[Moving back to the relevant topic, Ryuu and the Astraea Familia were involved in the final battle against Alfia. With the help of allies such as the Loki Familia, Freya Familia, and countless others- they were able to defeat Alfia. It is worth noting at this point, Alfia's illness had progressed to the point that she was only as strong as a Level 4. But, even with that strength, she was still strong enough to be able to fight off the entire Astraea Familia before she was defeated. Worthy of being called the Incarnation of Talent.]
Ryuu swallowed as she read that... She would not forgive Alfia for what she'd done so easily... But, at the very least, she could admire the woman's abilities. She'd been weakened down to Level 4 but was still able to single-handedly face all of her Familia and even got close to defeating them. Had her illness not caught up to her...
She shook her head, trying not to linger on the past.
[After that, Evilus activities dropped a bit- though not a lot. While they had eliminated many gods and Familia members, some were able to escape, and Evilus still lingered... This would then lead to a tragedy... The Destruction of the Astraea Familia.]
Ryuu tensed up immediately, her face turning to dread as she had a flashback to that moment... Of that horrible monster, of how she had killed Alise with her own hands...
She trembled but forced herself keep reading.
[Normally, when the Dungeon is damaged, it stops spawning monsters and instead prioritises healing itself. It's a helpful bit of knowledge that allows Adventurers to create temporary safe zones in order to rest and recuperate.]
[However, when the damage to the dungeon becomes too severe- I mean multiple floors are extremely messed up levels of damage- that is when the dungeon unleashes its boundless, infinite rage. It spawns a monster unlike any other- one made to punish those who damaged the Dungeon. It is known as the Juggernaut.]
"Juggernaut," Ryuu whispered, finally having a name to put to that monster. The very incarnation of despair.
[The Juggernaut is unlike any other monster in the dungeon- however what makes it truly terrifying is it has a magic reflecting armoured outer body. Not only is its shell tough as all hell, but it reflects any magic that comes into contact with it. You have to shatter its shell first before you can use magic on it. On top of that, it's fast. Faster than anything else you've ever seen, and terrifyingly efficient and powerful.]
[Evilus members caused explosions on several floors, causing the Juggernaut to spawn- and many of them fled in fear. Against the Juggernaut, the Astraea Familia stood no chance. It took the combined efforts of all of their members, and sacrificing themselves to be able to take it out. Only Ryuu Lion was left behind... And, in doing so, they entrusted their justice to her. But the Astraea Familia didn't account for one thing.]
[The rage of the gentle man.]
"The rage of the gentle man..." Astraea smiled bitterly. "For some reason, that sounds all too fitting, doesn't it...?"
[Ryuu Lion, by nature, is not a bad person. The woman, in fact, has an incredibly strong sense of justice and is surprisingly gentle. It is just that the loss of her Familia caused her to heavily retreat into herself, and she was consumed with absolute rage after she lost everything.]
[Seeing that Ryuu was on a dangerous path, Astraea told Ryuu to stop pursuing justice. She didn't say that to Ryuu because she had given up on her, however. She told Ryuu to stop pursuing justice because Astraea believed that if Ryuu tried to pursue justice while her mind was consumed by rage... Then it would break her. Even with Ryuu asking her to leave Orario and the loss of her familia, Astraea still thought about Ryuu first and foremost and only thought to save her.]
Ryuu froze in place, staring at the pages- reading the words again and again... But they didn't change, she didn't misunderstand.
Astraea... Hadn't given up on her? She had only said that to save her…
All this time, Ryuu had believed that she had essentially been disowned by Astraea- told that she was no longer worthy of pursuing justice. But now, she learned that it wasn't that she wasn't worthy of pursuing justice... But Astraea had told her to not pursue justice because it would break her inside.
"Astraea-sama..." Ryuu quickly wiped the forming tears from her face. "You really were... The best goddess I could have asked for."
[With her Goddess safely out of Orario, Ryuu sank herself into the abyss of evil. She used the very methods that Evilus had used to strike terror into the hearts of Orario and turned them back on Evilus, terrorizing them and killing anyone who got in her way. She single-handedly slaughtered the entire Rudra Familia, with only one person managing to escape.]
[For her 'crime' of slaughtering an entire Familia, Ryuu was branded a criminal by the Guild and given a bounty. This is where I would like to re-iterate the point- My Ryuu did absolutely nothing wrong, and I'm going to rant about this because it still pisses me off to think about!]
Now, everyone was reading with interesting... While Ryuu was starting to blush a bit from embarrassment.
[First off, what in the ever loving fuck were the guild doing? Because obviously the guild knew that Rudra Familia was part of Evilus by this point- how could they not? So would Loki and Freya and several other Familias- they would know that Rudra Familia was guilty and needed to be eliminated.]
[Rudra Familia's destruction was never a question of 'if' it was a matter of 'when.' So, why the fuck was Ryuu given a bounty for erasing an Evilus Familia? She should have received a commendation, not scorn! The Guild was the one who failed by not labelling the Rudra Familia as evil! Justice that is delayed isn't justice, it is cowardice! Maybe Ryuu's methods were cold, and her intentions weren't pure, but she was still following justice by wiping out Rudra Familia- because those cowards in the guild refused to do so.]
Ryuu found herself frozen.
Justice that is delayed isn't justice...
She was still following justice.
Riveria sighed heavily... "We really failed her, didn't we?" She murmured. "He's right... It was cowardice. We should have spoken up for her, regardless of what the guild said. And, in doing so, we left her to suffer in silence for five years... If it weren't for the Hostess of Fertility..."
Then Ryuu might have withered away.
A key member who had helped them in the darkest time of Orario, a hero unacknowledged, would have died.
Eina, reading the diary, felt her faith in the Guild's system wavering slightly... She had never known about the details of Gale's rampage. But now that she did... She couldn't agree with the fact she was made a criminal. Someone who had lost everything, given everything... And yet, this was her reward?
How cruel.
Zomo stopped writing for a moment, having returned home and taken a seat. He needed a moment to calm himself down, so he didn't actually get too angry.
Ryuu was one of his favourite characters, so it was easy for him to get riled up when it came to her. He knew he was biased, so he blamed the guild heavily for the fact that Ryuu was treated like a criminal. She did them a god be damned favour, and they repaid her by branding her a criminal.
He didn't care how afraid the gods were, fuck them.
[Had to take a moment to calm myself there- I'm extremely passionate when it comes to Ryuu.]
Ryuu took a deep breath, her cheeks burning... She felt so flustered, she'd never seen anyone defend her like this... She couldn't lie, it did make her feel just a little bit happy- for someone to know about her past and even still consider her a hero despite everything she did.
Perhaps helping out this Zomo wouldn't be bad if she ever met him...
[Moving on, Ryuu was taken into the Hostess of Fertility after she wiped out the Rudra Familia. While she does occasionally dive into the dungeon in order to make sure her skills don't dull and also keeps an eye out for any signs of Evilus activity, for the most part she is content to just live her life peacefully from now on. Since it was Syr who saved her, Ryuu chose to dedicate her life to Syr as thanks for saving her and giving her a new reason to live.]
[Ryuu considers Syr as her very best friend in the world, and she is willing to do anything to make Syr happy- even if it means giving up things she herself wants in the future.]
Ryuu nodded faintly, acknowledging the truth in Zomo's words. That did sound like something she would do, she considered herself far to indebt to Syr to make her sad. She would do everything in her power to see Syr smiling- protecting the smile that helped save her.
[It did take some time, but Ryuu eventually came to consider the Hostess of Fertility as her home. Many first-class adventurers recognized her, of course, even though she dyed her hair from blonde to green in order to hide. However, none of them ever ratted her out- perhaps out of guilt for the fact they let her be named a criminal in the first place. Maybe it was because Mia Grande- a Level 6 Adventurer- took her in regardless of her origins.]
[Regardless of the reason, Ryuu was able to live in peace within Orario as a member of the Hostess of Fertility. She wouldn't step into Orario's spotlight again until several months from now, but I'm getting ahead of myself with that- I'll speak about it if this topic comes up again or when it becomes relevant.]
The Elf sighed and closed her eyes... But, despite being forced to remember the past, she couldn't deny that her heart felt just a bit lighter. The feeling of someone still considering her a hero despite all the things she'd done, defending what she'd done and saying she was still worthy of justice... To know that Astraea still believed she was capable of justice...
She felt just a little warm.
Meanwhile, Astraea smiled fondly. She would have liked to learn more about Ryuu's current state, but she was still happy that Ryuu still had a place where she was accepted... However, she was not happy with the guild and how they had punished her grieving child. Maybe her motives were wrong, but she had targeted Evilus. Why was it she had been given a bounty?
Perhaps she should head back to Orario and have a stern talk with the guild...
[Diary Entry Complete.]
[Reward 1: Ryuu Lion obtains Magic: 'Astraea Memory.']
Ryuu blinked, momentarily feeling her Falna tingling as her final spell slot was filled by a new magic spell... She blinked as a textbox appeared in front of her, and her heart began to race at what she was reading...
[Astraea Memory - Summoning Magic. Allows the user to summon forth the souls of those bearing Astraea's Falna to fight alongside them in battle. This magic will still endure, even should the user join another Familia. Another magic may be developed by excessive use of this magic, ignoring spell slots.]
[Order in ruins, the scales unbalanced. Shining star, the mission is not yet over. Before the three-forked road to the kingdom- heed my voice, you who reside in the highest of heavens. In the name of the goddess, return from beyond the veil and soar through the sea of stars. Swear yourselves to the Wings of Justice!]
Ryuu's heart began to race in her chest as she read the words, but her mind wasn't able to comprehend them... Perhaps it was the shock mixed with needing to revisit old memories, but Ryuu covered her face and began to cry. Crying with pure joy, because she would finally be able to see her friends again- and apologise.
Even without having met Zomo yet, Ryuu's heart was full of nothing but gratitude to him.
[Reward 2: Eina Tulle obtains the Magic: 'Stellar Memory.']
[Stellar Memory - Summon Burst Magic. So long as the user memorises the name, effects, and chant of a spell, they are capable of copying that spell perfectly.]
[Sacred stars shining in the sky, please answer my fervent wish. The weary traveller, the wandering hero, the ruthless villain. Respond to my plea - and shine within that sea of stars.]
Eina stared at her reward with a blank expression... She felt immensely grateful that nobody could see the details of this magic or else all the Goddesses would go rampant trying to recruit her to their familia. For now, she was just happy being a guild employee.
... Why did she have the strangest feeling she'd just jinxed herself?