Life in Ancient Greece was not pleasant for women. They were treated like second-class citizens, almost as bad as slaves, and they barely saw the outside world. Just like in most cultures throughout histories, women were only seen as housewives, and as such they were rarely seen as individuals.

And many were unfortunately abused by their husbands.

But, in this world, where the Gods were real, the women of Greece had a saviour. One who would represent them against the oppressors, and would save those at their last legs. Her aim rivalled that of her brother Apollo, her servants rivalled most heroes in their prowess, and she had a streak of heroism.

She was the Maiden of the Moon, Artemis.

Unfortunately for me, she also had an extraordinary hatred towards all things male.

But that line of thought crossed my head at the time. Instead I was thanking my lucky stars as I watched the second arrow zoom past my hair and into the head of the monster on my back. Perhaps it was my father, but I could truly appreciate the sheer skill it took to make the shot. To aim it properly despite the constantly moving target, to hit it through the trees, to even see the target despite the darkness of the night. It was truly next level.

I fell to the ground, my legs finally giving out. I see the body of the two leucrotae vanishing in golden dust, with only the ivory arrows left. The arrows themselves were beautiful. They were the very form of elegance. Even a blind person could tell that they were mastercrafted.

Temptation took over my better instincts, as I discreetly took one into my inventory. I lean against one of the trees, my wounds hurting like hell. There was light bleeding coming out of them, and I could see that I was losing about 5 HP a minute from them.

From the shadows, three women walked out, wearing snowy white coats that had sky blue highlights, and their faces were obscured by a hood, adorned with a pale yellow crescent on its side. On their backs were quivers, all loaded with the ebony arrows that had saved me. Their regal, silver bows were drawn, ready to fire at a moment's notice.

They were the epitome of hunters.

I took a glance at each of them. On the right was a 35 year old Huntress called Sara, though she had the physical body of a 19 year old. On the left was a 17 year old Huntress called Leah. It seemed she was new, since her physical and mental age was the same.

But the middle Huntress was the most interesting.

Name: Zoë Nightshade

Age: 14 (Mentally: 2846)

Title: Lieutenant of Artemis

HP: 5000/5030
MP: 6705/6750

Stats
Strength: 829
Agility: 893
Endurance: 805
Charisma: 864
Intelligence: 801
Willpower: 833

Description: Zoë Nightshade, Daughter of Atlas. Once part of the Hesperides, and exiled by her father for helping Heracles, she now serves as Artemis's right hand. As the oldest huntress of Artemis, her combat ability and tactical experience is second to none, and is a strong ally to those she respects.
Despite her aversion to men, Zoë Nightshade is concerned about your wounds. She also feels a little (extremely little, almost microscopic) respect for you managing to survive the leucrota.

At least I knew they weren't gonna kill me right away. Though, Zoë's stats were interesting. Sure, her stats were way higher than that of Thalia's yet they should be far more than they are. Zoë's been around for thousands of years, and he stats should be into the thousands.

Is it possible that she reached the peak her body could reach. Her body is that of a 14 year old's, and there's only so much a body like that could do. Maybe if she had the System, she might've been able to become stronger, but perhaps she is simply stagnating now.

"Lieutenant, what do we do with the boy?" The huntress named Sara asked. She seemed to have a small amount of disgust towards me. Man, it's going to be really annoying to deal with these man-haters at their camp.

"He is still a child." Zoë responds, though her bow was still drawn, "Our lady would be furious if we were to abandon a child, even if it is a boy. And it is clear that he's a child of Apollo." Phew, it seems that I won't be left for dead. I wonder why Zoë specified that I was Apollo's son. I knew that Apollo often helped the Hunters, but did they need him that much? And I highly doubt that Apollo would even care. Nevertheless, it's not my place to look a gift horse in the mouth.

My vision was becoming blurry, though I wasn't sure whether it was from blood loss or exhaustion. But even so, I began to close my eyes, ignoring the barrage of notifications I was getting from the System. I suppose future-me was going to be a very happy gamer.

Eventually, darkness obscured my sight, but before I fell asleep, the last thing I saw was Zoë hoisting me upon her back. I suppose I should be feeling emasculated or something, but instead the only thought that came to my mind was about how fucking comfy her coat was. I should get one for myself.

Several Hours Later…

When I next wake up, I find myself lying on the ground, beneath what seemed to be a tent. Well, I wasn't actually on the ground, but instead I was lying in a fur sleeping bag. By the gods, it was so comfy that frankly, I wanted to lie in it forever. However, I knew that the longer I was in this camp, the more ire I would draw to myself from the hunters.

But first things first, I had to look over my notifications. Naturally many were about me losing HP and MP, though it did seem that I managed to level up Fireball and Wind Blast. However, there were far more interesting notifications.

Quest Complete!

Changing Fate: Halcyon Green

Halcyon Green, son of Apollo, and cursed with the gift of prophecy. In the books, he had died a hero's death, giving his life so that Thalia and Luke could live. But you have the ability to change that.

Objective: Save Halcyon from his unfortunate fate

Rewards: EXP, Celestial Bronze Wakizashi, +5 Levels in any chosen skill, 15 Stat Points, Potion of Mana

I have to be honest, while the rewards may seem pretty unassuming, they were outstandingly good. The EXP was enough for me to level up 3 times, therefore getting me to Level 15, which increased my HP and MP, but also gave me 15 Stat Points, which along with Stat Points I got as a reward, gave a total of 30 spare Stat Points.

The +5 Levels in any skill was very useful. It took quite a while to level up skills, so 5 free levels were great. But the question was where to put them in. Fireball was a skill that I used the most, since it did great damage and was also fun to use, but Sword-Fighting was also pretty important, and it was annoyingly low. Yeah, the choice was obvious I suppose.

Sword-Fighting Skill levelled up (4 - 9)!

Man, that was nice to look at. Although I didn't particularly have anyone to compare it to. I also had two new items from the quest reward. A Mana Potion, which as it does in most RPG's, lets me recover MP. This particular one helped me recover 500 MP, which would be pretty useful in tough situations. Shame I only had one.

But the Wakizashi was far more interesting.

Name: N/A
Type: Wakizashi

Rank: C
Item Effects: +100% Damage on Monsters, +20% Damage on Demigods, 5% to cause Bleed Effect (1% of Max HP/Second for 20 Seconds)

Item Description: A Wakizashi made of Celestial Bronze. A Wakizashi is traditionally a "companion weapon" to a Katana, effectively used in emergencies. However, it is sometimes used as a main weapon if the wielder is small enough.

This weapon does not have a name, and can be given one by the player.

The item effects were insane. Yeah, the extra damage towards monsters and demigods were great, but the Bleed effect was awesome. As anyone familiar with games should know, weapons that could cause bleed damage tended to be overpowered as hell. Even in Elden Ring, one of the hardest games in the recent decade (before I died), it was widely agreed upon that a build based on bleed damage was one of the best builds.

And 1% was nothing to scoff at. If an enemy had 2000 HP, then the Bleed damage would deal about 400 HP in 20 seconds, which could definitely help me a lot. The Wakizashi itself essentially looked like a small katana, and its blade was about 60 cm long, though I didn't have a ruler to measure it with.

Perhaps I should give it a name… How about Athanatos, which meant undying in Ancient Greek. It definitely suited me, considering that this was my second life.

Name given to Celestial Bronze Wakizashi: Athanatos

Well, it seemed that I unfortunately won't be using Needle anymore. Shame, it was a pretty cool sword. Especially since it was from a show.

Regardless, the quest rewards weren't the only rewards I had. I also got some rewards for killing most of the leucrotae. I got enough exp to gain a level, making my total level at 16, and my total spare Stat Points at 35. But other than that and some money, I didn't get anything else, which was a little disappointing.

I got up from the sleeping bag, and headed out of the tent. I was met with a wolf snarling at my face. I was ready to whip out a Fireball, but I resisted the urge. It would probably anger the entirety of the hunters and Artemis. I was not ready for that shit.

I quickly use Observe on the wolf, and dump 25 points into Charisma. Silly, I know, but I'd rather not have a wolf mauling my face. "H-Hey, girl." I calmly soothe, as if the wolf was a household pet, "Please don't hurt me."

Something interesting about the Charisma stat is how it interacted with other people. If my Charisma stat is significantly lower than who I'm trying to persuade or charm, then it doesn't work at all, and in some cases, it'll cause them to view me in anger or disgust. Conversely, if my Charisma stat is higher than the other person, then I'll be more likely to be charmed by me or be swayed to my side. Of course, the effect is far more extreme, the greater the difference between the other person and I.

And lucky for me, the wolf, being an animal, had a Charisma of 25, which was lower than my 33. Hopefully, that means my charm will work against the creature. A moment passes by, as the wolf and I make direct eye contact, before it comes forward and nuzzles my cheek. I let out a chuckle and pet the scruff of its neck. I was lucky that the hunters decided to let a young wolf guard me, because I doubt a more experienced one would let me go.

I go past the wolf and outside of the tent. I look around and marvel at the cohesive unit that the hunters move in. It was all so busy. Hell even the wolves were doing something. And using Observe on all of them they were all so much stronger than me. Even the weakest of them had +50 in all stats over mine. I had such a long way to go.

"Boy" With such vitriol in her voice, I knew a hunter had found me, "It seems you have awoken," I turn around, and see a huntress looking at the wolf that was meant to be guarding me, "And it seems that you have charmed our most recent companion" Next to me, the wolf was wagging its tail with a clueless look on her face. The huntress then turned around and called out, "Zoë! The boy is awake!"

Immediately, the entire camp turned their eyes to me. Even the wolves were looking at me. I could feel the glares of annoyance, anger, and disgust from all the huntresses. Whilst it did make me beyond uncomfortable, and slightly annoyed, I was also aware that may of the hunters had been fucked over by guys, some even being victims of abuse or rape. Shit like that leaves a mark. But still… there's no need to take it out on a 9-year-old.

After a moment of silence, a single huntress walks towards me. A brunette with olive skin, brown eyes like bronze, and a glare that could pierce the heavens. "It seems thou art awake" The huntress, which was obviously Zoë. "Follow me, Lady Artemis wishes to speak to thee." Damn, not even an introduction. Wait. Did she say Artemis? Crap, I'm screwed. I hope I don't get turned into a jackalope.

Without a word, Zoë turns around and begins to work, so I follow her, though very nervous of my surroundings. It was still night, and the full moon was still out, meaning I had only been asleep for a few hours at most. I wonder if the hunters had somehow caused the full moon.

I followed Zoë into a tent, which was far larger than the others in the camp. The exterior had silver linings, and seemed to be made of a silk like material, though it was clear that it was far sturdier than silk, or even bricks. The colour of the tent as whole was silver, though in a white colour were tapestries of wolves and deers.

As I enter the tent, I reflexively use Observe on everyone in there. Of course Zoë was there, but when I used the skill on the second entity in the room…

Name: Artemis
Age: 2412
Title: Goddess of the Hunt
HP: ?/?
MP: ?/?

Stats
Strength: ?
Agility: ?
Endurance: ?
Charisma: ?
Intelligence: ?
Willpower: ?

Description: Artemis, Goddess of the Moon, Child of Zeus, and one of the 12 Olympians. Along with her godly responsibilities, she roams the lands with her hunters, helping young maidens in danger, and kill wild monsters.

Her feelings around you are unknown.

Simply looking at the stat sheet gave me a headache. So many fucking question marks. Was it because she was so much more powerful than me? Bloody hell, how long would it take for me to reach her level?

I put away the stat sheet, and took an actual look at the goddess. Just like the books say, Artemis took the form of a child, although far younger than her hunters. Frankly, she looked a lot closer to my age than Zoë did. Artemis, despite her physical age, was truly elegant. Her auburn hair was like a burning fire, her steely gaze could make the strongest man bow, and her silver eyes felt like they could see your soul.

This… This is what a god felt like.

I kneel, despite how humiliating it felt. I need to get stronger. I can't be a hero if I can't stand on equal footing with these entities.

"Ah, so you must be my brother's newest child" Artemis says, a tone of amusement in her voice, though her face showed only indifference, "At least this one has manners." Zoë gave a simple nod, and gave me a look of suspicion. "What is your name, boy?"

She definitely knew my name already. Was this a power-play of sorts? "My name is Gilgamesh Ashford, Lady Artemis." I could hear a light chuckle from Zoë. It wasn't a bad fucking name! It's cool!

Fuck. I hope this doesn't become a running gag.

"Very well Gilgamesh," The amusement in Artemis's voice was far more clearer than it was a couple seconds ago. "Tell me why my hunters found you half dead, with two monsters after you. And don't leave a single detail out."

Of course, when I told her my story of helping Halcyon, I left many details out. Couldn't tell her that I knew the future, or that I had a multiversal power. I'd rather not be enslaved or tortured. Instead, I told Artemis a story of heroics, where I rescue a tortured brother of mine from prison, where I sacrifice myself for my friends, where I miraculously survive the fire and run from the last two leucrota, until I was saved by the hunters.

A minute of silence passes after I tell my story. Artemis shows no sign of anger or disbelief. She sat stone faced, as if what I said were an everyday occurrence. Although, it probably was for her. "You may leave." She says, to my confusion. "A wolf will guide you to one of my hunters. If you speak with any of my hunters as you walk, I can always just turn you into a jackalope, boy."

I gulp, and get up from my spot, walking out of the tent. Fucking hell. My first meeting with a god, and not only was it anti-climatic, it was demeaning as fuck.

Sighing, I look down to the wolf who I suppose was meant to guide me. It was also the same wolf that had been guarding me. At least my tour guide was cute.

Artemis's Tent…

Artemis's POV

"The boy is lying," Zoë stated. My lieutenant was sharp as ever. Millennia ago, I had doubts about her. After all, she was Atlas's daughter, but she proved herself over the centuries, time and time again.

"Why would you say that, lieutenant?" I ask her, "Is it because you deduced it from his body language, or from your hatred?" Zoë turned her head away, slightly embarrassed. Out of all my hunters, Zoë had one of the strongest hate towards males, second only to Phoebe. At least Zoë could hide her hatred far better than Phoebe.

I never had hatred towards males, which was something my hunters excelled at far better than I. Yes, I found them as disgusting, idiotic pigs, and far lesser than the fairer sex, but I never hated them. Some males went against the grain of their kind. Orion, would be one had my brother not cursed him.

"But yes, you are right. He was lying" I confirmed, "Or perhaps simply not telling the whole story." That Gilgamesh boy… he was unlike the other males. A strange aura surrounded him. It reminded me of fire. Not the fire of the sun, which was common amongst the children of my brother. No, it was a flame that I had only seen a few times in my immortal life.

The flame of a phoenix.

I wonder what the Fates were thinking by guiding him to use. You could never tell with those three, nor should you try to. Even I feared them. We originally came to this part of the country in search of Lycaon, but the trail we had found went cold. I ordered my hunters to set out camp when I felt the presence of a demigod and two monsters coming close. It was a surprise to hear that a child had fended off a pack of leucroata.

"Then we should force the truth out of him, my lady!" Were it anyone else who shouted in my presence, I would have turned them into a bear and have my wolves hunt them, but Zoë was different. After all these centuries, she was perhaps the closest thing I had to a friend.

"No." I could see her about to protest, but I raised my hand to stop her, "Two reasons. Firstly, to harm a child, regardless of gender, goes directly against my domains. What kind of guardian would I be to harm a child over something like lying? Unless you are perfectly willing to torture an 8-year-old" I could see my lietenant to squirm at the thought. "Perhaps one of my fellow gods would do such a thing, but I am not as callous as they are." And Apollo would be a nuisance for decades if I did.

"And secondly… I cannot see into his mind." I inform Zoë.

"I- Impossible, my Lady!" She says in disbelief. Even I cannot blame her. "For a mortal, even if it is a demigod, to have the ability to oppose a god's power in such a way. How?"

"I am unsure." I admit, even though it went against my ego."I do not think the boy is consciously doing it." Such an ability has not been seen since the Age of Heroes, and even then, Heracles, who had strength comparable to Atlas, could not compare to Gilgamesh's abilities.

"Then he is a threat…" Zoë murmurs. I could see her hand shaking. I don't believe I have seen her so nervous since we first met. She was such a naive child back then.

"Or a great ally" I counter, to Zoë's shock. Yes, he is still a male, but he doesn't need to be. He could be quite a formidable hunter.

But even if the boy says no, I will still have an eye on him. If he should turn against the gods, I will be ready to strike him down.

A hunter patiently watches her prey.

Hunter Camp's Requisition Tent…

Gill's POV

"Who's a good girl? You are!" I say sweetly, as I give my wolven guide head pats. She was easily the nicest person here. I was still kind of confused about my meeting with Artemis. It was so uneventful. Was she only cool when Percy was around?

"Boy. Come here." I looked up and saw a huntress, who was reluctantly waiting by a tent full of bows, arrows, tents, and… food? Must be some sort of requisition tent. I walked to the huntress, who glared at me with a mixture of hatred and annoyance. "You may leave," She says, turning to the wolf. The wolf's ears droop, and the huntress sighs, "I will give you some rabbit meat later" The wolf immediately perks up, wagging her tail, before happily leaving.

The huntress walks into the tent, and authoritatively gestures to me to come inside. From beneath a table in the centre of the tent, she pulls out a backpack, passing it to me.

"Uh… What is this?" I ask dumbly. Had they given me a bomb of some sorts in an attempt to get rid of me quickly. Perhaps they were doing the Ares method and put some god's symbol of power in the bag so I can get smited.

"A backpack boy" The huntress sneered, "Never seen one?" Bloody hell, they are so annoying. And who does she think she is, calling me 'boy'? Kratos?

"Yes, but what's in it? And why are you giving it to me?" I question, annoyed.

"Provisions. MRE's" She quickly took a look at me, or more noticeably, my height, "MRE's are food designed for the military. There are cooking instructions on the packaging. You do know how to read, right?" Urgh. She thought I didn't know what an MRE is. I mean, it's a reasonable assumption, but she didn't need to be so condescending! "There is also a sleeping bag in here, along with matches, a map, and a wilderness survival book." That… That's pretty useful. I mean, I was kinda hoping to get one of their cool tents that could open in less than a second, but beggars can't be choosers.

"Oh, uh thanks." I say, only to get a silence in response, "But why give these to me? I was under the impression you all would throw me out into the wilderness to fend for myself with nothing but the clothes on my back."

"Believe me boy, I would love to do that" The huntress answers, with venomous words, "But Lady Artemis has taken pity on you despite you being a male. This is the luckiest day of your life."

Wait. So Artemis ordered the hunters to give me provisions despite me being a guy. Why? Was it because I'm a child? That can't be it. I'm pretty sure she blinded a child once. Or am I thinking of Athena?

Fuck it. It's not really my top priority right now. I think I want to get out of this camp. As cool as being near a literal god is, the stares are getting real uncomfortable. "Thank you" I say to the huntress, even if she was a prick the entire time. I gave an internal grin as she became uncomfortable from my thanks. Mwahahahahaha! Kill them all with kindness!

A few more minutes passed by to get everything sorted out, before I decided it was time to leave. If I had to guess, it was around 3 am, and I was strangely energised and well-rested. I wonder if the hunters had given me some ambrosia whilst I was knocked out.

I took out a compass, and began heading north east. There was no final goodbye, or anyone seeing me off. But I was strangely comfortable with that. Perhaps I was used to it from my previous life.

The moon was still out, and I could feel Artemis's cold stare even now.

An hour or so of walking passes by. For the first half an hour, I felt as if someone was watching me, but every time I checked, nothing was about. Not even a mouse. Perhaps I was paranoid.

After another hour, I took a break. From my inventory I brought out some chocolate I had raided from Hal's apartment before it burnt down. A few minutes go by before I hear growling. I put the chocolate away, and took out Athanatos.

From the shadows, grey wolves walk out, teeth bared out at me. They were hungry and ready to feast. I sigh, "Come on! Wolves? Again?" Couldn't the universe be a bit more original? Send something from mythology at least. I quickly dump 10 stat points into Strength, since it was my weakest stat by far

"Ah well, at least I can test out my new sword." I mutter.

A wolf and I lock eyes, just like I had done with one before.

And then a one-sided slaughter began.

Author's Notes: Uh Oh. It's 4 minutes past midnight! Looks like I'm late to upload today's chapter. Sorry guys!

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy today's chapter, even if there was little to no action in it. And I know I say this every chapter, but the rate that this fic has been growing is insane! We're very close to 400 Followers and 300 Favourites, so thanks everyone!

Anyway, here are Gill's stats:

Name: Gilgamesh Ashford
Age: 8
Level: 16
Title: Wolfslayer

HP: 1570/1570
MP: 1980/1980

Stats
Strength: 29
Agility: 42
Endurance: 28
Charisma: 33
Intelligence: 31
Willpower: 25
Luck: 35

Stat Points: 0