Zongman: The wrong person on the ground, double Shenwei at the beginning

Even Loki's Familia wouldn't establish a branch in such a place. After all, being constantly targeted by the dark factions is annoying, and there's always the risk of casualties.

But after what has happened these past few days, those dark factions are probably turning their backs on Rhodes and running away at the mere sight of him, feeling utterly jinxed.

Moreover, since they are his people, they must all be of demi-human blood, so they are not afraid of assassination at all.

"I understand, but if we buy a lot, the clan's funds might not be enough~"

"Hmm... let's wait and see, I'll figure something out later."

The group walked noisily toward the bountiful hostess. After consulting with Rhodes, Shimomura Izumi immediately flew to the "470" Star Mansion to inform the remaining personnel. Suzuki Jun was also sent by Rhodes to pick up Lily and have a get-together.

Anya forcefully pulled back the still somewhat shy Koroi, while Lunova listened to Ryu and Kaguya bickering beside her and smiled slightly.

A new home?

A bountiful mistress.

Since the Court of Stars was closer, the goddess Astraea had already prepared a feast for the girls here.

The girls noticed Rod's relaxed expression and secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then curiously looked at the new face.

"These are the two newcomers Koizumi was talking about. Welcome, welcome!"

"Wow, it feels really powerful, even stronger than Norin!"

Why compare me to this person...?

"I've wanted to complain for so long! There's just no cat-person girls in the Familia. Now we finally have one! Hooray!"

"Idiot, everyone said they have other plans!"

"Oh...what a pity, I quite like them."

"Ignore those guys, come sit down and enjoy the food with us!"

Iska smiled gently, her eyes narrowed, and greeted the two bewildered individuals.

The two women were uneasy on their way here, and even mentally prepared themselves to be judged and questioned by the girls from the Justice Clan.

After all, they weren't exactly good people before.

As a result, the girls not only didn't ask them anything, but also treated them warmly.

"Um, is it really okay for people like us to hang out with you guys?"

"Yeah, actually, it's also okay for a cat to sit at the doorway and eat while holding a plate, meow..."

Astraea smiled gently, stood up, and led the two girls to a chair to sit down.

“I can see that you are all kind children, and now that Rhodes has acknowledged you, there is no need to be confused. Feel free to make friends with everyone.”

"Although I am not your chief god, you are always welcome to confide in me if you have anything to say~"

The two girls were so moved by the goddess of justice's gentleness that they almost cried.

"Oh, I've heard of you before, but this is probably the first time we've met!"

The girl, dressed in a waitress uniform, swayed her light gray hair, which was piled up, and placed the wine glasses on the table one by one, looking at Rod with curious, clear eyes.

"My name is Seele~"

Rod paused for a moment as he picked up the knife and fork, then smiled at her.

“I heard Anya say that you have always taken good care of her.”

Seele lowered her head shyly.

"Actually, no..."

“I’ve been busy distributing food lately, so I’ve neglected her a bit.”

Alexie paused for a moment, then looked at the girl with admiration and gave her a thumbs up.

"Distributing food on the streets during such a dangerous time? Hmm, you are undoubtedly beautiful and righteous!"

"Hehe, does this mean they've been recognized by the Familia of Justice?"

"Since I've already said that, could you give me a free glass of fruit wine?"

"Um, this..."

Despite being teased a little by Alexie, Seele still handed her a glass of wine.

"We are able to enjoy life because of your hard work. A toast to you is just a small token of our gratitude."

"Ah... I was just joking, but since you said so, I'll gratefully accept it—"

Alexandra reached out and took the glass, her smile suddenly fading unnaturally.

When my fingers accidentally touched the other person, they started to spasm as if an electric current was flowing through them.

"...What's wrong?"

Seele tilted her head in confusion.

Staring intently into those pale gray pupils, the same color as her hair, that seemed to absorb everything, Alexie unconsciously swallowed.

"—Are you really human?"

Upon hearing this, the group, who had been laughing and joking, immediately fell silent, their surprised eyes shifting back and forth between Alexie and Seele.

Astraea lowered her eyes, lost in thought.

Rod continued cutting the steak in front of him, a faint smile still on his face.

Lyra frowned and stared at Seele rudely, but couldn't figure it out.

Alexandra's intuition has never been wrong, but if that waiter really had something going on, shouldn't the goddess Astraea have been able to see through it...?

Alexie regretted it as soon as she said it.

I don't even know why I said that.

I just blurted out the words that flashed through my mind without thinking.

Xier was stunned.

Her red lips parted slightly, and her beautiful eyes widened.

Then...

"...Hehe, ahahahahaha! This is the first time I've ever been told that!"

The girl's laughter broke the unbelievable silence.

She burst into laughter as if it were utterly ridiculous, and carefully wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes to avoid spilling the drink.

Do I look like some kind of monster?

Upon seeing the other person tilting their head, a surprised Alexandra immediately showed an embarrassed expression.

To actually confront a kind and lovely waitress and ask her a question like "Are you even human?" is a serious dereliction of duty for a righteous clan.

"Ah... I'm sorry, I said something strange."

Alexie put her strange intuition aside and gave a wry smile.

"But I'm not quite sure why I said that, it just suddenly came to mind, I'm really sorry."

Seeing that their leader seemed to have admitted her mistake, the girls started teasing her without any restraint.

"Alicie is such an idiot who doesn't know how to read the room!"

"Well, Alexie is just a little disobedient sometimes..."

"Stop protecting her, Ryu."

Seele smiled and waved to everyone before heading backstage to continue her work.

Rhodes glanced at her retreating figure but didn't say anything more.

The topic seemed to have been dropped just like that.

"Brother Rod~"

As soon as Lily rushed in, she cheered and jumped into Rod's arms.

Rhodes smiled and ruffled her hair, transferring his demi-human power to her as he did so.

Lily sensed the information in her mind and stared wide-eyed in surprise.

Rod winked, signaling her to keep quiet.

"Go ahead, everyone misses you too."

Lily quickly greeted the girls and introduced herself to the newcomers.

Then she couldn't wait to ask Alexandra for advice on management and command skills, and also poured out her grievances.

"Commander Tsubaki is practically a hands-off manager these days. May I ask how Alicia usually behaves?"

"Phew, you've come to the right person! It's all about momentum! With momentum, anything is possible!"

"...ha?"

Lily's expectant smile gradually faded. In the end, Lyra couldn't stand it anymore and kicked the smug Alexie away. She then sat down next to Lily and earnestly shared her experience with her.

The girls' cheerful atmosphere also infected the originally reserved Lunova and Chloe.

Having fought a fierce battle, they were starving and no longer cared about being reserved. They ate and drank heartily, occasionally letting out satisfied sounds.

Anya naturally joined in, bickering with Chloe while vying for the grilled meat with her.

From the kitchen came Mia's furious roar, which exuded a terrifying aura.

"Hey, you over there, who told you to slack off! Now that you're back from your errands, get back to work!"

"Oh no! Mom! Mom! Please let the cat explain!"

"sorry!"

"Waaah, off to work, meow!"

The three girls stood up abruptly as if by reflex, their faces pale, their bodies trembling, and their expressions filled with fear as they prepared to go to work.

Maru looked up in confusion at the dejected Lunova and Chloe.

"It's one thing for Anya, but why do you two also look like you've had a really bad day?"

"Forehead....."

"Eh?"

Lunova and Chloe exchanged a glance, then clapped their hands in a moment of realization.

"That's right!"

"You silly cat, why did you stand up?"

"You...you're also thinking of yourself as a waiter, meow?"

So the two girls, feeling conflicted, sat back down, ignoring Anya's pleading look.

Anya took a deep breath and walked into the kitchen with a look of resignation, as if she were stepping into hell.

A loud bang was heard.

After a long while, staring at the still steaming large bag, Anya came out to work with tears in her eyes, complaining bitterly.

Lunova quickly ate a bite of the delicious noodles, still feeling lingering fear.

"The owner of this restaurant cooks really well, but has a scary temper..."

Chloe held the fruit wine in both hands and sipped it slowly, gloating.

"Choosing the right employer is really important, meow. It seems cats have a better eye after all!"

"As a workplace, this place is absolutely terrible!"

"Yeah, yeah, they're practically slaves. If they were cats, they probably wouldn't be able to stand it and would run away immediately, meow."

Listening to Lunova and Chloe muttering their complaints together, Rhodes' expression became somewhat subtle.