5. First Visit to Seth's Rock

Location: Seth's Bar and Rock

Seth landed in front of his small bar on his rock. The ball followed and spoke, "This is it, I will leave because I have matters to attend to. All that is left is for you to decide where you want to do this whole isekai job thing. We have some standard 'isekai' rooms if you want?"

Seth pondered and asked, "Can I do it here?"

"You can, but no offense, would a small bar on a small rock suffice?"

"No, my rock still has empty plots of land. I can just upgrade my bar to make it classy enough. I can also build an evil horror god's den, an interstellar space throne, a sci-fi white emptiness realm, and..." Seth's excitement grew with those wondrous room designs.

"Why didn't you build it previously?" The ball asked. 

"I had no time before, initially, I wasn't skilled enough to modify my realm, and when I did, you started assigning me more materials to study and comprehend. Remember the time when you gave me a hundred of those magic grimoires?"

The ball sighed and said, "Oh, forgive me, but I have to teach you so much because we can't let that potential go to waste, you know." 

Seth nodded and sighed, reminiscing about the events that happened before the meeting.

"It'll take a while before we get you to 'isekai' people, blame it on higher-ups' preparations, duties, and such. But heck! No more homework for you!" The ball used his magic to conjure a stack of paper and ripped them apart.

"We will send those two goddesses at a later time to start your mentoring plus teach you how to teleport from your realm to the public places of our organization. Before that, you can do whatever you want. Now, ta ta…" The ball poofed away Like an interdimensional stage magician. "

After the ball left Seth's rock/realm. Seth flicked his finger, and the rock changed shape, creating more plots of land for his construction.

With this Seth contemplated his next steps, embarking on a journey to create something that many Beings across the multiverse agree as an 'inter-dimensional must-see destination for all'.

 ---

Location: a certain goddess's workplace

A small flash appeared.

"ERIS! HURRY! I'm carrying chilled wine here!" Aqua shouted as she emerged from a circular portal holding a large bottle.

"Aqua senpai! Calm down! Seth can't go anywhere." Eris followed suit, welcoming Aqua.

"We need to find Seth so we can uhh… teach him the ways, it's a big duty we were given!" Aqua said determined.

"Yes senpai, they say that Seth's place isn't big, so we should find him quickly." Eris would have believed her words if she wasn't hugging a bottle of wine.

"Eris, you don't understand how important the training budget and time they gave. We have to use them wisely to mentor Seth. The more progress and growth Seth showed, the better our rewards from that bigshot's group." Aqua harrumphed with pride.

"And we bought that expensive wine using the said budget for what exactly?" Eris asked with a helpless smile.

"It's to lighten the mood so we can know each other more. It's not JUST because I want to drink it." Aqua defended her choice.

She is treating the budget as her own personal wallet. Eris thought helplessly.

"Now ONWARD to Seth's dingy bar and rock! We have lots of stuff to do, we gotta go fast!"

So that this debacle can end faster, I want to laze around with that leftover time. Aqua secretly thought in her mind.

Eris, however, had reservations, "Are you sure this is enough? Should we prepare something else?"

"AH!!! No more dilly dally! There's no time to lose." Aqua Pulled Eris's arm and leaped into the portal without hesitation.

So the two goddesses and one wine bottle entered the portal, unaware of the surprises and opportunities that awaited them. 

 ---

Location: Seth's 'Rock'

On what seemed to be a grand platform, a small portal flashed, and out came Two goddesses and a bottle of wine. They were now standing on top of a circular plaza atop a tower-like structure, surrounded by beautifully crafted topiary. Several bridges extended from the plaza leading to other floating islands, each with its own unique features. 

Above them stretched a star-filled sky, and below flowed an aurora-colored and luminescent ocean. The most prominent landmark visible from their current position was a grand and futuristic castle, others are scattered too far away in the distance.

"Strange? I was told that his place is just a small rock with a ramshackle bar on it. Why the heck is there a castle here?" Aqua exclaimed in confusion after observing the place.

"AQUA! DON'T SAY IT OUT LOUD! Seth might hear you!" Eris reprimanded her in a hushed tone.

"Too late." Seth popped behind her

"WAH! My apologies Mister Seth! Aqua didn't mean to!" Eris with a reddened face bowed down to apologize.

"Don't worry; it was just a small bar on a rock. I have just upgraded it significantly."

"Yeah, we heard you went full god build mode while waiting, though this place is a bit boring." Aqua quipped on a whim. Eris, hearing this, became worried. 

"Care to explain" Seth raised his eyebrow.

"First of all, this place is so big yet feels empty, you should allow people in like a big resort, or make it small and manageable, like a manor. I'm not bragging or anything but I am regarded as a master artist around here and my expertise tells me this architecture is misused. "

"You're also a master artist?"

"Ehh… Yes, not an active member, but still a high-ranking one. WAIT!? WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'ALSO'?"

He then glanced at Eris, silently asking 'Is what she said true?'

Eris nodded in confirmation, conveying 'Yes, it's true.'

"BUH! WAH! EXPLAIN TO ME NOW WHEN YOU SAY ALSO!?" Aqua stammered, feeling like her thunder was stolen.

Before Aqua could continue, Seth cut her off, "I did intend to make this place open to the public. It's just that I wasn't allowed before I get members or employees to manage the place first, automated machines don't count. They say you two could assist me in this matter." 

"Ughh… okay, I still have some issues with your design," Aqua replied, giving up on that matter and trying to assert her seniority with her professional criticism.

"Then Lady Aqua, can you enlighten me, or even help me in my venture constructing my place?"

"I originally didn't want to, but since you show such a humbling manner… Sure, let's do it...." Aqua obliged.

"Before you express your artistic view and suggestion for my islands, why don't we take a tour?" Seth tapped his foot, and the floor under them transformed into a floating platform, akin to a magic carpet. Three comfortable seats and a tiny fridge appeared out of thin air.

"Ladies, some lovely seats for you, and would you allow me to store your…" Seth reached for Aqua's drink, intending to store it in the tiny fridge, but Aqua jumped back, hugging it tighter and making a hiss.

"Message received." They took their seats, and the floating platform began to move.

Eris couldn't help but think, I hope this won't ruin Seth's impression of Aqua, as she observed Aqua affectionately guarding her bottle.

"Don't worry, it won't," hearing this Eris almost jolted.

"As a former human, I have dealt with many people worse than her. Compared to them, she is just a little bit frisky."

Where did you learn this mind link thing, Seth? This thing is not easy to do, right? A god's mind is a tough nut to crack; only true powerhouses can confidently do this.

"The ball previously did it to me; I reverse-engineered it and finally learned it the day before yesterday. I just tried it on you. Forgive me if this is intrusive."

As expected someone associated with that organization, please don't use it indiscriminately on others. Many people don't like it, and I… don't want you to get hurt.

"Thank you Eris; that is sweet of you." A smile rose on Eris's lip, and Seth returned the smile.

"Now what was I gonna ask? Oh yes! Was Aqua always this haughty?"

Seth, Aqua is a good person. She likes to inflate herself, but she means no harm; she just wants to be praised. She also speaks her mind without thinking, and there's usually no deeper meaning to it. Eris relayed her thoughts.

"So she is just like this? Airheaded, a bit egotistic, but also very honest like an open book."

A bit rude but yes. Eris replied in thought

"Is there anything else you would like to add?" a question was sent to her mind.

Uhh... Aqua is genuinely pure, to the point she can be easily fooled by others. She doesn't judge people at all, making her very open and enjoyable to be around. Even though her occupation as a 'master artist' is legitimate, her inaptitude and bad ethics prevented her from fully showcasing it. She likes to create plans with good intentions and maybe for praise. Sadly those plans were usually hastily planned and led to unintended consequences.

"She must have been a doozy for the higher-ups."

She was, but with proper guidance and management, she can produce great results, and that's why she holds a senior position. Eris thought as a reply to Seth.

I see, she seems manageable. Seth thought without transferring it to Eris's mind.

"This is enough for now Eris; thank you. We should end this here. Enjoy the journey; I added a fantastic show along the way." Seth spoke to Eris's mind and then pointed his finger slightly to the ocean surrounding them.

"Girls, what do you think of what I have done to what's under us?" As he ended this sentence, a giant cosmic glittering whale jumped from the bioluminescent ocean and flew to the skies above. Bioluminescent fishes followed suits, filling the skies by the thousands. 

They followed the platform and floated happily in the skies, sparkling the dark starry skies. Overlaying the actual stars above, they blended with the sky, creating a breathtaking sight. 

All the fish were moving in the same direction as Seth and the others. The moving fish's glowing mixed with the natural shine of the still stars made quite a spectacle. Creating an illusion as if they were shooting stars. They followed and gleefully danced above.

As the two goddesses stood in amazement. Eris spoke in amazement, "It's beautiful Seth."

Aqua, equally amazed, asked, "Where did you get these, I have never seen these fishes before?"

"These wonderful creatures already lived in this glowing milky ocean, it seems like they are from my previous god self, meaning they are ancient."

"Did the higher-ups know this?"

"They did, they deemed them harmless."

"Neat, though we've never heard you had an ocean in your realm."

"Neither did I previously, now I moved them closer here."

"Then how did you get them to float in the skies?" Aqua pointed at the floating fishes.

"They aren't." Seth smiled

"What do you mean?" Aqua and Ersi asked at the same time.

"We are actually underwater, I just made the top part of this ocean transparent and made a water tunnel surrounding our path. This realm is mine in the first place, I can edit it however I want."

"Whoa… you made part of this ocean transparent, I didn't know that," Aqua spoke out loud.

"All I did was make the ocean see-through." 

The moment Aqua heard those words, something ticked inside her, "Hey? You saying I'm incompetent?"

"No, why did you think…"

"LET ME tell you this! me being a goddess of water doesn't mean I have to be able to detect it!" Aqua proclaimed.

Seth finally understood what was wrong, "So have you ever done this? Since you're a goddess of water and all?" Seth asked, feeling a bit taunting.

"Uh… no, BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN I CAN'T DO IT! I JUST NEVER THOUGHT OF IT, UGH… I MEAN THERE IS NO REASON TO!" To prove her point, she crossed her arms and conjured a ball of water, then turned it so transparently that only the outline could barely be seen.

 Seth used his 'creation' power to conjure water too, "Then what about…"

With this, a heated debate and show-off of skills erupted on the moving platform, involving Aqua and Seth showcasing their water-manipulating abilities. Seth did it to experiment with his 'creation' ability and Aqua did it to prove her capabilities. Eris, who was not related to the water element, only observed from the sidelines.