On the other side—
Arcee (A2 Mode) and Bast had already worked together to truss up Steve Trevor with the Vibranium Lasso, binding him so thoroughly he looked like the Spirit of Ecstasy hood ornament on a Rolls-Royce, fixed to the opposite prow of the wooden boat.
Facing the open sea.
Completely unable to see Leon, Diana, or anyone behind him.
"Hey, hey, hey—don't tell me you're going to leave me tied up like this the whole time?"
"I could die out here!"
"If you keep talking, I'll gag you too =="
Arcee (A2 Mode) snapped impatiently—though she did at least free Steve Trevor's hands.
"Hold this."
Bast handed him a thick hemp rope.
"What is this??"
"The mainsail control line. This is your job now, Captain Trevor," Arcee and Bast said together in ghostly unison.
"Wha—what??"
Steve Trevor was stunned.
You can do that?!
What he didn't realize—
This was the most primitive, yet most realistic, high-level form of "manual intelligent-assisted navigation."
"Are you really going to leave him tied up like that until we reach shore?"
Diana lay on the soft bedding 2B had prepared, resting on her side with one arm under her head. She turned toward Leon, who lay beside her with his hands behind his head, one leg crossed over the other, calmly gazing at the stars.
"Why not? Who told him to have the guts to comment on two girls' weight? Arcee and Bast can do as they please—as long as he doesn't die."
Leon smiled indifferently.
"I mean… if he gets hurt or sick, who will lead us to Ares?"
Kind-hearted as ever, Diana couldn't quite be as cold-blooded as Leon.
"It's fine."
"You see this?"
Leon produced a transparent glass bottle from thin air as if performing a magic trick.
Then something even more astonishing happened.
From a silver ripple that manifested in the air, a stream of water flowed outward—familiar, radiant, alive—filling the bottle precisely to the brim.
"The Healing Spring!"
"Leon, how did you do that?"
Diana asked in amazement.
She even took a sip.
It was unmistakable.
On Themyscira, the Healing Spring was a living source, endlessly replenishing itself each day. Diana had occasionally taken a drink after bathing—fresh water constantly overflowed and replaced itself. Drinking her own bathwater was hardly embarrassing when the spring renewed itself immediately.
"A small divine trick."
"With this, our dear Captain Trevor can last the whole day."
Leon smiled.
"You're awful~"
Relieved, Diana laughed softly and lightly punched his chest. Leon returned the gesture, earning himself a blush and an eye-roll.
"I protest!"
"This is abuse of mortals!"
"Protest denied."
Arcee promptly stuffed a ball gag into Steve Trevor's mouth.
"Mmff—mmff!"
After struggling for two and a half minutes, Steve Trevor gave up like a salted fish that had lost all ambition.
He shouldn't have said anything.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be in this situation TT
Little did he know—
This, too, was part of the play.
…
The night stretched on.
Perhaps dopamine was to blame. Diana, who normally slept soundly, found herself unable to drift off.
So she turned toward Leon, who was as steady as ever, absently stroking Bast like a contented housecat.
"Leon, I can't sleep."
"Then let's watch a movie. How about Titanic?"
"Titanic?"
Diana tilted her head slightly in confusion.
Leon handed her a pair of holographic AR glasses—another Daily Check-In reward. They automatically synced with Arcee via Bluetooth.
And thus began Jack and Rose's romantic—and tragic—voyage at sea.
Popcorn and milk tea—
Leon provided those too.
The sweet, creamy flavors astonished Diana, who was accustomed to savory feasts and wild game. She instantly fell in love with them—just as she did with the film's early rhythm.
Jack and Rose's interactions were light and joyful.
Under the subtle influence of romantic tension, Diana unconsciously intertwined her fingers with Leon's. She leaned her head against his firm, elastic arm, half-embracing him like an old married couple.
They discussed the film.
Was Jack sincere toward Rose?
They had known each other for such a short time.
Inevitably, Diana thought of her own meeting with Leon.
Weren't they just like Jack and Rose?
So she asked the same question—but one far more dangerous:
"Leon… do you truly love me? Or do you just desire my body?"
"Diana, look at Arcee, Bast, and 2B. Beautiful and powerful. For a god, those are the cheapest qualities."
"But you are different."
Leon turned toward her, one hand brushing her cheek, the other resting lightly at her waist. Diana did not pull away.
"How am I different?"
"Clio wrote twelve entire volumes detailing the pleasures of the flesh. Physical desire is unnecessary—yet men can never fully satisfy it."
"Hey, darling… do you think I'm like those vulgar human men who think only with their lower halves?"
Leon deftly tossed the question back to her.
"Of course not~"
"You're different."
Reflecting on their time together, Diana realized that the first time their relationship crossed beyond friendship had been initiated by her—driven by instinct.
Her budding rationality was once again swallowed by romance.
She even began apologizing to Leon.
After all—
Any one of Bast or the others was stronger than her, and just as beautiful. She had no advantage. Why would Leon pursue her merely for physical pleasure?
While apologizing aloud, she was already defending him in her heart.
Even Leon's occasional "Leon's Grip" had become something she'd grown used to.
Habit—
Is a frightening thing.
The movie continued.
When the romantic first act gave way to looming disaster, Diana's smile vanished. She watched with knitted brows, deeply invested.
She knew—
The Titanic, once hailed as the largest passenger ship in the world, had sunk several years ago.
At the time, an Amazon explorer passing through had witnessed it all. Among the survivors she rescued—
Surely Jack and Rose had been among them?
Diana held onto that hope.
She had completely immersed herself in Rose's perspective.
And in her mind—
Jack had Leon's face.
When the ship's power failed, plunging the Titanic into darkness before it split in two—
When countless people screamed for help and plunged into the freezing sea—
Diana could no longer restrain herself.
Tears welled in her eyes as she cried out—
"No!"
When the Titanic finally vanished beneath the waves, and Jack and Rose surfaced once more—
"Yes!"
Arcee's advanced processing rendered the film with such realism that it felt indistinguishable from reality.
Diana's body tensed. Every hair stood on end.
She clutched Leon's hand tightly, just like Jack and Rose struggling toward the floating debris.
The sensation of drifting at sea—the piercing cold of night—felt terrifyingly real.
Shivering, Diana instinctively curled into Leon's embrace, greedily drawing warmth from him.
Unseen behind her—
The bracelet at Leon's wrist—Aionsega, the War God's Shield—flickered twice, almost sentiently.
As if to remind him:
Don't forget my contribution.
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