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Prologue Part 2 : Meet the Familia

Actually, you don't know if it's just the atmosphere or the lack of the noise of a modern city, but for once you could actually understand the lyrics of the song… Despite the upbeat rhythm and the light voice of the singer, the lyric is so fucking depressing!

"This better not be a bad premonition for the future, especially since you're going to go meet the Star Maiden of all goddesses… Fucking shuffle button, you better not be some kind of fortune-telling!" It took a while for you to cotton on to the identity of the Goddess that Lina had illegally recommended to you. It was the result of serendipity for the song you just played to have some link to your quest now.

The Stars Reaching Out For the Moon, and hopefully you're the moon in this analogy, and not the fact that you could now see the moon in the darkening sky.

Walking along the map, you had to fight the instinct to go into one of many side, small alleys that weren't on the map in a bid to save time. Actually, some roads and buildings that were not supposed to be there in the map lead to many dead-ends as you follow what you just realized was an outdated map.

"Did they not have anything new?" Because of this, even when you left the Pantheon just as the day reached midday, the sun was now starting to dip into the horizon, casting the crimson glow of the evening into the city. It was starting to go dark that the many road lights just lit up, casting the many side alleys into deep shadows.

This makes you even more reluctant to use them, even if you think that it may save you some time. And it definitely tempts you once you've gone into a dead-end for the tenth time, wasting time that you definitely don't have.

"What if the Goddess is retiring early!? I've got no other plans besides joining her Familia for a roof over my head!" It was as the day slowly grew dark that the shit creek that you've been paddling over without knowing dawned on you.

Ever tried going out of your house without your keys, phone, and wallet? Well, this was the situation that you're in now. And rather than going to the Family Mart a block away for some smokes, or even something ludicrous like going to another country, you're in another world entirely.

That same anxiousness that had caused you to pass out, began to bubble up again… If nothing else, you were quite glad that your stomach is mostly empty.

Before your stomach could threaten to expel itself again, you finally reached the Inn that Lina had pointed you towards… And now to try to meet a goddess that doesn't know about you. You could feel your stomach rumbling, both in hunger and anxiousness.

"Oh my, I think you have just woken up the dead with that~!" A voice, gentle and like the tinkling of bells, sounded from behind you.

Hurriedly turning around, you were greeted by the sight of perfection.

Walnut brown locks that looked silky smooth, and probably very soft to the touch, alongside eyes the color of deep indigo that you could just lose yourself in.

That and a killer body that is just poison to a virgin like you. You were really glad that she was dressed rather modestly, or else… You would embarrass yourself, more than you've already done, staring very obviously at the very pretty woman.

"Fufufu, that is a very funny reaction." Even as she laughed, covering her mouth with a dainty hand, you had to fight the embarrassment that seemed to burn your face like coal.

'You're a thirty-year-old man goddammit Red, control yourself!'

Keeping all the spaghetti inside yourself this time… Probably more because it's empty, judging by the loud noises it is making, rather than you actually being a functional member of society.

"Hahaha, sorry about that, I haven't eaten all day you see." Rubbing the back of your neck, you were quite surprised at how you were able to string words without stumbling over yourself. Did you finally overcome your social anxiety?

"Fufu, that's not good, you know? A growing boy like you should always remember to eat!"

No, it's probably just because the woman exudes such maternal energy that, even with her beauty actually causing your heartbeat to go a mile a minute, you are calm. Her presence was so warm and welcoming that not even being nervous, you just felt like you are talking to someone that would never harm you.

Like a mother perhaps… Which caused a complex feeling of wondering if you are suffering from a late onset Oedipus complex. Trying to think of your own mother in that way as an experiment, only caused you to almost vomit in your own mouth once again. So you're safe in that regard at least.

The lady was just so welcoming, with an aura of kindness that you didn't even find your age being mistaken once again as something offensive. Being mad at her seemed impossible.

"Well, today is your lucky day, mister!" Lifting the covered basket that she was carrying in her other hand, the smell of fresh baked bread wafted from beneath the cover.

"I've just met my friend, and she gave me too much bread to eat alone! So, would you like to join me for dinner? I've got soup heating up, and I always appreciate good company." Covering her mouth in a demure manner as she spoke the invitation, you almost broke the speed of sound as you nodded your head in excited affirmation.

Getting led inside the inn, that is actually some kind of apartment complex, damn you Lina and your very bad writing, how did you mistake an apartment for an inn! You climbed the stairs of the multi-floored building until you reached the top of the loft.

"Sorry for the climb, the rent is much cheaper at the top, you see."

"It's no problem, lady! Exercise is good for whetting the appetite!" Acting like the young man that you are definitely not, you've decided that if you're going to keep being mistaken for one, might as well just go along with it. And you did like climbing the stairs behind the lady… For no particular reason whatsoever.

"Welcome to the Stardust Garden (temp), sorry for the mess, my friends had decided that a housewarming party was something that they just had to do."

Entering into the tastefully decorated apartment, with a sofa and couch pillows strewn around, and large glass windows on the side of the loft, letting in the red light of the evening sun. Though, you were quite puzzled to see some decorations that really looked out of place. As in vases gilded with gold, marble tables and… is that a solid gold bust of the lady!?

Seeing where your attention was focused on, the lady turned around to see what you're looking at, before her face turned crimson in embarrassment.

"That was just a house-warming gift! I'm not that tasteless to have a solid gold statue of myself just placed in the living room!"

Seeing the beautiful lady panicking as she waved one of her hands up and down as if she was trying to ward your attention from the rather tasteless decor. You couldn't help but start laughing, the weight of nervousness lifted somewhat from your shoulders.

Even in this strange world and strange lands, no matter how long it would be in the future, you were sure that you would remember this moment for an eternity.

And not just because you just started crying like a little bitch, either.

"Mou! Teasing a lady is not gentlemanly, you know?" As she pouted at you, you just laughed even harder, tears now falling down from your eyes unbidden.

Ah, you never did have the time and levity to mourn what you have lost, haven't you?

So here you are in a stranger's room, steps from her front door, bawling your eyes out. The lady placed down the basket on one of the tables and closed the distance between you and hugged you close to her chest, and rubbed your back, back and forth in a soothing manner.

"There, there, just let it all out…"

Even with your face placed in the promised lands, there was not even an ounce of perverted feeling as you were just reaching out for warmth.

You were making a fool out of yourself, but just being showered with such kindness you had lost control of your emotions, and had let it all out…

It took a minute before your sobs finally died down, the lady just looking at you with a calm, serene look.

"Are you feeling better now?" Nodding, since you couldn't really speak without choking down a sob, the lady finally let you go.

"Look at the mess you made! You're a big, strong boy, so no more crying, okay?" Pulling a handkerchief from one of her pockets, she wiped the tears off of your face, and then dried off her chest that was now just sodden wet with your tears.

It's good that your emotions are in such a mess right now, or you would just die from the embarrassment… You probably just killed any chance of the lady seeing you as a grown man at this point.

"Oh dear, I think I need to change… Could you please set the table… Oh, dear, I'm such a klutz, I never did get your name, did I?"

~There you go doing this stuff again Astraea, you couldn't just pick up distressed children willy-nilly. What if people think you're kidnapping kids?~

Missing whatever it is the lady was muttering under her breath, you quickly gathered yourself and finally introduced yourself. But, really Red, just because the lady is warm, kind and drop-dead gorgeous doesn't mean that you should just follow some stranger into their house!

"My name's Robert, but my friends call me Red."

"Red, huh? That's a nice name." It's the name of a color lady, no need to lie to be kind, but it's appreciated nonetheless.

"This lady's name is Astraea, I don't really have a nickname that my friends call me… Which they should have now that I think about it. Well, Red, please set the table, okay? The plates and cutlery are in the cupboard next to the stove. Just a pair of soup bows and spoon."

You just nodded, too shocked to actually speak, which Lady Astraea, the now revealed Goddess that you were supposed to be begging to join her Familia, just responded by rubbing your hat-covered head. Seeing that you're still unresponsive, the Goddess simply sighed before turning around, probably heading to her bedroom to get changed.

All the while, the only intelligible response you could give was…

"Eh?"

To mutter incomprehensibly at the fact that you had just embarrassed yourself in front of your, hopefully, new employer.

"Hahahaha!" Revealing the fact that you didn't realize that Lady Astraea was a Goddess had been a mistake, as she laughed at your foolishness without reserve. Despite just how beautiful her laugh was, you really preferred if it was not aimed at your gaffes.

An embarrassment that you've tried masking by taking another bite of the delicious fluffy bread, and chasing it down with another sip of the stew.

Your usual method of just turning down the brim of your hat is unavailable since you had put it down on your lap when you sat down.

Wearing your hat on the dining table is rude, as your mother, and now Lady Astraea, had pointed out many times before. She really took advantage of the fact that she couldn't rub your hair when calming you down, happily messing up, fixing, in her opinion, your hat hair with a brush before you sat down to eat.

She is really just bursting with motherly energy.

"Really Red, you really should be more careful, what if you followed some criminal?" And now, she is starting to tease me… Truly, I have failed as a man. You could only look down as Lady Astraea looked on fondly as you devoured bread after bread, even as she sipped the white stew all ladylike.

Hmmph! There's no way that I'm going to stay on the defensive, the only way to win is to attack!

And so, wiping the last of the stew with the last piece of bread, and declining the seconds as Lady Astraea scooped up another bowlful of stew, you started on with your plan.

"There's no way that someone as beautiful and kind as Lady Astraea would do anything bad to me!"

"Oh my! Flattery will get everywhere, you know? Hehehe." It seemed that she was very pleased by your praise, exceeding your expectations.

It was minutes later that Lady Astraea finished with her own meal, and refused your offer to help with cleaning. The pot of stew has a lid put on top and put back on the cooker… You hope that the cooker would be able to keep it hot, but then again, magic.

As Lady Astraea returned, she came with two cups of some hot drink? And handed one over to you.

"Hot milk? With honey?" Taking a sip of the drink, you were pleasantly surprised as the warmth of the milk combined really well with the honey.

"It's good for digestion and really helps with getting a good sleep… Now, Red, would you like to share the story of why you were waiting in front?" As she finished asking her question, the room suddenly felt a lot colder as even the air felt stifling, and not even the warmth of the warm milk could chase away the cold.

Lit up by the light of the mood streaming in from the windows and the candles, Lady Astraea looked as if she was a star, bathed by the light of the moon and the sun.

It really does make you think, 'ah, so this is a goddess'. It almost felt comical how you couldn't tell before. The Goddess of Justice is kind, but she was not a fool.

And so you shared your story, about how you had found yourself in Orario, at how you had found yourself in a strange land without any idea of how you had got here in the first place. About your panic and despair at losing all connection to everything you knew. At your meeting with Lina, and how you had collapsed from having it all crashing down on you.

But, perhaps, more importantly, your determination to keep moving forward. If only, and this last part you kept to yourself, so that you didn't have to ponder what you have lost anymore. Though you did keep the part where you came from another world a secret, so for Lady Astraea it was more like you were an abandoned child, rather than a refugee from another dimension.

You simply had no idea how to start explaining that shit, but for all intents and purposes it was the truth.

"I see… You had it hard ne, Red?" The cold atmosphere going away so quickly that you could've thought that it was nothing more than a figment of your imagination. The Goddess of Justice was gone, and in its place was the same Lady Astraea that would calm down a brat that couldn't control their emotions.

With the heavy stuff over with, the two of you started talking about more light stuff. Like who was it that had given the Goddess that really tacky statue of her, not that it's not a work of art, anything made in the likeness of the Goddess is by default a work of art… It's just, why gold?

Hearing that it was supposed to be a gift from Apollo, you could only nod in commiseration, which then was followed by a tirade from Lady Astraea about how much she hated the god.

"He's just really persistent, you know! Which is just not cute at all. Especially since I know all of that was just in order to get into my pants… Eep, wait! I really shouldn't be sharing this with a child…"

And other complaints about her fellow gods, making you learn a lot of useless facts about the other gods… Especially about how many gods, male and female alike, wanted to fuck Lady Astraea since she was apparently one of the three Virgin Goddess or something equally silly.

You're not even going to bother and try to explain that you're not a child. And soon enough the topics of conversation drained away, and you were left in a companionable silence as you sipped the last of the honeyed milk.

Before, Lady Astraea stood up, and gazed at you with an unexplainable emotion on her face.

"This has been fun talking with you, Red, but isn't there something else that you need to ask?"

Hmm? Something else that you need to ask?

Ah! Right, the whole point why you had traveled the breadth of Orario, okay, a bit of an exaggeration there as it was a lot less epic than you had made it out to be, to her front doors.

Kneeling on one knee, you placed one hand on your chest and heart and looked upward at the Goddess now wreathed in the light of the moon streaming from the windows, ignoring the rather shocked look on her face.

"Lady Astraea, can you give me your blessing, to be a part of your family?" Putting in every ounce of sincerity you could, you, like every last Adventurer from the stories, pleaded to a Goddess so that you may receive their blessing.

And Lady Astraea is turning red for some reason? Ah shit, it's supposed to be Familia! You've fucked up!

"Oh, my! I've never been propositioned so earnestly before!" Fanning herself, Lady Astraea's eyes looked away, unsure on where she was supposed to look, mirroring your own panic.

But before you could speak up, you were stopped when Lady Astraea started speaking first.

"I accept… But no naughty stuff until you're older, okay!?" Her face red to the tips of her ears, you were shocked silent as you had received a reward that you were not even looking for.

Even as she asked you to lose your top, you ignored her hasty remarks as she explained that it was to bring you into her Familia and not for anything perverted. You were still silent as she bid you to lay down on one of the sofas as she straddled you, and even when you could feel her thighs on your side, you remained silent.

Even as the drop of divinity was etched on your back, and you became inexorably part of Astraea Familia, the emblem of Scales on your back, you remained silent.

It was only when you were brought to Lady Astraea's bed, not for anything naughty as she hurriedly explained, and you could hear the calm breathing and the warmth of the goddess as she used you as a hug pillow that you're brought out of it.

"Eh?"

End of Prologue : Welcome to Orario.

Your Stats at the End of Prologue

Name : Robert Red

Captain of the Astraea Familia

Your STATS : (Your Growth Rate)

Level : 1

STR : I 0 (4)

END : I 0 (5)

DEX : I 0 (1)

AGI : I 0 (4)

MAG : I 0 (3)

A/N : Phew second prologue posted! Next chapter would be Red's first foray into the Dungeon. What will he find there?

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