The Villain of Ancient Greece

Half an hour later, Lorne walked out of the cellar feeling completely refreshed, stretching lazily, his heart full of satisfaction.

Truth be told, he had wanted to do that for a long time.

There simply hadn’t been an opportunity before. Today, with Hestia delivering herself to his door, there was no way he could pass up such a fun chance.

And one had to admit, Titans really had great physiques.

After all that spanking, she was left with just a bit of redness.

By the time Hestia woke up and sensed something amiss, he could always blame it on a hangover.

Perfect!

Thinking through his excuse, Lorne cheerfully closed the cellar door, carved a protective charm upon it, leaving the unconscious hearth goddess in place to sleep off who knew how many more days, while he strode briskly out the door toward the outskirts of the city.

~~

In a secluded valley within the Cretan mountains.

Lorne looked around at the scattered remnants of the battlefield, the scenes of those two recent clashes still vivid in his mind, as if they had happened only yesterday.

Of course, the first round with demigod hunter Orion had been just a warm-up; it was the second round, against the sea god Poseidon himself, that had truly shown him the terrifying might of a chief god’s authority.

That overwhelming pressure had nearly crushed the will to resist from his heart.

And this was just a fragment of Poseidon’s power.

Then how unfathomably strong must Zeus, the king of the gods, be?

Lorne thought about it and could only shake his head helplessly.

Forget it—that’s too far off.

You eat a meal one bite at a time; you walk a road one step at a time. If you rush too fast, well... you’re bound to tear your balls.

This wasn’t the time to be thinking about that.

After calming his thoughts, Lorne stretched his body slightly, raised his foot, stepped out of the river bank, into the lake in front of him.

Unexpectedly, just as his body should have been sinking, he found himself standing steadily upon the water’s surface, as though treading solid ground.

And not just standing.

On the water surface, Lorne opened his eyes and began to move his limbs, trying to jump and run.

As a result, he could not only walk on flat ground, but also clearly sense the movements from all directions through the layers of ripples spread by the water waves under his feet.

At the same time, all the fatigue he’d accumulated vanished, and his magic reserves replenished rapidly.

Clenching his fist, Lorne swung it forward as a massive tidal surge of aether roared ahead like an angry sea, instantly pulverizing several waist-high boulders on the riverbank into dust.

As expected of something dropped by Poseidon—the effect is incredible!

Experiment complete, Lorne couldn’t help praising the sea god who had come all the way from the Oceanus to Crete to ”drop loot” for him.

——Sea’s Blessing. This was his prize for winning that bold gamble.

A blessing born from Poseidon’s golden blood, granting healing, recovery, enhanced perception, water-walking, and other benefits.

Overall, an extremely practical boon.

Especially in watery environments, his combat ability and survivability would be greatly enhanced.

High risk, high reward indeed.

To catch up to the gods as quickly as possible, he’d have to keep farming these old geezers for loot.

Harboring no small amount of malicious glee toward his ”relatives,” Lorne continued familiarizing himself with this powerful new oceanic blessing.

Though the path he chose was that of a god of joy and revelry, one who would shatter fate and order, that didn’t mean he couldn’t absorb other divine authorities as supplements.

For instance, the original god of wine possessed the water-based ability to turn water into wine, the agricultural power to make plants grow, the hearth power to brew drinks, the artistic power to compose and perform merrymaking...

So there was no need for him to treat other authorities as some kind of pollution to his core essence.

On the contrary, if they provided practical benefits or amusing effects, this god of fun would welcome them all.

Still... why does the combination of Sea’s Blessing and Infinite Martial Refinement feel strangely familiar?

Suddenly, Lorne looked down at the rippling lake surface, at himself walking atop the water, at the branch he’d picked up and couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

Isn’t this just a copy of that certain L-named knight of round table from Celtic mythology?

Even the ”Friend of Women” passive had manifested perfectly...

So does this mean the next step is to find a king to serve, then run off with his queen to complete the set?

Or maybe... I should save that opportunity for a certain great king of the gods, so he can taste some of his own medicine?

’Wait a second... wouldn’t that mean the one I’d be seducing is Queen Hera?’

Tsk... to make the goddess who was originally fated to kill me, be driven to exhaustion by me instead, if this works out, it really will be quite the delightful little joke.

Lorne muttered in his heard, entertaining himself amidst the monotony of training, his entire being filled with irreverence toward the gods and mockery toward fate.

Ever since that night when Hestia had pulled him onto the balcony to witness the world’s simple joys and sorrows, this foreigner from another dimension was no longer driven forward by either Chance or Fate.

He had fully integrated into this world, actively and deliberately pursuing the path he had chosen.

After a serious training session, feeling refreshed in both body and mind, Lorne strolled up the riverbank, bent down to sit on a pile of stones, and pulled out a clay jar from his magic array, ready to digest another reward from the day.

As he opened the jar, a rich, familiar scent of barley mixed with a hint of cool mint oil wafted into his nose.

—Kykeon porridge.

—But this was not from his witch master Circe, but rather the original, divine version personally prepared by Demeter, goddess of agriculture.

And this was what he had drawn that morning from the Dice of Chance using the silver badge he’d earned after pranking Hestia.

According to legend, during her search for her daughter Persephone, Demeter once disguised herself as an old beggar and came to Eleusis.

The four daughters of King Celeus welcomed her and asked where she came from.

Demeter fabricated a tale, claiming to be a noblewoman kidnapped by pirates who had escaped their clutches.

She begged for work to support herself.

As it happened, Queen Metaneira had just given birth to a son, Demophoon, and needed a nursemaid, thus, Demeter was brought into the palace.

Grieving her lost daughter, the goddess agreed to care for the newborn prince.

She loved the child dearly and decided to raise him as a god.

By day, the goddess fed the boy barley porridge prepared with her own hands, cradling him tenderly. By night, she placed him in the hearth to burn away his mortal impurities.

But this divine ritual was accidentally interrupted by the queen. Forced to reveal her true identity, Demeter had no choice but to leave.

The people of Eleusis were stricken with remorse upon learning the truth but at this point, things were irreversible.

In the end, they could only cling to the fragments of the goddess’s teachings in hopes of achieving transcendence.

Thus, the famous Eleusinian Mysteries were born.

The divinely-blessed porridge, Kykeon, was passed down through these rites.

However, mortal attempts to replicate its effects fell far short of Demeter’s original, if they hadn’t, surely Eleusis would have produced gods long ago.

As Lorne recalled the history of the substance in his hands, he raised the jar to his lips and decisively gulped down the divine porridge.

Although this thing cannot make people become gods at once, there is no doubt that according to previous records, it can at least enhance the physique, vitality, and divinity of the user, and then give birth to immortality.

Drinking it could only be beneficial!

And after years of abuse by his troublesome witch master, Lorne had drunk at least eight hundred if not a thousand bowls of Kykeon, so, he was more than familiar with it.

Gulp~

After a series of swallows, Lorne drained the jar and let out a satisfied burp.

Ah... still the same formula, still the same taste!

Now it was time to digest it.

According to the teachings of the silly bird teacher, Lorne closed his eyes and let his mind wander, gradually emptying his mind, trying to absorb the divinity contained in the God-given food in his body.

Yet after two full hours, he was forced to open his eyes in frustration.

Something’s wrong with the method.

Despite all that effort, he had absorbed less than one percent.

That can’t be right. Where am I going wrong?

As confusion filled his mind, Lorne furrowed his brow and pondered for a moment, then a bold hypothesis emerged in his thoughts.

Could it be... that I’m not releasing enough?

——I have never turned anyone into a beast. They were beasts to begin with.

Recalling Circe’s words, half a jest, half laced with deeper meaning, Lorne finally made up his mind before he completely opened his mind and began silently chanting to himself, entering a state of self-hypnosis.

’I am a leopard, a fierce beast running through the forest, with powerful limbs and sharp claws...’

Gradually, a mist of white vapor poured from Lorne’s body, enveloping his figure.

Moments later, amidst the sharp cracks of bones shifting and the soft rustling of flesh transforming, a beast’s paw covered in black fur stretched out from the mist, with a few shredded scraps of cloth hanging between its claws.

”Roar!” With a low growl, a sleek black panther burst forth from the swirling mist, leaping to the lakeside and gazing at its reflection in the water, all while feeling the rapid breakdown of the Kykeon porridge within its body as a human-like expression of satisfaction appearing on its feline face.

Yes, this is the feeling!

Demeter was a goddess of nature and growth, revering primal instinct and the wild.

Thus, by allowing the human self to return to its beastly origins, one could better resonate with her gift and absorb the divine essence within the porridge.

At this moment, as his guess was verified, Lorne immediately put aside his reserve and completely entered the role, stretching his limbs like a real panther, running and hunting in the woods;

Soon, no longer content with just one form, he shifted into a golden stag, bounding gracefully through the valley.

Then, growing more skilled, Lorne successively transformed into common animals such as a gray wolf, a yellow marten, a fox... unleashing his wild instincts to fully absorb the natural divinity in the Kykeon.

Done!

At last, when the absorption was complete, Lorne’s lightened body took on the form of a snow-white rabbit as it leapt toward a nearby pond, intending to wash away the dust and grime from all that running.

”Splish—”

”Smack—”

However, the little rabbit aiming for the water smacked headlong into a soft, elastic wall with a crisp splash.

At the same time, before the little rabbit that was almost knocked unconscious by the soft, overwhelming impact could come to its senses, a slender, fair hand with irresistible force grabbed its long ears, lifting it before a face as radiant as the moon, breathtakingly beautiful with an air of wild grace.

”Hmm? Little one, do you want to bathe with me?”

With a clear and melodious voice, jewel-like eyes blinked curiously, then softened with a faint smile.

”Alright, I allow it!”

With that, the mysterious golden-haired, silver-eyed girl gently cradled the little rabbit in her arms.

Then, like a mermaid, she leaned back into the water, her graceful figure creating a stunning image beneath the setting sun.

And at that very moment, the little rabbit trapped between two towering peaks curled up on this soft land, frozen stiff, unable to move a muscle.

(End of this chapter)

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P.S: Can you guess who she is??