DanMachi Universe, Lower World, Orario.
"Hey, do any of you lovely ladies want to join my Familia?" Loki asked once James, Alfonzo, Elicia, Aletia, Akatsuki, Sakura, and Momo joined Tatsuo, Violet, and Zelretch inside Orario. "I run one of the two strongest Familias in Orario, ya know? I promise, you'd get great resources to grow."
"So, that's the Goddess Loki we heard about on the road." James said while scrutinizing the four ladies standing in front of Tatsuo, Violet, and Zelretch. "And is that girl part of your Familia, too?"
Immediately upon hearing that, Aletia and Sakura both narrowed their eyes at Ais, the girl James was referring to, as they also saw when she attacked Tatsuo without reason. Loki, on the other hand, was glaring at James because his question immediately lowered her chances of recruiting any of the cuties in front of her.
"And doesn't the Loki Familia have a certain time they recruit new members?" Momo asked curiously.
"They all have to be High-Class Adventurers, too." Akatsuki added. "At least, that's what we heard from the merchants on the road."
Akatsuki's and Momo's questions, as Akatsuki said, were bits of information the group picked up while they were traveling to Orario. They also picked up some supplementary information along the way, as well.
For example, all Adventurers at Level 1 are called Low-Class Adventurers. Meanwhile, Adventurers who have managed to raise their levels to Level 2 are known as High-Class Adventures. They also heard that there are distinctions between Adventures at Level 2 and higher. However, their source of information could not tell them more than that.
"Hmph!" Loki snorted proudly while dismissively waving off Akatsuki's and Momo's questions. "Naturally, as the Goddess of the Familia, I have the right to bypass any of those rules. So, if you want to join, just say the word. And I promise I'd be happy to mark you with my color before nightfall."
"That sounds really sus." Elicia muttered while wrapping her arms around Alfonzo's left arm. "Besides, you only invited the girls, right? Well then, I'm not interested. I'm not going anywhere without my husband, Fonzie."
"I'm joining the same Familia as Tatsuo-Kun." Sakura said while stepping closer to Tatsuo.
"Me, too." Aletia added as she followed Sakura.
"I… I'd like to join the same Familia as Tatsuo-Kun, as well." Momo added shyly while trying to hide her rapidly reddening face.
And with that, five of the six female members of the [Dimensional Chat] rejected Loki's invitation to join the Loki Familia. And although Loki looked like she wanted to cry, Loki still turned a hopeful gaze in Akatsuki's direction.
"And what about you, cutie?" Loki asked with her voice trembling.
"No, thank you." Akatsuki said without changing her expression. "The way you're looking at me makes me think I'll have to keep my guard up so that you won't touch me inappropriately or try to stuff me into cute, frilly dresses like Henrietta."
"Oof!" Loki groaned while doubling over as if she had been punched in the gut. "How… How did you know?"
While everyone else looked at Loki with mild disdain, as her thoughts were written all over her face from the moment she first laid eyes on Akatsuki, Akatsuki turned away and looked off into the distance with a blank gaze.
"I've had far too much experience with your type in the past." Akatsuki replied in a somewhat traumatized tone.
*Clap!*
At that moment, before Loki could try another round of recruitment pitches, Aislynn clapped her hands, drawing everyone's, especially James' attention onto herself.
"Alright, that's enough of that." Aislynn said cheerfully while winking at James. "I'll worry about punishing Loki for trying to poach the children I had my eye on right in front of me later."
"Ooh! That's a really poor choice of words." Alfonzo muttered under his breath. "If we were back home and she said that, she'd end up on a watch list."
"Yeah, definitely." Elicia, the only person who was close enough to hear Alfonzo, replied in a whisper.
Actually, it seemed as if Aislynn was able to hear them, as well, if the way her eyes were twitching was any indication. Even so, her smile never disappeared as she continued. Meanwhile, Loki's face went pale again after remembering Aislynn's threat from not too long ago.
"Anyway, I've laid out the benefits of joining my Familia to your three companions." Aislynn said happily. "And the eldest among you said that he would like to see the conditions of the Familia I want to create before making a decision. so, would you be interested in taking a trip to my manner?"
Hearing that, the members of the [Dimensional Chat] exchanged glances as if they were conversing with their eyes, when in fact, they were only doing it to look as though they were a tight-knit unit. Then, after a few seconds of throwing glances at each other, they all turned towards Aislynn and nodded in unison.
"We'll see what you have to offer." Tatsuo said, stepping forward as the representative of the group.
Seeing that, Loki and Riveria raised an eyebrow each. Clearly, Zelretch, Alfonzo, and Elicia were the oldest members of the group. Yet, none of them showed any dissatisfaction at Tatsuo taking the lead.
"Interesting." Loki muttered as a small smile curled her lips.
Meanwhile, Aislynn smiled brightly at Tatsuo's response. Then, with a flourish, she turned to the southeast, the direction leading back towards the center of the city and started walking. {Pic}
Tatsuo, Violet, James, Alfonzo, Elicia, Aletia, Akatsuki, Sakura, Zelretch, and Momo followed Aislynn without hesitation. And just because she wanted to join in on the fun, Loki followed the members of the [Dimensional Chat] while dragging Ais and Riveria along with her.
Along the way, the ten soon to be Adventurers looked at everything with a hint of wonder. Though, none of them outright embarrassed themselves. Meanwhile, Aislynn, Loki, and Riveria took turns explaining the buildings they passed.
"That's Babel, right?" Momo muttered while looking up at the tall tower at the center of the city with awe in her eyes. "I still can't get over how big it is."
The tower in the center of the city, Babel, was an enormous construct built by the gods to keep the monsters in the Dungeon from escaping to the surface. So enormous, in fact, that the tower broke through the clouds, making it impossible to see its full height from the ground.
"That's what she said." Alfonzo and James said in unison while chuckling
In response, Tatsuo, Elicia, and Akatsuki rolled their eyes while Momo, as sheltered as she was, looked confused. Meanwhile, Riveria looked at the two young men who made such a crude joke with an aghast expression. And then there was Loki.
"Ahahahahaha!" Loki laughed uproariously. "Oh, damn… That was great. You know what, if you two were willing to join my Familia, I'd be willing to accept you, too. Heheehe! You might make some of those stiff kids in my guild loosen up a bit."
"More than likely, they would drive them insane." Riveria said with a frown. "Especially if they make jokes like that too often. I could just imagine the girls being a blushing mess after hearing something like that."
"They'll do it as often as they can.' Elicia said in an exasperated tone. "Especially Fonzie. He feels literal physical pain if he can't get it out of his system."
"Seriously?" James asked with his eyes wide open. Then, he put on an envious expression as he continued. "Damn… That means you have a good excuse to say stuff like that. I'm kinda jealous."
"Yeah, not having to apologize for doing the things I like is great." Alfonzo said with a bright smile.
"Perverts." Akatsuki said in a flat tone.
"So, how about it?" Loki asked while ignoring all the others' responses. "Wanna join my guild instead? There are lots of pretty girls. But you can only look, not touch. They're all mine. Especially my Ais-Tan."
*Smack!*
As she mentioned Ais, Loki reached out to sneakily touch her but. Yet, before she could get too close, Ais slapped her hand away without even looking.
"Tch!" Loki clicked her tongue while continuing to look at James and Alfonzo with anticipation.
"Sorry, but we all plan to join the same Familia." Alfonzo said while shaking his head. "So, unless you plan to let us all join, we can't do that."
Hearing that, Loki hesitated. Judging by how interested Aislynn was in these ten, she knew they must be special. However, when she looked at Tatsuo, who was so damn handsome that even she was finding herself a little tempted, she shook her head. There was no way she was letting someone that handsome get close to her harem. Though, she was the only one who thought any of the ladies in the Loki Familia were part of her harem.
"*Sigh* I would be happy to take the rest of you." Loki said in a downcast tone. A moment later, her expression turned fierce as she pointed at Tatsuo. "But I definitely can't accept that guy. He's definitely the type to corrupt young maidens and turn them down the wrong path."
Hearing that, Tatsuo looked thoroughly offended. But he did not say anything to try to defend himself. Because just like earlier, he knew that Loki would twist the facts and turn black into white if he did. So, he simply chose to continue following Aislynn in silence. {Pic}
Despite the conversation, the group did not slow down. and when the group was about halfway down Northwest Street, Aislynn came to a stop in front of the largest building, other than Babel, they had seen so far.
"As Adventurers, this will become one of the most important places for you to visit." Aislynn said while gesturing to the large building on the right side of the street. "The Guild Headquarters, also known as Pantheon, is where everything from Adventurer registration, to the acceptance of guild quests, to emergency meetings take place. So, you'll have to get familiar with this place if you want to survive as Adventurers." {Pic}
Following Aislynn's gesture, the members of the [Dimensional Chat] all turned to look at the impressive, large building. And although none of them said it, they all thought the name, "Pantheon," fit the building perfectly.
"But we won't be going inside for now." Aislynn said as she turned away from the guild headquarters. She then glanced at a building across the street. "And that building there, That's the Dian Cecht Familia Pharmacy. Home of the Dian Cecht Familia where the Lower World's greatest healer lives and works. Though, I'd rather you did not get too familiar with that place."
Looking to the other side of the street, the group saw a large building, though nowhere near as large as the Pantheon, built with white stone.
"I see.' Sakura said while nodding her head in understanding. "Because getting too familiar with that place means we get hurt far too often, right?"
"Although you're not wrong, I just don't like that money grubbing old man." Aislynn said with a hint of distaste on her face. "That shameless old man actually tried to haggle down the price for my services."
"Services?" Zelretch asked with genuine interest in his tone. "So, that's why you seemed so confident in taking all of us in. You run some sort of business in the city."
Actually, all of the members of the [Dimensional Chatt] were curious to know just how Aislynn could offer such great conditions when they just arrived. But playing the parts of people hoping to be Adventurers, they did not think it was appropriate to ask her what she did to make so much money in front of another god.
"That's right." Loki said as she approached Aislynn, reached up, and wrapped an arm around the Dragon Goddess' shoulders. "Aislynn here has probably the most successful business in all of Orario. She even puts the Pleasure District to shame."
"Don't say it in such a misleading way.' Aislynn said while shaking off Loki's arm. "You make it sound like I'm selling myself."
"No, I would never." Loki said while waving her hands frantically. "Everyone knows you would rather tear someone apart and steal their money than sleep with them and get their money that way."
"And now you make it sound like I'm some sort of bandit." Aislynn said while narrowing her eyes dangerously. "I suggest you choose the next words out of your mouth very carefully, Loki."
Hearing that, Loki took a step back with cold sweat forming on her forehead. Despite the fact that she had been friends with Aislynn for so long… No, precisely because they had been friends for so long, Loki new that Aislynn was not someone you wanted to mess with. Besides her dominion over dreams, Aislynn, as a powerful Dragon God, did not even need to unleash her divinity to make just about anyone in the Lower World have a bad time.
In fact, if it wasn't because the gods wanted to see a hero rise from the mortals, Loki was certain that Aislynn could solo the strongest existence in the Lower World, the One-Eyed Black Dragon, with nothing but her bare hands.
"Ah… ha… ha… ha…" Loki let out a hollow laugh. "I mean, who wouldn't pay a high price to have any dream they want? It's a lot less expensive than going to the pleasure district, too. Plus, there's no one in Orario dumb enough to mess with your clients, either. So, they don't' have to worry about getting robbed when they're done."
Understanding donned on the faces of the [Dimensional Chat]. The thought of using dreams as a service would never have occurred to them. Then again, it never occurred to Aislynn, either. Instead, it was written into her background in this world.
'This was more than likely something her Majesty came up with to let me know there was more to life than just floating around in the [Dimensional Gap].' Aislynn thought to herself while listening to Loki talk about how amazing her services were.
"Alright, that's enough.' Aislynn said with a smile while shaking her head at Loki. "For such a great explanation, I won't give you that terrible nightmare about your Ais-Tan."
Hearing that, Loki smiled excitedly while pumping her fist.
"But if you try poaching them again, I'll show no further mercy." Aislynn continued with her eyes narrowed. "Even if we have been friends for hundreds of thousands of years."
"Oh… Of course." Loki replied, genuine terror in her tone as she stole glances at Ais and could not help shuddering when she imagined her having like body of a buff man with that angelic, doll-like face. "I promise, I won't do it again. Cross my heart, hope to die."
"Good." Aislynn said as she turned back towards Babel. "Well then, let's go. My villa is in the southeast section of the city. So, we've still got a little way to go."
And with that, Aislynn started walking again with the rest of the group following closely behind her. And as they walked, the members of the [Dimensional chat], minus Aislynn, who was leading the way, started to chat.
"Hey, actually, Aislynn just reminded me of someone." Tatsuo said with his voice lowered so that only the other members of the [Dimensional Chat] could hear him. "We don't have a healer in our group, do we?"
"Now that you mention it." Elicia said while tapping an index finger against her chin. "We really don't."
"You're thinking of adding the healer Aislynn-Sama mentioned, aren't you?" Akatsuki asked.
"Yeah, she's the captain of the Dian Cecht Familia, Airmid Teasanare." Tatsuo replied. "From what I remember, she has the ability to heal injuries, abnormal statuses, and remove curses with her magic, [Dia Fratel]."
"Maybe we should try to find a guy this time." James suggested. "I mean, don't get me wrong. I have no issue with more ladies. But the numbers are getting a little skewed to one side at this point."
"Now that you mention it, we only have four guys in the group." Elicia said. She then looked at the other ladies in the group with a wide smile and started counting on her fingers before she continued. "But there are seven girls. And five of them are interested in Tatsuo~."
"We can talk about that later." Zelretch said while shaking his head. "We have two years to meet all sorts of people. So, there's no reason to talk about the invitation this early. Who knows, we might even find someone better than this young lady, Airmid, if we keep our eyes open."
"They definitely won't be a better healer, though." Alfonzo added. "But Zelretch is right. Let's not make a choice so early. There's still a long time, after all."
Everyone nodded in response to Alfonzo's and Zelretch's advice. They then dropped the topic of who to invite to the [Dimensional Chat] and continued enjoying this new world for as long as they could.
Meanwhile, Loki, Ais, and Riveria watched the members of the [Dimensional Chat] with curiosity. They could tell they were talking about something secret. But they were not able to hear it, unfortunately. And that just made them want to know what they were talking about even more.