— — — — — —
Clack!
A bamboo water clock chimed softly as the flow of water marked the passing of time.
Ryo simply stood there, watching Artemis. Since she hadn't spoken yet, he didn't interrupt.
Truth be told, while the silver-haired beauty was undeniably stunning, what caught his eye most wasn't her looks, but the icy, almost ascetic aura she carried. Her presence was the most striking he'd ever seen.
Unfortunately, his idea of "good manners" wasn't appreciated.
Keeping the same frosty expression, Artemis reached into her Gift Card, pulled out a robe, and draped it over herself before stepping out of the hot spring.
Water still clung to her clothes as she looked straight at him. "Where is Odysseus and his guards?"
Ryo glanced at the patch of white dust left behind by the maid, the residue left after her body had been broken down to the atomic level.
"They're all dust now." He tilted his head.
"I see." Her voice remained as calm as ever, as if she'd only asked out of courtesy.
She walked toward him, damp robes trailing behind her. "What are you? A Star Spirit... or a True Dragon? You can't possibly be human."
Ryo raised an eyebrow. "Want to find out?"
He grinned shamelessly. "Right here."
Artemis frowned. "You're far more irritating than Athena described."
Ryo laughed. "It's been less than three hours."
The instant the words left his mouth, a streak of light flashed past his cheek. Had he not tilted his head beforehand, it would have pierced his forehead.
His eyes settled on the silver longbow that had somehow appeared in Artemis's hand.
The bow had no string. Its silver frame was engraved with deer, cypress trees, bears, and countless other animals and plants.
"A Divine Authority weapon..." Heat flickered in Ryo's eyes.
A weapon forged by Hephaestus himself. Its power rivaled that of a living three-digit being.
Some entire pantheons in Little Garden had even been built around these Divine Authority weapons.
His excitement faded almost as quickly as it came.
"What a shame." He sighed. "It's only a projection."
If Heretic Gods were allowed to carry their real Divine Authority weapons, then the Godslayer Treaty would have been meaningless.
The bow in Artemis's hand was merely a sliver of her true weapon's projection, much like Ryo's mind-clone. Its true power was nowhere near the original.
Even so, Ryo preferred to be cautious. There was no point getting caught by surprise, which was why he'd dodged the first shot.
"You want my weapon?" Artemis calmly raised the bow.
"Of course." Ryo didn't bother hiding his desire.
These things were absurdly rare. He'd be willing to fight over a single Authority, let alone a weapon like this.
Artemis mimed drawing the string of her stringless bow.
As she did, a silver arrow slowly materialized. "Defeat me... I'll give you one."
The moment she aimed at him, a flood of instincts erupted in Ryo's mind.
Can't dodge. Can't evade. Can't block. Pierces all defenses. Guaranteed to hit.
An overwhelming premonition of inevitable disaster settled over him.
No wonder Artemis had calmly drawn her bow from this close.
There was no need to keep her distance.
The instant the arrow was loosed... it would hit. And it would kill.
'So this is the Goddess of the Hunt...'
Ryo's grin widened. "Interesting. Come on. Shoot me."
"If you can't kill me... I'll kill you." With a thunderous boom, he burst forward, laughing.
If he couldn't avoid it, then there was no point trying.
Let's see whether his fist crushed Artemis's skull first... or whether her arrow pierced his head first.
The arrow flew.
Artemis made no attempt to retreat. Rather, she knew perfectly well there was no escaping Ryo's close-quarters combat at this distance.
In that split second, she reached her conclusion.
To emerge completely unharmed... she would have needed to be at least three hundred thousand kilometers away.
"What a pity."
In the instant before impact, she sighed. Mutual destruction wasn't the outcome she wanted.
But she could accept it.
After all, Ryo had fought Zeus to a draw. Drawing with a man like him wasn't shameful.
At least it would give an explanation to the subordinates who had already fallen.
The next instant, Ryo erased the distance between them. His palm slammed through Artemis's chest, punching straight through her heart.
At the exact same moment...
Ting!
The silver arrow struck Ryo's forehead.
An endless tide of silver moonlight exploded outward. The room became a sea of pale lunar radiance.
Divine power surged.
Even the fundamental laws governing the world seemed to grind to a halt before awkwardly shifting into a new order.
The humming continued for several seconds before gradually fading.
The arrow lodged in Ryo's forehead slowly dissolved, inch by inch. When the final tip vanished... His flawless forehead was revealed beneath it.
For the first time, something other than cold indifference appeared on Artemis's face— Shock.
"How..."
Ryo grinned. "Looks like my head's a little harder than your arrows."
He slowly withdrew the hand that had pierced her chest.
Smiling, he flexed his fingers. "Nice feel. Next time, how about I do the shooting? My body's built for that sort of thing. I guarantee you'll enjoy it."
Artemis's pale face instantly flushed red.
She raised a trembling hand, clearly intending to rebuke him, to demand why he would humiliate her like this.
But after struggling for a moment... Her arm fell weakly.
Ryo gently caught her hand. He lifted it to his cheek, pressing her soft palm against his face with exaggerated tenderness.
"Don't worry. I'll make good use of your Moon Authority." He smiled warmly. "Goodbye... My beloved Moon Goddess."
Pfft.
Golden divine blood trickled from Artemis's lips.
Her eyes widened as her body gradually dissolved into light.
Even in her final moment, indignation still burned in her gaze.
Ryo couldn't help laughing. He climbed out of what had once been a hot spring but was now little more than a roadside puddle after their clash.
Patting his own cheek, he muttered, "Honestly... I just can't resist teasing girls with that cold, aloof personality."
He shrugged. "Well, whatever. Everyone in this stronghold's dead. Time to visit the next one."
Without another glance back, he left the Greek headquarters at the 7777 Outer Gate.
...
..
Lower Layers - Mount Olympus
Beneath the blazing sun, giant stonemasons sweated as they hauled enormous stone blocks, laboring to construct a grand temple dedicated to the Moon Goddess.
Then... the temperature suddenly dropped. Cool moonlight replaced the scorching sunlight, bathing the barren mountainside.
Moments later, fresh shoots burst from the earth. In the blink of an eye, they became a lush forest.
Animals appeared from nowhere, running and playing among the trees.
The giants witnessed the miracle and immediately fell to their knees.
They prayed fervently. But only a few seconds later... the forest continued expanding.
It swallowed the half-finished temple whole, reducing it to nothing more than ruins hidden beneath tangled vegetation.
The animals' eyes suddenly turned blood-red. They charged wildly through the woods, crashing into the giants.
The attacks weren't particularly dangerous. But the terrified giants couldn't understand why their benevolent goddess would punish her own followers.
As panic spread across the mountains, the full moon hanging overhead quietly drifted away from Mount Olympus.
...
"I'll remember this!" Far away in the South Area, Ryo suddenly felt as though a cold female voice had whispered through gritted teeth directly into his ear.
He shivered slightly.
Rubbing one ear, he casually let go of the headless Greek warrior he'd just killed.
With a troubled sigh, he muttered, "I only killed her Heretic God incarnation. Did she really have to chase me across several Outer Gates just to threaten me before running off?"
After making sure Artemis's presence had completely disappeared, he finally relaxed and grumbled,
"Artemis is seriously petty." He looked up at the sky. "Come to think of it... the direction she left in looked like upper layers."
He fell silent.
After a long pause, he finally sighed, "...I might've gone a little too far."
.
.
.