Farewell, Athena

"By the way, I'll have to trouble you to send someone to my estate and tell my parents that I've returned to Medimoth City."

"No problem. I'll send someone right away."

Peter drained the last of his beer and nodded, still wanting more.

After borrowing the bronze mirror, Ace hugged it and went to the guest room Peter had prepared, where he studied it with complete focus.

Although he was fairly familiar with the bronze mirror, replicating Soul Runes was not so easy. The Magic Element structures of the Emotion Suppression and Active Thinking runes were unique, so they required extra time.

Early the next morning, Ace took the clay figurine of a baby merman he had bought in Tsimari and headed to the royal palace.

He knew that maintaining a friendship with Athena carried enormous risks, but without Athena's friendship, he might lose his life at any moment. Even the miraculous contract could not save him. Only the dead could keep secrets—such was the truth.

Upon reaching the palace, Ace took out the bracelet Athena had given him, handed it to the guard at the palace gate, and asked him to pass it on to Great Hero Arnold.

More than half an hour later, a muscular man strode over, bare-chested and wearing red briefs, a black cape draped over his shoulders, a shield in his left hand and a spear in his right.

His face was stretched long with displeasure. He wrapped Ace in the black cape behind him, tucked him between his left arm and body, then leaped into the air. Ace had no time to react, nor any strength to resist, and was taken away with ease.

Rather than recklessly releasing his mental power, Ace did his utmost to restrain it and prevent it from leaking out. This helpless inability to resist left him feeling extremely stifled.

Arnold paid no mind to Ace's thoughts. After several leaps, he entered a hidden palace within the royal grounds. It was concealed by a barrier; ordinary people would subconsciously overlook it and leave the area.

Arnold stopped and released his left arm. Ace fell to the ground rather miserably.

After brushing the dirt from himself, Ace got to his feet.

"I heard you received the blessing of the Child of the Ocean, young man," Arnold said with some gravity.

There had been no effort to conceal this matter, so it was only natural for the Medimuss royalty to know about it, Ace thought.

"Yes, Lord Arnold," Ace answered respectfully.

"What I need to tell you is this: use the blessing's power sparingly, and do not worship the Child of the Ocean. If possible, you should find a way to rid yourself of the blessing. However, I can see signs of Quasi-Authority gathering around you, so I'm afraid that may be impossible."

Arnold still wore a sour expression as he spoke sternly.

"My lord, from what you say, is there something wrong with the blessing? I still worship the great Goddess of Wisdom, and may She guide me."

Seeing that Arnold had mistaken his advancement to a senior wizard apprentice for the blessing's effect, Ace went along with the misunderstanding and took the chance to probe for information.

"Mortals have no right to judge gods, not even heroes. Just remember not to keep using the blessing's power, and faithfully worship the Goddess of Wisdom. If you can control yourself, perhaps you may even become a Hero-class."

After saying that, Arnold rose with a leap and vanished after several bounds.

Ace did not enter the palace immediately. He quietly savored Arnold's words. It seemed that the city-state was not ignorant of what the Child of the Ocean had been doing; perhaps it even understood it deeply.

Whether it was deliberate indulgence or some tacit agreement, it might involve clashes between gods—something far beyond the level of someone like Ace.

More specifically, the city-state seemed to know a great deal about the blessing. Perhaps he could sound Athena out and learn some different information.

The moment Ace entered the palace, he saw Athena staring blankly toward the entrance with expectant eyes that seemed ready to sparkle with stars.

When she saw Ace enter, her gemstone-red eyes suddenly curved into crescent moons with a smile. She was still wearing her silver-white skirt armor today, and when she stood, she happened to overlap with the sunlight.

Looking into her smiling eyes, Ace felt that the morning sunlight was just right, bright and radiant.

The two entered the palace one after the other. Everything was familiar.

Ace took out the ugly-cute clay figurine of the baby merman and handed it to Athena.

"This is a local specialty I bought at Tsimari Port. It's for you."

Athena's smile bloomed like peach blossoms as she happily accepted the ugly little baby merman figurine.

"This is the first gift I've ever received from a friend, and also the first gift I've received from a man other than my father. Haha, that's double the happiness."

Ace listened to Athena's words in a daze. Why had the atmosphere suddenly turned into White Album studies? Did that mean he ought to beat a White Album scholar to death?

"Have you ever heard of White Album?" Ace asked as if possessed.

"No. What is that?" Athena answered curiously as she carefully examined the ugly baby merman figurine.

"Nothing. It's just a kind of picture frame," Ace hastily covered up.

"I did hear that you painted an immortal masterpiece in Tsimari. It's a pity I can't see it." Athena set down the figurine, turned, and moved closer to Ace as she spoke.

Breathing in Athena's scent, Ace's heart skipped a beat.

"With such a beauty before my eyes, it is only fitting to create another immortal masterpiece."

And so, Ace spent an entire day painting a portrait in Athena's palace.

After three consecutive days, Ace finally finished the painting.

Athena in the oil painting on parchment was both valiant and faintly alluring, possessing a young girl's brightness and innocence. It was exceptionally lifelike.

Athena held the painting with such affection that she could scarcely bear to put it down. After a long while, she finally put it away.

"When I come of age in two years, I'll use this painting together with your other works to hold a private exhibition for you in Medimoth City."

Ace was slightly dazed. He had not expected Athena to already be thinking two years ahead.

He had spent the past few days focused entirely on painting. He had wanted so badly to preserve that wonderful moment that he had forgotten his original purpose.

"Athena, when I was at Tsimari Port, I received the blessing of the Child of the Ocean. Lord Arnold warned me not to keep using the blessing and not to worship the Child of the Ocean. I want to ask whether you know something about this."

Athena's expression became somewhat serious. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Wait for me a moment. This concerns gods, so I can't explain it to you in detail."

She turned and walked deeper into the palace. After quite some time, she returned holding a badge engraved with the symbol of the Elegant Goddess, threaded onto a slender golden chain.

Athena placed the badge around Ace's neck, circled him once, and even sniffed him with her nose.

"This is a badge blessed by the ancestral god. It can dissolve curses and resist transformation. As long as you wear it properly, there won't be any problem."

"I can't tell you too much in detail. Gods are the greatest beings; even demigods should not be spoken of lightly. Believe me, as long as you keep wearing this badge, not only will this blessing be harmless, it will also allow you to retain your current power, which is close to Hero-class."

Athena looked rather pleased with herself, wearing an expression that practically said, praise me, as she continued, "From one perspective, you really struck it rich thanks to me. As an ordinary person, you've harmlessly gained power beyond mortal limits."

Though Ace was somewhat bewildered, he could sense people's hearts. Athena truly regarded him as a good friend and was sincerely helping him.

And this blessing had helped as well. Otherwise, he would have had no way to explain the drastic changes to his soul and body after advancing to a senior wizard apprentice.

He smiled and said to Athena, "Thank you, my good friend."

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