Chapter 122: Chapter 122: Don’t mess it up/ I am back
Leto raised her gaze at that moment. Meeting her daughters’ eyes. And for a moment, Artemis was left speechless, shocked to the core by her mother’s presence in the camp. Leto smiled at her softly, amused by the expression on her daughter’s face.
Artemis tried to maintain her composure. She wanted to approach her, hug her, and ask why she was here, and at the same time, she did not want to do it in front of so many boys watching. Her fingers tightened around the edges of her loose hunting clothes, but unfortunately for the goddess, her eyes betrayed her. The relief and longing were clear in the gaze of a goddess who always tried to appear untouchable.
Leto, seeing the struggle in her daughter’s eyes, let out an internal laugh. Always so proud. Even now, even after so much time, Artemis was still the same girl who preferred swallowing her emotions rather than allowing anyone to see her vulnerable.
So Leto decided to save her face.
With one final smile, she said goodbye to the demigods surrounding her. Then she straightened and walked toward Artemis calmly, without rushing, giving her enough time to recover that cold expression she worked so hard to maintain.
Rhea accompanied her a few steps behind, watching the scene with quiet appreciation. The Hunters, for their part, looked at Leto with immediate respect, knowing of her relationship with their lady.
Artemis took a deep breath when Leto stood in front of her. "Mother," she said, trying to sound normal. Leto looked at her tenderly, as if she could see directly through that mask of pride.
"Artemis," she replied softly. "You should know better than anyone that face doesn’t work on me," the Titaness said, scolding her affectionately before guiding her daughter into the cabin.
As soon as they were out of the campers’ sight, Leto hugged her daughter tightly. Artemis remained stiff for an instant, more out of habit than rejection, before slowly returning the hug. "You have no idea how much I missed you," Leto said, with happiness impossible to hide. Artemis, for her part, felt heat rise to her cheeks when she noticed Rhea’s gaze and the eyes of her own Hunters on her. "I’m happy to see you too," she admitted, in a voice lower than usual.
Leto smiled against her hair before pulling back a little, keeping her hands on her daughter’s shoulders. Artemis looked directly into her eyes, still trying to organize everything she felt. "But... why are you here? How are you here?"
Before Leto could answer, a voice came from the cabin entrance. "That would be because of me."
All the Hunters quickly turned at the sound of the voice, tensing instantly when they saw none other than the king of Olympus standing at the entrance. None of them dared to complain or say anything out of place. It was easy to murmur about Damon when he was not present, but when they had him in front of them, the story was very different.
Damon entered the cabin of the moon goddess calmly, looking first at Leto and then at Artemis. No one stopped him. The Hunters simply moved aside enough to let him pass, some with discomfort, others with caution.
Of course, the story was different with Artemis.
The goddess of the hunt looked at him with obvious anger. "What are you doing here, in my cabin?"
"Artemis," Leto reprimanded her seriously, "do not speak to Lord Damon like that. He is the reason I am here with you in the first place."
Artemis clicked her tongue, though she did not dare say anything else. Not in front of her mother.
Damon looked at her calmly, but the seriousness in his eyes made it clear he was not there to argue. "I didn’t come to listen to your complaints. I came to make sure you understand something. Your mother’s presence is my way of making things easier for you, not an invitation for you to keep causing problems."
The cabin fell silent.
"You are going to train the demigods. You and your Hunters. I don’t want to hear that you took out your anger on a camper because you didn’t want to be here. I don’t want unnecessary problems, I don’t want abuse disguised as training, and I don’t want excuses." Damon’s gaze moved over Artemis and then over the Hunters. "This is the only warning I’m going to give you. If any of you does something out of line, I will not hesitate to punish her."
Several Hunters tensed at those words. Artemis clenched her jaw, but remained silent.
"Do you understand what I’m saying?" Damon asked.
No one answered at first.
Damon’s eyes narrowed slightly. "I asked if you understand what I’m saying."
"Yes, sir," the Hunters answered, loud and clear. Artemis took one second longer, but finally lowered her gaze slightly. "I understand."
Damon nodded. "That’s what I like to hear. If you listen, you won’t have problems with me."
The seriousness in his voice made even the proudest Hunters straighten. A shiver ran down their backs, and although Artemis tried not to show it, she felt it too. Rhea and Leto watched from the side without interfering. Both knew Damon well. He could be patient, even kind when he wanted to be, but he was also someone who demanded respect when the situation required it. He would not always let disrespect pass.
"Lastly," Damon continued, looking at Leto this time, "I’ll be away for a while. I have matters to attend to, so I’m leaving the children in your care."
Leto understood that he meant both the demigods and Artemis, and nodded softly. "I’ll take care of them."
"Wait," Rhea said, alarmed by how sudden his words were. "Where are you going?"
Damon turned his gaze toward her. "The devils invited me to a meeting. I’ll go handle the matter and return soon. You don’t need to worry, Mother. If something happens, you know how to contact me instantly."
Rhea watched him for a moment, clearly not liking the idea, but Damon’s calm smile managed to reassure her a little. Even so, she walked over and hugged him tightly. Damon returned the hug before pulling away.
With that, the redhead disappeared, leaving Artemis with Leto, Rhea, and the Hunters. The entire cabin seemed to release a sigh at the same time; all of them realized how tense they had been.
A little later, Damon called a brief meeting with the main gods. He made it clear that he would go to Japan to handle the matter with the devils, and that he expected to find the pantheon in one piece when he returned. "Each of you knows what you have to do," Damon said, looking at those present. "Keep fulfilling your responsibilities."
After saying goodbye to Hera, Hestia, and his other sisters, Damon opened the space in front of him and quickly stepped inside. The redhead disappeared on his way to Japan.
XXXXXXX
Shinto Pantheon
How many years had it been since the last time he was here? The redhead wondered with a smile. He simply could not help but smile with nostalgia.
Hell, he had even missed the smell of this place. He quickly began using his domain freely to search for one person. He started walking, and he could remember all the moments he had lived there, both good and bad.
He continued walking through the luxurious Japanese-style place. He could hear people talking inside the houses, though more than houses, they looked like miniature temples. He could see children playing, who stopped when they saw him and stayed there staring at him, pointing while smiling.
Others were beside a woman, most likely their mothers or someone currently taking care of them. When they saw the redhead, they pointed at him while looking at the woman, trying to get her attention, and when the women looked at him, they were surprised before bowing with a small smile, respectfully.
Damon responded with a small bow as well, respectfully.
This had never been, and would never be, his thing. It felt strange when someone bowed before him. He understood it was out of respect, but even so, his kind and Greek personality kept him from letting people bow to him whenever he could avoid it.
He continued on his way, and after taking a few more steps, the redhead instantly began hearing a voice in his head. He immediately recognized what it was. Someone was praying to him, asking him for help to maintain order in their home after a stupid argument that had happened in their family.
When the voice went silent, he felt as if a strange sensation flooded his being. Letting out a laugh, amazed, he said, "So this is what it feels like to be prayed to and worshiped, huh?"
In fact, he had asked himself that question many times, but since it was almost nonexistent in the Greek pantheon, aside from demigod offerings, receiving voices from people praying to him was extremely rare.
It did not take long for him to hear other different voices, thanking him or praying to earn his blessing. He decided to leave that aside. He had another goal in mind right now, and he preferred to accomplish it before having to meet the devils in a few days.
It did not take long for him to reach his destination. Standing in front of the great doors of what looked like an enormous palace, he proceeded to enter. He did not even exert any force on the doors to open them. They opened on their own, as if the doors recognized him and granted him passage themselves.
When he was inside, he could not help feeling nostalgic.
Everything brought back memories, good and bad, but he could not say he had not been happy while he lived here. He walked forward, brushing his hand over some paintings and murals that seemed to show ancient events, along with other objects he did not remember being there in the first place.
He extended his senses to find the person he was looking for and felt her not far away. If he was not mistaken, she was in the back garden with someone else. A woman. The redhead raised an eyebrow. "Kaguya?"
Without wasting time, he headed toward the backyard and could see two women in the distance. One had black hair and had her back turned to him, while the other had white hair almost matching the color of her skin, along with two horn-like protrusions rising from her head.
He lowered his presence to the minimum so they would not feel him. Rather, so the black-haired woman would not feel him, and he made his way toward the two women.
They seemed to be having a pleasant conversation, judging by the laughter of both as they drank tea at a small table. Until the albino woman saw someone approaching behind the raven-haired woman.
She raised her gaze and saw a man she had not seen in many years. That was almost enough to make her stand quickly and warn her companion of Damon’s arrival.
When Damon noticed Kaguya’s gaze, he quickly placed a finger over his lips, signaling for her to stay silent. An action she followed with a smile, understanding the blond’s idea.
Just barely an inch behind the raven-haired woman, Damon could feel his heart pounding. How long had it been since the last time he saw her?
He was holding back his entire body from hugging her to death. He positioned himself closer behind her and leaned slightly down to the height of her ear.
"I missed you, Ama-Chan."
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Holy crap, we can finally have Amaterasu back, man. This worked out perfectly. I could’ve set up a meeting in the Greek Pantheon, but honestly, this is the perfect excuse for Damon to finally see Amaterasu and find out what the demons did, like the Nekoshou event and all that, before meeting Serafall.
200 stones for bonus Chapter!!!!!!!
