CHAPTER 1
Astrea Familia
It took some time before the flames were fully extinguished. While Lyu and company had managed to preserve much of the factory’s structure, in other places, the walls had partially collapsed and the scorched interior was visible even from the outside. However, the greatest priority had been to prevent the fire from spreading, and mercifully, these efforts had succeeded. While the townspeople celebrated in the street, the girls of Astrea Familia remained inside the building to clean up the aftermath.
“Stopped the fire and rounded up the Evils! All in a day’s work! He-hem! I’m so great!”
The redheaded human girl proudly puffed out her relatively modest chest. Her name was Alize Lovell, and she was the captain of Astrea Familia, a group dedicated to the pursuit of justice.
She swept her hair with her hand, a gesture that was clearly meant to charm her audience. “Even in the depths of a burning factory,” she said, “pretty and purehearted girls like us can always bring a crisis to a swift conclusion!”
“What is that even supposed mean?” interjected Lyra, the prum. The girl had a all-knowing air that seemed deeply at odds with her cute prum features. “I don’t know how you manage to stay so optimistic,” she sighed. “I’m gettin’ tired of fightin’ all the time. It never seems to end.”
Those words seemed to dampen Alize’s spirits. She dropped her head a little and said, “Yeah, we didn’t manage to stop the Evils before they put their plan in motion. If only we’d arrived a little sooner, maybe we could have saved the factory as well.”
Her voice that had been full of sunshine shifted to a subdued whisper in an instant. Lyra held her tongue and said nothing more. However, the awkward silence lasted only a moment, before a voice like treacle joined in.
“The captain cannot be held to blame,” it said. “If anyone, it was that elf holding the rest of us back.”
These words belonged to their human comrade, Gojouno Kaguya. Her long dark hair was smooth, like silk, and her voice was as fluid and light as a musical performance. She was elegant and refined, a shining example of what those in the Far East termed a yamato nadeshiko—the embodiment of modest femininity.
“Did you find some fault in my actions, Kaguya?” Lyu Leon refused to let that insult pass without comment. Though she kept her face hidden behind a mask, it was impossible not to notice the radiant and natural blond hair that flowed down her back. Their racial differences aside, when she stood side by side with Kaguya, the two often looked like sisters from behind. In truth, the two were bitter rivals—or so they might be called if the relationship were mutual. Instead, it was mostly Kaguya who kept finding new and inventive ways to get on Lyu’s nerves.
“Why, yes. Did you not notice?”
“I’m the one who cut through the enemy lines!” Lyu roared back. “I’m the one who secured the warehouse before anyone else! Tell me, where did I fall short?!”
But Kaguya’s rude insinuations were the least of Lyu’s annoyances.
“And drop the facade,” she said. “Just listening to you is making me sick!”
“Very well, very well. In that case, as you wish, I shall speak freely.”
Lyu’s outburst did little to faze her. Without breaking her perfect smile, Kaguya dropped the hand she’d been pressing to her cheek.
And then.
“You moroooooooooon!!”
Her personality changed completely. Her deranged smile and leering eyes put even Lyu on edge.
“Did I find fault?!” She scoffed. “You bumbled your way through everything!”
“Wha…?!”
“Who do you think has to clean up after you every time you let your emotions get the better of you? Me! So don’t get uppity with me, you trash pixie!”
“Trash?!”
A pair of wild eyes and an unending stream of abuse. This was Kaguya’s true self, behind the “facade” Lyu had been referring to. Her spittle sprayed Lyu as she raged like the saltiest of sailors. The yamato nadeshiko was nowhere to be seen now.
“You oblivious, tunnel-visioned, mindless little numbskull! How dare you speak as though you’ve done a good job, you child!”
“I—I wasn’t the only one who went on a rampage out there! I would very much like to know what part of your response you considered proportionate punishment!”
“Now you’ve done it, you trash pixie!!”
“Stop calling me that!!”
A fight promptly broke out between the two second-tier Level 3 adventurers. It was a fearsome exchange of punches and kicks almost impossible for the eye to follow.
“Oh, here we go again,” sighed Lyra. “Another swearin’ match between our hardheaded elf and our far-eastern princess. I wish you’d spend all that effort buildin’ each other up instead of tearin’ each other down!”
“I like it!” said Alize, hands on her hips. “They make a good match for each other, don’t you think?”
“Please stop them instead of lookin’ so proud, Captain…” said Lyra with an even deeper sigh. Just then, another voice called out, and into the factory strode several high-tier adventurers led by a strikingly beautiful woman.
“Sorry I’m late, Alize!” she said.
“Ah, Shakti, you came!”
Her azure hair was cut rough and short, and her battle clothes had a deep slit cut into the side. She was taller than Lyu and the others, with sharp features that paired well with her wise leadership.
This was Shakti Varma, the captain of Ganesha Familia. Her appearance put a smile on Alize’s face. It was fair to say the two were bosom friends.
“Oh, well, you’re just in time; we’ve just finished doin’ all the hard work,” scoffed Lyra. “You call yourself the city watch?”
Indeed, Ganesha Familia was the other group besides Astrea Familia dedicated to upholding law and order in Orario. Following the will of their god, the Lord of Hosts, Shakti and company took it upon themselves to ensure that laws and customs were being followed all over the city. In the current Age of Darkness, Orario would have long since succumbed to violence and mayhem were it not for their constant efforts.
“Lyra!” Alize chided, “Ganesha Familia are very busy watching over other parts of the city! Don’t say things like that.”
“Well, someone has to, and you guys are all too goody-goody.”
Alize was just about to reprimand her fellow adventurer when Shakti shook her head as if to concede the point.
“It’s okay, Alize,” she said. “Lyra’s right. And though it won’t make up for our negligence, we’ll handle things from here.” She turned and barked some orders to her followers. “Take the unconscious Evils into custody! Hurry! Keep an eye out for any stragglers!”
“““Yes, ma’am!”””
The members of Ganesha Familia moved out with perfect coordination. They were both more numerous and better equipped than Astrea Familia, so the latter had no cause to object.
“This is the fourth attack on magic stone factories so far,” said Lyu, resting in a corner of the burnt-out factory as Ganesha Familia got to work in the background. “Could it be mere coincidence?”
“Four attacks is no coincidence,” replied Kaguya. “The Evils are plotting something, and no matter how many we put down, more always seem to crawl out of the woodwork.”
“And the ones we round up never seem to know the full plan,” added Lyra, clasping her hands behind her head. “Wonder if we’ll learn anything this time…”
Just then, one of Shakti’s subordinates came over and whispered a report in her ear, after which she turned to face Alize’s group.
“So what are we looking at, Shakti?” asked Alize.
“At first glance, the same as the previous raids,” Shakti replied. “An attack on Orario’s all-important magic-stone-item production industry.” She turned her sharp-witted eyes on the members of Astrea Familia. “But thanks to your timely intervention, we managed to survey the factory before everything burned down. That means that this time we noticed that something had been stolen.”
“And that was?” asked Lyu.
“A batch of magic-stone ignition pieces,” Shakti answered.
“Ignition pieces…?” asked Alize, cocking her head in confusion. At her puzzled response, Shakti launched into a careful explanation.
“Think of them as the switches that activate a magical device,” she said. “They’re an integral part of all magic items, right down to the humble magic-stone torch.”
Lyu pondered the meaning of Shakti’s words. The item in her example was something any adventurer knew how to use. They came in all shapes and sizes, but the internal mechanisms were largely the same, or so Lyu understood. Of course, she wasn’t an expert, so this was just based upon what people said. The point was, the stolen part was vital to the construction of any magic-stone item.
“What do you suppose the enemy wants with them?” asked Kaguya.
“Who knows?” replied Shakti, closing her eyes.
“Are they building something?” asked Lyra.
“I don’t know that, either.”
“Well, some good we are, then. I hate bein’ kept in the dark. What does it say that neither us nor the watch have an answer for this?”
As harsh as they were, Lyra’s words came from a place of genuine concern more than anything else. That didn’t stop Lyu and the other familia members from stiffening up when she spoke her mind so frankly.
“…I’ll report this information to the Guild, and advise them to bolster their security,” said Shakti after a moment of silence. “I’ll inform Loki Familia, too.”
“Let’s beef up patrols around the city,” Alize added. “We don’t need to know all the details of our enemy’s plan to stop it from happening.”
As the two familia captains compared their plans, a third voice chimed in.
“The remaining Evils have all been rounded up, sis.”
Cute was the word that came to mind upon seeing Shakti’s younger sibling. The tomboy cut of her pale blue hair lent her less of the adult beauty of her elder sister and more of a childlike innocence. She was also more amply endowed than the likes of Lyu and Alize, with a petite build that was apparent even under layers of clothing. Her blue battle gear, however, was similar to Shakti’s.
But the captain seemed to take issue with her sister’s casual tone. “Ardee,” she said. “I thought I told you not to call me that in front of others.”
“Oh yeah. Sorry, sis,” Ardee replied, sticking out her tongue. Shakti sighed and left it at that.
“We’ll take things from here,” she said, turning to Alize. “We’ll keep the Guild appraised, so you can all go home and rest.”
“Really? We’ll take you up on that, then,” replied Alize with a smile. “Neze! Go tell the others we’re pulling out!”
“You got it!” came the wolf girl’s eager reply, and she ran off to relay her captain’s orders. Just as the rest of Astrea Familia turned to leave, Ardee piped up.
“See you soon, Leon.”
“Indeed. See you soon.”
Lyu gave a friendly smile before turning to leave. Alize took one last look at her comrades and declared, “Justice has been served! Let us return triumphant into the arms of our Lady Astrea!”
By the time Astrea Familia left the destroyed factory, it was already night. Thick clouds were gathering in the moonless skies above, allowing only a smattering of starlight to filter through. It was this scant light that illuminated the way home for Lyu and the others. Though quite some time had passed since the end of the battle at the burning factory, there were still grateful citizens in the streets who congratulated them as they passed. Lyu was awkward and unsociable at the best of times and never knew how to act at times like these. She hid behind her comrades, allowing them to bask in praise instead.
After leaving the main street and passing down several side roads, the group arrived at last in a quiet little neighborhood in the northern part of Orario.
This was where the members of Astrea Familia called home—Stardust Garden.
It was an elegant white mansion, but by no means extravagant. When they entered the lobby, a charming goddess greeted them.
“Welcome back, everyone,” she said.
It was clear to all who saw her that this was a woman of grace, warmth, and compassion. Such was the purity and dignity with which she composed herself. Long walnut hair flowed down her shoulders, and her eyes were a deep blue, like a sea of stars, with a fascinating clarity even more striking than Lyu’s.
Her smooth yet supple skin was wrapped in a pure white robe that had never seen a stain in its life, and she moved and spoke with perfect modesty. The only feature that might tempt a man to sin was the deep ravine that ran between her breasts.
The word goddess was invented for women like her. Such was her beauty, her grace, her magnificence.
She was Astrea, patron deity of Astrea Familia and goddess of justice.
“Lady Astrea!”
Upon seeing her divine mistress, Alize let out a cry of elation. The captain of the familia was so full of love and respect that she looked like a little girl running into the arms of her mother.
Afterward, the other members of the familia walked through the door, one at a time.
“It’s good to see you again, Lady Astrea,” said Lyu simply.
“Sorry to come back all at once like kids,” said Lyra. “What’s for dinner? Just kiddin’.”
“My, for our Lady herself to greet us at the door. What did we do to deserve this honor?” asked Kaguya.
While everyone had something different to say, all of them shared the same joy when they laid eyes on their goddess.
“Must it be an honor, Kaguya?” replied Astrea. “I am always happy to see your safe return. Celebrating that is universal, whether god or mortal.”
A benevolent smile played on her lips. Surely, Lyu thought, this was what everyone imagined a goddess to be, back before the Age of Gods began.
“Especially in times like these,” Astrea went on. “To see my beloved children all come back safe, it makes my heart soar like a newlywed virgin!” she added with a playful smile.
“A—a newlywed…virgin?! Lady Astrea, you sure know how to get the blood pumping!”
“And what’s got you all hot under the collar, Neze?” retorted the industrious and no-nonsense Lyu with a sigh.
Astrea gave a lovely smile before looking over the members of her familia.
“You are all weary, I expect? Would you like some supper? Or a bath?”
“Or you, Lady Astrea?” said Kaguya with a grin, casting her eye toward Astrea’s bust—the largest of the group by far save for Maryu’s.
“K-Kaguya?! You lecherous, impudent…”
Lyu confronted the troublemaker in a display of that famous elf temper.
“Oh? What’s got you so bothered?” Kaguya retorted. “Don’t tell me a pure and upstanding elf such as yourself took my innocent words as something scandalous?”
“Y-you…!”
A smug smile spread across Kaguya’s lips as Lyu fell right into her trap. The look in her eyes said “Come on, let’s hear what you were thinking, you trash pixie!” Lyu could do nothing but tremble in rage and grit her teeth as a single tear rolled down her cheek.
“I guess I’ll take a bath first!” said Alize, ignorant of the war being waged right under her nose.
“That’s our captain for ya,” remarked Lyra. “Doesn’t read the mood at all!” Then, with a tired sigh, she exited the lobby. It was a day like any other in the Astrea Familia household.
“Oh yeah, why don’t you join us, Lady Astrea? Then I get to make my bath time my you time as well!”
“““?!”””
Every member of the familia—even Lyra, who was halfway out the door—turned and stared in shock.
“Oh my. It seems none of you are so forward as our Alize here,” Astrea chuckled. Alize bounded over to her and, with an energetic smile, took her hand.
“Come with me, Lady Astrea! Let’s get you—”
“““No!! You can’t!!”””
The other girls shouted out in anger, and yet another of their daily quarrels began.
“Now that we’ve finished with our baths and our dinner, it’s time for the debriefing! Let’s go over what we’ve learned today!”
The night was drawing on, and the familia members gathered in a spacious meeting room, seated in a circle on couches and armchairs. Alize, her skin still glossy from her bath, led the proceedings in a rousing and energetic manner, earning resentful glares from her exhausted compatriots.
“How can she stand up there after what she just did…?” asked Lyra, slung over the armrest of her couch.
“It is quite a punchable face,” agreed Kaguya with a smirk.
“Don’t hate me just because I’m the perfect cutie on the inside as well as the outside!” came Alize’s reply. “Don’t worry, though, you’re plenty pretty yourself! Wink!”
“Grrrh…!” growled Kaguya, her smile struggling to stay on her face.
“You’re going to pop a blood vessel if you aren’t careful,” offered Lyu, but the far-eastern girl either didn’t hear or was willfully ignoring the elf’s words.
“Tee-hee,” giggled Astrea, sitting down in her prepared seat. “I shall never tire of watching your lovely banter, but I fear we must be pressing on. Alize, do you have anything to report?”
“I do, Lady Astrea! The factory may have been severely damaged in the blaze, but I’m pleased to report there were no casualties! That’s including us, of course!”
Alize proceeded to direct the meeting while the other familia members each stood up and gave their own reports and voiced their opinions on the matters under discussion.
“We’re dealing with riffraff,” said Kaguya, annoyed but nonetheless keeping up her polite persona. “An organized riffraff, but a riffraff nonetheless.”
“Yeah, someone’s clearly in command,” said Lyra. “Quantity over quality isn’t really up to snuff these days.”
“Even so, the attacks keep coming,” said Lyu, visibly frustrated. “Whoever’s behind this is laughing at us while we run around putting out their fires.”
“I understand where you’re coming from, Lyu,” said Astrea, “but we mustn’t rush into danger. Don’t forget that members of the Evils have been hiding in the city ever since the days of the two titans.”
“Zeus Familia and Hera Familia…”
Lyu intoned the names with a sense of reverence and awe.
“They epitomized the Age of Gods, and they were what every familia aspired to be,” said Alize, uncharacteristically serious. “Zeus and Hera ruled over Orario for a thousand years without a single threat to their existence.”
“Even the Evils were too afraid to make a move during their reign,” added Lyra, slouching messily in her seat. “So they must have been pretty strong, huh.”
“They were the most powerful familias ever to exist since ancient times,” said Astrea, causing Celty, the youngest of the troop, to gasp. Lyu’s face stiffened as she picked up the remainder of the tale.
“But the Black Dragon defeated them both…”
The Three Great Quests.
Orario’s duty, placed on its shoulders by the rest of the world. The slaying of three powerful beasts that predated the Age of Gods. Together, Zeus and Hera defeated the first two of these monsters—Behemoth and Leviathan—but they failed to vanquish the third, a dragon so mighty it was known as the apocalypse incarnate.
What kind of force could have been responsible for the fall of not one, but two of history’s greatest familias? Other gods and their followers could only dream of coming close to matching their splendor. A hush fell over Lyu and the others as they contemplated it.
After a few moments, it was Neze who said what was on everyone else’s mind.
“If they couldn’t beat it, who will? No one’s ever gonna put an end to the King of Dragons…”
This time, the room fell deathly silent. It was a fear shared not just by her fellow familia members but all of Orario and quite possibly the entire world. The Black Dragon was a living symbol of death and destruction, a harbinger of demise that slept at the northern tip of the world. Lyu and the others could not help but feel a sense of primal dread at the mere mention of its name.
A gloom had fallen over the late-night meeting. Of course, the one to attempt a return to form was none other than Alize.
“We’ve strayed far enough, I think. Let’s get back on topic! Ignite your righteous hearts, everyone! Burning justice!!”
Everyone looked up at their hotheaded captain. “Remember, nobody died today, and that’s thanks to all of you!” she went on. “And we figured out another step in the Evils’ plan! As long as we keep making progress like this, we’ll get there in the end! Let’s celebrate the small victories, people!”
She put on a beaming smile as though sheer enthusiasm could banish the gloom from her comrades’ hearts. “And every step we take brings us that much closer to the golden days of Orario when Zeus and Hera ruled the city!”
“Alize…” muttered Lyu, wide-eyed.
“So don’t lose faith!” said Alize, beating her right hand to her chest. “Remember, the fastest way forward is through! Our persistence will force the Evils to crack! And once they’re dealt with, we move on to defeating the Black Dragon! Mm-hmm, we can’t fail!”
Her huge leaps of logic, if such reckless optimism could be called that, left something to be desired. The rest of Astrea Familia just stared at her, mouths agape. Even Astrea simply blinked a few times in mild-mannered surprise. The room fell silent once again, though for a completely different reason than before. It was Lyra who spoke up first.
“‘We can’t fail,’ she says. There’s bein’ optimistic, and then there’s this.”
Her exasperated tone failed to hide the smile forming on her lips. Next to speak was Kaguya. She wasn’t as easily swayed by her captain’s words.
“I find it hard to accept such idealistic platitudes,” she said. “It’s fine to speak of the future, but we can’t look away from reality in the meanwhile.”
Once again, Kaguya had discarded any pretenses of humility to speak her mind outright. She wasn’t quite the wide-eyed maniac she was when making fun of Lyu, but her pragmatic and stern words were still a departure from her usual composure.
But Alize only turned and gave the far-eastern girl a curious look. “I don’t know what you mean, Kaguya. I’m not being idealistic at all. We won’t fail. We can’t afford to. That means all there’s left to do is get it done!”
Then she smiled. A clear, almost blinding smile, as though what she was saying was the most obvious thing in the world.
Kaguya was lost for words. She froze, an astonished look on her face. Then she smiled as well.
“…I never can win against you, can I? I’m starting to think this is a bad matchup for me.”
Kaguya conceded and allowed Alize’s soothing words to wash over her. Even Lyu, unwise as she was to the subtleties of the heart, could see in the girl’s face that this was one debate she didn’t mind losing.
“Hey, it’s not like we’ve never seen Alize be optimistic before,” said Noin, smiling fondly.
“That’s right! We never would have joined her if it weren’t for that unbeatable enthusiasm!” added Maryu.
“All right, we’re gonna beat the Black Dragon!” cheered the Amazon, Iska, raising a fist above her head. “I dunno when or how, but we’re gonna do it!”
The place erupted into smiles, banishing the girls’ fears in an instant.
“.….…. ”
It was looking at this scene that made Lyu think.
You’re amazing, Alize.
When they look into your eyes, everyone finds the courage to believe. From cynical Lyra to pig-headed Kaguya. Noin and Neze, Asta and Lyana, Celty and Iska, and Maryu, too.
And me.
You reached out and took my hand and earned my unending respect. You are my hope. My inspiration.
So long as we have you and Astrea leading us, we will never lose sight of what’s right.
Lyu thought back to the day the two first met. She could not quite explain why she felt so proud.
However, in an apparent screw you to Lyu’s introspection, Alize puffed out her modest chest and displayed her smuggest face yet. “Once again, everyone kneels before my overwhelming justice!” she declared. “He-hem! I’m so great!”
“““““““““Grr!”””””””””
Everyone save Lyu and Astrea looked ready to blow a fuse.
Her only flaw is that she doesn’t know when to stop talking…, thought Lyu, burying her face in her hands.
“Anyway! Our mission is to wipe away people’s tears and bring back their smiles! That’s why we fight!”
Astrea nodded sagely at her captain’s commendable words. “That’s right,” she said. “There are as many struggles for justice as there are stars in the sky. Have no doubt that our cause is one of them.”
“See? Lady Astrea agrees!” Alize grinned. “Now then, let’s do our usual, and then we can all get some rest!”
At the mention of this “usual,” a few of the members grew weary looks.
“Do we have to?” moaned Lyra. “I find it a little embarrassing, to be honest…”
“You’re not alone,” agreed Kaguya.
“Be serious, you two!” reprimanded Lyu. “I—I don’t find it embarrassing at all! Not one bit!”
So she claimed, but Lyu’s cheeks had already begun to redden at the thought of what was to come.
First, Alize beckoned the whole group to rise. The eleven girls stood in a circle while their fiery-haired leader extended one hand into the center.
“We do our duty! We balance the scales! Until the day we join the stars!”
She recited the words all in attendance had sworn by. This oath was their proof and pride that they were followers of Astrea.
“Like comets racing across the sky, we leave our starry trails on this earth wherever we go! This I swear, by the sword and wings of justice!”
“By the sword and wings of justice!!”
Lyu and the other girls repeated the oath, and before their smiling goddess, they renewed the vows that had brought them together.
Ten days until the Great Conflict…
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