Myth: The Spiritual Dominator

The further south the road goes, the more vegetation and water systems there are.

Perhaps because there were frequent cleanups or patrols, Ryan encountered no more trouble after crossing a wide river and arriving on the plain.

Even if they occasionally encountered some teams with the same goal, most of them would avoid the alchemical carriage and had no intention of getting close. Such an expensive thing was not something that ordinary people could afford, and Ryan was happy to be alone.

So when the positive displacement of the starry sky moved to the position of the sixth house of the ecliptic, the outpost of Athens, the sanctuary on earth of the goddess of wisdom, the Acropolis of Athens was finally within sight.

……

When the carriage reached a hill, Ryan opened the curtain and looked at the Acropolis in the distance.

The real Athens is still further away - perhaps in real history, the distance between the two is not far, but this is not the case in the mythological world.

It is the barrier of Athens, the core of the church, and a city built on a hill, or a fortress built on a hill.

Its real name was Acropolis, which translated into Athenian language as 'high city' or 'city on a high hill'.

In the original trajectory, this was just a small city covering an area of ​​only four square kilometers, and it was only passed down to later generations because of the existence of the temple. But now it is a truly magnificent wonder.

The city wall was built against the mountain and is divided into several layers of barriers. The natural mountain means that people can only climb the Acropolis from the west side.

The east, south and north sides are all cliffs, and the terrain is very steep. Doric and Oianic columns are cleverly arranged in front of the city gate, making people feel the solemnity and charm of this city.

There was a surge of people at the city gate, while the scene inside the city was blocked by the city walls and difficult to see with the naked eye. There were only two huge beams of light shooting up into the sky, which were clearly visible even in the daytime.

One rose from the center of the city, where stone columns towered taller than the city walls. It was undoubtedly the Parthenon, the sanctuary of Athena.

It is said that there is also an Erechtheion Temple opposite it, where Athena and Poseidon once let the people of the city choose their own beliefs. Today, it enshrines some of the main gods of the Olympian pantheon that have no obvious conflicts with Athens, but these gods have not cast any power on it.

As for the location of the other beam of light, it was probably a little further north in the city. Although he could not see the style of the building, Ryan had heard before that it was the Temple of Artemis, one of the few places in the world where the Lord of the Wilderness, the Crescent Moon Goddess, was publicly worshipped.

As for the reason...it is said that this goddess is hostile to the gods of Mount Olympus, but few people know why.

"Andrea, how much do you know about the Crescent Moon Goddess besides what is in the books?"

Motioning for the carriage to move forward, Ryan asked.

The Panathenaic Library is rich in information, but mostly restrained. In many places, it seems to be superficial, such as the story about Artemis.

Although this crescent goddess was to some extent another patron saint of Athens and a good friend of their main god, the description of how she came to Athens clearly used the Spring and Autumn style of writing.

The book hints that Artemis has a conflict with a certain god, but why there is a conflict and what the cause and effect are are not recorded in the book.

"Well... if you ask that, ahem, it is said that - I just heard it."

Andrea coughed twice and confirmed that she would never discuss matters between gods before she was kidnapped.

But now, after thinking about it, she decided not to refuse to discuss the gossip among the gods.

"I once heard my father tell me a bedtime story, saying that the respected Her Majesty Artemis originally lived in the southeast of the continent, in seclusion by the shore of Falling Star Lake."

"She hunts and shoots arrows every day, running in the wilderness, honing her skills, and not developing her own followers. If a mortal is lucky enough to meet her, he will be tested by the goddess - if he can hunt the prey designated by the goddess, then the goddess will give him an extra gift."

"Of course, gods are always noble, and Her Highness Artemis naturally wouldn't live alone. In addition to the moon goddess who often rode her in a silver chariot, because of her identity as the Lord of the Wilderness, many nymphs born among rocks, trees, water, and flowers spontaneously gathered around her and worshipped her as their master... Just like what is described in the story, this period of life was so beautiful, and it should have continued forever, until one day, the king of the gods came here with thunder and lightning and dark clouds to look for his children."

At this point, Andrea paused, a faint smile appeared on the corner of her mouth, as if she was waiting for Ryan to ask her what was next.

However, Ryan, who was sitting in the car, had already gotten the answer after hearing this. He just nodded slightly and said with some emotion:

"As expected, no matter how it changes, a dog will always eat shit."

"what?"

Andrea was stunned for a moment as she didn't expect to hear such a sentence suddenly.

"Is not it?"

"So the second half of the story is that the child the king of gods was looking for was actually Artemis, but she was not at home on the day he came - so the 'respected' king of gods had to wait here for a while, and ended up running into her beautiful maid. Just like the Crescent Moon Goddess herself, her maids all swore to remain chaste, so the king of gods changed into Artemis's appearance to approach her, and finally succeeded, just like he once changed into a cuckoo to deceive Hera's trust."

"After returning and discovering all this, Artemis was naturally furious. She refused the recognition of the king of gods, but she was no match for Zeus and could not punish or expel this annoying guy. So she made a prompt decision and moved directly to Athens to keep the goddess of wisdom company - that's what happened, right?"

"…you asked me even though you knew that!"

Andrea snorted lightly, expressing her dissatisfaction.

"No, I really didn't know that before... at least I didn't know it would happen here, but this is also in line with the character of the God King. He can always release his energy that has nowhere to vent in any situation, regardless of whether there is something serious to do or not."

Spreading his hands, Ryan would definitely not say that there was such a passage in the original myth, and that the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper were born as a result. He just attributed it to the nature of Zeus.

The flaws of the God King in this regard were already widely known, and even for most mortals at this time, if the existence of the Queen Hera was not taken into account, Zeus's romanticism was not even a flaw. After all, most of their ancestors came from this way, and it was naturally impossible for them to blame this behavior now.

During the chat, another puzzle was solved, but the carriage did not stop. Not long after, the alchemical carriage arrived at the foot of the hill where the Acropolis was located.

Not far away, a large-scale circular building was almost completed, and it looked a bit like the ancient Roman Colosseum. However, this venue for selecting people of "justice and wisdom" was circular, and there was a suspended alchemy platform in the center.

I don't know if it was prepared for the 'judges' or for the contestants, or if Athens was going to play up the characteristics of a classical republic and directly cancel the judges and let the audience decide the winner...

"Aiwen, are you sure you want to take me in like this?"

Standing outside the circular arch some distance away from the city gate, Andrea raised her eyebrows.

"You mean the [Spell Invalidation Barrier] that is fixed on the portal, right? Don't worry, I have specially held a divine ceremony to give you a permanent disguise that cannot be broken no matter how high your 'Magic Penetration' is."

Ryan didn't know if there was a gaming term similar to "magic penetration" in this world, but this kind of coined word could be understood literally.

"Besides, wouldn't it be great if your identity was exposed? Soon you can return to your palace and be a princess."

"Humph, as long as you are not afraid of being killed as a kidnapper."

Puffing up her cheeks, Andrea drove the carriage through the archway called the [Gate of True Vision].

As a city built in the form of a fortress, it is natural that there are magical devices that can identify non-human life, break invisibility, stealth, and appearance changes. However, as Ryan said, Andrea still did not change until she passed through this door.

Following the crowd and going up the ramp, Ryan and the others entered the city without any surprises.

Passing through the towering city gate, Ryan took a look at the tall spires on both sides. The power of the elements gathered at the bottom, and at the top of the tower there were two things like "lightning rods".

Looking at this shape, Ryan couldn't help but think of a magical creation he had discussed with Hecate through the Book of All Laws. At that time, he just recalled a weapon used by the Arcane Empire in a game before coming to this world, but now, has it been realized?

It's hard to draw conclusions without personal contact. After all, this thing has probably never been used since it was made, because no enemy has ever really reached the gate of the Acropolis, and no one knows if there will be a chance in the future... Ryan looked away and looked at the scene behind the city gate again.

The bluestone-paved road led all the way inward, connecting the main roads and alleys in the city. Glittering crystal lamps hung beside the road, but because it was daytime, they were not lit.

At a glance, there are residences, public baths, and various workshops. Not far from the city gate, there are bronze statues of the contemporary kings Theseus and Phaedra.

Well... seeing this, I have to mention again Chaos' outrageous behavior of going from a god to a mortal.

The father of the current Queen Phaedra of Athens is actually the King of Crete, the son of Zeus and Europa, and the King Minos who was previously called "just and strict" by the Olympian priests.

But in fact, Minos did not have a good relationship with his son-in-law, King Theseus of Athens.

According to legend, although Minos was an excellent king, he was probably not a person of high moral standards - this was also the norm among Chaos mortals. In short, his throne was not inherited, but usurped the position of his brother Radamanthys.

After ascending the throne, perhaps out of worry or perhaps because of uneasiness in his heart, in order to prove the legitimacy of his ascension to the throne, the King of Crete naturally turned his attention to God.

Needless to say, although Zeus was theoretically his father, on the one hand, the situation between him and Europa was well known, and on the other hand, Hera was world-famous for her jealousy. What's more, he usurped the position of his own brother... So Minos finally chose Poseidon, the king of the sea, as the object of sacrifice.

Poseidon was very happy that the son of Zeus prayed to him, so he not only did not make things difficult for the king, but even took the initiative to give him a sacrifice to himself - a white bull that walked out of the sea.

Logically speaking, as long as Minos sent back the bull, which was obviously sent by Poseidon himself, as a sacrifice, everything would be happy and nothing would happen, but the gods and people of this era were so arrogant.

Just like Tantalus, the son of Zeus, who thought he could hide from the gods, he was reluctant to offer such a beautiful bull to the gods, so he secretly replaced the sacrifice and kept the white bull given by the sea king.

As for the result... Of course, Poseidon found out. The angry Poseidon thought he was being mocked, so he cursed Minos' wife and made her suffer from zoophilia.

In other words, it means that her gender preference for men has changed to the unique aesthetic concept of a certain Maurya Dynasty person.