Just as the Argo resumed its journey, Perseus, who had been "expelled" by Hecate, was also flying clumsily over the sea.
Ever since leaving the Poseidonia Kingdom, Perseus had flown straight towards the Invisible Island, which the Graeae Sisters had pointed out to him earlier, but this area had been shielded by Ares's divine power. Ares's divine power gathered in the sky, forming a large fiery cloud with black smoke. When Perseus flew under the fiery cloud using his winged sandals, large and small fireballs would fall from the sky, smashing towards him. These fireballs would explode violently upon touching an object or the sea, their power no less than a great magic, capable of shattering a small island directly.
This alone wouldn't have been much; the magic barrier Perseus cast was actually fully capable of withstanding such attacks, but Ares was not the only god obstructing his path.
Whenever Perseus grew tired from his struggle with the fiery clouds in the sky and wanted to find a suitable island reef to rest, surging seawater would roar and rush in, rising eerily and submerging the reef he had set his eyes on.
If Perseus insisted on landing on a submerged island reef, the merciless sea would whip up gales and giant waves, attempting to swallow him. Clearly, this was the work of Poseidon, the Sea God.
Perseus had old grievances with Poseidon, as Athena had participated in ganging up on him, indirectly causing his son's death, and almost usurping the Poseidonia Kingdom under his control. Furthermore, Perseus's superior, Athena, had recently betrayed her temporary alliance with Poseidon, allowing Zeus to return to Olympus with the other gods, failing to uphold justice there, and leaving two difficult gods, Ares and Hecate, to deal with him.
With new grudges added to old hatreds, Poseidon naturally gnashed his teeth in fury at Perseus. Although Ares on the Argo also infuriated him, bullying the weak and fearing the strong is an instinct. With a lone demigod like Perseus here, why would Poseidon trouble a powerful main god and a ship full of Heroes?
Therefore, Perseus became Poseidon's punching bag. The Sea God had no intention of directly appearing to kill him, but simply prevented him from finding any foothold on the sea, and used the fiery clouds Ares had set up here to pressure Perseus, watching him struggle under Ares's divine power attacks.
The body Ares created was, after all, only a demigod's body, requiring food, water, sleep, and rest, with limited energy and stamina. Previously, to usurp the Poseidonia Kingdom, Perseus hadn't eaten since disembarking from the Argo. After the successful usurpation, subsequent events triggered the judgment among the gods. Perseus was expelled by his mentor Hecate and also sentenced by Zeus to never board the Argo again. Thus, until now, Perseus had not eaten anything or drunk a single drop of water; this body was already utterly exhausted.
The result of this situation was that Perseus, who could originally easily withstand the fiery cloud attacks in the sky, was now unable to delve deeper into this fiery cloud to search for the Invisible Island due to severe energy depletion.
His magic barrier was already shaky, and the surging waves below seemed to be eager to act. Perseus knew that as soon as his magic ran out and he fell from the sky, Poseidon's fury would tear him to shreds.
However, Ares, who was controlling Perseus, was not at all flustered. He understood that Athena would not simply stand by and watch Perseus die.
Indeed, just as Perseus's magic barrier became faint and almost translucent, his magic barrier was finally shattered by a fiery cloud smashing into him. The injured Perseus could no longer hold on and fell from mid-air, about to plunge into the sea.
But just then, a pair of hands as smooth as jade suddenly reached out from mid-air, cradling the nearly unconscious Perseus in a princess carry.
Through Perseus's already blackened vision, Ares saw a familiar lock of golden hair, so he manipulated Perseus's throat and tried his best to shout:
"God… Goddess…"
"Rest well."
Athena gently stroked Perseus's eyes, a wisp of divine power emanating from her palm, lulling his consciousness into sleep. Ares did not resist, instead hiding his mental energy deep within Perseus's mind. Subsequently, the Goddess carried Perseus's body and slowly floated upwards.
Below, amidst the surging waves, the enraged Sea God's figure seemed to flicker in and out of view. It appeared he greatly wished to question Athena and have a thorough argument with the Goddess of Wisdom to settle old scores. However, Athena had no intention of acknowledging this annoying and foolish elder uncle of hers. Holding Perseus, she parted the fiery clouds in the sky and then vanished from that sea area.
...
When Perseus regained consciousness, he found himself in a forest filled with the singing of birds and the fragrance of flowers.
He lay on a lush green lawn, the warm grass cushioning his weak body. Perseus could still smell a refreshing fragrance in his nostrils, though he wasn't sure if it was the scent of flowers or the lingering fragrance of the Goddess.
Ares, controlling Perseus's body, moved his head from side to side, feigning a dazed but still observant demeanor. Soon, he spotted Athena by a pond next to the lawn.
The beautiful Goddess was sitting sideways by the pond, a mass of smooth golden hair partially submerged in the water. She was gently washing her hair, looking incredibly beautiful.
However, upon seeing Athena washing her hair, a question arose in Ares's mind.
His decoy avatar in Hecates Garden in the Underworld tilted its head and asked Hecate beside him:
"Teacher, do you usually wash your hair?"
"Wash my hair? Why would I wash my hair?"
The Moon Goddess asked back, bewildered:
"We gods are always enveloped in divine power, so we naturally don't get dirty. Our bodies should be much cleaner than any pond in the wild, right? Washing hair? Isn't that like pouring dirt on yourself?"
Ignoring the coughs from a certain Hydra in his ear, Ares nodded knowingly and said:
"I see, Teacher, this Athena is actually trying to seduce me!"
He reported indignantly to Hecate, but only received a roll of her eyes in return:
"If you're so capable, then go for it. At worst, you two can die together."
"No way, she's not worthy—"
Ares drew out his words, bantering with Hecate, but his mental energy didn't stop. He made Perseus display a dazed expression, as if enchanted, and remained silent.
Upon noticing Perseus awakening behind her, the Goddess, who was sitting sideways by the pond, let out a soft laugh and asked:
"Perseus, are you awake?"