"Ah! Everyone, I found the troubled child!" We were on the fifth floor when I heard a familiar voice, Alise's voice to be exact.
"Alise, Arin is not a child," Ryuu said as she and the other girls from the Astraea familia made their way towards us.
"Really?" Alise asked, tilting her head, "But Loki said Arin is lost and only children get lost."
"No, you are right, Captain," Kaguya smirked as she looked at me, "He is a child, a very troubled one at that."
I crossed my arms and met her gaze directly. "That's rich coming from someone who acts like a bratty older sister every chance she gets. Tell me, Kaguya, is pestering me your only hobby, or do you actually have a life outside of being annoying?"
"Bratty?!" Kaguya's smirk vanished, replaced by an indignant glare. "I'm not being a brat. I'm stating facts! You wander around like a lost puppy half the time!"
"I don't wander, I explore," I said, spreading my arms dramatically. "There's a difference. Maybe if you spent less time critiquing everyone and more time working on your own flaws, you'd understand that."
"My flaws?!" Her hand moved to her katana's hilt. "Name one flaw I have. I'll wait."
"Your attitude, for starters. Your unnecessary commentary. Oh, and let's not forget how you can't go five minutes without making a sarcastic remark." I adopted my wisest expression as Kaguya got more indignant.
"That's called having a personality, something you might want to look into!"
"Oh, I have a personality," I shot back. "It's just not as exhausting as yours."
"Exhausting? I'm vibrant! Dynamic! You're just boring!"
"I'm not boring, I'm low-maintenance. There's a huge difference."
"That's exactly what boring people say!"
Lyra pinched the bridge of her nose. "Here they go again…"
Alise grinned widely, clearly enjoying the show. "Ah, young love! How beautiful!"
"IT'S NOT LOVE!" Kaguya and I shouted in unison, then glared at each other.
"Haha," Finn laughed, interjecting into our war of words, "It's good you are getting along, but by your words, Alise. I presume Loki sent you and others here to look for us?"
"Yup! Ais and others were taking too long, so when we heard about the situation, we decided to head down here as well," Alise replied.
"I see," Finn spoke, "looks like we troubled a lot of people this time, I apologize."
"No biggie! That's what friends are for." Alise waved away Finn's worries.
"Can we go back home? I am hungry!" Tiona whined, grabbing her stomach with both hands.
"Yes, we should get back," Ryuu stepped forward, "Everyone must have started to get worried."
On our way back to the surface, we filled Ryuu and the others in on everything that had happened.
"So that's why you were running around the dungeon?" Ryuu said once we'd finished.
"I also want to become a masked adventurer! Arin, you have to invite me next time." Alise added enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Captain, you can't just invite yourself," Kaguya sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Why not? It sounds fun! We could all wear masks and fight evil!" Alise struck a heroic pose. "The Masked Defenders of Justice!"
"That's... not really what we were doing… or maybe we were?" I said, trying not to laugh at her theatrical display.
"Besides," Lyra chimed in, "knowing you, Captain, you'd probably announce your real identity to every monster you fought."
"I would not!" Alise protested. "I can keep secrets!"
"You told everyone in the tavern about your 'secret' surprise party for Ryuu," Kaguya pointed out dryly.
"That was one time!"
"Twice," Ryuu corrected quietly. "You also announced my birthday present in front of me."
Alise deflated slightly. "Okay, maybe I'm not great with secrets... but I'd still make an awesome masked adventurer!"
"I'm sure you would, Alise," I said, "But maybe we should focus on getting back first? Tiona looks like she's about to start eating the dungeon walls."
"I'm starving!" Tiona groaned dramatically. "Ais, do you have any food left?"
Ais shook her head. "We didn't bring much with us."
"Then we need to hurry!" Tiona suddenly burst forward with renewed energy. "Last one to the surface buys dinner!"
"Wait, Tiona!" Tione called after her sister, but she was already disappearing up the stairs.
"Well," Finn said with an amused smile, "I suppose that settles our pace. Shall we?"
As we climbed the stairs back to the surface, Alise continued pestering me about masked adventures, while Kaguya made snide comments about my "criminal activities." Despite the banter or maybe because of it, I found myself smiling.
"You seem happy," Ais observed quietly, walking beside me.
"Do I?" I glanced at her, staring into her golden honey eyes. "I guess I am. It's nice, having everyone together like this."
"Mm." She nodded, a small smile forming on her lips as she gazed at everyone's antics. "It is."
By the time we reached the surface, the sun was already setting, painting Orario in shades of orange and gold. The Twilight Manor building loomed ahead, and I could already see some familiar figures waiting at the entrance.
Loki stood with her hands on her hips, Gareth to her left and Riveria to her right.
"Oh, looks like the welcoming committee is here," Finn remarked, his tone light, but I could sense the slight wariness in it.
As we approached, Loki's face brightened immediately. "Ais-tan! You're back!" She spread her arms wide and rushed forward, only for Ais to sidestep gracefully at the last second. Loki crashed face-first into the ground.
"Ow ow ow! Ais-tan, why must you be so cruel to your goddess?!" Loki whined from her undignified position.
"Welcome back, everyone," Riveria said, her tone even but her jade eyes settling on Finn and me with unmistakable knowing. "I trust your little... adventure was eventful?"
"You could say that," Finn replied smoothly.
"Oh? By eventful, do you mean playing dress-up in the dungeon?" Riveria's eyebrow arched elegantly, and I saw Finn's composed expression crack slightly.
"How did you—" I started.
"Word travels fast, kid," Gareth rumbled, crossing his arms. His beard twitched in what might have been amusement. "Especially when two 'mysterious masked adventurers' start making a scene on the middle floors."
Loki had recovered from her failed hug attempt and dusted herself off. "Yep! I heard all about it from some adventurers at the tavern. The 'Masked Prum' and his sidekick 'Shadow.'" She grinned wickedly at us. "Real creative names there, boys."
"Shadow?" Alise perked up immediately. "That was his hero name? That's actually pretty cool!"
"It is cool," Ais agreed quietly, a faint blush on her cheeks.
Kaguya smirked at me. "Shadow? Really? That's the best you could come up with?"
"Says the person who suggested 'Black Mask' earlier," I shot back.
"I didn't suggest anything!" Kaguya protested. "Don't drag me into your embarrassing hero fantasies!"
"Now, now," Loki interjected, her grin widening. "I think it's adorable. My little Finn is trying to be a hero for his people, and Arin here is trying to figure out what heroism means." She paused dramatically. "Very philosophical for someone who got lost in the dungeon."
"I wasn't lost!" I protested.
"Yes, sure," Loki waved dismissively.
Riveria stepped forward, her expression softening slightly. "While your intentions were... admirable, perhaps next time you could inform someone before running off on these adventures? Some of us were quite concerned." Her gaze lingered on me for a moment longer than necessary.
"Especially when half the Familia had to go searching for you," Gareth added. "Created quite the commotion."
"We're sorry for worrying everyone." Finn's expression was genuinely apologetic. "It started as a whim and... got a bit out of hand."
"A bit?" Tione muttered. "We chased you through half the dungeon."
"And Arin threw Bete into a wall!" Tiona added cheerfully. "That was hilarious, hehe!"
"Ha?! What are you laughing at, Stupid Amazon!" Bete howled.
Ryuu sighed, clearly used to this kind of chaos. "Perhaps we should continue this discussion inside? Some of us haven't eaten yet."
"Oh yeah! Food!" Tiona's eyes lit up as she grabbed Tione's arm, ignoring Bete's howls. "Come on, sister! I'm starving!"
"You're always starving," Tione replied, but allowed herself to be dragged along.
As everyone began filing into the manor, Loki slung an arm around both Finn's and my shoulders. "So, my little masked heroes, you planning to continue this little project of yours?"
Finn and I exchanged glances.
"Maybe," I said carefully. "Though we might need to work on our execution."
"And our names," Finn added with a self-deprecating smile.
"Well, if you do," Loki said, her tone surprisingly serious for once, "at least let someone know first. I know both of you are more than capable of handling yourself, but it's still better if someone knows your whereabouts, no?"
"Understood," we both replied.
"Good!" Her playful demeanor returned instantly. "Now let's get some food! I'm curious to hear all the embarrassing details of your heroic adventure!"
As we entered the manor, I felt a light tug on my sleeve. I turned to find Ais looking at me, her golden eyes reflecting the last rays of sunset.
"Arin," she said quietly. "About the Shadow thing..."
"Yeah?" I asked, suddenly nervous about what she might say.
"I think... it suits you." A small smile graced her lips. "The name, I mean. It's... cool."
Before I could respond, she quickly walked ahead to join the others, leaving me standing there, momentarily speechless.
"Are you not coming, Arin?" Riveria turned back to address me.
I shook my head. "Yeah, coming." As I followed her inside, I caught Kaguya watching me with that knowing smirk of hers. I ignored her and quickened my pace.
Inside the dining hall, the atmosphere was lively. Tiona was already piling food onto her plate while Tione tried to remind her about proper portions. Alise was enthusiastically explaining to Lyra and the others about how she would design her own masked hero costume, complete with dramatic poses. Bete was grumbling about the whole affair while Gareth chuckled at his complaints.
I settled into a seat between Finn and Ryuu, with Ais taking the seat across from me.
"So, Arin," Alise called out from across the table, "when's our next masked adventure? I've already got some ideas for costumes!"
"Alise, please," Ryuu said tiredly.
"What? I'm serious! We could have matching outfits and everything!"
"That defeats the purpose of secret identities," Kaguya pointed out.
"Unless we all have matching outfits!" Alise countered. "Then no one would know which one is which!"
"That's... actually not the worst idea," I admitted, earning surprised looks from several people. "What? I said it wasn't the worst, not that it was good."
Laughter erupted around the table, and even Ais wore a small smile.
As dinner continued with its chaotic warmth, I realized something important. Whether I was Arin or Shadow, whether I wore a mask or not, these people would tease me, worry about me, and fight alongside me.
Maybe that's what being a hero really meant? Not the grand gestures or dramatic rescues from the stories, but this—sharing meals with friends, making each other laugh, being there when it mattered. The everyday heroism of simply showing up for the people you care about.
…or maybe it doesn't.
But for now, I was satisfied with this result. Even if it meant enduring Kaguya's smirks and Loki's teasing.
Especially because of it. Even if I still didn't fully understand what being a hero meant, I was starting to figure it out.
One masked adventure at a time.