The group got to the Hermes Familia camp half an hour later. Ever since their private talk, Hestia had been spacing out and Artemis had a sad smile on her face.
Kisuke didn't know what they talked about in detail, but he could guess that Artemis already confessed to Hestia what the real situation is.
"We set our base of operations here. It's fine for now, but I'm not sure how much time we have left until the decay starts here too.", explained Asfi.
After setting aside their luggage, the Pallum magician, Meryl Tear, approached Yoruichi and said, "Aren't you guys exhausted from the long journey?" She pointed towards a certain direction and told them, "There's a spring ahead where you can bath."
Yoruichi patted the head of the small girl with a smile, "Really? Thanks for that~."
"Psst... Kisuke-kun!" Hermes, who was hiding in the bushes for some strange reason, called out to Kisuke discreetly, "Come over here~!"
Being curious, Kisuke went towards him. But as he walked over, he also observed his surroundings. It was then that he noticed that the majority of the male members of the Hermes Familia were missing and he figured out what Hermes was aiming for, 'T-this guy... He wouldn't let go of any chances...'
Hermes then dragged him to a small opening, where most of the missing members were currently sitting on the ground. They waited for another 15 minutes and every male member of the Hermes Familia was already present.
It was then, that Hermes started riling them up, "Today, you will become a legend!"
"Listen closely! Up ahead is a paradise filled with beautiful ladies! Asfi and the rest are cleaning off their sweat with nothing covering their bodies!"
Kisuke could hear some of them gulping.
Hermes then closed his eyes and clenched his fist, "And Artemis... No one has ever seen the renowned Goddess of Purity without her clothes on. Even the Gods haven't!"
Finally, Kisuke's interest had been piqued, 'Really no one?'
Hermes then slowly opened his eyes and continued, "My dream was shattered once! But my soul is telling me to never give up! And now I have friends. Friends with the same dream and goal. That's you guys!"
Some of the guys even started sniffling and Kisuke couldn't help but think, 'What a funny bunch.'
"There will be challenges that we must conquer. But know this, when we overcome the hardships, our names will be remembered for ages!"
"Stand up, children! To become true heroes!"
Everyone then simultaneously cheered, "Wooo!!! Wooo!!!"
'These adorable idiots. All the girls in the camp have already heard you.', thought Kisuke.
"Heaven, bear witness to our plight! And bless the fearless warriors with a victorious future! FOLLOW ME!" Hermes led everyone with great fervor towards the spring, where the girls were bathing.
And just as Kisuke expected, a few minutes after they sortied, all of them were caught without being able to take a single peek on anyone's naked body.
"I knew this was bound to happen!" Asfi sighed, as she fixed the white towel which she wrapped around her body beforehand.
"Men are a bunch of idiots.", added Lulune.
But what destroyed them the most, were some simple words from Meryl, "You all are perverts."
It was then, that Ryuu noticed something, "Where's Urahara-san?"
Asfi shuddered, 'If he's here, then I have no way of stopping him...'
"Probably somewhere around us?" Yoruichi replied to Ryuu.
Hermes, who was hanging from the waterfall, because he was the one who initiated all of this, suddenly shouted, "Go! Kisuke-kun! Leave us and seize the victory!"
"Victory?" Asfi muttered, "Wait... Where's Artemis-sama and Hestia-sama?"
"Hestia-sama is already resting. As for Artemis-sama, she insisted on taking a bath alone, so she's probably in one of the other parts of the spring.", answered Yoruichi calmly.
"Why are you so calm? Aren't you his wife?", asked Asfi.
"Whatever he does, I trust him." Yoruichi then went back to the camp to check on Hestia.
.
.
.
Kisuke did indeed sneak around, so that he could go to Artemis. But him peeking on her, wasn't motivated by lust, but by the sense of achievement and curiosity towards the unknown. A naked body of a very prominent Goddess which no one has ever seen before? Of course he would try to take a look at it, if he was given a chance!
A few seconds later, Kisuke was able to hear some activity in the water. After a few minutes of wandering around and following that sound, the bathing Artemis came into his view.
Kisuke finally achieved what countless Gods and mortals couldn't achieve. As he took a look, he couldn't deny the fact that Artemis had a great figure. Much better than a certain Goddess of Beauty in his opinion, because Artemis gave off a gentle feeling, contrary to the oppressive feeling which the Goddess of Beauty had.
He then saw Artemis lifting her arm towards the moon.It became transparent for an instant and he thought,, 'So she doesn't have that much time left either.' Achieving his goal, Kisuke decided to show himself just for the sake of it.
While stepping forward, Kisuke deliberately stomped on a twig, creating a sound, loud enough for Artemis to notice.
Immediately covering her body with her arms, Artemis turned towards the sound, "Who's there!?"
With a cheeky grin, Kisuke replied, "Good evening, Artemis-sama~. I'm here to peek on you~!"
Artemis was stunned to the point that she almost forgot that she was still naked. A few seconds later, due to the lack of responses she could make, thanks to his ridiculous words, she asked him, "Why?"
"Because I heard that no one has ever successfully peeked on you~!", answered Kisuke honestly.
She was stunned yet again, but this time, she noticed something. Unlike the gazes that landed previously on her, even though there was still a bit of lust present in Kisuke's eyes, it was more of an appreciation of beauty. Artemis also couldn't feel any vulgar intent from Kisuke, which she found impossible, unless he didn't like women. But she knew for sure that he had a wife and even several lovers.
'A man that isn't taken by my naked body? Does a man like that truly exist?', thought Artemis.
However, before Artemis could say anything back, Kisuke suddenly turned around and said, "Now that I've achieved my goal, I'll leave. I'll also apologize to you later and you can punish me by then." Waving his hand, Kisuke started walking away.
"Pfft... Ahahaha." Artemis suddenly started laughing, "Wait... Ah, but please don't turn around."
Kisuke stopped walking and he heard Artemis getting off the water. A few minutes later, Artemis called out to him again, "Done."
Kisuke turned towards her and asked, "Do you want to say something?"
Artemis shook her head, "No... I just want us to chat for a while."
Kisuke thought about it for a moment, before he manifested a magic circle that connected to his inventory and took a set of tables and chairs out of it.
Startled by this, Artemis asked him, "How are you doing that?"
"Magic~," Kisuke answered as he also took out some tea.
"So magic has come this far."
Both of them sat down and Artemis took a sip of the tea, "Hmm... Delicious."
"Thank you for your compliment."
Artemis went back to the original topic, "You're lucky, you know? If it was the old me back in Heaven, I'd have shot you through with my arrow."
"So what Hestia-sama told us was the truth. But I do apologize for peeking. The fact that no one has ever done that tickled my fighting spirit."
Artemis stood up and went back towards the water. She then started playing on the shallow part using her feet, "I accept your apology, but I must say, that's the strangest peeking experience I've ever had."
"Is that so? Then is it fine to accept that as a compliment?"
While chuckling, Artemis answered him, "Right. As strange as it was, it wasn't an unpleasant experience, so you can." She then sighed, "I envy Hestia a bit, since you're her child. But I'm also happy for her. She must be having fun every day."
"How was Hestia-sama back in Heaven?"
"Let's see, the Hestia I knew was quite lazy and used to slack off a lot."
"I'm relieved that we know the same, Hestia."
"Ahaha, so she hasn't changed." Artemis looked up to the moon before continuing, "She used to stay inside her temple quite a lot. And whenever I visited her, she lit up like an excited puppy with a new toy."
"I can imagine that."
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.
.
While Kisuke and Artemis were talking, Yoruichi followed Hestia, who took the spear and went towards the nearby stream, 'Does she intend to throw that away?' But instead of stopping her, Yoruichi only waited as another person was coming.
"Hestia." A wet Hermes suddenly approached and startled Hestia, "What are you doing here alone?"
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Editors:
28th00: I do wonder what Hestia is doing~? All is forgiven, for she is Smol and Squishy. She has to be going through some insane emotional turmoil though, her best friend is effectively committing assisted suicide through one of her children, and that's a really big deal. Even for Gods, dying for tens of thousands of years at the minimum is a VERY long time, especially if they don't come back the same.
Alexander: Hestia doesn't have to worry about Artemis. Kisuke won't let the spear get away from him. It's his compensation after all. So Artemis is already safe, since she comes as a pair with her weapon. Though that technically means that she'll also come into his possession. Hurray for the new maid.
And 28th00, don't you dare to correct my writing, when I haven't even read over it again.
28th00: But that's my job!? I thought the compensation was saving Hestia from tragedy? We don't leave our Loli's behind in tragedy! Phis-chama~! We're coming for you~!
Alexander: I'm the kind of guy, who changes his written sentences several times. I take different approaches until I'm satisfied.
Saving Hestia's friend is the goal in order to let Hestia stay happy and the spear is the compensation. After all, Kisuke is not a selfless hero.