Morning Entanglement and the Goddess's Wrath

The fraudulent protagonist and the unlucky heroine were already caught up in the incident. (4)

The next morning. 10:30 PM.

"...Mmm...?"

Unlike usual, when Ju Joyeon would wake up early with May or Jack's help, he stirred awake alone. What... the? Why didn't anyone wake me?

Since nothing like this had ever happened before, he wondered if something was wrong and tried to sit up. But for some reason, his body felt pinned down by something and wouldn't move at all.

Why won't my body mo—

"Nng~"

A chill ran down his spine. Arty's voice whispered right in front of his nose, making every hair on his body stand on end as his mind snapped awake. Only then did he realize the weight pressing down on him was Arty.

Ha?! Why?! Did she roll over?! How the hell—?!

Ju Joyeon froze completely, only moving his eyes to assess the situation. The first thing he saw was Arty's light pink hair and the top of her head. She had climbed completely on top of him, using his chest as a pillow while fast asleep.

Next, he noticed the blanket that had fallen off the bed. He couldn't be sure what had happened during the night, but Arty's poor sleeping habits had sent the blanket tumbling down. Seeking warmth, she had ended up sprawled across his body.

Thanks to all that movement, her clothes were barely functioning as intended. Though he couldn't see it from his position, they were hanging on by a thread.

And finally—

"May...!!"

Click.

Have you awakened, Master? Good morning.

May stood waiting in the corner of the room as if she had been there the whole time, politely greeting him in response to his hushed call. Ju Joyeon couldn't see it, but he was certain May was grinning widely beneath her veil.

"Why didn't you wake me...?!"

Click!

I couldn't possibly interrupt Master's private time! It's a shame you're not naked, so it doesn't seem ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like you've made things official yet~ But I certainly can't stop you from enjoying a body as ideal as Lady Arty's!

"What nonsense...! You think I'm doing this because I want to enjoy it...?!"

Click?

Oh my, was I mistaken? I naturally assumed you and Lady Arty had grown close enough to share a bed.

"Of course not...!"

With his senses sharpened upon waking, he could feel Arty's soft skin far too clearly. It was a softness he had never experienced before.

"Help me already...?!"

Click.

But Master, there's nothing I can do. Whether I wake Lady Arty or you, the situation of you two embracing in sleep won't change.

"Your job is to get me out of this no matter what...!"

"Nng...? Where..."

Arty, who had been lying on top of him, finally woke at the sound of his voice. She squinted with sleepy eyes and looked at Ju Joyeon right in front of her.

"...Joyeon...?"

"......"

Ju Joyeon couldn't say a word and turned his face away. Arty slowly rubbed her eyes and sat up, shifting into a straddling position.

"Hey...! Snap out of it and get off!"

"Uuu... Cold..."

"That's because you're wearing such thin clothes!"

"Blanket... Blanket..."

Arty lightly ignored him, hugging her bare white shoulders as she looked around. Eventually, she spotted the blanket on the floor. Pointing at it with her finger, one of her raw gemstones floated up and lifted the blanket.

"Hey... Hey! Don't even think about going back to sleep, get up!"

"Huu~ Cold~"

"If you lie down again, I'll force—!"

Before he could finish, Arty flopped right back down on top of him.

"Nng~ Joyeon's body is warm..."

"Y-You crazy woman...! Come to your senses!"

Arty, who had treated him like a bed while asleep, now hugged his head like a pillow. This time, Ju Joyeon's face was buried in her chest. Even he couldn't help but turn bright red at her actions.

"Let's~ sleep a little longer together...?"

"Sleep by yourself...! Can you even handle yourself once you're fully awake...?!"

"Sleep together~ Joyeon's body is warm..."

"Hey, please... I'm a guy too, you know? If we're talking gay or pervert, I'm obviously a pervert? Right now I'm... barely holding on..."

"Sleep with me... Yeah~? Sleep with me~"

Arty rubbed her face against his head, acting cute. Crack. Something inside Ju Joyeon's mind snapped.

Damn it. I don't care anymore. If I'm gonna die for this, then so be it.

He finally gave up his pointless resistance, accepted the situation, and tightly hugged Arty's slender waist before closing his eyes. Realizing he had surrendered, Arty smiled brightly and drifted back to sleep.

Click.

My, my~ Rest well~

May, who had been watching, decided she shouldn't interfere and left the room with a smile.

Before long, only the sound of Ju Joyeon and Arty's steady breathing filled the room.

...

Ding!

The notification that appeared before Arty was one she struggled to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠understand even after reading the explanation.

Ding!

And the notification that appeared before Ju Joyeon was one of the Ability Goddess's furious rage toward him for cherishing Arty.

Ding!

Ding!

Notifications directed at Ju Joyeon began pouring out like mad. And finally—

Ding!

With that final notification, no more alerts appeared.

****

A pure white space.

"...Huh? Where is this?"

Ju Joyeon, who had been standing alone in the middle of the space, came to his senses and began looking around.

"Uh... I was definitely holding Arty and sleeping... Huh? Did I die in my sleep or something?"

Thinking that might actually be possible, Ju Joyeon scratched his head, still not fully convinced.

"Inventory."

At his words, the inventory opened.

"Huh? It opens. Status window."

The status window opened without issue. Realizing he wasn't dead, Ju Joyeon dismissed the window floating before his eyes to look around again. Then, on the other side of where the status window had been, a woman appeared who hadn't been there before.

"Uh... Who are you?"

"......"

A woman as beautiful as Arty. It was none other than the Ability God who had blessed Arty. Unlike Arty's off-shoulder dress that revealed more skin than it covered, the Ability God wore a sacred-looking dress that hid every inch of skin. While Arty often smiled with various expressions, the Ability God was glaring at Ju Joyeon with her lovely face twisted in fury.

Without answering his question, the Ability God walked toward him.

Who is she? I've never seen her before. She's pretty... Arty's friend? ...Wait a second. I feel like I'm remembering something...

Smack!

Just as Ju Joyeon was grasping at clues about ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the Ability God's identity, his head snapped to the side. The Ability God had suddenly slapped him across the cheek upon reaching him.

Though the sudden shock left him momentarily blank, Ju Joyeon wasn't the type to take it lying down. Glaring at the Ability God who had struck him, he channeled strength into his right hand and swung it to slap her back.

"Whoa! Wait! Wait~! Calm down, calm down, friend~ You can't hit her~"

"No matter how angry you are, laying hands on her would be truly irreversible. Please endure it for a moment."

Just before Ju Joyeon's hand could strike the Ability God, two men suddenly appeared. The Modern God and the Magic God grabbed both of Ju Joyeon's arms.

"L-Let go! This woman...! Without any reason...!"

"We know. We understand. Friend, you wouldn't understand at all. Let's calm down a bit? Yeah? Calm down a little and listen to us first~"

"Ugh...!"

He struggled with all his might to free his arms and slap the Ability God back, but no matter how hard Ju Joyeon tried, his arms wouldn't budge. Seizing the moment while he was restrained, the Ability God raised her hand once more.

"Ability! That's enough!"

The Modern God, still holding Ju Joyeon, shouted at the Ability God with a serious expression.

"We'll handle the first incident since we missed it, but if you try to lay hands on him even once more, we'll expel the child you cherish from the fused world."

"Tch!"

Despite the Modern God's threat, the Ability God's anger toward Ju Joyeon hadn't subsided, and she continued glaring at him. Ju Joyeon found the sight absurd.

"What the hell is this all of a sudden! What did I do to deserve that glare! You crazy wo— Mmph!!"

The Modern God covered Ju Joyeon's mouth with his hand.

"No~ Please calm down, friend. Hitting with your hands is bad, and cursing with words is also bad. That would only give Ability more justification and pretext."

"Ability, it seems like you're deliberately trying to make him cross the line. You clearly said this place was created to sort out the situation. If you keep interfering like this, we'll finish the conversation without you."

"...Tsk!"

The woman clicked her tongue and nodded reluctantly, crossing her arms. For now, the Modern God and Magic God had suppressed the Ability God's outburst and turned to calm Ju Joyeon.

"Now, our friend too. We'll apologize for what just happened. Though it's small, we'll also compensate you. So let's talk first?"

"Can I slap that woman's cheek?"

"Hmm-- That might be a bit much~"

"...I understand, so please let go now."

"You won't hit her?"

"I won't hit her."

The moment you let go, I'll slap her at a speed you can't even react to.

Ju Joyeon said one thing while thinking the complete opposite, determined not to let this slide.

"Ahaha... I can hear everything you're thinking right now. I guess we'll have to start the conversation in this state."

"You've got quite the petty personality."

"Ability, be quiet for real. If you say one more word, I'll place restrictions on that child. I mean it."

"......"

It took some time for the Modern God and Magic God to calm both Ju Joyeon and the Ability God.