Chapter 0167: Ultimate Move
"Rustle, rustle—"
Hearing the footsteps approaching from behind, the valiant Astraea turned around and saw Hayashi and Erina walking together toward her. A faint smile graced her lips as she said, "Good morning, Erina, and Hayashi."
Erina smiled gently and replied, "Good morning, Astraea."
Hayashi raised his right hand and chimed in, "Mornin'~"
Astraea sheathed her sword at her waist and walked over to Erina, asking, "Is breakfast today also being handled by Erina?"
Erina lifted her head proudly and declared, "Of course! As a chef, I won't allow anyone else to invade my territory—the kitchen!"
Astraea's eyes curved into crescents as she said, "Then we're in for another treat today. How wonderful."
"Please look forward to it!" Erina placed her hands on her hips, beaming. "By the way, today's breakfast is red oil shaomai, zhajiangmian, and egg wine."
Hayashi's eyes lit up at Erina's description. He immediately began pushing her toward the "kitchen" area, urging, "Stop chatting and get cooking! I can't wait to eat breakfast already!"
Erina sighed helplessly, tilting her head back. "Alright, alright… Hey, stop pushing me! I can walk on my own, you dummy!"
"Hahaha—"
Watching the scene unfold, Astraea couldn't help but chuckle and shake her head, remarking fondly, "What an affectionate couple."
"Hehe, thank you for the compliment, Goddess." Hayashi rubbed his nose as he walked back and sat cheerfully on a nearby rock. "Goddess, is something on your mind?"
Astraea blinked in surprise and asked, "Why do you say that?"
Hayashi scratched his head. "Huh? Anyone who saw that scene would ask, right? Hmm, how to describe it… Just looking at your back earlier gave off a feeling of, 'Ah, this person has something weighing on them!'"
Hearing his words, Astraea let out a soft, amused laugh. She shook her head slightly and admitted, "Was I really that obvious?"
"Yep—super obvious!"
Just then, Lili, drawn by the commotion, peeked out from behind Hayashi and added, "Lady Astraea must be thinking about Lady Alise and the others, right?"
"Alise?"
"Mhm! Lady Alise is the captain of the Astrea Familia! She's a Level 2 adventurer with the title 'Scarlet Harnel'!" Lili clasped her hands over her chest, her face full of admiration as she introduced her captain. But then her expression fell, and she lowered her head dejectedly. "It's just… right now, she and the other senior members of the familia are trapped inside Orario…"
"Lili!"
Astraea frowned, her tone turning stern. "That's enough!"
"No, what's going on here?" Hayashi asked knowingly, his gaze shifting several times between Astraea and Lili before settling on Lili. "Trapped inside Orario? Why are they trapped? Is it because of the accomplices of those attackers?"
Lili glanced at Astraea's serious expression and silently lowered her head.
Hayashi sighed helplessly and rubbed his hair, then turned his attention to Astraea. He understood that if this goddess didn't relent, he wouldn't be able to get any information from anyone else—though he already knew what had happened, he needed a "reasonable excuse" to proceed.
Looking at Astraea, he asked, "Goddess, why are you unwilling to tell me?"
Astraea met his dark eyes and said, "You've already saved me once. I can't trouble you again."
Hayashi countered, "But isn't it your familia members who are in danger?"
Astraea took a deep breath and said, "This is our familia's matter. We shouldn't involve others."
Such tedious sense of responsibility, and such tedious pride.
This is what gods are like—beings who have lived for hundreds of millions of years yet remain utterly unchanged!
No wonder gods envy humans, who can undergo earth-shaking transformations and achieve remarkable growth in such short periods.
Hayashi rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration and said, "You're forcing me to use my trump card—"
"Huh?"
"Decided! From now on, our team is going to stick to you like glue!" Hayashi declared boldly, pointing at Astraea. "If you go to Orario, we'll follow you to Orario. If you go to the dungeon, we'll follow you to the dungeon. If you stay in the forest, we'll stay in the forest!"
"Wha... How dare..." Faced with such rogue-like words, Astraea opened her mouth in an adorable expression of shock.
"Heh heh! Now you have no way out, right?" Hayashi withdrew his right hand and crossed his arms, wearing a triumphant expression. "Unless you're willing to watch your companions suffer in Orario indefinitely, the moment you decide to go help them, you'll inevitably drag us along too!"
"Ooh—"
Beside them, Lili clenched her fists, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Hayashi with such admiration that he felt particularly pleased—when she heard Hayashi's unbeatable rogue tactic, she almost couldn't contain her cheers.
Mr. Hayashi, acting like a rogue at times like this is so cool! I'm falling for you!
"Mr. Hayashi, this method is just too shameless."
"I know, but you can't stop us anyway."
Faced with Hayashi's completely unashamed attitude, Astraea opened and closed her mouth several times before finally holding her forehead in frustration and letting out a sigh.
"Regardless of anything else, shouldn't your companions' lives be the top priority?" Hayashi said to the goddess before him, somewhat angrily. "When you see hope of saving your companions, shouldn't you be asking for help? Why would you want us to stay out of it?"
"Because I don't want innocent people to be dragged into the conflict between our Familia and Evilus," Astraea said seriously, looking at Hayashi. "The Astrea Familia are the Law Enforcement of Orario, so it's our duty to fight against Evilus, but you are not!"
Seeing Astraea's expression, Hayashi opened his mouth slightly. He seemed to understand her thoughts now—just like how police officers don't want to involve ordinary citizens in danger.
"That's a noble quality, and I truly admire you! Few people in such situations can make such rational choices without resorting to moral coercion—" Hayashi expressed his heartfelt admiration, but then he straightened his back and declared, "But I refuse! One of Hayashi's favorite things to do is to say 'No' to those who think they have everything under control!"
"..."
Faced with this man who, despite understanding her reasoning, praising her virtues, and even sympathizing with her perspective, still uttered these words, Astraea couldn't help but show a speechless expression.
"Still not willing to say it?" Hayashi scratched his head in frustration. "Then how about this—just think of it as me wanting to gain fame as a hero by defeating those pests from Evilus. How's that? This utilitarian explanation should be acceptable, right?"
Seeing the man's helpless gaze and the pleading looks from the younger members of her Familia behind her, Astraea sighed and said, "Alright, then let's treat it as a commission issued by our Astrea Familia—"
"Yay!!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Lili immediately cheered, jumping up from the ground before turning and running toward the rest area, shouting, "Rebecca, Shilu, Erika! Listen to me..."
Astraea shook her head, a hint of affection in her tone. "Really, so reckless."
...
...
One hour later.
Inside the large bamboo basket.
"I never imagined there would be such a method of transportation..."
The goddess Astraea looked up at the Corviknight flying above, clutching the basket with its claws, and murmured.
"If all goes well, we should reach Orario in half a day—" Hisako said, studying the map provided by Astraea. "But has Orario really fallen into such chaos now?"
When Orario first lost the Zeus Familia and Hera Familia, it plunged into a dark age. Almost every day, adventurers were injured or killed, and the cries of children echoed endlessly throughout Orario! It was at this time that Astraea and her Familia stepped forward, voluntarily becoming Orario's Law Enforcement. This Familia of only eleven members fought against evil, supported the weak, and once pulled Orario back on track.
But that was merely an illusion.
The evil Evilus had only temporarily gone into hiding. A week ago, believing they had accumulated enough strength, Evilus launched another terrorist attack that shook all of Orario, killing the main members of over twenty Familias and sending their gods back to the heavens. To protect these newcomers who had lost their gods, Astraea had no choice but to take them far away from Orario.
Astraea let out a wry smile and said, "If it weren't for your formidable strength, I might have told you—you've come to the worst possible Orario at the worst possible time."
The current Orario was even more dire than it had been two years ago, just after losing its "strongest," when darkness loomed everywhere. Those vermin of the Evilus faction were now hiding deeper, more cunning, more insidious than before, and the methods they employed were crueler, more despicable, and more repulsive.
Listening to Astraea's grim description, Hayashi and the other three exchanged glances, then simultaneously broke into smiles.
"Isn't this the perfect moment for heroes to make their grand entrance!?" x4
With that, all four raised their hands and high-fived in unison.
"Yeah, well said!" x4
Watching the four of them brimming with confidence, Astraea was reminded of the girls in her own familia. She couldn't help but show a nostalgic expression before turning her gaze toward Orario in the distance.
Wait for me. I'll bring help to rescue you soon.