Chapter 459: 13 Whoa, that's awesome!
Chapter 459: Chapter 13 Whoa, that’s awesome!
In the campsite, the six people who had resolved their misunderstanding gathered around the bright fire, exchanging names.
Of course, Luo En used a pseudonym.
The atmosphere gradually became friendly through their interactions. While the women dried their clothes and prepared food with laughter, the men stood guard and discussed their travels.
Coincidentally, the three siblings from the Spartan city-state, like Luo En’s trio, were also there to deal with the beast disaster in Arcadia.
Moreover, they were reinforcements specially invited by the King of Arcadia.
“Are Arcadia and Sparta that good in their state relations?”
Luo En looked at the twin brothers before him, his face showing surprise.
These three siblings were not ordinary Spartans, but the Prince and Princesses of Sparta, not only of noble status but also of legendary birth.
In Zeus’s fate-related eighth descent to seduce mortals, he transformed into a swan pursued by a hawk and nestled in the arms of the Spartan Queen Leda, then coupled with her in a semi-forceful manner.
After several days of dalliance, Queen Leda conceived and laid two shimmering golden swan eggs, from which four angelic children hatched.
From one golden egg came Castor and Clytemnestra, the eldest son and daughter; the other egg produced Pollux and Helen, the second-born son and daughter.
Of them, the two sons—Castor and Pollux—later became known as the Gemini heroes of Greece; the two daughters—Clytemnestra and Helen—one married Agamemnon, King of the city-state of Mycenae; the other married his brother Menelaus, and thus initiated the entire sequence of the Trojan War.
Seeing the surprise on Luo En’s face, the twin brothers answered with a light laugh.
“We didn’t want to come, and we aren’t close with the King of Arcadia.”
“But this is an oracle from Lord Apollo…”
Perhaps due to a sense of understanding, the two brothers had a distinctive way of speaking, almost alternately, completing a full statement together.
Apollo?
Luo En was taken aback for a moment, then quickly understood.
In the traditional perception, Spartans were brave and warlike, fitting the military city-state mold, quite in line with Ares, God of War.
But in reality, they primarily worshiped Apollo, the god of light and prophecy.
The Spartans considered Apollo their Guardian God, both a god of war and of the arts. In Sparta’s military training, before every deployment, Spartan warriors would pray at the Temple of Apollo, hoping for victory and protection, believing that Apollo’s power could grant them courage, strength, and combat skills.
As for Ares, sorry, though he was the god of war, he lost too often and was quite disliked by the Spartans.
After all, war has value only if it is won.
Well, now Apollo is also a war god, and Ares, poor fellow, seems to be having a tough time.
Luo En bantered silently to himself while piecing together the situation from the twins’ stories.
Not long ago, Arcadia faced a beast disaster. The Temple Priests sought help from Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, but could not get a response.
In fact, it wasn’t that Artemis was unwilling to help, but she wasn’t in Arcadia at all.
To vie with Ares for the faith of the Amazons, she took her war Nymphs to Paradise Island, where the Amazons resided. The battle for belief was at a critical juncture, and Artemis could not leave.
Before leaving, the Goddess of the Hunt had asked her brother Apollo to oversee Arcadia as her holy land in her absence.
Thus, upon hearing of Arcadia’s crisis, Apollo immediately chose his most powerful followers from the Spartan city-state, and several days before, delivered an oracle commanding Sparta to send demigods to assist the Arcadians in handling the beast disaster.
As a result, the twins with the pure divine bloodline accepted the mission and set out on the journey to quell the beasts.
As for Helen, she was an accident.
Her Royal Highness the Princess, out of curiosity and playfulness, sneaked out of the city with her brothers. Despite being caught red-handed, the brothers couldn’t withstand their sister’s pitiful pleas and had to take her along on their departure.
It must be said, Greece’s future “First Scourge of Beauty” showed the troublesome nature of her character from a young age.
Having heard the whole story, Luo En felt a twinge of empathy while silently mourning his distant great-grandfather.
Ares, oh Ares, letting Apollo completely take over the mantle of war god, and now Artemis is about to steal the hard-earned territory… Is it so that in all of Olympus, any god can fleece you?
“Dinner is ready, we can eat now.”
The pleasant voice ended the men’s idle chat, as Helen led her two brothers and the savior to formally take their seats.
The flickering campfire licked the bottom of the pot, while the aroma of the boiling mushroom broth filled the air; the beast meat skewered on branches next to it turned a golden brown, emitting the fragrance of fat.
Helen picked up a ladle, serving Luo En a full bowl of mushroom soup first.
Also, his plate of bread and roasted meat was noticeably more generous than others’, and presented better.
Seeing their sister’s clear favoritism, the twins waited for dinner with a look of understated grievance.
Although I know you want to express gratitude, you don’t have to make it so obvious, do you?
Atalanta and Medea, seeing the Spartan Princess acting so enthusiastically and actively, sensed a warning out of female instinct and promptly scooted lower, squeezing Luo En in the middle like a sandwich cookie.
He’s married, don’t even think about seducing a good househusband of War God Mountain!
In the end, Helen could only sit back beside her brothers, casting occasional forlorn glances.
Watching his left and right guardians on high alert, and the pitiful beauty causing trouble by his side, Luo En felt like sitting on pins and needles and hurriedly changed the subject.
“Come on, let’s eat, the food is going to get cold if we don’t eat now.”
With that, he quickly bowed his head, focusing intently on tonight’s dinner.
Although this meal wasn’t as elaborate or as delicious as Hestia’s cooking,
the ingredients from the mountains were still quite abundant, and they had quite a variety of seasonings, so the overall taste still scored around seventy or eighty points.
After the meal, Luo En took out some snacks he always carried and shared them with everyone.
The sour and sweet flavors adored by the Greeks, along with the delicate shapes, suited the girls’ tastes well. Thus, the three females in the group were soon busy dealing with the small cakes in front of them, no longer entangled with the issues about Luo En.
Seeing his strategy work, Luo En quietly passed a plate of snacks, fried wheat flour wrapped around grape jam until crispy, sweet, and soft, then tiptoed back to his tent, quickly setting up a defensive magic charm at the entrance before diving into his bedding and falling asleep.
Whether he was really sleepy or pretending, he wouldn’t deal with those three tigresses.
The night passed without incident, and the next morning arrived as usual.
Having eaten their fill and rested, everyone emerged from their tents one after another.
After spending the night together, the six, compatible in temperament and purpose, quickly reached an agreement and decided to travel together towards Arcadia.
~~
Whinnyyy~~
Across the wilderness bellowed the horses, raising clouds of dust, the six individuals driving their respective chariots, after several days of travel, finally approached the disaster-stricken area of Arcadia.
At this time, the area was already under military blockade by the Arcadians.
Soldiers armed with spears and shields, stationed at various strategic points on high alert, solemnly pounded their chests in salute and warned in a grave voice after identifying them.
“Brave warrior, once you pass this checkpoint, you will enter the area ravaged by magic beasts, they may appear at any time, you must be careful!”
“That’s perfect, we’re here to deal with those creatures.”
Castor laughed heartily, seemingly unconcerned.
The middle-aged man with the look of an officer opened his mouth but seeing the spirited demeanor of both parties and recalling their demigod status, he eventually didn’t speak, merely ordering his subordinates to open the sharpened barricades and deactivate the outer defensive charms, with a few simple instructions.
“Ten more kilometers ahead is the Royal City, you may want to gather there first for a brief rest and basic supplies. In three days, when we have assembled enough people, His Majesty will send someone to join you in the mountains to clear out the magic beasts.”
“Thank you very much. You all have been working hard too,” said Luo En as he nodded and thanked the soldiers and then drove his chariot through the checkpoint.
“These magic beasts are a bit different this time, be very cautious!”
Perhaps moved by Luo En’s expression of goodwill, the officer watching the expedition team advance finally shouted out a warning.
Luo En waved his hand to indicate he had heard the advice, then drove his chariot, picking up speed as he went forward.
Arcadia was mountainous and the jungle dense; even the main road mostly meandered through the more even slopes of the mountains and forests.
The chariots passed through a thin layer of mountain mist, and the view suddenly cleared up, with towering trees stretching straight into the sky and dense leaves casting spots of shade. It was only at noon that the dense fog began to dissipate slightly.
But even so, the bright sunlight that pierced through the gaps and broke through the shadowy obstructions only amounted to insignificant specks upon reaching the forest.
A breeze brushed past Luo En, who inhaled deeply, the vibrant fragrance of plant life mixed with the smell of decaying branches and leaves, tickling his nose and almost making him sneeze.
These magic beasts are not quite the same… what does that mean?
Luo En mulled over this while carefully observing his surroundings.
The plants around were unusually large, with clear signs of mutation, and the persistent haze hanging in the dense forest was tinged with a faint smell of blood.
“Something’s coming! Be on alert!”
Atalanta, standing atop the carriage, upon observing the rising dust clouds and the swathes of fallen trees on the slopes far away, couldn’t help but shout a warning, her ears pricked.
Soon, accompanied by a violent trembling of the ground, dozens of creatures covered in shiny manes, with a pair of tusks at the front, burst out of the dense forest and charged at the two carriages on the road.@@novelbin@@
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