Loki Familia meeting room.
On both sides of the long table sat the "Big Three" of Loki Familia: Finn Deimne, Riveria Ljos Alf, and Gareth Landrock.
At the seat of honor, a goddess with short red hair, dressed in menswear, lounged with one leg crossed over the other, lazily swirling the wine glass in her hand.
Loki.
Several freshly organized documents were scattered across the table.
An investigation report on a single person.
A boy named Genichi.
Finn set the report down. On his youthful, almost boyish face, a complicated sense of regret surfaced.
"So he came to our Familia too, and we shut the door in his face."
He blew on the edge of his thumbnail, remembering the entry in the report.
After Riveria brought back word that the boy had used Alfia's magic, Finn began digging into him.
As captain of Loki Familia, he had to understand every factor that could affect the Familia.
And more than that, this was a boy who supposedly wielded Alfia's "Silence" magic.
That monster had once nearly destroyed Orario by herself. Her magic was not something just anyone should be able to use.
The results of the investigation left Finn, Riveria, and Gareth all stunned.
Unbelievable.
That boy had actually come to Loki Familia.
Less than a month ago, he had stood at Loki Familia's gates, trying to join.
And he had been refused, right there at the door.
Refused by Loki Familia.
After that, he went to several other Familias, the small and mid-sized ones willing to take in rookies.
But without exception, none of them accepted him either.
The reason was simple.
Back then, his physical condition was too poor.
How poor?
Worse than an average twelve-year-old child.
What Familia would take in a prospective adventurer like that?
Raising a rookie required time and resources, and no one would bet on a boy whose baseline physique didn't even meet the minimum.
So he was rejected.
Again and again.
And then he vanished.
Gone from Orario's streets, gone from everyone's sight.
No one knew where he went, and no one knew what he did.
Until that day.
In the Dungeon, he ran into a gorgon that came at them head-on.
Back then, he was… and yet those pitch-black eyes held a light you couldn't ignore.
He returned to the surface with Finn and the others.
Then he joined the Demeter Familia.
Finn lifted his gaze from the report and looked around the table.
"So…"
His voice was calm, but there was a faint, helpless edge to it.
"Who rejected him back then?"
His eyes shifted to the others, more precisely, to the goddess at the head of the table.
After all, Finn and the rest had been on an expedition in the Dungeon at the time. Handling new recruits had largely been Loki's responsibility.
If the boy had come to Loki Familia, then the one who turned him away was, nine times out of ten…
Loki.
Everyone's eyes landed on her.
The red-haired goddess stiffened.
Of course she knew what they were thinking.
Guilty.
Very guilty.
But she was a goddess. How could she admit she'd been wrong that easily?
She cleared her throat and started making excuses.
"H-How was I supposed to know the brat would pull off a comeback?!"
Her tone was shamelessly righteous, even though it was obviously forced.
"You didn't see what he looked like back then. Skinny as a pole, worse physique than a regular twelve-year-old. What 'potential' was I supposed to see?"
She paused, then added one more line.
"If it were you, would you have taken him?"
Finn fell silent for a moment, then sighed.
He didn't blame Loki.
Because she wasn't wrong.
Back then, that boy truly had nothing that looked worth gambling on.
No normal Familia would have thought to take in someone that hopeless.
All he could say was that fate had a nasty sense of humor.
"Forget it."
Finn shook his head, pushing aside the useless regret.
"There's no point chasing that now."
He looked up at Riveria.
"Riveria."
Riveria gave a small nod, her emerald eyes steady on him.
"Can I ask you to make contact with that boy?"
Riveria didn't answer immediately, waiting for him to continue.
Finn paused, then went on.
"I'm curious about this claim that he can use Alfia's 'Silence' magic."
His gaze deepened.
"More accurately, I want to know whether he truly can use that magic."
"Alfia's strongest magic."
The room went dead quiet.
Alfia's strongest magic.
Everyone here knew exactly what that meant.
If Orario's greatest healing magic belonged to Amid, the miracle that could drag people back from the brink of death…
Then Orario's greatest offensive magic belonged to Alfia.
The monster who had once nearly wiped out the entire city on her own. The spell Genos Angelus, with power that crushed every known magic.
If that boy really could use it…
Then it meant there was something hidden inside him, something far beyond what they'd imagined.
Riveria was quiet for a moment, then spoke.
"You want me to test him?"
"No."
Finn shook his head.
"Just make contact. Talk. Get a sense of what kind of person he is."
He paused again.
"And if possible, bring him into Loki Familia."
Riveria frowned slightly.
"And if he refuses?"
"Then he refuses."
Finn shrugged.
"We're not going to interrogate him. It's just normal contact. One adventurer talking to another. What's strange about that?"
Riveria considered it, then nodded.
"I understand."
She stood and headed for the door.
At the threshold, she stopped and looked back at Finn.
"If he really can use Genos Angelus… what will you do?"
Finn fell silent.
Then he smiled.
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
Riveria watched him, something complicated flickering through her emerald eyes.
A moment later, she opened the door and left.
The meeting room was left with only Finn, Gareth, and Loki.
Gareth had been silent the whole time. Only after Riveria left did he finally speak.
"That kid's not simple."
His voice was low, carrying the sharpness of a seasoned veteran.
"Even if it was only one meeting, he's nothing like what the file describes anymore. Growing this far in such a short time… that's not normal."
Finn nodded.
"I know."
"And you're sending Riveria to contact him…"
Gareth paused.
"Because you want to recruit him?"
"Recruit him?"
Finn shook his head, the corners of his mouth lifting into a meaning-laced smile.
"No. I just want to see what he really is."
He lowered his eyes to the report again.
At the very top was a name.
Genichi. Demeter Familia. Level 1.
(End of Chapter)
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