In the warmth of a fire-lit room, as Athena spun her tale of deception and manipulation into the drama "Olympian Golden Primetime," Luo En, who had been sitting silently, found himself sweating profusely as he recognized the parallels to his own situation.
Indeed, this affair was not without his involvement.
Months earlier, with the aid of the "Dice of Chance," Luo En had stolen some of Ares's authority, turning the War God from a "mighty man" into a "wilted man." This left his frustrated lover, the Goddess of Love Aphrodite, with no choice but to kick him out, and caused quite a stir.
Not long after, Ares regained his vigor and reunited with Aphrodite, winning back the affection of the Goddess of Love.
However, their affair was discovered by the suspicious Hephaestus, which greatly angered the Craftsman God.
In a fit of rage, Hephaestus mustered all his skill and crafted a golden net. He waited for Ares and Aphrodite to be entwined in their illicit affair and caught the lovers in the act on the bed.
Unsatisfied, Hephaestus then summoned all the gods of Mount Olympus to publicly expose the cheating pair and seek justice and judgment from them.
The result, however, ended with the humiliated cuckold's capitulation.
On the one hand, most of the onlookers were male deities who found it hard to resist the charms of the Goddess of Love. Even the proud Apollo, upon seeing the coy Aphrodite, was moved by desire and found it hard to be uncompassionate.
The ever-pleasing Divine Envoy Hermes openly declared that he would willingly be bound to the beautiful Goddess of Love, even with three extra chains, despite being scolded by the other goddesses present. He used this to plead for the wronged Hephaestus.
Eventually, Poseidon, the God of the Sea who had long coveted Aphrodite, also chose a side.
It must be noted that with Hestia, the Goddess of the Hearth, in long seclusion in the Mortal World, Olympus was only home to eleven Chief Gods.
Confronted with the adulterous Ares and Aphrodite, the supportive Hermes and Poseidon, and the obviously biased Hera who favored her younger son, Hephaestus had to face five deities.
With Apollo swayed by passion and abstaining from voting, the Goddess of Harvest Demeter remaining apathetic to worldly affairs, and Zeus, who could hardly be expected to speak, given his own dirty laundry, opting to turn a deaf ear.
Even though Athena and Artemis, the virgin goddesses, stood up for Hephaestus out of disgust for Aphrodite and Ares's conduct and spoke on his behalf.
But facing the overwhelming advantage of the opposition, even if a council of divine power were to be held, the result would still be three votes to five.
Moreover, Hephaestus's foster mother, the Ocean Goddess Thetis, whom he greatly respected, had settled down within Poseidon's sphere of influence.
Luo En, hearing about his great-great-grandmother's bold exploits, was secretly amazed.
Damn, a threesome? Are you that capable?
And the Goddess of Love's divine power can be used like this? It even comes with a hymen-restoration feature? Impressive!
No wonder Athena ran away in the middle of the night to seek tranquility with Hestia.
Watching such a farce unfold right before your eyes, being powerless to do anything, and even if you tell Hephaestus, the victim, you're just rubbing salt into his wounds and subjecting him to greater humiliation.
In the end, the Goddess of Wisdom could only look out for herself and find peace of mind by staying out of sight.
Having finished speaking, Athena glanced at the person who was engrossed in listening and humphed softly.
"Speaking of which, you do fit the aesthetic of my relative. Do you want me to introduce you to her?"
"Cough, no need, I prefer to be faithful to one!"
Luo En jerked alert and hastily chuckled while shaking his head in refusal.
Just kidding, what hasn't Aphrodite seen in that field of hers? Even if the Bull Demon King came to plow the field, he'd be drained and devoured; I'd better not get involved with my frail self.
Moreover, this Goddess's birth is somewhat tied to Uranus, the Father of Heaven. There might be some unknown secrets and taboos hidden; even Zeus, the wandering anthropomorphic seed-spreader, wouldn't dare to touch her lightly, rarely involved in any scandal with Aphrodite, let alone a demigod like myself.
What's more, if I remember correctly, Aphrodite hasn't been without demigod lovers, but generally, they didn't enjoy much pleasure before they met their premature demise.
Hiss, thinking about it that way, this woman might truly be a calamity planted by Uranus.
Luo En muttered in his heart about his widely acquainted great-great-grandmother, while sitting up straight, his expression serious, demonstrating his firm stance not to consort with the corrupt.
Seeing Luo En's demeanor, Athena, being a virgin goddess, nodded in approval.
Of course, she had no idea that someone's so-called faithfulness meant one person.
But, it could also mean a group...