Chapter 39: Chapter 31: Unexpected Divine Intervention.

Echoes of Fire and Shadows

Chapter 31: Unexpected Divine Intervention.

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"Everything is ready~." I sat down on one of the sofas in my living room with a big smile on my face.

In front of me, there was a table with a cup of warm tea, a plate with some cookies and a sealed envelope with the letter of Marina, one of my precious friends.

In case it isn't clear, I'm currently extremely overjoyed thanks to the little kiss on the cheek my cute girlfriend gave me!

Hehehe! It feels so good to be able to say that again! I know she's actually my fiancée, but I just wanted to call her that at least once!

Without realizing it due to how happy I was, I started humming a very popular love song from my previous life.

While I was at it, I immediately picked up the envelope and broke the red wax seal using a little bit of wind magic, but before I could actually pull out the letter from inside the envelope, a familiar voice called to me.

"Hmm… It seems like someone is in a happy mood now." Auntie said to me after coming out of my room.

"You could say that~." I smiled at her 

"Well, at least one of us is happy…" She let out a heavy sigh as she walked towards me. "Julius, please be good and comfort me…" When she reached me, she immediately laid down on the couch and placed her head on my lap.

She looked tired and her eyes were a bit red… Had she been crying? I couldn't know for sure, but it definitely made me worried to see her like that…

In fact, this might be the first time I had actually seen her somewhat dejected… She's the kind of outgoing person who is always smiling and always in a playful mood.

I have seen her angry and annoyed, frustrated even, but I had never really seen her being sad or in a gloomy mood…

(Thiasis… What happened between you two? Did you threaten her or something…?) I asked the Goddess.

"Sigh… She didn't do anything like that. We just had our usual fight and we reconciled almost immediately. It is just that one thing then led to another and then we talked about a difficult topic for me…" Instead of Thiasis, it was my Auntie who replied. She had been able to listen to my conversations with Lia in the past, so I wasn’t surprised.

“Are you sure…?” I was still worried about her.

(That’s so rude! I don't threaten people!) Thiasis immediately complained.

(And what would you call the things you said to me just a moment ago?) I asked with a raised eyebrow.

(Protecting an important secret, of course!) She replied with pride.

(Right...) I obviously didn't believe her words.

"Can you please not do this right now while I’m feeling down…?” Auntie suddenly hugged me and buried her face in my stomach. She was nuzzling against me.

(Sorry about that, Tiria!) Thiasis apologized to Auntie. (Ah! Looks like I have to leave for a while either way. My other half wants help to reinforce the barrier or whatever… Julius, take good care of her, okay? Bye!)  Thiasis immediately took her chance to escape.

Jeez… This Goddess, I swear….

Anyway, Auntie's normal human ears had suddenly turned back into the ears she had been born with while I wasn't looking, her naturally long and pointy elven ears... Auntie had dispelled the magic she was using to hide them.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I asked my auntie as I started patting her head.

"No…" She clung to me as if her life depended on it. 

Her breath and her hair were kinda ticklish, but I was able to endure my urge to laugh…

"Auntie, you know you can talk to me about anything and I will listen." I kept patting her head to comfort her.

"I know… I just don't feel ready to talk about it yet…" She let out another sigh. "Just keep doing your thing while I lay in your lap, okay? I just need to relax…" She took a peek at my face as if to see my reaction.

"Alright. You can talk to me whenever you feel ready, Auntie." I smiled at her.

"Thank you, Julius... I'm happy to have you as my nephew." She hugged me even tighter than before.

I simply smiled at her in response and continued to pamper her. She seemed pleased and buried her face in my stomach again. 

Jeez… Auntie and Thiasis must have talked about something extremely serious to make her act like this…

I'm really curious what they talked about, but I won't pry into her personal affairs. I'll just wait for her to be comfortable enough to tell me.

While I was silently patting my Auntie's head and letting her relax, I decided to read Marina's letter.

It was a bit difficult to pull out the three-page letter with just one hand, though…

"Julius." Auntie said my name before I could actually start reading the letter.

However, my dear auntie seemed to have other plans…

"Hmhm?" 

"Would you mind marrying your poor auntie if I were still unmarried by the time I'm in my forties?" She suddenly asked a really weird question that caught me off guard.

"That's a bit of a strange question, Auntie…" I couldn't help but look at her wide-eyed thanks to her question.

"It is just a hypothetical scenario, but I still would like to hear your answer…" She spoke shyly which was something really out of character for her.

"I suppose that, hypothetically, I would be okay with that. Of course, that is only if you don't mind becoming my second wife. Hehehe…" I tried to make a joke to dispel the strange atmosphere in the room. My awkward laughter certainly didn't help…

At that moment, I realized that she was just messing up with me… I couldn't help but let out an inner sigh of relief.

Auntie sometimes enjoys teasing me about how I will probably end up with a dozen wives or more because of how 'cute' and 'adorable' I am…

Her teasing began because about a year and a half ago, during a lesson with Professor Tian, I learned that things like harems and polygamy are quite common in this world, not only within noble society but also with the common folk as well.

Well, not only did I learn about that through my teacher, but I also met a young woman who moved here to our village with an older woman and a young man her age, both of who happened to be her wife and her husband.

Yes, you heard that correctly… They are pretty nice people actually.

It is apparently socially and morally acceptable to have a harem or to be in a polygamous relationship in this world. The Goddess of Love, Catris, also encourages those types of relationships as well as monogamous ones through her teachings, in which she states that almost all types of love are acceptable.

Which makes you wonder which types of love are the ones that aren't acceptable…

Anyhow, in the Marcelian Empire at least, the law doesn't establish a limit of how many people a person can marry. The only limitation for a person to marry multiple people is that the aforementioned person needs to be capable of providing a sustainable lifestyle and a home for all their spouses.

I, of course, was pretty dumbfounded that something like that was allowed. It was not because I am conservative or think that something like that is immoral, but because I thought of how much of a nightmare must be getting a divorce in this country…

Just imagining figuring out how to split the assets and the alimony situation gives me a massive headache and that's without even thinking about child support…

It was quite weird to learn about such a law that would probably be the wet dream as well as the biggest nightmare of most lawyers…

But in any case, I don't know if I could ever be in a relationship like that since I only ever had a girlfriend before getting together with Mia and I don't plan to betray my current one obviously, but at the very least, I respect the lifestyles and choices of the people in those kinds of relationships.

It is like they say, live and let live.

Though, I do have to admit that I feel curious about what it is like to be together with multiple partners, all of them who have their strengths and weaknesses as well as their own skeletons in their closets…

It must be really difficult, especially taking the ugly monster that is jealousy into account…

Yeah, I don't know if that kind of thing would work for me… Mia is a wonderful girl and wanting more than that would be extremely greedy.

Though I can't deny that there are moments where I feel a bit greedy thinking that I could give it a try in the future, those moments are very very scarce though…

"I don't mind that. I know that Mia would definitely be the first wife. But it is more than likely that I will end up being your fourth or fifth, I think." Auntie spoke with an accepting tone. 

(Oh… OH!)

That's when I realized that she was actually being serious… I was completely speechless for a moment thanks to what I had just heard coming from my usually cool and playful Auntie…

"S-S-Sheesh! What are you even saying!? Where would I even find another two or three girls to marry me!?" I still nervously tried to pass what she had said as a joke.

"Well, you're pretty cute and you have a good personality. You're very responsible, you get along with almost everyone, you're pretty kind, you're not stingy with money, you're fun to tease, and you are probably the most hardworking person I know." She looked at me again and started complimenting me without holding back. "And if Lady Lia and your mother are right about it, you will probably grow to become an extremely handsome man." She used those last words to finish me off…

I couldn't help but feel embarrassed due to being complimented like that so suddenly by someone I admire…

"I-I-Is that so…?" I ended up averting my gaze as I felt my face heating up. I was sure that I was blushing.

"It is. I'm certain that most women would be fighting each other to get a chance to be with you. Your mom, Natalie, and I even have a bet about how many girls will propose to you and everything." She nodded to herself.

They have what!?

"Umm… Auntie, that's…" I was at a sudden loss for words.

"That's why I am securing my spot ahead of time if I am, hypothetically speaking, still alone by the time you're an adult..." She suddenly smiled weakly at me. "So? Can you promise that you will take responsibility and marry me when the time comes, please?" She was looking very intently at me with a serious expression.

I was once again speechless thanks to what was currently happening to me… I couldn't believe I was in this situation in the first place…

"..." I just looked at her, mouth agape without saying anything back to her.

My mind had gone blank and I didn't know what to say to her…

It was then when Auntie's serious expression turned into an ear-to-ear grin and then she started laughing…

"Hahahahaha! I can't believe you were actually taking me seriously! I'm flattered that you were seriously considering marrying this nasty old lady, but I was just messing with you!" Auntie laughed very loudly... She was poking my cheeks and pinching my nose with an expression of pure amusement just like she always does.

"Auntie… That was a bit mean, don't you think?" I was really pissed off.

"What? You're actually disappointed!? That is so cuteeee! Hehehe!" Auntie giggled like a little girl. "Maybe in a decade or two, when you have grown a little, I'll ask you again~?" She had a playful grin on her face while poking at my most visible insecurity…

"Shut up! I’m still waiting for my growth spurt! Don't laugh at me!" I was extremely pissed off…

Despite the fact that Auntie was currently laughing at my expense and pretending it was all a prank, I knew she was being serious before… 

I have known her long enough to know that she would never lie about this kind of topic, much less play with the feelings of someone else…

She might not look like it, but Auntie is a very honest and down-to-earth person. She's simply incapable of doing something like what she just did and then playing it off as a prank… She could never be that cruel.

That's how I know that she was actually being serious about marrying me if she doesn't find anyone…

Sigh…

I can't deny that for a split second, a part of me really considered saying 'Yes' to her… My admiration for my Auntie could be even considered borderline puppy love…

The two of us spend a lot of time with each other whenever she visits and I basically follow her around when she goes out to explore the forest, so it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility for me to have a childish crush on her…

Sure she can be a bit intense and she talks trash a lot, but she has a good heart and is very responsible when she needs to be. She's also very strong, cool, I'm never bored with her, and her tomboy style makes her look so beautiful and…-

Oh boy… I DO have a bit of a crush on her…

I know this is an impossible crush since she's my aunt, yeah we might not be related by blood, but she's still my auntie…  And there's the fact that she's twice my age and almost the same age as my adoptive parents… Also, I'm still a fucking child who still has to go through puberty!

It is an impossible love, no matter how you see it! 

Sigh… There's also the obvious fact that I'm engaged to Mia, and obviously, I don't want to hurt her in any way…

Ugh… Just what the hell is wrong with me!? I already have a fiancée and I'm crushing on another girl? And she's my aunt no less!

I'm fucking sick man! This is the fault of all of those fantasy harem animes and games that Claire was so obsessed with and forced me to watch!

"You're a good nephew, you know that? Spending time with you cheers me up almost immediately!" She lovingly caressed my cheek before getting up from the couch. "I'm also glad that you managed to confess to Mia... You two really look cute together!" She smiled at me. 

Wait… How does she know that!?

"Anyway, I feel better now so I think I'll go on a hike!" She then waved at me before rushing towards the door.

I was tremendously dumbfounded… So much so that my mind went blank again… I was struggling to process what had just unfolded with my Auntie…

I was completely unaware that I was about to make the whole situation even worse…

"I promise I will marry you! Even if it was a joke, I swear that I'll do it! So please wait until I am an adult! I get jealous easily, so don't see anyone else but me!" I suddenly screamed at the top of my lungs before I heard the door being closed.

Ah… Why did I just say…? HUH!? WHY THE FUCK DID I JUST SAY THAT!?

I was panicking and screaming internally because I had said something I clearly didn't intend to say… It was like my body decided to talk on its own without caring for my brain's input…

No… It almost felt like someone or something else had taken over my body…

(Sorry! I had to take over your body for a sec! You weren't being honest with her so I had to intervene! She was very happy to hear what you said though, so you can thank me with some offerings later!) An unknown female voice echoed in my head.

As soon as I heard that voice, I felt my heart skip a beat… It was so beautiful, so serene, so melodic and mature…

Just hearing a few words from this mysterious entity made me feel a myriad of deep and warm emotions in my chest… The panic and confusion I was feeling before were completely gone, almost as if it had never been there in the first place.

(But jeez… I guess I really have been neglecting Tiria for a while… Now I feel really bad! She must have thought I was bullying her or something! Hahaha…) The owner of the beautiful voice laughed awkwardly.

Her awkward laughter made me snap off the trance I was in…

(Umm… Who are you?) I asked while being wary of this entity.

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I was sure of it… This voice… It belonged to a deity. Her presence was really similar to Lia's but different at the same time… It was warm and gentle, yet it felt powerful… It was such a strange feeling.

(Do you wanna take a guess? You get one chance!) She said playfully before chuckling.

Her words made me feel warm and comfortable, even though I was wary of this unknown deity… I could feel how I was slowly lowering my guard and starting to think that I was safe, despite not knowing who I was talking with…

(Ah… She found out about this rather quickly, didn't she?) The voice started talking to herself. 

What she said certainly didn't help with my confusion and all the things I was feeling.

(Sorry Julius! I really wanted to stay to play for a bit and get to know you, but I'm afraid Lia is not very happy with me right now… Let's have a proper meeting later, okay? I'll give you a kiss and plenty of hugs as an apology! See ya later ♥!) She spoke to me with a flirty tone before I felt her presence disappear.

I was left in my living room, speechless due to how dumbfounded I was.

"What the hell is happening today?" I looked at the empty space waiting for an answer I definitely wasn’t going to get.

So, in summary… I got beaten up by my auntie, as usual, then I met the princess of all fairies and became her best friend, then I got tackled by Mia before I confessed to her, then later got proposed by the same auntie who beat me up earlier, and then I had a one-sided conversation with an entity that might be a goddess and who might or might not be an enemy who also seemingly knows Lia and left without explaining why she took over my body to make me promise that I would marry Auntie…

"Fuck me… I'm so fucking tired all of a sudden…" I let out a heavy sigh as my mind couldn't comprehend this bizarre situation.

I couldn't help but take a look at the letter I still needed to read.

"Marina… Please, for the love of all the good in this world, please tell me you wrote something normal…" I was afraid that something else could happen after reading the letter.

Still… I steeled myself and started reading Marina's letter…

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-----Lia's POV-----

I was in the middle of a perfect copy of my favorite beach in my Divine Realm.

I had been forced to merge my two halves again in order to receive a very annoying unwanted guest…

That guest was an olive-skinned man with light brown hair and yellow eyes who was wearing a Hawaiian shirt, shorts, a simple hat, and sandals. The man was Hermes.

The two of us were sitting right in front of each other at a wooden table made with my powers.

"..." I was frowning while looking at the material plane.

That damned Catris… Always doing what she pleases without caring about the consequences… I'll seriously have to beat her up to teach her a lesson…

"Are you sure that you don't want to tell him yet? It has been almost three years since our last reunion…" Hermes asked.

"Excuse me? It has been three years for me and merely less than a week for you! The situation is far from resolved!" I said with annoyance. "Have you taken Julius' parents and his friend out of that psychiatric ward? No? Then shut the fuck up! I have other things to take care of!" I shouted with the burning fury of a thousand suns to the unwanted guest in front of me.

"Lia, you should know that manipulating the memories of thousands of people is not particularly easy, especially after the incident was exposed to the media and the internet..." He spoke calmly, not caring that I was being mean to him.

"Excuses! Who was the one who said that they had sent all the valkyries available to deal with the issue? Oh, it was you!" I said sarcastically. 

This is so fucking annoying! I could fix this entire situation on my own if I didn't need to use most of my power to deal with that stupid angel army! It would be a piece of cake for me to deal with that if I was at my full power!

"We're still doing what we can… At the very least, we don't have to worry about most of his acquaintances, his sisters, and his girlfriend for now after tampering with their memories..." He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "But are you sure about not telling Julius about his family or the meeting with Lord Odin and my father, Lia? If you keep hiding things like you're doing, he might come to hate you." Hermes gave me a warning.

"You think I'm not aware of that!? You think I'm not dreading the moment I have to tell him that the lives of those he loved are currently in the shit because both you and I are completely damn useless in this fucking situation!?" I glared at him.

I'm painfully aware that Julius might not forgive me for this… But… I can't bring myself to tell him… I simply can't bring myself to hurt him more after all the crap he has been through already…

I don't want to ruin his current happy life… If possible, I would like him to forget about his previous life and his desire for revenge against Agmos and just live a fulfilling life in the countryside with his adoptive family…

But I know that is not possible… I know I can't hide the truth from him forever, because I was the one who got him involved in this mess… He has the right to know…

I know the most logical thing would have been to tell him as soon as I could, but… 

I'm scared…

That's truly how I feel…  I don't want him to hate me… I don't want the person I  care about the most to suddenly despise me… 

I'm scared that if I tell him, he will look at me with disgust and curse me out for being the source of all his troubles, which is unfortunately the truth…

I don't think I would be able to live with that…

"Lia, I know you are stressed out and you absolutely have the right to be, all things considered, but you need to trust me on this one… Being angry and lashing out at me will not help us in the slightest, especially with the kid." Hermes gave me a serious look as if he was worried about me.

"..." I simply kept glaring at him without saying a thing.

I knew Hermes was absolutely in the right, but… I just didn't want to admit it… I wanted to delay the meeting with the Gods of Earth as much as I could, so I wouldn't have to experience Julius feeling disdain towards me…

Sigh… For how long will I keep being a coward…? I hate myself for that so much these days…

Melius… I wonder what would you do in this situation, my friend. You always said that I was the smartest between the two of us, but I'm seriously doubting those words right now…

"You should listen to Hermie, Lia." A very feminine and flirty voice called my name.

I turned my back around only to see a beautiful woman with long and silky pink hair that reached her lower back. Her hair was adorned with multiple roses of all colors. Her eyes were the same color as her hair… They were filled with a certain playfulness that made me feel at ease. She was wearing a simple white toga and a pair of sandals as well as a couple of heart-shaped earrings. She was just as tall as me (2.30 meters tall).

That woman was none other than the Goddess of Love herself…

"Catris…" I was boiling in anger after I was reminded of what she had just done.

But… Just like Hermes said, lashing out and yelling would take me nowhere… I took a deep breath and tried to put my heart at ease.

As the Goddess of Knowledge and Emotions, I am a walking contraction… A person who should act rationally and logically but also a person who is driven by their strong emotions…

In the past, I had been able to easily find a balance between cold logic and my intense emotions. But these days, it has become an almost impossible task, which is why I spend most of my time divided even though it is so tiring for me…

"Sheesh! Don't sound so annoyed! You should be happier now that we made up and are in contact again!" She walked towards the table with elegance and grace.

As soon as she got close enough to the table, she immediately reached for me and hugged me.

"What? You're telling the Goddess of Emotions how she should feel?" I smiled a little.

"Yep! It is better than being angry and screaming profanities all the time, don't you think?" She started patting my back while hugging me tightly.

"Maybe…" I averted my gaze since I was a little ashamed.

While being embraced by one of my closest friends, that's when a realization hit me…

(Sigh… What am I doing? I'm so pathetic… I'm a fucking adult, and a Goddess on top of that, I can't act like this… Even if Julius hates me because of it, I should have told him sooner about everything…) I let out the heaviest sigh of my entire immortal life.

I'm truly a fucking idiot… I am the one who understands Julius the most, I know every single detail about both of his lives… What he enjoys, the things he hates, his deepest fears, his aspirations, his strange quirks, and what makes him truly happy… How could I forget that I'm the only one he is comfortable with to expose his true self?

Seriously, saying that I am an idiot is an understatement… 

I have the duty of being there for him just like he did for me in my darkest hours when he came into this world... Even if he doesn’t know that he's being there for me just by existing…

It is decided, I will tell him. I will have him meet Zeus and Odin and tell him everything and do my best to accept whatever he might do or say to me, and hope for his forgiveness. 

"Thank you, Catris… I really needed this..." I hugged my friend tightly, something I hadn't done in centuries.

"No worries~!" She sounded genuinely happy to be together again.

"Impressive… To be able to easily calm down the Goddess that almost turned my father and uncle Poseidon into a bloody pulp… I am awestruck!" Hermes spoke with genuine admiration towards Catris.

"Well, we have been friends since pretty much the beginning of time! It is only natural that I would know how to calm her down!" Catris said proudly.

"But I guess Lia is still the same as usual…  She has the spirit and the fury of a tiger, but the gentle heart of a kitten!" Hermes chuckled.

…

"Oh? So do you want me to turn YOU into a bloody pulp instead? I can work with that." I turned my head back and smiled innocently at him.

"Jeez… No wonder uncle Hades didn't want to come here with me…" Hermes' eyes widened and raised his hands in a panic.

"Well, Lia was especially brutal with the poor guy during the war. I still remember that terrified look he had after the peace talks. I heard he became NEET for a few centuries and all." Catris added.

"I can certainly understand why…" Hermes smiled awkwardly while looking at me.

Note to self: Buy Hermes a one-way ticket to Tartarus…

"Hehehehe! Well, now that Lia is calm and all. How about we watch a movie to relax? Of course, I will be choosing the movie~." Catris said with excitement.

Actually, that sounds good but there's something bothering me…

"Hey, Catris." I said her name with a smile on my face.

"Lia please, I know that you prefer action movies or comedies, don't worry." Catris was blissfully unaware of the storm that was approaching her.

"Thanks! But it isn't about that…"  I kept smiling innocently at her.

"Then what is it?" Catris tilted her head.

"Nothing serious…" I shook my head. "Didn't I ask you to fix Tiria's love life? I was just wondering… Why the flying fuck did you tell Tiria to ask Julius, her almost ten-year-old NEPHEW for marriage!?" I had an inquisitive expression on my face with a little bit of murderous intent.

The reason why Catris appeared so suddenly today, is because I asked her to help Tiria with her miserable love life because I felt really bad for teasing her about it and I couldn't leave her be…

This is of course not what I intended to happen when I asked Catris to intervene…

"So this is what uncle Hades meant when he told me how scary she can be…! Eeek!" Hermes mumbled to himself while his entire body was trembling.

"And that's exactly what I did! I fixed her love life! Those two have very very high compatibility with each other! There's literally no one that comes even close to Julius in terms of compatibility with Tiria!" I could see the panic in Catris's eyes.

I could also see in those beautiful pink eyes of hers that she was about to try to escape to her own Divine Realm. Of course, I was not going to allow that.

"Alright, I understand that." I smiled again and hugged her tightly. Very tightly.

She’ll never be able to escape now.

"Phew… I really thought you were angry at me…" She seemed relieved.

"Of course not! However, I do want to hear you explain in ten words or less why it was a good idea to ruin their perfectly platonic relationship!" I kept smiling at my dear friend.

"Lia… Umm… It is getting a little bit difficult to breathe… Could you loosen up your hug a bit…?" She started to timidly slap my arm as a sign of surrender.

"That’s good enough though~. You have enough air for ten words or less!" I said with increasing excitement. "Besides, you're immortal! You don't really need air, Catris!" I smirked.

"Lia, forgive me for all of my transgressions! I was in the wrong! I didn’t mean any harm!" Catris immediately panicked and apologized.

"Now, the clock is ticking… I want to hear your reasons before I hear the sounds of your ribs cracking!" I said nonchalantly as I made my hug very tight.

"I did it because they will definitely look cute together!" She immediately did what she was told, with clear fear in her eyes.

"That's it…?" I said with a flat tone.

"Yeah! There are other reasons too, but that was the main reason!" She nodded vigorously.

Hmm… That's a bit disappointing…

"Alright! Let's hear them too! Please explain in five words or less this time!" I kept smiling at my dumbass friend.

"Noooo! That's impossible!" She complained.

"Alrighty! Say goodbye to your ribs~!" I wasn't having any of that.

"Nooooo! Wait! Age is just a number! That counts as a valid reason, right!? Tiria is basically a teenager by elven standards! She's twenty years older than Julius, which is a respectable age difference between half-elves and their partners!" She tried to defend herself.

"And prison is just a place! I heard that Tartarus is very nice and hot this time of the year, just as you like Catris! Those Titans will surely love to have you as their new prison companion!" I was a bit disgusted with what she had just said. "And also, that's more than five words!" I tightened my hug.

"Aaaaaagh! Wait! You know that Tiria would do nothing nefarious to him! It will be a little innocent engagement until Julius becomes an adult in a bit more than eight years from now!" She yelped in pain before she continued to explain herself.

"True…" I stopped the little torture I was imposing on her. "Still that doesn't make it better! You forced Julius to accept a crush he didn’t even know he had and say something he wasn't intending to say!" I started to once again hug my dumbass friend really tightly, not holding anything back against her.

"Stop! Stop! I was in the wrong! I'm sorry! Please stop! I feel like something is about to burst!" Catris started apologizing again.

"You should have just thought about it before being a complete dumbass!" I obviously didn't stop what I was doing.

"Uuugh! It cracked! Something inside me is cracking! I'm pretty sure it shouldn't do that!" Catris let out another helpless yelp.

I continued to play around for a while with my dear friend, all the while I pretended to not notice that Hermes had quietly slipped away with a horrified look on his face.

I’ll get him next time…

---

Chapter 31: Unexpected Divine Intervention.

END

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