The Greece Antagonist

Greece, upon the Sea of Okeanos, under a dark sky heavy with dense clouds.

An old, worn boat rocked side to side amidst the rolling waves, as an elderly fisherman in a linen shirt tightly clenched his frozen stiff fingers, struggling to pull in the fishing net he had cast.

As soon as the soaking wet net was dragged into the cabin, a skinny little girl carrying a small bucket excitedly rushed forward to search around.

However, the catch was meager; besides a few small fish that looked pitiful, there was nothing but rotten seaweed and a few pieces of broken wood.

Holding the bucket, which was light in weight, the girl pursed her dry, cracked lips, utterly disappointed.

"Don't worry, the next catch will definitely be better."

The old man comforted his granddaughter with a gentle voice before casting the net again.

But after several attempts, the fishing net brought up nothing substantial.

Now, not only the little girl but also the old man couldn't help feeling a bit impatient.

Although he knew from many years of fishing experience that this terrible weather was not suitable for going out to sea, his family at home was all waiting to be fed.

If they didn't make a catch today, they would all go hungry.

The old man glanced at his thin, dark-skinned granddaughter beside him and gritted his teeth as he picked up the oar from inside the cabin:

"Let's go deeper and see!"

The little girl obediently nodded her head and sat quietly in the stern, holding the bucket.

The oar stirred the water, creating ripples as the boat entered a rarely visited area of the Sea of Okeanos.

The old man steadied the boat, composed himself, and then patiently looked for traces of nearby fish schools.

The weather grew colder, and a dense white fog gradually rose from the sea. The old man, unaware of how long he had waited in the cold wind, finally saw the layers of waves surging from beneath the water and his spirits lifted with joy.

Something was coming! And they seemed to be big ones!

Thinking of steaming hot fish soup, delicious fish meat, and loads of Athena's Bronze, the old man immediately stood at the bow and vigorously cast the fishing net forward.

However, just as he was waiting for the fish to swarm in, the fog in front surged violently.

A gigantic beast, as imposing as a mountain, sped through the waves at an incredible speed. The churning seawater raised waves several meters high, instantly flipping the decrepit little boat.

Caught off guard, the old man and the little girl plunged into the icy water, their bodies bobbing up and down with the waves, their consciousness gradually blurring from suffocation and hypothermia.

"Is anyone there? Stop the boat!"

Just when the grandfather and granddaughter thought they were about to drown, a stern shout echoed in their ears.

Following that, a gentle force pulled them out of the water and placed them onto a deck covered in cedar wood.

The old man and his granddaughter, lying prone, coughed violently to expel the seawater that had entered their nostrils and lungs. After catching their breath, they timidly looked around:

This was not a beast but a warship, even more massive than a beast.

The warship was constructed from sturdy cedar, appearing majestic and grand; the deck was engraved with a series of ancient symbols shimmering with light, exuding a mysterious aura; the central mast was carved from a Holy Tree with human facial features, looking somewhat eerie from a distance...

What shocked the grandfather and granddaughter most were the crew members on the ship.

There were mighty men , standing three meters tall, noble young men dressed in gold silk, a green-haired female hunter with cat ears and a tail, a strange girl with colorful wings and pointed ears, and... a group of pale skeletons maneuvering the warship.

Such an extraordinary sight profoundly impacted their worldview, leaving them stunned.

Seeing the rescued pair appearing both shocked and scared, Luo En, who was most human-like and approachable among the crowd, stepped forward and asked warmly:

"Old man, are you both alright?"

The old man, as if waking from a dream, hurriedly, tremblingly shook his head.

Luo En glanced at the soaked and shivering pair and promptly raised his hand to dry them off, also handing them two animal skin blankets.

"Here, cover yourselves with these. The weather is so cold; don't catch a chill."

The man's voice seemed to possess a comforting magic, making the grandfather and granddaughter nod obediently and gratefully accept the blankets, wrapping them around their thin bodies.

Seeing that their emotions had somewhat stabilized, Jason quickly stepped forward with an embarrassed smile:

"Sorry, we just came out from the Sea of Chaos, and I'm still not quite adapted to handling the situation, so I accidentally swept you up with us. Thankfully, you're not hurt, or I'd be in deep trouble."

The old man, hearing this, finally understood the cause of their earlier troubles.

With that thought, he hurried to the ship's side and looked out over the water, finally spotting his battered old friend among the waves.

Seeing this, the old man couldn't help showing a sorrowful expression, worried about his future livelihood.

"Don't worry, once we land, I'll compensate you for your loss at full price!"

Jason, patting his chest, stepped forward and reassured him with consecutive promises.

Hearing this, the old man was overjoyed and immediately, shakily, pulled his granddaughter to kneel down.

"Quick, give thanks to these kind-hearted masters."

As Luo En saw this, he quickly stepped forward to help the grandfather and granddaughter up, joking:

"Old man, it's only right to repay debts, there's no need to be so formal with him."

Seeing the grandfather and granddaughter continuing to nod hesitantly, their every move exuding unease and fear, Luo En sensed a tragic barrier distancing them and couldn't help frowning.

That shouldn't be the case. The Mortal World had just experienced the Battle of Giants, and the relationships among humans, heroes, and the gods should be in a honeymoon phase. Just exchanging a few words shouldn't provoke such a significant reaction, right?

Thinking of the Magic Formula around the Argo suddenly extinguishing after breaking through the Chaos Sea Domain, Luo En had a hunch, and a bad premonition immediately came to his mind; he quickly pulled up an old man to inquire,

"Old man, you know about the Giant War in Thessaly, right? How long has it been since that great battle?"

"The Giant War?" The old man blinked, then counted on his fingers and answered somewhat uncertainly, "That seems to be something from over two hundred years ago."

Hearing this, Luo En's heart skipped a beat, and the faces of the Argo Heroes aboard also changed.

Two hundred years? It had been that long!

"Time and space are disordered in the Sea of Chaos, there's no way to measure it normally. It's actually very fast for us to have spent only two hundred years making a round trip."

Hecate stepped out of the cabin, smiling as she explained.

Hearing that casual tone, everyone felt relieved.

Two hundred years, after all, wasn't too long for these demigods.

Seeing the atmosphere relax, Luo En jokingly waved his hand to disperse the heroes gathered on the deck, "Alright, since we all want to get home sooner, everyone back to your posts."

Upon hearing the command, the Argo Heroes eager to return home swiftly resumed their stations, pushing the Argo to dock at full strength.

Then, Luo En turned to Medea beside him:

"Medea, go make some meat soup, let these two have a full meal first; docking will still take a little time."

Medea obediently nodded her head and led the grandfather and grandchild away.

When the deck was once again empty, Hecate and Luo En looked towards each other, their expressions gradually darkening:

"Do you feel it too?"

"Yes, I hadn't noticed before, but now I realize this place doesn't feel quite the same as when we left. The restrictions from the 'Destiny Contract' on Divinity and rank seem to have multiplied several times."

Luo En spread open his palm, staring at the significantly reduced golden flame in his hand, frowning deeply.

Hecate spoke solemnly, "Strictly speaking, what is decreed is constant. According to the stubborn nature of the Three Fates, the restrictions of the 'Destiny Contract' aren't likely to change easily."

Luo En looked at Hecate, slowly voicing the answer both understood without saying: "Unless, something went wrong..."

Compared to the two hundred years, this was their real concern.

For this reason, the two had tacitly shifted the topic in front of others earlier, to prevent the Argo Heroes from getting wind of any crucial information from the grandfather and grandson, which could unsettle the morale of the troops.

And next, it would be best for them, the decision-makers, to personally inquire to find out what exactly had happened in Greece in these past two hundred years.

With this thought in mind, the two nodded to each other and headed to the kitchen together.

At that moment, the invited grandfather and grandson were sitting at the dining table, voraciously gobbling up the meat porridge Medea had served.

The salty aroma and the satiating sensation from the meat made the long unfed pair immensely satisfied, their originally pale faces gradually showing a healthy flush.

"Old man, I'd like to ask you about some things." Luo En pulled over a chair and sat down next to the grandfather and grandson, initiating the conversation.

The old man hurriedly set down his bowl, stood up, and respectfully replied, "Ask away, I'll tell you everything I know!"

"No need to be so tense, we're just chatting," Luo En reassured him, pressing the old man back into his seat, throwing out all sorts of casual queries as if he were making small talk.

As the conversation progressed, the old man gradually relaxed and recounted everything he knew.

After the inquiry was complete, Luo En smiled, bidding the old man farewell, and stuffed some homemade candies into the hands of the thin little girl, then walked outside with Hecate, who had been listening the whole time.

The two stood in the shadows aboard the ship, gazing out over the vast Sea of Okeanos, their expressions grim.

Greece was now plagued by disasters everywhere: locusts, plagues, earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruptions, and so forth; calamities came one after another... Humans soaked in misery were barely enduring.

Everywhere there were wars: territorial disputes between Argos and Thebes, status conflicts between Athens and Sparta, trade frictions between Corinth and Cyprus... The alliances formed between city-states during the Giant War had long since become meaningless, turning the entire Peloponnesian Peninsula into chaos.

The reason for all this was—

Gods and heroes who had participated in the war in Thessaly had suddenly vanished overnight!

Almost all of them!

Without the restraint of the gods and the pioneering of the heroes, social order in the Mortal World, which had been so hard to establish, had drastically deteriorated over these two hundred years, ultimately turning into the current lawless mess.

Luo En took a deep breath, calmed his chaotic thoughts, and turned to look at Hecate:

"Master, what do you make of this?"

"It's mostly linked to that person from Olympus."

Hecate looked up towards the silhouette of the mountain range among the stars, answering succinctly.

Luo En nodded slightly, agreeing with this assessment.

After all, besides His Majesty the King of Gods, it was unlikely any other deity could easily stir up such storms across Greece.

Still, there were a few questions Luo En couldn't get a definite answer to:

First, even if His Majesty the King of Gods intended to take action, how was it that every rebel deity and hero vanished overnight?

Second, with so many deities and heroes gone without a trace, why hadn't the Three Fates shown any intention to intervene?

Third, who was now in charge in the various city-states of Greece? Who were the enemies, and who were the friends? What exactly happened to those vanished heroes and deities—are they dead or alive?

Since the grandfather and grandson on the ship were merely ordinary fishermen with limited sources of information, Luo En couldn't make a precise judgment on these questions.

"Don't worry, no news is good news," Hecate consoled softly, "Once the ship docks, we'll send people to gather information."

Luo En settled his heart and nodded, removing a frost-blue stone box, secured with nine locks, from the Magic Circle Diagram. His fingertips slowly traced the cold runes on its surface, then he lifted his gaze toward Olympus amidst the stars, his eyes filled with determination.