Chapter 320: Excuse me?
"What are you doing, Artemis?! Isao-kun is mine!"
It was impossible for Isao to let everyone see the mess that happened within his group, so he quickly brought all of them to his mansion.
Unlike in the original, where Hestia had nothing and was still living in the abandoned church with Bell Cranel, as she was with Isao, her life was simply grandiose, like a princess in the storybook.
Regardless, the change in Artemis completely baffled Hestia.
"I just couldn't help it... I-I was just happy..."
While Artemis said so, she couldn't help but look at Isao longingly, yet it was impossible for her to approach him anymore as Hestia stood before her, and Aiz was ready to make a move to stop her anytime.
Artemis might be the number one archer in heaven, but her power was just like that of a normal human in the lower world, so she knew that it was meaningless to fight against Aiz, yet even so, the longing and affection in her gaze toward Isao was clearly be seen by everyone.
While others didn't think too much since they knew how many deities were smitten by Isao, Hestia felt that this was weird!
"Hermes! What was happening!? Who is this?! Are you sure that this is Artemis?!"
"Of course she is! She came from heaven anyway, so of course, she would change, right?" Hermes nodded hurriedly, telling why Artemis changed, and said, "But can you let go of me now?! Don't tie me like this! Let's talk peacefully! Let's talk first, okay?"
This was too much; how could they tie him like a caterpillar like this?!
Still, Hestia couldn't accept Hermes' explanation since the change in Artemis was so much that she couldn't believe it!
However, she decided to let go of Hermes since she wanted to know why Artemis had changed.
"Is there something weird about goddess Artemis, Hestia-sama?" Cassandra asked curiously.
"Of course!" Hestia nodded. "She is known as an anti-romance! Anything that is related to it, she will destroy it! I can't even imagine her going after Isao—" She fell in silence for a while, then looked at Isao. "Isao-kun, did you leave Orario secretly and meet Artemis?"
"...did you see me that way, Hestia?"
Isao was hurt by Hestia's doubt.
Yes, it was true that his past wasn't good, and he often made a mess, yet it didn't mean that he would shove his penis to all the women in the Orario!
His choice was quite choosy, and he never ever touched those whores from the Ishtar Familia or even those he didn't know. The women around him were all dangerous, and they were all too possessive. While they knew that they couldn't control him, they would destroy all the potential enemies that would make him lose their attraction toward them, whether it was with a gentle or a forceful method.
Frankly, if Artemis wasn't Hestia's friend and she also wasn't strong enough, then the chance of her even getting close to him was almost impossible since whether it was Hestia, Demeter, Hephaestus, Freya, or even Loki tried to stop any goddesses that tried to jump into his bed.
As for a god?
Well, even if they didn't do anything, they were sure that Isao would run away since all of them knew his taste well.
"Sorry! I am sorry! I am sorry! I am sorry for doubting you!"
Hestia quickly leaped into him and hugged him tightly, trying to ask for his forgiveness as she had doubted him.
Still, with Hestia's explanation, they understood why it was so weird of Artemis to fall for Isao. Not only did Artemis hate romance or even the opposite gender, who were all perverts, but she was also one of the three virgin goddesses in heaven!
Even if they had to admit Isao's charm was amazing, was it strong enough to even charm Artemis?
"...."
Strangely enough, they felt that it was possible.
Sigh!
Isao gave up since he knew that a good person would always be misunderstood. All of them didn't know that the reason why he slept with all of those women was because he was forced to, whether it was due to his life, his Familia, or even the world!
Yet, a true hero never thought of announcing their deeds.
He just did everything because he wished to do so, and it wasn't because he wanted to be praised. Even if all of them misunderstood, as long as he was able to keep their smiles, everything was okay.
Still—
"I know that it might be weird to say this from me, who is being... liked by Artemis, but why the heck would an anti-romance goddess sponsor us on a trip around the world?"
As Isao said, all of them looked at Artemis and Hermes.
If someone wasn't worth receiving the sponsor of Artemis, it was definitely Isao and his Familia, considering how wealthy they were.
Nevertheless, there was no doubt his question might be redundant and even meaningless, especially when he knew the reason why they came to him, yet... he wanted to hear the real answer from their lips to make his decision whether he should really help her or not.
"The truth is a monster appeared outside of Orario."
'As expected,' everyone had this expression on their faces when Hermes said those words.
"Outside of Orario?" Lefiya was surprised.
"Yes." Hermes nodded. "The Artemis Familia found them, and it's giving them real hard trouble, so she came here to ask for help..."
"In other words, the whole event was nothing but a monster quest issued by Artemis?" Isao sighed, which made Hermes smile. "As expected, you are sharp! It's good that I don't need to explain much!"
Yet, because Isao was sharp, Hermes was worried that Isao would notice everything. A monster quest was probably too simple to describe what kind of a quest Isao would face, yet somehow, he could tell that Isao was the perfect someone who could do this quest.
Yes, Hermes would be lying if he didn't feel sorry, especially toward this young man who was to his liking, but as destiny had chosen him, he could do nothing except watch him.
If only Isao knew what Hermes thought...
Regardless, Artemis wasn't a goddess who would leave everything to Hermes. She was always proactive and took the initiative to do whatever she had to do.
Stepping forward, approaching him, Artemis gazed softly into Isao and said, "I have been searching for you, Orion."
"Why am I an Orion?" Isao was confused.
"Because I told you so," Artemis said firmly.
"..." Everyone.
"Even if you said that..."
"There aren't any mistakes, and I know that it is you, my hope."
"Hope?"
Holding the spear that was pulled by Isao previously, Artemis softly pushed it toward Isao. "You have been chosen by this spear, and it was you who was the pure soul that was chosen."
"....." Everyone.
"Um... Artemis..." Hestia was helpless. "Isao-kun might be strong, but I don't think that the word pure can be used to describe him." As she said so, everyone nodded.
"...." Isao.
"No, I believe that he has a pure soul."
Artemis shook her head softly and disagreed with Hestia's words, causing Isao to look at them with a happy expression.
"..." Everyone.
"So, please take this spear and come with me, Orion, the pure soul..."
Artemis was filled with hope, and she thought that her wish would be guaranteed as she had made such a sincere request. More importantly, Isao appeared to be moved and even nodded as if he had accepted her request.
"Thank you." Isao looked at Artemis and said, "But I am sorry. I have to refuse."
"...." Artemis.
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By the way, just to ask, aside from Luffy's Nika and Kaido's dragon, which Mythical Zoan do you think is the best?