A Multiverse Journey Begins with DanMachi

"Hey! Wake up! Elf! Li Ang? Ryu! This is my first time being this intimate with a woman, too. If you die, I'll be traumatized around women for the rest of my life!"

And then, Ryu really did slowly regain consciousness.

Looking up at Noah, who was lying on top of her, only one word echoed through her muddled mind: first.

"Are you really a virgin?"

Was that really the important thing right now?

Whether before or now, why was this elf's attention always so skewed?

But Noah wasn't one to pry, and besides, he was about to defile the elf in front of him. It wouldn't hurt to humor her a little.

"Yeah. The only time I've ever had anything resembling intimate contact was during a fight with a woman. I was having trouble beating her, so in desperation, I bit her neck."

That was the time Noah had drained magic from her blood and turned the tables.

At that moment, looking at Noah's face, Ryu felt that he seemed a little young.

But she couldn't see any lust in his eyes.

Love, bashfulness, excitement, desire, nervousness... None of the emotions boys and girls were supposed to feel when they first got close to the opposite sex were there.

He'd shown helplessness, confusion, and curiosity before, but those were no more than ripples on the surface.

Even someone as cool-headed as Kaguya had a sore spot that could make her turn hostile the moment it was mentioned. Her aggressive words reflected her sensitive heart—because it hurt, she had to wrap herself in hostility and coldness.

But Noah probably wasn't like that. His heart had long since settled like steel.

Having shed all the confusion, hesitation, and inner turmoil that boys and girls were supposed to feel, he instead possessed an almost ethereal gentleness.

At the thought, Ryu felt a pang of tenderness for the boy, who was a few years older than her, and much of her embarrassment faded.

After all, he was only trying to save me—

Meanwhile, on the surface, in Orario's Central Square.

Night had fallen. Lights brightened the darkness, and countless stalls stretched across the square. People of every race streamed among them, while old and young walked together, their faces beaming with smiles and joy.

Although the small festival was being held in Central Square, the crowds spilled out onto the other streets, bringing them to life as well. The whole city seemed to radiate enough warmth to dispel the chill of the winter night.

Near Babel, Ais stood staring blankly at the first-floor lobby until Riveria called her back to herself.

"Ais?"

When she came to, Ais saw a girl about her age, her cheeks flushed, offering her an apple.

Ais looked at Riveria and, after receiving her permission, reached out and took the apple.

"Thank you."

"Lia should be thanking you! Thank you for protecting us, adventurers! Bye-bye!"

Holding the apple, Ais watched the little girl walk away. Then she looked around at the crowds moving through the festival, light reflected in her eyes.

Suddenly, a chill ran through her.

An irritation like someone snatching away her beloved pillow spread through her small chest, making it hard to breathe. Her back even began to feel strangely hot.

Noah.

Without needing to think any further, Ais knew the source of this strange discomfort. It had to be Noah, who still hadn't returned from the Dungeon.

Her behavior caught Riveria's attention as well.

"Ais? What's wrong? Did you notice something?"

Riveria gripped her staff and instinctively scanned the area, her keen gaze searching for thugs hiding among the crowd.

The Dark Faction would never sit idly by while the city held a festival. That was something almost everyone could predict.

So while civilians and members of smaller Familias could relax and enjoy themselves, those of them from the major Familias had no time to wander around. The Guild had assigned every one of them to guard duty, and they were stationed throughout the city.

Finn was posted in a nearby tower, directing the various Familias and keeping in contact with them.

Gareth was leading a team through the less-traveled alleys, searching for enemies who might be waiting to strike from the shadows.

Since the square offered a clear view and was unlikely to be ambushed by the Dark Faction, and because there was no room to use offensive magic on the surface, Riveria had been assigned to guard it.

Her primary duty was to protect and direct the people if an attack occurred, preventing a panic.

The goal of the festival wasn't to kill as many enemies as possible. It was to show the people that the city had the power to protect them. With that in mind, Finn had concentrated the Familias' main defensive forces at the square's major entrances and the nearby buildings.

As long as the Dark Faction couldn't fall from the sky or burrow up from underground, the poorly guarded Central Square was actually the safest place in the city right now.

That was why Riveria had reluctantly agreed to let Ais help with the guard duty, on the condition that she stay by Riveria's side at all times, after hearing Finn say, "It's about time we let Ais step out from under our protection."

Of course, the Elf Royalty suspected that their captain had only said that because they were desperately short-handed.

Damn hobbits!

"Riveria! Noah—Noah's in trouble!"

"Huh?"

The unexpected answer left Riveria momentarily at a loss.

Noah hadn't even returned yet. How did Ais know he was in trouble?

But recalling the magic and skills Ais had developed, Riveria chose to believe her.

All right, truthfully, she was worried too. Noah should have been back before nightfall, but he still hadn't returned.

But with the situation on the front line, she was the commander. She couldn't afford to show even a trace of uncertainty.

And yet she couldn't leave her post now.

What should she do?

Hmm?

As her gaze swept over the surroundings, Riveria suddenly noticed something odd on Ais's face.

Ais looked flustered, but what she felt wasn't mainly fear. It was anger.

The kind of anger a little girl felt when someone snatched away her favorite toy.

Something was off.

"Ais, think carefully and tell me the truth!"

Riveria leaned down and met Ais's eyes, her expression stern.

"Do you actually sense that Noah's life is in danger?"

Her question stumped Ais. Her little face, brows knitted and eyes glaring, froze.

She touched a finger to her chin and tilted her head up, as if she were trying to solve a magical array problem that no one could work out while furious.

After a long while, she looked at Riveria and nodded firmly, her face resolute.

"Yes! I'm sure. Noah's chastity is in danger!"

At that answer, Riveria's beautiful emerald eyes, like precious gems, turned completely lifeless.

The Elf Royalty didn't need to think hard to guess that Noah had probably met some woman in the Dungeon, and then one thing had led to another.

There were so many scenes like that in Heroic Tales. Riveria had seen plenty of them.

For example, after the girls of the Astraea Familia saw Noah fight Goliath alone, several of them became his admirers.

And a little girl from the Dian Cecht Familia had developed feelings she shouldn't have after treating him for a while.

But the question was, could Ais's skill really catch him cheating? What kind of skill was that?

It reminded Riveria of the Hera Familia.

In the eyes of the public, they were the Familia that had ruled Orario for ages.

But to people like Riveria, who had been in somewhat close contact with them, their reputation was rather tarnished.

They were certainly strong. The problem was, perhaps because they'd been influenced by Hera, their yandere, violent, and domineering goddess, most of the members came across as extremely fanatical old maids.

They were either lovesick yanderes or hated men.

An adventurer's desires could give rise to skills, but skills and magic could also influence adventurers in turn.

If Ais had developed a skill like this, would she end up like them?

And with Noah, who could attract women even without meaning to, the two factors combined. Riveria could already imagine what the Loki Familia—and even Orario—might become.

Thinking of that scene, the Elf Royalty's gaze drifted into the distance.

Her student was so outstanding that it had become a problem in its own right.

...If they hid Noah away and kept other women from seeing him, would things get better?

Huh? Why did that idea feel a little dangerous?

Shaking her head to clear those thoughts, Riveria rubbed her temples and stood up again.

"Ais, you know how strong Noah is. Even if he can't win, as long as he wants to run, no one in the upper levels of the Dungeon—or in Orario—can threaten him. If we go down now, we'll only get in his way."

Riveria went on and on, but Ais heard only three words: "You can't go." She puffed her little cheeks out like a bun.

But she wasn't the reckless child she'd once been, throwing herself into battle without a thought. She knew what mattered.

Not only as a member of the Loki Familia, but also as Noah's future wife, she had to learn to be mature!

For example, Heroic Tales said that heroes were always unfaithful!

So the wife of a hero had only two choices: either turn a blind eye to her husband's affairs so they could keep living together, as long as he was still willing to come home...

Or... break his legs and drag him back, like an Amazon!

Ais was selfish. She didn't want to share the not-so-broad chest of her beloved pillow with other girls... Though if Riveria wanted to sleep with them too, that was fine. It would be warmer that way.

But if Riveria wanted to break Noah's legs, Ais definitely wasn't strong enough to stop her right now.

Unless she surpassed him...

"Ais, keep your eyes on me. You'll never surpass me that way."

Ais had stopped exploring the Dungeon and turned her gaze to the wider world for the sake of surpassing Noah.

But what was she supposed to look at?

In a corner of Ais's field of vision, a violent explosion suddenly erupted. A moment later, chaos began to spread.

Standing in the wind, Ais was left feeling a little bewildered.

The explosion wasn't very powerful, and the sound was about as loud as fireworks. It didn't even carry across the whole square, which was filled with the din of people.

Most of the people near Ais, for example, were still absorbed in their stalls.

Only a few sharp-eared beastmen looked up and glanced around in confusion.

They had clearly heard a sound, but couldn't tell whether it came from an explosion or one of the performances arranged by the Guild.