Chapter 54. He's Here
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"He's here. Although I don't know why he came here voluntarily, it's great."
In the massive castle, a woman dressed provocatively descended the stairs, holding a smoking pipe. Her eyes, like amethysts, swept over the group of young men waiting for her below.
Almost instinctively, she compared her usual favorites with that pure white figure.
"Disgusting," she paused, "but it doesn't matter. Since he's come, today he will belong to me, forever mine. When that time comes... Freya, I will pull you down from your throne!"
Crack—
"Broken?" The woman casually tossed the broken pipe aside. "It's about time to get a new one."
"Ishtar-sama?" one of the young men, waiting for her favor, looked confusedly at the woman standing on the stairs.
"I've grown tired of him. He's yours now." Ishtar flipped her hair. "Phryne~"
Hearing that terrifying name, the young man's face immediately turned pale, collapsing to the ground in a faint.
"Quack, quack, quack, finally, you recognize who the true beauty is?" A massive shadow loomed over the young man.
His eyes rolled back as he foamed at the mouth, passing out.
"I hope you can behave," Ishtar coldly eyed Phryne, who picked up the fainted man.
"Tonight's guest is not someone you can touch."
"I bet he'll be mesmerized by me the moment he sees me," Phryne caressed her bloated body.
"He'll be petrified by terror," the other Amazon women around them sarcastically muttered.
"Jealousy is so ugly!"
Phryne dismissively glared at the others, grabbing the unconscious young man and shoving her way through the doors.
"What about the Soma Familia members?" Ishtar toyed with her hair.
"They're over there," one of the Amazon girls pointed to a nearby room. "If you want to talk business, better hurry. Soon, they won't even remember their own names."
"No need for that anymore," Ishtar chuckled. "Just drain them dry. They're no longer our partners, but our prey. Follow your instincts and do what you do best. It's time to paint that pure white figure with a new color."
As Cyd wandered down the street, a chill ran down his spine.
"Let's wrap this up quickly," Cyd said, pulling out Hermes' compass. The spinning needle abruptly stopped, pointing toward the distant, towering castle.
"Over there, huh?" Cyd squinted.
[What are you going to do?]
"We'll have a friendly chat," Cyd tucked the compass back into his pocket, leisurely walking toward the castle.
[You really think they'll listen?]
"Then we'll switch to this kind of 'friendly' approach," Cyd grinned.
[Aha~ Just like you did to me back then, right? You sweet-talked me, then forcibly barged into my heart, tore it apart, and finally left me coldly.]
The voice sounded pitiful and full of lament.
"If you had just handed over the Golden Fleece back then, none of that would've happened. Instead, not only did you lose as the dragon, but your reputation went down the drain," Cyd sidestepped a man strutting down the street with a prostitute hanging off his arm.
[Waaaah! Don't remind me!]
This guy... probably a god.
Cyd rubbed his chin, observing the strutting figure. Most of the gods had attended that banquet, and while he hadn't formally met all of them, he remembered their general appearance.
He had spotted a few familiar faces... gods, in fact.
"Hahaha, we meet again! Got enough money this time?"
"Of course! I swiped the stash the kiddo saved for snacks."
"Ooh, she's gonna flip out!"
"She shouldn't have been so careless, though it took me forever to find it."
Two burly men, each with an Ishtar Familia prostitute on their arms, proudly jingled their fat coin purses, which were quickly snatched away by the women.
Cyd silently sympathized with the child those gods were talking about.
Traveling with gods meant being at their mercy, especially for innocent children, who were their favorite targets.
"Lord Hermes? Lili? Welf?"
Bell muttered to himself, glancing around nervously while clutching a small package. Inside it was the "secret tool" Hermes said would prevent his teacher from beating him senseless.
But Hermes had vanished! The moment the crowd surged, Hermes, who had been walking with his arm around Bell's shoulder, was gone. Along with Lili and Welf!
Wait, don't tell me I got lost!
"White hair and red eyes... is that the Hero's Apprentice?"
"Should we take him back?"
Bell, flustered and lost in the unfamiliar street, quickly caught the attention of several idle Amazon women.
Swallowing nervously, he ducked his head and hurried into an alley.
He wasn't an idiot. It only took him a few steps to figure out what this street was all about, and why everyone had been looking at Cyd that way.
Even Bell could tell that Ryuu treated Cyd differently, yet Cyd had invited her to this red-light district in front of everyone.
This...
Though Cyd had claimed not to know what the Ishtar Familia was about, that only made Bell more curious. Why had his teacher insisted on coming here?
Bam—
Bell, walking with his head down, didn't notice someone turning the corner, and just like a storybook encounter, the young protagonist collided with a beautiful girl. A wonderful meeting would soon blossom into a sweet romance.
Unfortunately, the one who got knocked over wasn't the girl but the protagonist.
"Ow! Sorry, I didn't mean to..." Bell started to apologize as he sat on the ground, but his face turned bright red as soon as he saw all the exposed skin in front of him.
"Oh my~ You look unfamiliar, but you're quite enticing," the woman licked her lips and leaned down toward Bell. "My name's Aisha. How about spending the night with me~?"
And the woman before him wasn't a sweet maiden, but an Amazon prostitute, known for draining men dry.
"No thanks! Really, no thank you! Goodbye!"
Bell frantically shook his head, turning to flee, but it was too late. Aisha grabbed his wrist the moment he tried to get up.
Bell shuddered. He could break free from her grasp, but if he did, Aisha's hand would probably be broken.
"No need to be so shy, come along," Aisha narrowed her eyes, dragging Bell toward the most conspicuous castle.
Helpless, Bell could only shake his head, powerless, as he was led inside.