Aww, God of War Ragnarok didn't win Game of the Year 2022.

But I am really happy for Elden Ring. It's bittersweet for me since I love both games. Both games truly deserved all the awards that they have won!

"Boy!" Normal Speech.

'Boy!' Normal Thought.

"Nista!" Power/Technique.

"Loki" Demonic/Dragon Speeches.

'Loki' Demonic/Dragon Thoughts.

Summary: At seventeen years of age, Atreus and his father found themselves in another realm, one that was unfortunately filled with the less crazy, but irritating versions of the gods they had slain. Can they live their life in peace? Or the supernatural world of DxD will be forced to know the full might of THE God of War? Atreus will try to make sure that won't happen… anytime soon at least.

The story will focus on Atreus, with Kratos being a side-character most of the time.

Warning: There will be a lot of smut, lemon and 18+ stuff in this story. Read at your own risk! You have been warned.

Also, a friendly reminder in case some of you forgot or overlooked it:

Atreus is known as Atreus by everyone outside his family.

But Kratos is known as Kevin.

And Mimir will be Mike.

Son of War

Chapter 19

Rias Gremory did not know that what she and Atreus were doing could really be called their first date, but even in her wildest dream she could never imagine it to be something like that.

Not that she was complaining, however, since she was having a lot of fun.

"Alright, Rias." Atreus spoke quietly as he kneeled next to her, his hands gently adjusting her form while she held his wooden bow in hand and took aimed with an arrow at the ready "Take a deep breath. Try to relax as much as you can, and remember..."

"… accuracy over speed."

Rias nodded her head slowly and repeated the words Atreus had taught her just a moment ago, following his instructions while aiming her arrows at a rabbit that were currently twenty feet away from where they were hiding.

The moment that Atreus asked her out after the battle at Kuoh academy, had been one of the best moments that Rias had had in her life; right up there with the one when he defeated Raiser convincingly and freed her from the marriage engagement that she had had with the arrogant, cocky playboy third son of the Phenex devil household. Rias had imagined so many scenarios where she would be the ones who made the first moves, since she didn't think that Atreus would pay any special attention to her attempts to impress him whenever she got to cook for him and his father and yet, Atreus was the one who had done it first.

Soon after the devil servants of her household and those from the Sitri showed up, he had approached her and asked Rias if she would like to be his girlfriend, and if she would like to go on a date with him. Her answer of course had been an absolute yes, and she and Atreus had been dating for three days now.

Although at first, Rias had been quite stunned, especially only a few minutes after witnessing the display of strength and powers that he and his father had shown – and quite frankly, no one could blame her for feeling the way she did.

Regardless, while Atreus had said he would to take her out on their first date on Friday night, it had ended up getting canceled because Rias had had to spend the whole night writing a full report about what happened at Kuoh academy with Sona to her brother, his Maou colleagues and the higher ups of the devil faction, who all seemed to have been growing more and more wary of Atreus and his father.

And as much as Rias did not want them to, feeling worried that it would get in the way of her relationship with Atreus, she understood that her brother and the others had every reason to be wary of him, considering the strength and powers they had shown, and the enemies that they had fought that night. Kokabiel and his army were one thing, but the Cerberi and Cerberus itself had been a completely different story, considering that the guard dog of hell was an immensely powerful creature, being the eldest son of the mother monsters Echidna, and the being that even the gods themselves feared, Typhon.

But the real problem was the young man who had attacked Atreus. She and Sona had no idea who he was, at least at first, but their elder siblings had informed them about his identity, which had left both her and her childhood friend in total shock.

His name was Zagreus and he was the Prince of the Underworld, being the son of Hades, the Greek god of the realm itself.

Her boyfriend, Atreus, had fought on equal terms against a god.

A god.

The more she knew about Atreus and his father, the more confused she became, and the more questions that she had; questions that she desperately wanted answers for.

What were they? How were they so powerful? How did they become THAT powerful?...

And did Atreus actually turn himself into a wolf? Sure, there were plenty of transformation magic that allowed the users to assume different forms, even those of animals, but after seeing how Atreus' body had shapeshifted into that huge, brown furred wolf and how aggressive and feral he had become in that form, Rias couldn't help but wonder if it was a transformation spell or a natural ability of his.

And if Atreus was already strong enough to fight on par with a god, then exactly how strong was his father, who her boyfriend had claimed multiple times to be the one who had taught him everything that he knew? He could wrestle down a ten feet tall hellhound and broke its necks with little to no effort, and he could even hold back the Cerberus itself with his chained blades while looking like he was barely trying to do so at all.

If that was just a fragment of his power...

Were Atreus and his father gods themselves?

Atreus also appeared to have some kind of relationship with the Greek goddess of love and beauty even, so all things considered that thought might not seem as far fetched as it sounded.

Then again, she had never heard of a god who worked as a humble security guard for a local construction group, and one that went on to attend a normal high school before, so…

"Steady. Steady. Alright, good. You can shoot when you are ready." Atreus then said and Rias did not waste any more time to release the bowstring, allowing it to propel the arrow to fly forward with high velocity.

So of course, having only started trying out archery only half an hour ago, she missed, hitting the spot on the ground beside the rabbit and startled it, making it hop away and disappear into a nearby bush.

"Aww." Rias expressed her disappointment, having wanted to impress Atreus with her aim.

Turned out that hitting a target with a bow and arrow was so much harder than tossing a ball or unleashing a wave of power of destruction at the enemies that were throwing themselves at her with the intent to kill. Not to mention that the rabbit had to be one of the smallest targets that she had ever tried to hit.

"It's okay. You did good with your form. You just gotta practice your aim a bit more, that's all." Atreus said with an amused chuckle as they removed themselves from their hiding spot, standing up to walk toward the place where the rabbit had been. "And try not to hesitate as well next time."

"Wait, did I?"

"Yes. You felt bad for the rabbit, and your feelings affected your aim. It was written all over your face, you know." Atreus said as he bend over to pick up the arrow, pulling it out of the ground to put it back into the quiver he was wearing on his back. It was not the same quiver that Artemis had blessed, so the arrows were all normal wooden arrows that he had brought along with him and his father from their home world to this one.

Likewise, the bow Rias was using was his old Talon bow. Having bought some maintenance kit from Brok and Sindri, it wasn't that hard for Atreus to restore his old bow to its former state and make it look as good as new.

"Next time, try to not think of what you are hunting as an animal, think of it simply as a target." Atreus then said, giving Rias the same advice his father had once given him when they first journeyed together across the realm to fulfill his mother's wish.

"I… see." Rias said, nodding her head in understanding. "So, what are we…"

Before the crimson haired girl could finish asking the question, wondering what they should do next, a rustling noise coming from the same direction the rabbit had disappeared caused her to turn her head, the bow in her hands raising a little in alarm.

They were, after all, currently hunting in the middle of a forest in Europe, so besides rabbits, deer and boars, there were also all sorts of predators and dangerous animals, some of which could easily catch her off guard if she was not careful.

In fact, just a moment ago she had almost been bitten by a snake dangling from a tree. It had been the reason why she now reacted so cautiously to the noise.

"It's okay." Atreus said reassuringly with a small smile, putting a hand on Rias' wrist and gently lowering it down just as Fenrir emerged from the bushes in front of them with the rabbit from earlier in his mouth, looking quite content and happy as he strutted playfully over to Rias.

"Aww, good boy." Rias cooed, giggling as she lowered her body down on one knee in front of Fenrir to start petting him, praising her boyfriend's pet wolf for catching the rabbit for her.

Just like his masters, Fenrir had shocked her and every devil who had been there that night at Kuoh academy. Even after witnessing everything with her own eyes, it was still hard for Rias to believe that this cute, friendly wolf was the same one who had fought evenly against the Cerberus itself, helping his masters and the son of Hades subdue the beast so they could free it from the magic that appeared to have turned it into a mindless monster.

As much as Rias had wanted to just leave it, she had been too curious about Fenrir's real identity to drop the case, knowing that there could not be many mythical wolves in this world who could have such unimaginable powers, with the most obvious one of them all being the wolf that Atreus had claimed to have named his pet after, the God devouring monster which was created by the evil god Loki, the actual Fenrir itself.

She and Akeno had looked into the matter together right after she had finished writing the report. Although from every accessible record about the god devouring, none mentioned the power to manipulate ice, but to be one hundred percent sure Rias had had Akeno contacted the current family master in training, Zatouji, and learnt from him everything that he knew about Fenrir and its current whereabouts.

To their relief, it appeared that Fenrir was still being imprisoned in Asgard by the Norse gods, who chained it down with Gleipnir, magical chains forged by the dwarves and enchanted by the dark elves of Alfheim. Because the monster were constantly being watched by two of the nine original Valkyries, it was nigh impossible for it to have escaped on its own or being freed by someone without alerting the entire world due to how dangerous it was, allowing Rias to rule out the possibility that Atreus' pet wolf and Fenrir was one and the same.

Although from what he had seen, Fenrir could might as well be as strong as the monster wolf that he was named after.

"That should be enough now. Come on, let's return to our camp before it gets dark." Atreus spoke to his girlfriend, making her stand up and nod her head to him with a smile.

With Fenrir following closely beside them, Atreus and Rias made their ways north to head back to their camp, with Atreus stopping at their hiding spot to pick up the carcass of the deer he had hunted earlier, hoisting it over his shoulders and keeping it steady with one arm as he walked with his girlfriend and pet wolf.

Crossing over a small hill, the three of them eventually arrived at a clearing on the bank of a beautiful river, with a breathtaking view and a certain ashen skinned man who was currently chopping some woods with his axe to add into the campfire. Behind him was a set of tents that Rias had helped him and his son set up before leaving to hunt with Atreus, letting his father stay behind to finish the rest.

"Ara ara, welcome back, you three."

Rias pouted when she heard that awfully sweet tone of her best friend and the queen of her peerage, Akeno Himejima, who approached them from the side with a beaming smile and a large bowl of spices and vegetables, which she appeared to have been mixing with a large wooden spoon, in her hand. As happy as she was having her best friend on this hunting trip with her, having someone who was completely obvious about camping and hunting in the wild to relate herself to, Akeno was also one of the reasons she did not know if what she and Atreus were having could really be considered their first date or not.

The other reason was his father, but for simply being there (not that she could complain though, since the trip was originally between him and his son, and their pet wolf only). Moreover, the man was also surprisingly sensitive about the matter. He had been constantly making sure that the two of them would have their own time together, staying out of sight whenever his presence was not needed, and even setting up opportunities for Rias to hang out with his son alone, with the hunt for a rabbit being his idea.

However, he had also done the same for Akeno, who had been invited to come along with them on this hunting trip, with the idea apparently being agreed upon by both son and father. Before she and Atreus left to hunt that rabbit, his father had tasked his son and Akeno to find some vegetables and berries to make spices and side dishes for dinner later that night. She had no idea what they did together while gathering those veggies, having had to stay behind to answer a call from her brother, but Akeno couldn't have looked any happier when they returned.

"You should finish that one up soon, Akeno." Atreus said as he made a gesture with his head toward the bow of veggies in Akeno's hands before pointing at the deer's carcass on his shoulders "I am gonna go show the deer to father. I think he wants to show you two how to butcher it."

"will do, Atreus-kun." Akeno replied pleasantly with a beaming smile to Atreus, making him grin at her before walking away, making his way over to his father and leaving Rias and Akeno behind with Fenrir, who strutted over to the two and sat down between them while still holding the rabbit in his mouth.

"Well, it looks like Fenrir got the rabbit. Good boy. It was just as I had expected." Noticing the lack of arrow wound on the rabbit's body, Akeno commented as she reached her hand out to pet the wolf, making him whine happily while Rias could only pout at her best friend.

"What are you trying to imply, Akeno?" Rias asked while narrowing her eyes at Akeno, who merely hid her smile before her hand before answering.

"Ara, I am not trying to imply anything at all, Rias. Why are you so suspicious of me all the time, especially when Atreus-kun is around?" Akeno asked playfully, before noticing Atreus waving his hand to them while standing next to his father, who had laid down his axe and brought out a set of butcher knives. "Well, I guess that's our cue to leave this matter for later. Let's not keep them waiting now, shall we?"

"Why yes. And just wait till we are back home, Akeno." Rias said with a confident smile, which Akeno responded with one of her own as they made their way over to Atreus and his father, with Fenrir standing up and following shortly behind them.

And so, for the rest of day, Rias and Akeno spent their time with Atreus and his father, who taught them how to butcher the deer step by step before carrying on with the rabbit. Even if butchering game meat was not really that big of a deal, Rias and Akeno could finally see why Atreus held his father in such high regards, as the man reminded them of an old wise teacher. He was calm and collected, and each word he spoke, each guide he showed them carried within them a weight that Rias and Akeno could not help but find themselves following with no hesitation.

Though, Rias and Akeno couldn't help but wonder if he would ever call them by their names and not just 'girl'.

Rias believed she had even heard him addressing her as 'the red one' when asking his son about her, making her wonder if that really was just a habit of his.

Later on that night, the two devil young women found themselves sitting together on makeshift benches and chairs that was made from the trunk of a fallen tree with Atreus, his father and their pet wolf, surrounding the campfire in the center of their camp and eating the roasted game meat they had cooked. They had gone camping before, but this had to be one of the most unique and best camping experiences that they had ever had.

"Wait, so you guys are saying the entire academy has already been restored?" Atreus asked in mild surprise as he looked at Rias and Akeno, having been talking to the two for the past twenty minutes as they had dinner together. The two girls were sharing the rabbit Fenrir had caught, along with a vegetable side dish that Akeno had made.

Kratos, meanwhile, sat and enjoyed his foot in silence on the other side of the campfire with Fenrir, letting his son talk to the two devil girls without any interruption. Occasionally, however, the man would cut off a small piece of meat from his portion and toss it to Fenrir, who actually had already finished eating half the deer by himself just a moment ago.

"Yes. It was actually the work of the fallen angels, not ours." Rias answered with a nod of her head. It was an information that she had learnt from the call with her brother earlier "I don't know the full details, but it seems Azazel wanted to make up for the destruction that Kokabiel and his followers had caused. He did send someone over to take care of Kokabiel for us, but you two took care of him before they arrived."

"I mean… my father and I did give him a beatdown, but it was Cerberus who finished him off." Atreus said with a chuckle, while his father merely grunted in response "Hope that he did not get a stomachache or anything like that. Can you imagine eating that guy? Ugh."

He winced, making a look of disgust with his face before going back to eat as Rias and Akeno giggled.

"Still you and your father were able to beat him so easily, Atreus-kun. We couldn't even put a scratch on him even with our best shots." Akeno admitted honestly before saying.

"That fallen angel was cocky and arrogant." Kratos said, speaking up for the first time since dinner started in a firm tone and making all three of them turn to look at him. "He had too much confidence in his own ability to deal with us and lost focus at the most crucial moment. That is how we were able to win so easily."

"And because we are quite strong too." Atreus said, chuckling as he gazed at his father, who simply gave his son a look and another grunt in response, before continuing "But my father's right. Kokabiel lost because he was arrogant. Even if we had given him the chance to fight back, he wouldn't have been able to do anything at all."

"I see." Rias said, as she and Akeno nodded their heads at them in understanding. "Still, the way you two fought together… I don't think I have ever seen anything like that."

"How did you do it, Otou-sama, Atreus-kun?" Akeno then asked. Having been called father the entire day by both girls, Kratos no longer thought much of it, giving no reaction as he listened to the black haired young woman and allowed her to finish asking him "How did you two fight together so well like that?"

"Trust."

Atreus and his father spoke up at the same time, before the ashen skinned man added strongly, leaving Rias and Akeno unable to do anything but stare at the two in amazement.

"And discipline."

"Can you… teach us, father?" It was Rias who made that request, looking hopefully at her boyfriend and his father, who had made her and everyone, even Asia and the newest member, the former exorcist and wielder of the holy sword Durandal Xenovia Quarta herself, realize just how weak they were and how disoriented they had been as a group.

If there was anyone who could help them get stronger and teach them how to work as a cohesive unit, then it would be him, the ashen skinned man who was sitting on the other side of the campfire in front of her, looking as serious as he had always been from the moment she and Akeno first saw him.

As they waited patiently for Atreus and Kratos to answer the request, the ashen skinned man instead looked over to his son, who also did the same thing and gave his father a meaningful look. After a moment, Kratos closed his eyes and gave Atreus a small, but firm nod of approval, making his son smile before standing up to walk toward their tents, disappearing into the one that he would share with his father later that night.

"Atreus told me…" Kratos began as he looked over to Rias, making her widen her eyes slightly in surprise before collecting herself "that even though he saved you from your marriage engagement with the son of the other devil household, more will come, correct?"

"Yes, father. The opportunity to unify their families to mine through marriage is not something that some devil households can pass on so easily, especially after discovering that the engagement between my family and the Phenex is void." Rias answered, nodding her head to Kratos. "Even now as we speak, my father is turning down offers from the devil families who wish to marry their sons to me. And as much as I don't want it to happen, sooner or later even more will come and they won't just stop at letters and invitations, especially if they find out that a Rating game match was previously our solution to resolve the disagreements."

"And when that happens, what will you do?" Kratos asked firmly, looking directly into Rias' eyes as he leaned forward and rested his arm on one knee "Do you wish my son to fight those suitors of yours like what he did the last time? I'm sure Atreus will be more than happy if he can personally keep them away from you from now on."

"I know, father, and I am grateful for that." Rias answered with a smile.

If he was willing to fight for her when they were just friends, then Rias could only imagine the length that he would go now that they had started dating.

"However," Rias then continued, straightening herself as she continued to speak to the ashen skinned man sitting in front of her "I promised Atreus to take care of my own problem the next time it showed up. The first time, he did it not only because he wanted to help me, but also because he knew that I would lose, because he knew that my peerage and I were not ready to face such opponents, who were so experienced in the game. He simply wished to buy me more time to grow stronger, so that I can handle this problem of mine on my own."

"So father, I want to get stronger." Rias said with a hand placing on her chest before looking at Akeno, who gave her a smile "I want Akeno and every member of my family to become stronger, not just to fight off those who wished to beat me to earn my hand in marriage, but to prepare ourselves for the challenges ahead of us that we will be facing together."

"Hmmm… good. Very well then. We shall discuss this matter later." Snorting lightly under his breath, Kratos nodded his head and spoke to Rias, who couldn't help but smile at him before looking to the side and seeing Atreus returning with a small brown bag in his hand.

The bag looked nothing out of the ordinary, but she knew better than judging a book by its cover.

"Here you go, father." Atreus said, handing his father the bag before walking back to his chair and sitting down, looking slightly but rather surprisingly uncomfortable as he talked to Rias and Akeno "So uhm… you girls probably don't know this, but… my family actually has a fourth member that you haven't met."

"You do?" Rias asked in surprise yet feeling somewhat intrigued. Sitting beside her, Akeno was also feeling the same, as the two girls looked between Atreus and the bag in his father's hand, unable to stop themselves from wondering what a bag had anything to do with the fourth member of the family that he mentioned.

"Since we will be hanging around each other a lot more from now on, we have agreed to introduce him to you guys. Just… promise to not freak out, okay?" Atreus asked with a somewhat forced smile, making Rias and Akeno glance at each other before nodding their heads to him…

… just as his father reached his hand into the bag and pulled out the head of a bearded man with two horns by the green rope wrapping around it.

Silence.

Rias and Akeno found themselves staring in dead silence at the object in Kratos' hand, finding themselves too shocked to move even a muscle of their completely frozen bodies. The head, meanwhile, slowly spun around until it eventually looked directly at the two stunned devil girls with two shining golden eyes before opening its mouth to speak, greeting Rias and Akeno cheerily in a heavy Scottish accent.

"Hello there!"

"KYAHHHH!" Instantly jumping from their seats, both Rias and Akeno screamed, waking Fenrir after the wolf had started to slowly dozing off and sending the birds in the trees around them the flying with the echoes of their voices.

"Well, that's not a good first impression at all, isn't it?" Mimir questioned with a forced chuckle while looking at Kratos, who turned the horned man around to face him and gave him a few simple shakes of his head in response. Meanwhile, Atreus was trying to calm the two girls down, having gotten up from his seat the moment that they jumped from theirs to rush over to them.

"You… you are alive?" Rias asked in disbelief while holding her chest. A talking head was far from the scariest things that they had ever seen, but the setting of a dark forest, the campfire which illuminated the area with an orange glow, and imposing figure of a muscular, ashen skinned man did not help it in the slightest.

"Well, not exactly alive you see, my dear girl. More like… magically reanimated." Mimir humorously responded to Rias, making her stare at him for a moment before returning to their seats with Akeno. "My deepest apology, you two. I understand that I might be the most… pleasant sight for the eyes."

"It's… okay. Please, you don't have to worry about it." Akeno shook her head and said as she sat down with Rias "It's just… we just didn't expect the fourth member of Atreus-kun's family to be a reanimated head, that's all."

"So, he has been, like… in the house the whole time or…?" Rias couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah. Before my father built that shed in the backyard to keep our stuff, I actually hid him in my wardrobe whenever father and I weren't at home at the same time, or when you guys came over to do the chores."

Atreus answered while scratching the back of his head, making Rias and Akeno shudder slightly at the thought of accidentally discovering the head. The two couldn't remember just how many times they had wanted to open his wardrobe and see if he had any dirty laundry that needed to be washed in there while cleaning his room, but decided to not do not do it out of respect for his privacy.

"But now that we have been properly introduced, I don't have to be put in the storage room anymore!" Mimir spoke humorously. "You girls have no idea how bad the WIFI is in there. I couldn't watch this week's new episode of the hit Korean drama Descendant of the Sun without getting video buffering at least six or seven times in a span of only ten minutes."

"Really? That's all you care about when you are down there?" Atreus asked with a half-smile, but did not try to press on because he knew what Mimir was doing, trying to lighten up the atmosphere so Rias and Akeno would become less wary of him. After all, he was still a talking head and that alone would easily freak anyone out the first time they saw him.

"So, may I ask what your name is?" Smiling a little finally, Rias decided to ask the talking head after Kratos had put Mimir down next to him on his bench, letting the horned man face the two devil girls without having to hold him up constantly.

"Oh, my name? I have been called by many names, in many languages, in many realms, but you two might call me… Mike! The smartest head alive!" Mimir raised his voice and introduced himself dramatically, making Rias and Akeno turn their heads to once again look at each other, while Atreus and Kratos both gave Mimir a long look. "Well… I am sure I could have come up with something better next time."

"If you don't mind me asking, Mike-san." Akeno began slowly, raising a hand to make a gesture at Mimir "How did you… end up like this? I mean, you must have a body before, right?"

"Why yes! But it's a long story, my dear girl, a story that I am sure that the young lad will be more than happy to tell you and all of your friends one day." Mimir spoke, with Rias and Akeno understanding that he was referring to Atreus "But rest assured that having my head cut off from my body is entirely my request. It's the only way for me to come along with Atreus and his father and help them on their first journey together a few years ago."

"After that, I sort off became a member of the family and helped these two out whenever and wherever I could, talking senses into them and trying my best to keep them out of trouble."

"Best uncle you will ever have." Atreus said with a grin, making Rias and Akeno smile at them.

"Lad– "

"Mike gave good counsel." Kratos joined in the conversation, speaking in his normally dead serious tone "And he's also compact, as well as does not have any need for consumable resources."

"Brother!"

As Atreus burst out laughing, Rias and Akeno tried their best not to be rude to Mimir, hiding back their laughter and covering their mouths with their hands.

And although it was well hidden by his beard, even Kratos had an amused look on his face, with the corner of his lips curving up into a small smirk as he looked at Mimir, who couldn't stop himself from chuckling softly along the youngsters.

Break

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The morning after the camping trip with his father, Atreus finally discovered how painful the angry scream of two very pissed Dwarves could be.

Fenrir, who were sniffing the sets of armors on the other side of the dwarven brothers' workshop, jumped and spun around to growl in annoyance at Brok and Sindri for their outburst, the latter of whom was holding his head at he looked at the two broken pieces of woods Atreus had put on the table before him and his brother.

"Wow, overreaction much, don't you think?" Aphrodite asked while standing with her arms crossing under her huge bust beside Atreus, who only gave her a shrug of his shoulders in response.

"Overreaction!? I am so sorry, milady, but I will show you an overreaction!" Brok scoffed rudely as he brought out his hammer and slammed it on the table, making Atreus take a step back from him and his brother. "And you! What in Thor's sweaty ballsack happened?"

"He fought Zagreus."

Aphrodite gave the answer before Atreus could say anything, making Brok and Sindri widen their eyes in surprise.

"Zagreus? The son of Hades?" Sindri asked slowly, to which Atreus answered with a nod of his head "Does that mean… you fought against his Infernal Arms too?"

"Infernal Arms? Is that what those weapons are called?" He asked, looking over to Aphrodite and seeing her nodding her head in confirmation.

"Was it… difficult?" Sindri continued to ask, with a hint of amazement in his voice.

"Well, I wouldn't say the guy was that difficult to fight…" Atreus answered while waving his hand dismissively, pushing his chest out a bit until he saw the disapproving shake of the head Brok was giving him. "… but anyway, those weapons of his were really something else. They broke through my defense so easily."

"Of course, those arms are among the finest weapons the Greek world has ever seen… or at least used to be before the big six dumped them for cooler looking toys." Brok said as he picked up a broken piece of the Yggdrasil bow and examined the cut "Hmmm… was it the Stygius that did this?"

"If that is the name of that red blade, then yes."

"The blade of the Underworld." Sindri explained dramatically with his hands moving around in front of him, as if he was doing the storytelling for a play "Previously used by lord Poseidon to help his older brother Zeus banish the Titans to the deepest recesses of Tartarus, its shattered pieces lied broken at the end of the Titanomachy, being brandished by the lord of the sea himself in favor of the trident he so likes."

"What smart guy here is trying to say is that the sword is broken in the process of sealing the Titans." Brok interrupted with a thumb pointing at his brother "And they were given over to the son of Hades, who was able to reconstitute them into Stygius. I gotta give the kid some credit, as he was able to create a weapon that is more than functional despite not having any talents in this line of work."

"Wait, so you are saying that the sword is not at its full power."

"All of the Infernal Arms are, since they are only fragments of what they used to be being wielded by Zeus and his siblings during the Titanomachy." Aphrodite explained, in which Brok and Sindri nodded their heads simultaneously in confirmation.

"Fine pieces of artworks, they were." Brok said with a smirk, as he tossed the broken piece of the bow back onto the table "Compare to those arms, this is a stick of firewood."

"I mean, we know that you are skilled when you beat lady Artemis' challenge, but to think that you are strong enough to fight against the son of Hades… Make me wonder what you could do with something of the same quality." Sindri said, making Brok nod his head in agreement.

"Oh yeah, about that…" Atreus said. It was something that he had wanted to ask them since the end of the battle at Kuoh Academy "I am going to need a new weapon, so… can you guys make me one that will be as strong, if not even stronger than those Infernal Arms. Surely you guys can do that, right?" he asked, faking a suspicious look to rile Brok and Sindri up.

And their reactions were just as he had anticipated.

"Who in the deepest shithole of Helheim do you think we are?" Brok asked loudly as he slammed his hand on the table "My brother and me were the ones who created Mjolnir for the mead pissing idiot who calls himself the god of thunder and the mount of Freyr himself, Gullinbursti! You think that we cannot craft a weapon that can beat some Greek piece of scraps?"

"No offense to you and your magic girdle, milady." Sindri quickly added while looking at Aphrodite.

"None taken."

"So, can you guys make one for me or not?" Atreus asked challengingly.

"It's not the problem of if we can make it for you or not. You are our favorite customer, Atreus. You also helped us so much with our business. It was thanks to you that our advertising campaign was a huge success, so of course we will make that weapon for you." Sindri pointed out, taking Atreus by surprise as he did not expect Sindri to say it to him so straightforwardly without hesitation like that "However, a weapon of such caliber is gonna cost you a fortune, and that is not even the major problem. To craft such a weapon, we are going to need special components with divine properties within them."

"I have a feeling you guys would say that." Atreus said with a nod of his head, remembering the time when he and his father had to run favors for the dwarves to craft the legendary Dvegræðikr armor "I can find and get those components for you guys, if it helps reduce the price of the weapon."

"Ah, if you so insist. I am sure that we can find something for you in due time. This one is gonna be a big project, so we are going to need some time to plan it out." Brok explained before he asked in a rather serious tone "But are you sure about this weapon, kid? A weapon that is stronger than those Infernal Arms… It is going to hit harder than a pissed off Jörmungandr charging at you at full speed. Everything will be for naught if you are not strong enough to wield it."

"Don't worry about it, guys. I am sure that I can manage." Atreus answered with a small smile, before he picked up his backpack and made a gesture for Fenrir to follow him "I am going to have to leave now. Contact me soon as you guys find something, okay?"

"Will do!"

"And I am also going to need everything on this list." Atreus said, as he pulled out from the right pocket of his jeans a note, which he then handed over to Brok with Aphrodite trying to sneak a peek at what was on it "Can you guys have them delivered to my house tomorrow? I can pay you guys upfront if you can do that."

"Hmmm… some of these we have in our storage. We can have these things delivered right this afternoon, if you are in a rush." The blue skinned dwarf said while scratching his beard, scanning through the note several times with his brother to make sure that he did not miss anything "But why so many training gears? You trying to open a dojo or something?"

"Kinda." Atreus grinned before turning around to take his leave. "See you guys then, Brok, Sindri!"

"Take care now!" Sindri called, waving his hand goodbye to Atreus as he walked out of the shop with Aphrodite and Fenrir.

"So, a weapon that is stronger than the Infernal Arms." Aphrodite stated curiously as she walked with Atreus and Fenrir on the street of Olympia city, ignoring the lustful stares of the citizens around them. "You are not going to try to pick another fight with the son of Hades, are you?"

"Let's be clear, he started it." Atreus pointed out while holding his hands up in defense. "Plus, I don't intend to meet up with that guy anytime soon."

"Considering where he lives, I think it's for the best." Laughing playfully, Aphrodite nodded her head to Atreus before nudging him lightly with her elbow, a teasing smile on her face as she leaned closer to him and asked in a sweet tone "By the way, I know you ask Rias Gremory out. Quite the bold move, coming from you, but not unexpected."

Atreus could only roll his eyes, already having a feeling that for the rest of his time on Olympus, this goddess of love would not stop bugging him about the matter.

Break

"So, how much longer do we have to wait?" Xenovia Quarta asked, tapping the heel of her shoe impatiently on the ground as she crossed her arms under her chest. Gone was her black battle suit, the uniform that she wore on mission as an exorcist, Xenovia was currently wearing a black and blue tracksuit, complemented by a pair of running shoes.

Following the battle at Kuoh academy, and finding out that God was gone from Kokabiel, who had revealed the information to them after killing Valper Galilei before he could reveal it himself, Xenovia had decided to abandon her former life as an exorcist serving the Church, and joined Rias and her family as her second [knight].

Irina Shidou, meanwhile, had chosen to return to the Church with all the remaining fragments of Excalibur, including the ones that had been broken during the battle, even though she had also learnt the truth of the death of God from the Bible just like Xenovia had. Although she did not seem to hold any malice toward her former partner, understanding the decision of self-abandonment Xenovia had made, Irina seemed to have left with some disappointments at the fact that she had also become a devil.

While she did not have any regret, Xenovia wished that one day she would get the chance to meet Irina again, as friends and not as enemies.

"Relax, Xenovia. It's not 4:30 yet." Rias answered her new knight for the fifth time that afternoon. Like Xenovia and the other members of her peerage, Rias was wearing a tracksuit and running shoes, as they hung out together at the villa where they had had their picnic in the mountain at a few weeks ago with Atreus, who were the person they had waiting for, along with his father and their family pet wolf.

And Mike too, if Atreus and his father decided to introduce him to the rest of her peerage as well.

"B-Buchou… do I also… have to be here?" An extremely nervous, androgynous-looking boy with platinum blond hair styled in a short bob and pinkish-violet eyes asked Rias from the spot where he was trying to hide himself.

His name was Gasper Vladi, and he was the final member of Rias' peerage. Although he had joined the group for far longer than Issei, Asia and Xenovia, Rias was forced to keep him in a sealed room in the Occult Research Club's first floor to contain the time power of his Sacred Gear, Forbidden Balor view, which he could not control properly.

It was only recently that Rias was granted the permission to unseal him (much to his dismay), which could not be better in timing because Atreus had asked to bring EVERY member of her group to the villa so they could start their first training session together.

"Yes, Gasper. You do." Rias answered, while Akeno giggled softly at the crossdressing boy beside her. "Sigh… why do I have the feeling that he's gonna cry and completely lose control of his Sacred Gear the moment he sees father?"

The crimson haired girl then asked her best friend, who continued to smile softly before answering.

"Oh, he will. Kevin Otou-sama is scary enough with just his look alone." Akeno said before tapping her chin thoughtfully as she continued "Still, don't you think that Atreus-kun was being very specific that we bring everyone here? Do you think that he has always known about Gasper-kun?"

"Yeah, I think…" Before Rias could finish giving Akeno her answer, a familiar, greenish tear in reality appeared in the space before them, making the crimson haired girl and her devil servants widen their eyes at the sight of it. "Well, here we go guys!"

Just as she had expected, from the realm tear, Atreus and his little family emerged, with the only exception being Mike. Though, seeing the brown bag that the ashen skinned man was wearing behind him on his belt, Rias couldn't help but have the feeling that her servants would be meeting him very soon.

"I mean, this can be a start of something, right?" Atreus asked his father with a grin, appearing to be engaging him in a conversation "Maybe you can even open a school and be the headmaster, and the teacher. Imagine the number of students you will have when words got out. I think that can be a more reliable source of income than your current job, no? Not to mention that you gotta do what you do best and enjoy, other than just sitting all day, drinking coffee and reading newspaper while watching over a construction site."

"One thing at a time, Atreus." Kratos answered simply before snapping his head to look at the devils.

"Wah… wahhh…." Gasper gasped in fear and terror, as he gazed at the powerfully muscular man who had a hard look on his face as he walked toward them with an overwhelming presence about him.

"Calm down, Gasper. It's…"

"Fall in, all of you!" Kratos ordered with a deadly calm tone, interrupting Issei as he stopped before the Gremory group with Fenrir at his side, and Atreus taking his seat on the nearby bench with an amused grin on his face as he waved his hand apologetically to Rias and Akeno, who hurriedly formed a horizontal lineup before the ashen skinned man for the others to follow.

Kiba was the next to fall in line, running up quickly and coming to stand next to Akeno. Koneko was next, and even though she did not run, she was quick on her feet.

Xenovia, meanwhile, looked very confused as she walked to the line and stood on Koneko's right Issei and Asia, who tried to hide behind Issei as she looked nervously up at Kratos, who maintained an impassive look.

Gasper was the last to get into the line. The scared, crossdressing boy literally crawled his way to the end of the line after tripping on his own feet. Rias and Issei had wanted to help him, but a harsh grunt from Kratos stopped them from doing so, making Gasper stand up on his own before running up to stand beside Issei, losing the will to even raise his head and look at the man standing before them.

"Too slow!" Kratos snapped suddenly, making Gasper and Asia jump fearfully, while the others, even Rias and Akeno, could only look nervously up at him. "Tomorrow, it will be 200 pushups each if even one of you fails to present yourself before me properly. Am I clear?"

""Yes sir!"" The devils shouted loudly in unison, but Kratos did not look impressed, not in the slightest.

"Now, I will get straight to the point. Your master asked me to train you, all of you!" Kratos began, folding his hands behind his back as he looked at each and every devil standing in front of him "And I will be frank, I cannot train you."

"I do not know your ways, nor do I know how your powers work." The ashen skinned man then continued before any of them could say anything, having been left in shock by his earlier statement, especially Rias and Akeno "My son can help you with them, but it will be as far as it can go."

"However, what I can do is teach you the way of true warriors. I will teach you how to prepare for the fights that you are not ready for. You will learn focus! You will learn control, discipline!" Kratos spoke strongly, with each word he delivered carrying behind them an unimaginable weight "You will learn how to harness your emotions, your anger, your anxiety, … and use them as your weapons in battles."

"You will train nonstop for hours. There will be pain. And soon, you will find yourself crying harder than you have ever done in your life." The ashen skinned man continued, his golden eyes glancing down at Asia and Gasper, the latter of whom had already started sobbing uncontrollably "But in return, you will grow stronger, and you will have the determination to overcome any challenge, no matter how hard they are going to be."

"Do you understand, boy? Are you even listening?" Kratos asked, suddenly appearing before Gasper, who found himself getting towered completely over by the hulking figure of the ashen skinned God of war.

"Eekkk! I am sorry!" Gasper cried, trying to run away but ending up tripping on his feet again and falling on his bottom, finding himself staring up at Kratos as the man got down on one knee before him and rested one arm on the other.

"Do not be sorry…" He said, in a much softer tone than before. It made the other devils look at him in surprise, while Atreus had a smile on his face as he looked at his father "be better."

"Now, come." The God of war then said, extending his hand out for Gasper and offering it to him with his palm facing upward "Let us begin."

Break

"Oh! You are really going to come to Kuoh, Yasaka-san!?"

"That's right, Serafall-san." Yasaka, the nine tailed fox youkai leader of the Kyoto Youkai faction, answered with a smile as she sat in her office and looked at the holographic image of Serafall Leviathan that was being projected from the communication magic circle on the table before her. "You have always been the one to come meet me in Kyoto, Serafall-san, so let me be the one to come meet you this time."

"When will you go then, Yasaka-san?"

"I believe I can be there in two weeks. There are a few things I need to take care of in Kyoto first before leaving for Kuoh."

"Oh you couldn't have picked a better timing, Yasaka-san. I will be hosting a meeting here and nothing would make me happier than having you attend it as a trusted ally of the Devil Faction." Serafall replied with a beaming smile, before she decided to ask "Still, is it really okay for you to leave your city? You know there is a very good reason that I have to be the one who needs to come see you instead of the other way around."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about it, Serafall-san. All the preparations have been made for my departure from the city. Recent events have also been making me question if putting myself as the center of the immensely powerful spiritual power flowing through this city is a good idea." Yasaka said, finishing with a long look on her face. Serafall knew what the fox woman was referring to, having heard the rumors about the recent events that had happened in Kyoto, about a full scale battle that had broken out in the city of Youkai, about how her daughter had been used as a pseudo center for the leylines of Kyoto in order to weaken Yasaka.

No one outside of the youkai of Kyoto, who had been incredibly tight lipped, knew what happened, leaving the credibility of those rumors questionable. However, if even only half of them were true, then Serafall could understand why Yasaka would have such a look on her face. She could tell that the fox woman loved her daughter dearly, probably even more than herself and anyone in this world.

"But why Kuoh, Yasaka-san? Surely there is a reason for you to choose the place instead of my office in the Underworld, right?"

"Oh, it's just that last time we met, you mentioned your work kept you from going to Kuoh to see your little sister, and it'd been so long since you last saw her. I just thought that maybe if your work took place in Kuoh as well, then you would have the chance to meet your sister, that's all." Yasaka answered, hiding her smile behind her hands as she remembered the excitement that Serafall always had when mentioning her sister.

"Aww, you really don't have to, Yasaka-san."

"Oh, by the way, Serafall-san. My daughter will be coming as well." Yasaka suddenly said, making Serafall look at her in surprise. "She will be coming with me, since I don't feel like leaving her in Kyoto alone, and not to mention that she also wishes to come with me."

"Oh dear, then I simply cannot wait to see you and Kunou-chan there. For suuree I am gonna introduce you two to my little sister." Serafall beamed "Would you like me to prepare a place for you and your daughter to stay, Yasaka-san? I can also prepare a security team for you and your daughter."

"I'd love to, Serafall-san. My daughter and I will be traveling with a group of entourage, but we all can't be too careful these days."

"You took the words right off my mouth, Yasaka-san." Serafall smiled "Very well then, Yasaka-san. I guess the next time we meet, it will be in Kuoh. Please don't hesitate to contact me if anything changes or you need something. I will do my absolute best to make your visit to Kuoh a wonderful experience."

"I will keep that in mind, Serafall-san. See you."

And with that, the holographic image of Serafall disappeared, with the communication magic circle deactivating itself as the call ended, allowing Yasaka to finally stand up from her seat and leave her office to go outside to see her assistant.

"Hanami." She called gently, making the fox girl who was watering the trees in her garden outside look at her "Can you go to my daughter's room and see if she has finished packing up her personal belongings?"

"Of course, Yasaka-sama." Nanami answered with a bow of her head and then left to do as she was requested by her leader, who then returned to her office to look for some books to read and pass her time.

In two weeks, she would be in Kuoh.

In two weeks, she would have her first meeting with Serafall Leviathan outside of Kyoto.

In two weeks, she and her daughter would meet them again.

In two weeks, she would get the chance to meet that man again…

End of Chapter 19

Note: And that, my beloved readers, is the end of this chapter!

Nothing much I want to say, other than that I really hope that everyone has had a good time reading this chapter! This chapter is a really fun one to write, with lots of character interactions, especially those from Kratos. Strangely enough, even though this story focused on Atreus, I think some of the best moments so far in this story always involve Kratos, or at least whenever Atreus is with him. The father-son relationships of these two and their shared moments with others are truly so fun to write!

That will be all! I really don't know what else to say in this note of this chapter. I am really happy that everyone loved the last chapter. Got so many reviews as well, which in my opinion is the best thing ever! 81 reviews are not something to be scoffed at at all!

Keep it up! Keep showering me with lots of reviews, and I will see you in the next chapter very soon!

As always, make sure to leave me a REVIEW once you have finished reading. Last chapter I got so many reviews as well I couldn't help but feel really happy, so I really hope that everyone will give me tons of reviews this time too!

Check out my p/atreon if you can and have the power to supports me! Feel free to join my discord channel as well and be a part of my community (the links to both can be found in my profile)

And I will see you in the next chapter!

P/S: Oh, by the way, please don't take the 'I am a fucking god of war' that Kratos said in the last chapter too seriously. I simply did it for the meme that came from the line that Christopher Judge did while voicing Kratos in God of War 2018. The line will not affect the story in anyway (no one heard it), as well as change how I want to portray Kratos in this story (as I want to keep him in character as much as possible)

End of Chapter 19