Under Surveillance
I left Hestia's temple.
After a fight, nothing beat working off the lust. The rest of the cleanup would fall to Seretia—no, to Hestia. It always did.
So the main body gets all the fun, and the clones get stuck with the aftermath?
Looked at that way, she was reaping the pleasure while dumping the responsibility. By that measure, Hestia was one hell of a sinful mother.
Nah. No way.
She wouldn't pull the same stunt as the rest of the Greek gods—take everything they wanted and bolt without a second thought. I trusted the image of her goodness that had settled so firmly inside me.
"Lady Hecate!"
Instead of lingering, I charged straight into Hecate's cabin.
"Hueh?"
Hecate startled so hard she dropped the potion bottle in her hands. It shattered with a crash, the liquid inside spilling across the floor.
"Aaaah! Homeron, what are you doing barging in like that and scaring me half to death?!"
She stared down at the ruined potion with a face on the verge of tears.
"I worked so hard on that, and now it's all ruined!"
"I got it!"
At my shout, Hecate's ears perked up and she whipped her head around. Her eyes went round as saucers—adorable.
"You really did?"
I grinned and held the ore aloft.
Hecate's mouth fell open. She bounced in place, then came running at me, pure delight written all over her.
"You really did! You actually brought it back!"
"Who do you think I am? I'm the hero of the goddess Hecate herself, aren't I?"
Her face went scarlet. But the joy still outran the embarrassment. She snatched the ore from my hand in a rush of excitement, practically drooling over it.
"Hyaaah…"
"Well?"
I planted both hands on my hips and puffed out my chest.
"This Homeron has proven himself worthy of answering a goddess's request!"
The moment the words left my mouth, the messages appeared.
Hecate's Quest completed.
Nepherion's Lair cleared.
Experience gained.
Passive skill leveled up.
Achievement unlocked: A Hero's First Steps
One of Hecate's Blessings received.
Hecate's affection has increased.
Worth risking my life for. Rewards this sweet would have left me bitter as hell if I'd failed.
"Excellent!"
Hecate thrust her arms into the air. Still buzzing, she bolted for the laboratory with the ore in hand—and promptly stepped on a shard of broken glass.
"Kyaaah!"
She dropped straight to the floor, lifting her foot. Blood was already welling up.
"Huing…"
I went to her as she sat there looking ready to cry. Kneeling, I pulled the glass free and started binding the wound.
"Honestly. How are you this clumsy?"
"B-but…"
"Be more careful."
Hecate stared up at me, dazed. The second I caught her looking, she jerked her gaze away.
Hecate has taken a liking to you.
It wouldn't be long before I had her on that bed.
I walked the main avenue whistling. Odysseia bustled with people going about their ordinary lives.
"Everyone's so damn carefree."
Some of us were out there fighting for our lives, fretting over whether a god might notice us. Others just lived as they always had.
Not that I've got any right to complain.
Compared to my days as a slave, my life now was night and day. I still worried about Zeus catching wind of me—that hadn't changed. But living in Hecate's cabin and running her quests was a clear step up from the Temple of the Hearth.
The temple prized austerity as a virtue, so austerity was what you got. Hecate was different. She was fairly well-off in her own right. Running her quests had given me free rein to enjoy whatever I could get my hands on. And whenever the mood struck, I could drop by the Temple of the Hearth and thoroughly wreck the place.
If that wasn't paradise on earth, what was?
Ah, this is the life.
Nothing would get in my way for a while. I could stretch out and sleep easy. Odysseia was Poseidon's domain, so no goddess would dare mess with me lightly. With Hestia and Hecate both in my corner, there was no one left to interfere.
Happy. I was happy.
"Hm?"
That was when I felt it—a gaze locked on my back. The same one I'd felt in Athens.
Athena is watching you.
What the fuck?
I nearly spun around on instinct. Then Hecate's words came back to me, and I froze every movement.
"It would be better if the other gods never learned you have this kind of power. They're all so greedy—they don't take kindly to a human and a goddess getting involved with each other."
No—fuck that. Thinking about it, this was bullshit. They screwed human women left and right, but a human man screwing goddesses made them uncomfortable? What kind of double standard was that? These bastards!
Calm down. Calm the hell down.
I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them and started walking again.
First I need to figure out why this goddess followed me all the way from Athens.
Where had she been this whole time, if she wasn't watching me?
Odysseia is Poseidon's territory. She probably had to get his permission first.
My steps stopped of their own accord. I lifted my head and looked up at the sky.
So she's watching me from here on out?
Dangerous. As long as Athena had eyes on me, coming and going from Hecate's cabin would look blatantly suspicious. At this rate, I couldn't complete her quests.
My growth stops here.
I had to drag her out by any means necessary.
One of the Twelve Olympians. Goddess of War and Wisdom. And a virgin goddess.
Athena.
I have to fuck her to get out of this.
Was it possible?
No—I'd make it possible. For now.
I turned on my heel and headed straight for the Temple of the Hearth.
"Oh my?"
Seretia happened to be outside, tending the trees. Sacred firewood for the rites. The sight brought back memories of Phylotera doing the same, and a strange nostalgia washed over me.
"What is it this time…"
She trailed off, her expression hardening as she looked me over carefully. I gave her a small nod and walked past.
"I've got business today. Came to pay my respects to Lady Hestia."
"I see."
Seretia wiped her hands on her apron and took it off. The high priestess's dress beneath clung to her narrow waist, her full breasts and hips straining against the fabric.
"I'll show you in."
We entered the temple. The moment we were inside, Seretia asked again.
"Since when?"
"Just a little while ago."
"Do you know whose gaze it is?"
"Athena."
Seretia sat in a chair and studied me from across the way. I met her eyes without looking away.
"As I thought. Has Zeus started to notice?"
"I don't know that either."
I shook my head. I couldn't read Athena's intentions at all. When I'd been in Athens, she could have seized me and delivered me to Zeus anytime she wanted—and she hadn't. That alone was suspicious.
"As expected…"
"As expected."
Seretia and I both looked up at each other.
"Better to ask her directly."
We said it at the same time, then nodded.
"How do you plan to do it?"
I steepled my fingers.
"I'll have to fuck her."
Seretia looked thoroughly unimpressed. Looking at that face, I still couldn't tell. Was Hestia actually acting through her, or was this the clone's own personality? Did Hestia only possess her during sex?
No. I would have felt the dissonance if that were the case.
Ever since Phylotera, the clones and the main body had clearly synchronized more tightly. Otherwise Hestia couldn't appear and vanish so freely.
I closed my eyes and let out a breath.
That's not what matters.
What mattered was that the woman in front of me was my Hestia. And even as she radiated clear discomfort, she was still respecting my will and my decision.
"Can you actually win?"
"I'll have to."
I raised Hestia's sacred relic and stood.
"The blessing you gave me, and the one Aphrodite passed along—I'll throw everything I've got at her and win."
Seretia blinked.
"Pardon?"
"Ah. My mistake."
I'd nearly slipped.
"I keep thinking of you as Hestia's clone, so for a second I just… thought of you as Hestia."
Seretia closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, she smiled softly.
"Well. An easy mistake to make."
Her tone was off. She was definitely suspicious of me. I snorted a quiet laugh and turned away.
"Take care of yourself."
Then I glanced back at her from the corner of my eye.
"Once I've fucked Athena, I'll teach you a new position."
And with that, I left the Temple of the Hearth.
I didn't need to look to know. Her lower half would be soaked through with arousal for a long time yet, waiting for me. Leaving her behind, my steps turned toward another temple entirely.
The god of fire and the forge—Hephaestus.
"I've come to reinforce a weapon."
I held up Hestia's sacred relic.
"Call Lord Hephaestus for me."
It was time to prepare for my first fight against an Olympian god.