Ch.191Side Story: Divine Realm #1

The Divine Realm is literally a world where gods live.

There are various gods, each with their own territory like lords, and occasionally they visit other domains or cause mischief to alleviate their boredom.

Of course, they also make their way to the massive temple standing in the center of the divine realm to conduct observations.

“Jeong-woo, look at this. I made it. Isn’t it good?”

Amidst all this, Helena, who was mixing bibimbap in the kitchen, asked with a bright smile.

Since I explained how and why I met Helena, she had been calling me Jeong-woo instead of Ji-on, and Ellen and Eve did the same.

And Helena, perhaps because there was no one watching and no constraints of status, smiled much more freely than before her death and was living quite comfortably.

“Yes. It’s delicious.”

“Really? Then let’s eat quickly. Before it gets cold.”

As I scooped some of the bibimbap that Helena had mixed over low heat onto a plate and ate it, Helena smiled contentedly.

Eve was busy as usual, buried in books at the library, and Ellen had gone out for a walk, saying she wanted to survey the surrounding terrain.

After finishing our simple meal in the kitchen, I immediately went out to the terrace in my room.

The sea flowing beneath the sky where the temple stood tall was still amazing.

Perhaps because Hypnos had created this place saying that the sleeping environment was important, despite being by the sea, the wind wasn’t humid or salty.

“The gods truly are magnificent…”

On one side was the sea. On another, a garden in full bloom. And on yet another, a night sky with the Milky Way flowing through it.

These completely impossible things gathered in one place created a sense of incongruity, and Helena was happily trying to get used to living in this disparate landscape.

Here in the divine realm, time was abundant, so eventually, all these things would come to seem natural.

“Yes. They are magnificent indeed.”

While Helena was muttering, I lay down on the sunbed first and admired the outside scenery.

The sight of the sea gently undulating with mild waves was somewhat boring, but that’s why it felt peaceful every time I looked at it.

It was both familiar and serene.

Helena alternated glances between the sunbed placed next to mine and where I was lying, then, as if it were the most natural thing, she snuggled against me, burying her face in my chest.

She had always been affectionate, but since coming to the divine realm, she had become much more clingy.

Of course, from my perspective, it was familiar and rather pleasant, so I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her close.

“But can we really keep living like this? Won’t we be punished later…?”

As if she had been waiting for this moment, Helena, who had buried her face in my chest and was breathing heavily, raised her head and asked worriedly.

It was understandable, since we were living here as attendants serving a god but spending most of our days idling.

She wasn’t burdened by a sense of duty to work, but rather anxious about whether she could continue enjoying this time.

“Attendants differ depending on which god they serve. Some have to follow their god around busily every day, and some can live like us. Hypnos is the most relaxed among them, so we’ll be fine.”

Hypnos spends most of the day just sleeping, usually waking up around 1 PM and going back to sleep at 3 PM.

He could be called the most leisurely in the divine realm. So it was natural for Helena, who had lived a diligent life, to feel anxious, but I thought this too would pass.

“Really?”

“Yes. But since we’re attendants, we should still do the minimum required work. We need to be grateful, and not get too lax.”

I told her we should maintain some tension, even though Hypnos wouldn’t wake up no matter how noisy it got, because we might fall out of favor otherwise.

If we became too relaxed thinking everything would be fine, we might lose our reverence, and that would show in our attitude, which wouldn’t be good.

But I was inevitably getting sleepy, my eyes closing on their own, when—

“Oh? Jeong-woo. Look, the floor’s turning red. I think we have a visitor?”

Hearing Helena speak with slight surprise, I opened my eyes wide and sat up.

Since an unannounced visitor was almost certainly a god, I couldn’t remain lounging around.

I carefully detached Helena from my embrace, then hurriedly ran from the room to the entrance.

The clattering noise from my rushed movement was loud enough to hurt my ears, but Hypnos wouldn’t wake up from such a sound.

“Who is it?”

“Oh my, it’s Jeong-woo? You know me, right? I’m Demeter.”

After catching my breath at the entrance door, I asked, and a very familiar voice and name reached my ears.

I couldn’t possibly forget one of the Olympian gods who had offered me her freshly squeezed milk as soon as I arrived.

So without hesitation, I opened the door, and as expected, a brown-haired woman with extremely, extremely pronounced feminine curves came into view.

As the goddess symbolizing abundance, she exuded an unmistakable sense of fertility.

“Welcome.”

“Hello there. It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other face to face, hasn’t it? I’ve been watching your activities in that other world. It was truly entertaining.”

After I bowed my head in greeting, Demeter smiled cheerfully and began chattering away.

Her motherly gaze remained the same, and being a talkative goddess, she seemed to have much to say.

Especially since I had been dispatched and returned.

“Did you… see everything?”

“Unfortunately, I didn’t see it all. I started observing after hearing rumors about you mixing flesh with four women. But it was very entertaining from that point on. Especially seeing you mix bodies whenever you had time, other gods also got into heat…”

When I asked cautiously, Demeter became even more excited and raised her voice.

As I was just beginning to forget those embarrassing memories, Demeter vividly recounted them, making my face burn red to the point of bursting.

It was fine when there were no watching eyes, but the thought that she had observed everything was mortifying.

“I-Is that so?”

“Of course! I even preserved it as a video, thinking this was absolutely worth keeping. Even that ill-tempered Eris spent an entire year soothing her heated body alone after watching your activities. I certainly enjoyed it too. It became quite the talk.”

“Uh… that’s the first I’m hearing of this.”

“You didn’t know? Well, I suppose Hypnos is so laid-back that he wouldn’t mention it.”

Unless someone deliberately recorded and distributed videos for exposure, it was shocking to hear that all sorts of gods and their attendants had seen such intimate moments.

Hearing this, my mind went completely blank.

So blank that I even forgot to feel embarrassed.

Moreover, Helena, who had quietly approached and was standing at a distance, had her head bowed with a face as red as a tomato.

She was showing such shyness that it was hard to believe she was the same assertive Helena I knew.

“Ah. Talking about it suddenly makes me want to do it. Is Hypnos inside?”

“Yes. He’s sleeping with the night sky spread out.”

“Oh my, that’s perfect. Hypnos always sleeps, but his equipment is substantial, so I might as well have a taste while I’m here.”

It was difficult to get used to her speaking without restraint as a god residing in the divine realm, but at this point, I just accepted it.

Since they had nothing to hold back, they occasionally exposed their naked bodies—what more could be said?

Besides, I had no right to speak.

“If I may ask, did you come to see Hypnos?”

“Hmm? Not really. I suddenly want to taste him, but there’s another reason. Talking made me almost forget. “

As soon as Demeter heard my question, she seemed to have an “aha” moment and reached into the waist of her party dress-like clothing to pull out a seed.

It wasn’t a dull green reminiscent of poison or swamps, but a color that evoked a bright forest basking in sunlight.

“This is my viewing fee. I’m giving it to you for providing such a good show, so plant it in a suitable flower bed. It will create a flower garden according to the size of the bed, so adjust accordingly.”

“Thank you. How should I water it?”

“Once a day. But more than good soil or water, this child needs affection, so it’s best to check on it often.”

It was still the same, calling seeds “children,” but given that this was a seed from Demeter, I thought it might be appropriate to call it a child.

From its color and the way she spoke about it, it seemed like much more than just an ordinary seed.

“Yes. I’ll raise it just as you instructed.”

“Thank you. That concludes my business. Now… I should head inside, shouldn’t I?”

Demeter placed her bare feet on the floor, as if her earlier statement wasn’t a joke.

It was natural for gods to walk barefoot without getting dirty, and no sharp object could cause them pain or injury.

Moreover, even dirty bare feet could be cleaned with just a gesture or a glance, so there was absolutely nothing to be concerned about.

“If there’s anything you need, I’ll prepare it for you.”

“Something I need? Let me see…”

As the goddess entered the hallway without hesitation, I asked, and she lightly stroked her chin with her finger, lost in thought.

While she could create anything she needed with her own hands, it was also common for gods to have their attendants fetch things for them.

“Ah! Could you bring me a silver basin half-filled with fragrant oil? Those scenes I watched looked so enjoyable that I’ve been wanting to try it sometime.”

“…Yes. I understand. I’ll prepare it and bring it in, so please go to the room.”

“Thank you~. I’ll go ahead then.”

As Demeter, who was singing in excitement, entered the room at the end of the entrance hallway, I couldn’t help but let out a long sigh.

Although she was among the more merciful of the Olympian gods, like other gods, she had her eccentric aspects that made meeting her exhausting every time.

Just like now.

“Helena. Are you going to keep standing there?”

When I asked Helena, who was still frozen from the whirlwind that had just passed through, she finally let out a small “Ah!”

Even for Helena, the thought that others, especially numerous eyes, had watched and were still watching those intimate moments must have been paralyzing.

“N-No. I was just surprised. I should move quickly. The goddess is waiting.”

“Right. She’s partly teasing, so don’t worry too much. It’s very embarrassing, but she was complimenting us in a way.”

That “compliment” could easily be interpreted as mockery depending on how one heard it, but I comforted her with the word “compliment” anyway.

Otherwise, I didn’t know how long the frozen Helena would remain like that.

Besides, if something happened that we couldn’t control, it was better for our mental health to forget or let it go.

So Helena and I went to the kitchen, took out a small silver basin, and half-filled it with fragrant oil.

I could imagine what it would be used for, and the future cleanup of the room flashed through my mind.

But I couldn’t refuse, so I carefully brought the basin into the room where Hypnos was sleeping.

Demeter’s smile as she straddled the sleeping Hypnos on the bed was so creepy that I had to pretend not to notice.

“Jeong-woo.”

As I left the room with its ceiling transformed into a dark night sky, Helena, who had been waiting in the living room, called out to me.

Her cheeks were still flushed, but judging by her expression, her feelings of embarrassment had subsided considerably.

“Yes? What is it?”

“Are all gods like that? The way they speak, the way they act, they’re so uninhibited…”

“Yes. After all, the gods have nothing to hold them back.”

I put my arm around Helena’s waist and moved to the living room sofa, sat down next to her, and slowly began to speak.

First, all gods possessed what is commonly referred to as omnipotence, and they were classified as benevolent gods, malevolent gods, or other types according to their preferred domains.

For example, the reason Demeter is the goddess of abundance and Hypnos is the god of sleep is simply because they liked agriculture and sleep, respectively.

However, because of this, the gods established and tried to follow rules, and when someone occasionally emerged who broke them, they would collectively crush them to prevent such behavior.

I’ve only heard stories, but apparently several gods did whatever they pleased, causing chaos, which led to the establishment of rules.

These rules included provisions regarding disputes among gods and precautions to be taken during observations.

In other words, even their seemingly uninhibited behavior was the result of following rules established by consensus.

One might doubt whether these were really rules or wonder if this was acceptable, but… anyway.

“It might be hard to adapt to such behavior since you haven’t been in the divine realm long, but you’ll soon get used to it, Helena. Just as I did.”

“Will I really?”

“Absolutely. You’re already adapting well.”

Helena asked with an uncertain look in her eyes, as if wondering if that was really possible, but I tried to instill confidence in her because she truly was adapting well.

Perhaps because she had shed the constraints of being a duchess, she had gained much mental space, which helped her adapt calmly.

Additionally, knowing that we would never be separated, her obsessive behavior had also begun to fade.

So when I told her she could become like people who live with peace of mind, Helena’s lips curled slightly into a smile.