It was already noon when they arrived at their destination, and the amusement park gave them a free lunch.
This is actually one of the capital's famous diving spots. The amusement park is just a joint venture project with the local area, so the staff left after sending them here. In addition, a special person came to ask if they wanted to have preliminary diving lessons.
The rich second-generation Mr. Azathoth refused without hesitation.
Igor wasn't surprised. After everyone else left, the god quickly occupied the indoor swimming pool in the hotel suite next to the ocean. Igor went out and brought back two cans of beer. He saw the twenty-plus-meter-long pool was filled with an indescribable mass of tentacles, merrily pressing, moving, pressing, moving, on the bubbling pipes at the bottom. Upon seeing the human followers, they swarmed over, one tentacle darting over and diving headfirst into the open beer can.
Igor: “…”
He sat down cross-legged by the pool in his beach shorts without changing his expression, put the beer that Azathoth was slurping aside, and opened another can for himself.
Azathoth underwater: "Gulp gulp gulp gulp."
Igor: "What did you say?"
A head with wet black hair surfaced. "Is this beer? I thought you didn't drink."
"I really don't drink much." Igor took a big gulp and nearly choked. He coughed and put the can down. "But going out on vacation always has to be a little different from usual. In the past, some of my friends would specially bring their family's precious red wine collection... but I don't really like it." He smiled and shrugged. "It's just a common hobby. I actually prefer drinks from street food stalls."
Azathoth's head floated back and forth, and Igor saw that his underwater body had completely transformed into an image that looked terrifying at first glance.
The human stood up and walked to the door to hang up the "Do Not Disturb" sign outside, and checked the door lock.
After returning, Azathoth asked, "Do you often go out to party with them?"
"...most of the time I'm just socializing," Igor said honestly. "There aren't many friends I can really connect with during that time."
"And Wendy... Ever since Wendy disappeared, I've felt for a long time that anyone who approached me had ill intentions—though such malicious assumptions aren't fair to those who genuinely connect with me." He fiddled with the pull tab of his beer can unconsciously. "But it's hard for me to be as open with people as I used to be."
The young man sighed.
“I might not be good at politics.”
Azathoth said: "You can't be good at everything."
He thought for a moment and added sincerely, "I think you know so much. I even thought all humans in the interstellar age were like you, but later I discovered that's not the case."
Igor's hand holding the beer stopped in mid-air.
After a while, he asked dully, "Is that what you think?"
"Of course." Azathoth said, "At first I thought I was lucky."
Igor: "...What?"
"There are simply too many of you humans!" the god's tone was accusing. "Or perhaps it was always this many from the beginning, and being able to basically control them now is already quite impressive? In any case, finding a qualified follower among billions of people is incredibly difficult."
"But I only took one chance."
Azathoth raised a tentacle with an empty beer can on it... As an aside, when Igor saw this scene, he inexplicably remembered that a fisherman said that octopuses like to drill into bottles, and he had also seen old news about catching octopuses with bottles.
"You fell on the deserted planet and met me and Hugo. I happened to be hungry at that time... I saved you."
He concluded: "A single draw can create miracles."
“…”
Igor licked his dry lips and resisted the urge to pull the beer can off the tentacle: "That's because you haven't seen enough humans. I just..."
"I've seen a lot." Azathoth's tone was as certain as if he was stating a universally known truth. "You are the best person I have ever met."
“…”
"Look." Azathoth ignored Igor's complicated expression and continued, "I've met many people. Those who are good-looking are not as smart as you, those who are smarter than you are too noisy, those who are taciturn are inflexible, and those who are flexible are too thoughtful. Even if there really are people who are perfect both inside and out, most of them will not be single."
——And you won’t fall into a deserted planet and encounter an evil god on the way to escape.
Igor blushed at what he said, although it didn't look that obvious.
The human was tongue-tied, and after a long while he finally stumbled over his words, he asked, "So what does this have to do with being single?"
"Then my workload and the number of people I have to interact with for a long time will have to be multiplied by two," Azathoth said matter-of-factly. "I can't prevent him or her from interacting with his or her partner."
"That, that might be the case..."
"So, Igor." The evil god looked at his follower solemnly, "Swear to me, you won't suddenly bring back a girlfriend one day."
"..." Igor was not only tongue-tied, but his mind was also stiff and unresponsive. Before he could react, he blurted out, "Actually, it could be a boyfriend."
Azathoth: “…”
Igor: “…”
Humanity panicked and tried to make amends.
Before that, Azathoth's tentacles slapped the water surface as if suddenly realizing something: "You're right, there's also a boyfriend."
He had completely forgotten about it!
There are six genders among humans in the Interstellar Federation, and men can get married and have children!
In a rigorous and truthful spirit, he asked, "So, which gender do you prefer? Alpha or Omega?"
Igor was caught off guard by his scientific-experimental expression and the content of the conversation at the matchmaking agency.
To be honest, as a man who had lost both his parents and had once held a high position, no one had dared to ask him about this topic openly in front of him - although there were countless men and women who threw themselves at him when he was at the pinnacle of power.
Wendy sometimes asks, "When will my brother get married?"
Igor always answered: "I don't know, I'm not interested."
...the standard answer of a straight male bachelor, used to deal with his sister's sometimes serious and sometimes gossipy and joking inquiries.
The young man's toes were tensed and pressed against the wall under the pool.
You still have to answer seriously.
Igor didn't dare to talk nonsense as if he was talking to his sister.
"…Alpha or Beta, gender doesn't really matter..."
For the first time in years he had to seriously consider this question and answer it honestly, and his whole body was steaming at the water's edge.
"So you're not interested in Omegas?" Azathoth swam over and looked at him seriously, saying thoughtfully, "No wonder you seem unhappy every time you smell my Omega pheromones."
“…”
What are you thinking about?!
This is not a question of O or not, but no one can xx to mustard!
Besides, why would you think of yourself so naturally at this time?!
Igor stared at him with his mouth open, his heart filled with complaints, which was rare.
"In that case..." The god continued to ponder, "Beta and Alpha, aren't these two qualities easy to satisfy? Is there any human who meets the requirements better than me?"
"...What did you say?" Igor suspected that there was something wrong with his ears.
"Look, this is very obvious." Azathoth spoke with increasing conviction. "I don't want you to have an intimate relationship with anyone else, nor do I want you to leave me. But I don't want to treat you like a pet. I also hope that you can get more from me than other humans who don't have contact with me. So, why can't we interpret our relationship in another way? For example, lovers?"
Igor looked as if he had been hit by a hundred beer cans.
...Maybe the ninety-ninth one will still be 'one more bottle'.
"Are you serious?" he insisted, feeling dizzy and bewildered. "Or is this beer just too strong? Why don't you get some sleep?"
"I am very sober." Azathoth said, "Just a little impulsive, maybe. But I will never regret my decision."
"If you want to refute me, or reject me, why don't you think about it again?"
"Putting aside my identity and race, what do you think of my human appearance?"
The god, who was still covered in water but had turned back into human flesh, walked step by step on the water surface and came to Igor and half-knelt down.
"……very beautiful."
Igor suppressed his conscience and admitted it.
"What about personality?"
——Have you really never imagined this kind of relationship?
Igor asked himself.
Just as Azathoth said, putting aside identity and race, after getting along with Him for a long time, Igor could even say that he liked Him very much.
Even if he occasionally thought of the other person as a high and mighty god who could not be blasphemed, he could not help but get close to Him and treat Him as an old friend or a close relative. Sometimes Igor even felt that he had the illusion that "living like this for the rest of my life would not be bad."
…Maybe that wasn’t an illusion.
Because even if no human promise can last forever, in Igor's limited life, Azathoth's existence and protection are eternal.
Even if the other party wanted to eat his soul after his death, that would happen after his death. How could anyone who dared to provoke the evil god have the energy to think so far ahead?
Habit is a terrible thing. Even though not much time has passed, Igor will subconsciously bring back two when he buys something, including today's beer.
"You don't hate me," the god said. His voice was tinged with temptation. Igor had never thought that he could have such a moment that fit the definition of an 'evil god'. "You even like me a little. I can feel it."
"Then why was your first reaction to refuse?"
"Does it terrify you to lose control of yourself? Does it terrify you to be out of comfortable, familiar relationships? Answer me, Igor."
"That's just my preference, sir." Igor held onto the hard wall of the swimming pool, relying on the pain to stay awake and calm. Only in this way could he not impulsively agree to the other party's request - that was very likely to happen, and he didn't want to see the other party's disappointed expression at all.
“I think there’s still a gap between that and love.”
"Love can be cultivated slowly," Azathoth said. "I can assure you that you are the most important person to me. But it's not the other way around. It's not fair."
The god indeed showed a slightly lost expression.
"Okay," He seemed to be about to sink into the water again, "I knew you wouldn't agree, but never mind." I can ask again tomorrow... We still have a long time to spend together anyway.
"I agree," Igor said.
"Um?"
"I think you have a point." Igor tried to drink the last sip of beer, but his hand shook and spilled it. The bubbling beer flowed along the edge of the pool and flowed forward. His fingertips were colder than the cold stone floor. But his cheeks and neck were steaming.
This wine has a really strong aftertaste.
He thought dizzily.
"There's nothing wrong with that."
Whether it's the relationship with Azathoth... or a longer-term promise that lasts longer than the life of this universe.
"I promise."
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