Around the table, Godwyn, Thalia, Mimir, Nico, Bianca, Hazel, Percy, and Sally were eating Chinese food in a quite comfortable atmosphere. There were bottles of sodas and some pitchers of juice. They looked like a group of friends having dinner.
"So, you're telling me I'm a demigod, just like you guys?" Percy, his mouth full of Chinese noodles, asked with a confused expression as he chewed his food. His eyes widened, but he didn't stop eating for a second.
"Percy, don't talk with your mouth full." Sally couldn't help but speak up as she helped clean the table Percy was making messy, dropping crumbs and spicy broth droplets.
Percy stopped talking, but his wide eyes, looking at everyone present, was quite funny. Nico, who was the most introverted of the group, let out a low laugh and felt for the first time that he belonged somewhere.
"Yes, dear, your father is a god, handsome, kind, and loves you very much." Sally kissed Percy's forehead and spoke in an affectionate tone, making all the children around show a touch of envy. Especially Nico, who missed his mother.
"Why isn't he with us? Why didn't he protect you from that man?" Percy felt a lot of resistance upon learning that his father loved him. Abandoning his son and wife was love? If so, what kind of cruel love was that? He preferred not to have that kind of love.
Sally showed a guilty expression and explained in a gentle tone. "He can't, the gods have laws and must not interfere with their mortal sons and daughters. Otherwise, he would have loved you every day, even in the smallest seconds of your beautiful existence."
Percy's expression improved upon hearing this, although he still felt angry at his father for not protecting his mother, knowing that he simply wasn't abandoned was comforting.
Swallowing the noodles again, Percy's sea-green eyes turned to Thalia and Godwyn, who were eating cozily next to each other. "So gods really exist?"
Godwyn looked up and directly into Percy's eyes, a playful smile appeared on his lips, and the Primordial God of Death did not hesitate to use his Divine Position to show young Percy what a god truly was.
Looking into Godwyn's eyes, Percy was petrified; he saw himself stepping into a dark and gloomy sea. Looking down, his face paled as he saw that the black sea was full of skeletons, ranging from small humans to gigantic bone dragons.
Suddenly, everything disappeared, and Percy found himself in the Garden of Eden again. "This is a god, Percy." Godwyn said with a smile, looking at Percy's pale face. He didn't mean to harm the child but simply showed this so that the desire for power in Percy would be born.
"I am a god, just like Thalia and Mimir." Godwyn explained, making Nico, Bianca, Percy, and Sally's eyes simply widen in shock upon learning that there were three gods eating with them as if they were mere mortals, but Godwyn's next words made everyone, including Hazel who already knew Godwyn and Thalia were gods, widen their eyes.
"And just like all of you."
"Except Percy." Godwyn paused for a moment to eat and continued speaking, hiding nothing. "Hazel, Nico, and Bianca are my future subordinates; their Divine Positions are an exchange of interests between me and your father. Your father helps me, and I turn the three of you into gods and goddesses."
"As for Percy, if he accepts, I can turn him into a god, along with his mother." Godwyn finished with a smile, very pleased with the shocked expressions of everyone present. As for Sally, if this would bring Percy to his side, he didn't mind giving the woman a Minor Divine Position.
Hazel was calmer but accepted quickly; she had already heard about the exchange of interests involving her own father and Godwyn. However, Bianca and Nico were simply too shocked to speak. Which was normal; after all, it's not every day you hear that you're going to become a god.
If Nico and Bianca had acted normally, Godwyn would have suspected that they had been swapped or had their bodies stolen. The pursuit of power is ingrained in the human core. No one can remain calm in the face of immortality and the power of the gods.
Percy and Sally were in an even worse situation than Nico and Bianca; they both looked at each other and saw shock, confusion, disbelief, and even more confusion in each other's eyes.
"Godwyn, I'm just a human; I'm not worthy of being a goddess." Sally was the first to speak and shook her head without any hesitation. She had no ambition; she just wanted to live happily and freely, she didn't care about becoming a goddess or anything else.
Her words made Thalia, Godwyn, and Mimir look at the woman with genuinely shocked expressions. Not to mention Godwyn and Thalia, even in Mimir's long life, he had never seen a mortal refuse the chance to become a god so easily!
Godwyn soon calmed down and laughed, finally understanding where Percy's refusal to become immortal came from. Like mother, like son. However, he didn't try to convince Sally to accept being a goddess; he left that role to Percy, as he believed the boy would convince his mother.
"Don't answer so resolutely; who knows what will happen in the future?" Godwyn did not accept the mortal woman's refusal and spoke with a smile. He wanted to know if Sally would really refuse the same proposal years in the future.
Sally felt uncomfortable under Godwyn's gaze; she felt naked before him, with no secrets he couldn't see.
Looking at Nico, Hazel, and Bianca, Godwyn's smile deepened. "Of course, this won't happen so quickly; we have to find at least decent gods until I create my own Pantheon."
"By the way, we are currently a self-help organization against tyranny (read: terrorist group) known in two pantheons; we plunder and kidnap any demigod with good talent and character."
"Welcome to the Pirate Ship."
Everyone looked at Godwyn speechless, but Percy and Nico's eyes were shining with excitement; both acted like children and spoke at the same time. "Captain, we are ready to set sail!!!"
"Don't worry, Nico, I'll protect you!" Percy looked at Nico's thin body and spoke with a feeling of camaraderie sprouting in his chest. Nico was thin and weak; he would probably get beaten up a lot in a fight.
Nico looked at Percy with emotion and spoke in a strong tone for the first time. "I'll protect you too, Percy."
He didn't want to be just a burden to everyone and his sister; he wanted to show Bianca that he could take care of himself because he was also his father's son.
The boys quickly became friends without any hesitation; as comrades in arms, this friendship only grew stronger with time.
Godwyn looked satisfied at the two children who were in a military stance with their hands on their foreheads; Nico and Percy obviously saw a glorious future as pirates.
"Very well, you will be my swordsman and first mate. Our enemies will suffer our wrath." The Primordial God of Death spoke with a tone full of power and responsibility.
Thalia covered her face and felt an overwhelming sense of shame; she couldn't even look at her boyfriend without feeling shivers and embarrassment.
Sally just let out a laugh full of amusement; she looked at Godwyn kindly and felt happy to see her son so excited and innocent. It had been a long time since she had seen Percy acting that way and finally making a friend.
Bianca and Hazel, who were older, looked at Godwyn with suspicion, especially after learning that they had joined a self-proclaimed self-help group against tyranny (which was actually a terrorist group).
Honestly, the news that Godwyn would create a pantheon was simply shocking to them. Sally, Percy, and Nico couldn't know, but they knew very well what that meant. Remembering that their father had an exchange of interests with Godwyn, they felt that the future would be quite turbulent.
However, remembering that they could become goddesses, Bianca and Hazel couldn't leave and didn't want to leave this terrorist organization. Especially Hazel, who suffered at the hands of Gaea; she desired power more than anyone present. The feeling of being manipulated by Gaea was still fresh in her mind.
"We will do our best to help, my king." Hazel, who accepted Godwyn very quickly, spoke with a determined tone, and the same happened with Bianca. She felt it was her chance to live on her own and no longer be a babysitter for her brother; she would finally have a life.
Godwyn was pleased to see that the four had indeed agreed to join the Golden Order!
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Note: I was watching the news and saw a report saying that a man had been admitted to the emergency room with a broomstick stuck in his butt.
He swears he slipped and the accident happened.
My reaction was simply this: "...."
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