Danmachi: Westward Cloud [Complete]

[Vol.4] Quest 385.5- Sword, Bow, and Thunder

A while later.

“So.” Elysium stretches his limbs. “Callisto is away sleeping. So I thought I might as well have some fun!”

“A three-way fight huh?” Artemis said stretching as well. “This chance doesn’t come around very often. If Callisto was still awake, she would jump right in.”

“She has a very dangerous mixture of you two,” Nara said. “There have been several times where you,” Nara looked to Artemis. “Would just jump into the fray.”

“You are one to talk, but for now I suggest you grit those teeth you two. I will show you what I can really do.”

“I can say the same. I have been itching to fight another god.”

“So how many gods in heaven did you fight, Elly? Aside from the goddesses throwing themselves at you?” Artemis asked.

“Well, Chernobog knew how to use a sledgehammer. Vritra was scary with a whip. Shiva, I nearly died, like a lot of time. Krishna is a very kind and thoughtful god. Asura was fun; he threw a lot of punches, and his wife Durga was also a peach to talk with. Nyarlathotep, fucking hate them, annoying prick. I have to admit, they knew how to keep me on my toes. But of them all, I enjoyed Sun Wukong and Khorne the most.”

“Y-you fought him!" Artemis said shocked. "Wait, who’s Khorne?”

“Are they that impressive?” Nara asked.

“Very, he fought most of Heaven on his own for the fun of it. Ananke and Chronos had to get involved. But who exactly is Khorne?”

“Don’t worry about them.” Elysium waved it off. “Sun is super fun to hang with,” Elysium said, smiling. “Chill, philosophical, and very wise.” Elysium closes his eyes and reminisces about his time with the monkey god before Elysium had to go. “I think he is Heaven’s greatest god.”

“Hah!” Artemis scoffed. “Elly I came across him, and I even shot him. He is not the strongest god in heaven. I will admit he is probably Heaven’s greatest martial god, but not its strongest god. Those belong to Chronos and Ananke, and I guess you as well.”

“You may say that it’s your personal opinion. Sun could easily defeat them both in a one-on-one battle. Both in mind and body. Also, I must preference that they, Chronos and Ananke, are a duo; I know this since I also eventually fought Chronos and Ananke again together; it wasn’t very nice; lots of punching.”

“Doubt it. He’s been in Solipsism enough times that one would question if he’s sane. He’s the second most sent deity to be sent to Solipsism; the first is Eris, but her record is unbeatable.”

“Anyway, he even showed me a few tricks with his boa staff.”

“Then show me what your true spearmanship is like, Elly!" Artemis’ arcanum exploded.

Whoosh!!!

Violent winds blow past Elysium and Nara.

“Hoh~,” They said, gazing at Artemis.

Artemis' hair turns a silver blue, and her golden hair accessories and general appearance turn wilder as if all that she wore was something she hunted and made for herself to wear.

“Here,” Elysium said, reaching into his clothes. “Take these.”

He gives Artemis a golden bow and a quiver full of silver arrows.

“These!” Artemis grabbed. “You brought my divine weapons, Phoebe, and Orion!”

“I figured you would like to use them when we occasionally spar. It's not really fair if I and Nara use our divine weapons.”

Artemis couldn’t help but smile.

“You certainly do know how to make me smile!” Her face blushed as she put her quiver on and notched an arrow.

Nara and Elysium could feel the difference already. An unnerving feeling of being under a sniper's scope.

“Two can play that game! Come!! Yakumo-Ginko!!” Nara then, from a cut in space, drew her sword.

Shing!!

Artemis gazed at the silver and black blade. Its sheath had a cloud design along with several eyes as red as her owner.

“Your divine weapons look rather nice. Did Elly make it for you?”

“No, I made it using my Authority of the Void, Sword, Bifurcation, and Storms.”

“Well, Elly, show us yours? I know that the spear you use is not the full one, right?” Artemis said.

“Heh.” Elysium cracked a smile. “No, it’s not. Come!! Rhadamanthus!!” His spear was formed in his hand by lightning. “Second form, Aeacus! Crack!!!” The spear glows brightly as it gains a second prong.

S̵̻͔̅͐̓ͅḩ̶̧̯͊͌͝ā̵̩͊k̵͚̓̆̕͘ë̸̢̩͕́!̵̡͓̟͒͘̚

S̵̻͔̅͐̓ͅḩ̶̧̯͊͌͝ā̵̩͊k̵͚̓̆̕͘ë̸̢̩͕́!̵̡͓̟͒͘̚

S̵̻͔̅͐̓ͅḩ̶̧̯͊͌͝ā̵̩͊k̵͚̓̆̕͘ë̸̢̩͕́!̵̡͓̟͒͘̚

The spear was shaking in an unstable manner, almost as if it would bite you.

“That’s a rather… Hmm.” Artemis and Nara take a few steps back.

“What? It doesn’t bite yet. Besides, it’s not fully dressed yet. Show them your beauty, Minos.” Elysium swung his spear, and his spear was blanketed by a sea of stars.

Whoosh~

The sea of stars disperses, revealing its true form.

“Ooh~”

They look in awe at his star-touched spear; its appearance is as if Elysium chipped out of the night sky. In its spear design, it was a simple design with no extra features. The only noteworthy design of the spear was its two long prongs, giving it a pentagon shape for the blade portion; the middle of it was empty.

"Rhadamanthus is unwavering and strict in its judgment. Aeacus, the merciful, fair, and just in their judgment, was lenient upon those who did neither wrong nor good. To balance the unwavering and the lenient, Minos, the tempered wisdom, through time and experience, does the unwavering waver, the lenient, no longer be taken advantage of. A compromise is formed, and its name is Laelaps, the spear that will never fail to catch its prey.”

Looking at the spear, Artemis and Nara knew they shouldn’t get struck by it.

“Can I ask what authorities you used to make Laelaps?” Artemis asked.

—!!

Elysium swings Laelaps through the air, leaving not even a sound behind.

“A lot. So shall I show you the martial arts I made under several gods' teachings?” Elysium stood straight; his right leg was a bit ahead, while his left was a bit back. His spear rests on his shoulder, with his right arm slung over it so as not to let it fall behind him. “I named it after the title Sun gave me; a lot of them gave me that name. Talk about similar minds thinking alike.”

“What is it? Was it something like Monkey King’s Friend?” Nara said.

“No, he said Avalokiteśvara; he also said his best friend, but... yeah.”

“Avalokiteśvara?”

“It translates to The One Who Hears the Cries of the World or The Lord Who Looks Down. He gave me that title, saying I was compassionate. Heh. All I said was that those on the bottom should have their voices heard and that they should have the right to a home and food. That was the basis of the Fuyukusa. I tried to deny it, but he kept insisting. I told him that that should be something everyone should be able to do—a little bit of empathy for those less fortunate.”

“As insane as he is, he gave you a rather fitting title.” Artemis nods.

“Yes, it suits you well. But now I am even more nervous about why you decided to name your martial art, Avalokiteśvara?” Nara said.

“Come at me and find out,” Elysium smirks as his power begins to rise. “I am Elysium, The Emerald Knight Flower.”

“The Emerald Night Flower?” Nara said confused by the title.

“Yes. It was a nickname and title given to me. But night is with a k."

Whoosh~

Sure enough, his attire changed to a beautiful, decadent, incredible, well-crafted armor befitting a god of his status. It was a perfect balance of metal and fabric. Spectacular shades of green covered him, with his star-touched clothing becoming the sub- and supporting colors. Thick star-touched threads flowed behind him, giving off the feel and look of tendrils along with scripture. His head was covered in a dome-like helmet that was like an emerald galaxy, swirling with a myriad of green stars; the helmet even flowed into horns like those of a large eland. The finishing touch was beneath him; elysium’s grew around him.

“Oh,” Artemis said.

“That’s why you are called that,” Nara said, amazed.

Both of them fell in love again, looking at him in his new look. They loved the grandeur and design of it. It was the result of his years of travel to several worlds.

“So are you two going to get ready?” Elysium said, cracking his neck.

“Well, now I kind of want a nickname like that,” Nara said, liking the naming style.

“You like Wuxia naming style? Very well, I shall give you both one. Naraka-no-Tsurugi, The Argent Blade That Gathers Flowers. Artemis, The Amaranth Bathed Under the Moon."

“Oh, I like that!” Nara was happy with the name. “I am Naraka-no-Tsurugi! The Argent Blade That Gathers Flowers!"

“Hm…” Artemis was embarrassed by the name he gave her. “Can we workshop it?”

“Come on, Art!” Nara shouted, smiling. “It’s just between us!”

“Hmm, fine!” She smiles, still embarrassed by the name. “I am Artemis Zephyr! The Amaranth Bathed Under the Moon!”

“Then let’s begin this match! Blip!”

Nara vanished out of existence.

Artemis’ eyes darted above Elysium.

Nara was already in mid-swing. The sword Yakumo-Ginko was an odd-looking one-sided katana with a silver and black blade that was barely attached to the tsuba; the tsuba in particular was similar in appearance to a spider lily. The handle had several red eyes and a gold pommel.

“—!”

“!?” Artemis saw Elysium move his spear with such grace and fluidity that she swore it was water.

Clang~!!

Laelaps and Yakumo-Ginko clashed.

“Hoh~” Nara was amazed by the ease at which Elysium moved.

“Om Mani Padme Hum.” Elysium strung a mantra as his body vanished briefly before appearing again in a different pose. “Two can play that game.”

Fwhish!!!

“!?” Nara found herself getting further away from Elysium, yet she felt no pushing motion.

Ting-Ting!

Clack-Clack!

On the ground, two silver arrows land.

“Artemis.” Elysium looked at her with three arrows already notched.

“Well, don’t you have eyes in the back of your head, huh?” She jumped back and fired off three more soundless arrows.

Elysium held his hand out and spoke softly.

“Oort.”

Crack!!

Crack!!

Crack!!

Three bolts of white lightning struck down Artemis’ arrows.

“Tsk!” Artemis looked up to see a suspicious-looking cloud. “Did Sun Wukong give you his cloud as well?”

“Well, one version of Sun Wukong gifted me a part of Geundoowun, as he called it, as a thank-you for helping them with their world. That and also beating him after, uhh… tsk, let's see, it was about 9 or 10 billion years using my limited authority of time on a planet without using Elpis? His name was Jin Mori; that guy can fucking kick.” Elysium rubs his head and forearms. “Heh. When I told him what this world's Sun Wukong called me, he laughed, saying he was about to call me as well. He also warned me about facing an unenlightened Sun Wukong should I ever come across another world's version. I cannot blame him for the warning; they are terrifying martial masters. It took me just about as long to beat him as this world's version.”

“It seems you spent a lot of time in Heaven or well, worlds, shall we say?"

“Of course, time was only relevant. Time in which I created Oort, named after the Oort Cloud of my and his world.”

“That is—!?” Artemis froze for a second. “What?”

Elysium moved his arms.

Clang~!!!

He stopped Nara’s strike from the back.

“As I said when I told you my story when I returned. When I was born, I was an Artificial Moksha. This is a secret that not even Nox or Circe know.”

“What’s going on?" Nara said feeling as if she had cut in on a discussion.

Elysium was finally going to tell them something he could never have done when he was mortal. This piece of him that he wanted to let his wives know.

"You... you are a reincarnator." Artemis’ eyes widen. Thinking back on Cirrus, it added a surprising amount of context.

“After countless eras, I can admit that. Yes, I once had a life before I was born as Alcides. Ai actually visited a world similar to my own.”

“Uhh…” Nara loosened her stance, no longer in her fighting stance.

Both Nara and Artemis walked up to him with their weapons lowered.

“… Elly, how old were you when I met with Cirrus?” Artemis spoke a bit hesitantly.

“I do not know; by that point, the modern man had fully died. Killed and buried within the Kaios Desert sands, you know where.”

“Do… did you know what Ai was saying in English? Back when she returned from being Spirited Away?” Nara asked.

“It was the first language he ever spoke, followed by Spanish, Japanese, and then Koin. I also knew how to use a smartphone. Hm.” Elysium smiled. “Even now,” In his hand, a black plastic rectangle formed. “When Ai handed Cirrus the phone, he felt an unbearable feeling of nostalgia. Did you know?"Elysium walked past them as his appearance returned to normal. A sea of stars covered them and the whole area. “The Greek word for return is nostos, and algos means suffering. So nostalgia is the suffering caused by an unappeased yearning to return. Not my words per se, but spoken by a Czech-French writer.”

The area changed to that of an office, found in metropolitan areas.

“I thought we were going to just fight, not have this bombshell dropped on us,” Artemis said, looking around.

“This place…” Nara looked around to see Tokyo Tower. “Is Japan?”

“The last place before Alcides was born.” Elysium stares down the open elevator shaft. “I am telling you this now as... well, I figured you would want to kick my ass for keeping this from you. I felt… that I needed to keep this hidden. That my existence would warrant some sort of judgment or something. I didn’t know what could happen, but I sure as hell wouldn’t want to figure it out. Thus, I kept my mouth shut.”

“Who knows?” Nara asked.

“Four people. Hecton, Fafnir, Vesta, Odin, and probably Nox?”

“Odin!?” They both shouted.

“You told that angry old man before your wives!" Nara shouted.

“I told him as a threat. He would tell me what he knew about Elpis or how to break from Ananke. Didn’t give me much to go on.”

“Let me ask you this.” Nara walks up to him, his back still turned. “When Ai and Cirrus were kids, he was an adult in mind, yes."

“He was.”

"Then... can I ask when he loved Ai?”

"I must preference that Cirrus did not love Ai until that surprise kiss on their way back from Telskyura. By that time, the modern man—”

“What is your name?” Artemis asked. “Your real name?”

“Elysium.”

“Not your name as a god; your name as a man, the man who worked here.”

“That is not important—No. It is unnecessary.”

“Why is that?”

“Because just like Cirrus Zephyr, the man who worked in this office, he gave this half-baked company his time, effort, sweat, and well-being to get off the ground. Shakingly walking over to this elevator and...” Elysium takes a step forward.

“Elly!!” Nara reached for him.

She reached to grab his hair, but her hand phased through it.

“And fell to his death.” He fell down the elevator shaft.

“Elly!!” Artemis also rushed over.

Nara and Artemis watched as Elysium fell down the shaft, and just before he hit the bottom, he struck his head against a metal railing.

THUD!!!

His body spins from the force before his head splatters against the roof of the elevator, crushing it a bit from his weight and speed.

“Thus ended his first life.”

Elysium then melted away.

The scenery changed to a dark corridor.

“!!” Nara and Artemis know this place.

"Huff! Huff! Huff!"

They turn to see a young child; they look past their bangs to see their face.

“Cirrus.” They both said softly.

They could see him breathing heavily, his eyes unsteady. His whole body was stained with fear and exhaustion.

Nara briskly went over and knelt.

“Hey! You’re gonna be alright!”

Yet when she reached for him, her hand went through him.

“This is but a memory.” Elysium phased into existence, walking out of the air. “You cannot do anything to alter it.”

Cirrus's body shook before some vomit leaked out of his mouth.

“Urgh!”

He moved his body, getting on all fours, and he vomited violently.

BARF!!!!!!!!!!

The look in his eyes was one of horror and regret.

“Yeah…” Elysium grimaces. “The underdeveloped mind of a child certainly couldn’t handle what an adult mind could. Even their modern-day sensibilities didn't help.”

Once his vomit stopped, he remained there, staring into the pool of vomit in a trance.

“Urgh!” He wanted to vomit, but he had no more to give. “Urgh!”

His arms grew weak, shaking again.

He pulled his body back and slowly leaned against the wall of the secret tunnels.

They watched as he slowly drew his broken spear with shaking hands. Stains of dried blood stained it, along with his hands.

“… Fuck… Fuck…” He softly spoke with words laced with desperation and despair. The events that had unfolded today had taken a heavy toll on his psyche. The horror and regret gnawed at his soul and child’s brain, leaving the modern man at death's door.

Nara and Artemis watched as he desperately tried to wipe away the blood, but it remained.

His face slowly scrunched up, and tears flowed down in thick droplets.

"He would do this until exhaustion took him and he fell asleep.” Elysium softly. “This was the event that would lead the man to eventually die and give birth to the child known as Cirrus Zephyr, son of the Sage Fels. Much like the man Cirrus Zephyr also suffered the same fate, dying alone, surrounded by darkness, then giving birth to another like some fucked up butterfly.”

Nara and Artemis' faces were contorted with emotions.

They had so many thoughts and feelings, but they didn’t know what question to ask.

The world falls away around them, and they return to Elysium’s domain.

“… I did not show you to get your sympathy. I only showed you to have you understand that I—he was born into this world, the same as Ai, the same as Malion, Ryuu, Hakushika, Callisto, Auberon, and Alise. Albeit a bit differently than most.”

“… This is hard, Elly.” Nara’s fox ears drooped down, her eyes watery.

“… Elly.” Artemis looked him in the eyes. “Did Cirrus know of the goddess Artemis?”

“He did. Universe #BOU4122021. Nara, the BOU stands for Base Observation Universe.”

“They are universes that no one could look into,” Artemis added. “Information on them is dripped through souls from other worlds when we get them from Samsara. Most of their knowledge is all mixed and jumbled together. I actually wanted to ask Ai if she had looked into the goddess Artemis.”

“… She does not. She spent her time trying to get back.” Nara replied.

“But Cirrus did." Elysium spoke up. "He was a history major and loved mythology. He knows the Greek pantheon very well. Shall I recount a story about the famed goddess of the hunt, the virgin goddess, Artemis?”

“Gulp!” Artemis swallowed her saliva.

Nara could see her beginning to sweat.

“The story begins with a hunter named Actaeon. Actaeon, a skilled hunter, accidentally stumbled upon the goddess Artemis while she was bathing in a secluded forest. Upon seeing him, Artemis was furious at the intrusion and, in her rage, transformed Actaeon into a stag. Actaeon, now in the form of a deer, was chased and torn apart by his own hunting hounds, who no longer recognized him.”

“That seems like something you would do.” Nara looked to Artemis.

"..." Artemis's lips stretch back.

She hated how accurate that was to what she would actually do.

“The story was meant to be a warning of the dangers of the wild; a single mistake can cost you everything. For the wild is the god's domain, where man treads at their own risk, gaining either fortune or death. The same could be said for all the gods of Greek myth; it was why so many know and relate to them despite how godly they were.”

“Why is that?” Nara asked.

“Because they were the most human of the gods. The portrayal of Zeus misusing his power was because he was a king; that is what they do. Artemis’s wrath was wild and painful because that is what nature can be. Hades snatching a young girl from her mother's arms, that is what death does. By the way, the tale of Actaeon was what rang in Cirrus’ head when he met you, Artemis. Every time you would bathe, he would be far away to ensure he would not catch you naked.”

“Really!?” Artemis was a bit embarrassed and shocked.

“Yes. Artemis is widely known as thee virgin goddess; the picture example of it. Your myths had Artemis painted as one who did not care for man or love, just the hunt. Artemis even asked her father Zeus that she wished to remain a virgin forever.”

“Egh!?” Artemis took a lot of points of mental damage. “Him!?”

Seeing her reaction, he decided to keep her other family a secret.

“… I think I will keep the twin brother’s identity a secret, although Artemis and him being twins are debated, with some saying Artemis was born first while others say he was. Personally, I subscribe to the former, as when Artemis was born, she helped her mother give birth to him. Thus Artemis became a goddess of childbirth, or, you know, midwifery.”

“… Fuuuuuck.” Artemis leaned back, as this was making far too much sense to her.

“I like that too; Artemis does have the big sister energy,” Nara said.

“She does.” Elysium nodded.

“W-whatever!! Then explain to me, Orion, huh?"

“… Yeah about that, I was actually curious how that name came to mind as your true love equivalent to Freya’s Odr."

“W-well um…” Artemis turned bright red. “I-I thought that… Orion would be a very nice name!”

“Liar.” Nara and Elysium said.

“It’s the truth!”

“Anyway. Orion was a hunter, and both Artemis and he grew and bonded together through their shared love of hunting. The story diverts around here into different tales; one tale says that Orion grew prideful and said that he could kill every animal on the planet; Gaia did not like that and sent a scorpion to go kill him; it did, and he died of poison.” Elysium gestures to himself. “Did you see why I did not want to be your Orion?!”

“…” Nara looked at Artemis as Artemis looked away, a bit in shame.

“U-understandable,” Artemis said fully understanding and supporting his hesitance.

“Now another tale was that Apollo, having learned that Orion would be the one to break Artemis’ vow of chastity, tricked Artemis, so he came up to her and was like, ‘Hey! I bet you can hit that dot in the ocean!’ Then Artemis said something along the lines of, ‘Hold my beer.’ And then she shot it. What was that thing in the ocean, you may ask? Well, it was Orion’s head, bobbing up from the sea.”

“You did shoot him,” Nara said. “You even shot him without much thought when you and Cirrus first met.”

"Elly, can we end this story? I completely forgive you.” Artemis said putting away her bow.

“No! No! keep going! I wanna learn more!” Nara said.

“If you stop, I will forgive you for keeping this from me, and I will wear whatever you want!”

“If you keep going, I will forgive you wholeheartedly, and I’ll let you be on top! I’ll even moan extra loud and sensual!"

"If you wear Goth clothing then you got yourself a deal."

"Deal!"

“So anyway,” Elysium kept going.

“Nooo!!!” Artemis shouted in anguish. "I will even wear the bunny girl outfit and say pyo~n pyo~n while you—"

“Calm down! Geez this is the last one, okay? So the other tale was that Orion was trying to hook up with one of Artemis’ followers or do some other sexual assault, and she put him down.”

“Ew.” They both said.

“Yeah… So in a weird way, I somehow adverted the worst cases, those being, you know, killed by you. That was a fate I wished to avoid at all costs.”

“Elly,” Artemis said, walking up to him. She holds his hand. “I’m sorry I pushed your mortal self to be a hero. You knew this would happen, and…”

“It’s fine.” He placed her hand on her head and stroked her hair. “There is one final part of his story. In a majority of the tales, Orion’s death is a constant, but in a majority of them, he is sent by Artemis or Zeus into the sky, placed amongst the stars. So that Artemis could always look up at her love.”

“Aww!” Nara said. “That is kind of sweet.”

“Yes, very.” Artemis nodded as she floated up and kissed him.

“I should mention that originally there was no love between Orion and Artemis.” Elysium referenced.

“What?” Artemis said, a stunned blank expression.

“Yeah, poets and artists in the 19th century made it so that they were lovers, as it would be a classic tragic love story, which makes it more entertaining or interesting. Also, you know they couldn’t fathom a man and woman hanging out and being friends—just friends. Like platonic friends.”

“You should have kept that to yourself.”

“To be honest, I kind of readied myself to get fucked up, so... yeah."

“Did you want to get beaten up?” Nara said by his side.

“… Well I feel pretty bad having kept this core part of myself from you two, who hold a piece of my heart.”

“Fufu.” Artemis smiles. “Well, you certainly do live up to the title of Avalokiteśvara.”

“Alright, I am ready.” Elysium closes his eyes.

Artemis looked to Nara, and she did the same.

"Elly, do you mind if me and Art talk about this for a minute or two?” Nara spoke up.

“Uhh…” Elysium opened his eyes. “Sure.”

Nara grabbed Artemis and vanished.

Blip!

With them gone Elysium sighed.

“Haa… Guess I’ll just mess around for a minute.”

Whoosh~

A bluish cloud came up behind him.

“Ah, Oort! Sorry, you couldn’t have more fun. I figured this would be the best place and time to tell them.”

Whoosh~

Oort moves around him.

“Yeah… sorry. You wanna go outside? If you do, you have to promise me you won’t cause any trouble.”

Whoosh~

Oort flew back into the sky, blending into the environment.

“That’s what I thought.” He stretches a bit before checking his clothes. “Teumessian seems to be good.”

Teumessian is his divine armor that has the appearance of the stars in Elysium’s clothes; its purpose is that it will never let anyone harm or touch its wearer. It has its own form, like Laelaps, but it prefers to stick with its creator.

“Laelaps.” He holds his spear out, and though it morphed into the shape of a two-headed dog, it still retained the appearance of the night sky.

“Bark! Bark!” Laelaps got onto his lap.

“Who’s a good boy?"

“Bark! Bark!”

“Yes, you are!” He began to rub Laelaps.

An hour later, Artemis and Nara returned.

Blip!

“Elly,” Nara said. “We are…”

“What are you doing?” Artemis asked. “And what is that dog?”

They caught Elysium meditating under a tree. Laelaps was sleeping next to him.

The tree had grown to wrap its vines around Elysium.

“Mediating and working on some projects.” Elysium opens his eyes. He gets up, phasing through the vines, back on his feet. “This is my dog slash spear, Laelaps.”

Laelaps woke up from his name being called.

“Bark!” They got up and walked to his owner's side. “Bark! Bark!”

“Aww!!” Nara came up to him. “Look at the cute dog!"

She began to pat and rub him.

“Bark! Bark!” Laelaps liked her petting.

“Hm.” Elysium noticed Laelaps liked Nara rather well. “Guess they like you.”

“Nara,” Artemis said sternly. “We have to tell him our decisions. We can pet the dog after.”

“Alright…” Nara stepped back next to Artemis.

“Bark! Bark!” Laelaps returned to his owner's shadow.

“So we have discussed this, and we understand why you kept it. Art informed me of the severity of your case, and... we forgive you for hiding this part of yourself.”

“But we are a bit hurt that you kept such a massive part of your life away from your wives,” Artemis said. "Again, we understand why, but... it’s still a sore spot.”

“That’s fair. Is there anything I can say or do to make it up to you?” Elysium said apologetically.

“Well, Nara told me of your fluidity. So I wanted to ask if you could turn for me?" Artemis was blushing from her suggestion.

“And!” Nara chimed in. “We want one of your Cosmo Swords!”

Elysium's eyes narrow to those of the hole in a needle. The air around him began to sharpen and twist.

“… Charon.” Elysium sighed. An air of seriousness colored him. “He is rather soft on family. Nara, Artemis, if you want one of my Shōuchūtō then you truly need to prove it. Me changing genders,” He changed his gender within a blink of an eye. Artemis became flustered by their appearance even more. “But the Shōuchūtō,” He returned to male just as fast. “Is a whole other beast.”

“Elly—”

“To wield!!” His voice boomed through the air, and Nara and Art felt his voice shake their bones. “To wield a Shōuchūtō, the Cosmo Sword is to dedicate your life to one thing! The protection, sovereignty, and existence of this world!!” An overpowering pressure falls on the two goddesses. “They are not to be given out like candy!"

“S-sorry!” Nara spoke with a strained voice. “I just thought having one would be cool!”

“Naraka-no-Tsurugi.” Elysium retracts the pressure and centers himself. “Artemis. How about this, a new trial? The conditions of you two winning are still up, along with the bestowal of two Shōuchūtō. When I win, you two will not get one, and we can work on mending sore wounds.” He holds out his hand, and Laelaps shoots into his hand from his shadow. He slowly changes to his battle attire. “By that, of course, I mean I will take my time with you both.” A devious look slowly paints his face as his helmet covers him. “Thoroughly.”

Nara and Artemis look at one another and nod.

“Fine by us!" Nara shouted, grabbed Artemis, and tossed her back.

“Get ready to kneel!" Artemis shouted; she glowed a silver light, drawing her bow. She quickly notched her arrows.

“I can’t wait,” Elysium said under his breath.