"My name...?"
"Yes. Is there some kind of problem?"
A problem. There were more than enough problems to go around...
*If I tell her my real name... that would be bad, right?*
He was a man destined to die anyway, but that was a separate issue from casually throwing my own name around. If that ended up twisting the future, there would be no disaster worse than that.
"I already told you before, I..."
"Vesta... was it?"
"..."
So she hadn't forgotten my name and asked just to confirm it. But if that was the case, then why was she asking for my name now...
As she lifted her heavy eyelids, her odd-eyed gaze felt as though it were piercing straight through me. The silent pressure weighed down on me even more heavily.
"...If you don't want to say it, forget it."
"Huh...?"
For some reason, the woman suddenly withdrew her question.
And with that, she stood up and left the room.
"Huh...?"
Left alone, I could only stare blankly, letting out a bewildered sound.
What the hell was that?
*
"Hmm..."
Arphia replayed the scene from earlier as she walked home.
The white hair that brought a rabbit to mind, paired with those red eyes. The mere thought of that striking combination made an ominous premonition flicker through Arphia's mind.
Arphia, known as a monster of talent, possessed a mind and intuition that far surpassed those of ordinary people. It was nothing short of divine instinct.
And that intuition was more than enough to serve as a valid basis for suspicion. In other words...
"That man is..."
Impossible. It couldn't be.
Countless possibilities rose and vanished. Even knowing it was too early to be certain, the worst assumption refused to disappear from the corner of her mind, instead radiating its presence all the more strongly.
—*You know, if I ever have a child...*
"..."
The memory that flashed through her mind sparkled and seized Arphia's feet. Her connection to her one and only younger sister was everything to her.
Even if it was... that kind of possibility.
"Hera, I'm coming in."
Back at home, Arphia went straight to her goddess. Except when she was reporting Zeus for sexual harassment, she had never once entered the goddess's room of her own accord.
"What is it?"
The goddess was sprawled lazily on the bed. Seeing her lying there with no trace of dignity, kicking her feet idly, made Arphia's brow furrow.
She was always hysterical and lacked any sense of decorum, but for some reason, this sight was even more irritating than usual. Still, because it concerned her younger sister, Arphia held back and sat in the chair nearby, facing the goddess.
"Are you asking because you don't know why I'm here?"
"I'm asking because I don't know."
Arphia's eyes narrowed.
*She doesn't know?*
Impossible. There was no way that goddess, with her absurdly sharp instincts, wouldn't know why Arphia had come. And if those words really did come out of her mouth...
*Is this something she can't talk about?*
Arphia wanted to know just what kind of matter could make that goddess refuse to speak of it at all. Just a little.
Arphia didn't care about the rest. The only thing that mattered was her younger sister.
"Why can't you talk about it?"
"You've probably already figured it out, so stop making my head hurt and just get the hell out."
"This is an important matter."
"I know, I know! I said I know!! That's why I'm thinking this through!!!"
Another outburst. Just when it had seemed quiet, Hera was Hera after all.
Arphia faced Hera without flinching, even at the sudden explosion. In terms of sheer force of personality, Arphia was no less formidable than Hera. She wasn't the sort to be cowed by a goddess's hysteria.
"Why are you coming here to make a fuss when I already have a headache! If you're going to bother someone, go bother Materia!!"
"Tell me what happened."
"Ugh, you're so annoying! No wonder you can't get along with anyone except your little sister!"
"You're one to talk."
In terms of rotten social skills, Hera was a step above Arphia. Arphia simply didn't care about other people, but Hera was the type to actively start trouble.
Of course, if you got involved with either of them, you'd bleed for it all the same.
"Get out! I said get lost because my head hurts!"
"...I'll come back later."
Arphia might not revere the gods, but she wasn't reckless enough to pick a fight with one. For her younger sister's sake, she could do anything—even kill a god—but she knew very well that if she pushed now, she wouldn't get a single answer. So she reluctantly decided to step back for the moment.
*
With a thud, the room fell back into silence after Arphia left.
Lying on the bed, Hera covered her head and tried to make sense of the situation.
*That bastard...*
She had been too busy raging at Zeus to notice at first, but now she was certain.
Once she calmed down and looked at the man carefully, the meaning of that unmistakable combination of white hair and red eyes became obvious...
"That worthless piece of trash...! So he really did go and do it!!"
Her temper flared again. Just imagining her precious child ending up with that slick old geezer's son made her stomach turn.
She wanted to kill him right now, but if she did, Materia would hate her. Hera might have a terrible personality, but her love for her children was genuine. And Materia was the most precious child she had, more cherished than even the Empress. If possible, she wanted to protect not only her body, but her heart as well.
That was why she had been letting her meet that fool without interfering too much...
"Aaaaaagh!!"
Blood rushed to her head. It felt like her blood pressure was rising high enough to send her back to the heavens on the spot.
She had left it alone because she thought that cowardly, awkward idiot would never lay a hand on Materia, and yet he went and pulled something like this?!
She seriously considered going to war with the Zeus Familia. She wanted to tear that rotten man apart and kill him on the spot, Materia's feelings be damned.
But she held back. She didn't want to see Materia cry. Besides, it was still something that had not even happened yet. Even Hera thought it was far too cruel to hold someone accountable for that.
...And, to be honest, she still couldn't quite believe it. From what Hera had seen with her own eyes, there was no way that man had the nerve to take a woman. Even now, a part of her wondered if she had simply misread the situation.
It was so unbelievable it was almost like a Hume Bunny or an Almiraj turning human. What in the world had happened to give that coward the nerve to do something with Materia... with him? It made no sense unless Materia had been the one to pounce first.
"Haah..."
But that wasn't the important part right now. Materia and that trash's child... infuriating, yes. Still, that much could be set aside for now.
If the child was born from Materia and that bastard, then all the things that had been puzzling her until now would make sense. It was surprising that a child born from those two could possess that much skill, but even that she could accept.
Only one question remained unresolved.
*He talked comfortably with Materia...*
That was what she had heard when she interrogated the intruder's whereabouts on the day Materia had slipped out in secret for a rendezvous a few days ago.
It was true that talking with Materia felt easy. So easy that even Hera herself felt her heart grow calm. But if that person was Materia's child, the story changed.
From what she had seen, that child couldn't lie. Could such a child really speak so calmly while looking at his own mother?
Hera didn't think so. And yet that man had spoken to Materia without a trace of agitation.
*There are two possibilities...*
The first was that he wasn't Materia's child in the first place. That would be the best-case scenario, though she doubted it was likely.
The second was the one she hated to even consider, but which seemed far more likely.
*He never saw Materia's face.*
That Materia had died either during childbirth or immediately after it.
Of course he wouldn't know who his mother was, so there would be no reason for the atmosphere to feel awkward.
"...Grit."
Her teeth clenched. Even she thought the conclusion was infuriating, but the evidence was too clear to deny.
*
"I've come because you called for me, Lord Zeus, but..."
Meanwhile, at the Zeus Familia's home.
Cranel, summoned in the middle of the night, entered the god's room with a puzzled expression.
He had been keeping a low profile for a while after getting caught last time, so why had he been called? Watching Cranel shuffle into the room, Zeus looked at him with a strange expression.
*This guy... supposedly pounced on Materia?*
He could vaguely understand that the two of them were in love, so fine, maybe that was possible. If he did pounce, Materia would probably say okay. She'd surrender herself without even the slightest resistance.
But this guy had the nerve to pounce on Materia? Even Zeus couldn't imagine that.
Still, there was a result, so he couldn't simply refuse to believe it... Hmm...
"Lord Zeus?"
"Ah, yes. Sorry. What was I saying?"
"...You weren't saying anything? I was asking why you called me here."
"Ah, right. Sit down for now."
"...? Yes, but why are you being so unusually kind today—"
"Sit. Sit. It's respect for a hero."
"???"
Zeus disliked men. But on the other hand, he respected heroes. No matter how strong or weak they were, those who accomplished great deeds were always worthy of praise.
To seize the Hera Familia's treasure? That was a feat worthy of a rank-up at the very least.
Cranel sat down with a dazed expression. Zeus, after thinking over what to say, finally opened his mouth.
"Did you do it with Materia?"
"Pffft?!"
Cranel spat out his tea on the spot. Whether it was because it had gone down the wrong way or because he was embarrassed, his face turned bright red.
*So he didn't...*
Zeus had thought that if a child were going to be born, it would be around now, but after seeing that reaction, he decided it was still too early. Still, since it was clear that a child had been made, he could easily tell that a celebration would be coming before long.
"W-w-w-what are you talking about all of a sudden...?!"
"What do you mean? I'm asking whether you and Materia had (censored) together."
"Kyaaaah?!"
Cranel let out a bizarre shriek and blushed furiously, while Zeus looked at him with a pitying expression.
Did this guy really have it in him to make a child later on? At this point, it almost seemed more likely that Materia had been the one to pounce on him.
*So that child really is yours and Materia's...*
For some reason, he had thought it strange that the child was so friendly toward him, but now the mystery was finally solved. Then, all at once, he realized something important...
*Wait?! That child of yours and Materia's fought Arphia to a standstill?!*
Cranel, the weakest member of the Zeus Familia, and Materia, who was weaker than an ordinary person. There was no way a child born from those two should have any talent worth mentioning...
*Amazing.*
His gacha luck had exploded. It felt like fusing two 1-stars and pulling a 6-star.
Zeus's mouth curled up sky-high at the jackpot that had burst out from the most unexpected place.