Several days later,
in the grand hall of Hecate's temple in the Underworld.
The blessed sword of Apollo, God of Light, now hung high in the air above the hall, suspended there by Hecate herself.
Under the divine power radiating from Apollo's sword, the deep, chilling aura of the Underworld in this area was completely dispersed.
In the afternoon,
Medea had gone out to complete the homework Hecate had assigned her.
As for Jason, he naturally remained inside the temple, under Hecate's watchful eye.
"By the way, Teacher Hecate, when are we going to visit Lady Pyrrhia?"
Pyrrhia, a spirit and divinity born from the unquenchable river Phlegethon, one of the five rivers of the Underworld; a type of nymph.
"No rush… Persephone and Hades's wedding still needs some time to conclude, and I also need to observe the situation for a while longer."
"Observe?" Jason blinked in confusion. "Observe what?"
Hecate glanced at Jason but said nothing.
Since Jason no longer remembered anything about the "Crossroads," Hecate naturally had no intention of telling him. As for the matter of him falling unconscious that day, she had brushed it off with a random excuse.
"Hm… so she has finally come?"
At that moment, Hecate seemed to sense something. She looked outside the temple, frowned for a while, then relaxed.
"Jason, go prepare yourself… we have a guest."
Not long after Hecate spoke,
Hermes, Messenger of the Gods and herald of God-King Zeus, arrived.
"It has been a while, Goddess Hecate."
Entering the temple, Hermes removed the winged cap from his head and greeted Hecate with a smile.
"It has only been a few days. To beings like us, that is merely the blink of an eye, is it not?"
Hecate spoke as she walked over and sat down in front of Hermes.
Jason came forward and served them tea.
"Though it has only been a few days, these past few days have been far more memorable than years… By the way, Jason, unless I am mistaken, that thing hanging in the hall is Apollo's sword, right?"
"Um… yes, Lord Hermes." Jason admitted somewhat awkwardly.
"I did it," Hecate said calmly. "He is a living person, not a shade. This light can dispel the deathly aura in this area, which suits both him and Medea perfectly… So, Hermes, what brings you here?"
"You probably already know, don't you? A while ago, the great Father was truly furious."
"I know. That is why I have been waiting for you… Jason, return to your room for now."
After a brief assessment, Hecate noticed that although Hermes had glanced at Jason several times upon entering, he showed no hostility.
Thus, she now had a pretty good idea of the situation.
Jason obediently left. About an hour later, a puppet came to fetch him and brought him back to the hall.
By then, having learned the recent developments from speaking with Hermes, Hecate had completely relaxed.
Just as she had guessed: even if the Moirai intervened, the fate they saw would be replaced by a more probable one!
Still… when she learned that the Moirai had ultimately still seen Jason, only not as a gods-slayer but as a hero, Hecate genuinely found it rather amusing.
"Has Lord Hermes left, Teacher?"
"Yes." Hecate nodded, looking at Jason before her.
Her mood, which had just improved, began to sour again.
Hecate hated trouble… in that respect, she and Jason were very much alike!
Whether it was becoming the darling of the gods, becoming a gods-slayer, or walking the original path of Jason, every single option gave her a headache!
Yet no matter how troublesome it was, she still had to grit her teeth and accept it.
Who told her to peek at Jason's "miracle" out of momentary curiosity and then become his teacher?
With that thought, the inexplicably irritated Hecate grabbed Jason's cheeks the moment he approached and squeezed them hard several times.
"Ow, Teacher Hecate, that hurts…"
"Endure it!"
Jason could only stand there helplessly and let Hecate vent, inwardly puzzled about what he had done to anger her.
After pinching a few times and seeing Jason not resist, Hecate lost interest.
"Do you know why I hit you?"
"Um… because of Senior Sister Medea?" Jason thought for a moment and asked cautiously.
"No. I am not in the mood to meddle in whatever is going on between you two right now. However… even though I have become your teacher, that does not mean I will stand by and watch you bully Medea, understood?"
Hecate narrowed her eyes at Jason.
"Teacher, I really haven't, and I truly wouldn't dare!"
"Heh, you wouldn't dare…" Hecate was about to say something, but then she remembered how cowardly Jason had been in front of Athena, Apollo, and Artemis… Fine, this guy really might not dare.
"Let me ask you: do you know Queen of Heaven Hera?"
"I do. Why?"
"You have thoroughly offended her… Right now both Demeter and Hera have their eyes on you. Be careful when you go out in the future."
…???
Jason's eyes widened.
What is going on? How did I offend Hera? The past few days I have literally done nothing but eat and sleep!
"Weren't you originally Hera's believer? She secretly helped you survive your pursuers and even guided you to Chiron's door. Yet now you have taken me as your teacher and begun worshipping me. Tell me, haven't you offended her to death?"
What? I was Hera's believer?! …Wait, now that I think about it, that does seem familiar… Holy crap!
It was perfectly normal for Jason not to realize it. Even Hera herself had said she only helped from the shadows; whenever she appeared, she disguised herself as an old woman to point him in the right direction.
"I heard from Hermes that she has been watching over you from the shadows the whole time and was even planning to grant you her protection once you grew up…" As she spoke, Hecate couldn't help giving Jason a look that said, "You've got some guts, kid."
The more Jason listened, the more he wanted to cry.
Greek gods share one common trait: most of them are extremely petty, outrageously petty!
And Hera is one of the pettiest goddesses; otherwise she wouldn't have tormented Heracles so relentlessly!
Now…
"My dear student, you had better not say anything like wanting to switch the god you worship or add another goddess to your devotion right now."
Hecate narrowed her eyes and smiled sweetly at the hesitant Jason.
You caused me this massive headache and still want to worship someone else?
Keep dreaming!
"Teacher, of course I wouldn't dare… By the way, Teacher, you wouldn't just stand by and watch something happen to your student, right?" Jason looked at Hecate with pitiful puppy eyes.
"No worries," Hecate replied indifferently. "Once the flames of the Underworld have tempered your soul, no god will be able to destroy it unless they act directly themselves.
If you die then, you can come to the Underworld and guard the gate for me."
That way I won't have to worry about you running around causing more trouble.
Jason's mouth twitched.
Guard the gate? Endless unpaid labor? …No thank you!
"Sigh, maybe I should just do nothing from now on and go home to farm instead." Jason muttered with a look of utter despair.
Looking at Jason like this… If Hecate had still doubted Jason's future potential at the beginning, now she fully believed it!
Zeus, Hades, Hera, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Demeter, and Hermes… Good grief, eight already!
There are only twelve Olympian gods in total.
And the most important part is that every single one of them is currently paying extremely close attention to Jason. In that case… whether it ends in favor or destruction might hinge on the thinnest of lines!
As for the path of living an ordinary life… Hecate now felt that path might be even harder to walk than the path of destruction.
With this many gods watching your every move, do you really think you can just slack off in peace?
Hecate pondered for a while, then eventually shook her head and cast all those thoughts aside.
"Let's go." Having settled one worry and knowing nothing would happen for the time being, Hecate said, "We are heading to Hades's palace. The sooner we finish tempering your soul, the better… Also, several days have already passed. Have you thought about what to do with Medea?"
"Yes… Teacher, I have already figured out a solution."
Taking a deep breath, Jason spoke seriously to Hecate. "Actually, you are right. Running away is not the answer. I am even a little glad now that I was able to meet her!
Because the current Medea is still young and very easy to… shape, no, I mean persuade, cough, neither, I mean she is very reasonable!
So I have decided. I will convince Medea to become my sworn little sister right now!"
Hecate stared blankly for a moment at the utterly serious Jason, then felt utterly speechless.
Become sworn siblings… Only you could come up with something like that!