Happy times were always short, as precious as the Queen of Heaven's crown.
People always hated painful times, yet flocked eagerly toward moments of pleasure.
No one liked pain, unless it brought them pleasure.
The night passed in an instant. Helios, the sun god, impatiently urged Nyx, goddess of the night, to depart and hastily raised the sun, as though anticipating a grand show. The lingering black curtain at the horizon seemed to say, "Let's squeeze in, move over a little, and watch together."
At that moment, within the city-state of the Kingdom of Iolcus, beneath the gaze of countless subjects, Pelias emerged slowly from the royal palace. He wore a luxurious crown studded with jewels and a splendid silk robe, holding a scepter that symbolized royal authority.
After he emerged, the guards dutifully maintained order around them, preventing any incident on this great day. At the same time, they carved a broad path through the surging crowd for their king.
Surrounded by several priests, he walked step by step toward Hera's temple.
There, they had built a massive altar from the finest wood in the kingdom. The place had long been tightly guarded, sealed off so completely that not even water could pass through.
The sacrificial tables were piled with every kind of fruit grown within the Kingdom of Iolcus. Attendants beside them held one precious treasure after another from the mortal world. All of them were offerings to the Queen of Heaven.
Led by Pelias, everyone knelt and worshipped in the direction of Hera's temple. What followed was a long period of sacrifice and prayer.
So many precious gifts, such a solemn ceremony for the gods—everything demonstrated the king's respect for Hera, as well as his "repentant" heart.
After all, she was the Queen of Heaven.
Under ordinary circumstances, upon seeing such a grand festival, Hera would surely have been moved and chosen to forgive the king's disrespect.
But this time, that might not be the case. She had just gained a beloved new child, and unfortunately, this king, who had no sense of propriety, was about to oppose the child she favored.
As for Thaumas and the other boy, they had successfully slipped into the sacrificial procession by fishing in troubled waters.
Thaumas quietly watched Pelias. Sure enough, the man bore some resemblance to Jason. He was undoubtedly Jason's biological uncle.
But when he turned to look at Jason beside him, he was surprised to find that Jason was unusually calm.
He had expected Jason to start shouting or charge onto the platform in fury, yelling things like, "You traitor!" or "I, the great Jason, will definitely..."
Sensing Thaumas's gaze, Jason smiled faintly. "What is it?"
This is bad! Why did he suddenly change like this? This is the calm before the storm, an extremely terrifying omen.
"Aren't you angry? Don't you want to say something?"
After hearing Thaumas's question, Jason looked at his glorious uncle, Pelias, and said coldly, "Do you know? Before someone betrays me, I will betray him first. And whatever I lose, I will take back twice over!"
Hiss... I never expected Jason to have this side to him. Why did he suddenly seem so scary? Though he also sounded a little embarrassingly dramatic.
Could little Jason possibly have an Avenger Heroic Spirit class? Would a darkened Jason become stronger too?
"Even the Goddess of Wisdom Athena stands with me! A mere traitor like Pelias can easily be defeated by the great Jason!" The familiar Jason had returned. That fitting tone made Thaumas breathe a rare sigh of relief.
Yet at that moment, a disturbance seemed to arise atop the altar.
Noticing something was wrong, Thaumas and Jason immediately rushed over to investigate.
"Shameless Pelias! Do you truly think you can obtain the Queen of Heaven's forgiveness?" At that moment, a white-haired old woman ran out from beneath the altar. Leaning on her cane, she pointed furiously at Pelias.
"You ignored the Queen of Heaven, Hera, and murdered your brother Aeson beside her temple, beneath the gaze of her statue!"
"With those sinful hands, you spilled blood throughout Hera's temple! Filthy bloodstains covered her statue. You have subjected her to the greatest humiliation! Those stains have yet to be washed away!"
"You, Pelias, current king of the Kingdom of Iolcus—do you truly deserve to wear that crown symbolizing the throne and hold that scepter representing power?"
"For your own selfish desires, you greedily murdered your brother Aeson and his wife, then drove out your nephew Jason!"
"You are a sinner! Put down your crown and scepter at once, and return glory to your nephew!"
The old woman's words caused everyone to look at one another, whispering among themselves and pointing toward the altar.
The power of rumors lay in the fact that they required very little effort to achieve unexpected results.
Sometimes, all it took was a few words at the right moment to leave someone unable to defend themselves. Afterward, the victim often had to pay an unimaginable price to erase the consequences.
But Pelias was completely bewildered. He had killed Aeson, but when had he ever killed him before Hera's temple? Yet when he turned to look at the statue inside the temple—
No, wait. There really was blood there!
He could see those clear, dried bloodstains, and naturally, everyone else could see them too.
When had those traitorous rebels tampered with it?
He prided himself on having a good memory. There clearly had been nothing there just moments ago...
Of course, he did not know that this was the work of a god.
But the truth was unimportant. What mattered was that he could not defend himself now.
Still, his exceptional composure allowed him to react swiftly. He immediately straightened his appearance, organized his words, and said sternly, "Where did this mad old woman come from? How dare you disrupt the Queen of Heaven's sacrificial ceremony!
"If the revered goddess Hera learns of this, then even if you are a frail old woman at death's door, you will surely not escape divine punishment!"
"If the Queen of Heaven truly sends down her wrath, I alone will bear it!" The old woman, drawing confidence from who knew where, retorted forcefully.
"And now, your nephew Jason, the child of former King Aeson, is right here. If you have no guilty conscience, do you dare confront him face-to-face?!"
Her words rang like struck metal, and the dagger was finally revealed!
Thus, beneath Pelias's murderous gaze and at the old woman's accusation, Thaumas, looking grim, and Jason, brimming with excitement, stepped onto the altar, determined to debate Pelias!
Thaumas had already recognized Hera, but seeing that Hera was so engrossed in her act, he did not dare expose her.
But this was precisely part of Hera's plan!
As long as she guided things carefully and proceeded step by step, these two children would surely be condemned by everyone. Then, once she revealed herself as the Queen of Heaven, she could easily help Jason seize the throne. In that way—
Having helped him fulfill his oath with Jason, Thaumas would surely be grateful, then throw himself completely into Hera's embrace!
The Queen of Heaven was incomparably confident. This was a scheme she had humbled herself to ask Athena to refine! Although her initial plan had not been so complete, the Goddess of Wisdom's wisdom truly was useful.
"So, which of you two is my foolish nephew?" Pelias said coldly. Naturally, he showed no courtesy toward these two who wanted to steal his throne!
Jason rarely displayed such masculine courage. Fearlessly stepping forward, he pointed at Pelias's nose and cursed loudly.
"I am Jason! The rightful heir of the Kingdom of Iolcus! Despicable Pelias, I am utterly ashamed to have an uncle like you!
"Following the guidance of the gods, I have returned to the homeland I longed for day and night. Now, it is time for you to return what belongs to its rightful owner!"
Pelias smiled disdainfully. "I do not know which political enemy sent you, but you have clearly underestimated me!"
Thus, this conspirator, who had exhausted every possible means, walked to the front. Upon Hera's altar, he faced the countless people of Iolcus and declared:
"My subjects! Do you see this? These two vile outsiders intend to impersonate the child of my unfortunate late brother, my beloved Aeson!
"My subjects! Since I accepted my duty amid crisis and was honored with the crown, our Kingdom of Iolcus has grown stronger step by step! Even the gods would be moved by our former great achievements!
"And yet they do not even respect the great goddess Hera!
"So! Let us, with compassionate hearts, drive these two foreign blasphemers away! Sparing their lives will also be a praise of the Queen of Heaven's mercy. Let us defend our beautiful Kingdom of Iolcus together!"
With only a few words, offense and defense had already switched places! This thoroughgoing politician, willing to use every means at his disposal, rode the tide of public sentiment and pressed down like an avalanche. His entire body radiated the oppressive presence of one in power.
A king who had disrespected the gods and murdered his brother and sister-in-law had instead seized the hearts of the people!
That was the brilliance of his methods: always stand on the side of "righteousness."
The surrounding crowd was completely ignited. They shouted, "Execute them!" one after another, filled with righteous indignation. To them, this was a battle for "justice"!
That was why most people were ignorant. With only a little seasoning, public opinion powerful enough to shake heaven and earth could easily be stirred up!
No one was a fool, especially not a true iron-blooded ruler without mercy!
The old woman smiled. Now they would fall into the abyss called "despair," wouldn't they? Child, I will fill your body and soul with love! Prepare yourself to properly receive this affection from the Queen of Heaven! You must accept every bit of it!
Just as the Queen of Heaven was about to reveal her true form and stuff her little darling full of love, she saw Thaumas calmly step forward.
After thinking about it, she decided to first see what her beloved child wanted to do. After all, she was quite curious too.
Thaumas showed no fear in the face of Pelias's overwhelming pressure.
After all, he had already met gods. No matter how cleverly a conspirator schemed, could he really contend with gods?
He grabbed Jason, whose legs had gone numb with fright, and pulled him up, patting his shoulder reassuringly to show him there was no need to worry.
Come to think of it—if Jason's legs had not gone weak, he might really have run away. That foolish deer was cowardly without even a bottom line!
Then again, perhaps not. Since he was with Jason now, Jason had someone to rely on. That was probably why he had not stepped forward to face things alone.
"I am a believer of the great goddess, the Queen of Heaven, Hera! I am the goddess's child!" With a single sentence, Thaumas silenced everyone.
With those words, their first confrontation had already begun!
The first sentence was not important. What mattered was that he made "child" sound especially ambiguous. Humans could be called children of the gods, but biological or adopted children could also be called children. Everyone hesitated. They did not dare commit such a taboo, nor did they dare gamble recklessly.
After all, invoking the gods worked very well in Ancient Greece.
First, he had to make them listen! Only after the crowd fell silent did Thaumas speak again.
"Pelias, king of the Kingdom of Iolcus, I swear before the great gods that Jason is Aeson's son!" He swung his true first sword!
First, those words acknowledged Pelias's political status, which counted as a concession. Given the current situation between Jason and himself, continuing to stubbornly resist would have been truly unwise! Though it would affect Jason deeply, the situation was urgent, so Jason would have to suffer a little.
Surely he would understand! (Chen Gong face—extremely serious.)
(In FGO, Chen Gong was famous for his Noble Phantasm that sacrificed allies in exchange for great power. Whenever he used it, he would say, "This is a necessary sacrifice. You understand, right?")
After all, this was the wisdom known as political compromise.
And swearing before the gods was an even deadlier thrust! It meant Pelias could no longer doubt Jason's legitimate status! He was forcing Pelias to comply! Didn't Pelias claim to respect his elder brother? Then he would certainly take care of his brother's biological son, wouldn't he?
After all, that was Pelias's public image. Let's see how he handled this vicious move. Did he think all those books had been read for nothing?
To give was to gain; give a little, gain a little.
Give much, gain much; give nothing, gain nothing!
Then next, let our game begin, Pelias! How would you, king of conspiracies, refute me?
Use everything you have and entertain me to your heart's content, Pelias! How would you make your move? This was truly worth looking forward to.
Mm... wait, what?
No, how could he think like that? He must have been infected by some God of Amusement. He definitely was not that kind of person!
This was bad. He was absolutely not someone who lived for amusement! Much less a tax evader!
But he seemed so conflicted. Could he become a conflicted hero?
After all, in Ancient Greek mythology, even casually spoken words often came true. That was why he kept muttering every day about having the entire world beat up Jason!
Mm... thinking about it that way, it actually did not seem too bad?
P.S. Today's two chapters came to 7,500 words. Together with yesterday's bonus chapter, it would have been exactly 10,000 words, but since I already released it, today will be the usual three chapters. So I took a look, and it is almost 10,000 words anyway. By the way, is signing a contract difficult? If I update 7,000 to 8,000 words daily, can I get signed on Qidian?
I originally planned to write 10,000 words a day, but a friend told me that if I write 10,000 daily now, it will be hard to add bonus updates after the story goes premium. They said if I write 10,000 a day before it goes premium, then after that I would have to write 15,000... so I decided to slow down. If there are more words on a given day, then there are more.
Seven or eight thousand words is already pretty good.
Before you continue