Your Son's Face is Totally Fucked Up
Hera had been in a foul mood ever since she arrived here.
As a goddess of Olympus, she had tried her best to persuade her adoptive father, Oceanus.
Yet despite her pleas as his adoptive daughter, Oceanus insisted on remaining neutral, just as he always did.
Even with war now an absolute certainty, he refused to get involved.
Knowing how stubborn her adoptive father could be, Hera felt deeply frustrated, but she ultimately had no choice but to give up.
At the very least, he had promised not to side with the Titans either, but at best, that was merely maintaining the status quo.
With things going poorly right from the start, there was another factor that irritated Hera even more.
Her primary reason for coming here: finding her son.
Yet no matter how much she searched, there was no sign of the "son" she was looking for.
'...I knew it wouldn't be easy from the start, but...'
The palace was packed with thousands of guests, not just hundreds.
The central banquet hall was colossal, and the number of adjoining rooms was staggering.
Furthermore, the estate was so vast that it truly befitted the name of the great ocean.
Even for someone as powerful as Hera, finding a single person here was like searching for a needle in a haystack.
'Where on earth could he be? I'm certain he's somewhere here...'
It would have helped if she at least knew his name, but she didn't even have that.
Her only clue was his hideous appearance, but even when she asked around, people only gave vague answers like, "I think I might have seen someone like that," with no one offering a definitive lead.
Then again, that was only to be expected in a place crowded with so many people.
As her anxiety mounted, Hera searched the area even more frantically.
But her search was suddenly cut short in the most unexpected way.
Eurynome.
The woman she had clashed with at every turn back when she used to live here.
Normally, as the Queen of the Gods, Hera held absolute superiority and had no reason to feel inferior to a woman like her, but...
At this moment, looking at Eurynome, Hera was experiencing a vivid emotion for the first time in her life—a profound sense of defeat.
'How could a woman like Eurynome possess such a treasure...?'
It was the necklace shining brilliantly around Eurynome's neck.
As the Queen of the Gods, Hera had made sure to wear her finest jewelry for the occasion.
Ornaments crafted from gold and her signature red rubies.
Yet those pieces, which would normally be more than enough to display her majesty,
now looked as dim as candlelight before the moon in the presence of Eurynome's necklace.
"It seems even the great Queen of the Gods has never laid eyes on something like this before."
"Urgh..."
Eurynome held a cup of Nectar in one hand while stroking the blue gem—which looked as if it held the entire ocean within—with the other, showing it off shamelessly.
It was highly uncharacteristic of her usual demeanor, but Hera was one of the very few people who could provoke such behavior from her.
After all, Hera knew better than anyone how haughtily she had behaved toward Eurynome in the past.
And a single defeat always stings worse for someone who is used to winning ten times out of ten.
For Hera, who had always enjoyed absolute superiority, this situation made her feel an even deeper sense of humiliation.
"Hmph... It is... certainly a pretty necklace. Where on earth did you get it? Did you dig up some treasure chest buried at the bottom of the sea? Or did you crawl all the way down to Tartarus and shake your hips for the Cyclopes?"
Hera, her veins bulging slightly with anger, did not hesitate to spit out such vulgar provocations.
Yet Eurynome merely let out a soft snort.
"My, my... What vulgar language from the Queen of the Gods."
With those words, Eurynome leisurely took a sip of her Nectar.
Clearly enjoying her upper hand, she spoke with a smile radiating pure happiness.
"I'm afraid there is nothing dirty about this necklace, unlike what you're imagining. The one who made this for me is none other than my beloved son."
"...Your son?"
Eurynome's unexpected words left Hera momentarily bewildered.
She knew Eurynome had three daughters. She knew that fact all too well.
But at the same time, Hera knew that Eurynome was destined never to bear a son.
Even though she disliked the woman, Hera had felt a shred of pity for her because of that fate.
But now... Eurynome had a son?
And not just any son, but one skilled enough to craft such a masterpiece. For Hera, who was already desperately searching for her own son, a mixture of confusion and intense jealousy flared up inside her.
"What on earth are you talking about? Fate itself barred you from having a son. How could you possibly have one?"
"It turns out fate doesn't only deliver children through the womb. Sometimes, fate delivers a child straight to one's heart."
With those words, Eurynome lightly patted her chest—which was slightly more voluptuous than Hera's.
Watching Hera scowl at the sight of those annoying mounds of flesh, Eurynome continued with a smirk.
"The bond between parent and child can be forged after birth. You of all people should know that, shouldn't you? After all, you are the adoptive daughter of my parents."
"...You adopted him?"
"Fate... brought us together."
Eurynome blushed slightly, once again radiating pure happiness.
Seeing this, Hera felt her stomach twist in jealousy.
Here she was, suffering to find her lost child, while this insufferable woman was bragging about her good fortune in adopting a talented son.
But then...
"I still remember it as if it were yesterday. Three years ago, the moment that child fell from the heavens and into my arms. The joy of nursing that lovely creature as his mother."
"...What?"
Hera's face froze instantly at Eurynome's words.
Cold sweat began to pour down Hera's back at the unexpected story coming from the most unexpected person.
"What... did you just say?"
"Pardon?"
"Say it... say it again. Three years ago... what happened?"
"I said, three years ago, the child fell from the heavens..."
"And his face! What did his face look like?! Was he hideous? So ugly you could barely look at him?! So ugly you wanted to throw him away immediately...?!"
At that moment,
Eurynome's face turned ice-cold.
Looking at Hera, who had suddenly lost her words, she spoke in a voice dripping with frost.
"What are you talking about? Are you... insulting my son right now?"
"...Huh?"
Eurynome began to release her divine power, instantly shattering the lighthearted atmosphere.
The raw hostility radiating from her left Hera utterly bewildered.
"How utterly offensive. It wasn't enough to insult me, but now you insult my son? And you call yourself the goddess of family?"
"N-No... That... that's not..."
This was a first. She had never seen Eurynome this furious.
Even when the scandal with Zeus erupted, Eurynome had remained perfectly calm. Hera never expected her to show such intense emotion.
But in truth, Eurynome's reaction was entirely natural.
From Hera's perspective, she was merely asking in a desperate attempt to find a clue about her lost son. But to Eurynome, it looked like Hera, out of bruised pride, was doing everything she could to insult her child.
What mother would stay quiet after hearing someone say, "Your son's face is totally fucked up," right to her face?
Especially when her pride in her son was at an all-time high, it would be stranger if she didn't get angry.
Unfortunately, Hera did not have the mental capacity to realize this at the moment.
"C-Calm down. It's... it's not like that. I just wanted to know if your son was ugly..."
*Crack!*
Eurynome crushed the cup in her hand.
In the freezing silence, she clenched her fist, Nectar dripping from her fingers.
And then,
"...I was foolish to even speak with you. I believed you would at least maintain a shred of basic decency..."
Suppressing her explosive rage with all her might, Eurynome turned to leave.
Given the circumstances, it was her way of keeping her emotions in check... but Hera could not let her go.
It was a thought she dreaded to entertain, but Eurynome's words had sparked a terrifying possibility in her mind.
"W-Wait!"
Hera unleashed her own divine power in response.
She grabbed the wrist of the departing Eurynome, who was visibly displeased.
"Let go of me."
"Just calm down and listen to me. I only want to confirm one thing."
"I believe I told you I have nothing more to say to you."
"I said it will only take a second—"
"Mother?"
At that moment, a man's voice suddenly rang out.
Hera instinctively turned her head.
"!"
The next second, Hera froze solid, her hand still gripping Eurynome's wrist.
Standing there was a man.
A male deity with a solid, muscular build and a face that carried the same familiar impression as back then.
Though his size and aura had changed significantly over the past three years, there was no mistaking that hideously ugly face.
The moment she finally laid eyes on the face she had been searching for ever since she descended to this place,
a smile instinctively began to spread across Hera's lips.
She had finally met him. She had finally found him.
The product of her worst mistake, and the existence that had weighed heavily on her conscience for the last three years.
His face was still incredibly plain and unattractive, but seeing him grown so healthy and robust, without a single injury, Hera no longer cared about such trivial matters.
"M-My... baby..."
Calling out to the child in a trembling voice, Hera took a step forward.
Driven by the instinct to hold the son she hadn't seen in three years.
Driven by the guilt that made her desperately want to apologize.
She slowly reached out her hand toward the child who had just called out "Mother"...
"My son!"
"!?"
In that instant, Eurynome slapped Hera's hand away and rushed toward the youth.
Without hesitation, she threw herself into his arms, embracing him tightly.
And then,
"!"
"Are you alright, Mother?"
The youth asked, gently holding Eurynome back and calling her "Mother."
"I am fine, dear. It was just a minor disagreement. Nothing for you to worry about."
As she spoke, Eurynome looked back at Hera, flashing a brilliant smile as she pointedly displayed the necklace around her neck.
Hera knew all too well what that gesture and smile meant.
Look at him. This is my son.
The one you threw away as hideous. Yet here he is, so reliable and gifted with unmatched talent. My proud son.
Eurynome basked in a vivid sense of victory, showing off her most precious treasure.
But as Hera watched this scene unfold before her eyes, she was struck by a profound shock—one entirely different from what Eurynome had intended.
'H-How... How can this be...? How... how is my son by that woman's side...?'