I Became Artemis’ Boyfriend

I ascended the golden staircase heading toward Aphrodite’s Temple.

“Thanks to the task, I’m getting an unusual experience of stepping on gold I’ve never touched before.”

To not be overwhelmed by the grandeur of this magnificent temple, I let out a curt comment in my usual macho style.

However, hearing my own slightly trembling voice only served to further tighten the growing tension in my chest.

Moreover, the unease of having no information about the Iclina flower also played its part.

If I had at least known the value of that flower, it would have made the upcoming negotiation with Aphrodite a bit easier.

Climbing into this temple now feels no different from an adventurer entering a dungeon without any weapon.

“Wow~ the view’s great.”

At the temple entrance after climbing the stairs, I looked down at the city.

The entire view of Ditesia spread out at a glance.

The city lit up by lanterns promised a breathtaking night view, a beautiful sight indeed.

That’s not all.

The location of this towering temple right at the center of the city, standing out like a landmark, spoke volumes.

It reflected Aphrodite’s sense of superiority: the citizens must look up to her while she looks down on them.

It’s clear that Aphrodite’s nature, which seeks to monopolize everyone’s attention and affection, is deeply ingrained.

“When can I continue doing this, … Let’s go in now.”

I passed through the main gate and crossed the temple courtyard.

The courtyard was akin to a top-notch resort hotel.

On the left was a crystal-clear swimming pool where the bottom was plainly visible.

On the right were barbecue grills and luxurious sunset daybeds that looked incredibly comfortable.

Just by looking, it was obvious that people here indulged in luxurious living all 365 days a year.

“Truly impressive. Our temple doesn’t even have a single parasol, which we have to plant ourselves after uprooting the grass…”

I pushed the grand central doors of the temple with both hands.

As the hinges screeched, the hall of the temple came into full view.

I couldn’t help but gape at the sight before me.

The hall was fully immersed in Aphrodite’s elegant and loving aura.

Her likeness was everywhere – statues, paintings, symbolic flowers, and more.

The wallpapers and glass crafts shimmered as if finely crushed diamonds were sprinkled, adding an extra touch of refinement.

“Have you finally arrived…?”

A glimpse of the crimson dress started to emerge from behind one of the temple’s massive pillars.

Gradually, she revealed herself and stood before me.

It was none other than…

The Goddess of Love and Beauty, Aphrodite!

Her wavy blond hair flowed down to her waist.

Her mesmerizing emerald-green eyes could captivate anyone at a glance.

The utmost beauty within the Greco-Roman mythological worldview.

Golden-haired, blue-eyed Aphrodite.

“To meet the eternally beautiful Lady Aphrodite is an honor.”

I immediately prostrated myself and greeted her.

She smiled and approached me.

Without concerning herself with the hem of her red chiffon dress touching the floor, she knelt slightly and took my arm with both hands and graciously helped me stand.

“Arc.”

“Yes, Lady Goddess.”

“How could you ever guess how much I’ve longed to see you?”

I was most curious about how she would react to my visit.

Whether it would be aggressive or defensive, or indifferent, and I had prepared my responses accordingly.

But for someone meeting me for the first time to be so kind and cordial…

It was both pleasing and disconcerting.

“Lady Aphrodite, I’ve come here to seek the Iclina flower.”

“I know. It’s because of the Twelve Labors, correct?”

She gently rubbed her lower lip with her finger and glanced at me with fox-like eyes.

How alluring her gaze was, I had no choice but to grasp my rapidly thudding heart and bow my head.

“Uwahahaha. Such a cute Arc. Come, let’s go.”

She linked her arm with mine, bringing her bosom snugly against my arm, and very kindly walked me along.

Her hospitality was almost to the point of being overly burdensome.

She opened a door at the back of the central hall, and guided me through a corridor into a room.

On one side of the small windowless room was a table, and on that table was a vase containing a snow-white flower.

It was a simple flower with three large petals like a clover leaf.

“Is… this the Iclina flower?”

“Yes. Arc, it’s yours.”

“EH?”

Surprisingly handing it over so casually, I couldn’t help but gape in shock as Aphrodite edged closer, grabbing my torso and smiling slyly as she looked up at me.

As if a girlfriend full of anticipation on a holiday date, lovingly staring at her boyfriend.

“Why are you so surprised? I’m simply giving you what you desired.”

“I thought I would need to endure some trials or negotiate to obtain it.”

“Hohoho. Love, after all, is about giving freely.”

“What? What—”

Unexpected words suddenly escaped her lips.

I was about to ask her what she meant by that, but before I could, Aphrodite pointed to my wrist and shifted the topic, suggesting we undo the bond of the trial first.

Caught up in her rhythm, I walked over shakily and picked up the vase.

Instantly, the imprint on my wrist, resembling a tattoo, vanished.

“Oh… It’s over.”

The second Labor ended remarkably and embarrassingly easily.

Its ease made me uneasy.

It seemed impossible that Artemis, who should be angry with me, had set this overly lenient Labor.

“Has the Labor come to an end?”

“Ah… Yes! Thanks to Lady Aphrodite, I was able to accomplish it quite easily.”

I temporarily put aside the inexplicable doubts.

Most importantly now, it was critical to sincerely thank Aphrodite for her generosity.

“This precious flower being handed over so easily… I’m deeply grateful, beyond measure.”

“Uwahahaha, what nonsense~ Though it’s indeed rare on earth, in the realm of the gods, the Iclina is a weed that grows more abundantly than the weeds themselves.”

More abundant than weeds?

Then why did Artemis impose such a Labor on me?

She, who accused me of being a filthy traitor.

She, who told me I must pay for my sins.

I had no clue, only confusion and unease.

It’s like knowing the answer to a math problem but having no idea how the solution was reached.

“Arc? With the Labor completed, how about it? Would you now perhaps lend an ear to my tale?”

“Ah, certainly.”

Due to her kindness, the Labor was easily resolved.

Even if she asked me to scrub the temple floor for a month, I wouldn’t hesitate to agree.

With my hearty response, she smiled faintly, unhooked her arm, and faced me.

Her deeply cut chiffon dress drew my gaze.

I looked away quickly as my overt staring felt inappropriate, but in that instant,

“Arc!”

Suddenly, she hugged me tight.

Her scent, like a spilled perfume bottle, filled with a rose floral fragrance, stimulated my nose.

“A, A, Lady Aphrodite? Why are you doing this? Please don’t.”

Struggling to keep my wits about me, I tried to escape from her grasp, but

How much strength does the Goddess possess? It felt like I was being tightly bound by ropes.

“Reject me not! Reject me not!”

“A, Lady Aphrodite…”

“You’re just so wonderful to me, just so wonderful. Wonderfulwonderfulwonderful.”

Aphrodite, like a young maiden, repeatedly confessed her blushingly awkward feelings.

With her face buried in my arms, she kept inhaling deeply, as if trying to absorb every essence from me.

“Such a strong smell of masculinity radiates from you. It seems even I, who always favored muscular men, after a thousand years, find my taste has reversed. Uhohohohohoh.”

“La, Lady Goddess. What on earth…?”

“Forgive me, Arc. But I can no longer suppress these burning feelings.”

In my embrace, she rubbed her face.

As if sketching, she left traces of her makeup and lipstick on my shirt.

“…”

“For the past six months, I’ve been keeping an eye on you. I witnessed how the rural backwater Luna was reborn through your hands. Initially, I only intended to steal your wisdom and emulate it—things like citizen pension insurance.”

She continued to speak, reminiscing as if lost in a distant memory.

“But contrary to my original purpose, I kept getting more and more drawn to the person named Arc. Your boundless wisdom, your unflinching disposition, and above all, your steadfast heart! You’ve brought color back into my dreary life of centuries.”

“But, Lady Goddess, aren’t you married? It’s not right to act like this.”

Her pleasant expression turned sour at my pointed question. She let go of my arms and turned away.

Still, she didn’t step aside from the door as if fearing I might escape.

“Hmph! That husband, well, I’ll just divorce him! Arc~? I’ve found my true love in you.”

“Nevertheless, I don’t wish to indulge in illicit love.”

“Uhohohohoh. You’re truly my cute Arc. Your steadfastness makes my heart race so. Don’t worry, if you nod, I’ll resolve everything immediately.”

Her unexpected confession left me perplexed.

I was trying to gently reject her, citing her marital status.

But Aphrodite interpreted my diplomatic approach as a mere formality, and her eyes gleamed with renewed delight.

“This is my personal space, Ditesia. No man has ever been permitted entry here. Arc, become mine. Let’s live together right here in Ditesia.”

“I’m here to take on Zeus’s challenge.”

“Cancel the Twelve Labors by revising your wish and let it slip away! And immediately renounce your position as Artemis’s priest. If you do, I’ll appoint you as my first-class priest through the authority of the twelve gods.”

The title of First Class Priest alone had my heart racing.

Starting from third-class, the rank of Senior Priest is designated, but the privileges and promotion associated with the rank of first-class operate on an entirely different level.

Not only are you treated like a minor deity, but you consistently receive nectar.

As long as you drink nectar, you attain immortality and semi-permanence.

For someone who had always thought they would barely live to a hundred…

Was I being promised an eternal life?

The immortality that ancient emperors so desperately sought was right before my eyes.

As I sensed my wavering, Aphrodite slipped into my embrace again.

She peeked out, looking up at me pitiably, and began to encircle my neck with her snake-like arms.

“Let’s share the wardrobe in my bedroom.”

Could there be a more passionate confession?

Offering to share your private wardrobe means she’s fine with my scent getting into her clothes.

What else would someone be, who’s comfortable with that kind of intimacy?

A spouse.

Aphrodite was making a direct proposal for us to be matrimonially joined.

This was the first time I had received a proposal.

Even more so, a marriage proposal.

If I were to describe the feeling without weighing my options, it truly felt like running around in the rain and laughing, overwhelmed with joy.

No man, either here or on Earth, could be more fortunate or happier than I.

Yet, why?

The Iclina flower no longer seemed like a true trial.

Rather, choosing between Artemis and Aphrodite, as I faced now, seemed to itself be a sort of ordeal wrapped up in the trial.

What exactly are you plotting, Artemis?

“Forget the clumsy girl who knows nothing but to act like a fool. Just think of me now. That naive girl will only exhaust you.”

Her crimson face removed the ruby ring from her left hand and offered it to me.

The value of this ring, studded with a huge ruby, could buy an entire city and leave some money left over.

The moment I accept this heart-shaped ruby ring, I cease to be Artemis’s priest,

Instead, I become the man of the Goddess of Love and Beauty, Aphrodite.

But…

Her marriage proposal…

Her offering of the ruby ring…

What kept swirling in my mind, overshadowing everything else, was her unexpected, out-of-the-blue statement.

“…Wait, hold on, hold on.”

“Why do you pause, Arc?”

“What did you mean by ‘naive’?”

“Uhohohohohohohohohoh~!!”

She threw her head back and laughed heartily, seemingly recalling some funny memory.

Then, gently sweeping her finger along my chin, she returned, unwilling to break away even a moment and slipped back into my embrace, encircling my neck with her arms.

Staring into my eyes as our breaths mingled, she whispered softly.

“I explained to Artemis what a worm looks like, but that ignorant one imagined a nine-headed hydra. Isn’t delusion truly terrifying?”

“A…”

I recalled all the circumstances from the moment Artemis suddenly started hating me under the cool moonlight,

To Aphrodite’s proposal now.

Finally, I uncovered the truth hidden within the sad misunderstanding.

Clearly, Artemis must have met Aphrodite at the Mountain of the Gods.

With that fact established, the rest of the story unfolded predictably.

With a heavy heart, I closed my eyes.

“Uhohohohoh. Our Arc is full of bashfulness. I was quite looking forward to a kiss from you. I’m so curious to see how you’d change because of me.”

However, interpreting my act of closing my eyes as a request for a kiss, Aphrodite tightened her grip on my neck and moved closer to kiss me.

I could feel it.

Her drawing near.

Her breath becoming heavier.

When I opened my eyes again, all I saw in my field of vision were her plump lips.

Pfft!

I pushed her away by her shoulders with both hands.

“Lady Goddess, I cannot reciprocate your feelings.”

“…”

“Your kindness is appreciated. However! Love built on sadness and unhappiness has no value.”

The shame of having her confession and physical intimacy rejected turned Aphrodite’s cheeks not just red, but almost black with burning embarrassment.

Her previously loving smile was now twisted into a vicious expression of anger,

And her lips that once seemed sweet now quivered uncontrollably, revealing their venomous demeanor.

“You… You… You dare reject my confession? And the value of love? You dare reject the love of the Goddess of Love?”

“Correct.”

“Hat! It feels like being bitten by the very dog I loved so dearly. Right here and now—”

It was then.

“Wow, you said something pretty smart!”

A familiar voice, confident and bold, sounded from outside the door.

At the exact moment I turned my head toward the doorway, came an ear-splitting bang, and the door swung wide open.

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