There was one advantage to short skirts—
They were practical.
No matter how much they were tugged or rumpled, a quick smoothing of the fabric and they fell back into place.
Afterward, Diana merely brushed out the faint creases, and the resilient material returned to its pristine form.
"Let's go. Time to find our guide."
Smack. Smack.
Leon gave a playful pat to the "forbidden zone" that had become acquainted with Leon's Grip, then raised a hand.
Bast appeared at his side in her black panther form.
Even on all fours she stood 2.5 meters tall—far more imposing than the Amazons' warhorses.
"Hop on, darling."
Leon mounted as Bast lowered her head, extending a hand toward Diana.
"Leon. You absolutely cannot do that when others are around."
Diana shot him a look, half glare, half flustered protest. Even she felt a faint lingering ache—Leon did not exactly "hold back" when showing affection.
"As you wish," he replied smoothly. "Only when we're alone."
He pulled her into his arms, hands settling at her waist, chin resting lightly on her shoulder. A teasing breath brushed her ear.
Her earlobe flushed faintly red.
She did not argue further.
When they located Steve Trevor, he had slipped out of the guest quarters prepared for him and was hiding in tall grass overlooking the coastline, evading the night patrols of dark-skinned Amazon guards.
Now that the Amazons knew he fought for peace, they treated him courteously—but forbade him from leaving the island.
Without Amazon guidance, escape was impossible. The mists surrounding Themyscira would simply return him to its shores.
Thus, only two symbolic guards had been assigned to him.
He had climbed out a window using bedsheets.
Predictable.
"Hi~"
"!!!"
Steve turned—
A massive panther head hovered scarcely an inch from his face.
"Holy—!"
For a moment, he thought he saw his ancestors beckoning.
Torches flared in the distance as patrols rushed toward the commotion—
Only to abruptly extinguish.
Silence.
"Leon… what happened to them?" Diana asked.
Two swift shadows landed beside Leon—A2 and 2B returning from their island reconnaissance.
"I merely rendered them unconscious," 2B said calmly.
"I hope they don't catch cold," Diana murmured.
A2's blue eyes flickered faintly as she transmitted privately to Leon through an earpiece.
"Leon. We found it."
"The object."
"But most of the island's forces are guarding it. Infiltration would require neutralizing them."
No need, Leon mouthed in response.
Knowing the location is enough. It concerns the fate of this world. Their caution is understandable.
We'll revisit it later.
He had no intention of stealing it outright.
The Mother Box was intriguing—but Tony Stark remained unmatched in technological genius.
At best, it was worth studying.
And scanning something that might counter-hack A2 was an unnecessary risk.
Worst case?
He could always dismantle Cyborg later. Same principle.
When Steve realized Leon and Diana intended to leave Themyscira with him—
Relief washed over him.
Until—
Bast shifted from towering panther into a dark-skinned, silver-haired, long-eared beauty with an impressive figure.
Steve's worldview shattered.
"What are you?!"
He threw a half-hearted military boxing stance for intimidation.
Bast frowned.
One light slap.
He collapsed into blissful unconsciousness.
Diana, meanwhile, had her own curiosity.
She knew Leon was Odinson, the God of Battle.
But the women around him?
Little else.
Sensing her hesitation, Leon casually wrapped an arm around Bast—now in her black-and-white maid attire—and gave her silky silver hair and long elven ears an affectionate stroke.
Bast pouted faintly but did not resist as he presented her.
"Allow me to introduce Bast, the Panther Goddess."
"She may seem docile here, but among the three, she's the strongest in actual combat."
Diana blinked.
"Stronger than Miss 2B?"
"In raw firepower, 2B leads," Leon explained. "But real combat isn't decided by firepower alone. Each has her specialty."
He then drew A2 and 2B close, one on each side.
"A2 is a fully autonomous mechanical lifeform."
"2B is a sentient divine construct once enchanted by Odin."
"They're neither ordinary humans nor typical artifacts. Think of them as hybrids of technology and magic."
"They are my wings."
Leon spoke with almost boyish enthusiasm, as though proudly introducing treasured companions.
Diana listened attentively, occasionally asking a question, mostly smiling softly—like the Mona Lisa come to life.
Four women.
One man.
The atmosphere was strangely harmonious.
Meanwhile, Steve Trevor lay on the ground in blissful slumber, cheek pressed against the grass, occasionally chewing on it in his sleep like a confused farm animal.
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