Chapter 8 - Part 4 - Elves, Artemis and Lamias

Little Olympia

Jin Skyward

We had teleported back to Little Olympia and it was still busy as ever. Even at dusk, they were still hard at work… Probably because they can get some drinks at night.

"Should we have an early dinner? If we get hungry later on, I can just buy extra food and store it away with my space magic."

They don't know about my [Inventory] so I'll just use that… Though I did give them the same function but with the rings.

"Yes please, I'm hungry… All that exploring worked up an appetite!"

Serafall and Irina nodded their heads simultaneously, looking at each other before laughing. The others didn't have any problems with it.

"Alright, how about Tehami's restaurant then? They make delicious food and are at affordable prices."

I can afford to pay, so anywhere is fine for me. Often, the prices and amount of food on the plate at some of those expensive restaurants just feel insulting. Some are basically nonexistent! I want actual food, dammit.

That's what my restaurant's motto or policy will be! Top quality food at affordable prices! They'll be on par with five-star restaurants without the over-the-top stupid prices! Wait for me, Kuoh, wait for me, world!

"Sure, it's a comfy and cozy place ~ Hermes brought us there after one brief meeting once. He and his parents are nice~"

The girls agreed, so we started to walk over there. Hermes is seen carrying boxes, planks of wood, and other materials to people around the city as we make our way there. He saw us and gave us a friendly peace sign before getting back to work.

At least he's enthusiastic about it—

"Hohoho, if it isn't Jin. How was your trip to the Harpies?"

We suddenly come across Chronos with Poseidon and Zeus. I was surprised that they weren't being surrounded or crowded, though they probably frequently visit this place so it shouldn't be too big of a deal.

"It was fine, I didn't really get to speak with the Queen… The same with the Sirens. A God and Goddess were responsible for that…"

I glance at Demeter and deadpan to Chronos who both let out a short laugh.

"My apologies, Jin. I was just checking up on her that day, it was pure coincidence."

"So was I ~ but I'm coming with you to the Lamias, but we'll be making a pit stop in the Elves' village."

"…Now that I think about it, why are elves here? They're usually not in this mythos…"

"They originally came from different parts of Europe. So, the elves here are of different heritages. Some English, Irish, and Norse elves… And whatnot. That's why you'll see elves there with a variety of hair colors, they're not just blonde."

Zeus answers my question… I see that makes sense, but why did they leave? Maybe I can just ask that when I get there. But I'll probably have to wait till tomorrow, I wonder if they've been contacted by… I look at Chronos and he winks at me.

"Anyway~ we're planning to have dinner at Tehami's~ care to join us?"

"I shall fetch Hera and we'll join you."

Poseidon and Chronos agreed to come with us, Zeus disappeared and then reappeared in a flash of lightning with Hera in tow. She greets us with a wave and we continue on our way to Tehami's restaurant.

…

Tehami brought us back to the same table as last time, but it did not have enough space, so I just expanded the table and the area around it. I said it would be permanent and would be on the house.

"How has your time here been, Jin? I hope everything has been well for you."

"Yeah, it's been mostly pleasant. Not much trouble so I don't really need to do anything…"

"Of course, we deal with them as soon as we find out. The ones you should look out for are the more… 'Rowdy' Gods and Goddesses here, you should know who they are, no?"

I nod, yeah Hermes warned me about them when I first got here. I haven't felt them doing anything so far. I'll also trust what Hermes said about them being warier of me since I threatened them. These are the type of 'villains' that are cautious but are also prone to being arrogant. They'll eventually slip up, if not, then I'll just end them when the time comes.

…I wonder if they've heard of Black Alice from Hermes? I'll bring it up once our food arrives… And that didn't take too long since Tehami came back with our dinner soon after. He placed them one by one until he was done.

We dig into our food as everyone seemed quite hungry. I look around at everyone and they're eating, so I also start eating. The girls were chatting lightheartedly, the same with the Gods, everything was quite calm and normal.

"Question."

The Four Gods look at me, they seemed curious about what I had to ask, Zeus nods and waits for me to continue. I put a sound-canceling barrier around us.

"Black Alice."

That name made them all frown. It looks like Hermes didn't say anything to him at all then. Alright, I nod and tell them what I found out and what I told Hermes. As I spoke more and more, I could see the look of disbelief appear on all their expressions.

"…I do not believe you would lie about something like this, Jin. How are you sure?"

Shrugging, I'm willing to share some things with you, Zeus, but not everything. The man just nodded, as he didn't push for it. It looked like he understood what I said.

"Let's go with— My subordinates found out about it. I had them spy on one of their members and found out that way."

"A half-truth, then. Very well, Jin. I will discuss it with… The 'saner' Gods and Goddesses here, I may consider signing the alliance if that's she really is alive…"

I didn't think that Black Alice put so much fear in Zeus of all people. I wonder what happened? I know Hermes told me the story of what happened, but it was mostly from his perspective.

"Heh, would you like to know what happened on my end, Jin?"

"I am curious about it."

Zeus lets out a chuckle and closes his eyes. Chronos, Hera, and Poseidon had complicated smiles on their faces. I doubt they want to remember that day either, and I just moved ahead and asked for a retelling. Am I insensitive? Zeus then began to speak.

"It was an ordinary day in our realm, our people carried on about their usual business. As the Gods, we were aware of Typhon's rumors, but we didn't think he would act on such an outrageous claim. He wants to overthrow us and claim Mount Olympus for himself. For what? He never specified a reason."

But then he came into our realm at night and began attacking us while leaving the humans alone. An initial firestorm— Multiple of them wiped out a few towns and villages towards the south."

"Typhon has weather manipulation skills at an unbelievable level; he used it very well. He flooded the West, that's how the home of the Sirens came to be, it was just a moderate lake before, and now it's… He wiped out the North's landscape, you saw the ravines, cliffs, random drops, and destroyed landscape, yes?"

"Many of the trees in the East were also torn down and destroyed. A very prominent tree the elves planted there long ago was destroyed in the attack. While we are in good relations with him now, the damage was done over there. Elves, Lamias, and most inhabitants of the East hate him."

"Little Olympia was also not safe, you see most of the surroundings here… It's mostly empty, a few ruins here and there, many open fields with trees there. He wiped it all out. This place was much larger than what it is now."

"It was as if 'Hell' had entered our world. He came alone and I faced him alone. I ordered the rest of the Gods and Goddesses to evacuate and protect our citizens. When I look back at it now, it may have been foolish. I nearly lost my life during the battle. Typhon was much stronger than I anticipated."

"Hera and I had five children in total, four are alive today while… The fifth… Died during that time. Ares, Apollon, Eileithyia and Hebe. Hera was pregnant at the time. My fight with Typhon got too close to where Hera was and…"

"Something… Something happened…? Darkness, tentacles, and an overwhelming sense of dread briefly engulfed the area. It came out of Typhon, but once it was gone… Hera felt empty."

...What? Darkness and tentacles…don't tell me…she even messed with them when I wasn't here? What? Why? For what reason? I closed my eyes and tried to look into the future.

…

<Jin-chan? Hi, hi!>

<….?>

"What did you do to Hera's baby?"

<Huh? Hera…. Hera…. Ah! That Greek Goddess? Hehe, that thing was quite tasty. Typhon was… How do I say this, my test? I put him to sleep forcefully and gave him a very small amount of power. He turned around and challenged the Greek Gods after, what a fool, haha!>

….She ate… It…?

<After that I went to Azrael and you know the story~ hmmm~ why? Oh, oh! You're with the Greeks Gods right now, huh? Hehe, you were told the story? Greek fetus divine energy is quite something, it felt spicy. I wonder why? I never looked into it.>

...…What is wrong with this… I look at Azathoth as the eye was closed. Really? You're willing to turn a blind eye? Fucking hell, I seriously do not want to meet the other Outer Gods if they're as nasty or more evil than her.

<Don't worry, Jin-chan! Our babies will be adorable! Don't worry, once you evolve, just r—pe me and impregnate me! I'll give birth right away and we can rule—>

She's a lost cause…you're the first thing I'm erasing and replacing when I evolve. She's way too irredeemable. I shake my head and leave…

…

"Jin?"

"Sorry, I was thinking of something, so… Shat happened after Hera felt empty?"

Zeus nods and sighs.

"She knew she lost the baby…it's been a struggle for her. But we hadn't tried for another since, she is afraid it may happen again."

Zeus stops eating and holds Hera's hand under the table. She was also just zoning out while eating. I'm sorry I didn't mean to bring up any unpleasant memories.

"After I defeated Typhon, much of our realm was destroyed or on the brink of destruction, but what we didn't expect was for another Monster to show up, and it called itself Black Alice."

"She began to wreak havoc; I was already quite weakened by my fight with Typhon so I had to accept the aid of my fellow Gods and even some of the denizens offered to help… It was like an all-out war. Black Alice had raw power but she was still quite inexperienced."

"She relied too heavily on her raw power and techniques, we fought back with strategies, tactics, and of course our own powers. We had many casualties, but in the end, we prevailed… Well we thought we did."

"However, if what you said is true… She may be stronger than what we are now. We are Gods, so we don't train— But if she drank that blood… Stronger than the Heavenly Dragons in their prime…"

"Khaos Brigade, that terrorist group seemed like trouble, but I didn't think it would get into this kind of trouble… If she's the leader of this newly formed faction and still bears hatred for us, our pantheon may—"

"Don't go in with such a defeatist attitude, Zeus. You're a powerful God, while you may not be in the top ten strongest, you're still powerful. You did beat a much more powerful Typhon and even kept fighting Black Alice when in a weakened state."

"I know you said you would think about it but, seriously consider joining the alliance, with the other factions' help and me, we can prevent that from repeating.... Here."

I snap my fingers and summon a small box with a green button in the middle, it had all the documents in them.

"Tap the button and the documents for the alliance will appear. You said you'll be discussing the alliance with the other Gods and Goddesses, right? Just read this over with them."

"I see, my thanks, Jin. Heh, who would have thought a youngster like you would try cheering me up. You're still too young for that, boy… But again, thank you. Now then! Let's move on to more cheerful topics!"

"Oh boy, here he goes—"

"Jin! Do you engage in orgies with your harem?!"

Smack!

Hera immediately smacked him after he asked me such a bizarre question... I could see some patrons looking at us now... In the end, he's still a pervert, never change— Geezer Zeus.

…

Dinner was over and it was still quite early in the evening, around seven. Therefore, we still had some time to travel to the Elf town or city, whatever it was. I was outside with everyone else, I paid for the meal and tipped Tehami again. He was crying and grateful… It's no big deal, dude.

"Thank you for the documents and for paying for our meal, Jin. I wish you luck in your journey."

"Yeah, no problem. Just tell me your decision when I get back for the final day— Before or after the tournament."

Zeus nods and looks at Chronos.

"Chronos, join me. I wish to discuss this first with you, Apollon, Hera, and Poseidon."

"I have time, hohoho, good luck, Jin."

"I wish you the best of health, Jin."

After saying their goodbyes, they left in a flash of lightning, courtesy of Zeus. I was left with the girls and we fall silent for a few seconds.

"That was heavy… I didn't even get a chance to speak. Poor Hera, whatever— No we know who it was, right? You did... become silent, Jin."

Serafall's expression took on a serious expression as she glanced at me. She even lost the 'chan' part of my name, but yeah, we do know. I nod as she comically stomps her foot.

"Mouuu! When I get stronger, I'll kick her tentacle ass with the power of a true magical girl!"

Demeter who was still with us looked confused. I lightly chop Serafall's head and glance at Demeter. She sees this and puts her hands over her mouth… Haaa… What am I going to do with you?

"Tentacles?"

"Don't worry about it, let's get moving. You said the village-town or whatever will be a lot better looking, right?"

"Yep ~ carry me, I'm tired ~"

She didn't wait for a response from me and jumped towards me, so I instinctively caught her. I shook my head and flew into the sky, the rest followed but they were strangely silent… They were probably just processing what was said.

The fetus eating part.

…

Fwoshh ~

The wind and air were much colder at night in this realm. Much like what Zeus and Demeter mentioned, new trees were growing here. They weren't normal trees— Well not all of them. I could feel some sort of magic coming from them.

"The wind feels nice~"

"It really does! Demeter-sama! Will the elves let us stay in their village?"

Demeter still in my arms had a rather content smile on her as the wind blows into our faces. I will agree with her though, and say it does feel pleasant. It was also agreed upon by the girls, but only Irina voiced her opinion.

"They sure will~ while they hate Typhon, they won't turn away a traveler because of their history. They want to be as accepting as they can, their current Leader and previous one have the same mindset."

"Previous leader? Did they die?"

"Yes, during the attack of Typhon and Black Alice. Their last Queen died, once she did, the previous King stepped down from the throne and they elected new ones. The new Queen is quite young. However, there is no King at the moment."

"The Queen is quite picky on who she wants as King…she wants certain standards to be met. Hehe, she just looks up to the previous King too much~"

Like what Terrance and Hermes said, the elven village has a Queen and King, so both male and female elves reside there. They're also quite diverse, apparently, so I look forward to meeting them.

"Well, if the previous one was so good… It only makes sense to try to have the same standard, right?"

"Hehe, you'll soon see ~ turn right into that mountain ~ there are larger trees there. That's where they are at."

It was still quite far away but… Yeah, I could see it, even in the darkness and moonlight. There was a large tree but… It seemed normal, nothing special about it, the same with the trees surrounding the elves' home.

But I could feel something… Something in the middle, it wasn't too strong, but there was magic coming from it.

Kshhhh!!! Kshhhh!!!

"….That's quite a drop and only a small bridge to connect this land and theirs."

"It's deliberate. Can you feel it? There's a large barrier around their home… It keeps unwanted guests out. Anyone they deem as an enemy can't enter… Of course if they're much stronger, then they won't have any problems getting in."

A barrier, huh? I guess that event put a scar on them too. At least they're taking precautions too…. I suddenly feel like I passed through something— It had to be the barrier. Before I passed through it, it looked like I was entering into a large forest with very tall trees.

Once we got through the barrier, the quaint village below us was quite a sight. They were made from the same woods that surround their quaint village. The roofs were mostly A-frame style and a few were gable-valler roof styled.

Many of the windows were circular or rectangular in shape— The walls were dark green in color— The same wood type as the trees that surrounded their village.

Not all the structures were wooden as there was some kind of middle area that was mostly made out of stone, the same with the buildings at the background. They had a strange blue glow that was dim, there were also small rivers and bodies of water around the village.

As to where they came from? I couldn't see. I would guess it's somewhere beyond this barrier, on the outside. Since it was nighttime, the area was quite beautiful. I'm not sure if it's because of the trees or the barrier doing something to this place but…

It gave off a 'mystical' vibe if you get what I mean. I could feel… Something else here… It felt like fairies, ariels, or spirits? Did they live alongside the elves?

"What's that in the middle?"

"I can't answer that ~ ask the Queen tomorrow ~ we'll meet them and we'll stay at that cozy inn~"

Demeter points at a building to the top right of the village, a house that was built into a literal tree, the tree was also quite large. That's the inn? That's a first, even the one in the Faerie Kingdom wasn't built into one or the one in the Land of Heaven Falls…

"The Queen should be over there ~ let's fly over ~"

Following her instructions, I fly over there with the girls. I don't think we can explore much tonight…probably just stay in the Inn and then sleep. As we approach the Inn, we could see a lone female elf there....

After we flew down, she had a calm smile on her face as we stood in front of her. Though she looked a bit sleepy… The Elf Queen has long golden hair with a pink ribbon that keeps a portion of her hair in a plait and eyes with dark blue irises and pink clover-like pupils. She has a rather large bust. Her outfit has an olive green and pale yellow creme color scheme.

"Greetings, Goddess Demeter… I, haaa… Forgive me, I'm quite tired… I am the Queen of this small village. I am Amaryllis Ismene. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Hi, Ama-chan ~ I'm here with the Harem Dragon Emperor— Ow! Hey! Don't hit a Goddess— Ow! I'm sorry!"

I lightly chop her head; I do not want to be called that… Amaryllis looks at us with amusement.

"We shall continue this tomorrow. Your accommodations are already in order, with that, I bid you a goodnight."

The Queen smiles at us before walking down a path past us. We watch her walk away and disappear from our sights. Now that I'm here… I can feel something underneath us, I felt more elven auras down there… Did they make an underground portion of their little village?

Serafall stepped into the Inn first while I was pulled by Demeter. Once inside, the place was quite cozy, with branches that formed a small area to rest and sit on, a small tree stump for a table. A single reception area with a male elf.

He had medium light blue hair; grey eyes and he wore a… Butler uniform? He opens his closed eyes and nods at us, he reaches for the keys behind him and makes them float to me. I grab the two keys…. Two? I glance at Demeter as she's pretending to ignore me….

I nod at him and hand the other key to Penemue. Suddenly small green orbs appeared.

"Please follow those orbs, they will guide you to your room."

The male elf informs us, and we begin to follow them. The orb then ascends up a short flight of stairs. Once up there the orbs split off, one veers right and the others go left. I looked at my key and it had a small number that said '11'. I looked at the doors in the hallway and the right was numbered 15+ while that last door on the left was 13.

I go left and Penemue and Irina turn right. Two doors down was my room. Push it open and it was simple, one large bed and the typical things you would need if you were staying at an Inn. The bed sheets were blue with purple leaves as designs.

"It's a little different from the ones in the Faerie Kingdom…"

"It is?"

Oh, right… These guys weren't with me. I nod, I then explain my experience there and how the realm was, it was quite a unique place. Though, all the places I've been have looked like something out of a fantasy book or anime.

"...You guys sleep. I want to check out something."

After Valerie and Serafall protested, Demeter agreed with me, and with the power of a Goddess and her persuasion, they went to sleep.

"You better come back soon."

"I will, Valerie."

She wasn't convinced, but Demeter gave me a knowing smile and winked at me. I shook my head and left the room. I quickly headed downstairs and left the Inn. The receptionist didn't even question me. I leapt into the air and flew to my right. There were some large trees behind the buildings, but I felt something so I kept flying.

There were no elves out since I felt them all in their homes. As I broke through the large trees, I saw a large field beyond them. I could see some training dummies. Is this some sort of training field? I mean it would make sense because of what happened with Typhon… Looking at the dummies they had small holes on them.

I fly over to one of them and land in front of it… I touch it, it was made out of the same wood as the trees around me… I suddenly felt someone approaching me—

"…What are you doing?"

This voice… I didn't think she would be up right now. I turn around and see Artemis. I guess she was here, probably helping with this archery training.

"I was curious, so I came over here. I didn't expect to see you here, Artemis."

"…"

She didn't answer me but glared at me instead, trying to see if I was lying or whatnot. While glaring at me, she sighs and then summons a bow.

"…?"

"Do not act like we are friends, Red Dragon Emperor. But since you are here, let us have a friendly competition."

Competition? What's with the hostility? She looks like the Artemis of Danmachi but… Haaa, whatever. I doubt she would accept a no for an answer, so I wait for her to continue. I hear a low rumbling behind me and a bullseye appears.

"I'll make it simple, a bullseye will award you ten points, if you hit any areas that are yellow, it will be five points. Red will be four, blue three, black two and white one. We each will have five shots, whoever has the highest points wins."

I looked at the bullseye, and it was normal. There had been no magic or tampering with it.

"Sure, thing but—"

"If I win, you will answer my questions. If you win… You can request anything you want."

...That's one hell of a wager, lady. Are you that confident in winning? Also, I don't think that's fair on your part. If you win, I just have to answer your questions? But if I do, do I get to ask for anything?

Silently, she points at...a red line that I hadn't noticed before. I guess that's where we'll be firing from. It was around… One hundred and twenty meters away. Isn't the one in the Olympics just seventy? She's pretty hardcore in her own way…

Can the elves here even hit it…? No, that's stupid, of course, they can. There are some holes in those dummies after all. We go over there and she goes first. Artemis creates arrows out of her own divine energy, she aims and—

Tah! Hit! Pah! Tah! Tah!

I watch her fire arrow after arrow as it hit the bullseye. After her five shots… She had thirty-five points. She seemed kinda angry for missing the last one. She steps aside and gestures for me to go ahead… I don't have a bow you know… I guess I'll make one now…

The bow I created is a matte black, western-style straight bow, it's a simple design, no need to be fancy. I could see Artemis giving it a strange look, I just shrugged and created an arrow with my own energy.

I take aim—

Hit! Hit! Tah! Tah! Pah!

"I guess I win."

All my arrows hit the bullseye. Seeing as how I didn't exactly want to answer her questions… I didn't want to lose. Artemis was clearly frowning, not liking the results.

"One more time."

"Sure."

So— We played another round… And another… And another… And— You get what I mean. I kept winning and she kept getting more frustrated. She didn't show it but I could tell from her emotions. This dragged on for a total of ten rounds, I won them all.

Artemis finally put her bow away and sighed. She looks back at me with a glare.

"Anything, but I will not have sexual intercourse with you. You are aware of my vow."

Do I look like I just want to bend over any woman I see and fuck them?! I have standards and my own morals! I may want a harem but—

[....I— Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!]

….?

[Why are YOU! Attacking— Screw it, bring it you cun-simp!]

'Do not fret, Ddraig and Cúntóir are just playing a game of tag.'

I don't think attacking someone is considered tag, Rudra…

"Speak, Red Dragon Emperor. What do you desire?"

"I'll have two number nines, a number nine large, a number six with extra dip, a number seven, two number forty-fives, one with cheese, and a large soda."

"…??????????"

Mmmm, that makes sense, she has no idea what I was referencing. My bad…. Please don't look at me like I'm insane… I swear I'm not…

"Er— Why are you here?"

"…? I am close to the elves of our realm. I help train them in archery and swordsmanship, why are you asking?"

"Because that's what I 'desire', I just asked the question."

She had a look of disbelief on her face as she stared at me like I was pulling her leg. I'm sorry lady, but I don't really have anything I 'desire' since I can just make most things come true if I wanted…

"I'm not lying, you know—"

"I do not accept this, please suggest something else."

"Bu—"

"No."

Fine! Lady why are you making things more complicated than they have to be?! ...Oh, I know! Why did she keep her chastity in this world then? Since I'll assume that it has nothing to do with her being a child of Zeus or whatever…

"Why did you make your vow?"

"…"

Artemis seemed to slip into thought as she closed her eyes. I could feel her emotions soaring, but I wasn't sure which was more prevalent— Hatred, anger, or rage? Well then. I guess she doesn't like men?

"Athena and Ares. One of Zeus's sons, Ares tried to court me for many years, but I was not interested. So, he tried to sexually assault me once, but it did not end well as I fought back. He's much stronger than me, but men do have weaknesses after all."

"I pretended to change my mind and when he got close to me, I attacked his special place. He was in a lot of pain."

…Fucking hell lady, though I don't feel sorry for the guy. But… Hearing you say that, I'm more surprised that the guy was able to come out of it intact.

"Athena. We were once 'friends' but she has romantic feelings for Ares, so when he started to try to court me, our relationship turned foul. When she found out what I did to Ares, they started to conspire."

"She started to re-connect with me and I genuinely thought that we were starting to be friends again. But then I was drugged and when I woke up, I was chained up to a wall, with Ares and multiple other men I did not recognize."

"…..."

"They tried to; I fought back as much as I could. But I was lucky since Zeus and Apollon had been suspecting Ares of plotting something against me since our last incident. So, I was saved that day— That's why we have limited interaction."

"I hated being in the same room as them, even during the time I met you."

So, Zeus basically gave Artemis a restraining order, probably the same with Athena… Wait, then are—

"Yes, it's as you suspect. The two of them are now lovers, mocking me or goading me on whenever they see me even though they can't get close to me. However, like his father, he's quite… Concupiscent."

"Unlike his father, though, he acts on it to anyone and everyone he likes. Whether it be Athena, myself, or other women, he doesn't care. Athena is not bothered by it; I do not know why. That is why I took my vows. I hate men, I can tolerate them. Zeus, Poseidon, Chronos and Hermes."

"Those are the ones I'm in frequent contact with. There are more that I can tolerate, but the rest I want nothing to do with."

Ares is the Zeus of this world. I'm not sure if that's irony or not since he's his son…. So, I'm not on the list yet, huh? Well, we'll work on that then.

"I see. Well thanks and sorry for having to share your reason with me. I didn't think it would be that dark, Artemis. I'll head out. Goodnight."

"…Do you truly wish for nothing else? Even if you asked— I would have—"

"Nah, I'm good. I don't force women into my harem. This isn't just about a concubine or anything like that; I love them all equally. Anyway, see you tomorrow then."

Even if I'm slowly becoming known as the Middleman, Red Dragon Emperor, and probably a giant pervert for wanting a harem… I don't care, let them think that. I'll prove them wrong on it once they meet me.

[But you are one.]

Okay, I know, but it's only to my lovers, alright?!

{And to the women you're interested in.}

OKAY, FINE THAT TOO! BUT I'M NOT THAT BAD!

I flew away while arguing with these two. I felt Artemis's gaze on me as I left.

…

"Why are you still up?"

When I landed back in front of the Inn, Demeter was outside sitting on a large root of a tree with her eyes closed. When she heard me, she opened it and smiled at me.

"How was it?"

"It was fine, she was a bit hostile but we're fine. I beat her in a friendly archery competition."

Demeter faked a surprise and I rolled my eyes at her, she giggled to herself. She walks over and stands beside me.

"You know, I'm surprised that Artemis tolerated you that much."

"She had questions she wanted to ask me. If she won the competition I would answer them, but I won, so I asked her why she made her vow."

"Also, maybe she tolerated me because I was invited here and I'm also the Middleman. I have the Three Great Powers, the Irish Gods, and the West Youkai Faction as my allies."

Demeter nodded and hummed; it would be dumb for most of them to attack me. Although they cannot do anything against me, the threat posed by those I am friendly with or in an alliance with is widely known.

I believe that the Three Great Powers alliance, as well as the Irish joining hands with the Three Factions is spreading now. Yasaka's will also start to spread eventually. I'll probably snag a deal a lot sooner than I anticipated since Black Alice is involved with the Greek Mythology.

"Oh well, ~ let's go to sleep~"

She grabbed my arm and dragged me back inside; this woman just takes things at her own pace…

…

Next day

"Oh dear ~ what is this jagged thing poking me from below?~"

"Mount Fuji. I'm hungry, let's go."

I had woken up and the first thing being pointed out to me was my morning wood. It's a natural phenomenon, let's move on, shall we? I feel a tug on my right arm and see Valerie was also awake. I gave her a look and she points to her lips?

Confused, I kiss her— She blushes and shakes her head.

"That's not what I meant… Blood…"

"Ahh—"

Demeter hadn't gotten off me but I ignored the weird rubbing by her. I give some access to Valerie to my neck and she leans in to bite me. She does her thing and after a few seconds she licks it and gets up.

"That's the first time I've seen that… Valerie-chan… Are you a vampire?"

I haven't told them about Valerie, so I might as well. I tell Serafall what I did and who Valerie is, Demeter started to laugh while Serafall looked stressed.

"Do you have any idea of the implications of what you did? We may want to form an alliance with them— Both the Tepes and Carmilla faction, you know…"

Business-mode Serafall had arrived and she was scolding me. Yes, I am aware of what I did and the possible implications. I mean… They're still likely to ask for Gasper, they'll just be missing Valerie.

"But… I understand why you did it. They hurt Valerie-chan! And that's unforgivable!"

Which is it, woman?! Your personal feelings or business?! I finally pull Demeter off me and set her on the bed.

"Breakfast, huh. I wonder if the elves here are vegetarian or vegan?"

"Huhu ~ don't worry about that~ you'll see soon enough ~"

Demeter answered my question in a vague manner, I shrug and leave the room followed by them. I wanted to see what kind of breakfast we'll have… I still have the food from last night.

…

The food that we were served for breakfast was a combination of both. Apparently, a lot of the elves here are omnivores, they consume both vegetables and animals. Even though I spoke briefly with the guy who brought us the food, I believe they usually eat vegetables and fruits more. However, eating animals like fish is not out of the question.

Since we're guests and they sometimes have travelers coming here, they have other meats prepared for such an occasion. But even without the meat… The dishes they served with just the vegetables were quite good…and from what I was told, they're really good. I wonder what they have in it?

"Umai!"

Irina happily cheers while eating her second serving. She had a mix of vegetables and meat, she wasn't too picky, that's probably due to what she used to eat while being an exorcist. Everyone else was in agreement, and the chef who made it looked relieved as I gave him a thumbs up.

"Ama-chan is probably waiting for us ~ let's hurry up and meet up with her. I'll take you there, so don't worry~"

…

We quickly finished our breakfast. I gave the chef a small tip of five thousand. Irina was disappointed since it ended so quickly… She was slowly turning into a glutton, at this rate it'll be Kuroka, Shigune, and Irina.

We were outside and the place had elves out everywhere. There were kids running around too. Demeter was greeted by them. It seems like she's popular here too, however, we got strange looks.

This place looked quite picturesque even in the daytime. As we approach the stairs we pass the center of the village and it looked as if a ritual would be conducted there. It was surrounded by pillars; however, no one was currently there…but it did have a strange feeling to it.

Once we got up the stairs… Another elf was waiting there— A dark elf.

The Dark Elf has brown skin, pointed ears, and silver hair. She looks like a girl around the age of 39 years old. She has violet eyes and her light lavender hair is long, waist-length which she tied in a Sleek Ponytail style, with side-front bangs. She is moderately muscular but still has a curvy figure with large breasts, slender waist, and legs.

"Greetings Goddess Demeter, I trust this is the Middleman? How do you do? I am Nienna, the Queen's personal bodyguard. Please follow me, she is waiting."

She turns around to stand on a platform. We follow her and once we are all on it, it drops down...so there is an underground section. The platform falls down with no change in anything as we're just surrounded by walls of rock, then—

"Wow! There's a city underneath!"

There indeed was, and a small glowing light at the center, it looked like it was underneath the ritualistic place at the center of the above city, perhaps those two are connected somehow?

I'm surprised though, there were very large trees here, some of the houses and buildings had been built into them. The 'bridges' were giant roots from the trees connecting the land to one another, while the higher elevations had wooden bridges, probably made by them.

"This is…?"

"Both the above village and our underground city are our homes. Only Elves of this realm, or anyone that has been given permission may use this platform to go down. This was created by our previous Queen and King."

"Elves, fairies, and spirits live here— You may have sensed them while you were there last night… The building to the right background is the where the Queen currently resides. The building in the middle is where the elders and the Queen hold discussions."

"The one to our nearest right is our library, this holds more of our history, while the one at the surface holds just some of it."

The buildings here were mostly made out of stone, but they do keep the color scheme of the roofs as purple, however, they're much rounder in shape. The lights here were powered by magic, just like the surface, but… The magic density here is denser than it was on the surface.

"Are the Gods aware of this?"

"Yes."

I turn to Demeter and she nods. I saw a lot of plant life and insects around the place, as well as white mist or fog. In addition, there were waterfalls surrounding the area, as well as some bugs buzzing around.

The platform eventually stops. Nienna steps off first followed by us, she starts to walk away and we follow her.

"Is there anything beyond here?"

"Just trees, plants, and a training area much like the surface, why?"

"Oh, just wondering."

It wasn't a very spacious city; there were more houses and buildings around it, but I couldn't feel any other life outside of this small city. There were a few elves here walking around and doing their own thing. But what did she mean by elders? Do old elves assist with decision-making?

The Queen looked a bit young so I would assume the older one would help in the decision-making, maybe even the past King?

"How do we get to the castle?"

Just as Irina asked, we come across another… Platform… It's like the ones in the Land of Heroes and Giants. It'll probably take us there? Or just teleport us? Nienna stepped onto it and it didn't do anything. We got on it too.

We were suddenly teleported in front of the entrance of the castle. There were two guards, another dark elf, a male, and a blonde elf who was also male. They saluted Nienna and let us through.

"Across this bridge is another section, mostly a housing district, it is small and you will need to turn right from where we first descended from. It also has a small marketplace as we live off the fish and plants down here, much like the surface."

Nienna explained as we walked through the castle. Colors used mostly were purple and green, with the occasional yellow or blue, but it wasn't overly fancy either, like the one in Harpy Haven. There were a few pictures of a female elf and male elf, probably the past rulers?

Upon arriving at a door, we enter it, and inside we find Queen Amaryllis Ismene. She was wearing the same thing as last night but she didn't look as tired this time. She smiled at us after we arrived. Nienna joined her at her side.

"Ama-chan ~ we're here ~"

I swear this Goddess is just friendly with everyone…

"Welcome to our quaint village, Red Dragon Emperor, Goddess Demeter, and Serafall Leviathan."

Did she know about Serafall? As I glanced at her, she didn't seem to react much. She's probably used to it.

"This may seem sudden, but please hear out my request, Red Dragon Emperor."

"…?"

"Please impregnate me."

...

...

...

'{[Huh?!]}'

Irina and Valerie started to have a coughing fit, even Nienna had a completely dumbfounded expression on her, as she was staring at Amaryllis like she grew three extra pairs of breasts.

Even Demeter was taken aback by the request. Serafall completely short-circuited as this request came out of left field.

"I—"

"I am aware of you seeking a harem! Isn't this a prime opportunity?! I will stri—"

"My Queen, stop!!"

Amaryllis grabbed her clothing and was about to rip off her own clothes when Nienna rushed to her and restrained her. I was expecting some kind of serious request… Well I mean— This is serious in a way… Like, why does she want to be pregnant?

"…May I know why you wish to be impregnated?"

"Are you really considering it?!"

Demeter, Valerie, and Serafall snapped back at me, I shake my head. I just want to know her reason, there has to be a reason for this. Why doesn't she just ask another elf? Or someone else in this world…

"As you know, when the last Queen died, the past King stepped down and has entered his retirement. I have been searching for a new King since I took up the throne, however, every candidate that has been put forward has been… Lacking in some areas."

"So! I came to the conclusion, if a strong man impregnates me, I can raise that boy to become King, find him a lover and they can take over for me!"

I thought of her as a smart and wise woman when I first met her, but does she have a screw-loose up there? Also, I'm not that smart, we'd probably have average kids…

"Queen Amaryllis, the elders have said that if you become pregnant you will have to marry the one who did that to you…"

"That sounds even better! Red Dra—"

"I decline."

I don't want to be confined here, sorry to say. I also still have a lot of things to do in this world and… Another. Places to go, people to meet. I can't marry you and be locked here. The girls had a look of relief, please trust me a little more… I won't just accept something like that.

"Haa… If that's all we'll get going… We need to get to the Lamias—"

"W-Wait! Very well— We don't need to get married but… Umm… Please consider, romance with me?!"

I smile at her and teleport back to the surface.

…

"…Red Dragon Emperor."

I teleported back to the top of the staircase, below us was Artemis. It looked like she was heading our way but stopped.

"Artemis ~"

Demeter left my side and hugged Artemis; she looked a bit uncomfortable but also hugged her back. They speak for a bit and I turn to the girls.

"You know, I'm thankful the Elves I met in Ireland didn't react like that…. Okay they didn't really interact with me much, but still."

"She was quite pushy, she looked very dignified and proper last night…"

"Who knew being single that long will make you like th— Ow, ow, ow, ow! Sister Griselda, why?!— Ow!! I'm sorry!"

Valerie makes a comment on the Queen as the girls agreed with her. I agree with her— What just happened destroyed my image of her… And Irina, don't say those kinds of things when you're with women who have been single for most of their lives…

Griselda had reached over and started to lightly squeeze and stretch her cheeks. Irina had tears in her eyes…. Mmm, they get along.

"Jin ~ wanna go take a look? ~"

"Huh?"

"Artemis is training the elves on archery again~"

Artemis seemed a lot less hostile today, maybe because of what happened? Or maybe because of Demeter? Whatever the case, I didn't mind going.

"Sure."

…

We were at the same spot I was with Artemis last night, but this time… There were multiple elves everywhere, some training in swords and some with bows. They all varied in height, color, hairstyles, males and females.

Clap ~ Clap ~

"Alright, everyone. Let's continue from where we left off yesterday!"

Artemis had all the elves present and they answered her enthusiastically with a 'Yes, Teacher!' Which was pretty interesting. Did she make them call her teacher? She also doesn't seem to mind speaking with the male elves, though she was a lot sterner with them.

"…"

Someone else— Another elf who looked like she was helping with teaching the class was here. Artemis goes over to her and they speak for a little bit, they laugh and then separate ways.

The young female elf with a long, luscious lime-green hair that reaches to her knees and has light-green eyes, and pointy ears.

She wears a princess vest with different shades of green, lime, and mint. Her skirt is also the same color. She had two scrolls attached to her belt on the left side.

She wore black fingerless gloves, except for the index finger which was covered in both hands. She had a very unique-looking bard's hat with a red feather on it. The bow she had was also unique as it was also in the shape of a harp.

She sees me looking at her. She gives me a small wave and smiles.

"That's Rena."

Artemis had come back to us and probably saw me staring, she continues.

"She's a powerful Elf. She's mastered the use of the bow, is a martial artist, has a high mastery of wind manipulation, plant manipulation, and uses the power of song and music. She can create music that can help her allies or damage her enemies."

"She's a one in a million geniuses to be born. She can also form contracts with spirits, but she can also naturally use spirit magic. I believe she's a hybrid, a half-elf and half spirit… Or perhaps a Demi-God, An Elf God hybrid… I felt her use divine energy once."

That's quite an extensive list… But yeah, you're right about that, she's a hybrid. Elf Spirit hybrid, how can she use Divine energy? I don't know. But she's at the peak of Ultimate-class. I see Artemis wave her over, she happily does so and joins us.

"Yes?"

"Rena, this is the Middleman and his companions."

"Nice to meet you, Middleman! I'm Rena, I saw you staring at me earlier, did I look that strange? Hehe ~"

"No, you just looked familiar, sorry for staring. I'm Jin by the way."

I believe she's from a game from my old world, she does resemble one of her 'job paths'… I didn't expect to see her here though. Though she was just a normal Elf and, in that path, she does use music and spirits to fight.

"Nice to meet you, Jin! Well, I'll get back to teaching them."

Rena quickly left after greeting the others of my group, Artemis gives me a strange look but doesn't ask me. I wonder what Rena's deal is? If what was said from before is true, then she may not have come from here originally.

"Demeter is the place where the Lamias live, far from here?"

"Hmmm ~ from how fast we usually go… We'll reach it in an hour, more if we take detours or stop to look at the scenery, which is mostly trees, plant life, and other remnants of the past ~"

"Let's leave in an hour then… I doubt that the Queen will give up that easily after we leave abruptly."

Artemis again looks at us strangely, Demeter explains what happened while giggling. The Goddess of Moon, Hunting, and Archery just shook her head disappointedly.

"Haa… Idiot, I swear… Ignore it, I will speak with her— I knew her parents. They died during the attack of 'that' thing and Typhon."

"Oh, Black Alice, huh? Alright, I'll leave it to you, thanks."

Demeter whispers to the shocked Artemis as she nods understandingly in the end. She doesn't speak about it anymore and I look at the other girls as they go around speaking to the elves. They were quite friendly…

…

"We'll get going then. Sorry about this overprotective idiot."

I awkwardly look to the side as Valerie and Penemue apologize to Artemis and Rena.

"Hehe, don't worry about it! It's sweet that he cares about you all that much."

"He did not kill anyone, just… Glared a lot at them. It's fine, no harm done, well physically at least."

Not too long after the girls started to help the elves— In particular the males… They started to get hit on. I tried to ignore it at the start but they tried to get touchy-feely with them and I released a bit of my aura, scaring the shit out of everyone.

Anyway, they stayed away from me and stopped doing it… I got a call from Reni, and Akeno almost immediately… I guess I let out a bit too much that they could feel it, Kuroka was with Akeno so she spoke through the transceiver.

The Queen didn't appear, much to my surprise. But I'll leave that stuff to Artemis then. We thanked them open last time before flying away and out of the village and barrier.

"Onwards and upwards then, Demeter, what can you tell me more about the Lamias place?"

"Their leader is called Alice, ironically enough. But she's a nice Lamia, she likes eating mostly, reading books… She's what you call an 'otaku' that's why the buildings in their home are mostly based on Japanese architecture."

"They're also quite… Horny!!!!!!"

"Pfft—"

"Why did you shout that?!"

There were multiple complaints beside and behind me, the only one who took it in stride was Penemue. Demeter giggled to herself as Irina and Valerie were flustered.

"Hmm?"

As we kept on flying, I could see very large trees in the distance, there were a lot of them as they stretched across the area in front of us.

"Ah, it's the 'Forest of Giant Trees' those were planted a very long time ago. Before the attack by Typhon and Black Alice. Miraculously they didn't get destroyed. Nothing really lives there as far as I know, but that could have changed ~"

I check out the entire forest and… Couldn't feel anything in there, no life of any sort. We enter it and we had to occasionally move around since there were a lot of trees in our way, I look below and there was a road in this forest.

"There's a road down there, did someone carve it out?"

"Mmm-mmm ~ a long time ago, Zeus foresaw that it would be used so he ordered a road to be built through it."

"Let's lower our flight path then, we'll have an easier time since we won't hit trees down there."

Following my instructions, we fly closer to the ground, and being down here was quite something, I felt almost tiny being surrounded by these trees… There is also a constant breeze here, I didn't know where it could come from, I did a scan this earlier.

"Beyond this is a little jagged valley and past that is their city. A lot of their city is built into the cliffs and mountains, but of course not all of it. There are normal houses… If I'm honest it's probably the third-largest city in the realm, before the attack in Little Olympia."

"The city of the Orcs and Minotaurs is the largest currently, the built around a large mountain and open field."

Interesting, so the largest current city is South, the second is East. I can guess that's the same with the population? Though I doubt it since the previous places had very small populations because of their species being limited.

We finally break through the forest after spending around twenty-five minutes in there, once we did, I looked back and it's still quite a sight to behold. I turn back and increase my speed while flying up higher, I could see beyond the valley and the Lamia's home was, interesting.

It's like what Demeter said, it looked very much like Japanese architecture from the older era. The one building that stands out is the Japanese castle-like structure, I could see that a large wall was encompassing it. The same with the outer part of the city.

The roofs were black, while the walls were white with red pillars of wood as supports. There was a small pathway that connected the castle and the inner city to the outer one. In the outer part of the city, there stood a large statue of a lamia, it was female.

We fly past the valley as I didn't see or feel anything there that was important. Maybe they used it as a sort of defense when and if they were attacked? Though Zeus did say this place was peaceful.

We land in front of a giant Torii gate and were there female Lamia guards. They wore silver armor on their top half, while they had skirts to cover their bottom half, not including the tail.

"Demeter-sama? Welcome! Is this the Middleman? Queen Alice has been early waiting for your arrival, please come through."

One of the Lamias speaks up and easily lets us through, Demeter spoke with her for a bit before joining us in the city. Once we got inside, we could see Lamias walk— Slithering around? Like any other city we've been to, they were just doing their usual business— Living their life.

"Follow me~"

Demeter was the guide again since she's close to the Lamias, she took us around the outside city. There were some food vendors selling, well, food. But what stood out to me was… THERE WERE SO MANY FUCKING BROTHELS!

It's like every other damn building! I kept getting cat called by female Lamias, some even exposing their tits to me! I've had Valerie, Serafall, and Irina just slamming their hands on my face to try to cover my eyes!

"Hey, boy ~ why not have my tongue wrap around—"

"Tits ~ tits here, wanna touch them? Feel them? Suck—"

"Look at my Lamia pu—"

[Lamia Pussy.]

[…]

[Lamussy?]

{What the fuck is wrong with you?}

...….Lamias are like this. Deep breaths, Jin, deep breaths. This is how they are in this realm, just calm yourself—

"Dammit! He's ours!! Look!!!"

Serafall shouted back as she grabs my hand and forcefully makes me grope her. She glared back at the Lamias who started to encourage her.

Squeeze ~ Squeeze ~

I, on instinct, squeeze her chest making her moan. She immediately turns red and swats my hand away. You did this! I didn't do it!

[You squeezed her though.]

{Shut up, Lamussy dragon.}

[…]

{…}

Boom!!!!!!!!!! Bang! Bang! Crash!

"M-M-Mine too!"

Excuse me? Valerie-san?! She— Valerie goes to where Serafall was and does the same thing as her, but instead of me instinctively squeezing her breast, I accidentally poke her nipple.

"Hyah! ~"

Valerie slaps both her hands onto her mouth looking horrified with herself, she also turns red like Serafall, and the both of them fall back as they ashamedly walk behind us.

Did the lewdness and perverseness of this place amplify or something? What's up with this all of a sudden? Demeter just laughed at me, while Griselda, Irina, and Penemue said nothing, but had 'those' kinds of 'smiles' on them.

I didn't do those on purpose you know… I'll get to do that to all of you in the future! Just you damn wait, hehe—

Bonk!

I felt someone lightly hit me on the head, I could see Griselda much closer to me. The 'smile' she gave Irina was directed at me, behind her— Irina was shivering, and her face was pale.

"…"

…

We finally reached the entrance to the 'inner' city. We stood outside the door as another pair of Lamia guards push it open for us, having Demeter made this a lot easier. I gotta thank her later.

We enter and we were inside the 'inner' city, while it was much smaller— The shops here seemed a lot fancier and bigger, the population was also around the same as the outer city. I don't think this place is divided by some sort of ranking system, but probably from wealth?

I could clearly see that there were more brothels here, even still some female Lamias gesturing to us seductively. One of them waves to me and I do—

Yank!

I was pulled away by Demeter, I could tell that she was getting annoyed? Huh, why? Her mood was going downhill quite fast since the Lamia prostitutes had been greeting me more and more. She was fine with it at first…

She increased her pace as we were practically jogging now, we got a few weird glances but nothing too lingering. In front of the 'castle' was a large water fountain. Demeter pulls me forward again; we get to the door and she pushes it open. Once inside there was a Lamia waiting for us.

She has a long, white serpentine body descending from her waist with long waist-length silver hair. Her upper body is humanoid, shapely, and lithe with large, bright red eyes.

She wears a black mesh skin suit under a strapless, white cupped bralette. At her neck is a posture choker, white with gold accents and red gems to match the rest of her outfit.

Her sleeves hang low on her shoulders and spun around her like a shawl. She wears a black skirt with a red, black, and white tunic-like fabric over it with white panels on her hips. Atop her head is a nurse cap. Her tail end has red and gold cuffs.

"Welcome Demeter-sama, Middleman-sama. Queen Alice is waiting for you…"

"Hi hi Kathossia-chan ~ we're here and ready to meet that Otaku Queen of yours ~"

The Lamia named Kathossia shows a strained smile while her lip twitched, she nods and starts to slither away. We follow after her and another Lamia came out of a room and joined us.

"Ah— It's Gina-chan!!"

The new Lamia called Gina has medium-long blue hair, light skin, and brown eyes. She has blue wings, with their base color the same as that of her short, pointed ears. She has a long blue snake tail with yellowish plates across the bottom contrasting with her predominately blue color scheme.

I can see the thin black strap of her bra over her shoulders. She wears a white, feminine top with a black frill across the top. The sleeves sit very low on her arms and her cleavage is emphasized. She wears a short skirt with the same design scheme as her top.

"D-Demeter-sama… Welcome, I'm sorry I was just here to hand this to Kath…"

She seemed a bit nervous, she glances back and sees us, her eyes widening then she— Suddenly bolted away, she slithered away pretty quickly. Demeter looked at us as she giggled, Kathossia just sighed and shook her head.

"She's shy around males ~ she hasn't seen many in her life so don't be too offended ~"

I nod and we wordlessly kept on going. The inside of the castle was what a carbon copy of the old Japanese castles in Japan. Mostly made out of wood, with its typical design structure… This Queen Alice really went all out, huh?

There was no carpet or anything, just wood floors, wood walls with some stone, a wood roof…everything was a different shade of brown, as well as the occasional red, gold, and blue. Most of the doors were screen doors as well, the lone exception was the outside.

We eventually arrived at another normal door and it was medium in size. I could feel two auras inside, was there a king here?

"Calm yourself, Alice…"

"B-B-But they'll be here soon!"

"You're the Queen, you have no time to be like this. Do you want me to make you your favorite snack?"

I could hear two voices beyond the door, both were female so…. No King then. But, the other presence almost felt familiar in a way.

Kathossia pushed the door open and we all stepped through. Once we were in there, the Queen stiffened and straightened herself on her throne.

Queen Alice had long straight white hair that goes all the way to her waist, the yellow eyes of a snake. She has two pink flowers on the side of her hair. She wears a black skirt and black bra top, both have gold-red ornaments on them.

Above her forehead was a red mark that looks like an eye in vertically positioned. On her face, arms and body were strange-looking tattoos.

She looked like Alice from MGQ, beside her was… A Kitsune? …Wait what?

The Kitsune girl has radiant orange fur with white tail tips and brown fox ear tips. She wears a red and white Miko kimono with a beige apron tied with a red ribbon and traditional Japanese geta. Her eyes are an ombre shade of yellow to brown

"I-I-I-I am Alipheese Fateburn the third! But you may refer to me as Alice! I am the c-current Queen of this city! I welcome you, Demeter-sama, M-Middleman-sama!"

Er— Why is she so nervous?

"I am Senko, her… Attendant? It's nice to meet you all. It's been some time, Demeter-sama."

The Kitsune bows to us. So, she has an attendant too? I look around the room and it was relatively normal, unlike the rest of the place, the throne room was made in a more western style… She probably wanted an actual 'throne' to sit on rather than just… Sitting there.

"Jin Skyward, Middleman, and all that, nice to meet you, Ali—"

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!"

"?!"

Alice proceeded to shriek and lunged at me; I was mostly confused so I didn't move. She then hugs me while wrapping her lower half around my body.

"I'm a big fan!"

Why?!?!

"Can I have you sign my nipple?! No— Please suck and lick them!"

Excuse me?!

"Alice…"

Senko looks at Alice with a 'calm' look but she was exuding quite a lot of pressure making the current Queen flinch. Well, I'll be… She's at least peak Ultimate-class too…

Alice lets me go and goes back to her throne. She was a blushing mess and coughs into her fist.

"F-Forgive me, thank you for visiting our city, while it may not be much… We do have…. Um, have a lot of… Brothels? Haa… I'll be honest with you— The only thing this place provides are Lamia brothels and that's about it…"

Losing her 'Queen' attitude and vibe she lays it out in a blunt manner, she sighs again and leans back on her chair… How long has she been ruler? She seems young and not that mature yet… I mean making the entire city look like old-era Japan is a bit…

"Allow me. Yes, the main attraction is Lamia brothels and the Lamia women. The Queen chooses one King and this entire city becomes his harem— Now not all the Lamias want that and that's fine. They may choose another mate— However, they have to leave."

"Leave? Like as in…exiled?"

That's pretty hardcore if that's the case…

"Yes. The Lamias currently here are descendants of just one-man impregnating the previous Queen, while others are from the first Queen. Alice is no exception. Lamias that want families will join his harem, those that don't remain prostitutes and wait for travelers to come here and have their fill, or go out to be exiled and live their own life. Incest is quite common here."

"Most of those travelers are nothing special, so when they become the 'Harem King' in here, they do feel quite special. I have served the last two Queens, Alice's mother, and her grandmother."

"What about the ones in Little Olympia?"

I did see quite a few of them in the Red-light district. Are there exceptions or are they exiled? Or are those decedents of the ones that were exiled?

"There are exceptions but I would assume most of them have left and have been exiled. We wish them luck and good health, but those are the rules set by the first Queen. The exceptions sometimes venture out to do business with the other races or in Little Olympia, of course, we won't stop them from trying to seduce anyone or try having fun."

Okay… So, what about you then? Why is a lone Kitsune here?

"I know that look, young dragon. I am here because… I was saved by the first Queen; I was here on a little journey around the supernatural world. I had made it to this city when that attack happened. I wanted to repay her, but I grew fond of this place so I decided to serve them. It's been a fine life."

I see, so just serving them because of a lifelong gratitude, huh? I can see that she has a good-ish relationship with the current Queen as she's quite obedient to her…

"Now to expand on the earlier question, brothels and our prostitutes are the main attraction, however, we have one of the best hot springs in this realm only second to the muscle-brains of the South."

"Next are the views, you can see the 'Forest of Giant Trees' from here, as well as our 'Lantern festival', it's to celebrate our past and current Queens. It's a monthly thing, there's one happening tonight, actually. Please do stay."

"We just release magic-powered lanterns into the sky, they will eventually burn up and vanish. Our massage parlors are also quite good, both normal and the… 'Happy ending' kind. We are also growing in the…. Otaku culture side if that's what you're interested in."

"Alice is quite fond of Japan and has adopted many things over the years, to the buildings, food, clothing, and parts of their culture, she's what you call—"

"A Japanophile, yeah I'm aware of one."

I interrupt Senko as she lets out a laugh and nods her head. She stops talking and looks at Alice… Who had turned into a human?

"I know… Transformation magic! I can turn myself into a human, how is it? Is it to your liking, Jin-sama?!"

In her human form, her blue-purple-ish skin had turned into a peachy-pink color, everything else was the same. Except her lower half now had legs instead of a tail, her 'boots' had her 'eyes' by the knees and by her feet.

She was looking at me rather expectantly, I'm not too sure in how to respond to her. I mean, she looked pretty in both?

"Um, you look beautiful in both your forms, I guess—"

Thud!

She fainted. Her eyes had become completely white and she was breathing heavily…

[You have acquired another simp, well done.]

"...Haaa. Kathossia, go and show them around the place, I'll deal with this idi— Our Queen."

"Yes, Senko-sama. Please follow me."

I forgot Kathossia was here with us during all that… I guess that's a normal enough scene here. We leave the room I take one last glance at the passed-out Queen, who Senko was shaking her head at.

"It's been around one hundred years since Alice took up the throne and she's still quite childish~ hehe, but she'll eventually grow… Though it's partially your fault, Jin."

My fault? How? I haven't even met her until today… Demeter sees me with a confused look and continues.

"It's because of what you're doing. I mean… Who's crazy enough to try and unite the entire supernatural world? That's almost unheard of, even in the human world that's impossible."

"You're like the knight in shining armor, or the superhero trying to make the world a better place!"

…It's not like that at all, I just have knowledge of the future, well… It's vague at best now since a lot has changed. I also changed a lot of its course, also, peace is best, right? We can all just relax, and go through our lives not worrying about wars or big conflicts.

I feel like a broken record but no true utopia or the perfect world will be ever achieved. Even when I do unite everyone, there will always be a group who's unsatisfied. They'll rebel or start their own terrorist organization and the cycle repeats again.

Like the never-ending fight of good and evil in comics, unless you take the supreme tyrannic or dictator route like in 'Injustice: Gods among us' and even then, in the good ending… Superman loses, but when he does win, is it really peace? Is it really freedom?

Whatever action he sees or deems 'evil' will be stopped, so you need to watch your actions so as to not arouse that suspicion of his, and even then, acting too carefully can fuck you over too. It's like living life in a minefield, how's that fun?

"Is that so? I just want to spend my days relaxing with my lovers, that's the only reason I'm uniting everyone… So when trouble arises… I can just let you guys deal with it… Unless I'm needed."

Demeter looks at me before laughing to herself.

"The Lazy Dragon Emperor, I'll admit that does sound enticing, a world that's mostly peaceful, huh? We can achieve our own dreams without worrying about war or some sort of conflict."

…

We got outside and Kathossia guides us around the place… Just outside the castle was a souvenir shop with very 'explicit' souvenirs… Even those places aren't safe. Now that I look around more— Past the sexual stuff, there are some lanterns and other 'festival' like items around the place.

"Are those fireworks?"

"Yes, we don't use many but we do launch some after the lanterns have all vanished."

I see, I guess that's fine. One last big bang before closing for the night, right? But, this is a monthly thing. Should it be a yearly thing instead? That seems a lot of work…

"We have been trying to change it to be a yearly festival, it lasts a week, and tonight is the last day. It's usually towards the end of the month, but was pushed since you were invited here."

So, I'm the reason for it happening sooner? I'm sorry… I'll try to convince Alice since she's apparently a big fan of mine…

We leave the area and go to another, there were a few fancy shops… Some were selling old antiques of… Well anything really, from the window I could see old items of all kinds, swords, toys, even an old clock.

…

For the next few hours, we went to every nook and cranny of this city, both inner and outer. A few notable areas were… The hot springs, while we didn't go in them— We planned on tonight, after the festival.

There were also the massage parlor— The biggest one in the city, but we didn't go in either…the Lamias there didn't mind 'doing' male or female, so the girls opted out of it. They did have a museum and we went in there to learn a little bit more about their history.

A short version of it is… They— Alice's grandmother came from somewhere in Europe, they didn't specify where, but they came here once the Greek Gods first formed it. She— Alice's grandmother set out East and found this area.

It originally looked like a normal Victorian town, the same as when Alice's mother was in control. But a lot of changes happened when Alice took over, especially the changes in building structure, culture, and the like.

Most Lamias took it in stride and didn't mind it, they were quite happy that they were able to experience and learn new things, taste new foods, and the like.

There were a lot of shops that had 'Alice' figures, both the current and previous Queens, however, there weren't any for the previous 'Kings' because… As it was mentioned before they were mostly used for their 'seed' to impregnate the Lamias.

In the museum there was a last little tidbit they added at the end of the information booklet that was given. It was a new rule that Alice created, it caused quite a stir a few years ago. It was a requirement for her to get a man, the next 'King'.

It also explains their dwindling numbers as it makes it harder for the Queen to find a man for all of them. The requirements are as such: One, the man has to be stronger than the female, so they have to be stronger than Alice.

I checked her out earlier and she was High-tier Ultimate-class. Just below Senko, I would assume that she's been training her too. Second, the man in question must wish to be married to the female. So, they don't just force them anymore, interesting choice there, Alice.

Finally, the last place we went to was above the city actually, from there the view was quite incredible. While it wasn't official, they planned on making it a tourist spot in the next few years, but they haven't gotten around to creating a path to walk there.

…

Nighttime

We were at a little restaurant we found near where we were staying at… Well, we were informed that we were staying in Alice's castle. So, we were having dinner right now before going back. There were a lot of Lamias out right now as they were beginning to let some lanterns float into the sky.

We were watching all of this through the window by where we were eating at. Everyone was enjoying the food since it was just regular Japanese cuisine, it was also cooked quite well.

"It's pretty, this will never get old~"

"Will we be able to let some lanterns float up?"

"Yep ~ I bet Alice-chan will have some ready for us~

Irina was satisfied with the answer as she turns to Griselda and asks if she wanted to let some go, she agreed and looked forward to it.

"…"

Penemue had been silent for quite some time now, I wonder what's on her mind? She sees me looking at her and shook her head…. Sure thing, I'll wait.

"We have three days left before the tournament starts, are you going straight to the south after this?"

Three days, huh? I'm not sure… Maybe? If we're done over there after tomorrow then we'll have a day left. So we can just relax in Little Olympia waiting for it to start, I'll probably have a little meeting with the Gods too about the alliance.

"Is it quicker to fly here to the South or teleport back to Little Olympia and then go from there?"

"Teleport back and then fly from there. The terrain over there is relatively plain ~ the Orcs and Minotaurs have destroyed the remaining surroundings to make travel over there easier. They are a very welcoming bunch. They have a lot of parties, for now, reason, you know?"

I see, then we'll teleport back in the morning, after that… The girls will probably ask for an hour break. I'll go tour Little Olympia on my own then.

"We should finish up soon, everyone should start to let their own lanterns float into the sky~"

I do want to see it in full view so— Irina started to devour her food at a faster rate, but started to choke. She was handed a drink by Griselda and was scolded, she let out a sheepish laugh.

…

We were at the same spot for the future tourist spot. Alice, Senko, and Kathossia were with us. Alice had given each of us a lantern and said we should release them all at the same time. We apologized earlier saying she didn't have time to make a custom one for me.

She really didn't need to, but I appreciated the thought. Alice was back in her Lamia form and was waiting eagerly for the time to do it. She wanted to do it at eleven at night exactly… Time slowly moved forward until—

"Now!"

She happily shouts, we all let go of our lanterns—— Just then, everywhere in the city of the Lamias… Probably hundreds of lanterns started to float into the sky from multiple points around the city.

The night sky suddenly turned into a yellow-orange-ish color, almost like a fake sun just appeared in the sky. The girls were looking at it in awe, the same with Alice… Even though she's probably seen this so many times already.

'It's the little things, Jin. Enjoy them while they last… Not everything is forever after all.'

Yeah, enjoy the moment with whoever you're with because someday you'll say goodbye to them… I felt someone hold both my hands, it was Serafall and Valerie.

"It's beautiful, let's come back here again sometime in the future, Jin."

"I agree with Valerie-chan, let's bring more people with us!"

The future, huh? Sure thing, I'm sure everyone would enjoy this little scene… Maybe we can recreate this in Kuoh? I can suggest it to Rias and Sona, they probably won't be against it.

"Sure thing, let's all come here again, together."

A few minutes later all the lights in the sky that were coming from the lanterns vanished—

Bang! Bang!

What replaced them were fireworks, they varied in size and shape… But they were quite a spectacle to see. Alice had brought some sparklers with her and was slithering around while they were on.

She really did act like a kid. Senko watched over her with affectionate eyes, almost like a mother watching her child grow up in front of her eyes.

…

I couldn't sleep. Valerie, Demeter, and Serafall were all fast asleep. It's been around two hours since the final day of the festival ended and it was around one in the morning. I had left my room where I was staying in Alice's castle.

Everyone in this castle was asleep except for one, it was Penemue. I followed her aura and she was by a little veranda, our rooms were on the ground floor and it was like any typical Japanese-style bedroom.

I stand beside her without saying a word, she was looking out into the distance, there were a lot of clouds blocking the view but we could see a shape of a mountain in the distance. I couldn't feel anything over there so it's just a regular mountain.

"Couldn't sleep?"

"No…"

"Something bothering you?"

"Maybe…"

Okay, looks like she won't be giving me straight answers then. So, we just stood there in silence… How do I even approach this? I don't know much about Penemue, both in this world and in the books… She's an unknown to me.

"Hey, Jin."

"Hmmm?"

"Do you like this world?"

Huh? What kind of question is that? Of course, I like this world. If I didn't, I would probably have left near the start of my reincarnation… I've met a lot of people and experienced many things, it would be weird if I didn't like it.

<…>

....?

<No.>

W-What? 'No'? What the hell does that mean?

<You do not mean that…. Fully, yet.>

....?

"Because I really, really love this world, even with all its faults and flaws… But I know nothing can stay unchanged. Fun times… Happy times… They can't possibly remain the same. Our times together… They'll all slowly fade away."

"Even still, I love it, I love this world, I love everyone in it— Even when I fell, I wanted to help people— Help the humans… Is that such a sin?"

Penemue wasn't talking to me, was she….?

"Just find them."

"Eh?"

She finally looked over at me when I responded to her, she had a confused look. I look at her with no change in expression and continue.

"Just find new fun and happy things you can enjoy, even if it's by yourself or with others. We're part of the supernatural world, we have extended lives… I'll have to say goodbye to my human friends somewhere down the line."

"…But even still, I don't regret becoming friends with them. They're two dumbasses but… They're two dumbasses that stick with me and make me laugh. I've only known them for a few months but… They're good dudes."

"Nothing is forever, but… That doesn't mean it's a bad thing. Just enjoy the moment, and find new things to enjoy in the future. Geez what's with you all of a sudden? Being all emotional."

<….>

…Did he just… Give a satisfied sigh? Yo…. If you're listening in let me look into the fu—

<No.>

I tried.

Penemue beside me starts to giggle to herself, it slowly turned into a fit of laughter. Though… That was a rare moment of vulnerability that she showed me, did she trust me a little more after our time here?

I'm still young, even with the combined ages, I hope someone like her will rely on me more in the future. She eventually stops and wiped a tear from her eye from laughing too hard.

"You're trying to cheer me up? I'm flattered, Jin. But it's too early for you to do that… But, thank you. Let me give you a little advice too, Jin."

I cock a brow and look at her strangely.

"It's not as bad as Azazel said, though… You're on the road to recovery, it's a lot faster than I anticipated too. Jin, you may already be aware of this but…"

"Life can bring lots of hardships, but it's always important to keep in mind that there are people around you who care for you, and are willing to help you through whatever you're dealing with."

….Yeah, I know. Over the course of the few weeks, I've already realized that. I have the girls, my friends, and 'family' through the Gremory's and Himejima's. I can't mope around forever; I need to move forward.

<Good.>

Shut up, let me have this moment to myself, dammit.

"I know, I'm aware. Heh, I'll tell you my answer in the future then. I don't have a definite answer to your question, Penemue. But I'll definitely give you one, so just wait a little bit."

"Is that so? Then I hope it's the same answer as mine…. It's getting late and I'm finally tired. Goodnight, Jin."

Penemue starts to walk away before I can answer. I watch her slowly disappear. Haaa… What's up with her? I can't really read her most of the time, but… She felt at ease at the end, her emotions had been in a bit of a frenzy since we were in the Elven village but I didn't say anything.

…

Next day

Unfortunately, we didn't get a chance to use the hot springs and only used the baths in the castle, I made it a point to use them the next time I come here with whoever I do come with.

Alice was sobbing, I wanted to stay a little bit longer but… I had one last place to visit. Like Ireland, I'll visit these places again. I feel like there are more things I could find out… Like how her grandmother and mother died.

The other Lamias I met too… The same with the other races, I feel like I just touched the surface with them.

"Jwin-swama!!"

"….I'll come to visit in the future, Alice. Stop crying…"

Senko was beside the Lamia Queen shaking her head. She floats up and pinches her ear.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow! I'm sowwy!! Oww!!!"

Seeing a Queen reduced to this was quite a sight… I reach out and pat her on the hea—

Thud!

"You shouldn't have done that."

Senko deadpan at me, Alice had fainted again… If me calling her beautiful made her faint, then physical contact would probably do the same thing to her. I hope she gets over this otherwise being friends would be next to impossible.

"Duly noted. Anyway… We'll get going then. Thank you for the hospitality."

"Come back anytime, Jin."

I nod at Senko as we wave to them one last time before leaving. Gina and Kathossia were also there to see us off.

…

Little Olympia

"Is it just me or… Is it even busier?"

When we teleported back to Little Olympia there were even more people around us, they were all carrying something or just working on something on the street. I could feel that Hermes was running around the entire town, poor dude.

Fwshhh!!

"Just the man I was looking for! Jin! Come with me, please!"

"Huh?"

…

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