"Akira, this is my good friend, Adi. You've met her before, remember? She's the one you ran into last time." Ryuu introduced with a gentle smile.
"And Adi, this is Akira, the newest member of our Familia."
This time, Akira took the initiative. He stepped forward and extended his hand politely.
He sincerely said, "Hello, Adi-san. I'm really sorry for the trouble I caused last time… and for running off without saying anything."
Adi reached out and shook his hand briefly, their palms just brushing before she pulled back. Her eyes swept over Akira, observing him with mild curiosity.
"You're still Level 1, right? But you've already awakened… magic or a skill, perhaps?"
"Eh? How did Adi know that Akira had magic or skills—ah!"
Ryuu suddenly realized her slip, belatedly covering her mouth as she turned to Akira with an apologetic look.
"Ryuu." Kaguya sighed helplessly.
"Adi is quite sharp. Judging from what happened that day, it was clearly the result of some powerful magic or skill. And… Akira and I looked so wrecked afterward that it was kind of obvious who was responsible."
"Hehe, you give me too much credit." Adi smiled playfully, clasping her hands together in a mock pleading gesture.
"So? Will you satisfy my curiosity? I promise I won't tell a soul."
Before Akira could answer, Alise chimed in, placing a hand on her hip. "It's magic."
"So it was magic!" Adi's eyes lit up with amazement.
"Wow… having such powerful magic at Level 1. I'm seriously jealous."
— — —
Adi didn't leave after having her curiosity satisfied. Instead, she stuck around, casually chatting with Ryuu about Familia matters while throwing an occasional question at Akira.
Suddenly, a commotion rose from the distance.
A Ganesha Familia soldier wearing a hieroglyphic mask came running toward them, panting heavily.
"Adi-sama! There are members of Evilus attacking civilians up ahead—we need your support!" He gasped, pointing toward the direction of the chaos.
"Looks like trouble found us." Alise muttered, her expression sharpening as she glanced at the others.
"Adi, let's move out."
"Right!" Adi answered without hesitation.
The group dashed toward the scene.
"Hahaha! You can't escape! Come to hell with me and pay for your sins!"
A dozen figures cloaked in tattered robes, clearly from Evilus, were rampaging through the streets. Their weapons swung wildly, cutting down anyone who couldn't fight back.
"Ahhh! Somebody help us! Please! Let me go!" Panicked screams echoed from all sides.
Without hesitation, the five charged into the fray. They scattered into different directions, drawing their weapons and diving into the rescue.
Alise spotted a cloaked criminal raising his blade against a terrified mother and child. Without hesitation, she invoked her magic.
"Arga, Arvana, Arvelia!"
Fire wrapped around her limbs like living snakes. With blazing speed, she shot forward, her rapier slashing the enemy's sword aside. She thrust the blade through the man's limbs, immobilizing him, then finished with a brutal kick to the stomach.
The criminal dropped to his knees, retching. Before he could recover, Alise stepped in again and stomped on his head with her heel, knocking him out cold.
"Yoshi! One down! Let's go, I'll get you out of here safely!"
She declared to the mother and daughter, then began leading them to safety. Any enemy in her path fell easily to her flaming sword.
Elsewhere, Akira's legs moved like a storm, kicking up a whirlwind as he clashed with two of Evilus' fighters.
He wielded a battered one-handed sword, aiming it squarely at an opponent's arm joint and smashing it cleanly. The man's weapon dropped.
In the same moment, Akira's magic surged, forming a cannon-like blast that hurled another man backward before he could even react.
The first attacker, despite losing his weapon, lunged forward with a barehanded punch.
Akira leaned back, dodging with minimal movement, then conjured a chunk of ice around his sword—morphing it into a gleaming hammer and smashed it into the man's face.
The second enemy charged with a roar, swinging a dagger at Akira's side.
"You dare get in our way?! You'll regret it in hell!"
Akira responded with a swift kick to his neck, then followed up by slamming the ice hammer into the man's skull. Both foes collapsed.
Without wasting a moment, Akira dragged them by the ankles, stacked them together, and froze their legs solid. Whether they got frostbite or not was none of his concern.
The battle raged on, but the tide quickly turned.
After the fighting died down, more than a dozen Ganesha Familia members arrived, taking control of the situation. The criminals were bound and loaded into carriages while the wounded were carried away for treatment.
Alise and the others regrouped.
With one hand on her waist and a half-serious smile on her face, Alise sighed.
"Phew. Another crisis handled. Some people were injured, but considering the situation, I'd say we got lucky."
Adi nodded. "Yeah. It could've been far worse. Still… I'm glad it wasn't."
Ryuu pulled down her mask, her face filled with solemn regret. "We didn't make it in time for everyone… some were still hurt."
"But."
She added softly, "It's a blessing that it wasn't worse."
Alise reached over and patted Ryuu on the back with a warm smile. "Don't beat yourself up, Ryuu. Not everything can be solved perfectly."
"She's right."
Adi added gently, "We're not gods. We can only do our best to protect those right in front of us. That's enough."
Akira walked up to Kaguya, who stood silently in thought. "What's wrong, Kaguya-nee? Something bothering you?"
Kaguya furrowed her brows and said, "Don't you think these people were… too weak? All of them were Level 1s. Not a single Level 2. What kind of fools launch an attack like this?"
Akira nodded, recalling how easily his spells dispatched them.
He said, "Could be brainwashing. They kept shouting about atonement. Or maybe… they were just disposable pawns."
He paused, his eyes narrowing. "Classic misdirection. Send out the cannon fodder to create chaos while something bigger happens elsewhere."
"That makes sense."
Kaguya murmured, "I'll report this to Astraea-sama when we return."
They waited a while longer, making sure no new incidents occurred, then resumed their patrol elsewhere.
Eventually, night began to fall. Their shift had ended, and the larger Ganesha Familia took over the watch. Adi prepared to take her leave.
"Well then, I'll say goodbye here. I'm heading off now—see you around!" With a wave, Adi turned and disappeared into the crowd.
"Bye-bye!" Ryuu waved politely.
"Alright! Let's head home too! Ooooh!" Alise stretched her arms high and struck a triumphant pose.
"Ahh, the diligent and dazzling me has once again solved a crisis with grace!"
Kaguya and Ryuu exchanged a look and sighed, clearly used to Alise's antics. They turned toward the Stardust Garden, silently continuing on.
Akira, meanwhile, grabbed Alise's hand and followed with a smile. "Yes, yes, our beautiful captain. Time to go back now."
On the way home, they stopped by the clothing store to pick up Akira's new outfits. Then, they returned together to their base—Stardust Garden.