This Ascent to Divinity is Lewder than Expected (A Futa LitRPG)

5.31 - Priestess II

The couple introduced themselves as Delta and Zoey. Aria knew immediately that she'd been caught looking—or more accurately, admiring. The two were probably used to being stared at, so the way she'd panicked and turned away had all but tattled on her.

The good news was that it didn't seem like her ogling had made them uncomfortable. In fact, they had used it as an excuse to come over and chat. To feel her out. They probably thought Aria's staring meant she was interested. The way they asked her about the Temple and Ephythithys's altar, subdued smirks and teasing present throughout the whole conversation, made it clear that they had come over for her more than to learn about the Temple.

Was that bad, though? That Aria was suddenly being hit on by two goddesses? And Aria knew it was blasphemous to be calling other women 'goddesses' in a temple of all places, in a space meant for worshiping actual divinities, but there wasn't another word she could use. They were perfect. More than perfect. Aria's cheeks had started burning the moment they had come over.

Which, unfortunately, they were delighted by—a reaction that only made Aria's face burn even hotter, and her stomach squirm around even more excitedly.

The two girls kept the conversation polite, keeping away from their obvious real intentions as if explicitly to tease Aria. They asked about the Temple of Natural Order and the surrounding churches, about the various gods, goddesses, altars, and amenities. Finally, they asked about her duties, and what she'd been doing—cleaning, she explained, waving her duster to emphasize—and the topic somehow landed on Ephythithys's statue. Namely, the same subject of Aria's previous musings: how obvious it was that visitors were groping the goddess's figure for 'good luck'. Delta seemed to find that hilarious, even stepping forward to also touch—which Aria protested, and Zoey also scolded her for.

The conversation was actually somewhat difficult to navigate, not because it was awkward, but because their presence simply made Aria hot and tongue-tied. Especially with all the subtle teasing, and the way their eyes flicked down to her figure, not bothering to be covert about checking her out. After Aria had done the same, she supposed that was only fair. Though she'd done so from across the hall, not right next to them, while they were talking.

They were interested in her, which Aria honestly found a bit confusing. It wasn't like her priestess's get-up was flattering, and compared to them, she was nothing. Aria hardly thought she was ugly, but Zoey and Delta made her heart stop just by looking at them.

Thanks to how flustered she was, Aria nearly forgot about the incident with the pink candles. A reminder came shortly, as soon the two girls revealed their true reason for coming to the temple.

"It's funny you were here, actually," Zoey said. "By Ephy's statue. She was who we came for. Lucky coincidence."

"Divine intervention, maybe?" Delta tacked on, a hint of mischief in her voice.

Aria paused, though not at the flirting. 'Ephy'? That was a bizarrely familiar nickname to use for a goddess. And said with such casualness, as if the woman was accustomed to using it. How odd.

Aria's thoughts returned to the flickering pink candles. If she wasn't so distracted by two beautiful women flirting shamelessly with her, she would have been much more focused on that.

So, these two goddesses had come for Ephythithys? After the goddess had maybe given Aria a sign? Just what was going on?

"You came to say a prayer?" Aria asked in clarification, wanting to know more about their intentions.

Zoey and Delta shared a look. "More than a prayer," Zoey said. "More direct. Which is why we need advice. If I wanted to commune with her—to try to speak with her directly, or be given a message—what would be the best way to go about that?"