Although only a few hours had passed in this world, for Charlie, the time he spent in the other world was a solid two years. The long journey, battles, and growth he experienced during that period were clearly etched in his memory.
After everything he had been through, returning to Empyrean Citadel felt slightly strange yet very familiar. However, seeing Astraea's graceful and gentle face immediately erased any sense of separation within him. He felt he had truly come home.
"By the way, Goddess Astraea." Charlie started the conversation after the atmosphere calmed down a bit. "Have you ever thought about rebuilding your Familia?"
"Hm? That's sudden, why are you asking this?" Astraea tilted her head slightly, looking at him with a veil of curiosity.
"Do you want to transfer to my Familia? You should know, just like Hera Familia, my Familia only accepted women in the past. But... if it's you, I'll make a special exception, just like what Hera did for you."
Astraea threw out that tease with a thin smile. She knew very well Charlie's intention wasn't to change Familias. Glancing at Kei sitting beside Charlie with a slightly confused face, she actually already had a guess about what was behind that question.
"You misunderstand, Goddess Astraea. I never once thought of leaving Hera Familia." Charlie waved his hand quickly, firmly denying that guess. "Goddess Hera accepted me when I was nobody, and I won't betray her unless she does something truly harmful to me."
Then, with a gentle motion, he grabbed Kei's shoulder and pulled her slightly closer. Without beating around the bush anymore, he directly stated his intention.
"This is for Kei. I want Goddess Astraea to accept her into your Familia."
"Charlie-san?!"
Kei flinched, staring at him with wide eyes. She was really confused that her name was suddenly mentioned in this context. She didn't know anything about this plan beforehand!
Charlie had been thinking about this for a long time since Gaia told him he could bring Kei to the Danmachi Planar World.
Initially, he indeed intended to let Kei join Hera Familia, just like himself. However, after reconsidering, he felt there was a better option.
Wasn't Astraea in front of him now the more ideal choice?
It should be understood that the role of a Main God in a Familia wasn't just to give the Falna blessing. They were also the ones who updated the Status of members regularly.
Without the presence of a Main God to perform the update ritual, no matter how much Excelia an adventurer collected, their power wouldn't increase. Their growth would stagnate because Excelia would only accumulate without being able to be converted into ability improvements.
The problem was, Hera was currently in Olympia, far from Orario, and practically exiled from the center of the world. Once she returned, she would inevitably face opposition from other gods—she might even be forced back to Heaven (killing her).
If Kei joined Hera Familia, she would have to go back and forth between Orario and Olympia just to update her Status—something very impractical.
So, Charlie changed the option to Astraea.
He had already asked Hera, Aphrodite, and Astraea herself, and concluded that there was no adventurer who could update their Status themselves—except Charlie, who was a unique case because of The Chosen Savior skill.
Kei couldn't imitate that special aspect. Therefore, the presence of a stable and accessible Main God was a necessity.
"Ufufufu... I know. No need to panic."
Charlie's reaction that went straight to the core and was slightly serious made Astraea cover her mouth with the back of her hand while laughing softly.
"Rebuilding Astraea Familia, hmmm... To be honest, I've been considering it for a long time even before meeting you, Charlie."
Her hand gracefully supported her chin. Then, Astraea shifted her gentle gaze to Kei, who had been silent listening, not daring to interrupt the conversation of the "important people" in the room.
With a warm and friendly smile, Astraea asked directly.
"Shirogane Kei. Will you become my child?"
The context of 'child' here wasn't an actual blood relationship, but rather a term for a God or Goddess's followers. This term was used because gods treated their followers like family, which is why their organization was called Familia.
Of course, not all gods treated their followers well. On the contrary, the majority of gods in Orario actually considered their followers only as entertainment to kill eternal boredom. Especially the Evil Gods affiliated with Evilus, who often treated their 'children' as disposable pawns.
"Hurry and answer, Kei. Don't leave Goddess Astraea confused." Charlie urged while patting Kei's back who was still stunned.
"Ah! I-it's truly an honor for me to be part of Goddess Astraea's Familia!"
Immediately standing from her seat, Kei bowed deeply before Astraea. Her back was straight, showing a very formal and disciplined attitude of respect.
"Ho~ so it's true you come from the Far East." Astraea muttered with a slightly nostalgic tone.
That manner of bowing full of etiquette wasn't foreign to her. In the past, her Familia also had a member from the Far East named Gojouno Kaguya. Seeing Kei, her memories of Astraea Familia's glorious past briefly flashed.
Astraea then touched Kei's shoulder, helping her stand upright, then gazed into her eyes with a very serious yet loving look. She began giving her first advice.
"I hope you don't disappoint me, Kei."
"Astraea Familia upholds justice. We must not ignore injustice that happens before our eyes. If you feel there are no good people in this world, become that good person yourself. And remember—those who are tolerant of evil are usually the evil people themselves."
Normally, gods wouldn't accept just anyone into their Familia.
This was clearly seen at the beginning of the Danmachi story, where Bell Cranel was rejected by almost every Familia he approached because he was considered untalented or had no future prospects.
Astraea was no exception; as the Goddess of Justice, she would feel very guilty if she gave Falna to someone who would become evil.
However, Kei was a direct recommendation from Charlie. Astraea decided to place full trust in that man's assessment of the girl's character before her.
"Yes! I definitely won't disappoint you, Goddess Astraea." Kei answered firmly, nodding with conviction.
Her dark blue eyes sparkled with a newly formed determination—a determination not only to become strong, but also to become good, under the guidance of the Goddess of Justice.
"Mm. Alright, let's go to the room. I'll carve Falna on you." Astraea signaled for Kei to follow her.
"Can't we do it here?" Kei asked innocently. She didn't see why they had to move rooms.
Hearing that question, Astraea stopped her steps for a moment. She glanced at Charlie with a blaming look—a look that seemed to say, 'Why didn't you explain this basic process to her?'
Charlie could only smile wryly, shrugging as if innocent. Indeed, he forgot to tell her the technical details.
"If you don't mind Charlie seeing you half-naked, I don't mind doing it here." Astraea teased with a small meaningful smile.
"Eh? N-No! Let's just go to the room!" Kei exclaimed, her face suddenly turning bright red, hot to her ears.
Although her relationship with Charlie had already crossed the 'finish line' like a married couple, that didn't mean she felt comfortable being shown half-naked in front of others—especially in an open living room!
So, with mixed feelings of embarrassment and excitement, Kei followed Astraea to the goddess's private room. Charlie could only watch from the sofa, hearing their footsteps fade away.
After the bedroom door closed, the living room became silent for a moment.
"Disappointed?"
Suddenly Aishia's flat voice broke the silence. She who had been silently observing as a spectator all this time.
"Of course not." Charlie answered while shaking his head, a small smile blooming on his lips. "There's no part of Kei's body I haven't seen. Seeing it again or not now doesn't change anything."