Chapter 170
It took time for the flames to be extinguished, both within the factory and on the streets.
While the Astraea and Bahamut familias managed to preserve most of the factory and surrounding buildings, many partially collapsed and charred structures were still visible.
Their highest priority had been to prevent the fire from spreading and to save as many lives as possible.
Thankfully, these efforts had succeeded, and no lives were lost outside the factory, a fact that brought some joy to the survivors.
“Stopped the fire from spreading and rounded up the evils; all in a day's work, aren’t we great?” Alise said, puffing out her chest proudly.
They were currently in one of the partially destroyed warehouses.
“Yawn, sure, sure, whatever you say, Miss Justice. Just came to tell you that we’ll be heading back home when the Ganesha familia arrives,” Draco replied, already accustomed to Alise’s quirky behaviour.
The other members of the Bahamut familia were outside, keeping watch over some captured members of the Evilus.
Word had been sent to the Ganesha familia to handle the prisoners.
“Aren’t you going to help with the cleanup?” Alise asked, gesturing to the debris around them.
“No, we have plans for later today. I think we’ve done enough already; we can’t spoon-feed the civilians. They can handle the cleanup themselves,” Draco replied.
While he wanted to earn the trust of the civilians in Orario, he didn’t want them to become overly reliant on the Bahamut familia.
The immediate danger had been dealt with, so it was time for the civilians to step up.
Draco had been peacefully sleeping when the smell of smoke reached the Bahamut familia home.
Everyone had sensitive senses, so they all woke up.
The magic stone factory under attack by the Evilus was very close to their residence, necessitating their action, even though it was outside their usual patrol territory.
Coincidentally, the Astraea familia was patrolling the area, which allowed both familias to cooperate and resolve the crisis.
Another reason Draco wanted his familia to return home quickly was that the monster Rex ‘Goliath’ was spawning that day.
He had worked hard to reserve it for the Bahamut familia, and missing it could lead to complications for various familias and their adventurers.
All his familia members had finally reached the threshold to level up, just a bit later than he anticipated.
The Goliath, while challenging, was the right opponent for them to gain the final burst of high-grade excelia needed to level up.
Upon hearing Draco’s response, Alise didn’t get mad.
He had already made it clear that their perceptions of justice differed.
Brushing her ponytail to the side, she met Draco’s gaze.
“Sure, you can leave. Pretty and pure-hearted girls like us can take care of the rest anyway,” she said with a bright smile.
‘Ugh, can someone like this really exist?’ Draco thought.
“What does that even mean?” Lyra interjected.
Alise cocked her head to the side, feigning confusion.
“I don’t know how you manage to stay so optimistic,” Lyra muttered with a sigh.
“I’m sure everyone is quite tired too; we haven’t had a good sleep in a while. We’ve been fighting almost every day, and I feel like we might burn out at this rate,” Lyra continued.
Her words seemed to dampen Alise’s spirit a little.
“Yeah, if only we could have stopped the Evilus plan before it happened, arrived earlier or reached the heart faster. Maybe we could have saved the factory and houses, and there wouldn’t be so much work left,” Alise replied, her voice shifting from optimism to a subdued whisper.
Lyra wanted to say something but held her tongue, leaving an awkward silence hanging in the air.
‘Should we leave now?’ Draco wondered, watching the tension between them.
“The captain cannot be blamed for anything,” a voice broke the silence.
“If anyone is at fault, it’s that elf holding the rest of us back,” Kaguya said.
“Did you find fault in my actions, Kaguya-san?” Ryuu shot back, unwilling to let the comment slide.
“Draco-nii, should we leave now?” Vasiliki whispered, unsure whether they should witness this fallout.
“Not yet; this seems interesting,” Draco whispered back.
He had always assumed that the Astraea familia members got along well, but their current behaviour suggested otherwise.
“Why yes, did you not notice?” Kaguya asked.
“I am the one who cut through enemy lines! I am the one who secured the warehouses before anyone else. Tell me, where did I fall short?” Ryuu's voice rose as she spoke.
“And drop the facade; just listening to your fake personality makes me sick,” Ryuu added.
“Very well, as you wish, I shall speak normally,” Kaguya said.
Her demeanour remained unchanged, and without dropping her usual smile, she dropped the hand she had been pressing on her cheek.
“You moron!” Kaguya yelled at the top of her lungs, startling Draco and Vasiliki.
Her sudden personality change, coupled with a deranged smile, was shocking.
“Did I find fault, you say? You basically bumble your way through everything, every time!” Kaguya scolded.
“Wha….” Ryuu wanted to counter, but Kaguya cut her off.
“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 all uppity with me, you trash pixie,” Kaguya said, her words flowing in an unending stream of abuse.
This was Kaguya’s true nature, a stark contrast to the refined persona she used in public.
“You oblivious, tunnel-vision, mindless little moron! How dare you speak as though you’ve done a good job?” Kaguya raged.
“I-I wasn’t the only one who went on a rampage out there. So I would like to know exactly why you have a problem with only my actions,” Ryuu countered.
“You stupid trash pixie!” Kaguya yelled, her words seemingly falling on deaf ears.
“Stop calling me that!” Ryuu retorted, and a physical fight broke out between them. The punches and kicks exchanged by the two level 3 adventurers were quite a sight.
“Sigh, here we go again,” Lyra said, a deep sigh escaping her lips.
“Another swearing match between our hardheaded elf and Far Eastern princess. I wish they would spend that effort building each other up instead of tearing each other down,” she lamented.
“Aren’t you going to stop them, Alise?” Draco asked, finding a comfortable spot on some rubble to sit.
It seemed like this was a regular occurrence within the Astraea familia.
“Sorry you had to witness this side of us, but they make a good match for each other, don’t you think?” Alise said, hands on her hips.
“Hmm, I guess so, though a bit surprised by their sudden change in personality; it makes me wonder what else you Astraea girls are hiding,” Draco replied, a smirk on his face.
Vasiliki nodded in agreement.
She had always found most members of the Astraea familia were hard to read, unlike most people.
“Speaking of hiding, your familia is doing a lot of that. Who would have guessed that you are already a level 4? You’ve already passed us,” Alise said, playfully elbowing Draco.
“Well, I wasn’t really hiding my level; the guild has known for a while now. Besides, you know how many forces are after us. Gotta be careful,” Draco replied.
“Hmm,” Alise nodded in understanding, her mind lost in thought.
Draco briefly stared at her, wondering what she was thinking when Alise's eyes caught his.
“Fall in love,” Alise teased, her gaze meeting Draco’s.
“You wish,” Draco scoffed, his scaly tail flicking the ground in response.
“Captain, please do something instead of flirting!” Lyra called out.
“I am not…” Alise’s words were cut short as she noticed someone else enter the warehouse.
“Sorry I’m late,” a voice said.
“Ah, Shakti, you came!” Alise exclaimed.
Shakti had arrived at the scene along with several high-tier adventurers.
‘Guess that’s my cue to leave,’ Draco thought, relieved that he could finally go back to sleep.