God of What? 13 (Patreon)

God of What?

Chapter 13

-VB-

Hephaestus found herself staring up at Marris’s first child, Yor.

Yor looked down at her in surprise after having opened the door, dressed in his adventuring outfit of padded leather and steel helmet of some kind.

Actually, that helmet was a very old design. Effective still against weaker monsters but not so for stronger ones found in mid to deep floors. It was also a design no one made these days within Orario or the surrounding nations led by deities because of … well, cultural reasons and then simply because it was lost to time.

“You must be Yor,” she spoke up.

“I am, Goddess Hephaestus.”

It was obvious an adventurer would know of her, so she dismissed his words. After all, the best equipment made for the blessed by the blessed came from her and her familia. Of course, any adventurer worth the salt would know of her.

She thought about it for a second and realized something, though.

She never met him before.

How did he know to address her by her name?

“Say, have we met?” Was he someone her familia had rejected?

“No. I have heard your description from Goddess Hestia.”

Ah, right. There was that avenue. She must have talked about the eyepatch, huh?

“What did she say about me?” she asked coyly, curious as to what her friend might say behind her back.

“... Diligent.”

“Hmm?”

“Goddess Hestia told my god that you were diligent, kind, and competent.”

… That was nice to hear. Hestia indeed wasn’t someone to back bad about her friends behind their backs.

“I have heard from others, in the bars, inns, and taverns about what you looked like as well, and I find myself confused.”

“Oh? What could you be possibly confused about?”

“Your eyepatch.”

She almost grimaced.

“They say that it covered something so horrible that all but one person ran away from you.”

“Ha!” she barked out a laugh. “Well, that’s the truth, and that one person who didn’t run is Hestia,” she gave him an easy grin before narrowing her eyes. “So I care very much about her. She’s my friend and aunt. I hope she’s been treated well under your god’s care? Otherwise…”

“She’s been treated well, Goddess Hephaestus. I am curious, though.”

“Yes?”

“I have seen many things in my long life. Many horrible things. I can’t understand how a beautiful goddess like you can have something so horrible as to cause people to run away.”

She raised an eyebrow. Was he trying to sweet-talk her or playing himself up?

Shrugging, she reached up to remove her eyepatch to show him. It was something she did on request, initially out of a desire to find someone who would accept her and lately out of self-deprecating fascination.

“There.”

He stared at her. His expression didn’t change one bit and even the little tells that people had when they were suppressing their reactions was absent. The freezing of those who just flat out got shocked out of their minds was also not there.

Huh.

“That’s it?”

She blinked.

“What?”

“That’s it?”

“What do you mean that’s it?” she asked incredulously.

“I mean… it’s not bad.”

She gawked at him.

Not bad?!

“It’s certainly better than rampant keratoses.”

“The what?”

“I get that the specific discoloration you have there might not be fun to stare at, but it’s not that bad. I suppose the cracked skin condition with that color might make someone think that there’s a rot there somewhere-”

“Rot?!”

“It’s not like there is blood and puss leaking out of there. Unless it’s leaking into your blood inside?”

“Ew, no!”

“... then it must be the magic.”

She paused. “I’m sorry?”

“It has to be. My pops and I aren’t good at external magic but we are good at our internals. We know when someone uses magic on us because we feel them on our defenses. Right now, my defense is screaming at me that something is attempting to penetrate it. Don’t know exactly what or now, but I can feel it.”

Hephaestus stared at him with her eyes wide open.

It wasn’t the sight? It was something else?

Why … hadn’t she noticed that? No, why had no one -. Right, they were too busy running away.

“Well, I can see why most of them would run. They would have no choice but to.” Then he paused. “Ah, what am I doing? Sorry, goddess, but I gotta go dungeon diving.” He gave her a slight bow, walked out, closed the door, and then ran off toward the center of the city, leaving her confused and … enlightened.

“Ah, Hephaestus!”

She jolted in place, looked around, and found Hestia walking up to her from the side of the building with a bag of groceries.

“Oh, hi, Hestia. You look like you’re doing well.”

Hestia laughed sheepishly. “My first child is heaven-sent! Let’s talk inside.”

Hephaestus stopped her. “No need. I … need to go.”

“You do?”

“I do. I just came to check up on you,” she began with a smile and then glared at Hestia. “Because you completely forgot to tell me about your days, hmm?”

Hestia froze and sweated a little. “Ah. Ah ha ha ha…” she laughed nervously now. “Um. Right. Sorry?”

She shook her head at her aunt’s antics. “Honestly, you need a child who does secretary work for you if you keep forgetting small things like this. It’ll come back to bite you in the ass eventually.”

“Eventually is not here yet!” Hestia giggled before she pulled out a key. “You sure you don’t want to come in for a quick chat?”

She shook her head. “No. I’ll go. We’ll talk some other time, okay?”

Hestia pouted a little but nodded. “Okay. See you later, then!”

Hephaestus gave her a light wave before walking away. As she did, her mind was filled with the image of Marris’s child, the only mortal to look at her in the face and think nothing of it.