As Shaka stepped out of the divine chamber, he immediately came face-to-face with a familiar figure.
Leaning against the wall, arms crossed, Cecil stared at him with a raised brow.
"Well? Who's the captain?"
Shaka averted his gaze awkwardly, scratching his cheek with a sheepish smile.
"…You calling me?"
"WHAT?!"
Cecil's brows shot up, face flushed with indignation.
"What are you pretending for? The moment you officially joined the Familia, you should've called me by my proper title!"
She had clearly been waiting by the door for a long time—no doubt, anticipating her moment of glory.
But—
"…Sorry. There was a slight change of plans. Looks like the captain's position… won't be handed over so easily."
Cecil puffed up her cheeks in a pout, glaring at him with disbelief.
He's going back on his word?! Someone like that… doesn't deserve to be Astraea-sama's Familia!
She would never recognize a captain like this!
Just then, Astraea herself spoke up.
"Cecil-chan, I'm sorry… but due to certain reasons, Shaka has to be captain."
"…What reasons?" Cecil mumbled bitterly.
"It's related to his skills…" Astraea glanced at outsider Asfi, hesitating, then clapped her hands together with a hopeful smile.
"So please, I'm counting on you!"
"Even Astraea-sama is taking his side?!" Cecil's eyes widened in betrayal.
She looked like a rural wife whose scholar husband had passed the imperial exams only to abandon her to live in the capital.
Feeling bad, Shaka offered a compromise:
"How about this—let's compete for it. We'll have three months. Whoever recruits the most new members to Astraea Familia—approved by Astraea herself—wins and becomes the official captain."
"No fake members allowed!"
Cecil gritted her teeth, clearly dissatisfied, but seeing Astraea clasping her hands together behind Shaka, pleading with tilted head… she finally relented.
"Fine! Three months it is. It's a deal!"
She glared daggers at Shaka, then huffed and looked away with arms crossed.
A rookie like him stands no chance against a veteran blacksmith like me. Especially in a city of smithing and swords—that's my turf! Plus, I've got my rare skill on my side!
She was going to win.
Cecil thought of the ability she had awakened:
---
[Weapon Creation]
Increases proficiency when forging bladed weapons.
Increases base stats of weapons forged.
Low chance to improve the material grade during forging.
---
It wasn't the Forge skill proper, so she couldn't imbue attributes. The weapons would be basic-grade—but with her ability, even blank slates would shine bright enough to attract adventurers.
On Shaka's end, he, too, felt confident. A bold and ambitious plan was already taking shape in his mind.
And so, the two newest members of the newly reborn Familia of Justice bumped fists, sealing their friendly rivalry.
"Ahem."
A sudden cough broke the moment. Asfi, who had been spectating the whole time, finally made her presence known.
"…You're still here??"×2 Shaka and Cecil said in unison, looking surprised.
"What's with that ! you two were just fighting a second ago! Now you are in sync against me?!?""
Asfi rolled her eyes and protested.
"Ugh, I only brought someone here as a favor, and now I'm being tossed aside like old newspaper !."
Heh, as if you didn't have your own motives.
Shaka rolled his eyes back. "Of course we're close now. We're in the same Familia, after all."
Cecil added proudly, "Unified front against outsiders and enemies !"
"…Tch."
Clicking her tongue, Asfi decided not to dig deeper.
"Well, now that I'm no longer needed, I'll report back to Hermes-sama. Though I still don't see what Astraea-sama saw in you."
"If I'd failed the interview, you would've been the one in trouble," Shaka shot back with a smirk.
"Hmph."
With a final tsundere snort, Asfi turned to leave—when Astraea's voice called out.
"Wait, Asfi-chan. Sorry, but could I ask you to wait just a moment?"
Astraea approached with a polite smile and a humble request."I heard that child sent a letter… I'd like to write a reply too. Would you mind waiting?"
Asfi's face dropped, glasses sliding down the bridge of her nose. "Even Astraea-sama… really now…"
"I'm sorry, Asfi-chan. I'm counting on you," the goddess said with a gentle bow.
Astraea took the letter from Cecil and read it with care. Then she pulled out parchment and a quill, thinking over her response.
Curious, Shaka came over to watch. He pulled out his pencil case and notebook from his bag and offered them to the goddess.
"Here—maybe this'll be easier."
"Oh my, how convenient."
Astraea cheerfully swapped tools and began writing with grace. Her penmanship was as elegant and composed as her presence, each letter exuding warmth and sincerity.
The content felt like a letter from a loving mother to her child far from home—gentle, reassuring, and tender.
Astraea-sama… really does feel like a mother. Well ...a Milf
Seeing her up close like this made Shaka feel a newfound sense of peace.
Damn! She's is perfect wife material.
As the goddess wrote, she paused when she reached the part about her own situation—clearly pondering something.
"Having trouble?" Shaka asked.
"Mhm… this is a letter to a senior member of our Familia. She's been stuck, unable to move forward for a long time. But from her recent letters… it seems she's finally stopped running and begun searching for a new path."
Astraea explained the story of Ryuu bit by bit.
"But I don't know how to reply. She always worries about me, too…"
Shaka smiled. "Why not tell her about us? The Familia getting new blood is something worth bragging about, isn't it?"
"You're right!"
Astraea clapped her hands joyfully and resumed writing with renewed energy. She included introductions of both Cecil and Shaka—even going so far as to mention Shaka's ambitions.
Of course, being the wise goddess she was, she omitted all mention of Shaka's actual abilities.
Watching his embarrassing history being written out again, Shaka could only hold his forehead in despair.
"Do you have to share everything…? At least write some nice things about me too. If Ryuu-senpai's impression of me goes up, I'll get a stat boost, right?"
"Oh, that's right!"
Astraea slapped her forehead and, while not changing the original text, added plenty of praise for Shaka toward the end.
As someone who had grown up with the standard orphan-hero backstory, Shaka didn't actually hate the feeling of being bragged about by a mother figure.
But then… he saw the last line she wrote:
This child, like Alise, has hair as red as fire.
Shaka fell silent.
So that's explain why… she didn't reject my ridiculous reason for joining the Familia.
"I just hope Ryuu-senpai doesn't end up with a bad impression of me…"
"She won't," Astraea said with a soft laugh. "Ryuu is a very kind girl. A little stubborn, but very gentle."
I sure hope so…
Shaka let out a long sigh.
If all went well, Ryuu-senpai—currently in Orario and still a member of the Familia—might provide him with a substantial boost in stats. Especially considering their dynamic of senior and junior, captain candidate and promising newcomer.
And she wasn't just any adventurer.
She was a peak-level Lv. 4, already at the cusp of ascending to the next stage.
"Even a 1–10% inheritance… would mean +100 to +1000 points in all stats."
Basically, a shortcut to greatness.