Cilician Marshes.
Under the shade of the trees, Tina tiptoed and plucked a ripe fig, about to pop it into her mouth.
"Hold on, you need to peel it first."
Samael chuckled, flicking the smooth forehead of the goddess's larva with his finger. He patiently took the deep purple fig, softened it in his hand, and peeled away the skin.
After a moment's wait, Tina finally tasted the flesh. She grabbed Samael's wrist as he held it out, swallowed the piece in one bite, then looked up at him with expectant eyes.
"Alright, alright. I'll find more. I'll find more."
Samael sighed, patting Tina's head. He picked dozens of figs from nearby, laid them on banana leaves, and continued peeling and feeding her as they walked.
With a mischievous glint in his serpent eyes, he tossed and flicked pieces of fig flesh in varying arcs and angles. Tina's cross-shaped pupils locked onto each piece, and she jumped or crouched, catching them like a dog snapping frisbees, swallowing every bite cleanly.
Watching the adorable figure bounding around beside him, Samael's mind suddenly conjured a rebellious thought.
Speaking of which… does this count as training?
"Ah!"
Lost in that dangerous thought, he suddenly found the last piece of fig flesh in his hand sucked straight from his fingers by Tina, who clung to his arm.
Her small pink tongue lingered on his palm, lapping at the juice still clinging to his skin, sending shivers down his spine.
Samael's heart stirred as he stared at his fingers, now sucked dry, while her tongue slid and scraped along them. His face flushed, and his steps faltered.
When she was sure no more juice remained, Tina reluctantly released his hand, rubbing her rounded belly with a blissful look on her face.
The heavy sense of fullness made the goddess grow dreamy-eyed. She yawned, already looking drowsy.
Samael, too, found himself infected by her yawn, suddenly missing the comfort of his bed at home.
Hmm, too many dishes… I think I overate.
Of course, the food they had devoured last night wasn't fruit or meat, but the divine essence and Spirit Cores of gods.
Over the past decade, everything had unfolded exactly as Samael planned, their scheme proceeding smoothly. The gods of Mount Olympus and Mount Othrys fought by day and rested at night. He and Tina hid through daylight, then emerged under cover of darkness to sweep the battlefields, harvesting the divinity and Spirit Cores from corpses.
After all, one was a larval vessel of the Mother of Genesis, the other an ancient serpent with the Authority of the Beast, able to replenish his Spirit Origin through what they consumed. Impure divinity that might threaten bloodline purity was easily digested by them.
In just a few years of scavenging, their power had surged, rising from Lesser Gods to Intermediate Gods.
Samael's enigmatic divinity of destiny, combined with Tina's extraordinary origin rank, made them unstoppable against swarms of mid-to-lower-tier Divine Spirits. At times, they had even slain Greater Gods together, feasting on their remains.
Greater Gods marked the pinnacle of degenerated bloodlines. Beyond them, the Main Gods underwent a qualitative shift in authority, far harder to oppose.
But overall, Samael and Tina now held more than enough power to roam half of the Cilician Marshes without fear, confident in their ability to protect themselves.
Still, Samael remained cautious, striking and moving quickly, rarely lingering at a battlefield. Under cover of night and the concealment of destiny, they would venture out, gorge themselves, then retreat into the depths of the marshes to sleep and digest.
So long as the few remaining Main Gods left them alone, their days were pleasant and fulfilling.
Just as Samael and Tina, drowsy and satisfied, were preparing to head home, Daphne appeared with her nymph companions. Spotting them, her eyes lit up and she rushed forward, wings fluttering as she surrounded them.
"Hurry, Samael! You have to help me this time!"
The reckless little girl grabbed his hand without explanation and pulled him toward her home.
"What is it now? Did your prank with those parchments in Astraea's room get exposed?"
"No!"
"Then did you get some nymph in trouble and her relatives came after you?"
"No way! I've been really good lately!"
"Just so you know, I won't plead for you about throwing away your books and skipping the exam."
"I've already been beaten for that! Who needs you to plead for me?"
Faced with Samael's relentless questioning, Daphne shook her head furiously, trying to dodge his suspicions.
Finally, driven to the edge, she blurted out the disaster weighing on her.
"My aunt and cousin must have said something… their faces turned so dark, they're about to start fighting!"
"Go ask your dad to mediate."
"Ever since my cousin moved in, my dad left. I haven't seen him in years…"
"And that has what to do with me?"
"My cousin listens to you the most…"
"I'm not going! Your cousin might not even be the one losing out."
"But that's my home! If you don't help and they fight, I'll lose my home! You can't call yourself a friend if you abandon me!"
Clinging to him in tears, Daphne refused to let go. Samael's mouth twitched, his face darkening.
In the end, under Daphne's relentless sobbing and Tina tugging at his sleeve with pleading starry eyes, Samael gave in with a sigh.
Thus, the renowned arbitrator of the Cilician Marshes marched proudly toward the small hut, nymphs crowding around him.
But the moment he entered, Daphne froze in shock.
Inside, there was no trace of tension. The two goddesses who had been quarreling sat calmly in wicker chairs, sipping tea and playing chess in harmony.
"Daphne, what's this about?"
The elegant goddess with silver hair cascading over her shoulders and deep violet eyes turned curiously toward the noisy doorway, a chess piece in her hand.
"Oh, this is Samael. He came to visit today, and he especially wanted to see Cousin Astraea."
"By the way, that beast chess you're playing? He invented it. This guy's pretty amazing!"
The nymphs immediately shuffled aside, leaving Samael exposed at the center. Chuckling awkwardly, they turned, muttered excuses, and bolted, wings fluttering as they slipped away through cracks and windows.
"Astraea, Aunt Metis, you two keep chatting. I'll go gather some mushrooms for lunch!"
With that, the group of winged nymphs shrank their forms and scattered like dragonflies.
When Samael turned, he found himself utterly abandoned. Even Tina, who had been waiting outside, had been whisked away into the forest by the treacherous little creatures.
Wait. That brat just called a name.
Aunt Metis? The goddess of wisdom, Metis! Zeus's queen, Athena's own mother!
Shit!
A chill ran down Samael's spine. He carefully edged backward, hoping to slip away unnoticed.
Like hell I'm sticking around!
Not only had he and Tina been sneaking around at night, devouring mid- and low-tier gods from both sides like snacks, their hands were filthy with crimes. And these two? One was a Titan Main God of Mount Othrys, the other the strategist of Olympus.
Whatever they were arguing about, it was bound to be dangerous. Listening in could get him killed.
But as soon as Samael shifted to leave, the Queen of the Gods turned, a faint smile on her lips as she toyed with a chess piece.
"Since the guest is here, why not come in and sit? I'm not very familiar with this game, and I could use a teacher who knows the rules."
...
(50 Chapters Ahead)
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