Chapter 29: Affair

[3rd POV}]

High in the sky, Athena noticed that the usually silent God of War, Ares, suddenly shivered.

Seeing his strange behavior, Athena was startled and asked, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"I'm fine. It's just that some of Hecate's lightning is still in my body," 

Ares shook his head, "It's just a side effect."

...

On the other side, in front of Hecate's tree palace, Ares' real body jumped up from the ground, covered in lightning, and shouted to Hecate, "Bring it on, I'm getting the hang of it!"

"Really?"

...

Athena gave Ares a suspicious look, quietly speeding up and moving a little farther from him.

Seeing Athena move, Ares didn't say anything, and the two main gods maintained a bit of distance as they returned to Earth ruled by the Greek gods. 

During this time, Ares shuddered several times, looking like a malfunctioning robot.

Athena didn't speak, focused only on flying forward, and soon, she led Ares to the temporary home of Prometheus and his brother Epimetheus on Earth.

After leaving the magnificent Olympus Mountain, Prometheus, the former god of wisdom, didn't want to build a big temple for himself on the earth. 

He and his brother lived in a simple stone house they had constructed using their divine power, providing them shelter from the wind and rain.

Arriving at Prometheus' doorstep, Athena approached, knocked on the door, and explained her purpose.

After hearing Athena's words, Prometheus didn't hesitate. He turned around, went inside to get his brother Epimetheus, and then led Athena and Ares to a cave where they stored their creations.

As they walked, Prometheus looked at Ares with confusion and asked Athena, "Why is the God of War here?"

"He hasn't given me his concept."

Athena replied as they walked, "So, I decided to bring him along. In the end, he will give his concept as a 'gift from the gods,' to be given to one of your creations."

"I see." 

After hearing Athena's explanation, Prometheus gave Ares a long look but didn't say anything else.

The gods arrived at the entrance of the cave. 

Prometheus asks Athena and Ares to wait on the flat ground outside the cave, then calls his brother Epimetheus. 

The two gods worked together to bring out the prototypes of their creations, one by one, from inside the cave.

Seeing the beings being brought out, Athena and Ares leaned in curiously to look closer. 

To their surprise, they found that Prometheus and his brother had created small clay figures of animals.

The animals' appearances were creatures Athena had never seen before, but to Ares, most of them resembled wild animals that would exist in the future.

"As long as we bestow the 'gift' of the gods upon these creatures, and then we grant them souls, we can bring them to life."

Prometheus explained.

"This can't be all, right?" 

Athena's gaze swept over the clay figurines placed at the entrance of the cave and asked Prometheus.

Prometheus looked at her, and eyes met. 

After a moment of thought, Prometheus lowered his head slightly, smiled, and said, "Of course not. These are actually Epimetheus's creations. I only made one creation, and it's in the very back of the cave. I'll go get it now."

"I'll go with you." 

Athena said, offering to help.

"Alright."

Prometheus nodded, "The concept from the gods can be left outside. Epimetheus will keep an eye on it for us."

Athena thought for a moment, and after hearing Prometheus, she handed the fancy bag she was holding to the foolish god Epimetheus and followed him into the cave.

'Hmm? I smell the scent of a shady deal.'

Ares watched as their figures disappeared, deep in thought. Meanwhile, his actual body in the tree palace informed Hecate of the situation and asked, "Teacher, do you think these two are going off to... have an affair?"

"Haha, how could that be? Athena made that virgin goddess vow, right?" 

Hecate added, "Her vow was made to restrain itself. If she breaks the vow, her power will be greatly diminished due to the force of restraint. They're probably going to do that thing."

"What thing?" 

Ares asked, eager to learn.

"Alright, I can tell you, but don't say I didn't warn you." 

Hecate thought momentarily, then extended her index finger, gently tapping Ares' forehead. 

Immediately, Ares felt a surge of magic flow through his body, transmitting through the connection between him and his avatar of himself.

Ares didn't resist and allowed the magic to pass through.

As the magic reached his avatar, it flowed from its fingertips, transforming into a droplet of water that fell to the ground. 

The drop quickly sank into the earth, transforming into an earthworm, swiftly wriggling and heading into the cave.

Next, Hecate extended her finger again and drew a circle in the air. 

Suddenly, a glowing screen appeared, and Ares immediately saw Athena and Prometheus standing side by side inside the cave.

At the same time, Athena's voice echoed from the screen, "Prometheus, I would like to ask you for a prophecy."

"Honorable Athena, but I am no longer a main god." 

Prometheus said carefully as he moved a batch of clay figurines while smiling, "As a lesser god, how could I dare to freely offer a prophecy for such a respected main god? What if my prophecy turns out to be wrong? I would be held responsible for that."

"You are being humble. As the God of Forethought, no one on Olympus can see the future as clearly as you."

Athena said, not giving up, "I only ask for one prophecy. I assure you that I will do everything I can to help you return to the Twelve Olympian Gods afterward."

"Oh? So which god will you have to give up their seat for me?"

Prometheus scoffed, "Could it be that 'foolish' God of War outside?"

"It's not about having someone step down." 

Athena shook her head, "Hades and Hestia will likely voluntarily step down from the Twelve Olympian Gods in the next few hundred years and make room for new gods."

"Enough with that, Athena." 

Prometheus said with some effort as he lifted several boxes filled with the clay figurines, "That position is going to the son of Zeus. Aren't you here to help me? Then lend a hand."

Athena frowned slightly, then walked over and easily lifted the boxes with one arm. At the same time, she asked, "You really don't want to reconsider?"

Prometheus didn't say anything, but as they were carrying the boxes out of the cave, he shouted in panic and surprise, "Oh my god, Epimetheus, what are you doing?"

Hearing his shout, Ares focused on his avatar, and that's when he noticed that the bag Athena had given to Epimetheus was now mysteriously empty. 

Meanwhile, the clay figures that once had no life had gained souls under the influence of the gods' concepts and the divine power granted by Epimetheus.

The figures had turned into all kinds of creatures, now scattering and running away across the ground.

As for the instigator, Epimetheus stood in place with an empty bag, scratching his head and grinning sheepishly.

"Look, Prometheus." 

Epimetheus boasted to his elder brother, "My creations have come to life."

"Ares." 

Athena saw what happened and immediately asked Ares, "Why didn't you keep an eye on him?"

"Dammit, don't try to pin this on me." 

Ares' avatar shuddered, then angrily snapped, "How was I supposed to know what you gave Epimetheus? You were the one giving it to him, and you didn't ask me to watch it! Now you're blaming me?"

"What are we going to do now?" 

Prometheus sighed, taking the box from Athena and placing them on the ground, and looked at the clay figures inside that now resembled gods.

"It seems that my creations are the only ones without the blessings of the gods. How will they survive on this land without it?"

Seeing the God of Forethought looking so down, Athena's eyes flashed with determination, and she spoke up, "Don't worry, Prometheus. This is also my mistake, so let me give them a gift."

To be continued...

...

300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter

A/N: Every 300 power stone, I'll drop bonus chapter...