Nyx nodded slowly, her small hands clasped in front of her. "That is correct. I am Tentamono by classification, but Nyx by name."

Benjamin stood there, in the middle of the torn meadow, with the evening wind cooling his bloodied skin and the weight of truth settling over him.

She stood there for a long moment, her small face scrunched up in concentration, her yellow eyes darting between Benjamin and her mother as she worked through his confusion in her mind.

Her dark tentacles had fully retracted into her body now, leaving her looking like nothing more than an unusual child in a strange outfit, rather than the deadly assassin who had just tried to murder Benjamin with extreme prejudice.

She tilted her head to one side, then the other, her brow furrowing deeper and deeper until finally, with a soft sound of realization, she spoke.

"Ah, mother, I think I understand now," she said, her voice carrying a note of amused comprehension. "I believe he must have confused us because we are currently using humanoid forms instead of our true shapes."

Rahab shook her head slowly, her pale features twisting into an expression of mild disbelief.

Her red cloth rustled softly as she moved, and the custom collar around her throat glinted in the fading evening light.

"Huh? That is impossible," she said firmly, her gaze narrowing with conviction. "One as powerful as Master should be able to tell instantly when he is standing before an individual he has seen—even if their forms have changed! That kind of perception is basic for someone of his caliber! I refuse to believe that he could be so easily fooled by something as simple as a physical transformation when his soul should recognize ours instantly!"

"..." Benjamin stood there in absolute silence.

His mouth was slightly open, his eyes wide and unblinking.

He could not find the words to respond. Every thought in his head had scattered like leaves in a hurricane, leaving behind only the hollow echo of realization.

Partly because that 1000-foot-tall abomination was now standing directly in front of him in the form of this pale woman in red, salacious clothing.

And not just standing, she had been living with him. Sitting in his village and calling him Master.

And he had not recognized her at all.

And partly because he could not understand how he had missed it.

How he had looked at her face, yellow eyes, and her pale skin and had not once connected her to the thing he had fought with such desperate fury.

Rahab and Nyx soon moved toward him, their bare feet padding softly across the torn grass.

They closed the distance with easy, casual steps, as if they were approaching a friend they had known for years rather than the man who had killed one of them and been stabbed by the other.

And then they embraced him warmly, their arms wrapping around him from both sides, their bodies pressing against his with a gentle affection that made his breath catch in his throat.

"R... Rahab..." Benjamin finally managed to speak, his voice barely above a whisper.

He could feel their warmth seeping into him through his torn clothes — the softness of Rahab’s bare midriff against his side, the small solidness of Nyx’s head pressing against his ribs.

He could smell them too, a faint scent like rain on dry earth, clean and natural, and utterly at odds with the violence they were capable of.

Despite everything, the confusion, the shock and the absurdity of the situation, he found himself smiling.

"No matter how stupid and dumb Master may prove to be," Rahab began, her voice warm and genuine as she pressed her cheek against his, squishing the side of his face with her own, her pale skin soft against his jaw. "I have decided to follow him forever. I have made my choice and I will not waver from it, no matter how many times he fails to recognize me or forgets my true nature."

Her yellow eyes softened as she then looked at him.

"Don’t worry," she continued, her voice gentle and reassuring. "It is not so much a big deal that you cannot remember two entities simply because they changed forms."

"Thanks," Benjamin said, managing an awkward smile. "But your kindness kinda hurt."

He pulled back slightly, his gaze shifting to the tall, dark-skinned woman who had been standing at the edge of the clearing throughout the entire exchange.

"Ah, Deva," Benjamin called out, his voice returning to a more normal tone. "Do you know where your sister is right now? I want to speak with her seriously. I have some things I need to discuss with her."

***

Benjamin’s POV

Uwah. Life as a demi-god has actually been really weird.

For starters, I think I have completely lost my sense of self-preservation, and that realization is terrifying.

I used to be careful and cautious. I used to look both ways before crossing a metaphorical street and consider the consequences of my actions before I committed to them.

Sys said it is because I have become such a higher existence than most beings in this world.

She explained it to me in terms I could barely understand, but the gist of it was this: my instincts have recalibrated themselves to my new power level.

Since I am so much stronger than almost everyone I meet, my subconscious mind has simply stopped registering things as threats.

It haughtily assumes, on some deep and automatic level, that no one can do me any real harm. None that I have met, at least.

But that is a dangerous assumption to make!

I knew I was getting way too conceited these days, the way I underestimated most threats to my life.

And the problem is even worse because I use most of my willpower and concentration to withhold the real demi-god part of myself — to suppress my true power so that I can function like a more normal person.

I hold back constantly, all the time, in every moment, and that means I am also holding back my defenses.

Even something that would not have drawn blood from me when I was just a normal god-touched individual would now definitely cut me in two now.

My body is not as tough when I am not actively channeling my power. My reflexes are not as sharp.

My regeneration feels like it’s sometimes slower.

My danger bells are dulled too.

Or, more accurately, they have not been working at all.