The Hero Proposes an Exchange (Extra Update)

"Hey! I'm talking to you! Human! Are you looking down on me?" Phlegon said angrily.

Tch, just another piece of work like Jason, nothing special after all.

"Not at all, I was just choosing my words carefully to avoid offending you, the noble divine beast Phlegon!"

"Mm-hmm! Very good. I shall grant you a few extra mouthfuls of grass later; consider it my favor!" Phlegon raised its head proudly and nodded, suddenly feeling quite satisfied with this human!

He has a good eye! This is exactly how a human should act when seeing a divine beast like me!

"Noble Phlegon, I have heard that the Night Chariot of the Goddess of Wisdom Nyx is also pulled by four mares! Furthermore, one of them represents the arrival of dawn and the rising sun; she yearns for the daytime!"

"So what?" Phlegon grew excited, vaguely sensing the subtext in Thaumas's words.

"So, I was thinking, perhaps you could swap duties with her?"

The dagger was revealed from the map.

"?Is that possible? Would the Goddess Nyx agree?"

"I will be the one to persuade the Goddess Nyx; you only need to say yes! Besides, this way, you get a luxury stable, you can enjoy feed provided by the gods, and you get to work with three beautiful mares every day! And the work itself is the night, which you love most. What else is there to hesitate about?"

This single sentence struck home like a blade to the throat.

Ask yourself, who could possibly resist such a temptation?

Everything that could be given had been offered; if Phlegon refused now, it would be nothing but greed, and it would be mocked by the other horses for a lifetime.

"Fine, I agree! It is settled that I will work with the little mares; no backing out!"

"Then come with me now!"

"Mm-hmm, do you need me to carry you?"

"No, it's too hot for my backside, uncomfortable. The Griffin will do."

"Hm? A swap? Hahahaha! Truly worthy of you, Thaumas! To think you could come up with such a devious idea!" The speaker was a young man named Hermes.

"Regardless, as long as we brought it back, that's what matters. As for whether we swap or not, that's irrelevant. Now that it's here, it can't run away, can it? Thaumas, you are truly clever! You solved this difficult problem in less than a day!" Apollo said approvingly.

"Neigh--" Phlegon suddenly felt a sense of foreboding, realizing it had been deceived.

But a single glance from Apollo silenced it. It hung its head in dejection, blaming only its own lack of judgment for failing to see through a human's lie.

"That may be true, but since Thaumas has given his word, he will certainly follow through, won't he, Thaumas?" Athena asked gently.

Even Phlegon felt a spark of hope ignite.

"Of course, Goddess of Wisdom! I will certainly see it through! Because I am a hero, and heroes do not break their promises. I will do this, even if I fail in the end, I must try!" Thaumas replied firmly, then looked at Phlegon and said to the terrified fire horse:

"Phlegon, you can rest easy too. I will get this done, but you must return with Lord Apollo first. After all, my negotiations with the Goddess Nyx will take time. You can understand that, right?"

Thaumas put on a serious expression (Chen Gong face).

"Neigh-- what if you are lying to me again?" Phlegon said cautiously.

"That is unfair of you to say. When have I ever lied to you? Don't talk nonsense, please. It has always been like this. I did say I would help you, but I never said when I would help you, did I? This is for the success of the plan; you can understand that, right? If you still don't believe me, I swear by the gods of Olympus that I will absolutely help you! Unless I die!" Thaumas said earnestly.

"Pfft-- Hahaha, Thaumas is truly wicked!" Hermes laughed heartily.

But soon, he couldn't laugh anymore; Apollo's sword was already held across his path.

"But there is one more thing, Thaumas, which you may not know. Phlegon and the others represent the rules of the world. If you swap them so casually, the sun will become less pure." Athena reminded him, curious to see how the hero would resolve this.

"That isn't such a big problem, is it?" Thaumas waved his hand, saying dismissively, "The moon has its phases, and even if the sun has an occasional eclipse, that is perfectly normal. Nothing in this world is absolutely perfect! Besides, Phlegon represents the arrival of night and the descent of the stars, while the one belonging to the Goddess Nyx represents the breaking of dawn and the departure of night. A swap like this should surely be feasible!"

Is that so? This problem doesn't need to be solved, right? Yes, indeed, things with flaws are the most real. Then, let it be.

Athena nodded, acknowledging the hero's approach.

Although Hermes kept grumbling about it.

Thaumas ignored Hermes's behavior; after all, the guy was always like that. He then looked seriously at Phlegon and asked:

"So, are you willing to trust me? To believe that I will bring you a miracle?"

"Neigh--!"

Phlegon nodded earnestly, let out a long whinny, and walked toward the Sun Chariot. The reins of the Sun Chariot automatically fastened themselves onto its body.

Then, the four fire horses were reunited once more.

"Phlegon, you're here too? Never mind, I'll ask you later. Aethon, you haven't finished yet, hurry up!" Pylos urged.

"Are you annoying or what? What else can be done? This Seat was beaten black and blue by Apollo! Is that enough for you!" Aethon said furiously.

"Heh heh, I knew it. This kid is usually so arrogant, but now he's so dejected; he must have been beaten into the dirt," Eos laughed.

"It seems all three of us got a beating. Wait, Phlegon, what's going on with you? Why are there no injuries on your body? Don't tell me you didn't get beaten? How can that be? We're all brothers, let us beat you up too," Pylos said excitedly.

So, this is why Phlegon hated these three guys so much! They were all a bunch of curs!

"Well then, Thaumas, I must set off. It's been so long, the sun should have risen by now.

Goodbye, little cutie, I look forward to our next meeting." Apollo excitedly jumped onto the Sun Chariot, gripped the reins, and drove the Sun Chariot to bring light to the world!

"Goodbye, honorable Lord Apollo!"

I hope we never meet again! That is very important!

"Neigh--!" "Neigh--!"

Accompanied by the sound of hooves and roaring, the sun finally arrived.

Goddess Nyx felt very happy; such a long period of unpaid overtime had left her feeling exhausted.

Finally, she could rest too!