A week passed in the blink of an eye after the completion of the third task.
The day I returned to the temple while tearing a page off the calendar, noticing the moon had changed, instantly came back to mind as soon as I woke up.
Athena, who had expected to return to her own temple, came together with Nike to the Artemis Temple.
The reason was because this place’s fresh natural energy had helped her recover when she fainted from her father’s lightning bolt in the past.
Throughout the return trip, Athena, who tightly pressed her lips, was ready to invade even Hades’ Underworld if it would ensure Nike’s safety.
Upon arriving at the temple, we moved swiftly.
Athena and Artemis moved Nike to a clean guest room,
and I immediately descended to City Luna to bring a renowned physician and beautician.
Upon seeing the burns on Nike’s back and neck, they were shocked, but soon realized why they had been summoned.
While cutting her burnt and singed hair bit by bit, it eventually turned into a short bob that slightly revealed her earlobes.
Thanks to this, her cute appearance added a boyish charm, making her look pure and fresh.
The problem was her wings and back.
According to Athena, Nike’s charred wings currently had no solution.
In order to see Nike’s smooth, lustrous white wings again, her feathers would need to molt several times, similar to how a damaged fingernail grows out.
Undoubtedly, the biggest issue was the burns on her back.
When I laid her down, I realized the condition was even more serious.
Her skin seemed as though it might have necrotized.
She must have endured immense pain while shielding us from the scorching heat by wrapping her body around us.
The doctor could only prescribe medicinal herbs that would help with burns but was cautious about mentioning skin regeneration.
With no medical knowledge, I could only ensure that no bacteria entered her wounds by maintaining her hygiene meticulously.
Thus, time passed with us idling about until today.
“What fools we are. Nike too… and me…”
Still, thanks to Artemis throwing a tantrum, the god of medicine, Apollo, has agreed to visit this afternoon.
I sincerely pray that he can cure her completely.
If any money is required for treatment, I’ll break all my savings if I must.
It’s only right to repay a life-saving benefactor this way.
Leaving my quarters, I headed directly to the priest’s office.
Probably because I hadn’t opened the door for three days while caring for Nike, it felt oddly unfamiliar, as if I were entering someone else’s house.
The neatly stacked newspapers left by devotees on the desk piqued my curiosity, especially since I hadn’t followed any recent events during these past few days.
I picked up the papers for the week.
“Let’s just read the lead articles on the front pages.”
《Shock! Zeus escapes from his promotion party and is discovered hiding in Leto’s house after 5 days of going missing.》
《Ares destroys parts of his own small city with a catapult. How far will his reckless behavior go?》
True to expectations, the Olympus Gazette didn’t write an article solely about the quarrel at the promotion party a week ago.
It wouldn’t do to broadcast Zeus’ public defeat against a human priest to all the cities’ people.
Still, they couldn’t completely ignore the event and instead featured articles on the absurd antics of Zeus and Ares.
“Zeus really… to run away and hide at Leto’s home of all places… hahaha.”
Leaving a brief comment, I turned the page and moved on to the next newspaper.
The recurring name of a certain goddess on nearly every headline made me suspect they were from the same day.
《Hera delivers a four-day consecutive lecture on priestly dignity. Public criticism of Priest Ark under the guise of a lecture.》
《Hera abruptly cuts ties with Artemis’ City Luna. Hera’s citizens are troubled by this end to trade with Luna, with whom they trade frequently.》
《Hera decides to lower tariffs on trade with other cities.》
It was Hera who starred in nearly all the headlines.
Apparently, her anger against me was still boiling, as she continued to make aggressive moves.
I can endure her public criticism, but
the other items displayed ominous signs that made even a forced smile impossible.
Cutting ties with our city signals that Hera perceives Artemis and me as adversaries.
Reducing trade tariffs with other cities implies she wants to recruit other gods to her side.
Hera, maintaining her political acumen and not losing her calm to anger, demonstrates her ability by first reinforcing her power base.
She seems to be following the textbook strategy of befriending distant countries while attacking nearby ones.
“Why are all the smart gods here?”
Murmuring these words to myself as I faced the tightening crisis, I was interrupted by a knock at the door.
“Is Ark here?”
Early in the morning, Athena had visited my priest’s office.
I quickly rose from my seat and opened the door to greet her.
I guided her to the guest sofa and offered her some clumsily brewed tea along with dessert.
“I’m sorry, all I have in my office are cheap cookies…”
“Hmm. No, one cup of tea is enough. This warmth in my palms… Ark, I see glimpses of talent in your tea-making skills.”
Athena seemed quite satisfied with this modest treatment, her lips curling into a subtle smile as she nodded her head appreciatively.
Then, her eyes caught the newspaper lying on the armchair, and her expression stiffened slightly.
It seemed evident that she had already read the same article I had just finished.
Because of that, the atmosphere in the office was naturally filled with the tension of the Golden Pen incident.
“Hera-sama is truly a formidable figure. Now she has targeted you, she will continue to tighten her grip.”
“I anticipated disfavor from some gods, but I didn’t expect her to be so aggressively hostile. Still, it’s a relief that it doesn’t affect you, Athena-sama.”
At that, Athena smiled bitterly, saying I only knew one side of the story but overlooked the other.
She pointed alternately at herself and me with her index finger before responding.
“Even those present at the gathering, including me, and Nike, might have inadvertently drawn Hera’s ire. It seems all of us are now Hera-sama’s enemies.”
“Why is that?”
“Are you really unaware?”
“No, but…”
Zeus had three wives in his history.
The first wife was the goddess of wisdom and Athena’s mother, Metis.
The second wife was the goddess of law, Themis.
The third wife was the goddess of home, Hera.
Uncomfortable with Gaia’s prophecy, Zeus confined his first wife, Metis, inside himself.
He later married Themis, but they mutually divorced and remained good colleagues.
Eventually, Zeus fell in love with Hera and married her, living as a couple ever since.
An astute observer might notice an anomaly here.
He divorced his second wife Themis, leaving no further issues with Zeus.
However, his first wife, Metis, although confined, remains technically married to Zeus!
If Metis were freed from Zeus and reappeared in the world,
would Zeus’s true wife be Metis or Hera?
A preposterous story akin to a movie plot: A wife who remarried five years after hearing that her husband had died in war, only to have her supposedly dead husband return.
Hera, immediately spotting the threat to her solid position, would doubtless have intended to somehow eliminate me in order to bury the Metis affair.
It seems her calculations work the same way for both gods and humans.
Recalling the celebration, Athena placed her cup down, brought her hands together, and gently pressed them against her restlessly beating heart to calm it.
“I felt my heart race at the sight of your star-like brilliance. I harbored a glimmer of hope that mother might return.”
“Hera-sama, on the contrary, detected the danger.”
“Hoohoohoo. Not just danger, but also the risk of losing the throne of the queen of the gods. And even the dignity and authority of protecting the family could be destroyed.”
“Even the seat of the 12 principal gods might shift from Hera-sama to Metis-sama.”
“Yes. Total chaos.”
Athena’s words were correct.
The issues Athena worried about back on Mount Olympus are now gradually becoming reality.
While everyone had been living peacefully until now,
if Metis were to be brought back, the order of Olympus would collapse, and it would be obvious that the gods would divide into factions supporting Metis and Hera, leading to confrontation.
But I will never stand by and watch Athena’s sorrow.
I will surely rescue Metis and restore the family’s happiness to Athena.
Compared to that, temporary confusion in Olympus means nothing to me.
“Athena-sama, please don’t worry. I will manage this somehow.”
“Is there a method?”
“I’ll find it, at least now I need to.”
“I apologize, but I cannot act directly in matters concerning my mother.”
“I understand.”
Athena, being unable to act directly on an issue involving her mother, clenched her teeth and tightly gripped her fists, deeply frustrated.
It was Zeus who confined her mother.
Fully understanding her complex situation, I refilled her tea to let her know it was alright.
“Athena-sama, could I ask for help in another area?”
“What is it? Just ask.”
“Why did Ares suddenly show up and become our adversary? Nike’s suggestion seemed like just an excuse.”
“Hmm….”
At the mention of Ares, Athena’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.
Sighing quietly as she looked out the window, she slowly spoke.
“Probably… because of me.”
