On the battlefield plains of the Freya Familia.
At this moment, the eight top executives of the Freya Familia sat quietly together.
The Braver, the Goddess' Chariot, the White and Black Knights, and the Four Warriors of Burning Gold.
Unlike before, there was no shouting or arguing between them, not even any conversation. They simply sat on the ground, resting and adapting to their newfound power.
One more detail stood out. On each of their chests, a red pattern had appeared, and the weapons they held were completely different from before.
Greatswords, spears, staffs—every piece of equipment was brand new. Just by looking at them, one could sense their overwhelming power.
This was the newly reborn Freya Familia. Not only had they obtained powerful weapons and armor, but they also possessed eight full sets of high-grade Stigmata. With such strength, they could even crush the Loki Familia head-on.
Even so, every single one of them wore a grave expression.
Because they knew that the enemy they would face was not a monster from the Dungeon, but a monster among humans.
To fulfill their goddess' wish, they had made countless preparations. Without them, there would be no chance of victory.
First was the timing. Freya had already figured out when Elise conducted her experiments, deliberately arranging this battle shortly after she finished one.
This would significantly weaken her mental strength.
Second was upgrading everyone's equipment and providing each person with a top-tier set of Stigmata, greatly enhancing their combat ability.
Of course, the Freya Familia did not have enough valis to purchase all this equipment. So when Hedin was sent to acquire it, Freya had also dispatched her other identity—the gray-haired girl, Syr. If necessary, she could use charm.
In this way, they could obtain the highest-grade equipment without spending a single valis, greatly increasing their chances in the coming battle.
Finally, there were hostages.
From Freya's investigation, Elise displayed a very obvious tendency to protect her own.
If any member of the Astraea Familia was harmed, Elise's expression would become extremely unpleasant.
Under such circumstances, her combat style would become restrained, as if she did not dare to act freely—perhaps out of fear of hurting her companions.
Even with all this equipment, their chances against Elise at full strength were still slim. So they could only do everything possible to weaken her while strengthening themselves, to create some semblance of balance.
Even they themselves did not know just how vast the gap truly was.
Not long ago, the other executives of the Freya Familia had also heard about Elise from Ottar, seemingly under Freya's orders.
That was how they came to understand just how powerful she really was. For example, Ottar's achievement in advancing from Level 6 to Level 7 was fighting Elise.
When they heard that, everyone had been stunned. Ottar needed Elise to level up?
Then what exactly was Elise?
A humanoid ancient monster?
They could not fully comprehend it, but since it was the will of their goddess Freya, they were willing to carry it out.
...
That evening, Elise returned to the Familia from outside.
These past few days, she had been busy researching Stigmata, expending a great deal of time and energy, as well as many rare materials.
"It seems I've hit another bottleneck..."
She sighed softly. But the moment she opened the door, she noticed something was off about the atmosphere inside the Familia. Everyone present—even Astraea—wore anxious expressions.
"Everyone, did something happen?"
Confused, Elise spoke up, drawing everyone's attention.
"Elise!"
"Thank goodness, Captain is back!"
"Now we finally have a solution!"
Many members of the Astraea Familia rushed over, surrounding their captain.
Seeing their flustered state, a shadow fell over Elise's heart.
"Elise!" In the end, it was Astraea who spoke. "Allow me to explain everything."
With that, Astraea took out a letter from her robes and placed it on the table.
"This was delivered not long before you returned. It seems Freya has finally decided to make her move."
Astraea narrowed her eyes. The usual gentleness in them had vanished, replaced by a chilling killing intent.
"The letter states that if we want our Familia members to remain safe, Elise must go alone to the Freya Familia's base—the battlefield plains..."
It was now almost certain that the disappearance of their members was entirely the work of the Freya Familia. This realization filled the young girls with fury.
"So it really was them..."
"What should we do now? Are we really supposed to let the Captain go alone?"
"Of course not!"
"But if anyone else goes to the battlefield plains, won't the Freya Familia kill the hostages?"
Everyone's expressions turned grim. The Freya Familia, once seen as a force of order, had now resorted to methods no different from Evilus.
"Quiet!"
As the girls argued noisily, a commanding voice instantly suppressed everyone present, forcing them to turn toward its source.
The one who spoke was the goddess Astraea. While the others debated, she had already made her preparations.
"Elise, what do you think about this?"
"Freya wants you. She must have made thorough preparations, waiting for you to walk straight into her trap."
"If it were you, what would you do?"
Astraea handed the decision to Elise. For her first Familia, she held absolute trust—especially given Elise's overwhelming strength.
"..."
Elise remained silent, her expression blank as she pondered.
"Lady Astraea, I think it's best if I go alone."
As everyone was still stunned by her response, Astraea continued, "Are you confident, Elise?"
"Yes. I have absolute confidence in myself."
"Since the Freya Familia has made their move, it means they must have some kind of method prepared."
"But even so, the difference in raw strength is simply too great. Even alone, I can handle it."
Elise turned her head, as if looking at her companions.
"I understand that everyone wants to come along, but this time, please sit it out."
Although the enemies she would face were nothing in Elise's eyes, for the others, it was still too early.
If they were to confront the Freya Familia directly, they would certainly be defeated.
"Then we leave everything to you, Elise," Astraea said.