Inside the dim cave, the gloomy youth named "Asclepius" set down the medical book in his hand and then looked deeply at the gray-eyed old man, brows tightly furrowed.
"Are you really blind?"
"In a world that distinguishes neither black nor white, you and I are both blind. And what you see may not reach any farther than what I see."
The old man, or rather, the wine god disguised as the blind poet Homer, murmured meaningfully, then raised his head toward the silver-haired youth and changed the subject.
"So listen to my advice: it would be better not to go to Cyprus."
Asclepius picked up the invitation on the table, adorned with rose patterns, and glanced at the signature of Adonis, Prince of Cyprus, speaking calmly.
"I trust my patient. He will not harm me."
"But he will bring you considerable trouble."
Lorne tapped his staff forward and advised earnestly.
His pair of gray-white eyes gazed at the gloomy youth before him, revealing a trace of pure goodwill.
Asclepius, son of the sun god Apollo and a mortal princess, the future god of medicine.
Outside the cave, the centaur Chiron was his teacher, instructing him in the arts of medicine and hunting.
As the boy grew, his talent in medicine had already surpassed his master's.
He began leaving Mount Pelion, practicing and treating patients in various city-states, gradually building a considerable reputation.
This naturally attracted many patients suffering from strange illnesses who invited him to come and diagnose them.
Adonis, who sent the invitation, was one of them.
Under the continuous sincere invitations from patients, the future god of medicine finished dealing with several cases on hand, returned to his residence on Mount Pelion, prepared to gather some medicinal herbs, pack his bags, and set off for the island of Cyprus.
However, unlike this future god of medicine who was single-mindedly devoted to saving lives and deaf to other matters, Lorne knew full well the reason behind the Prince of Cyprus's hidden affliction, as well as the tangled troubles lurking behind it.
Several years earlier, after being attacked by a wild boar transformed by Ares, the Prince of Cyprus had suffered from a certain unspeakable male affliction.
Even the goddess of love, Aphrodite herself, who could turn the softest cotton into steel nails, had personally intervened, using every trick in her arsenal, yet to no avail.
Left with no choice, Adonis could no longer hide it and had to seek help from all sorts of physicians.
But after years of consultations and countless tonics, his condition showed no sign of improvement.
Now that Asclepius, the prized disciple of the sage Chiron, had risen to fame outside, the desperate Adonis naturally set his sights on this highly skilled doctor, repeatedly inviting him to Cyprus as a guest, hoping he would incidentally resolve his hidden ailment.
If it were merely a matter of treating and saving a patient, that would be one thing.
But behind it lay the entanglements and conflicts among the gods of Olympus.
Ares had risked having his face scratched bloody by his old lover Aphrodite just to successfully frighten that pretty boy Adonis into impotence, thereby slightly reducing the insatiable love goddess's interest in him.
If this trip really allowed the future god of medicine to cure him, that reckless brute Ares was capable of anything.
Moreover, whether Adonis's impotence involved the participation of Hephaestus, Zeus, or other gods was still uncertain.
If the future god of medicine did not want to invite disaster upon himself, the best course was to stay out of it entirely.
After all, his father Apollo was still serving his sentence in Thessaly, and his aunt Artemis was overwhelmed with troubles.
If anything went wrong, no one was currently in a position to protect the boy.
A certain cheap uncle looked at this "nephew" of his in a certain sense.
On the surface, he remained calm, but his mind had already turned a thousand times.
According to the original plan, the life or death of this cheap nephew had actually been his first choice for scheming against Apollo, his way of sending the sun god straight to prison.
But during the Arcadian journey, that lecherous goat Pan had coincidentally run straight into the crosshairs, directly taking the place of the future god of medicine, Asclepius.
Thus, Lorne had let the matter drop and hadn't truly acted against this cheap nephew.
He had even come to Mount Pelion at the request of his old lover Artemis, befriended the sage Chiron, and "incidentally" looked after this blood relative of Apollo's.
Even so, he couldn't stop this future god of medicine from always rushing headlong into trouble himself.
In order to have a proper explanation for his old lover Artemis, and also out of respect for this future god of medicine, Lorne had deliberately stayed a few extra days on Mount Pelion after learning who Asclepius's next patient would be, hoping to persuade him not to take the risk.
However, just like his sun-god father, Asclepius was clearly not someone inclined to listen to advice.
At this moment, the future god of medicine inside the cave gazed at the blind old man before him.
After a moment of silence, he spoke solemnly.
"I swear by the gods of heaven and earth: I will, to the best of my ability and judgment, follow the creed of acting in the best interest of the patient, no matter how high the mountains or how rough the road ahead!"
With that, he slung his neatly packed bag over his shoulder.
Clearly, this principled future god of medicine would not lightly abandon any patient in need of treatment for the sake of his own desires or interests.
Seeing this stubborn ox about to charge straight into the pit, Lorne was helpless and could only reach into his robes, take out a bronze badge, handing it to the future god of medicine before him.
"Since you insist on going, then take this with you."
"What is it?"
Asclepius looked at the gorgon pattern in the center of the badge and asked in confusion.
"The emblem of the builders of Athens—the house of Pandion."
Lorne leaned on his staff and spoke gravely.
"Since you wish to heal and save lives, after you finish this matter, go take a stroll in Athens.
There are many people there, and many patients.
Moreover, the goddess of wisdom, Athena, seems to be preparing to establish an academy and hopes to attract talented individuals from every city-state.
It's very suitable for developing scholarship and studying medicine.
Your teacher, Chiron, has also received an invitation. In a while, perhaps you master and disciple will be able to reunite in Athens."
Asclepius nodded, placed the badge inside his robes, stood up, and walked toward the cave entrance.
Just as he stepped out of the cave, the future god of medicine paused slightly, and his low voice drifted back into the cave.
"Although there seems to be a scent on you that I don't like… thank you anyway…"
Watching the youth's figure gradually move farther away until it disappeared at the edge of the dense forest, Lorne couldn't help but lower his head to sniff himself, muttering inwardly.
A scent he doesn't like? Such a sharp nose?
Was it because of the nine Muses? Or because of his aunt Artemis?
Of course, the most likely reason was probably the divinity of Apollo connected to both.
It was clear how terrible the relationship between this father and son was.
Lorne muttered to himself for a while, shook his head, leaned on his staff, and walked toward the clear stream valley.
(End of chapter)