Hearing the question, the tall, elegant, and handsome blond man standing outside the prison door, whose figure perfectly combined grace and beauty, answered with a matter-of-fact expression.
"Of course I came to see you."
Instantly, Lorne's heart skipped a beat.
He subconsciously took another step back into the corner and pressed himself firmly against the wall to protect his ass.
Well...there was no way around it.
Although Lorne was straighter than steel, the Greek gods played around a lot and most of them were into both men and women.
If he remembered correctly, Apollo had a male lover.
The son of the Spartan king, the beautiful youth Hyacinthus.
He loved hunting and sports, so Apollo eagerly accompanied him.
Like a servant, this guy would carry the fishing net and lead the hunting dogs for the youth, staying by his side.
One dusk, the lovers were playing with a discus in the fields.
After Apollo threw the golden discus, Hyacinthus happily chased after it, but the West Wind God, who also admired Hyacinthus, blew the discus off course with a gust of wind, which struck the beautiful youth squarely on the head, causing a fatal wound.
The blood from this beautiful youth's death dyed the earth, and from it bloomed a delicate flower, which is now known as the "hyacinth."
Plus, Lorne's own hometown of Thebes had the famous Theban Sacred Band known for same-sex relationships.
He was genuinely afraid that if he wasn't careful, Apollo would end up fucking him.
Seeing someone's sudden vigilance, Apollo frowned and snorted coldly in displeasure. "Relax. Our grudge was settled back in Thessaly. I won't do anything to you."
Hearing the clear disgust in those words, Lorne breathed a sigh of relief.
Disgust was fine.
As long as Apollo wasn't actually interested in him, it was okay.
After relaxing his guard a little, Lorne asked cautiously. "Then why did you come to find me..."
"Didn't you also come to Thessaly to see me before?"
"You care about me?"
"I just don't want to owe you a favor."
Apollo rolled his eyes at Lorne in the cell and a trace of mocking cold laughter appeared on his handsome face.
"Besides, it's rare to see you end up as a prisoner. Of course I had to come take a look."
Lorne's face darkened upon hearing this.
Alright, it seemed there was some revenge mentality involved.
Previously, when Apollo was down on his luck, Lorne had brought the nine Muses to Thessaly to watch the show.
Clearly, this guy had remembered it.
After all, holding grudges was an old tradition among the Greek gods.
"I'm doing very well. No need for you to worry." Lorne snorted lightly with irritation.
His gaze swept over the cleaned-up spots in the cell, and a deep hint of mockery flashed in his eyes. "Moreover, I've been 'eating' well and 'sleeping' soundly."
Unfortunately, Apollo didn't catch the double meaning behind "eating" and "sleeping." He simply nodded.
After a moment of silence, he spoke quietly. "You told Poseidon earlier that our plan has been exposed?"
So you specially came to see me because of that sentence?
Lorne immediately felt amused and asked with a teasing smile.
"What? Are you scared?"
"Humph. I just can't figure out how you knew."
"You and Poseidon are so close.
Did you really think everyone is blind?"
Lorne glanced at the somewhat indignant Apollo outside the cell door, his eyes showing strands of contempt.
Previously, Poseidon had used his own demigod son Orion to scheme against Artemis.
In order to stand up for his sister, Apollo had even teamed up with Athena and others to go to the Ocean of Oceanos to settle the score.
So their relationship was not that close.
Even after being cellmates in Thessaly for seven years, where they saw each other almost every day, Apollo and Poseidon rarely interacted.
So why, after their sentence ended, had their private contact suddenly become frequent?
They were definitely planning something big behind the scenes!
Apollo had lost a son, and Poseidon had lost Atlantis.
It was obvious who they held the deepest resentment toward and what they wanted to do.
The above was Athena's reasonable deduction based on the clues she had observed.
Ever since the Battle of Crete, Athena had been on guard against Poseidon's revenge, so she naturally paid extra attention to movements in the Ocean of Oceanos.
As for where Lorne got his information, it was even simpler.
Because this rebellion was clearly recorded in the "Theogony."
Although the process and number of participants were completely different now, the overall direction remained the same.
Therefore, the secret collusion between Apollo and Poseidon was, in the eyes of both him and Athena, as obvious as someone running naked down the street without underwear. It was impossible to hide.
"However, our God King doesn't seem to suspect you yet."
Lorne smiled as he took another sip of milk, lest the real mastermind of this rebellion back out.
Speaking of which, Poseidon truly deserved to be called the innate scapegoat.
During the Battle of Crete, he took the blame for him and Athena and was held responsible for the sinking of Crete.
Now, even though it was a group crime, he still had to take the bullet for Apollo and got beaten by Zeus again on some pretext...
After several rounds of this, he had lost not only his balls, but almost all his face as well.
But there was nothing to be done.
Who told the Sea King to have such a massive family fortune, attract so much attention, be both weak and playful, and have a long criminal record?
Every time, he became Zeus's primary suspect.
"But he has already been exposed."
Hearing Lorne's reassurance,
Apollo didn't feel much more relaxed.
Seeing this, the latter smiled faintly and spoke calmly.
"Doesn't he get exposed every year?"
Apollo slapped his forehead, suddenly enlightened.
That's right.
Poseidon's little ambitions for the God King position were practically written on his face.
Everyone on Olympus knew about it.
He would frequently oppose the God King at divine council meetings, make small moves every few days, and then hook up with different gods from time to time to incite them to rebel against the God King.
This was basically normal behavior for him.
Because he would almost always be beaten by Zeus and have some of his main god authorities stripped away, the gods of Olympus never took these small actions seriously, nor did they take Poseidon seriously.
It was precisely because of this that the Father God, after routinely beating Poseidon, would immediately stop investigating and show no intention of digging deeper.
After all, Poseidon would always lose, and he would always win.
The God King of Olympus possessed the Mandate of Heaven, and his position was unshakable.
But precisely because he had won too many times, the God King had gradually lost his sense of danger.
After knocking down Poseidon, the obvious troublemaker, he unknowingly fell into a mental trap and overlooked the real threat lurking beneath the surface.
This time, it wasn't just Poseidon's solo antics, but seven main gods who had accumulated dissatisfaction conspiring together to rebel!
After figuring out the key point, Apollo felt as if the clouds had parted in his mind and his mood improved greatly.
In that case, they could indeed seize the opportunity and have a proper "talk" with the Father God.
"Don't get too happy too soon.
Even if he loses the initiative due to carelessness, he is still Zeus, the unrivaled God King of Olympus in terms of strength."
Lorne timely poured cold water on Apollo's overly optimistic mindset, lest this brother-in-law get too excited, reveal something, and ruin the excellent situation before them.
The God of Light outside the cell door felt his blood run cold after the reminder, and his heart trembled.
Indeed, the Father God possessed the Mandate of Heaven and had devoured the primordial goddess of wisdom, Metis.
He was the strongest God King in history.
Even with preparation against no preparation, driving him off the throne would not be easy at all.
Even if all seven main gods joined forces, it would be the same.
Subconsciously, Apollo looked toward the prisoner inside the cell, as if expecting some answer.
"The God King in his prime is indeed difficult to shake. But what if he is not at his prime?"
Lorne smiled faintly and spoke meaningfully.
"Do you still remember the Typhoeus War?"
Apollo's eyes lit up, and he fell into thought.
When the demon ancestor Typhon first broke out of Tartarus and attacked Olympus, the gods were actually at a disadvantage.
At that time, the most powerful God King Zeus had relapsed into his old habits.
He hid his divine weapon [Thunderbolt] in a cave and went to have a secret rendezvous with a nymph named Pluto (Plouto).
The divine weapon emitted smoke and sparks in the cave, constantly radiating its power.
And so, following Gaia the Earth Mother's reminder, the demon ancestor Typhoeus stole this immensely powerful divine weapon and secretly hid it in another cave.
Only then did he roar fiercely, break free from Tartarus, officially gather the monsters and Titans, and launch a full-scale assault on Olympus.
Because Zeus was out cheating, the gods had to join forces against the enemy.
Apollo naturally participated.
It was an extremely brutal divine war.
The demon ancestor Typhoeus rampaged across the four directions, spreading his snake hair and raising his giant arms to strike the heavens.
The skies were thrown into chaos: constellations shifted or fell into the sea, and the sun and moon appeared at the same time.
Apollo was the first to confront it, but his chariot was easily knocked down.
His sister Artemis then fought it, but ended up covered in wounds.
The four wind gods who came to help were torn to pieces and could not reform for a long time.
Then Poseidon arrived and stirred up massive waves from the Ocean of Oceanos, but the seawater, which didn't even reach the monster's waist, had no effect.
Instead, it provoked the creature into a frenzy.
The demon ancestor stirred up towering waves, parted the seas, dragged Poseidon's chariot out of the water, and beat the Sea King violently.
The marine gods who had come with him were terrified and fled in all directions.
By the time Zeus realized something was wrong and rushed back to Olympus, the entire sacred mountain had almost been torn apart by Typhon and his demon army.
Except for Athena who could barely hold on due to her shield, no one could stop the demon ancestor's advance.
Zeus, who had joined the battle without the [Thunderbolt], could not fully exert the powers of [Sky] and [Thunder].
In the end, he was defeated by Typhon.
The situation collapsed.
The gods fled Olympus to avoid the sharp edge and returned to their own domains to gather strength.
After the first defeat, the injured Zeus calmed down and began to win through strategy.
He summoned Cadmus, the brother of Europa, and ordered the shepherd god Pan who had come with him to gather herds of cattle and sheep.
Zeus set up a hut, dressed Cadmus as a shepherd boy, and had him trick Typhon into returning the Thunderbolt.
In return, he promised to marry the goddess of harmony, Harmonia, to him afterward.
Once everything was ready, Zeus transformed into a bull and mixed into the herd.
Cadmus sat under a tree and played a reed flute.
Attracted by the music, Typhon came out of the cave where he had hidden the [Thunderbolt] to enjoy it.
At that moment, Zeus in bull form had already sneaked into the cave and retrieved his original divine weapon.
By the time Typhon realized he had been counter-tricked, Zeus had recovered to his peak state with the [Thunderbolt], reassembled the gods, and launched a counterattack.
In the end, the God King of Heaven used clouds as armor, thunder as a shield, lightning as a spear, and the Thunderbolt as arrows.
Riding the chariot of time, he charged down from the heaven.
Queen Hera drew her divine bow on the left, and the goddess of wisdom Athena held spear and shield on the right.
Together with the gods, they completely defeated Typhon and his demon army, then threw him into Tartarus to be punished.
Apollo reviewed the entire Typhon War in his mind, his eyes thoughtful.
"You mean, learn from the demon ancestor's successful experience and make sure he cannot access his own original divine weapon?"
"That's what you thought yourself.
It has nothing to do with me."
Lorne raised his hands, quickly distancing himself.
His face looked innocent, but deep in his eyes was full of ill intent.
Alright, Apollo had guessed correctly.
This was exactly what the big filial son meant.
Previously, Themis's sword, which had shattered her own godhood, had already created cracks in the God King's royal authority.
Zeus's strength was definitely no longer as powerful as before.
If, before the rebellion, they could find a way to disarm Zeus, weaken his divine rights, and greatly reduce the strength he could display.
Then, the seven main gods joining forces might really be able to make the God King flip over.
According to the records in the "Homeric Hymns," if not for the interference of the three Hundred-Handed Giants, this rebellion might very well have succeeded.
Moreover, in the original history, only four main gods participated in the rebellion: Hera, Apollo, Poseidon, and Athena.
Now there were seven.
Even though Hestia had given her godhood to him and could not fight, and Poseidon had become a one-balled warrior with weakened divine rights, the current rebel forces were definitely stronger than in the original records.
Since that was the case, Lorne didn't mind helping these main gods by offering a few more bad ideas to add fuel to the fire of the Olympus rebellion.
Even if it failed, it could further force out Zeus's trump cards and make the God King suffer.
At this moment, the rebel leader Apollo, who had been completely bewitched, frowned and seriously considered the feasibility of the plan.
"It's not easy. Ever since the Typhon War, he has been very careful with his divine weapons. Few people know where those things are hidden."
"You can go find the three Cyclopes on Sicily."
"?"
"The [Thunderbolt] is extremely powerful and needs regular maintenance. Back then, they forged this original divine weapon for Zeus together, so they definitely know more secrets related to the [Thunderbolt] and the [Aegis Shield]."
Lorne smiled as he actively gave advice to the rebel leader before him.
In the past, besides the twelve Titans, Father Uranus and Mother Earth Gaia had also given birth to three battle-skilled Hundred-Handed Giants and three forging-skilled Cyclopes.
Uranus found them noisy and threw all three Hundred-Handed Giants and three Cyclopes into Tartarus.
Cronus, who overthrew Uranus, also felt these six deformed children were dangerous, so he kept these brothers imprisoned in Tartarus.
It was not until Zeus, in order to overthrow the rule of the twelve Titans, personally entered Tartarus to free these uncles and made a pact with them that the six Titan giants were able to see daylight again and swore loyal service to Zeus who had freed them.
Now, the three Hundred-Handed Giants stayed in the primordial ocean guarding Poseidon, while the three Cyclopes mostly lived in volcanic regions, forging and maintaining divine weapons for the gods.
Apollo gave someone a quiet look, full of suspicion."How do you know everything?"
"It's common knowledge, my friend."
Lorne answered matter-of-factly, then shifted the blame to the craftsman god. "Also, Hephaestus mentioned it to me while chatting."
"So that's how it is. Hephaestus does often forge together with the Cyclopes and has a good relationship with them."
Apollo nodded, clearly believing the second explanation more.
In Sicily?
The God of Light outside the cell murmured, his eyes flickering coldly.
Lorne caught the cold glint deep in Apollo's eyes and smiled without saying anything.
In the original historical trajectory, because Asclepius had violated the gods' exclusive right to immortality, Zeus struck the god of medicine dead with the [Thunderbolt].
Enraged, Apollo shot and killed the three Cyclopes who forged the [Thunderbolt] for Zeus in order to avenge his son.
It seemed that the God of Light, in order to clear obstacles for the rebellion, was once again going to strike hard at the poor three Cyclopes.
Although [Fate] had deviated in various ways due to [Chance]'s interference, it would still correct itself in all kinds of strange ways, forming a certain wonderful closed loop.
While sighing, Lorne couldn't help but think of himself.
Speaking of which, during the Typhon War, his grandfather Cadmus had helped Zeus retrieve the [Thunderbolt] and was rewarded by founding Thebes.
After the War, this grandson of his was born.
Now he was assisting the rebels on Olympus in stealing Zeus's [Thunderbolt].
Didn't this count as another kind of closed loop?
The big filial son let out a mocking chuckle, then looked at Apollo outside the cell door and gave a friendly reminder.
"Time is almost up. If you have nothing else to ask, you should go back. Be careful these days."
Apollo subconsciously nodded, turned, and walked out of the prison, ready to go back and digest the fruitful conversation.
However, just as he was about to step out of the cell door, the God of Light seemed to think of something.
He stopped, turned back to look at Lorne inside the cell, and spoke seriously. "Wait for us. We will rescue you."
With that, Apollo left without stopping, leaving behind a dashing figure that disappeared into the twilight of Olympus.
After a long time, Lorne suddenly shivered, snapped out of his daze, and hurriedly reinforced a certain ideological steel seal in his mind.
'I am straight!'
~~
The long night passed without sleep.
The moon set and the sun rose.
"Creak~~"
The familiar sound of the prison door being pushed open rang out for the sixth time.
Lorne, squatting in the corner, opened his eyes and looked at the figure outside the cell door.
A man! Man on top of man?
The moment he confirmed the other party's gender, the steel-straight man who had developed some psychological shadow subconsciously moved closer to the corner again.
But then he came back to his senses.
When his gaze fell on the imposing face in the darkness, his heart tightened.
It was Zeus!
The God King who had been out fooling around had finally returned.
(End of this chapter)