Astraea Familia, training room.
Thud! Thud!
Just like before, tremendous crashing sounds echoed through the training room. The scene before them made Alise recall the time when she had first joined the Familia.
Though, to be fair, she had only joined three months ago.
But this time, the one being beaten wasn't Alise—it was Kaguya. And the one doing the beating wasn't Elise, but Est.
Thus, in everyone's eyes, an utterly bizarre scene unfolded: a petite little girl pinning a tall young woman to the ground and mercilessly pounding her.
After spending so much time with Elise, Est had always appeared rather soft and quiet. She showed little interest in anything other than Elise.
When she was with Elise, she would simply act spoiled, eat snacks, or lean against her to sleep. Only during battle would she transform into a sword.
Outside, Est rarely revealed herself.
After all, Elise had deliberately kept Est hidden from the public. As a result, Est's presence outside the Familia had always been extremely low. Those unfamiliar with the Astraea Familia didn't even know she existed.
But in truth, Est had long since advanced to Level 2—and she had done so with all her abilities maxed out.
Back when Est had no mana of this world, Elise had prepared a magic book for her. No matter what, it would grant her at least one spell—and it just so happened to be perfectly suited to Est.
Thus, after discussion between Elise and Astraea—and with Est's consent—they made a decision: minimize Est's influence in the outside world as much as possible, while Elise would attract public attention instead.
In the future, at a critical moment, Est could serve as a trump card capable of turning the tide.
Now, back to the present.
Kaguya had struggled greatly even against Alise, whose abilities were all ranked S. If not for her superior technique, she might not have been Alise's opponent at all.
So what about a Level 2 who had advanced with S-999 in every attribute?
Even accounting for the gap in technique, Kaguya stood absolutely no chance.
Moreover, was Est's Level 2 really the same as an ordinary Level 2 in the outside world? Obviously not.
And so, Kaguya was beaten down once again.
Just like Elise had done to Alise before, Est sat on Kaguya's stomach and rained punches down onto her head.
Though her fists were small, every blow that landed on Kaguya's skull gave her the terrifying sensation that her brains were about to burst.
And...
Kaguya had no way to break free the way she had from Alise.
Each time she reached out toward Est, Est countered even faster. Kaguya couldn't land a single effective hit on her, nor could she block Est's punches.
This time, Kaguya was deeply shaken by this tiny yet unimaginably powerful Familia.
They were... a Familia of justice... weren't they?
Probably... yes.
Though her mind continued racing, she had already completely lost any chance of victory.
Or rather, from the very beginning, she had never had even the slightest hope of winning.
"That's enough, Est. Stop."
After a while, Elise stepped in to halt the one-sided beating. She wrapped her arms beneath Est's armpits and lifted her up.
"Mm!"
Est puffed out her cheeks. Though she stopped at Elise's request, her eyes still glared fiercely at Kaguya on the ground.
"Hmph! I'll let you off this time!"
"There won't be a next time!"
Seeing Est's anger, Kaguya shrank back slightly but nodded.
Est was referring to Kaguya calling her short earlier. She had been displeased, so she had thoroughly beaten Kaguya for it.
Now that she had vented enough, her mood had likely improved, which was why Elise intervened. Kaguya had narrowly escaped further suffering.
"Now then..."
A white light shimmered in Elise's hand. The moment it enveloped Kaguya, she felt as though a pair of warm hands were gently caressing her, filling her with a sense of serenity.
At the same time, the wounds on her body and the swelling from the beating began to slowly heal.
"This is...?"
Kaguya was astonished. Healing abilities were exceedingly rare in this world. Any Familia possessing one would treat it like a priceless treasure.
And yet the captain of this so-called justice Familia possessed such power?
Powerful members, a healing captain, and a gentle goddess...
So enviable.
Why hadn't she met them sooner?
If it were this Familia...
Kaguya raised an arm to cover her eyes. She didn't want others to see her like this.
But in the end, she still began to cry.
If it were this Familia, they could surely achieve true justice, couldn't they?
And yet she had spoken of taking revenge on justice before...
The one who's truly laughable has always been me.
Kaguya took a deep breath, enduring the pain within her body, and struggled to sit up.
"Goddess of Justice—no, Lady Astraea!"
Her crimson eyes were completely flooded with tears. Even so, they shone with a brilliance difficult for ordinary people to imagine.
She stared at the goddess before her, as if making a firm decision. Astraea simply smiled back at her, saying nothing, quietly waiting for her next move.
"I want to join your Familia!"
Kaguya spoke those eight words as though she were crying.
But everyone present understood—this Kaguya was completely different from before.
If earlier she had sought to refuse by fighting, now she sincerely wished to join the Astraea Familia.
Because the justice in her heart had been reignited.
Kaguya wanted to return to justice's embrace.
"I understand. From now on, you're a member of my Familia, Kaguya-chan!"
Astraea smiled—not only because her Familia had gained another powerful member, but also because she could see a child of the lower world finally untie the knot in her heart.
That night, Astraea performed a conversion for Kaguya. Since she had previously belonged to another Familia, she did not directly become an adventurer.
At that moment, the Kaguya who had been abandoned by everything and who despised justice disappeared. In her place stood an adventurer under the banner of justice—Gojouno Kaguya.
Originally, Kaguya had intended to advance immediately to Level 2, since two of her ability scores had already reached S. However, Elise opposed the idea.
The kind captain of the justice Familia stated that although Kaguya's abilities were indeed impressive, they could still be raised a little further.
And so Kaguya readily agreed to this gentle-looking captain's suggestion. After all, she herself wanted to try breaking past her limits.
Only Alise sighed softly at the side, for she could already foresee the miserable future awaiting the young girl...