"'Freya-chan,' what do you think about what I'm wearing now—eh?"
Inside the clothing store, when Syr returned to the group once more, she immediately noticed something was off.
"Ah! Oh my god aaah~!"
Bell didn't even use the specially agreed-upon title of "Miss Syr" anymore.
With a trace of sobbing in his voice, he only wanted to hurry up and find his "guardian" to beg for help.
However…
"Wow!"
Seeing the plain long dress that had been forcibly put on Bell, Syr's eyes lit up as she exclaimed in amazement.
Even the female shop assistants nearby clasped their cheeks and twisted back and forth, sincerely praising, "He's really so cute!"
At once—
Bell, who had subconsciously been about to pull a "Syr-chan, I'm your fan!" move, slammed on the brakes.
The next moment…
Welp. No matter how innocent the rabbit boy was, by now he should have realized it.
His own goddess… was also a fun-loving one.
Yes—right now, Syr (Freya)'s gaze was exactly the same as those two behind her.
That look of anticipation upon seeing a "toy," paired with a grin so mischievous it sent chills down one's spine.
In other words: at this moment, he was completely alone.
At a time like this…
"Captain… sob sob sob~"
Bell thought of that certain hanging man, whose silhouette in his mind had been magnified into something impossibly tall and heroic.
How he wished he could once again receive that person's help—just like before, when he had been pulled effortlessly out of the quagmire of the Soma Familia, rescued from suffering in an instant.
Only… he would probably never know.
That right now, the true culprit behind this young man's tearful breakdown—ahem—was in fact the very captain he admired so deeply.
"Boys venturing out into the world must always remember to protect themselves~"
Vaguely, Bell seemed to hear the words of advice once given by his already-departed grandfather.
Unfortunately, it was far too late now.
After all, the rabbit boy of today lacked both the power… and the courage to resist.
On this day…
"Nooooo~"
Bell and Allen, though they didn't even know each other, reached the exact same decision by sheer coincidence.
That is: if there was ever another mission like this, they'd rather die than come along again.
=======
When Syr, Renjiro, and Lumine were messing around, they did at least know where to draw the line… probably.
Still, that evening, when Razor and Lili returned to the Maria Orphanage with the money they had earned in the Dungeon that day, what greeted them was a rabbit boy curled up in the corner, hugging his knees.
He wasn't crying or making a scene, but…
He looked so pitiful!
Seeing this…
"Uh… what happened?"
Lili could more or less guess what had gone on, but she still asked cautiously.
At this moment, Renjiro hadn't returned yet.
Syr, meanwhile, was sitting at the dining table with Rai, Xiaolu, and the other children, teaching them how to read.
Hearing Lili's puzzled question…
"I dunno~"
Syr played dumb with a knowing look. "When we went shopping today, Bell was obviously having lots of fun (being played with)."
"But after we came back, he didn't say a word and just curled up over there. Heehee~"
Lili's eyebrow twitched violently.
That expression does not look like 'I don't know' at all, she thought.
However, Lili wisely chose not to press further.
She only silently mourned for the rabbit boy for a few seconds in her heart.
"It seems Bell-sama has suffered severe damage to both body and mind today."
The pallum girl understood everything perfectly.
But there was nothing she could do.
Just then…
"I'm baaaack~!"
A certain loud-voiced hanging man barged in, speaking in a bizarre accent as he shoved open the doors of the abandoned church.
As he strode into the first-floor hall—
"Eh?"
At first glance, Renjiro noticed the lump in the corner…
"Bell?"
He himself was glowing with energy, in stark contrast to the rabbit boy's utterly deconstructed state.
Clearly, the two of them had gone through experiences not all that different today.
If anything, Renjiro's had been even harsher—more thorough.
One could only say: once you abandon your sense of shame, you truly become invincible.
Of course, Renjiro could tell…
"Seems like we might've played a bit too hard today."
Yeah—this might even have played Bell's Liaris Freese toward Lumine right out of him.
Thinking of that…
"The kid's this hurt. I should compensate him a little."
Renjiro thought to himself. "I was planning to give this to him later anyway."
After a brief bout of cryptic inner monologue…
"Bell."
Renjiro walked over to the corner and patted the rabbit boy on the shoulder.
Seeing Bell look up at him with lifeless eyes, his expression completely broken…
"Ta-da~"
Renjiro had ostensibly gone out today to handle the "land transfer" business, so naturally he had a package with him.
Now, he directly pulled out a book from it… a dictionary?
On the cover were the bold words:
"Even Goblins Can Understand Modern Magic"
Yes—this was unmistakably a grimoire.
Though compared to the Supreme Grimoire Freya had once given Renjiro, its rarity was much lower.
Still, it was at least a Variable Grimoire worth hundreds of millions—an ultra-precious item capable of awakening the most suitable postnatal magic for its user.
Bell subconsciously took it—
"This is…?"
"Didn't you always envy how Lili and I can both use magic?"
Squatting in front of Bell, Renjiro looked very much like a reliable big brother right now as he smiled and said,
"As long as you read this once, you'll awaken magic that belongs to you."
Bell's eyes widened instantly.
Lili was even more shocked beyond words.
Without a doubt, the former was stunned by the sudden surprise.
As for the latter… she was shocked by the value of a Variable Grimoire.
"Renjiro-sama, where did you even get something like this?"
"Oh, the captain of the Soma Familia gave it to me."
That was actually the truth.
See? The benefits of going undercover and becoming the boss were already showing.
Renjiro pushed himself up by his knee and smiled.
"The newly appointed Captain Diona already knew me. This time, when the Soma Familia had to compensate us with a large amount of gambling money, this Variable Grimoire was included."
He turned to the pallum girl.
"Lili, you only have one magic slot, and I've already filled all of mine. So I'm giving this Variable Grimoire to Bell. Is that okay?"
"Of course, Renjiro-sama. It's entirely up to you."
Lili truly had no objections at all.
In fact, the fact that he even asked her opinion—however casually—was already a sign of respect.
And the fact that he gave such a precious item to a member of their familia instead of auctioning it off…
Rather than selfishness, it made Lili feel even more at ease.
Because here—in this Freya Familia—there really was a sense of home.
This was the life she had once dreamed of.
Compared to before, she was already very happy now.
So what reason was there to be greedy?
Of course, even though Lili was considerate, Renjiro wouldn't overlook everyone else.
So…
"everyone, come over! Our familia made a killing today—there are gifts for everyone~"
"Wow~"
…..
Completed version available on [P]atreon.[c]om/Veltoria [remove brackets]