Chapter Summaries

Suye defeated Adus with an endless assault of treants, then returned to Thermopylae and rested after his victories. As Persia prepared for the decisive naval battle at Hunters Strait, Suye’s feats inspired donations and a surge of interest in magic across Greece and beyond.

• Suye overwhelmed Adus with steel treants until Adus surrendered and handed over his Spatial Ring.
• Suye taunted the Persians before returning to Thermopylae, where Miltiades and the defenders welcomed him.
• Suye dropped his exhausted act in private, summoned familiars to guard him, and slept until his strength returned.
• Reports revealed that Gilgamesh remained in Hero Palace while the Persian Navy prepared to face Themistocles at Hunters Strait.
• Suye’s victories encouraged Greek city-states to donate to magic academies, while applications to become mages surged.
• Plato Academy doubled its enrollment quota for the new year.

Suye learned that soaring warhorse prices let him sell the Stud Farms at last, while mages discussed how his fame, the Greco-Persian War, and the spread of paper and printing were changing attitudes toward magic. The chapter left him hopeful that mages would popularize magic and set humanity’s progress in motion.

• Warhorse prices rose sharply, and Suye had Neder sell the Stud Farms after nearly a year of preparation.
• Mages in the World Reception Room discussed the Suye Effect, noting that Suye’s battles had increased interest in magic and boosted sales of goods associated with him.
• Mages connected the Greco-Persian War and Suye’s Paper Making and Movable Type Printing to the rapid spread and popularization of magic.
• Suye smiled as mages recognized his efforts, then shut off the discussion when praise for him became overwhelming.
• Mages worried about divine suppression but argued that the changing balance among divine kingdoms would protect low- and mid-level mages.
• Suye concluded that popularizing magic could help humanity grow and overcome forces that obstructed progress.

After seven days of costly Persian assaults on Thermopylae, Suye and the Greek commanders waited for news of the naval battle at Hunters Strait and discussed the Athena’s planned intervention. Leonidas warned Suye that the Goddess of Revenge’s priest had been investigating him, and Suye suspected the temple was searching for a Defier of Fate.

• The Persian Army resumed its assaults on Thermopylae and lost hundreds of Golden Warriors, over a thousand Silver Warriors, and twenty thousand Immortal Army soldiers before taking a rest.
• Miltiades told the commanders that the battle at Hunters Strait had likely begun, and Suye explained that the Athena would join the Greek Navy and help drive back the Persian fleet if Themistocles could hold out.
• Suye advised the commanders to wait for news, while Leonidas confirmed that they would have to retreat if the Persian Navy reached Maris Bay.
• Commodus asked Suye to take his youngest son as a disciple, and Suye offered the boy a trial-study place at Plato Academy instead.
• Leonidas, Castor, and Pollux told Suye that the Goddess of Revenge’s priest had been investigating him, and Suye suspected the temple was searching for a Defier of Fate.

Suye wrestled with the threat of the Goddess of Revenge and resolved to avoid treating her temple as an enemy without proof. At Thermopylae, the Persian fleet entered Maris Bay and Gilgamesh’s army advanced, forcing the Greeks to begin a careful retreat.

• Suye calmed himself by weighing how to respond if the Revenge Priest investigated him, while keeping his attention on the battle at Hunters Strait.
• At dusk, Suye saw Persian ships bearing Gilgamesh’s Royal Banner enter Maris Bay and realized the earlier attacks on Thermopylae had been a feint.
• Miltiades and Leonidas urged retreat as Persian forces approached, while Hastings and Adus called on Suye and the Greeks to surrender.
• Leonidas challenged Adus and hurled a javelin, but Hastings caught it before it could strike him.
• Miltiades ordered ten thousand defenders to withdraw first through the narrow terrain, as Persian land and naval forces sounded their horns and cheered.

Leonidas took command of Thermopylae and urged Suye to retreat, but Suye stayed as twenty thousand defenders prepared to face the Persian assault. After the Persian Fleet captured the port and Thermopylae fell into chaos, a colossal shadow appeared at sea, leaving the defenders confronting an unknown force.

• Leonidas knocked out Pollux and Castor, sent them away, and invoked the Demigod Family’s authority to take command of Thermopylae.
• Thousands of soldiers withdrew, but many Greeks turned back, bringing the number who stayed to twenty thousand; Suye remained despite Leonidas’s order to leave.
• The Persian Fleet passed Thermopylae, then landed at a distant port while the Persian Army attacked the city with Light Infantry.
• The Persians captured the port, and Adus demanded that Suye surrender his gains as the Greeks panicked and Leonidas ordered the defenders to fight on.
• A huge Black Shadow approached across Maris Bay from the direction of Hunters Strait, astonishing the Greek commanders.

Suye revealed Themistocles’s plan as Athena and the Greek Navy arrived to attack the Persian fleet in Maris Bay. Leonidas led 3,000 Spartan Warriors out to strike the Persian Army, while Athena’s weapons broke through the Persian flagship’s defenses.

• Suye explained that Themistocles had lured the Persian fleet into Maris Bay before joining forces with Athena.
• Suye sent the Ice Queen and Wind Queen to Athena and persuaded Leonidas to lead 3,000 Spartan Warriors in a surprise attack.
• Leonidas departed through Thermopylae’s rear gate with the Spartans and 2,000 men assembled by Miltiades.
• Athena entered Maris Bay with the Greek Navy and a Legendary Sea Magic Beast, prompting the Persian Army to panic and consider retreating.
• Athena’s Magic Giant Crossbows and amplified magic destroyed ordinary Persian ships and eventually pierced the Persian flagship’s barrier.

General Themistocles led the Athena in destroying the Persian fleet at Maris Bay and cutting off the Persian Army’s supplies and retreat. With the Persian Navy annihilated and the Greek Allied Forces advancing, the Persian Army was left in a desperate position.

• The Athena sank Persian Magic Battleships and destroyed ordinary warships with its spells, crossbow bolts, speed, and powerful hull.
• Admiral Sekam ordered the Persian Magic Battleships to ram the Athena, but Themistocles outmaneuvered them and kept attacking the ordinary ships.
• The Athena smashed more than a hundred Persian ships in Maris Bay, destroying the army’s supplies and trapping the Persians ashore.
• Greek naval commanders celebrated their victory and chanted, “Suye is in the navy!”
• Themistocles turned the Athena against the Persian Magic Battleships, whose repeated ramming attacks failed as the Athena’s damage was magically repaired.
• The Athena sank every Persian Magic Battleship, and the Greek Allied Forces returned to attack the stranded Persian Army.

The Greeks retook the harbor at Maris Bay and captured more than two hundred thousand Persian soldiers, but Gilgamesh’s arrival threatened to overturn their victory. Suye challenged Greece’s leaders to seek help from its Legendary Mages, exposing their reluctance to share power as Gilgamesh announced he would cultivate on Mount Romus.

• Leonidas led the Greek forces in defeating the Persian army at Maris Bay, and more than two hundred thousand Persian soldiers became prisoners.
• Themistocles’s fleet left Maris Bay under cover of darkness while the Greek Allied Forces celebrated their victory.
• Suye and Miltiades discussed the danger Gilgamesh posed, and Medels explained that the temple could not intervene before Gilgamesh acted.
• Gilgamesh announced that he would cultivate on Mount Romus at noon the next day and ordered everyone else to leave, prompting alarm among the Greek generals.
• Suye demanded to know why Greece would not enlist its Legendary Mages to restrain Gilgamesh, and Faust said Greece’s leaders were protecting their own interests.

Suye argued that nobles had to abandon their narrow interests and adapt to the new era for humanity’s future, then prepared to withdraw from Thermopylae as Gilgamesh’s power emerged. Just as the Hero Palace rose and Suye was about to order a retreat, a streak of golden light arrived from the east.

• Suye persuaded the commanders that opposing mages and other new forces would make the nobles enemies of progress, and General Faste declared that people should pursue the future and climb higher.
• Euclid reminded the commanders that Suye had sacrificed personal and Greek interests before, and the meeting ended under a heavy atmosphere.
• The next morning, the Greek army withdrew in order from Mount Romus, leaving ten thousand warriors to guard the harbor.
• Suye studied Gilgamesh’s deeds, made his final preparations, and returned to Thermopylae as the Persian army remained absent.
• Gilgamesh summoned the Eight Wind Sword and the Sky City Armor, and the Hero Palace rose into the sky as Suye prepared to order a retreat.
• A streak of golden light flew in from the eastern horizon.

Heracles and Gilgamesh began a devastating battle above Maris Bay, while their clashes sent tsunamis and hurricanes toward both armies. As Miltiades and Hastings struggled to shield their soldiers, Suye tried to watch the fight and noticed Euclid was recording every movement with astonishing clarity.

• Heracles flew toward Hero Palace, where Gilgamesh waited, and the two Hero Kings collided in the sky.
• Miltiades ordered those below Gold Rank to close their eyes, then used his Heroic Spear to break apart the tsunami rushing toward Thermopylae.
• The battle accelerated, and Gilgamesh's sword sent black hurricanes across the sea while the fighters' clashes battered both armies with waves.
• Suye saw that Euclid could follow the battle through geometric patterns and record it rapidly in his Magic Book.
• Miltiades and Hastings ordered everyone to turn away as the fighters' next collision unleashed enormous shock waves, hurricanes, earthquakes, and towering tsunamis.
• Miltiades and Hastings struggled to stop the destruction, retreating and coughing up blood as the disaster continued.

After Gilgamesh and Heracles fought to a draw, Persia withdrew and Greece celebrated the end of the war. Suye joined the victory banquet, then found Euclid troubled by a threat to his life and nearing the memory of his Second Forgotten Thing.

• Gilgamesh ended his battle with Heracles, returned to Hero Palace, and ordered the Persian troops to withdraw.
• Miltiades returned to Thermopylae exhausted, and Suye used Radiant Healing on him as the Greeks declared victory.
• Miltiades announced that the Greeks would defend Thermopylae for three days before attending the War Ceremony at Delphi, and he approved a small celebration that night.
• Suye celebrated with the soldiers, then found Euclid alone on the walls and heard that studying the battle had advanced his geometry.
• Euclid told Suye that he was nearing the memory of his Second Forgotten Thing and had sensed a powerful threat to his life; Suye suggested the gods might be behind it.

Suye and Euclid planned to establish a public Geometry and Magic Research Association and explore a hidden Divine Power Plane, while Euclid revealed he had deciphered its Plane Mark. Later, Suye reunited with the transformed Acades at Thermopylae and asked how much it would cost to hire him for the expedition.

• Euclid told Suye he planned to investigate the Fifth Postulate, and Suye offered to fund a Geometry and Magic Research Association with Euclid as its president.
• Euclid proposed that they explore a Super Giant Divine Power Plane after the War Ceremony, explaining that he had deciphered its Plane Mark and believed Suye could obtain its Plane Heart.
• Suye relaxed on the beach at Thermopylae after the celebration and recognized Acades, who had returned with a vastly improved body and Legendary strength.
• Acades told Suye that he and Hulu had been separated in Hell, where Hulu had grown into a Holy Domain giant and might already have reached Legendary strength.
• Suye asked Acades how much it would cost to hire him for the planned Divine Power Plane expedition.

Suye helped Acades examine his past choices and rethink how he could turn hardship into motivation. Acades left Suye three bottles of Hydra Blood and disappeared, leaving Suye to ask Miltiades who he really was.

• Acades said he could not spare time for another exploration and encouraged Suye to keep creating works and technologies that would help him.
• Suye asked Acades to list what he could have done beside what he could not, and Acades realized his missed opportunities far outnumbered his limits.
• Suye explained that maturity meant turning negative or neutral experiences into something beneficial, and urged Acades to keep trying to improve.
• Acades gave Suye three bottles containing powerful Hydra Blood, then disappeared into the mountains.
• Suye returned to Thermopylae and pressed Miltiades to reveal Acades' identity.

Suye sacrificed three drops of Demigod Hydra Blood and gained powerful bloodline abilities and elemental talents. He then began developing an enhanced Flame Demon Snake, completing the Magic Creation of the Flame Hydra.

• Miltiades explained that the mysterious man was an illegitimate child of a Demigod Family who had suffered persecution, and said Suye could count on his help.
• Suye arranged for Miltiades to leave Thermopylae quietly in his Magic Carriage on the way to Delphi.
• Suye sacrificed the first drop of Demigod Hydra Blood and gained the God-vein Giant Bloodline Crown and Elemental Perception, which strengthened his Divine Might Root.
• Suye sacrificed the second and third drops of blood, choosing Elemental Balance and Elemental Fusion from the powerful talents they revealed.
• Suye abandoned his homework and used the Magic Tower to reshape the Flame Demon Snake array, creating the Magic Creation of the Flame Hydra.

Suye arrived in Delphi to overwhelming acclaim and ascended the temple steps for the War Ceremony, which was broadcast across Greece. As the ceremony began, a gigantic White Light Giant appeared above the clouds.

• Suye practiced engraving the Flame Hydra's Magic Array Diagram, learning from repeated failures before leaving Thermopylae with Miltiades, Euclid, Medels, Kabazan, and Rockett.
• Great Judge Leona gave a priest an Old Altar and ordered the Revenge Temple to follow Suye, then intercept him after the War Ceremony to determine whether he was a Defier of Fate.
• Suye arrived in Delphi and walked through cheering crowds, who celebrated him as the King of Hell and a hero who had saved Greece.
• Chief High Priest Berngora welcomed Suye before the gathered Greeks, while Light Screens carried the ceremony to city-states across Greece.
• Suye climbed the temple steps to receive the gods' blessings, and a ten-thousand-meter White Light Giant appeared atop the clouds as the ceremony began.

Athena bestowed Suye with Battlefield Dominator and an overwhelming share of her radiant blessing, while Ares later granted him a powerful Belief Battle Armor. Suye emerged from the divine ceremonies with extraordinary new protections and powers, as the gathered warriors watched in envy.

• Athena appeared as a colossal figure of light and sent Suye a divine blessing that granted him the Six-Ring Battlefield Dominator domain.
• Athena's radiance spread across Greece, healing and empowering people while an immense cascade of light gathered around Suye.
• Ares's divine miracle appeared as God of War Fire, and flames descended on warriors across Greece, especially those who had fought near Miltiades.
• Ares gathered the remaining flames into a massive blessing that engulfed Suye and formed a red, dragon-shaped Belief Battle Armor around him.

After the Greek victory, Suye received four divine miracles and an unprecedented twenty-seven divine blessings, including Messenger of Peace and Perfect Body. The War Ceremony continued as the priests praised their gods, while Suye wondered how long he would need to rest.

• The doves of peace crowned Suye with Messenger of Peace, which could protect him from powers of equal rank and nullify one stronger attack.
• The Discord Goddess sent Blood Thunder Baptism to the generals, then struck Suye with a massive bolt that gave him Perfect Body.
• Gods bestowed twenty-seven divine blessings on Suye, including three that granted items, stunning everyone present.
• Generals and mages from Thermopylae realized Suye had understood the greater stakes of the battle and looked at him with new respect.
• Suye rejoined Miltiades and the other leaders to await the next part of the War Ceremony as temple priests praised their gods.

At the War Ceremony, Suye displayed his divine gifts and learned how the Ghost Palace could control or frighten away undead. Grahana then awarded him the chief merit medals for both the Battle of the Two Passes and the Battle of Thermopylae, leaving the crowd stunned by his unprecedented honors.

• Suye joked with Castor about becoming the Divine Gift King, while Leonidas questioned his warrior talents and strength.
• Suye showed the Flower of Youth, the Deerskin Hat, and Persephone's Ghost Palace, which General Miltiades explained could control or purify undead.
• Grahana recounted the three major battles of the Greco-Persian War and praised Suye's achievements at the Battle of the Two Passes.
• Grahana pinned the chief meritorious contributor medal for the Battle of the Two Passes onto Suye.
• Grahana declared that Suye also deserved the chief merit for Thermopylae because of his Magic Lamp, Magic Servant, and fifteen victories over Saint Realm opponents.
• Grahana awarded Suye the second chief merit medal, leaving him confused and the crowd astonished.

Suye received an unprecedented number of military honors for his achievements in the Greco-Persian War, including the newly created Greatest Medal and promotion to Meritorious General. The ceremony ended as Grahana prepared to award a disputed final medal whose significance had sparked fierce debate.

• Grahana announced that Themistocles had insisted Suye receive the third first-merit medal for designing the Athena, and she pinned it on him.
• Grahana presented Suye with the newly created Greatest Medal, which shone with seven-colored light as the crowd cheered.
• Grahana awarded Suye numerous additional military medals, while Euclid recorded their names and quantities.
• Grahana apologized when Suye ran out of room for medals, then read the remaining awards aloud before promoting him to Meritorious General.
• Medels brought out a black box decorated with stars, and Grahana announced that the final medal had caused fierce disagreement over whether Suye should receive it.

Grahana awarded Suye the General’s Rank, and Greeks across the city-states celebrated his appointment as their youngest, first mage, and first commoner general. After the ceremony, Miltiades and Leonidas revealed that many Great Nobles wanted to make Suye the patriarch of a Legendary Noble Family, partly under pressure from heroes and descendants of the Argonauts.

• Grahana argued that generals should be chosen for their ability to protect Greece and lead its armies, then pinned the General’s Rank on Suye.
• Greeks bowed to thank Suye, who promised to repay Greece, and the crowd hailed him as the youngest general in Greek history.
• Suye watched the remaining awards and attended the ceremonial banquet before Miltiades and Leonidas took him aside in a Magic Carriage.
• Leonidas told Suye that more than half the Great Nobles wanted to promote him to the patriarch of a Legendary Noble Family, while Miltiades confirmed he was sincere.
• Leonidas explained that Aias, Achilles, and other heroes had pressured the nobles, then revealed that many supporters were descendants of the Argonauts.
• Suye recalled Jason’s Argonaut Expedition to retrieve the Golden Fleece and learned that it had gathered more than a hundred Greek warriors.