The day Artemis and I obtained the gift and medicine for Clotho, our journey toward Storm Island began immediately.
In the dream world, I saw that Clotho had lost her eyes to the blades of wind and was blinded.
Losing eyes is one of the fatal injuries for humans that cannot be recovered.
The moment one loses their eyes, there’s no way to see light again unless it’s a miracle.
Though it feels strange to say, she gained the ability to see my fate tied to the thread of a Great Hero in exchange for her sight.
Perhaps then, she knows.
The way for me not to part with Artemis.
“Arrived. Get down.”
“Okay.”
After arriving at Poseidon Harbor in a carriage, we immediately boarded the ship we’d reserved in advance.
As the port staff hurried over to load our luggage onto the ship, I casually asked Artemis a question while observing them.
“Since Clotho is a goddess, this medicine should work well on her, right? Unlike humans, gods can regenerate their eyes if injured.”
“I don’t know.”
“What? Hey, that’s a different story. That medicine definitely restores Clotho’s blindness—”
With a tsk Artemis clicked her tongue before raising a single finger at me, cutting off my words.
Confused by her gesture, I tilted my head.
“What’s the problem?”
“Hmm. Well, if there is one…”
Nodding in response, she sighed as if something was troubling her, leaning against the ship’s railing and looking up at the sky.
Following her gaze, I looked up as well, seeing a cloudless blue sky with flocks of seabirds circling around the ship.
At that moment, a sailor who had climbed onto the deck extended his hand with a biscuit to offer it to the seabirds, but they ignored his gesture completely.
Artemis’s face hardened at the sight as she continued speaking.
“It’s the same as with seabirds.”
“Seabirds? What do you mean by that?”
“That medicine, I actually sent it to Clotho a hundred years ago.”
“You sent… it? Artemis, you?”
Taken aback by the new information, I inched closer to push her for more details.
“Yeah. Do you think I have no conscience? Tsk! …It just happened because of my fault, so I only sent her the medicine.”
“But? So what happened? Was the medicine ineffective?”
“She didn’t use it.”
I was so startled by the unexpected response that I couldn’t even think to close my mouth.
“What…?”
“She didn’t use it. That’s right, Clotho returned the medicine I sent her.”
“Why?”
“How should I know? All I can guess is she didn’t want to use the medicine I gave her.”
With that sad speculation, our conversation came to an end.
An ominous premonition that Clotho still harbored ill feelings toward Artemis made my nose tingle as the ship set sail.
In this way, a boat carrying only two passengers, us, headed towards Storm Island.
Despite its name, the sea route was relatively calm.
But as we neared our destination, the situation took a 180-degree turn.
The once calm waves grew increasingly rough the closer we got to Storm Island,
and the clear weather quickly turned to a cloudy sky accompanied by strong winds.
“Hey! Sir Priest!”
The first mate emerged from the undulating ship to call out to me.
I almost crawled on the floor as I made my way clumsily toward him.
“Did you summon me?”
“I’ve brought us as close to Storm Island as possible. If we get any closer, we’ll risk running aground from the storm and whirlpools!”
In truth, there were no ships bound for Storm Island from the very start.
After failing to secure a ship five times due to our destination, I had no choice but to arrange for a ship under the condition that it would only carry us to a safe distance.
“I understand. Let’s finish with one more thing: please lower a single boat.”
“Understood. Please be careful.”
The crew loaded our luggage onto the lifeboat with us and then quickly moved to distance themselves from the treacherous Storm Island route.
Shhhaaa!
Splash! Splash!
“Uuaaaah!! Ark!! This… this is way rougher than before?!”
I hadn’t realized because the larger ship had shielded us from the wind and currents,
but as soon as that barrier was gone, the fierce waves began to overwhelm our small boat, nearly capsizing it.
Artemis infused her divine power into the boat to keep it from sinking.
That’s when I managed to stand, shakily steadying myself, and cupped my hands around my mouth like a megaphone, shouting loudly.
“Clotho, I’ve arrived!”
Based on the emotions I saw in the dream world, I assumed she would surely respond to my voice.
But the reply was only silence.
I raised my voice again.
“Thanks to your help, I’m incredibly happy now!”
“I’d help you if I could!”
“At the very least, wouldn’t it be nice to express your gratitude?!”
…
Did my cries reach her?
The raging storm surrounding Storm Island gradually subsided, the clouds that had been gathering rain rolled away, and the warm sun emerged.
“Perhaps she has… approved of us?”
“Yeah. Honestly, what’s this grim goddess hiding that’s making us undergo so much trouble? Tsk!”
Disregarding Artemis’ complaint, I picked up an oar.
I was about to row forcefully across the sea when,
the current shifted as if to say there was no need for such labor, pushing the boat quickly towards Storm Island.
As we settled onto the island’s nearby beach and ascended the hill, a woman awaited us.
Clotho with a black eye patch.
Upon hearing the sound of our approach, she neatly swept her pink hair behind her and greeted us politely.
Having seen Clotho’s appearance many times in my dreams, I was overwhelmed with joy.
“Clotho!”
As I waved and approached, Clotho bowed deeply at a 90-degree angle and moved backward while keeping her distance from me.
Not understanding why she was keeping her distance from me, I turned to Artemis for help, but
she only turned her head the other way, seemingly uncomfortable about seeing Clotho again.
“Um… Clotho?”
“The formal greetings and farewells are for Artemis of the Twelve Olympian Gods. I have not welcomed you.”
“Ah… but don’t you recognize me? You heard my voice in your dreams, didn’t you…”
“I’d like to confirm whether you truly possess the ‘thread’ of destiny belonging to the Great Hero.”
Clotho already suspected that I was the thread of destiny she had been waiting so long for.
She couldn’t fully suppress her trembling lips and the intensity of her emotions.
Still, I understood her desire for certainty after experiencing so much pain that left her unable to trust even when she wanted to.
In such cases, it’s simple:
Just say something only Clotho and I know.
“The last scene in the dream Clotho showed me was when Artemis, returning to Storm Island, shouted that my existence would cause her eternal suffering.”
“…”
“I believe we conversed through the dream with the first cut thread. Does this suffice?”
“Savior!!!”
The moment I had proven that I held the thread of destiny,
Clotho ran toward me and hugged me tightly.
She buried her face in my chest and sobbed, her scalding tears soaking through my shirt,
reminding me of a young girl who anxiously waited alone inside the house until she heard her parents outside the door and finally relaxed.
Her emotions, pouring into my chest, confused me as I didn’t know what to do,
“Hey! What is this? Who are you hugging and causing such a scene?! Can’t you let go?!”
Artemis, with a ghost-like face, rushed over and forcibly separated me from Clotho.
Though blind, Clotho accurately glared in the direction where Artemis stood by tilting her head upward.
I couldn’t see her eyes, but the atmosphere radiated with anger.
Clotho neatly adjusted her wetted eye patch, dusted her trousers, and elegantly stood up again.
“Artemis? Why interfere with the Savior and my first reunion?”
“It should just be a handshake, why all the hugging and crying? Are you filming some melodrama?”
“It’s none of your business, outsider, to interfere with my strong emotions.”
As the conversation progressed, more heated words were exchanged, and Clotho’s voice deepened in intensity.
However, it seemed Artemis had been eagerly waiting for a specific word — “justification” — from Clotho’s mouth.
She smirked as she advanced toward me,
and then grabbed my hand, locking her fingers with mine, and swung us back and forth like on a swing.
“Look! He’s my boyfriend. Isn’t that justification enough for you?”
“Eh…?”
“Why? Because you have no vision, you have no clue how the world works? Let me explain again. You dove into another man’s arms, you vulgar and crude thing!”
Her statement shocked me more than Clotho.
Artemis, who held the divinity of purity, was well aware of its gravity.
For this reason, she never easily used expressions like “vulgar” or “crude” towards anyone else.
It was almost like an official announcement from the Goddess of Purity herself.
This meant that Artemis’s attitude toward Clotho could be compared to hatred even stronger than enmity with her parents.
“Artemis, that was—”
“It’s fine, Savior, it’s fine. Please don’t worry.”
Clotho smiled while dissuading me from mediating.
Her attitude towards Artemis and me was as different as fire and water, making me feel even more uneasy.
“There are a lot of things we need to discuss, Savior. Please come with me to my home.”
“Hey! That’s really vulgar. Why are you inviting an outsider to your house? You should guide him to the meeting room.”
“Let’s go, Savior.”
Ignoring Artemis lightly, Clotho took my sleeve gently and led me toward her home.
The house of the Moirai sisters was no different from what I had seen in the dream world, so there wasn’t much sense of alienation as I entered.
She carefully guided me to the dining table near the kitchen by lightly holding the hem of my sleeve.
“Are the other sisters not here?”
“Yes. I’m currently the only one here in Storm Island. Now, Savior, what has brought you here?”
“This.”
After confirming that Artemis was leaning against the door, not sitting face to face with us,
I sat down as well, and pushed a gift wrapped in fine cloth across the table to her.
She touched the package moved toward her, then only tilted her head in confusion.
I carefully unwrapped the bundle and took out the contents one by one.
“I felt odd coming empty-handed… so I brought several items. A few outfits for spring and summer, some honey and cider. It’s trendy lately, so Clotho, please try it.”
“Cider… I’ve heard of it. A beverage personally developed by you, Savior, and something Apollo anxiously searches for?”
Clotho explained this while looking not at me but at Artemis standing by the door,
an evidently teasing and provocative remark alluding to Apollo’s invasion of Storm Island a hundred years ago.
“This is too much!”
Artemis obviously understood the implication and once again charged toward Clotho out of anger.
I quickly rose to block her path, whispering into her ear to remind her of the reason we came to Storm Island,
which only made her grit her teeth in frustration before circling the room and heading outside grumpily.
“Now that the unwelcome guest is gone, only the cherished guest remains.”
“Sigh… Clotho, we came here hoping to resolve some past grievances. Artemis acquired a renowned medicine good for regenerating your eyes.”
“Perhaps. However, it seems that she simply does not want you to return to your original world because she’s curious about the method. Once she knows the method, it’s likely she will despise me again as before.”
Clotho, the eldest of the Moirai sisters known as the Goddess of Fate,
accurately understood the purpose of our visit.
