Chapter 42 – The Social Church of Self-Condemnation (2)
“Did you bring me this kind of low-quality alcohol for me to drink?!”
A man threw the glass he was holding on the floor and screamed.
When the glass fell to the ground and shattered, not only the waiter in front of it but also the other customers did not know what to do.
“Sorry, sir!”
“If you’re going to say something like that now, why don’t you do something you’re sorry about in the first place!”
The waiter bowed deeply and repeatedly apologized, but the man with a frown on his face seemed to have no intention of accepting it.
I took a close look at the face of a man not far away who was getting angry over something trivial.
The short black hair, yellow eyes, and most importantly, the scar on his face were so vivid that there was no chance of mistaking him for someone else.
“Brother Kratos… ?”
When I called the man’s name in a low voice, the man who was pointing at the waiter turned his head as if in response.
As expected, the person in front of me right now was Kratos El Frey, the brother of one of my wives and the god of power.
“What…”
Kratos, who checked Athena’s face and mine, twitched his eyebrows on the spot as if he was not very pleased.
“Are you here too?”
Kratos snorted with a displeased look on his face at his brother-in-law, whom he had not seen in a long time.
But I didn’t react displeased to his blatant disdain.
It was an open secret that everyone knew that Kratos El Frey had a bad personality and did not get along well with his sister or other goddesses.
In particular, her relationship with her younger sister was so difficult that it was hard to believe that she was her biological sibling.
The person who created that scar on Kratos’ face was none other than his younger sister.
People thought that it was a glory scar from fighting the Demon King’s army during the Battle of the Holy Music, but having played the Pure version, I knew very well the true circumstances of how that scar came about.
“How dare you give this trashy drink to the god who came down from heaven and hope you’ll be safe…” …”
“That’s about it.”
When Kratos looked away from us and tried to scold the waiter again, Athena stopped him with a short but strong voice.
Kratos then widened his eyes and glared at Athena without hiding his hostility.
“What?”
“Now stop holding your weight. “There are many eyes around us.”
Athena stared at him with eyes that felt indescribable pressure.
At her words, Kratos turned his head and belatedly noticed the gaze that was now focused on him.
When Kratos looked at them with mischievous eyes, the frightened social church attendees hurriedly avoided his gaze.
“… Sheesh.”
Kratos, who seemed to have decided that there would be no benefit to him if he behaved any further, clicked his tongue in disapproval.
Then he muttered six or two letters to himself and soon disappeared somewhere out of our sight.
“It looks like he still hasn’t healed his base personality…”
Athena, who looked for a moment in the direction where Kratos had disappeared, could not help but lament.
Kratos’ personality was born from heaven and was difficult to change.
Once Athena had completely left Gratos, she took her steps and approached the waiter who had been staring at him just a moment ago.
“Are you okay?”
“Oh, I’m fine! Thank you so much for your help, no, it is an honor for the family… !”
The waiter bowed at a right angle to Athena and expressed his deep gratitude.
The waiter, who had not only seen the goddess of battle with his own eyes but also accepted her help, had no idea what to do with her body.
After confirming that there was no problem with the waiter, Athena gave him some words of encouragement and then moved her legs again, this time to look for the host of this social event.
At these upper-class gatherings, it was a lady’s basic knowledge to be the first to greet the host.
As Athena and the host exchanged friendly greetings, the party hall slowly began to fill with people.
It seemed that most of the guests who were being checked at the entrance to the mansion had already entered.
As the spacious party hall became increasingly cluttered, the attention naturally turned to me and Athena.
Everyone who participated in the social church competed with each other to try to talk to us in some way.
In particular, Athena’s popularity skyrocketed not only with men but also with women because of her beauty.
Of all the women present, there was definitely not a single one who could rival Athena in beauty.
Everyone gathered here heaped praise on the incomparable beauty of the Empress of Cheonghae, which was only seen in newspapers and magazines.
Although Athena might have been bothered by such attention from people, she smiled generously and treated them as gently and politely as possible.
I was slightly shocked by her appearance, which was quite different from when she was wearing her military uniform and leading the military.
“Huh?”
At that time, when Athena and I were expressing appropriate reactions to the handshakes and flattery of many people, the sound of calm music suddenly came from somewhere and gently enveloped the hall.
It was music that signaled the beginning of dance time.
Suddenly, I looked around and saw that the men and women who were talking were pairing up one by one and naturally starting to dance in the center of the venue.
It seemed like a very natural event for those who regularly attend social gatherings.
“Hey, Athena…”
As the surroundings became increasingly colored with rhythmic dance, I, caught up in the atmosphere, mustered up my courage and hesitantly held out my hand to Athena.
“Won’t you dance a song with me…?” … ?”
As we went on, the voice became quieter. Even when I thought about it, it was a very pathetic dance request.
But still, Athena held my hand without hesitation, with a blush on her cheeks.
“Gladly…”
Athena answered with her charming eye smile and placed her opposite hand on my shoulder while holding her close to me.
After confirming that Athena’s voluptuous breasts were just out of reach, I lifted one of her arms and carefully wrapped it around her slender waist.
Then, we naturally moved our bodies to the beat of the music we heard.
This kind of social dancing was unfamiliar to me, who was born and raised in modern society, but fortunately I was able to imitate it to some extent thanks to the knowledge and senses that remained in Ion’s body.
As the dance between the warrior and the goddess, which is difficult to see, unfolded, the attendees at the party stopped dancing and focused their attention on us.
Athena and I were immersed in this moment, just looking at each other’s faces, not caring about the gazes of those people.
The goddess in front of her was so overflowing with beauty and grace that she couldn’t believe it was just her body being violated in her sleep.
*
After the dance time was over and we had unintentionally hogged the attention of the social gathering, we headed to the living room outside the party venue to take a break.
This living room, set aside just for Athena and Ion, boasted a spaciousness and comfort comparable to that of most luxury homes.
“I’m a little tired. “I try to always smile and greet everyone who comes to visit.”
Athena said with a tired sigh, sitting on the soft sofa in the center of the living room.
“It would be better to fight on the battlefield…”
Athena smiled wryly and occasionally lowered her hand towards her ankle, feeling very uncomfortable in the white shoes she was currently wearing.
Ion sat down next to Athena and handed her a cup of warm tea that was placed on the table in front of her sofa.
“Wouldn’t it be okay to relax a little and deal with it? Athena is a goddess, so even if she treats her poorly, I don’t think anyone will be offended…”
“You can’t do that.”
Athena immediately shook her head at Ion’s cautious opinion.
“The people gathered at the party today are all the most powerful people on the continent. “In order to proceed smoothly with the numerous issues, we need to make a good impression on them as much as possible.”
Only then can Athena’s peace on this continent become more solid, she added calmly.
She had no doubt that this was also one of the important duties that the goddess herself had to perform for the happiness of all.
“Athena seems like a really upright and just goddess…”
Ion looked at her face and muttered those words.
Then Athena stopped the tea cup she was about to raise to her mouth and quietly closed her mouth.
If it had been a week ago, she would have been able to express her joy by exchanging words in moderation at Ion’s praise just now.
But I couldn’t dare do that now.
This was because she had not yet forgotten the great karma she had committed.
Athena held her teacup in her hands with both hands and wondered for a moment whether she should confess her sins to Ion right now.
But those worries had no choice but to end with her worries.
She didn’t have the courage to tell him that the last time she had built up Ion’s walls so hard, she had actually spent the night with another man.
Athena slowly lowered her head as her heavy guilt resurfaced.
