Olympus.
In the end, we didn't need a tour, and Artemis led us to a large temple with a symbol of the hearth, obviously belonging to Hestia.
Inside, we were greeted with all honors by nymphs in the form of young maidens dressed in colorful togas, who escorted our group deep into the building, where an extremely long table, about ten meters long, was already set with all kinds of dishes and appetizers.
In addition, the goddess Hestia herself was waiting for us there, and I must say, she looked and felt a cut above the rest in the previous world. She was a beautiful woman of medium height with light red hair and kind green eyes, dressed in the familiar Greek toga.
Zeus' sister exuded an aura of calm and gentleness, somewhat reminiscent of Tia's, but weaker. I would call her a kind aunt who could listen, sympathize, and give advice. However, I don't think anyone took advantage of this, at least not to any acceptable extent here on Olympus. Not the right crowd. Definitely.
Half an hour had passed since our arrival at the temple, and almost everyone had found something to occupy themselves with. Archer, after trying a couple of dishes, paid a few compliments to the cook, that is, Hestia, and they struck up a lively conversation about cooking and everything related to it.
And considering the laughter of the goddess of the hearth, as well as her interest in the conversation and good mood, I would bet that Archer had a new addition to his regiment. Heh.
Artemis quietly chewed on the treats, occasionally glaring at me with a dissatisfied and threatening look, the nymphs played the servants, and I found a wonderful conversation partner in another god who arrived a little later.
- "Well, how many women are in your harem now, Romani?" he asked with great interest. "Besides the nine-tailed fox, of course. I bet you've already started to catch up with your predecessor, haven't you?"
- "Heh. You won't believe it, but even if I try, I won't be able to catch up with him. And you won't either, Apollo," I grinned.
Yeah. My conversation partner was Apollo, the god of the sun, a fortune teller and healer, according to general information, with blond curly short hair and golden eyes. And although the conversation began with simple social questions, in the end, everything came to the current topic.
I understood why he had chosen this direction; after all, the thunderous machine gun needed to lure me in, but it could also work to my advantage. There was one very good target for my entertainment here. Two, even. Heh.
- "How can that be?!" he exclaimed sincerely. "There is no woman I cannot seduce!"
- "I take into account not only quantity, but also quality," I said wisely, which Apollo took as a challenge, and Artemis couldn't help but click her tongue. "By the way, how do the gods of Olympus act nowadays? In your heyday, it seems you denied yourselves very little."
- "Our lifestyle hasn't changed much. A few changes here and there," he shrugged, obviously wanting to avoid the question, and then smiled. "But let's get back to the topic, Romani. I'm sure you have someone to tell us about. Who are they? Demons? Angels? Maybe even goddesses?"
- "Well, you're only half right," I began. "The first one is a fairy. An extremely smug, selfish, and manipulative woman. If she wants you around, she doesn't really care what state you're in. And she always has her axe-like staff, which is twice her size, and she won't hesitate to use it."
- "Sounds like a very cruel woman," Apollo said thoughtfully, and Artemis nodded in agreement.
- "Well, she has her good sides, even if they overlap with her bad ones," I continued. "For example, she's very attentive and curious. If she cares about someone, she'll stand up for them to the end, even at the cost of her own life. True, this does not apply to everyone else, whom she does not care about. She prefers to use them for her own benefit by any means necessary. Heh."
- "I've known a few women who fit that description, and I must admit, they have a certain charm," Apollo commented. "Who else?"
At these words, I grinned.
- "You guessed the second one, she's a goddess," I nodded, and Apollo made a satisfied face. "And don't get me wrong, Apollo, but she alone is stronger than all the Greek gods combined."
As soon as the last word left my mouth, time seemed to stop moving around us. The nymphs froze in mid-step, causing something to fall to the ground with a clattering sound. The conversation between Archer and Hestia instantly fell silent. Artemis looked at me as if I were a dead man, and Apollo stopped smiling, as if his personality had been replaced in an instant.
The atmosphere on Olympus changed in seconds. Thunder rumbled, clouds appeared and covered the sun, the clouds turned into black clouds with hundreds of bright white and blue lightning bolts running across them, and the smell of ozone filled the air. The nymphs panicked and tried to hide, while Artemis, Hestia, and Apollo exchanged glances. Archer sighed wearily and tensed, but said nothing, simply preparing for battle.
- "Be careful, Romani," Apollo said quietly but clearly, his expression extremely serious. "Father does not tolerate such remarks, especially here on Olympus, where he is, so to speak, in person.
- "Or you can try, but it will be your last," added Artemis.
- "Zeus would not dare start a fight in my temple," said Hestia. "But once you are outside, you will no longer be under my protection."
I refrained from commenting or rolling my eyes, because I wanted to save that for the evening, and then I smiled sweetly and stuck out my tongue, tapping myself on the head with my fist, imitating a silly anime girl.
- "Oh, I'm sorry. I'm so stupid," I said in a cute voice. "I hope the greatest god of Mount Olympus, the exemplary husband and father, will forgive me for my mistake. I can count on one pass, right?"
At first, nothing changed, but after a few seconds, everything returned to normal. The clouds dispersed, the lightning stopped flashing here and there, and sunlight once again illuminated the mountain's surroundings.
Archer shook his head, Hestia nodded approvingly, Artemis clicked her tongue, but Apollo's expression did not change, and he continued to stare at me.
I smiled.
Zeus wasn't as smart as Apollo. If the latter could catch the insult hidden in my words, then the king of the gods himself was incapable of such a feat. Besides, I was sure that Apollo understood what I was hinting at and to whom. After all, she would never take what I said as a compliment. Heh heh.
- "You know, since we don't know when the meeting will start, it would be nice to do something," I said in a businesslike tone, stopping my antics. "I hear you and Artemis are pretty good with a bow, right?"
- "That's true," Apollo nodded.
- "I'd bet my mother's soul that my Archer would beat you both."
- "Impossible!" Apollo exclaimed immediately.
- "Absurd!" Artemis jumped up and slammed her hand on the table. "He's only mortal!"
- "Do you want to kill him?" Hestia asked.
- "Huh?" Archer jerked, his mouth wide open. "What nonsense are you..."
- "Yes, yes," I interrupted him, crossing my arms over my chest and nodding repeatedly. "You are amateurs compared to him."
My cook is not only good at cooking, cleaning, washing, and so on, but also at fighting, especially archery. You are just children.
- "Hey!" Archer protested and looked at the gods. "He's talking nonsense! I'm just..."
- "A heroic spirit capable of killing demons, immortals, and even gods. It would be nothing for him to smear you across the wall, wait for you to gather yourselves, and smear you again."
- "Very strong words, Romani," said Apollo, glaring at Archer. "But is your Archer capable of proving them?"
- "No, he can't..."
- "He can, of course. You can call all your servants at once. It won't change anything," I replied instantly, interrupting the Archer again and sealing his mouth with a mental command.
- "Then let's do it," Artemis nodded. "My lands are perfect for our purposes."
- "If we win and he proves to be as good as you describe, your Archer will serve us," Apollo declared.
- "And if Archer wins, you must obey one command of mine," I added.
- "Agreed."
- "Mmm!" Archer mooed, unable to open his mouth.
- "You're worrying for nothing," I said, although of course he meant something completely different. "They're just physical bodies. As long as you don't destroy the core, everything will be fine. Don't hold back. The only thing that will suffer is their pride."
- "How presumptuous," Artemis sneered. "My hunters could take you down in seconds, even without my help."
- "That's why we're going to test it out," I smiled and looked at Archer, whose eyes were saying only one thing: put me on a bottle.
Archer's strength with the Muramasa' Holy Graph? He'll just walk right through them and not even notice. But even if something unexpected happens... I didn't say anything about reinforcements on my side, did I?
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