Slip of the Tongue (4)
Before Frondier could draw back his bowstring,
“Charon! We’ll assist you!”
The two Paladins, deciding they couldn’t stand by any longer, stepped forward in front of Charon.
Until just a moment ago, Charon had held back out of pride, never imagining he would lose. But seeing the situation unfold, it was clearly not the time for such thoughts.
“Ugh…!”
Charon grimaced at the sight of the Paladins protecting him but remained silent. He had swallowed his pride.
One of the Paladins glared at Frondier with fury in his eyes.
“You devil! You will regret daring to challenge a Paladin!”
“…….”
Frondier listened silently, then,
Ptwing—
He released an arrow.
“……!”
The arrow ripped through the air between the two Paladins, aimed directly at Charon.
Clang!
One of the Paladins intercepted the arrow with his sword.
‘It bends in such a bizarre trajectory! Truly a devil’s bow!’
The arrow had clearly been aimed at Charon. It had cleverly avoided the two Paladins and tracked Charon, but it was ultimately blocked by the Paladin’s sword.
Frondier scratched his head.
“Hmm, I guess it’s not bad. I should be grateful for a Unique-grade bow.”
Frondier, having already experienced the power of the Godly bow, wasn’t fully satisfied with the accuracy of a lower-ranked bow.
If it were Crisellakathos, it would have bypassed the Paladin’s sword and hit Charon without fail.
To his eyes, the guaranteed hit of a lower grade was unsatisfactory.
“Wh-what…?”
Of course, his words only sounded like absurd bravado to the Paladins.
“You’re full of yourself, devil…!”
“Well, yeah, one arrow and a Paladin is rolling on the ground.”
Frondier said with an indifferent expression.
“And on top of that, two of you came out because you were afraid your comrade might die, talking about regrets. I think I’m allowed to be a little confident.”
“You bastard!”
The two Paladins charged without hesitation.
Their swords, imbued with aura, drew two clean lines in the air, their trajectories aimed at Frondier.
Frondier didn’t move.
Instead,
Craaaash!!
One of the swords was abruptly blocked by a magic barrier that appeared out of thin air.
Kwaaaack!
The other sword was intercepted by another figure that emerged from the shadows.
The two who stood beside Frondier shot him resentful glances.
“I told you I didn’t want to do this! What were you going to do if I hadn’t blocked that?”
“At least give me a heads-up! I almost just stood there and watched!”
“Like you two would ever do that.”
The Paladins, witnessing their conversation, were momentarily taken aback by the absurd situation.
They were each lost in their own confusion.
‘What was that just now? A magic barrier blocked my sword?’
‘Did that woman really just emerge from the shadows…?’
They retreated to regroup.
Frondier watched their every move.
“Selena. I have a favor to ask.”
“Yes. I’ll retaliate with everything I’ve got—”
“Lift your head.”
“What?”
As Selena instinctively straightened her posture at his words,
Swoosh—
Frondier removed Selena’s mask.
“Ah! Wh-what are you doing?!”
Elodie had already removed her mask at Frondier’s earlier instruction, so both Selena and Elodie’s faces were now revealed.
While no one reacted with exaggerated surprise like in a cartoon to their radiant beauty, it was undeniable that everyone present was looking at them in a new light.
Both women felt a sense of embarrassment. It was as if their faces were some kind of artifact with special effects.
Selena asked,
“D-does this… mean anything to them?”
“No, not really.”
An immediate and blunt negative response.
Selena was speechless. She had a lot she wanted to say to Frondier, but she couldn’t afford to take her eyes off the Paladins in front of them.
‘It’s not like it matters to these guys here.’
Frondier thought to himself.
The reason he had revealed their faces. It was a meaningless act to most of the people present.
If the vote were currently underway, it might have been a factor.
Selena, Elodie, or even Lily. Their appearances would undoubtedly have had a significant impact on the citizens.
But Charon knew the faces of these three. And so did Athena.
If he had revealed them during the vote, it would have been easy for Charon to accuse them of being devils, and that would only hinder the very doubt Frondier was trying to sow about the vote itself.
More than anything, it was too risky to expose them in the middle of the plaza with Gods, devils, and Paladins present.
‘Sybil took care of that.’
The situation changed with Sybil’s appearance.
Information that neither Charon nor anyone else possessed – Sybil Forte. A being whose identity as a human, a devil, or even a God was unclear.
She had brought forth Athena and Aphrodite.
That’s why Frondier was able to put his plan into action.
‘The beauty of Elodie and Selena means nothing now that the humans are all preoccupied.’
Frondier was targeting a single entity behind him, hidden from his sight.
‘You’re the only one it matters to.’
Aphrodite.
Although Frondier didn’t turn to look directly, he could easily picture the expression on Aphrodite’s face right now.
And just as he had predicted, Aphrodite was watching the scene unfold with an almost identical expression.
‘What are those?’
Aphrodite hid her trembling hands as she looked at the faces of the two women who had appeared.
She had endured even when Sybil emerged. She had even understood the appearance of Carla.
Throughout history, there had been one or two humans who could rival her beauty.
But now, there were already four before her very eyes. And they weren’t scattered across the continent; they were gathered here in one place.
‘Is beauty like mine this common?’
Each and every one of them possessed beauty that could rival hers.
Of course, it wasn’t common. It couldn’t be.
However, Aphrodite, confined to the capital, was unaware of the situation outside.
The exceptionally beautiful women were all those who had come here from outside the capital.
This meant that during the long years Aphrodite had been trapped in the capital, such beauty might have become commonplace elsewhere.
Of course, human beauty didn’t improve from the perspective of aesthetics simply with the passage of time.
But what about magic or curses? Or if the Gods had intervened in human affairs…
‘Don’t tell me, another God… me…?’
A fundamental fear took root within Aphrodite.
Frondier’s companions all happened to be incredibly beautiful.
Had he, knowing of Aphrodite’s existence, scoured the entire continent for the most beautiful women he could find? And in the process, managed to gather those who were also skilled enough to face the Paladins? It was logically impossible.
Therefore, from Aphrodite’s perspective, she had to consider the possibility that the average appearance of women in other continents had changed.
Frondier thought to himself.
‘The biggest problem with Aphrodite is that while she governs ‘beauty,’ she herself strives to be ‘beauty’ itself.’
At first glance, it seemed natural, but it was one of the things that made Aphrodite the most different from the other Gods.
Just as Poseidon, who ruled the seas, didn’t strive to create waves every day, and Zeus, who ruled the sky, didn’t personally choose the weather each day…
Gods, by their very nature, were separate entities from what they governed.
However, Aphrodite was different.
As the Goddess of Beauty, she was worshipped by all Gods and humans for her beauty, so she had to be more beautiful than anyone else.
That was both Aphrodite’s power and her curse.
That was why Frondier called her the Goddess of ‘Jealousy.’
‘I don’t know what Aphrodite is thinking specifically right now. But…’
Either way, it didn’t matter.
Doubt.
Doubt this situation where women who rivaled her beauty had appeared one after another.
Could she, at this very moment, declare with confidence?
That she was the ‘Goddess of Beauty.’
That she was far more beautiful than anyone else.
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