"Now, remember Hakaru, these goddesses have had almost no contact with the human race. They only have humanoid bodies because Beloved asks them to appear human. Otherwise, they would have no bodies and no names. Other than our servants, we’re solitary existences, us upper goddesses. You won’t hear it from my sisters, but they secretly envy you lower gods. The way you interact with each other so closely, and how there are so many of you, they’ve always been watching. I think they want such contact but are afraid of obtaining it.”

“What about you?” I asked.

“Me?” she blinked and then laughed. “I’ve had plenty of contact. One could say that I’m an extremely popular goddess.”

“That doesn’t mean you don’t want things.”

She gave me an amused look. “Are you trying to learn my secrets, Hakaru?”

I blushed. “I’m just… trying to figure you out.”

“I don’t think there is much to figure out. I’m an earthy woman. I like being the bottom. I give everything of myself for others.”

“If you’re giving everything to others, then what about yourself?”

She smiled gently but didn’t answer. Turning away, she opened a door into a large room that looked like a great hall. She walked over to a large bell that was sitting at the head of the room, lifted a large hammer, and then slammed it against the bell. A ringing sound exploded out, causing my insides to shake. She dropped the hammer and laughed softly while I felt my body still vibrating.

“Wh-wh-what was that about?” I asked, feeling like my teeth were loose.

“I’m just calling all of the girls over.”

“You’re letting them know I’m here? I thought you said I had to be snuck in!”

“True… but if you seduce the girls, you’ll have to make your presence known to them.” She responded thoughtfully while tapping her lip. “How else will they know you’re here?”

“What about this Beloved?”

“Well, I mean, she’s always out. You’ll likely be gone by the time they return. If Beloved returned before you left, they’d find out anyway and you’d be doomed.”

“Doomed!”

“Ah! Did I say that? Y-you’ll probably be fine!” She hastily corrected herself, looking incredibly guilty.

I shook my head, deciding I didn’t want to think about this Beloved coming home. “Didn’t you say many gods and goddesses lived in the celestial palace?”

“I did… but I also said they’ll mostly ignore the likes of you and me. You’ve already encountered a few hundred of them.”

“What?”

She giggled. “As I said, they won’t show their human forms. They exist in this space, but they won’t interact with you and you won’t interact with them. If you reach a high enough level, you’ll at least be able to sense their presence. Although this castle is quite crowded, you’ll likely only encounter my sisters. Furthermore, only my sisters will come to a bell I ring. Even Beloved doesn’t have the right to call many of the people who reside in this palace. The concepts are so ancient and abstract that even attempting a conversation with them would be impossible for someone at your level.”

“I see… it seems like I have a long way to go.”

She nodded thoughtfully. “It’s true, you have some way to go, but don’t allow yourself to grow a personality like Procreation, where all you seek is power. Strength comes and goes. Time always moves on, and no one can move time.”

“Time, huh?” I responded while thinking to myself.

If no one could move time, then I wondered how I had been sent back in time. Netori had moved time for me. I decided not to contradict Mother though. I noticed Mother still watching me.

“Ah… I know!” I cried out as I realized she was waiting for an answer. “As a former human, I understand about getting too close to the sun.”

“You do? Good. As long as you remain within your limits, I see no problem.” Mother nodded thoughtfully.

As she said this, the door burst open. A young woman with small B-sized breasts and white hair walked in. She was very beautiful, and while she didn’t have the voluminous bosom of Mother, she had her own charms. Her face was perfect as a doll’s, and she had pert red lips that looked extremely kissable.  She didn’t wear much, and the few fragments of clothing were just enough to accentuate her small figure even more, making it look extremely desirable. 

She let out a sigh, pulling out a mirror from a place no one could see and admiring herself in it. “Why have you called us here, forth? Don’t you know I’m very busy?”

“This is Third.” Mother whispered to me. “She can be a bit volatile and self-absorbed.”

“Who are you calling self-absorbed, you big fat cow?” Third snapped, closing her hand mirror with a click.

“And then there is that tongue that spits acid…” Mother put on a smile while her face twitched. “Sister, you’re not still jealous about our sizes, are you?”

“Hmph… how can I be? If it’s the size that matters then Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth are all larger. Well, they may be big, but I have substance!” Third snorted, then her eyes landed on me. “Who is this?”

Before she could say anything, the door opened and a girl stepped in. She looked somewhat shy. My eyes widened when I saw her because she was big. Calling her fat wasn’t right, but neither was calling her muscular. She was nearly seven feet tall, with thick thighs and an equally thick butt. Her hair was strange, a mixture of white, orange, brown, and red streaks giving her an appearance like the strata of the earth. If anything, she was much curvier than Mother, but she was much more everything than Mother.

The smaller Third next to the larger woman only caused her appearance to be more exaggerated. Unlike Third, who wore very little, this woman covered her body in loose-fitting robes, and her head was lowered. It seemed like she was very uncomfortable with her body. The Third girl shot the larger one a dismissive look.

“H-hello, M-mother…” She responded nervously.

“Sister!” Mother threw out her arms and hugged the bigger woman.

“S-sister… why did you call us?” She asked shyly, clearly unused to being touched.

“Isn’t it obvious?” A new girl appeared at the door without a sound. “She invited another mortal god into the celestial palace.”

She had an angry expression on her face. She was pretty, with long red hair, but at this point, comparing any of these girls was like comparing beautiful sunsets. Each was different, but they were all beautiful.

“Another?” Third cried out.

“Yes, Fourth has surely done it this time.” Another girl walked in.

I recognized her as well. This was Fifth who I had met a bit ago. Although she already had known why the bell was rung, she had an expression like she had come just to see the fighting. She had a grin on her face like she was enjoying the disaster.

“I guess this makes everyone.” Mother announced.

I looked around in confusion.

“If you were expecting Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth to leave their rooms, they’re far too distant to care about Fourth’s issues. Even Beloved isn’t that close.”

“Th-that’s not true…” Sixth cried out and then blushed.

The war goddess grinned, causing Sixth to shrink into herself even more, which was saying something given her size.

“You dare bring another humanoid god into our sanctum?” The redhead snapped.

“Second…” Mother lifted her hands defensively, “I just…”

“Don’t think we don’t know what you want.” She snapped. “You think if we hang around with humans, we might start to like them as much as you do! Isn’t that right?”

I was shocked to see Mother getting cursed out. She had exuded quite a pleasant atmosphere. She almost felt like my own mother. It made me uncomfortable to see her being berated by that small B-cupped redhead. She was Second? Mother said that power had nothing to do with ranking, but it was clear to me that Second was in charge. They seemed to grow timider and timider the larger the numbers. Just who was Beloved that she made them all so hot-tempered?

“I’m sorry I imposed… my name is…”

“Names? Such a human!” The woman interrupted me before I could speak. “I don’t care about your name or anything else about you. Do what is best for you and leave this place! I-i-if you don’t, then I’ll tell Beloved!”

“You wouldn’t?” Mother gasped in surprise.

Her shock did catch the angry girl off guard, and for a moment, there was a guilty expression on her face. However, then she grew serious again. Crossing her arms, she snorted.

“Leave, boy. You don’t belong here. You should know your place.” She declared, her eyes flashing like volcanos. “Come, girls. We’re done with this.”

Second spun around and started to walk toward the door. When no one followed her, she spun back shooting them all a look that said they were coming with her or she’d make them.

“Ah! Y-yes…” Sixth cried out, lowering her head and leaving the room.

Second’s eyes fell on Fourth.

“Heh, whatever… I got better things to do.” Fifth left as well, but she took her sweet time.

“Look at the bright side.” Third smiled at me sweetly, causing me to feel like smiling back. “You’re still ugly. Bye idiot!”

She waved and then skipped out of the room. Naturally, my flickering smile fell to a frown. She knew how to kick someone when they were down. With all of the girls gone, Second shot Mother one more look, and without saying a word, spun around and left. The door slammed shut, leaving the pair of us alone in the room like before she hit the bell.

“Well, that went well.” Mother declared.

By her tone of voice, she wasn’t being sarcastic. I gawked at her as she smiled contently.

“How did that go well?”

“Well, you don’t know how bad my sisters can be.” Mother sniffed. “You were able to meet half of the girls, and you weren’t instantly kicked out or killed.”

“That… I mean…” I actually didn’t know what to say to that.

I was a bit frustrated, but she had warned me it wouldn’t be easy. I had been around temperamental or disinterested women before. It was just, in the past, those women couldn’t vaporize me with a thought. Furthermore, I was in my element, where here I was somewhere I had never been before. The door opened a crack and a head popped in. The pair of us turned to see Artemis there.

“Are they gone yet?” She asked.

“Artemis!” Mother crossed her arms. “Did you seriously wait until after they left before you showed up?”

“I-I’m not a number… they won’t even treat me properly. They treat me like the help!”

“Well, other girls in the celestial palace in your position are just maids.” Mother said thoughtfully.

“M-mother!” She cried out tearfully.

“You know that I don’t make you serve me.” Mother sniffed. “However, what about your man Hakaru? You left him alone and haven’t even offered him any help at all!”

“Th-that’s not true!” Artemis shot back and then brightened. “Ah! That’s right! Hakaru! I found you a woman?”

“Oh?” Mother raised an eyebrow.

“Yes! I ran into Tenth on the way here.” Artemis declared. “We have a lot in common, so she’s the only number that talks to me. I told her what I was looking for and she volunteered!”

“Tenth? That weird girl?” Mother frowned before turning to me. “She’s a little… out there.”

“Hmph! Don’t be jealous just because I’ve already helped Hakaru! That’s why I’m his woman!”

“Helped… but volunteer, you mean?” I asked.

“I mean, she’ll have sex with you! I told her how fun it was and she says she wants to try it!”

“Why am I not surprised.” Mother sighed.

“Really? She will?” I blinked in surprise.

“Mm… well, she says you can have sex. Whether she joins your harem, that depends on you, I guess.” Artemis admitted.

“Then, great!”

“Good, you ready to meet her?” Artemis excitedly opened the door again and waved.

“Now?” I cried out.

“Come on, Tenth.”

I waited as a pretty girl stepped into the room. She was extremely cute. She seemed to be wearing a long nightie dress like she had just been sleeping. Her hair was grey and tied up in pigtails, and she was holding a teddy bear in her arms. My eyes looked down at her, and my excited expression dropped. I knew why they called her Tenth. It was because she was no older than ten! She appeared, unequivocally, absolutely, like a little girl!

“Are you ready to rock my world?” The girl asked in a flat voice, cocking her head.