At this point, with Artemis here, it might seem rather out of the blue, but I would like to talk a little about my past.
What story are you trying to tell by setting the mood like this?
It’s not anything grand.
The tales of successes and failures, big and small, that anyone might have experienced.
And the aftermath of how things turned out because of those.
The first time I felt true success was when I was nine years old.
In that era when playgrounds were common, on a snowy winter day, my childhood friend and I built an igloo using nothing but a square frame.
I can still vividly remember how elated I was that day when we finally had our little hideout.
I enjoyed it so much that I even spent a night in that igloo with my friend.
Of course, when the kids didn’t come home late at night, my parents were worried sick—thinking of runaway scenarios or abduction, even calling the police and causing quite a commotion.
I firmly believed that as adults, we would one day sit together over a beer, reminiscing about this day, and laugh about it.
But the following year, when that child turned 10, I heard they had been hospitalized for a serious illness and eventually passed away.
Apparently, it was leukemia.
Next,
My first failure took place during my first year of high school.
A time when everyone was fervently diving into crushes and relationships.
As more and more of my peers started dating, I decided to confess my feelings to the girl who sat next to me.
It was just before summer vacation.
While my feelings for her were genuine,
I can’t deny that I acted rather strategically, trying to convince myself that it would be okay to be rejected since it was summer break—”It’s fine if she turns me down, it’s summer break anyway!”—quite cowardly, really.
Whether she had seen through my cunning or not,
She said she would think positively about it once the summer break was over, and then abruptly left.
I took this as an outright rejection.
It was just a misused positive rejection—she could have accepted me on the spot if she harbored affection.
If she wasn’t sure, she could have given an answer during the summer when there was plenty of time.
But she said she’ll answer only after the vacation was over.
Given how impatient I was back then, with the month-long break, I couldn’t wait that long.
I concluded that she was merely teasing me and completely shut her out of my heart before the summer break began.
Completely.
As time passed and the school term resumed, I sat in the classroom for homeroom and noticed an empty seat beside me.
Our teacher informed us that a student had transferred schools, which felt a little odd.
Was it wise for her to have rejected my confession if she was going to transfer anyway?
Could she have been laughing at my hopeful anticipation?
I deluded myself with all sorts of wild imaginings, creating wounds in my heart, while hatred quickly took its place, replacing any fond feelings for her.
That hatred lingered as I spent a week silently cursing her.
One day, while walking home with a close friend, I overheard snippets about the girl.
“Hey, did you hear?”
“Hear what?”
“You know the girl from our class who transferred? She used to live right here. This tall, luxurious three-story house.”
“Wow, she must be happy living well.”
“Hey, hey. Does having money really matter if the family collapses? I heard her parents had a terrible fight, they might get a divorce.”
“Divorce? What do you mean?”
“Well, my mom told me in private—they were going through some kind of period before finalizing the divorce. What’s it called? Something about time?”
“Reflection period.”
“Right! The reflection period. During the summer break, her family was in this reflection period, and after the divorce, she moved with her mother.”
“…”
After hearing my friend’s explanation, I think I didn’t sleep for three days.
That plush, cozy bed felt like a bed of sharp thorns, and all I could do was toss and turn in vain, crying through the nights.
Maybe I was seeking some kind of punishment or redemption for misjudging and slandering her.
When she said she’d think positively after the summer break…
It wasn’t some cruel prank to toy with my feelings.
Because she had to leave her heart in the hands of her parents, she was likely overwhelmed with anxiety that I’d be left alone if things didn’t work out—thus, shouldering everything silently as she left without a word.
Even if she held the same affection for me…
How afraid and alone she must have felt.
How much she must have wanted to convey her true feelings about my confession.
Nevertheless, I was blinded by mistaken assumptions and malice, maligning her without knowing her side.
Why did I waste the precious summer vacation like that…
It was the same with my childhood friend with whom I built the igloo.
Why didn’t I visit them during their illness?
In my complaints about daily boredom, how extravagant might I have appeared to my childhood friend?
Such memories of my past, passing through my mind, made me detest that pitiful version of myself.
Perhaps that’s why…
Up until I entered university and became an adult, I refrained from any form of romance.
Or rather, I believe I created barriers—like stacking “Y”-shaped blocks one by one around a lighthouse standing alone in the vast ocean—so no one could approach.
The breakwater was strong, and inside, while building sandcastles, I envied others’ romances from a distance.
But as everyone might have experienced…
Desiring love doesn’t automatically make it happen,
And not wanting it doesn’t mean it won’t happen either.
I was no different.
Artemis, who entered my life by chance, penetrated deep into my heart.
Because of my fraught past experiences, I had constructed a sturdy breakwater to protect her from harsh waves, knowing exactly how to manage it.
Though they say that love makes people more skilled through experience,
I never dated but learned through my past human relationship failures: “How can I avoid regret?”
Standing on the base of my flawed past, I have risen to become who I am today.
Even if I start truly dating the goddess Artemis, whom one might call cute and sexy, I must always stay vigilant.
A relationship doesn’t end just because we are dating.
In fact, that’s where it begins.
I don’t wish to ever break up with her.
Rather, I want to move forward.
Though the art of playing hard to get and other advanced strategies could wait for another time, we should first establish an unshakable overall strategy.
Hence, the first operation in my “romance plan” is this:
“Remove all sources of insecurity and raise the baseline!”
Even if ten good memories are created, one bad one can easily ruin it.
So from the late evening of the very first day we started dating, I sequestered myself in my room, preparing for the inevitable risks that might lie ahead.
“Even now, we can’t let our guard down. Only once we have eliminated all embedded insecurities can we move forward unencumbered.”
Thus, I started listing with Artemis what we considered the potential risks in our relationship.
Artemis,
She told me at the clock tower what her greatest fear was: my inevitable return to Earth.
She was extremely scared and opposed to this idea.
I reassured her with a solemn vow on the river Styx, binding her wavering heart in a way that nothing could shake it.
But that was just a temporary measure.
The vow on the river Styx is merely symbolic of my firm resolve, but its efficacy alone cannot protect her from forces that might drag me back to Earth.
Neither Artemis nor I know anything about this yet.
It’s worth consulting Clotho.
“Still… considering the situation between Artemis and Clotho in the dream world, their relationship seems strained.”
Artemis lost her eyesight due to some past chaos,
Though she did not fall into deep despair upon glimpsing my fate, resentment against Artemis may remain a separate issue.
“First, let’s pack plenty of medicine and gifts for the eyes and schedule a visit to the whirlwind road. Next…”
The risk I personally perceive.
That is, the re-establishment of the relationships among the gods of Olympus.
I’m very concerned about how the gods who had been friendly to me will react to my relationship with Artemis.
Don’t misinterpret this.
They were captivated by my quick wit in solving difficult issues,
But they have not accepted the degradation of Artemis’ pure divinity because of me.
After confirming our relationship, as soon as I returned to the temple, I sent little gifts to their city.
Depending on their responses, I’ll have a rough idea of their thoughts.
“Alright, let’s take a break now?”
Pushing my love diary aside,
I stretched lazily in my chair, then suddenly,
KUHNG! KUHNG!
Someone was forcefully pounding on my door like a debt collector.
“Oi! If you keep pounding, the door will break!! Who’s there?!”
Looking through the gap at the bottom of the old door, I saw four thin legs.
“Someone with four legs coming here… That’s ridiculous!!”
Startled by the strange legs, I stepped back.
KA-WHAAANG!!
The door was shattered in a special forceful body-check, as if done by an anti-terrorist squad, and the intruder entered my quarters.
“GYAAAAAAAH!!! Who… who is… is that a deer?”
The intruder was a deer,
And not just any deer, an enormous one.
It was looking down at me, lying on the floor, with what seemed like a smirk on one side of its face.
“…What the heck is this? Wasn’t that you?”
It was that same deer who had carried Artemis’s bags for our one-night, two-day camping trip to the mountaintop.
“You! Why are you here?! Do you know how much that door cost?!”
“…”
The majestic creature completely ignored my interrogation and casually spat on my foot,
Then spun around and trotted out the broken door.
“What was that absurd creature all about? Could it be jealousy?”
As I was reaching for a tissue to clean the saliva from the floor, I discovered something stuck like gum—a crumpled white sheet of paper.
It undoubtedly contained a private message from Artemis.
After brushing off the sticky saliva, I unfolded the note.
[Come to my bedroom tonight unnoticed.—Artemis]
“…Tonight… without anyone knowing…?”
I had visited her chambers at night before.
However, it was rare for her to personally invite me, except in emergencies.
A man and a woman sneaking off at night…
Right after we became a couple…
“Why, whywhywhy… Is she calling me?”
Is spring finally arriving for me?
When I was sliding the diary under the desk,
My chair creaked as I stretched,
At that moment, the door was roughly pounded on by someone—loud and persistent, like a loan shark at the door.
“Hey, if you keep pounding this way, the door is gonna break!! Who’s there?!”
Peering through the gap at the base of the door—already old and worn—it appeared someone with thin legs stood there.
“Someone with four legs visiting isn’t possible!!”
Startled by the peculiar sight, I retreated further as a powerful smash sounded.
KA-WAAAANG!!
The door splintered apart in a scene worthy of a special anti-terrorist unit’s dramatic break-in, revealing a creature who barged right in.
“GYAAAAAAHHH!! Wh..Who or WHAT… is that a DEER?!”
And not just any stag—it was a massive one.
It looked down at me, sprawled on the floor, smirking with only the corner of its mouth.
“…What are YOU? Wasn’t that the guy?”
It was the same deer from that 1-night, 2-day camping trip with Artemis—the one that had carried her bag up the mountain.
“You! What are you doing here? Do you have any idea how expensive that doorframe was?!”
“…”
My stern questioning, lacking any true authority, was effortlessly ignored. The creature spat on the floor near my foot, then turned and trotted right back out.
“What was THAT about? That ridiculous animal—can it be jealousy?”
As I grabbed a tissue to wipe up the saliva on the floor, I noticed a wad of gum-like paper stuck there.
It must have been a surreptitious message from Artemis carried by that creature.
Removing the slimy saliva, I unfolded the paper:
[Come to my bedroom tonight without anyone knowing. —Artemis]
“…Tonight? Without anyone knowing…?”
I’ve visited her chambers at night before.
But directly summoned by her, sans emergencies? That’s rare.
A man and a woman sneaking around at night…
Especially on the very night we’ve officially become a couple…
“Why, whywhywhy… Why is she calling me?”
Is spring finally here for me?
