....

Alex slept for a whole two days, waking up sluggishly and trying to restore life to his weak-feeling limbs. While he was being, he believes he had a dream, one about waking up in his room back home and calling his mother, who came over to his house along with his younger brother and they sat, all together, on his living room table, discussing miscellaneous matters over a cup of mint tea and biscuits. It was euphoric for Alex, who got to see his family again as his face was flushed with happiness as he was discussing his recent ventures in his job, some friendships he's formed and his ambitions for the future.

It was nice.

However, Alex suddenly remembered something, it was a reminiscence of faded memories, similar to Marcel Proust's madeleine cakes(1). It was memories of a distant land, one they call Olympus, with beautiful mountain peaks, lush forests and lapis seas.

Then he remembered the people; Hermes, Crista, Athena, Dionysus, the consul, Aadityapal, Padmapani and Aphrodite.

Alex slightly moved his mouth and as the memories became more vivid, he began telling stories of his short time in this world, happy that it was over, that he was finally in the place he wanted to be, surrounded by the people that he's spent so much time with that he can only be himself with them.

There was also a bittersweet feeling, however. As much as he liked home, he's also grown a bit fond of the exciting lifestyle he's gotten used to back in Olympus, and the monotony of modern home life, although cozy, pales in comparison to the life his curious instincts wants to lead in this world.

If possible, he would like to be in Olympus with his family, but one can't get everything they desire.

He's now back at home, sipping on lukewarm tea with his most loved people and he won't complain.

As expected, while he was telling his tales, Alexander, a young kid, was listening carefully and excitedly about each of his adventures, asking him for more which Alex happily obliged to.

His mom, was looking at him with her lips raised slightly and her pupils reflecting his figure, forming a nostalgic but happy smile.

"Mom, why are you smiling like that....?" Alex was happy, but he felt a heavy emotion in his heart, a certain feeling that he was forgetting something.

At his question, his mom kept looking at him and suddenly, the surroundings started to fade from his room to a bright white space and the tables and chairs were the only pieces of furniture left.

His mother and brother's faces also started fading away until he could no longer distinguish their features. The two then stood up while Alex was looking anxiously at them.

'What's happening?' He already figured out the answer, but he couldn't bring himself to think of it.

No, he didn't want to accept it.

His mother then held his younger brother's hands and the two faced him, standing in silence for a few seconds before his mom spoke in a muffled but intelligible voice.

"Son, do you remember what I have taught you?

One often finds themselves in situations they don't desire, and being happy in these predicaments is extremely hard. Of course, one can choose to do what they want, but not choose what they want.

However, I hope you'll be able to find happiness in what you have and keep a smile through even the hardest times.

I raised you to be a good son, and I am proud of who you are and will forever be.

You may feel like you want something, but your wings are flapping in another direction.

I cannot cut these wings or trap you in a cage, so fly now.

fly, my son."

Alex felt his eyes redden, he just didn't understand anything. His mother then turned around along with his brother and faced the bottomless white void.

Then she stated with a distant tone "Now, we will go. We'll be happy and you will be too. I promise you we will take care of ourselves and you promise us you will too."

Alex felt tears streaming down his face and he spoke, albeit with a voice muffled by his mucus.

"I will, I promise you I will" He stated with red eyes.

Then he saw Alexander turn around, even though he was now just a silhouette, and heard a child's voice that made him feel at home saying excitedly "Goodbye, Alex. See you soon!"

"Goodbye, Alexander. Goodbye, Mom"

The two proceeded to dissipate into the white void, along with the table and chairs, leaving him alone in the white void.

Alex then felt his body turn heavy and his vision fading and when the unpleasant feeling was gone, he found himself in his room in the carriage. Feeling cold tears sliding down his wet face, he was barely able to move his weak hands to wipe them, and when his body no longer felt numb, he stood up and opened the curtains, showing bright blue boundless waters in the distance and a blindingly bright fireball in the sky.

He then went down the stairs and found the crew playing cards, and when they got sight of him, they all smiled and said good morning to him, despite the fact that it was clearly midday.

The card game they were playing looked fun.

"Can I play with you?" Alex smiled as he asked the crew.

_______________________________________________

Two days later, in the carriage.

Alex felt a lot better now, and although he was still furious at the actions of Aphrodite, the dream he's experienced gave him some insights he didn't know he needed.

Even if he feels powerless and can't do much right now, he'll brave through life confidently and live as he pleases, now that he has the chance and the ability to do so.

The carriage by now left the Aegean coastal route and entered the inland terrain, where familiar mountains dominating the scenery could be perceived whichever way one turned.

He was currently writing on his diary/parchment scroll about today's scenery, the traveling merchants they met and the fauna and flora inland of the Greek mainland. Writing is now one of his favourite activities as he just feels so free when he writes and the time passes by so fast due to him enjoying scribing down every letter. He even writes it in English, effectively making it the most private diary in this world.

The carriage rode through the landscape and they soon reached the perimeter of the village of Atreksos and they parked outside the village, as due to it being located in a plateau entering the village would be hard and impractical.

The crew including Alex then hiked up a bit and soon reached a bottleneck in elevation and what greeted their sight was a crater-like plateau containing the fertile green farmland and humble buildings in the distance. They thus climbed down the plateau and even though the crew wasn't surprised at the village due to not knowing what ensued here the last time they came. Alex, however, was extremely surprised at the state of the village.

In the short two weeks they departed, Atreksos turned from a lifeless village into a colourful scene of co-operation and prosperity.

When he entered the village along with the crew, a familiar-looking local ran off after perceiving his face and brought with him the village chief, who's pale and anxious face from last time was replaced by a resting happy face, perhaps due to the extremely improved affairs of the village.

She stepped a fair distance from him and bowed deeply, and the villagers behind her did the same.

"We are eternally grateful for what you have done for our village. It's not much, but please follow us, as the village has a humble gift for you" The village chief said as she rose from her bow and turned around.

Alex nodded and followed her lead, entering the marketplace which was now filled with food stands and fresh produce on display, it was a blissful scene that one would expect from a painting.

Although the crew wondered why they were being treated like royalty, they assumed it was probably just because of Alex's status as they shrugged and followed along too.

They then reached a crossroad at the center of the village, and in the center of the crossroad there was a sculpture. It was an artwork of a man standing in a similar pose to Michelangelo's David, with chiseled musculature and detailed morphological details and a good-looking, but it didn't have a phallic design unlike David.

'They must have just finished it' Alex thought the sculpture looked very aesthetically pleasing and it added flair to the village.

However, taking a second glance at the piece, he noticed something weird. The face of the sculpture looked quite familiar.

Before he could further ponder on it, his thoughts were interrupted by the hopeful voice of the village chief.

"Lord, we have employed the services of one of the best art studios in the surroundings to sculpt your figure by the time of your arrival. We hope you appreciate it"

Alex was shocked. They sculpted him to such degree in only about 2 weeks?!

He felt very grateful and didn't know how to react, only nodding senselessly.

'It must have been very expensive for the village to undergo such an operation.' Alex thought.

"Lord, we have also spread your name and great achievements to any passing peoples"

In fact, there was a caption under the statue. It said 'Alex, Nightmare Slayer'. It's quite the grandiose title but he didn't feel like he deserved this kind of delegation.

Further under the caption was written in very small text 'By the Olep branch of the Konstan Studio'

'Konstan Studio? that's a familiar name' Alex asked himself, and then he remembered it. The Konstan Studio was a big art studio in Abdera where he got the tragic insights into Eros and Psyche.

"Thank you! I'm grateful to receive such good word, even if it really wasn't anything much." He exclaimed.

The villagers started objecting fervently to him, screaming that he was the 'saviour' of Atreksos and whatnot. Alex rubbed his hair in embarrassment.

"We have lost a lot to the Nightmare Lizard. But thanks to you, Lord, we were able to get back on our feet and we will not waste this opportunity and go into the future stronger and happier!" The village chief looked tearful. She really cares for her people

___________________________________________________

Alex spent the afternoon in the village, helping the villagers for certain tasks and drinking tea and having lunch with his crew. When they left the village there was only about an hour left until sunset so they bade their farewells to the village and wished them good luck in the future.

The villagers kowtowed gratefully to him, but he asked them to rise up.

Therefore, they made their way back into the carriage and they resumed their journey back to Olep.

A few uneventful days later, they were greeted with the sight of the inland metropolis, Olep. It seemed more sprawling than usual and when they asked the people they stated that the recent deals with the city of Aklypso has substantially increased trade volume to the city.

The carriage reached the familiar consul's mansion and parked there.

Now it was time for goodbyes.

When they started the trip, none of the crew members knew each other but through this short journey they all became close friends, Alex included, and had a lot of fun together.

Alex got the names of each of the crew members, gave them some gold coins, thanked them for everything and then said his goodbyes and entered the consul's mansion, where he was once again shamefully forced into a princely palanquin.

He thanked the consul for the carriage and his help in everything and then left, refusing to stay the night as the consul suggested.

He then went through the dark forest, not really scared of anything this time as he felt stronger than when he just started the trip. Soon enough, he felt the dense vegetation clearing up and the steep mountains coming into view.

It was going to be a hard hike, he knew that for a fact.

After struggling to hike up the first hill for a few dozen minutes he barely made it and the succeeding hikes weren't as challenging so he found himself in the plaza leading up to the deities' abodes. He took the staircase that he remembers leads to Hermes' place and climbed up the infinitely long staircase.

By the time he reached the square with the singe olive tree in front of the purple opulent mansion, the horizon was illuminated by a single line of light, indicating the sun will rise in some time.

He opened the large gates of the mansion and entered the familiar place, feeling happy that he was back safely and also feeling really excited to sleep on the heavenly comfortable bed in his room.

However, as he entered, he caught a whiff of a familiar scent, a scent he knows very well from his past world.

The scent of melted cheese and tomato sauce and cooked dough in the oven, aka pizza. It was coming from the kitchen so he went down the center path which led there and entered the kitchen where the smell was the densest.

There, she was, in the kitchen, plating the familiar round piece of dough. It was Crista, the nymph, and it seems she made pizza.

When he entered the kitchen, she seemed to have felt his presence as she turned her attention from the pizza to him and gave him a single hand raise as a greeting. She looked busy so he left her to finish her stuff.

When she properly put some fresh basil on top of the cooked pizza, unlike a certain amateur who almost burned the kitchen, she looked at him and said indifferently "So you're back, huh?"

"Yes, It was quite an adventure" Alex responded.

....

There was nothing much to say anymore so they stood in silence, albeit not awkwardly, before the voice of the nymph broke the silence.

"What the f**k are you waiting for? The flatbread thing is getting cold" Crista exclaimed with annoyance written on her face.

'Oh. Does she want me to take a slice?' Alex ignored her calling pizza a 'flatbread thing' and diverted his attention to the pizza itself.

Honestly, it looked much better than his in every way possible and he was actually feeling a bit hungry.

"Don't mind if I do then!" Alex took a slice of the pizza and brought it over to his mouth, taking a bite of it.

It was.....divine. As he bit the crispy crust of the pizza, he felt the taste of the melted mozarella enter his mouth and the rich tomato sauce adding depth and providing freshness to the whole dish. There was also a very very slightly spicy aftertaste that probably came from oregano and the harmonious flavours of the ingredients merging together to form the perfect bite.

Crista did much more justice to the modern dish than he did, and his face flushed with happiness as he savoured the addictive food.

He then thanked her, and she looked proud of herself, which Alex found rightful as she made better pizza than the best of chefs in only a few weeks.

She must have practiced hard.

She then also tasted the pizza and smiled, eating the rest of it.

The two didn't talk anymore as Crista made her way to her room and Alex did the same, throwing himself onto the bed he longed to see.

And so he entered the dream world.

He woke up by dawn and readied himself for a new day.

Today will probably be an unpleasant day though as he has to visit the witch Aphrodite to inform her of the completion of the mission and he wanted to get it over with fast.

He remembered she had told him her mountain peak was "the fourth one to the east" as he navigated through the mounts of Olympus and then found a conspicuous peak.

The mountain peak was barren and lifeless, unlike the other ones, and it almost looked like it was made that way on purpose, as if to remove any sort of aesthetic value from the peak.

The soil was also burnt to an ash colour and the mansion on top of the peak wasn't dissimilar.

'Is this really the peak of the goddess of beauty? Doesn't really look the part.' He thought to himself as he knocked on the unsymmetrical doors of the mansion.

After a long period of silence, the doors of the mansion opened and it was two men who opened the door. The two looked strong but their eyes held no life whatsoever and they looked listless.

It was quite creepy.

The two men started walking and he followed them until they reached a big hall that had a wood-carved throne on its deep end, the only thing worth looking at in the entire place.

On the throne was sitting a familiar figure, that infamous woman with blond hair and magenta eyes. Goddess of beauty and 'love', Aphrodite.

She was being fanned by multiple men who seemed as listless as the ones in the door, like they were being manipulated.

Aphrodite looked at him, slanted her eyes and raised her lips and stated "Took you long enough, boy."

Alex stared at her, not responding and approached her, then informing her impatiently about the completion of the mission.

"Now that you've done it. Ask me for anything but I can'-"

"Essence. I want Essence" Alex interrupted her and spoke confidently.

She stopped talking and looked at him with an incredulous expression, like she was expecting something else. She then harrumphed in anger, and raised her shoulders then signaled to the men fanning her to bring something.

The men stopped the fan immediately like they were struck with lightning and ran off, obeying her orders. It was quite distasteful.

'Tsk' Alex clicked his tongue, in his mind of course.

After a few minutes the men came back with a tray containing a bowl, a razor-sharp blade and a small flask.

Aphrodite took the blade to one of the arteries on her hand and cut it, dripping thick red blood on the bowl and filling it soon enough. The wound closed as fast as it opened and Aphrodite put down the blade and put her hand in the blood-filled bowl and he didn't quite know what she was doing but the blood started reducing in volume until the bowl of blood turned into just a few drops of a brown-ish golden liquid which she bottled in a flask and threw over to him.

The process was a bit weird but the end product is too precious to not use just because it seems a bit vampiric.

Alex verified with his item appraisal if it was really Essence and at least she didn't lie about it and it was in fact, Essence.

Before leaving, he wanted to try if he could use Creature Appraisal on her as he stared at her and words started appearing on his retina matter-of-factly.

_______________________________________

Name: Aphrodite

State of Existence: Immortal Goddess

Specialties: Manipulation, beauty, love and fertility

Notes: Aphrodite is one of the core members of the Olympian pantheon. She is extremely strong and is only second to Zeus in terms of influence.

_______________________________________

It worked.

Alex didn't hesitate to turn around and leave, saying only a simple goodbye and his back facing the dumbfounded Aphrodite.

Even if it didn't sit well by him to use anything the witch makes, if it would make him stronger and more capable of defending himself, then he will consume it to see its effects.

He hence left the ugly mansion and peak behind.