Robin was momentarily at a loss under Lanti's blunt words. She could only smile and deftly steer the conversation elsewhere.
"So it sounds like you're very interested in romance, Lanti?"
"Of course I am!"
Lanti first glanced nervously toward the carriage where her goddess was riding. Only after confirming some distance did she lean close to Robin and whisper in a hushed voice:
"I really want to experience that kind of… sweet, heart-fluttering love. But you know how it is in our Familia… romance is forbidden."
"If you wish to pursue love, Lanti, you may leave the Familia. I will not stop you."
A cool, composed voice drifted clearly through the air.
As the Goddess of the Hunt, Artemis possessed senses far beyond those of mortals. Even without invoking her divine power, what Lanti thought was a whisper was as audible to her as a raised voice.
The atmosphere in the caravan instantly stiffened.
Artemis felt a twinge of frustration.
She had personally raised these children—so how had they turned out this way? Why had they begun resembling the very gods in Tenkai whom she disliked most—those who indulged endlessly in romance?
"No, no! I would never leave Lady Artemis, not even if I died!"
Lanti shook her head so fiercely it resembled a rattle-drum, her resolve unmistakable.
Artemis had found her in the wilderness and raised her from childhood. To Lanti, Artemis was both goddess and mother.
"It's just… I don't understand…"
Perhaps years of quiet suppression surfaced all at once. Lanti gathered her courage and asked loudly,
"Lady Artemis, why are you so opposed to love?"
"Lanti!"
Captain Letessa's expression shifted sharply as she shot the girl a stern glare.
But Lanti did not back down. Pressing her hands together in plea, she looked toward her goddess and said, "Please tell me. I really want to understand!"
Faced with the confusion and yearning in her child's eyes, Artemis fell silent.
For the first time, clear bewilderment appeared in her pure green gaze.
"I can only say… because I am who I am, it cannot be so."
Her voice carried a faint trace of uncertainty, though she herself did not notice it.
"I am the goddess who governs chastity. My domain stands in direct opposition to the goddess of beauty. If I were to acknowledge love… I would cease to be myself."
She sounded like a child reciting a truth she had never fully examined.
"But Lady Artemis should fall in love too!"
Lanti protested boldly.
"Love is a beautiful thing."
"I want Lady Artemis to know the joy, the warmth, the happiness that love brings!"
Her fists clenched, her voice brimming with conviction.
The other girls exchanged glances. What began as surprise gradually transformed into quiet support, their eyes lighting with shared determination.
"That's right, Lady Artemis. For girls, love truly is something wonderful."
They spoke almost in unison.
The sudden "campaign for love" meeting turned the caravan's mood unexpectedly lively.
In his own carriage, Faen instinctively shrank back a little.
He had not anticipated the conversation escalating this far. At moments like this, silence was unquestionably the safest course.
Meanwhile, Furina looked completely stunned. Her blue-and-teal heterochromatic eyes were wide and round as she stared blankly at the scene unfolding.
Confronted with her children's unprecedented fervor, Artemis found herself utterly at a loss.
She turned to her most trusted captain for support.
"Letessa… do you feel the same?"
Called upon, Letessa flushed crimson and fumbled awkwardly. "I… well… I suppose so. People do change before and after falling in love. That much is certain."
With even her captain's hesitant affirmation, Artemis fell quiet.
She lifted her gaze toward the boundless sky, her pure green eyes clouded with deep uncertainty.
...
That night, the caravan made camp near a clearing by a stream.
A bonfire crackled to life, pushing back the chill and darkness.
After stepping some distance away from camp for privacy, Faen was on his way back when he spotted a slender blue figure standing alone beside the softly flowing stream.
Moonlight spilled across her like liquid silver, rendering her almost ethereal—sacred, yet solitary.
It was Artemis.
And she had clearly noticed him as well.
"Lady Artemis."
Faen halted respectfully and offered a polite greeting.
"You are called… Faen, correct?"
She turned toward him. Beneath the moon, her voice carried a gentler timbre than during the day.
"Yes."
Faen inclined his head. Observing the lingering uncertainty in her expression, he ventured carefully,
"It's late. You haven't retired yet. Is something troubling you?"
Moonlight filtered through the branches overhead, scattering shards of silver across the rippling stream. A breeze carried the scent of damp earth and grass, along with the distant warmth of the campfire.
Artemis stood quietly at the water's edge. The pale lunar glow softened her regal bearing, lending her an almost fragile ambiguity.
She gazed at her reflection in the water, as though examining someone unfamiliar.
"Tell me… as an unchanging god, do you think I could… change?"
She did not look back. Her voice was soft—half a murmur to herself, half a question for the only listener present.
Perhaps it was because Faen was the sole male in this small company, a presence at odds with her doctrine.
Or perhaps because he was a complete outsider—someone safe to confide in.
Whatever the reason, the goddess who usually embodied stern composure had allowed her guard to slip.
"Yes," Faen answered without hesitation, his tone firm.
The certainty in his reply startled her. She turned, her pure green eyes brimming with confusion.
"Why?"
"Because the one standing here now is Artemis the mortal, not Artemis the goddess of Tenkai."
Faen met her gaze calmly, sincerity on face.
When gods descended to the Lower World, they ceased to be distant, immutable abstractions.
They formed Familias. They gained children. They shouldered responsibilities and forged bonds.
They rejoiced at their children's growth. They grieved at their departure. They wavered for their sake. They changed through their experiences in this mortal realm.
"Then…"
Something in his words touched her. She stepped closer, the moon illuminating the uncertainty etched across her features.
"Do you also believe… that love is beautiful?"
"I don't know."
Faen shook his head softly, his voice lowering.
"That is an answer you must discover for yourself."
===================
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