She received the gift of God [Greek mythology]

In the morning, Hermes told Pandora that they would return to Olympos today.They had spent three days in Elysium, and she had acquired enough of her humanity that there was no need to stay any longer.

He announced it abruptly, but she accepted it without protest.Hermes smiled wryly upon seeing this.She has no reason to miss this kind of life.

"Will I be allowed to wash my body before departure? I don't want to be disrespectful."

Pandora's respect for the gods does not need to be learned at all.Probably the craftsman mixed this rule into the clay that molded her.

Hermes led her into the woods under the hill.

The woods were not deep, and they arrived at a clear spring within a short distance.The clear spring flowed into a shallow pond, and the branches of the trees on the bank poured towards the water surface, and the crooked shadows were reflected in the reflection of the blue sky, like some creatures hiding at the bottom of the water, slowly swinging their arms joint by joint.

He was suddenly a little worried whether she would find the spring water too cold.

Pandora had no worries in this regard. She untied the golden belt woven into a laurel pattern, took off the white robe presented by Athena, and then took off the other treasures that the three goddesses of Grace used to adorn her, carefully and neatly Arrange on top of folded clothes.The loose honey-colored long hair is not enough to be used as a covering veil, but when she and Hermes met their eyes, they were still calm and peaceful, without showing the slightest bit of embarrassment.

She has no concept of shame.After all, she was born in such a posture.

Although Aphrodite had planted the seeds of tenderness in her chest, the vines of longing had apparently not sprouted yet.

And what was boiling quietly in his body at this moment was the fire of love and lust fanned by a hateful arrow, nothing more.

It's boring to be in heat with an unrepentant partner.And if you want to get real fun from the game, Hermes must first teach Pandora what love and desire are.Unfortunately, that would undoubtedly fall into the trap of Venus, who is not willing to dance to the beat of Eros.Most importantly, he has decided to end this ridiculous dream today.If the delay continues, he doesn't know what kind of abyss he will fall into.

Hermes suddenly lost the interest in continuing to look at her, turned around and said, "I'll wait for you outside the woods."

Pandora picked up the cool spring water and slapped it on her cheeks. The water droplets on her eyelashes blurred her vision. She could only vaguely see the back of the envoy's departure, to be exact, the outline of his purple cloak.

She was actually a little unhappy, her heart seemed to be sunken a little bit, throbbing sourly.She identified it carefully, matching this feeling with the emotion called "loss".But she couldn't tell what kind of expectations she had.

Hermes says she has acquired enough of her humanity.Of course she believed he was right.Walking around Ilysion for a while, she has a deeper and more understanding of her surroundings.But she couldn't help feeling that it would be nice if she could stay a little longer and listen to Hermes' stories.

Pandora buried her head in the water, and saw the long string of bubbles she spit out floating towards the light.

The underwater light reminded her of the second day's afternoon in the Forrest.

The day spent with Hermes on the grass slope is the best memory Pandora has so far.

Strangely, looking back really carefully now, apart from the many stories that had become part of her lore, the one she remembered most clearly was the look on Hermes' face as he plucked the strings of the lyre.Sometimes he narrated vividly, and sometimes he sang softly, his eyes narrowed slightly, and there seemed to be melted emeralds flowing between the eyelashes.

Pandora thought for no reason that he was gentler with musical instruments than with people, and perhaps because of this, when he accidentally looked at her, the tenderness seemed to be for her too.That feels really good.She wants more of these gazes and moments.But after returning to Olympus... after arriving in the world, there will be no more of them.

The breath in her chest and lungs was used up unconsciously, and the suffocation locked her throat. She hurriedly stood up straight and got out of the water, coughing and panting.

Then, she noticed a figure beside the pond.

Not Hermes.He is short in stature, shorter than all the residents Pandora has met so far.is a child.She then noticed that among the residents of Fuleyuan, this was the first time she met a child.

"Hello." The child had a cute and pretty face, unable to distinguish between men and women, and said hello with a smile.

Pandora stayed in the water and replied, "Hello."

"Your dress is so beautiful, may I pick it up and have a look?"

She hesitated for a moment, and felt that there was no need to refuse: "Yes."

The child hugged the white robe and the decorations together, approached her eyes and exclaimed, "It's really beautiful. I've never seen such a beautiful dress—"

Before the voice finished, the child turned around abruptly, and started walking while holding Pandora's clothes.

"Stop! My clothes—" She immediately rose from the water and tried to catch up.

"Hee hee hee." The child ran incredibly fast and lost track in the blink of an eye.

Pandora stood by the spring in a daze.The kid stole, no, her clothes.She lost a gift from the gods.

"Hermes..." Naturally, the name of the messenger of the gods escaped from her lips. She didn't know if he could hear him, so she called out in a panic, "Hermes!"

The purple cloak was raised because of running, and he immediately appeared in front of her eyes.

Hermes was stunned.

Pandora's face was pale, her gray eyes widened hastily, dripping from head to toe, trembling.

"A child stole my clothes." She tugged at the hem of his clothes in a panic. Seeing the purple cloak smeared with water stains, she hurriedly let go, her wet eyes still glued to him, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lost it." Something so important... I'm sorry, I..."

Boom, the flames almost overturned Hermes.

Just now, I was able to instantly recover from the impulse that I could restrain well with my self-esteem and reason.She was so flustered that he was at a loss, but he used his peripheral vision to search for the grassland in the forest suitable for a flower bed, trying to take advantage of the chaos to pull her into his cloak.He was a little surprised. It turned out that he was so despicable and greedy, and he liked her to rely on him unconditionally and be the first to ask him for help.

"The prisoner is a child?" Hermes asked, with a serious expression, which was rare, and it was impossible to see that he was imagining how to iron his wet skin at the same time.

"Yes, a pretty boy with blond hair who runs very fast...almost as fast as you."

He had to cover her up before he couldn't control it.

"Let me help you find a set of clothes first." Hermes took off his cloak and covered Pandora.She hesitated to speak and raised her eyes to look at him, her brow furrowed in worry.He resisted the urge to kiss her eyes, and calmly assured: "Don't worry, I'll get everything back."

She pursed her lips suspiciously.The frightened pale cheeks made the lips even redder.

"I already know who the thief is." He stroked her hair, not daring to take too long.Just enough to blow the beads of water out of her hair with simple magic.

Pandora nodded convinced and obediently.

"Don't move here, don't let anyone steal you away." Hermes said so, he was really a little worried that someone would show up and take her away, so he simply used the double snake stick An inviolable circle was drawn around her, "I'll be back soon."

He did come back very quickly, in the blink of an eye, with an extra white linen robe like the one worn by the female inhabitants of Elysion.

"Thank you." Pandora untied the cloak on her body, not sure whether to return it to Hermes immediately.

The envoy's purple cloak is made of some strange material, it is light and warm, and it dries immediately even if it gets wet.Even so, she was indeed covered in water droplets just now, and she almost used the cloak as a fabric to dry her body, so she just returned the cloak that was soaked through and restored to its original shape, and she felt a little sorry.

Hermes had already turned his back, and his voice was lower than usual: "After you change your clothes, I will take you to catch the thief."

Pandora did as she said: "Okay."

"follow me."

She thought Hermes would hold her and fly to the destination again, so she was a little surprised.

He looked back at her.It was a strange look, which caused a tremor to jump up from the tailbone.

Immediately, he showed a friendly and gentle smile: "The journey is not far, just walk."

"But... if you don't go quickly, will the child escape?"

"No." Hermes answered simply, walking ahead.He turned his attention to the various temples and shrines outside Ilysion and the beacons dedicated to him, listened to the same prayers for a while, and finally managed to calm down.

Then, he secretly greeted Eros earnestly.But he didn't dare to take it too seriously, for fear of being sensed by the god of love and causing more revenge.

Outside the woods is still a quiet and beautiful pastoral scenery.

Standing in the sunlight, Hermes relaxed a little, and turned around to hold Pandora's hand.

Her hands were cold, showing uneasiness.He squeezed her palm reassuringly, not realizing that this was a small gesture of intimacy that he had never done before.Compared with the outrageous thoughts that tormented him just now, squeezing his hands was too ordinary.

Pandora didn't say anything, but felt a sudden thumping in her chest.

Hermes thought, in fact, there is no need for Pandora to be so flustered, even if she really lost the robe and all the decorations, it would be fine, and Athena didn't only have one piece of clothing that she could give away.Moreover, as the envoy of the gods who spread the wealth of the world, he does not lack rare treasures that can be as brilliant as those gifts.

But he enjoys the dependence she exhibits because of her uneasiness.Moreover, the matter has come to this point, he has to take her to the "thief".

They came to a wide river with a green island in the middle.

Pandora looked around, recognized the hills and fields on both sides, and whispered in confusion: "Here... there was no river before."

"The path leading here is only open to those who are allowed to enter." Hermes picked her up and easily crossed the water waves and set foot on the island in the middle of the river.

It cannot be a mortal who can cross the river by flying.Then Pandora realized that the island in the middle of the river and the child who stole her clothes were not simple.

The island is a beautiful garden.All I could see were exotic flowers and plants that Pandora couldn't recognize.The path opened between the bushes and the shade is like a labyrinth.

Hermes pulled her forward.Pandora looked at his back and thought, he has been here before.

The blooming bushes of heterochromatic flowers suddenly parted, and they reached the heart of the river garden.On the fresh and tender emerald grass, there is a huge oak tree growing.There was a high-backed chair under the tree, and an old man with huge white beard and hair was sitting there.He wears a wide cloak, the hood pulled over the eyes.

"Ah." Pandora's eyes widened.

At the old man's feet, there is a white robe as bright as the moon, on which are the jewelry she took off, all of which are not missing.

Hermes looked at her briefly, as if to say "Look, you found it".

When the old man saw them, the beard on his lips moved, as if he was smiling.But he didn't say a word until Hermes and Pandora came before him, and then he said:

"Cunning child of Zeus and Maia, I am amazed at the lack of vigilance of your apprentice."

Pandora understood: that child was sent by the old man to test her.She lowered her gaze.What the old man said seemed to be accusing Hermes of not doing well enough.

Hermes bowed his head slightly as a salute.It's hard to say whether his attitude is respectful: "I just follow Zeus' will and grant her enough humanity."

The old man let out a weird low laugh.

Pandora thought of Zeus on the glorious throne of Olympus, and his laughter was somewhat similar to that of the old man, which made her uncomfortable.

"It is indeed enough to achieve his goal. But—" the old man paused and looked at Hermes, with the hood moved back slightly, exposing his eyes.

Pandora only took a quick glance, before she even had time to figure out what she saw clearly, she instinctively lowered her head.She shuddered, knowing she had glimpsed something she shouldn't have seen.

"It is far from enough to survive after that, and you know this very well, don't you?" The old man said calmly, as if stating the facts, "The people created by Zeus are despicable and cunning creatures .”

Hermes replied neither humble nor humble: "Tell me your purpose directly."

"Purpose?" The old man let out another uncomfortable laugh. After laughing for a while, he suddenly turned to Pandora.Hermes took a wrong half step forward, as if he was about to stand between them.Seeing this, the old man shook his head: "This is really strange, Hermes, this is the first time I've seen you like this. Ah, that's how it is. But I'm even more puzzled."

"Hermes is an expert in lies and deceit, and you don't mind that he didn't teach you anything about it?"

Pandora froze for a moment, realizing that the old man was speaking directly to her through Hermes.

"I have no idea."

There are so many things she doesn't know.However, just because she didn't ask doesn't mean she didn't notice.

For example, both Hermes and the old man knew what she would face after going to the mortal world.Why hasn't she thought of questioning Hermes so far?Maybe knowing that even getting an answer won't make a difference.She had no choice but to accept it.

The old man seemed to lose interest in Pandora in an instant.He got up, stared at Hermes again, and said meaningfully: "After that, I allow you to bring her here to use this oak tree. Think, worry, and then make a decision, son of Maia."

Before the words fell, the old man disappeared.

Hermes still turned his back to her, and remained silent in a rare way.

After a while, he still didn't speak, and Pandora carefully walked around to his side to look at his expression.

The black-haired and blue-eyed god stared at the empty chair without blinking, like a stone statue with an expressionless face, which made it difficult to approach, even a little scary.

"Hermes?" She was a little timid.

He turned to look at her with a weird smile on his face.His voice is soft:

"After learning to deceive, you can no longer look at the world with the original eyes, and doubts about whether others are also deceiving you will follow you everywhere."

When talking to her, Hermes was basically so patient and good-tempered.But the current him made Pandora want to retreat.Probably because he has been getting along with her as the Messenger of the Gods, rather than the inherent, cunning and deceitful side.She trembled slightly, but was attracted by his words uncontrollably.

"I'm not supposed to teach you deceit and cunning, but that would do you a lot of good. It would be easier to leave Blessed Place now, and a part of me wants you to choose that. But another part of me wants you to learn to be cunning at the right time Shameless. So I can teach you, but you have to promise me one thing." He paused for a moment, his seductive aura was restrained, and he became the one she was familiar with in the past three days, but the words he spit out were arbitrary , and thus quite unfamiliar:

"As the guardian of thieves, liars and magic, I have the right to deceive anyone and will not tolerate being suspected by anyone. Including you."

Hermes looked at her more tenderly than looking at the lyre, as if persuading her to give up:

"Pandora, if you want to stay and learn lies and tricks from me, then promise me that you will always blindly believe in me without any doubts."