And so the banquet went on until the night turned pitch-black.
After I had fallen asleep beside my wives,
[Child. Come here.]
"Ugh... what is it?"
I woke from my sleep at the sudden, mysterious voice.
The voice that had roused me kept telling me to come this way.
[Come to this place.]
I rose from the bed and looked out the window. From within the forest, I felt an unusual presence, and I realized that it belonged to the owner of the voice calling me.
For a moment, I hesitated over whether to go to the source of that voice, but...
"...Let's go."
In the end, I set my feet toward the forest.
*
How long had I walked after entering the woods?
I had come here several times before, and yet tonight everything in this place felt strangely unfamiliar.
As I continued along the path, I came to my senses and found myself at a place I had never seen before.
An open plain with nothing in it.
I looked around, wondering whether such a place had always existed.
[See? You've already figured it out, haven't you?]
[Indeed, you have, my dear.]
"..!!"
Then, all at once, two unknown voices reached my ears.
I could hear them from somewhere, but the owners of those voices were nowhere to be seen.
In such an extraordinary situation, I immediately understood that the ones intervening here were none other than...
"...The King of Eirene greets the gods."
at least two gods.
[Hmm?]
At my words, the voices watched me with interest.
[An amusing child.]
[You seem to like him, my dear?]
"Mm...?"
As the two gods conversed over my words, a memory suddenly surged up in my mind—one of those voices sounding as though I had heard it somewhere before.
After thinking carefully about where I had heard it, I said,
"...Thank you for your aid in the subjugation of Leviathan, divine one."
I then realized that it was strikingly similar... no, identical to the voice of the god who had appeared and vanished during Leviathan's defeat, and I bowed respectfully.
[Hmm. So you've finally noticed.]
"I apologize for only realizing it now. The situation was so sudden."
[No, it matters not. I did not summon you here merely to hear such words. Well... then I suppose it is about time we told you.]
At my words, the god who had aided in Leviathan's subjugation answered, and as soon as those words ended, a tremendous wind swept through the place, making it impossible to see ahead clearly.
Bracing myself so I would not be blown over, I finally came face to face with two immense divine presences unlike anything I had ever felt before.
[Since you are qualified, I shall tell you. My name is Erebus. And this one is...]
[Erebus's wife, Nyx.]
And in that instant, the two gods revealed their True Names.
At those names, I was struck with astonishment.
"I do not understand why the two of you, great gods as you are, would go so far as to seek me out. If you would be so kind as to tell me your purpose, I would be grateful, primordial gods."
That was because they bore the very same names as the primordial gods I had heard of from Hecate.
[It is nothing much. Or perhaps it is something quite important.]
At my words, the god Erebus replied.
[You are our vessel.]
Vessel.
At that unexpected word, I looked up at the two gods and asked,
"...May I ask what you mean by 'vessel'?"
[Exactly as it sounds. For some reason, you alone possess the qualification to fully contain our fading power.]
[That is why he tested you.]
"A test, you say..."
[Leviathan. He watched how far you could make use of my husband's power. And as a result, we became certain.]
As Nyx answered me in a gentle tone, she suddenly moved in front of me and caressed my face.
[That you truly are a sufficient vessel. How very amusing. Even one who has not received divine blood has the qualification to inherit our power.]
She laughed brightly as she spoke.
[So I shall make you an offer. Become the adopted son of me and my husband, and become the priest of us both.]
At that moment, it felt as if the world had stopped, and my mind had turned into a blank sheet of white paper.
Nyx spoke as though it were nothing, but if one understood the true meaning of her words, the situation was entirely different.
First of all, these two were primordial gods whom even gods like Zeus could not treat lightly.
Their power and authority were beyond anything I could dare imagine.
If I inherited the power of such beings, Eirene would grow into a mighty kingdom that even the gods could not casually lay a hand upon.
And... I too would become even stronger than I was now.
"...I do not quite understand. The reason you would make such an offer to me..."
[You have a tendency to think too little of your own worth.]
As I voiced those thoughts, Erebus answered.
[It is enough that you have grown to stand equal to, or even above, the children of gods. And above all, I found your heart pleasing. You possess a pure spirit and a clear soul that are hard to believe belong to a man of Greece.]
[So what Erebus means is that it is fine. All you need to do is say one thing.]
"...I..."
[...If you become our adopted son, you will inherit a portion of our power and grow stronger. And your lifespan may also increase. And...]
[You too, now. The child is trying to speak, and you keep interrupting him. You seem impatient, unlike yourself.]
[....I have never done such a thing.]
[Hmph. Liar.]
[.....]
[You should understand. He often says things different from what he truly means.]
Nyx, who had been speaking with Erebus, continued while keeping her gaze fixed on me.
[Now, what will you do?]
"I..."
At those words, I thought for a moment about what the gods would do to my wives or to Eirene, the things most precious to me, if I were to die or disappear.
"...I will do it. I will become your adopted son."
After weighing it all, I concluded that in order to protect what I cherished, I would take the power that even gods could not treat lightly.
[Hmm...]
[Heh heh...]
At my answer, Erebus made an expression that revealed nothing of his intent, while Nyx broke into a bright smile and then...
[Then from now on, you're our son~!!]
Whoosh—
"...Huh?"
She suddenly pulled me into her arms.
"W-what in the world...?!"
[...There she goes again.]
While I was flustered by Nyx's reaction, Erebus responded as though he were used to it.
[Nyx is very soft-hearted when it comes to her children. And now you are one of them as well.]
"I-I see... Th-then... wait a moment! Lady Nyx!"
While Erebus was speaking, Nyx kept drawing me closer into her embrace, and
'I-can't breathe...!'
panicked, I hurriedly tried to make her let go. Nyx released me from her arms and then spoke with a serious expression.
[Call me mother. Call me mother, my son.]
"N-no. Isn't this moving a little too fast?!"
At that solemn face, I was already flustered, and then I was utterly stunned by Nyx's next words.
[I'm going to keep calling you that from now on anyway, so what does it matter? Come now, our youngest. Quickly, call me mother.]
"Th-tha... tha..."
[Quickly.]
"Mo... moth... mother..."
Unable to withstand Nyx's urging, I finally forced the word out, and Nyx smiled as though she were overjoyed.
[Ah! As expected, our youngest is adorable!]
And once again, she pulled me into her arms.
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