"Rawr—! You puny adventurers dare trespass into my territory? Prepare to face my wrath!"
Aiden bared his teeth and brandished his claws, playing the monster. He purposely slowed his pace as he chased after Rye and the "Hero Party." The plaza was instantly filled with the children's joyous laughter and exaggerated shrieks.
Beneath the shade of a tree not far away, Robin watched the scene, her eyes growing increasingly tender.
She truly never expected that the usual Aiden—who cared only about getting stronger and spent most of his time ruthlessly slaughtering in the Dungeon—had such a childish side to him.
Compared to the powerful, battle-hungry, determined Familia Captain who always made people feel safe, Robin felt that this version of him—playing with kids like an overgrown boy—was also quite wonderful.
"Sister Robin, are you and Brother Aiden lovers?"
Just as Robin was lost in thought, the blonde Dog Person girl, Fina, suddenly tilted her head up and asked with her pure, wide eyes.
Twitch. The ears of the other little girls instantly perked up. They all crowded around, the flames of gossip burning brightly in their eyes.
"Not yet," Robin snapped out of her daze and smiled, gently petting Fina's fluffy blonde hair.
"Huh?"
Fina tilted her head in confusion. "Brother Aiden is so handsome, and you're as pretty as a goddess, Sister Robin, and you sing so well. You guys get along so well, too. Why aren't you dating?"
"Fina, just because people get along doesn't mean they have to be dating. They can be friends, too," Robin explained with a smile.
"Oh... so you and Brother Aiden are just friends?"
Fina continued to press, acting like an insatiably curious baby.
"No," Robin shook her head, her voice soft but firm. "We're family."
"Oh, I get it now."
Fina's face lit up in realization, and she clapped her hands together hard. "Just like how we are with Mom! We're all family."
Meanwhile, the "Demon King of Monsters" was finally "defeated" by the combined efforts of the "Hero Party."
"Hey, Brother Aiden," Rye sidled up to Aiden during their break, poking him with an elbow. "Do you like Sister Robin?"
"Oh?" Aiden, who was in the middle of drinking water, raised an eyebrow. "What makes you ask that?"
"Because I heard Sister Syr say it."
Rye planted his hands on his hips, putting on the airs of a miniature adult, looking utterly triumphant. "If someone's eyes keep unconsciously stopping on another person, it means they like them."
He puffed out his small chest, looking like a detective who had uncovered a shocking secret.
"I noticed it! You were staring at Sister Robin earlier. And here's some good news: I just saw it too—Sister Robin was secretly looking at you, too."
"Syr..."
The corner of Aiden's mouth twitched involuntarily.
Miss Waitress, what exactly are you teaching these kids? But on second thought, this perfectly matched her character.
"You're still young. It's too early for you to worry about these things."
Aiden put on a stern face, reaching out to pat Rye's head, adopting the demeanor of a lecturing adult.
"Hmph, I'm already eleven. I'm all grown up."
Rye wiped his nose in dissatisfaction, dodging Aiden's hand.
"I know everything. You definitely like Sister Robin, and she definitely likes you back. You adults are so complicated."
"You don't get it." Aiden sighed deeply, pretending to be profound, trying to maintain his adult dignity. "I'm dealing with a lot of stress here. You'll understand adult troubles when you grow up."
He really didn't want to have a serious conversation about love and romance with a bunch of little squirts. It was too embarrassing.
"Wait, Brother Aiden," Rye's eyes suddenly widened as if he had remembered a crucial clue. "Then what about your relationship with Sister Tifa and Sister Hyacine?"
"Hm?" Aiden paused, instinctively replying, "We're all family in the same Familia. Just like with your Sister Robin, we all get along really well."
Gasp— Rye sucked in a sharp breath of cold air. His gaze instantly shifted from gossip to awe and pure worship.
"Brother Aiden... are you... are you trying to build a harem?!"
Aiden didn't know whether to be angry or laugh, and he exasperatedly flicked Rye on the forehead.
"You little brat, where did you even learn a word like that? Knowing about harems, really?"
"Ouch!"
Rye cried out in pain, clutching his forehead, but the light in his eyes didn't dim. Instead, it burned with even more excitement. He spoke in the tone of someone who had seen through the ultimate truth: "I knew it! A harem is the true romance of a great adventurer! I knew even a cool and strong adventurer like you wanted to build one!"
Looking at him, the kid was clearly heavily poisoned by reading too many Heroic Tales novels.
For a moment, Aiden was completely speechless.
Because... that was exactly what he was thinking. In this Labyrinth City full of miracles and adventure, wasn't building a harem a completely natural dream?
He coughed dryly, desperately trying to salvage his pride: "D-don't make things up. We haven't even crossed that bridge yet. Your Brother Aiden is still single."
Little did he know, that sentence was akin to kicking a hornet's nest.
"Lame!"
Rye immediately shot him a look of utter disdain, as if looking at a hopeless loser. "You're so lame, Brother Aiden. You've got top-tier beauties like Sister Robin, Sister Tifa, and Sister Hyacine around you, and you're still a dateless loser."
Pfft— Aiden felt an invisible arrow pierce straight through his chest. He instinctively clutched his heart, feeling as if he had just taken a hundred points of true damage.
Being mocked with that exact look by an eleven-year-old brat was an absolute blow to his ego.
Happy times were always fleeting.
After spending the entire afternoon playing wildly with the kids, the sun began to set, and it was time for Aiden and Robin to leave.
Amidst the children's reluctant farewells, the two left the church and made their way out of Daedalus Street.
Before leaving, Aiden made a solemn promise to the little ones that he would definitely come visit them again and bring even more fun toys.
Facing the magnificent sunset sky, Aiden and Robin walked shoulder to shoulder out of Daedalus Street. The maze-like district behind them was slowly swallowed by their elongating shadows.
"Are there many orphanages like that church?"
Aiden broke the silence between them, asking softly.
"Mhm, a lot. And they're all in Daedalus Street."
Robin nodded, a trace of unconcealable sorrow rippling in her lake-green eyes as she empathized with the children's plight.
She quickly added, "Fortunately, there are commercial Familias like the Demeter Familia and Hephaestus Familia who make regular donations, so those orphanages can barely scrape by."
Aiden pondered for a moment, his gaze shifting toward the spire of Babel Tower, bathed golden by the evening glow. "When we have the spare capacity later, let's help out too. Didn't those kids say they wanted to go to the School District? At the very least, we can sponsor their tuition."
"But your system..."
Hearing this, Robin furrowed her elegant brows.
She knew very well that Aiden's system, "Intertwined Fate," was a bottomless money pit. With every summon, the required number of magic stones grew exponentially. No matter how much money the Familia made now, throwing it in wouldn't even produce a splash.
"The summons can wait."
Aiden turned his head, meeting Robin's concerned gaze. His tone was calm but incredibly resolute. "But there are some things that, once you see them, you just have to do. I don't think I'm a good person, and I'm definitely not a savior. But there are just some things I simply want to do. It's that simple."
Robin didn't say anything more. But in those beautiful eyes of hers, it was as if stars had been ignited, and the smile on her face was more radiant than the evening clouds on the horizon.
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