Author's Notes: Hello there, dear readers! Welcome to Monster Girl Encyclopedia: Bonds are Unbreakable.

This fic is based on Kenkou Cross' Monster Girl Encyclopedia, and his MGE: Fallen Maidens.

Moreover, this story is going to be a different take on the Fallen Maiden's story, although the changes are pretty minimal. It's just that this fic will take place before, during, and after the invasion of Lescatie. The changes I mentioned above will be revealed…in-story.

Disclaimer: The Monster Girl Encyclopedia series is owned by Kenkou Cross.

Monster Girl Encyclopedia:

Bonds are Unbreakable

Prologue

"Sky-blue days of false peace and true conspiracies."

The Nation of Lescatie…

One of the world's largest nations, and as well as a nation where faith in the chief goddess is the main religion, Lescatie is one of the most religiously influenced countries in the world, ruled by the king named Castor Bistoa Lescatie. But it is not the only thing that the nation is famous for…

Lescatie has the second most powerful military among all religious order aligned states at the present time. And to add, this nation also has multiple hero training organizations and facilities, training people into fighting for the order from a young age.

The most prominent of these organizations is the Templars of the Goddess's Cross, or in short, the Holy Cross Templars. This organization produces a minimum of a least a hundred heroes of all kinds per year, and produces a maximum of thousands per year than any other organizations around Lescatie and the world itself. Thus, Lescatie boasts as the number one hero producing nation around the world.

Due to its status as a high class hero producing nation, the nation of Lescatie is also one of the world's largest centers of trade, ranging from the important military supplies to things needed for daily life. The nation's city has dazzling central districts, merchant districts, parks, and all sorts of things one may expect to see in a prosperous and powerful city.

However, along with these benefits, came problems typical of urban life: corruption, violence, crimes, and poverty.

Thanks to the corrupt habits of the many high officials of the order, who makes use of their positions for their own conveniences, most of the money that was supposed to be given for the healthcare, food, and shelter of the people ended up straight into the pockets of these high officials, forcing the poor into the squatters of the slums. Because of this, the heroes who came from the poor families often have mistrust , and would have the tendency to quit their jobs as heroes to take jobs that actually make money without risks, or cause dissent among the order by desertion during a mission.

Amidst this oppressive environment, a young man persevered…

A freshly recruited member of the Discreet Mamono Elimination Department of the Holy Cross Templars, named Levant Zanvolt…

A fine day has arrived once again in the courtyard of Holy Cross's headquarters, where the training of the Holy Cross Templar's new recruits and veterans are occurring as usual in a day of peace and good weather within the nation of Lescatie.

Throughout the courtyard, sounds of spears, arrows, maces, swords, and shields clashing can be heard, as a whole multitude of Templars are having sparring matches by pairs. Those who train have different specialties, ranging from regular knights, spearmen, assassins, archers, scouts, and all other kinds of warriors.

The new recruits are always paired up with a fellow Templar with more experience, so that they might get evaluated on their performance after the battle. For example…

"Tch!" A newly recruited assassin, wearing black robes with a hood on and wielding two short blades held in reverse grip with both his hands, jumps into the air as he attempts to land a blow onto the neck of his opponent, a shielded knight, from above with his pair of blades, only for the said knight to deflect the attack with his shield, and swing his sword vertically upward with a lot of raw force, causing the twin bladed assassin to guard himself and get sent up to the air.

The shielded knight then begins his counter-assault by jumping up into the air towards his twin bladed foe, and slashes downwards in an attempt to force his foe into the ground. However, as if in anticipation, the assassin quickly intercepts the knight's attack with his own by swinging one his blades with focused strength in a horizontal manner from the left, causing them to clash and allowing the assassin to push himself away from the knight and land before him using the force of the collision.

As soon as the assassin landed, he quickly switches his blade in his left hand with a knife, and throws it towards the head of the knight as he was about to hit the ground, surprising him and making him guard his head with his shield, and making him stumble as he landed, giving the opening that the assassin has been waiting for.

Wasting no time, the assassin quickly lunges forward before landing a swinging kick to the knight's left foot, causing the knight to lose balance and fall flat on his ass. And thanks to the weight of his armor, the knight had a hard time getting up, allowing the assassin to jump and heavily land on the knight's chest plate, causing him to groan in pain, and with quick speed, the assassin skillfully disarms the knight, removing his helmet in the process, revealing a middle-aged man with brown hair, green eyes, and beard all over the lower area of his face.

The scout quickly points the tip of his blade to the area below the knight's bearded chin, as a sign of victory…Making the said knight tap the ground as a sign of surrender. The assassin then quickly puts away his blades…

The knight smirks as the assassin gets off him and helps him up, and after finally being able to stand, the knight commends his trainee, "Heh, not bad for a fresh meat! Even though you're young and a part of the sneaky back-stabby guys, you sure have strong arms! Say, what's the secret to that strength of yours, eh? A lady waiting at home?" The knight teases the assassin, who just laughs along and pulls up the hood of his robes, revealing his face. He had spiky silver hair, golden eyes, and his skin tone akin to ivory.

The assassin then proceeds to answer in a joking manner, "Well, for one, I've been single for seventeen years!"

The knight lets out a hearty laugh before replying, "Hahaha! You'd better stop using those hands and get yourself a real woman, Levant! Hahaha!" Instead of being embarrassed, the assassin Levant just laughs this off. The knight then proceeds to pat Levant's shoulder before saying, "I'm being serious about the woman part, my boy. A year more and you'll be of age! As a man, it is a part of your duty to find yourself a woman who'll be by your side when you'll start rottin' in the keister!"

Levant then proceeds to brush off the old knight before replying, "Unfortunately, I don't have time for that, though, Sir Ganz. It's just that…I still have to look after everyone in the orphanage, along with Ramir, Primera, and Sasha-err, I mean, General Sasha. I can't just leave them after all they've done for me. And that's because they are my family." The knight named Ganz proceeds to give Levant a look of apology and understanding before patting Levant's shoulder again, since the old knight forgot that Levant is actually an orphan who grew up in an orphanage, and that Levant has no one else other than his fellow orphans for family.

"Well…Keep up the good work, kid. I forgot that you still have your little sisters and brothers to deal with." As Ganz finished talking, the loud sound of a bell echoed throughout the headquarters, a signal that it is already mid-noon, the time for change in patrol shifts.

Ganz then proceeds to give Levant instructions before leaving, "Alright. Supposedly, I'm supposed to give you a 1-hour break, but…Listen to me for a bit, kid." Ganz then proceeds to take a piece of paper from his pocket, and hands it to Levant. Written on it is 'Evaluation passed with an A++'. Levant's eyes widened at what was written on the paper, especially when he realized what it entails…

Ganz then proceeds to keep speaking, "Out of most of the trainees I've encountered, you're one of those few that actually show tactics, spirit, and dedication, despite your lack of magical skills, my boy, unlike most of these day's young brats, who just runs around while randomly swinging a sword declaring they're 'heroes'. I could see a good future set for you, if you won't die on the battlefield that is, knowing your job!" Ganz then stares Levant into the eye as he kept speaking, "You actually have that fire in you. Your mentors trained you well. Keep that bravery with you all the time, and I guarantee, you'll reach great heights!" Ganz then once again pats Levant's shoulders…Before taking out another piece of paper from his pocket.

"You have a mission tomorrow, as decreed by the high priests. You will receive the information tomorrow at your squad room, which means you'll have to be on time, awright? Oh, and your designated squad is…General Dascaros's Squad, named the Snake's Lance squad. You know which room that is right?"Ganz informs Levant, who gives off a nod.

"With the information I gathered, the squad leader is someone named Mersé Dascaros, a war veteran from a previous war with monsters. Because of her knowledge at fighting, she's the one who gets all the newbies these days. So I guess this means I get to work with more fellow newbies too? That's…a good thing, I guess." Levant then proceeds to speak, "Very well. I'll be on time tomorrow. Goodbye, for now, Sir Ganz." He then proceeds to bow, before turning his back to Ganz and leaves the headquarters…

"Looks like Ramir is in patrol duty right now…Primera's not in her quarters, too…Geez. I'll just have lunch by myself, then. Workaholics these days…Oh wait, maybe Mimiru is going to visit again today…" Levant mutters to himself as he walks around the central square of Lescatie, which is currently filled with so many people, ranging from kids who are playing around, residents just taking a walk, tourists who are checking up the shops, and Templars on patrol duty strolling around…

"I guess it's the barracks for me…as usual. She'll come over there around lunch time, anyway."

As Levant was about to head back into the headquarter's barracks, a young girl's voice interrupted him by calling his name, causing him to stop in his tracks…

"Hey, big bro! Over here, you lolicon!" A girl calls out to Levant. A vein throbbed on his forehead as he guesses the identity of the girl. Levant then turns towards the said girl.

The girl appears to be around the age of twelve. She has pink eyes, long pink hair tied up by a large white ribbon at the back of her head, and light colored skin. She wears a pink and red shoulder-less dress, with detached pink and white sleeves. Her lower attire consists of a non-transparent white stocking that reaches above her knee, and she also wears a pair of brown colored shoes. She also appears to carry a staff with her.

Despite her small appearance, a strong, suffocating atmosphere of magic surrounds her, a sign that it would be foolish to mess with this child…

"Oh, hey there, Mimiru. Are you on break too?" Levant asks the little mage, Mimiru.

"Of course I am, big bro! And speaking of that, the great Mimiru would like to ask a great favor to you, lowly peasant!" Mimiru declares in a proud, yet playful tone. Levant just gently pats her head before replying, "Okay, okay, I get it. So, the great Mimiru wants her lunch, right? Say, how about we have our lunch together at the barracks as usual? You can ask your question while we're eating, is that okay with you, little sis?"

Mimiru's face turned beet-red, causing her to fret as she attempts to retort to Levant's words, "Wha-what are you saying, you degenerate?! Don't touch my head so casually, you lolicon!"

A smirk crept its way upon Levant's lips as he replies, "I'll take that as a no, then. Bye!" He then casually turns his back to Mimiru while attempting to run away straight to the barracks...

His actions causes Mimiru to run after him and started shouting, "Wa-wait! I was just joking about the lolicon part! Don't leave me!" A blush was making itself known as Mimiru shouted this words. Knowing that she will persist in the chase, Levant just smirked again and kept running, but a little more slower otherwise…

"Hmm...this is weird. Why isn't there anyone around?" Levant mentaly noted as he ate his food. Indeed, the barracks are only occupied by himself and Mimiru. It's as if the other Templars suddenly vanished into thin air...

"Wow…That tasted great! Even the maids at the mansion can't cook this good!" Mimiru says in praise as she kept on chomping the lunch, and omelette, that Levant made at his home, at the orphanage, for lunch.

Usually, every lunch time, Mimiru would look around the headquarters for Levant. Even though she has a lot of cooks back at her mansion, Levant's cooking seemed to have that 'warmth', whereas, the cooking at the mansion seems to lack this mysterious 'warmth'.

In a matter of seconds, Mimiru already finished off the omelette, surprising even Levant, despite having seen the same scenario so many times in the past.

"Really? I guess Sasha was right to have taught me the recipe for this then." As soon as Levant mentioned Sasha's name, Mimiru suddenly had a dark look on her face, as if she just heard something unpleasant…

Sighing, Mimiru closes her eyes and lowers her head, trying to look asleep. However, the insides of her mind are not as sleepy as it seems. "Sasha this, Sasha that. Can't he speak about something else?! Like…me…Why can't he praise me like how he praises that hag with the quadruple giga-sized chest?! Damn him and his paizuri fetishes…"

"You know, if you're trying to pretend to be asleep or playing dead, you should at least slow down your breathing by a notch. You're not supposed to look like you're having asthma." Levant speaks in an as-a-matter-of-fact tone, surprising Mimiru, but at the same time, made her realize something she did wrong…

Her breathing was deep and loud. If she has something to blame for that, it would be her anger from earlier…But she's not about to reveal that…

Mimiru then tries to talk her way out of embarrassment, "I-I was just testing you, that's all! You're an assassin right? So yeah, I was just trying to see if you can, uh, guess it right if I'm actually asleep! B-but you did it right, so you have my praises for that, haha…hahaha!" Her tone was fretting, a sign of an obvious lie in the making...

"You don't guess it if you want to know if someone's asleep. You check their breathing." Levant swore that if he had ten pairs of hands right now, they would be planting themselves on his face.

"Okay, okay, I believe you." Levant casually replies.

However, Mimiru's intelligence says otherwise, "No, you don't! You're lying! You're a jerk! Uwaaaah!" Taking advantage of Levant's weakness to his 'little sisters' at the oprhanage, Mimiru then decides to use the same tactic and puts on her most powerful weapon: the crying little sister.

With his big brother instincts kicking in like a spear impaling his chest, Levant unconsciously lowers himself on one knee, as he tries to console the crying Mimiru by unconsciously hugging her with one arm, and gently rubbing her head with the other, "There, there, I really believe you, I swear! Just…stop crying, alright?" Levant says in a staggering manner as he kept on trying to console Mimiru.

"Damn it…Why is it that I can't resist little sisters?! Oh, wait, that came out wrong…" Levant's mind was in turmoil as the…sensation of hugging Mimiru is already being engraved onto his senses…

"Ehehe…" Mimiru freely lets out a giggle as she rubs away her tears onto the frontal part of Levant's robe. "Only if I can do this anywhere I want…And for as long as I want…" Mimiru's mind calmed down as her big brother's 'warmth' wrapped around her…

"Aaah! Help! Monster!" A scream interrupts the two, causing them to quickly let go of each other. A man comes inside the barracks, panting. He spots both Levant and Mimiru, "Thank the goddess! A soldier is in here! Please help me!" A large vein popped in Mimiru's forehead for being ignored, but proceeded to ask the man about his situation anyway, "What happened?! And what was that about a monster?!"

The man then proceeds to speak, "Me and my buddy were riding in our wagon to deliver goods into this city! But as we were leaving the southern forest borders, a minotaurus appeared out of nowhere and attacked our wagon! I managed to get away, but my buddy was left in there, trying to take the delivery goods to safety! I arrived at the city gates, but there were no guards on duty. I went inside, there were no guards on patrol either! Please, I beg of you, help me!"

"That's funny…How the hell are there no guards at all? That's not even possible!" Levant thinks as he proceeds to console the man, "Okay, I'll help you. The entrance to the southern forest border, right?" Levant asks the man, who nods in return.

"Let's hurry then, big bro! This man's friend must have gotten laid by this very moment!" Mimiru speaks in a sarcastic manner while moving out, leaving the man and Levant, whose gearing himself up.

"Who was that brat?!" The man angrily asks Levant, who replies in a deadpan tone before putting on his hood and leaving hastily, "…Mimiru Miltie."

The man's jaw dropped.

"You've got to be kidding me…There really isn't anyone around at all!" Levant mentally exclaimed as he runs across the rooftops of Lescatie's southern district, whereas, as he observed while running, there really isn't a single Templar on patrol…even from when he passed through the central district.

As Levant is free-running his way throughout the rooftops to the southern gate, Mimiru rides throughout the skies on a green colored glyph, which is a wind transportation spell she learned during her first time studying magic.

"Whoa, that guy from earlier wasn't joking! There really isn't anyone of those Templar jerks out here!" Mimiru's thought's reflected what she saw: The total absence of Templars around the districts and the area around the gates.

As she flew, a rush of sudden chill ran throughout Mimiru's body, disrupting her concentration for a moment…

"What in the…What was that surge of magical power?!" Mimiru thinks as she recognizes the chill she felt just now. It was a surge of magical aura, yet, it was brimming with dark energy at the same time, giving off that cold, intimidating atmosphere, which also got stronger as Mimiru approached the gates from above…

A precaution made itself known as Mimiru descended down to the gates, "I just hope the monster outside really IS just a minotaurus…I don't wanna lose big bro! Not while I can still breathe and fight!" Mimiru's fear of the surge of magical aura is slowly changing into courage as she holds her staff tighter…

"Ufufu…so that's the famous young mage from the organization of human magicians? She does look quite powerful…Although, if you cannot sense her magic, you will be unable to differentiate her from a normal little girl. Aww, so cute…" A monster girl declares as she watches Mimiru from a distance fly her way into the gates. The said monster girl has white hair with horns protruding from behind her head, she has red eyes with the supposed white part are colored black. She also has a pair of white demonic wings, and wears a very revealing set of armory, barely covering her purplish skin.

"Yes, indeed, mistress Deruella. I did not even recognize her as such when I first saw her in the barracks with her companion." A middle aged man whose clothes is in tatters replies to his master, Deruella, who shifts her attention from Mimiru to Levant, who's currently free-running across the rooftops on the way to the southern gates.

"…That boy in the hood. Is he someone well-known as well?" Deruella points to Levant, prompting her companion to reply quickly.

"Ah, you mean the young man in the black robes? He is a member of the Assassin Brotherhood, an infamous branch of the Holy Cross Templars. They are also known as the Discreet Mamono Suppression Department. As for fame, you could say that the organization he belongs to are known to work in the dark, so there isn't much information about them in the open, except if you start sniffing the drawers of the order's high officers." The human companion of Deruella explains.

"Oho? Could you tell me more about these 'Discreet Mamono Suppression Department'?" Deruella asks again, causing her human companion to clear his throat before explaining once again.

"That organization is infamous for preventing organized assaults of mamonos before it could even start. Their method is taking the source of intelligence, power, and organization of the mamono groups by assassinating the important members of these said groups. This assassins are also well known among humans and monsters for being able to easily take anyone's life with relative ease, and disappear like ghosts right after, earning them the fear of the leaders of the pro-monster human factions. In short, mistress, they are the well-rounded chaps who do the dirty work for the chief goddesses' order. Oh, and a fun fact: Due to what they do, they never receive the chief goddess's blessing, making them disposable cannon fodder for the order's conveniences. Unlike your classic assassins working as lapdogs for the nobles, the Brotherhood's Assassins are under Templar command only." The human explains to Deruella, who had a sour expression as the explanation finished.

"…To think that she'd face an assassin and a high rank mage at once…Should we not interfere? Minorin might be a minotaurus, but to go against two on one isn't something to sneeze at." Deruella asks as she prepares to leave, but Duran, her companion, stops her before she could take flight.

"Do not worry mistress. From what I have gathered from a certain high priest's drawers, the assassin who is currently with the mage is just a fresh graduate of the brotherhood, and still doesn't have any experience in real monster combat or magic. Even if he could take on humans, he can't take on monsters that easily, most especially against ones with attacks that induce pleasure. So please, do not reveal yourself just yet. And what do you know, he might be the one for Minorin, if you know what I mean." Duran carefully explains to Deruella, who sighs, and returns to watching the human city…

"Very well. I shall observe, then. But I will still interfere should it be necessary." Deruella says as she crosses her arms and observes both Mimiru and Levant from afar.

"Hmm, I wonder what he looks like with his hood off…Humans and their silly fashion sense." Deruella smirks as she thinks of the possible results of today's mischief…

In the forest borders, southern Lescatie…

"There she is!" Levant whispers to Mimiru as they observe the minotaurus from afar, while hiding under a thick bunch of bushes. The said minotaurus has bright blue eyes, and vibrant red hair that reaches towards her muscular shoulders. She wears a metal chest plate with no cloth beneath, held by a pair of spaulders stationed on her shoulders. She wears a skirt of jaguar fur held by multiple belts. She also appears to be barefoot.

Far behind the minotaurus is an old-aged man with white hair and black eyes, tied and gagged.

"Let's plan this out before we do anything. There's only the two of us, so we've got no choice but to be careful, okay?" Mimiru says in a serious manner, sounding like a professional adult.

"Very well. Do you have a plan?" Levant asks, earning a nod from Mimiru.

"Of course. Listen up, because this is what we are gonna do…" Mimiru then begins explaining her strategy as Levant listened intently…

"Whoa, boy, those Templars sure are slow. Are they on lunch break or something?" The minotaurus asks herself, but her words causes her human hostage to shiver in fear.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt anyone lest they start swinging at me first. And other than that, I'm just looking for a young and healthy husband-to-be. Don't worry, I'm not that horny to attack old men like you." The minotaurus explains, earning a look from the human hostage that says 'Are you kidding me'?! However, she just ignored the tied up man.

A few more minutes later, sleepiness occupies the minotaurus' mind…

As she closed her eyes, a sudden surge of magical energy and a shout jolts her senses, and as she opened them, she saw in front of her a young human girl in the middle of a dancing blue glyph, who shouts, "Gefrorenen Käfig!"

As the shout ended, a blue glyph appeared below the minotaurus, a sign that she must dodge in any way possible, and she was just about to do that, when…

Her body wouldn't move!

"Wha…Why can't I-!" The minotaurus screams in panic, as her body felt very, very heavy, like it was held down by gigantic weights. She then takes a look at the little mage before her, and gave her a questioning look as the ice magic glyph is about to finish…

Even with the minotaurus' painful looking stare, Mimiru just puts on a sadistic smile before saying, "Oh no, don't look at me, you horned muscle-bound...something. I would have taken better care of my back earlier if I were you! Ahahaha!"

With all the strength that she can muster, the minotaurus forces her head to get a look behind her from her right side...

…And found five throwing knives impaled on her right shoulder, with a smell she was familiar with: poison. And worse, she also saw a man in black robes with a hood on untying the minotaurus' hostage, much to her displeasure.

A second later, a bright blue pillar of light bursts forth from the glyph below the minotaurus, and as the light subsided, the minotaurus is now encased in a block of ice.

"Err, are we supposed to take her to prison like that? There's no way I can carry that block of ice! It might even melt before I can lift it!" Levant complains as he eyes the frozen minotaurus.

"Don't worry. That block of ice is self-sustaining, as it feeds on the prisoner's own magic energy. And knowing how monsters are like reservoirs of magic energy, she'll stay in there for a long, long time. And as for the transfer, I have my teleportation spells, so we've got nothing to worry about!" Mimiru proudly explains to Levant, who gives off a sigh of release.

"Good thing you were able to throw those knives without being detected or those knives being felt by the monster. Was that magic too, young man?" The freed hostage, the old man, asks Levant, who just shakes his head.

"Yeah, that's right! There's no way that ordinary throwing knives can paralyze a monster, much less a minotaurus, out of all of them!" Mimiru adds, in hopes of seeing Levant's secret.

Levant sighs as he gives up resistance and pulls something from his pockets, "No, it's not magic. But rather, a good mix of strong paralysis poison and high grade anesthesia, which is best for long range stealth kills. The combination is meant for a slow, painless death for humans, but will only cause strong, but undetected paralysis among monsters due to their resistance." Levant explains as he pulls off a vial containing a transparent colored liquid, and shows it to Mimiru and the old man, who both gave an 'ohhh'.

"So then, now that we're done here, let's take the old man and the monster to the headquarters for reporting." Levant declares, earning a nod from the old man,, and Mimiru, who summons multiple teleportation glyphs, enough for everyone, even the frozen minotaurus…

Meanwhile, at a certain part of the forest borders of Lescatie…

"Gah!" Duran is currently bound by tentacles, as a punishment for an error from earlier…

…Which is his miscalculation of the High Mage Mimiru Miltie, and the unnamed Assassin.

"You…Should have not stopped me when that assassin was already positioning himself…Minorin could have been saved! But because of you and your understatement…" Deruella speaks in an angered tone, due to the capture of her comrade and soldier, the minotaurus Minorin.

"…I wasn't expecting them to be that cunning. But I'll admit: I didn't anticipate that blitzkrieg tactic of theirs…I was sure that the assassin would get caught as he was sneaking behind Minorin…My mistake, my mistress." Duran answers in a calm manner, despite the tentacles around him tightening at every syllable he sends off his mouth.

"And now that you understand that it is your fault, how are you going to compensate for Minorin's life?" Deruella questions Duran, who then begins to explain quickly.

"Have you not noticed, that as of late, many of the monsters to be executed always would get away the day before the execution? Well, that's because…" Duran takes a deep breath before continuing, "We have an pro-monster insider, within the veteran heroes of Lescatie's order."

Deruella appears to remember something as Duran was done speaking. Deruella herself begins to ask, "Now that you mention it…There have been cases of monsters escaping executions, and most of them would end up at our camp, to boot…Say Duran, who is this insider?"

Duran then speaks in a loud, clear manner, "The Maiden of Light, Sasha Folmoon."

Deruella smirks as she recognizes the name…and lets go of Duran.

"What?! You didn't have a travelling partner?!" Mimiru asks in surprise. After teleporting the monster successfully to the dungeons, the trio went back to the headquarter's lobby…Both Levant and Mimiru took this opportunity to ask the old man about his travelling companion, who isn't present with them…And it was discovered that the old man was actually travelling alone.

"Well, yes. I was travelling alone when this horned monster came out of nowhere and flipped my wagon…" The old man explains.

"I guess that explains the disappearance of our 'guest' from earlier…Fishy bastard. Oi, Mimiru, you remember his face, right?" Levant asks Mimiru, who responds with a nod.

"All right then old man. You are free to deliver your goods around the city as you planned. Me and my partner here will report about our 'friend' to the big guys. okay?" Levant tells the old man, who nods in reply. But before he went out of the headquarters, the old man takes out a large rolled clothe from his bag, and hands it to Levant…

"Here, as a token of my gratitude. Thank you, Sir Levant, and thank you too, Miss Mimiru!" Before Levant could say his welcome, the old man walks out quickly of the headquarters with a contented smile on his face…

Levant then senses the weight of the cloth, and is quite tempted to open it…

"Big Bro, let's look for those lazy ass Templars first! We have a report to make! Let's check the activity board upstairs!" With Mimiru's declaration, the mage and the assassin went to the second floor of the Holy Cross Headquarter, and went straight to the bulletin board…

On the latest list of activities are written…

'Sewer check-up session after lunch. Please proceed to the Lescatie Sewer entrance for details…'

"You've got to be kidding me…They're in the sewers right now?! Useless bunch of…Ugh, no wonder why they can't know anything that happened upside…" Levant angrily mutters to himself as he palms his face. To think that the proud Templars would be cleaning sewers rather than be on duty…He felt irritated.

Meanwhile, Mimiru just yawns as she watches Levant check the bulletin board, "Hey, big bro, I wanna go home…I don't think they'd be in the mood to listen to an attack report while cleaning poop…And I don't wanna go to the sewers, either." Mimiru complains as she yawns again…

"…I'm tired too. I'll just leave a written report on the notices, and go back to the orphanage. You may go home first if you'd like." Levant tells Mimiru, who just wordlessly nods and leaves, obviously very tired…

Taking a pen and a piece of paper from the registrar's table, Levant begins to write everything that transpired during the incident with the minotaurus from earlier…

-A few hours later-

Around the time where the sun has completely set…

At the front of the Goddess's Loving Embrace Orphanage…

"Phew. Finally home. Good thing Lescatie allows rooftop commute…For those who can do it, anyway." Levant says to himself as he jumps from a tree branch, before proceeding to open the gates of the rather large orphanage. He also appears to be carrying a bag of food on his right hand, and the rolled up cloth he received from the old man from earlier carried on his shoulder like a sling bag.

"I'm home!"

Opening the front door, he is then greeted by two little girls. Every time he or Sasha comes home, these two girls are the one to first greet them before all the others…These two are quite close to the two of them, and they even proclaimed themselves as Levant's 'official' little sisters. They even went as far as claiming Levant's last name, Zanvolt.

"Ah! Welcome home, big bro!" The first girl energetically greets Levant as she runs and tackles him in a hug. She has medium length dark brown hair tied by a pair of blue ribbons in a two-ears hairdo… and has dark brown eyes. She also wears a blue colored long dress, with white long sleeves. Her name is Elisha Zanvolt.

"Big bro…Welcome home…" The second girl shyly greets Levant. She has blue eyes, very light brown colored hair that reaches below her waist, and wears a short sleeved blue colored long dress. Her name is Silmeria Zanvolt.

The other group of kids seemed to have noticed Levant's arrival, and like a group of moths heading for one large light bulb, they started greeting Levant at the same time…

"It's big bro Levant!"

"He's back! With food too!"

"Welcome home, big bro Levant!"

Levant gently pats their heads before speaking, "I bought something tasty for everyone today. Who wants to help me cook again? I'll only allow two people this time!"

The two girls who greeted first from earlier managed to raise their hands before everyone else, catching Levant's eye.

"Alrighty then! The two joining me in cooking duty today are…Elisha and Silmeria!"

With a loud cheer, the two of them followed Levant to the kitchen with a smile on their faces, while the other kids cutely pouted…

Later, at the kitchen…

"Say, Elisha, did Primera take her lunch with her today?" Levant asks his brown haired little sister.

"Yes, big bro! I nagged at her till her face went red and she took it without complaints! Ufufufu!" Elisha proudly states, earning a sweat drop from Levant…

"That's…a good job done!" Levant proceeds to pat Elisha's head.

"Muuu…I did a good job too…Pat my head too, big bro…" Silmeria complains with tears in her eyes, causing Levant to temporarily lose control of his composure as his 'big brother instincts' took over, but managed to limit himself to patting Silmeria's head.

"All right, now that you girls are ready, let's get cooking!" Levant declares as he and his little sisters started their cooking…

-An hour and a half later-

After cooking and having dinner, washing the dishes, and putting all of his little siblings to sleep, Levant finds himself resting on the rooftop of the orphanage, as a result of his recent activity…

"Oh boy…Primera and Ramir are overdoing their duty…again. Can't they at least remember they have a home? Damn workaholics…" Levant mutters under his breath…

"Oh, what a surprise to find you here this late…" A gentle voice of a woman from beside him grabs Levant's attention from his rest…

Levant takes a look behind him, and finds…

A woman with flowing, long green hair and calming blue eyes. She wears a hat adorned with white feathers on both left and right sides. Her clothes is the standard uniform of the high priestesses of the order, which is a white blouse paired with a blue colored mini-skirt. The blouse also has detached white sleeves. She also wears black colored knee-high stockings and pair of blue and gold heels for her feet…

Levant knows this person…

"Sasha…Don't tell me you're always home this late." Levant reprimands his fellow caretaker of the orphanage, Sasha Folmoon. Other than her job as the said caretaker, she's also one of the highest ranked veteran heroes of Lescatie, superior to even Mimiru, or Lescatie's current strongest rookie knight, Wilmarina Noscrim.

"Please understand. Things are very hectic right now. But if I can finish-" Before Sasha could finish, Levant cuts her off.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. I know for one thing being a hero is important, but so is your health! What are you gonna do if you collapse in the middle of the battle field and get eaten or killed?! What am I supposed to say to everyone else in this house that ever happens?!" Levant explaims, unable to contain his worry. To work herself to the bone without much rest…Levant can't help but be ticked off at Sasha's sudden change in work schedule. Isn't she a human who needs rest, too?!

"…I'm sorry."

Levant takes a look at Sasha, only to see her still pale skin and thick eye bugs. This, not wanting a repeat of last week's habits, Levant voices out one last intent from his heart.

"I know I've already said this a million times, but, as long as I'm able to speak, I'll say it again and again." Levant began, "I know how serious and dedicated you are, and I wouldn't change that for the world, but wrecking your body because of that will only backfire and end up hurting the people who love you."

"That's... I'm sorry."

Sasha shrank and apologized. Those who knew her would probably have been astonished to see the woman whose all-embracing smile never faltered, who guided and advised, crestfallen and being scolded like a child.

Seeing Sasha in that state, Levant's expression softened.

"That's why... Please take care of yourself, Sasha. Elisha, Silmeria, Ramir, Primera, and all our brothers and sisters in this orphanage, and me…We all love you." Levant says in a gentle tone of voice.

"...I understand."

A faint red tinge suffused Sasha's face the moment she heard Levant's last few words.

Levant was the only one who could urge her to take care of herself like that. Sasha, who had spent such a long time guiding people as a hero, as an apostle of god, was the sort of person that others tended to rely on, and she was more than happy to respond to their requests.

Levant, however, although her junior, was one of those few people who never hesitated to speak with her as an equal. He would often told her, "Please don't just let other people rely on you for help; rely on someone else yourself sometimes." When he was like that, he would be the only one to whom Sasha was able to reveal a little of her own vulnerability.

"…You know, it was really fun cooking with Elisha and Silmeria today. They have been learning well." Levant speaks in a nostalgic manner, causing Sasha's face to lit up…

"Really? So what did you guys cook?" Sasha's burdens somewhat lightened up as kept talking…

"Well, we started with…" Levant then explains what kind of food is it that they had cooked, and even discussed with Sasha what is going to be cooked the next day, along with a promise that she'll join by then…

After and an hour of chatting about different topics, thirst caresses both Levant's and Sasha's throats…

"Ehehe, that was fun. Didn't think you could be this talkative, Levant." Sasha comments as her throat already feels dry, out of talking.

"…Fun times, huh?" Despite his thirsty throat, Levant kept on speaking as he looks up to the starry night sky, "You know, Sasha, despite our situation right now, I still could proudly say that…we are leading a good life."

"Yes…A really difficult, but peaceful one…" Sasha replies with a smile…

"Yeah, you're right. It's just that, this life of ours, being together with everyone everyday…" Levant speaks in a nostalgic manner, "…I wish it will never change …"

Sasha shares the same nostalgic look as Levant as she answered, "And may it never change us…"

The two of them stared at the stars for a while longer, before retiring back to their rooms and falling into the embrace of sleep…

~Prologue end~

"Unfortunately, the clock is ticking, the hours are going by. The past increases, the future recedes. Possibilities decreasing, regrets mounting. Time never waits. It delivers all to the same end."

And done!

I hope you enjoyed the prologue!

Oh, and note:

Gefrorenen Käfig –means 'frozen cage' in German.