Myths Reawakened

“Someone called you Master Wayne already. Now tell me. What’s with the coin and Monica?” Auston changed the subject.

“Do you recognize me as the head of the family?”

“Never, unless I’m dead!”

Auston rejected Wayne immediately. The head of the family had to take responsibility for every word they said and every action they took. Wayne was going to occupy the seat without shouldering the responsibility, and he wanted to order Auston around? Nothing in life was that easy.

“You fail to honor your word. You’ve lost all credibility. Even demons are more trustworthy than capitalists like you.”

After the derisive comment, Wayne talked about what had happened in the underground catacombs, including the latest update on the reincarnated angels and the Divine Realm of Death.

Auston’s eyes widened at Mona. Learning that she was the Śār representing purity, Hesione, he found himself at a loss for words.

You bedded a Śār. Would Heavenly Father let you off the hook?

Also, is the Pope out of his mind, assigning a Śār as your bed partner? Not even going to Hell would be a serious enough punishment!

Auston’s head hurt. Compared to Mona’s true identity, the fact that the black cat might be the Goddess of Death suddenly mattered little in comparison. As for the rebellion in the Underworld, he felt no desire to analyze it since it was a distant matter that didn’t concern him.

“Oh, no. It does concern you. You have the silver coin. Grau, the Observer, communicated with you.” Wayne glanced at Auston. “Remember, he once offered you the silver coin of luck in exchange for wiping out the Church of Nature’s head office in Londan.”

Auston’s hand that was holding the coin trembled. “Do you mean that the Goddess of Nature plotted against the Goddess of Death, and Grau, who hasn’t actually betrayed the goddess, chose to take it out on the Church of Nature because he couldn’t do anything to the Goddess of Nature?”

“That is a possibility...”

Wayne shook his head. They couldn’t make a conclusion until Rognes provided more accurate information.

“It’s too dangerous to keep Monica in the Lando Estate,” Auston said decisively. “Take her to your residence. It’s yours now.”

“Why should I do that?”

“Your mother and fiancée are here. You don’t want them to be dragged into the mess, do you?”

“Ha, Veronica has been staying at my residence every night. That was where her heart takes her,” Wayne huffed. “It’s even simpler with Master. I could just keep her working overtime. Why should I be worried?”

“What do you want?”

“Call me family head or Master Wayne.”

“Master Wayne!” Auston said immediately.

“...”

This man would do anything for his wife and daughter. He had even tolerated the presence of Trash Jr., so there was nothing he couldn’t endure. He said ‘Master Wayne’ with such readiness that Wayne felt no satisfaction at all.

Wayne rolled his eyes, accepting that he wouldn’t get the joy he was looking for. “I’ll take Monica tonight, but there’s nothing I can do if it comes back on her own.”

“I’ll exchange my silver coin with yours. Then she should stay at your place.”

Auston tossed his lucky coin to Wayne, taking a silver coin with no buff in exchange. Since accepting Twilight Despair, he no longer needed Grau’s silver coin to suppress the roiling Darkness in his body. The swap would only lose him the luck buff.

His lack of hesitation put a damper on Wayne’s mood. He said resignedly, “This is luck. You should reconsider. Without the coin, you might not have luckily encountered me.”

“Encountering you is the worst misfortune in my life!” Auston scowled.

That, however, was only talk. Auston knew how the Lando family would have turned out without Wayne; it would’ve fallen apart long ago.

“Keep your lucky coin for now,” Wayne said with narrowed eyes. “I’m going to do a little experiment on Monica tonight.”

“Don’t mess around and find out. If Monica is Death, it’s best not to provoke her.” Auston frowned. The best-case scenario would be sending both the coin and Monica away.

Wayne touched his eye. He hadn’t just messed around with Death. He was already in too deep. The old him had been the Death Knight, so was the new him. His connection with the Goddess of Death couldn’t be severed. It wouldn’t be wise to send Monica away.

Moreover, it wasn’t easy to be the goddesses’ slaves. The ordeal involved more than rearranging limbs so that they all fit together. The three subordinate gods were alone in the Underworld at this moment. He would like to take advantage of that.

A real man should stand on his own. He would not be content with serving someone else!

Previously, Wayne’s backup plan was the Divine Domain of Storm and Thunder. In this new version of the game, he had access to a bigger map. With one hand on his weapon, he resolved to take the Underworld for himself.

Auston couldn’t do anything. If he were able to control his son, he wouldn’t have been forced to press a blade to the Queen’s neck.

***

That night, the Lando family had dinner together. The master, mistress, young master, and young master’s secretary and lover were all present. They were joined by the young master’s new lackey and the mistress’s former subordinate, who occupied the guest seat.

The Lando family had a great fortune and a large inventory of everyday supplies. After filling her stomach for a whole afternoon, Isabella expressed her readiness to eat more. Such a waste of food would warrant a beating in wartime, but Isabella had been quick to sell herself. She had signed the slave contract to secure a long-term meal plan, and she didn’t plan to let go now.

Her eye for investment could rival that of a goddess.

Silvia welcomed Mona with a smile, considering her Wayne’s Megan. She had high hopes for Mona and quickly developed a rapport with her.

After a whispered conversation, Mona took an instant liking to her eloquent, graceful mother-in-law.

Then, Silvia struck up a conversation with Isabella, wondering if Wayne had bedded her, too. It wouldn’t make sense for her son to bring a woman home without a good reason.

Unfortunately, Isabella had been doing nothing but eating.

Silvia rolled her eyes at Wayne. The new woman didn’t pass. She would take her and give her some proper lessons.

Wayne wordlessly showed Silvia paperwork signed by the Oracle High Reverend—himself. Silvia could do as she pleased as long as Isabella was well fed.

At eight that night, a black car drove out of the Lando Estate. In the backseat, Monica remained docile in the birdcage. From the passenger seat, Wayne glanced at Mona, the driver.

“Stop laughing. The steering wheel is shaking.”

Mona bit down a smile. Whenever she remembered what Silvia had whispered to her, she felt like she was in Heaven, her soul free of care.

That’s not the kind of conversation that’d happen in Heaven, Hesione commented.

Shut up. You’re just jealous!

The car arrived at Wayne’s estate. He got out with the birdcage, turning toward the driver’s seat. “What’s wrong? Aren’t you getting off?”

Mona rolled her eyes. He knew full well why she wasn’t staying. She stepped on the accelerator and sped away.

“Good woman, I’d make you my viceroy if I were the Anointed One.”

Wayne ambled into his residence, glancing at the birdcage in his hand. He let Monica out once he was in the back garden.

Coo—

Snow popped its head out, perched on a branch. Its eyes widened.

Monica’s attention was immediately drawn. Arching its back, it curled its claws in, eyes widened like saucers. Snow glared back. What was the cat thinking, getting into predator mode? Did it really think of Snow as prey?

Wayne nodded in approval at the two critters’ friendly meeting. Covering his right eye with a hand, he leaked some of the Goddess of Death’s energy.

Monica abandoned its prey at once, meowing and raising its tail while circling Wayne’s foot.

“Such keen intuition. You have to be the Goddess of Death!” Wayne muttered, bending down to pick up the black cat. As soon as he released more of the goddess’s energy, the cat nuzzled him affectionately.

The experiment succeeded. He had proven that Monica was one of the goddess’s incarnations. Judging by its eagerness, it had already forgotten the mouse treats it used to get at Lando Estate.

“From now on, this will be your litter box.” Wayne pointed at the back garden, allocating a plot of land to the cat. It was much smaller than the lawn at the Lando Estate, but big enough for Monica.

“I’ll introduce two friends to you...”

Wayne entered the sewer through his basement, sweeping it with his thoughts. A moment later, Julia opened a portal and appeared with Do on her back.

(ŏ_ŏ;)

Wayne stared at them. Do didn’t have the Goddess of Death’s thoughts in her, yet she rode on Julia like it was the most natural thing to do. What a shame that Rognes wasn’t here to witness it.

Thankfully, Do was a female dog and a dead dog at that, so it wasn’t a serious problem.

Bark, bark, bark— x2

Meow, meow, meow!!

The two bizarre abominations used the hostile language of a cat’s natural enemy. Monica struggled in Wayne’s embrace, its hackles raised.

“It’s okay. You’ll be friends from now on.” Wayne scratched Monica’s chin before patting Julia on the back, sending out more of the goddess’s energy. The cat and the horse immediately found a friend in each other.

“Who’s this cat, Master? It looks nice.”

“Her name’s Monica. She’ll be a new friend for you and Do.” Wayne smiled. “What do you think? Do you like her?”

“Yeah.” Julia nodded. She liked the tiny friend.

Do sulked. Her bestie’s attention was completely stolen by the newcomer. She growled, warning the cat to back off.

Julia nuzzled Monica. Then, hearing the warning growl, she bent down to nuzzle Do’s head, resolving the conflict.

(ᖛ_ᖛ)ʃ)

As expected of you, Wayne thought. Let’s exchange notes someday.

He rode Julia around the sewers for two hours, with Monica in his arms and Do following along. It was eleven at night, about time for the trio of magical girls to retire to bed. Only then did he head back to his residence with the black cat.

The bedroom smelled good. When Wayne turned on the light, three blonde heads popped out together.

Holding Monica, he grimaced. “Sorry, it seems that I’m interrupting something.”

Kristen covered a smile, while Veronica turned red instantly, seemingly looking for an excuse. Vera, on the other hand, jumped out of bed in white pajamas, skipping her way to Wayne to grab the cat.

“Monica, fly!”

“No changing the subject.” Wayne knocked her head with a hand chop. He tossed Monica outside before heading to the bathroom. “Once I’m back, give me an explanation.”

Vera tilted her head and followed him with a grin. “You should stay there, Senior. You tripped the last time, and you might trip again. I’ll explain to Wayne. I’m not afraid of tripping.”

♀ ♀ ♀ ♂

♀ ♀♂♀

⚢ ⚤

♀♀♀ ♂

As it turned out, this was in fact Kristen’s harem. Wayne merely acted as a tenon to keep the mortises stable.