Filvis's mission ended in complete failure.

No one from Loki Familia had been killed in the end. A few had gotten badly injured — like the rude werewolf with the crushed legs — but that meant next to nothing in Orario, the great Dungeon City.

Here, it only took a quick trip to the nearest hospital or clinic to get even the worst injuries, curses, and poisons nullified by a healer. Even a good potion brewer would do in emergencies. Short of actually cutting the limb off, Filvis was sure that the werewolf would be back on his feet in a few days.

Even now, he was complaining to the poor animal person from Hermes Familia who had been ordered to carry him to the Dian Cech Familia hospital. Filvis might have been annoyed with him on any other day, but right now she couldn't care less.

"Miss Filvis!"

All her attention was focused on the bright elf walking besides her. Lefiya looked noticeably haggard, with her clothes covered in dirt and her face lined in exhaustion. Despite that though, there was a spring to her every step, and her smile was still bright and sweet. Filvis felt herself genuinely smiling back.

The two were walking side-by-side down the streets of Orario, their backs warmed by the setting afternoon sun. Filvis had the maddening urge to reach out and gently hold Lefiya's hand. It would be so easy. She just had to take a half-step closer, extend her hand just a bit farther, and she'd be able to feel the soothing weight of her soulmate's hand.

Filthy monster! Not yours! Not your soulmate!

Just a small touch...that wouldn't be asking for too much, would it? I just...

"Miss Filvis?"

"…Ah! Sorry about that Lefiya. I was…a bit lost in thought,"

Filvis felt a red blush crawling up her pale neck. She had been so focused on the thought of holding hands that she had zoned out on their conversation.

"It's fine! It has been a long few days, hasn't it…."

Lefiya grew suddenly gloomy here. Her lips trembled as if she was holding back an anguished cry, her knuckles whitening from the strength she was using to hold onto her staff. No one could blame her for feeling what she felt.

Under her command, four members from Hermes Familia had been killed. She barely knew their names (Pock, Pot, Jose, and Ellie). She couldn't even properly mourn them. What lives and dreams did they have before they had been so cruelly murdered down in the Dungeon, defending her, testing her to save them with her magic?

She couldn't bear to think of it for too long. She quickly forced her mind to think of happier thoughts.

I'm glad that Miss Filvis was there with me though! I'm glad that she made it out safe and sound.

Lefiya grew bashful here. Her long, elven years grew just a shade redder, and she averted her gaze away from Filvis and towards the ground.

She felt a certain affinity for her fellow elf. She was strong and kind and gallant, almost like her idol Ais Wallenstein. Unlike Aiz though, Filvis had a certain vulnerability and sadness to her that made her seem more human, more approachable.

I'd like to be friends with her!

With her mind made up, Lefiya turned to resolutely look Filvis in the eye. Her demeanor was a bit bashful, but she still held a good bit of determination in her eyes.

The sight was so endearing that Filvis felt her breath catch in her throat.

She's…she's so beautiful.

Unlike you.

"Um…Miss, Filvis? Would you like to meet up sometimes? I understand if you're too busy! I just…I'd like to get to know you a bit better,"

Filvis jolted back in surprise. She found herself responding before she had fully processed what she was hearing.

"Yes! Yes, of course! I mean...if it's not too much of a bother…"

"I'm glad! Would you be free next weekend? We could go to an elven café that I know for some snacks and tea! Unless you want to do something else?"

Filvis was reeling over the fact that someone was willingly spending time with her. At that moment, Lefiya could have asked her to clean out the city sewers with her and Filvis still would've been eager to accept.

"That works fine for me,"

"Great! I'll see you then! Goodbye, Miss Filvis!"

With a last cheerful wave (Filvis had been secretly hoping for a hug), Lefiya rushed off for the Loki Familia home with her fellow familia members, the werewolf and the Sword Princess, if Filvis remembered correctly.

Filvis smiled softly after her and gave a small wave back.

Next weekend. I'll see her again then.

That's if you don't get stood up.

Oh shut it, Ein.

"So you're finally back,"

A frigid voice greeted Filvis the moment she stepped into the Dionysius Familia home. The four-storey building was constructed with warm, orange bricks, with wide windows lining most of its exterior walls. It was a short walk away from the Tower of Babel, nestled squarely in the residential area.

It was the essence of a respectable, mid-sized Familia home.

Filvis never liked it much.

It didn't help that Aura was the first person she saw upon entering the building. The other elf was the epitome of her race, proud and unyielding. She was quick to criticize her for the smallest mistakes — from using too much hot water, to getting a bad price on potions, to allowing Lord Dionysius to get so much as a paper cut from filing paperwork. Everything was a fight between them.

(Filvis felt like she deserved every bit of it)

Today though, Filvis was undaunted. She breezed through a stunned Aura and made her way to her room. Unlike most other Familia members, Filvis did not have a roommate. Her high level afforded her that much, and few of her Familia members were willing to room with 'Banshee' in the first place.

Aura eventually shook off her surprise and ran off gracefully after Filvis.

"What's with you today?"

Her suspicion was well-founded. Aura couldn't remember the last time her teammate looked so content and serene without Lord Dionysius in her immediate presence. At best, she was gloomy without him. At worst, she was downright miserable. The change intrigued Aura, who followed after Filvis.

"…nothing. Why?"

It was a horrible lie and they both knew it. Aura nearly snorted (gracefully, of course), and Filvis was adamantly looking straight ahead and not at her teammate.

"Let's see now, what could have actually broken through your miserable cloud of a personality?"

Aura hummed aloud, making a show of thinking deeply. When Filvis gave no response, she started guessing at random.

"Did Lord Dionysius gift you a flower?"

"…"

"Did Lord Dionysius invite you to dinner?"

"…"

"Did Lord Dionysius compliment you?"

"…"

"Wait, don't tell me, does it have nothing to do with Lord Dionysius?"

"…"

" I knew it! What a miracle! Someone other than Lord Dionysius managed to tolerate you! What luck!"

Filvis flinched at that last jab, but kept walking. Ein was at once howling at her to rip off Aura's tongue while also agreeing with her and egging her on in her mind.

Kill her! She's right! Shut her up!

Will YOU shut up?! Gods, why did I pick the room furthest from the entrance?

The door to her room was finally in sight. Filvis breathed a sigh of relief and picked up her pace. Aura kept throwing wild ideas behind what caused her good mood, ranging from finding a rare item in the Dungeon to taking a special, happiness-inducing medicine (drugs, she's talking about drugs).

"Wait! Don't tell me, have you taken a lover?"

"Pffff?!"

"Filvis?!"

Aura hadn't actually expected her last guess to be true. She was taking guesses at random to see what reactions she could incite from her usually gloomy captain. But the moment she said it, Filvis tripped over nothing and slammed face-first into the door to her room. She was fine, but her pride was not.

Filvis cursed her lack of composure. She could already imagine the look on Aura's face as she quickly pulled herself up and actually opened her door.

You absolute idiot! What's wrong with you?!

Filvis responded to Ein by slamming her door shut. Well, she tried to. Before the door could fully close, Aura jammed her foot between the doorframe and the swinging door.

"What do you want, Aura? Haven't you said enough yet?"

Her words would've had more bite, if only Filvis's face wasn't currently rivaling the colour of a very ripe tomato. She was expecting ridicule from Aura, but when she finally looked her in the eye, she saw only genuine curiosity.

"Did you actually find someone?"

"That's none of your business."

Filvis pulled more insistently on the door, but Aura chose to ignore that.

"Who is he? Is he from our Familia? Is he an elf?"

"I said it's none of your business! Now, if you'd be so kind as to leave your captain alone…"

"Wait!"

"What do you want from me?!"

Now Filvis was flushed with anger. She had returned from her trip to the middle floors in a rare, good mood, which had vanished at this point. Although she had technically failed in her mission to kill the member of Loki Familia, Lord Dionysius assured her that they had ultimately gained more than they had lost.

"Don't worry. We'll kill Loki Familia eventually. It's more important that the spirit orb ate its fill,"

He had spoken of mass murder with a gentle smile, as if those people were nothing more than naughty children that had to be reigned in. Maybe that's all they were in his eyes, or maybe not. It was hard for even Filvis to fully understand her god's thoughts. Lord Dionysius ended that conversation with a small pat on their back, accompanied with a charming smile. Both Ein and Filvis trembled with sheer joy at the praise and affection.

(This was their sole compensation, after they found out that the one who killed her old friends, who orchestrated her transformation into a monster, had been working with her god for who knows how long)

(They did not think that deeply. They couldn't)

That was not the cause behind Filvis's good mood though. The happiness she and Ein felt from serving Dionysius was fleeting, as fleeting as his presence. He was frequently gone on his own errands, keeping up his friendly persona with the townspeople or working on his ultimate plan of eradicating Orario. He had little time to spend with them. His absence usually soured Ein's mood and saddened Filvis's.

No, Filvis's good cheer was not due to her god, but to Lefiya.

My soulmate.

Even just the memory brought a small smile to Filvis's lips.

Not our soulmate.

Even just the memory brought a cruel sneer to Ein's face.

"See! You're smiling again!"

Aura was staring wide-eyed, as if she couldn't quite believe that her gloomy captain could actually make such an expression. It made her even more curious about her lover. She was certain at this point that Filvis did have a lover, or at least fancied someone.

"Just tell me something about him! Then I promise that I'll leave you alone,"

Filvis weighed out her options. Either she refuses and has to deal with Aura heckling her for the rest of the day, or she could accept and get some peace and quiet.

She chose the latter.

"…it's a her, not him"

And with that, Filvis slammed her door shut and took silent joy in the brief glimpse she got of Aura's bewildered face.

Nice job you idiot.

Her joy didn't last long.

What now?

What do you think? Lefiya isn't our lover, no matter what sick delusions you have in your mind. What will you do once she finds out from Aura that you've been going around, announcing that we're lovers?

Are you trying to drive her away, to disgust her? If you are, you're doing a terrific job!

"…that won't happen. Aura has no way of knowing about Lefiya,"

Filvis was beginning to regret saying anything at all to Aura. She dreaded the possibility of driving Lefiya away, and now that Ein had pointed it out, she felt worry gnawing away at her stomach.

"It won't happen. It won't. Aura doesn't know Lefiya,"

What if it does?

Filvis tried to ignore Ein. She knew her other half was actively trying to anger and worry her, but it was hard to ignore someone talking directly to her mind, someone who knew exactly which buttons to press to rile her up.

Just stop! For once in our lives, just stop!

Filvis collapsed on her simple bed. She didn't bother changing clothes, or washing up, or even getting under the covers. She was already so exhausted, dealing with Aura and then dealing with Ein. She curled in on herself and tried to drown out Ein's thoughts.

Imagine. Aura knows you were out on a job with Lord Dionysius. She could ask him about the job, and he could mention Loki Familia, and then she could reason out that…

She wasn't having much luck ignoring Ein. She looked around desperately for any distraction, anything at all, and her eyes fell on the two handprints inked onto her right forearm.

Her soulmate marks.

She ran her fingers over the marks. Their magic hummed softly, grounding her amidst Ein's rants.

I wonder, are the marks working right? Are you happy right now, Lefiya?

The marks left by your soulmate allow both parties to faintly feel each other's emotion. Although, some thought it was only an old wives' tale. In more rural areas of the world, where villagers knew little of the outside world, knowledge about soulmates was almost non-existent. Some even claimed that soulmates were nothing but an elaborate conspiracy spun by a bored god of love, who wanted to watch the drama put on by mortals left forever unsatisfied with their current lover.

They were a minority though, and Filvis paid their opinions no mind. She was more concerned with the emotion she felt through her marks.

She's a bit sad. Maybe from losing the Hermes Familia members during our 'rescue mission'?

Are you alright, Lefiya? How can I ease your sadness? How can I make you happy?

Filvis felt her eyelids getting heavier and heavier. The mission took more out of her than she thought. In her last moments before falling asleep completely, she brought her marked arm up to her face and pressed a light kiss to them.

"…are you happy, Lefiya?"

Aura walked through the wooden halls of the Dionysius Familia home in such deep thought that passing members could almost see the gears grinding in her mind.

"Hello Aura!

"..."

A fellow elf tried calling out to her, but his greeting went in one ear and out the other.

"Aura? Is everything alright? You look a bit…occupied?"

"Oh! Excuse me,"

Aura finally shook herself out of her thoughts when the other elf waved his hand in front of her face. She turned to address him, just needing to talk about what had happened.

"Harold, did you know that our captain fancies women?"

"Our captain?! 'Banshee'?!"

"Yes Harold, she's our captain,"

"…I didn't know it was possible for her to feel affection for anyone other than Lord Dionysius,"

"I know, right?"

Neither elf was fazed by their captain being bisexual. When every single deity — excluding the few virgin goddesses — was incredibly gay and sexually attracted to both sexes (and in Zeus's case, anything that moved), no one batted an eye when the odd mortal was also gay.

The two elves were just amazed that someone managed to befriend their cold, gloomy captain.

"Hmmmm, I wonder what she's like,"

"Me as well,"

"…"

".."

"…Harold, are you up for some detective work?"

"Well, if you insist Aura…"