"You didn't ask me before starting any of this…" Raven was understandably upset with Erika, but the priestess couldn't understand why. And as the carriage carried them home, their conversation grew tenser by the second. "You've already recruited soldiers, what's next? Make an army under Milo's nose and pile up more work for Ophelia and Amelia?"
Squinting with doubt, Erika stared at Raven. To her, nothing felt wrong as it was her duty to spread the name of her goddess forward. Even so, trying to sympathise with her man, she placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Is this why we do this, Raven? To spread her name and influence?"
"That's why you did this, not us." Shrugging her hand off, the hero looked into Erika's eyes. A mix of frustration and confusion, he too was lost as to how to handle this situation. "As for the reason we fight, it's for our own survival. Without Athenia's help, we might perish, but that doesn't make her an angel either, as she, too, has a lot to gain by helping us."
"I know, but what other god can bless us with what we have here? Fertile land, citizens free of most diseases–not to mention the lack of monsters at our doorsteps!"
It was no use trying to talk to Erika about matters of faith, for she was amongst the people who lived not with faith but because of their faith. Without it, she would be stripped bare and the lacerating cruelty of life would consume her from the inside out like a worming parasite. Her faith, both a chain to her neck and a whip in her hands, held her as close as she held it.
"Athenia's a better god than most sure–but she's a god nonetheless," lifting his head, Raven stared at Erika again. "I trust Helga more than her, and if her word is anything to go by, all gods seem harmless until they're not."
"But–" Placing a finger on her lips, Raven shut her in an instant.
Sliding his finger down and away from her mouth, he added.
"Now that is not to say that I don't trust her at all, but if you're gonna do anything like what you've done every again–I want to know beforehand." To lose Erika to her blind faith would be among the worst things to happen throughout his life. And to accentuate that point, Raven leaned closer to the priestess' face and kissed her every so briefly as he whispered. "Remember, your family will do anything for you, and I hope we can count on you for the same even if it turns you against your faith."
Lost for words, Erika's mind went numb with the kiss. She hadn't expected such a serious conversation to take place in the carriage, but now that it has, it made her reconsider doing anything for her goddess without telling Raven and her family. To her, Athenia was everything, even so Raven and the others held such a place in her heart that not even her goddess could compare. It was her duty to protect the younger family members just as Athenia protected her and her proverbial children.
"I-I'm sorry, I won't do it again…" She whispered back, and with it, the matter came to a close.
The mage and warlord had won from her goddess. She may love her with all her heart, but her soul belonged to her family. Raised together from the cradle to the present, their bond had grown more sacred than anything Athenia could've bestowed.
Eventually, as the two reached the mansion, it was time to warn the others about the man Athenia had warned Raven about. The killer of saints, not to be found, nor to be struck any deals with. Needless to say, it felt like a strange request, as what it seemed to everyone was that their goddess wanted them to simply ignore this man, yet wanted to look for him for some reason.
'She must know something that we don't.' Raven hoped, and to a degree, he wasn't wrong, but he was severely overestimating Athenia's knowledge of the matter. Not to mention, the situation at Elenaris had left the warlord drained and thus, without wasting much time, he decided to retire for the night, and everyone else followed the same.
In the meantime, Athenia was fascinated by how easily Raven had swayed Erika away from blind worship. She wasn't fond of Erika's zeal either, as it only seemed to blind her to all reason despite being a sufficiently smart woman. Which, in turn, only made Athenia wonder.
"Could it be her parents' possessive genes working on her? Full of zeal about their cause, thievery for them and her faith for her?" The answer to that question couldn't have been more murky. But since both of Erika's parents killed each other for the other's possessions, a hint of concern rode onto Athenia's chin.
'I hope she isn't consumed by her emotions. Would be a shame to lose her, especially since her death would most likely end my relationship with the hero and his party.' The goddess of life and death was no stranger to the possibility of her own demise. And if Erika were to perish, her death wouldn't be far behind. Why and how? Even if nobody can enter her prison, at least not anyone who could kill her, losing her high priestess was bound to make people lose faith in her.
"And faith is what gods feed on. I doubt I would last more than a year without the help of these mortals." Crossing her heart in promise to never betray the hero, Athenia ensured that she wouldn't hack her own leg because of some stupid decision down the line.
Besides, it was far too late for her to appoint a new hero–a new chosen, as the demon lord had already been conceived and was now only a year from being born. If she knew, perhaps she would've granted the heroes even more of her gifts in spite of the looming fear of punishment by Razor or the other gods. But since nobody had a clue about the demon lord's conception, everyone continued on their path just as they had and just as they had planned.