78 [78] The Goddess of Control
"It should be you come to be my dog instead."
"This will be the greatest honor of your life."
In the tranquil bedroom, bathed in the ethereal moonlight, the night was serene and peaceful.
Upon the royal bed, a woman with amber hair, her expression almost frozen in place.
A young man with black hair, articulating each word with precision, uttered words that seemed to resonate with the very earth, causing it to tremble.
"This, indeed, is... a piece of advice for you."
Hum...
A dazzling light suddenly emanated from behind Athena's head, bathing the entire bedroom in a radiant glow reminiscent of the noonday sun.
Within this intense brilliance, the woman with amber hair spoke with an icy, penetrating voice.
"You're playing with your luck, Kratos..."
Within the amber depths of her eyes surged the fury of a goddess.
Indeed...
Even deities could feel anger.
The gods of Greece...
They could be jealous, angry, resentful, greedy... possessing all sorts of uncontrollable desires for conquest and possession.
In various mythological accounts...
The gods of Greece were portrayed as the most human-like of deities.
So, rather than calling them gods...
It would be more accurate to say they were 'beings' endowed with immense power.
And what of gods?
As long as they possessed human nature, they harbored emotional weaknesses.
The young man with black hair gazed steadily at Athena before him, despite the glaring light. He met the eyes of this renowned goddess without a hint of fear.
It was akin to the daze of drunkenness.
Intense emotions were indeed a way to dismantle reason.
The more one displayed overwhelming anger...
The more it revealed flaws, exposing weaknesses.
"This is your one and only chance, Athena..."
Kratos enunciated each word, carefully selecting the most insulting and enraging words.
"I truly dislike keeping pets..."
"However, for a goddess like you, revered by all, to be led around on a leash in public, should be a sight to behold, don't you think?"
Boom!
The entire room erupted into a suffocating atmosphere.
The once tranquil and serene bedroom was now in disarray.
Frost formed on the walls while flames danced on the candlesticks.
The seething anger brewing within Athena's amber eyes was like a rising tide on the brink of overflowing.
Standing within the oppressive aura of the goddess...
The young man's black hair gently swayed.
He looked at Athena with indifference, even as her face contorted with rage.
His frail body seemed like a lone boat tossed in a storm under the pressure emitted by the divine presence.
Yet...
Within Kratos's deep, abyssal-like pupils of deep russet, there was not a trace of panic.
"Kratos..."
Athena's ivory fingertips lightly brushed against the young man's cheek with a chilling touch.
Athena's eyelids lowered.
In the amber pools of her eyes, tumultuous ripples stirred.
This gentle caress, reminiscent of lovers, was suffused with an undisguised, suffocating intent to kill.
With just a slight squeeze...
Both parties knew.
The esteemed goddess could easily crush the young man's head into a pool of grotesque, bloody matter.
"Are you truly..."
Athena smiled, sending chills down one's spine.
"Unafraid of death, Kratos?"
Faced with this question...
The answer, of course, was unquestionable.
"Fear... of course I fear..."
"After all, I still have to storm Ares to rescue Vergil."
A subtle curve appeared on the young man's lips.
"However, it's a pity, noble Athena."
"Your threats only reveal your impotent rage..."
"Because, here..."
"...it's all just a dream, isn't it?"
As his words fell silent...
The immense killing intent emanating from the goddess suddenly stagnated.
The suffocating atmosphere dissipated quietly.
Kratos raised his arm, displaying undisguised disgust as he gently brushed away the soft fingertips of the goddess.
As the saying goes, a dream within a dream.
Indeed...
The waking world of this bedroom was still his dream.
Kratos had realized this long ago.
At the first moment he couldn't communicate with Aatrox, he had sensed it.
He and Aatrox were practically inseparable now, bickering countless times a day.
Just by insulting it with a not as good as Zoe, the printed-like rage would roar suddenly in his heart.
Aatrox couldn't ignore him.
This was the tacit understanding between them, half of a shared heart.
So, the answer was obvious.
"It must be said, Athena, it's an extremely ingenious concept."
Kratos lightly touched the bedsheet.
The sensation was so real, it immersed him.
"To blur the line between reality and illusion... This so-called dream within a dream must have taken a lot of thought on your part, right?"
The delicate expression on the goddess's face remained frozen.
Kratos was all too familiar with this kind of development.
The nightmares that once plagued Kratos now appeared in his own dreams.
That... who else could it be but Athena?
She must have put in a lot of effort.
Clearly a dream.
Yet the senses were so vividly real.
Sometimes... it felt like living peacefully with everyone was a rare kind of happiness.
But alas...
It was all just a mirage.
Perhaps it's because of the unknown dreams that wanderers chase after mirages.
Can't tell... right?
Kratos had always been very clear.
Even if he couldn't distinguish, he would never fall into the madness.
Because of him, to some extent, he had gone mad a long time ago... no one could make a lunatic fall into madness again.
Lunatic.
Those people at the Clock Tower often used this high-frequency term when referring to him.
Even the usually harsh Touko Aozaki, who had been dubbed a madwoman, also liked to use this word to describe Reinhard.
Beneath his modest and gentle exterior.
Was locked a soul as deep as an abyss.
He was awake... yet insane.
It was a madness that sought to overturn the world.
Abandoned alone in this unfamiliar world, experiencing the despair of a terminal illness, and losing his own family.
The concern of his parents.
The worries of relatives and friends...
Would his gentle and loving parents, who were full of expectations for him, go crazy searching for his whereabouts?
How much pain and despair would they... endure?
Every time he thought of such things.
Kratos's heart would ache and twist.
Just as Aatrox's accurate assessment.
The similarly crazed demonic sword keenly perceived Kratos's state...
This guy had gone mad a long time ago.
Was it upon realizing that this was the moonlit world, that he went mad?
Was it upon glimpsing that various bizarre disasters were about to befall, that he went mad?
It was simply because the heart that just wanted to live, intertwined despair and pain, unable to see any hope yet still had to try hard to maintain composure, had to put on a smile to reassure his mentor, his wife Morgan, and everyone else.
Kratos had no one to communicate with.
On this dark and lightless path, he was alone, and he could only march forward alone, bathed in blood.
Perhaps, at the moment he passed through the gates of the hospital.
The human named Reinhard had long gone mad.
[Even if you can't tell, I will help you distinguish.]
The gentle words that brushed past Kratos's eyes made him slightly dazed.
Tch... so reliable.
That's right.
Kratos had an anchor named System, an absolute anchor that could help him distinguish between falsehood and reality.
"Even if it's... a dream, so what, Kratos."
Athena's voice rang out coldly.
"Outside of dreams, if I want to kill you, it would be as easy as crushing an insect."
You are insects.
It's indeed very fitting for a god to say that to humans.
"...But unfortunately, you can't bear to kill me, Athena."
In Kratos's calm voice.
The expression of the goddess froze once again.
"Heh..."
Seeing her reaction.
Kratos let out a disdainful chuckle.
"If you wanted to kill me, Athena, you should have done it from the beginning."
"When I came out, among the piles of corpses in Sparta."
"The Spartans, who have always praised and revered Ares as the god of war, and you, who wield military authority."
"So, shouldn't you have noticed my existence long ago?"
"Even if you Olympian gods were too busy dealing with the vanguard of the wandering star."
"But if you want to kill a mortal, it shouldn't be difficult for the goddess of wisdom, right?"
Kratos mercilessly pierced through Athena's thoughts.
Even in the mythology of Greece, Athena, as the fourth-generation god born from Zeus's head, had always wanted to overthrow Zeus's rule.
In other words.
If a person learns to think, desires will arise.
If a person possesses wisdom, ambitions will be born.
Whether it's because of the hatred of swallowing his mother, or the rising desire.
They let the gods fall into humans.
For her.
Was something that must be obtained by any means necessary.
"If you wanted to kill me, Athena..."
Kratos sneered at her hypocrisy.
"...You wouldn't have deceived Ares, intentionally misled him, and let him take away my brother, Vergil."
"In the prophecy, it was foretold that a mortal would destroy Olympus."
"You clearly know... it's me."
As his words fell.
The echoes lingered.
In the amber eyes of the woman with orange hair, a strange ripple emerged.
She didn't speak.
Instead, she silently stared at the black-haired young man in front of her.
Quietly listening to Kratos, who held the blade of words, as he dissected his own hidden heart inch by inch.
"So, the reason you won't kill me is simple..."
"Either you can't..."
"You don't dare..."
"Or... you can't bear to?"
The black-haired youth gazed into the eyes of the goddess.
He tilted his head slightly and smiled.
"...I guess it could be all three?"
The tranquil moonlight bathed the serene bedroom.
A subtle atmosphere seemed to stagnate.
Would she be embarrassed and angry if she were exposed?
Would she immediately grab her own neck, unleash her divine power, and explode into a messy pulp?
No, Athena still possessed a world-shaking intellect.
Therefore, no matter how much he provoked her, she wouldn't actually strike him.
Kratos was convinced.
He was convinced of Athena, convinced that her ambition would overcome her anger.
Whatever reaction this wise goddess showed.
As long as she retained her humanity, Kratos could find glimpses of her weaknesses.
However...
As the words faded and the echoes dissipated.
Kratos was only met with a long, somewhat eerie silence.
All that frustration, all that anger.
All the goddess's dignity.
In the slightly narrowed eyes of the young man.
All of it, without a trace, vanished without a hint of regret.
As if nothing had ever happened.
Athena smiled.
That subtle curve of the lips.
The ripples in her amber eyes.
The circular rings in her eyes, like a profound abyss.
There was not even the slightest trace of anger.
Not even the slightest remnants that could be called wrath could be observed.
The tightening of the wrist, the flicker of the eyes, the subtle facial expressions.
Human anger couldn't be concealed.
And gods, their emotions were even more intense than humans'.
Kratos frowned as he gazed solemnly at the goddess's instant recovery, her graceful and divine aura.
Clearly, he had insulted her.
Even labeled her as a lowly, despicable dog.
Let alone a goddess, even the most patient person would never tolerate such ultimate humiliation.
However...
Athena smiled, completely unfazed.
This couldn't possibly be a feeling that humans could suppress and transform.
That exquisite, enchanting, beautiful face.
It was unlike that of a human.
Rather, it was some kind of... grotesque non-human entity.
"You... You've figured it all out, haven't you, Kratos..."
Athena sighed softly as she smiled and spoke.
The heart that Kratos thought was controlling the situation suddenly skipped a beat.
"All those improvements, those inventions..."
"All those things that I praise endlessly, as if they contain the beauty of nature."
"Whether it's humans or gods, everyone thinks it's my benevolence and gift to you."
"But... they're wrong."
Athena smiled, slowly raising her index finger to her lips.
"Shh..."
"I haven't told anyone this secret."
"You see, this is my sincerity... I'm protecting you."
"Only I know best... I haven't bestowed even a single bit of favor on you."
"Rather, your transcendent talent and knowledge are not something I can bestow upon you."
A halo extended from the back of her head, a bloody umbilical cord, forming a crown, hovering above Athena's head.
Kratos gazed at her solemnly.
Gazing at this goddess, he revealed a side of himself that he had never shown to anyone.
"Hehe..."
"You recognized me at first sight, didn't you, Kratos."
"Clearly, my appearance at this moment has never been revealed to the world."
"Where exactly did you come from with such conviction?"
"And where did you gain those strange knowledge?
"Like us..."
"Could it be that you're not from this world either?"
"Your mystery, Kratos..."
"It truly makes me... very curious."
As the spreading blood-colored chains enveloped Kratos's body, Athena's fair hands slowly reached out.
The corners of her mouth curved with a smile that seemed like a smile yet not.
Like the affectionate caress between lovers.
Athena gently stroked Kratos's cheek.
Even though the chains weren't tightly binding him.
His body felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, as if manipulated and controlled, making it difficult to move.
He tried to lift his arm, to grab her face, to smash it to the ground, to tear it apart and turn it into a piece of cloth.
But his body seemed to be filled with heavy mercury, making his limbs stiff and immovable.
"Clearly so weak, so small, so pitiable."
Athena regarded the young man before her.
The covetous gaze seemed to be scheming to devour every bit of its target, as if a long-abandoned glutton caught sight of a rare delicacy.
"The vanguard of the wandering star... choosing you, and even entering into a symbiotic contract with you. Originally, I disregarded those prophecies..."
"Because there's simply no prophecy that can constrain the King of the Gods, Zeus."
"But..."
"Now, I seem to understand a bit?"
"...You truly intriguing, Kratos."
The black-haired youth's gaze was solemn and heavy.
Who the hell said that the Greek gods were easy to fool and manipulate?
Athena, in particular... was just putting on a show...
This ultimate villainess.
Her frustration, her anger, her threats.
Was it all just a disguise she put on to observe his reactions?
It seemed a bit too real.
So real that Kratos relaxed his guard a little.
He thought Athena, the goddess of wisdom, was only that much. Like the scheming bitch in the original version of the God of War.
Now it seems... the gap is huge.
She didn't care at all about provoking with words.
Maybe she didn't even care about this body.
Kratos even suspected that even if he were to insult her to the extreme here, marking her all over his body with his own stamp.
The corners of this goddess's mouth would still be adorned with a gentle smile, and she would open her arms, welcoming his most violent intrusion.
Kratos slightly narrowed his deep reddish-brown eyes.
He had to admit that he couldn't see through this goddess, who was hailed as the embodiment of wisdom and order.
Athena.
Was her temperament and character, compared to the mythology's original, as deep and scheming as this?
Or was the Athena in the moonlit world designed as such an ultimate villainess?
And...
Not from this world?
Her words.
Made him couldn't help but be concerned.
"You've insulted me so excessively, Kratos..."
"Although I won't be angry with you, but... disobedient pets must be disciplined."
"So..."
"I will also, in turn, insult you, Kratos."
"I especially like the kind of little dog that will resist and eventually submit to its master..."
"Because... once tamed..."
She said with a smile.
"...It's very interesting."
Imaginations fluttered like gossamer, gently falling.
The halo behind her head, reflecting against her skin, was as moist and greasy as the bright moonlight.
The orange-red hair strands scattered casually around her neck, the lines of her clavicle, and the curves flowing downward.
Vibrant, mature, seductive, deadly.
Even Kratos, who had been through countless battles with Morgan, couldn't help but feel a bit sluggish in his gaze.
The concept of beauty involuntarily surfaced in his subconscious mind for a moment.
His brain's disgust and resistance towards Athena seemed to loosen for a moment.
He keenly noticed the change in his perception.
...What kind of sorcery is this?
Just subconsciously feeling her beauty would... involuntarily make him feel fond of her.
Does Athena have such a seductive quality?
Kratos immediately closed his eyes.
However, those relaxed and leisurely contours, like lines and contours carved by the gods, were deeply imprinted in his chaotic thoughts.
The ambiguous atmosphere permeated.
The fair fingertips of the goddess lightly approached.
Dancing flirtatiously on the young man's chest.
"I will make you faithfully address your master."
"I will make you devoutly recite, Offering myself to Goddess Athena, to please me with your prayers."
"You!"
Kratos's eyes twitched, and he reluctantly turned his head, avoiding her fingertips.
"Aren't you supposed to be the Virgin Goddess?"
"That's right..."
She touched the young man's face.
The beautiful woman with orange hair lowered her upper body, bringing her cheek close to Kratos's forehead.
The concentric pupils, as enticing as amber, glowed in her eyes.
The orange-red hair was scattered downwards.
A few strands were bitten softly between her soft crimson lips.
"But... this is a dream, Kratos."
"So, what does it matter?"
"The union of our spirits and wills does not hinder the purity of my divine body."
"You say... doesn't it?"
Silence.
The young man with black hair gazed blankly into the goddess's eyes and sneered.
"Is this how a fallen you should still be called a goddess?"
"Fallen...?"
In Kratos's somewhat stunned expression.
Athena answered with a smile.
"Do you think I actually like the praises of people?"
"Peace, nobility, purity, wisdom..."
"The adoration of humans."
"It's both worship and shackles."
"We Olympians originally had our own order... our goal was to transform this planet into a home suitable for our people.
"But..."
"You humans."
"Zeus, the flagship, ironically, generates a sense of pity and compassion, like a human.
"He... pitying you all.
"Clearly, he is our flagship, yet, he wants to protect you humans."
"What is fallen?"
"Our divinity, it's just something carved and engraved by the thoughts of you humans."
"The so-called fallen."
"It's just your wishful thinking and ideas."
Gently caressing Kratos's face.
Athena's cheeks showed a slightly flushed expression, as if she was excessively intoxicated.
"Praying for the gods to look upon humanity..."
"Like a group of dogs yearning for affection."
"In truth, I like humans..."
"I like humans the way humans like dogs."
"But, I don't like people's praises for me."
"To be praised by humans as pure, noble, and always dignified."
"That is... the goddess of wisdom, Athena."
"And I am..."
"The goddess of control, Athena."
With her orange-red long hair cascading down like a waterfall, her exquisite figure was impeccable, coupled with her flawless beauty.
A holy halo floated above her head.
The goddess of control, with her fair fingertips, gently lifted Kratos's chin.
She smiled and said.
"Let me tell you, Kratos."
"I didn't kill your father, your hatred shouldn't be directed at me."
"Ares, upon hearing the prophecy of Moirai, wanted to capture you for himself."
"I, on the other hand, even protected you."
"Your father, your brothers, and even your childhood friend..."
"They were destroyed by War Devil."
"War Devil?"
Kratos furrowed his brow, repeating the phrase.
"That's right, War Devil indeed."
"The birth of devils relies on the fear of humans, not just the people of Greece, but humans all over the world... the devil is such an unreasonable thing."
"Because the fear of war in humans all over the world makes that guy a very tricky monster for us Olympian gods to deal with."
"Ever since Tartarus was thoroughly contaminated, the fear of humans gave birth to the arrival of devils."
"We gods have been fighting against devils for a long time."
"But our main battlefield is in Tartarus, so you probably wouldn't know about this."
"Unfortunately, as people say... devils cannot be truly killed."
"As long as humans exist in this world, their fearful hearts will continue to spawn devils."
"So..."
"I pity humans and love humans."
"And wishing to create a world... without fear."
The goddess, elegant and beautiful, gazed into the deep reddish-brown eyes of the young man.
She smiled softly and whispered.
"If all humans could be under my control."
"I could make all humans... rid themselves of their fears."
"So you see..."
"I am actually... helping you to seek revenge, Kratos."
"The Vanguard of the Wandering Star chose you, he and I made the same wise choice."
"I need your strength..."
"We don't have any deep-seated blood feuds between us, right?"
"Ares, that brute with brute force, I can help you overthrow him, embrace you as the new God of War."
"Your father, your brothers, your childhood friend... I can even tell you how to find them."
"Wealth, fame, power, happiness..."
"Even... me."
"I can help you obtain... whatever you desire."
Concentric pupils.
Eyes as seductive as amber.
The goddess's words were full of temptation.
They drifted softly into the ears of the black-haired youth.
Kratos lowered his eyelids, looking at his own palm.
A somewhat trance-like and confused expression appeared on his face.
"Come..."
"As long as we join hands, Kratos..."
In the young man's bewildered expression.
Athena smiled and whispered softly in Kratos's ear.
"Losing yourself is just a shackle, but what you will gain is the whole world."
Squelch.
As the chains broke, the crimson sword suddenly pierced through.
A dazzling golden light and fresh blood splattered from behind the orange-haired woman.
"Why do you think I want to listen to all your nonsense, Athena?"
As Vortigern once did.
Kratos gripped the bloodthirsty sword, piercing through Athena's heart from behind.
Like father, like son.
"I'm waiting for Aatrox, what else besides that??"
As the Vanguard of the Wandering Star, Aatrox possessed the ability of civilization erosion.
So it could invade, like the dream created by Athena.
But it just... needed some time.
Since the beginning, Kratos has tried everything to delay it.
Amid Athena's slightly stunned smile.
The black-haired youth drew out the bloodthirsty sword.
The clash of blades resounded.
Causing her body to tremble slightly.
Athena, with blood splattered on her cheeks, lowered her amber eyes slightly.
The wound on the goddess's phantom chest oozed with dripping blood.
Kratos's attack couldn't hit her as a deity.
But the Vanguard of the Wandering Star could.
Unfortunately, this elusive woman wouldn't appear in her true form.
This was just... a sword strike on her avatar, difficult to harm Athena's foundation.
Kratos only regretted that the Firelink Greatsword wasn't in his hand.
He and Aatrox were still too weak.
Because they were too weak, so...
"You're too slow, Aatrox."
Kratos stared at the eye of the demonic sword.
"Are you really a vanguard of the wandering star? I could find an old man from Sparta to run over here faster than you could provide support."
"Huh?"
Aatrox's slightly hoarse and playful voice echoed in his mind.
"I thought you were enjoying this, Kratos."
"Although Athena is considered the most annoying person in all of Olympus... but after all, she is the goddess of wisdom who chooses to ride on your back..."
"You must enjoy having the ride on with her."
"Fuck your ride!"
Feeling the stab given by the black-haired youth in front of her.
The woman with orange hair, still had an unchanged smile at the corner of her mouth.
Athena licked her lips, cleaning the blood splattered on her face, somewhat invitingly.
There was a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
She tilted her head and smiled, asking.
"So..."
"...Why resist me, Kratos?
"We could join forces to overthrow all of Olympus."
"Bring happiness and peace to all humanity."
"You've governed the city-state of Sparta so prosperously, surely, this is also your vision?"
"It sounds... quite wonderful, Athena."
Kratos said softly.
"But I refuse."
"Why refuse? That's not a reason."
Athena really wanted to know the answer.
She had seen too many prayers, too many people, whose discordant hearts and ugly souls could be seen at a glance.
But...
Like the young man in front of her, mysterious, inscrutable, as deep as an abyss, impossible to fathom.
As if emitting a kind of bewitching charm.
This made the goddess, named for wisdom.
Very eager to probe the depths of it...
Why... resist?
Because, I, Kratos, most enjoy defying those who consider themselves gods.
"Because... I don't believe you at all."
"Every word you say is dripping with unbelievable lies."
Kratos could hear Athena's inducement.
If she meant well, why distort her own perception?
Talking about the lofty ideals of the world, but not knowing how to think, he had seen too much.
Merlin.
Marisbury.
And now, Athena.
Truth is not forged in words.
Kratos would verify the facts with his own hands.
"So, what would it take... for you to believe in my sincerity?"
Stroking her chest, the woman with orange hair, licked the blood off her fingertips, smiling nonchalantly.
"If you want me to prove myself, why don't you propose a feasible suggestion?"
"Didn't I tell you before?"
Kratos sneered.
"I don't like dogs that say no."
"So..."
"Either answer yes or answer woof."
You like making others as your dog.
It was about time to taste the flavor of being a dog oneself.
"Oh, I see..."
The gruesome wound.
On the goddess's chest, it healed instantly.
With a smile that seemed like a smile but not quite.
The woman with orange hair slightly lifted her chin.
A delicate, leather collar appeared around her fair neck.
The dignified goddess knelt on the bed.
Clasping her hands together, she presented the end of the chain to the young man in front of her.
With a smirk, somewhat provocative.
The woman with orange hair tilted her head.
Narrowing her amber-colored eyes slightly, she poured out a fascinating light.
"...Woof?"
"..."
"...I catch a glimpse of that twilight imp's shadow from this shit."
Aatrox sighed inwardly.
"She's a bad woman, Kratos, you can't outplay her."
"So, I choose to withdraw."
In Athena's slightly stagnant expression.
Chuckling.
The black-haired youth raised the bloodthirsty sword and directly stabbed himself in the chest.
