episode_0269

“Even if you want to leave, I will make it so that you can never leave us.”

At Athena’s words, Marie opened her eyes and looked at her.

“…Are you saying you’re going to lock my mom up for life?”

“No. There’s a better way.”

Athena slowly conveyed her thoughts to Marie.

What Hera said to the polymorphous Marie.

A cruel statement that says you are leaving because you do not truly love.

Those words brought to mind a possibility that struck Athena with a heart-wrenching pain.

If…you don’t love me and want to leave.

Wouldn’t it be okay to give her a being that she can’t help but love?

No one knows Hera’s personality better than she does.

A kindness that you can’t help but rely on for the rest of your life. Affection that you can’t help but fall for.

So Hera has us all locked up in her fishing grounds.

And yet, you want to abandon us like this, so miserably.

But what can we do?

The emotion called love is not something that can be moved at will.

Look at yourself now.

He became addicted to the drug Hera without anyone knowing, and ended up in such a miserable state.

The opposite is also true.

No matter how much we love Hera, we can’t guarantee that she will love us back.

but.

Even if you don’t love us.

Could one really not love and even kill a fragile child that one gave birth to?

Given Hera’s personality, that was absolutely impossible.

That means…

“If we have Hera’s child, Hera will have no choice but to stay by our side.”

“Mom’s…child…”

Marie muttered, absentmindedly recalling Athena’s words.

Athena slowly closed her eyes as she watched Marie like that.

It was research I had already asked Ariel to do.

As his relationship with Hera developed, he hoped that one day she would bear him a child.

And indeed. Heaven helped us, not long after we asked Ariel to complete her research.

News has come that a magic has been developed that allows women to become pregnant with each other.

*

“Give birth to our child.”

In the midst of the endless silence locked in the iron cage, Athena’s words rang clearly in my ears.

The quiet silence that came into the room like that.

I just stared blankly, my eyes wide open at her words, which I couldn’t possibly have heard properly.

“Uh…? Huh…?”

The words still didn’t come out properly because of the strange feeling in my throat.

But Athena slowly nodded and answered, as if she understood what I meant.

“Yeah. Don’t you understand? Women having children together? It’s impossible in the first place.”

“Ahh…”

Of course, I didn’t understand that women could have children like Athena said.

What confused me was the very fact that I was being asked to have a child.

But I didn’t realize it until then. Athena spoke to me while slowly stroking my head.

“It’s okay, Hera. Ariel will finish her research soon. The results will probably come out in about three weeks.”

“Ah..EL..?”

“He’s the youngest to reach the rank of Grand Wizard, so he can do it. He even boasted about it himself.”

Her words were so serious that I couldn’t believe they were lies, and my pupils began to flutter.

‘Are you… serious?’

I thought you said it half-jokingly, of course.

Looking at Athena’s face, I can’t see that kind of atmosphere at all.

Are you really telling me to get pregnant?

My confused mind slowly began to turn to astonishment, and I instinctively stepped back towards Athena.

Then Athena slowly approached me with a wounded look on her face.

Eventually, when I reached the end of the room, there was nowhere left to run, and Athena came right up to me and looked down at me with a shadowy face.

“Ahh..! Ugh..!”

I tried to resolve this incomprehensible situation through conversation, but all that came out was babbling.

This reality of not being able to speak properly was so frustrating.

“It’s okay, Hera. If you have the child, Mari will lift the spell right away.”

I slowly began to feel fear as Athena’s hand stroked my cheek while speaking gently to me.

“If you just give us your child…then we’ll set you free, Hera.”

“Ugh….”

As I trembled and turned my back against the wall, Athena took a step back from me as if to reassure me.

“Don’t be so scared, Hera. I have no intention of forcing you to get pregnant.”

At those unexpected words, the trembling in my body stopped just a little.

As I looked at Athena cautiously, she looked at me with a kind smile and continued speaking.

“We wouldn’t rape you. We’re talking under the assumption that you’d give us permission.”

Clearly, the momentum I felt just a moment ago made me feel like she was going to rape me at any moment… but I guess I was mistaken, as Athena spoke more calmly than I thought.

‘..If I allow it..?’

In fact, Athena’s words were so absurd that I still can’t accept them…

I took her words seriously.

‘I’m really sorry, Athena, but…’

I have no intention of granting this offer.

You want me to give birth to the child myself.

It goes without saying that I have no intention of becoming a mother.

Marie was really in a helpless situation, and since I didn’t give birth to her myself, I accepted it with a bit of lightness.

I have no intention of giving birth to a child with my own body.

Oh, mom.

There was no way someone like me could take on that enormous responsibility.

I am still a sinner who cannot bear reality and can only run away… How can I embrace this precious life with this body?

And..for another reason.

I still had memories of having once lived as a man.

…It’s true that I’ve shown some behavior that wasn’t my thing up until now. But since it wasn’t my will, I still had some semblance of a manly life.

‘Actually, I can barely remember my past life now…’

The only thing I remember is my name from my previous life.

But that doesn’t mean the years I lived as a man have disappeared.

Well anyway… to sum it up.

I could not grant Athena’s request.

..I wonder if Athena would be pregnant with my child.

“…..”

I raised my head and looked Athena in the eye.

Her eyes were empty and clammy.

I shook my head to the side to indicate my refusal to her.

“Hera. If you don’t like this, you can do me another favor.”

But before that, Athena’s words had already struck the player.

“Huh..?”

Athena looked at me without saying anything, then took something out of her bosom and placed it on my hand.

‘…knife?’

What was in my hand was a small dagger, but its tip was sharply cut.

Athena looked at me, squeezing my hand tightly.

“If you won’t conceive my child, kill me, Hera.”

“Ahhh?!”

As soon as I heard Athena’s words, I instinctively threw down my dagger.

A sword thrown shabbily on the ground with a clinking sound.

Athena let out a short sigh and took the sword, placing it back in my hand.

Then, this time, he grabbed my hand tightly so that I couldn’t throw it away, and pulled the sword right in front of his neck.

“But!!”

I wanted to scream, “What the heck are you doing?” but all that came out was a desperate scream.

“I’ve already lived my life without you three times, Hera.”

Athena’s words, which sounded so sad, made my body tremble.

Then Athena pulled my hand closer so that the cool tip of the sword touched her neck.

“Give birth to my child, or kill me here and make it easy for me. Choose, Hera.”

A single drop of clear blood runs down the tip of her neck.

I tried my best to pull my hand away, but I couldn’t overcome Athena’s strong grip on my hand.

“Please take responsibility for this miserable me who is addicted to you and can’t do anything, Hera.”

Athena’s eyes, shabby yet shining intensely, like the sun on the verge of going out. When I looked into her burning eyes, my heart started beating like crazy.

“If you are willing to hold my child, nod your head Hera.”

Leaving those words behind, Athena.

He pulled my hand very slowly.

Phew-

The eerie sensation of the dagger’s tip digging into Athena’s neck.

Although it was only a small penetration, blood began to flow continuously from Athena’s neck.

“Ah..!! Aah!..!!”

I wanted to scream at him to stop right away, but all that came out was babbling.

Athena slowly pulled her hand closer with unwavering eyes.

Phew-

A sharp dagger that digs even deeper into Athena’s neck.

But even though the sword was dug into her neck, Athena’s eyes remained firm and unwavering.

If you don’t allow me, I’m really thinking of dying.

A dagger already dug into the throat.

If we go any deeper than this, Athena’s breath will be cut off.

My heart started pounding when I realized that.

“Ah…ah…uh…stop…”

My body began to tremble, and tears immediately poured down.

But Athena, as if it wasn’t the answer she wanted, slowly began to pull my hand again with her eyes that had put everything down.

Die.

Athena dies.

“Hey…stop…”

In a tense and imminent situation where your hair turns white.

“I’m going to give birth!! Please stop!!”

I ended up just nodding.