The voice of Uranus grew ever fainter, and his shadowy figure dispersed, leaving behind only the vessel carrying the goddess, drifting along the waves.
As it was about to sink beneath the sea, Zeus stifled his hesitation, summoned his divine power, and with a flick of his fingers, drew the white shell toward him and pried it open.
The slumbering figure within slowly awoke, stretching languidly with a soft yawn. Every casual movement tugged at Zeus's heart.
The goddess, naked and her delicate curves fully revealed, bowed with enchanting grace. Her faint smile bloomed like a spring breeze.
"My king, by my father's command, Aphrodite obeys your will."
Zeus's gaze froze upon her, and through the resonance of their divine powers, he began to perceive the true nature of Uranus's gift.
The King of Olympus's face slowly brightened with understanding, and his eyes burned ever hotter as he looked upon the fragile beauty before him.
With this, the next stage of his plan could be carried out with full confidence.
...
More than a month later, on the shores of the Oceanus, the handsome silver-haired god came ashore in triumph, with three newly won lovers in his arms.
Besides the Memory Goddess Mnemosyne and the Nurturing Goddess Leto, who had been part of his plan, he had also stolen away another daughter of his father-in-law, Oceanus.
Metis now had companions by her side, and she could rest easier, focusing only on carrying her child.
Zeus's expression brimmed with satisfaction as he glanced back toward the distant sea horizon, though a trace of regret still lingered.
Alas, the hall of the goddess of justice lay deserted, its tables and chairs covered in dust, as if she had not dwelled there for a long while.
Otherwise, this journey would have been flawless.
Shaking off the thought, the King of Olympus tapped his thunderbolt staff lightly.
The man and three women ahead of him, along with Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty trailing behind, all transformed into bolts of lightning and streaked across the sky.
After days of swift travel, four thunderbolts descended from the clouds and struck before Mount Olympus.
Swayed by Zeus's honeyed words, his three wives, swept away by love, obediently went ahead to Olympus.
But the god king lingered, spreading his arms to catch Aphrodite as she lagged behind, reaching out in an attempt to seize her delicate hand and draw her closer.
The goddess of love and beauty giggled, deftly pressing down on Zeus's grasping hand.
"In that marshland just now, I sensed the invitation released by Themis. Why don't you accompany me on another journey, my king?"
Zeus smiled, flames of desire burning in his eyes.
Aphrodite lifted her hand, brushing her fingers lightly across the brow of the lustful god.
Before the restless Zeus could pull her into his embrace, the goddess of love and beauty slipped away like a sparrow escaping the talons of a hawk, darting nimbly out of reach.
Her laughter, light as silver bells, echoed in his ears, making the god king's longing all the more unbearable.
Sooner or later, you'll be mine.
Zeus, stirred by desire, let out a pleased hum.
Though this fairy had evaded his pursuit and advances ever since her birth, keeping him from ever succeeding, Aphrodite always managed to offer him a new taste of sweetness just as his patience wore thin. She truly was a little wildcat who knew how to ensnare hearts.
Never mind. She has already entered Mount Olympus and become mine. There's no need to rush.
What matters now is business. I must first meet that Titan goddess. With my charm, I'll persuade her to abandon the darkness and turn to the light.
Zeus straightened his expression and strode toward the source of the divine summons.
...
Meanwhile, deep within the waters, in the Arima Cavern.
Samael held the leash of the rampaging three-headed hellhound, the beast bounding around like an unruly calf. His expression was nothing short of exasperated.
The exaggerated, almost comical faces of the three heads made him want to beat them senseless.
Since moving into the cavern of the Mother of Serpents two months ago, he had finally learned the hardship of raising divine beasts.
Even handling just the three-headed hellhound and the hydra left him completely worn out.
The hydra preferred silence by day and rampaged at night, solitary and cruel by nature.
The hellhound was the exact opposite—wildly active during the day but snoring soundly at night, impossible to rouse, with not the slightest sense of a guardian's duty.
Two beasts with clashing habits and temperaments, cooped up together, could only end in constant fighting.
At first, Samael had the patience to try reasoning with them, using gestures and signals to explain.
But the lesson never stuck. Within a day or two they were fighting again—smaller scuffles every couple of days, bigger ones every three. One stirred up chaos by day, the other by night, leaving him no peace at all.
Fed up, the ancient serpent resorted to the simplest solution: a stick. Whenever the troublemakers acted up, he gave them a thorough beating.
The Mother of Serpents, who was just as weary of raising the brats and had even considered throwing them out early, was all too pleased with the method.
At last, when Cerberus, covered in lumps, and the hydra, swollen and knotted like a rope, recognized who the true master was, Samael finally found some peace.
If it weren't for Ana's hatching day being so close, I would have roasted you all by now!
Grumbling, Samael glared forward. Just as the hellhound was about to lift its hind leg to piss on the newly planted flowers by the entrance, a shiver ran through its body.
The stupid dog immediately clamped its legs shut, whimpered, and bolted into the forest to dig a pit to relieve itself.
"Get lost! Next time I catch you pissing at the door, there'll be no warning—I'll cut them off!"
"Whine…"
Terrified by the ancient serpent's threats, the hellhound, bladder aching, scrambled desperately deeper into the forest.
But then, from the rustling bushes, a sharp scream rang out.
"Ahhhh! Help! Don't eat me!"
"My meat is sour! I taste terrible!"
The startled hellhound bared its fangs, growling. Its middle head lunged, snapping up the "little dragonfly" darting about in the air.
But as it heard footsteps behind, the beast froze, turned, and crouched low. Obediently, it released the struggling nymph into Samael's palm, wagging its tail eagerly with a doglike grin, waiting for praise.
Samael gave the central head a perfunctory pat before shooing the fearsome mutt aside.
With the danger removed, he opened his palm, revealing a trembling nymph. His brow furrowed.
"This is the territory of the Mother of Serpents and other great magical beasts. Do you have a death wish?"
"Sa… Samael? Waaah! Thank goodness, I finally found you!"
Before the ancient serpent could scold her, the little nymph—one of Daphne's companions—threw herself into his chest, sobbing.
But with her wings still wet from the hellhound's slobber, her embrace only left his chest sticky. His face darkened.
The unlucky hellhound, caught in the blame, shrank its neck. Without even finishing its business, it tensed its body and shuffled awkwardly deeper into the cavern.
"Enough. Speak. What happened?"
Samael lifted the tiny nymph and asked coldly.
"Big Sister Astraea is looking for you. It seems urgent."
The three-inch-tall girl quickly snapped out of her panic and explained. After their earlier search had failed, the nymphs had gone off to investigate elsewhere.
"When?"
"One… two…"
"Two days ago?"
"Um… two months ago…"
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
Samael's breath caught as the nymph finished counting on her fingers and mumbled the answer. His face went black.
Two months ago they were looking for me? And only now the message reaches me? I don't even know if I'll make it in time.
Without realizing it, I've been holed up in the Mother of Serpents' territory for this long.
I should have told them before, but I was too fixated on Ana's hatching—and on wrangling these little disasters.
As his cold, slitted eyes swept the beasts, the hellhound, long broken under his tyranny, immediately dropped to the ground with a pitiful whine, staring up at him with mournful eyes.
I may not be human… but this thing is even more of a mad dog than I am.
...
(50 Chapters Ahead)
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