Roland woke up and stretched; it was the best sleep he'd had in this world. Outside, the sky was pitch black. He headed to the kitchen. Ryuu was there, as usual.
"Are you awake, Roland?"
"Yeah, I feel great, Ryuu. How are the necklaces?"
"Lady Astraea said they only have three charges, so no one has dared to use them yet," Ryuu replied seriously.
"Honestly," Roland complained. "If you don't use them, I won't know how to improve them. I can supply ten of these a day if needed."
"Everyone just wants you to not overwork yourself," Ryuu said softly, leading him into the room for dinner.
After the meal, Roland asked everyone for a few drops of blood. He switched to Blood Mage. "One at a time, please. It's tricky if I mix them up."
Neze nudged Celeity, who was hesitating. "Need help, Celeity?"
"Thanks, Neze."
"Honestly, Roland looks cool in every form," Lyana said, playing with his long hair and trying to braid it.
Roland ignored her, focusing on merging their blood with his own and the magic items using his [Mystery] ability. Soon, the task was done. Alise put hers on, posing for the group. "Well? Doesn't the Captain's beauty shine even brighter now?"
Kaguya stepped up behind Roland and handed him her necklace. He took it, and as she lifted her long black hair to expose her neck, he leaned in, the scent of her perfume surrounding him as he fastened the clasp.
Seeing this, the other girls immediately swarmed him, wanting him to put theirs on too. Roland knew this would happen the moment Kaguya asked.
Finally, only Lyra and Ryuu were left. Roland walked up behind Lyra. "Miss, do you require my assistance with your necklace?"
Lyra handed it over, trying to act nonchalant. "Hmph. I'll let you do it just to see how it feels. Later, I'll make a plan to get Finn to do it."
Roland leaned down, whispering in her ear as he fastened the necklace. "I'm not letting you get away, Sister Lyra."
He's not even hiding it anymore. He really wants us all, Lyra thought. But what is this feeling? Is this... what being pursued feels like? It's so... strange. A blush crept onto her face.
"Alright, next!" Roland moved to Ryuu. She just sat there with a red face, let him finish, and that was that.
Alise watched the others get helped by Roland while she had put hers on herself, and for the first time that day, she felt a pang of regret for being so quick.
While Alise was dazing off, her hand was suddenly grasped and she was pulled down into a chair. Hearing the laughter of the others around them, her face began to burn with heat.
Roland looked at the stunned Alise and chuckled. "Lately, you've become quite easy to read, Alise. Usually, the Captain would be the one taking the initiative."
He lifted her long red hair, unfastened the necklace she had already put on, and brought it in front of him before re-fastening it around her neck himself. Under the amused gazes of the rest of the Familia, Alise sat frozen in her chair, her face a deep shade of crimson.
Early the next morning, knowing that people might still be staking out the front door, Roland decided to take the unconventional route. He pulled up his hood and hopped over the back wall where no one was watching to make his way to his meeting with Aiz.
He arrived at the Twilight Manor, the headquarters of the Loki Familia. Guards were already on high alert at the entrance. Roland approached, lowered his hood, and offered a smile. "Hello. I am Roland from the Astraea Familia. I have an appointment to go adventuring with Aiz Wallenstein. Could you please notify her?"
"Roland of the Astraea Familia? Ah! You're that rookie everyone's talking about!" the guard exclaimed.
"That would be me."
"Please, come in. The Captain gave orders to let any Astraea member through if they were looking for Aiz. Just head straight in." The guard gestured for him to enter.
They really do trust the Astraea Familia, Roland thought. Though it was called a manor, it was essentially a castle. He pushed open the massive inner doors. In the center of the grand hall, Aiz and Riveria were sitting on a sofa. When the doors opened, both looked over.
Aiz's eyes visibly brightened. A tiny smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she waved at him.
"Good morning. I hope I'm not late, Aiz, Miss Riveria," Roland said, walking toward them.
Riveria gave a small, knowing smile. "It seems the prospect of adventuring with you made Aiz quite excited. She was up very early today."
Riveria had heard the news from Loki yesterday. While she was shocked by the appearance of another "Limit Breaker," she found herself feeling it was only natural given it was Roland.
"Is that so? I've been looking forward to this as well," Roland replied. He suspected Aiz just wanted to escape Riveria's strict supervision for a bit.
"Let's go, Roland." Aiz grabbed his arm and began dragging him toward the exit, her impatience clear.
Roland braced his feet to stay in place and patted her head. "Wait a second, Aiz. I have gifts for both of you." He took out five custom-made magic items and explained their functions and limits to Riveria and Aiz.
"These four necklaces are for teleportation, and this magic stone is the anchor point," he explained.
"Impressive work. I take it you chose [Mystery] for your development ability?" Riveria noted.
"I did."
Riveria didn't pry further. Seeing Aiz practically vibrating with excitement, she sighed and beckoned her over. Riveria fastened the necklace around Aiz's neck herself, her expression turning serious. "You can go together, but do not take Roland into the deep floors, understood?"
Aiz nodded firmly. "I understand. I will protect Roland."
Riveria looked at the remaining items and smiled at Roland. "I'll leave Aiz in your hands. Though with these, I doubt you'll run into much trouble."
Seeing that Riveria was no longer blocking her path, Aiz grabbed Roland's hand and bolted for the door. "No need to rush, Aiz!" Roland laughed, waving a quick goodbye to Riveria.
As they ran through North Main Street, Aiz suddenly stopped at a stall. "Roland, do you want some?" she asked, pointing at the fried potato balls.
"Aiz, didn't you already eat breakfast? Can you still eat more?"
"It's fine. Boss, two red bean cream flavors," she answered, holding up two fingers.
Aiz took the snacks and stood on her tiptoes to hold one to Roland's lips. He took it, looking down at the blonde girl clutching his arm and eating happily as they walked. He still didn't quite understand why her favorability toward him was so high—they had only met a few times, after all.