In the warmth of a fire-lit room, as Athena spun her tale of deception and manipulation into the drama "Olympian Golden Priti," Luo En, who had been sitting silently, found himself sweating profusely as he recognized the parallels to his own situation.
Indeed, this affair was not without his involvent.
Months earlier, with the aid of the "Dice of Chance," Luo En had stolen so of Ares's authority, turning the War God from a "mighty man" into a "wilted man." This left his frustrated lover, the Goddess of Love Aphrodite, with no choice but to kick him out, and caused quite a stir.
Not long after, Ares regained his vigor and reunited with Aphrodite, winning back the affection of the Goddess of Love.
However, their affair was discovered by the suspicious Hephaestus, which greatly angered the Craftsman God.
In a fit of rage, Hephaestus mustered all his skill and crafted a golden net. He waited for Ares and Aphrodite to be entwined in their illicit affair and caught the lovers in the act on the bed.
Unsatisfied, Hephaestus then summoned all the gods of Mount Olympus to publicly expose the cheating pair and seek justice and judgnt from them.
The result, however, ended with the humiliated cuckold's capitulation.
On the one hand, most of the onlookers were male deities who found it hard to resist the charms of the Goddess of Love. Even the proud Apollo, upon seeing the coy Aphrodite, was moved by desire and found it hard to be uncompassionate.
The ever-pleasing Divine Envoy Hers openly declared that he would willingly be bound to the beautiful Goddess of Love, even with three extra chains, despite being scolded by the other goddesses present. He used this to plead for the wronged Hephaestus.
Eventually, Poseidon, the God of the Sea who had long coveted Aphrodite, also chose a side.
It must be noted that with Hestia, the Goddess of the Hearth, in long seclusion in the Mortal World, Olympus was only ho to eleven Chief Gods.
Confronted with the adulterous Ares and Aphrodite, the supportive Hers and Poseidon, and the obviously biased Hera who favored her younger son, Hephaestus had to face five deities.
With Apollo swayed by passion and abstaining from voting, the Goddess of Harvest Deter remaining apathetic to worldly affairs, and Zeus, who could hardly be expected to speak, given his own dirty laundry, opting to turn a deaf ear.
Even though Athena and Artemis, the virgin goddesses, stood up for Hephaestus out of disgust for Aphrodite and Ares's conduct and spoke on his behalf.
But facing the overwhelming advantage of the opposition, even if a council of divine power were to be held, the result would still be three votes to five.
Moreover, Hephaestus's foster mother, the Ocean Goddess Thetis, whom he greatly respected, had settled down within Poseidon's sphere of influence.
And it was with Hers's help that he was able to ascend to godhood and return to Mount Olympus.
Under such pressure, Hephaestus, the wronged party, had no choice but to hold his nose and release the adulterous pair.
Of course, with such a scandal blowing up without fair resolution, the storm wasn't going to subside anyti soon, especially given Hephaestus's notorious stubbornness.
So, as Athena put it, the Craftsman God remained at odds with Ares, the War God who had wronged him, causing regular upheaval in Olympus.
Thus, Athena, preferring to be out of sight and out of mind, decided to descend to earth early to visit her reclusive aunt on Crete Island—the Goddess of the Hearth, Hestia.
Now, having heard the full story, Luo En was amazed on the one hand at how inadvertently he had directed a family soap opera, and on the other, he was astounded by the chaotic ethical relationships atop Olympus.
In a way, it seed like he had accidentally wronged his nominal great-great-grandparents...
"Wait a minute..."
As Luo En tried to untangle the complex chain of information in his mind, Hestia, who was sat beside him on a stool, nibbling sunflower seeds from a pottery plate, expressed her surprise.
"Since when did the 'Seaside' one show such kindness? Moreover, isn't the lad from Maia's household known for not doing anything without profit?"
Since even Hestia could see the problem, Athena had nothing to conceal, so she nodded grudgingly and spilled even more thrilling insider information.
Everything has its price, and since Poseidon and Hers were willing to step forward to bail out Aphrodite, they naturally had their own motives.
And what others coveted about that harlot was nothing but her attractive flesh.
Of course, Aphrodite was well aware of this herself.
So, while Hephaestus was busy locking horns with Ares, the lonely Aphrodite couldn't resist returning secretly to The City of Paphos in Cyprus, where she bathed in the sea waters, allowed The Three Graces to anoint her with fragrant oil and to purify her body, regaining her chastity, before heading to the Sea of Okeanos to tumble in the sheets with Poseidon, who had stepped forward to diate.
Afterward, to express her gratitude to Hers for his intercession, she ended up getting involved with that Divine Envoy as well.
As Athena spoke, disgust appeared in waves across her face.
Hestia, who had just encountered this shocking revelation, was left stunned, feeling pity for her honest nephew whose head was now covered in an unmistakably green hue.
Luo En, hearing about his great-great-grandmother's bold exploits, was secretly amazed.
Damn, a threeso? Are you that capable?
And the Goddess of Love's divine power can be used like this? It even cos with a hyn-restoration feature? Impressive!
No wonder Athena ran away in the middle of the night to seek tranquility with Hestia.
Watching such a farce unfold right before your eyes, being powerless to do anything, and even if you tell Hephaestus, the victim, you're just rubbing salt into his wounds and subjecting him to greater humiliation.
In the end, the Goddess of Wisdom could only look out for herself and find peace of mind by staying out of sight.
Having finished speaking, Athena glanced at the person who was engrossed in listening and humphed softly.
"Speaking of which, you do fit the aesthetic of my relative. Do you want to introduce you to her?"
"Cough, no need, I prefer to be faithful to one!"
Luo En jerked alert and hastily chuckled while shaking his head in refusal.
Just kidding, what hasn't Aphrodite seen in that field of hers? Even if the Bull Demon King ca to plow the field, he'd be drained and devoured; I'd better not get involved with my frail self.
Moreover, this Goddess's birth is sowhat tied to Uranus, the Father of Heaven. There might be so unknown secrets and taboos hidden; even Zeus, the wandering anthropomorphic seed-spreader, wouldn't dare to touch her lightly, rarely involved in any scandal with Aphrodite, let alone a demigod like myself.
What's more, if I rember correctly, Aphrodite hasn't been without demigod lovers, but generally, they didn't enjoy much pleasure before they t their premature demise.
Hiss, thinking about it that way, this woman might truly be a calamity planted by Uranus.
Luo En muttered in his heart about his widely acquainted great-great-grandmother, while sitting up straight, his expression serious, demonstrating his firm stance not to consort with the corrupt.
Seeing Luo En's deanor, Athena, being a virgin goddess, nodded in approval.
Of course, she had no idea that soone's so-called faithfulness ant one person.
But, it could also an a group...
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