Chapter 175: Chapter 30 The Goddess of Beauty in Marriage and Division
Sitting in the stone chair, Laine and his companions simply watched in the round mirror how Protheus and his human students deceived the deities.
It must be said, purely in terms of execution, the Forethinker was remarkable indeed.
He knew how to avoid risks, how to probe, and how to keep secrets, which were rare abilities among the gods. Laine could almost foresee that, had he been a mortal rather than a deity, he would have lived a smooth life for the most part, and at the mont of welcoming death, mocked the foolishness of the deities for not seeing through his little trick.
But he was a god, and this made his actions look anything but clever. He was bound to be punished one day in the future, sooner or later.
“Your brother will be back soon.”
Having stored away the High-Grade Artifact imbued with the authority of [Space], Laine glanced at Epitheus beside him and took his leave.
“But rest assured, we will keep our lips sealed about everything we saw today.”
It must be said, in the absence of divine power, the usefulness of these artifacts was greatly amplified.
“Then I will not see you out…”
Watching the two about to depart, Epitheus hesitated for a mont, but still asked,
“However, stranger, in your opinion, how will the Divine King punish my brother in the future?”
The two unfamiliar deities had never been seen by him before. Perhaps they ca from the Underworld, or from the stars, or even the depths of the Spirit Realm, but their coincidental appearance here undoubtedly proved that they were no commoners.
“Well, I guess… he will not punish Protheus.”
With a slight smile, Laine looked at Liana beside him.
“What do you think, why is that?”
“…”
Taken aback by the question, Liana pondered for a mont. It was not her forte, but she still ventured a guess:
“Because Protheus is still of use?”
“Incorrect.” Laine shook his head: “Once he created humans and passed on the knowledge from the past era, he could no longer be considered valuable.”
“Even his much-prided ‘Wisdom,’ the Divine King could achieve this through other ans too, though it would require a bit more divine power.”
“…Then is it because of his identity?”
Liana guessed again.
“Also incorrect.” Laine refuted again: “Titan Iapetus’s status and power were never high, so why would Zeus fear him.”
“Besides his own father, Protheus’s wife is only an Oceanides who is weaker than he, and the only powerful brother is still holding up the sky in the west.”
“…”
Liana fell silent. She was always an effective executor, capable of doing everything Laine asked of her, but that didn’t an she was adept at pondering such matters.
Shaking his head, Laine still turned back to Epitheus, who had initially raised the question.
“What about you, lesser god of hindsight?”
“Perhaps because my brother’s offense is not severe enough, and humanity’s transgressions are insufficient as well.”
As the conversation with Liana unfolded, the famously foolish deity seed to have understood sothing.
“The Divine King desires a permanent solution to my brother, to this creator of the Bronze Humanity, rather than a re punishnt. He has the rit of creating people, and although he deceived the gods, he has yet to affect human faith, so the King cannot punish him too harshly, otherwise it would affect his own prestige.”
With a sigh, the lesser god of hindsight understood the causes and consequences. He felt the rising divine power within him. As the deity who helped Protheus create humans, they both amassed more faith than even Zeus did.
So it was not just his brother, but he himself had to bring disasters upon humanity.
“Thank you for your wisdom, stranger deity. Might I be fortunate enough to learn your na?”
Rising to offer a slight bow, Epitheus asked.
But across from him, Laine declined.
“There’s no need. To be honest, I don’t really like you.”
Standing up, Laine could already faintly see Protheus rushing over.
“If your brother prides himself on his wisdom, always doing things that he shouldn’t, then you are just the opposite. You clearly could have changed sothing, yet you do not wish to change at all.”
“I have no reason to reproach you, as this is rely a difference in how individuals approach the world. But a deity like you, who may well care only for himself, is certainly not what I need, the kind of life capable of accomplishing extraordinary feats.”
Gently shaking his head, Laine signaled to Liana, then turned to leave. Behind him, Epitheus seed to want to say sothing but in the end held back.
Just as the stranger deity said, in the past, he seed to have advised Protheus, advised Atlas, but it was only superficial.
‘Matters unaddressed, awaiting destiny’s command,’ would be the perfect description of him. Perhaps feeling that his own abilities were limited and unable to bring about change, he opted to simply drift along, saving himself only.
“Alas—”
Epitheus sighed and leaned back in his chair, lost in thought once again.
·········
“It’s truly incomprehensible yet logically sound.”
Walking on the well-trodden dirt road, Laine was sowhat reflective.
Regarding why Protheus would do such a thing, he was initially baffled. Had the Forethinker never considered that a deity might whimsically descend to the mortal world to witness the mortals’ worship firsthand?
Reviews
All reviews (0)