The entire stadium fell silent for a moment after Ares, the small attendant, entered the field.
Iasos, the King of Arcadia, flew into a rage and shouted, "Are you not Atalanta's attendant? How dare you participate in such an honorable and sacred competition!"
"attendant?"
Hippomenes heard this and asked with a somewhat stiff smile,
"Little brother, this isn't good, is it..."
"What's not good about it?"
Ares deliberately put on an affectionate look, gazed at Atalanta, and said to her,
"I have always admired my master, but due to our statuses, she and I are destined to interact only in this way. However, now that there is finally an opportunity for us to be together, how can I give up, noble King, O Gods in Heaven, please allow me this precious chance. If I lose, I will kill myself and offer my heart to the Gods in Heaven."
Iasos angrily slammed the table, just about to refuse, but at that moment, a sudden strong wind swept through the sky, and a bolt of lightning abruptly descended from the heavens, striking the arena and blasting a large pit in its center.
"It's lightning! It's divine lightning!"
Spectators on the side of the arena immediately cried out in alarm:
"The Gods have answered this attendant's request!"
Of course, this lightning bolt and the spectator in the arena were actually Ares's doing, but he had already stirred up discussion among the other spectators in the arena. These people shouted one after another, all believing that this lightning bolt was a sign given by the Gods in Heaven.
Iasos looked up at the sky with a solemn expression. In this era, even a King dared not defy the will of the Gods. Therefore, Iasos's face alternated between green and pale, and he could only allow Ares to stand on the other side of Atalanta.
Hippomenes's expression was not good when he saw Ares stand on his side of the arena. He looked at Atalanta beside him, wanting to speak but hesitating, but finally, he said,
"Princess Atalanta, do you really want your attendant to run the race? He should be a very favored servant of yours, it would be such a pity for him to die like this."
"It doesn't matter."
Hippomenes watched as Atalanta glanced at Ares beside her. This Princess of Arcadia inexplicably seemed a little nervous. She replied,
"He runs very fast."
The relationship between these two is unusual.
Hippomenes immediately felt a pang of jealousy in his heart. He began to secretly ponder whether to kill Ares after the race ended.
However, at this point, Iasos had already announced that the contestants should prepare, so Hippomenes could only compose himself and begin warming up, getting ready for the race.
One minute later, all three contestants were in their running stances near the starting line. The King of Arcadia suddenly waved his hand and loudly declared, "Let the race begin!"
At Iasos's command, Hippomenes immediately dashed out. Ares followed closely behind; his small body suddenly burst forth with a speed comparable to an adult man, keeping pace with Hippomenes. Only Atalanta remained leisurely in place.
She kept her eyes on Hippomenes, and only when Hippomenes had run halfway down the track did she suddenly exert herself, transforming into a green breeze, rapidly closing the distance between herself and Hippomenes.
Hippomenes only felt a gust of wind behind him, and then saw Atalanta directly overtake him, running ahead. Seeing Atalanta's terrifying running speed, Hippomenes dared not delay. He immediately pulled out a golden apple from his person and threw it vigorously to the side.
The golden apple rolled into the grass outside the arena, but the grass could not conceal the dazzling radiance it emitted. It attracted the attention of everyone in the stadium. Hippomenes saw that Atalanta's gaze was also involuntarily drawn to this golden apple, and his heart rejoiced. However, the next moment, a happy voice sounded behind him.
"What a beautiful apple!"
At this moment, Ares, who was behind Hippomenes, suddenly burst out with a strange speed. He quickly ran into the grass, and with a dive, picked up the golden apple.
He wiped the surface of the golden apple, then tucked it away, and then shouted to Atalanta, "Princess, I've put your golden apple away for you! Don't worry!"
How is it hers again? That's mine!
Hippomenes's heart surged with anger, but Atalanta, seeing this situation, did not stop. Instead, she nodded and continued running. Therefore, Hippomenes could only close his mouth and continue to sprint head down.
After picking up the golden apple, Ares also returned to the track. He continued to trail far behind Hippomenes. The three ran one lap, and Atalanta was now far in the lead, with Hippomenes seemingly having no hope of catching up to her.
Left with no choice, Hippomenes could only take out another golden apple, preparing to throw it towards the side of the arena. As soon as he took out this treasure, the eyes of everyone in the stadium were immediately drawn to its radiance. But just as Hippomenes's golden apple left his hand, a black shadow darted out from behind him and snatched the golden apple into his arms.
"Thank you, brother, thank you."
Ares, with a simple smile, wiped the golden apple with his clothes while sincerely thanking Hippomenes.
"Big brother, do you have any more? You're going to throw them away anyway, why not give them all to me? I just saw you had another one in your pocket."
"Shut up, you attendant!"
Hippomenes roared in fury, shouting,
"How dare you ruin my plans? See if I don't come after you later!"
"Well, if you really want to come after me, I can't do anything about it, after all, I'm just a attendant."
Ares pointed forward with an innocent expression, and then said,
"But I don't think you'll have a 'later'. Look at Princess, she's almost at the finish line."
Hippomenes turned his head at these words and was immediately startled. Atalanta was indeed only a short distance from the finish line, and this hero of Arcadia had even deliberately slowed down and turned to look at the two of them.
"What good does this do you!"
Hippomenes shouted to Ares in grief and indignation,
"Are you really happy destroying my plan and making your master never marry?"
"The key isn't whether I'm happy or not, it's whether my master is happy and willing."
Ares sighed deeply and said earnestly,
"Hippomenes, marriage is a matter of mutual consent, a matter between two people. If you don't even understand this simple truth, then you are not worthy of being Princess Atalanta's husband."
Hippomenes was now utterly despairing. His hands trembled, his lips quivered, and he asked Ares,
"If you do this, you'll die too. Do you really want to drag me down with you?"
"Who says I'll die?"
Ares winked at Hippomenes, then suddenly charged forward. In Hippomenes's stunned gaze, his figure instantly vanished from the spot.
Hippomenes stared blankly as Ares, with a series of sonic booms, came from behind and overtook Atalanta, who had begun running at full speed, crossing the finish line ahead of her.