Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

As Ryu sensed that her expression was becoming a little strange, she removed her hood and mask.

"Thank you for saving me. Please allow me to express my gratitude."

Seeing the surprise in the other person's eyes, Ryu sincerely thanked her, and then Alexie Rofer broke into a smile.

"You look troubled, you must be having some problems. If you don't mind, you can tell me about it."

She greeted Ryu with a friendly smile and said those words.

She must be like that, treating everyone equally. This is what Ryu thought as she was somewhat forcefully led from the back alley to the square.

The two sat by the fountain where water splashed everywhere. Ryuichi came to his senses and realized that he had already poured out his troubles about always being unable to refuse others.

"Oh... I've heard about the habits of elves, but I didn't realize it was such a big problem for some people."

It feels so incredible.

At this moment, she had already opened her heart to this girl she had just met.

Liu didn't know what words could describe this feeling.

While listening and responding appropriately, Alexie quickly leaned closer to Ryuichi as soon as he finished speaking.

"In that case, just practice more! Practice letting people shake your hand without shaking them off!"

"Varied……"

Her suggestion to laugh off her current regrets left Ryu completely bewildered.

"Let's try it right now! Can I borrow your hand?"

"Please, please wait a moment, I...!"

"I'll soon be a Level 3 adventurer! No matter how much you hit me, I won't feel a thing! Don't worry, come on!"

Seeing that Alicia was trying to hold her hand, Ryu was afraid that she would reject her and wanted to stay away from her.

But she was grabbed by a girl who claimed to be a high-ranking adventurer trainee—who held her hand tightly.

"────"

Their fingers intertwined.

They continued to hold hands.

Ryu's hand showed no sign of trying to knock away Alisha's hand.

The hand held by the girl could feel her body temperature.

"What? Nothing's wrong at all. You made me worry for nothing."

"No, how could this be..."

His sky-blue eyes were fixed on the hand being held.

She couldn't understand what was happening.

Alexie gazed at Ryu's astonished profile, and slowly a smile spread across her face.

"Hey, would you like to join our [Family]?"

Then she continued to hold Ryu's hand and extended an invitation to Ryu.

“Eh…”

"I like you! Although you're a bit stubborn, you're an elf who's willing to admit your mistakes. More importantly, you must really hate improper behavior, just like us!"

“B-But, I…”

"I won't force you! But it would be nice to just come and visit!"

As Alyssa stood up from the fountain, Ryu, who was holding her hand, naturally followed suit.

Ryu couldn't shake her hand away.

As if she had found something incredibly precious, she couldn't bear to let go.

"Oh, right, I haven't asked your name yet! Hey, can you tell me?"

"...Lyu. Liu, Liang..."

After being pulled by the hand, Ryu answered in a flustered and disoriented manner...

The red-haired girl turned around, a happy smile on her face.

"What? Your name is Ryu? That's hard to pronounce. From today onwards, I'll call you Rion!"

When she noticed that the girl had changed her address from "you, miss" to "you"—she felt a sense of warmth rising within her, a feeling that the girl had drawn closer to her.

"Goddess Astraea, I'm back!"

Led by Alyssa, Ryu arrived at a mansion located in the southwest of the city.

Walking along the same route as on a certain map, Liu had a premonition, and when she passed through the entrance hall, she indeed saw a goddess with blue eyes sitting in a chair knitting.

"You're back, Alexandra. Oh, she is... Heh, I see. So that's how things turned out."

Seeing the goddess Astraea, with her long, walnut-colored hair swaying and a joyful smile, made Ryu feel a little embarrassed, and her cheeks seemed to flush—that was the feeling.

As a result, he met this kind-hearted goddess again, and Ryu bowed in response and as an apology.

"Captain, who is this elf lady?"

"You've picked someone up like a stray dog ​​again!"

"I suggest you stop acting like a good girl when you first meet someone, Kaguya! Leon is a formal candidate for new member, Lyra!"

Several girls of other races were relaxing on the long sofas in the hall, each in a different posture.

After answering her fellow members from several factions, Alexandra led Ryu to the center of the room and began her introduction:

"Rion! This is the headquarters of our [Astraea Familia]! We have ten members, and our chief deity is, of course, the goddess Astraea, who lives right here!"

Incidentally, I'm the leader! Alexie added smugly.

She also told Liu that they were a newly established faction that had only been around for a short time.

"In addition to our activities as an exploration-based faction, we also strive to maintain urban safety."

"Maintaining order...? Is that under orders from the management (guild)?"

"No! We are acting in accordance with our sense of justice!"

"justice?"

When asked, Ryu replied, "That's right." Alexie nodded.

"We are under the name of the supreme goddess (Goddess Astraea), who governs justice and order, to correct the world's errors! To extinguish all injustice! Our justice is Goddess Astraea, and our respective ideals! As long as Goddess Astraea is here, our justice will never lose its way!"

Alexie proudly recounted their beliefs and their sense of justice.

In a sense, these words sounded somewhat blind to Ryu, an outsider.

If the chief god (Astraea) were to use them arbitrarily, as is commonly understood by the gods, they would quickly become comical puppets.

However, at the same time, she was also certain that such a thing would not happen.

She still gazed tenderly at Alicia, the other members of the group, and Ryu's Astraea, neither betraying their trust nor abandoning them. Undoubtedly, she was a noble being who loved children more than anyone else.

The complete trust that Alexandra and others placed in her was what distinguished Astraea from other gods.

"Of course, justice will conflict with the justice of others! It's only natural that others have their own ideals!"

There are as many ideals as there are people, and as many wills to see things through to the end.

The girl told her that the destiny of justice is to clash with others.

"—However, what's running rampant in Orario right now is definitely not justice!!"

At this point, Alexie asserted firmly.

"Rion, what do you think of Orario now? Are the people on the street smiling?"

"...Everyone is afraid of something, like a silted-up river."

"That's right! Orario is currently in a state of chaos! Five years have passed since the famous Familia of Zeus and Hera were defeated by the 'Black Dragon,' yet evil forces still run rampant in the city!"

The Zeus and Hera factions failed in their challenge to the "Three Adventurers' Request".

Even Ryu, who was in the Elf Village, had heard about the incident. And Alexie told her that the incident had resulted in a chaotic situation, led by the Dark Faction, that was about to engulf all of Orario.

"Loki and Freya's factions go without saying, and recently Ganesha's faction has also been making its efforts! Hephaestus's blacksmith group is too! But, this is still not enough!"

"..."

"We must rise up and act! Then we will put an end to this dark period!"

They must quell the chaos in Orario with their own hands.

The girl with her arms outstretched was speaking from the heart.

"Orario is the 'center of the world,' and if this place becomes unstable, the consequences will affect the entire Nether. Orario doesn't need Chaos!"

"Alicie..."

"What Orario needs now is proper order and the smiles of its people!"

So dazzling.

A single-minded will and belief, and Alexandra's eyes that radiate glory.

The girl's resolute expression seemed to shake Ryu's heart and deeply attracted her.

"...For this reason, we need partners. We need comrades who share our ideals."

Alexie, who had been passionately talking about her ideals, now spoke calmly and stared intently at Ryu.

Under her gaze, Ryu closed her eyes as the goddess and her fellow members stared at her.

What Ryu has always wanted is a friend with an equal stance.

I want companions with whom I can respect each other.

She came to Orario because she hoped to obtain something she could not get in the Elven land.

But what about now?

What is she thinking right now?

When Ryu hears the foreign girl, who is holding his hand for the first time, pouring out her heart, what is Ryu's heart asking of her?

She recalled.

Recalling the time when I was almost bullied by thugs, or the righteous indignation that filled my chest at that time.

And the figure of the girl who rescued him.

The smile of the young girl (Alicia) and the compassion of the goddess (Asteria) returned to her closed eyes.

"I also……"

Ryu opened her eyes and looked back at Alicia's green eyes.

"Can I also shoulder the justice you speak of...?"

"—Of course! Welcome to the team, Leon!"

Alexandra smiled broadly.

The other members cheered, and Astraea smiled broadly.

"Thank you for joining our [Familia], Ryu Rion."

"No... I have to thank you, and Alicia. You showed me the way when I was lost and standing there in confusion..."

Ryu took off her clothes in another room, turned her back to Astraea, and said this to express her gratitude.

Soon after, having her [ability stats] inscribed, she rightfully became a member of the goddess's harem and received the faction's emblem.

It is a symbol of the sword and wings of justice.

"Alright, let's hold the induction ceremony for our new member! Everyone, gather around!"

Despite a member trying to pat a new colleague on the shoulder and being accidentally thrown aside by Ryu, causing a commotion, Alexie and the others ended up forming a circle in the center of the hall.

Noin, Niz, Laila, Aste, Leyana, Kaguya, Celty, Iska, Maru.

Many of the girls were around the same age as Alexandra.