DESTINY;DIVINE

# Chapter 6: How About A Bet

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“**Ivy!**” Xane bellowed behind as we exited the settlement room. 

We were in the hallway of the opulent auction house preparing to leave.

“Young scion Bronte, how may this elder maiden be of assistance?” Rhea chirped with a warm smile. 

I couldn’t help but chuckle at Rhea egging the idiot on.

His group, with Aria, stood silently behind him, their eyes fixed as he fumed. 

“What do you want to trade for the staff?! The Bronte clam has many treasures more than it!” He raved.

“Apologies, apologies. But Hyperion isn’t mine to trade.” Rhea said coolly. 

Xane gazed at me, yellow light emanated from his eyes and static crackled through the air. “Him? Just hand it over now then. He’s unworthy.” 

I flared my translucent black aura and opened my third eye fully in defense, determined not to be caught off guard this time.

My aura nexus contained my spiritual pressure, magic pressure, and killing intent. It may not stack up to a Tier 2 god, but it was denser more powerful than any Tier 0 presence.

With my third eye fully open, I could detect future paths of attack, I wasn’t certain how effective it would be on more powerful deities, but I would still try.  

Suddenly a suffocating heavy divine presence descended, suspending all of us. 

Rhea enveloped herself in a mesmerizing purple silhouette, taking control of the situation.

The eyes of the goons behind Xane ignited with yellow malice, but rough, purple vines swiftly sprouted from the floor, ensnaring them firmly in place. 

“Young Bronte, I implore you to save face and leave. You wouldn’t want to be seen bullying the younger generation in public, would you?” Rhea scolded.

Xane sneered and punched the wall like a child.

Golden runes pulsed on the walls, ceiling, and floors, indicating that a defensive formation had been triggered. 

I couldn’t believe I was witnessing a temper tantrum from a god.

“**What’s the meaning of this?!**” A booming voice shouted.

A tall, wizened god with an extremely long, gray beard and eyebrows shuffled over to us quickly. His sigil must’ve been hidden under his clothes.

Behind him was a gorgeous woman with a round face and small, pointy cat ears, wearing a business suit. Her sigil was also not immediately apparent. 

“You won’t always be here to protect him,” Xane whispered to Rhea hatefully.

Rhea released her presence, but she kept the goons tied up with her vines.

“Hello, hello, headmaster Solomon and madam Baset, fine day, wouldn’t you say?” Rhea asked innocently.

The headmaster rubbed the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “Miss Ivy, would you care to explain why madam Baset felt the need to retrieve me for an incident involving my students and an assistant professor?” 

“Certainly, certainly. The young scion of the Bronte clan seems to have had a misunderstanding about who exactly won a certain treasure during the auction here in madam Baset’s fine establishment. I was only delivering a kind reminder.” She explained patiently. 

The headmaster sighed. “Xane Bronte, care to defend yourself?”

“The Bronte clan is offering to trade fairly for the treasure. The Ivy is refusing to set a price. Wars have been started for less.” Xane spat.

“One, I will thank you not to involve my seminary in your clan politics. Two, you have no right to force them to sell you something. If they won the bidding, then that's final. I can’t believe I have to explain this. I’ll be having a word with your clan, again.” The headmaster said, annoyed.

“Now, now, before anything gets confusing. This wasn’t bought by the Ivy clan, they are not involved. I bought the treasure with my own money as a gift to my disciple.. So no clan business here!” Rhea chirped.

She cleverly disassociated her clan from the nonsense so the Bronte couldn’t act against them.

I wasn’t sure if I’d because to navigate all the clan politics. At least the headmaster seemed to be fairly neutral. 

“Excellent,” the headmaster said before bowing to madam Baset. “I sincerely apologize on behalf of my students and assistant professor, I will reprimand them appropriately.”

Before madam Baset could respond, Rhea interrupted.

“I have an idea. Since my disciple has something the young Bronte wants, and the young Bronte has something my disciple wants, how about a bet?”

Xane squinted his eyes, frowning. “Terms?”

“Yes miss Ivy, where are you going with this?” The headmaster questioned.

“In three months, we’ll have a martial challenge. If you emerge victorious, you’ll be rewarded with the staff. However, if Aeon wins, he’ll claim your little pink handmaiden as his prize.” Rhea declared, stunning everyone.

Aria’s eyes widened and her cheeks reddened as all eyes in the room fell on her.

“A marvelous idea! Let the students fight their own battles and gather their own resources—one of the founding pillars of this institution. If the terms are acceptable, the golden palace seminary will officially sanction this martial challenge.” The headmaster declared with gravitas.

I was caught just as off guard as everyone else.

I had no idea what Rhea was thinking, what a martial challenge was, or what must have been going through Aria’s mind.

On one hand, it was both humiliating and demeaning to have your life and autonomy used as a prize for winning a bet. 

On the other hand, if I were to win, I could liberate her from the circumstances that led to the situation in the first place.

But how would she know that? To her I could be just as bad as Xane, trying to own her.

My blood boiled at the thought of him yanking her hair and licking her face earlier.

I tried to reassure her with my eyes, but she refused to meet anyone’s gaze.

Xane furrowed his brows, deep in contemplation. “My furnace? You want my furnace?”

Rhea smiled slyly. “If you’re afraid of losing, just kowtow to me right now while taking a divine pledge to never bother my disciple again, and we can just forget this whole mess ever happened.”

“Young scion!” Said one of Xane’s goons, stepping forward.

“Enough!” Xane shouted, stopping the guardian. “I am not afraid of anything and I will not lose to charity trash.” 

He looked at me with cocky disdain. “Three months and you die. Enjoy the time you have left.” 

“Excellent, the arena shall be prepared beforehand. And again, I reiterate this will be officially sanctioned by the seminary and not a clan battle.” The headmaster said, looking at both Xane and Rhea. “And once a victor is decided, I don’t want to hear about this again, understood.” 

“Understood, understood.” Rhea sang happily. 

“I get it, fine.” Xane spat.

Him and his crew spun around and walked away quickly. 

Aria glanced at us for a fleeting moment before sprinting to catch up with them.

“I hope this works out for you miss Rhea, you know how the Bronte can be.” The headmaster said, eyeing me before leaving.

I bowed instinctively to him, then bowed again to madam Baset. “I apologize for all the commotion ma’am.”

She smiled a beautifully fanged smile. “Think nothing of it. The clans try to fight in here all the time, it’s why I have Solomon on speed dial.” She touched my shoulder before leaving. “Good luck, I’ll be rooting for you.”

She seemed very kind. I hoped I could establish a good relationship with the owner of the auction house. Rhea seemed to have a good relationship with most of the store owners on beacon street but she was more reserved with madam Baset.

“What the hell?! I thought you said to keep my head down?” I exclaimed to Rhea, once the room was empty.

“Relax, relax. You have everything you need to defeat him. Besides, you did want to help Pink, didn’t you? I told you we would figure out a way.” She said dismissed my concerns nonchalantly.

This woman was a maniac. I wasn’t even Tier 1 yet and she had arranged what sounded like a death battle with a Tier 2 narcissist backed by the largest clan in the realm.

“If you say so..” I said in deep contemplation. 

In only three months, I’ll be taking on a Tier 2, I didn’t exactly fear Xane, more like I thought I should fear his greater cultivation. 

Ever since I first came to the realm, it felt like my cultivation was non-existent compared to the depth of everyone else’s. 

I supposed it’s finally time to rectify that.

On top of helping Aria, Hyperion had many mysteries that I needed to solve. It was connected to me on a karmic level and I was certain it being here was the reason J wasn’t able to look at any other staves at Ogun & Oya’s store.

“You should probably talk to Pink so she doesn’t think you’re a creep. Oh, oh, and I’ll be keeping Hyperion until after you win the challenge. We wouldn’t want it to be unfair, would we?” Rhea said, leading me out of the auction house.

Like a Tier 2 vs a Tier 1 was fair in the first place. 

***

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That night, Pandora, Eve, and I were rearranging my courtyard to harness the abundant divine energy created by Rhea’s plants and flowers.

We meticulously moved the table, chairs, and rocks into the most balanced formation possible.

As I was lifting the last stone, a knock at the gate startled us. 

Luna dashed over and sniffed the air curiously. I could admit that I was a sucker for cuteness. How Mercurius could put her in a cage, I’d never know. 

I opened the gate to find Aria, her face downcast, holding tightly to a bundle of medicinal herbs.

I widened the gate and she lifted the herbs. “For you. This one regrets that you were injured today.”

A chuckle escaped my lips. “Thanks, that sneaky bastard gave me a good one, huh?”

She stared at me blankly for a moment. 

“Please cancel the challenge; you’re no match for him! He’ll kill you!” She blurted, quickly bowing.

“Hmm.” I gestured for her to raise her head. “Would you like to come in?”

“Introducing Eve and Pandora, my soul bonds and, hopefully, my first believers,” I said, gesturing to the ladies.

“This one greets the esteemed immortals,” Aria said in another low bow.

Pandora giggled. “Hello. I suppose you would think this one is esteemed.”

Eve rolled her eyes. “It’s nice to meet you, Aria. Let’s get out of your way so you can talk.” She said, dragging Pandora to the other side of the courtyard.

I picked up Luna and led Aria further inside. 

“This is Luna,” I said smiling. 

Her three tails gently swayed and brushed against Aria’s skin.

Aria smiled warmly. It was the biggest smile I had seen on her face. 

“Can I pet her?” She asked.

“What do you say, girl?” I asked, bringing Luna to my eye level.

She licked my face and I laughed.

“I guess that’s a yes.” 

Aria leisurely traced her fingers down Luna’s head and back, causing the little fox kit to wiggle and lick at her before jumping into her arms.

“She likes you,” I said, grinning

Aria held Luna tightly while still petting her. 

“This one likes her too.”

We settled on a bench positioned at a right angle to the koi pond. 

Eve feigned indifference, while Pandora blatantly eavesdropped.

“Apologies for the unusual seating arrangement and unfortunately, I don’t have anything to serve. I just received a new tea set, but I lack tea leaves.” I said awkwardly.

“No, this one apologizes for the intrusion,” she responded meekly.

“By the way, I realized that the whole ‘this one’ thing is a sign of respect for someone who ranks higher than you in your clan, but you don’t need to do that with me or anyone here. I consider us to be equals.”

“This one..” She started.

“I, me, her, him, they, them, anything but this one, please.” I jokingly interrupted her.

She blushed. “This one.. I’ll try. I’ve been at the very bottom of the Bronte clan for so long that it’s difficult to break the habit.”

I sighed. “Right, right. The handmaiden of the devil.”

I looked at her sternly. “I’m not backing down from the challenge. I may not know you well, but the expression you made when we first met.. It was a face I know well. I used to have it.. And I was in dire need of help, whether I realized it or not.”

“Let me help you, I promise I’ll free you from whatever bonds you have to the Bronte,” I said, reaching out and placing my hand on top of hers.

“This one.. I..” She struggled to speak.

Shaking her head, her eyes began to water. “No, it’s not that simple. I’m property, I’ve always been, and there’s no way to change that.”

“How is that possible? Big sister Rhea found a way for you to escape. All I need to do is win this martial challenge, and you’ll be free. If I’m being completely honest, I would still want to fight that jerk, even if it didn’t help you.” I joked.

She fell silent.

“I won’t force you to be my handmaiden if that’s what you’re thinking. I’d like to be your friend, but you don’t even have to speak to me again if you don’t want to.” I tried to reassure her.

“No, you don’t understand. This one is not just a handmaiden; I.. I’m a cultivation furnace!” She snapped at me.

Surprised by the forcefulness of her words, she immediately bowed and apologized.

“No, you’re fine. I’m sorry too. Could you please explain? What’s a cultivation furnace?” I asked.

She let out a sigh and looked off wistfully into the distance. 

“My physique is a Divine Yin Maiden. My entire clan was composed of Yin Maidens until they were all brutally murdered by the Bronte clan.”

I listened attentively.

“Dual cultivation is a technique where a god’s yang merges with a goddess’s yin, resulting in an enhancement of both their cultivation, far beyond what they could do alone. It’s one of the main paths of power for non-faith godhood.” She explained.

“Oh, that sounds amazing. So, if you and I were to dual cultivate right now, would our yin and yang energy would push my cultivation forward?” I asked, mulling over the possibilities. 

She flushed furiously. “This one.. I. I.. That’s..” She stuttered.

“What? Are you okay?” I asked, concerned.

“Dual cultivation is sex dummy!” Pandora exclaimed, laughing heartily.

“Oh,” I felt my face flush with embarrassment. “I apologize, I didn’t know.”

“If we were to do it right now, he says!” Pandora repeated, laughing.

My embarrassment deepened, and I turned to Pandora. “Do you mind?”

“Not at all,” Pandora replied, while Eve playfully swatted at her.

Aria giggled, and it was the most adorable thing I’d ever heard.

“It’s okay,” she said, her smile fading. “But there’s more. Because of the Yin Maiden physique, all of my energy is yin aspected. If I dual cultivate, I will lose my entire cultivation. Energy, essence, bloodline; It will be transferred to the god.”

I remained silent, but I was certain my face was a picture of horror. The whole thing sounded egregious.

I couldn’t imagine having all of my cultivation, my blood, sweat, tears, and effort over decades just taken from me.

I doubted born gods worked as hard as I did, but still to have godhood and then lose it had to be heartbreaking. 

“I was raised by the Bronte to incubate divine energy and eventually bestow it all to lord Xane. In exchange for my protection, I’m required to produce at least one baby goddess before my cultivation is crippled or worse..” She explained in a somber tone.

“What the actual fuck?!” I couldn’t contain my shock and rage. “That’s repulsive and fucking bizarre. Raising a person, a goddess, to be used and slaughtered like livestock.. I’m deeply sorry for the suffering they’re inflicting on you and your clan. This is fucking disgusting.” I fumed.

I already didn’t like Xane or anything about the Bronte but this was just too much. I hated all of this. There was absolutely no way I would allow myself to lose this challenge. 

Someone needed to stand up to them.

Aria continued petting Luna softly. “Now you understand that I can’t be saved. If it’s not the Bronte, it would be someone else who wanted to take me and use me against my will. At least I know them and they’re honest about their intentions. At least I have some sort of control!” She spoke passionately, expressing her feelings.

I couldn’t tell if she was trying to convince me or herself.

“I’m sorry,” I said, calming and dropping to her eye level. “But now I’m even more determined to free you. Control isn’t just about choosing who you give yourself to. It’s about deciding whether you give yourself at all. What they’re doing to you is wrong, and you shouldn’t have to accept it.”

Tears streamed down her face.

“I have no place to go and no idea how to do anything. I’m just a furnace. At least there, I’m protected by the Bronte clan. Once I reach Tier 1, Xane will start using me freely and you won’t even see me anymore. Everyone will just forget me like I never even existed.” She said sobbing.

“Do you hear yourself? You’re protected by the clan that killed your family and wants to drain you dry? You’re more than just a furnace; you’re a goddess with free will and the right to live life on your own terms. You’re also incredibly talented with music, so don’t tell me you don’t know how to do anything.” I pleaded.

She looked down, her face filled with fear. “I’m afraid of losing everything once more, of being alone, of being taken from what I know..”

I stood up and embraced her. She jerked slightly in my arms, but then she hugged me back, tears streaming down her face.

“Pandora, Eve, Luna, and me. As long as you let us, you will never be alone. I can even reach out to Big sister Rhea to see if the Ivy clan can offer any assistance.”

She remained silent for a while, just holding on to me until she had to return home.

“We have to help her.” Pandora sniffled, rubbing her eyes.

“You cannot afford to lose this battle,” Eve spoke in a stern, drill sergeant-like tone.

I nodded, I was determined to set her free.