章節 33: [33] Disease Recurrence
Aiden continued with his line of questioning, hoping to divert Hestia's attention.
"What do you want for dinner tonight? Do you want to eat out, or should we cook at home?"
Hestia, having given up on extracting any meaningful answers from Aiden, crossed her arms, which only emphasized her already impressive front. Puffing out her cheeks in displeasure, she retorted, "Don't change the subject!"
Turning his head, Aiden quickly looked away from the impressive sight before him, pretending to admire the view outside. He tried to mask his embarrassment with a barrage of questions.
"So, do you want to eat out or cook at home? If we go out, which restaurant should we go to? What should we eat? If we stay home, what should we cook?"
This rapid-fire questioning threw Hestia into a contemplative state.
"Should we go out for a feast or cook at home? We did buy a lot of ingredients yesterday. But if we go out, where should we go? And if we cook at home, what should we make with all those ingredients?"
"Why am I so conflicted? For the first time, I have my own family; for the first time, I'm no longer a poor goddess but someone who can afford things. These two joyous events are intertwined. And these joys should bring me even more happiness. I should be enjoying this dreamlike bliss. But why am I so conflicted?"
"A few days ago, I didn't have to worry about this problem at all... because we had no money, there was no choice to make. Is this what they call the troubles of the wealthy? Ah, I think I like this kind of trouble!"
"So, what should we eat?"
Watching Hestia delve deeper into her thoughts, and then seeing her face contort with indecision, Aiden couldn't help but reflect, indeed, this is one of life's ultimate dilemmas... deciding what to eat when there are so many options.
Then, Hestia burst into a silly laugh.
Aiden sighed, holding his forehead, because he was still grappling with this ultimate life dilemma himself.
"Hestia, take your time deciding. I'm going back to my room for a bit." Aiden closed the window and left Hestia's room.
Once back in his room, Aiden quickly donned the Sparda family's heirloom black coat. He threw a punch, and although there was no visible gust of wind or force, he could still feel a slight increase in his strength. This sense of progress was truly addictive.
Aiden couldn't help but reflect, "This is the charm of role-playing games, providing players with strong positive feedback. Every time your equipment levels up or your character's abilities improve, you can immediately feel it. The constant positive reinforcement, with basic ability values that grow with every battle. Tomorrow, I'll bring lunch and come back later. I refuse to believe that my progress will still be this small."
"The disciple of the Bathroom Goddess leaves her divine realm." After resolving his physiological needs, Aiden joked to himself as he returned to his bedroom. Walking up to the full-length mirror beside his wardrobe, he gazed at his reflection... his silver-haired figure in the coat, handsome yet unfamiliar.
Suddenly, Aiden recalled Vergil's hair gel technique. Seizing the moment, with his hands still wet from washing, he swept his long bangs upward with his right hand, maintaining the pose.
Examining his reflection in the mirror, Aiden realized that lifting the bangs exposed his entire forehead. While his attractiveness remained the same, his face appeared less gentle without the cover of his bangs. Aiden let his bangs fall back down. "Indeed, it's not just my imagination. Bangs do weaken one's aura."
Lifting his bangs again, Aiden, unable to master Vergil's hair gel technique, could only hold them in place with his hand. After scrutinizing himself for a while, he let them fall.
Aiden concluded, "With the bangs down, it partially obstructs the view and softens the gaze, making it less aggressive. It also makes the face appear smaller, more delicate, and younger, with a friendlier demeanor."
"Without the bangs, the features become more defined, and the aura becomes stronger, exuding more dignity."
"Indeed, different hairstyles and bangs serve different character designs. No wonder that in certain movie about hunting, the main character kept his long bangs during his college days, probably to highlight his youthfulness and make him look more like a student. After entering the headhunting business, styling his hair back emphasizes his authority and sharpness as a professional in the workplace."
Maintaining the styled-back look, Aiden found himself resembling Vergil more and more. "I think I've figured out why Vergil is so fixated on his hair gel technique. Besides its necessity in the game, distinguishing the two brothers in the most conspicuous way, the most crucial reason is that the styled-back look makes him appear more dominant, with a stricter sense of authority and power. Are even these minor details part of your calculations, Vergil? Truly worthy of a man who spent his life pursuing 'the roof tiles.'"
"On the importance of bangs, haha." Aiden finally stopped fussing with his bangs. Looking at his reflection clad in the black coat, he was suddenly reminded of Jotaro Kujo from JoJo series, still wearing his high school uniform at 17, albeit not much different from his black coat.
On a whim, Aiden changed his posture from standing upright to a sideways stance, slightly lifting his chin. His left hand was casually tucked in his pocket, while his right hand formed a fist with his index finger extended, pointing forward.
Observing his JOJO-inspired pose in the mirror, Aiden smirked, thinking, if he was going to play along with the gag, he might as well go all out. So, he lowered his voice and adopted a tone that attempted to suppress his anger but still oozed with pretentiousness. "There's only one reason you failed, DIO, just one simple reason: you angered me."
"Yare yare daze."
"Star Platinum!"
"Zawarudo... stop time!"
"..."
.
.
.
"So, Hestia, have you decided?" After indulging in the joke for a moment, Aiden picked up Durandal, stylishly swung his coat, and opened the door.
"Hestia, have you figured out what you want for dinner?" Aiden asked, opening Hestia's door.
Hestia was still sitting there, giggling and conflicted.
"Why, still undecided?"
"Well then, let's make a cheerful decision. How about we go out to eat and leave the choice to the Hostess of Fertility? Don't they have a daily special menu?" Aiden, who also suffered from decision paralysis, left the decision to the restaurant.
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