"Whoosh whoosh whoosh".
Near the alley entrance of Northwest Street, Naza leaned against the wall, panting heavily as she caught her breath. Every now and then, she peeked out to check the street.
"Hey, that guy ran this way! After them!"
A large group of Ganesha's guards charged past. Naza pulled Kanade Tachibana into a shadowy corner, only relaxing once all the guards had gone by.
Kanade stared blankly at the "suspicious" older sister, rubbing her small hands together until a silver-white blade emerged from her wrist.
"Sister... a bad person?"
"No... no... no.." Naza's voice was listless.
"Also... that thing is very dangerous..."
"Oh." Kanade retracted her magic.
"You just believed me like that..."
Naza was surprised she found the child a bit naive, but the feeling was familiar, as if she'd seen her somewhere before.
"You smell like herbs, so you're not a bad person," Kanade said confidently.
Are you a dog...? No, I'm the dog... Well, not exactly...
Naza was speechless. She fidgeted with her clothes, wanting to speak but stumbling over her words.
"Um... Potato Balls..."
Kanade pointed to Minoru Kageno's stall, her eyes sparkling.
"Hmm... I'll buy you some..."
Naza winced as she looked at her wallet, but decided the expense was worth it to recruit... no, persuade the girl to join her Familia.
They reached the stall.
"Same as usual," Kanade said, pointing.
"Got it! Five servings of Special Mapo Tofu Flavored Potato balls!"
Naza was stunned. Mapo tofu flavor? And why are you so familiar with this place?
She paid obediently and stood aside, watching Kanade nibble on the potato balls like a little hamster. When Kanade finished the last one and stared longingly at the stall, Naza reluctantly bought more.
"Thank you for your patronage!"
Naza handed over the new order and said, "Um... shouldn't we get going now? We have things to do..."
Kanade's eyes went wide with shock: "Wow we didn't come here just for the potato balls?"
Naza was at a loss for words...
Just then, a voice spoke in her ear:
"Fried potato balls, ten total."
"Yes, yes, I'll buy them..." Naza automatically reached for her money, then froze it wasn't Kanade who'd spoken.
She looked at the girl munching on a potato ball like a hamster, then slowly said: "Sword Princess..."
Next to Kanade, Ais Wallenstein stood in the same posture, biting into a ball covered in red sauce.
"Are you sisters?"
"No." X2
Put side by side, their personalities were almost identical. Ais noticed Kanade and became curious about the potato balls in her hand.
"New product?"
"Made to order."
"Want to try some?"
"Hmm."
"Mmm... waaaaah, it's so spicy..." Ais recoiled.
Same golden eyes, similar age, equally concise speech, flat voices...
Good heavens, are they really not related?
Watching the two suddenly bond over food, Naza panicked. Was the talent she'd finally found going to be stolen by the Loki Familia?
Just then, a figure sprinted down the street:
"Ais——"
The red-haired, squint-eyed goddess moved faster than humanly possible, leaping onto Ais's back.
"Yay! Got you! Let's see if you've grown... hehe." Loki groped excitedly for once, Ais didn't dodge.
Rubbing her eyes, she spotted Kanade and froze.
"Huh? Two Aises?" Loki paused, then grinned: "Double the fun!"
She darted over to Kanade and said sweetly:
"Hey there, cute little sister you're from the school district, right? Join our Loki Familia! I'll let you skip the test entirely!"
Kanade hid behind Naza, looking terrified of the leering goddess.
"Don't be scared! My place is huge, and I have lots of pretty dresses... slurp"
Loki circled around, ready to pounce—until Kanade stepped forward with hands crossed protectively.
"H is prohibited."
"Guard skills activated."
A lotus flower sprouted along her arm, blocking Loki's charge dead-on.
"Hmm..."
Loki crashed face-first into the flower and collapsed.
Ais's eyes widened: "Loki..., Loki is dead!"
Naza couldn't hold back: "No way!"
Attacking a deity was a serious offense, even if accidental. She grabbed Kanade's arm and ran as fast as she could.
"You owe me later..."
"Got it!"
They vanished at the street's end in an instant.
Loki slowly lifted her head, a trickle of divine blood running from her nose. She opened her narrow eyes, her expression unreadable: "That magic? Is it the same as that girl from hera?"
Beside her, Ais poked Loki's flat rear with a twig, her eyes innocent as she asked: "Are you okay?"
"Aww, Ais-tan!! Kiss me~"
Loki jumped up enthusiastically only to trip and face-plant on the ground again,
At the potato ball stall, Minoru Kageno smiled slightly: Perfect another day as an unnoticed bystander!
Orario, Tower of Babel
Black Cat stood at the dungeon entrance, holding Mamenosuke with Miko beside her. As agreed with Blank, she'd arrived early to wait, while the others prepared for their leveling session.
Bored, she didn't notice an elf approach until he was right beside her. The elf had dark skin, silver hair streaked with demon-king purple that covered one eye, and wore a jet-black coat. In his hand was an ominous black longsword looking just like a demon king from old stories.
Too bad his eyes darted nervously everywhere, and sweat beaded on his forehead he was clearly just a minor character.
Black Cat struck a dramatic pose like the Queen of Eternal Night, covering her mouth to mock:
"Foolish mortal we have forgiven your rudeness. If you do not wish to be bound by the claws of the abyss and cast into endless void, stop now."
The man shrank back, ready to flee but her words seemed to resonate with him. He summoned his courage, forcing a stiff smile and speaking in a shaky, sinister tone:
"Ku, kuku how dare you speak such nonsense before the [Black Demon Sword]? Are you prepared... to accept the punishment of the Ten Thousand Blade Night Banquet?"