I relaxed in the warm ocean as gentle tides lapped against the shore. The soft sand where the water was low made for a perfect resting spot. Next to me lay Azathoth in her swimsuit, her black sunglasses shielding her eyes.
The cosmic horror I had once imagined turned out to be a beautiful goddess, looking anything but the incomprehensible monster I had expected. Her figure was slightly muscular yet feminine, a perfect balance.
She relaxed as well, a slight smile on her lips. From time to time, I glanced at her before turning my head back.
"Do you have anything to tell me, or are you just appreciating my well-maintained body? You don't have to be shy in front of me, you know. I am your goddess, after all," she teased.
I rolled my eyes and stood up from my relaxing session. She kept looking at me, her sunglasses reflecting the sunlight.
"Alright, I'm going to go now. But before I do, could you tell me about all the new powers and rewards I've unlocked for completing two quests and killing a god? If there are any rewards for killing a god, that is."
Azathoth stood up, revealing her soaked figure. Any ordinary man would be hard as a rock at such a sight, but I didn't have those urges. Her legs were muscular, and perfectly shaped, something every woman would wish to have.
"You'll find out once you open the book. You can go back this time, but next time I call you here, I expect you to stay a little longer."
With a kiss on the cheek, Azathoth waved at me, and my mind slowly faded into the familiar darkness. Soon, I found myself flying through space, surrounded by stars and planets.
The view was breathtaking, but the moment was short-lived when I heard a creepy female voice calling out to me. It sounded like a woman but with a raspy, weakened tone.
"What do we have here? What do we have here? What do we have here?"
The voice repeated the same sentence three times, each time drawing closer. I could feel its breath on my neck. Quickly turning around, I was met with nothing but vast space.
The nightmarish ordeal continued until an angry scream echoed from my left: "LOOK AT ME!!"
Suddenly, I was transported back to the destroyed manor of the Aeshma Familia.
Looking around, I found Aeshma nowhere to be seen. 'Looks like I did kill him back there, but what the hell was that? Could Azathoth be trolling me?' I wondered as I stood up. My clothes were torn, leaving me naked once again. With no time to waste, I hurried toward the exit and soon left the Familia manor. As I ran across the rooftops, I noticed Gita staring at me nearby.
If looks could kill, I'd be dead on the spot. Gita's eyes blazed with visible hatred—not disgust, just pure anger. She didn't even seem to care that I was naked.
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!!" she screamed before I slammed her down with a forceful wave, causing her to let out a painful yelp.
"First of all, don't yell at me like that," I said sternly. "Second, I saved your familia and countless potential victims, so a little gratitude wouldn't hurt, okay? You don't command me. You came to me for help, and I helped you the best I could."
She continued to glare at me, but the fight in her had lessened. "Now let's get back before the Ganesha Familia swarms the streets. I don't want to get jailed just because I cleansed the city of another piece of trash."
With that, both of us moved swiftly back toward the Player Familia manor, avoiding any potential problems with other familias. Gita clenched her fists the entire time, but she knew deep down that I had saved her familia.
Not only that, but I had saved countless others from becoming victims of Aeshma's sick experiments. This city lacked the proper laws to prevent another Evilus from going on a rampage.
When Ryuu had finished off multiple Evilus familias—or whoever she killed back then—she was hunted by the Guild instead of being praised and rewarded for her deeds. That alone showed how flawed Orario's system was.
There was no doubt that my massacre of the Aeshma Familia would be the talk of Orario for some time. While they weren't a particularly powerful familia, they had enough influence to bully weaker ones.
And if, by some chance, the Guild found out I was responsible for the act, they'd likely send their goons after me. But if they ever tried, the only thing they'd find would be the mutilated corpses of those who dared to come after me.
---
Gita and I arrived at the manor after about five minutes of running. At the entrance, we noticed Emma waiting for us, looking worried. She was alone but seemed to have heard the explosions at the Aeshma Familia home.
"Thank goodness you two made it back safely! Quickly, get inside—Ganesha Familia will be scouting the streets any time now!"
Emma hurried us into the manor, and I found myself in a cozy interior. We passed through a hallway lined with paintings on the walls and entered a dining room.
As we walked in, the girls all stared at Gita and me with anticipation in their eyes, though the god Player looked rather confused.
"Welcome back, everyone. I'm glad you're okay... Now, Gita, mind telling us what happened and what those explosions were about?" The player asked her, though I could tell the question was aimed at me.
Gita sat down at the dinner table and quietly spoke, still angry at me for knocking her unconscious. "Ask that guy over there. My original plan was just to scout the area, but he knocked me out and committed a massacre..." She pointed at me and began eating the food on the table.
The others gasped in shock and gave me wary stares. Emma looked both confused and worried about what I had done. Before I spoke, I sat down at the table and made myself comfortable.
"What Gita said is true. I did what I thought was best. There was no other way to deal with them—they were part of Evilus."
The player's face darkened upon hearing the name of that infamous organization. The others didn't react as strongly, as most of them weren't in Orario when Evilus was at its peak—though some may have been.
"I've heard about those guys. They committed some horrific acts years ago when they terrorized Orario. I didn't know they were still around..." Leo commented, clenching her fists.
As someone who aspires to be a hero one day, Leo would surely feel anger at the thought of what Evilus had done. But there wasn't much she could have done to prevent it, not with the gods currently ruling Orario.
The other girls were speechless and remained quiet throughout dinner. No one asked me any further questions until Player finally spoke up.
"Thank you for your help, Niall. We are in your debt. I didn't realize we were dealing with Evilus... I need to inform the guild about this."
He was about to continue, but I stopped him. "No, you're not going to inform them. If you do, they'll assume you had something to do with the massacre. And knowing how corrupt and incompetent the guild is, they wouldn't be pleased with the way I dealt with Aeshma and his familia."
The player was silent for a moment before nodding. He raised his arms in surrender and continued eating his dinner.
"Well, thank you for the dinner. My job here is done. I'll go back to my usual routine, so if you ever want to find me, don't."
I stood up from the table and headed toward the door, only for Emma to rush over and stop me by placing her hand on my shoulder.
"Wait! We can't let you leave empty-handed after you saved us—saved me. At least allow me to give you all the loot we earned from the dungeon this month."
She began showing me a heavy bag, but I made myself clear. "No thanks, Emma. I helped because I was bored. The dinner was amazing, by the way, but I don't want to deal with your familia anymore. You're the only reasonable one among them."
Her eyes sparkled for a moment, and she hugged me. "Thanks, Niall," Emma spoke with warmth in her voice and waved as I left the manor.
As I walked away, a whistle called out to me. Turning around, I saw none other than Hermes, with Asfi by his side.
"Ah, shit, here we go again."