—"My name is Nina Tulle, and I belong to the [Baldur Class] in the school district! I'm looking forward to working with you as part of this faction experience internship starting today!" —she exclaimed enthusiastically.
Nina had brown hair with a few locks dyed jade. As she nodded vigorously, her deep red tie swung forward in time with her decisive gesture.
Bell, Hestia, and the rest were watching her from the living room of the Hestia Familia residence.
—"I never thought students would actually come from the 'school district'..." —Mikoto commented, clearly surprised.
—"It's impressive that you were even sought out for recruitment, Bell-sama!" —Haruhime added, clasping her hands in admiration.
—"I haven't done anything that grand… honestly..." —Bell responded, scratching the back of his neck, unsure how to handle the compliments.
Three days had passed since Bell finished his participation in the school district under the disguise of a student. Now, back as a first-tier adventurer and a member of the [Hestia Familia], he felt a bittersweet relief. Although Director Baldur had offered him the opportunity to stay at the academy, Hestia insisted it was time for him to return.
Still, Bell couldn't help feeling uneasy. His true identity had been exposed during the "Dungeon Special Training." Previously, he was known as "Rapi Flemish"—an alias that concealed his true role as the adventurer "Rabbit Foot." Now, the students of "Third Platoon"—whom he had led—knew exactly who he really was.
As Bell was reflecting on all this, Nina's voice interrupted his thoughts.
—"A..." —she said timidly, lowering her head when she noticed Bell was looking at her.
Bell also looked away, remembering the moment when, on a whim, he said: "I want to see many landscapes by your side." Although it hadn't meant to be a confession, now it felt embarrassing.
For her part, Nina saw Bell as a reliable person, almost like an older brother. Although she was an honor student in the school district, her simple, warm attitude toward him made him feel at ease.
Hestia, observing their interaction, decided it was time to intervene.
—"...We gladly welcome you as an intern to experience our Familia, Nina-kun. I'm not sure whether you'll want to join our Familia in the future, but we'd be honored if you considered it. I hope you enjoy your time here!" —she said with a smile, extending her hand toward Nina.
—"Yes! Thank you very much!" —Nina responded, taking the goddess's hand warmly.
Meanwhile, Mikoto and Haruhime looked on with gentle smiles. Hestia, on the other hand, seemed to have tasted a sour plum, causing the two to suppress a giggle.
—"So, will the interns stay in the main house?" —Mikoto asked, evaluating the logistics.
—"Yes, if the [Familia] allows it. The guild suggests they stay at base to facilitate their experience." —Eina responded, adjusting her glasses.
—"In fact, Baldur-sama already approved it, and..." —Nina faltered briefly, then added with a slight smile— "…I already brought my luggage outside. I'll go get it with my sister now!"
—"Ah, I'll help you too, Nina." —Bell offered immediately.
However, Nina's response surprised him.
—"It's okay, Bell-senpai!"
—"B... Bell-senpai?" —he repeated,
The young half-elf simply smiled, a faint blush on her cheeks, while Bell tried to process what had just happened.
"Stop moving around so much," he thought, seeming a little annoyed and complaining, as if he had just tasted some strange delicacy that stings and drives him crazy.
—"Well, there's no need to be so surprised. Just call me like you always do..."
—"Like always... you call me Rapi-kun?"
—"Pfft!?"
For a moment, Niina returned to the tone she used when speaking with her classmates and looked at Bell.
The nickname "Rapi-kun" was certainly awful.
Both because it would be confusing if someone who didn't know heard it, and because of Bell's own awareness.
Seeing Bell left speechless, Nina wasn't shy and even seemed happy.
—"If you're an adventurer and I'm your junior, shouldn't I call you senpai?... No, please let me call you that!"
—"Uh, yes... I understand, Nina..."
—"Thank you! Well then, I'll go get your luggage with your sister!"
Laughing, Nina left the room with her sister.
Bell seemed to be in a good mood, and as he watched her long brown hair bounce like an animal's tail, he placed his hand on the back of his head.
— "You seem like a good guy, Senpai."
— "Oh, come on, Welf."
— "To think the day will come when they'll call you senpai… it makes me really excited."
— "Even Ryu-san…!"
Welf, who had his arm resting on Bell's right shoulder, pursed his lips amusedly.
On Bell's left shoulder stood Ryu, a smile on his face.
Feeling completely drained, Bell glanced once more toward the other side of the door where Nina and the others had gone out.
— "Aaah! I was so nervous!"
Walking down the mansion's hallway, Nina brought her hand to her chest and let out a deep sigh.
Eina, who was walking beside her, felt both happy and calm at the same time. It was strange to see Nina, usually so confident, showing such vulnerability. Eina smiled tenderly, feeling great joy seeing this side of her sister.
— "Thank you for your hard work. But you said it was okay, right? The god Hestia is a deity, and Bell-kun and the others are too..."
— "I felt relieved because Baldur-sama also told me about it, but… calling him 'Bell-senpai' was really hard! Even though I tried to be strong, for me, Rapi-kun will always be Rapi-kun..."
— "Ah, there...?"
— "Ah, my heart still races when I look into those red eyes! I'm sure they'll always be there!? Could you at least wear the wig you used when you were Rapi?"
— "I don't think that's possible, but..."
Nina's face constantly shifted between deep red and a soft pink, mirroring the variety of expressions Bell had just shown, making Eina hold back a sigh.
She knew other details about "Rapi-kun" and really wanted to scold him for sneaking into the "Learning District" without revealing his true identity, but since Director Baldur and my mentor Leon were also involved, Eina couldn't say a word anymore. What are those two even doing? It just gives me a headache.
In my tired mind, I was thinking about my beloved sister being the adventurer I was responsible for... and so on, when Nina stopped and turned toward me.
— "Still, I never expected even my older sister to like Mr. Bell... From now on, we're rivals!"
"Wow, so my sister and I think the same way!~" Eina thought, briefly escaping reality. She quickly adjusted her slipping glasses.
— "I-it's not like I like Bell-kun or anything...!"
— "Lies, sister! You were all red. And besides, I totally understand that you like Rapis-kun... I mean, Mr. Bell. It doesn't matter that he's younger for you and older for me... yes, I get it. We're sisters."
Rebuked by her younger sister, Eina stammered. Nina brought a hand to her chest and nodded.
"We have the same tastes. In fact, in our family, the Tulles have a weakness for that type of man. Mom and Dad are proof. And right now, you're about to say the same thing!"
Seeing her sister about to say something like that, Eina blushed and tried to cover her mouth.
— "Besides... Mr. Bell is a first-class adventurer. Even if your sister isn't, there are many people who'll try to get your attention."
It's true — Bell is already an undisputed level 5. It would be strange if he weren't popular.
People who aren't popular find themselves in a strange situation.
However, (Bell is different… I don't want others to see him that way…) screamed the "older sister's mind," that annoying root that had taken care of Bell since he was a beginner — a painful shout inside.
— "I want Bell to be more like this, more like this!"
Meanwhile, Nina, watching her older sister cover her mouth and start to agonize, took a fighting stance.
— "But I won't give up! Not against my sister or anyone else!"
Ah, oh, I've become so athletic...
Eina's eyes were serious and her heart pure, but she closed her eyes for a moment, feeling both happy and sad watching her younger sister, who unknowingly had been tainted by the "school district."
After all, there's something to be said.
By the time I realized, it was already too late and I was about to give up.
The real enemy lies elsewhere.
— "Um... Nina?"
— "What, sister?"
— "Bell-kun… he already has someone he admires and likes, right?"
— "Whaaaat... eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee?!"
At the sound of today's little sister's screams, Eina pressed her fingers into her two thin, pointed ears.
— "I think I heard some kind of scream..."
In the living room of the mansion where Nina and the others had gone, I looked toward the door leading to the hallway, feeling sweaty.
In the lounge, where the faction experience interns had left their seats and the atmosphere had relaxed a bit, the gods were lounging on the sofas, chatting among themselves.
— "Still, receiving a reverse nomination from the 'school district' side... was unexpected."
— "We also informed the guild that recruitment would be suspended for a while, right?"
— "Ah, Elf-kun joined us, so I told him to stop getting carried away. Well, I was thinking it'd be nice if you came from the other side, but..."
— "Recruitment for the school district was impossible anyway, so it was a fortunate miscalculation, wasn't it?"
— "I feel the same. There are no factions that can acquire a level 2 healer, except the founding members. We should make the most of this good luck."
— "As expected, Bell-sama is a lucky rabbit!"
— "Hmm... if you think about it, I was the one who ended the recruitment requests that seemed impossible, so I don't know what to say..."
Lili leaned back against the sofa with a puzzled look, Mikoto-san glanced sideways, the god responded while folding his arms, Welf took the chance to give his opinion, Ryu-san nodded, and Haruhime-san looked happy, a smile spreading across her face.
Though I was worried about what was happening in the hallway, I smiled ironically and said something that didn't quite make me happy.
— "Actually, considering the fame of the Hestia Familia after defeating Ottar and the others, the current situation is almost too good to be true."
Mr. Syr offered me a delicious cup of tea, steaming and fragrant. I took it and said:
— "Oh, thank you."
— "I guess that's true, but... to be honest, there are too many kids chasing after Bell-kun."
— "Well, Bell-san is a first-class adventurer too, right? He's on the direct path to becoming a popular conqueror."
— "I don't like that at all."
As the tea was being passed around, the goddess took a large sip from her cup, sighed deeply, and at that moment...
— "What are you doing here──!?"
A shout echoed through the room.
A loud noise was unleashed. We were startled to see the gray-haired girl who had quietly joined our group, serving tea as if it was the most normal thing in the world. However, we noticed she was wearing the tavern uniform — it was Syr.
— "What's wrong? Let me join you, please~."
— "What did you say?! What happened to your job at the tavern!?"
— "Horn and the others are doing all the work, so I just stopped by while running some errands~."
Meanwhile, Hestia-sama was shouting, and Syr skillfully dodged her words, while Haruhime, dressed as a maid, was shocked, saying:
— "They took my job away?!"
For some reason, Syr often did this. Due to the need to protect Haruhime, Ryu, and the others, and with the Masters always present at the Hestia Familia residence, Syr would often appear without prior notice (of course, the Masters had free access).
However, the goddess Hestia was far from pleased with this situation. It was said that if Syr got too comfortable, she might start treating the Hestia Familia residence as her own home. Syr actually seemed to yearn to spend the night there...
— "Go back to your own home!"
— "The war zone in Fólkvangr is now under the guild's control, so I can no longer enter freely. Please, let me stay here~!"
— "I don't care! Sleep at the tavern if you want!"
— "I'm already crammed in with Horn, Anya, Chloe, and the others! I'm bouncing from bed to bed, all squeezed in with them! Uuugh!"
— "I already told you! Having you sleeping near Bell is even more dangerous than letting Aisha join. Go away, Syrwhatsherface!"
— "Can't you just call me Syr-sama...?"
While Syr and Hestia argued, Lili sighed resignedly.
After much insistence, Syr agreed to occasionally stay at the Hestia Familia residence, gradually lowering her demands. Her negotiation strategy was clear: ask for a lot at first, then lower expectations—a trick Hermes once explained to me.
As goddess Hestia breathed heavily, Lili and the others sighed: "There's no way Hestia-sama can win an argument against Syr-sama."
— "Eh? Is the tea all gone?"
— "Then I'll make some. Syr-san... and Haruhime-san seem to be having a rough day too."
I took the white ceramic teapot Welf handed me.
Syr and the goddess continued their bickering: Syr saying, "Thanks, goddess-sama!" and Hestia replying, "You too! I still don't like you! Stop hugging me!" Meanwhile, Haruhime, dressed as a maid, tries to calm things down with Lili and Mikoto.
"I don't want to become a person who does nothing at home just because I'm the leader."
I returned Welf's greeting, who said "Sorry," and headed to the kitchen.
While preparing the magic stone to light the fire, I started washing the used cups. Then...
— "Let me help you, Bell."
It was Miss Ryu.
Now, wearing her familiar casual clothes, she approached with the ease of a tavern worker.
— "Ah... thanks, Ryu..."
— "You're welcome. It's my duty since I'm a newcomer."
— "That's not necessary..."
— "At least when I joined Alice's faction, that's how it was."
I held back my surprise and somehow managed to thank her. Ryu shook her head and smiled, mentioning Alise and the others.
From that moment on, we divided the chores. I put the kettle on the fire, and Ryu took care of washing the dishes.
We stood side by side as if it were the most natural thing, our shoulders almost touching.
A faint dizziness washed over me as I caught the subtle scent of a woman from her shining golden hair.
Just Ryu and me.
(…This is hard.)
I couldn't help but feel uneasy. When Lili and the others were around, things felt normal, but now, alone with her, the atmosphere grew heavy. The reason was obvious.
"I like you."
"As a man, I want you."
Those simple words she had confessed during the faction war echoed endlessly in my mind and heart, tearing me apart. I was frozen, unsure of how to respond or what to do next.
Did Ryu really not realize?
I glanced sideways, trying to loosen the tension in my stiff neck. Yet Ryu remained calm, serene as ever.
(…I can't do this.)
I have to be honest.
I didn't want to hurt her, but I had to be clear about how I felt. My heart was torn between selfish feelings and the choice to do what was right.
— "Ryu… there's something I need to tell you…"
But before I could finish—
— "Don't say it, Bell."
My words were cut off.
With those sky-colored eyes that seemed to see right through me, Ryu stopped me.
"If Syr couldn't make it, it's no surprise I'd end up the same way," she said softly, her gaze gentle.
— "...!"
— "It's okay, I understand."
Ryu added those words with a calm smile. My face flushed, feeling like everything I had tried to hide was laid bare.
It seemed she understood me completely, just as she had during the Goddess Festival, when she saw me at my most vulnerable.
And now, my heart, full of uncertainty, wanted to say something—but I couldn't.
Ryu looked at me softly and whispered:
— "But… I want to keep liking you a little longer."
If I remember correctly, that was when we met on Daedalus Street in the labyrinth city to rescue the dragon girl Wiene and her friends.
With a finger pressed gently to my lips, she reminded me of that moment. Everything had happened so fast, I couldn't help but blush again.
— "Finally, the stubborn elf has been honest. So… it's okay to keep letting myself be carried away by these feelings, right? For an elf, life is long, so I can stay swept up in this passion a little while longer. That's what they begged me to do."
Faced with that plea, pride and masculine appearance felt trivial and meaningless.
— "Is that okay?"
She asked me.
I nodded awkwardly, taking my time. That was all I could do.
— Thank you.
She said that and left. She had made sure to prepare enough cups and arranged them neatly.
I couldn't follow her. No matter how insensitive I was, I understood I shouldn't chase after her right then.
To make matters worse, the kettle sitting on the magical stone stove began to boil.
I froze for a moment before slowly turning off the fire.
By now, I had no idea what the right temperature was to make tea.
The master would surely kick me.
In fact, I almost wished he would.
To be a man and have someone care about me... no, that wasn't all.
Was I being manipulated by an older sister?
Covering my forehead and trying to calm my flushed face, I realized I had been forced to accept her way of putting things in order.
"......."
After leaving the kitchen, for some reason Ryu didn't return to the living room; instead, she walked out into the hallway.
She moved at a perfectly measured pace and, after rounding the corner, suddenly collapsed hard!
She buried her face in both knees, her pointed elf ears completely red.
"You did really well, Ryuu."
Then, suddenly—
No one knew when or from where, but Syr's head appeared from the shadows in the hallway.
She approached Ryuu and, with a gentle smile, began to comfort her. Ryuu slowly lifted her face, as red as her pointed elf ears.
"Syr…"
"Are you sad now? Or embarrassed?"
"…The latter."
"I knew it. I'm impressed by how mature you were, Ryuu."
Syr, now sitting beside her, wrapped an arm around Ryuu and gently patted her back.
Surprisingly, Ryuu didn't resist and, still blushing, began to murmur an excuse.
"During the Family War, I confessed my feelings to set things straight, not because I expected acceptance. I already knew what his answer would be, so there's nothing to regret now…"
"Yes, yes."
"Besides, even after saying that… I'm not a woman who settles easily. Someday, I'll be attracted to someone else and… when I choose my partner…"
"I understand, I understand. But Ryuu, you're just like that goddess of first love monsters. You'll obsess over your first love, won't be able to forget, and stay trapped in it forever."
"That describes you!"
Ryuu spoke quickly, raising her voice as she accused the village girl who'd brought up the topic of the supreme goddess of first love.… heavy love, Freya — as if it were something distant from her. It was as if she were witnessing the very goddess Hestia in person.
"Now we're companions, both rejected by Bell!"
"I haven't been explicitly rejected yet…!"
"Oh, Ryuu, you're clever! But I get it. Rejected men and women become unstoppable."
"I'd never experienced rejection myself, so hearing you — the ruler of love — say that..."
"By the way, even if Bell were to become a soul, I'd pursue him, and when he is reborn, I'd seek him again. I'm a step ahead of you, Ryuu!"
"Stop talking nonsense!"
Ryuu, who had finally come to her senses, tried to scold her friend for such a ridiculous view of love — a love that crossed lives and borders.
She broke away from Syr; their faces were both red, and she shot her a warning look.
Syr, however, broke into a wide smile. She was happy to be able to have conversations like this with a friend.
"... Is it really harder to find a place by Rapi's side than it is to get a job at the Guild…?"
"That's what I told you..."
A pair of half-elves had been quietly witnessing this exchange from across the corridor.
As they carried their burdens, Nina trembled, peering from behind the wall, while Eina sighed deeply.
Both understood that their own futures were filled with difficulties as well.