Mythology: Spiritual Ruler

Inside the palace of Eleusis, the palace where the queen lives.

In the cold winter, snowflakes fall down and land on the roof and the ground. The cold wind outside forms convection with the burning fire in the house, bringing gusts of breeze. Through the window, Metaneira can see the guards guarding outside.

They are all elites of the kingdom, warriors who have reached the second level. They not only have extraordinary physiques that are not afraid of cold and heat, but can also use the energy in their bodies to temporarily increase themselves, wear heavy armor and travel a hundred miles a day, or fight ordinary beasts with bare hands.

In this era, they can almost be regarded as the reserve of the top leaders of Eleusis, and after hundreds of years of development, this "top leader" may even be replaced by "nobles". Therefore, being able to let them serve as guards was originally a symbol of status, but the queen knew that they were not here to protect herself.

On the contrary, they came to protect this thriving country from being destroyed by themselves. And all of this is because of Metaneira's complaints about the goddess of agriculture.

Everyone "forgot" the existence of the little prince, or more civilians didn't know the whole story, but the queen didn't want to "forget"; everyone was grateful for the existence of the goddess because she made the natural disaster no longer terrible, but the queen was also unwilling to be grateful.

Even when seeing the people of Eleusis grateful to Demeter, Metaneira tried to tell them the truth behind it - she didn't expect people to understand her, but at least they should remember that Demophon died because of this, and his name should not be unknown.

Then from that day on, the queen was taken back to the palace.

Obviously, although Demeter herself had put the dead child behind her and she didn't want to recall the failed work, others didn't dare to let the goddess's "stain" spread. Even King Chrysos gradually had some guesses about the whole story.

Although the goddess was moody and regarded mortals as ants, if the "ants" in her eyes didn't hinder her, then Demeter wouldn't actually do anything.

This is the contempt of God for man, just like the contempt of man for livestock. After thinking this through, the king's suppressed pain in his heart was not erased, but it was inevitable that he let go of his worries a little. At least he understood that as long as he obeyed the goddess's wishes in everything, the same disaster would not befall his eldest son again.

In this case, he would naturally not allow any unexpected things to happen, and would not allow Metaneira's remarks to affect the image of God in the eyes of the people, and then shake the goddess's faith. So even if he understood the queen's grief, he still indifferently locked her up in his palace.

He thought that time could smooth everything out, and the emphasis on the eldest son and family would gradually let Metaneira let go of unrealistic ideas. After all, the dead can no longer be saved, and the living have to continue living. But it is very obvious that Chrysos didn't know that for some people, the status of the living can never beat the dead.

So on this day, when night fell, the queen dismissed all the maids who came to "take care" of her, or simply didn't want her to do blasphemous things. She covered the window with a curtain and took out a box of fine incense she had made by herself.

It was the result of Metaneira's two months of hard work, and it was a spice made with a special formula. Take four parts of frankincense, two parts of benzoin, and two parts of incense. One part of cedar and ginger, with half a part of vetiver, cardamom, cinnamon, juniper berries, iris and linden, plus seven dried raisins, a few drops of wine, honey and lotus incense. If she was not the queen, there would be no way she could get all these materials together.

After having the raw materials, she processed them according to different time sequences and rituals. She crushed the hay and left it in a sealed container for two weeks, then mixed it with essential oils, wine, grapes, etc. and left it again. After waiting for a month, she finally made the finished product into incense sticks and stored it in a small box.

It is said that such incense can communicate with the gods - at least that's what the gods said. So now, Metaneira took it out and carefully lit it.

The fire flickered, and then a faint mist lingered in the room, but disappeared after extending to a certain distance. It seemed to be transmitted to an unknown place with the queen's thoughts, carrying her will.

Time passed by, and the night became darker. Until midnight, when the incense was about to burn out, in Metaneira's expectant eyes, the void in front of her finally trembled slightly.

After a while, under the flickering candlelight, two beings that could be called "dwarfs" slowly emerged and solidified. They were two children who looked only ten years old, but looking at them, the queen's eyes were only concerned and eager.

"It seems that you are ready."

The boy spoke first, and the girl followed closely.

"Choose one of us."

Looking at the mortals in front of them, Volos and Eros said calmly:

"Now... make your choice."

"This is your only chance in this life to take revenge on the gods."

······

In the queen's bedroom, the conversation was still going on.

This was not the first time the two sides met. In fact, Metaneira had seen these two child-like gods not long after she was imprisoned in the palace.

In a simple demonstration, these two children, who were no more than ten years old, just shot a golden arrow, causing a determined guard to fall passionately in love with a stone and regard it as the only one. This horrifying scene not only chilled the queen's heart, but also convinced her of the other party's identity.

In the simple concept of human beings in Chaos, affecting people's thinking is far more terrifying than killing a person's body. Therefore, without much doubt, Metanera concluded that the visitor was a god far more powerful than Demeter. After a brief conversation with the other party, the queen also understood what the other party meant.

They are willing to help her complete her revenge and take revenge on the goddess of agriculture - or in other words, helping her complete her revenge can achieve their goals, so they come here for this reason.

A golden arrow can bring irresistible love; a lead arrow can create intolerable disgust. They placed two arrows in front of the queen and asked her to choose one, and then give it a target - of course, this target must be related to the object of her revenge.

"I want to know...can you bring Demophon back to life?"

In the smoke rising from the burning incense, the queen spoke with hope. Although she had thought long and hard about revenge against Demeter, she still preferred to bring her child back to life if possible.

This is something far more meaningful than revenge. However, in front of her, the two gods who looked like boys and girls just shook their heads together, and then said in turn:

"As much as I want to say it, we wouldn't agree to it even if it were possible."

"Because we are not here to help you realize your wish."

"But actually."

"We really can't do that."

It's like being connected with each other. Although each person speaks a word, there is no sense of separation in the sound.

Watching the queen's eyes change from expectation to despair, Volos and Eros continued:

"Because his soul is dead too."

"At least he didn't return to the spirit world."

"Divine power can do this."

"And no one will hold her accountable on a case-by-case basis."

"Now, make your choice - this is your only chance." x2

The last sentence, overlapping voices sounded in the room, bringing with it some echoes. And when the hope in the queen's heart was extinguished, the flames of hatred became even more intense.

In these days of being imprisoned in disguise, Murtanella is also recalling the events of that night. Her child was killed. Perhaps there was a reason for her interruption, but the essence of the matter was God's superior attitude. Demeter had never really been emotionally devoted to Demophon - and if she had, it was definitely not much.

She only regarded Demophon as her perfect work, and then she naturally wanted to destroy this flawed creation. So the biggest punishment for such a being is naturally to let her have a descendant that truly belongs to her and will bring her eternal shame.

"I choose the golden arrow, Your Highness Volos."

Clenching her fists, the queen said word by word:

"I want you to shoot it to the ugliest of the gods, and give him the feeling of possessing Demeter."

"I want them to give birth to an equally ugly child together..."

"There is no such thing as an ugly true god, Mortanera. Even the most ordinary-looking true god would have a hard time describing his appearance as ugly."

Volos, who did not understand the existence of Hephaestus and carried a golden arrow, denied the queen's statement.

"Then I will like the most bizarre god with a cruel personality!"

Gritting his teeth, Mortanera even looked at Eros beside him. Or to be more precise, it was the lead arrows she carried.

"If I could shoot her another arrow, she would hate that god from the bottom of her heart..."

"This is impossible. You don't have the ability."

He casually denied it, Eros looked a little careless.

"Our arrows are powerful because of revenge, and cannot be shot out of thin air. If you are also a god, the hatred of killing your son is indeed enough to use two arrows, and their effect will even be extraordinary."

"But unfortunately, you are just a mortal. So no matter how much hatred you have, you can only make one effective, and the effect it brings will not be permanent."

"..."

Silent, after being rejected repeatedly, the queen finally calmed down a little.

She looked at the twins in front of her, and an inexplicable sadness and anger arose in her heart. It's like this again, just like Demeter once treated her as if she were nothing, now, the two gods who came to 'help' her actually do the same.

They just use themselves as a tool...but maybe they no longer care about their own lives, so looking at them, Murtanella couldn't help but mocked:

"In that case, why do you want to appear in front of me? Do gods also need the help of mortals?"

"Ah--"

With a disdainful laugh, Eros paid no attention to the queen's intention. Boring mortals, meaningless emotions... Of course, they might have meaning to her, but Eros didn't want to understand them.

She pulled out the golden arrow from her twin brother's back and threw it in front of the queen. The resentment in the other person's heart cannot escape her perception, so she will never give up no matter what.

"We will satisfy you—drench this arrow with your blood and with vengeance. When you have finished all this, we will finish the second half."

"What happens after that, just with you -"

laugh--

The golden arrow pierced her chest, but the queen didn't seem to feel any pain. The blood gushing from her chest soaked the arrow, and the power contained in it seemed to be gradually awakened.

A strong hatred flashed in Metaneira's eyes, not only for Demeter, but for all the gods. However, opposite her, the twins of love and desire who watched all this were only stunned for a moment, and then ignored it.

The determination to express hatred with her own life may also be because her husband and son knelt in front of the enemy, making her give up hope in life. But people and gods do not share the joys and sorrows, and the two just think her behavior is ridiculous.

Can she prove anything? No. Her behavior can do nothing except moving herself and making her relatives sad.

Bang——!

"Remember what you promised me..."

Falling to the ground, the queen's voice sounded intermittently, and finally disappeared. When the room became quiet again, Volos stepped forward to pick up the golden arrow, and then shook off the excess blood on it.

The twins saw clearly that when Metaneira lost her life, her soul left her body and went to the underworld. She would follow the Styx into the world of spirits, where her memory would be washed away and she would be reincarnated.

This is why the twins found this ridiculous. After all, even such a fierce hatred would have no meaning in the face of the laws of the world. When she followed the River of Oblivion to the Well of Samsara, those unforgettable memories would have long gone with the wind.

"Well... So how about Poseidon as the candidate?"

Looking at Eros, who was not sure whether she was the elder sister or the younger sister, Volos suggested casually.

He had heard of the name of this god before. It was said that his hobbies were a little different from those of normal gods, and the spirit world had received many souls of his descendants. And the forms of those descendants were very unique anyway.

This undoubtedly met Metaneira's requirements, so Volos thought of him first.

"I have no objection since she chose your arrow anyway."

"But then again... are you really going to fulfill her wish?"

He responded indifferently, but Eros was a little confused about another point.

Before coming, the guy who seemed to be their father god - or maybe not - told them what happened here and what they could get from Demeter on this basis - but he seemed to be a "threat" instead of letting them take action.

Therefore, although the queen had performed a lot before and showed her strong emotions, in fact, from the beginning, the twins had no intention of executing this agreement. They just needed an arrow that could deter Demeter, and as for the hatred of mortals, it didn't matter whether they took revenge or not.

After all, the reason why they needed "revenge" was just affected by the laws of conception. Because unlike the original trajectory of fate, the twins, who were directly shaped by the blood of the father, were not only affected by love and beauty, but also had some close connection with the power of the three goddesses of revenge.

But in the final analysis, they were not goddesses of revenge, so they didn't have any obsession with helping others to avenge.

As for breaking one's word - unfortunately, the newly born twins don't have any moral values ​​of keeping one's word.

"Well - that's what I said, but Eros, can't we shoot him?"

Putting away the cleaner golden arrow, feeling the power on it gradually "awakening" stimulated by hatred, Voros asked casually.

"It's just a 'suggestion'. We can threaten her, but it doesn't matter if we let her see the power first, right? Anyway, the goddess of agriculture doesn't know that I only have one golden arrow."

Opposite him, after a moment of silence, Eros thought for a while, and then nodded decisively.

"You're right, it should be possible... Yes, it seems to be the case!"

It sounds very interesting, so why refuse? You know, although they are the twins of love, they have not seen what true passionate love is like when they were just born, and it's not bad to see it now.

As for what will happen to Poseidon and Demeter, Eros doesn't care about these. Maybe it's the slight influence of the original god's essence. Although the power is almost gone, a certain mentality still remains.

Just like how gods look at mortals, in Eros's eyes, there is no difference between Demeter and Poseidon. Even if they have great power, at best, it is the difference between humans looking at cattle and sheep and lions and tigers.

They are not of the same kind, and the opinions of non-same kind can naturally be ignored.

"Then let's go!"

The attitude changed, and even began to urge. With a flash of the void, the twins disappeared in the room.

The queen's palace returned to silence, only a little blood smell slowly spread out. And from beginning to end, they did not look at the queen's body on the ground again.

...

South China Sea, the palace of the sea king.

Holding the fishman beside him, who was his offspring for many generations, Poseidon drank a sip of the fine wine in the glass and watched the dancing in front of him.

He is in a good mood now. The losses caused by the previous flood have finally been made up, and the human beings on the island are also developing well. Except that the ocean gods still can't beat him, there seems to be nothing that makes him dissatisfied.

Although he could not compare with Zeus, the king of gods, Poseidon felt that his life was already very good compared to Hades, so gradually, the sea king also felt a little addicted to pleasure.

There are still many goals, but we can talk about them later. It doesn’t matter if we are happy for a day or two, so this kind of life has lasted for a long time. Even if a premonition flashed through his mind, he still didn’t realize it.