Chapter 189
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 189
Chapter Title: Cookie
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-Waaaaah!
-Aphrodite! Aphrodite!
Gods, heroes, spirits.
All the renowned beings of fame and power in this Greece cheered, praising Aphrodite's authority and ecstatic over her divine feat of blessing love.
Her eyes locking precisely onto me and narrowing as she smugly savored it all was probably no coincidence.
'How about it? With this, I've paid back with interest, right?'
The goddess of love, sexuality, and beauty, Aphrodite.
This was the first time I'd laid eyes on her, and since I wasn't exactly a devout follower, I'd barely prayed to her a handful of times.
Honestly, just counting the Olympus clients clinging to me right now put it at two.
Drinking buddies of the muscle god variety: another two.
A deadly-enemy sun god: one.
A slave goddess nearly ready for training: another one.
Then those ancient goddess sisters whose presences were starting to feel off: two more.
And finally, one supreme god who was beginning to get entangled and sizing everyone up.
Damn.
They say getting tangled with gods makes life hell, and just looking at the ones I'm already tangled with makes my head spin.
Directly or indirectly wrapped up with the top gods of this world to the point I'm dreading the day I leave the forest—and I sure as hell can't go inviting incidents with my own two feet.
But this was the result of heeding Ares' sincere warning: Do you really want your family to end up like ours?
A pretty classic, cliche-stuffed love story—and a brand-new episode added where Aphrodite herself stars, blessing that romance.
"How's this? Satisfied enough for the goddess, you think?"
Ares grinned at my question, looking impressed.
"Good? Hell, look at the smile blooming on that sister's face."
Sure enough, Aphrodite stood in the center of all the cheers below, blessing the lovers' romance like a fish in water.
At a glance, her smug beauty screamed, I love the attention~—and Ares was over the moon about it.
"Yeah, your lovers should be safe for a while now. Good job!"
Grinning like a mischievous kid, Ares excitedly slapped my back.
'My god. That war-crazed prince making that face.'
Ares, Aphrodite's lover.
Actually, she was Hephaestus' wife having an affair with Ares, or maybe married to Ares from the start—my knowledge had all sorts of theories, nothing firm.
But from what I could see now, they were definitely lovers.
Her lover happy, so he was happy too.
Grinning wide as he watched her hog the spotlight.
Anyway, on a personal note, this cliche-fest of a pure love tale—straight out of cheokguman-geuk, the kind where fruit flies at the stage—wrapped up triumphantly.
There were twists and variables I hadn't even anticipated flying everywhere, but.
Just as I'd gone to the temple with Nesneria and Atalanta to request cooperation(?), the goddess of beauty had happily descended and saved one couple.
And she'd seemed satisfied accepting the protagonist spot in this tale as tribute.
"I mean, damn! Know how scared I was? Not just anyone—you, with two gorgeous beauties, and you skip only Aphrodite sis?"
"Ah, come on. No time for that!"
Ares grinned like a big brother teasing his immature little bro, hollering loudly.
But since I had my guilt, I just took the beer he offered and sighed.
Honestly, he had a point.
Aphrodite.
Just looking at her exploits, danger level, and sheer drama—right up there with Zeus.
Other gods were just natural disasters; that pink goddess was a whole different breed of nasty.
Her wildly free-spirited personality perfectly captured love's cruelty and suddenness!
Chiron had specifically warned never to insult Aphrodite or her divine works, unlike the others.
'She had a massive share in those comic series, right after Zeus.'
So many big episodes kicked off with her and her followers' antics.
Atalanta had even been cursed by that goddess to become a lioness alongside her husband.
Not even directly by Aphrodite—but her husband got hit by a lust beam while passing another goddess's temple...
Ahem.
Even Zeus, whose divinity exceeded imagination when faced directly, couldn't stand up to Aphrodite and her son Eros' arrows.
If I couldn't live without ties to her, then as Ares said, the only way was to treat her with utmost respect and dodge the wrath.
Other gods were insane natural disasters, but her and her family? A whole other dimension.
Beings who could influence my plans, my emotions, my mind—far more dangerous than any heavenly calamity for an ascending warrior.
Hell, maybe scarier than Zeus' lightning—that beautiful goddess and her son?
"Honestly, even I find sis scary. Sea-born goddess wanting the sea? Natural. But she straight-up turned her lover into a shellfish for not coming to Olympus."
"...What?"
This wasn't even in the comics?
"Didn't hear from your sea goddess? Sis had a lover back when she lived by the coast.
She headed to Olympus, but the guy wanted to stay in the sea—poof, shellfish."
...No more grilled shellfish for a while.
Even before becoming an Olympian goddess, she was one fierce love deity.
"Brother, I'll handle it well."
The Heavenly Demon Cult didn't worship the God of War as their patron for ten millennia for nothing.
How spot-on was this oracle?
'Hermes or Hera? All that mysterious buildup, circling around—and nothing matched up.'
Make a gayageum and it'd smooth things over with the sun god somehow.
Ended in a fistfight.
Fun enough, but I don't want my surroundings turned upside down by outside forces—death before that.
I'm the type who turns trash games into fun ones; I don't want this life turning into a trash irl game.
In that sense, Ares—who warned me straight-up about how dangerous his lover and the love goddess were, and even suggested countermeasures—was my benefactor. My god benefactor.
Chuckling as he looked at me, Ares suddenly ruffled my hair.
"Eek?!"
"Me and Mother have big hopes for you, y'know? She never sleeps easy because of Father, but lately she's been saying it's better thanks to you. Aphrodite's lively again after ages—thanks, man."
That handsome face showing what a manly smile really looked like—Ares seemed genuinely grateful.
"If you're really thankful, swing by my daughter's kingdom sometime."
"Daughter's kingdom... Ah, the Amazons? Hippolyte story?"
Hippolyte of the golden girdle, whom Ares boasted about whenever he got the chance.
Her valor was whispered about outside the forest even without his bragging.
Atalanta had shown huge interest in her—another female master who'd already become a nation's leader—like a role model.
"Yeah. She's been griping lately about some Athens or Athene coveting her land and picking petty fights. But opponent's Athena—Father'd flip if I stepped in."
"Hmm..."
True. Ares was chummy with me, but the stories painted him as a battle-maniac thug.
On top of unknown karma piling up, Zeus glared every time he tried anything big—hard to move freely.
"Rough, huh?"
Ares' eyes flicked briefly to the Athena token on my wrist.
Athene was Athena's prime territory—the biggest, most powerful nation in Greece.
From my Zhongyuan perspective, where the whole Greece was smaller than the mainland, calling it a kingdom was laughable.
Still, blessed and founded by Zeus' eldest daughter—its power rivaled modern America. Even for Ares, asking me to tangle with Athene seemed a bit much; he looked worried.
'This stings my pride a bit...?'
No matter how tangled I got into becoming Athena's contractor, it was still an equal trade at core.
Did she think because Athena was a client, I'd grovel to some puny nation under her?
"Call me if it gets serious."
"Huh...?"
"The god our cult worshipped as patron says so. Can't just ignore an ex-high priest, right?"
"...You rascal."
Not expecting me to accept so readily, Ares stared blankly before chuckling and turning away.
So blunt a god—no extra words—but that turned face was flushed, touched.
Just as Ares and I silently shared that manly bond of friendship.
Noisy racket from behind shattered the moment.
"Sniff! *sob*! U-Ultimately, not me... but that Acis...!!"
"Back to his senses, huh."
"Bloodline aside, guy's got a tough head on him."
Proof that Aphrodite had heard prayers from Nesneria, Atalanta, and me—and accepted this pure love tale as tribute.
The Cyclops Polyphemus, who'd been rampaging with his eye pierced by Acis' sword.
Vanished with one gesture from Aphrodite, only to plop down right beside where Poseidon, Ares, and I sat at the top seats.
Luckily, Poseidon caught him, pulled out the sword, and healed the eye—no lasting wound.
But watching Acis and Galatea, now blessed and love-approved by Aphrodite, the giant Cyclops struck the textbook OTL despair pose, tears streaming.
Well, yeah—not just any goddess, but the goddess of love herself stepped in to approve their romance. Force it now, and it'd be his head, not his eye, rolling.
He knew it well enough not to approach, just shedding tears from that massive single eye.
"Rise, Polyphemus."
"F-Father..."
Poseidon stood firm before him, arms crossed, sharing the view of his son's ordeal.
"Is this how I raised you?!"
"Sir!"
Poseidon shook his blue beard and bellowed; Polyphemus snapped to attention like a booted recruit.
"Did you love that woman?!"
"Sir!"
"Is that man standing there you?!"
"No, sir!"
In my drawings and the original myths, Polyphemus never won Galatea's love.
His brutish temper aside, his looks weren't hideous, but that single eye smack between his brows? Aesthetic crime.
"Hey, bro. Any way that Cyclops snags Galatea?"
"Excluding Eros' arrow? Nope. None."
Galatea's type from the start: delicate pretty boys stirring protective instincts.
Strip the eye, Polyphemus wasn't bad-looking—but a million miles from her tastes.
"If that's not your place... then you lost!"
"*Sob*!"
Like a death sentence from father; Polyphemus slammed his head into the ground.
"Uncle's got killer atmosphere."
"Rare father mode. Hush."
Like finishing the main flick and a surprise cookie video pops up.
My directed cliche pure-love drama even had a hot-blooded cookie straight out of the script.
Not bad at all—we clinked glasses quietly and tuned into the hot-blooded father-son chat.
"Tell me. Was your rival weak?"
"*Sob*, n-no!"
"Did he use dirty tricks?"
"No!"
"Is it unfair that your rival took the woman you loved?"
"*Hic*!"
"Speak!"
"N-Nooooo!"
Poseidon's blunt, straightforward questions kept coming; tears practically gushed from Polyphemus' single eye.
But Poseidon and Polyphemus alike had to admit it.
That lowborn Acis had proven his love even unto death.
And that final strike, pushed to the limit, had transcended bounds to repel Polyphemus.
The nobility of a man who'd burned everything facing his end—even a son of Poseidon, self-proclaimed sea warrior, had to acknowledge it.
"What are those two to you?"
"A-Aciss!! A worthy rival!! Galatea!! A woman who deserves happiness!!"
"Then cry! Cry it out once—and rise!"
-RAAAAAAGH!!
Whew—Ares' sound barrier saved us, or the festival below would've been a splash zone.
"...Kinda cool?"
"For real?"
Ares pondering if he'd try that someday—tackle slipped out.
Thus, Marine Corps Polyphemus' tear-soaked screams dragged on long and loud.
Poseidon, unflinching through the wails, strode over to us.
"Hey, young god. Got one request."
"...Knew it."
As expected.
Pointing at his son slumped blankly in exhaustion over his shoulder, Poseidon said,
"Take that guy under your wing. Power's solid, as you saw. Train him tight like those demigod kids—no funny business."
Oh. S-rank slave—no, warrior—rolling right in.