What is justice?
The moment he heard that question, Cid understood why Kaguya had called it a pain.
It's normal to feel lost about your path. Every time you interrogate your heart and find an answer, you become more resolute.
But the war with Evilus had just ended. They still had to calm the civilians after the battle—and before long, they'd have to fight another major clash.
Ryuu shouldn't be wavering at a time like this.
Even so, Cid didn't find her troublesome.
If we're talking about "not doing the right thing at the critical moment," the guy currently lying in bed had no right to criticize anyone.
"Did someone say something to you? You look really lost."
Cid genuinely didn't understand.
Even if you can't fully define "justice," you still know what you need to do.
So what exactly was Ryuu stuck on?
"That evil god—the 'greatest evil'—the one you and Aditi helped before… he asked me that question. And he said my justice is filthier than evil."
Ryuu slowly explained what she'd experienced and what she was thinking.
At first, she hadn't cared. Even if he was a god, what he said would only make you angry.
How could a heart that longs for justice be filthier than Evilus?
But that evil god insisted: she helped others because she gained happiness from helping.
Otherwise, he couldn't understand the meaning of helping people endlessly.
"Cid… is my justice really that filthy? And if it isn't—then why does the justice we pursue yield so easily to evil?"
Ryuu didn't dare lift her head. She didn't dare look out the window, either.
Even if the Flame Stones' damage had been reduced, the world outside was still wrecked.
In last night's siege, many adventurers died—let alone ordinary residents.
Even though Orario reinforced five major shelter zones, they still couldn't protect everyone.
Overall casualties that night exceeded five percent of the total population.
It sounded like "one in twenty," but the reality was horrifying.
Facing Evilus, Orario had come within a hair's breadth of collapse.
In the end, it took an unnamed adventurer stepping forward for Orario to avoid losing too disgracefully.
Only "not too disgracefully," though—the casualty numbers hadn't dropped because of it.
From Ryuu's perspective, that was justice being utterly routed.
"Ryuu, then think about it this way. If you did nothing last night—if the entire Astrea Familia did nothing—what would've changed?"
"…The district we guarded would've fallen. Someone else probably would've replaced us, but manpower was already short."
"Exactly. So even if justice doesn't always defeat evil, that doesn't mean justice is meaningless."
"But there were still so many people we couldn't protect."
"Then what prevented you from protecting everyone wasn't a 'heart of justice'—it was a lack of strength, right?"
Ryuu fell silent, thinking.
Cid's head started to ache.
He'd basically never agonized over things like this. He had no idea how to counsel someone properly.
More than that—he didn't even understand why Ryuu was lost in the first place.
"In my eyes, Ryuu, you have a straight and kind heart. If you ask your heart before you act, you'll never stray onto a crooked road. So your justice is absolutely not filthy. And if you can't believe in yourself… then believe in the me who believes in you."
Ryuu lowered her head after hearing that, unable to meet his eyes.
Everyone in the Familia liked coming to Cid for "consultations."
He clearly didn't understand how girls thought, yet he always seemed patient and mature—different from his usual self.
Most importantly, Cid trusted them more than anyone.
"…Can I really trust you, Cid?"
Ryuu wanted to trust him. She wanted to use trusting him as a way to trust herself.
"Of course. I never—uh… I never betray someone's trust."
Cid wanted to say he never lied, but he didn't have the face to say that.
"If you're still lost… why not ask Aditi?"
Seeing Ryuu still thinking, Cid offered a suggestion.
On the road of practicing justice, Aditi had gone farther—and stood firmer.
And if it were Aditi, she'd probably drag Ryuu into dancing in the middle of the street.
Cid didn't understand the mechanism, but every time Aditi forced Ryuu into some embarrassing "play," Ryuu's mood improved a lot.
Maybe Ryuu actually liked that sort of humiliation?
Cid had a bold idea—one he didn't dare to try yet.
"Yeah… thank you, Cid."
Ryuu stood to leave, unaware that Cid was mentally slandering her.
She still hadn't figured everything out, but her heart felt lighter than when she'd come in.
The heaviness didn't vanish instantly—it just shifted.
"Cid… if you want me to trust you, then you can't go dying recklessly."
After saying it, Ryuu felt like she'd become even weaker.
"Don't worry. Next time I run into danger, I'll run away."
Cid agreed casually—
still completely unaware of what he'd just promised.
After Ryuu left, Iska entered Cid's room.
"You really have to come one by one?"
"Everyone's busy. I just finished my work too."
Iska stopped by the bedside, smiling faintly.
"Cid, weren't you desperate to level up to Lv.3 so you could demand your reward from me?"
"Huh? Why would you say that?"
Cid suddenly felt a bad premonition—like he'd ignored something extremely important.
"Lv.2 surviving a slash from a Lv.7—that's a feat!"
"…"
Cid's face stiffened. He was so angry he wanted to slap Raul's thigh.
How did he forget something that important?!
…
In the center of Orario's Sixth District stood a statue of the elephant god, Ganesha.
The statue was grand and magnificent—except for two flaws.
First: it cost so much that at one point it drained the Familia's entire savings.
Second: the design carried Ganesha's terrible sense of humor—every member of the Ganesha Familia had to enter their territory by passing through the statue's crotch.
Aditi, returning to the Familia grounds after completing a task, blinked in a daze—and bumped into someone.
"Sorry! I didn't hurt you, did I… Sis?"
She hurriedly apologized, only to look up and realize she'd collided with Shakti.
"Aditi, are you tired? Not sleeping all night is rough, but hold on a bit longer—this isn't the time to sleep."
Shakti didn't think too deeply, assuming her little sister was just exhausted.
But as a Lv.3 adventurer, going two or three days without sleep wasn't that big a deal.
With things as they were, Shakti couldn't afford to coddle her sister much.
"No… it's just that I have something I want to ask you for help with."
After hesitating for a long time, Aditi decided to be honest.
She was fifteen this year, while her sister Shakti was sixteen years older.
When it came to life experience, Aditi had always liked going to Shakti for "life consultations."
And what troubled her today was something she'd never encountered before.
It was the kind of thing she could only ask Shakti.
"What is it?"
"…Sis, have you ever been in love?"
....
My Patreon : patreon/RuneA
If you want to read the novel in advance, you can subscribe for early access. I also have many more novels in my collection that you might be interested in
I upload ten novels a day, with 3 to 4 chapters per title depending on the length. If you're following a particular series, please wait your turn a little
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it