Aphrodite -4-
In truth, Aphrodite wasn't the type to obsess over one man. She had maintained a long affair with Ares, but that was only because he was a handsome, powerful Olympian who could satisfy her—it wasn't because she saw him as a lifelong companion.
From the day she married Hephaestus, Aphrodite had given up on the idea of ever having a true partner for life. The husband forced upon her by the king of the gods was utterly unsuitable as a mate by any measure, and he showed little interest in her besides. Her marriage had been doomed from the start.
In that sense, Heracles was a special god.
His human origins didn't matter. If anything, the trials and tribulations he'd overcome to ascend to godhood earned him extra points as a man, in her eyes. Every woman in Achaia yearned for a strong male. That was why she despised Hephaestus and drew close to Ares—Ares was the stronger of the two.
She, who believed without a doubt that she was the most beautiful goddess in Achaia, was convinced that only the strongest man deserved her as a match. That conviction hadn't changed since her birth on the island of Rhodes.
Which made it all the harder to understand Heracles' inner thoughts.
There was some room for debate in Aphrodite's confident claim to being Achaia's most beautiful goddess, but there was no denying she was a flawless deity of love, beauty, and eroticism—a breathtaking beauty. She held her own even compared to the triad of Gaia, Adamantia, and Echidna.
All men naturally desired her, and she naturally reveled in that desire. The eroticism she ruled was as innate as a roaring blaze—savor it while it burned fiercely, let it fade when it dimmed. That was the natural flow.
Yet Heracles was clearly drawn to her beauty and figure, and still he consistently shied away from getting close.
"Just how long do you plan on running away from me?!"
"…Lady Aphrodite, good evening. Are you enjoying the banquet?"
"If I said someone ruined it and made me furious, would you help?"
"……If there's anything I can do to assist, of course I will. What do you need help with?"
"Talk to me! I have so much to say to you!"
"Ah, very well."
After a full day of what felt like an endless game of tag(?), Aphrodite finally lost her patience and grabbed Heracles by the shoulder. He flinched for a moment but responded with his usual kind smile.
It was hard to believe this was the same man who'd spent the whole day dodging her—his demeanor was utterly serene. Aphrodite seethed with frustration, but the water was already spilled.
Still fuming, she dragged him out of the palace. The banquet hall's attendees all eyed the goddess of love's sudden outburst, but she couldn't have cared less about their stares right now.
"Come with me, Heracles."
"Yes, my goddess."
"You can drop the 'my.' You're a god too, after all."
"Even so, I have a duty to keep my distance from you, Lady Aphrodite."
"Why on earth?!"
"?"
Aphrodite longed to hear him call her name in that low, velvety voice of his, but Heracles politely refused. Yet she couldn't comprehend his behavior at all.
Why did he keep pushing her away like this?
"Do you hate me?"
"No, I'm a man too—how could I hate a beautiful goddess like you?"
A blunt question got a blunt answer.
"So you do find me beautiful?"
"In my eyes, you're dazzlingly so."
"Of course. I'm the most beautiful goddess in Achaia, after all."
"That claim seems open to some dispute. To me, my wives are even more beautiful."
"Oh ho."
Aphrodite felt like she'd just uncovered Heracles' secret.
"Your wives must be quite the handful, then—such powerful goddesses, hard to handle?"
"……Why do you think that?"
"Isn't it common sense that a wife who stops her husband from taking more wives is a wicked one?"
Aphrodite spoke the truth. A wife who opposed her husband taking additional wives and tried to bind him tight was indeed troublesome. Even Queen Hera tried to block Zeus from marrying more goddesses, though Zeus had no intention of taking any beyond her, so it amounted to turning a blind eye.
But to Aphrodite, endless nagging about it without action just made the wife seem petty. Yet Heracles' response was completely different.
"My wives all love me. They've never been wicked to me, not once. Gaia is the same."
"Then why use your wives as an excuse to avoid me? Explain that. It sounds like a lame lie to me."
Aphrodite's expression brimmed with absolute confidence in her beauty as she pressed him. This unyielding directness was the root of her irresistible charm. Her confidence—bold but not overbearing—even drew honest admiration from Heracles.
And so he answered honestly.
"I don't know why you see it as a lie, but to me, my wives are more beautiful than you, Lady Aphrodite."
"I asked why."
"Yes, you did. First off, they're all incredibly beautiful goddesses. You know that much."
"Well……yes, but I pride myself on being the most beautiful."
"But they're all my companions. They're the ones I've sworn eternity with. I believe I must cherish the flowers in my own garden above all."
"……"
His answer was unexpected. Women seeking a true companion wasn't rare, but hearing a husband—the master of his wives—speak of seeking a companion himself? That was a first for her.
So for the first time, Aphrodite pressed Heracles not out of anger, but genuine curiosity.
"Go on, keep talking."
"I'm not much of a talker, so I can't say much more, but thanks to you, Lady Aphrodite, I half-accidentally gained three beautiful goddesses as wives and became a god. So first, I owe you my thanks. Because I love my wives, they are the most beautiful to me."
"Enough with the smooth talk. Do you really see women as true companions?"
"I don't understand why you call it smooth talk. I love all my wives and strive to cherish them as companions. Please don't mock my efforts."
Heracles' voice held a flicker of anger at Aphrodite's rude words, but as a husband, he suppressed it. He managed to deliver his final words in as even a tone as possible.
Those last words struck Aphrodite like lightning. She repeated them like a parrot, stunned.
"Wait—you cherish and love all your wives as true companions? Not just wife versus concubine?"
"Wife versus concubine? They're all my wives."
"So, no hierarchy?"
"That's right."
"No favorites or rivalries?"
As she fired her final question, Aphrodite eyed Heracles' lower body intently. His face flushed under her gaze, but he answered without evasion.
"……Embarrassing as it is, even in bed, they've had no complaints."
"Impressive."
"……"
Aphrodite was genuinely awed, and Heracles fell silent, apparently unwilling to delve further into indecent talk. But since she was the one whose body heated first from his words, her barrage of questions continued.
"So that's why you married four goddesses at once? To avoid favoring any one companion?"
"It wasn't my idea at first—it was Adamantia's—but yes, it carries that meaning."
"Then, if one of your wives or companions wanted to leave you now, what would you do?"
"I'd spend as much time as needed convincing her otherwise."
"And if no amount of convincing worked? If she wanted a different companion?"
"I'd pray it never happens, but if it did, I'd let her go for the sake of her happiness."
"……"
Heracles' final answer left even the goddess of eroticism speechless. She, who championed free love and unbound marriages as the protector of eroticism, had never heard anything like it.
A man convincing a woman and then letting her go? Unheard of.
And with that, her ultimate question followed.
"You said you hope it never happens. So, how long will you keep striving to prevent it?"
"……As long as this marriage lasts—eternity."
To Aphrodite, those words were the sweetest temptation imaginable. They were exactly what she'd yearned for all her life.
So the thought echoing in her mind was just one phrase.
Found him.
The goddess's heartfelt inner voice.