I Just Awakened My Sharingan, and You're Telling Me This Is DanMachi?

A familiar atmosphere washed over him.

Up on the second floor of the hall, he could faintly make out a few figures — most likely Finn, Gareth, and the other core members, already preparing for the next expedition.

Near the practice yard, a few more Familia members were sparring, honing their skills.

The Familia, having awoken again, was once more lively and running smoothly.

Ryota turned, scanning the area, but didn't see that familiar head of golden hair. Just as he was about to ask someone, he suddenly felt a sharp wave of killing intent behind him.

He turned around to see Lefiya standing at the edge of the corridor, hands on her hips, her elf eyes practically burning with visible fury.

"What's with that look…"

Ryota scratched the back of his head and gave her a harmless, sunny grin as he stepped forward to greet her.

"Hey, Lefiya, long time no see?"

"Hmph!"

Lefiya turned her head away, but the words still shot straight at him.

"You vanished off the face of the earth for three days! Is it that hard to come back here and sleep? You think the Dungeon doesn't need you anymore?!"

"Ahaha…"

Ryota let out an awkward laugh, pointing at the longsword on his back.

"No, no, these past few days I was over at the Hephaestus Familia, picking up a bit of forging."

"F-Forging?"

The elf girl's voice hitched, her wide, pretty eyes going even wider.

"You went to the Hephaestus Familia to learn forging??"

"Yup."

Ryota nodded.

"Blacksmithing, sword-smithing, quenching… I tried it all. Made a few short swords too, and then fused them into this."

He drew the longsword from his back and gave it a little flourish in front of her.

"What do you think? I named it Kusanagi."

Lefiya stared at him in shock, then at that perfect-looking longsword — so flawless it felt unreal. She was completely speechless.

Forging?

You made this in just three days??

Her eyes went from stunned, to disbelieving, to something faintly… envious.

"You… you really can do everything, can't you?"

Ryota smiled without denying it, and instead asked:

"So, were you waiting here for me? Did you need something?"

"Hmph — w-who was waiting for you?!"

Lefiya jerked her face away, arms crossing tight over her chest, her tone as awkward as if she was reading off a poorly rehearsed script.

"Ais asked me to keep an eye out for you in case you came back, and I had to fulfill Lady Ais's request, obviously!"

"Ohhh~~ I see how it is."

Ryota looked at her pointedly, amused to see her slender elf ears going slightly pink.

But he didn't expose her, only smiled and asked:

"So where is Ais? I actually need to talk to her."

"Mm… ever since you weren't around here at Twilight Manor, Lady Ais has hardly come by the main hall either. I think she's probably in the back courtyard — she trains there a lot. You can check there."

Ryota nodded, thanked her, and was about to head for the courtyard when he paused, turning back to ask:

"By the way, Lefiya, have you been short on any gear lately?"

"Eh? Why are you asking that all of a sudden?"

"Well, I picked up forging, right? Figured maybe I could get in some practice for the Familia members."

He paused for a second.

"Your weapon, is already good enough… so maybe you could use some armor?"

"I-I don't really need anything…"

Lefiya lowered her voice, looking a bit conflicted.

"During expeditions, I… hardly get a chance to fight anyway."

"Mm, got it."

Ryota clapped his hands together decisively.

"In that case, you'll need a full-body set of armor to protect you. Settled!"

"Eh…?"

Lefiya looked up, momentarily dazed.

He's… going to make me equipment? Custom-made, just for me?

In that instant, something seemed to gently stir inside her heart — a warmth, a sweetness, a surprising, indescribable little thrill.

"Oh right, make sure you have the money ready. My forging is expensive, you know."

The air froze.

In that moment, all the sweetness in her heart came crashing down, like a dream violently drop-kicked off its pedestal.

All those pink, sparkly bubbles in her head popped on the spot.

"You… you jerk!"

"I don't want your armor!!"

The elf girl stomped her foot, cheeks puffing up in a fury, and spun around to storm away.

Ryota just grinned. Lefiya really was pretty fun to tease.

Sheathing Kusanagi again, he headed for the back courtyard.

Passing through the corridor, he emerged into the rear yard of Twilight Manor.

Sunlight dappled the slate floor through the leaves of the trees, and the place was so quiet he could hear the faint rustling of wind.

His gaze immediately settled on a familiar silhouette ahead.

On the steps, a golden-haired girl sat quietly, a wooden practice sword resting by her side. 

She was leaning forward slightly, elbows propped on her knees, staring into the distance, lost in thought — or maybe just daydreaming.

Usually expressionless, she somehow seemed even more quietly beautiful from this side view, in a way words couldn't capture.

Ryota stepped forward and called out:

"Ais."

The familiar voice made the girl start slightly. She turned her head, those golden eyes meeting his across the air.

She didn't reply right away, just blinked a couple of times as if returning from a faraway thought, then gave a small "Mm."

She took a moment to think, then slowly said,

"You're back."

"Yeah, just got back."

Ais's gaze paused on Ryota's face for a moment, then shifted up to the sword handle peeking over his shoulder.

"You have a weapon now."

"Made it myself."

Ryota smiled.

"I mean, I went to all the trouble of visiting the Hephaestus Familia — had to bring something back to show for it, right?"

Ais simply nodded again, then lowered her head to pick up the wooden sword at her side.

No unnecessary chatter, no explanations.

She stood up, gripping the practice sword, her clear golden eyes fixed calmly on Ryota, her face steady and composed — but that alone was enough to say:

Let's start.

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