"What is it you want to talk about, Lady Artemis?"
Judas said as Artemis picked up the Arrow of Orion and gazed at it for a few seconds.
"Orion… you are not planning to use this arrow in the battle against Antares, are you?"
Artemis said as she gently put the arrow down, walked toward him, and sat beside him on the bed.
Judas slowly turned his head to meet her eyes.
"How did you know?"
He asked.
"Hestia. She told me."
"Ah… of course."
Judas said, thinking back to some time earlier when they were making their way toward the camp.
…
"Judas, I have something I want to talk to you about."
Hestia said as she grabbed ahold of his arm and pulled him aside.
Seeing the serious expression on her face, Judas gave a nod.
"Please hand me the arrow."
Hestia said, stretching out her hand and glancing nervously at the Arrow of Orion strapped to his back.
Judas blinked and stared into her blue eyes before shaking his head.
"You are planning to throw this arrow away, aren't you?"
He said, which caused Hestia to flinch as if she had been caught red-handed.
"Ah… what are you talking about? I wouldn't do that…"
Hestia said as she looked away, whistling.
Judas merely continued to stare at her in silence.
Feeling his gaze locked onto her, Hestia eventually began to sweat.
"Alright, you win. I am planning to throw that arrow away."
Hestia admitted as she lowered her head.
"But you don't understand! I am doing this for your sake and Artemis' sake… because… because…"
Hestia spoke loudly, her fist clenched tightly, tears threatening to spill from her eyes... until Judas interrupted her.
"Because if I use this arrow to kill Antares directly, Artemis will also die, and I will have to bear the sin of killing a goddess, am I right?"
Judas said, making Hestia snap her head back up to him, eyes filled with disbelief.
"Y-you k-knew?"
Hestia stammered.
"From the start."
Judas didn't bother hiding it.
Looking at Hestia's troubled expression, Judas exhaled lightly.
"I am not handing over the arrow, but I am going to defeat Antares and save Artemis."
He declared to the Goddess of the Hearth as he briefly glanced to the side, noticing Hermes hiding behind a tree, leaning against it.
"Huh?"
Hestia's eyes widened.
"Did I hear that right? Y-you aren't joking?"
"B-but Antares… you have another way to defeat it, right?"
Judas stared at the back of his hand before shifting his gaze back to Hestia.
"Let me make it clear... I don't like bad endings. I will kill Antares, save the world…"
Judas paused, seeing Hestia's eyes glistening with tears.
"And save Artemis at the same time."
Hestia could hear the conviction in his words.
Her goddess intuition told her he wasn't lying in the slightest.
The tears she had been desperately holding back came flooding out all at once.
"Thank you… thank you…"
She said as she hugged him, her tears staining his clothes.
Judas stayed still for a moment, letting her be.
…
Back to the present.
"Hestia, in her excitement, told me about it and kept singing praises about you."
"Her gloomy expression, which she had shown throughout this entire journey, vanished. I finally saw her smiling genuinely for the first time in a while. For that, I thank you."
Artemis said, looking at him with a tender expression.
"You are not going to persuade me or anything like that?"
Judas said, meeting her gaze.
Artemis turned her head, interlocking her fingers in her lap.
"No… from the look in your eyes, you have already made your decision. Even if I try to persuade you, it would be useless."
"A man who has made up his mind is the hardest to convince."
She replied as she lay back on the bed, looking up.
"Hey, Orion… have you ever fallen in love before?"
She asked suddenly, turning onto her side, her head propped up by her hand as she stared at Judas with a curious expression.
"Huh? We're shifting the topic that quickly?"
Judas was genuinely caught off guard by her question.
Seeing the look on his face, Artemis couldn't help but giggle.
"So even you can make a face like that."
She said, covering her mouth with her hand.
"Still want me to answer your question?"
Judas asked, unfazed by her occupying his bed.
"Please, I want to know."
Artemis said as she wiped a tear from her eye.
"Then, the answer is no."
Judas said without hesitation.
'Maybe Alden, who had a few crushes back in his school days…'
But as Judas Spade, he had never experienced something like that.
'There was that one time… but that was not me.'
He thought to himself.
Artemis sat back up and leaned closer, their faces only inches apart.
"Really?"
She studied him, searching for any sign of a lie.
"It doesn't seem like you're lying. I guess we have something in common."
For some reason, Artemis looked delighted.
Judas watched as she stepped out of bed and extended her hand toward him.
"Orion… do you want to dance with me?"
Artemis offered.
…
Judas and Artemis exited the tent.
Seeing them walk off into the woods, Lante and the members of the Artemis Familia who had been sneaking around to watch couldn't help but be surprised.
"No way… our Lady Artemis, who hated romance, is actually going out alone with a man?"
"So what our captain said is true?"
"I can't believe it."
"I have to see this."
They murmured among themselves. Lante, who was about to follow, was stopped by Rethusa, who placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Lante… just leave them be."
Rethusa said, her gaze fixed on the direction where Judas and Artemis had disappeared.
"Captain…"
Hearing this, Lante followed her gaze and reluctantly complied.
…
Finding a shallow lake, the surface like a dark mirror, Artemis... barefoot, hands behind her back... walked into the middle of it and glanced back at Judas.
"I'm the goddess of virginity."
She said softly.
"I used to despise romance and forbid love between men and women in my familia."
"But one day, my children told me that love is amazing."
"I think… I understand what they meant now."
She took his hand in hers, her voice a whisper.
They began to move.
They locked gazes, drawn into each other's eyes.
'She's beautiful.'
Judas thought.
It was an unconscious realization, but it made his heart beat with a sudden, uncharacteristic rhythm.
"I never expected you to be such a good dancer, Orion."
Artemis said as Judas spun her around, her eyes reflecting him perfectly.
It was as if everything else had disappeared, and she could see only him.
"I learned a long time ago."
Judas replied with a small smile.
They danced for minutes that felt like hours, bathed in a silver glow as if the moon itself had cast a spotlight just for them.
…
"Orion, I had fun."
Artemis said with a smile as she looked straight into his purple eyes.
Looking at her, Judas felt the corner of his lips lift slightly.
"Yeah… me too."
Just as he said those words...
BOOM!
The sound of explosions thundered in their ears, causing the ground to shake.
Back at the base they were camping in, chaos was unfolding.
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