He Did WHAT with Her?!

Aeneas could hardly believe his own ears.

W-what did that guy just say? He… he spent last night with her?!

His gaze shifted from King Iarbas, who still stood before them with an equally astonished expression, to Dido, who sat speechless atop her white horse.

That… that can’t possibly be true. Can it?

At last, the captain of the Carthaginian Queen’s Guard spoke up, one hand already resting on the pommel of his sword.

“How dare you drag our queen’s honor through the mud with your filthy lies, you stinking desert savage?!”

Only now did the Gaetulian’s soft, disappointed expression darken as he heard the words.

“You call me a liar, Phoenician upstart?!”

“I come from Sparta!” the captain shot back. “And what else should I call you when you spout such shameless nonsense!”

Iarbas ground his teeth with a low growl before turning back to Dido, who still sat there in stunned silence.

“Dido, darling, say something! Tell them what you told me last night. That Carthage is nothing without the strong hand of a man! That only I have what it takes to raise it from an insignificant provincial town into a mighty kingdom!”

The queen blinked at him in astonishment, while his face lit up with bliss as he recalled the alleged events clearly.

“…I could hardly believe it when my guards said you had come to see me. But when you wrapped your arms around my neck so passionately, and especially after what you did with your mouth, I knew…”

“S-SILENCE!”

Dido shrieked in a squeaky voice, her face blazing red as she tried to drown out his words.

“How dare you spread such… such delusions?! I have never met you in my entire life, nor have I ever even heard of you!”

Aeneas felt a huge weight lift from his chest when he heard her furious voice.

O-of course this is nonsense he’s spewing. I knew it right away! Why was I even nervous? The Dido I know would never be with someone like him...

Suddenly something small and golden glinted in the sunlight.

Iarbas had stretched out his arm and was holding it up with a serious expression.

Dido flinched and instinctively clutched at her neck, only to find nothing but bare skin.

But… that’s…

An intricately crafted gold necklace, with a precious crescent-shaped pendant dangling from it.

“Her necklace…” Eshmunet blurted out, looking more genuinely shocked than Aeneas had ever seen her.

Aeneas breathed heavily as the realization hit him.

Wait... if it’s a lie, th-then why does he have…

“Where did you get that?!” Dido hissed at the Gaetulian king.

But Iarbas only sighed.

“Oh sweetheart, you’re still denying it even now?” Then he raised his voice so everyone could hear. “This gift from you proves that I am speaking the truth. And just as you promised, I am now here to claim your hand in marriage!”

Loud murmuring broke out, not only among the escort, but also among the troops, who had not missed the exchange.

Dido’s heart pounded, her chest tightening.

How is this even possible? Did he have the necklace stolen just to stage this farce? This is a disaster. I need to shut this down immediately…

“If you believe a stolen trinket is enough to deceive my court or the people of Carthage, then you are mistaken! I reject your proposal. And I command you to withdraw your army from Carthaginian territory at once, or...”

“...Or what?” the king interrupted loudly.

His voice had turned cold, sharp, and cruel.

“So you think you can make a fool of me? Very well. If that’s how you want it…“

He raised his arm.

“I will give you three days to decide. Otherwise, I will simply take what is rightfully mine…”

With that, he jerked the reins and turned his horse around.

“When you’ve made your decision, you know where to find me,” he called over his shoulder before riding off into a thick cloud of dust with his riders.

Dido breathed heavily, turning back toward her retinue with a troubled expression.

But she met only uneasy faces. People avoiding her eyes. 

What… what’s wrong with them? They don’t actually believe that nonsense, do they?

Her heart beat faster, caught between dread and hopeful anticipation, as she turned toward Aeneas.

But the Trojan prince had lowered his head as well.

He cast her only a brief, pain-filled glance before yanking on his reins and riding away without saying a word.

“A-Aeneas…?” Dido whispered, her voice trembling as she stared after him in desperation.

No. Wait.  

“Lady Elissa, what do you intend to do now?” Eshmunet asked uncertainly beside her.

But she received no answer, as the queen's chest tightened, her voice failing her.

🏛️🏛️🏛️

A short while later, many miles away, in a small green oasis in the middle of the desert, a brilliant portal of light and swirling rose petals suddenly appeared.

From it stepped a small figure wearing a dark cloak with a wide hood pulled over his face.

“Well?” a bright voice called immediately after the portal vanished. “Did it work out as intended?”

He shook himself once and steadied his footing, as though the journey through the portal had left him dizzy, before slowly walking down toward the hot water of the oasis.

“Yes, my lady. Everything went exactly as planned…”

In the steaming spring lounged a naked beauty, her long golden hair clinging wetly to her shoulders, her breasts floating like two buoys in the bubbling water.

She opened one of her sapphire-blue eyes.

“Excellent," she said, as she stretched languidly while her servant plucked a date and began to eat it in the shade of the palms.

“Convincing that chamberlain was easier than expected,” Alexios added. “He should make his move soon.”

Venus smiled satisfied.

“I knew it would pay off to make a two-pronged approach. Although I could have done without deceiving that idiotic Berber king in such an... unpleasant way…” She lifted one arm and sniffed it cautiously before lowering it back into the water with a wrinkled nose. “His stench still clings to me. Ugh…”

Alexios frowned.

“Wouldn’t it have been easier to just borrow one of Cupid’s arrows again? Or a love potion or something like that?”

Venus raised herself slightly.

“That would have required them to actually cross paths first for it to work. No, it was worth it. And with this little trick involving the necklace, my Aeneas will finally realize that this... pet of Juno... isn’t the right one for him…”

“If you say so…” her servant replied indifferently through a mouthful of fruit, sweet fig juice dripping down his chin.

“That’s how it is…” Venus murmured, closing her eyes again and sinking deeper into the water. “Now go and take care of whatever else you have to do. Your smacking is ruining my beauty bath.”

Alexios sighed and tossed the rest of the fruit into the undergrowth before walking quietly away on soft hooves.

All that remained was the bubbling of the hot spring, and the contented humming of a goddess.