Will I be willing to sacrifice my body when the time comes?

For Adrestia. Still gazing at the floor between James's feet, a grin crept up with my lips, and I look up again at the young man in front of me with golden spiky hair. He looks at me, and a smile appears on his face, he knows my answer just by looking at my face.

I stand up from my whatever I was sitting on, "In a heartbeat! I serve my goddess to the end, and if she needs my body then who am I to say no. Besides, it's the noblest thing I can do, serving the gods to the fullest."

"I know you would say that. Almost all candidates answer the same as you do. Including me." We both look at each other with pride in our eyes.

Our hands grab each other, then I pull him closer to me, instead of a macho hug, James's cheeks suddenly blush red and break away from the embrace. Then, I realize his face was press up against my firm breasts because of his short height. I completely forgot about my woman body, James must have startle himself when that happens.

I let out a chuckle as James stutter his words, "I-I-I'm s-sorry. Your soft b-breasts. Ah! I mean, your exquisite b-busts! Wait, what am I saying! I dint means to bury my face in your bosom. I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. But, there is something weird about my body, it doesn't feel right, somehow." I gaze down at my hands, clenching them and unclenching them to feels every muscle and skins move, but more importantly the sense of touch.

"It probably means, you were a man before you become a candidate. Gender-bending is quite common here. The gods need a body that matches them to some degree. Since your Goddess a woman, she will need a woman body."

"Maybe, could be."

"Just-" I finish James's sentence before he did "Don't think about it too much. Understood."

"Correct. Anyways, let's get back to the topic about guns." He walks to where his gun was and takes it out then loads a full clip into it.

"Before we move on? How about Pure-born, does their body gets taken over by the gods when times come?"

"Nope, they have a different purpose than us. They act more like a guardian during the reborn process and act as temporary gods when it needed. However, all this talk about Pure-born and Half-born doesn't matter, because do you think it easy to kill a god? Because it never happens before."

I raise a finger. "Last question. What if a candidate doesn't want to be one?"

"Oh, the gods just let you go, you probably get to reborn as human again as gratitude or something. That happens sometimes, and I have seen it happen."

"What? I can quit anytime I want?" My eyes widen in surprise at the options.

"Yep." James shrugs his shoulders.

"Huh, I don't know that was an option—!"

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Three loud gunshots shake the air in the workshop, I place a hand on my stomach, as the pain surges throughout my body like wildfire. Shock at what happens, my mouth is wide open while I blink my eyelashes a couple of times, after taking a step back, and I place my other hand on the end table right next to me to prevent myself from falling. The cogs and metal springs fall onto the floor as my hand pushes it down from the end table.

"ANDRE!!" Agnes screams as he barge into the room, and growls at James, causing him to back away in fear of the harpy.

It so painful, it feels like someone is pinching my skin with a plier. I grit my teeth as I bend forward, removing my hand from my belly, three bullets slide out from under my shirt, and three burn holes decorate it. There is no dripping blood or anything, just a mark of gunpowder.

"What have you done!" Agnes yells at James again.

"It's okay, I was showing her about guns. She's okay!" James tries to calm down Agnes.

Agnes glare at James while baring his sharp jagged teeth against him, "Agnes, calm down!"

"What?" The harpy looks back at me and confuses about what happened.

"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

"I'm fine. Just a little stomachache. The bullets did nothing, but it still damn painful."

"Are you sure?" His worried eyes bore into me, waiting for an answer.

I let out a reassuring smile, calming the harpy, "I'm sure."

"As I said before, a bullet can't harm us." James places the gun back into its box.

"You just get shot by a Desert Eagle with 50 caliber bullets. It's amazing really, the toughness of our skin. Imagine, if people possess the ability to stop bullets as our skin does, or the means to create armor as effective as our skin."

"Sure, sure, but you could have warned me before shooting me in the stomach. It still feels like getting shot, even if the bullet did nothing." I lift the bottom of my shirt to show the gunpowder mark on my abs.

Weird, how do I know the feeling of getting shot? I shake my head at the thought.

"Hehe, sorry—normal bullets can't hurt us. If it can't hurt us, then it won't hurt the Darkness. Their skin is as tough as ours, so we need specialized weapons like this sword." He gestures to the weapon among the selection.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

"Look like a normal sword to me, but a good-looking one." All these weapons have a particular style to them, no curve, only sharp corners, and a few jagged teeth on the blade.

"Don't let their normalcy fool you. These weapons can hurt us. It can even kill us."

"But can't you make bullets that can hurt them?"

"Making one bullet to hurt them took amazingly long time to do, It inefficient. Unless you an Artemis candidate, she uses a long-ranged weapon. A bow to be precise because she can create an arrow made out of the light that can pierce through anything. It's her gift."

At the corner of my eyes, I can see Agnes is staring at me intently. I wonder if he even listening to the conversation between James and me. "Still, I prefer a gun."

"Fine. I might have something. A prototype that I been developing, it might work or it won't." James turns around and rummages through his stuff again.

Agnes is still staring at me for some reason, "If you stare too much, you might fall in love with me." I say with a grin on my face.

He's worry about me, I can tell by the look in his eyes. "It's okay, I'm fine. I'm not hurt, see?" I show him my glistening abs with a smirk on my face, he rolls his eyes, and he steps back to take a seat while his shoulders droop.

After lowering my shirt down, I turn to face James, he takes out another box larger than before and brings it to me. He opens the box and reveals a firearm that looks like a short version of a rifle in a western movie.

There a sense of pride in James's eyes as he looks at the gun, "This is a custom-made, Henry Big Boy 'Mare's Leg' Lever Action Pistol .44 magnum. It has a gold plating receiver with custom engraving, and I sand down the brown wooden stock and fore-end, myself. A prototype with a magnificent design. So, what do you think?"

"What do I think? This gun looks awesome as heck, but you said that normal bullets don't work?"

"Yes, normal bullets don't work, but what I made is a special bullet, fill to the brim with powerful energy, compact, and press together by me. It took me a lengthy amount of time and a massive amount of energy that I pull from myself to make these bullets."

"I can only make six bullets, and that six bullets are powerful and explosive round. My word of advice, don't shoot people with it because it may disintegrate them, and don't use all of the bullets in one go because the gun may explode in your hand. It is a prototype after all."

"Man, I especially like the western movie vibe, the gun has." I take out the pistol, looking at the Mount Olympus engraving on the frame, and feel the weight of the gun.

"I love western movies back before I was a candidate. It's one of the reasons, why I love collecting guns."

"I'll take it. Now, it needs a name how about 'Boomer'?" The stock begins to turn searing hot, and for some reason, I can't let go of the gun.

"Ouch! What's going on?"

"The gun is registering you as its new owner, now only you can use the gun. It's a feature, that I put in, for safety."

After the gun cools down, only then I can remove my hand, "Seriously, a warning next time."

"My fault. Should have warned you. However, you still need a main weapon, a blade one, you can't rely solely on the gun, and I won't let you leave without one. It's like sending you on a suicide mission."

"Sure, sure. I'll pick one." I walk closer to the assortment of bladed weapons.

I look at the European broadsword, the crossguard and the double edge seems cool, but the katana, I mean it's the katana, who doesn't want that? Hmm, carrying them will be a pain though, should I pick the dagger? Wait, what is that? A sickle attaches to a chain, looks dangerous and overly complicated. A battleax looks heavy though.

As I browse the selections, one of the weapons caught my eyes. A hatchet, it's a moderately common-looking hatchet with a diamond-shaped head, intricate engraving of a maze on both sides of its head, and a combination of jagged teeth and smooth end on its cutting blade.

The rectangle shaft looks uncomfortable to hold, but thanks to the leather wraps, it should prevent any awkward handling. Still, it wasn't the look that caught my attention.

It reminds me of something, but no matter how much, I try to remember, it won't let me. "D&D..."

"Dungeons & Dragons, the boards game? That game only exists on earth. Maybe, you're from there before all of this."

"I'm not sure...maybe." I keep staring at it like a moth to light. My upbeat personality is gone and replaced with mild gloom. A tear drip down my cheek as I feel grief for reason unknown.

"Are you okay?"

I wipe my cheek and take the hatchet off the cabinet. "I-I'm fine...Haha, I'll take the hatchet then." Just like the gun, the handle turns red hot and searing my palm once more. When it cools down, only then I can release it once more. The searing heat didn't leave any mark on my palm, but it sure is painful.

"Okay then. A tip from me, the hatchet possesses the ability to fly back to your hand when you call out it. If you understand, then let me grab you a belt sheath for that hatchet and the holster for the gun." James begins to rummage through his stuff again, while Agnes observes him.

I glance down at the holes in my shirt and bare feet, then I look up at the chainmail vest, "I'll be taking the chainmail vest, and also do you have any cloth that I can have? I can't wear a shirt with bullet holes in it." I take off the chainmail from the selection.

"Sure, the chest near my motorcycle. I have some cloth that I use for reference. You can pick whatever you want from there as my apology for ruining your shirt."

Motorcycle? I finally notice the big junk that covers with a tarp is a bike. I walk to the chest first, squatting down, I open the chest and revealing the contents. There are a bunch of different shirts and pants inside of this thing, some I have never seen before.

Rummaging around the chest, I finally found the cloth suit my taste, a purple Hawaiian shirt with sunset and palm tree print. Among other things, I take are a white t-shirt, tight blue jeans pants, and cowboy high-heel brown boots that reach my calf.

I strip off my old cloth without a second thought, leaving me in my undies. James let out a high pitch squeak as I try to put on the pant. After I wear my pants, I turn around, and he is covering his eyes in panic. Agnes on the other hand look confuse.

"Why are you naked?!"

"To put on the cloth?"

"Why not do it outside?!"

"Oh, sorry. I forgot...It's becoming a habit. But, meh." I shrug my shoulders.

"Surprisingly, I don't care. You can look all you want. I don't mind."

"What? No! Quickly, put on your cloth!"

"Come on...I know you want to see it." I press my breasts together with both my arms while leaning forward in an attempt to mimic a sexy pose. A few trickles of sweats slide down into the crevice of the softest bosom that I have ever felt. James peeks a little and quickly shut his eyes while covering his crotch.

I let out a giggle while wearing the white shirt first before putting on the chainmail. Lastly, I put on the Hawaiian shirt and the high heels boots. "Done, how do I look?"

James peeks again and lets out a breath of relief. "You look like a cowboy about to go on a Hawaiian vacation. Why the Hawaiian shirt?"

"It shows what my moods are, Happy and ready to have fun. Agnes, how do I look?"

"The weird cloth suit you, weirdo."

I glance back at the chest and take out a turquoise scarf with white stripes. Turning around, I walk to the harpy with a smile on my face. Agnes looks at me, confuse and alarm by my smile.

He closes his eyes while I wrap the scarf around his neck, "It gets cold when flying, this will warm you up."

Backing away from him. "So, do you like it?"

A bright smile showing his sharp teeth appear on his face. Agnes answers me with quick nods. Aaaww, he looks so precious with that happy face.

"Here, your belt and thigh holsters." James shows me the items, and I take them off his hand.

I put on the thigh holster on my left leg and slide the Boomer in it. Then I wear the belt around my waist. So, I can sheath the Hatchet on my right side.

"Also here, your complimentary teleportation rune pebble. It will teleport you to a fixed place, in all the worlds."

I push the teleportation rune away, "I don't need it, I have the most cutest guide in the universe, but I do need a vehicle to fly. Do you have anything for that? Because I don't want Agnes to carry me all the way, I am heavier than him and with all this junk on me. I find it may be hard for him to carry me."

"Oh, that's how you came here. That explains a lot."

James looks past me at the Motorcycle hidden under the tarp. "I may have something in mind."