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The moment those words were spoken, the noisy room suddenly fell silent.
Dan, who was completely unprepared for this, looked up in shock. He glanced at Alise, who had a serious expression on her face, then turned toward the goddess Astraea sitting by the bed.
"Wait... a guy... can join too?"
Astraea playfully flipped her chestnut-colored hair, grinning like a mischievous kid.
"I hadn't really thought about that before… but if it's you, Dan, I doubt anyone would have a problem~"
Aside from their past connection, Dan was easy on the eyes and didn't have an annoying personality either.
"Besides, if I said no, I bet Lyra and Kaguya would be mad at me~"
Lyra and Kaguya instantly blushed and shouted in unison:
"Lady Astraea!!"
"Ahahaha, you're all usually so reliable, but you're still girls deep down! You should be more honest—just like me, the beautiful and pure-hearted one!"
Even though having a guy in this all-female familia might feel a little awkward, Dan's desperate and daring journey to ask for help had left a strong impression.
Even the usually aloof masked elf gave a nod of approval, as if to say: "Alright, kid, you've got my respect."
All the girls seemed impressed by the aura Dan gave off, and their eyes sparkled with curiosity and hope.
Dan looked down, lost in thought.
Alise's offer might've come out of the blue, clearly based on his potential, but deep down, it was her way of protecting him.
Right now, he was on both the heroes' and villains' radars—basically, a shining target in every possible way.
The Evilus had just suffered heavy losses. Even if Valetta still held him in special regard, she couldn't stop everyone from coming after him.
In fact... he might already be on someone's hit list.
Plus, he had another reason to be curious.
Gods' blessings were supposed to unlock a person's hidden potential. But what about his system? That was a part of him too. Would the divine blessing react with it somehow?
Most importantly, when he was at his lowest point, the ones who came to his rescue—like fate itself—were Lyra and Kaguya.
So he didn't feel any resistance to joining this familia.
"Alright, I'm in."
Dan smiled and nodded toward Astraea, meeting her deep blue eyes, after exchanging quick glances with the nervous Kaguya and the awkwardly calm Lyra.
The girls in the room lit up with joy, already imagining all sorts of fun and chaos that might come from having a boy in their group.
But then...
"What the hell?!"
Alise gasped, covering her mouth in disbelief.
Lyra frowned deeply, clearly troubled by what was happening.
"Lady Astraea, is something wrong with Dan's body?!"
Astraea stared blankly at the divine blood on Dan's back... slowly fading away.
The ritual had been performed perfectly. But the result...
It failed.
Dan hadn't become one of her familia.
Divine blessings were supposed to be the key to unlocking human potential. Yet for the first time ever, Astraea had encountered someone she couldn't bless.
There were only two explanations she could think of.
One: the boy had absolutely no potential.
But that couldn't be. Every human, even on the brink of death, still had untapped potential—especially someone who'd never received a blessing before.
The second possibility?
His potential was so massive that even divine blood couldn't trigger it.
His future might not just be alongside the gods...He might surpass them.
Shaken by the unprecedented thought, Astraea's starry blue eyes widened. For once, she looked nervous—yet excited by the unknown.
"Lady Astraea...?" Kaguya looked at her, clearly worried.
Dan also turned around, confused.
"Did something happen to me?"
Astraea took a deep breath and gave him a gentle smile.
"I'm sorry, Dan. It seems... your fate doesn't lie with me. Or rather... your fate can't be touched by any god."
Alise scratched her head, totally lost.
"So... you're saying Dan can't become any god's follower?"
"That's right."
The cheerful excitement in the room slowly died out.
The beast girl, Neze, clenched her fists in worry.
"But blessings don't just unlock potential—they also let us gain experience and grow stronger..."
The big-sister type, Marleuu, sighed deeply.
"Without a blessing... that basically means no adventuring career at all..."
Even the masked elf twitched her ears and couldn't hold back her concern.
"That's awful... isn't there any other way?"
"....."