At the temple of Olympus, the gods moved quickly once the council's decision had been passed unanimously—thanks, of all things, to the opinion of the last god anyone had expected. More precisely, it took them a day to finish preparing, but the moment that day was over, they acted at once.
First, Hermes tracked down Apollo's location while Hephaestus made the necessary preparations. Then Zeus immediately ordered Poseidon and Ares to seize Apollo. Faced with the strength of those two, Apollo was subdued without being able to do a thing.
And while Apollo was being restrained, Athena set out with Iskios's mother, Selene, to search for Iskios in the very forest where Apollo had been captured. The other gods watched from above the temple of Olympus. Zeus, meanwhile, had already left his seat to go see Apollo in person.
"Is there one here called Iskios!?"
"I-Iskios!!! It-it's your mother!"
Athena and Selene called for Iskios, but there was no answer—no sign of a presence at all. Selene was growing anxious, but Athena merely nodded as if this were only natural.
The boy had spent two whole years running from and hiding from Apollo. And not once had Apollo managed to lay so much as a finger on him. It was only natural that he would have become wary in that time. If anything, Athena felt like praising Iskios for it.
But resolving the matter with Apollo came first. And as long as Apollo was around, Iskios would never show himself. At this point, Selene looked moments away from bursting into tears because her son still would not come out.
"Uuu... what do we do...?"
"...Iskios, can you hear me!? I am Athena, goddess of war and wisdom! I know your circumstances well! If you come out now, I will protect you from Apollo. I swear it by the River Styx!"
Athena judged that this was the best way to draw Iskios out. Selene had been unable to protect him because Apollo was one of the Twelve Olympians.
But if she, another of the Twelve Olympians, protected him, that changed things. And as if by magic, Iskios's voice echoed out from somewhere in the forest. It was still full of caution, but the fact that he had spoken at all meant Athena's words had worked.
"Is that... really true?"
"It is! I, Athena, do not speak twice!"
Folding her arms, Athena declared proudly that she would not take back her word. She had even sworn by the River Styx that she would protect him from Apollo.
Right after that, Iskios appeared with something like a cloth draped over his head. Even Athena could not help being startled when he suddenly revealed himself.
Iskios had been much closer than expected. He appeared all at once from beneath the shadow of a great tree growing near Athena and Selene. He had been right nearby, and yet she had not sensed even the slightest trace of him... For the first time, Athena looked at Iskios in genuine shock.
"Iskios!!!"
"U-uurk...!?"
The moment she saw him, Selene threw her arms around him with tears in her eyes. Athena watched with a wry smile as Selene—usually so timid and always one step withdrawn—clung to Iskios while crying.
Iskios, on the other hand, struggled to break free, apparently unable to breathe with his face crushed against Selene's chest. Then, as he looked toward Athena, he realized the cloth covering his face had come off and stared in alarm.
"There is no need to look so horrified. If this continues, even Olympus may be driven to ruin... so I will give you this."
"Th-this is...?"
The item Athena handed him with both hands was a long khaki-colored cloth and a mask. The mask bore the face of an old man with a long, pointed beard—but it was no ordinary mask.
This mask and cloak had been made overnight by Hephaestus, the very god who had offered the most unexpected opinion during the council at the temple of Olympus. They were special items imbued with power. Seal Iskios's charm, then have him speak with Apollo—that had been Hephaestus's proposal.
Of course, in case that failed, Ares, Poseidon, Athena, and the other gods had prepared to step in themselves if necessary.
They had found Iskios, the key figure in all this. They had given him a mask and cloak capable of sealing away his alluring appearance. All that remained now was a one-on-one conversation with Apollo.
***
Two years. It had been both a short time and a very long one.
Strange. I don't even know how many years it's been since Apollo started chasing me, but today he was quiet to a downright unnatural degree.
Normally he'd have been screaming my name and rampaging around looking for me from the morning on, but I hadn't heard any of that. No, ever since this morning, everything had suddenly gone cold and silent.
What kind of trap is this? Thinking that, I stayed on guard as usual and watched the outside carefully. Then I sensed several presences that felt completely different from normal. The last time I'd felt something this overwhelming was from my mother and Apollo... but the problem was that there were several of them.
...Come to think of it, the answer was simple. They were probably other gods who had come to drag away Apollo for neglecting his duties—
Then someone walked out into the forest, calling for me.
"Is there one here called Iskios!?"
"I-Iskios!!! It-it's your mother!"
...So instead of Apollo, the ones who had come this time were my mother and a goddess in armor who practically screamed "war maiden" at a glance. The two of them were walking through the forest looking for me.
Were they trying to make me lower my guard? Maybe the other gods were disguised too. If I raised my voice carelessly, I'd give myself away, so for now I should watch the situation first. My mother was crying, but even that might be part of the trap. They could be using those tears as bait while Apollo lay in ambush somewhere.
Like they were throwing out the finest bait possible to catch a special-grade fish like me and waiting for me to bite—
That was what I thought, but then I heard what the armored goddess said, and my ears perked up.
"...Iskios, can you hear me!? I am Athena, goddess of war and wisdom! I know your circumstances well! If you come out now, I will protect you from Apollo. I swear it by the River Styx!"
Athena... one of the Twelve Olympians, just like that damn homo Apollo, and the goddess of war and wisdom.
And now that goddess was swearing by the River Styx that she would protect me from Apollo. In this apocalyptic Greece, an oath on the River Styx was one of the very few things I still trusted.
To swear by the River Styx meant that even the gods would not break that promise. Once Athena had sworn it, I felt a little safer—but just in case, I asked again carefully.
"Is that... really true?"
"It is! I, Athena, do not speak twice!"
She even folded her arms and shouted it with perfect confidence. Since she'd gone that far, there was no reason to keep hiding any longer. For the first time in a long, long while, I released my concealment.
When I dropped my concealment and approached Lady Athena, she stared at me in surprise. Then my mother, who had been standing beside her, burst into tears at the sight of me and ran over to hug me.
"Iskios!!!"
"U-uurk...!?"
My mother's magnificent God-cup chest crushed my face, and my body naturally began to crave oxygen. After I barely managed to escape from her, Lady Athena handed me a long cloth and a mask.
The mask she gave me looked so much like one of those stone masks I'd seen in some hopeless, dreamless dating sim with Yudahui that it startled me, but what really shocked me was Athena's explanation.
She had just finished explaining that this mask and cloak were items forged overnight by Hephaestus, god of the forge, for the express purpose of sealing away the charm that could even captivate the gods.
When I heard that, I couldn't help tearing up. They were giving me something to cover my face with. My mother looked disappointed, but I had absolutely no regrets. If anything, this was perfect. I was moved.
"Thank you very much, Lady Athena."
"U-um...! Y-you needn't thank me. Save your gratitude for Hephaestus!"
I was so happy that I thanked her with a smile before I even thought about it. But the moment I smiled at her, Lady Athena abruptly turned her body the other way, and her tone faltered.
The instant I received the cloak and mask, I wrapped myself in the cloak first and then put on the stone mask. As soon as I wore it, I could tell it had been made with high-quality leather. As expected of the god of the forge.
All right... now all that's left is the final round with Apollo. With this cloak and mask, there's nothing for me to fear...! For some reason, that confidence welled up inside me.