By the time the last giant toad fled, croaking into the bushes—and Aqua was forcibly extracted, twice—Orion had done what he came for. Kazuma got his money back, down to the last reluctant coin, and Orion had earned enough to secure himself a modest inn to stay at. At least the prices here were not completely inflated like back in Orario.
Modest meaning a room with a bed, a door that mostly closed, and only one suspicious stain on the wall. Doable for now. More than enough for two people. They just had to share, nothing new to him.
He should have felt satisfied.
Instead, his stomach growled, and worse, his goddess still wasn't speaking to him. Her back was currently permanently facing him like she was a compass and he the south pole.
'Man… what do I do about this now.' He pursed his lips, pondering all the options he had to make it up to her. Technically, there shouldn't be much to make up for. After all, he only came to this world because he had more chances to beat Beldia here with others.
But still, he had just taken the part of goddesses having their own godly tantrums for granted.
Rubbing the back of his neck, he thought about how to break the ice when his mind clicked.
With the same reckless resolve that usually got him killed, he decided to solve both problems at once.
Instead of buying cheap street food and saving his money like a sensible person, Orion decided to spend all his recently earned Eris. Every last coin. On dinner.
For her. More like with her.
Somewhere in his mind, the doubt that it almost sounded like a date arose, alongside how useless the spending would be, but he suppressed it.
[A dinner?]
Marika blinked, turning to look at him.
"Yes," Orion said, bracing himself. "A proper one. I just realised that I haven't taken you anywhere nice all the time we have been together. So why not. It's a new world, let's see what we got in here."
She studied him for a long moment, golden eyes unreadable.
[Better. At least now you understand how one truly apologizes. An improvement.]
She smiled—small, amused, and dangerously warm.
[…Very well,] she continued. [I accept.]
He exhaled in relief.
"Does that mean you forgive me…"
[That only means I have accepted your invitation. Whether I choose to forgive you or not… that judgment remains mine alone.]
'Oh… great.' He almost rolled his eyes. He was emptying out his entire pocket and this forgiveness status was still unclear. 'Just great…!'
[However.]
And just when he thought that it was final, she added sweetly, [I have a condition. You shall call me Mother for the entirety of the dinner—and even after it has ended.]
Orion froze. "Huh… b-but…"
[No buts.]
Orion pursed his lips.
"Even outside!"
[Entirety of the night.]
His soul left his body briefly, came back, and apologized for returning.
Still, a promise was a promise.
"Fine… I better get that apology card sigh after this," he grumbled.
And so began the most awkward date in Orion's history. Well, it was his only date in his entire history, if one doesn't count that dinner with Eina.
Choosing the place was easy. Sneaking Marika in and out when she manifested physically was the hard part.
Not that she had any disagreement towards walking or anything; it was the others walking on the same path who were the problem. She just attracted too fucking much attention.
He picked one of Axel's finest restaurants—which, by Axel standards, meant clean tables, real cutlery, and a menu that didn't include the word 'slime.'
Not even kidding, slime was a very popular dish in Axel somehow…
Orion already drew attention when he entered. You know… new face, not a kid but not a man either, and above everything, handsome.
He looked better than 99% of the male population in Axel effortlessly.
Adventurers glanced up, whispering about the handsome newcomer. And that was fine. No matter how handsome a man is, there is a limit to how much attention he can gather.
However, that quiet reassurance was immediately evaporated the moment Marika appeared.
Golden grace followed the goddess's path, her skin dazzling with golden radiance which for a second could overshadow the sunlight itself.
It wasn't just physical beauty with her; with her came an aura of divinity which no one could ignore. A slight pressure which unconsciously made her the centre of attention.
The room fell silent.
Conversations died mid-sentence. Forks froze halfway to mouths. Every eye turned toward her golden grace, her presence bending the air itself. Even the staff forgot how to breathe.
A waiter happened to drop his recent order in awe…
"…I knew this would happen," Orion grumbled. He never thought there would be a downside to something like beauty, but now he knew better.
Though again, it's about perspective. He didn't like to be in the spotlight; Marika, on the other hand, was so used to it that it was second nature to her.
She completely ignored everyone else. Like they didn't even exist.
She sat across from him, radiant and composed, while Orion shrank into his chair, desperately wishing for invisibility.
The waiter approached with trembling hands. "M-may I take your order?"
"Yes," Orion said quickly. "My—"
He swallowed.
"…Mother would like—" Orion shuddered saying that, and the audience seemed to gasp.
'She's his mother…'
'Oh god… that goddess is that handsome boy's mother.'
'No wonder he's so handsome. No, at this point he didn't even inherit 5% of the good gene pool.'
'Which bastard snagged a bombshell like her, who's the bloody father.'
Hushed murmurings broke out. Orion dug himself deeper into his chair.
Marika leaned forward, chin resting on her hand, eyes glittering. Lips curling slightly upon hearing him call her mother.
[You decide, darling… anything you want.]
She winked.
The waiter almost dropped the menu he was holding.
'She's enjoying it, isn't she.' Orion clenched his teeth. He too choked at that unexpected 'darling' and wink.
'And what do you mean anything I want, I'm the one paying, okay…' he grumbled.
Somehow lifting his chin again, he spoke.
"…Mother would like whatever you recommend."
The waiter nodded like a man who had just received divine revelation and fled.
Throughout the meal, the food proved excellent—rich, warm, and far better than anything Orion had eaten since arriving in this world. Or the last world, for that matter. Yet somehow, it barely registered.
Perhaps it wasn't the food which was good, but rather the company.
Not as a goddess issuing decrees, not as a distant watcher, but as someone remembering. She spoke of ruling the Lands Between, of the weight of the crown, of existing half-bound by the Higher Will, moving as both ruler and instrument.
They shared their past, their thoughts during the dinner. A self-respected 'US' time for them.
[There were days,]
She said softly, [when I could not tell which thoughts were mine.]
Orion listened quietly, calling her mother when required, flushing every single time. She noticed. Of course she noticed.
Orion wasn't good with women, never had enough experience. However, he knew the simple thumb rule.
When she speaks, you listen.
Don't try to add anything, nobody cares what you wanna say. Just listen like you're getting divine revelation. Pay attention and you most likely would survive.
He followed everything to a T. It was still a better outcome than him talking about his part.
What was he to say, 'I have a record of beating 3 AAA games in a week,' when she talked about conquering the Lands Between and marching armies so casually.
'Nah, I'll just listen.'
[You're blushing again,] she said with mock concern. [Is something wrong, child?]
"Nothing, MOM!" Orion spat and focused entirely on his food.
First, he was truly hungry. Second, he felt like his heart was bleeding at how costly these dishes were. For a frugal person like him, this was hell. And lastly, if there was any misunderstanding even at this far into the story, then he'll say it again—he very much was a shut-in introvert. He didn't like this much attention.
She laughed, a sound warm enough to ease something tight in his chest.
'I'd rather make something at home for us next time... than this,' he sighed.
When Marika was done telling her own story and bored of teasing him—though she sure took her time—she finally started asking about his own life.
Unwilling, but still unable to deny her, he told her about being an orphan, about never really having anyone to return to, about learning to survive alone and growing up.
His daily boring life which he actually liked. He hesitated a bit about whether to even tell her about the modern world and that she was a character in a game. That was not something he wished to explain anytime soon.
So, he smartly dodged around the topic as much as possible. Mostly not talking at all.
By Marika's expression, she was also waiting for the part where Orion would be summoned to the Lands Between and his adventures there. Orion promptly skipped all of that, to her dismay.
They avoided talk of work, quests, and death. For once, it was just… dinner.
During the time, Orion also saw a rather familiar-looking figure there, another blonde-haired woman and she was a looker.
'Now that I recall, she was loaded, yeah. A true noble woman...' Orion wisely didn't bother her. Of all people, he didn't want that masochist there.
When the night ended and they stepped back into Axel's lamplit streets, Orion realised something—he was walking with the goddess hand in hand like a couple.
Oh, how hard it was to suppress that blush. But he did his best.
Marika glanced at him, amused and gentle all at once. [You did well tonight.]
"…Ah, thanks. Hope this improved your mood."
Her smile softened.
[It does, though I have something else in mind... let's see whether you can satisfy me there as well.]
Orion stiffened.
'Does she mean what I think she means?'
xXx
A/N : What do you think ? What does she mean ?
How you like the chapter ?
Also please throw some stones and Comments.
Please Consider Donating Power Stones if you like the Chapter.
"Thank you Very Much for All Your Support"
You can check out upto 10+ advanced chapter from Webnovel on My Patreon
Check my Patreon on
Patreon.com/Kamidemond