The Greece Antagonist

In the lush trails by the forest just off the northern shores of the island,

the "foreigners," one tall and one short, who had successfully smuggled themselves ashore glanced at the towering city walls and the majestic gates at the end of the road before ducking into the shade of the trees to begin the standard process of rehearsing their cover story.

"What do you call me after we get in?"

"Luo En..."

"Bang!"

A dull thwack landed on the little head of Medusa as Luo En, with a darkened face, repeated,

"Brother, you call me brother! From now on, you are my sister, and we are sibling merchants from Celifos, making our living out on the sea, got it?"

"Oh..."

Medusa rubbed her slightly aching head, uttering a monosyllabic word nonchalantly, her attitude rather perfunctory.

As for how much of that the Gorgon sister had taken in, perhaps only she knew.

Forget it, even if siblings call each other by first names, theoretically there shouldn't be any mistake.

Luo En reluctantly raised his hand to massage his slightly swollen temple and, after a bout of self-comfort, continued speaking.

"And your own name?"

"Anna!"

This time, Medusa's answer was decisive, and her tone was not as lifeless as before.

Clearly, she quite liked this new name.

And in Greek, from which the name originates, it means "grace," "mercy," "gracefulness," or "favor," signifying a blessing of good fortune and hopes.

Luo En nodded satisfied with the response and gently petted the little girl's head as a reward.

In the world of the divine age, a true name often reveals the origin and nature of a being, possessing some kind of mystical power. Furthermore, actions such as curses, prophecies, and spell locks, all require it as a medium.

Therefore, exposing something so crucial to one's survival could potentially invite unnecessary danger and trouble.

So, for safety's sake, Luo En had specifically created an alias for Medusa before entering the city, to hide her identity.

There was no helping it; the notoriety of the "[Sisters of the Gorgon]" and the "[Blood of Gorgon]" was simply too great—for the mortal humans, they were akin to walking treasures.

As for Luo En himself, there wasn't such a necessity.

On one hand, his true divine name should have been "Dionysus," a fact still unknown to anyone.

On the other hand, "Luo En," originating from the Greek word for "lion," was a pet name given by his late mother.

Besides his foster mother and teacher Circe, Hecate the Gambling Goddess as his partner, and the present Little Medusa, hardly anyone knew.

Even his nominal father Zeus was unaware.

—He hadn't waited for his lover to disclose the news before taking matters into his own hands.

Heh, it could be said to be a fitting retribution.

Remembering that stormy night and that Divine King who had thought he controlled everything, Luo En chuckled and shook his head.

Little Medusa looked up at the face which had become somewhat grim and asked with a bite of her cherry lips, whispering,

"Are you, are you alright?"

Luo En came back to his senses, laughed softly, shook his head, and then collected his thoughts to continue lobbing a few more questions to perfect their fabricated identities.

Perhaps because of the recent mishap, Medusa's subsequent answers were surprisingly cooperative, and they quickly completed the basic rehearsing.

Having finished the preparations, Luo En, still somewhat worried, reiterated his instructions.

"Remember, once we're inside, stick close behind me and do not run off. This isn't Formless Island; you should know how outsiders treat you."

"Hmm!"

Medusa's little face became serious, and she nodded vigorously, clearly understanding her predicament.

Luo En patted Medusa on the head, showing a warm smile as an encouragement. Then he lowered his hand to hold the little girl's cool hand and followed the flow of people on the road, leading the Gorgon towards the city gate at the end.

Along the way, he listened to the conversations of passersby, squinting his eyes to enjoy the breeze blowing in his face and the view of the island named "Crete."

This place was the source of ancient Greek culture, with a topography of mountains and deep valleys, and beautiful scenery, including cliffs, stone capes, and beaches forming the coastline. The standard Mediterranean climate made the island pleasant and sunny, with abundant rainfall, evergreen plant life in the woods, and fields of olive, grape, and citrus fruit bearing heavy, plump fruits.

Surrounded by the sea on all sides, the expanse of blue waves made it seem as if one were in a stunning garden.

Legend has it that Crete Island had nearly a hundred ancient cities, the most important of which was Knossos City, the royal capital known as "City of Cities," situated on a coastal plain in the northern part of the island.

Indeed, that was the city right before Luo En's eyes.

Following the crowd and paying the entrance tax like everyone else, the two of them successfully blended into Knossos City.

Past the towering city gates, a wide road paved in bluestone ran through the center of the city, connecting the main thoroughfares and lanes running in all directions, with buildings arrayed closely together on both sides, mostly constructed of stone, sturdy and durable.

Looking around, there were residences, palaces, villas, inns, public baths, and workshops among other places, all functional and well-equipped.

The market was exceptionally lively. Stone sculptures, gold and silver products, jewelry, pottery, bronze smelting, seasonal fruits and vegetables, and basic snack foods were all available.

Looking past the bustling crowd straight to the end of the road, one could see a grand palace, rectangular in shape and covering 22,000 square meters, with stern axial lines, standardized column structures, and skylight-style lighting, all radiating a unique Greek charm.

There lay the cultural and political center of the entire Crete Island—Knossos Palace.

And this magnificent residence belonged to a figure of great renown in Greek mythology.

—The ruler of Crete, one of the future three Judges of the Netherworld, son of Zeus and Europa...

As Luo En followed the related memories, his thoughts touched on the last title that emerged in his mind, and a pleased smile curled his lips.

...as well as the well-known Minotaur victim—King Minos.

It was said that Minos's ascent to the throne was not legitimate as he had seized the kingship from his older brother Radamanthys and banished him before securing his place as the new ruler of Crete Island.

To whitewash the sanctity of his succession, he once prayed to Poseidon for a divine sign to prove that his usurpation was justified. Consequently, Poseidon granted Minos a tremendous white Bull and demanded him to sacrifice it to the God of the Sea.

But the Bull was too beautiful, and Minos ended up sacrificing another one instead, infuriating Poseidon, who cursed Minos's wife Pasiphae with a desire for the beast.

To hide the shame, Minos hired Daedalus to create a wooden cow for Queen Pasiphae, into which she was concealed.

Due to its lifelike construction, the white Bull mated with this wooden cow and Pasiphae became pregnant, later giving birth to a creature with the body of a man and the head of a bull, the Minotaur, signifying "Minos's Bull."

In the end, when the scandal was exposed, Minos ordered Daedalus and his son Icarus to build an underground labyrinth to imprison the monstrous Minotaur.

After the accomplishment, Daedalus and his son also became prisoners, which led to the story of their flight across the Sea of Okeanos and the wings of Icarus.

Of course, by Luo En's estimation.

In the matter of imprisoning Daedalus and his son, King Minos as the instigator harbored somewhat personal grudges.

It was Daedalus who made the wooden cow so realistic that his own wife succumbed to a Bull.

Minos couldn't retaliate against Poseidon and was also ashamed, so Daedalus's size and stature were just right to bear the brunt of his fury.

So, in Greece, what really matters is power.

After silently mourning for the unfortunate soul of Crete Island for three seconds, Luo En casually pulled Medusa by the hand and while moving forward, began to speak out loud about the next arrangements.

"First, we'll find a shop to sell our catch and other items, and then we'll take a look around, buy some things including a sea chart, and then consider our next steps..."

Silence at his side, with the tug on his hand growing increasingly heavy.

Luo En turned his head and saw Medusa staring intently at the nearby stall with milk, grilled eggs, fruit preserves, and other dazzling local snacks, a hint of crystal saliva unknowingly hanging at the corner of her pink lips, gradually elongating.