“Huh! Huh! Huh!”
She runs.
From the moment she left the Coachman’s Association, she runs toward the Temple.
Is the distance about 5km?
It seems this is the first time she’s run for so long without intervals.
Running across the flat terrain within the city only quickened her breath,
but once she stepped onto the mountain trail, her legs joined in screaming in protest.
However,
the speed might slow, but she absolutely will not stop.
Crack!
“Hack!”
She slips and falls after stepping on a wrong branch.
Her face lands squarely into a pile of weeds.
There’s no time to dwell on the throbbing pain in her face as she immediately gets up.
“Faster, I need to meet Artemis fast.”
Through Castor’s silver ring, she reached the truth.
Artemis is Jake!
Yes. Assuming this, everything falls into place.
Even the reason why Jake, who died 300 years ago, still exists in this world is explained.
Can Artemis transform into others?
Or does she replicate the appearance of a dead person using her power?
Is this ability exclusive to the Twelve Olympians?
Hmm,
I don’t know exactly.
But if I ask her today, I might learn the exact nature of her power.
Perhaps because her thoughts were preoccupied with Artemis,
with every step toward the temple, conversations she had with Jake flash by like a reel.
Subtle awkward or strange behaviors in their natural conversations come to light, reinforcing her suspicions.
That certainty is the energy fueling her movement now.
“Huh! Huh! Ah, Artemis!”
Finally stepping into the temple grounds, she shouted while looking across the front yard.
But there, only books and various trinkets were scattered around.
Without a moment’s hesitation, she pushed through the gate, through the temple hall, and headed straight for Artemis’s bedroom.
As she passed through the corridor, her sweat quickly dried, and her heavy breathing subsided.
Knock. Knock.
“Artemis!”
She called out impatiently, but there was no response from inside.
At this point, other people might have thought Artemis wasn’t there.
But that’s wrong.
Bang! Bang!
“Artemis!”
She pounded on the door with all her might, shouting again.
“Come in.”
After being called twice, she finally got permission, and without hesitation, she reached for the doorknob.
Throwing the door open, Artemis stood in front of her with her arms crossed.
Normally, she would be sprawled lazily on the sofa, rolling around, but today she emitted an unusual, heavy atmosphere as she glared at her fiercely.
Her gaze was like that of a predator eyeing its prey, making her involuntarily shrink in fear.
“… Is that you, Spark?”
The definitive sentence from Artemis made her body stiffen, unable to move, as if she had seen Medusa’s gaze.
Why had she forgotten?
I blasted her with a flash and escaped to Luna, didn’t I?
“A, Artemis. Listen. First of all— hahk!”
Overpowered by Artemis’s aggressive approach, she stumbled backward, her hips retreating.
Artemis, extending both arms, grabbed the hem of her sleeve and collar simultaneously, preventing any escape.
Then she began shaking her side to side, as one would turn a steering wheel.
“Uaaah, What, What—?”
There was no time to wonder.
Before she could, Artemis had already approached and locked her head under an arm, immediately striking her legs.
Flipping her 180 degrees with the leverage.
Bang!
She fell ungraciously onto the floor.
But this wasn’t enough for Artemis, who grabbed her right arm, locking it between her legs as she lay down, pulling her arm in the opposite direction of her elbow.
The waist twist followed by the arm break while lying down.
A dazzling and powerful combination that could even make Judo experts cry, was now being unleashed.
“Ahh! Ah! It hurts! It really hurts!”
Shaking her body in vain against the joint pain, Artemis’s iron grip held her chest firmly, making it impossible to move.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
She tapped on the floor, signaling her surrender, but there was no referee to acknowledge it in this unfortunate situation.
Relying solely on Artemis’s mercy wasn’t looking promising as her face turned a fiery red with humiliation.
“A, Artemis! It’s not what it seems—”
“Where in the world do you find someone who blinds the woman they like with flash bombs, you psycho!”
Her voice grew louder, increasing the intensity of the arm-breaking.
Someone who had learned Judo once before had said:
When a woman performs the arm-breaking technique, even if the arm is precisely locked around the chest valley of the technique, for some reason, it doesn’t hurt as much.
Let me tell you from experience—it’s all lies.
There’s no room for silly thoughts here, and it hurts like hell.
Anyway, I need to escape quickly.
If I don’t, my right arm might end up like an inflatable decoration at a venue.
“Mi, sorry! There’s a reason!”
“Reasons like this! Who do you think would believe your excuses about oversleeping?!”
“Kghhhhh!!”
Thorough and relentless Artemis.
She clearly had investigated all the details after identifying me as the culprit of the flash bomb.
Even Maia couldn’t resist her relentless questioning and must have divulged everything.
“I’ll have my revenge today. Do you realize how much my authority has suffered because of you?!”
“Guu, authority has been bas— Aaaaaaaaackkkk!!!”
The sight of me refusing to give up even in such a situation only further irritates her as she pulls on my arm harder.
No good.
I had intended to bring up a more serious topic in a calmer atmosphere,
but first, I need to survive.
“Artemis!”
“What!”
“Jake is you!”
“!!!”
Did that decisive blow work?
The strength in her hand holding my arm suddenly slackened.
I didn’t miss this chance, quickly extracting my right arm, and rolling three times in the opposite direction to escape.
Forcing my malfunctioning right arm to bend and straighten repeatedly to restore it.
Phew, if I had been a little slower, it would have really broken.
“…”
In contrast to me recovering from the pain, Artemis lay there like she had been ambushed unexpectedly, blinking her eyes repeatedly.
Worried by Artemis’s unusually long silence, I approached cautiously, as if crossing a minefield, extending my hand to invite her to stand.
“…”
Slap!
She swatted my gesture of consideration away.
Supporting herself on her knees, she rises slowly.
Her eyes were fixed on me the whole time, her pupils darting rapidly, trying to decipher the intention behind my words.
“Jake uncle. It’s you, right?”
“What are you talking about? Have you been drinking?”
With confidence in my certainty, I made a definitive declaration, causing Artemis to seem flustered, her voice trembling.
Unwilling to reveal her expression, she crossed her arms and turned her head to the other side.
Yet, she couldn’t help sneaking glances at me from the corner of her eye.
Trying to act aloof?
Fine with me.
Isn’t this world ultimately a matter of evidence above all else?
I took out the memo sheets Castor had written and handed them to her.
“What’s this?”
“Jake’s information. The person who was still around a few months ago actually passed away 300 years ago.”
“Ah~ So you’re writing a novel, huh, you?”
“Whether it’s fiction or non-fiction can be determined by continuing our conversation.”
Gathering the information from Castor, I completed all my deductions by the time I reached the temple.
Now it’s time to present the answer I came up with.
“Back then, citizens who were about to leave this world would dedicate offerings to you, Artemis, receiving冥界 money in return, right?”
“Yeah, although it’s an old custom, it still exists today. But so what?”
Artemis answered casually, as if it weren’t a big deal.
She shrugged her shoulders once and casually dropped the memo I handed her onto the floor.
“Jake uncle realized his life was coming to an end and dedicated an offering to you. It’s documented, right? You can’t refute that, can you?”
“Refuting or not… so what? What’s the big deal about the offerings?”
Even as Artemis twisted her face as if my accusations were absurd,
to me, each of her exaggerated actions seemed defensive.
“Now begins my deduction.”
“Hahahaha! Deduction, more like wild speculation, right?”
Word for word, neither of us was about to back down in our standoff.
Me, trying to uncover Jake’s true identity,
and Artemis, denying it and refuting me back.
It reminded me of the time we were at the temple hall accepting the Twelve Labors, each determined not to yield.
“Uncle Jake’s offering, the bronze ring, right?”
“Your imagination is incredible. What’s the proof? Did Arc see it?”
“Uncle Jake’s bronze ring was passed down three generations with a wish for health and peace. Uncle Jake had no children. Wouldn’t he then want the next person to inherit the peace and blessing of that bronze ring?”
“…”
“Isn’t it natural that he wanted to dedicate it to the goddess he believed in?”
“…”
“I saw Jake for the last time about two months ago. At that time, he was still wearing the bronze ring. … If we trace the whereabouts of the bronze ring, the answer will become clear.”
The meaning of the bronze ring is peace.
Jake wished for Artemis’s peace with the ring and then passed away.
That is, since 300 years ago, the bronze ring could only belong to Artemis.
“And above all, the timing when I began driving the chariot perfectly coincides with Jake’s disappearance.”
Yes.
Starting from the third labor?
She taught me how to drive her own chariot since she found it troublesome.
From that point onward, Artemis stayed close to me.
Therefore, there was no particular need for her to transform into Jake.
Unknowingly revealing evidence of her true identity all along.
“And isn’t it true that Olympian gods can transform into animals or humans, but maybe the bronze ring played some role in this transformation?”
“What’s that supposed to mean? Enough with the nonsense!”
“For instance, maybe some medium is required to carry out the transformation.”
“……What? How, how could you?”
“When transformed, they may be able to deceive humans, but surely not other gods?”
“……”
With my final reasoning, Artemis’s poker face finally crumbled.
No matter how she tries to deny and argue, it’s futile.
I still vividly remember an awkward part of the conversation with Jake during the first labor.
It was definitely the time when we arrived at Poseidon’s major city, Portuna, riding Jake’s chariot.
Jake seemed curious about how I planned to solve my mission,
so I suggested we go together into Poseidon’s temple to enlighten him.
“Hey~ If you explain I’m with you, it’s fine, so let’s go!”
“I’m not going, seriously!”
When I grabbed his arm to take him inside the temple, Jake irritably shook off my hand.
Jake’s rather odd behavior.
Then and now,
the sudden change in emotion, the flare-up of irritation, reminded me so much of my girlfriend.
“Voice may change, but habitual speech is hard to hide, right?”
“……”
Artemis, at a loss for words, closes her eyes tightly and slowly bows her head.
Seeing her like this makes me feel it’s somewhat vulgar to ask “Is it really Jake?” again for confirmation.
I am simply waiting for Artemis to give the answer herself.
“……”
“……”
About two minutes later?
When she lifted her head again, the wavering in her eyes had disappeared.
“So what?”
“E… huh? So what?”
“Ah, I acted as Jake. But so what?”
Artemis changes her defense strategy.
She drops the denial of being Jake and turns brazenly arrogant.
“Arc, you’re hilarious. Did I deceive you and scam you somehow? What did I do? And why are you digging into this? You sound like some creepy stalker.”
“Umm…”
“Even unintentionally, the story of the bronze ring was a hint that led you to succeed in your first labor, right?”
“Yeah… That’s true, I guess?”
“But? Even if I admit now that I was Jake, what changes? What do you even want to know?”
If she counters like this, there’s not much I can say.
After the labor started, Jake only took me for a ride in the chariot a few times and chatted.
Nevertheless, I need to ask her.
I want to hear “it” somehow.
Closing my eyes, my second labor still comes back vividly.
The girl, Artemis, who cried tears of misunderstanding due to Aphrodite’s provocations.
That labor was filled with nothing but misunderstandings, and it began with my expulsion.
Even when I pushed Artemis away, telling her I didn’t like her, she ended up staying by my side as Jake.
In the end, didn’t she protect me from Aphrodite’s attack?
“Artemis.”
“What?”
“Why were you always by my side?”
Enough with the teasing inner thoughts.
Let’s wrap this up.
