The road heading towards Heraeis, one of the major northern cities of Hera.
We had been traveling on the winding unpaved road for over two hours.
“Ugh. The wheels keep getting caught on the rocks, and my back and butt are killing me.”
“…”
“Next time, we should equip the carriage with a spring suspension. But what if it bounces too much like a pogo stick?”
“…”
Trying to start a conversation with Artemis under the guise of complaining, but she just stares blankly out the other window with her chin resting on her hand.
Ever since we left Luna, she’s been in low spirits.
The reason is obvious.
At first, when I joked about her sweat smell before we departed, she took it in stride. But when I teased her about it again while she was chatting on the way, she got upset.
So I’ve been trying to find a way to lighten her mood, but so far, no luck.
“Hmm… I don’t get it.”
Truthfully, I can’t understand why she’s upset. In my experience from elementary, middle, and high school, playing soccer or basketball on the field, getting covered in dust, and sweating with friends was just a normal part of life.
Sure, I admit it can be tough if someone hasn’t showered for a long time, but a little sweat smell for a few hours from someone who showers daily? To me, that’s as natural as breathing air.
I was just joking around lightly, but Artemis seems to have taken it as a major insult.
I never expected her to be this hurt by a word like “sweat smell” when she handles much worse insults like “troublesome” or “annoying” without issue.
“Artemis, I’m sorry, can you cheer up, please?”
“…”
“If we complete this mission successfully and return to the temple, I’ll make you something delicious. How about pizza? Curious about the flavor?”
“…Hey.”
Her dry call.
I’m glad she responded to something I said, so I glance at her, only to find her looking at me with an expression like she’s seen right through me.
“Why are you always trying to charm people with food?”
“Is it wrong? Isn’t a healthy relationship about doing things the other person likes ten times less important than not doing the one thing they dislike?”
“How did you know about that from ‘This is All You Need to Be a Dating Expert’?”
“…How did I know? I read it too.”
“…Me too.”
Two people without any real dating experience thinking the same actions would work—it’s kind of obvious.
I once found the goddesses reading that book during their break and sneakily read it at night.
Guess what they say—couples grow alike. Looks like Artemis has been reading it in secret too.
“Anyway! It’s annoying. Saying someone smells of sweat. How would you feel if I told you your breath stinks?”
“Hmm… That’s a bit…”
Her comparison hits me like a sponge absorbing water.
Come to think of it, telling a chatterbox that their breath smells and asking them to shut up would pretty much crush their self-esteem and make them reluctant to speak.
I see now; to Artemis, mentioning sweat smell is like bringing up bad breath.
“If you really like me, don’t do things the other person dislikes. What’s the point of revealing your flaws?”
“Hmm… We disagree there, don’t we?”
“Where?”
Artemis looks at me intently as if challenging me to point out where her logic went wrong.
“Sweat smell, bad breath, foot odor, snoring, drunken behavior… Flaws like these don’t matter. Even if there are more, I have no issue with the charm radiating from the woman I’ve fallen for.”
“Wh… What… What…”
My sudden confession leaves Artemis blushing deeply.
As the red spreads from her face to her ears and neck, she struggles to find words, eventually turning her head the other way in frustration.
Though she grits her teeth, feeling defeated once again, every word I said was true.
Friends are the same.
This friend smokes, which I don’t like.
Talks too much, which I don’t like.
Picks their nose, which I don’t like.
Even if someone has many small flaws, I won’t end our relationship over them. If there’s a single advantage that outweighs them all, I’ll approach with an open heart.
It’s the same with my partner, Artemis.
Even if she has a thousand faults, the charm I see in her far outweighs them all. Falling for Artemis was inevitable.
Her face also fits my type.
—Heeey!
The horse signaled our arrival at the great city of Heraeis with a short neigh.
I kept my grip on the reins, circled the outer wall, and stopped the carriage next to the mountain trail entrance.
Stepping down from the driver’s seat, I quickly walked around to the passenger side and extended my right arm.
“Here, Artemis. Grab my hand and come down carefully.”
“…Why are you suddenly being so gentlemanly?”
“Because I unintentionally hurt you. Today, I’ll treat you like a real queen.”
“Die? Calling a goddess ‘queen’? You’re pretending to care but subtly lowering my status.”
In the modern world where I lived, a queen represents the highest rank, so I was offering the best possible treatment.
But apparently, “queen” to our goddess is a derogatory term that diminishes her status.
Ah, what a hassle.
“Queen or goddess, it’s all the same.”
“Uhuhuhahaha! Don’t be ridiculous? It’s completely different!”
Exasperated, I scratched the back of my head and decided to let it go for today.
She was back to her usual self after being upset, so that was good enough.
“Ah~ fine, fine. Okay. Lady Goddess Artemis, please take my hand and step down.”
Stepping back with one foot and bowing slightly, I offered a formal greeting like a noble child and extended my hand to the lady once more.
Smiling sweetly, Artemis reluctantly takes my hand.
Adjusting an errant strand of hair behind her ear with a delicate touch, she carefully steps down from the seat.
What a day of many experiences.
Most of all, it reinforced to me that Artemis is, indeed, a woman.
But they say the land hardens after the rain.
After a small argument and a natural reconciliation, a strange yet comfortable atmosphere developed between us.
Taking advantage of this, I stood beside her and bent my left arm at 90 degrees to create space for her to link it with mine.
“What?”
“What, you don’t get it? I said I’ll escort you. Link arms.”
She stared at my face for about a minute and finally, with a brief, reluctant “Just today,” she awkwardly looped her arm through mine.
Unexpectedly bold of her, my heart skipped a beat.
I thought she would hit me, and we would bicker as usual, but she actually linked her arm with mine.
“…”
“…”
Just like in the carriage before we arrived, our words diminished drastically.
We stood there, stiff as statues who’ve glimpsed Medusa’s gaze, finding it hard to move.
Thump! Thump!
The sound of our intertwined heartbeats is so loud it’s unclear if they belong to me or both of us.
I couldn’t have predicted how short of breath I would feel from simply linking arms.
With that, we ascended the back mountain of Heraeis, where the ill-intentioned Dionysus resides.
Our arm-in-arm “date,” which had made things somewhat awkward, came to an end in less than ten minutes.
Contrary to my assumption that Dionysus’ residence would be at the summit, we discovered a cave with human activity halfway up the slope.
“Is this… Oh, never mind.”
Momentarily planning to confirm if this was truly Dionysus’ residence, I shut my mouth quickly upon catching a foul smell of alcohol emanating from inside the cave.
Jackpot.
We must have come to the right place.
Thump, thump.
Did he hear our footsteps?
The sound of approaching footsteps grows louder from within the cave.
A staggering silhouette appeared at the cave entrance.
“Hey! You two! Hehe! I thought I was waiting until I died!”
With bottles in both hands, he welcomed us with continuous hiccups.
Dionysus, drunk and unable to steady himself, stumbles and falls flat on his face.
Without making a fuss over the fall, he sheepishly laughs and sits on the ground.
Meanwhile, Artemis, clearly not pleased with this, places her hands on her hips and confronts him first.
“Hey! What’s your game with all this nonsense?”
“Wha? What game?”
“This is ridiculous, right? You issued a decree to kill Ark and cursed my city, you fool!”
As she recounts the obvious points, her voice rises higher, finishing with a string of curses.
Clearly still upset, she kicked up dust from the ground, throwing it in Dionysus’ face.
Rubbing the dirt from his eyes with his hands, when he pulls them away, his red, bloodshot eyes are genuinely terrifying.
In stark contrast to me, who slightly flinched, Artemis only grows more assertive.
“Cancel the decree and the curse. Then go chug your drinks elsewhere. It’s disgusting giving attention to someone like you.”
“Artemis. Still as rude as ever, like a bratty hooligan.”
“Laugh all you want that a drunken mess is criticizing someone’s character.”
Artemis stands her ground.
Her confident demeanor reminded me how capable she truly is.
Is this resolve turning out easier than expected?
But Dionysus dismisses her with a smirk, empties the contents of his bottle into his mouth, stands up, and points at me.
“Don’t misunderstand, Artemis. I’m… trying to help you.”
“You’ve gone mad.”
Baring her sharp fangs, Artemis resists fiercely, ready to pounce if he utters another falsehood.
“Whoa, whoa, relax. I’m speaking the truth. I’m here to help you.”
“Bull. How does issuing a decree and casting a curse help me?”
“Honestly. Artemis, isn’t Ark’s relentless pursuit bothering you? That’s why you’re trying to drive him away with the Twelve Labors.”
“That’s…”
Dionysus, looking at us with a sly grin, sets a trap we can’t escape.
“If I were to kill Ark for you, it would be much simpler, wouldn’t it? You’d keep your godly position, and the reputation of your chastity would remain intact.”
“Quit joking around. Do you think I’d allow my priest to be killed?”
Artemis lands a solid counterattack.
Dionysus, seemingly troubled, pinches his temples with his fingers and bursts into laughter.
After laughing it off for a while, his eyes narrow, and he mocks Artemis with disdain.
“Artemis… one of the Twelve Great Gods… surely you don’t actually… like Ark?”
