After parting ways with Freya, Elise began making her way back to the Familia alone.
However, she still found something rather strange.
The mysterious smile Freya showed before leaving seemed almost like she was taking pleasure in someone else's misfortune... what exactly did that mean?
Although Elise was puzzled, she clearly had no time to dwell on it. Both Ishtar and Freya had already been dealt with, and now it was time to return to the Familia.
Knock knock knock!
As the sound of knocking echoed out, movement quickly came from inside the house.
The moment the door opened, the ones greeting Elise were not just Astraea, but also Alise, Kaguya, and Lyra.
Everyone in the Familia was here.
"Captain, are you alright? Were you hurt anywhere?"
The instant Alise saw Elise return, she immediately rushed over and hugged her while checking her condition.
"Don't ever do something like this again. If you died, we wouldn't even be able to collect your body!"
Although Kaguya and Lyra expressed themselves differently, the concern on their faces was unmistakable.
"Judging from how unharmed you look, along with the divine return earlier, I assume it succeeded?"
"I still can't believe you actually managed to send a god back to Heaven..."
Meanwhile, Astraea stood in the distance, smiling as she watched the scene.
The concern and affection shared between Familia members truly formed a beautiful sight, especially since they were all pure young maidens.
Clap clap!
Astraea clapped her hands twice, drawing everyone's attention toward her.
"Alright, today's matters end here. Everyone should go to bed early tonight, and for the time being, don't enter the Dungeon either. Orario will likely experience major unrest soon, so we need to prepare for it as well."
"And Elise, come with me for a moment. There are some things I need to discuss with you..."
After speaking, the goddess left the living room with a smile and headed toward her room.
"Lady Astraea is right. Let's rest early tonight. We can ask questions tomorrow. It's probably impossible for us to explore the Dungeon anytime soon anyway."
"After all, the return of a god is a major event. Orario is definitely going to fall into chaos."
"Then I'll go see Lady Astraea first!"
With that, Elise also left the living room, leaving only the remaining three staring at each other.
"Say..." After a long silence, Lyra was the first to speak. "Isn't the gap between us and her even bigger than we imagined?"
"It feels like the captain is incredibly far away from us... I mean emotionally."
"To be honest, I've been thinking the same thing." Kaguya frowned. "Even though we're members of the same Familia, she still seems to deliberately keep her distance from us... is she worried about something?"
"Really? I think the captain is pretty approachable. During training, didn't we all punch each other in the face already?" That was Alise, who clearly did not understand the situation.
"Nobody asked you, you violent woman!"
Compared to the sharp-minded Kaguya, Alise was far more carefree and innocent.
"It's strength... the difference in strength between us and her is simply too great!" Kaguya practically gritted out those words.
Back in the Far East, Kaguya had been born into nobility, so compared to Alise and Lyra, she understood class differences far more clearly.
In the Far East, marriages had to be between families of equal standing. If the difference in status was too large, it would only lead to tragedy.
In Orario, those class differences were even more obvious.
The first was strength.
Every time an adventurer's Level increased, their fame would rise dramatically, and their influence within Orario would grow accordingly.
Even within the major Familia, members were divided into ordinary members and core members. Though they were all companions, their status within the Familia was completely different.
And right now, while the Astraea Familia had excellent relationships among its members, Kaguya still felt something subtle lingering beneath the surface.
Because she felt that aside from Elise being a core member, everyone else was merely ordinary members.
And the root of it all returned to the same issue mentioned earlier...
The difference in strength.
As long as Alise, Kaguya, Lyra, and even any future members who joined the Familia remained separated from Elise by this overwhelming gap in power, the "distance" between them would never truly close.
"We need to narrow the gap between our strength and hers! Otherwise, our relationship with her will forever remain like this..."
Kaguya glanced at the two beside her before letting out a sigh.
"For a very long time from now on, I plan to seriously focus on improving my strength... constantly being protected behind her back really irritates me!"
"Just like what happened today, I don't want to remain someone who understands nothing. I want to stand beside her and face difficulties together. What about you two?"
"Now that you mention it, that's true... the captain has protected me way too many times too!" Alise sighed emotionally before nodding in agreement with Kaguya's idea. "If you want to become stronger, then I'll go with you. Walking that path alone would be far too lonely."
"Hey, hey! My talent isn't on the same level as you two!" Lyra pouted in dissatisfaction. "But count me in too! If my strength isn't enough, then I'll make up for it with my brains!"
"At the very least, it'll help close the gap a little."
"Hahaha! In that case, our Beautiful Girls Working Hard Alliance has officially been founded today! From now on, let's all work hard together and become stronger!" Alise excitedly raised her hand.
The response she received, however, was the same look one would give an idiot.
"Change the name! That's way too stupid!"
"Then how about the Beautiful Girls Support Society?"
"That name isn't any better! Can't you come up with something normal for once?"
Thus, amid playful arguing and laughter, the three returned to their rooms.
Although Astraea had told them to sleep early, none of them would probably manage it.
Tonight, they were definitely going to suffer from insomnia.
...
Astraea's room.
Compared to the luxurious living room, this place appeared rather plain. There were no especially valuable decorations, and it hardly looked like a woman's room at all.
But this also reflected Astraea's frugal nature. No matter how much valis her Familia possessed, she would never spend excessively.
"Elise, have a seat."
Astraea set down two chairs and beckoned toward Elise.
For some reason, this scene always reminded Elise of something strange, as though something bad was about to happen.
After waiting for Elise to sit down, Astraea's gaze suddenly sharpened.
"Shouldn't you explain where the thing on your face came from?" Astraea raised a finger and pointed toward Elise's right cheek.
Those words instantly stunned Elise, and she hurriedly touched her face in confusion.
Her face?
What could possibly be on her face that needed explaining...?
Wait!
Could she mean that?
Recalling Freya's final smile, Elise's expression changed drastically.