Chapter 463: Bath

Vince POV

I stood there, watching in disbelief as my parents practically groveled before Jerah...who's...technically a family friend at this point since he's friends with Dawn and Perseus.

So by association, he is also my friend, a friend who also happened to be a god, well, I'm not good at making friends...but whatever. It was surreal, seeing them so desperate to make amends for nothing we did wrong. I couldn't help but feel a mix of embarrassment and frustration.

"Please, your excellence, we're so sorry if anything our Perseus said offended you. We don't condone his behavior, and we're doing everything we can to make sure he understands the gravity of his actions," Mom Nyra pleaded, her eyes filled with genuine remorse.

"We've raised him better than this. We apologize on behalf of our family. It's important to us that you know we don't share the same views." Mom Rylee added

"Well, I'm more offended by his actions." Jerah shrugged

"Oh, right, he's dating the sun goddess."

"Oh no, not her, but I hate him for destroying my daughter's purity."

"Please stop," I finally spoke up, my frustration evident in my voice. "Just treat Jerah as our friend, not some deity we need to appease. You don't have to apologize for someone else's mistakes."

*****

"Well, that took a while." Jerah said as we now had room for ourselves

"So? Why are you here?"

"Well, since Ruka and Leilah accomplished Perseus' end of the bargain, I'm here to help give out mine."

"And what's that?"

"To either create a companion for you or to give you a special power, the choice is up to you."

"What kind of companion are we talking about? A super cool dragon knight or something?"

"I keep forgetting that you didn't have much of a life until now, your brain's maturity is similar to that of a child."

"Hey, and who's fault is that? You helped Cain do what he did."

"Indirectly and accidentally."

"Then you should have done more to help out."

"I've had that argument with Dawn already, I'm not here to repeat it, so what do you want? Buddy might not be happy if you choose a companion, but he'll tolerate it soon enough. And it can be anything, an animal, a living talking sword, a ghost, you name it, as for the powers...well, I can give you a similar one to what you had in the past, though it's nowhere near as powerful, I got a list of others as well, so...which one?"

"I choose..."

*****

Perseus POV

The first trial of Lucifer was surprisingly easy, it was to have me resist the sight of beautiful women, I've seen enough lewd sights to learn the ultimate resistance, besides, none of them were the goddesses or the roses, I was more than fine, even Maple was impressed.

So, unlike Satan's, his is more peaceful but probably more time-consuming. 2nd trial had this stupidly lavish-looking chamber that I'm too lazy to describe as the author is currently writing this very chapter at 1 am.

The first trial was something along the lines of having me understand the power of light better if I pass. The first challenge loomed ahead, a labyrinth of mirrors reflecting fragments of light that twisted and turned in perplexing patterns. 

At first, I approached the mirrors tentatively, studying their reflective surfaces for clues. I reached out, fingertips grazing the glassy planes, trying to discern any anomaly or pattern. But the reflections were cunning, twisting reality into intricate mazes that confounded my senses.

I moved cautiously, my fingers grazing the smooth surface of the mirrors. Some seemed to ripple under my touch, sending ripples of refracted light across the maze.

I attempted to follow the faintest glimmers, certain they held the key to my passage. Yet, with each step, the path seemed to shift, morphing into new configurations. 

"I'm going to have to be a maze runner, this trial was made to delay me as long as possible cuz this bastard knew that I wouldn't have much time."

"Yeah, and Buddy did say that a week has passed since we entered, despite the time feeling much shorter in here." Maple added

I tried emitting a super dark aura to blacken the surroundings, to see if there was any secret string of light that could lead me to the exit, but no...so I just sat and meditated, studying the refracted light, it was chaotic and refracting everywhere.

But after a while, I traced some sort of pattern and followed it, took us about 2 days, I had Buddy go out and come back in, it was 2 days...for one trial, which is bad.

And the 2nd trial was a bath, and as I submerged, the waters enveloped me, cocooning me in a warmth that transcended the physical. Colors swirled around, manifesting my emotions, joy, sorrow, and unspoken fears. The pool revealed truths I'd concealed from myself, forcing me to confront the depths of my soul.

The bastard even had the water at a perfect hot temperature, which made me want to stay in longer, but I fought off the resistance.

And after a while, its mirror-like surface reflects fragmented images of memories and aspirations. It was all ripply and distorted, but it was presenting me with fragments of forgotten dreams and buried desires. I stared into the reflections, recognizing parts of myself I'd long overlooked.

My former dreams, the ones I had when...I was younger, I saw my parents...but the water made it hard to see what they truly looked like. I couldn't even recognize the language they were talking to me with...it's kind of sad...I wanted to know more.

Floating orbs of light then floated and danced across the waters, each pulsating with a unique hue. Instinctively, I reached out, feeling the subtle vibrations they emitted. With focused intent, I attuned myself to their frequencies, harmonizing conflicting thoughts and emotions within.

I also then heard the voice of myself before I was captured...in a language that I couldn't recognize...and before long, the water became still with a quest window popping up and telling me to leave.