The Myth of the Greek Heavenly Demon

Chapter 71

Chapter 71 – Is That… The Goddess Of Marriage And Family?

Hera.
Honestly, from my perspective, now living under the name of a minor hero in Greece, she was someone I needed to be cautious of and avoid more than any other goddess.
And with good reason. Half of the tragedies and trials of the heroes in Greek mythology were her doing, and the rest were due to other malicious gods and the heroes’ own flaws.
According to Hermes, for some reason, she had quite a fondness for me. And according to Atalanta’s testimony, after my big clash with Hercules, when I was in a groggy state and collapsed, it was Hera who dressed up Atalanta and sent her with an elixir to save me.

One way or another, if you’ve received something, you must give something in return. It’s only courteous.
And after long years of experience, I knew that it was best to handle both gratitude and grudges definitively to avoid any future complications.
So, I had planned to visit her temple once the matter with Apollo was resolved, to offer the item I was currently preparing as a gift of thanks.
But instead of a messenger from the temple, the Goddess herself had appeared before me.

‘…Could she have come personally because I was late in expressing my gratitude?’

Moreover, she was a goddess who had saved me once and, for some reason, actively paired me with Atalanta.
Yet, despite her direct appearance, I didn’t even look back to face her and even initiated an attack to test my sound technique.
Ultimately, due to my mistake, I ruined the melody, got angry, and ended up being healed by her.

‘Oh noooooo…’

Honestly, I felt like crawling into a hole if there was one.
Even if I was influenced by the youthful energy and hormones of this young body, wasn’t this taking things a bit too far?
It was bad enough that I had rolled around madly with Atalanta in broad daylight, but ever since I arrived on the island, there had been quite a few moments where I had been overwhelmed by this young body.
And this incident was by far the worst, one that could easily be called the pinnacle of my embarrassing moments.
Whether the other party was a goddess or not, I wasn’t noble like Cao Cao1 to boldly confront a beautiful woman. goddess
I openly unleashed fierce charm attacks on my benefactor, no, my benefactor goddess, who saved me and even pushed a fine lady towards me.

As a human, I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed with feelings of regret, thinking that I had crossed the line.

Fortunately, though the goddess wore a stern face, there was no killing intent or rage in her eyes.
Inwardly, I was relieved as her eyes seemed closer to admiration or curiosity.
Even so, there was a reason I couldn’t let down my guard or reverence.

From my experience with Artemis and Eris, it was clear that the gods of Greek mythology were just like how they were portrayed—beings with great power but unable to fully control it, essentially just strong brats who lived a bit longer than humans.
Of course, there were exceptions like Nemesis and Hermes, who did indeed give the impression of true gods.
Nevertheless, they didn’t seem like such great and insurmountable beings.
However, the Goddess Hera was on a different level from them.

Queen of the Gods. Leader of the Goddesses.
And why the Goddess, who openly showed sarcasm and anger while opposing the number one figure in mythology, became the hardship of heroes.
Even Zeus, the King of Gods and Mythological Philanderer, while being nagged so much, still elevated her as queen and was deeply devoted to her—this made sense.

The moment I turned around and faced the Goddess Hera…
It was an enigmatic magic that draped nobility and elegance like an aura, with a beautiful noblewoman reclining obliquely on a cloud and looking down at me, her surroundings pulsating as if alive.

‘Is that… the Goddess of Marriage and Family?’

Damn, is it because it’s the mythological era?
Is even family and marriage some kind of highly advanced magical organization and mystical ritual that’s hard to imagine?

The great library of the Demon Cult, boasting ten thousand years of history, and the secret arts of the entire martial world.
Even the secrets of the Podalap Palace in the outer regions, the Southern Barbarian Beast Palace, the Northern Ice Palace, the sorcery practices of the West, and the magicians and alchemists of Europe.
My level and achievements, which had transcended the physical body to reach the soul, engraved all those memories into my soul, and all those secrets remained intact in my mind.
However, even with all that wisdom, logic, and enlightenment, I could barely follow the principles of the magic cast by the Goddess Hera, let alone understand it.

Yes.
This was truly the age of myths.
Marriage and family must be some kind of fantastic magic that I simply didn’t understand because I had never experienced it.
That must be it.

Otherwise, there’s no way that a goddess who wielded such overwhelming divine power and wisdom could be just an ordinary goddess of marriage and family.

It must be the same shock that a prophet feels when they encounter a holy yet eerie angel atop a high mountain in the scriptures.
No wonder angels, upon their first appearance, would reassure the prophet not to fear.
And why gods transform into human form to sneak up and surprise humans and heroes.
I understood it with my body.

‘If they just appeared out of nowhere like this, nine times out of ten, people would have a heart attack.’

As I got accustomed to the overwhelming presence of such a great being and calming my thoughts a little…
From the depths of my heart, I could only pay reverent worship to the Goddess, filled with joy and awe.

Heaven above heaven, earth below earth.
Today, I have finally witnessed the state that martial artists and followers would always see when they looked at me.

The peak that everyone praised as the pinnacle of existence, the highest summit that one could ascend.
Yet, despite my experiences and accomplishments in my previous life, I had never been able to confidently claim that there was nowhere higher to ascend.
No matter how much I explored, meditated, wandered, learned, and practiced, I could not grasp it clearly, thinking this must be the end—the next state, the world beyond.

But now, standing before me was someone who gazed down from that very realm, proving to me that it did exist, and that I, too, could reach it, no matter how long it might take.

The sour grapes that I thought didn’t exist because I couldn’t even grasp them.
How could I, as a warrior and a demon, not be thrilled that vague imaginations and faint illusions existed in reality?
Even considering the example of Artemis, this Goddess was never born with such power.
Surely, it was through unimaginable eons, through a time not recorded in myths and history, that she had become what she is today.
That charisma, that pressure, that achievement.
Those were things that mere fools born great could never possess.
They were medals I too had earned only after enduring the years of suffering.
I bowed my head and paid my respects to her with utmost certainty and reverence.

“Queen of the Gods. I, who have received the grace of the Great Sorceress, offer you my humble greetings.”

Not the mindless faith that humans offer to gods.
But as a warrior and a practitioner, presenting my respect to a senior who had reached a higher realm; it was the first time in my life that I, as a junior, was showing respect to someone.

In her long existence, she had never encountered a child quite like him.

There had been fools like Ixion, who were ensnared by her beauty and burned with foolish lust.
There were sycophants who knelt and flattered her due to the majesty of the Queen of the Gods.
There were couples who sought her blessing for a harmonious marriage and family.
There was also a hero who, unable to withstand the hardships that followed his bloodline, cried out and resented her.

Yet, in the long rebirth, not a single one.
There was not a single person who looked at her with eyes of admiration and respect, harboring endless desire.

A great sorceress, even?

The black-haired disciple paid homage, uttering a cherished title from a distant past, now barely a memory.

“Yes, there was indeed a time when I, too, was not just bound as someone’s wife, but was endlessly exploring and advancing.”

Not that she was ungrateful for her current divine status and duties.
But still, the reverence of this young hero, reminding her of her free and adventurous past, brought an undeniable smile, as gentle as a spring breeze, to her otherwise stern face.

“Hm, you say strange things. You impudent young hero. But do you not know that aiming the peculiar magic of Hyperborea at a goddess is an unforgivable sin?”

That husband of hers, who she wouldn’t feel satisfied even if she tore him apart and kicked him out like her grandfather, had vanished again into the dawn breeze.
Fuming with rage, she naturally wandered through Greece and ended up at the peak of Mount Taygetos, overlooking the Forest of Heroes.
Anyway, if she went to Olympus, what more would she hear besides her hateful husband’s nonsense or the clamor of the gods suffering from their infidelities?
So, to get some fresh air and see if the young bride she had marked and the young hero who would be her match were doing well, she watched from the mountain. And while she was at it, she reprimanded the bastard child who was acting out of place.
It was while leisurely gazing into the Forest of Heroes.
The son of the night, whom she had been watching, suddenly came out in the middle of the night with a strange instrument and began to play under the moonlight.
She had already known that the child’s soul did not belong to this land.
Hera was deeply moved by the strange and beautiful melody, no less than the performance of Apollo and the nine warriors.
Such a versatile little hero.
Indeed, she was impressed by the depth and refinement of this hero from another world, crafted by the hands of the Protogenoi, untouched by the blood of that philanderer husband of hers.

She furrowed her brows slightly when he attacked her using magic through music, surprised by her appearance and presence.
She had heard how artists could make a fuss if interrupted during their peak concentration.
The current Hera had enough mercy to overlook such rudeness as a product of ignorance.

However, the child’s boldness knew no bounds.
Seeing him continue playing without turning back, she wondered if she should turn him into a pig or a sheep.
Still, considering he was Nyx’s child, she pondered whether to show some mercy and only drive him slightly mad.

The beautiful yet cruel and mysterious music played by the child, along with the mysterious magic of another world, filled her heart not with anger but with interest and curiosity.

Many have forgotten.
As this child praised her, she was the origin of all the secret arts and knowledge handled by modern magicians, witches, and alchemists.
If Zeus symbolized force and power, she was the magician who held the ancient wisdom and forgotten secret arts.
No matter how much she passed on the divine duties and stepped back to focus on the current divine tasks.
As the successor of old witches and mysteries, her curiosity and wisdom were stirred after a long time, and with the broad heart that once accepted Ares’s tantrums, she watched the tantrum of the young successor of mysteries with affection.

And as the situation calmed down a bit, even the remaining slight displeasure in Dianes’s worship after realizing her identity vanished.
Hera was looking at the young disciple with pleased eyes, contrary to her stern words.

ED/N: A historical figure from ancient China, specifically during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He is one of the central figures in the period known as the Three Kingdoms. ??