My heart swelled with happiness, a huge grin on my face as we made our way back inside the mansion. The girls noticed my expression, but they only shook their heads with sighs—completely ignoring their own smiles.
"But, man, am I going to get in trouble with Loki." I muttered, remembering how much she dotes on Ais.
Riveria shifted her eyes towards me. "It will be fine, Loki might not appear as such, but she is reasonable to a degree. … I think?"
"That, 'I think,' doesn't inspire much confidence, Riveria. I just hope she doesn't stab me in the neck when updating my status." Ais turned to face me, her neutral expression serious.
"She won't do that," she said, and started walking again. She sounded oddly confident about it. I tilted my head in confusion
"Why so?" Ryuu asked for both of us.
Ais remained silent for a bit, then spoke, "I…I threatened her against it before."
"You did what?!" All our voices rose in surprise as Ais ducked her head low, before lifting back up.
Riveria, bewildered, asked, "Wait, when did that happen?"
"I was just… joking," she said, her expression neutral as always. We all exchanged a look and shook our heads after all her jokes rarely landed well.
Well, at least I don't have to worry about getting stabbed now. I thought as we walked through the long corridor, the party was still going strong despite my earlier assessment that most would be passed out drunk by now.
"Ready…?" Asfi asked, her cyan eyes intent despite the flush spreading across her cheeks.
I took a deep breath. "As ready as I'll ever be."
We pushed open the doors to the main hall.
The party was still in full swing—music playing, people laughing, drinks flowing. But the moment we entered, still holding hands, the noise began to die down like a wave spreading across the room.
First, the people nearest the door noticed. Their conversations trailed off, eyes widening.
Then their neighbors noticed what they were staring at and turned to look. Within seconds, the entire hall had gone silent, every eye fixed on the five of us standing in the doorway, hands linked.
The silence was deafening.
"Oh my," Hermes was the first to break it, his orange eyes sparkling with delight as a massive grin spread across his face. "Well, well, well! What do we have here?" He practically glided across the room toward us. "Young Arin, you absolute madman! I knew you were bold, but this—" He gestured at our joined hands with theatrical flair, "—this is truly spectacular!"
"Lord Hermes," Asfi said warningly, color flooding her cheeks.
"Oh, don't 'Lord Hermes' me, my dear Asfi!" He was practically bouncing with excitement. "Do you have any idea how entertaining this is going to be? The rumors, the gossip, and the sheer audacity!" He clapped me on the shoulder. "I'm genuinely impressed. Most men can't handle one woman, and here you are with four of the most formidable adventurers in Orario! Brave or suicidal, I can't quite decide which!"
"Lord Hermes!" Asfi's voice rose in embarrassment.
"Right, right, I'll behave." He didn't look like he'd behave at all. "But seriously, congratulations! Though I do hope you're prepared for the chaos this will inevitably cause. It's going to be delicious to watch!"
Before I could respond, a new voice cut through the hall.
"WHAT?!"
Everyone's heads snapped toward the sound. Loki stood frozen in the middle of the room, her cup of wine tilted at a dangerous angle, liquid sloshing over the rim unnoticed. Her crimson eyes were fixed on me and Ais, her expression cycling through shock, disbelief, and something that looked suspiciously like betrayal.
She set her cup down with exaggerated care, then slowly, deliberately, walked toward us. The crowd parted like she was radiating danger.
"Ais-poo," she said, her voice deceptively calm. "Would you mind explaining what I'm seeing right now?"
"We're dating," Ais said simply, her tone matter-of-fact.
"Dating," Loki repeated flatly.
"Yes."
"All of you."
"Yes."
Loki's eye twitched. She turned to me, and I could practically see the storm brewing behind those crimson eyes. "Yo-you—!" She stopped, took a deep breath, then another. "My precious Ais-poo. My beautiful, innocent Ais-poo. You've corrupted her!"
"I didn't—"
"And Riveria! My elegant, refined mama! How could you fall for his schemes?!"
"They weren't schemes," Riveria said calmly, though I noticed her grip on my hand tighten slightly.
"This is a travesty! A catastrophe! My familia members, stolen away by this—this—" Loki gestured wildly at me, struggling to find words.
"Loki," Finn's voice cut through her dramatics. He was smiling, clearly amused. "Perhaps you should calm down before you say something you'll regret."
"Calm down?! Finn, he's dating half our strongest members!"
"Technically, only two of your strongest members," Gareth rumbled, stroking his beard. "The other two are from different familias."
"That doesn't make it better!"
"Actually," Astraea's gentle voice joined in as she approached with a warm smile, "I think it's wonderful." She looked at each of us in turn, her expression radiating genuine happiness. "Love in any form is precious. If you've all found happiness together, then I'm glad for you." She placed a hand on Ryuu's cheek. "You have my blessing, Ryuu, all of you."
"Thank you, Lady Astraea," Ryuu said softly, her ears still red.
"WHAT?!" Loki looked betrayed. "Astraea, you can't be serious!"
"I'm quite serious." Astraea's smile didn't waver. "Ryuu is old enough to make her own choices, and if this is what makes her happy, who am I to object?"
"See, Loki?" Hermes grinned. "Even Astraea approves! You're outvoted!"
"I don't remember this being a democracy!" Loki wailed.
"Oh! OH!" Tiona's voice suddenly rang out as she pushed through the crowd. "Does this mean what I think it means?! You guys are together?! Like, TOGETHER together?!"
"Yes, Tiona," I confirmed.
"THAT'S SO COOL!" She grabbed Tione's arm, shaking her twin excitedly. "Tione, did you hear?! Arin's dating all four of them! At the same time! How does that even work?!"
"I heard," Tione said dryly, though her eyes swept over our group. "And that's... bold. Insanely bold. Maybe stupid bold. But..." She shrugged. "If they're all okay with it, who cares?"
"Exactly!" Tiona agreed. "Oh man, this is going to be so interesting! Can I ask questions? I have so many questions!"
"Tiona, no," Tione grabbed her collar. "Let them breathe."
"But—"
"No."
While the Amazons bickered, the Astraea Familia had descended on Ryuu like a flock of excited birds.
"Ryuu!" Alise practically tackled her, rubbing her head like a mother being proud of her child, "You actually did it! You confessed! I'm so proud of you!"
"Alise, please—" Ryuu's responed, her entire face burned crimson.
"I want details!" Kaguya's eyes gleamed with mischief. "How did this happen? When? Where? And more importantly—" She turned to me with a predatory smile. "—did our precious Lion confess first, or did you manage to make her so flustered she couldn't form words?"
"Kaguya!" Ryuu's face burned brighter.
"I'm just asking the important questions." Kaguya's smile widened. "After all, I've spent months watching her turn red every time you walked by. I deserve some details after all that suffering."
"You weren't suffering," Ryuu protested weakly.
"I was suffering watching you suffer. It counts." Kaguya turned back to me. "So? Details. Now."
"Kaguya, leave them alone," Alise laughed, though she was clearly waiting for the answer too.
"Fine, fine." Kaguya waved dismissively, but her eyes were still twinkling with that teasing light.
"And you're all okay with sharing?" Lyra asked, genuine curiosity in her voice.
"We talked about it," Asfi answered for them. "We came to an understanding."
"An understanding," Kaguya repeated, raising an eyebrow. "That's one way to put it."
"Congratulations, Ryuu!" Noin said warmly. "You deserve happiness."
"All of you do," Asta added with a gentle smile, as the others offered congratulations, with a few teasing complaints about how long it had taken us to confess.
But not everyone was celebrating. I could feel the weight of hostile stares from across the room. A cluster of elven members stood together, their expressions ranging from disapproving to outright hostile. Their eyes were fixed on me, particularly where my hand held Riveria's.
Riveria noticed too. She turned her head slowly to face them, her jade eyes cooling to arctic temperatures. She didn't say a word—just looked at them with that authoritative stare that could freeze the sun itself.
The hostile stares faltered. One by one, they looked away, though the disapproval remained etched on their faces.
"They'll get over it," Riveria murmured to me. "Or they won't. Either way, it's not their decision to make."
"Riveria..." Lefiya's voice came from nearby. The younger elf approached hesitantly, her expression conflicted. "I... um..."
"Lefiya," Riveria's voice softened. "Are you alright?"
"I'm... well..." Lefiya looked between Riveria and me, then sighed. "I'd be lying if I said I am not a little conflicted. But I'm also happy for you, Lady Riveria. Truly. If this is what you want, then... then I support it." She turned to me, her expression becoming surprisingly stern. "But if you hurt Lady Riveria, or Miss Ais, I'll make you regret it. Understood?"
"Understood," I said seriously, and she replied with a smile.
"Good." She nodded once, then turned to Ais. "And Miss Ais, I... I'm happy for you, too. You deserve to be happy."
"Thank you, Lefiya," Ais said quietly.
"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT!" Loki's voice cut through all the side conversations. She'd apparently accepted reality, though she still looked like someone had stolen her favorite toy. "Fine! FINE! You're all dating! Whatever! But—" She pointed at me dramatically, "—if you break any of their hearts, I will make your life a living hell. Are we clear?"
"Crystal clear," I said.
"And Ais-poo," Loki turned to Ais, her voice becoming almost pleading. "You'll still let me hug you, right? This doesn't change that?"
"...We never hug, though?" Ais tilted her head, genuinely confused.
"This is cruelty! This is torture!" Loki wailed dramatically.
"Oh, stop being such a baby," Gareth rumbled, clearly amused. "The lad's made his choice, the lasses have made theirs. Accept it and move on."
"Easy for you to say," Loki grumbled. "You're not losing your precious familia members to romance."
"Actually," Finn interjected with a slight smile, "you're not losing anyone. They're still your familia. They're just... sharing their personal time a bit differently now."
"That's supposed to make me feel better?!"
"Not particularly, but it's the truth."
Raul appeared at my side, shaking his head in amazement. "Man, when you go for it, you really go for it. I can't believe you actually pulled this off."
"Neither can I," I admitted.
"Well, congratulations. Seriously." He grinned. "Though I hope you're prepared for all the attention this is going to bring. People are going to talk about this for months."
"Let them talk," Ryuu said quietly, squeezing my hand.
"Exactly," Asfi agreed. "What matters is us, not what others think."
"Well said!" Hermes called out, raising his cup. "A toast! To love in all its forms! To courage! To these five brave souls embarking on a very interesting journey!"
"To love!" Several voices echoed, cups raised.
Loki didn't join the toast. She just stood there, arms crossed, pouting like a child who'd been denied dessert. But even she couldn't completely hide the small smile tugging at her lips.
As the party slowly resumed—with definitely more whispers and stares than before—I looked at the four women standing by my side, at their flushed faces and happy smiles, and felt my heart swell with gratitude and joy.
Ais, still holding my hand with quiet contentment, Ryuu leaning slightly against my shoulder, Riveria meeting my eyes with warmth despite the lingering stares, and Asfi standing close.
My heart felt too full for my chest.
"So," Tiona's voice suddenly rang out again. "Does this mean double dates? Or... quintuple dates? How does that even work mathematically?"
"Tiona!" multiple voices shouted at once.
I couldn't help but laugh.
Yeah. This was going to be interesting.