As that familiar figure returned and sat down beside her with a long sigh, Artemis, who was already irritated and fearful, could not help but become even more angry.
"You're still not leaving?"
"I want to leave..."
Lorne sighed, face full of helplessness.
"But the problem is, if something happens to you, won't the trouble come knocking on my door too?"
Hearing such an earnest answer, Artemis was even more infuriated and she nearly kicked him square in the face.
But in the end, the goddess of the hunt clenched her teeth and squeezed out a cold promise from between them.
"Fine! I won't turn you in! Is that good enough for you?"
At this point, though, her face had already darkened considerably.
And yet, that bastard across from her still had that damn aggravating look on his face.
"Some things can be figured out even if you don't confess, you know? There are only two survivors. Want to guess if your father is going to let me off the hook?"
Seeing Artemis's face turning pitch-black like the bottom of a pot, on the verge of exploding, Lorne quickly forced a smile and spoke with a low voice.
"So, we are now grasshoppers on the same rope. Instead of thinking about who will be unlucky first and who will be unlucky later, we might as well think about how to work together to deal with this matter."
"Deal with it? With what? You?"
Hearing his words, ahough the goddess of the hunt sneered coldly, her side glance toward him had already softened a great deal.
"Yeah, let's be real, I'm not exactly packing enough weight to solve this with just myself. The one who tied the knot must untie it. I think the goddess of love might be the key."
At that, Lorne glanced meaningfully at Artemis and spoke in a suggestive tone.
"If I'm not mistaken, there's a blessed area near Paphos on the island of Cyprus—consecrated by the love goddess's divine power. If someone bathes there and undergoes the purification of the Three Graces, they can regain their virginity."
Instantly, Artemis's dull eyes lit up with excitement.
That's right! That woman Aphrodite does this all the time!
After sleeping with every god on Olympus and every second or third mortal who caught her eye, she'd simply take a bathe in the sacred spring to regain her virginity, as if none of it had ever happened.
Like she was some untouched goddess no man had ever laid hands on.
Of course, every god knew what kind of slut she really was.
But after each dip in that enchanted water, she could play the part of a shy, untouched maiden, and seduce men.
And of course, it worked.
Although Artemis didn't really like that woman, she couldn't deny that every god was charmed by her.
To the foolish or the desperate, she seemed like a chaste beauty wrongfully slandered by jealous men who couldn't have her.
Some gods pretended to believe it. Others didn't care—they just wanted the feeling of being the first.
The feeling of "being the one to take the goddess of beauty's seal"… felt like a trophy in itself.
And she gave them that. Again and again.
And for mortal men? They had no idea.
She could moan like it was her first time, cry out like they were her one and only, and they'd believe every damn second of it.
Fall head over heels thinking they were her first, when in reality, they were just… next.
No no no...it was going off topic.
Artemis secretly slandered herself for forgetting the main point, however, she couldn't actually be blamed.
After all, she'd was so panicked that every slander was enough to distract her.
Likewise, being caught up in the panic also made her forgot about such a crucial thinking completely.
After all, if she were to take a bathe in that pond..wouldn't the problem be solved?
Thinking about it, the goddess of hunt's heart was filled with excitement.
But her excitement only lasted a few seconds before she slumped again.
"It's useless. Aphrodite would love to see me suffer. She'd never help me. And besides, the ritual would require summoning the Three Graces and who knows how many nymphs. There's no way we could keep it a secret."
"If you don't want them to find out, then why not sneak in? At this point, what's left to be embarrassed about?"
In response, Lorne shot back without mercy.
"You think I don't want to?!"
Artemis glared at someone with an annoyed expression.
"In order to stop my father and the others from instantly detecting the broken oath, I've already sacrificed more than half of my divine power just to suppress the anomalies.
Right now, forget about Aphrodite—I'm afraid I can't even take on one of the Three Graces at her side."
Lorne froze for a moment, his mind turning.
That "others" likely included the god of light and prophecy—Apollo.
If Artemis had gone to her dear little brother for help, he would probably be lying in a puddle of arrows right now.
And truth be told, if she had wanted to sacrifice a mortal to clean up the mess… Artemis wouldn't have hesitated. Not even for a second.
After all, Apollo could also help her solve her problem—and it was even a sure way.
Aphrodite wouldn't always be at her pond, and defeating the Three Graces and coercing them to perform a ritual without anyone noticing wouldn't be too hard for him...
That was the simplest solution—and the most reliable. Apollo would've done it without question.
If Artemis had not done what she did, he'd be there in an instant to protect her. To "help" her.
And to kill the one who defiled her.
The evidence? Easily erased.
The suspect? Already dust.
And the victim? Soon to be.
As someone who'd known a bit about that sis-con, Lorne was absolutely sure what his end would be...
Cause and prevention would come later.
If Apollo had known what happened between him and his sister, the first thing he would have done would be to obliterate him.
And Lorne, as a demigod, wouldn't have been any match for him.
To Apollo, it was just one mortal… Sacrificing his life to save a goddess would be his life's greatest ever purpose—his highest redemption.
Not to mention, it was this ant who dared to defile his sister.
Artemis probably did have such thought.
After all, it was about her life—and involving Apollo would've also left her some chance to save herself. But she didn't do it.
Realizing this, Lorne glanced at the goddess beside him, a flicker of complexity flashing in his eyes, along with a bit of exasperation.
It seemed like his actions to calm her down were already in vain...
After all, this woman had never truly intended to not kill him...
And here he was, thinking he had successfully calmed down this crazy goddess.
Well... on the fortunate side, there was some good news.
It seemed like his efforts these past few days weren't in vain—and he had managed to increase her favorability, even if just a little.
Although, if he had left just now, that would've been another matter.
"I didn't say charge in head-on. If you can't win a fight? Try lying, stealing, cheating—whatever works!"
"Oh please. You think it's so easy to sneak past a main god, three lesser gods, and who knows how many nymphs just to steal into the love goddess's holy grounds?"
"How do you know it won't work if you don't try?"
Lorne rolled his eyes at her, then asked with deep meaning—
"And besides, at this point, do you really have another choice besides betting on me?"
Artemis paused for a moment.
Then, stunned, she turned to the small half-god beside her.
Hearing the implication, Artemis was slightly stunned, and then couldn't help but look at the little demigod beside her in astonishment.
"You're going to help me?"
"I'm helping myself too..."
Lorne grumbled, then casually pulled a coat from his open magic circle and draped it over Artemis's shoulders.
The goddess of the hunt clenched her teeth slightly as she looked at the coat on her shoulders.
Would it kill this guy to say something nice for once?
"What are you spacing out for? Decide already—are you coming or staying?"
Seeing that Artemis' expression was changing constantly and not knowing what she was thinking, Lorne had no choice but to interrupt her and remind her in a bad mood.
"I'm guessing even if you suppressed the anomalies temporarily, that state won't last long, right? Rather than wasting time here, how about we get moving?"
"You don't need to tell me that!"
The unyielding goddess snapped back with her chin raised, then her face turned serious as she replied:
"This method might work—but we have to complete it before the next full moon. Otherwise…"
Her words trailed off. Lorne nodded knowingly.
Her authority over the moon and the hunt likely changes with the lunar phases.
Just suppressing the symptoms wasn't going to be enough.
So—
"There are still seven days left!"
Lorne quickly calculated, his brows furrowing with tension.
"Looks like we need to finish everything within one week!"
Artemis bit her lip and gently nodded.
"Alright. Let's head for the coast and get ourselves a boat—we'll sail to Cyprus!"
After making up his mind, Lorne immediately shifted into his usual decisive mode and calmly laid out his plan to his new accomplice.
"The sea charts around Crete—I've got them. We need to pick a route that's rarely used, somewhere with the least eyes watching.
Before that, I'll have Doggo take all the supplies we reserved in town back home, and while he's at it, send Hestia a message telling her we spotted a herd of antlered deer and went to hunt them somewhere else. It might take a while, so she doesn't need to come looking for us."
Listening to such thorough and well-thought-out arrangements, even the headstrong Artemis couldn't help but nod repeatedly, earnestly memorizing everything.
That heart, which had already been prepared for the worst, now flickered with a sliver of hope.
It wasn't time to give up just yet.
Might as well try—what if it worked?
Soon enough, within just ten-odd minutes, this seasoned under-pressure battle-hardened god of misfortune had everything perfectly prepared.
And the boat they were using to depart?
It just so happened to be the same one he'd used to smuggle Medusa to Crete, a vessel he'd hidden away afterward.
Funny how life came full circle—he never thought he'd be using it again.
As he sighed at the coincidence, Lorne pushed the boat into the water and casually pulled Artemis into the cabin with him.
The sail rose. The oars moved. The little boat cleaved through the waves, dashing toward the endless sea.
After a brief moment of rest, Artemis gradually calmed from the post-crisis panic. She pressed her lips together, stood up, and exited the cabin, clearly intending to help.
But Lorne immediately stopped her.
"Remember, from this moment forward, you're just an ordinary person. Unless absolutely necessary, don't use divine power or authority. And don't let outsiders see your face or body. I'll handle everything that comes up."
As he spoke, Lorne raised a hand and traced several lines of Hermes-script in the air, and spoke in a serious voice.
"I'm fairly skilled in disguise magic. Just in case, it's better if you change your face now, we wouldn't want anyone recognizing you the moment we land on Cyprus, do we?."
Immediately, the air shimmered like rippling water, and a chill washed over Artemis's skin.
When the sensation faded, the goddess instinctively looked down at the sea—and saw a face reflected there.
Silver hair. Blue eyes.
It still resembled her in certain ways, but clearly… it was a different person altogether.
With all that done, Lorne returned to the deck, stood at the bow, and began rowing with measured rhythm, carefully scanning the sea for the right heading.
"The distance is long—we'll need at least three days of sailing. If there's nothing to do, get some sleep first..."
The low-pitched instructions echoed gently in her ears, like a lullaby sung by her mother Leto long ago, making her feel peaceful.
She hadn't had a good night's sleep in seven full days and nights.
Inside the cabin, Artemis suddenly felt a wave of drowsiness. Her head leaned to the side, resting against the wall. Slowly, she drifted into sleep, her body finally letting go of its tension, relaxed in a way it hadn't been for a very long time.
At this time, Lorne, who was carefully controlling the direction at the bow, looked at the three golden oracles refreshed on the altar, and his face was as black as the bottom of a pot.
"Blasphemy I: Drag the virgin goddess Athena into battle..."
"Blasphemy II: Drag the virgin goddess Hestia into battle..."
"Blasphemy III: Corrupt the virgin goddess Artemis after defilement..."
For a long time, Lorne twitched the corners of his mouth, then raised a middle finger to the vast ocean.
"Poseidon, you bastard."
(End of Chapter)
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