Perseus knelt on one knee, pausing for a moment.
He did not explicitly state whether he accepted or rejected Athena's command, but his actions fully demonstrated his attitude; the rare Hero under Athena's command slowly raised the Slaughter of the Undead Blade, its sharp, massive scythe-blade a shocking sight in the Heroes' eyes.
Wielding the great scythe, Athena's loyal warrior walked step by step towards the slaves who had fought bravely by his side earlier. A group of Argo Heroes watched from the side, and although they felt some reluctance, they did not object.
In this era, these slaves were inherently "items"; since they were "items," no one found it wrong for them to be disposed of.
Moreover, this order came from Athena, whom Perseus directly worshipped. If other Heroes' revered deities had given them such a command, they would most likely have had to carry it out against their conscience.
Seeing Perseus's actions, these slaves also knew what fate awaited them. Some recoiled in terror, while others gripped their weapons and bravely attacked Perseus. However, after Athena's judgment descended, the Goddess also withdrew the protective power she had originally bestowed upon them, and at this point, the slaves' bodies became weak again.
They had never eaten their fill, and their ability to overthrow the soldiers of Poseidonia Kingdom earlier was entirely due to Athena's blessing. Now that Athena had withdrawn her blessing, these strong warriors once again became hungry slaves. The divine light that had once enveloped their weapons and shields also vanished, their weapons reverted to mundane objects, and with a gentle sweep of Perseus's Slaughter of the Undead Blade, they shattered like withered branches and rotten leaves.
The slaves whose weapons were shattered looked at each other, immediately dropped their weapons, and turned to flee. Seeing these slaves scurrying around like headless flies, Perseus frowned slightly, seemingly displeased.
He chanted two incantations using the technique of High-Speed Divine Words, and with a slight lift of his finger, the nearby ground immediately rose up, forming a circle of earth walls that trapped all the slaves within.
"Do you not understand the Goddess's words?"
Perseus said, approaching the slaves:
"You refuse to listen to the Goddess's words, and you refuse to die. This puts me in a difficult position."
As he spoke, Perseus had already arrived in front of the first slave, a scrawny man. Seeing Perseus's shadow cover his entire body, the man was so frightened that he fell to the ground, shielding himself with one hand, trembling.
But Perseus said nothing and simply raised his scythe, bringing it down on the man's neck without hesitation.
Clang!
The sharp Noble Phantasm descended, but instead of blood, a dazzling shower of sparks appeared. Perseus retracted the scythe-blade, glanced at the magical barrier protecting the thin slave in front of him, then looked at Medea, who remained silent, and asked softly:
"Medea, what is the meaning of this?"
"Senior, they are lives, after all. And they just fought alongside you. What you are doing is not quite right, is it?"
Medea said.
"I know they are lives, but lives have distinctions of high and low, noble and humble. To die for the Goddess is their honor. Moreover, they were originally destined to die. The Goddess helped them go through such a magnificent ordeal; that should be enough, shouldn't it?"
Perseus gently pushed the magical barrier in front of him, then said to Medea:
"Move aside, Medea, do not interfere in this matter."
"I will not, Senior brother."
Medea walked over forcefully, even parrying Perseus's scythe with her magic staff. She stared at her Senior Disciple, who had raised her since childhood, and said stubbornly:
"Teacher said that there is no distinction of high or low, noble or humble in life. These slaves are only unfortunate because they were not born as lucky as a king. Moreover, they are not your enemies, but companions who once trusted you and entrusted their lives to you. Your actions are undoubtedly a betrayal."
"Medea, let it go."
Jason advised the young sorceress:
"This is the judgment of the Gods. We have no right to speak."
"Why do we have no right to speak when it is the judgment of the Gods?"
Medea looked around at the Heroes on Argo and slowly said:
"Upholding justice, condemning evil, opposing all injustice in the world, and fighting for the justice we believe in—this is what a Hero is, isn't it?"
After she finished, she turned her head again to look at her Senior Disciple:
"And this time, Senior Brother, your actions, in my opinion, completely violate the justice of this world and the justice I believe in. Therefore, I must stand up against you!"
"Nonsense!"
Perseus frowned:
"Athena is justice itself! Her words are the truth in this world!"
"Then what about our Teacher?"
Medea's eyes widened as she retorted:
"Are the words of the noble Regent of the Underworld, the great Goddess Hecate, who controls chance, paths, and the moon, not truth?"
Perseus was momentarily speechless, unsure how to refute his Junior Disciple, and could only growl:
"Get out of the way! Medea, do not force me to act against you."
"I will not!"
The young sorceress stubbornly stood her ground, making many Argo Heroes tremble with fear.
After all, her actions could be seen as openly defying a decision made jointly by the chief Gods, Athena and Poseidon, which was undoubtedly blasphemous.
But at this moment, a graceful figure moved past the Heroes and quietly stood beside Medea.
"Atalanta, what is the meaning of this?"
Seeing this, Perseus asked again:
"Medea is doing something foolish here; you are not stopping her. Do you intend to help her in this mischief?"
"This is not foolish, Perseus."
Atalanta silently took down the Bow of the Heavens from her back, drew an arrow, and aimed it at her fellow traveler:
"Although this is a group of slaves, there are children among them. Their parents might be responsible for being reduced to slavery, but they should not have to endure such a fate."
"Artemis!"
Upon seeing this, Perseus immediately turned his head to the sky and asked:
"Atalanta is your worshipper. Do you not intend to stop her?"
After Perseus's words fell, in the ranks of the Gods in the sky, Artemis, in a moon-white dress, beautiful and captivating, stood up from among the Gods and responded with a smile:
"Why should I control little Atalanta? She is currently using the Bow of the Heavens I gave her to do what a Hero should do."
"Goddess..."
Finally seeing the deity she had longed for and receiving her personal affirmation, Atalanta was immensely excited and her confidence grew even stronger. Her fingers tightened their grip, and the arrow on the longbow steadily aimed at Perseus's brow.
And at this moment, someone else in the Argo Heroes' team began to move.