Three days prior to the start of the international.


    Ares hopped out of bed and got changed into his regular clothes while Enyo also put on some pyjamas; a pink onesie to be precise. She clearly had no intention of going out today but to say she wasn''t going anywhere was also wrong. Ares was going to go and pay the inner-court grocery store a visit and see what good stuff they had on offer while Enyo was going to go and cuddle her sleeping sister. In some ways, Enyo was like a big koala. Ares was the main branch she clung to regularly but if he wasn''t available for whatever reason she would go in search of Bellona instead and latch onto her. It''s not like she had anything else to do either. There were no missions that caught her interest. There wasn''t any training today as it was a day of rest. She was refraining from cultivating until she switched to dedication cultivation and flaunted her pleasure pillar affiliation to Ares. In other words, Enyo was bored and wanted to play. Sadie was probably still hung over in the living room after she crashed the place yesterday so reading a book there was a no go and Appa was likely cuddling with Allie in her room. This all meant Enyo only had one option available to her, it was time to go be a sex pest in her sister''s general direction!


    Ares mused his thoughts aloud as he put his shoes on. "Do you think your mother is going to come down early? You said she usually comes down on the day but, now that things have changed, I wonder if she''ll pop up sooner..."


    Enyo smirked and kissed Aers on the cheek. "What? Feeling nervous meeting your girlfriend''s parent? As long as you don''t go overboard I''m sure you''ll be fine. Just keep an eye out for any woman with a stern face and a high cultivation and try not to insult her too much."


    "Yeah... Yeah. I''ll be sure to address her properly..." Ares caught sight of Enyo looking up at him with a raised eyebrow and Ares shook his head with a sigh. "No, Enyo. I said address, ADDRESS. Not undress. I will be sure to ADRESS your mother properly. Get your sleepy head out the gutter you unapologetic nymphomaniac."


    Enyo simply chuckled as she walked out the room, down the corridor, and successfully infiltrated Bellona''s room. Ares caught a glimpse of the inside of the room, just before the door closed, as he strolled by and saw Bellona tightly hugging the body pillow as she snored away. It was kinda cute how she was dribbling in her sleep so Ares saved that image to his brain and left the house. If he wasn''t mistaken the grocery shop was give or take a ten minute walk away from here. He could always Shift around or use Voidwalk to get there quicker but he was in no rush and he decided to take his time.


    Around ten minutes after Ares left, Sadie stirred awake. Or half awake, anyway, as she mumbled about Aym on the sofa while scratching her rear. After a few giggles and ''not there''-s, she blinked herself fully awake as she rolled onto the floor. The pain of banging her head on the ground was more noticeable than usual because she''d forgotten she was in a new house. She''d smacked her forehead on the floor in the previous house so many times she''d actually made a dent in the ground. That dent wasn''t present here, though, and so the smack was a little more unpleasant than normal as there was nothing to cushion her fall. She stumbled to her feet and stretched a couple times before heading towards the front door. She didn''t need to seek out Enyo and have her cure the hangover today as, luckily, her hangover didn''t seem to be too bad compared to usual because she''d held back on the alcohol yesterday. She was proud of herself for having had less drink than usual but any reasonable person would still consider it way too much. Sadie wasn''t a lightweight by any stretch of the imagination, she just really drank like a horse. She fumbled around at the door before eventually managing to escape the building, only to be blinded by the morning sun and wishing she could crawl back onto the sofa. Her arms waved as she fended off an annoying fly and the sun''s rays while she headed away from the house. All was normal up until an overwhelming sense of dread coursed through her veins and her head started dripping with sweat. Some manner of superior being had locked its sights on her and she was fairly sure she knew exactly which monstrosity was targeting her. She took off with a sprint and looked for the nearest hiding place but barely made it two feet before she was crushed under heel on the dirt beneath her.


    "You seem to be having fun. Getting drunk and lazing around in the sun while my daughters are being seduced by some man slut!"


    Sadie, pinned to the floor, knew the jig was up and punishment was inbound. Her days of fun and relaxation, for the foreseeable future, had come to and end. The demon herself had arrived and her typical conduct wasn''t going to fly anymore, not in her presence. Sadie sniffed, begged, and even tried to throw Ares under the bus. "Rhea, please, hear me out! He cooks delicious food and tempts me with alcohol! How could I possibly say no? He tricked me into gobbling up his food! I swear I would have dealt with him by now if he didn''t keep buttering me up! It''s all his fault!" Sadie squirmed as she twisted her head to look back and over her shoulder. She tried to look up at Rhea''s face to see if she''d convinced her or not but the sun was beating down on her and she couldn''t make anything out other than the rough silhouette of the fierce woman standing on her back.


    "Are you some kind of beggar?! Why are you so easily defeated by food and drink?! You are a sloth and a glutton! See if I don''t make you regret your inattentiveness later. You can consider yourself lucky because right now I''m more interested in my stupid daughters than stupid you. Where are those two foolish children anyway? I saw you when I was landing but I didn''t see either of them out and about roaming the sect. Where are they living? Take me to them right now and maybe I''ll consider making your punishment lighter!"


    Sadie weakly lifted her arm and pointed at the house she literally just left. Although she struggled to breathe properly she managed to utter the word ''there'' before flopping back on the floor.


    "There?! What do you mean there?! ISN''T THAT WHERE YOU JUST CAME FROM?! DID YOU SLEEP THERE OVERNIGHT? DON''T TELL ME YOU''VE FALLEN FOR THIS CURSED MAN TOO?!"


    "N... NO!" Sadie pleaded with all her might for Rhea not to misunderstand. It seemed Rhea was curious enough for an explanation such that she lifted her feet slightly and let Sadie talk. "He hosts get togethers and cooks for people often... Yesterday wasn''t anything special but I came because I smelled something good from outside... He always stocks up on alcohol for me and lets me sleep on the couch when I pass out so how could I not go in? The food smelled so delicious... I''m telling you, Rhea, he lures you in with food! That''s how he gets you! It''s how he got Enyo and Bellona too. He''s a food demon!"


    "As if there''s such a thing! You''re just a greedy bitch! TSK. Whatever. I''m clearly not going to get any useful answers out of you, so you can feel free to lie here for as long as you want while I go and investigate!" Rhea raised her foot and slammed it back down, burying Sadie in the front garden like a potted plant. No matter how hard Sadie tried she couldn''t free herself so she accepted the life of a mole. This was going to be her resting place up until Rhea came back and set her free so she gave up immediately and got comfortable instead of trying to fight an uphill battle. At the very least, thankfully, she still had some leftover beer and meat skewers from yesterday in her spatial ring... She brought them out and they were promptly snatched away by Rhea who inspected the goods closely. Sadie cried and whined when her stuff was taken away but Rhea ignored her and chewed on the meat. She closed her eyes and savoured the taste before taking a swig of beer and kissing her teeth. "... It''s damn good. The hell? Even our chefs back home aren''t as talented... Oi, Sadie, I''ll give this stuff back if you answer some questions."


    "I''LL DO ANYTHING!"


    "... O.k... Does he cook regularly?"


    "Every day, breakfast, lunch, and dinner!"


    "Is his stuff always this good?"


    "Mhm! Yep. Actually, it''s probably better than this. For the most part, he caters to people individually and makes specific food to suit everyone''s tastes. That''s the real good stuff."


    "What do you mean this was how he got Enyo and Bellona? Did he make them something specific?"


    "Yes. Actually, I happen to some of the stuff he made for them in my space ring. If I give these things to you, will you give me my skewers and beer back? I''m kinda hungry... I left before he made breakfast. A rookie mistake on my end, I''ll admit."


    "Sure, fine, whatever idiot. Give me the stuff." Rhea handed over the meat and beer while Sadie fished around in her ring for the honeycomb and popping candy she''d gotten after demanding a taste. She found what she was looking for and traded before going back to her cosy burial grounds and chewing away without a care in the world for her current predicament. This woman was seriously easy to please provided you had a bit of food and some drink for her. Rhea took the goods and could guess at a glance which one one had done in which sister thanks to minty smell coming from the honeycomb. She tasted the two creations one by one and swallowed each with a soft smile on her face. Her hands trembled slightly as she wiped a tear from her eyes and she sighed as she started going towards the house. It didn''t take a genius to understand exactly what this guy had done with the food and, although she hated to admit it, Rhea was impressed with the guy. He''d clearly not half-assed these dishes and put in the utmost of consideration for the sister''s tastes, personalities, and preferences to all shine through. She wasn''t entirely convinced yet but she was at least relieved somewhat. Her impression of him had gone up a few notches already. Granted there were still a couple thousand notches to go before Rhea would ever consider any man ''worthy'', but that was more of a general parent thing than anything Rhea specific. Part of the reason she''d been asking about the quality of his food and how often he cooked was because Rhea was seriously considering hiring him as a chef. Employing him would work three-fold as he could be supervised at all times, Rhea and everyone else would get to enjoy his cooking, and if he wasn''t a particularly gifted cultivator, by way of chance, he could live an easier life this way. Of course it remained to be seen what kind of person he was and, though not as important, what kind of cultivator he was. Rhea didn''t want to entrust her daughters to someone that couldn''t defend themselves. Especially not Enyo, she had it in her blood to defend the weak and the last thing Rhea wanted was to find out Enyo had sacrificed herself over love. Still, the guy was a revenant, supposedly, so that wasn''t as big an issue. Revenants didn''t really need defending so much as they needed restraining. If you took your eyes of them for even a split second they would probably go and do something inestimably stupid behind your back for the fun of it.


    Crash


    While Rhea was pondering this and that, she had both purposefully and accidentally walked straight through the front door. Purposefully because she was going to do it regardless, but accidentally because she didn''t even realise how close to the door she was as she was still deep in thought. She passed by the living room where Appa and Leo were staring inquisitively at the mysterious intruder. Rhea was still contemplating in her head and didn''t even see them, however. Her motherly instincts guided her to Enyo''s room and she opened the door expecting to find the rascal but the bedroom was empty. What she did see, however, was that two people had clearly slept in this bed! Unless Enyo and Bellona took a nap together Rhea was not going to be pleased! She huffed and puffed as she exited the room and tried again. This time she was successful but she almost couldn''t believe her eyes after she opened the door. Bellona was moaning with half opened eyes as she tried to push away her sister. Enyo was curling her legs around Bellona like invasive ivy and trying to steal a body pillow while kissing Bellona''s neck.


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    "Mmm, mummmm, get Enyo offa meeeeee." Bellona muttered as she was still in lala land. She probably thought this was all still a dream and that Rhea being here was just a fabrication her brain had conjured right now. What Bellona really cared about was fending off her predatory sister and hanging onto the cool pillow. It was kinda hot today and she was being hugged by her sister who was wearing a onesie! Bellona wanted the pillow to keep her fresh, but Enyo also wanted it for the same reason, thus the wrestle match had begun and the two had been clamouring over one another to keep it in their possession. Enyo''s onesie had slipped down a bit, exposing part of her chest, and Bellona''s pyjamas were all over the place, exposing her midriff that Enyo attached to immediately and hugged for dear life. In one word, the display here was ''lewd''. Or maybe ''pre lewd'' would be more accurate.


    "Hm? Mum?" Enyo noticed Rhea and briefly looked away from her two targets, Bellona and the pillow, to say hello. "I didn''t think you''d be coming down this soon what with Calla holding you back." Enyo got off the bed and walked around it and over to her mother with a radiant smile. She hugged her dumbfounded mother and laughed at her stupefied reaction. "Bellona, get up and say hello."


    "Mmm, she''s not real..." Bellona redoubled her vice grip on the body pillow and rolled over.


    "Not real my ass. She''s realer than the fake person on the body pillow you keep hugging at least!"


    "Ehh?" Bellona rubbed her eyes and, sure enough, the ''fake'' Rhea was still there, gawking at the ceiling while hesitating to pat her daughter. "Oh, yeah, would you look at that? She is real... Hey mum. How ya doing?"


    "..." Rhea couldn''t quite get the words out of her mouth after the surprise hug from Enyo left her stunned on the spot. ".. Who the hell are you?!" Rhea, despite not being entirely sure the person she just wrapped her arms around was actually Enyo, still returned the hug on the off chance it was because this was too rare an opportunity to pass up.


    Enyo laughed as she looked up at her mother. "What? Don''t you recognise your own daughter?..." Enyo embraced her mother more tightly. "Sorry for being so difficult before. I love you."


    Disbelief was plastered on Rhea''s face as she cried a little looking down at her daughter''s head. She pat it and stroked Enyo''s hair. "I love you too, silly girl. I don''t know what I''ll think about this guy when I finally meet him but I''ll never not be grateful to him, that much I can promise you. You have no idea how happy it makes me to see you like this, Enyo."


    "Is everything ok in here?" Aejaz, who''d just voiced his concerns after hearing the sound of small sobs coming through the open door, and Allie poked their heads around the corner. Rhea turned around and saw an unknown man and was on full alert.


    Is that him? He''s attractive but I sense cowardice in him. His cultivation is high for his age and I can tell by his hands and his general demeanour he''s got assassin blood in his veins. Wait a minute... "Why are you holding another woman''s hand?! Damn three-timing cretin! I''ll skin you alive no matter how grateful I am!"


    "Eh? Three-timing? Who are you? What are you talking about?"


    "No back sass is permitted before me, runt!" Rhea let go of Enyo and decked Aejaz, knocking him flat on the floor before stepping on his stomach and glaring down at him. Rhea looked at Allie with a penetrating glare. "Go on then! Who are you!"


    "Uh, um, I, er, it, but." Allie stammered and fidgeted as she looked around nervously.


    Enyo slapped her forehead and cleared up the misunderstanding. "That isn''t him, mum. That''s his brother and he is completely unrelated. That girl''s name is Allie and she''s something like a little sister to me so if you could stop scaring her that would be great. Poor thing''s turning white as a sheet!" Enyo''s observation was true as Allie had gotten really quite pale. She probably thought someone had invaded their home and seeing Aejaz getting beaten made her worry.


    "Not him, huh..." Rhea narrowed her eyes and let Aejaz stand as he hunched over and took deep breaths. Allie helped him stagger off but, before he could make it halfway down the hall, Enyo utterly betrayed him.


    "You might want to check your space rings, mum, that guy is a notorious thief and he''s obnoxiously good at it."


    "HOW COULD YOU?!" Aejaz'' pained cry echoed from the living room and the sound of him leaping out the front window in a bid to escape could be heard even from the bedroom.


    Rhea couldn''t fathom how on earth some peak mental accumulation brat could possibly steal anything from under her nose but she checked regardless. To her shock, a large chunk of stardust and a few alchemical plants were indeed missing. Taking something small would have been one thing but this rat bastard had taken heaps of stuff! Rhea put aside the fact that he''d accomplished such a grand feat and chased him down, busting through the door again, running past Sadie who''d just finished her breakfast, and catching Aejaz by the scruff of his neck.


    Gulp


    Aejaz chuckled sheepishly as he dared to look up at the frightening woman which had pressure rolling off her in waves. "Spare some change?"


    "Forty high-grade stardust and thirty high-grade worth of ingredients is not ''some change'' you scamp! Cough it up before I make you cough up your internal organs!" If it weren''t for the fact that Rhea was incredibly impressed with this strange thief, and that he might end up being a relative of some sort in the future, she would have buried him in garden just like Sadie and dealt with him later! After retrieving her belongings, she put the guy down and watched him turn invisible and sneak back off into the house. Unbelievable. Enyo being willing to live in the same house as a conman like that is unthinkable. Plus everything that happened earlier... I guess she really has changed... Now the only question is, where the hell is the man who did it?


    "Good morning Sadie. I see your past has finally caught up with you."


    "Wahhhh, get me out!"


    Rhea turned around and saw some caped guy pulling Sadie out of the ground like she was a kind of weed and immediately she had a few questions. First of all, how did he get her out? Rhea had buried her forcefully so nobody from this domain should have been able to help her jailbreak. Second of all, what was the oddly disturbing mana that was lingering about? It was unlike anything she''d ever seen. Third, why did Rhea feel like she recognised that cape?... Fourth, and this was the most important question that was eating away at her right now, preventing her from concerning herself with the other ones... Was it him? Was he the one? Somewhat above average looks, kinda reminds me of Aster actually. Cultivation is pretty low considering his age. The fact that Sadie knew he would be able to help her escape means he''s reliable ad has interesting tools at his disposal. I can tell he''s wary of me and ready for a fight, so not a coward if he doesn''t shrink in the face of a mightier foe. Tongue in cheek, as all revenants are. I can smell various aromas on him which makes sense if he''d been around food recently. It''s him. "You. It''s you, isn''t it?"


    Ares shrugged. "People rarely tend to show up at my house looking for anyone else. What can I do for you? Care to come inside and have some tea or coffee?... Although it looks like you''ve already made yourself at home..." Ares'' eye twitched when he saw his broken door, or what remained of it anyway, hanging off the hinges. he''d only just moved in and the place was already in shambles!


    Ares was lifted into the air and brought eye to eye with Rhea who looked him up and down with scorn. "Not necessary. In there or out here makes no difference."


    "Tsk, so close." Ares lamented his poor luck and his failed negotiations.


    "Hm? Close to what?"


    "My secret weapon is currently inside the living room."


    Rhea snickered. "I doubt there''s a secret weapon capable of fending me off but I am amused enough by your answer to give you some bonus points." As Rhea dangled Ares who seemed rather nonchalant about the whole ordeal he was undergoing, Enyo and Bellona stepped outside through the door and watched in silence. This was Ares'' trial and he would have to be the one to complete it with no outside interference. ''No outside interference'' also included Charity and Gladius who came out of the house next door after seeing a familiar looking suit of armour and wanted to come say hello. They figured it was better not to interrupt the current event, though, and instead took a seat and enjoyed the show with some leftover skewers.


    Ares sighed deeply and his mind raced as he rallied his determination to square off against the monster in front of him. "Ok, Rhea? You''re Rhea, right? Look, before we get started, there''s one thing I really want to... Oh hey look! A crime!" Ares pointed to the right and all six legion members who were present simultaneously craned their heads in the same direction. "Hahahaha, suckers!"


    Everyone turned their heads back and Ares was gone, having escaped the clutches of Rhea with a Shift he''d scarpered into the living room. Enyo and Bellona chuckled as Rhea cracked her knuckles and stomped into the house. She rounded the corner and entered the living room whilst making sure to keep an eye out. This rat said his secret weapon was in here and, although she had zero hesitation because she truly believed there was nothing that could stop her, she kept herself ready to respond to any immediate threats. What she saw, however, was the guy holding up... A shade? A damned shade? Rhea hadn''t seen one of these in a very long time because they were somewhat uncommon. She stared at the shade for all of two seconds before leaning past it and looking at Ares with a questioning gaze. "Is this your secret weapon? A hostage? I expected better, honestly."


    Ares'' evil grin disconcerted Rhea somewhat as he opened his mouth to deliver the final blow that would help him survive this deadly encounter. "This isn''t just any shade. No, this is Appa! The cutest shade of them all. You may think it''s an unimpressive secret weapon but there''s something you don''t know about it that will change your mind I''m sure."


    "... And that is?"


    "This shade is my adopted daughter. This shade is Enyo''s adopted daughter. Or in other words, this shade is your granddaughter!"


    "Hello!" Appa waved its rope as it joyously wiggled at its new relative.


    Rhea stared blankly at the shade and all fell quiet for a few seconds before Ares crashed into the opposite wall and part of the building collapsed on his head. He unearthed himself from the rubble and saw Rhea cuddling Appa with a beaming smile on her face.


    Appa nuzzled Rhea and flawlessly executed the coup de grace that would expertly diffuse the situation. "Aunty, you''re nice and warm!"


    Rhea smothered Appa and cooed. "Why are you so cute?!"


    "Hehehehehe, aunty that tickles!"


    Ares made a celebratory fist pump while Rhea squealed in delight playing with her new granddaughter. Cute things were unrivalled and Appa''s cuteness was unrivalled! Why meet violence with violence when adorable things will make do!? The greatest victory is that which requires no battle. Only if Rhea was truly a heartless monster would she be able to ignore Appa''s presence! Plus Rhea seemed like the type to really care about family, even if she frequently beat them senseless, so a granddaughter, which was completely unexplored familial territory for her, was simply impossible to not devote her full attention too. Actually, she seemed very happy. So happy that Ares wondered if he didn''t make the cut if Rhea would seriously consider abducting Appa. Simply tying himself to Appa and framing it as a package deal had just skyrocketed his chances of acceptance so his scheme had been fruitful. It was a good thing he was able to scurry into the living room otherwise things would have gotten complicated... His wall was chipped, and his head had a bump on it from where the roof had fallen on him, but at the very least things were going well with Rhea so far. Ares was confident that nothing could go wrong and that he''d cleared the major hurdles. All that was left was to have a simple conversation, answer some simple questions, and all would be good. There was even a perfect conversation topic that he''d long since been considering bringing up to break the ice ever since he found out about the Legion clan''s main branch''s naming scheme with Gods and Goddesses and such. He could joke about how he would blend right in what with his name being Ares and all! Surely there was no way for things to go wrong!