“Is it really true that you go blind when you see the image of a God? Then why am I…” Eutostea asked questions that she had long wondered about.
The expression of Dionysus changed subtly. His green eyes meant, ‘Do you believe that shit?’
“The rumor that the goddess Hera spread was still raging in the human world. No human woman actually burned to death upon seeing a god. There’s a woman who fainted when she saw dear ol’ Zeus.”
Dionysus somehow seemed reluctant to talk about the subject. However, Eutostea asked because it was an opportunity to solve some of her mysteries, she wasn’t about to miss it.
“Then why do gods dress up in fake bodies and come to see humans?”
“Because it’s no fun when humans are afraid. People who encounter a god in his true form get scared of incurring their wrath. It is the instinctive fear of a mortal facing an immortal. I heard they feel like they’re being crushed under a mountain. I came here to play with you, but if the other person reacts like that, you lose steam. That’s why there are often gods who disguise themselves before they come down. Well, Apollo just doesn’t want to be seen by a nobody. Eutostea, you’ve been real to yourself the whole time, haven’t you?”
Dionysus saw her with eyes that seemed to ask “why are you suddenly inquiring about this?” Eutostea shut her mouth. When she saw the melting candle wax, she was reminded of Apollo’s body, which had been shattered and broken. A fake face that was only subtly different from his original appearance.
“He disguised himself whenever he came to spend the night with me. But his grandeur didn’t go away. I felt like I was being squashed.”
“And now?”
“I don’t feel that way anymore. I also didn’t feel that way when I first met you.”
Eutostea glanced at him, asking him with her eyes. Her first impression of him was so familiar that she mistook him as a beggar. Dionysus smiled and dodged the answer. He lacked the divine character in itself. He had a festival with humans and enjoyed their pleasure. It didn’t make sense to dress up as a living person and preserve his godly aura when he was going on a trip to drink and play. Dionysus felt content with Eutostea’s words that unlike Apollo, she had accepted him comfortably from the beginning.
“Priest, aren’t you coming in? Who are you talking to? I can’t see anyone even with my healed eyes.”
The old woman came out to the altar looking for her. Eutostea reaffirmed that Dionysus, leaning obliquely against the pond and dipping his hands in it, was indeed invisible to her eyes.
“I was praying to god. I’ll add the firewood in the bowl.”
“Can I help you?”
“It’s alright. It’s what I have to do.”
Eutostea filled the bowl with firewood and picked up a poker to show that she remained to take care of the fire. Then she went into the inner room with her, wrapping her hand around the old woman’s back. Dionysus played the liquor like water, dipping his hands in the moonlit pond for a long time. He seemed to be thinking that if he couldn’t drink it, then he would at least play with it.
The night deepened.
The mother and son stayed in Eutostea’s room. The guests were given the only room and Eutostea took the leopards out to the assembly hall. When two huge beasts as big as bears stared at them, they could not fall asleep and could only tremble.
She didn’t need a bedding. Mariad bent over and sat down so that she could lean on his back. Eutostea crouched in front of him, and the sides of Eonia wrapped her body like a blanket. The temperature of the two leopards was as hot as the fire in a burning brass bowl, so the night air could not invade their barrier. Eutostea watched the candle melt and fell asleep.
“Is it really true that you go blind when you see the image of a God? Then why am I…” Eutostea asked questions that she had long wondered about.
The expression of Dionysus changed subtly. His green eyes meant, ‘Do you believe that shit?’
“The rumor that the goddess Hera spread was still raging in the human world. No human woman actually burned to death upon seeing a god. There’s a woman who fainted when she saw dear ol’ Zeus.”
Dionysus somehow seemed reluctant to talk about the subject. However, Eutostea asked because it was an opportunity to solve some of her mysteries, she wasn’t about to miss it.
“Then why do gods dress up in fake bodies and come to see humans?”
“Because it’s no fun when humans are afraid. People who encounter a god in his true form get scared of incurring their wrath. It is the instinctive fear of a mortal facing an immortal. I heard they feel like they’re being crushed under a mountain. I came here to play with you, but if the other person reacts like that, you lose steam. That’s why there are often gods who disguise themselves before they come down. Well, Apollo just doesn’t want to be seen by a nobody. Eutostea, you’ve been real to yourself the whole time, haven’t you?”
Dionysus saw her with eyes that seemed to ask “why are you suddenly inquiring about this?” Eutostea shut her mouth. When she saw the melting candle wax, she was reminded of Apollo’s body, which had been shattered and broken. A fake face that was only subtly different from his original appearance.
“He disguised himself whenever he came to spend the night with me. But his grandeur didn’t go away. I felt like I was being squashed.”
“And now?”
“I don’t feel that way anymore. I also didn’t feel that way when I first met you.”
Eutostea glanced at him, asking him with her eyes. Her first impression of him was so familiar that she mistook him as a beggar. Dionysus smiled and dodged the answer. He lacked the divine character in itself. He had a festival with humans and enjoyed their pleasure. It didn’t make sense to dress up as a living person and preserve his godly aura when he was going on a trip to drink and play. Dionysus felt content with Eutostea’s words that unlike Apollo, she had accepted him comfortably from the beginning.
“Priest, aren’t you coming in? Who are you talking to? I can’t see anyone even with my healed eyes.”
The old woman came out to the altar looking for her. Eutostea reaffirmed that Dionysus, leaning obliquely against the pond and dipping his hands in it, was indeed invisible to her eyes.
“I was praying to god. I’ll add the firewood in the bowl.”
“Can I help you?”
“It’s alright. It’s what I have to do.”
Eutostea filled the bowl with firewood and picked up a poker to show that she remained to take care of the fire. Then she went into the inner room with her, wrapping her hand around the old woman’s back. Dionysus played the liquor like water, dipping his hands in the moonlit pond for a long time. He seemed to be thinking that if he couldn’t drink it, then he would at least play with it.
The night deepened.
The mother and son stayed in Eutostea’s room. The guests were given the only room and Eutostea took the leopards out to the assembly hall. When two huge beasts as big as bears stared at them, they could not fall asleep and could only tremble.
She didn’t need a bedding. Mariad bent over and sat down so that she could lean on his back. Eutostea crouched in front of him, and the sides of Eonia wrapped her body like a blanket. The temperature of the two leopards was as hot as the fire in a burning brass bowl, so the night air could not invade their barrier. Eutostea watched the candle melt and fell asleep.
