she was lazing in an invisible cradle, but perhaps reacting to the shouting, she put her big round eyes on Lyu. “You wanna play? Let’s play!” A whirlwind erupted around them. Lyu instinctively raised her arms to cover her face as she caught a glimpse of lesser spirits turning into orbs of light, drifting through the forest. “Yufie is a good kid, but she’s the sort who tends to break her toys while playing with them!” “I know we brought you here, but um, please don’t die!” “This is divine punishment for the fairy who monopolizes the goddess…” Schau, Iselina, and Uranda called out encouragement—and a bitter grievance. At this point, they had completely abandoned any semblance of restraint, and the original game of tag was clearly no longer on anyone’s mind, but Lyu steeled herself all the same. “A spirit as a sparring partner…this is the sort of training I wouldn’t get in Orario!” Lyu declared her resolve with a sharp swing of her wooden sword and the innocent spirit beamed. “Let’s aaall play together!” And so… Playtime ended with an earth-shaking crash echoing in the woods. “A-are you all right, Lyu…?” Iselina worked up the courage to ask. “No problems here. If anything, I wish you had brought me to her sooner.” After leaving Yufie’s home, they returned to the woods near the familia home, now bathed in the brilliant colors of the setting sun. Iselina was clearly uneasy after seeing how intense the fighting had been, but Lyu remained utterly calm and composed. This was in stark contrast to the Level 1s, Schau and Uranda, who had trouble simply getting out of the spirit den and were currently slumped on the ground and leaning against each other. “The spirits don’t know how to hold back, so we thought it might be better not to take you there when you’re not in top form…but I guess we didn’t need to worry about that.” Iselina fell back on the awkward smile that was starting to become a habit when she couldn’t help but notice that Lyu was completely unscathed. They had never encountered a first-tier adventurer—there were hardly any Level 5s in the world outside Orario—so they had exercised some common-sense precautions. Of course, if this were Orario, any adventurer who had seen a first-tier adventurer before would have simply said things like, “Worrying is a waste of time.” “Those guys won’t die even if you try to kill them.” “Logic doesn’t apply to monsters.” That was what it meant to be Level 5. Iselina’s obviously forced laugh made Lyu reflect on how their preconceptions differed, but ultimately, she thought it was a welcome miscalculation. I’m sure Lady Astrea must have known that those spirits would be able to put me through my paces and help me with my status adjustment, even in this place, far from Orario. That was most likely why she had kept Lyu here without hesitation, despite Lyu’s initial concern. Lyu would have preferred it if her goddess had simply told her so from the beginning, but she had to admit that if that had happened, she would have charged straight into the spirit den before she had a chance to get used to her new powers. As impatient as Lyu was, she still couldn’t argue that this greatly reduced the risk of injury. Lyu was grateful to her goddess who constantly had her best interests in mind, and she couldn’t help but feel a smile creeping onto her face. “By the way, when did that spirit Yufie start living there? To be honest, I never would have dreamed of running into an intermediate spirit in a place like this.” “From what Cecille said…she’s been in Zolingam since long before we were born.” As an outsider to Zolingam herself, Iselina answered as best she could. There were many lesser spirits such as gnomes in Orario, but the number of intermediate spirits had dwindled in modern times, even when counting all around the world. And what could be called great spirits were now the stuff of legend, mythical beings that could only be found in tales from a bygone age. “I’ve heard that Zolingam was established here specifically because there were spirits living here. It’s common knowledge that spirits will enrich the soil and trees and bodies of water wherever they live.” “I see…” This explained why the region was so blessed in materials for smithing and was such an ideal environment for weapon-making. However, even if it was a paradise for artisans and crafters, the spirits would not remain silent if nature was carelessly despoiled, polluted, and destroyed. That could easily lead to a fate similar to what befell the Crozzo family. In response to Lyu’s furrowed brow, Iselina shrugged, as if guessing her thoughts. “Of course, the spirits did get mad. That was just a few years ago. Apparently it was Lady Astrea herself who reined them in.” “What?” Lyu’s eyes widened in surprise. At the same time, it sounded entirely plausible. Despite her serene appearance, Astrea could be a bit of a tomboy. That was how a certain impudent god had described her, but Lyu knew there was truth to that statement. As her lips unconsciously contorted into a strange shape at the thought of that, the werewolf girl chuckled, shaking in amusement. “From what I heard, Zolingam had angered the spirits so badly that it came very close to being completely annihilated…and then five years ago, Lady Astrea suddenly appeared and managed to patch things up. So you could say that this place is peaceful now thanks to you in a way, Lyu.” “That’s not a very good joke…and all I did was selfishly push Lady Astrea away—nothing worthy of praise…” “I’m sorry, that was rude of me,” Iselina immediately apologized, seeing the pained look on Lyu’s face. “Anyway, it seems Zolingam and the spirits are able to coexist thanks to Lady Astrea. What’s taken from the woods and mountains are carefully managed, and the blacksmiths provide offerings and entertainment for the spirits at annual festivals…” “So the reason Lady Astrea is living out here rather than in the city proper is…” “Yes, it’s to watch over the spirits and the forest.” Astrea was never one to boast about her work, so Iselina explained in her stead, and in the process answered several of Lyu’s lingering questions. She still didn’t know why Astrea had come to Zolingam in the first place, but she had a feeling that would get answered soon, too. “The people of Zolingam are really grateful for Lady Astrea. Even me. I came here and asked to join her familia because I heard about everything she had done here.” “…Cecille, too?” “Yes. In her case, she saw Lady Astrea negotiate with the spirits herself, so I imagine she probably leaped at the chance to join her familia.” Lyu stayed silent for a moment. She was curious about the blue-haired girl she had hardly seen since that tense morning. “We’ve been chatting for a while now, but what are you planning to do now? As for us…sorry to say, I don’t think we’re in any shape to help you train right now…” “That’s fine. You should rest. I’ve more or less adjusted to my status. I should be able to do the rest on my own.” After she gave her thanks to Iselina, Schau, and Uranda, who were all visibly worn out, Lyu turned away and stepped onto the barely maintained trail that led back to the familia home. Yes, I’ve gotten the hang of it. So next is… As her thoughts turned to the status update that awaited her tonight, she hardened her resolve and pressed on. “Lyu. Are you done training for the day?” “Lady Astrea?” The goddess appeared on the path directly ahead. Lyu hurried over to her patron goddess, whose walnut hair rustled in the gentle breeze of late autumn. “Please do not go out alone without a guard…Iselina and the others have reduced their numbers, but there are still monsters in these woods.” “It’s fine. I brought Cecille’s sword with me.” Astrea brandished the longsword she was carrying. Lyu awkwardly stared at the weapon that was so at odds with the pure white gown Astrea was wearing. Although it was difficult to imagine due to her gentle manner, this goddess of justice could more than hold her own in a fight. In the heavens, one of her duties was doling out just punishments, and in terms of skill, Kaguya once described her as “Strong enough to make you cry in a sparring match. I know I did.” Alize had also recounted tales of harsh training during her travels alone with Astrea before they settled in Orario. Rigorous training that, while necessary, were anything but gentle. Alize once described being left to fend for herself against a group of monsters that were too strong for her to defeat without awakening her full potential while Astrea watched with a smile. Even as Alize became more and more battered, the only help Astrea offered was bits of advice. According to Alize, the advice had been incredibly effective and precise, but it had been given in a do-or-die situation, so in that sense, she absorbed the lessons fast and thoroughly. Astrea herself never directly intervened, but she showed a talent for pushing people past limits that they assumed were insurmountable, squeezing out every last bit of potential. And now that she thought about it, Lyu had a similar experience while fighting criminals shortly after joining Astrea Familia. In other words, everyone in the familia had to run the gauntlet. And the girls who had already leveled up, like Cecille, had no doubt gone through something similar. “Isn’t Lady Astrea kind of crazy? Like super scary?” Lyu recalled Lyra asking that seven years ago, after hearing Kaguya’s and Alize’s jaw-dropping stories. “It’s fine, because she let me rest on her lap and lie on her chest after!” Alize had responded smugly. “You’re the only one who could do that.” “But there is some logic there.” “I’ll follow Lady Astrea forever.” Getting back to the topic at hand. Doing her best to ignore the nostalgic, if exasperating voices of the star maidens worshipping their goddess in the back of her mind, Lyu sighed ever so slightly. “I heard from Iselina. About the spirits…when you first came to Zolingam.” “Oh…you heard that? How embarrassing.” Still holding the sword, Astrea blushed and put a hand against her cheek with a shy smile. In an attempt to deflect, she said, “I’m sure Hephaistos would have done something, even if I hadn’t. She visits Zolingam fairly often.” When Lyu decided to not let that pass without comment, Astrea looked even more embarrassed. As inappropriate as it may have been, Lyu found that bashfulness incredibly endearing. “…Did you have some need of us, since you came all the way out into the forest, Lady Astrea?” Lyu asked, having no interest in teasing the goddess like Lyra and her other old friends often did. Astrea smiled softly and said, “Cecille went into town and hasn’t come back yet…Could you please go find her, Lyu?” This prophecy from her goddess caught Lyu by surprise. The fairy dashed through the encroaching twilight, heading west, where the city still glowed madder red in the rays of the setting sun. As she watched her go, Astrea stuck the tip of her sheathed sword into the ground and retrieved a letter from her robes. “There’s no time…Sorry for rushing you…Lyu, Cecille…” The letter bore a wax seal marked with a winged traveler’s hat. It was her second time seeing Zolingam in the sunset. Just like three days ago, when she first arrived, the city was terribly busy, and the pounding of hammers was incessant. It was normal to see artisans working on the side of the street here, much like it was nothing out of the ordinary to hear blacksmiths from different schools shouting loudly at one other. Hooded and masked, Lyu kept moving as she consulted a map marked with a circle that had Blackliza written in Koine next to it. Apparently, Cecille had left the familia home around noon. Astrea had explained that she had most likely gone to her family’s workshop, one of the largest and most well-known in the city. The closer she got to the center of Zolingam, the more the sound of hammers and the heat grew. Lyu marveled at the relentless energy of the city that forged weapons without pause, even as the sun slipped under the horizon. “That’s…” She spotted a familiar-looking structure—a metallic inverted hourglass missing its top half that essentially looked like a massive funnel and emitted emerald-green light. When she had first come to Zolingam, she figured it was something important based on that mysterious glow. And now she saw that it stood right next to the massive Blackliza workshop. “Please! Let me use the spirit forge! With that, I’m sure I can complete the weapon for this job…!” The entrance of the workshop was open, and Cecille was standing in front of it, surrounded by soot-stained men in work clothes. “What are you saying now, girl? You’re the one who ran away and went cryin’ to Lady Astrea. You think you can finish the weapon just by using different gear? Don’t make me laugh.” “Argh…! But Dad!” Lyu had started to run over, sensing an unsettling mood in the air, but when she overheard that last bit, she came to a stop after piecing together their relationship. The man standing across from Cecille with his arms crossed was her father, while the younger men beside him must have been her older brothers. And then there was Cecille, desperately pleading with her family and completely oblivious to the fact that Lyu was behind her. “And what happened to all that big talk about being able to convince tons of spirits to listen to you? You haven’t even won over any lesser spirits, have you?” “Th-that’s…!” “I’m not lending Zolingam’s spirit forge to a good-for-nothing half-ass who can’t get a single tear…You’re a greenhorn who doesn’t have enough determination or skill. I was right not to let you have even one workshop.” The girl shuddered under her father’s cruel evaluation and then exploded. “I-I’m working as hard as I can!!!” The smiths who had been passing by as if this were a normal scene started to stop and stare. “All of you refused to acknowledge me, so I left and made lots of weapons with Lady Astrea! I’m Level Two and have the Smithing ability! I can even make magic swords! At any other workshop, I’d be leagues above any other blacksmith!!” “…” “And here you are, saying I don’t have the skill! What are you even talking about?! What do you mean not enough determination?! What do I need to do to be good enough?!” It was an agonizing shout, a tearless cry that almost made Lyu’s heart ache. But the blacksmiths standing in front of her didn’t so much as react. They continued to look down at their family member, whose head was bowed as she shouted at the ground. “You don’t get even that much?” “This is why you’re no good.” “What have you learned these last five years?” “Determination comes from the heart, obviously!” “Watch what you say, dumbass.” “You gonna cry again?” “Crybaby Cecille.” The seven brothers were merciless. The girl clenched her fists as their words rained down on her, until finally, the father spoke. “You can’t even finish a job you took. That’s proof you’re still a greenhorn.” “…?!” “Your heart’s not in it. As Lady Astrea would say…you still don’t have a justice you can call your own.” As his daughter’s face swung up to meet his, he coldly drove her away. “Hurry back to Lady Astrea, you whiny little brat.” The girl’s eyes flared, and she grabbed her much taller father by his shirt, ready to punch him. “Wait.” “!” Silently closing the distance in a flash, Lyu hooked her wooden sword in the girl’s elbow, stopping her. Cecille spun around in surprise, and her brothers looked just as shocked. Her father alone remained unfazed, even as his daughter still held him by the chest. “Why are you…?!” “Lady Astrea was concerned. I don’t know what led to this situation, but…it would be better for you to calm down.” Lyu wanted to say that she shouldn’t become emotional, but Cecille started yelling like she had finally lost what little remained of her self-control. “Grrrr…Stay out of this! Why do I have to hear that from you, of all people?!” “…” “Stop acting like you’re my mentor!” After she freed her arm from the sword and let go of her father, Cecille sped away from the workshop and melted into the shadow of approaching night. It was then that time finally unfroze. The sound of hammers began to ring out once more and the bustle of the sword-smithing city filled the air again. Lyu felt incredibly awkward when she noticed that Cecille’s seven brothers were still looking at her in open shock, so she got ready to leave when… “So you’re the one?” The large man fixed his clothes as he directed the question at Lyu. “The one…?” When she turned to face him, Cecille’s father looked her carefully up and down. She explained, “I am Lady Astrea’s follower…nothing more than Cecille’s senior.” It could not have been a satisfactory answer. But even so, he seemed to nod slightly, and then said, “Please take care of Cecille.” Lyu’s eyes widened as the head of the family and his seven sons entrusted Cecille to her. The girl did not return to the familia home. When Lyu got back, she heard this from Schau and the others, who were in a panic, and so Lyu immediately set out into the woods all on her own. “Lyu, I’m sure she went to see Yufie.” Just before she left, Lyu received that revelation from the goddess. She quickly traced a path from memory. Racing like the wind, brushing aside the foliage with her hands, jetting through the sky at various points. When I think about my original goal…I have to wonder what I’m doing? The largest battle Orario had ever seen was fast approaching. Lyu had to rush back to it as soon as possible for the sake of a certain boy and girl. Astrea had asked her to stay, and Cecille’s family had asked her to look after their daughter, but at this very moment, she could ill afford to bear other people’s burdens. She had not forgotten her feelings for that boy. She had not abandoned all the complex emotions she felt toward that girl. And she had no intention of making excuses for herself with convenient proverbs about how the roundabout path is sometimes the fastest. But I am a member of Astrea Familia. Lyu believed that this was a form of justice. Alize and the others, the former Astrea Familia, would have saved Cecille and helped Bell and everyone else. Kaguya would have grumbled, Lyra would have complained about drawing the short straw, and Alize would have laughed and said it was fine, and in the end they all would have chosen to pursue the ideal outcome. And Lyu couldn’t forget how that boy had stayed true to his principles, even in that treacherous journey through the depths of the Dungeon. That was why she was sure she could be forgiven for her greed now. “No matter how inexperienced I may be…I have a responsibility as her senior.” And so, Lyu poured everything into this moment. Turning her muttered words into a font to summon another gale, the fairy accelerated. She rushed through the russet forest beneath the black curtain of night, and it wasn’t long before she reached the verdant green realm where the spirits dwelled. “Yufie! Give me your tear!” In the distance, Lyu could see Cecille standing under a giant dome of leaves. She pointed her hammer at the spirit floating overhead. “Everything will work out if you just give me your tear! My family will finally acknowledge me, I’ll make a proper weapon, everything will fall into place! It will! It has to! If it doesn’t, then I…!” Though her voice held firm as she called out her demands, from behind, she almost looked like a lost little girl on the verge of tears. Meanwhile, the spirit, who seemed to know Cecille, was lounging in midair and looking terribly bored. “Just say yes already!” Cecille took an insistent step forward, but Yufie just laughed impishly. “Don’t wanna.” “Ugh…You stupid spirit!” Cecille launched herself off the ground with an angry shout, swinging her hammer at the spirit floating overhead. Not good. Lyu sped up to close the distance, but she did not make it in time. The smirking spirit’s prank was faster. “I hate when you’re like this, Cecille!” And with that, a powerful gust of wind blew the girl away. Unable to maneuver in the air, Cecille froze in surprise as a section of the dome of leaves peeled away, creating an opening that led out of the forest. Beyond it stretched a sheer cliff. “Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” The spirit’s innocent laugh pierced the night as Lyu became the wind once again and leaped into the hole. She reached out to the astonished Cecille, and they plunged together over the side. It would have been a stroke of fortune if there had been a deep river at the bottom of the cliff—but there was not. Instead, there was a small copse of trees, and Lyu began to perform extraordinary maneuvers like kicking off the cliff face and leaping from trunks and branches—all while carrying Cecille—until she gracefully landed like a Far Eastern ninja. “Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Urgh?!” At some point on the way down, Cecille had gotten caught on a branch, but it quickly snapped and she ended up sharing a nice embrace with the ground. “Are you all right?” “…Of course I’m not all right! Yufie was seriously going to kill me…!” Lyu walked over without a mark on her while Cecille peeled herself off the ground, her body trembling in either anger or terror. As she stumbled to her feet, Cecille turned toward the spirit den yet again, but it was no good. Her strength had left her, and it was all she could do to lean against a tree trunk and slide to the ground. “You should rest a little.” “I don’t need to rest! I’m a Level Two. I can handle this much…!” “You’ll collapse in your condition. You’re worryingly pale.” “Ngh…!” Noticing the shadows of exhaustion beneath her eyes and in her gaunt cheeks, Lyu could tell Cecille had not properly slept in days. After she’d fallen down the cliff, her taut nerves finally snapped, and she was in no condition to move. A normal person would have passed out already. Unable to argue, Cecille bit her lip in frustration as her body refused to obey her. They were currently in a forest clearing. There was enough starlight shining down on them to not need a campfire. Maintaining a slight distance, Lyu sat down, and after some time, Cecille finally opened her mouth. “…Why did you show up again?” “Lady Astrea and the others were worried about you. And I was concerned as well.” She opted to not mention Cecille’s family’s request. She decided it would just make things more complicated, and with how furious Cecille was, she probably wouldn’t believe it. Cecille’s face twisted into a grimace. “To think I’d be saved by someone I said I hated…” “…” “Pathetic, awful, lame…this is the worst…” It was hard to say whether she was angry or disappointed. But probably the latter. Given how much she had laid into Lyu at their first meeting, she would surely be shouting again now if she were in top form. That she did not was proof of just how exhausted she was in body and mind. Lyu continued watching her carefully, not sure what to expect, but what she got was self-deprecation. “…Did you come to laugh at me, too? Or to complain about me not delivering on time…” Lyu was genuinely confused. “What are you talking about?” “…Did you not hear anything about it? From Lady Astrea?” “No.” “…Or Iselina and them?” “Now that you mention it, I recall Iselina telling Schau not to say something.” Cecille looked down. “Lady Astrea is really mean…” In response to that, Lyu, rather than rebuke her, simply asked, “Do you really believe that?” “…No, not at all. I’m just a coward…” Cecille leaned against the tree trunk she was clinging to, as if she was having trouble even staying standing up. In a moment, as if admitting her own pitiful state, she said it. “Lady Astrea commissioned me to make a custom weapon for you. Five years ago.” “!” “She said there was a child she wanted to give a pair of wings when they met again. A gift so that child could begin a new journey…” Apparently, when the goddess had first come to Zolingam, and settled things between the city and the spirits, she suddenly found Cecille, and, smiling, she walked right over to her. “When we are finally able to meet again, it will surely be after she has finished a long journey. When that time comes, she will need a new power, a new starlight. I would like you to make that for her.” That was what Astrea had said to Cecille. Of course she surely had not predicted everything leading up the present and the great familia war that had started. But Astrea had believed in Lyu. Believed that the elf who had lost Alize and everyone and scorched herself in the flames of revenge would start walking again and be able to find her own justice. And believing in that, she had tried to provide a pair of wings with which to create a new future. That was the reason Astrea had come to Zolingam. It was all for Lyu’s sake. That’s… Lyu was stunned, and her heart was trembling terribly. A whole deluge of emotions flooded her heart. Yet again she felt the goddess’s mercy beside her, she wanted to bury her face in her hands and cry. But also, she understood just why Cecille had been so furious with her. It was a natural anger. Because Lyu had tried to go right back to Orario without even attempting to understand Astrea’s feelings or the depths of her compassion. “I leaped at the chance…I had been looking for her in the first place, wanting to join her familia no matter what it took.” “You did?” “That’s right. Because after she calmed Yufie and the other spirits, she was like a hero of Zolingam. Even my dad and brothers respected her. I thought if I could become one of her followers…they would finally acknowledge me, too…” Cecille’s words began to reveal the core of her being. Lyu hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to push further. But she quickly cast aside that doubt and moved closer to Cecille. Though they were not around anymore, Alize and the others would not have hesitated to ask for the whole story. Just as they had done to Lyu when she first met them and had made the same sort of face as Cecille was now. “Is there a rift between you and your family?” “What do I know. Is it even anything that fancy? I dunno.” “…” “But, me and my dad and my brothers are all stubborn…Even after Mom died, we were always fighting.” When Lyu asked, Cecille made up her mind. Or perhaps she just gave up. The fiery attitude that Lyu had come to know died down, and she started talking haltingly, like a mechanical doll whose gears no longer fit together. “I was born in Zolingam. My family, extended family, we’re all blacksmiths. Making strong weapons and providing them to the people who need ’em is our city’s mission, and it’s practically our reason for existing.” It was an idea deeply rooted in the culture of Zolingam. This city of famed blacksmiths, well-known throughout the mortal realm, had a clear role to play. To produce great weapons. To produce great power. They understood the true nature of weapons, and they knew that it was pointless to attach labels like good or evil to them. If they didn’t like a customer, they simply wouldn’t sell to them, and that was enough. They focused solely on refining their craft, striving to create ever greater weapons. In a way, everyone in the city was trying to reach the peak of their craft with their own hands. Noticing Lyu’s probing gaze, Cecille smiled faintly. “I liked making swords. Seeing an ordinary hunk of metal transform into a beautiful sword felt like art. When the person who bought the first weapon I ever worked on came back to buy another one, they told me that sword had saved them. I was so happy when I heard that.” The girl made it clear she was not just a slave to the ways of her hometown like Lyu had been, but even so, her expression darkened. “But I was the youngest, and I couldn’t keep up. I was the only girl, and my brothers always made fun of me.” “…” “It bothered me so much…I holed up in the workshop, hammering at the steel like crazy. I thought up all sorts of designs for weapons, taking my own approach to things. But they would never acknowledge me.” “…Why do you think they refused to acknowledge you?” “Every smith at Blackliza other than me is part of a familia, so if they wouldn’t let me join, then what explanation is there other than them not acknowledging me?” Lyu could imagine her, face covered in soot, burns all over, her hands raw and calloused, sweating in front of the blazing furnace while swinging her hammer. “Lady Hephaistos comes here from time to time, and I tried asking her to let me join her familia, even. But she just shook her head. Maybe my dad said something to her…” So she tried to use Lady Astrea. Lyu’s eyes widened as she confessed like a remorseful criminal. “At first, I was just after the Smithing ability…” “!” “I thought if I became a high smith, my family would have to acknowledge me. And if that wasn’t enough, I thought I would try to get my hands on a spirit’s tear.” “A spirit’s tear…?” “Zolingam has always been deeply connected to spirits, even long before Lady Astrea came here. There are still several buildings in the city that come from spirits…You saw the spirit forge, didn’t you?” The emerald glow flickered in the back of Lyu’s mind. Apparently by using the spirit forge, it was possible to strengthen a weapon far beyond what standard work could achieve. And it proved its true worth when making magic swords and superior-grade gear. The feeling Lyu got was that it was sort of like a boost to the Smithing ability using external tools. Although the city’s traditions had become a hollow shell of their former selves, and the smiths had become haughty, provoking the spirits’ anger five years ago, Zolingam had coexisted with the spirits since ancient times. Like spirits in fairy tales granting strength to heroes, they had given the blacksmiths all sorts of boons, including the spirit forge. “In Zolingam, being acknowledged by spirits is crucial. Only those who commune with the spirits who live in the nearby forests and mountains and bring back a tear—a spirit’s tear—are allowed to use the spirit forge. I wanted that. To make a weapon that would blow my dad and brothers away…” In addition to the spirit forge, Zolingam was also provided with salamander wool, undine cloth, and various other spirit materials. Those who returned with spirit tears, like Cecille’s father and others like him, negotiated with the spirits to procure these materials. When Lyu heard that Zolingam even provided a small amount of what they acquired to Orario, she was stunned. She knew the spirit materials on sale in Babel came into the city by various routes, but she did not know Zolingam was one of them. It was possible that Hephaistos Familia, who also had a store in Babel, was involved as well. The conversation had derailed a little, but this explained the fundamental origins of Zolingam’s old customs. “That’s why when some goddess I knew nothing about asked me to make a weapon, I thought she was trying to use me. So I figured I might as well use her, too…” That was how Cecille became a follower of Astrea. All full of calculations herself, she privately scoffed at the goddess of mercy and justice and simply focused on leveling up. “Of course, I got taught some hard lessons by Yufie and the other spirits…” As expected… “That was really because I was asking for too much, and Lady Astrea was just answering in kind…I was always complaining back then. Even though she surely saw through my lies and everything…she never once got upset and always helped me.” Cecille’s tone was growing just a little lighter and softer. As she thought back on her time with Astrea, her lips at some point slipped into a little smile. “At first, Lady Astrea and I made a shabby little cabin in the woods here, and I would go see Yufie every day, then I would work on weapons whenever I had free time…” “…And then?” “We ate our meals together at a tiny table, just the two us. I would always complain, and she would listen, and sometimes we would end up laughing and smiling…” Lyu could not help feeling disappointed at how bad she was at keeping the conversation flowing, but even so, the girl could not hide her slight smile as she continued reminiscing about the path she had taken to become who she was now. “I couldn’t help wondering what I was even doing when I so desperately needed to polish my blacksmithing skills. But it’s a weird thing. Even though it was a detour, it all ended up working out.” She had improved at a remarkable rate, and the weapons she made became good enough that even the craftsmen of Zolingam were in awe. Her family still refused to acknowledge her, but even so, she had grown so much that even she could feel the difference. And finally, Iselina joined the familia, having heard the story of Astrea’s heroism, and when there were occasionally reasons for Astrea to leave the city, Schau and Uranda started tagging along for some reason. After that, they gradually got more members, and Astrea Familia grew larger. Because of that, they tore down the cabin and built up a proper home together. That was when Astrea had asked a craftsperson to build a workshop just for Cecille. And at some point, she managed to reach Level 2. Cecille was stunned to realize she had practically forgotten about that, even though she had been so obsessed with it to begin with. Somewhere along the way, she had grown to adore the goddess who was always smiling. “I didn’t know anything about the justice Lady Astrea represents, but…I started to feel like I wanted to be at her side.” “…I know that feeling.” “Really? That’s surprising. But I guess that’s how it goes with Lady Astrea. Her kindness can even envelop a stupidly serious elf and a pain-in-the-ass human…” For the first time, Cecille looked Lyu in the eye with a smile. Lyu was a little bit relieved at that. But the girl’s eyes grew distant, seeing something elsewhere. “Honestly, getting acknowledged by Dad and them stopped being so important to me. It felt like I had found my place in the world. But…in order to keep that place, I had a promise I had to keep.” That was Lyu’s custom weapon. The thing Astrea had come to Zolingam in order to get. Cecille’s right hand trembled slightly as she rested it on her chest. “As I came to respect and love Lady Astrea more…I grew more and more jealous of you!” “…” “I know it’s selfish of me! That I was just trying to use her myself at first! And then the moment I was bound by this bond, I started begging to be loved!” She exploded. She vented the emotions she had bottled up, never sharing them with the goddess or her fellow familia members. “I didn’t want to make it! But I had no choice! If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be a real member of the familia, I would just be a villain lying to Lady Astrea all this time!” Cecille’s connection with Astrea had begun with the order for Lyu’s weapon. It was unthinkable for her to go back on her word. She had spent countless days and nights questioning if she could even call herself a follower of Astrea if she broke that promise. Her goals and means had flipped somewhere along the way. The guilt and shame Cecille felt tormented her. And Astrea, as the other side of that deal, could not resolve it no matter how much she tried. Indeed, the more she demonstrated her concern for Cecille, the worse the pain became. “So I did it! I tried to make a weapon, imagining you, someone I had never met before!” she kept shouting. “I thought I was losing my mind, but I managed to come up with all sorts of designs! I drew blueprints, gathered materials, finally designed a weapon that I thought could work! I even asked Lady Astrea about the wooden sword she said you used and tried to re-create it!” Once the torrent of words was unleashed, it couldn’t be stopped. The pain and troubles welled up. In the deluge of all the feelings Cecille had kept hidden until now, Lyu finally understood. The wooden sword she had ended up using these past few days, though not perfect, fit cleanly in her hand. Cecille had thought of all sorts of things for Lyu working on just Astrea’s descriptions alone, trying to get closer to Lyu’s beloved sword as much as possible, and this was the result. “And yet…why can’t I finish it?!” As if she was reaching her limit, tears started to well in her eyes. “I kept thinking, kept trying, kept struggling all this time! So why can’t I finish your weapon?!” “Cecille…” “Why won’t Dad and them acknowledge me?! Why would Yufie do that?! What am I missing?!…What is it…?” Her trembling fingers clutched her chest. Translucent tears fell behind the hair covering her eyes as she looked down. “I won’t be able to keep my promise to Lady Astrea at this rate…!” It was like seeing herself when she had arrived in Zolingam. Three days ago. Unease and impatience were strangling Cecille’s body and mind, creating a negative feedback loop. Unable to take care of things using just her own power, she’d swallowed her pride and gone to ask her father, clinging to the hopes of using the spirit forge. And even after that was rejected, she had tried to bring back a tear from Yufie. Even now, Cecille fought against the dark tides, continuing to struggle. At the same time, that had brought into relief for Lyu what she was lacking as a blacksmith, which her father had pointed out to her. That was surely the reason they had been so cold with her. If there’s one thing I can understand about this…then it would be that her eyes are being clouded by jealousy of me and a sense of inferiority. Her anxiety and other turbulent emotions were getting in the way of making the sword. That she could not finish the weapon, even though she had manifested the Smithing ability, was at least partially due to that. And it was incredibly difficult for Lyu to help her overcome the complex she had developed, since she was essentially the source of it. “When you showed up, ‘oh no, this is it,’ I thought…the deadline was finally here. The promised day that I had been running away from for years…” Cecille let it all out as the tears fell. It would have been better if the one who would use the sword were someone loathsome. If she could just say she would not make a weapon for that elf or if she could just bring herself to give them a half-assed weapon. Cecille had pinned her hopes on that. But Lyu was fastidious, forthright, willing to accept her own faults, able to acknowledge her mistakes. Lyu had been so honest and upright that shouting at her only made Cecille feel even more pathetic. She had thought Lyu was truly worthy of being called Astrea’s follower. Meanwhile, could she really say she was not hoping in some part of her heart to tarnish Lyu’s dignity? “I’m just getting more and more pathetic. I don’t want this. I hate what I’m becoming. I’m the worst…” Her thoughts were quickly losing any semblance of logic, and the pained words kept tumbling from her lips like falling tears. “I’m scared to think how Lady Astrea sees me now. Is she fed up with me, disappointed in me…? I don’t even want to know…!” Her voice cracked. She kept rubbing her face to no avail. The uniform she had made with love was dirty and covered in tears, like an outward expression of her heart. That was all Lyu could think while she watched in silence. “Lady Astrea, will they be all right…? Cecille and Lyu…” Iselina asked uneasily. Beneath the dark night sky, the familia members could not bear to stay inside and were waiting outside Stars’ Rest for Cecille and Lyu to come back. It was already nearing midnight. The dinner they had set aside for the two of them had grown cold hours ago. Astrea was also standing outside, looking out into the forest. “They aren’t coming back…Maybe it would be better if we looked, too…” “She isn’t great at explaining things, either…Even if she finds Cecille, I’m sure it will turn into an argument…” “C’mon, that’s saying too much, Uranda!” “Even if it isn’t a fight, she seems crazy bad at talking to people…” Schau was swaying back and forth, and Uranda was making pretty rough evaluations. Even when Schau corrected her, the long-haired girl was unconcerned. Listening to them, the goddess acknowledged her followers’ anxiety and smiled. “It will be fine.” There was no doubt in the conclusion she had already reached. “If it’s the current Lyu, it will be fine.” “‘A weapon made specifically for someone can possess a special power.’” That was what Lyu said after collecting her thoughts. “Huh…?” “Something I heard from an acquaintance. The deeper the feelings poured in, the more unique a gleam the weapon takes on compared to any other.” The acquaintance—a certain white-haired boy—had apparently heard it himself from someone else, but Lyu could understand the logic of it. “Cecille, would you please make a weapon for me?” And so Lyu asked her herself. Not as a request from Astrea, but in her own words. Cecille was surprised, even as the traces of tears still stained her cheeks. “Wh-why…? You heard my pathetic story just now, didn’t you…?!” “I heard it, and I thought I would like to try holding your weapon.” Lyu spoke plainly as ever, but Cecille, who managed somehow to wipe her cheeks, was confused. Lyu slowly started putting what she felt into words. “Unfortunately, I cannot fully comprehend your envy and jealousy. If I could put myself in your position, perhaps it is something to be ashamed of, as you say.” “Ngh…” “But those feelings aren’t necessarily worthless.” “Huh…?” Cecille couldn’t believe her ears. “Though my thoughts were rather different, I have also struggled against doubt and indecision. I have accumulated sins utterly incomparable to yours and was always troubled…unable to progress in any direction.” “Y-you did…?” Cecille looked like she could not believe Lyu’s confession. And before answering that question, Lyu started with the conclusion. “And because I continued to struggle against my doubts and worries, I was eventually able to find an answer I could accept.” Cecille’s eyes widened. “I am sure you, too, are in the middle of a journey in search of your justice.” “…A journey in search of justice? Something this painful is…?” Cecille froze absentmindedly and looked down at her own two hands. As she watched her, Lyu remembered what Astrea had said the other night. “…because she was so similar.” “To Alize, and to you, Lyu.” She was beginning to understand. It felt like she now understood the odd sense of familiarity before. In her own immaturity, she had continued to struggle with self-doubt, coming to a standstill and stagnating even, before finally completing her journey. And because she had reached the end of that journey, she was able to stand before Astrea and meet Cecille, another new traveler. This was, in a sense, a crossing of orbits. A locus of stars. Perhaps this is also how Alize felt when we first met. Like she was seeing a fellow traveler. “Cecille, will you listen to an old story of mine?” For the sake of their crossing paths. For the story that she wanted to pass on. “……Okay.” Cecille agreed, and Lyu slowly began talking. A story of an elf, more troublesome, less flexible, more fastidious, more stubborn than Cecille. Of an elf who loathed her home village that looked down on all other races, who ran away and went to Orario. Of a child who vented at Astrea and her familia for her own failure and disappointment. Of sweeping through the Dark Age with her vexing, reliable comrades. Of the great battle seven years ago. Of what she lost and what she gained. Of the calamitous fight five years ago. Of new loss and of being scorched in the flames of retribution. Of the days of revival spent in a benevolent tavern after becoming a hollow shell of herself. And now. Overcoming thousands of darknesses, a terrifying past, in search of a future. In telling her story, she could not spin a tale like the ancient bards of her race, but each and every word was imbued with both her current feelings and the vision of the scene in the moment. A single shooting star crossed the sky and disappeared into the darkness as Lyu continued. “…Did that really happen?” “Yes. It is all true.” “Even as pure and perfect as you seem…you spent so long unsure like that, too…” With her tears dried, Cecille looked at Lyu, whose face was clear, and then finally she looked up. There was a sky full of stars above them. As many stars as there were different definitions of justice. And there were surely stars that had shattered and crumbled into stardust. Yet they endured. So long as people like Lyu and her companions existed, those feelings and justice would go on. “I shall say it again, Cecille. Lose your way. Hesitate. That is nothing to be ashamed of.” “…” “Continue to struggle. Even when you find an answer, keep questioning yourself…That is what my irreplaceable friends taught me.” As she looked at the blue-haired girl before her, Lyu smiled, recalling the memory of the red-haired girl from her past. Cecille said nothing. Her silence was no longer born of pain, but because she was facing her own feelings. This should be enough, right? Alize, everyone…Adi… Lyu was aware she must have sounded like she was preaching. And that she had no right to do anything of the sort. But she was still a senior member of the familia, even though she didn’t feel like one. It was an embarrassing, bittersweet realization. The youngest and most inexperienced member of Astrea Familia was now lecturing a new generation. But that was what it meant for justice to return. And, as if affirming her thoughts, she was filled with a warm feeling as Cecille spoke up again. “…I still don’t really know about any journey or justice. And I’m kind of doubtful that even if I find the answer it will make me a good blacksmith.” “…” “But it’s weird. Even though I thought I could never make it…right now, I sort of feel like I can.” She held her head high. “I don’t know if I can make something that will satisfy you…but I think I can make a weapon for you, Lyu.” Lyu had never seen such a gentle smile on her face. Like beautiful blooming rudbeckia. And Lyu smiled back, just as she once had to an old friend. Standing up, she walked over and held out her hand. “Let’s go.” “…Yeah.” The girl nodded as her hand clasped the fairy’s without being brushed aside. “Ceciiiiiille! Thank goooooodness!” When the two of them returned to Stars’ Rest, they were met by a loud and boisterous welcoming party. Schau wept and clung onto Cecille, who wrestled with her, telling her to let go, and Iselina and Uranda and the rest gathered around the two of them, the relief clear on their faces. They are a good familia, Lyu thought as she smiled, seeing the joy and smile that had returned to Cecille’s face. “Thank you for your work, Lyu. Looks like you made a proper mentor, after all.” “Please don’t tease me, Lady Astrea…” She averted her eyes, enduring the embarrassment at Astrea’s comment, but the goddess just giggled and then she walked over to the blue-haired girl. “Welcome home, Cecille.” “…Yes, Lady Astrea.” “You’re finally looking my way again.” “Nguuuh…I’m sorry…!” “It’s all right. It’s also my fault that you ended up tormenting yourself…Maybe it would have been better if I were pushier like Schau?” “No! I was the one avoiding you…! I just decided by myself I was too ashamed to see you…!” Cecille’s eyes watered up as the goddess teased her. Unable to make a weapon, always feeling burdened, she had been afraid of Astrea, too. It was because Astrea’s words and outstretched hand could not reach her that Astrea had chosen to entrust it to Lyu. And that had been the correct choice. There were words and feelings that could only come from a fellow familia member like Lyu rather than an all-knowing deusdea. As Cecille looked about to cry, Astrea gently embraced her. Cecille was stunned, but after a moment, she wrapped her arms around the goddess’s narrow waist. Uranda and the others were dumbstruck as her head nestled deep in the goddess’s bosom. It seemed there really was not anyone like Alize in the new Astrea Familia, no one who would behave so irreverently around their goddess. Ending the embrace, Astrea gave instructions, and the gathering came to a close. “All right, everyone, let’s go back into the home. Cecille, make sure you properly rest…And Lyu, sorry, but could you come to my room after?” Lyu had expected to be called out from the start and so went into the home together with Astrea. The girls watched them disappear into the home, and one girl murmured a curse. “Uuugh, that elf always gets special treatment… How come you didn’t just stab her in the back, Cecille…?” “Argh, this isn’t that kind of story…Quit saying such scary things, Uranda!” Schau shuddered and shouted as Cecille continued looking at their home. “She’s…going to leave after this, isn’t she?” “Yeah, probably.” Even without saying where, Iselina still knew what she meant. Cecille looked down at her right hand and clenched it in determination. “Lyu, read this.” After washing and preparing herself, Astrea handed her a letter as soon as she came into the room. “News from Orario, from Hermes.” “…!” “The details of the War Game have been decided. They are written there.” Lyu hurriedly broke the wax seal marked with a winged traveler’s hat, the Hermes Familia’s emblem, and confirmed its contents. There was a simple, general description of the rules that were being settled on and the date it was to be held. The contest would be decided with hide-and-seek. And it would start in… “Three days…!” “It seems Hermes and others have been hard at work at the Denatus to obtain as many advantages for Hestia’s side as they can, but they’ve reached their limit. They won’t be able to win any more favorable conditions.” “…Considering the distance to Orario…” “Yes. At the very latest, we will have to leave in the morning two days from now or we won’t make it in time.” There was a scrawled note in Koine saying I can’t disrupt Denatus any further. As well as I’ve bought all the time I can. If possible, please make it back for the battle. While it was not exactly working from the shadows, Hermes was setting the stage for Lyu and Astrea to take part in the War Game. And he believed that without them, there was no hope of defeating Freya Familia. That was why, when Lyu had left for Zolingam, she’d had Asfi help her with the troublesome process of leaving the city. Hermes had placed a slender hope on Lyu getting her status updated and returning with Astrea as a powerful reinforcement for the decisive battle. Even Andromeda is pinning her hopes on this… She pulled out the magic item Asfi had given her before leaving Orario, which she had kept on her at all times. It was shaped like a feather, with a blue jewel near the quill tip—one of a twin pair of crystals that were used in the making of the item. By breaking the gem, it would signal the paired magic item, sending a message to Asfi. Leon, a letter will come as soon as the detailed rules and date of the War Game are settled. After you leave Zolingam, if you determine that you will not arrive in time, break this item. So long as you are anywhere near Orario, I will use Talaria to deliver you no matter what it takes. The letter that had arrived this evening had come from a fleet-footed Hermes Familia member who had been waiting outside Orario. Though it was the instructions of their patron god, Hermes’s followers were all doing everything they could to insure Lyu’s and Astrea’s participation in the War Game. With how far apart Orario and Zolingam were, there would be a time lag in receiving the report, but befitting a god, Hermes had foreseen the delivery date accurately. Or more like, there was a very little note scrawled in the corner of the letter saying, Just in case, while making sure no other deities saw, I added Astrea’s, Demeter’s, and Njörðr’s names to the roster. In other words, he was cheekily telling them to be sure they made it. His chic plan, or more like his almost desperate wish upon a star, made Lyu’s head hurt. Apparently, the trickster god was trying to support Bell from the shadows. “I would have liked to give you and Cecille more time, but…it seems we have little choice in the matter.” Astrea had kept Lyu in Zolingam and given Cecille as much time as possible. Lyu looked up with a resolute expression, knowing what the goddess would say next. “Lyu, I will update your status one last time.” After she pricked her fingertip with a needle, a bead of crimson welled up. It was a solemn ritual to bequeath a new pair of wings to a traveler who had finished her long journey. The goddess’s ichor dripped onto Lyu’s bare back. There was a glow and a ripple as it touched her skin like a water surface. “Lady Astrea, my five years’ worth of status update was not finished in a single session, was it?” As the update was happening, she asked, knowing the answer already. As the goddess’s finger scrawled across her back, recording new hieroglyphs, Astrea nodded. “Yes. I did not release all the excelia dormant within you. Neither the higher-grade nor the lower-grade excelia.” “May I ask why?” “Because you would have leveled up twice.” Lyu herself gulped when she heard that. “The amount of excelia you accumulated over these five years was enormous. Calculating it all, if I released everything…you would have been able to go from Level Four all the way to Level Six.” From the annihilation of the Evils’ main force five years ago, to the Black Goliath and the Xenos incident and Juggernaut, Lyu had overcome countless struggles and fights to the death. A series of trials that the gods hailed as great feats, and goddesses mourned as terrible tribulations. Considering that she had been at the upper range of Level 4 when she parted from Astrea, Lyu’s body and soul possessed the right to reclaim her five years’ worth of stagnation. “And because you fought those five years at Level Four…with the same status the whole time, what would happen to you if you jumped all the way to Level Six in one go? Most likely, you would have suffered a far, far worse disconnect between your body and your mind than you have these past few days. It would have taken more than a week, perhaps even more than a month, to recover.” “…!” “You likely would have destroyed at least one limb because you would have failed to control the sudden change in your physical form. That was why it was crucial to take this one step at a time. First letting you adjust to Level Five, then gradually adding abilities.” Meaning Astrea had carefully calculated the burden this process would have on her follower’s body and provided her with appropriate tasks. That was the real reason why she did not send Lyu to Orario right away and had her stay in Zolingam instead. Two level-ups…?! Me?! Finally understanding Astrea’s divine will, Lyu felt a cold sweat. Last night, Lyu had been sure that there was no way her abilities could have grown that much from just some practice swings and working with Iselina and the others on adapting these past four days. While it was perhaps a rude way to put it, it was because Astrea had been holding out on her. A growth in abilities beyond mere leveling up must have been occurring. That much Lyu had managed to deduce. Until now, she had thought Astrea was controlling the adjustment in stages out of concern for the effects of a sudden increase in abilities. She had not even considered the possibility of leveling up a second time, which was nearly unthinkable. The world was vast and filled with mystery, but she had never heard of anyone who had achieved consecutive level-ups. It was a feat that even the record holder had not accomplished. “B-but, releasing excelia in stages, is that really possible…?! I thought that everything, including extra points, was unconditionally released in a status update…!” Lyu struggled to quell her unrest as Astrea smiled wryly behind her. “These sorts of strategy game tactics were never really my thing…but it’s surprisingly common with other gods.” The extraction and release of excelia was entirely discretionary. For example, suppose a goddess sniffed out the development of a dangerous bullet point in a follower’s status—something that might be considered a self-destructive skill. In that case, supposing she could suppress her curiosity toward the unknown, she could let the excelia that would develop into that skill to lie dormant instead, sidestepping the potential danger entirely. Astrea had done largely the same thing. She had chosen not to release all the excelia relating to abilities and leveling up, holding on to them for a moment. “Loki and probably Hermes are pretty skilled at this sort of thing, I would guess. Deities are always balancing their followers’ status with an eye on what would be most optimal.” It was widely known that some goddesses avoided leveling up even when it was possible in order to push the limits of basic abilities. And for a faction as large as Loki Familia it might even be considered standard practice. It was just one of the tricks that deities had at their disposal and was sometimes called the status loophole. It was a normal thought among deities to want the children they had brought up personally to be strong, and it was an important tool in familia management. (Such as a certain goddess who postponed a level-up when the record holder returned from the deep floors because she did not want to draw even more attention.) Ability growth and leveling up were at the patron deity’s discretion. And so, Astrea had gambled everything on that loophole. Judging the optimal point for the final update of Level 4 and Level 5 in order to provide the greatest growth at Level 6. “In your case, the crucial factor came down to the fact that you had actually accumulated enough excelia to be able to level up twice, which is unprecedented.” “…!” “No other deity has experienced it, and honestly, I’ve been fumbling my way through this as well…” To speak in more detail of this case, Astrea was capable of skipping the second level-up, just as Loki did for some of her followers. Because Lyu already had more than enough excelia to level up, Astrea could wait for Lyu to have a satisfactory growth in her basic abilities—in particular waiting for her to reach S in some of her more important areas like magic—and only then allow her to level up. Other deities would do the same. It was more efficient and would ultimately make their follower stronger. However, in Lyu and Astrea’s case, circumstances would not allow them the luxury. “I am going to raise your Level Five abilities to the limit and then level you up. All right, Lyu?” “…! Yes!” A great battle awaited them. The strongest enemy, Freya Familia, would not allow them to hold back. Lyu had to grow all she could now in order to challenge the fearsome einherjar. “This is your final status.” Once Astrea stopped her work, she handed Lyu a paper. Lyu Leon LEVEL 5 Strength: G288 Endurance: G201 Dexterity: E494 Agility: D507 Magic: E457 Hunter: G Resistance: G Magic Defense: I Magic Control: I The minimum requirement for a level-up was a D in a basic ability. Ordinarily, many of Lyu’s abilities would reach S, but this was not the time for worrying about that sort of inefficiency. Lyu had people she wanted to protect no matter what, and people she had to save no matter what. The goddess checked one last time. “Is this really okay?” Lyu nodded without hesitation. “Please.” It began. A flow of hieroglyphs. The feeling of a knock in her soul, just like she had felt when reaching Level 5. It was stronger this time, and a blazing heat swelled inside her all of a sudden. Lyu shut her eyes and her spine shuddered. “This magic, too, will return to you.” With that proclamation, Astrea finished the update. Lyu Leon LV. 6 Strength: I0 Endurance: I0 Dexterity: I0 Agility: I0 Magic: I0 Hunter: G Resistance: G Magic Defense: I Magic Control: I Successive Attacks: I Magic Luminous Wind • Wide area of effect. • Wind and light element. Noa Heal • Healing magic. • Environmental effect. Magic effect boosted in wooded environments. Astrea Record • Inherited justice. Skill Fairy Serenade • Amplify magic effect. • At night, magnitude of enhancement increases. Mind Load • When attacking, consume Mind to increase Strength. • Active trigger ability, including the amount of consumed Mind. Aero Mana • When running, attack strength increases as speed increases. Astrae Varmas • Falna effect. • Amplifies skills of followers who share the same god and ichor as the user and are in range. • Enhances the Mind and magic of followers who share the same god and ichor as the user and are in range. • Provides moderate resistance to psychological corruption to all followers of any deity who are in range. • Passive effect. • Degree, magnitude, and scale of enhancement and range increase with Level. “!!” She had already heard, so the Level 6 did not surprise her. What made her sky-blue eyes widen was in the magic slot. The third spell and its effect. Astrea Record. It was translated as “inherited justice” in Koine. Seeing that, Lyu teared up. She did not know the specific effects, but there was something she did know. The justice that Alize and everyone else believed in had not disappeared. They were still with her, even now. I finally understand why Lady Astrea didn’t let me develop this magic immediately. With the unease and impatience from a powerful enemy looming before her, Lyu had become unable to do anything but look and move straight ahead. She would not have been able to look up to the sky. She would not have noticed the gleaming stars that were watching over her, even now. “…Thank you, Lady Astrea.” As she lowered her head, her voice was faint as she said only that. Smiling, Astrea gently draped clothing over the fairy, who was still sitting there naked as the day she was born. “Tomorrow we’ll put on the last finishing touches. I’ll speak to Yufie…Are you ready, Lyu?” Lyu paused before answering, and then asked, “…Lady Astrea, can you return my hair to its original color?” “Hmm?” “I want to face Syr without hiding myself…the way I was when I fought with Alize and the others.” Astrea stood still at that request. Lyu’s faint green hair was dyed, a favor from Syr to help hide her identity. Lyu’s original hair was a beautiful blond that befitted a noble elf. Seeing her follower’s tearful eyes and open smile as she sought to reclaim herself, the goddess smiled. “Yes, of course.” Night broke, and the sun began to rise in the east. The chirps of birds had not yet started. The stillness of the forest did not feel like the calm before a storm. Looking out the window to the faintly lighter sky, Lyu began to set out for the forest, the natural blond hair Astrea had restored rustling as she moved. She humbly ate the food that the goddess had prepared for her, and after finishing her meal, she stepped into the hallway of Stars’ Rest. “Whoa, you changed your hair?! Why?!” Her junior’s voice rang out gratingly loud in the early morning. She hesitated, and then, her voice tinged with embarrassment… “Hey, umm! Just a sec, um…Lyu!” Stopping and turning around, she saw Cecille rush over, holding some cloth over one arm. “…I still can’t get used to hearing you talk to me like that.” “You don’t have to comment on every little thing! More importantly, this!” Blushing, Cecille pushed what she was holding into Lyu’s hands. Taking it in surprise, she spread it out… “Battle clothes…?” “You’re going to Yufie today, right? I heard there’s is some crazy battle that’s going to happen in Orario…It’s sort of like a defensive outfit? It’s made with spirit cloth, so it should be better than just standard combat gear.” Surprise filled Lyu’s eyes. She could tell just by feeling it that it was an excellent set of equipment. Seemingly approving of that reaction, Cecille sniffed proudly. “This is thanks for yesterday! I haven’t finished your weapon yet, but I thought I should give you this first.” “You did this last night…?” “That’s right! I can make things happen when I need to!” “You were already sleep deprived. Did you get any rest last night?” “A-a Level Two can handle an all-nighter, okay…?” She started out rather loud and proud, but beneath Lyu’s cool dorm-mother gaze, she quickly looked away and her words trailed off. Lyu was about to scold her, but… “I—I took a nap, okay?!” she hurriedly explained. “I just reused a spirit dress uniform I’d made for snatching a tear from Yufie! It was just modifying something I already had, so it didn’t take that much time! Really!” With that confession from Cecille, Lyu chose not to probe further. Cecille was not lying about the making of the outfit, at least. And Lyu was in no position to scold people for pushing themselves. So instead, she smiled at the girl, who had become so much closer in this past day. “Thank you, Cecille. I would be happy to wear it.” “Ah…uh, mhm!” Cecille’s awkward expression transformed into a big smile. Lyu went back to the guest room she was borrowing and changed into the battle clothes. A hairband was included with the outfit, and she gratefully used it to tie her long hair back behind her head. She could tell even without looking in the mirror that the size was a perfect fit. Impressed, she started to leave the room, when she suddenly remembered and took a certain fragment of wood from her bag. Cecille clapped upon seeing Lyu return in her new clothes. “Ohh! I knew it! It looks great on you! How does it feel?” “Wonderful. It doesn’t get in the way of my movements at all.” Lyu complimented her without restraint and then asked the question that had popped into her head. “However, I have to ask—how did you know the size? You never took any measurements.” “Huh? Even when people are wearing clothes, it’s easy enough to tell stuff like height, bust, and hips, right?” “…?!” Lyu was startled, as if she had just run into a talking monster in the Dungeon. Suspecting she may have just glimpsed an aspect of this girl’s abnormality, she just cleared her throat. “Cecille, this is from me.” “…? This is…some wood? No, does this come from a sacred tree…?” “It is a piece of the weapon I used before.” “!” Cecille looked up with a gasp. It was a fragment of Lyu’s main weapon, Alvs Lumina. It had been broken by Juggernaut in an encounter in the lower floors, but Bors, the head of Rivira, had recovered it and given it to her when she was leaving Orario. “The weapon that was broken was given to me by a dear friend. If it is possible, please use it in the new weapon.” “A-are you sure? This was originally a branch of a sacred tree, wasn’t it?” “I do not mind. I can never meet her again. So at the very least, if it could be reborn in a new weapon…I would still be able to feel my bond with her.” Cecille looked down in shock at the piece of wood Lyu held out to her. And finally, as if handling a precious jewel of stardust, she carefully accepted it. “…I thought I would try to finish your weapon while you were with Yufie. But…” “Cecille?” “Umm, can I come with you?!” Seeing her look up and lean forward excitedly, now it was Lyu’s turn to be surprised. “I don’t want to make a half-assed weapon! I want to make a sword worthy of the things you’ve inherited and carry inside you!” “…!” “So I want to use the spirit forge, too! I’ll steal a tear from that jerk Yufie and make my stubborn dad let me use the forge! I can picture the weapon now! If I combine this with the spirit tear and the last bit of material I have left, I’m sure I can make a custom weapon just for you!” Cecille’s eyes were blazing with a blacksmith’s spirit. “Not because I want to be acknowledged! But because I want to make this weapon for you!” It felt almost like the entire building was shaking. As if it were resonating with her determination. “I swear I’ll make it in time. So…please,” Cecille pleaded in a soft voice. The sense of déjà vu welled in Lyu again. That recklessness, and the gallant determination… It was like looking into Alize Lovell’s face. “…” Lyu couldn’t say no to that look. Before long, a resigned smile spread on her lips. A combination of Lyu’s subtlety and Alize’s strength, just like Astrea said…Cecille resembled them both. Patting her on the shoulder once, Lyu started walking. “Let’s go.” “—!! Thank you!” Lyu set off for the spirit den with her junior in tow. In that strange place, time of day meant nothing. The thick canopy overhead and the magic of the spirits kept it always dim and gloomy. In that twilight realm… “Yufie, please play with Lyu and Cecille. You can play together, as much as you want,” a goddess called out to a beloved child. “Really? Can we? Can we, goddess?!” Cecille trembled, possibly because she knew the terrifying nature of the supernatural being who took the form of a child and could tell that her innocent voice carried an undertone of cruelty. Shuddering slightly, her right hand touched the fairy beside her. She held on to her pinky, wrapping it in her hand. Oddly, just that was enough to blow away the terror in her heart. “Yes, you may. To your heart’s content…because these children won’t break.” Astrea turned to them with a smile. Lyu and Cecille, who stepped into the den together, both nodded firmly. “Ha-ha-ha-ha! Then let’s play! Let’s play!” As Yufie floated in the air, her joyous voice echoed. And as if answering the call, several balls of light—red, blue, gold, white, black—rose with her, emanating magic power. The din of lesser spirits. An excited, flickering chorus rang out as the child of light summoned a storm. “Let’s play! To the end!!!” The rustling wind enveloping her small body was the starting signal. Lyu and Cecille immediately covered their faces with their arms as a four-legged beast appeared, tearing through the wall of wind. “OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!” A mare with a deep green mane. A spirit steed clad in a turbulent wind. That was the true nature of the intermediate spirit called Yufie. “I-I’ve never seen that…! That’s Yufie’s real form…?!” Cecille must have heard the myths of spirits taking the form of weapons, but she had never seen or heard of a spirit taking the form of an animal. The floating little girl who could have easily fit in her arms before was now far taller than Cecille or Lyu. She was far more imposing, and the wind, overflowing with powerful magic, threatened to sweep Cecille away. Cecille gulped as the spirit seemed to trot across an invisible platform in the sky. “Cecille, stay behind me.” Lyu stepped forward. “I will protect you no matter what.” Wearing the clothes Cecille had prepared and wielding the wooden sword Cecille had made, she faced off against the spirit mare staring them down. Seeing the fairy decked out with all the things she had made, Cecille felt her heart tremble for a reason other than fear. “Here I come.” “OOOOOOO!” Lyu took the lead. As the spirit whinnied to meet her, she disappeared. “Huh?” “!!” Cecille did not know what had happened, and Yufie gazed in similar wonder. However, Astrea was completely unfazed, as if this were only natural. With blistering speed that was impossible to keep up with for anyone but a deity, Lyu closed in on the spirit mare right in front of her. “Hah!” The raw power of a Level 6 was plain to see in the sword slash that left no room for evasion. The spirit almost seemed frozen in time…… “—Mgh?!” …But the attack failed to connect. Managing a sound that was both a forceful cry and a surprised gasp, she slipped just by the spirit with a big swing and a miss. “Huh?” “Oo?” Cecille and Yufie were dumbfounded, and Astrea grimaced a little. This was the disconnect between mind and body that occurred right after leveling up. Lyu was very obviously not able to adjust right away after her explosive growth transformed her into a star so fast that left even Cecille exasperated. But, the next instant, the gale came. Lyu’s miss created a buffeting Yufie. “GHHHHHH?!” Pummeled by the wind, the mare, glowing with a jade light, stumbled. Lyu charged diagonally upward on a ballistic trajectory into a giant tree, twisting gracefully, and then BOOM, her boots landed against the trunk, and she leaped again. The spirit desperately dodged the furious gale charge. Then it was time for the flowery meadow to explode. “Whoa??! I-incredible…!” Cecille almost toppled over from the impact shaking the ground and caught her breath when she looked back up at the battlefield. The fairy and spirit had already exchanged places in their dance. Lyu slashed in, and Yufie responded by summoning wind, holding off the sword swipes that tended to be big swings. The magic-imbued wind rampaged, deflecting the wooden sword and keeping it from reaching its target. However, each and every attack made by a Level 6 being overwhelmed by her own power and skills was absurd, and even a grazing hit was enough to send the spirit flying several times. A half-translucent dome, a faintly green spirit wall, sparked whenever the wooden sword grazed it. “KHHHHHHHH?!” “Don’t run!” The fairy took flight with a leap, sweeping down at the four-legged beast floating in the air. Unable to bear the string of attacks coming from all directions, the mare galloped through the air to get some distance. Lyu gave chase, tottering a bit from her speed going out of control, and ultimately failed to land a blow. However, there was a thundering boom. It was hard to tell which of them was the real wild horse. “I was right to have Yufie handle the final adjustment… Iselina and the girls wouldn’t be able to handle this.” Astrea moved to a corner of the clearing as the battlefield expanded, never sitting down and keeping her distance as she watched the fight unfold. Lyu was overwhelmingly stronger in raw physical ability. But her speed control was disastrous. She also could not rely on her sense of distance. Yufie was a wind spirit, which already made her difficult to catch. Lyu’s perception problem was just making it all the more difficult. The fairy and spirit were engaged in a one-sided struggle. Lyu just kept attacking, and even though she had not adopted a counterstance, the spirit was dodging everything like a matador, with dodges and well-aimed gusts of wind. It went without saying which one was in the worse position, though. Protected by Lyu’s rampage, or rather, her status’s rampage, Cecille was watching the tremendous scene in awe. What changed the situation was Yufie’s annoyed command. “OOOOOOOOOOOO!!” It was an order to the glittering lesser spirits who had been left behind. The lesser spirits, who were even less self-aware than Yufie, glowed and obeyed the impulse that rushed through them. Tracing perfect arcs, they launched bolts of light at Lyu from above. “!!” The spirits charged Lyu right as she set foot on the ground. As she accelerated to avoid them, with each step, the ground where she had been a split second earlier was bombarded by blasts of light, tracing the path of the elf’s flight. Lyu ducked and dodged with the barest margins, passing through the fusillade of light kicking up a storm all around her. “Lyu?!” Cecille’s shout was swallowed the incoming barrage of lights. The lesser spirits that did not charge Lyu flew overhead, unleashing a constant rain of flames, lightning, and ice. It was a miracle that Lyu was still unscathed despite not being in full control of her status. This was a sign that she was gradually correcting her senses and adjusting with each passing moment. However, it was madness still. Even with all that, it was absurd. With the glitter of the lesser spirits, the forest clearing was like a night sky filled with shooting stars, and what would happen to the little fairy closed inside? Would she be crushed by the crisscrossing comets or scorched by the fiery star? Cecille blanched as the forest, or even the whole world, seemed to be attacking, but Lyu herself saw it differently. The injustice inflicted on us by the world itself. She was intimately familiar with something incredibly similar. “It’s almost like the Dungeon…! This is even a match for the bane of adventurers!” The scale and depth were incomparable, of course. But within this clearing, the spirits’ woods were beginning to match the danger of the Dungeon. At last, there was no doubt that training here was just as intense and demanding as training would have been in Orario. Lyu was so overjoyed by this realization that Cecille could not believe how palpable her excitement was. That incredibly small, illusory world had become as vicious a battleground as the deadly Dungeon. “OOOOOOOOOO!!!” “?!” And if this den of spirits was the Dungeon, then naturally, she was obviously a powerful floor boss. Recovering her freedom with the support of the lesser spirits, Yufie whinnied and flew at Lyu from above. She struck back at the troublesome fairy with a horn formed with swirling eddies of air. Under the lesser spirits’ relentless attacks, Lyu shifted to the defensive for the first time. The wooden sword and horn of air clashed. They held for a moment, and then there was a crack as the wooden sword shattered. “…?!” The concerned voice was not Lyu’s but Cecille’s. The training sword she had made had been completely obliterated from the hilt up. The weapon had not been able to endure Lyu’s newfound strength. As Lyu sliced into Yufie’s barrier so many times, more and more cracks had formed in the sword’s body. It was only natural it would shatter the moment Lyu shifted to defense. My weapon is holding her back… Unable to do anything but watch, Cecille stood there in silent despair. I’m putting her in danger…! This was the primordial fear of any crafter. “It’s all right, Cecille.” Lyu leaped back to avoid Yufie’s follow-up attack and landed right in front of Cecille, almost as if she had heard the cry in Cecille’s head. Stunned, Cecille stared at her in disbelief as she continued to grasp what should have been the useless remnants of the broken wooden sword. With nothing more than a hilt in hand, Lyu raised her head and looked at the goddess on the other side of the battlefield. “I am going to use it, Lady Astrea.” “Yes.” They shared a smile. The next instant, the spirits mercilessly unleashed a six-element magic barrage on the entrance to the battlefield. Lyu and Cecille stood there as the lesser spirits’ fire, water, lightning, light, and darkness, plus Yufie’s wind, bore down on them. The destructive gleam illuminated Cecille’s face as Lyu held up the broken wooden sword and closed her eyes. Then she spoke. “Astrea Record.” This was the answer of justice she had obtained. “Duty shall be fulfilled, and scales shall be balanced.” The chant that began with the magic name summoned innumerable characters of light. The hieroglyphs were adorned with the wings and star sword, just like the status on her back, and they marked off an area with a five-meder radius, deflecting the spirits’ barrage. “Huh?!” “?!” Cecille and Yufie were equally shocked by the appearance of the barrier. Countless hieroglyphs like glimmering stardust filled the air around them and created a powerful wall. “Bastion of order, crown of the righteous, vanquishing torch.” Focusing on her spell with her eyes closed, Lyu reflected on what had happened that morning. Before setting out for the spirit den, she had tried her new magic once with Astrea. After hearing the chant from her goddess and confirming its meaning, Lyu was already sure what this spell was. “In the goddess’s name, racing across the sky, bind the star trails to this land.” It was a ritual. A ritual that Lyu might recall a fragment of justice. A prayer. A prayer for a fairy who had lost everything, that she might reclaim her justice. A vow. A vow to travel beside them beneath the never-ending night sky. I swear on the sword and wings of justice— “—Justice will go on!!” Transforming her friend’s teachings into the final verse of the chant, Lyu opened her eyes. The starry sanctuary that had protected her until the coming of justice had just shattered, transforming into stardust that Lyu drew into herself. Cecille witnessed the exact moment that vow was made. And then Lyu called her name. “Agris Arvensis!” A noble blaze enveloped the fairy’s arms, legs, and the broken wooden sword. “…A fire…enchantment…?” Seeing the crimson petals that emitted a powerful heat, Cecille was awestruck. She did not know exactly kind of magic Lyu had used. But somehow, she could tell. This crimson flame was not Lyu’s magic. Because she could see her.