"I told him that the destiny intertwined with him inside the Golden Fleece had already been stripped away by the goddess Athena and transferred onto that evergreen olive branch.
"Miracles can be recreated. Prestige can be rebuilt. But once a person is gone, there's truly nothing left. The Golden Fleece is guarded by a dragon personally appointed by Ares. What does that have to do with you? You've already proven your loyalty more than enough. It's time to think about yourself and seize what's in front of you. That was the third sentence."
Praise Athena!
Realizing that the King of Colchis's will to fight had been completely crushed, and that it was highly unlikely he would come looking for trouble again, everyone broke into smiles, silently offering their thanks to a certain scheming goddess of wisdom.
My dear daughter, don't say your old man is unfair. I do the work, you carry the glory… cough, the honor. No need to thank me.
Samael, the one who had personally orchestrated everything, chuckled inwardly with satisfaction, quite pleased with his image of quietly hiding both merit and infamy.
However, their moment of ease didn't last long.
A biting storm rose over the sea as a massive black shadow lifted from the nearby coast and swept across the sky. Its broad wings cut through the air, kicking up waves several meters high. Pitch-black scales gleamed under sunlight and mist, radiating a heavy, oppressive killing intent.
"Roar!"
As the savage shadow closed in, the furious roar made the hearts of most of the Argonauts pound like war drums. Their muscles stiffened, limbs went weak, and an overwhelming sense of dread surged up.
Dragon's might!
The monster from the sacred grove had caught up!
Jason was the first to react. His pupils shrank sharply as surging ether crashed over him, and he immediately realized that the dragon's power was now dozens of times greater than before.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack! All hands on alert!"
As the monster dove down menacingly, its enormous head slamming toward the side of the ship, the captain screamed at the top of his lungs.
"Bang! Bang!"
Yet dull impacts rang out at the same time. Both Jason and the dragon that had stuck its head out let out miserable cries as one fell onto the deck and the other splashed into the sea.
"What are you all screaming about?"
Samael frowned slightly, irritated as he dug at his ear and scolded them.
"Whimper…"
Amid the sound of rushing water, the horned, ferocious-looking head surfaced, letting out a pitiful whine. Its once-majestic body rapidly shrank until it was no bigger than a puppy. It nudged affectionately against someone's hand, docile and obedient.
The atmosphere on deck froze solid. Several heroes stared blankly, eyes bulging.
That was a god-tier dragon. Why was it acting like a dog?
No wonder when Orpheus played his lyre back then, it dropped and fell asleep on the spot. So the one in the sacred grove was an insider? Turns out it was this easy to deal with. Scared the hell out of me.
Jason, who had just pulled himself up by the railing, instantly saw through what was going on. He leaned back against the ship, patting his chest in relief, silently thanking his luck. His awe toward a certain troublesome friend deepened even further.
At this point, one man and one beast moved to the stern and began muttering back and forth in dragon tongue so dense it might as well have been encrypted, gradually sorting out how each of them had ended up here.
The reason the Fierce Dragon of Colchis wasn't sleeping in the Arima Caverns but instead guarding Ares's sacred grove was actually very simple.
It was all Ladon's fault.
That guy had shown off every single reward he earned guarding his sacred garden, flaunting them proudly. And there were so many of them.
"So you ran out here to take a side job?"
Samael asked casually as he stroked the little creature's head.
The Fierce Dragon of Colchis blinked its slit pupils, eyes darting away as it muttered awkwardly in dragon tongue.
"Ahem, Master… I couldn't hold back and ended up looting the dragon hoard Ladon secretly dug out in the Arima Caverns…"
"Damn, you robbed your big sister's private stash? She didn't burn you to ash?"
"So… I followed divine will and came to Colchis to guard the sacred grove."
"So in the end, you were just afraid Ladon would catch you and beat you to death, so you ran away."
"Uh… there were other reasons too. Like the food and lodging here being great, and the high-quality gemstones and piles of gold coins from sacrifices being really adorable…"
Samael's mouth twitched as he pressed a hand to his forehead and tilted his head back, completely at a loss for words.
After a brief silence, the ancient serpent darkened his expression and let out a cold laugh.
"Since Colchis treats you to good food and drink, and even lets you roll around in piles of gold coins, why did you run over here?"
"With the Golden Fleece taken, if I stayed any longer, I'd be beaten to death!"
The Fierce Dragon of Colchis wasn't stupid. He knew perfectly well that after slacking off and failing his duty, he would definitely be held accountable. If he didn't run now, was he supposed to wait for someone to come knocking?
At least you know when to save yourself.
Samael's expression eased slightly as he nodded with mild approval.
In truth, once Jason took the Golden Fleece, the Fierce Dragon of Colchis had nothing left to do and only became an eyesore.
Legend had it that Zeus, King of the Gods, praised the dragon's "diligent service" and sacrificed it to the heavens, forming the constellation [Draco].
The fact that this fellow ran off before Samael could even warn him showed just how much his sense of danger had improved.
That said, looting his own sister's dragon hoard and screwing over his employer Ares in the process… this one was trash to the core.
"You did help, sure, but that little bit of credit doesn't even come close to making up for the mess you caused. And you still expect me to plead with Ladon for you? Serves you right if your sister burns you to death!"
Samael snorted coldly, righteous and indignant.
"Then what about the four Hearts of the Earth from the Earth Mother Goddess's temple? Top-tier materials for powering automatons."
"I'm your teacher. I have to be fair. You're making this very difficult for me."
"I know where she's hiding. She's got two golden apples with her."
"We're family. What's hers is yours. Is there really a need to draw such clear lines? Right?"
The Fierce Dragon of Colchis nodded frantically, agreeing with every word.
The two accomplices whispered to each other, quickly concluding a filthy on-the-spot deal to divide the spoils, and even set a time for their next joint operation.
However, at that very moment, the ether tides surged violently. Blood-red bands of light fell from the horizon as hundreds of ships tore through the crimson sea fog at incredible speed, closing in on the Argo to form a sealed net.
Looking out, the red-and-black decks were covered in a chilling expanse of white. Thousands of Dragonfang Soldiers stood in formation.
The Dragonfang fleet of Colchis?! What was going on?!
The Argo, cheerful just moments ago, instantly turned tense and grim. Standing at the stern, Samael's expression shifted as he cast a dark glance at the Fierce Dragon of Colchis, who was already turning around to slip away.
"Uh… I only took a little gold and silverware from the sacred grove that nobody wanted…"
Unrepentant to the very end.
Samael's lips twitched. He nearly wanted to strangle this gold-obsessed dragon on the spot and clean house.
"Auntie, did the ship stop? It's really stuffy inside, so I came out for some air."
At the same time, amid a soft mutter, a small head with purple hair and purple eyes sneakily poked out from Circe's cabin. The moment it appeared, it locked eyes with Samael, who had turned at the sound.
When did the Argo pick up a stowaway?
And worse, a massive problem of one.
While cursing inwardly, Samael's gaze swept coldly across the deck before locking onto a tiny figure skulking near a corner, peeking over nervously. His teeth ground together audibly.
Circe, you damn bird.