Engagement and Duel

'Hefestus." Zeus looked at his and Hera's eldest son, his voice warm as he summoned the recently returned god. No matter the past grievances with this son, the benefits this chief god brought to Zeus were enough for him to show a bit of goodwill.

'Father."

Among the gods, a male deity wielding a forging hammer stepped forward. His features were rugged, and upon hearing Zeus's call, he appeared somewhat tense, exuding a pure and simple aura. It was hard to imagine that such a person could force Zeus to bow his head.

In fact, it was not Hefestus's idea; this god, whose mind was consumed with forging and metallurgy, was indeed a rare honest man. He was merely following the orders of his mother, Hera.

Hefestus's appearance could not be described as ugly, but when compared to the generally outstanding looks of the gods of Olympus, he always seemed somewhat lacking, earning him the title of the ugliest god on the mountain.

He limped toward the center of the great hall and respectfully bowed to Zeus, waiting for his command.

'Build a temple of love for Aphrodite at the center of Olympus."

The gods gasped in shock!

The center of Olympus? There, aside from Zeus's throne room, was Hera's temple of marriage. By placing the temple of love there, was Zeus implying he wanted to keep a mistress right under Hera's nose?

'…"

Zeus's words nearly made Hera crush the golden cup in her hand. How brazen of Zeus! Not only was he a notorious womanizer, but he was also planning to sneak around under her watchful eyes?

The white-armed goddess struggled to suppress her rising anger, determined not to show any ugliness in front of the other gods. She glanced at the smug Aphrodite above, thought for a moment, and then a cold smile crept onto her lips.

'This task is perfectly suited for Hefestus."

Hera's smile was warm, as if she had not noticed Zeus's ulterior motives. Her graceful and elegant demeanor made the other gods doubt their own eyes.

'After all, they will soon be husband and wife. It would be a beautiful story for a husband to build a temple for his wife, wouldn't you agree, Zeus?"

'What!?"

'Did I hear that right? Aphrodite is going to marry Hefestus? When did this happen?"

'Hera's jealousy is acting up again."

'The most beautiful goddess and the ugliest god—what a waste of divine resources…"

Aphrodite's previously smug face turned pale in an instant. She looked at the simple-looking, limping god beside her, her eyes flashing with disdain. As the embodiment of all beauty in the world, she simply could not appreciate this god who was neither handsome nor whole, even if he was the son of the esteemed king and queen of the gods.

'Hera, do you know what you're saying?"

Zeus narrowed his eyes at Hera, a hint of displeasure in his gaze.

In his calculations, he had long intended to take this beautiful goddess as a lover and have a divine child with her. Wouldn't the temple of love still be under his control?

'Zeus, it seems you have forgotten. When you summoned Hefestus back to the mountain, you personally promised to marry the most beautiful goddess of Olympus to Hefestus. Well, isn't this lovely lady right in front of you?"

Hera smiled slyly, pulling out the contract that Zeus had signed with Hefestus. The golden divine script on it shimmered with light; this was the promise of the king of the gods, a commitment that no power could destroy.

The other gods suddenly remembered that there had indeed been such an agreement between Zeus and Hefestus. The promise made by the king of the gods was unchangeable, and it seemed that the marriage between the beautiful goddess and Hefestus was now a done deal.

The gods looked at Aphrodite with sympathy. She, too, saw the terms of the agreement and was filled with disbelief; she did not love Hefestus and did not want to marry him!

Aphrodite's emerald eyes looked helplessly at Zeus, filled with pleading, hoping that the king of the gods would retract his command.

'…"

Zeus averted his gaze, avoiding Aphrodite's eyes.

'In the name of the goddess of marriage, I will grant the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite, and the god of fire and forging, Hefestus, a grand wedding. Gods, you are all invited to the banquet."

The white-armed goddess rose, raising her scepter high. The divine authority of marriage shone brightly, and the world acknowledged Hera's words, binding the marriage between Aphrodite and Hefestus.

After doing all this, the beautiful and noble goddess cast a mocking glance at her husband and turned away without looking back.

Meanwhile, Hebe was completely unaware of all this; she was still in her temple of youth, meditating on the laws of the ice and snow divine authority. By the time she emerged from her meditation, the entire mountain of the gods was already buzzing with excitement about the wedding of the goddess of beauty and the god of fire…

Not to mention how Hefestus managed to win the beautiful goddess, while the resentful Aphrodite secretly manipulated Zeus's desires, making him even more of a womanizer, leading to Hera catching him in the act more times than ever.

For the gods, time was the least valuable thing; a month passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, Olympus was bustling with activity, as the gods eagerly anticipated the divine contest between the goddess of youth, Hebe, and the goddess of the forest and hunting, Artemis. After all, divine life is long, and they did not want to miss any opportunity for entertainment.

Even the sun god Helios paused his daily journey, casting dark clouds across the sky and bringing his two sisters, the full moon goddess Selene and the dawn goddess Eos, to watch the contest.

The eternally joyful Olympus was bright and sunny. The gods sat around the viewing platform of the arena with golden goblets in hand, waiting for the two competing goddesses to arrive.

Artemis had long been waiting in the arena. Today, she abandoned her usual elegant long dress and donned the hunting armor she wore in the forest.

Her silver-gray hair was tied up high, and her delicate and pure face was as lovely as the bright moon. Her silver-gray eyes were filled with fighting spirit; the goddess with the silver bow undoubtedly dazzled the gods with her heroic demeanor.

'What a pity, both Artemis and Athena are virgin goddesses. Such beauties, alas…"

A male god couldn't help but sigh, and his words resonated strongly with the other male deities around him, who all sighed in agreement.

Not all goddesses yearned for love and marriage. For instance, Athena, the wise goddess and goddess of war, looked down on romantic love; while Artemis, the pure maiden who valued spiritual love, found physical relationships disgusting and detested them deeply.

Thus, both goddesses made a vow to the River Styx in the Underworld, pledging to remain chaste forever.

The River Styx was not just any river; it represented all promises and oaths in the world. Once a vow was made to it, it could not be broken. If one were to violate it, they would be dragged into the river and suffer eternal damnation, even the gods would not escape the cost of breaking their vows.

It was precisely for this reason that the vows made by the two goddesses to the River Styx protected them from the harassment of male deities. After all, these vows were no joke; while the two goddesses were beautiful, they were not worth risking one's life over.

'Speaking of which, where is Princess Hebe? Why hasn't she arrived yet?"

Artemis had already arrived, and the gods began searching for the other main character.

'Could it be that she's too scared and is hiding? Hahaha…"

The gods still hadn't shaken off their impression of Hebe as a timid third-tier goddess.

'Shh! The queen is sitting up there; are you trying to get yourself killed?"

'Ahem… This wine is a bit too strong."

The god who spoke awkwardly put down his cup, annoyed with himself for getting carried away and forgetting that the other party's mother was famously protective.

'Hmph."

Hera overheard the whispers of the surrounding gods. In the past, she might have become angry and punished them. But now, the esteemed queen was calm and composed; Hebe had changed significantly since then.

A smile tugged at her red lips as she began to anticipate the shocked expressions on the faces of these foolish gods.

'Athena, what do you think of this duel?" The exceptionally handsome sun god Apollo crossed his arms and conversed with the goddess beside him, who had bright eyes.

'It's hard to say. Artemis's divine power and combat experience are indeed stronger than Princess Hebe's, but let's not forget that she is notoriously protective."

Who that 'she" referred to was obvious; as Zeus's illegitimate child, they had all suffered under her hand.

'…"

'Hebe is here!"

'Finally! The wine is almost gone."

The god who spoke gestured for a nymph to refill his cup.

The goddess, appearing as a young maiden, walked gracefully in. Her hair, resembling the finest silk, was styled high, revealing a youthful, fair face.

Today, she wore a practical battle outfit, and in her white, jade-like hands, she held a bow and arrows crafted from jade. Her rose-petal-like red lips held a faint smile, and her purple eyes, inherited from her great mother, shone with determination and intense fighting spirit.

Hebe did not present herself with the mature appearance that came with her promotion. The fact that she had ascended to first-tier divine power was known only to Hera and Ares, allowing her to keep it as a trump card, ready to deliver a surprise and potentially lethal blow at a crucial moment.