Chapter 74: Success and failure

Rain:

"Urgh," Groaning, Rain started to awake to a massive headache. The hammering on the inside of her head felt like a minotaur was standing above her, hitting her again and again with a nature weapon.

Cursing her miserable state, Rain found her feet. If that minotaur existed, it would be fleeing in fear right now. As it was, Strea and Philia had to endure it. With the two girls being stronger than a minotaur, neither fled.

So, Rain had to resort to words. "Why are we alive?"

"It fled," Strea answered. "After the gargoyle hit you on the head, it took off down the corridor."

Rain followed Strea's gesture and had to restrain the urge to take off after it. She didn't have a perfect internal clock like the first-tier adventurers were rumored to, but Rain was confident it had only been five minutes since then. Sighing, she gave up on hunting the gargoyle and held a hand to her head.

"Come on, we should head back to the surface."

"Are you sure?" Philia whispered. Her blue eyes were unfocused and red—likely the remnants of dried tears. "If we don't level up—"

"We promised Kirito," Rain reminded her. "We can keep trying at a later date."

"Hehe, spoken like a true assistant captain!" Strea praised her.

Rain stuck out her tongue but could not generate a reply. Strea had the best chance of any of them of having secured a level up.

"Let's get back as quietly as possible. None of us are in condition to fight well." Rain said. Taking command of the situation, Rain led the beleaguered party back from the depths of the twenty-fourth floor.

It was both a slow and quick journey back. On one hand, avoiding and ignoring monsters really sped up how fast they could traverse. Alternatively, their aching bodies were protesting movement and sometimes monsters weren't kind enough to move out of the way in a timely fashion.

As frustration mounted for Rain who drove her sword through the last lizardman of a small pack camped in the middle of the path; she heard the sounds of combat from further on. Sighing with relief, she looked back at her compatriots, smiling. "Hopefully we can just coast behind them up to the eighteenth."

"Urgh," Philia groaned. "But if their leader is a guy and—"

"Then we will leave them behind," Rain cut her off, hoping Philia's fears wouldn't be realized. The last thing they wanted at this time was a man who would try to bargain aid for a date or 'favors'. It was unfair to group them all together, but sometimes profiling was in order.

Filled with silent acceptance that the worst would pass, Rain waited at the intersection for the party to emerge. She was not ready for the mop of familiar white hair. "Bell?"

Behind him trouped in a line the supporters protected from behind by Mikoto. "Huh? Rain?"

Bright smile blossoming, Rain finally felt like that minotaur had fled for good at the sight of her familia members. Mood rising from the gutter it had been left in, she skipped over. "Privyet, everyone. Heading back up to the surface?"

"Ah, that's right." Bell nodded.

At this distance, Rain was able to appreciate exactly how awful the boy looked. His hair was matted to his scalp with blood and mud. Armor shattered in half a dozen places. If he had told Rain that her proverbial minotaur had stampeded over Bell for an hour, she would have believed it.

"Finally," Lili growled, her voice more tired than angry, "Bell dragged us into a right mess."

"But we have taught him better," Haruhime added. Her angelic voice had the providence of divine right that elicited a shiver from the exhausted Bell.

"We will have to swap stories," Rain smiled. "Did you see Leafa's group? They ran down the main path and left us behind after we split."

It was hard to believe that that had been only yesterday. Running into the bloody hive and then the gargoyle were such vivid memories. Each one was a lodestar in Rain's memory, making the other events seem dim by comparison.

"I did not." Bell said. "I'm pretty sure they were planning on going to the water capital."

"The water capital…" Rain mused looking back down the path. The deeper area would have provided a harder challenge but based on how they had fared against the bloody hive, maybe it was for the best that they hadn't.

But is that group stronger than us?

From an objective point of view: no. However, their slightly larger group did have tools that Rain's didn't. The obvious one was Liz's magic swords. They were basically get out of jail free cards. The hive that had taken a heroic effort from Strea could have been dealt with via a few gouts of fire.

Perhaps more importantly though were Silica's senses. Her cat person ears were sensitive enough to pick up monsters and even some traps.

The knowledge helped to calm Rain down. Certain that they wouldn't die down there, Rain proceeded up through the colossal tree labyrinth.

"So what beat you three up?" Bell asked curiously.

Rain winced and allowed the energetic Strea to answer. Even for her though, the day had been draining enough that her step was missing its skip.

"Oh, we encountered one of those hive things. Not to mention a whole bunch of monster trains. That took most of our energy before we encountered a gargoyle that was super strong! Also, I swear it spoke?"

"Spoke?" Bell squeaked. Rather than a rabbit, he sounded like a mouse cornered by a cat. "Ahaha, speaking monsters…"

"Well that sounds suspicious." Philia broke in. Both her and Rain cast an appraising eye over the party they had met up with.

"Lili is unsure why Bell is so hesitant," the prum supporter said. "There was a talking lizardman that took away a strange Vouivre."

"Ah, that sucks. Vouivre stones are expensive," Philia bemoaned.

"That… is not the issue," Haruhime spoke up. "The Vouivre was… very human-like."

"Human-like?" Rain considered the description. When it came to monsters, human-like was a rather vague description. The problem was, when it came to this monster, Rain had only read descriptions of Vouivres. "Umm, how exactly is a viourve… human-like? Does a gaping maw, sharp claws, and wings on a serpentine body invoke humanity to you?"

"She—It, had none of that. No dragon body, no wings. Only a girl's body with patches of scales."

How odd. It was curious but no more than that. "An irregular then," Rain dismissed with a wave of her hand. "Some new monstrosity spit out by the dungeon. Probably a trap."

"I… I don't know," Bell's voice was tight with consternation. He had the look of a man trying to forget things. Unfortunately, trying to forget something often had the exact opposite effect.

Strea broke through the melancholy with her typical exuberant declarations. "Oh, but what if you found friendly monsters? You know, something like Pina but—"

"There are no friendly monsters!" Bell yelled. "That's impossible! They're bloodthirsty, monstrous things!"

Rain shared a look with Philia. It wasn't that she didn't understand, but the residents of this world's inability to reevaluate their preconceived notions of monsters was astounding.

If they didn't fall within set determined rules they were labelled as bloodthirsty irregulars. Even when faced with monsters like Pina—who had never shown the slightest bit of hostility—they simply averted their eyes.

"You've lost a lot, haven't you, Bell?" Rain commiserated with the boy. For all of the gods' laughter, death hung over this world with a tangible pallor. You could feel the reek of its breath in the undercurrent of everything. From the normalization of weapons in the street, to the hordes of orphans that crowded streets and composed familias.

For all of that, Rain had avoided losing anyone close to her. Hopefully. Even this very trip had the potential to be their last. Suddenly, Kirito's words were a lot closer to her heart. They had all risked their lives… for combat potential?

No, for the ability to save his life.

It was such a fine line that Rain could no longer distinguish the edge anymore. There was no easy path, only risks. And only if they want to go home.

For the first time in months, Rain's determination flickered. Her own notions about what was necessary began to waver. Left needing to talk to someone, Rain turned and grabbed Philia's arm.

Her friend saw the pleading there. With a curt nod, Philia pulled Rain ahead. "Sorry about that Bell. Rain and I will scout ahead!"

The boy's shadowed look from Rain's words turned confused as they darted away.

Now alone, Rain clamped down on Philia's hand, unwilling to relinquish it. Her heart was tearing in half for a sister left behind.

"Rain," Philia spoke slowly. "What's wrong?"

"I-I was just wondering… why we came down here like this? Philia… Do we need to go back to our world?"

"Huh? Didn't we already agree to do so?"

"But why!" Rain protested loudly. Her voice drew the attention of monsters that she slaughtered aggressively. Her pent-up anger and confusion being vented to the sound of pained cries. "We can all marry Kirito here, start families! Can we do that back in Japan?"

"W-Well… It will be hard."

Rain barked a laugh as she sheathed her bloody blades. "Isn't that insane, Philia? We have everything we want here, and yet we risk that happiness to return to a society that hates us!"

Philia finally paused. "I'm surprised. I thought we had discussed this already. Where did this come from?"

So, Rain explained. How Bell's refusal to even consider the possibility of good monsters existing had led Rain to question her own beliefs.

"T-That…" Philia looked floored. "Why… do we want to go back?"

It was a fantastic question. Rain chuckled, grabbing back onto Philia's hand. "Let's discuss this again with Kirito, alright?"

"Hmm, there are other things I'd rather do with Kirito…"

Rain blushed, but still nodded strongly. She may have lost her position with this expedition, but Rain knew that she would not lose those closest to her.

Bell:

"I'm ready." Speaking softly, Bell prepared himself for the drop of blood to fall from Hestia's fingers onto his back.

"It went well?" The goddess sitting on his backend asked. "Urgh, I should have made you bathe first."

"S-Sorry," Bell apologized. "Do I smell?"

"Smell? You have dried blood flaking off your body!"

"I-I'll go as soon as you finish with the status update." Bell promised. Lying flat on the bed, Bell was surprised that his rudeness at not presenting himself cleaned was more stressful than seeing the result of his hard work.

"T-This is… Congratulations, Bell." Hestia spoke softly. "You are my second child to reach level four."

Level four… It was both surreal how high it was and how much further he had to go.

"Before we complete the level-up though… You have advanced abilities to choose from. They are Knife fighter, Chain attack, and Escape."

Escape… "You can disregard that last one," Bell practically growled. His fingers tightening around the cloth in the bed at the implications. That he was so proficient at running away that he got an advanced ability to further develop it.

"Are you sure?" Hestia asked. "It could save your life. None of the options this time are as strange as luck."

"Hmm… Chain attack is rare, and Knife fighter makes sense… but I've never heard of it. Does it exist?"

"Do you want me to check?" Hestia inquired.

"N-No, it isn't important…" Bell tapped his fingers against the bed, uncertainty filling him.

"This is a big decision. Should we leave you at level three for now?"

"No. Just give me Chain attack."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah." Bell felt at peace with the decision. Escape was not what he wanted. Knife fighter may be unique but… Bell had seen the potential of chain fighter firsthand watching Lyu fight.

"It's done." Hestia announced, her voice solemn. Sometimes it was easy to forget that she was a goddess, but not right now. Bell's senses were telling him that something… mysterious, was sitting on him currently. She did not have the feeling of a strong adventurer. There was no aura of great power, but there was something that Bell could not understand. The Deusdia.

"Here you go!"

A cute voice and a piece of paper broke Bell's line of thinking. Contemplations over the nature of his goddess were shredded completely.

Bell 'Vesta's Light' Cranell Level 3 4

Level Three → Four

Strength: A 860 → I 0 Defense: A 890 → I 0 Dexterity: S 914 → I 0 Agility: SS 1010 → I 0 Magic: S 932 → I 0

Luck: G → F

Immunity: I → G

*New* Chain attack: I

Magic:

Firebolt – Swift strike magic.

Skills:

Liaris Freese – A strong desire increases rate of growth. The stronger the desire, the stronger the growth.

Argonaut – Charge skill. Gather energy into the point of the User's choice. Active activation.

"Whoa… My stats went up a lot."

"Scrapes with death tend to do that," Hestia drawled sarcastically.

Bell sensed it, but did not dodge as the goddess suddenly launched herself at him. With her arms tied around his neck, holding their bodies together, Bell failed to prevent blushing as her soft breasts pressed against him.

"G-Goddess?"

"Why can't you be more careful?" Hestia whispered against his chest. "How hard did you push yourself for these gains? You're leveling up faster than the otherworlders even…"

"Ahaha, I'll be even stronger than Kirito soon then!"

"No."

"N-No?"

"I don't want that!"

Jealousy boiled in Bell's stomach. "I know he's the captain and your first child but—"

"It means you're pushing yourself too hard!" Hestia elaborated. "Take a break! Let that elf from Astraea familia train you!"

"A break…" It sounded wrong. Even now, Bell's blood was burning to start again. The zeros on his statues begging to be turned into numbers.

"Bell…" Hestia growled. "They'll be back right away!"

"I'll stay out of the dungeon on one condition."

"What?"

"Kirito spars with me until then."

Bell's bold declaration received only a loud smack in response as Hestia hit her own forehead. "You little… Go bathe and rest first!"

"Yes goddess!" Permission received; Bell ran off.

Kirito:

"You all came back…"

Closing his eyes, Kirito soaked in the presence of his sweaty, smelly girlfriends. Still riddled with the rigors of their expedition, they were all in some state of disarray. Despite that, they were beautiful.

In the middle of the group hug, Kirito could keenly sense where each one was touching him. Some that had only a small part of him, Kirito touched with his hand.

"O-Of course we did!" Liz declared. "It was easy!"

"Hmm, can you just be quiet and let us enjoy this, Liz?" Silica of all people spoke up to reprimand her.

The shy girl calling off her friend was so unexpected that Kirito laughed. His demonstration of happiness getting a response from most of the others. It didn't last long however as the exhausted girls quickly fell back into a sleepy lull.

"Alright," Kirito declared. "Let's get you all to the bath so you can clean-up before bed. Bell's getting his status updated, so it should just be Lili and Haruhime there right now."

"I don't wanna!"

It was Philia protesting this time.

"Carry me there and bathe me!"

The mood in the group shifted. As contentment and exhaustion were burned away by the awakening of a more primal desire.

A vein pulsed in Kirito's temple. "I said Lili and Haruhime are in there."

"Right, right." Philia sighed and disengaged from the hug. "Let's go everyone!"

Kirito was sad but relieved to see them go. At least they had enough energy left to remain reasonable. He had no idea what he would have done if they all had joined in.

Stopping by a side table to grab the small sheaf of documents Lili had brought back from the guild, Kirito returned to his room. Knowing that he would probably be kept up late hearing about what happened in the dungeon, he quickly began sorting through them.

Most were pointless updates. Notice of increased property tax, notice of increased familia tax, notice of decreased magic shard worth… All sorts of great news that the guild deigned to provide them.

Kirito marked a note down to discuss their budget with Lili. Things would be a little tighter from now on. With soaring metal costs, Liz would likely be sidelined from starting new projects for a while…

It took longer for Kirito to get through the next sheet. It was the guild updating them on the state of evilus and Knossos. Since rescuing Welf, there had been no updates. With Argo's information about their operations at the edges of the city, the metal stealing had decreased as well. Reading that, Kirito revised his previous thought. Hopefully prices would stabilize shortly.

"So that's that?" Kirito wondered. Of course there was no way that this would be everything, but it was increasingly becoming evident that Evilus were on the backfoot and growing desperate to stay alive.

The final page however, stopped Kirito in his tracks. It was one of the annoying ones that required a response. A long, detailed response. Basically, it was a form which detailed their familia rank and achievements to this point. That was fine, the problem was the part at the bottom requesting an outline for their proposed expedition which had to be carried out in the next two months.

Now that Kirito had been around for a full rotation of it, he could understand how years melted away for the first time in his life. All through middle school, a week was an age, and a few months was the future.

This time, he gave the schedule on his wall an annoyed look and started to pencil in dates. Deadline for familias participating, deadline for draft submission, window of departure dates. That led to him looking up when the floor bosses were expected to spawn again. Then he started to brainstorm a list of acceptable objectives depending on composition.

Hours flew by in the blink of an eye. Before Kirito realized it, a knock was sounding against his door.

"Come in!"

His door was slammed open as two figures entered, one of them carrying a plate of food.

"Oh… Food! Umm, I mean, Rain and Philia!"

The girls rolled their eyes at his one-track mind. But Kirito's eyes were focused solely on the plate of food as a string of drool threatened to fall from his mouth.

His stomach growled with awakened fury. The needs of his body had been forgotten first by worry over the girls and then the work that Lili had brought him.

"Eat, you mongrel," Philia said disgustedly as she threw it on his desk just as Rain grabbed his work away to clear a spot.

"Rude!" Kirito managed before launching into the sustenance. His famished body desperate for the nutrients contained within. He was halfway through without even registering what he was eating. He only knew that it was good.

"Ugh, no wonder you skipped dinner." Rain said, perusing the form about the dungeon expedition. "And you've already planned so much! That's our captain for you!"

"Eh? Show me, show me!" Philia demanded, crowding in next to her. As the girls went over what he had accomplished, Kirito polished off the meal.

"Ahh, thank you for the meal!" Putting his hands together one more time in supplication, Kirito stood and greeted his girlfriends. Or rather, that was the intention. Mouth drying out, he beheld the spectacle that was them in their night clothes. Skin still gleaming with a freshly washed glimmer. "Ahh…"

"What a nice reaction," Rain giggled. Dropping the papers on the bed, she did a twirl for Kirito. Her blood-red night gown was thin and clung to her curves. Kirito had no idea when she had procured it, but it was his first time seeing it.

"A-And me?" Philia asked nervously.

Kirito's eyes somehow managed to find the room to widen even further. Philia was grabbing the bottom of her frilly pink nightgown. It did not cling as tight, but it was more of a cutesy look, with plenty of lace. While Rain's was tight around her chest, Philia's hung down, showing substantial cleavage.

"Y-You two look fantastic!" Kirito managed. Despite having gone all the way with Asuna, Kirito was having trouble getting his heart under control. The tension and mood in the room was driving his senses wild. "T-Thank you for the food. I'm sorry I missed all of your stories. Would you mind telling me?"

As Kirito sat back down on his desk chair, the girls sat side-by-side on his bed.

"Not much to say," Rain started the tale. "Basically, we sucked and Strea saved our bacon."

"It started with a bloody hive. We couldn't break through the ranks, so Strea charged it. She was fantastic. After that well…"

"That damned gargoyle…" Rain muttered. "It was some sort of irregular."

"A… gargoyle?" Kirito blinked at the unfamiliar monster. "What floor is that from?"

"Hell if I know!" Stamping a foot, Rain began swearing under her breath in Russian. After so long with her, it wasn't much of a disguise. Sharing a look with Philia, they giggled at Rain's pointless language swap.

"It beat us and escaped." Philia summarized. "As such…"

"We didn't level up," Rain finished. "I-I'm sorry to have let you down."

"Are you kidding? You have no need to apology. I was thinking about it, and we should use this upcoming expedition to try and increase our familia's levels. If we use our time well in the lower floors, I think we can get all of the current level three's to four."

"I saw that written down…" Philia murmured. "But isn't that less efficient? The more a person struggles themselves, the greater the benefit."

"Is that what you want? To struggle by yourself?" Kirito asked fiercely, black eyes burning into his two girlfriends. "Personally, I'm sick of it. I have no desire of fighting in that dark dungeon by myself ever again."

"Kirito…" Rain's eyes shone with tears. "Please… let me fight by your side and get stronger!"

"M-Me too of course!"

"Ahh, nothing would make me happier." Propelled out of his chair, Kirito kneeled in front of them, pulling them both into a hug.

It lasted a surprisingly short time before both Philia and Rain pushed him back as they drew away. Before Kirito could question what was wrong, their mouths were on his. First at the same time, and then alternating in short bursts so that they could increase contact. They had no hesitation about the incidental contact between themselves. Their lips and even tongues touched with no stopping or embarrassment.

Kirito, however, was too surprised not to comment on it. "Have you two been kissing without me?"

"W-Why you…" Rain growled, grabbing a fistful of his shirt. "Can't you just be glad that your girlfriends are willing to go this far for you?"

Kirito nodded mutely. "I am. But if it isn't something that you want…"

"Oh, enough!" Philia's temper flared and rather than attack Kirito, she grabbed Rain. Pushing her friend down on the mattress, Philia climbed on top of her and began making out.

Kirito was locked in place, stunned. Mouth agape he only watched as things got more and more heated. Rain was trying to protest her rough treatment, but Philia was incessant. Her continued kissing loosened Rain's lips, allowing their tongues to touch.

Standing at attention, Kirito had no idea what to do with himself. He had no experience to handle this situation.

"P-Philia…" Rain protested.

"Hmm? Should I stop?"

"T-That isn't what I…"

Rain's flushed face with teary eyes as she struggled to catch her breath was one of the cutest yet erotic sights he'd ever seen.

"Hmm, then I'm going to keep going, alright?"

"P-Philia…" Rain panted again.

There was no more room for words as their lips met again. Philia did not stop there. Her hand coursed across Rain's torso and finding her way to Rain's chest. As Philia massaged her, Rain's pants turned to moans.

What is happening… Stunned, Kirito didn't even notice himself moving. He wasn't sure his body had ever been this alive with heat. The desire to touch his girlfriends was no longer a want but a need.

Clambering behind Philia, Kirito breathed in her ear and got an even better view as she pleasured his girlfriend. "Bold of you to assume that I'll let you be the one to take my girlfriend first."

Philia's ministrations paused as Kirito's hand crept up the inside of her thigh, the soft skin giving in as he felt every indentation and muscle in intricate detail. It was incredible how blind he had been before. At level four, every texture was saturated a hundredfold. Silk and satin couldn't come close to the experience of just running a finger across their skin.

"N-No fair, Kirito," Philia protested. "I was just going to—"

Philia's words cut off in a sudden gasp as Kirito found the underwear hidden beneath the nightgown.

With teasing motions, Kirito's fingers wrapped around the fabric, preparing to tear it away. Just as his fingers tensed—

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Kirito was at the door in an instant, flinging it open only far enough to stick his head out. Bell on the other side recoiled away.

"What?"

Bell took another step back. "I umm, I was going to ask during dinner… Would you spar with me?"

Kirito slammed the door.

"I meant starting tomorrow!" Bell's muffled voice came poorly through the well sound-proofed wood.

"Fine! Just go away!" Interruption dealt with, Kirito enjoyed a long, pleasurable night with Rain and Philia.

Bell:

"T-Thank you for agreeing to do this. I am sorry about yesterday. Now that I'm level four, I want you to go all out."

"All out?"

"Yes!" Bell nodded, eyes bright. He had slept poorly, thinking about this chance. It would be his first chance since the expedition to the deep levels to compare himself to Kirito. To see how much he had closed the gap.

"Fine," Kirito muttered drawing a wooden practice sword. His eyes had a dead quality about them. It reminded Bell of stories of adventurers captured by a siren's song. The monsters could apparently suck away a person's vitality.

How is he going to approach? That slow gait leaves him open… Eager to learn and improve, Bell watched every aspect intently.

Kirito's pace quickly ticked Bell off however. The boy needed to go back to sleep.

That was why Bell missed the moment Kirito's foot shifted slightly. Instead of taking a step, he kicked a loose pebble. The rock flew at Bell with incredible momentum.

Raising his arm, the pebble bruised the skin of his forearm. Stumbling back, Bell raised a sloppy guard against Kirito's blade which was now descending for Bell's head—the gap between them closed in an instant.

An awful shock ran through Bell's body as their weapons made contact. Kirito's strength was in a tier above his own. Before Bell could recover, Kirito's boot took him in the stomach.

Lungs emptied of air, Bell flew backwards and struck the courtyard wall hard. Rebounding off the reinforced brick wall, the entire house shook from the impact. Body momentarily going limp, Bell laid there, eyes glazed as Kirito walked away.

"Our bout is over. I have work to do."

"No… Wait…" Gasping out the words, Bell pulled himself up. But even as he staggered for the sparring circle, Kirito was gone back into the home. Various girls were poking their heads out to see what had happened but all of them quickly retreated.

Less than a minute after the sparring was supposed to start, Bell found himself alone again. "Damn it!" Swearing, Bell threw the wooden knife against the ground. On the verge of running into the house after him, Bell realized something.

Kirito had been going all-out. There was no babying, but also no help. Bell had been able to follow the motions, even if he couldn't keep up yet.

"You see me as a threat, do you?" Smirking, Bell dove into mental training as he shadow-boxed with the imaginary image of Kirito that he created in his mind.

As Bell's skills improved hour by hour, their leader labored away at keeping the laborious company known as Hestia Familia afloat.

Lyu:

"W-Why is Ais here?"

Just as Lyu had been about to relax on the familia couch with a cup of tea in the presence of Astraea and Lyra, an unexpected trio had arrived. That trio being the familia captain, co-captain, and the ostracized Loki member.

"I invited her of course!" Alise spoke proudly.

It was just like her. Only a complete airhead would do something typically taboo among families as if it was no big deal.

"On my behalf," Astraea clarified. "Alise, Kaguya, and I talked, Ais. Do you understand why we invited you here today?"

I don't know! Lyu complained internally. Except maybe… could it be?

Ais as well looked conflicted, her eyes scanning the room as if preparing for an attack. With her hands clasped together, she looked like a scared, young girl. The veteran adventurer was not present today.

Astraea spoke plainly. "Ais Wallenstein. You are a female adventurer who has faced injustice and suffered for it. If you would like to strive to find justice with the girls here, there is a spot in my familia available for you."

Ais lowered her head. Her face was scrunched up with emotion. No one would call this girl the doll princess. Lyu could only imagine what was going through her head. The very offer seemed to have caused her incredible pain.

"I… I don't want to leave Loki familia."

"I see…" Astraea started to answer.

"However! I-I don't belong there anymore… They hate me…"

Tears began to fall from her eyes in a quick drizzle. It was a veritable flood of emotion that had emerged from the girl whose walls were cracked open.

I wish I could touch her… Lyu's hand started to reach out. It feel limp in midair, unable to close the distance. She knew that the touch of the human's skin would cause her instinctual aversion to rear its head.

Thankfully, Alise and Kaguya did not have the same problems. Each girl took a side, throwing an arm over her shoulder and waist.

When the tears finally faded to sniffles, Astraea spoke once more. "Should I talk to Loki? I know that she cares deeply for you."

"Riveria practically raised me," Ais said hoarsely. "I was friends with them for so long… So why? Why can you all forgive me and they can't?"

"I can only speak for us," Alise said soothingly, rubbing Ais' back. "But all of us here have made mistakes and suffered pains before. Besides, we knew what we were risking."

"Agreed," Kaguya sniffed, doing her best to sound haughty despite the empathy shining in her wet eyes. "And it's awfully cocky of you to assume that you're powerful enough to affect the entire expedition's outcome."

Ais hiccupped. "I want to stay but… they don't want me. I-I didn't mean for it to happen!"

"We know," Alise assured Ais, pulling her in tighter. "Whatever you decide… We will be here for you."

Is she… really going to join us? Lyu took a moment to consider the possibility and found no problem with it. After everyone they had lost, it would be nice to start to grow again. Ais was dependable and had gone on adventures with them already.

"One other thing, Lyu, Kaguya," Astraea called out once Ais had excused herself to think. "I volunteered the two of you to train Hestia's boys."

"H-Huh?" Lyu protested her cheeks turning crimson. With her long elven ears vibrating, she accosted her goddess. "And what possessed you to do that?"

"Did I make a mistake?" Astraea asked with feigned innocence.

Gods are the worst when they do this stuff… Grinding her teeth, Lyu gave in. "Whatever. If you promised then it is fine. Why are both Kaguya and I training them though?"

"Oh, you misunderstand. You'll be training Bell, Lyu. Kaguya will be training Kirito."

"Eh? L-Like one-on-one?"

"Not like. Exactly one-on-one. I think this will be a good chance for you girls too."

"Yeah," Lyra snorted. "A good chance to let a boy in your pants!"

"Lady Astraea, could I talk to you for a moment?"

"M-Me too!" Lyu added on to Kaguya's statement.

"Very well. But you two should know that whatever we discuss is unlikely to be secret from the other two for very long."

"You have a point. Very well then, I will keep it short. While I appreciate the sentiment, and I do think the boy has potential, there is no future where we work."

"Does it always have to be about the future?" Astraea answered calmly.

"Huh?"

In the face of Kaguya's bewilderment, their goddess took a sip of tea. "That boy is trying to build a future but still manages to live in the present. I want you to see that."

"You think…? No, I will go and figure it out for myself." With a dramatic turn, Kaguya's long black hair flung through the air. It was a sight beautiful enough to set both men and women's hearts aflutter.

Turning to their goddess in confusion, Lyu asked a hesitant follow-up. "Is that… my lesson as well?"

"Not at all."

"HUH!?"

As Lyu gaped in shock, the still present leader and Lyra burst into peals of laughter. Growing embarrassed she stamped her foot but was powerless to stop the mockery.

"You, Lyu. I want you to have fun."

"Have… fun?" What is she talking about? "I'm there to seriously train him. It would be disrespectful to both my student and I if I started joking around."

"Joking around," Lyra quoted. "Don't think I've ever heard those words come from Lyu's mouth before."

"Yeah, I think this will be a great experience for her!"

Receiving her familia's unhelpful comments, Lyu turned back to Astraea with pleading eyes—silently begging for an explanation.

Astraea relented with a sigh. "Lyu. When is the last time you had fun?"

"Umm… I enjoy spending time with my familia…"

"But you are always slightly on edge," Astraea clarified. "You can never truly let yourself live in the moment. Always worried you will touch someone besides Alise or embarrass yourself and get teased."

"Y-Yes." Lyu endured the tirade, firmly ignoring Lyra's mirthful expression.

"Bell is not your familia captain, he is not someone you have to worry about reacting poorly when touching. I hope you manage to let your guard down a bit and enjoy teaching him, that's all."

"That… sounds doable." Confidence restored; Lyu nodded once sharply. Then, following in Kaguya's footsteps, she spun on her heel and strode purposefully through the door.