"I vote for Amphitrite. Any objections?"
The Oceanids' father, Oceanus, was one of the oldest sea gods in all the land.
Even after the Olympian pantheon absorbed many of the older deities, he remained the eldest of the Twelve Titans, a living symbol of the seas.
By all accounts, he was a good father. Despite having countless children, he never neglected a single one.
Among the gods, he was known for being affable and easygoing, almost never at odds with anyone.
But that didn't stop many of his daughters, the Oceanids, from avoiding him whenever they could.
Perhaps it was age catching up to him, but Oceanus had developed a certain hobby in recent years: matchmaking. He loved arranging marriages for his daughters.
So naturally, many single Oceanids were too afraid to visit him casually.
Even goddesses weren't immune to the terror of matchmaking and blind dates.
Perseis, already married, had no such worries. At worst, she'd just find it a bit annoying.
Confident that she had the vote locked in, Perseis was caught off guard when another goddess chimed in casually:
"Amphitrite would be perfect, wouldn't she? Father dotes on her so much, he'd never nag her."
That, of course, was a lie. The real reason lay elsewhere.
Amphitrite?
Hearing the familiar name snapped Eros out of his musings. His gaze swept the crowd, searching.
Poseidon's queen? No… not yet, at least.
Don't misunderstand. It wasn't that Eros had some specific kink or anything. He was just curious what kind of goddess could capture Poseidon's attention.
Compared to unfamiliar names, a legendary one like Amphitrite's had a different kind of allure. That must be the power of name recognition, like how certain tycoons prefer to build up something before tearing it down for fun.
Even though every goddess here had her own charms, the moment Amphitrite's name was mentioned, the others all seemed a little dull in comparison.
He was especially curious now. What kind of goddess would become the queen of the seas in the future?
Following the others' line of sight, Eros finally laid eyes on the famed Amphitrite.
Her long, flame-red hair shimmered like coral in the light. Her timid expression held a hint of panic as she glanced nervously at the surrounding goddesses.
Despite her youth, a delicate sensuality was already beginning to show in her features. Iridescent, sea-toned scales glimmered faintly on her cheeks.
Yep, Eros thought, she's a rare one.
His cosmic instinct flared. He couldn't just let a beauty like this be handed off to that silver-haired scoundrel, Poseidon.
A bashful, soft-spoken girl with such charm was a rarity in a place like Greece.
Without another word, Eros walked straight toward her and extended his hand.
"My lady, would you do me the honor of becoming my guide and showing me the way forward?"
He already had a good read on what the other goddesses were thinking. Amphitrite clearly had a quiet, introverted nature.
In Greece's wild and unrestrained environment, someone like her was likely to end up living a lonely life.
That's probably why the others pushed her forward, to avoid the chance of someone else getting too cozy with Eros.
But that was fine. If Amphitrite wasn't the proactive type, then he could take the lead.
"Th-this…"
Amphitrite froze at the sudden proposition. Her voice trembled, and she fidgeted nervously, but looking at Eros's outstretched hand, she couldn't bring herself to say no.
Who would understand this?!
She was just a background character, and now the male god every sister was eyeing had just walked up and talked to her?
"What about me?!"
Perseis stood off to the side, practically invisible, her face crumpling in disbelief.
She was the first one to find him, dammit. Why was she being shoved aside now?
But at this point, it didn't matter what she said. Under the eager encouragement of the others, Amphitrite slowly reached out and let Eros take her delicate, boneless hand.
Her skin felt dewy, soft, almost as if her whole body had been sculpted from water itself.
"T-then please… I'll do my best to be a good guide."
Amphitrite stole a glance at him, but the moment their eyes met, she immediately turned away, flustered.
She didn't quite understand it. It was supposed to be a simple guiding task, yet under the attention of all her sisters, it felt oddly intimate.
And seeing Perseis's jealous face—why did that make her just a little happy inside?
Amphitrite was still too young to grasp these emotions. For now, she was just swept along by the momentum of the crowd.
Perseis bit her fingertip in frustration as she watched them.
It wasn't like she actually wanted to hook up with Eros. She was a married woman, after all.
But the more her sisters excluded her, the more they tried to keep her out, the more she wanted to stir the pot.
No reason, really. She was just rebellious.
"All right, now that the guide situation is settled, shall we return to the banquet?" Styx spoke up, trying to smooth things over.
She casually arranged for Perseis to be seated beside Eros.
She knew her sister too well. Maybe if Perseis had a little more direct contact with Eros, she'd lose interest faster.
As the eldest, she was constantly worrying about her younger siblings.
With Amphitrite now assigned as Eros's guide, she too was seated beside him.
Being naturally introverted, she clearly wasn't used to such a central, high-profile spot. She squirmed a little in her seat, clearly out of her comfort zone.
But what she didn't realize was… the more flustered she got, the more Eros's cosmos was stirred.
He was dying to corrupt this future Sea Queen, to break her through exposure to the raw intensity of Greece's open, lavish culture.
To shame her, to tease her. To drag her into the uninhibited world she wasn't ready for.
How could someone raised in free-spirited Greece be this bashful? That won't do at all.
Eros was on cloud nine, experiencing what was probably the happiest moment of his life.
Which meant, of course, something unexpected was about to ruin it.
"Well, well, a little goddess party, huh?"
A woman rode into the banquet on a massive seahorse. Its head was shaped like a stallion, its body like a fish. She barged in without so much as a warning.
She scanned the crowd with a smirk, her long bluish-purple hair floating in the air like drifting tentacles. An oppressive pressure radiated from her, thick and tangible.
The air itself seemed to grow heavier, as if they were all submerged in seawater.
And just like that, the light-hearted banquet turned deathly still.
"What? Cat got your tongues? What, I'm not welcome? Me? The Mistress of the Oceans, Goddess of the Seven Seas, Shaker of the Earth, Poseidon?"
As she spoke, Poseidon's gaze locked sharply onto Eros.
His heart sank.
Wait a minute… don't tell me I just walked straight into the timeline where Poseidon tries to force Amphitrite to marry her?
Also, what was it with Greek playboys and gender-bending?!
Why do they all love cosplaying as women so much?!
************************
Hey everyone! I'll be dropping an extra 1 chapter once we hit 800 power stones! If you're enjoying the story, don't forget to spend some power stones. I'd really appreciate the support. Thanks a bunch!
For advance chapters, please do visit and consider joining me on P(a)treon, it really helps me out and I'd love to have you along for the journey!
p(a)treon.com/Lnee
*remove () to open it