Artemis was no fool.
With just a slight nudge from Lorne, the huntress goddess quickly caught on.
"You mean, use Adonis to lure that woman away?"
"Exactly!"
Lorne nodded, spreading out several terrain sketches on the table and explaining the plan he had been devising over the past two days.
"First, based on my observations, Adonis is an avid hunter.
His relationship with the king of Cyprus isn't great, so he goes out of the city every day to hunt and clear his mind.
Second, perhaps as some form of psychological compensation for her own uncontrollable behaviour, before Aphrodite seeks out Adonis, she always visits a sacred pool that restores her chastity, as if to signify that she's giving her entire heart and body to her lover.
There's some distance between Adonis's usual hunting grounds and the sacred pool Aphrodite regularly visits.
If, just as Aphrodite and her three Graces activate the sacred pool, Adonis happens to be in mortal danger, what do you think she'll do?"
In an instant, Artemis's eyes lit up, and the answer burst from her lips.
"She'll abandon her bath and rush to save her little lover!"
"Exactly. That's your window of opportunity!"
Lorne nodded approvingly, his voice steady.
"If you lie in wait near the sacred site and wait for Aphrodite and the three Graces to activate the pool, then slip in to replace the love goddess and complete the ritual while they're distracted, our goal will be achieved!"
Perfect!
Hearing this highly feasible plan, Artemis was thrilled.
But then, she quickly realized the crux of the matter and looked at Lorne with a hesitant gaze.
"So, you're going to make a move on Adonis?"
Indeed, the idea was brilliant, and the plan's feasibility was high.
But it hinged on someone acting at the right moment to target Adonis and draw away Aphrodite and the three Graces.
With only the two of them, Artemis needed to stay near the sacred pool to seize the opportunity, which meant the most dangerous part of the plan naturally fell to Lorne.
The latter gave a straightforward nod, showing no hesitation, and earnestly instructed her.
"Yep. When the time comes, we'll stay in contact with a spell.
The moment the opportunity arises, signal me immediately."
"No way, that's too dangerous!"
Even with the opportunity within reach, Artemis instinctively shook her head in protest.
Lorne confidently patted his chest, offering a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry. Adonis is all looks and no substance.
The divine authority of the springtime god of vegetation isn't innate to him, and he can't yet wield a god's combat strength.
Plus, because of his strained relationship with the king of Cyprus, he doesn't bring many followers, just a handful of ordinary palace soldiers.
I can handle them."
"What about Aphrodite and the three Graces?"
Artemis fixed her gaze on the man before her, raising the critical question.
As a woman, she knew that some women could be even more terrifying than men when driven to madness.
If Aphrodite found out someone had targeted her lover, she'd likely stop at nothing to retaliate.
Even a goddess of love, who was unskilled in combat as compared to other Olympians was not someone a demigod could handle.
Not to mention, the three Graces, who were inseparable from Aphrodite, would be there as well.
"No problem. I'll escape their encirclement before they can close in…"
Lorne paused, looking at Artemis with a serious expression.
"So, you need to seize the moment!"
Despite knowing the danger, he showed no signs of wavering or backing down.
First of all, as a man he was responsible to the one, who took his first time and vice versa.
And even if it wasn't for that..the fact that if they failed, they would be in a big trouble, a trouble called Zeus was enought for him to not care about anything else.
After all, when weighing the lesser of two evils, he'd rather provoke Aphrodite's pretty boy than give Zeus a reason to act against him early.
Artemis bit her cherry-red lips, nodding lightly, and ultimately refrained from further objections.
She understood that some things had to be done by someone, or they'd face even graver consequences.
After finalizing the plan and briefly confirming the runic signals they'd use to communicate, Lorne raised another challenge in executing the plan.
"Based on my observations, I'm confident I can overpower Adonis in a direct confrontation.
But creating a life-or-death crisis strong enough to draw Aphrodite in? That's a lot trickier."
Thinking about it, he couldn't help but grumble with a headache. "Gods are nearly immortal by nature, and on top of that, to protect her little lover, Aphrodite gave Adonis the divine authority of the springtime god of vegetation, which specializes in vitality…"
Pausing briefly, Lorne looked up at Artemis across from him and asked in a low voice. "So, do you have any methods or items that can deal with a god? Preferably something that won't easily reveal our identities."
The huntress goddess thought for a moment, her eyes lighting up.
"I do!"
With that, Artemis activated her magical array and pulled out a vibrant pelt woven with red, blue, and black hues from a corner of her storage.
The moment it was spread out on the table, a thick, bloody scent hit them.
Even from a few meters away, Lorne could feel the ferocious aura lingering on it.
It was the hide of a savage, fearless beast from the Forest of Slaughter, a creature that devoured flesh, gnawed on armor, and dared to challenge even dragons and gods head-on.
Lorne reached out, touching the beast's pelt with its needle-like, mottled bristles, and instinctively asked. "What is this?"
"[Divine Punishment Boar's Mane]—the pelt of the first magical beast I hunted when I inherited the title of huntress goddess."
As she spoke, Artemis's eyes glimmered with nostalgia, her face filled with emotion.
"It was a magical boar, incredibly powerful. Countless demigods, dragons, and even nymphs fell to its tusks.
To eliminate this menace, I chased it for seven days and seven nights before finally bringing it down.
I stripped its entire pelt as my most cherished trophy and stored it in my collection."
Lorne examined the boar's pelt, sensing the unyielding ferocity that still clung to it, and couldn't help but marvel.
"No wonder—it feels almost alive!"
"It is alive!"
Artemis's words were startling.
Under Lorne's astonished gaze, she flipped the pelt over, revealing intricate golden divine runes on the inner side, proudly showcasing her masterpiece.
"As the huntress goddess, letting such a fine prey rot alongside mere scraps of meat would be a waste.
So, I secretly used this pelt as a medium, infusing it with my divine authority and imprinting its fiercest essence.
Whenever I wish, I can summon it back to the world to fight for me, carrying out my will and delivering my divine punishment!"
She paused, then looked up at Lorne with a serious expression.
"Similarly, if you drape this pelt over yourself, you can take on its form, wield its power, and even harm a god!"
Listening to Artemis's explanation, Lorne's gaze drifted to the spread-out boar pelt, his thoughts wandering.
Legend had it that when King Oeneus of Calydon forgot to offer a sacrifice to the huntress goddess Artemis during the harvest season, the enraged goddess unleashed a massive boar onto the plains of Calydon, wreaking havoc on its crops and livestock.
In the end, Prince Meleager of Calydon rallied heroes from across the Greek city-states to hunt the beast, and only with their combined efforts and Artemis's permission, sought through prayer, did they manage to slay it.
This alone was proof of the creature's formidable strength.
If he wore this pelt, combining his war god divinity with Artemis's huntress divinity, he could probably pin that pretty boy Adonis to the ground and pummel him.
And if he recalled correctly....
Adonis's fate, it seemed, was to be gored to death by a boar.
As the saying goes, restraint trumps all.
Tch, tch, Artemis pulling out this thing was truly a professional move.
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