Prophet in Greece

But he had been the one to ask Theron for a prophecy, and Theron was far too weak. Making an issue of it would be humiliating, so Uranus could only be magnanimous.

But the Twelve Titans were different. They were his children and his subordinates. Whether as their father or as the king of the gods, he had every reason to "discipline" them.

In stark contrast to the kind and merciful Earth Mother Gaia, Uranus did not think there was anything wrong with venting his anger on the innocent. He was the king of the gods, the ruler of this world. Every living being in this world ought to obey his will.

And he was somewhat displeased now, so these gods should offer themselves up for his amusement. It was both their duty and their honor.

The king of the gods' creative power erupted without reservation. The Twelve Titans felt as though their souls were being torn apart, the terrifying pressure leaving them unable even to breathe.

Their minds and bodies were ravaged at once, filling the newly born gods with utter terror.

They all fell to their knees, trembling and prostrating themselves, begging the king of the gods to quell his anger and grant them forgiveness, even though they had no idea what they had done wrong.

Uranus looked at their miserable state, his eyes full of disdain, and even his tone carried a hint of mockery. "Is this how you act as gods? Crawling on the ground without a shred of dignity."

"I actually gave birth to children like you. You shame me."

The prophecy seemed increasingly absurd to him. These worthless fools before him were supposed to raise their blades against him and overthrow him?

It was simply an insult.

Uranus was displeased, and so he released the king of the gods' power even more recklessly while leisurely lecturing them on what gods ought to do.

He told them how to fulfill their divine duties, how to develop the world, and, most importantly, how they must absolutely obey the orders of their king of the gods.

As he spoke, the twelve new gods remained prostrate on the ground, enduring the dual torment of body and mind as they shuddered in pain.

They did not even dare make a sound, afraid of inviting harsher punishment from the king of the gods. They could only endure in bitter silence.

Uranus admired the scene, his tone growing ever more leisurely.

He was deliberately using this method to warn his children, to prevent them from harboring even the slightest disloyal thought.

Time passed little by little. No one knew how long it had been when Gaia finally could not bear it any longer, seeing her children wailing in agony and begging for mercy because they truly could not hold on. She tried to stop Uranus.

"Great king of the gods, my most sincere love, they are your children, not your enemies. Why must you treat them with such cruelty?"

The Earth Mother, always gentle and mild, questioned him now. This was the first time she and Uranus had disagreed since they had come together, and the first time she had disapproved of his actions.

Sensing Gaia's shift in mood, Uranus finally withdrew his divine power with lingering reluctance, ending this prolonged "warning."

He smiled and soothed Gaia, as though all of this were merely a trivial matter unworthy of concern.

"My beloved queen of the gods, it is about time. Let us visit the Three Fates."

Gaia was still somewhat displeased, but looking at Uranus, her beloved, she ultimately suppressed those feelings. She nodded and said no more.

The twelve new gods, who had been completely drained, wore expressions of joy at having survived a catastrophe. When that uncontrollable emotion appeared on their faces, Uranus found it laughable.

Before leaving, he looked at his children and said in a voice full of sarcasm and mockery, "My obedient children, you truly put my mind at ease."

"To reward your obedience, I have decided to grant you the title of Titans. From now on, you shall be the Twelve Titans."

Titans meant cowards, those who were nervous. Uranus was mocking his twelve children for their miserable display before him, declaring them twelve cowards.

Uranus was the king of the gods acknowledged by the world. The instant he bestowed that title, it was set in stone and could never be changed.

It was an immense humiliation. Dignified gods had been given the title of cowards, and the Twelve Titans could not bear such disgrace.

But as they looked at Uranus's towering figure and felt his overwhelming divine power, they had no choice but to endure it. Not even the slightest thought of rebellion could arise within them.

Although Gaia was displeased by this, there was nothing she could do. She could only place her hopes on the Three Fates, hoping they would offer a different prophecy and thereby improve Uranus's attitude toward the children.

They arrived at the end of the world, passed through gray-black storms, and saw the divine mountain where the Three Fates lived. There, atop the mountain, they met the three goddesses.

Within the vast palace, three beautiful young maidens were tending to threads that embodied fate. They radiated a powerful yet unique divinity, and everything about them carried an indescribable air of mystery.

Though their divine power did not equal that of Uranus, king of the gods, or Gaia, the Earth Mother, it already surpassed that of the Twelve Titans. Both sides were newly born gods, yet the gap between them already existed.

They had been so powerful from the moment of their birth. As expected of gods born from the Night Goddess and charged with governing part of fate's course.

This was what prophets were supposed to be like: powerful and mysterious, unlike a certain weakling who could not even stabilize his own divine position.

"Respected Three Fates, please forgive our presumptuous intrusion."

Gaia took the initiative to speak. She remained as gentle and courteous as ever. "We have come to ask about our fate, to learn the prophecy of the future."

She glanced at Uranus beside her, gritted her teeth, and finally asked, "We also wish to know whether my beloved Uranus will remain the eternal king of the gods."

"Great king of the gods and queen of the gods, forgive us, but we cannot answer that question."

The three goddesses spoke at once, their voices merging and echoing through the entire temple like the lingering chime of wind bells.

"Why is that, noble goddesses? Was our arrival too presumptuous?" Gaia pressed.

"No. It is because we have only just been born and are still too weak to glimpse the outline of fate," said Clotho, the eldest of the three sisters.

"Perhaps after some time, once we have grown stronger, we will be able to glimpse a trace of fate's outline," Lachesis, the second sister, added.

"And when that time comes, if you still wish to know, you may ask us again," Atropos, the youngest goddess, concluded.

Though Uranus and Gaia were somewhat disappointed, they had expected as much.

After all, how could fate be so easily glimpsed, especially the fate of a king of the gods?

But...

Even the Three Fates, as powerful as they were, could not glimpse it. How could that weak prophetic god, Theron, possibly have seen it?

It seemed that prophecy truly was inaccurate.

With that thought, Uranus finally put his mind completely at ease.

Cyclopes

Uranus had not received the prophecy he wanted. He returned to his divine mountain, while the Twelve Titans had already been driven away by him and ordered to carry out their respective divine duties.

The world was still barren then, with almost no living creatures in existence. Compared to the entire world, the number of gods was far too small, and the world was still evolving.

In the blink of an eye, thousands of years passed.

Then, atop that towering divine mountain, another fierce argument erupted.

"Uranus, you should not treat them this way. They are your children too!"

Gaia pleaded bitterly, while before her knelt three enormous giants with a single eye each.

This was not their first argument. Ever since the three Cyclopes had been born, Uranus and Gaia had often clashed. No matter how Gaia begged, Uranus could not accept these three strange-looking children.

"No. They are all malformed monsters. I could not possibly have produced such hateful monsters," Uranus said coldly.

Ever since that prophecy in the temple, Uranus had found his twelve Titan children increasingly displeasing.

It was a contradictory mindset. He did not believe the prophecy, nor did he think these useless fools could overthrow him, yet he also considered having produced such useless children a disgrace.

Gradually, as Uranus watched those cowards beg and crawl beneath his divine might, trembling in fear, he came to feel a subtle satisfaction. The feeling of holding everything in his hands made him feel at ease.

So he devised every possible way to torment the Twelve Titans for amusement. It became one of the few pleasures in his long divine life.

The Twelve Titans were tormented beyond measure. Every time, they would seek out the merciful Earth Mother Gaia, who would then plead with Uranus on their behalf. Uranus would restrain himself for a few days, if only to give the queen of the gods some face.

But only for a few days. During those days, with nowhere to vent his frustrations, Uranus would force Heaven and Earth to press tightly together, madly taking Gaia's power.

Gaia suffered as well, but to give her children a chance to catch their breath, she could only endure it alone.

Perhaps because love had faded, or perhaps because of the rift in their hearts, in any case, under such circumstances, Gaia gave birth to three children utterly unlike the Twelve Titans, who had been born as gods. They were the Cyclopes.

The three children were incomparably ugly from birth and possessed no divine status. They were not gods acknowledged by the world, yet they possessed powerful divine strength, even surpassing the Twelve Titans when they had first been born.

The Twelve Titans had possessed intermediate divine power from birth and, after so many years of growth, had reached powerful divine power.

Yet these three monsters had surpassed intermediate divine power the moment they were born. Though they had not yet reached powerful divine power, what if they were given more time? What if they were allowed to grow further?

This discovery made Uranus feel humiliated, but it also gave him a sense of crisis.

Once again, he thought of that lingering prophecy, which he had gradually put out of mind over the years but still recalled from time to time.

That person had said his children would raise their blades against him and overthrow his rule, but had not said which children.

The Twelve Titans were indeed weak enough, but what if it was the children born later?

Behind Uranus's deep loathing for these three strangely shaped, ugly, and unintelligent monsters lay apprehension.

Every day, he tried to deal with the three monsters. No matter how Gaia tried to stop him, no matter how she begged, he remained unmoved.

Moreover, these three dim-witted fools did not know what fear was. Even when Uranus used his creative power to torture them until they were covered in wounds, they merely opened their single eyes and glared stubbornly at him.

Whenever Uranus saw their unrepentant, fearless gazes, he felt boundless fury. It made him feel that the dignity and authority of the king of the gods had been offended.

"Look at them, Gaia. These monsters have no respect for the king of the gods!"

Uranus could no longer suppress his rage. His cold gaze swept over the three monsters as he spoke cruelly. "I can no longer tolerate them!"

The three Cyclopes had been born for more than a hundred years. Every time Uranus had tried to deal with them, Gaia had stopped him.

Out of consideration for the queen of the gods, Uranus could only endure them for the time being. But more than a century of tolerance had completely exhausted the last shred of his patience.

So this time, no matter how Gaia begged or tried to stop him, he had made up his mind to deal with the three monsters once and for all.

But how should he deal with them?

The king of the gods found himself troubled. Gods could not be killed. Though the three monsters had no divine duties, they could not be destroyed either.

In the end, he turned his gaze toward the abyss at the edge of the earth.

That was also the domain of one of the primordial gods, Tartarus, god of the abyss.

Aside from Gaia, who was overly personified, the other primordial gods possessed almost no personification. This ensured their power, but likewise, because they lacked personification, they rarely involved themselves in struggles for divine authority.

The abyss where Tartarus resided had always remained in its primordial, impersonal state.

Uranus seized the three giants with immense power, hurled them down from the mountain, and cast them into the bottomless pit of the abyss.

At the same time, the king of the gods' majestic voice rang across the entire earth. "In the name of the king of the gods, I declare the Cyclopes guilty of arrogance. They shall be imprisoned forever, until the end of the world!"

Gaia stared at everything in disbelief, the words nearly bursting from her lips. "Uranus, what are you doing? Have you gone mad?!"

Uranus had thrown the three Cyclopes into the abyss, and the abyss was connected to the earth. It was equivalent to forcibly stuffing the three giants back into her body.

The immense pain twisted the expression of the merciful Earth Mother. The Cyclopes' agonized howls echoed endlessly in her mind, and the double torment of body and spirit nearly drove her mad.

Yet Uranus merely watched it all happen coldly, so coldly that she felt nothing but ice in her heart.

For the first time in her life, she felt Uranus was utterly unreasonable. Their former love had become a passing cloud, and at that moment, only endless resentment remained in her heart.

But Uranus did not notice any of this. Having finally resolved a grave threat, he relaxed at last, and a long-lost smile appeared on his face.

That joy stirred an urge within him to vent his desires. He looked at Gaia and, ignoring her unwillingness and struggle, forcibly made Heaven and Earth press together once more.