Zeus hesitated slightly. He watched Hera, seemingly assessing whether she might act irrationally, but in the end, he let go.
The Divine King understood his sister even better than Hera understood herself. Like other goddesses faced with sudden change, she might act impulsively, but would choose to salvage the situation rather than result in mutual destruction after calming down.
As for what terms she might propose... as long as they weren't too excessive, he found them acceptable.
Thus, in the eyes of the other gods, there was no quarrel between the Divine King and the Queen of Gods. They simply watched Apollo's every move in the projection. After exchanging a glance, Zeus released his grip and Hera slowly stood up.
"As everyone can see," Hera said calmly, "Olympus is about to welco an outstanding deity."
"I know many of you are wondering about his origins—a powerful deity must have an exceptional birthright; he couldn't have co into this world out of nowhere. And what I have to say is, he carries the noble bloodline of the Divine King, the very proof of his extraordinary nature. But in addition to that, today, I have another announcent to make.
It is, like the third matter, one of the reasons for convening today's banquet."
With a slight pause, the Heavenly Empress gestured for Ares to co forward. The War God, unaware of this extra event unfolding, took a few steps ahead in confusion.
Hera took his hand, and the authority of the Heavenly Empress surged within her. Amidst the sowhat astonished and amused gaze of Zeus, she solemnly began:
"In the na of the Heavenly Empress, as the definer of marriage, I and the Divine King shall witness a sacred marriage. Zeus's eldest son shall wed the most beautiful among you. Her beautiful features naturally should be protected by strength."
"What?"
"This..."
"..."
As her words fell, the great hall buzzed with noise. The eyes of the gods swept between Ares and Aphrodite, caught by surprise.
"Isn't this decision a bit sudden?"
"Ares... hasn't he just co of age?"
"...Heh, the Heavenly Empress probably doesn't want the Divine King to 'make a mistake' again. Seeing the son of a rival, she naturally wouldn't want another one."
"True, the Goddess of Beauty's girdle... it should be so, though whether Aphrodite will agree is still unknown..."
"..."
Once the statent was made, all the gods engaged in discussion, but next to Hera, Zeus felt relieved.
Hera's decision was sowhat unexpected to him, but not troubleso. He had intended to marry Aphrodite to Apollo, but that was only from a rational standpoint—a powerful divine power should match with another. Unlike the Goddess of Beauty who was born with near-peak divine power and represented an era, Ares's strength had yet to grow.
Now, however, there seed nothing wrong with this outco. A direct marriage order for Apollo could seem hasty and could further agitate Hera.
Now, the definer of marital order wished to restrain the unrestrained Goddess of Beauty; the Heavenly Empress aid to eliminate potential rivals; the mother wanted to find a dazzling wife for her child; even blaming the stimulus that Apollo had brought to Hera could be plausible... As long as his own purpose was achieved, Zeus didn't care who was to marry Aphrodite.
Therefore, he conspicuously expressed his astonishnt and surprise before rising amidst the various looks of the gods and added with so 'helplessness':
"Yes, that is also a decision we made earlier. As grandchildren born of the Heavenly Father's lineage, Aphrodite, you surely wish to fully integrate into Olympus, do you not?"
In the great hall, Ares was ecstatic, the unexpected windfall leaving him thrilled; he had long harbored secret admiration for the Goddess of Beauty. The other party, Aphrodite, after a brief bout of anger, cald down.
Without considering other factors, Ares did indeed fit the shared mortal and divine standard of rugged beauty. As the embodint of love and beauty, excluding her instinctive aversion to marriage, Aphrodite even felt this wasn't a bad outco.
But she didn't want to agree so readily, feeling powerless to refuse when the Divine King and Queen of Gods were united, yet she still made so attempts.
"His power is not yet strong enough," Aphrodite asserted. "Marriage, perhaps, isn't quite suitable. With his current strength, he's also inadequate to protect ."
"Then let's wait until Ares possesses power that matches yours, and then complete this marriage. I believe that day won't be far, right, Zeus?"
Taking a step back, but with her words, Hera decisively sealed the deal. She looked towards Zeus, who then continued with a 'helpless' nod.
"Yes... if that's the case, as a wedding gift for you, Ares and Aphrodite, I will allow you to carve out a piece of land on my earth as a territory for your mortal worshippers. You will receive their faith day and night, to grow swiftly and beco a robust pillar for Olympus."
"I will, Father!"
Surprised by another windfall, Ares stepped forward, kneeling on one knee to express his gratitude to the Divine King and Queen of Gods.
Though Hera's son, he was born too late to have shared in the division of faith among the gods, but now Zeus's promise suddenly granted him the qualification to enter.
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