Chapter 88
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: Fierce Beast, Lethal Female Warrior
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Even on Pasos Island, whenever I lay on the warm sandy beach dozing off, Neri's hair—infused with a fresh sea breeze—would tickle my body.
She appeared to be nothing more than a promising beauty, boasting mythical charm and otherworldly allure.
But whenever her snowy-white arm wrapped around my back and that soft cheek pressed against my chest, I could subtly feel the ocean surging within her.
Warm seawater, perfectly heated by the Mediterranean sun, and the deep waves that chilled my spine refreshingly when submerged beneath it.
Neri brought the entire sea into her tiny body and nestled into my arms, and in those moments, I felt as relaxed and peaceful as if I were drifting in warm waters with her, enjoying a lazy nap.
Awakening slightly and opening my eyes, I could see the pre-dawn sky preparing for the sunrise peeking through the gap in the balcony door far off in the distance.
Yesterday had been field training for external commissions, so today's schedule was free time. No need to rush out.
"Heracles and Atalanta... they'll probably join in to mess with the kids... Yawn~"
What was everyone so busy with anyway?
They should take a page from this life veteran—savoring fleeting moments with leisure, sleeping in as long as they want.
They say once you get old, even morning sleep vanishes, making it hard to lounge like this.
Lost in a drowsy haze staring blankly at the ceiling, I recalled the sea fairy who'd been pounding against my chest last night.
"Hm... Neri?"
As in so many myths, the mysterious lover vanishes upon waking, leaving a vague emptiness that reignites the hero's spirit through the enigmatic encounter—that's the classic flow.
"Mmhehehe... Rock bed..."
Glancing down at the heavy weight settling on my chest, there was only a young fairy giggling mischievously, snugly nestled against me.
"Sigh..."
By physical age, Neri was probably a bit older than me.
According to her sisters and her own account, she'd only been allowed to roam the surface alone after her coming-of-age rite, under Olympus's protection for safeguarding their beautiful youngest.
"So what? She acts just like a kid."
"Eek? Ehehe..."
Her cheeks puffing out like microwaved glutinous rice cake, all soft and white.
When I gently stroked her hair, her sleepy smile beaming in response evoked a puppy—no, a harp seal pup.
"Aigoo, Miss Fairy. Do you know what it means sneaking into a man's bedroom in the middle of the night?"
Surely her sisters, who'd choked down a crate of sweet potatoes over the baby sister's love life, had urged her to go with a full-frontal assault.
Can't be helped. I chuckled lazily and sank my head comfortably into the pillow.
For reference, my sleepwear was simple—just covering the lower half.
In other words, Neri was rubbing against my bare upper body.
My body, honed relentlessly through spars with Ares and practical training with Atalanta, was toned to my own satisfaction.
To put it another way, it was too hard and uneven for a young fairy to use as a bed.
Yet Neri clung to me like a cicada on a tree, refusing to let go. Intoxicated by her cooling body heat against the dawn breeze and her unique sea scent, I carefully embraced her and pulled the blanket over us.
In the end, I only managed to get up when the sun was high in the sky, still wrapped in Neri's arms.
Even then, she showed no sign of leaving the bed until I got up to wash, sleeping so soundly it felt wrong to wake her. I quietly covered her with the blanket and slipped out.
"Haaah~"
-Thud! Thud thud!
After getting ready, I headed to a small clearing near Athena's training grounds.
Hastening my steps at the brutal striking sounds echoing from afar.
Under the glaring sunlight in the clearing stood a female warrior fiercely unleashing kicks against the iron puppet I'd specially ordered from Hestias.
"Haaap!"
-Kwang!
Her brown, beautiful leg whipped through afterimages, smashing the iron puppet's head and sending it flying far away with a clear footprint etched on it.
She wasn't standing on solid ground but atop a wooden pillar about the length of a stone pillar I'd trimmed and set up.
Balancing on these pillars erected to match the Galloping Horse Technique's footwork without falling, while landing effective hits on the iron puppet.
That was the task I'd assigned to the successor of the Galloping Horse Technique, and now I was witnessing the results firsthand.
-Clap, clap, clap!
"Weight distribution, balance, footwork—all perfect."
"Huh? Dianes!"
As I clapped in approval, Atalanta descended with a bright smile and greeted me.
"R-Really?"
"Of course. I wouldn't know about anything else, but you've started mastering the Galloping Horse Technique almost perfectly. You still have openings, but that's..."
"Something to cover with speed, right?"
"Exactly."
Her ruby-red eyes sparkled with joy at the recognition, her tightly bound crimson hair evoking flames in contrast to Neri's sea— a fierce, intense beauty.
Our first meeting had been quite hostile—no, downright deadly. Since then, every entanglement brought chaos and rampages. The boisterous female warrior Atalanta.
A master thief who'd stealthily absorbed the Galloping Horse Technique from my mindscape. Now, properly trained by me, she'd shed her hunter vibe entirely, exuding the aura of a true warrior woman.
"Hm..."
"What's up? Did I mess up somewhere?"
"Nah, just find it intriguing."
"Intriguing?"
Of course it was.
She'd endured hellish practical lessons evoking the upper levels of hell with the Galloping Horse Technique, plus Karyklo's three square meals packed with nutrients from highland game.
No matter how naturally slender she was, a month of that should've bulked her into a bodybuilder.
Yet Atalanta's body remained soft and fluffy as ever.
Not that her training yielded no results, far from it.
Her legs grew swifter by the day, now able to chase and capture deer alive in the forest.
And the immense power surging from those supple limbs—no one but Heracles or I could withstand it.
"Maybe because she didn't just learn the Galloping Horse Technique but absorbed its essence..."
The Galloping Horse Technique was an extreme external art; normally, training it would cover the body in muscle.
With muscles hammered like rolling dough and beaten like iron forging, it optimally shaped body and mind for a warrior.
I'd started with it in my past life to build my body, and its effects were unparalleled. But Atalanta, through a different transmission method, retained her feminine curves and beauty while wielding power unmatched by most heroes.
A miraculous body that would make countless female masters scream "cheat."
That was Atalanta.
"Anyway, it's a good thing, right?"
"Yeah."
"Hmph!"
At my words, Atalanta puffed out her chest proudly, her smile radiating a wild beauty like a lioness after a successful hunt.
Seeing this beast, boasting power and beauty beyond others' reach, purely delighted by my praise, my hand moved on its own.
"Huh?"
"You're soaked in sweat."
I slowly wiped the sweat beads from her dewy morning neck and jaw, catching a deep, sensual feminine scent tickling my nose.
"Hng~ Feels cool~"
She leaned into my touch with a rumbling purr, and I smiled back, meticulously drying her face with the towel.
With each brush of my hand, the female warrior's exquisite form drew subtly closer, exuding not a girl's but a woman's ripe fragrance in that instant.
An instinctive scent that drove men mad, glossy moist skin gleaming invitingly, crimson eyes sparkling with vitality and allure.
And those beautiful fruits of womanhood that naturally drew a man's sorrowful gaze.
Wearing her revealing Greek training attire, Atalanta's breasts were fully exposed, dew trickling over the ever-growing sinful fruits in a dizzying sight.
"Hmm... This area's too wet too... Wanna wipe it?"
"Whoa..."
What made this beautiful beast so maddening.
She knew exactly how to wield her weapons lethally, anytime, anywhere.
The wild huntress once prone to berserk rages fueled by excessive zeal and fury had mastered self-control, turning it into deadly precision.
"...Where'd that huntress go who charged at me ready to kill on first sight?"
"Eek!"
But at my smirking jab, Atalanta crumbled in an instant, proving I still had the upper hand.