In the church basement.
Apollo Familia had set their sights on Bell, which left Hestia deeply worried. She slipped out under the pretense of running an errand to seek advice from Hephaestus.
Only Ryuu and Bell were left in the room.
"Ryuu, thank you for pretending to be my lover yesterday. And just now as well… I'm really grateful that you chose to trust me instead of rushing in to hit me like Goddess-sama did."
Bell voiced his thanks. If this stern Elf girl had actually swung at him, he wouldn't have stood a chance.
"It's fine… as long as you didn't betray Syr…"
A faint blush warmed Ryuu's cheeks. She refused to admit she'd been too flustered to move.
Silence settled in, and an ambiguous tension slowly filled the room.
Just as Ryuu was about to escape, footsteps sounded outside.
"Bell!"
Airmid saw him opening the door and immediately kissed him.
Ryuu stared in shock at the two now wrapped in each other's arms. She tried to avert her gaze, yet her eyes kept drifting back to the boy on their own.
Airmid didn't ask a single question. She simply held him tightly, lips pressed to his, her tongue weaving against his in a deep kiss.
Ryuu felt a pang of regret—why hadn't she left sooner…
When the kiss finally ended, Airmid brushed back her silver hair and shyly greeted Ryuu.
Then she took Bell's right hand, her expression full of concern.
"Bell, I heard you got dragged into some trouble… If there's anything I can do to help, just say so."
Bell frowned. News shouldn't have spread this fast.
"Where did you hear that?" he asked.
"Well…"
"I'm the one who told Airmid, you know."
Before Airmid could answer, a blonde Elf stepped in with a bright smile.
"Laurier…"
Bell spoke her name. If it came from Hermes Familia, experts at gathering information, then it made sense.
"When did you two get so close?" Bell asked quietly.
"That's a secret between girls…"
Laurier smiled as she moved in and wrapped herself around his left arm.
What Bell didn't know was that as the number of girls around him increased, a silent war had already begun.
To counter the devilish Syr, Laurier and Airmid were steadily closing ranks—just like earlier.
Laurier's advice to Airmid had been simple: When you meet him, forget everything else and kiss him first.
"…"
Ryuu felt she absolutely shouldn't be here. But with the three of them practically glued together, she couldn't bring herself to walk past them.
"Aren't you curious about what happened in the Pleasure District?"
Bell addressed the two lovers.
"Compared to that, the matter concerning Apollo Familia is far more important."
"I agree."
Airmid spoke gently, and Laurier murmured her assent. Their mutual trust showed clearly in the softness between them, a stark contrast to a certain golden-haired Elf.
"Bell Cranel! You pervert rabbit in heat!!"
Lefiya's furious shout rang out from outside the church.
"We're visiting someone else's base, Lefiya. Try to be a little more reserved."
Riveria offered a gentle reminder.
Lefiya forced herself to hold back her anger, brows knitted, but the instant she saw the boy again, her resentment erupted.
"Start talking! What were you doing in the Pleasure District? And what's this about sleeping with the girls there?!"
"Lefiya-san? I'll explain, just please don't jump on me?!"
Bell nimbly dodged Lefiya's sudden attack.
"Seeing Airmid-san and Laurier-san says it all! Skipping Dungeon work during the day just to hug girls left and right?! You perverted rabbit in heat!!"
With Riveria confiscating her wand, Lefiya had no weapon left but her own hands as she tried to tackle the boy. Yet against the agile youth, her Lv.3 Status meant nothing—she missed again and again.
"Hmph… even Ryuu-san too?! Unforgivable!"
Noticing Ryuu's troubled expression, Lefiya sentenced the boy all over again.
"…I was merely fulfilling a request. It's nothing like what you imagine."
Ryuu replied, a faint shyness in her voice.
"Oh! Go, Lefiya! Catch Argonaut and just do it!"
Tiona cheered happily.
"Tiona… I warned you to work on breaking some of those Amazoness habits. Don't use such crude phrases."
Riveria sighed softly.
She also wanted to know what Bell had experienced last night, so she chose not to intervene.
"..."
Ais quietly watched the two chase each other.
They ran from the basement to the stairwell, then across the ruins and into the trees. Bell seemed to offer several explanations along the way, but overwhelmed by embarrassment and anger, Lefiya ignored everything and kept pursuing him without pause.
They didn't actually start fighting…
Ais felt a touch of disappointment.
If they had, she could've used the opportunity to whisk Bell away on her back…
She pushed the thought aside and patiently waited for the commotion to settle.
"Have they… always been like this?"
"I'll stop her!"
Watching the scene unfold, Laurier and Airmid—Bell's lovers—found unexpected jealousy rising in their hearts. The two rushed forward, blocking Lefiya and bringing the farce to an end.
"Enough, Lefiya. Everything is clear now."
Riveria dipped her head slightly toward Bell. "I'm sorry for the trouble."
"It's fine. As long as things are explained."
Bell gave a gentle smile.
"Um… I'm sorry… I misunderstood you…"
Breathing heavily, Lefiya apologized.
"Bell Cranel, regarding Apollo Familia, what are your intentions?"
Riveria had traveled through many countries, some where polygamy was common, so she wasn't overly concerned about the matter of harems. What truly worried her was Apollo Familia's fixation on the boy.
Bell looked around at the women surrounding him and began slowly:
"Goddess-sama told me that God, Apollo, is incredibly persistent."
According to Hestia, Apollo had once relentlessly pursued her in Tenkai. Their relationship hadn't even approached romance, yet Apollo suddenly proposed to her outright.
Naturally, the goddess rejected him without hesitation, but Apollo never gave up.
He was a somewhat twisted god. That was Hestia's evaluation of Apollo.
Riveria listened, and a hint of worry appeared on her flawlessly beautiful face.
"Actually, Apollo Familia has a rather peculiar way of doing things in Orario. Once that god sets his sights on someone, he'll stop at nothing to take them back. From what I've heard, several young women have already suffered because of it."
Bell nodded.
The intentions of Apollo Familia were painfully clear.
They wanted to provoke him, force him to make the first move, then use that as justification to corner him.
Either join Apollo Familia, or settle it through a War Game.
"Riveria-san, do you think Apollo Familia will stop here?"
Bell asked.
"It's highly unlikely. Their Familia God is… the way he is. Since they've already targeted Lefiya, they may very well escalate things even further."
Riveria shared her thoughts gently.
"I figured as much…"
Since the other side had come looking for trouble, Bell had no intention of ignoring the threat.
He looked around at the women surrounding him and spoke slowly:
"I'm going to challenge Apollo Familia to a War Game and drive them out of Orario."