8:32 AM, Hestia Familia.
Bell and Freya sat together, while Hestia, Hephaestus, Loki, and Artemis occupied the seats on either side. This was the lineup for the meeting.
All four goddesses had their eyes locked on Freya, seated at the center.
Artemis had already switched into her Type-Moon mode, her gaze filled with murderous intent. A faint blood-red aura surrounded her, making her look genuinely terrifying.
"Freya~ You really do love flirting with other people's men no matter where you go, don't you?"
Freya only gave a light chuckle in response, her tone smug and victorious.
"Then I suppose that makes you the perfect example of a loser, no matter where you are?"
Crack!
A sharp cracking sound came from Artemis's direction. A beat later, the sound of a goddess bursting into tears and wailing echoed through the room.
"Ahhh!!! Freya, you cheater! That's not fair!"
Artemis had broken down completely, big tears streaming down her face as she cried out loud.
"..."
Freya was stunned. She hadn't expected this version of Artemis to be so fragile. Just one jab, and she'd already reached her breaking point.
Faced with such an emotionally unstable, almost childlike goddess, Freya had no idea how to handle it. So, she nudged Bell with her elbow, silently pleading for him to step in.
"I'm not good at comforting people," Bell muttered, his scalp tingling.
But Freya clearly had no intention of dealing with it herself. That left Bell with no choice but to bite the bullet and try.
"Artemis…"
"Darling."
Artemis lifted her tear-streaked face, looking heartbreakingly pitiful. The classic image of a beautiful woman weeping played out in front of him.
But Bell had seen too many beautiful women at this point—he'd long since built up a resistance. So instead of being moved, all he felt was a pounding headache from having to deal with yet another crying goddess.
He'd felt the same way back when dealing with Sanjouno Haruhime.
And now, it was happening again with Artemis.
"Artemis, I'm not great at cheering people up… But shouldn't you be talking this over with the Artemis from this world? You two are sharing the same body now, aren't you?"
Her sobs suddenly paused.
Sharing the same body—didn't that mean anything she did with Darling also applied to the other version of herself? Wasn't that an unchangeable fact?
The realization hit her like a ton of bricks. The thought of sharing her feelings for Darling—let alone the more intimate experiences—with another version of herself made her feel sick. That kind of emotional overlap? No thank you.
The sheer weirdness of it all made Artemis forget about crying altogether.
"Why do we have to be one and the same body?!"
No longer sobbing, Artemis now started wailing about her current situation instead.
Unfortunately, this was a reality she couldn't escape.
Bell gave her a cautious reminder.
"It's probably because your original body was already falling apart. The body and soul of this world's Artemis are the best match for you. It wasn't ideal, but there weren't many other options."
At that, Artemis had plenty to say.
"Well, isn't that just because Darling wanted to use my soul to wake that useless girl up?!"
Bell chose to ignore the accusation entirely and smoothly changed the subject.
"You did get your body back, though. Try not to forget that."
"...Mm."
It was true. No matter how frustrating, she couldn't deny the facts.
Thanks to that, Artemis was still alive—and she could even emerge from the other Artemis's body whenever she wanted.
"Ahem, so before you continue that earlier topic, you'd better consult Artemis first. If she objects strongly, are you sure Artemis won't try to wrest control of your body from you?"
That remark completely floored Artemis.
Compared with sharing a body and mind, the real fear was losing control of her body's reign. Even if she and Darling had some passionate time outside, if the other version of herself couldn't bear it and suddenly came to fight for control—what then? How would she carry on with Darling?
'Looks like I need to talk this out with the other me.'
Artemis had already made up her mind. This was important.
Seeing Artemis remain silent, Bell let out a small sigh of relief. His method of argument might've been a little clumsy, but it was all he knew how to do—he had absolutely no idea how to soothe a goddess in such a state.
Meanwhile, Loki—who had witnessed the entire scene—nearly lost it with laughter. Yet seeing Artemis, who had been sobbing minutes ago, now calm… Loki genuinely respected Bell for daring to say those words.
It was as if he'd asked a woman who liked him, "What if your other self floats in during our… time?"
Artemis was now confronted with this 'sharing a body' issue. Once the other Artemis disagreed, the fight for bodily control would begin. Some things needed the approval of both Artemis—or disaster was bound to strike.
"Tsk tsk~ Didn't expect you to have this trick up your sleeve, Bell."
Her eyes twinkled with mockery.
Bell listened to Loki's tone and hesitantly asked:
"Loki, are you… jealous?"
"Pfft!"
Bell's question was too blunt. Even Artemis—still recovering from her meltdown—couldn't hold back reacting.
She's definitely jealous. —Hestia
Hmm, Loki jealous… that's unexpected. —Hephaestus
Oh dear, did Loki think she could stay out of this so she made that remark? —Freya
Pfft! This guy, hilarious! —Artemis (both)
Loki's expression froze instantly. The teasing grin drained from her face, replaced by a sudden blush so fierce it made her look like she'd been electrically charged. She sprang to her feet in indignation.
"I am not!"
Bell blinked, thoroughly baffled.
"If you're not, then why are you so emotionally unstable?"
That kicked Loki's defenses down again.
"I am not emotionally unstable! How dare you say I'm jealous!?"
…Yeah, you are.
Bell didn't say it out loud this time. He had a feeling that if he did, Loki might literally blow up right there.