After being struck in the chest by an arrow of love, Persephone froze in place.
"Hurry!"
Artemis hadn't yet recovered when the person who had just pulled her urged her again, grabbing her arm and quickly retreating into the distance.
It wasn't until she was pulled by that person to a place where Persephone was no longer visible that Artemis finally came to her senses. With lingering fear, she looked back at the person who had just saved her. As expected, standing behind her was her dear brother, Apollo.
The handsome God's face was filled with anger, mixed with a hint of lingering fear. He noticed his sister's gaze and replied,
"Thanks to Helios, who saw Hades' chariot from the sky and informed me, otherwise you might have been hit, Artemis. I warned you, don't play with Athena for no reason."
"I didn't expect it either."
Artemis finally realized what had just happened, and a hint of indignation appeared on her face:
"Zeus didn't even notify us?"
"He never trusted us anyway," Apollo sneered, then added, "We just need to watch from afar, don't get involved."
Artemis nodded, and then the siblings cautiously peeked out together, observing the situation with Persephone.
Artemis had her brother Apollo to pull her, but Athena, one of the instigators, wasn't so lucky. The moment she saw Persephone get hit by the arrow, she thought, "This is bad," and quickly tried to run, but by then, Persephone's gaze had already fallen on her.
Persephone seemed unaware that she had been struck by an arrow. She just looked at Athena, and as she watched, two blush clouds suddenly appeared on her fair face.
Danger!
Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom, who feared nothing, felt an involuntary surge of fear in her heart as she met her best friend's gaze. She swallowed with some difficulty, then cautiously asked, "Persephone, are you alright?"
"Athena..." Persephone stared intently at her good friend, her eyes seemingly melting, "Why do I suddenly feel that you are so beautiful?"
She sniffed, then continued, blushing, speaking slowly in a fanatical tone, "I don't know why, but when I see your face, my heart beats so fast, and my body feels so hot... Ah, your hair smells so good too, siiigh..."
As she spoke, Persephone suddenly leaned in like a dog, breathing heavily next to Athena's ear.
Athena immediately felt a chill down her spine. She quickly retreated and said to Persephone:
"Persephone, be normal, I'm a little scared."
"I, I feel like I've always been normal."
Persephone wiped the glistening drool from the corner of her mouth, grinning foolishly as she continued to approach Athena:
"Athena, you're so cute."
"Persephone, stay away from me."
Athena was so scared that she even pulled out her shield, aegis:
"Listen to me, you need to calm down now, and it's best to keep a certain distance from me."
"I am very calm."
Persephone quickened her steps, extending her fair arms, and pounced towards Athena, wanting to hug her. Athena, startled, quickly flashed away, avoiding the Goddess of Spring, then she sped up and fled the scene without looking back.
"Athena! Wait for me!"
Seeing her beloved Goddess flee, Persephone stomped her foot and chased after her, emitting a terrifying sound as she pursued Athena:
"Athena! Athena! Athena ah ah ah ah!—Ah ah ah ah ah ah!"
Hearing this scream, which sounded like a demon from hell, Hades, who was originally prepared to act as if nothing had happened, couldn't help but stop his chariot. He shook his head as he watched the two streaks of light fleeing towards the horizon, one after the other:
"You made your own bed, now you have to lie in it, niece."
...
Two days later, in the God King's Hall on Olympus, Ares, after hearing Apollo and Artemis's report, couldn't help but slap his thigh and point at Athena, who stood opposite him with a face as black as a pot, bursting into laughter.
"Hahahahahahaha... Oh my god, this is too much, Athena, you're amazing, I, Ares, concede defeat."
After laughing, he pinched his voice and called out to Athena in a coquettish tone:
"Athena, Athena ah ah ah ah—siiigh."
"Enough! Shut up! Ares!"
Zeus, mortified, slapped the golden table in front of him and roared at the main Gods present:
"The question now is, who told Hades about this?! Step forward!"
The main Gods exchanged glances, then Apollo was the first to speak. He let out a slight sneer, then said in a sarcastic tone:
"Who knows? It certainly wasn't Artemis and me, after all, we only knew the plan had begun the moment little Eros shot his arrow."
After speaking, he gave his father a meaningful look, and after his brother finished, the white-haired Artemis also showed a somewhat indignant expression.
"I don't know either." Aphrodite carefully shielded little Eros, who was trembling at her feet, and said tremblingly, "Zeus, I can guarantee that I was always performing the ritual to exchange the original love God Eros's divine artifacts. I didn't have the opportunity to do this."
"Hmph, no matter who did it!"
Demeter glared at Zeus with a face full of anger, gritting her teeth and saying:
"Anyway, I want to thank him. If it weren't for him, would my daughter have stayed in the Underworld forever?"
"Enough, Demeter, you shut up first, we'll talk about this later!"
Zeus felt a little guilty, but he still forcefully suppressed one of his wives. He turned to look at his Queen and saw Hera staring at her fingernails with disinterest.
Hera had no motive to interfere in Hades' affairs.
After watching for a while, Zeus shook his head, then glanced at Hephaestus, who was silently bowing his head, and shook his head again. Finally, he looked around and then fixed his gaze on his brother, Poseidon, and his son, Ares.
"Ares."
Zeus summoned his divine power, lightning flashing around him, his eyes glowing, and pressed Ares:
"Tell me honestly, did you tell Hades about this?"
"Huh? You suspect me?"
Ares couldn't help but laugh:
"Yes, Zeus, I won't hide it anymore. I just don't like your and Athena's sneaky tactics behind people's backs. But I, Ares, have always acted honorably. If I wanted to tell Hades, I would go to the Underworld and shout loudly to him in front of all the Gods of the Underworld: 'Hades, Zeus is going to mess with you!' I disdain to use such petty methods of backstabbing, okay?"
Hearing his forceful words, all the main Gods present, except Athena, turned their heads away. Then, Ares continued, "Instead of agonizing over this, you might as well go directly and ask Hades who told him. To be honest, Hades isn't afraid of us at all, he'll definitely tell you directly if you ask him."
Hearing Ares' words, Zeus's face turned purple with anger, as if he had swallowed a large pile of excrement. However, Ares's words, though crude, were not without reason; Hades indeed was not afraid of him.
Thus, Zeus successfully contacted Hades, who had already finished enjoying the sacrifices and returned to the Underworld, through the olympus holy fire, and asked him this question.
"What? Who told me?"
Hades smiled and said:
"Alright, it doesn't matter if I tell you. This matter was actually told to me by a group of Atlanteans' spirits."