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Chapter 237: Such an Inauspicious Laugh
2023-10-23 Author: Rowing Without Oars 233
Olympus.
“I thought you were all just talk, but it turns out you were actually serious. The God King of Olympus, that Amazon? Is that really okay?”
The Goddess of Discord sat on the steps below the throne, munching on an apple as she watched the gathered gods below.
The major gods had gathered for the second time in just a few days, which was a rare occurrence on Olympus. The gods might not gather together even once in ten years, yet this was the second time in just a few short days.
But the difference from last time was that neither Wonder Woman nor Hephaestus was present; it was not a formal gathering with everyone in attendance.
“This is something we decided upon after discussion, Discord,” Hades said expressionlessly. “And watch yourself. You have no place to speak here.”
The Goddess of Discord ignored Hades and looked at the Queen of Heaven, Hera. “You can accept this outcome too? I mean, after putting in so much effort, so much work trying to get rid of that Amazon, you can turn around and accept her suddenly being above all of us?”
Hera said stiffly, “This is the result of everyone's discussion. I am merely following the majority.”
After a pause, she added, “Besides, we've all agreed that in the face of the impending cataclysm, personal grudges can be set aside for now.”
“What?”
The Goddess of Discord was unexpectedly stunned.
“A cataclysm? Are you talking about…?”
Poseidon said coolly, “The fewer people who know, the better, Hera. She doesn't need to know this much.”
Hera glanced at Poseidon. “Discord can be trusted. Besides, among the major gods, Hephaestus and Wonder Woman are on good terms privately. He will definitely tell that Amazon the truth. But that doesn't really matter anyway. She is now the nominal God King of Olympus, which means she has already become the biggest target. Whether she knows the truth or not doesn't make much difference.”
Poseidon said no more, tacitly agreeing.
“A target? A cataclysm?” The Goddess of Discord vaguely guessed something. “Is some enemy coming to Olympus?”
Hera nodded slowly. “It's that prophecy you should know of. The prophecy says we will all die, and at the hands of one of Zeus's offspring.”
The Goddess of Discord nodded, then suddenly realized something.
“Wait, are you saying… you already know who that offspring is?”
All eyes focused on Hera.
“It was my fault,” Hera said in a low voice. “He is my child… Zeus's and mine.”
The Goddess of Discord was taken aback.
“Why have I never heard you speak of this before?”
“Because his existence was erased from history, by Zeus's command,” Hera said slowly. “That was a long, long time ago, like something from a past life.
“He was my first child with Zeus, The Newborn. When he was born, a witch divined his destiny. The prophecy said that there would be countless offspring of Zeus in the future, but none would be able to surpass the eldest son. He is the strongest son of Zeus, and one day he would become the Lord of Olympus—and its sole master.”
The Goddess of Discord placed her hands on her hips and frowned. “I get it. Zeus isn't the sharing type. He wouldn't be willing to give up his throne, not even to his own child.”
“Yes, my husband sentenced that child to death. But he was our first child, after all. Unwilling to do it himself, he handed the child over to the witch. I begged that witch to spare the child's life. She promised me she wouldn't do it herself, but she didn't dare defy Zeus's command either. So she left the infant alone in a desert overrun with fierce beasts, letting the cruel world complete her mission.”
“And he survived, didn't he?” The Goddess of Discord said with understanding.
“Yes.” Hera sighed softly. “He took the world as his nursery, grew up, and came to Olympus for revenge, attempting to seize the throne. But he failed—that was seven thousand years ago. I thought I had watched him die with my own eyes...”
“Obviously, he didn't,” Hades said. “Perhaps Zeus killed him once, or maybe Zeus spared him for some reason. In any case, he spent seven thousand years climbing out of Hell, and now he's back for more, still targeting the position of God King. This time, he is even more powerful than before. If the prophecy from his birth is true, then he is undoubtedly stronger than any of us. And if the later prophecy is true, then we will all die by his hand.”
“I see... so you pulled Wonder Woman in to take the bullet for you?” The Goddess of Discord realized. “Ha, I knew it. All that talk about needing a God King to maintain order, needing someone who wouldn't bring change—it was all a pretense.”
“Be serious, Discord,” Hera chided. “We are all thinking about the future of Olympus.”
Nice words, but deep down, everyone knew the truth as clear as day—they were just afraid of death. The longer one lives, the more one fears death. When Typhon came back then, the gods had turned tail and fled without a shred of integrity. Saving their own skins was more important to them than anything else.
“And Apollo is okay with this?” Discord looked at Apollo with a smile. “I'm quite surprised. I thought your obsession with the God King's position was stronger than this.”
Apollo said vaguely, “I never thought this was a good idea. I told you Wonder Woman is not to be trifled with, that she has a monster of an ally in the Mortal World, but none of you would listen to me—”
“Enough,” Poseidon interrupted. “You know nothing of The Newborn's power. This is a necessary measure to deal with the crisis.”
Apollo mumbled, “I'd say it's you who know nothing of Ultraman's power...”
“What did you say?”
“N-nothing.”
“Actually, I was against it too,” Hera grumbled. “For once, Apollo has a point. We shouldn't have hidden these things from Wonder Woman.”
The other gods were still in the dark. Only Hera and Apollo had some idea of how powerful Diana's “connections” now were.
The hunting goddess Artemis looked at Hera strangely. “I thought you hated her to the bone.”
“It's... it's alright. Just a small misunderstanding, nothing so dramatic.” Hera's expression was evasive.
“A small misunderstanding?”
Artemis stared at her with wide eyes, almost suspecting that Hera had been possessed.
“Isn't she the child that Hippolyta of the Amazons had with Zeus behind your back?”
“The grudge of having a husband stolen is hardly worth mentioning...”
Artemis: “???”
“Oh, I mean, this matter requires careful consideration,” Hera quickly corrected herself.
*If you'd seen how big her ally's fist is, you wouldn't be asking such a stupid question,* she grumbled inwardly.
“Alright.”
Artemis didn't press further, but her expression was still very strange.
“In any case, the matter has been decided. When The Newborn returns, he is bound to go after the current God King first—Diana Prince of Paradise Island. And that will be our chance,” Poseidon shouted.
“While his attention is on Wonder Woman, we'll work together and strike when he's vulnerable. Then...”
He didn't finish his sentence, instead revealing a cruel smile.
The other gods chimed in with their agreement, one of them even curling his lips and letting out a sinister cackle.
Apollo hastily stopped them.
“D-don't laugh like that,” he said.
The gods looked at him strangely. “Is there a problem?”
“No,” Apollo said. “I just think that kind of laugh isn't very auspicious.”
Speaking from experience.
(end of chapter)
2023-10-23 Author: Rowing Without Oars 233
Olympus.
“I thought you were all just talk, but it turns out you were actually serious. The God King of Olympus, that Amazon? Is that really okay?”
The Goddess of Discord sat on the steps below the throne, munching on an apple as she watched the gathered gods below.
The major gods had gathered for the second time in just a few days, which was a rare occurrence on Olympus. The gods might not gather together even once in ten years, yet this was the second time in just a few short days.
But the difference from last time was that neither Wonder Woman nor Hephaestus was present; it was not a formal gathering with everyone in attendance.
“This is something we decided upon after discussion, Discord,” Hades said expressionlessly. “And watch yourself. You have no place to speak here.”
The Goddess of Discord ignored Hades and looked at the Queen of Heaven, Hera. “You can accept this outcome too? I mean, after putting in so much effort, so much work trying to get rid of that Amazon, you can turn around and accept her suddenly being above all of us?”
Hera said stiffly, “This is the result of everyone's discussion. I am merely following the majority.”
After a pause, she added, “Besides, we've all agreed that in the face of the impending cataclysm, personal grudges can be set aside for now.”
“What?”
The Goddess of Discord was unexpectedly stunned.
“A cataclysm? Are you talking about…?”
Poseidon said coolly, “The fewer people who know, the better, Hera. She doesn't need to know this much.”
Hera glanced at Poseidon. “Discord can be trusted. Besides, among the major gods, Hephaestus and Wonder Woman are on good terms privately. He will definitely tell that Amazon the truth. But that doesn't really matter anyway. She is now the nominal God King of Olympus, which means she has already become the biggest target. Whether she knows the truth or not doesn't make much difference.”
Poseidon said no more, tacitly agreeing.
“A target? A cataclysm?” The Goddess of Discord vaguely guessed something. “Is some enemy coming to Olympus?”
Hera nodded slowly. “It's that prophecy you should know of. The prophecy says we will all die, and at the hands of one of Zeus's offspring.”
The Goddess of Discord nodded, then suddenly realized something.
“Wait, are you saying… you already know who that offspring is?”
All eyes focused on Hera.
“It was my fault,” Hera said in a low voice. “He is my child… Zeus's and mine.”
The Goddess of Discord was taken aback.
“Why have I never heard you speak of this before?”
“Because his existence was erased from history, by Zeus's command,” Hera said slowly. “That was a long, long time ago, like something from a past life.
“He was my first child with Zeus, The Newborn. When he was born, a witch divined his destiny. The prophecy said that there would be countless offspring of Zeus in the future, but none would be able to surpass the eldest son. He is the strongest son of Zeus, and one day he would become the Lord of Olympus—and its sole master.”
The Goddess of Discord placed her hands on her hips and frowned. “I get it. Zeus isn't the sharing type. He wouldn't be willing to give up his throne, not even to his own child.”
“Yes, my husband sentenced that child to death. But he was our first child, after all. Unwilling to do it himself, he handed the child over to the witch. I begged that witch to spare the child's life. She promised me she wouldn't do it herself, but she didn't dare defy Zeus's command either. So she left the infant alone in a desert overrun with fierce beasts, letting the cruel world complete her mission.”
“And he survived, didn't he?” The Goddess of Discord said with understanding.
“Yes.” Hera sighed softly. “He took the world as his nursery, grew up, and came to Olympus for revenge, attempting to seize the throne. But he failed—that was seven thousand years ago. I thought I had watched him die with my own eyes...”
“Obviously, he didn't,” Hades said. “Perhaps Zeus killed him once, or maybe Zeus spared him for some reason. In any case, he spent seven thousand years climbing out of Hell, and now he's back for more, still targeting the position of God King. This time, he is even more powerful than before. If the prophecy from his birth is true, then he is undoubtedly stronger than any of us. And if the later prophecy is true, then we will all die by his hand.”
“I see... so you pulled Wonder Woman in to take the bullet for you?” The Goddess of Discord realized. “Ha, I knew it. All that talk about needing a God King to maintain order, needing someone who wouldn't bring change—it was all a pretense.”
“Be serious, Discord,” Hera chided. “We are all thinking about the future of Olympus.”
Nice words, but deep down, everyone knew the truth as clear as day—they were just afraid of death. The longer one lives, the more one fears death. When Typhon came back then, the gods had turned tail and fled without a shred of integrity. Saving their own skins was more important to them than anything else.
“And Apollo is okay with this?” Discord looked at Apollo with a smile. “I'm quite surprised. I thought your obsession with the God King's position was stronger than this.”
Apollo said vaguely, “I never thought this was a good idea. I told you Wonder Woman is not to be trifled with, that she has a monster of an ally in the Mortal World, but none of you would listen to me—”
“Enough,” Poseidon interrupted. “You know nothing of The Newborn's power. This is a necessary measure to deal with the crisis.”
Apollo mumbled, “I'd say it's you who know nothing of Ultraman's power...”
“What did you say?”
“N-nothing.”
“Actually, I was against it too,” Hera grumbled. “For once, Apollo has a point. We shouldn't have hidden these things from Wonder Woman.”
The other gods were still in the dark. Only Hera and Apollo had some idea of how powerful Diana's “connections” now were.
The hunting goddess Artemis looked at Hera strangely. “I thought you hated her to the bone.”
“It's... it's alright. Just a small misunderstanding, nothing so dramatic.” Hera's expression was evasive.
“A small misunderstanding?”
Artemis stared at her with wide eyes, almost suspecting that Hera had been possessed.
“Isn't she the child that Hippolyta of the Amazons had with Zeus behind your back?”
“The grudge of having a husband stolen is hardly worth mentioning...”
Artemis: “???”
“Oh, I mean, this matter requires careful consideration,” Hera quickly corrected herself.
*If you'd seen how big her ally's fist is, you wouldn't be asking such a stupid question,* she grumbled inwardly.
“Alright.”
Artemis didn't press further, but her expression was still very strange.
“In any case, the matter has been decided. When The Newborn returns, he is bound to go after the current God King first—Diana Prince of Paradise Island. And that will be our chance,” Poseidon shouted.
“While his attention is on Wonder Woman, we'll work together and strike when he's vulnerable. Then...”
He didn't finish his sentence, instead revealing a cruel smile.
The other gods chimed in with their agreement, one of them even curling his lips and letting out a sinister cackle.
Apollo hastily stopped them.
“D-don't laugh like that,” he said.
The gods looked at him strangely. “Is there a problem?”
“No,” Apollo said. “I just think that kind of laugh isn't very auspicious.”
Speaking from experience.
(end of chapter)
