In an instant, a giant question mark popped into Lorne's head.
"..She wants to keep you too? To make you her attendant god?"
"..!"
How did she guess that?
Lorne's expression showed surprise.
"..I knew she had ulterior motives for helping you from the start!"
At this, Artemis sneered coldly, unreservedly criticizing the other virgin goddess who stood on equal footing with her.
"..That woman acts like she's always thinking of others, but in the end, it's mostly manipulation!
Using small favors to bind people tightly, chaining them to her chariot to serve her. Hephaestus is completely devoted to her because of that!"
Before Lorne could respond, the perceptive huntress grabbed his hand, her expression understanding and considerate.
"..Don't worry, I understand. I won't put you in a tough spot now.."
Looking at Artemis, who was gazing at him with deep affection, Lorne's mouth hung slightly open.
'Actually, what I meant was, I need to stay on Crete to complete my ascension to godhood…
And even if I were to hook up with someone, it'd be Hestia…'
"..Um.."
"..No need to defend her. Listen to me, you need to be careful. Don't let that scheming woman trick you!"
Artemis cut off Lorne's attempt to explain, and warned him sternly.
Then, she gave the man before her a big hug, comforting him in a low voice.
"..Whatever you owe her, I'll pay it back for you.."
Hearing her gentle whisper, Lorne's expression grew even more conflicted.
He couldn't help but try to speak again.
"..Um.."
"..Just wait. Once I find the chance, I'll definitely steal you back from her!"
Artemis vowed solemnly, then blew a whistle, summoning a golden chariot drawn by two horned deer.
She leapt onto the chariot, waved a dashing farewell to Lorne, and headed straight for Olympus in the clouds.
She had been away for over three months and needed to return, lest her father god grow suspicious.
Watching her figure fade into the horizon, Lorne, who hadn't managed to say a single complete sentence, felt a pang of guilt.
It seemed he'd accidentally thrown Athena under the bus.
"..She's gone, and you're still lingering here reluctantly?"
As Lorne gazed upward, a teasing voice came from the dense forest behind him.
In that instant, the already guilty Lorne flinched, beads of cold sweat forming on his forehead as he instinctively turned to explain.
"..Bang!"
But before he could speak, a powerful force slammed into his chest, accompanied by the crisp tremor of straining bones, knocking him flat on his back.
Caught off guard, Lorne's vision went dark as he sprawled on the beach in a starfish position, nearly spitting out a mouthful of blood.
Struggling to open his eyes, he saw a cascade of purple hair falling across his chest.
The victim first let out a relieved sigh, then looked resentfully at the culprit of this collision.
"..Are you trying to kill me, Anna..?"
At that moment, the little 1.4-meter girl who used to follow him around for food and drink had grown to over 1.7 meters.
Her lustrous purple hair draped over her shoulders and chest, accentuating her delicate collarbone and voluptuous curves.
Her once-youthful features had been replaced by mature allure.
The intense, pure serpent divinity radiated a mysterious, icy, and seductive aura, unconsciously drawing others to surrender to her charm, willingly offering their necks to the blade.
This was Medusa, having absorbed a vast amount of Keto's divinity, now in her adult form.
"..S-sorry, I was just too excited to see you back."
Medusa, who had tackled Lorne to the ground, hurriedly sat up, explaining awkwardly.
Her now-cool voice couldn't hide the innate shyness from her past.
Seeing the sky blocked above him and that breathtakingly beautiful face, Lorne felt a heat in his lower abdomen and reminded her in a dry voice.
"..How about you get up first so I can catch my breath..?"
As he spoke, his gaze lingered on the two shapely thighs straddling his waist, while the two hips pressing against his abdomen sent waves of astonishing elasticity.
Legend had it that Medusa possessed beauty rivaling Athena's.
At the same time, as an embodiment of serpent divinity, beyond her terrifying venom, she also carried an innate seductive quality.
And looking at her now, it was obviously true.
But, having just enjoyed the sweetness of the marrow for a while, Lorne couldn't withstand this kind of torment.
"..You don't like it?"
Seeing the pained expression on Lorne's face, a wave of disappointment washed over Medusa's cold, beautiful features as she lowered her head, muttering softly.
"..My sisters lied to me again.."
As she spoke, Medusa rose from Lorne's body, retracting the intense serpent divinity within her.
In an instant, the tall, curvaceous, and alluring beauty began to shrink rapidly, reverting to her familiar 1.4-meter form.
Lorne watched this dramatic transformation, feeling an inexplicable sense of loss.
Gone—the long legs, the 36D, the mature, cold beauty—all gone…
Meanwhile, a playful, exaggerated conversation drifted from the dense forest ahead.
"..Hey, Lorne, darling, do you like my new look?"
"..No way, too tall, too ugly."
"..Hmph, what about now?"
"..Now that's more like it, small, sweet, soft, and just as cute as ever.."
Beneath the shade of the trees, Stheno and Euryale, like twin sisters, clasped their hands together, gazing at each other as if admiring their own reflections in a mirror.
Their lips, inches apart, let out heartfelt praises and exaggerated kissing sounds.
"..You're so beautiful, mwah!"
"..You are too, mwah!"
Unable to hold back any longer, Stheno and Euryale burst into unrestrained laughter, reveling in the success of their prank on the beach.
"..Stupid Medusa, she actually believed it! Who would like that tall, bulky look?"
"..Heh, she believes anything we say. Still as dumb as ever."
Under the public judgment of her sisters' reenactment, little Medusa, long subjected to their gaslighting, flushed crimson with embarrassment, wishing she could sink into the ground.
At that moment, Lorne, the other party involved, had a face full of dark lines, his right hand itching uncontrollably.
So, after all that, it was these two mischievous brats setting him up.
He'd almost thought he was about to face Athena herself after throwing her under the bus.
Seeing little Medusa lose confidence under her unscrupulous sisters' pressure, practically wanting to burrow into a crack in the ground, Lorne stood up, grabbed the little girl's hand, and commanded with a cold snort.
"..Transform back!"
Though confused, Medusa, out of trust, suppressed her shame and activated her serpent divinity, reverting to her adult form.
As the tall, leggy, cold beauty reappeared before him, Lorne's furrowed brows finally relaxed.
He studied her carefully from head to toe, his eyes filled with pure appreciation, and praised her sincerely.
"..Anna, you look truly beautiful grown up."
Feeling the sincerity in his words, Medusa, who had been downcast, regained some confidence as she lifted her stunning face, beaming a radiant smile at Lorne.
"..This guy's gotta be blind, right? What's so great about that look?"
"..Fat and tall, with those huge lumps on her chest!"
"..We're clearly way cuter!"
"..Exactly, everyone who's seen us says so!"
Hearing such absurd nonsense, Stheno and Euryale couldn't help but jeer.
At this point, Lorne, unable to bear it any longer, turned around and took a deep breath.
For the sake of the aesthetic freedom of countless men behind him, he unleashed an explosive burst of fighting spirit.
"..Shut up! You two flat-chested, no-hip washboards!"
"..Both of you combined aren't even three loaves of bread tall, what do you know about aesthetics?"
"..Even the horizon knows to have some curves, but you two flatlands can't even hide a fly!"
The barrage of sharp sarcasm left the two Gorgon sisters, who usually only bared their teeth at the family dog, utterly stunned.
All their lives, they'd been the center of attention, their serpent divinity's charm captivating countless passersby with admiration.
When had they ever endured such grievance and insult?
"..Move aside, don't block the way."
Lorne, pulling Medusa along, deliberately passed between the dazed Stheno and Euryale.
He then paused, turning back with a pitying look and offering earnest advice.
"..Take my advice: malnourished bean sprouts like you should avoid going out at night. Someone might bump into you, mistake you for a steel plate, and head home early to wash up and sleep."
Finally, after relentless mental attacks and verbal insults, the two Gorgon sisters, vaguely realizing something, trembled with rage. Their faces flushed with fury as they charged forward, waving their arms and gnashing their teeth.
"..Don't think you can escape!"
"..Beat him up!"
Lorne turned back and smiled faintly, curling his hands into a trumpet shape and placing them before his lips to amplify his voice, shouting for help from the city of Knossos.
"..Heya, there are snakes causing trouble! Are you going to do something about it?!"
In an instant, Stheno and Euryale froze, their faces paling. In the distance, they saw a certain black-haired goddess striding toward them, whip in hand.
(Chapter End)