To wait for his friend, Ikki sat on one of the steps of the staircase and calmly waited.
The sound of footsteps behind him entered his ears, but he didn't take his eyes off the ground on the steps in front of him. Even so, he spoke in a steady manner.
"Afrodite, what can I do for you...?"
By the presence and smell, he had recognized who it was the moment she approached. It was a woman with supernatural beauty, someone he had met during his journey to retrieve Zeus' thunderbolt, the Goddess of love; Aphrodite.
"I came to see how you're doing..." Aphrodite sat beside him and looked down the steps. She smiled as she spoke, "And also to thank you. Your words made me reflect, and after much contemplation, I realized I was wrong about my own domain."
She wasn't lying to get closer to the boy and eventually take him to bed; she had even considered doing that, but after reflecting on her words and watching the relationships of some mortals, she realized she had lost her way over the centuries.
She remembered a time when she was just a young Goddess who had received the domain of love and saw it as something beautiful and wonderful.
A pure and innocent little girl who wanted to experience love and find her knight in shining armor, very different from who she was now. Then she questioned when in her life she had lost herself?
And the answer came when she remembered the time when Hera, in all her malevolent wisdom, forced her to marry someone she didn't love. It could have been a simple event, but it was the trigger that caused her to become "broken" in the future.
Love cannot be forced; either you fall in love with someone, or you don't. It's as simple as that. It's something that has to happen naturally, and she herself learned this through experience. She tried to love Hephaestus with all her heart, but no matter what he did for her or how good he was, the feeling didn't come.
The two drifted apart after a while, and she, who was already sexually frustrated due to her husband spending more time in his workshop than tending to her carnal needs, only got worse — as a goddess who had dominion over pleasure and sex, she had a high libido.
Then she met Ares with that muscular body, and her desires took over her mind. She slept with him and soon after began to cheat on Hephaestus with several men she found attractive, focusing more on the domain of sex and pleasure while thinking that the drama was the best part of love.
After all, her "love" had been a soap opera drama. So, that was the only good part of love; it was this kind of thinking that distorted her view...
"I understand..." On any other occasion, Ikki would have been happy to have helped the Goddess of love see a new perspective on what love truly is, but on this occasion, all he could say was this simple word. His eyes remained fixed on the ground in front of him. He didn't even notice that the goddess had also come to check if he was okay...
The Goddess of love felt her heart being pulled like an elastic band. She looked toward the horizon visible from the staircase that led to the throne room of the Gods.
"I'm seeing firsthand how the drama of love isn't as pleasant as I thought. It might be for the audience, but for the people involved, it's a suffering that's hard to describe in words."
She spoke, looking at the boy beside her, placing her hand on his shoulder as she asked gently.
"Are you okay?..."
Ikki, for the first time during the conversation, lifted his eyes and looked at her with a smile. However, there was lethargy in his smile that could not be hidden. He asked calmly, "Why wouldn't I be?"
Aphrodite didn't know him as well as she would have liked, but this guy always maintained a sharp and formidable demeanor. Regardless of the dangers he faced, he would move forward without fear. Even before the Gods, he held the posture of an invincible figure, but now, in front of her, he seemed a little fragile, and that nearly broke her heart.
As it was something connected to her domain, she knew why he was in this state. It had to do with the Goddess he fell in love with... And she realized who it was during their encounter with the Gods.
"Does it have to do with her?" she asked in the gentlest tone.
Ikki widened his eyes briefly before returning to his calm expression and asking, "Is it that obvious?"
"Actually, no..." Aphrodite smiled and said, "The Goddess of love forgot? But I didn't imagine that the girl who captured your heart was her. That was quite a surprise..."
"Never mind..." said Ikki, feeling somewhat burdened by all of this. He spoke, "I know it was a mistake, but I couldn't avoid it. I couldn't control my heart as I thought I could. Now, all I have left to do is bury this subject and move on..."
"Actually, I don't know why I expected it to be different. In the throne room, she remained so indifferent to my relationship... I thought at least we had become friends during the time we spent together. But apparently, we hadn't..."
"Artemis is just too proud to show it. She probably wants to keep up her image at all costs. But that doesn't mean she doesn't see you as a friend," Aphrodite, who never thought she'd speak in favor of someone she considered her enemy, said. "Although this doesn't change the fact that she ended up hurting you in the process..."
"You must hate her right now, don't you?"
Ikki sighed as he heard the words of the Goddess of love beside him. He spoke lethargically, "If I could hate her, it would be easier, but I'm just upset and disappointed with myself..."
The Goddess of love felt her heart tighten seeing the boy like this. She ran her hand across his back and said, "Unfortunately, I can't do anything to help you in this situation, since a virgin Goddess like Artemis is resilient to my powers, and I think you wouldn't want me to force her to fall in love with you if I could..."
"How can you be so sure?" Ikki looked deeply at the Goddess sitting beside him and explained a bit about himself. "I'm a selfish person..."
"Don't lie to me," Aphrodite shook her head negatively and spoke softly, "With your good looks, if you wanted, you could have any girl you wanted! Just a little effort, and here you are, suffering for someone you can't have..."
"But really, you're just so kind that you chose to refrain from conquering her through those fuzzy means because those very means are the ones men use who she hates so much... And you call yourself selfish?"
Ikki clenched his lips. He thought he had hidden things very well, but the Goddess in front of him could see through that too? He really was losing his composure with everything that had happened in the last few days, wasn't he? A sigh escaped his lips.
"You're very kind, Ikki." Aphrodite brought her hand, which had been on his back, to his knees and used both hands to support his head as she looked at him and said, "That has its disadvantages. If you were more selfish like you say you are, you wouldn't be suffering because of her and would have used your looks to have her for yourself."
"It's like you said..." Ikki said, taking a deep breath and adding, "But what can I do? It's just who I am..."
Since his past life, he had been this way, sacrificing his happiness for the people he loved, and he never saw that as something bad. Was his kindness toward the people he loved bad? Should he be a little more selfish?
"Be more selfish, please..." Aphrodite sighed as she finished speaking, disappearing in a flash of pink light, leaving behind the pleasant scent of her perfume.
Ikki just sighed and muttered to himself, "Great advice..."
...
..
.
Percy left the main hall of Olympus, where a light breeze still seemed to carry the last traces of Poseidon. His steps were heavy, but he knew Ikki was waiting for him, and that gave him some strength to keep going. As he crossed and descended the stairs, he saw his friend sitting on one of the steps, eyes fixed on the golden horizon.
Ikki seemed calm, but the intensity of his presence was still there, like a silent reminder of what had happened minutes earlier. When he noticed Percy approaching, he turned his head and smiled faintly, though his eyes were still filled with thoughts.
"Did you manage to talk to him?" Ikki asked, his voice calm but with genuine interest.
Percy nodded and sat beside him. "Yeah. I think... it was strange, but necessary. He said he's proud, but also that he regrets I was born. I'm not sure how I feel about it."
Ikki remained silent for a moment, analyzing Percy's words. Then he replied with his usual calm: "Sometimes people say things they don't completely understand themselves. Maybe he doesn't know how to express what he truly feels. But one thing is certain: he wouldn't be here, nor would he have spoken to you, if he didn't care."
Percy sighed, looking at the ground. "Maybe you're right. And you? Are you okay after all that? Hera seemed ready to kill you, but you... well, let's say you gave a masterclass in control in there."
Ikki laughed quietly. "I'm used to people wanting to kill me, Percy. Hera was just another on the list. Besides, I was sure Zeus wouldn't let her go too far. He may be arrogant, but he's smart enough not to risk Olympus for a whim."
Although he found it strange that Zeus had sided with him and didn't see him as a threat, he wasn't going to complain about it...
Percy stared at his friend for a moment before saying, "Still, you had everyone up against the wall. Even Zeus was speechless. It was scary, to be honest."
Ikki shrugged. "Sometimes it's necessary to show strength to be heard. I don't like resorting to it, but... I thought you were worth the effort."
The son of Poseidon smiled, feeling grateful. "Thanks, man. I don't know what would've happened without you."
"No need to thank me," Ikki replied, standing up and extending his hand to Percy. "Now, let's get out of here before they change their minds and decide to turn us into statues or something worse."
Percy accepted the help and stood up, laughing quietly. "Good idea. I think we've had enough excitement for one day."
The two started walking toward the portal that would take them back to the mortal world, side by side, knowing that this battle had ended, but many more were yet to come.
During their walk through the city of the gods, conversations stopped. The Muses stopped their concert. People, satyrs, and naiads, all turned to Ikki and Percy, their faces full of respect and gratitude, and when the two passed, they knelt as if the two were some sort of heroes.
Fifteen minutes later, the two were back on the streets of Manhattan. As they had planned earlier, they went to buy a pizza with four different flavors and a soda.
They decided not to eat at the pizzeria. Ikki said he had a good spot in mind and used his teleportation ability to take himself and his friend there.
The place in question was full of hills and mountains, the landscape was stunning. The surroundings were full of abundant flora and fauna. Even the air quality here was fragrant beyond compare.
In the middle of these hills and mountains, there was a large crystal-clear blue lake, where you could easily see the various fish at the bottom of the water, which seemed completely immaculate. This beautiful lake was surrounded by green pine trees everywhere, as if it were a paradise.
At one end, there was a small cliff. On the cliff, there was a waterfall. Countless drops of water danced and flew in the currents of air, illuminated by the sun, creating a rainbow in the mist. At the other end, there was a white marble bench by the edge of the lake, in the shade of the trees.
The two sat on the bench with a pizza in the middle, each holding a plastic cup, with the three-liter Coca-Cola bottle at their feet. You could tell what they were drinking.
The bench they were sitting on was created by the [Item Creation] spell, a spell in Ikki's arsenal that allowed him to create simple items within his knowledge through magic. A simple bench was a basic application of this spell.
"This paradise-like place is where?" Percy asked curiously. He was shocked by the natural beauty of the place when his friend brought them here. It was definitely a paradise-like landscape.
"Somewhere in America," Ikki replied with a shrug. He looked at the waterfall with a beautiful rainbow at the other end and smiled faintly.
The two were silent while eating. Sometimes, they talked about casual things and so on. After they finished eating, they just stayed there, drinking their soda and talking.
The conversation took a somewhat melancholic turn for Ikki. Earlier, during the meeting with the Gods, Percy had noticed that his friend kept looking at everything in the room except for one thing—the throne where a Red Goddess with silver eyes sat.
Ikki seemed to want to avoid looking at the woman sitting on the throne, but... he miserably failed many times, and whenever that happened, a flash of various emotions, the most evident being sadness and bitterness, would shine in his eyes too quickly for anyone to notice.
Percy had noticed this because he knew his friend very well. When Ikki was sad or experiencing a similar emotion, his deep purple eyes, like agate, would become less bright and even darker.
He noticed this change when Ikki entered the throne room and observed the Gods, and then he realized the cause of the change, which was that Goddess who seemed too dangerous for him to look at properly.
"Ikki, in the Gods' room. Earlier, who was the Goddess with black hair and silver eyes?" Percy asked, looking at his friend.
"That was Artemis," Ikki replied calmly, with an unreadable gleam in his eyes. His usual calm expression faded a little.
"Wait..." Percy was surprised and said, "Wasn't she the one who helped you find us?"
"Yes, that's her," Ikki confirmed with a small nod of his head.
"Did something happen between you two? Since you reunited with me, Annabeth, and Grover, you've been acting strange. And during our meeting with the Gods, you were trying to avoid looking at her, and when you did look, you had a look... how can I say? Full of emotions, the most obvious one was sadness..."
At the end of his words, Percy looked at his friend, who was looking at the water ahead. He furrowed his brow a little.
Ikki kept looking ahead, not at all surprised that his friend had seen through him. Apart from the fact that everyone seemed to be able to do this lately, his friend knew him better than anyone, so it wasn't strange that he had noticed something was wrong.
He gave a faint smile in response to his question.
But there was lethargy in his smile that couldn't be disguised.
"I fell in love with her..."
These words were the ones that left Percy surprised. He never expected that to be his friend's response.
Ikki had grown tired of hiding it from his best friend. He had done so before because there were more important things to deal with, and now that Percy had come close to finding out, there was no point in hiding it anymore. So he was honest and continued, "That's why I've been acting so strange. After all, it's a love destined for failure..."
"How lucky I am, right?"
Percy was taken aback by his friend's words, and even more by his current state... Over all these years, he had never seen his friend so vulnerable! He felt a tightness in his chest.
His friend was the kind of guy who, even if beaten down by others until he fell to his knees, would still wipe the blood away and get up again with a calm and cruel expression in his eyes. Also, while everyone had witnessed his remarkable achievements, they had forgotten the effort he had put in to achieve them.
He saw how much his friend trained at camp, the enemies he had faced one after another without fear. It was hard to see him in such a weak state.
This made him realize that he was forgetting something important—no matter how strong or mature his friend was, he still had his age, his fears, his thoughts, and most importantly, his burdens to carry. He was so incredible that everyone seemed to forget that.
Hating how vulnerable he was and how much he was suffering, Percy tried his best to cheer him up.
Placing his hand on his shoulder, he said, "You're a great hero, Ikki. A guy so incredible that any woman would be lucky to have your love. If Artemis can't return it, it's her loss, because she'll miss out on the best thing that could happen in her life. Not to mention, there are many other girls out there who would love you easily. I know you can find the right girl for you."
"Thanks for the words, Percy. You're right! I think I just need time to forget my first love." Despite his attempt not being very effective, Ikki smiled faintly and spoke.
Percy looked at his friend with concern. He had an apologetic look when he said, "Sorry if my words didn't help much, just know that if you need anything, I'm here to help as your friend."
"Don't worry about that, your words helped more than you can imagine, and thanks for being by my side," Ikki said, returning to his natural calm expression. Talking to Percy about this helped ease some of his emotional burden.
At least now he wouldn't have to hide such a thing from one of the most important people in his life anymore.
The two were silent before Percy broke it with another question.
"How did you fall in love with the Goddess who hates men? I mean, she must be scary, considering the legends. Right?"
"Percy, love has no explanation. It just happened. And Artemis isn't scary, at least she wasn't with me," Ikki said calmly. He stood up from the bench and stretched.
He looked at the blue sky and said, "Besides, no matter how insignificant an encounter or incident may seem, it will always have an influence. No matter how short the time, the connection will never disappear..."
Percy blinked, surprised by his friend's words. He thought about them for a bit, not understanding what they meant.
"Let's go back, we need to stop by your mom's house," Ikki said calmly, turning his gaze back to the clear water in front of him.
"Okay."
Percy nodded.