"I used to think that gods were high above us, untouchable. They were mysterious beings and our invincible enemies, but... I suddenly realized that gods, especially the Olympians, are not something to be feared," Hilde said with a smile. "On the contrary, they are just creatures that are a little more advanced than humans. They will die and disappear."
(I have encountered a lot of unexpected things recently, which caused huge problems in my personal emotions and life, so the update was frustrated. I will try to resume normal updates tomorrow. I hope you can bear with me. Thank you!)
The Goddess Participated in the War
So Artemis couldn't help but ask, "What do you think our gods are?"
"I used to think that gods were high above us, untouchable. They were mysterious beings and our invincible enemies, but... I suddenly realized that gods, especially the Olympians, are not something to be feared," Hilde said with a smile. "On the contrary, they are just creatures that are a little more advanced than humans. They will die and disappear."
"A more advanced creature..."
The word creature is the opposite of God.
The reason why God is God is that He is above all living things and is not a living being at all.
But Hilde's words were equivalent to pulling the gods down from their lofty status to the ground, where they were only creatures slightly higher than humans. Such a statement was obviously disrespectful to the gods, but now, the one who said this was Hilde, who had once defeated Apollo and was now standing on the opposite side of the entire Olympian Protoss.
In Hild's view, gods are advanced creatures. They are not immortal. Like all creatures, they will always decline and die. Now, Artemis can understand this. Since the creation of this world, gods have risen and fallen like humans, from the original creator gods to the Titans and now the Olympians. The gods have changed for three generations, while the human world has changed for countless generations.
The world is constantly changing.
So is God.
God is not always constant.
"Your statement is very interesting."
"Yes."
Hearing Artemis' praise, Hilde smiled and nodded.
"I understand what you mean. Gods will die too. However, when this world was first created, various restrictions were set. Once gods have great power, they will be trapped in the divine realm. When they want to come to the human world, they must give up their almost immortal bodies. But there is nothing in the divine realm. It is not as colorful as the human world. It is boring and has nothing... Therefore, gods cannot stand loneliness. They must descend to the human world, but in this case..."
“You might die.”
"Correct."
Hilde and Artemis smiled at each other.
"So I think that what you said just now about gods being more advanced creatures is quite correct. Perhaps the gods at the beginning had already thought of this when they created this world, so they set up a law to trap the gods in the divine realm. Even the gods themselves cannot resist this law. We gods all think that we are powerful and the masters of this world, but it seems that we are still trapped in this world. In fact, there is not much difference between us and humans."
"So, even if the entire Olympus clan stands against me this time, I still won't be afraid, because I think they are only a little bit more advanced than me, and I have the ability to defeat them. And I also know Zeus's purpose. He wants to break this restriction on the gods, so he needs the original library of creation."
"Then you absolutely cannot give it to him."
This time the battle is between gods.
It is also to maintain the fundamental order of this world.
If the original library of creation really fell into the hands of Zeus, a guy with evil ambitions, then the world would obviously be in chaos. Without the gods bound by this rule, it is obvious that they would prevail in the human world. Like Apollo before, his oracle, the King of Thrace, alone caused great pain to the local people.
So Hilde must never allow such a thing to happen again.
And Hilde was actually very puzzled.
The Original Book of Genesis and such a mission were not actually what he wanted, but were forced upon him by Athena. Originally, he should not have wanted to do such a thing, but now, Hilde felt that he had a strong sense of mission to complete this matter.
When Hilde thought about the possible damage to the world if Zeus could get the original book of creation, he absolutely could not tolerate such a thing to happen, so he said to Artemis beside him: "So this time, we must work together and never let what Athena is worried about happen."
"Of course!"
Now, Artemis was ready too.
Originally, Artemis didn't want to get involved in this matter. After all, he was also an Olympian god. It was really too much to ask him to deal with his brothers and sisters. But now, things have developed to this point, and Artemis has made his own decision. He absolutely cannot stay out of this matter.
Therefore, Artemis felt that she had to fight in the next battle, even if it was against her brothers and sisters, or even her father. Artemis could not retreat. This was an action to stick to her own beliefs and the beliefs given by Athena, and it was a necessary step to fulfill Athena's last wish.
This is why Artemis, a god who is not very interested in human wars, actually personally participated in the army this time, and led the powerful Byzantine army with Hilde towards Athens.
In this way, the army of the Byzantine Kingdom set out towards Athens from both sea and land, and the navy's advancing speed was undoubtedly the fastest. With the blessing of Rhodes' power of the god of the sea, the Byzantine Kingdom's naval fleet sailed on the calm Aegean Sea at an extremely fast speed. This huge fleet with hundreds of warships sailed on the Aegean Sea without restraint, and he didn't have to worry about being discovered by Athens' ships, because its speed was too fast. Even if it was discovered by the Athenians, their ships could not outrun this huge fleet.
As they advanced, Rhodes stood at the bow of the flagship, looking at the calm sea ahead. The ship beneath his feet was riding the wind and waves, breaking through many obstacles. At this speed, Rhodes estimated that it would only take another seven or eight days to reach the outskirts of Athens.
Rhodes himself couldn't have imagined it.
It turns out one day.
He would transform himself from the oracle of Athens to the commander who attacked Athens.
This change made Rhodes feel a little sad.
But there is nothing I can do.
The Fifth Tune, Section 2: The Struggle of Nicias
Present-day Greece, or Athens.
I don't know yet that danger is coming.
After Hera chose Nicias, she disappeared temporarily near Athens. Now, Hera returned to heaven. After all, Hera didn't want to stay in the dirty human world for too long. Nicias, who had obtained Hera's power, began to win the hearts of the people in Athens according to Hera's instructions, and then through the Citizens' Assembly, he gained enough power to become the new archon of Athens.
Nicias was a man who paid great attention to procedural justice, which had a lot to do with his background. He was upright and had a good reputation in Athens. After Cleon's death, the hawks in Athens were naturally suppressed, and the dove Nicias' popularity would obviously continue to rise. Now, the citizens' assembly was increasingly supporting Nicias, and it was estimated that it would not be long before Nicias became consul.
But here's the thing.
No one knows.
Time is running out in Athens.
On this day, Nicias stood on the Acropolis as usual, looking at the magnificent city of Athens. He could never have imagined that the highest authority in Athens might actually be himself one day. Moreover, he also obtained the divine power bestowed by the goddess Hera. Hera's power was also related to thunder and lightning. After all, she was the mother goddess of Zeus, but it was also quite powerful.
Power, status.
that power……
It seems that all of these are available.
Nicias didn't particularly like these things, but that didn't mean that when Nicias was about to get them, he wouldn't have any inner waves. However, Nicias still had to pretend to be calm, as if these things that happened suddenly and completely changed Nicias's fate were all under his control.
"Lord Nicias."
At this time, a man dressed as a wise man came behind Nicias.
"what happened?"
"Now, the Athenian citizens are increasingly calling for you to become the consul. The Citizens' Assembly has decided to start voting tomorrow. Now, I think it is basically a foregone conclusion that you will become the new consul."
"That's it."
Nicias nodded.
It feels like he doesn't care about this matter.
"Thanks a lot."
"It's my honor to be of service to you."
This statement of the wise man is also the attitude of most Athenians.
There were two oracles in Athens, one was Poseidon's oracle Rhodes, and the other was Apollo's oracle Cleon. However, the former was persecuted and fled to the Byzantine Empire, becoming a Byzantine citizen. Cleon, on the other hand, almost brought Athens to a very dangerous point, and almost plunged Athens into a vortex of destruction.
Therefore, the oracle this time, the calm Nicias, was favored by the goddess Hera, which was undoubtedly exciting news for Athens, which had been hit hard. Everyone naturally trusted Nicias, who signed the Treaty of Nicias, so under such circumstances, the Athenians naturally hoped that Nicias could help Athens out of its current predicament.
Wait until the wise man leaves.
A happy smile appeared on Nicias' face.
"Hahaha……"
Finally, I can become the archon of Athens.
Finally, I can become the most powerful person in Athens.
Even Nicias would be happy about such a thing!
However, while he was happy, Nicias also remembered the mission given to him by the goddess Hera... The reason why Athens needed him as an oracle was to integrate the city-states of the entire Greek peninsula to deal with the invasion of the Byzantine Empire. And now he had to lead Athens and cooperate with the Spartans and other former enemies. Once the Byzantine Empire invaded, everyone would turn their weapons, share the same hatred, and face the invading enemy together.
But...it's not that simple.
Nicias was clear.
The Peloponnesian War had not ended long ago, and the feud between the Athenians and Spartans had not been resolved. The so-called Treaty of Nicaea did not actually solve some of the core issues at present. There were still huge contradictions and conflicts between Sparta and Athens. If you advocated cooperation with the Spartans at this time, you would only be beaten to death by the Athenians.
Moreover, the so-called Byzantine Kingdom.
Why attack Athens?
The goddesses said so.
But Nicias was a little confused.
As the future archon of Athens, he could not be led by the gods, even if they were real gods. As a politician, he must first understand the motives of the Byzantine Kingdom, understand the military and national strength of both sides, and then study a series of issues such as how the other side should attack. The basis for studying these issues and making preparations is to let the shadow of war hang over the city of Athens.
But you let Athens—
A place where nobles were proud to use goods from the Byzantine Empire.
To worry about whether the Byzantine Empire would attack Athens.
That's just nonsense.
Even if Nicias became consul, he said in the citizens' assembly that the Byzantine Empire would attack us, so we must be careful and prepare now, otherwise he would be regarded as a fool and driven out. Therefore, Nicias was under great pressure, and it was not as glorious and comfortable as it seemed.
but.
Nicias didn't know yet.
Something that will make his head even bigger is about to happen.
An Athenian fleet was patrolling the islands of the Delian League in the Aegean Sea. While patrolling, they suddenly saw a huge fleet coming from the northeast. The number of warships was even greater than the number of fishing boats in this sea area. These densely packed warships were not only large in size, but also very fast, so fast that it was unbelievable.
The Athenian soldiers saw the flag above.
That is the eagle flag of the Byzantine Empire!
"It's a warship from the Byzantine Empire!"
This is terrible news.
The Byzantine navy suddenly advanced to a place only a hundred kilometers away from Athens. The patrolling Athenian fleet could not possibly be the opponent of such a fleet. Therefore, the Athenian soldiers immediately called for the news to be brought back to Athens.
However, this is impossible.
The speed of the Byzantine warships was enhanced by Rhodes.
It has reached a speed that is impossible to catch up with.
The Siege of Athens
"Lord Rhodes."
At this time, Amyntas stood beside Rhodes.
"Just now, the warships on the edge reported to us that there is an Athenian fleet on the periphery. Do we need to pursue them?"
"Need not."
Rhodes looked into the distance very seriously.
"Our goal is to surround the port of Piraeus. As long as we take it, we can force the Athenian fleet to assemble in order to save Athens. In this way, we can capture all the Athenian warships in one go. If we are distracted now, it may give the other side a chance to react."
Rhodes' words were very calm.
There is a huge difference from his previous childish appearance.
"Yes!"
After receiving the order, Amyntas continued to concentrate on maintaining order in the fleet.
The warships with sails blowing were moving at a constant speed. The soldiers on the deck didn't need to do anything at all. They only needed to train every day, eat, sleep, or chat. This was clearly the process of attacking Athens, but everyone seemed to be on a picnic. The reason why they were so leisurely was that the guardian of this fleet was none other than Lord Poseidon.
A fleet led by Lord Poseidon's Oracle himself.
How could anything happen?
The reaction speed of the Athenian fleet was far slower than that of the Byzantine warships.
Soon, the Byzantine army passed through the archipelago of the Byzantine Kingdom and arrived at the prosperous trade route. The merchant ships coming and going, seeing such a large fleet, gave way one after another, fearing that they would be involved in a war. At this time, the people on the merchant ships knew that a war might break out nearby.
A few days later.
The sun rises in the east.
