The gods of Greece not only had their powers connected to nature and the very essence of existence, but their personalities themselves were like the embodiment of nature, quick to react to rumors and prone to sudden changes in mood.
Just like now, Aphrodite had just been acting like a good woman, gently comforting Hippomenes. If Hippomenes had been willing to humble himself and plead with her, he might even have been able to share an intimate moment with her in this forest.
But now, upon hearing that Hippomenes had no intention of making a sacrifice, Aphrodite's expression immediately changed.
She coldly pushed away her once beloved favorite and questioned him:
"Hippomenes, I have protected you and fulfilled my promise. Now you ask such a question? Are you trying to go back on your word to me?"
Seeing Aphrodite's expression, Hippomenes also realized his mistake. He was drenched in cold sweat and urgently tried to explain:
"Merciful Aphrodite, it's not what you think. What I meant was…"
"Enough!"
Not all the gods of Greece were as easy to talk to as Ares, so Aphrodite directly interrupted Hippomenes and delivered her judgment upon him:
"I do not need a follower who does not believe in me, Hippomenes. I will punish you."
After speaking, the Goddess of Beauty gently exhaled a breath towards her follower. Hippomenes immediately felt his entire body stiffen, unable to move.
No matter how despicable Aphrodite might have seemed, she was still a main deity. Subduing a mortal like Hippomenes, who had no real power, was still very easy for her.
Aphrodite circled the immobilized Hippomenes, and a thoughtful look began to appear in her beautiful eyes. She had initially wanted to turn Hippomenes into an animal out of anger to pull her chariot, but upon careful consideration, other main deities had at least two divine creatures pulling their chariots, while Hippomenes was only one. She would then have to specifically find another one to pair with him, which would be troublesome.
If possible, Aphrodite actually quite wanted to turn that Princess of Arcadia into another animal. At the feast of the gods, Ares had actively rejected her advances, yet now he had incarnated himself to participate in this princess's suitor race, and he had even learned from his father, Zeus, and abducted her. Surely, Atalanta would become Ares's divine consort. Didn't this prove that Aphrodite's charm was inferior to a wild girl who grew up in the mountains of Arcadia?
However, as soon as she thought of Ares, she dared not lay a hand on Atalanta. The God of War was an unreasonable and fearless brute. Her charm as the Goddess of Beauty was useless in front of the God of War, and just thinking about how that God of War nearly beat Notos, God of the South Wind, to death in her palace, Aphrodite felt a surge of fear from the depths of her heart.
If Zeus and the others hadn't arrived in time, Ares probably wouldn't have minded truly killing Notos, God of the South Wind.
Therefore, Aphrodite decisively dismissed this idea, and with it, also abandoned the plan of turning Hippomenes into an animal. She thought for a moment and suddenly remembered the Goddess of Wisdom who had come to her palace a few days earlier with a profound smile on her face.
At that time, Athena had not only borrowed her son, Eros, for archery but had also given her a vial of what was said to be a potion that could turn humans into monsters, as a gift, saying that she would definitely find it useful in the future.
Aphrodite pulled out the vial of potion from her embrace. The potion was contained in a bronze test tube, and through the deliberately designed translucent material, one could see the crystalline blue potion inside, which looked as beautiful as the azure sea.
At the front of the test tube, Athena had also attached a sharp needle. As long as this needle was inserted into another person's bloodstream, this cleverly designed test tube would automatically inject the potion inside into that person's body.
Gazing at the crystalline potion in the test tube, a malicious smile curved Aphrodite's lips. She came behind Hippomenes and then plunged the needle deep into Hippomenes's carotid artery.
"Whether you live or not depends on your own luck."
After speaking, Aphrodite threw the empty test tube aside, then lifted her spell. Hippomenes immediately let out a painful cry, fell to the ground, and began to convulse uncontrollably.
His body was covered with Cyan blood vessels, and then countless hairs grew out, followed by his entire being beginning to twist and transform into an alien form.
In the forest of Arcadia at night, terrifying roars, unlike those of humans, immediately echoed.
…
Early the next morning, Ares waited for Atalanta to wake up and get ready, then he took her from a certain inn in Arcadia, preparing to leave and head to Sparta, the kingdom he protected as his preserve.
But just as the two walked onto the street, they saw many Arcadia warriors on the streets of Arcadia. They looked nervous, held weapons, and patrolled back and forth on the streets.
Initially, Ares and Atalanta both thought this was due to the incident caused by Ares's descent yesterday, but after passing through a market within the Arcadia city-state and seeing several merchants in the market being interrogated with terrified expressions by a group of Arcadia soldiers, Ares and Atalanta immediately understood that the city-state's lockdown had nothing to do with Ares.
It made sense; in this era, if a main deity abducted a princess from a certain country on earth, that king would not dare to show even the slightest displeasure. Therefore, after Ares "abducted" Atalanta, it would be meaningless to impose a nationwide lockdown in Arcadia Kingdom.
"Lord Ares, should we ask?"
After all, Arcadia was her hometown, so upon seeing this situation, Atalanta gently asked.
"It's fine, I'll investigate this matter."
Ares said:
"Your identity is sensitive, it's best for you to leave here first."
After speaking, Ares's divine power avatar continued forward with Atalanta, while at the same time, he multitasked, dispatching the avatar that had helped with the cheering and acting as a shill in the audience yesterday, to the market in Arcadia.
This avatar of Ares used the identity of a merchant from the city-state of Thebes, so upon seeing the situation on the street, he acted very "surprised" and stopped a squad of Arcadia warriors on the street, gave them some drachmas as a bribe, and then began to inquire about the lockdown in Arcadia.
"Friend, what's wrong with Arcadia?" Ares feigned surprise, even with a hint of fear, and asked, "Could it be because of what happened at the arena yesterday?"
"It has nothing to do with that." The two Arcadia warriors said with serious expressions, "Last night, a group of merchants were attacked by a monster in the forest outside the city. According to the survivors, that monster had the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and a snake's tail, and it could breathe fire. If you're not in a hurry to leave, it's best not to leave the city-state until we confirm that the monster has gone far away, or until a hero has been invited to defeat it. Then it won't be too late for you to leave the city-state."