If it was just death, it could still be understood.
In Alise's crimson pupils, the gentle smile of the God of Wine, Dionysus, was reflected.
But, hell.
Alise's keen intuition instantly made her think of Loli's Soma Familia.
Dionysus's reputation in the city was naturally much better than Soma's, but since they were both Wine Gods, perhaps...
She was unwilling to make wild guesses about a God without any evidence.
But this system prompt, coming from the depths of the contract, seemed to be hinting at something.
Alise quickly regained her composure. She brushed a strand of crimson hair from her ear, perfectly concealing the fleeting seriousness deep within her eyes.
Then, a brilliant smile appeared on her face.
"Speaking of which, I haven't had the chance to meet Dionysus before. I'm quite curious about your Familia!"
This reply was not a lie; her genuine curiosity allowed her to successfully deceive the God's all-seeing eyes.
Alise's gaze then slid to the three girls behind Dionysus.
Noticing Alise's gaze, the human captain, who looked valiant and capable, scratched her head a little awkwardly, revealing a hearty smile.
"My name is Pax, hehe. Although I'm a captain now, compared to you, I'm still very much a novice."
Behind her, the young Fairy Girl unreservedly cast a pure and longing gaze, like a small animal.
Even compared to other races, at the age of twelve, she would be teased as a little girl, but the honor contained in her eyes would certainly not lose to any fairy.
Her lustrous, feathered hair and gem-like crimson pupils were untouched by impurity, possessing only pure beauty.
It made one feel that if she grew up like this, she would become a Fairy purer than anyone else.
"I... my name is Fille Weiss, and my goal is to become a strong and righteous adventurer, just like Big Sister Alise!"
"Pfft—"
Alise couldn't help but first touch her nose, then put her hands on her hips, proudly puffed out her chest, and let out a "kukuku" laugh.
"Very good, very good, little Fille Weiss has excellent taste!"
"With this righteous and beautiful me as your goal, your future will surely make you the most excellent Fairy!"
The vice-captain, another Fairy Girl, couldn't help but laugh and retort.
"I say, Alise... you're a human, through and through, aren't you? What does that have to do with a Fairy..."
"Then aim for Ryu!" Alise said, undeterred.
The Fairy vice-captain showed a subtle expression.
"Uh, my fellow kin... let's not consider that for now..."
Evidently, Ryu's awkward and stubborn personality was quite well-known even among her own kind.
The white battle dress, like a miko's outfit, on Fille Weiss swayed gently.
She tightly gripped the short staff made from a branch of her homeland's great sacred tree, blushing, and loudly retorted.
"Lady Lofina! You mustn't speak of Senior Ryu like that!"
Then, as if all her courage had been exhausted, she shyly lowered her small head and added in a mosquito-like voice.
"I also admire Senior Ryu very much. We also fight hard for the order of Orario. Everyone in Astrea Familia is definitely not fighting alone!"
The breeze ruffled Alise's beautiful crimson hair, and she felt a warm current flow through her heart.
"Is that so... Then, if you have time recently, would you like to try acting with us?"
Alise showed a gentle smile and extended a sincere invitation.
"Whether it's patrolling or exploring the Dungeon, we also want to be friends with you."
"Eh?!"
The girls opposite, hearing this, instantly had their eyes light up with excitement!
Perhaps in their pure hearts, the noble and beautiful Star Maidens were unattainable idols they longed for!
The girls looked at each other excitedly, their eyes full of anticipation and trepidation.
"C-can we really...? We are still very weak, maybe... maybe we'll be a burden to you?"
"Hahahaha!"
Alise laughed heartily and patted her chest.
"We also grew up step by step from being weak! And our Familia has recently welcomed a group of energetic new children, so you can all work hard together!"
Dionysus watched the girls' innocent interactions with soft eyes, smiling pleasantly.
"Speaking of which, Astrea Familia suddenly recruiting a boy surprised quite a few Gods. You know, that used to be a forbidden garden for girls, acknowledged by all Gods as a no-entry zone for males."
He imitated something vividly and continued.
"Quite a few Gods, at the Divine Council, were envious, jealous, and hateful, constantly clamoring to give that lucky boy the most unpleasant nickname as revenge!!"
Alise thought of that amusing scene and couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"It's fine, I believe Goddess will handle everything."
"That's true."
Dionysus nodded, looking as if he had a lingering fear.
"Astrea is quite scary when she's angry."
He added, "Your new members have also been widely discussed in the city recently, and those... unheard-of powerful weapons they use."
Alise humbly waved her hand.
"They are still growing children, just like Fille Weiss. Please don't praise them too much, God."
She changed the subject, bringing the conversation back.
"Speaking of which, Lord Dionysus also has a very good relationship with his Familia!"
Dionysus squinted, nodding with an expression that didn't seem feigned.
"Ah, of course. I certainly deeply love all the children of my Familia!"
He looked at Pax and the others, waving his hand.
"I've accepted your previous invitation on their behalf!"
"I'm entrusting Pax and the others to Astrea Familia for now. I trust your reputation."
The girls couldn't help but let out a joyful cheer.
Passersby cast curious glances, and when they saw the pure smiles on their faces, their own moods involuntarily improved.
"It's because of the existence of such pure things that this era doesn't seem so bad after all..."
"Who's to say, but beautiful things are often very fragile..."
"Hey, don't curse them!"
"Sorry, sorry, my mistake!"
After agreeing for Pax to bring people for a formal visit another day, they officially parted ways.
Walking down the street back to the Familia's base, Alise lowered her head, the brilliant smile on her face long gone, replaced by an unresolvable seriousness.
"How could this be..."
Although Dionysus had always seemed benevolent, the alarm bells in her heart rang incessantly.
Just being near him gave her an instinctive anxiety and an overwhelming desire to escape.
Originally, she had thought about investigating on her own, but a scene of a young boy with a serious look tapping her head suddenly appeared in her mind.
"Pfft..."
Alise chuckled, the tense seriousness quietly dissipating.
"I'll discuss it with Goddess and Rod when I get back."
The current Familia was no longer a fragile illusion that required her to force a smile and struggle alone to support.
On the other side, Pax and the others went to buy supplies for exploring the Dungeon, while Dionysus smiled as he saw them off before returning to his Familia's base.
"Click."
The moment the heavy door closed, the gentle smile on his face peeled away like a mask, and his eyes became playful and profound.
"Should I say she's worthy of being the captain supporting the Justice Familia? Her words were watertight; I couldn't get any useful information out of her."
Dionysus pressed a finger to his chin, a dangerous glint in his eyes.
"The obstacles in the plan are Freya, Loki, Ganesha, and Astrea..."
"I originally thought that Astrea Familia's forced, ridiculous ideal would inevitably vanish under the cruelty of reality, but now it's even stronger than before."
A young boy's figure appeared in his mind.
"Rod... he's truly an inscrutable fellow. I'll hide for now and let the other impatient ones go and probe his background first..."
Dionysus showed a playful yet confident smile.
Only when all their cards were revealed, would it be his time to drag these fellows into the abyss.
Night, Court of the Stars.
As the patrolling teams returned one after another, the entire Familia base became bustling.
The Court of the Stars became lively.
The five-person team exploring the Dungeon hadn't even entered the door when their characteristic, energetic clamor came in first.
"Hey, you unladylike human, didn't you hear that the Floor Boss was refreshing today? You made us run for nothing, meow!"
"Hah? What are you talking about, you pervert-like Cat Person! You're the one who thumped your chest and said you were confident in your information judgment, right? It turns out it's refreshing tomorrow!"
"Hah? Do you want to fight, meow?"
"Do you think I'm scared? Bring it on!"
Just as Ke Luoyi the Cat Person and Runova the human glared at each other, flexing their fists, radiating dangerous auras, and preparing for a big fight—
"Creak—"
The door was gently pushed open, and Goddess Astrea was gently narrowing her eyes, smiling as she looked at the two of them.
"What... were you two just saying?"
She didn't know why.
Goddess clearly looked like a weak woman who couldn't even truss a chicken, but Ke Luoyi and Runova instantly felt their hairs stand on end, as if they were being stared at by something extremely terrifying!
The two immediately clung together like magnets, forcing out an awkward smile that was uglier than crying.
"W-we were just using this way to express our deep friendship, meow!"
"That's right, that's right—!!"
Astrea extended a snow-white finger, resting it against her smooth cheek, tilting her head, and showing an innocent, puzzled expression.
"Is that so?"
"Y-yes, meow!"
"That's how it is!"
In the living room, Laila looked at the two idiots who clearly despised each other to the extreme but had no choice but to hug and fake a smile, covering her head, and weakly complained.
"Did these two idiots forget that lying to a God is useless?"
She sighed.
"I always feel that their existence lowers our overall intelligence..."
Ryu, beside her, spoke earnestly to persuade her.
"Don't say that, Laila, at least..."
Ryu racked her brains for a long time before managing to squeeze out a stiff advantage.
"...at least their strength is quite good!"
Iska, sitting in a chair, removing her makeup while listening to their conversation, didn't even turn her head but accurately delivered a finishing blow.
"Ryu, why don't you just say they're both simple-minded and strong?"
It was somewhat incredible.
Even though Ryu wasn't particularly close to her new companions, and hadn't even had a proper conversation with them until now, she inexplicably felt... she got along with them well.
Of course, she didn't mean like Alise and Rod, who could make a 潔癖 Fairy feel comfortable with physical contact; it was just... a premonition that they could become friends.
Ryu's cheeks instantly flushed crimson, and she retorted loudly.
"I-I didn't say that!"
When Astrea walked in with the two troublemakers, Ke Luoyi and Runova's gazes simultaneously and precisely locked onto the young man sitting on the sofa, smiling at them.
"Cough, cough, you're back."
Runova instantly dropped her carefree demeanor, becoming a little reserved and shy.
"Rod—! Kitty wants pets, wants hugs, wants to be held high, meow~~!"
Compared to her, Ke Luoyi transformed into a missile, cheering, and with a perfect pounce, accurately burrowed into Rod's arms.
Rod chuckled as he scratched Ke Luoyi's chin, then placed his warm palm on her flat stomach, gently kneading it, instantly making the Cat Girl look as if she was about to faint from happiness, emitting a purring sound from her throat.
While comforting the cat in his arms, he spoke to Runova.
"How was the party today?"
Runova scratched her head, somewhat embarrassed, and said.
"Uh... it felt pretty good."
It was her first time acting with companions, and although it made her a little uncomfortable, she didn't dislike the feeling at all.
"We didn't go too deep, only to the 18th floor before returning. But according to Nize, our haul wasn't as much as when you were with us."
"It's okay, the main purpose is to train everyone's abilities and teamwork."
"En, Shimomura Izumi is really talented in combat; she can quickly learn the techniques I teach her. It's just Sister Jun...."
Runova's face showed a conflicted expression, seemingly trying to find a less direct way of speaking.
Rod laughed heartily.
"Don't worry, she's an internal logistics personnel; combat ability only needs to be slightly proficient."
Not far away, Suzuki Jun, who was 趴 on the table researching recipes, heard this and immediately raised her hand to show strong agreement.
"Although fighting monsters is interesting, I still prefer staying at home!"
Rod suddenly realized that the two demi-humans probably hadn't trained their magic attributes yet, so he cleared his throat, attracting the attention of all the girls in the room.
Ke Luoyi was still squirming in his arms like a boneless cat, seemingly having no intention of getting down.
Rod simply rubbed her ears while speaking to the girls.
"Many of the abilities and skills in this world are very suitable for you. You can go find Noin and Leyana; they should have already collected and organized relevant information specifically for you."
"And you should all have activated the system by now, which will allow you to more intuitively know the price of the abilities you want to exchange for in the future, making things much more convenient."
"However, my personal advice is that unless it's a special skill with particularly strong functionality, you'd best aim directly for Ruler-Rank Hunter, or at the very least, S-Rank Hunter."
The power of a monarch was too overpowered for the current girls, so Rod simply didn't mention it.
But many Hunter abilities were indeed a good match for the girls.
For example, Thomas's ability was quite suitable for Nize, who was a Beast-kin.
Kaguya shook her silky black hair, her gaze fleetingly passing over the newly arrived blonde girl.
"That being said, besides Noin and Leyana, we haven't personally witnessed the abilities of an S-Rank Hunter."
Che Huiyi immediately looked at Rod upon hearing this, and after seeing him nod, she stood up gracefully, her neat golden short hair tracing a beautiful arc under the magic stone lamp.
"Although I'm only of ordinary level among S-Rank Hunters, since everyone is interested in our power, I'll spar with you all."
Kaguya was somewhat surprised inside.
She was a completely different personality type from Suzuki Jun and Shimomura Izumi...
She was about to accept the challenge when Rod suddenly spoke up.
"Let Ryu and Che Huiyi spar."
Ryu blinked blankly.
"Huh? Me?"