The Villain of Ancient Greece

Seeing that Lorne, on the other side had thrown out several excuses in succession and refused to take the bait, Athena had no choice but to suppress the malicious intent brewing in her heart for the time being.

She rolled her eyes at the cheeky brat who always managed to get under her skin.

”Fine, then let’s play chess. I’ve just had some new insights.”

”Sure, whatever you say.”

Having narrowly avoided a brutal beating, Lorne eagerly seized the opportunity to change the subject.

He laid out the chessboard and, while pretending to play earnestly, recalled Hecate’s tactics, trying to glean tips from Athena that might help him deal with that gambling goddess later.

Time flew by. Outside, dusk had settled, and the fading sunlight streamed through the window panes into the living room.

Hestia was tidying up the place, while the two players battled on the chessboard with no clear winner in sight.

”Lorne, Lorne!”

Just as one round ended, little Medusa came running into the room with Nike, her playmate, in tow.

With excitement gleaming in her eyes, she proudly showed off something hanging around her neck.

It was a bronze medallion, cast with intricate patterns of intertwining serpents.

Lorne patted the head she had eagerly pushed toward him and smiled gently.

”What’s this?”

”A gift! Nike gave it to me!”

Medusa beamed with pride, her tiny face glowing with excitement.

Lorne gave the medallion another curious look and offered some casual praise.

”Mhm, looks good. Really suits you.”

”Not just that!”

Medusa shook her head, her expression suddenly solemn, before she raised the medallion in her palm and channeled divine power into it.

In an instant, a grayish divine radiance flowed from her fingers and enveloped her body, transforming into a shimmering full-body bronze armor.

The serpentine engravings on it writhed like living creatures.

Buzz!

At the same time, Medusa gave a flick of her small hand, and with a metallic hum, a bronze chain sword, shaped like a serpent—materialized in her grasp.

As she swung it casually, it sliced through the air with a sharp, eerie whistle.

Feeling the surge of divine power emanating from the armor and Medusa’s sudden spike in presence, Lorne’s expression changed drastically.

”This is…”

”The Bronze Serpent Armor. I asked Hephaestus, the god of the forge, to create it by infusing it with part of my divine essence,” Athena said, putting down the chess piece she was toying with. Her tone was calm, but her eyes glinted with amusement as she looked at Lorne.

”It was originally made for you. But since you don’t seem to need it, I had Nike gift it to Anna instead.”

”…”

Lorne’s lips twitched as he felt a surge of regret so deep it turned his insides green.

A divine artifact! A real one!

He had scoured Circe’s entire stash and didn’t find anything remotely this high-grade!

And this one, this masterpiece, wasn’t just crafted by Hephaestus himself, it was also infused with Athena’s serpentine divinity.

Let’s not forget: the legendary Achilles only became an unstoppable force during the Trojan War because he wore gear made by Hephaestus. Even gods aiding Troy couldn’t stop him.

In the end, it was Apollo, one of the twelve main gods, who personally took action, transformed into the sixth, and shot an arrow through the heel of Achilles, the only weak spot on his body, which completely eliminated this great hero who was almost invincible on the front battlefield.

Likewise, if he had this armor in front of him, Lorne figured he’d be a god among demigods. Maybe even go toe-to-toe with a real deity.

As if sensing Lorne’s burning desire, little Medusa casually pulled off the medallion from her neck and shoved it into his hand.

”I don’t really need it. You can have it.”

Lorne felt a warmth in his chest. He gently pressed down Medusa’s small hand and gave her a gentle smile.

”No need. The Serpent Divinity aligns best with your bloodline. This thing already seems to have chosen its master—better if you keep it.”

He paused, then pointed toward Nike playing in the backyard and added in a hushed tone. ”Besides, a gift from a friend isn’t something you should casually give away.”

Under Lorne’s earnest persuasion, Medusa looked conflicted and uncertain.

”But…”

”With that emblem,” Athena suddenly chimed in softly, her voice tinged with amusement and a hint of temptation, ”you can enter and leave my temple freely.”

”It also means… you can eat whatever you like.”

”...!”

In an instant, little Medusa’s eyes locked onto the bronze emblem in her hand and she gulped.

A second later, the little girl decisively pushed the ”lifetime meal ticket” back into her hand, then lifted her head seriously, her eyes full of resolve.

”Don’t worry, I’ll protect you!”

Watching her bolt off back to the backyard for more playtime, completely sold by the promise of endless meals, Lorne couldn’t help but chuckle and sigh, before he turned to Athena and asked helplessly:

”Letting her carry that and hang around your temple just to eat… isn’t that a bit much?”

”A regular person wouldn’t have the right, of course. But she’s my priestess now—she walks the earth as a vessel of my will. Isn’t it only natural that she enjoys my offerings and hospitality?”

Athena spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

But to Lorne, her words were like thunderclaps. He stared at the goddess across from him, stunned.

”Priestess? Yours?”

”Yes,” Athena nodded, her eyes drifting to Medusa and Nike laughing in the garden and a trace of tenderness couldn’t help but appear in her eyes.

”I like this child. And she likes Knossos. Since you aren’t using that armor, I figured I’d raise her as my priestess instead.”

Lorne listened carefully, and on the surface he remained calm, but his heart could not help but rise up waves that were difficult to calm down.

Because this was one of the most famous legend he has just thought about before.

Medusa became Athena’s priestess and was famed for her beauty, said to rival the goddess herself. This, in turn, attracted the attention of Poseidon.

In the end, that shameless sea god assaulted her in the temple.

Athena, angered by the defilement of her shrine, cast Medusa out and cursed her into a monster.

No way...

—Could it be… even after dodging the fate of the Invisible Island, destiny, as an immutable force, still seeks to ”correct” the course of events?

That all trajectories, despite our efforts, are being pulled back toward the destined line—just in another form?

As expected, even with the [Dice of Chance] in hand, completely prying open the [Inevitable Fate] is not an easy task.

Having foreseen that a new crisis had already planted the seeds of disaster in Medusa, Lorne frowned deeply, pondered for a moment, and looked toward Athena hesitantly, trying to dissuade the wisdom goddess in front of him from this idea.

After all, there was no way he could let little Medusa face such fate.

”Boom!”

However, before he could speak, a violent tremor came from outside the window, and the entire island of Crete shook slightly.

Athena’s expression changed, and she suddenly stood up and rushed out the door, the others instinctively following her.

At this moment, the world was shrouded in darkness, and from the vast sea, a giant wave over a hundred feet tall stretched from sky to sea, rapidly advancing toward the coast of Crete.

The Minos people on the streets turned pale as they watched the engulfing flood.

Some screamed and scattered in panic, others hugged their loved ones and shrank in corners.

The entire city was permeated with the wails of doomsday.

Damn it, couldn’t hold back already?!

The wisdom goddess’s gaze turned grim, and divine power surged out from her entire body, transforming into golden flames that shot into the sky, dispersing the swirling clouds above in one blow.

But the waves on the sea were still advancing, the crisis not yet fully resolved.

”Nike!”

Athena gave a low shout, and the little victory goddess at the door instantly transformed into a golden-cyan spear, flying into her master’s hand, exuding an astonishing sharpness.

Then, donned in bronze armor and summoning the goatskin shield in her other hand, the wisdom goddess solemnly muttered.

”I’ll be back soon. You guard this place and don’t let anyone approach the coastline!”

”Okay!”

Little Medusa nodded without hesitation and rushed toward the panicked crowd, shouting out the warning.

At the same time, after giving her orders, Athena unfurled brilliant golden metallic wings behind her and soared toward the monstrous waves nearly upon Crete.

Lorne and Hestia exchanged a glance and couldn’t help but see shared worry in each other’s eyes.

Trouble is probably here...