Chapter 8 - Part 2 - Greek Gods, Ares and Hephaestus - Winds of Change (DxD)

Mount Olympus

Jin Skyward

"…Sup."

I greet the Gods and Goddesses bluntly and casually while maintaining a serious look. Zeus and Poseidon grinned at me. Hermes, Hestia, and Hephaestus walked over to the floating seats that were elevated.

A semicircle shaped like a courtroom… I feel like I'm in a fantasy court. However, there were a lot of Gods here… More than I anticipated. I did feel a lot of godly auras earlier.

Zeus, Hera, Hades, Erebus, Nyx, Ares, Athena, Eris, Hecate, Atë, Apollon, Artemis, Chronos, Astraea, Aphrodite, Hermes, Hestia, Hephaestus, and Demeter. Those were the Gods and Goddesses that were currently present.

The ones that Hermes told me to watch out for were already eyeing me up like some sort of prey or tool. The 'normal' ones he vaguely mentioned… They were curious about me. Our three companions, Hestia, Hermes, and Hephaestus, were smiling. Hermes and Hephaestus looked a little expectant while Hephaestus wore her usual stoic expression.

I checked all their names using [Observe].

Zeus is very tall, muscular, and handsome. He had shoulder-length dark brown hair, a neatly trimmed brown-and-gray beard, and bright electric blue eyes. He wears blue and white robes with gold threads and golden accessories.

Poseidon is shown to have a large, muscular build. He has long, silky silver hair and a long, silky silver beard that appears to twist at the end.

He appears to wear a turquoise sash and multiple gold accessories. Poseidon has golden yellow eyes and wears a golden crown that signifies him being king of the seas.

Hera has long aubergine hair that is seen to be tied in a braid with gold and silver ribbon weaved in. Hera possesses cyan-blue eyes and is taller than the average human like all the other gods.

Hera is incredibly beautiful and appears to be a magnificent woman. She wears a floor-length pastel purple dress with a deep v-neckline laced with golden trims that exposes much of her bust.

Her dress has a high slit on the left, revealing her entire leg. Hera also wears jewelry from her royal tiara, armbands, to necklaces. The most prominent is a golden choker decorated with aqua gems and clear ornaments. She is also shown to be wearing the Golden Fleece.

Erebus is a handsome young man appearing in his mid-twenties with black hair. He wears a black cloak and his body radiates a dark aura.

Hades has the appearance of a tall skeleton dressed in attire worn by high priests, gives off a creepy aura. Despite having no eyes, his eye sockets can glow to give the appearance of eyes.

Nyx is a beautiful young woman with long, black hair and pointy ears. She has the face of a child. She wears a cute frilly dress called Godly Virgin Killer Clothes that has a corset jumper skirt. Her body also emits a tremendous dark aura.

Ares wears an all-black chest plate and black pteruges (skirts worn by Greek/Roman soldiers). He is shown to be having spiked shoulder pads that hold his cape in place and forearm cuffs that have spikes.

He has a faded buzzcut as well as a clean beard. He is the tallest and most muscular of Zeus' sons possibly due to the fact he is Zeus and Hera's son.

Athena is a fairly tall and beautiful pale-skinned woman with wavy lower-back black hair that has short bangs that part at the center of her face while curving to the left and partially hiding her left eye, narrow mauve eyes.

She is slender yet voluptuous in build. She is wearing a form-fitting black dress with a low backside and no straps, black high-heel boots, and elegant black gloves with red lines running up the length to end with circles.

Eris has long straight purple hair that reaches all the way down to her waist. She has red eyes and is wearing purple lipstick. She also wore golden colored ornaments on the left side of her face near her ear.

She also had a golden neck bracelet with three green diamond-shaped pendants. She wore a magenta-colored one-piece long dress which showed off her arms and a bit of her cleavage.

Hecate is a pale, fair-skinned, tall woman with a pair of deep purple eyes. Her dark brown hair is tied into a bun that hangs down onto the back of her head and reaches past her shoulders if let down. She wears an attire which consists of a black dress with a white blouse underneath it and a white apron over it.

Atë is a young woman with long brown hair pulled up into a ponytail secured with a red bow. She wears glasses and a yellow skirt suit over a blouse and stockings along with Mary Jane pumps.

Apollon has black curly hair and rare orange eyes. He wears a chiton, Greek clothing.

Artemis has green eyes and long blue hair with two long bangs, two strands on the sides, and a partly braided tail in the back. She wore a white and pale blue outfit, a pair of brown boots with a light brown design, a belt in which she kept a piece of white cloth and a dagger in, gold bracelets, and various gold hair accessories.

Chronos is an elderly man with a slight hunch on his back. He has light blue eyes and tan skin. He has spike white hair, thick white eyebrows, and a thick white mustache.

He wears a long-sleeved black martial arts jumpsuit, light-colored pants, and Tai Chi slippers. Despite his old age, his body is lean and very muscular, and it is covered in scars.

Astraea has long walnut brown hair that is tied behind her head in a dignified manner, along with deep indigo eyes that are reminiscent of a sea of stars. She wears a simple kirtle and a long skirt.

As a Goddess of Beauty, Aphrodite is an extremely beautiful woman. She has golden hair, green eyes and smaller breasts than Hestia. She wears old Greek clothing that's pink in color. She also has green clam earrings on both ears.

Finally, Demeter is a beautiful mature woman with long wavy golden honey-colored hair and orange eyes. Like Hestia, she is well-endowed, giving her a great figure.

She usually wears a long, light pink dress and a gold belt around her waist, though she wore white gloves and a light-colored dress with darker edges.

"Hyahahaha! 'Sup' to you too, young one. Jin, was it? I welcome you to Mount Olympus! I've heard rumors about you! As well as many of your achievements! Since then, I've wanted to meet you."

Zeus greeted me enthusiastically while letting out a hearty laugh, Poseidon nodding along.

"Hmmm! You do not seem that old, Jin, how old are you?"

"I'm eighteen and in my last year of High School in Japan."

Poseidon nods but Ares scoffs at my answer. I could also see him eyeing up the girls I was with, he had his eyes set on Valerie and Griselda. Both Irina and Griselda seem tense since we entered this room.

I can't blame them, while quite a few Gods here had a friendly vibe, the rest— Not so much, and now they were being looked at with lecherous eyes by Zeus's son, Ares. I don't want to mess this up, so if he does something… I'll make it look like one hundred percent a defensive play on my part.

"You have all that power, but you still play human? For what? The same with the foolish devils of that academy. The older generation never did such a foolish thing. I also heard you were looking for a harem? Hah! You don't deserve any of them."

What the hell is his problem? Did someone shit on his cereal, have his daddy nut on it and force him to eat it this morning? Or is he just a giant asshole in general?

"Ares, calm yourself. Jin is free to do what he wants with his life."

Ares scoffs again and eyes Griselda…. Haa, sure why not? Since coming into the room Griselda had let go of my arm and was standing beside me with her hands in front of her in a respectful manner. However, she was clearly intimidated by Ares.

It isn't easy for her to stay calm when facing beings she can't fight; even now, her calm and stoic expression was on display as she looked at the Gods.

Doom!

"Ares."

"Brother…"

"Tch."

Zeus lets out a bit of his aura making his son look away in frustration. Apollon just looked disappointed at him. Zeus sighs turns back to me and gives me a thumbs up. What a great guy. Smart thinking, or I might have killed him.

"Hmmm ~ you're not a virgin, how cute ~"

Nyx eyed me up and down as she chuckled sweetly to herself. The 'eviler' Greek Gods and Goddesses hadn't said a thing and were instead staring at me. I make eye contact with Hades as we stare each other down. I am ninety-nine percent sure he knows that I know about him.

"Heh, you're a very interesting Red Dragon Emperor, perhaps the strongest so far—— However, how high can your power reach? Or is this your current limit? Humans— That's what all Red Dragon Emperors in the past had in common, even you."

"Humans will have limits— What is that foolish saying? Humans have infinite potential? Quite laughable, really. Did you really win against the God of Thunder of the Norse Mythology? I feel nothing from you. Perhaps he let you have the win?"

...Is this their way of taunting me? I mean, the 'evil' Greek Gods, if so… I feel like they are children at a playground trying to rile me up. Sorry to say, it's not working.

"Don't taunt him now, Nyx, Hades. The young Red Dragon Emperor is a calm and collected guy, he won't be fooled that easily."

"Right, right, Ere's right ~ he's kind of cute too ~ hey, got space in your harem, you hot hunk~"

Erebus had a calm smile to him, he's quite infatuated with his own sister— Nyx, I'm more surprised he hasn't tried to sleep with her yet. After that, Eris the Greek Goddess of Strife, and Discord chimed in.

She had a very… Provocative smile, almost enticing in a way, she also asked me a weird question… That I won't answer. So, I just shrugged and stared at her.

"…"

I could feel the Goddess Hecate trying to look into me, my mind, my soul, and everything else. However, to her surprise and dismay… She got nothing, which caused her to smile and focus on me more.

She is variously associated with crossroads, entranceways, night, light, magic, witchcraft, the Moon, knowledge of herbs and poisonous plants, graves, ghosts, necromancy, and sorcery.

A woman of many talents, too bad she's generally on the bad or mischievous side since she mostly looks out for herself. But… I was confused as to why she was wearing maid clothes? Did she have a fetish for that kind of thing…?

The final one of the 'Evil' Gods was Atë. She was just staring at me with a bright but wicked smile. Atë was the goddess of mischief, delusion, ruin, and blind folly, rash action, and reckless impulse who led men down the path of ruin. She also led both gods and men to rash and inconsiderate actions and to suffering.

So, in short, she's trouble. I'll need to keep an eye out on everyone here— Maybe with the exception of Valerie since she's above them in terms of raw power. But everyone else varies from Middle-class to Satan-class and those gods are Low to High-tier.

"Ya~ so tense all of a sudden, Jin's here to check our realm out, will all of you relax? It's not exactly a positive first impression from most of you, especially Ares-boy. Follow your brother's example. The Great Apollon ~"

Hermes finally chimes in and tries to break the tension; he gives us a small wave as Poseidon and Zeus nod along.

"Right, forgive them for their… 'Edgy' introductions, that's what the young ones say these days, to fit in, right?"

"Oh, yeah, it's pretty overused. They think they're 'woke' or something, I just laughed at it."

Zeus grins at me again as Hera just shakes her head at her husband's antics.

"Hmm, well the rest that haven't spoken up are Aphrodite, Astraea, Demeter, Artemis, and Chronos. Greet the young man, will you?"

"Greetings, I'm Astraea."

"Hello ~ I'm Demeter ~"

"Nice to meet you, Red Dragon Emperor. I am Aphrodite, you may lick my feet."

...…...????

"I am Artemis."

"Welcome to Mount Olympus, Jin-kun, I am Chronos. The Primordial God of Time, a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Likewise."

The rest of the Gods had varying kinds of introductions, Astraea waved at me, the same with Demeter though a bit lazily. Artemis was quite blunt and on guard… She values her virgin status and avoids love at every point, but she's also quite kind.

Aphrodite… I am not sure how I feel about her introduction. She seems to be of the high maintenance type, but hopefully, that is only a misunderstanding, and I hope she is calmer in private. The strangest one is Chronos.

He literally looks like Bang from One Punch Man; I am compelled to befriend him.

"Huuu, my small prank has lasted long enough, oh well ~"

Nyx let out a sigh as she waves her hand above her and something changes… Outside, it became dark again.

"Ah! So you were the one responsible!"

Hestia and Hermes point at Nyx as she lets out a laugh confirming it was her.

"Well, I just wanted to mess with the Middleman a bit, it wasn't harmful, no?"

"Jin! It is quite late! I have prepared an inn back in Little Olympia for you and your companions, Hermes informed earlier so I had that done."

He summons a card? And it floats to me and I grab it... What? A small message was left on the card, but it did not say much.

|If my son— Ares does anything foolish, kick his ass, but don't kill him.|

I look at Zeus as he smiled, and Hera just shook her head again probably aware of what Zeus had just done. Well, I got permission from the guy, I'll kick his sorry ass if he touches any of them.

"Is that so? I appreciate it then, Zeus."

"Hmm! You may go! Come back here tomorrow as we shall discuss some happenings in our supernatural end."

Something is happening to the Greek Gods? As he didn't seem bothered by it, it's probably nothing too serious… Hopefully it's just like what happened with Tuatha Dé Danann, a festival or something minor. I want to explore this place… I can just ask Zeus tomorrow.

"I see, till tomorrow then."

I make a small gesture for the girls to go ahead, I'll go last. They reluctantly do so, and they all walk out of the door when Valerie— The last one left. On my way out, I stopped by the door and gazed back at the 'evil' Greek gods.

Doom!!!!!!!!

Letting out a little bit of my aura— Just as a warning… Do anything to them… And I'll wipe you all out and your precious pantheon.

…

Zeus

Once Jin Skyward left our meeting hall we came out of our stupor. What in the world was that? Such a powerful and condensed aura and magic from such a young human… No— That felt Draconic in nature.

"Haha! Wow, talk about intense! My blood felt like it froze…. Hehe, was that a warning to a certain, someone or group of Gods~?"

Hermes was the first to speak as he makes his usual sarcastic comment and looks at Ares, my son.

"…Tch."

"….Perhaps he isn't entirely human."

Ares clicked his tongue and Hades, the God of the Dead, looked like he was having second thoughts. His eyes briefly glowed brighter before settling back down…

"Well— We'll be fine, we're on his good side, sucks to be you guys!"

Hestia shrugged it off, but was clearly shaken, as were the calmer-natured Goddesses. To the Gods and Goddesses who are typically viewed in a negative light, she said, 'sucks to be you guys'.

Which are Hades, Erebus, Nyx, Ares, Athena, Eris, Hecate, and Atë. Some were wary, while Hecate had a very curious and dangerous glint in her eyes… If she perishes, I will not retaliate… No, I doubt I could— Any of us.

What Jin did there was just a warning… If I am right, what else is in store? Hehe… Azazel-boy, what kind of creature is roaming around factions and pantheons looking for a harem…? It's as you said…

…

'Hey old man Zeus, I heard you got in contact with the Middleman, Jin.'

'Azazel-boy, of course, I sent a messenger not too long ago, I look forward to meeting him. Anyway, want a hand in finding a wife? Even if you're famous for cheating on your lovers! Hyahahaha!'

'Thanks, but no, thanks. Anyway, a warning… Don't get on his wrong side. I can't pinpoint what's wrong with the guy. However, he's a lot more protective of his women as of late due to what happened to one of them a few months ago.'

'Something happened?'

'Yeah, anyway, I know some Greek Gods are super horny and don't generally care about consent… So anyway, protect your pantheon, or else it might be wiped out entirely— Ahhh! I have to run, see you around, old man!'

…

"...…Do not antagonize him or his women, Ares. That holds true for the rest of you."

"Whatever."

Always the rebellious type, why do you not follow after your brother Apollon? I look at my wife Hera but she's as powerless as I am. If we use force, he'll just struggle even harder— He won't change that easily. That boy is stubborn.

"Hermes, Hestia, and Hephaestus, it seems like you are in good relations with Jin. Please look out for him during his stay, however long that may be."

"Roger that, boss!"

"I want to get to know him more! He's pretty interesting."

"…If it's an order, then I have no problems with it."

Thankfully they are complying with my order. Even if I'm the leader, not many follow my orders or commands because of God's egos… I should retire soon…. When one day Apollon matures more…

…

Jin Skyward

I didn't feel anyone following us, so we quickly left the castle-like structure and made it outside again. We stood on the teleportation platform and were teleported back to the building further down.

"…This place looks incredible at night…"

"Mmm…"

Irina says what we were all thinking, since we were above the clouds, we could clearly see this realm's night sky and it was quite a view. But not only that, but the terrain before us looked quite spectacular at night.

We look towards Little Olympia; we were quite far away so we couldn't get a good look but…the lights it was producing were quite bright. The walls also had some… Light magic imbued into them making them slightly brighter.

"I guess the nightlife down there isn't entirely dead… Hermes, and you guys what are you doing here?"

"Wow ~ sensed us that fast, huh? Well, we do live here. I'll be blunt with you, Jin. We were told to be careful around you~ but I don't care about that stuff. I live an easy-going life."

"I concur! I live how I like too, Hermes and I just let them deal with the more complicated stuff… Even Hephaestus doesn't meddle too much with the politics."

The Gods who came with us hurriedly caught up with us. Hermes seemed to try and sneak up behind me, but that failed horribly. At least these three are more outgoing. I couldn't sense a lie in them so that's good.

"Is that so?"

We slowly made our way back down, enjoying the view around us. Hestia was getting along with Valerie and Irina. Hermes and I were just talking about general things— Trying to understand things we like and maybe find common ground.

Griselda has been strangely quiet as she walked beside me, but pretty close. Serafall was hugging me from behind while walking awkwardly. Hermes was quite amused to see that the Satan Leviathan had this side of her.

We walked to the teleporter and before we stepped in, I spoke to Hermes.

"Is there anything that I need to know about the Gods and Goddesses I met up there? About this realm?"

He looks at me amused and thinks for a bit. Everyone else had gone inside but hadn't teleported, they watched us and waited. After around nearly a full minute of pondering Hermes nods.

"Hmm-hmm, well, Ares doesn't give up that easily. Even with that little threat of yours, Zeus gave you permission to kick his ass, right? Just do that, he'll keep coming back but just teach him a lesson in humility and that should get him to calm down and out of his rebellious phase."

"Keep an eye out for those Gods, the 'asshole' Gods you asked about, while some are quite malicious. Some just like annoying you, pranks and such."

Pranks… Ugh, no more. Hermes laughed at me; I clearly had an annoyed expression on me. I shook my head and we joined the girls on the platform.

…

Little Olympia

"And if he doesn't calm down?"

"Let Zeus handle it, he's a good guy and relaxed about it. He will put his foot down if he thinks someone keeps pushing it. He did win against the fight with Typhon all those years ago."

"So, that legend is true?"

Hermes had a proud smile on his face as he nodded.

"Yep! That legendary fight between the Skyfather of Olympus and the King of Monsters Typhon. Yeeaaah, if the human history books knew of the truth and had seen that fight… I'll tell you, no movie can live up to it."

Speaking of Typhon, where is he? From human legends he was buried on Mount Edna, Italy, or thrown into Tartaros… But that's a living being in this world… So he probably has his own little world? Or is literally living beneath or inside Mount Edna?

"Hey, where's Typhon?"

"He and Echidna birthed many well-known monsters such as Orthus, Sphinx, Hydra, Ladon, and Regulus, who has been turned into the Sacred Gear [Regulus Nemea]."

"Anyway, Typhon and Echidna have their own world underneath Mount Edna in Italy, you could say a sanctuary or world for Monsters, survival of the fittest in a way. By the way, Echidna is the opposite of her husband, Typhon."

They reside there? I know that guy wants to fight strong opponents… If he lost to Zeus in the world, then… What the fuck happened to him? Is he humbled? Or just still healing from the fight?

"You seemed confused, don't be. We, the Greek Gods and Typhon as well as his 'faction' are in good terms. We did help make that little world for him; you know?"

Monsters… Are they the same from the Monkai Association? But Typhon shouldn't be part of that… Unless he made some dealings with them and Khaos Brigade… Wait, what if…

[That Black Alice chick, what if she was one of the ones birthed by Echidna? If we compare this Black Alice to the one from MGQ, then…]

{Black Alice is extremely ambitious and desires to rule the world. She claims to have had this desire ever since she was born.}

She was known as a Monster Lord in that world. It makes sense, if she is the same Alice, she sided with Khaos Brigade… Who knows, she may even try to backstab them at some point.

"Hey, Hermes, have you ever heard of a monster called 'Alice' or 'Black Alice'?"

We were walking down the streets of Little Olympia; it was still quite crowded and the lights from before were quite brighter here. When I asked this question, he, Hestia, and Hephaestus froze up. They looked at me like I had three heads.

"That name… Haha, I haven't heard that in a long time."

The girls were confused. Initially, I had not mentioned the name Alice to them, only that there was a leader for the Monkai Association of Khaos Brigade. I guess… She's a huge deal in this world?

"Let's go and have some dinner and chat about that, shall we? Tehami's family owns a restaurant that makes good food."

Since we didn't know about this place yet, we took Hermes' word and from the looks of it, Hestia looked quite excited as she started to tell Valerie and Irina about the place.

…

"Wel— Hermes-sama! M-M-Middleman!!! You came!"

He seemed quite excited and practically screamed that out. The few patrons there in the restaurant looked over at us before turning back to what they were doing.

"Hey, we're here to have dinner."

He nods furiously and gestures for us to follow him. He took us near the back where there was a large table— Larger than the ones at the front… Are these VIP seats or something? Everything in this restaurant was made out of wood.

Well, the furniture was, the walls were made out of stone, the ground was wood, and the roof was as well. It had a very old fantasy restaurant feel. Tehami came back and handed us menus… I had no idea what most of these were so I picked them at random, the same with the girls.

"So, about 'Black Alice'… Any being or God that was around the time she was alive and well known… Heh, you could compare her power to be the same as or slightly below that of the Two Heavenly Dragons."

Ddraig? Albion?

[I mean, we thought she was dead, so had no reason to mention her— I had my suspicions when we found out about the new faction in Khaos Brigade.]

{Mmm, Ddraig and I were discussing when to let you in on about this. While you knew more or less who Black Alice was based on… Well, your memories. You should know what she's capable of.}

"Like Ddraig and Albion?"

Valerie asked and Hermes nodded.

"Of course, she wasn't that powerful initially, but… Around the time of the Great War between those Three Factions— The Devils, Angels, and Fallen Angels… We had to deal with Typhon, then after that, Black Alice."

"Typhon at the time wanted to overthrow Zeus and Olympus, so he came here by himself and fought all of us. There were many casualties back then, and some families lost everything. While I said earlier, we've entered a healthy relationship with him… There are those that remember and those that still hate him."

"We have no idea how Alice, or during the attack— She called herself 'Black Alice'. She somehow went up in strength as I mentioned before, we nearly lost lives that day… But we somehow won against her, it was just, experience vs raw power."

"Our combined might, experience, and strategies won against her even with the large gap in power. As well as Zeus being greatly fatigued."

Hestia jumps into the conversation.

"I was part of the rescue and recovery team; I remember that day clearly. Hephaestus was churning out weapons at fast rates. She didn't like it as she wanted the most effective weapons made for us but had to compromise."

Hestia looks over at Hephaestus who sighs and rubs her forehead.

"As Hestia said, I was the one responsible for creating most of the weapons and armor used that day. I had some apprentices back then but they died during it, from both Typhon and Black Alice."

"The quality was below my standards, but due to the urgency of the time, I had to release them... I feel responsible for those who died. If only what I made was much better."

"No one blames you if anything— It's Black Alice. She came after Typhon, no warning, just appeared after Zeus was finished fighting Typhon who was temporarily sealed and just started attacking."

"She started off in her human form— But quickly transformed into a grotesque tentacle squid-kraken thing… Ugh… Thinking about it makes my body crawl…"

Suddenly, Tehami reappeared with plates of food. He quickly left and brought more. He eventually put it all down… I've got to give this man props. Although there were other waiters and waitresses, he brought it all himself.

We start to eat our food, the table feeling solemn after hearing what happened.

"Jin, why did you bring up Black Alice?"

Hermes stops eating as everyone looks at me… I shook my head and sighed. They won't like this, but seeing and hearing them talk about it, they have to know.

"…Black Alice may have been resurrected."

Drop ~ Drop ~ Drop ~

The three Gods dropped their forks and spoons while staring at me blankly. I glance at the girls as Valerie's eyes widen.

"W-Wait… Is that the Monkai Association…? Don't tell me, she's…"

"Yeah, she's the one leading it, along with other monsters and youkai that joined her. The Three Great Powers knows of this."

I tell them what I found out, mainly the part about the 'Next Dolls' and the 'Seeker of Truth'. All of them gained complicated yet horrified expressions. I continue on and tell them about Azrael's blood and how it increases powers even more.

"—And depending on how much you consume and if you can survive…"

"You may contend with the top strongest in the world… That's troubling…"

Hermes finishes my sentence for me and I silently nod. He leans back on his chair and lets out a frustrated groan. The other two Goddesses also scrunched up their faces.

I'll might mention this to Zeus tomorrow in private. I don't want other Gods hearing it… Who knows, maybe some of the more 'evil' or mischievous Gods and Goddesses teamed up with Khaos Brigade? Or made their own little organization?

Hades was a temporary member of Khaos Brigade. He opted to create his own terrorist group called 'Alliance of Hell'. The members of said group varied but the more notable ones were…

Hades himself, Angra Mainyu a God of Evil Darkness from the Persian Mythology, Tartarus, Erebus, Nyx, Aka Manah, Gressil, Sonneillon, Grim Reapers, Fake Ddraig, Fake Albion, Aži Dahāka 2.

Some members that abandoned them were Balberith, Verrine, and Zeno. But seeing as how much shit has changed and new enemies popping up left and right… I have no idea how the 'New' Alliance of Hell will turn out— Or will it even come to fruition?

Those weren't the only problems since they had allies. Nebiros, one of the six households that served the original Lucifer as well as Meredith Ordinton, a magician that's related to the British Royal family and the possessor of one of the New Longinus [Alphecca Tyrant]…. There's also the 'Hidden Khaos Brigade'.

Other candidates that could have joined were Indra, Hel, and King Enma.

But as I mentioned earlier, Khaos Brigade is still quite alive and kicking… Hell they seem more powerful than their canon counterpart. I can assume that 'Alliance of Hell' may just become a faction in Khaos Brigade instead of being a new group.

"…What are you trying to say…?"

"I may just be pulling things out of my ass, who knows, Hermes. But if you choose to believe me then…"

I just shrugged and continued eating. Hermes had a complicated expression as he ate as well. Hestia lightened the mood by chatting about something else. But it was clear that what I had said made Hermes think about it.

Although he said he wasn't interested in getting involved in the political side of his pantheon, if the lives of the ordinary people are at risk, he may get involved... We eventually finished dinner. I gave Tehami a sizable tip, around fifty thousand euros. The guy and his family nearly had a heart attack since it's not customary to tip in the EU.

I insisted and they relented. We were currently outside preparing to part ways. Hermes was giving me directions to the inn that Zeus set us up with.

"Well then, good night, Jin, ladies. Till tomorrow!"

"Yes, goodnight, Hermes."

Hermes and the two Goddesses waved to us as they walked away. We watched on until they made it inside the Tower of Heaven. I look back at the girls and start walking towards the inn, right now. The streets were still lively but not as lively as earlier.

"Busy tomorrow then… Ah shit, I'll need to text Reni and apologize… We'll be here longer than I anticipated."

…Also, Akeno so she can relay it back to Rias and everyone else. Being away from them this long is quite torturous. But I mean, I have Valerie with me so it's not as bad.

"The balls on you, Jin. You have three females clinging onto you and you're talking about another… As expected of the future Harem God."

…Harem God? I mean sure, though she has a point. To my right was Valerie, left was Griselda, and the one hugging me from behind like a koala is Serafall. Irina was walking beside Griselda as she was full and tired after dinner.

But she was giving questioning glances at her 'Boss' but generally just shrugged it off. I also don't know what her deal is. She's done this since we climbed up the mountain in Greece.

Cúntóir: Answer: Title Acquired.

Don't.

…

"This is it, huh?"

In front of us was the Inn called 'Tired Travelers' with a smaller sign beside it saying: 'This was originally in the Greek language, but people didn't know how to say or pronounce it so we changed it'

Much like the rest of the place, it was white stone and red roof, but this building was much larger— Two stories in fact! I push the door open and go in followed by the girls. Serafall was still clinging onto me. There was a little bell sound when the door opened.

"Hmmm? Oh travelers, welcome!"

A brown-skinned, bald-headed man with silver eyes greeted us. He had a muscular build and seemed friendly.

"Hello…. Uh, here."

I summoned the card that Zeus gave me and handed it over to the man. He took a look at it, nodded, and handed it back to me. He grabbed two keys and gave them to me.

"Two rooms, just in case… Is what Zeus said, haha."

I glanced at Penemue who had a thankful look. I guess that Irina and Griselda were going to join her in the room. I handed the other key to Penemue. It had the number '34' and mine was '36'.

"We have a bath… Well underground, they're separated by sex so don't worry. Red for girls and blue for guys. Just down that way, we have towels in the rooms already. Oh, the name's Terrance by the way."

"I see, thanks for the heads-up, Terrance."

"No problem!"

Terrance points to a door to his right. We thank the guy and proceed to our rooms. Serafall and Valerie were going to join me while Griselda, Irina, and Penemue were in another. Two reincarnated Angels and a Fallen Angel, I wonder how that'll turn out?

We arrive at our room and it was… Well, medium in size and was comfy looking, as previously mentioned everything was made out of wood… I look at the lights and at Valerie. She had a 'I dare you' look on her——— Challenge accepted woman!

—But before I could do it…

Clap! Clap!

Serafall clapped instead, and the lights turned on and off… I fall to my knees in despair.

"Huh? Jin? What's wrong?"

"Leave him be… He's stupid…"

"????"

Serafall sounded concerned, but Valerie brushed me aside… How cruel, isn't— Isn't that my shtick?! I'm the Clapping Dragon Emperor, dammit!

[What kind of title is that?!]

{…The Clapping of Ass Cheeks?}

[…]

{…}

{[Aye!]}

'I tend to forget that Albion just holds himself back from saying stupid things like you, Ddraig.'

Doom!!! Boom!!!

'Hmph, come, Dragons.'

[Oraaaa!!!!]

{Mudaaa!!!}

They started to fight… When I came back to reality, Serafall was sitting on the bed chatting with Valerie.

"Jin, we're planning to take a bath and invite the others. Just sit tight and behave here."

They didn't wait for my answer as they got up and got their towels then left. I heard them speak to the other three and then multiple footsteps leaving… I didn't really have much time to explore, even if it was nighttime, I could still explore.

I leave the room, and go to the front and Terrance was still there.

"Hey, I'm going out, if the girls are looking for me just tell them I'm on a little stroll."

"You got it, boss!"

He gave me a toothy smile and thumbs up, what a cheerful guy. I thank him and leave the place…once out I flash step to the main street and there were still quite a number of people out. It was significantly lower than when we checked in but still more than the human world at this time…

I walk towards the Tower of Heaven, once I reach it, I go left I could see from the distance a water fountain, seeing this street even more empty than the rest I go down it. A few shops were starting to close their doors while some were already closed for the night.

"Hey, wanna go to the Red-light district?"

"Hell yeah man, I need to get laid. It's been like a week."

Red-light district? Heh, leave it to the pantheon with the horniest Gods to let a place like that be established.

"Who are you gonna try to pick?"

"Suzie! I want those tentacles to suck me off!"

"...I don't judge, my man, but holy fuck that's weird—"

Not wanting to hear more of this weird conversation I quickly power walk away, I was quickly approaching the water fountain when—

"Hmm ~ Hmm ~ Hmm ~"

….? Singing? Someone was singing? This feels like déjà vu. Wait, Ingvild… Isn't this how Ise meets her? Though that was back in Kuoh's park fountain. I walk around the fountain to find the source of this voice.

"…"

Truthfully, it wasn't really singing, it was more like very loud humming. In front of me was… A Goddess I met earlier tonight— Astraea. Her eyes were closed, her hand on her chest while humming a tune that I didn't recognize.

I sat near to her while I continued to listen to her hum, but it eventually stops as she lets out a satisfied sigh. She opens her eyes once she was finished, she looks in front of her and then at me.

"…Jin Skyward? Not many come here at this time of night."

She had a gentle look on her, she averts her gaze from me and looks up into the night sky.

"I was out for a stroll, just came by this place by chance. I didn't expect to see you or hear your… Humming."

"It was just an old lullaby of Greek origin. It is meant to put children to sleep, would you like to hear it with words?"

"If you don't mind."

She happily nods and starts to sing. I listened in to the song for a few minutes… It had a weird calming effect since it definitely affected the surrounding area, including the residents sleeping there. She eventually finishes.

"How was it?"

"It was interesting, but I liked the melody… So, why are you out here this late in the night?"

"I always take nightly strolls across Little Olympia. I always end it here, humming a little tune for myself…. It's always been like that, it hasn't changed in many years."

Years? She's been doing this for years? I'm more surprised no one tried to attack you or take advantage of you, lady. She lets out a chuckle, probably from my doubtful expression.

"I may not look like it, but I can hold my own in a fight… I'm still a Goddess after all. Even the ones that don't fight can beat most beings that challenge us."

I mean, that makes sense, you are a Goddess… I take a look at her and… Yeah, just like Goddess Danu, she's Low-Tier God-class. I'll assume most Gods here are around that and Middle to High-class. Hades being the strongest since he's in the top ten strongest…well, not factoring in the girls.

"So you're saying that there have been times in the past that someone tried to, you know."

"Yes. I dealt with them quite easily, I am not a damsel in distress, Jin Skyward."

"Please just call me Jin, having my full name said every time is weird."

I never really expected her to be a damsel in distress, hell most women of this world are anything but that. Once they get stronger, then they're the ones doing the saving… She nods and the conversation dies out. I find myself looking at the sky again, even if this world was made— The sky was almost better than the human world.

"Do you like sky gazing, Jin?"

"…Truthfully, I don't know, I just find myself looking up into the sky when I don't have anything to do— Well when I'm outdoors or near a window or something. During school too, I just stare out the window most of the time."

Astraea giggles...… Now that I think about it, doesn't Astraea and Asteri kinda mean the same thing? Astraea means… I think… 'Starry-maiden' or 'Starry night'? Meanwhile, Asteri means, uh… 'Of the Sky' or 'Of the stars, starry one', basically stars.

[You found another loophole, Partner. First with Shuri through Suzaku and Amaterasu, and now…Asteri through Astraea. How lucky.]

...No comment.

"Is that so…? Well, it's been nice chatting with you, Jin but it's around the time I set for home. Good night and we shall see each other tomorrow."

She quickly got up and started walking away and didn't let me reply. I stare at her as her figure slowly fades into the distance. She is the virgin goddess of justice, innocence, purity, and precision. I wonder what her stance is on romance and love?

Artemis is rather easy to read before she swears to abstain from sex. Additionally, she goes as far as abstaining from relationships... From her appearance. In fact, 'that' Artemis is what she is based upon.

"Time to go back then…"

…

When I was close to the Inn, I could feel Serafall's aura outside, I wonder what she was doing out here? Focusing my eyes… She indeed was outside the Inn; she had her eyes closed leaning against the Inn's walls.

I flash step beside her and tap her shoulder, she opens her eyes and hugs me.

"….Uh, hey there? What are you doing outside? What about the other girls?"

"Mmm ~ they're back in their rooms— You stink go bathe! Actually, wait here!"

Serafall lets go of me, grins, and goes back into the Inn. I didn't question it and waited for her...… And she's back, it didn't take long. Her grin was even wider.

"Terrance said it's fine, there are no other guests staying here after all. Let's go take a bath together! I don't mind going in again!"

"…"

And so, I was dragged down there with Serafall.

…

I was in the bath… It was like an open bath but underground with a fake sky on the ceiling, it was immersive enough, like my own bath in my newly renovated home. I had gone in first since Serafall had to go back to our room to get her towel… I should give her a ring soon, probably during this.

"Sorry for the wait!"

I turn to look at Serafall and… She was butt naked. I had a towel wrapped around me, but she was just in her birthday suit… She shaved down there; it was quite smooth.

"My eyes and boobs are up here, Jin."

I look back up as she was grinning at me, she practically pranced towards me and sat on my lap. She looks at me all cutely, expecting something… We're taking a bath, right?

She started to rub herself against me— Her head on my chest…

"Spoil me ~"

"Don't most people spoil you already?"

"I want you to spoil meee ~"

I sigh and let out a chuckle. I summon a ring and put it in front of her, Serafall stares at it not making a sound but was confused.

"It's for you, like the ones the girls have— Like what Valerie has. Here"

I take her left hand and put it on for her. She still hadn't said a thing but was staring at it quite intently. She finally turns to me with a bright and goofy smile.

"Thank you, Jin! ~~ does that mean I'm official?!~"

"Pfft— Yeah sure it does. This is what I was expecting…"

"Mouuu!! I can be romantic if I want to be!"

She huffed at me and frowned. I guess the face I was giving her was of 'Oh really? Prove it? Kind of look. Well, she is an actress so she can definitely pull it off…

Serafall looks down for a few seconds before looking back up at me…. Very teary-eyed and blushing.

"…Jin… Love me… Pwease…?"

This is cute, I won't deny that, but…. Pwease….?

"Pfft— No, …I'm sorry! That was cute! I swear it was!"

"Ahh— You laughed at me!"

I couldn't help but laugh at the 'pwease' part, it didn't suit her. In turn, Serafall did really turn red and started lightly smacking me on the chest as I continued to laugh at her.

"I want my moment back…. Ugh…"

She seemed genuinely sad about it… So I'll make it up to her. I grab her chin and turn it towards me, I lean in and kiss her.

"Mmmh?!"

She was caught off guard but didn't resist, she started kissing me back almost immediately. Going with the flow, I reach forward and grope her right breast.

"Aahhnn…"

She let out a sweet moan but didn't stop me, so I kept going… While they weren't huge, they were just right for my hand— A perfect fit almost. Pushing a little forward, I invade her mouth with my tongue, again she's a little surprised but goes along with it.

Serafall starts to lick my tongue back and we start making obscene sounds.

"Nnh, chuu… Hafuu… Hehe… Kiss… With… Jin…"

She seemed quite happy with this outcome and forgot about the little teasing I was giving her earlier.

"…!!"

I felt Serafall's hands lightly poking my member through the towel, I had become hard at this.

"Looks like Jin junior wants some atte—"

Booom!!!!!!!!! Rumble! Rumble!

"Wha—?!"

Serafall and I were taken out of our little moment when the area shook and a loud explosion occurred. We quickly jump out of the bath; I poke her forehead informing her of what the functions of the rings are.

I snap my fingers and my clothes and hers appear on our bodies, I touch her and enchant her clothing while touching her, and we teleport outside.

…

"Tch, you're pretty strong for a dumb whore, huh?"

Outside, the Inn was a man floating in the air— It was Ares… This guy doesn't give up, does he? But he looks pretty beaten up, his left arm was bleeding pretty badly and he was clutching it. In front of him— The person he was glaring at was… Valerie.

She looked pissed off, as was I. What the fuck is this guy—

"Jin, let me handle this."

I look at Valerie as she really is pissed off, this was the first time I've seen her have that expression, her eyes were so sharp and had so much intensity. I activated the communication feature on the rings.

[What did he do?]

[Came in the room by breaking the window and was about to touch my chest, but I woke up and hit him quite hard with my powers.]

[Good, Zeus gave me express permission to beat the shit out of him if he messed with any of you. Do it for me, just don't kill him.]

Because I might end up killing him if I fought him right now. I guess my warning meant nothing to him, huh? Castrate him, Valerie. Make it so he can't have children or stick it in anyone— Ever again.

Ares summons a sword into his right hand that was uninjured, he goes into a stance and releases his power, I cover the area with a barrier to prevent the houses and buildings from being blown away and destroyed.

He notices this but shrugs it off, he had to focus on Valerie, otherwise, he was a dead man, by her, me, or Zeus.

"Jin?"

"Valerie can hold her own; you know that… She's a Dragon God-class being and Ares at best is Middle Tier God-class."

She isn't limited in retaliating anymore too, since I put a barrier around them, she can let loose. With that in mind, Valerie launches some fireballs at Ares. The Greek God of War quickly dodges almost having an arrogant look but—

Don!

It was a distraction, for some reason— He was still underestimating her, perhaps he's a bit sexist? Valerie's fist hit him on the face, she followed it up with a barrage of punches.

Don! Don! Don! Don! Don! Don! Crash!

Ares was hit all over his body— He almost seemed like a rag doll in the air, Valerie ended it by kicking him in the stomach. Ares crashes into the barrier I had made, it was a physical barrier so he or Valerie won't accidentally leave it.

Ares coughs up some blood as I felt his anger shoot through the roof.

Doom!!!!

"You fucking slut! I'll beat the shit out of you and then use that C- body of yours!"

Excuse you, asshole. Valerie's body is EX times a thousand. Valerie glances at me and smirks…. Now is not the time for that…

"…"

Valerie doesn't reply but manipulates the blood around his wound by…. Increasing its weight? Ares caught off guard plummets to the bottom of the barrier. She then traps him in her [Crimson Binding], ultimately making him useless.

"What the fuck?"

Ares starts to try to break the blood chains but was unsuccessful, he was clearly using his full power as the barrier was shaking quite furiously and his veins were popping on his head.

"If he keeps that up, he'll shit himself."

"…Really?"

Fwosh ~

"Haaaaa… What is this foolish son of mine doing?"

"Glad you guys could join us."

Behind me were a few Gods, including Zeus, Hera, and Apollon. It didn't take them long to reach us— This ruckus, thankfully the attack earlier by Valerie didn't do too much damage. Terrance was on the ground with a look of despair as his Inn was just blown up— Well part of it.

"What did he do?"

"Oh, tried to molest or violate my lover— Valerie in her sleep. She woke up on time and blasted his sorry ass."

I answered Hera's question as I hear her sigh behind me.

"Brother, stop this foolishness! Stand down and apologize to the both of them… You will have the appropriate punishment after."

I feel Apollon looked at me from behind.

"Hey, I have the appropriate punishment when Valerie finishes this, so don't worry too much about it."

"….Will you kill him?"

Zeus asked hesitantly but I shook my head. Gods like Ares have high egos, like so far up their ass that it shot through their throats and past their mouths. Taking that away— Or sealing it… Would be a more torturous punishment than outright killing him.

"No, something better."

I left it vague so it would keep them worried about him. The [Crimson Bindings] that were wrapped around Ares started to drain… His energy and blood. The guy was on his knees now—a look of disbelief and anger.

"What are those blood of ropes doing?"

"Draining his blood and energy, Valerie knows when to stop. I'll step in and punish him after."

I answered Hera's question… I could feel Ares getting weaker and weaker and finally…. He fell to the ground with a loud thud. Valerie who had been floating landed on the ground and dispelled the [Crimson Binding].

I walk over to Ares, touch his back and… Take away his powers, also sealing the ability to get stronger or get new powers. Like what I did with Raynare's group. I turn back and look at his family.

"It's done, that's my punishment."

"…What did you do?"

Zeus asks while walking over to Ares, he touches him but doesn't feel any changes… Well physical that is.

"I took away his divinity, powers and made him unable to gain new powers— Right now he's as useful as a newborn baby. Once he fixes his attitude problem then I'll give this back."

I want to see his despair when the time comes, his frustrations. He didn't hear me now, but he'll find out from these three or on his own. If he comes back to attack us again, then the Greek Mythology will have one less God in its rankings.

I summon a little red-orange orb on the palm of my hands, and all of them look at it. Yes, this was Ares— the Greek God of War's power. If I gave this to someone— They would gain all of his powers and then some. I put it back into my [Inventory].

I turn to the destroyed Inn and also restore it back, Terrance saw this and jumped up, overjoyed. He ran up and bear hugged me while thanking me over and over again. I just hope this isn't a reoccurring thing…

"I see, thank you for now killing my son, we shall leave then. I still need to serve him a proper punishment…."

Hera and Apollon give me a thankful nod as they disappear in a flash of lightning. I sigh as Terrance had run back into his Inn. We— Valerie and Serafall go back in too. Inside the Inn were a now awake Penemue, Irina, and Griselda.

I tell them of what had transpired and Penemue just shook her head.

"I knew that sleaze ball was eyeing us up. It made my skin crawl back in that room in the castle, but to think he would try to violate us in our sleep…"

In a way, it was lucky for him to go after Valerie. I relied too much on my threat from earlier…

Five Dragon Knights go into each of their shadows, protect them with all your might if anything happens.

Just like that— Five shadows left mine and entered theirs.

"The other Gods and Goddesses were more interested in Jin than us, but we shouldn't let our guard down."

The girls agreed with what Serafall said, better safe than sorry, right? I summon three more rings and present them to Penemue, Irina, and Griselda. The three looked at the rings blankly before Penemue started to hysterically laugh.

"Um… Jin-senpai…?"

I tell them what the rings do, and who I usually give them to. Irina blushed at the gesture.

"Um, so this is just temporary…?"

"No, keep them forever. I won't stop worrying about all three of you if I didn't do this, we don't know what those 'evil' Greek Gods will do. As far as I can tell, Hermes, Hestia, and Hephaestus are trustable— Maybe Astraea, the rest are still unknown until they prove otherwise."

Griselda follows it up with her question, but in truth— While also a bit forceful I want them to have them, also for them to know I'm interested in them. They glance at each other before taking the rings and putting them on.

Heh, I'm still naïve. I guess I'll do this to anyone I bring with me from now on— Well to factions or pantheons that I haven't been to. Unless the girls I'm with already have those… For guys…. Maybe a bracelet? Or just a shadow… I'm not sure, I'll think about it.

The three of them had their clothing from earlier in the day, so I touch them and enchant them too. They looked confused but I explained what I did.

"W-Wait, y-you have all of these protections on your lovers?!"

"More or less, yes."

"….Are you telling us you're interested in us, in this round-about kind of way?"

"I was quite sure I was being straightforward about it? The way I treat my lovers was the same way I treated the three of you, no?"

Penemue started to ask questions and I answered all of them, she seemed a bit stunned by my response— In a rare moment, she blushed. Oh?

"Anyway, let's just go to sleep, we have more things to do tomorrow."

…

Next day

Terrance provided us breakfast, it was apparently part of the experience while staying there, he even said that dinner was part of it but seeing as how we arrived late and had dinner already, he didn't mention it.

"Let's go back to that place, then… You know that? Screw the scenic route…"

I gather the girls around me and teleport to the small platform before we entered the castle. This should be fine—

"Woah! Geez Jin, a little warning next time!"

To my surprise, Hermes, Hestia, and Hephaestus were already there… A little bit in front of them was Demeter and Astraea.

"I skipped the scenic route and opted to teleport here."

"I can see that…anyway, only a few Gods showed up to this meeting, it's not mandatory since it's just you and Zeus talking about 'that'…. It's nothing too serious, don't look at me like that, Jin-Jin, geez. I heard about naughty boy Ares so lighten up, will you?"

"I can't exactly lighten up when he tries to violate one of my lovers, Hermes."

"Point taken, but still… Come on."

Hermes starts to drag me away as everyone else followed after us. The girls were joined by Hestia who dragged Hephaestus with her and asked about what had happened last night. I was with Hermes, Astraea, and Demeter.

"Before you ask, I'll say what I did to Zeus again so I won't be repeating myself."

"Roger that ~"

"It seemed trouble follows you wherever you go, Jin. It also happened after we parted ways, no?"

Hermes and Demeter look at Astraea strangely, she calmly explains what happened between us and they understood. Her nightly walks are well known after all. We quickly reach the door again, but during that short walk… Demeter kept glancing at me and lazily waved her hand at me.

I did the same just out of… Habit, I guess? Such a strange Goddess… She's the Olympian goddess of the harvest and agriculture, presiding over crops, grains, food, and the fertility of the earth.

Although she is mostly known as a grain goddess, she also appeared as a goddess of health, birth, marriage, and had connections to the Underworld— But I'm not too sure about that last one, seeing how she is in the world.

We eventually reach the door and Hermes pushes it open, we all step inside and I could see that… Zeus, Hera, Apollon, Chronos, and Aphrodite were the only ones there. It seems like the 'Evil' Gods opted not to be here…. No, Nyx was to the corner.

I turn around to face her.

"Hehe ~ to think I was found that easily ~ hi, hi, Red Dragon Emperor~"

She giggles to herself and flies back to her seat from yesterday. The Gods with us join them too, I stood at the front while the girls were beside me, the atmosphere was a lot less tense as yesterday.

"Jin, good day to you, I trust you rested well… After last night's events?"

"Yeah, more or less."

Zeus strokes his beard while nodding sagely, Hermes for some reason was holding back his laughter. Does he need to shit or something?

Zeus then proceeds to tell everyone there of what happened last night, a few of them were shocked at what I did.

"Show us proof~"

Nyx believed me but wanted 'proof', so I pulled out the power I took from Ares and presented it to them, I could see a strange glint in her eyes as she grinned. That's enough so I put it back into my [Inventory].

"So, what's this 'thing' that's happening to you?"

"Hahahahaha!!"

He finally lost it and started laughing, Zeus just sighed.

"It's nothing serious, Jin… It's not even a request but, well maybe it is. We are going to hold another 'Tournament of Power' we would like you to be a judge or… An exhibition match participant."

"Something like an extra opponent for the winner of the tournament, of course, you can decline and just be a normal judge. Usually, Ares or Apollon are the ones to be the exhibition match participant but since you're here—"

"You wanted to ask me to do it? Since Ares is out of action right now… Apollon will be taking over, yes?"

"It's happening in a week, Jin! If you chose the scenic route this morning, you would have seen the entirety of Little Olympia preparing, it was in our luck you teleported here."

I see, that's why Hermes was laughing, hell he still was while telling me that…what do I choose? Fight? Or be a judge? Honestly— I don't want to fight, too much effort… Wait, I can just have someone else do it…

"Actually, I'll fight— No a subordinate will fight for me, how's that?"

"A… Subordinate? You have subordinates?"

Zeus asked confused and I nod, however, I wasn't too sure in who to let fight and run loose…. I'll decide when I see the final contestant then.

"I have quite a few, I'll let them come when the winner is announced."

Zeus closes his eyes and seems to be thinking about this, he opens them back up and speaks to Hera and Apollon. They nod at each other before he turns back to me.

"I see no problems with that, Jin. I shall trust your judgment on this, you did spare my foolish son last night…. Hyahahah! Well, that's it! You have a week before the 'Tournament of Power'! You can leave and come back or stay here and explore our realm!"

"There is more than meets the eye, after all! Not only Greek Gods and Goddesses reside here, but also other beings, you saw them in Little Olympia!"

Great, we can go explore for a week before the start of this tournament… I also don't need to help out apart from being a judge and letting the winner fight… Someone, I'll decide before it starts… I have a week. It's a lot more relaxed than I thought.

"Go and explore to your heart's content, Jin!"

"Uh sure, thanks, I appreciate it."

Nyx was still smirking at me, but I can't let my guard down until I leave this place— Hell for the three other girls' sake since they can't compete with a God-class being as of now. Valerie was the only one with me— Not including Ophis or Irene, my shadows, or the guys in my rings.

"So, will you go exploring today, then? I can bring you around if you want, Jin~"

Hermes offered to be our tour guide, if he means just Little Olympia, then I don't mind. I want to explore this realm with just the ones with me, sorry mate.

"Oh, just in Little Olympia! I do have some things to help out with after all."

Ahh— So that's why I mean sure why not?

"Sure thing."

"I'll join! And Hephaestus too!"

"No, I'm bus—"

"No, you're not!"

Hestia not accepting a no from her fellow Goddess stops her from protesting, Hephaestus just sighs and resigned her fate. Zeus nods and dismisses us; everyone starts to leave…

"Red Dragon Emperor-chan ~"

Once out of the room, Nyx calls out to me, she was looking at me with a lot of interest. She walks up to me— As she basically circles around me slowly, she sometimes nods to herself or giggles.

"I see, I see~ the future will be interesting~ bye bye~"

[She's bluffing.]

{Yes, she is.}

"Ahh— You don't need to worry too much, Red Dragon Emperor-chan! Those baddies won't bother you too much, unlike Ares who's— Well, stupid, hot-headed, and arrogant. They took your threat quite seriously~"

"I can't imagine winning against you— At all. Anyway, bye now~"

Nyx disappeared in a ball of darkness. I was left standing there as everyone looked at me, the other Gods should know about her antics— Zeus wasn't even bothered by her insulting Ares. I guess he agreed with it.

"Let's go then!"

Hermes ignoring what just happened shouted cheerfully.

…

We had arrived back at Little Olympia. Zeus, Hera, Apollon, and Chronos left us as soon as we arrived here.… Demeter, Astraea, and Aphrodite decided to follow us as well, why? I don't know, Demeter said she had nothing to do while Aphrodite… Well, she was just arguing with Hestia.

Even now they were butting heads, something about their breasts or something. Astraea didn't give us a reason and just wanted to follow us.

"Hmm-hmm, what does Jin-chan think of it?"

Demeter who had been mostly silent and listening in to her fellow Goddesses arguing directed the question at me. Don't bring me into this…

"Huh?"

"You have a harem, right? What do you prefer? Small breasts? Medium breast? Or large breast?"

She asked me 'innocently' as she smiled at me… She's a lot craftier than I thought, the arguing stopped as everyone had their eyes on me again.

"I can see from Valerie, Irina, and Serafall Leviathan— They have medium-sized breasts. Meanwhile, Penemue and Griselda have large breasts."

Where did she hear their names? I don't think I introduced them to her… Hermes or Hestia, well whatever. I have no preferences, honestly, as long as they're from the women I love I don't mind what their size is.

"I have no preference, I have women in my harem that have small, medium, and large breasts. They all suit them and I love them."

[That's right, he also loves butts and thighs. Heh.]

"..."

Ddraig's mark suddenly appeared— Ratted me out and dipped…. Cúntóir.

Cúntóir: Answer: Roger.

[Ahhhhhhhhhh— Get away from me, you psycho!]

'…'

{I'm glad that I don't do that kind of thing.}

'Like how I beat you up earlier?'

{Shut it, Rudra.}

"That's true, Jin tends to use our thighs as pillows… He almost asks for them on a regular basis if he's not currently doing anything important."

"Hmm ~ Thigh Dragon Emperor? ~"

[Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!]

You reap what you sow, you idiot dragon… You literally outed me, that also means— You!

[Turn back time! I need to stop myself!]

No.

"Breast Dragon Emperor and Butt Dragon Emperor… You're quite a unique Red Dragon Emperor, huh?"

Demeter seemed strangely interested in this topic… Irina was looking at her chest in… Relief? She saw me looking and awkwardly laughed to herself.

"We're here! First stop, the Museum of Little Olympia!"

Hermes suddenly stopped and told us where we were, in front of me was a large building, this time it was all white, made of stone— Including the roof since it was round in shape.

The inside was also white, but quite spacious, each item was in its little stand with a little barrier in front of it preventing anyone from just reaching over and taking them. There were only a few staff strewn about.

"This houses many replicas of items and also information about events that happened throughout history! I was asked to help move some boxes here, so take your time to explore the place!"

With that Hermes saluted to me and hurried inside, I followed him with everyone else. Since our main guide had left us… Hestia, Demeter, and Aphrodite. Astraea stayed back and watched us— She didn't speak that much; I wonder what her deal is? Is she observing us? …Me?

The inside was also white, but quite spacious, each item was in its little stand with a little barrier in front of it preventing anyone from just reaching over and taking them. There were only a few staff strewn about.

We arrived at the first exhibit… Zeus's thunderbolt? I mean it looked like the one in the castle, except smaller in size. It was a statue of Zeus holding a thunderbolt… That's it.

Beside it was Poseidon and he was holding his Trident, it was the same size as Zeus's statue. We moved on to a different site and it was a shield.

"Is this the Aegis?"

"Correct! Hephaestus was responsible for creating this! Well, it's a replica, but the real one is quite legendary!"

…Isn't there a Sacred Gear for this? I'm pretty sure it's called [Aegis Mineralization] it's wielded by Perseus as he carries the spirit of the Hero of Greece Perseus. He was persuaded by Cao Cao to join the Hero faction— But they had different views so he retired.

The Sacred Gear fires beams of light that turns people into stone… Like what Medusa could do. I wonder which one is stronger? The Sacred Gear or the real thing…?

"Jin? Are you interested in it?"

Hestia asked me but I shook my head.

"No, just had a fleeting thought. Let's move on."

They were obviously curious but didn't ask any further, we moved on to another replica. This time it was a bow. It didn't have a name but, was said to be wielded by Apollon himself— He never officially gave a name to it, but it was gold in color.

"Many of the things you'll see here are made by Hephaestus, so if you have any questions, ask her!"

"What did you use to make it?"

I asked Hephaestus. She glances at me and then turns to the bow.

"Amber with other materials found in our realm imbued with both mine and Apollon's divine energy. It took me quite a long time to create it. He uses his divine energy to construct arrows, as well as add other elements to them… Making them quite powerful."

Interesting… The next was…

"My staff!"

From somewhere… Hermes joined us, it looks like the next thing we were seeing was his staff.

"It's called the Caduceus! Doesn't it look pretty?"

The staff of Hermes, or the Caduceus is a short but magical staff that's shaped as two interwoven serpents with two small wings at the top. He seemed quite proud of it— Since he's looking at it affectionately even though it's a replica.

For the next few minutes Hestia guided us around, after we saw Hermes staff, he quickly left again. The girls were the ones who asked the most questions, and the Goddesses around us answered them. Astraea was still silently following us.

"So, why the silence?"

I decided to hang back and join her— Demeter also joined us. She looks at me with her usual calm expression and smiles.

"I wished to accompany you, is that not enough of a reason?"

"Surely you have another reason. After Ares's foolish stunt—"

Boing~

"Jin-chan! Believe her ~ Astraea-chan says the truth around ninety-seven percent of the time, you know."

Demeter hugs my arm and puts it in between her large chest as she stares at me with a serious expression. I'll be the judge of that.

"I can tell a lie from a truth, go ahead, try me."

The two seemed amused so they decided to play along. I summon a small light bulb; I explain to them that it will turn green if they're telling the truth and red if they lied.

"I am a man!"

Demeter says, and the light bulb turns red… Please that's way too obvious unless she just wanted to test it…. Seeing that it worked, she tried again with another obvious lie, 'I have a twelve-inch penis!' that caused a few heads to turn toward her, making the Goddess chuckle nervously.

Obviously, the bulb turned red on that one. Seeing as this thing did in fact work, Astraea spoke up.

"I simply wanted to follow Jin today."

....It turned green, huh… Interesting. Was she curious about me after last night's talk? Demeter then started saying weirder and weirder things making the bulb turn from green to red, at an almost freakishly consistent rate.

…

In the end, we saw a lot of replicas of weapons used by the Gods and Goddesses here. We also learned a few more things about them since there was a little bit of information on the plaque cards.

Hermes also joined us once we left, he was quite a fast worker it seemed. The man led us to a different part of Little Olympia that had a lot of things that seemed to be related to different Greek gods. Did they design it like that? I mean, maybe, right?

"Poseidon wasn't at the meeting today because he's here, actually. This is a small aquarium. While he usually hates these things, many of the aquatic life in there voluntarily chose to live in the tanks."

"Apparently, they didn't like the 'surviving' aspect of the wild and opted to be fed by the staff instead, Poseidon was a bit amused by it so… He sometimes visits here. He's normally just in the oceans of the human realm, you know?"

We go into the place… Well, down. The Aquarium had a hollow 'building' on the surface with a small reception with no staff. There was a large staircase that led down into the ground. That's where the real aquarium is apparently.

"Oh? Hermes my boy— Ah, Jin! Welcome to All Blue, that's this Aquarium's name! I named it myself, since all the oceans of the world are… Well, blue…! …Mostly."

All Blue? Like the one from One Piece? I can understand where he's coming from. A lot of the natural water of the human world is starting to be polluted and it's quite disheartening to see that humans still take it for granted.

"A nice name, Poseidon."

"Come! Come! I'll be your tour guide! Hohohoho!"

He offered and we accepted. When I asked if he was busy or what, he replied that his wife Amphitrite was looking after the ocean in his absence, so he had time. Amphitrite was a sea goddess and wife of Poseidon and the queen of the sea…

"Hey—"

"I only have one wife, like Zeus. Do not believe the nonsense that the human books and legends spout, while some of them are true in a sense… They're far from fact."

Well, that answers my question then. I nod at him as he grins. He takes us around the underground aquarium, most of the aquatic life here were small— Nothing large or big… I mean that makes sense, the smaller ones wanted an out, right?

'Hey look, it's boss! He's bringing around a bunch of… Humans or whatever they are in our home again.'

'Hey, boss!!!'

"You seem popular."

The fish that we passed by started to speak, most of the time they were silent or minding their own business. Poseidon looks at me in surprise but a wide smile stretches across his face.

"You can understand the fish? Does this extend to all sea life?"

"I can understand all animal— No, any type of creature's language? Probably supernatural too, but I hadn't many chances to test that out since they're mostly quiet."

Smack! Smack!

Happy with my answer, Poseidon smacks me on the back, the fish also heard and had surprised looks— Well as surprised as you can make those faces as fish…

"I heard from Akeno that you scared a poor dog when it kept being… Mean to you?"

Valerie tilts her head and looks at me… I chuckle and nod.

"Well by 'mean' you mean, asshole? Then sure, I mostly endured that crap for a few months."

"Another interesting ability from the Middleman, hmm-hmm."

Like Poseidon Hermes grabbed my shoulder and forced me to keep both of them company, they just talked and talked about this place, how it was built, who built it, and why. I basically got a history lesson.

Now that I look at it, it was mostly black, blue— Not just the lighting but the walls and floor… He really tried to make it 'ocean' like, huh? Even the lights were glowing sea rock… I wonder if Poseidon has his own little home down there, perhaps Atlantis?

No, isn't he just regarded as a God? But what if he remains there?

"Hey, Poseidon, what's your connection or relation to Atlantis?"

"Hohoho! I am worshiped by Atlanteans my boy! If this place has most statues of Zeus, then I have most of my statues in Atlantis. My home is located in the Aegean Sea, near the island of Euboea. It is masked in magic, so no human eyes can see it."

"Feel free to visit me in the future, if I'm there in the future, if not my wife Amphitrite will be there."

I see, I wonder who rules Atlantis then… I'll learn more about it in the future, let's just focus on this for now…

…

We spent around an hour in 'All Blue' with Poseidon doing most of the tour, he shared a few personal stories with me, how he and Amphitrite met and fell in love… Just a typical Greek God love story. But what surprised me is… They have one child— A daughter, that he didn't say the name. She's apparently not in any of the Greek Mythos… So I'm even more curious about that.

After that, we bid farewell to Poseidon as he had to go back. The rest of the day was Hermes dragging us around the entirety of Little Olympia while he helped around, we just explored the general area he took us to while also eating food. I had to pay; I didn't have any problems with it.

Throughout that time, Hestia became good friends with everyone— But I did get a few glances from everyone when they got together and started talking. I didn't bother finding out at first but I got curious so I started reading their lips.

Apparently, Penemue said that I may be after them as well— You know, add them to my harem or something since I did admit to her last night that I was interested in her. Now she didn't do it out of malicious intent but, I guess teasing?

I mean she stuck her tongue out at me when I asked her about it. But the Goddesses weren't really too bothered by it, they took it in stride actually which was… Comforting? I guess.

Hermes said he wanted to take us to a special place at night—I more or less knew since I heard some youths talking about it the night before…

It was dusk and the sun was setting, Hermes had gone somewhere to help out again, we were just sitting around relaxing.

"Hey, Jin-senpai."

Irina was beside me as I had sat away from the group since the 'girls' talk was becoming more and more prevalent, I almost felt like an outcast.

"Hmmm?"

"Is it true that Xenovia is part of your harem?"

"No, well, unofficially. I haven't had time to get too close to her but… We get along well enough. Why do you ask?"

I had bought everyone drinks and we were all sipping away at… This guava smoothie. I don't understand why Irina is asking this.... Okay, maybe they did talk about love and relationships… Mostly about me throughout the day.

They didn't ask me; I mean I'm here they could have just done that. I can answer any questions… I don't get women sometimes…

'A maidens h—'

Shut— Anyway, per Irina's request, I had changed her outfit during that day— She said she was thinking of transferring into Kuoh Academy starting the second semester so she's wearing the school's uniform right now.

"Jin?"

"Sorry, you do look cute in the school uniform. Heh, you'll be in Xenovia and Asia's class then, if you do transfer in… I'll dub you three the 'Church-trio' it'll fit you…. Anyway, what's up with Griselda? She's been weird since the walk up the mountain."

Irina shook her head and took a sip out of her drink, seems like she was clueless. I don't want to read her mind— But I did read her emotions, she's just… Confused I guess? Even with the new changes, her mind is still getting used to it.

——Angels can now reproduce or procreate without the fear of falling. That was almost impossible to imagine before, but now that I changed it, it's possible. So falling in love with someone, while it was possible— It's even more freeing now.

In the past, it had to be out of pure love and nothing else— Or risk the chance of turning into a Fallen Angel.

"Maybe Sister Griselda likes you? Even with the limited interaction? Hehe… Hiii?!"

Irina put out an outrageous theory, she tried to laugh it off, but a sudden ominous aura was directed at her as she shrieked and hid behind me. We look over and could see Griselda 'smiling' at us— No, Irina.

"I'm sorry!!!"

I was really surprised at how well Griselda got along with Serafall and Penemue, and in a short amount of time as well. While Griselda wasn't against the alliance and befriending Serafall and Penemue, I have no idea what her origins are. I also have no idea what caused her to join the supernatural part of the church.

I have no idea about the past of Serafall or Penemue… They're a mystery, I want to find out. I can probably ask Serafall since she's my lover now. Her 'smiling' stopped and she started to talk to the women around her again.

"Huhuhu! Sorry for the wait, Jin, ladies! Time to go to the last stop of the day! Follow me!"

Hermes appeared out of nowhere and started to walk away from us - we followed after him - and yeah, from the look of the Goddesses it was clear where he was taking us. Serafall, Penemue, and Griselda caught on quickly, the only one clueless was Irina.

As we walked, the lights above us were the color of red, orange, and yellow. Many of the buildings there had very explicit names and signs. Such as 'Come have a good time' or 'Blow from me to you' that one made me chuckle.

I look beside me and… Yeah, Irina caught on— Hell, she's completely red now! She was staring at the ground but turned to look at me. She cutely gripped my arm and said nothing else. The sun had fully set, so the entire district was lit up by lights.

"Jin and ladies! Welcome to the Red-light district of Little Olympia!"

Hermes winked at me and I blankly stared back at him. The women with us, not including Irina, were not amused by this. It is rare to see Astraea look so angry. Her face looked calm and pleasant, but she radiated hostility towards Hermes.

As he feels all the anger from the women, he looks to me for help. I just shrugged. Not my problem, dude. You brought this upon yourself… You deal with it.

"With that, I am gone! Good luck and have fun, Jin!"

Hermes ran out of there, he was pretty fast...but I could follow him...it almost seemed like it was slow motion. However, when he passed me he saw me looking at him and he gave me a surprised look.

Zoom ~ Fwsshhh ~

He left a small trail of dust as he ran away, I guess you'll need to be quite fast on your feet as the messenger of the Greek Gods, huh?

The ladies turn to me and I shrug then I point behind me, they seemed to understand what I was getting at and started to walk back. I also turn back to start walking when—

"Hey cutie, want to have a good time?"

"No, pick me! I'm much younger than her!"

"You look like a lolic—"

I walk past them— Especially that last one, I do not look like a lolicon dammit…!

[Ophis, Asia, Shirone, Hestia, Iryuka, and Ravel. Don't they count as …Lolis?]

{Ddraig, they're just young— Well maybe not Ophis since she can change her appearance. I'm sure Ravel and Iryuka will mature more as they grow older— Hell Shirone has had a growth spurt thanks to the [Pocket Dimension] training.}

[Okay, then Hestia!]

Stop, stop. Let it pass, I'm not a damn lolicon.

[Suuuure thing, Partner.]

.....

"Let's go this is getting annoying…"

The women in this district kept bugging me, as did the males who kept on attempting to hit on the girls… Well, tried. However, the girls were already giving off a very hostile aura around them. So only the ballsy ones tried to grab at them and it didn't end well for them.

I had grabbed Irina's hand and pulled her with me… Oh god, why are they topless and… Uh, underwear less— For the guys anyway… Ugh, I don't want to see any of this.

…

We made it out of there— It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows though, there were clear signs of abuse from certain owners of those brothels to their staff… I don't think I can get too involved; I mean I'm still nameless here.

'Middleman' as I mentioned before I'm a glorified mercenary-so while some may know me and perhaps respect me? Most don't care. They have their own lives to deal with and worry about. If I just walk in, what can I do? Do you want to provide temporary relief, or do you want to make things worse?

They do need that job for their livelihood. They must already have tried to find a normal job, right?

"Hey, let's get dinner together!"

The girls agreed and I went along with it...there were apparently a few more shops below the Tower of Heaven. These were mostly reserved for Gods, Goddesses, and anyone they bring there. Hestia looked like she could be homeless with what she wears…

"I'll pay."

"Many thanks, Jin!"

…

Safe to say, this place was fancy— Like fancy, fancy. The tables were made out of some hard-to-get wood here which was the color of silver. The same with the chairs, the plates and utensils were made out of gold, and the wine glasses were diamond!

The waiters and waitresses were also wearing pretty fancy attire too. I honestly felt so out of place here. Before they walked in, we made a small detour to get changed. Everyone was wearing fancy dresses.

Still wearing my black suit and gold tie, I was already ready to enter. Valerie was wearing a red and gold one-piece dress. She also had her make-up done… The same as everyone else.

Serafall had a peacock green dress, her hair was tied into a bun, Penemue had a lilac-colored dress, and Irina had a white colored dress and had her angel wings out for some reason… What I was surprised about was Griselda.

I've always seen her as a 'nun' or 'sister' so her being out of that was a bit weird… I did bathe with her once but I was a bit distracted at the time so I didn't remember what she looked like without her hood.

Griselda had olive green hair, she had blue eyes… So her dress was a mix of the two, which strangely suited her— But she was a blushing mess already. I don't think she's worn… Well this less clothing since she became part of the church.

Astraea, Aphrodite, and Demeter didn't need to change since they were already wearing proper attire, only Hestia and Hephaestus… She protested hard but relented in the end. Hestia was wearing a light blue dress and Hephaestus a red one— But she was still frowning.

"Alright! Time to eat!"

Hestia was quite pumped— The rest of the girls were hungry.

…

"Huuuu… I'm stuffed, thank you for paying, Jin. That didn't make you go broke, right?"

"No, I'm fine. I'm quite well off…"

Dinner was normal— Well as normal as you can get with that place. Everything was high quality and expensive, even the god damn water was two hundred euros! What the fuck? It better be made from a Goddess's piss!

[Par—]

I don't mean from an actual Goddess's piss! Ddraig, what the fuck?

[…]

{He may be into that—}

Doom!!!

[Fuck you!]

{Fuck you too!!!}

...….I don't judge, Ddraig.

[Partner?! I'm not into that— Ow!]

{Eyes on the fight, idiot!}

Astraea and Demeter departed for their home after dinner. Hestia and Hephaestus came with us to our Inn. Well Hestia wanted to so she dragged Hephaestus along with her as she wanted to see where our Inn was. I swear these two are like best friends…

Valerie, Serafall, Irina, and Griselda had taken Hephaestus with them and were speaking with her ahead of Hestia and I. She did speak with them throughout the day but not this closely or intimately… She had some sort of… I guess aura or barrier?

I don't know how to describe it, but— Almost like—

"Are you curious? I can tell from your expression that you're curious and confused."

I look at Hestia as she was grinning at me, I was 6'3 and she was 4'7… This may look really weird to anyone looking at us right now.

"Yeah, why does she have 'that' feeling, and why does she wear that eye patch? Are the legends of her true?"

Hestia shakes her head, causing her chest to shake as well...

"Hey, eyes up here!"

"Sorry, continue."

"None of the human tales about her are true, I mean— He is a she, no? Anyway it's just a deformity. When she first showed it to us most Gods and Goddesses were repulsed by it. So, she hides it with her eye patch."

"But the ones who did nothing are also at fault. They confided in me that they didn't really think much of it at the time, but later said they regretted not saying anything. They've tried to address the topic with her but she shuts it down quickly."

"That's why she's just as big of a virgin as me ~ huhuhu ~"

I don't know why you're proud of that… Hestia, I mean nothing's wrong with being one but— You wear it like a proud badge… I guess you are sometimes referred to as the Goddess of domestic and civic hearth, sacred and sacrificial fire, virginity, and family.

"Do you want to see it? I can see you're curious about it! I'm her friend, maybe I can convince her? But if you run away or be disgusted, I'll hate your guts and so will Hephaestus!"

"…I mean, I'm curious, but I won't try to force it out of her— You don't need to, Hestia."

"I—"

"We're here!"

Irina interrupted us once again as we arrived back at the inn. They looked at Hestia and I, waiting for something.

"You guys go ahead; I need Jin and Hephaestus for a second. But geez, this is the place Zeus set you guys up in? I mean it's fine but it's at the lower end of accommodations."

"It's fine, Hestia-sama! It's quite a comfy Inn, even an underground open bath! They also serve breakfast and dinner, so it's quite a sweet deal!"

Irina answered her enthusiastically— She liked this place that much, huh? I'm glad then, Terrance is a pretty chill guy after all. The girls were a bit confused but complied, so they walked into the Inn first.

Hephaestus looked at Hestia with a questioning gaze, but she waved her off.

…

Hephaestus

"You guys go ahead; I need Jin and Hephaestus for a second. But geez, this is the place Zeus set you guys up in? I mean it's fine but it's at the lower end of accommodations."

Hmm? Why does she want Jin and I to remain with her? I wasn't too sure why but… I had a weird feeling about it.

The reincarnated Angel, Irina was quite friendly, easygoing, and chatty. I had a hard time dealing with her early on but… She's quite simple-minded, I like her. The rest were also fine women, Jin at least knows how to pick friends and allies.

Never in my life would I have thought I would get along with Angels, Fallen Angels, and Devils. Yet here I am… I waved goodbye to them as I stared back at Hestia, waiting for her to continue.

The Red D— Jin looked a bit uncomfortable…. Haaa, it's Hestia again, once she sets her mind on something, she can be quite stubborn and won't let it go. He is a victim, as am I. I glared at my self-proclaimed 'best friend'.

"D-Don't look at me like that, Hep, c'mon we're besties!"

"So? What did you want me for?"

I stare blankly at her as she nods. She looks at me, then back to Jin…. It has something to do with him?

"Can you take your eye-pa—"

"No."

Oh, it's about that. Hestia… You already know my stance about that. I will not make any exceptions, even if it's you. I remember those looks from them, it's something that won't leave me.

You know how it makes me feel. How it makes others feel. To take this off and show anyone is just asking for trouble.

"Please! This is the Mad Dog God Dragon Red Thigh Boob Butt Emperor! He threatened us last night! Beat up Ares— Well, Valerie did, but still! He's fearless!"

"What the hell kind of title is that?!"

Jin was looking at Hestia like she was some otherworldly being with eight breasts with twelve nipples.... Huh? Where did that come from? ….Has she been influencing my vocabulary? I need to stop…

"...…"

I wasn't sure, so I'll stay silent for now. If she really wants to, she can—

"I got rid of the rare Devil sleeping disease of two Devils, I revived the [Welsh Dragon] Ddraig. I can probably heal or fix whatever you have under there."

"Oh! So it was true, huh?! You revived the [Welsh Dragon]?! Can we see him?!"

"Sorry, he's a bit busy right now… Maybe tomorrow."

I was left speechless, so those rumors were true! But… Fix… My eye? Can such a thing be possible…. Do I even want it to be fixed or healed? I've lived with it for so long that I—

"Do you really need to think about it, Hephaestus?! Isn't this… This a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?!"

"...I don't do transactions for free, you must want something in return, right?"

He gave me a strange look and so did Hestia… D-Did I say something weird?

"Hep, I did just say he wants to see your eye, I guess that's what he wants? If he sees it then he'll fix it. You both win in the end."

"...…..."

I-I guess she did, but that doesn't benefit him at all, why?

"Why?"

"Why, huh? It doesn't benefit me in any way shape or form is what you're thinking, huh? You're right, it doesn't. But I do things not just because I want something from it or try gaining something from it."

He pauses before continuing.

"One of my friends from Grigori— His current fiancé was in bad shape, we started out as strangers— To business partners and now we're friends. I help heal her because I wanted to, not because I was expecting something out of it."

"Friendships start somewhere, Hephaestus. However, conventional or unconventional they may be, I have suspected it since I met you— You keep people at a certain distance— At bay. You don't want them straying past a certain 'point'."

"…."

I…

"Now, we've known each other for barely any time, but— Thanks to this loli Goddess with giant boobs— I feel like I've known you guys for a long time. She's just that easy to get along with."

"Ahem!"

Hestia puffs out her chest proudly— Yes, that is something to be proud of… It's impossible for me, but it's as easy as breathing for you… You did the same thing with me back then— Back all those years ago.

"So, why not start here, Hep! Jin doesn't seem like a bad guy, well, he's a pervert, but not a bad person!"

"Oi."

Flick ~

"Ow! Hey you can't just flick a Goddess— Ow!"

Jin flicked Hestia on her forehead and she stumbles back a bit. She angrily looks at the young man with teary eyes. She tried to protest but was flicked again, I couldn't help but let out a chuckle at their interaction.

"…Alright, I'll show you, Jin. You better keep your promise then."

"I win!"

"…Shut up Loli Goddess with Boobs."

I slowly take off my eye patch, this has always been on when I go out in public— When I'm with other people… For the first time in a long time… I—

"Heee… It's been a long time since I saw this. It hasn't changed, huh?"

"…"

He was staring at it, but with…no reaction whatsoever, he— Seemed… Fascinated by it? It's just a weird defect… It's nothing special.

"So, can you do something about it?"

"…Let me analyze it, I need to… Touch it, can I?"

They both look at me, asking for permission… I sigh and agreed to his request. I felt strangely nervous, he approached me and put his palm over it. He then closed his eyes. But he quickly steps back— Did… Did he fail?

I look at him and he had an amused look.

"Well?"

"Easy enough, I can fix it now…alright, hold up."

He opens his palm and…summons a hand mirror? He hands it to me.

"Look at yourself— Look at this for one last time, remember it well because, after that, that defect will be gone forever."

I was a bit surprised, I look at Hestia and she did the same thing, we stare at each other for a few seconds before I nod… I bring the mirror up to my face…. I cringe as I see it. I put it down and closed my eyes.

"I'm ready."

"Sure thing."

He answered back nonchalantly, I felt him put his hand over my right eye and—

"Done."

…Eh?

"Eh?"

D-Done? What do you mean done? That was too quick! Did he dupe us? I open my eyes to glare at the man but when I did— Hestia gasped, w-what? Why did she gasp? I look at her but she didn't answer me but kept on pointing at me— My eye.

I brought the mirror back up and…

"…."

I was left speechless again, it… The defect… It was gone… How? I've resigned myself to a life of solitude and loneliness, I always thought it would be with me until I die— One way or another.

"You guys are making a bigger deal out of this more than anything. It's done, I should get going since the girls are waiting."

He just brushes it aside like it was nothing! What do you mean, Jin Skyward?! This has plagued me my entire life, and now you! –You, just waltz in and fix it in less than a second?!

I look back at him and he was grinning. Hestia and I were both confused by his reaction.

"Maybe nothing in this world happens by accident. Maybe everything happens for a reason— That's what I think anyway."

After he said that, he——Jin looked… Amused? No, he had a look of… 'Did I really just say that?' I don't think he truly believed what he said himself. He looks rather doubtful of himself.

"Our destiny slowly takes form. Hehe, hey, Hep!"

Hestia continues as she looks back at me with a wide and bright smile.

"I guess, both of us living this long was worth it, huh?"

I'm starting to think about all those years of…

"Like I said you're making this into a bigger deal than necessary. Anyway, I got to see what I wanted and that defect of yours is gone— We both win. Anyway, goodnight you two."

Hestia and I look back at Jin and he was—— Grinning at us…

Thump ~ Thump ~

"…..."

…

Jin Skyward

I waved to the two as I entered the Inn. They were just staring at me… What the hell's wrong with them? Whatever… I have a long week ahead of me, nothing major is happening… It's just a very long wait for the 'Tournament of Power'.

I'll just use this time to explore more, since we had Hermes give us a tour of Little Olympia, if I come across him tomorrow before we set off, I'll ask more about this world. Like what things to expect?

By the time I get to my room, both Serafall and Valerie are lying on the bed, seemingly exhausted. I quickly join them as they cuddle closer to me.

"Tomorrow, we will begin exploring this world… You guys better be ready."

"Levi-tan is always ready, Jin-tan ~"

"I already said I was sticking with you for the entire summer… Jin."

That's reassuring then…

…

=========================

Check the chapter comments to see images of certain characters.

Chương 47: Chapter 8 - Part 2 - Greek Gods, Ares and Hephaestus

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Chương 47: Chapter 8 - Part 2 - Greek Gods, Ares and Hephaestus

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