The Interloper
"Don't talk nonsense!"
Poseidon bellowed. The roar rolled through every corner of the temple, and the waves answered him, heaving and thrashing.
In an instant, the temple that stood right on the shore became a sea of water.
"Gah—! Khh—!"
As the surge came crashing in, I clung to a pillar and held on with everything I had.
If I got swept away here, it was over.
"What right do you have!"
Poseidon roared, his face twisted with pure wrath. The veins standing out on his forehead were no act. He was genuinely furious.
"There have always been legends of humans overcoming gods!"
I threw my arms wide and shouted back.
"It isn't only the myth of Sisyphus! Before him, and after him as well!"
Myths that had never been told. Myths that had. And stories from religions and pantheons that weren't Greek at all.
"You insolent—!"
But Poseidon only roared louder.
"A human dares declare he will surpass the gods!"
"Yes. That's exactly what I'm saying!"
"Silence!!"
His rage climbed another notch.
Hecate turned to me, her face tight with fear.
"Homeron, any further than this…!"
"Poseidon!"
I pushed her back with one arm and stepped forward. Looking up at him as his muscles swelled and his body ballooned with power, I shouted,
"What, in the end, is a god's true nature? Hasn't it always been your purpose, generation after generation, to surpass your father, your mother, and become the next king?"
Poseidon froze.
Yes. That was the tradition of Greek myth itself.
The tradition of the King of Olympus.
"Do you not have that desire?"
He stared down at me, locked in place. I took another step and pressed him again.
"The desire to cast down Zeus—the youngest who became the eldest!"
Poseidon bared his teeth. The face that had been pure fury a moment before slowly twisted into a sly, cunning smile.
"So you're saying you can actually make that possible?"
Of course I can.
And so can you.
But I shut my eyes for a beat, burying that truth, then opened them again.
"Yes."
I said it with absolute certainty.
Right in front of Poseidon.
"Even without your help, that is my intention."
"Uwahahahahaha!!"
Poseidon threw his head back and roared with laughter.
"Without my help, even?"
"I will prove it."
I met his eyes without flinching.
"How far a human—a hero—can go. I will show you something even Heracles never managed!"
Poseidon grinned, teeth showing, as if the whole thing were beneath him. He was openly mocking me.
"A mere human declaring he'll defeat a god—and not just any god, but the King of Olympus. Well now. Live long enough and you really do see everything."
Of course it would gall him.
A worthless human claiming he would defeat a god.
And not just any god—Zeus, the King of Olympus, whom even all of them together had never managed to topple.
"Fine."
But more than that, every emotion that had been crushed under Zeus for thousands of years pushed Poseidon to accept my proposal.
I had seen through that from the start. That was why I had thrown the challenge.
It was half a gamble—but that was why I had done something this close to suicide.
"I can't wait to see how far you'll thrash about, and how ugly your end will be."
Poseidon said it with a cold, crooked smile.
"Zeus's favorite little human—not only running from his arms, but declaring he'll kill him. How deliciously absurd!"
Yeah. Even I would be laughing myself sick.
When had Zeus ever been made a fool of this thoroughly?
But the same goes for the rest of you.
The crime of trying to drag a man who wasn't even gay off as a lover.
That crime would have to be paid for in full.
I forced down the heat rising in my chest.
This could not be discovered.
Not yet.
I will kill every last one of the gods.
At last I understood what the passive skill Adversary of Olympus truly meant.
From the very beginning, I had been fated to stand against them.
Without fail!
Either I died, or the Greek gods did.
It was the fate of a man with nothing left but vengeance.
Crack!!
The moment we returned to the cabin, the first thing Hecate did was slap me across the face.
"You reckless idiot…"
Tears welled at the corners of her eyes.
She raised her hand again, ready to strike. I grabbed her forearm in a hurry. Hecate clenched her teeth and struggled to hit me anyway.
"You stupid fool! Reckless isn't even enough—you're an absolute moron!"
Her face crumpled as the tears spilled down.
Back in her sealed, petite form, she looked up at me with both hands trembling.
"What in the world were you spouting in there! What if you'd gotten yourself killed…!"
I shrugged.
"But I didn't die, did I?"
"Shut up!!"
Hecate shouted.
"The only reason you're still breathing is because Poseidon chose to spare you! If you'd so much as brushed his temper the wrong way, you would have died on the spot!"
I knew that.
And I knew how much of it was thanks to Hecate shielding me.
Because she had fought so desperately to save me, Poseidon had taken an interest. That was what made him listen. That was what made him pay attention to me.
All of it was because of Hecate.
"I'm not unaware of that."
I said it clearly.
"Lady Hecate. I know I'm alive because of you."
"So you do understand!"
Hecate yanked her arm free of my grip. Then she raised her hand again.
"Then you won't mind taking a few more, will you?"
"No. I do mind."
I stepped in closer.
Close enough that our faces nearly touched. Close enough that our breath mixed.
"In a situation where I might have died, the first thing that came to mind was you."
And then I pulled her into a full embrace.
"Thank you, Lady Hecate."
I didn't need to look to know her face had gone scarlet. She flailed her arms in helpless confusion.
"Y-you—! D-don't think you can get away with this just by—!"
"Please let me off."
"U-uuh…!"
Hecate trembled, completely at a loss. Then, slowly, she lifted her hands.
And stroked my back.
"I was worried. No—I was terrified."
"I know."
"I was so afraid you might die right there…"
The sound of her sniffling rang clear against my ear. I gently stroked her back, soothing her.
"Don't worry. It's over now."
"Hic…"
I started to ease away. But Hecate pressed herself even closer, pushing her body against mine.
"A little longer… Just a little longer like this."
"All right."
I stayed exactly where I was, just as she wanted.
After a long while, I carefully drew back.
I looked down at Hecate's face—flushed red, streaked with tear tracks.
Then I took her face in both hands.
And pressed a deep kiss to her lips.
Hecate's eyes went wide.
"Mmnh…"
A soft moan slipped out as her gaze went unfocused. I rolled my tongue into her mouth, caressing her gently, thoroughly.
Her hands tightened at my sides.
With a wet sound, our lips parted.
A thin thread of saliva still connected us.
"Lady Hecate."
I whispered it carefully—but hotly.
She dipped her head, avoiding my eyes.
"I told you, didn't I? You would be the second."
"B-but…"
I brought my lips to her ear and whispered, brushing them lightly along the shell.
"Shall we?"
A jolt ran through her. Then another.
I could feel her body trembling hard in my arms.
It was the trembling of someone glad.
The hand that had been stroking her back slid down to her waist.
She was small—almost childlike in height—but the curves under my palm made it clear she was a grown woman.
Her chest was modest compared to Hestia's, which always looked ready to burst.
Small enough to fit perfectly in a hand. Cute. Delicate.
Of course, once the seal was broken she would be as voluptuous as any other goddess.
"The way you are right now excites me the most."
Under that praise, Hecate melted.
She buried her face in my chest, nuzzling against me, taking a deep breath.
She inhaled a man's scent and let out a long sigh.
"Mm. Do it."
Hecate whispered, soft and low.
"Hold me."
She wasn't asking for a simple embrace. She was asking me to take her properly.
A smile rose to my lips on its own.
I scooped her up in one motion.
She didn't resist. She didn't even cry out.
Like a shy new bride, she looked up at me with a bashful little smile.
Bang!
That was when it happened.
Someone threw the cabin door open with full force.
Hecate and I both turned our heads.
"Th-this…"
Athena.
My collared sex slave.
She stood in the doorway.
"What on earth is this!"
Haa…
Of all times for her to show up.
"H-how—Lady Hestia wasn't enough, and now Lady Hecate as well…!"
Hecate's gaze slid toward me.
"Hestia? The goddess you said you slept with—don't tell me…"
Dangerous.
Without a second's hesitation, I crushed my mouth to hers again.
Wet, deep, relentless kisses.
Once I felt Hecate go soft and pliant, I beckoned to Athena.
"Come inside."
"I-I refuse…!"
"That is an order from your Master."
The Collar flared red.
Athena flinched and trembled, then had no choice but to shut the cabin door and step inside.
"You ruined the mood."
I snapped at her, voice sharp.
"You'll pay for that, won't you?"
Athena swallowed hard.
"Strip."
I ordered.
"And wait right there."
The price for interrupting my time with Hecate.
I would make her pay it properly.
Let's see how long she could last under neglect play.