It was the home of the Astraea familia, the Stardust Garden; It was unmistakably one of the most beautiful and peaceful places in the whole of Orario. The mansion stood tall, surrounded by lush green grass on all sides, with flowers blooming all over the place. At a glance, anyone can tell that the garden was well taken care of. The mansion gives off a warm feeling, making you feel safe once you enter it.
And without any doubt, it was one of the safest places in Orario, as it was the home of several first-class and second-class adventurers. And all those adventurers were females.
And those same adventurers were present in the hall, planning their shifts and grouping for their patrol duty.
"So, the next team will be Lyra, Kaguya, and Lion. okay?" Alise asked the blonde elf, who was staring outside the window, looking at the entrance gate, deep in thought, clearly not paying attention. Alise finds it strange, as Ryuu Lion was not the one to behave like that.
I wonder what Arin-san is doing right now? Should I go and secretly meet him?
No, no, I can't do that, it is supposed to be his punishment, though I still find this 'punishment' a little strange.
But if this punishment makes him less prone to jumping into danger alone, then I do not mind even if it's strange.
"Lion?" She again called out, but received no reply, which attracted the attention of the other girls present, some raising their eyebrows at her, since it was something new for them as well.
But still, at least I wanted to go on patrol with him. Spar with him like usual, and teach him how to use a bow, and maybe sing some songs together.
"Lion!" This time, Alise called her out a little louder than before. Ryuu, seemingly surprised, quickly lifted her head in the direction of Alise, sitting on the sofa.
"It's unlike you, being so absent-minded, I mean," Alise said, "Is something the matter, Lion?" She asked a little worriedly.
"No-Not really." Ryuu tried to deny it, but a certain far-eastern woman did not miss the chance to get on Ryuu's nerves.
"Goodness gracious, when did the noble and sophisticated Elf turn into lazybones, I wonder?" She paused, her face getting closer to Ryuu. "Asleep on her legs, no less…" She backed off, hiding her face with the scruff of her kimono. "Why, I could never hope to achieve such a great feat!"
Ryuu could not let her snarky comment go as she bit back. "Kaguya! I assure you, I am wide awake. And lose that snarky tone. It's extremely irritating."
Seeing Kaguya and Ryuu arguing like usual, the other girls simply smiled.
Their argument continued with Kaguya teasing Ryuu, until a certain female prum intervened.
"C'mon, don't tease her like that, Kaguya." She said, walking towards them. "Isn't it obvious? She's distracted because she's fallen head over heels for a sexy dreamboat."
"Wha-? Lyra!" Ryuu's face flushed crimson, and she shouted in embarrassment. "Why must you make everything sound dirty?! I would neve–" Before she could finish speaking, Alise spoke up.
"Ah! That's what it was, Lion! Now you gotta tell me, who is it? And how you fell in love… You'd better give me ALL the details."
Ryuu did not get the chance to say anything, since Lyra again spoke up. "Who else? It's Arin, and seeing his behaviour, he also seems to be smitten with our little Lion." Her words hit Ryuu like a thousand magic spells.
"L-Lyra! Arin-san and I are n–" Again, Ryuu was interrupted, this time by Kaguya.
"Oh my, Lion. I never knew you had such poor taste in men," said Kaguya. There was slight bitterness in her words; she remembered how every time she tried to make fun of Arin, he would turn the tables on her.
But hearing her words, Ryuu, who was fumbling with her words, got serious and looked straight at Kaguya.
"What do you mean by that, Kaguya? Arin-san is a human worthy of respect, and I won't let anyone mock him like that, even if it's you." There was no hesitation in her words, as she stared right at Kaguya in a challenging glare.
"Oh? Are you saying I am wrong?"
"Yes! That's exactly what I am saying. Now take it back."
Seeing things getting heated up, Alsie decided to intervene. Clapping her hands.
"Both of you, calm down, there is no point in arguing like that, besides, we are getting late for our shift, now everyone moves out!" she said and turned back towards Kaguya and Ryuu.
"Now, I wanted to say that I am changing the team structure, but…"
Ryuu, understanding Alsie's position, spoke up. "It's fine, Alise, I will go on my own," Ryuu said and walked away.
Alise saw her figure disappear behind the door and looked at Kaguya. "You've gone too far this time, Kaguya."
Kaguya merely shrugged. "If that helps in her understanding her own heart better, then I think it was worth it."
Hearing her words, Alise grinned, "He-hem, I knew it! no matter how much both of you argue, you still care about Lion a great deal."
"You are getting the wrong idea. I just found it annoying and frustrating that she hasn't realized her own feelings. The world is not kind enough to wait for her to conclude her feelings." The more Kaguya spoke, the more bitterness her words exuded; her eyes took on a low light, like remembering a painful memory.
Alise, realizing that, used her natural cheerfulness to poke fun at her. "Hehe, if Arin hears you now, He will definitely call you a pessimistic woman again,"
Hearing his name, Kaguya scrunched up her nose in disgust. "Captain, please don't mention his name like that in my presence again. He is just as much of a handful as Lion, no, he is even more handful and annoying. Ugh… I need to cleanse my thoughts. I am going to patrol by myself as well, Captain."
After that, Kaguya left the half as well. Alise just stood there staring at the door and released a sigh. "All of them are so handful, but it can't be helped, I guess. Not everyone is perfect like me."
She started to walk away to complete her shift as well.
On the other hand, Ryuu was walking through the streets of Orario, her mind still thinking about the thing Lyra said.
*It's Arin, and seeing his behaviour, he also seems to be smitten with our little Lion.*
There is no way that's true. Arin-san is an amazing person, and he has a lot of prospective partners. First, there is Kenki, then Andromeda, and even La-Miss Riveria as well. While it might be difficult for Miss Riveria and Arin-san to be in a relationship, since those fanatic elves will try to stir up trouble, But the possibility is there. So why would he be interested in me?
Yes, Lyra must have misunderstood it.
But if Arin-san does not L-L-Love me like that, then what about myself?
Do I L-Lo-Lov-admire him?
She thought, her cheeks taking on a red hue, as she kept walking, she remembers Arin promising her that he would protect Ryuu familia members from harm, under that crystal sky, as her comrade talked about death. How he reprimanded them for thinking of death so easily, when she herself could do nothing and freeze at that moment.
She remembered how He was always there to support her when she struggled to find her justice. A justice that even now she did not know.
She remembered all those moments she and Arin spent together, sometimes singing and teaching each other songs, sometimes sparing, sometimes Ryuu teaching Arin how to use a bow, sometimes conversing about their life events, and sometimes just being there in complete silence. For Ryuu, those were comforting times, times when she could feel herself being free of any burden and just living a peaceful life.
And she thought about how much she misses his presence now, even though it's only been 3 days since they last met.
But is that Lo-Admiration?
She asked herself, but did not receive an answer.
"Lion!" She heard her name being called, and the next moment, a girl about her age gave her a bear hug.
"Wha! Ardee?!" She called out the girl.
"Yes. It's the level 4 of the Ganesha familia, Ardee!" Said Ardee in an energetic tone.
"Why do you always introduce yourself like that?" Ryuu got out of her grasp and asked.
"It's fun!" Ardee beamed and replied. "But what happened, Lion? You seem deep in thought."
Ryuu hesitated to share her problem, but after a slight hesitation, she finally asked. "Ardee, do you know what l-love is?" she said, and saw Ardee's eyes go wide. "Of course, I am asking on a friend's behalf!" Ryuu hurriedly added.
"Lion asking about love?! That's a first!"
"Yo-You are too loud, Ardee!" Ryuu quickly tried to quiet her down and looked around to check if anyone was listening.
Ardee quickly recovered and asked quietly but eagerly. "So who is the man you fell for? Hm? C'mon, tell me? Is it Arin? It's Arin, right?"
"No! And I just told you I am asking for a friend!" Ryuu tried to dissuade her.
"Oh, right! That was the story, wasn't it? But you have to give me more details." Ardee quickly adapted to the situation.
"It's not a story, though, ugh. Whateven so the thing is…" Ryuu explained everything, obviously adding that it was for a friend at the end of every line.
"Hmmm…" Ardee put on a thoughtful expression on her face, while Ryuu just stared at her, waiting patiently. "I think it is love… or something close to it at least."
"Wha! You really think so!" Ryuu couldn't believe Ardee's words. "Maybe you are just lacking understanding since you have never been in a relationship, Ardee?"
"GAAAH!" Ardee made a weird noise as she put her hands on her chest. "Lion, you sure know how to do damage without swords. But, yeah, even if I've never been in a relationship, I at least know what love is. And what you describe feels eerily similar to what I read in a book."
"I-I see, thank you for answering, Ardee, then I will be on my way!" Without looking back, Ryuu sped up ahead.
"Wai– Lion?!" She did not turn back and continued walking. Her heart was pounding rapidly in her chest.
So am I in L-Love?!
No, no, Ardee must have the wrong idea, since she has never been in a relationship.
But then how can I judge my own feelings?
For the whole day, Ryuu could not focus on her task, and then night arrived, Ryuu was getting her status updated by her goddess, so she decided to ask her goddess.
"Um.. Lady Astraea?" She called her name to get her attention.
"Yes, Lion, what is it?" Astraea answered while updating Ryuu's status.
"I…umm..I want to ask you how a person can know if they are in love with someone?" Astraea's hands had gone still for a moment; she was not expecting, out of all her children, Ryuu to be the one to ask her that.
Astraea thought for a moment before answering.
"That is a difficult question, Lion. There are no set lines that could describe it. However, in general, when you are in the presence of the person you love, you feel happy, and a warm feeling bubbles up in your heart; you also worry about their well-being. But like I said, it can be different for each individual, as there are as many stars in the night as there are that many definitions of love."
Ryuu did not get the straightforward answer she was hoping for, but she was not disappointed. At least she got something to work with.
"Thank you, Lady Astraea, I will try to find the answer to that myself," Ryuu said, clenching her fist, a small smile on her lips.
"I am sure you will reach the right answer, Lion, and here is your status sheet." Astraea handed Ryuu a paper, and Ryuu studied the content.
____________________________________________________________________________
STATUS
Lv. 5
STRENGTH G265
DEFENSE H186
DEXTERITY F346
AGILITY F387
MAGIC G202
HUNTER E
IMMUNITY F
Chain Attack I
MAGIC
LUMINOUS WIND
Wide-Range Attack Spell.
Wind and Light Element.
NOA HEAL
Recovery Spell.
Affects all targets in an area.
Power increased in forested areas.
Virtue Nexes
Grant the power to use the magic and Skills of those who follow the justice under Astrea banner.
Create a shield around the user when chanting.
Gives a boost to all stats.
SKILL
FAIRY SERENADE
Enhances spell effects.
Enhancement increases at night.
MIND LOAD
Can spend Mind while attacking to boost strength.
Active Skill. Mind spent is decided by the user.
____________________________________________________________________________
Ryuu was happy with her status. Recently, she was growing at a very fast rate, and the last time she leveled all of her stats were either an S rank or an A rank.
And this time as well, if that strange thing happens that makes her level up faster, then Ryuu wants to increase all her stats to at least A rank before leveling up again, though she doubts that will happen.
"Ryuu, be sure to get your status updated regularly, okay? That will help us in understanding 2318were gaining strength at that fast speed because the opponent was stronger or because there was something else at play."
"Yes. Lady Astarea, I will be sure to do that. And thank you for hearing my doubts." Ryuu, bedded her goodnight and went back to her room.
Love or not, I will find out about it!
Ryuu swore a cute vow and went to sleep, counting how many days remain until Arin's punishment is over.