The Greece Antagonist

Seeing his lifesaver's regretful and pained expression, Luo En quickly offered heartfelt comfort.

"Don't worry, I did it cleanly. With Ares's brain, he definitely won't be able to trace it back to me!"

"So, that's why he's run off to the Sea of Okeanos to trouble us?"

Thetis gazed somberly at the opposite side, grinding her silver teeth, her blue eyes brimming with grief and indignation.

"That, was an accident..."

Luo En chuckled dryly, attempting to make excuses, but under the murderous gaze of the Ocean Goddess, he ultimately shifted his head away, guiltily.

Alright, he did it on purpose.

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Choosing the seaside for a decisive battle, the protection and healing granted by his ocean authority, his incarnation as the Great Whale wielding divinity, along with the dissipation of the Spear of Nation-Building's presence at sea...

All these factors combined, even Athena, renowned for her wisdom, would be misled to first suspect the ocean deities, let alone the single-minded Ares.

Moreover, Olympus, represented by Zeus, had just made its move against the Sea of Okeanos.

The motives and reasons were all terrifyingly sufficient.

By the way, that Dice of Chance on him, coupled with the divine protection of art and memory granted by the Nine Muses, practically maxed out his BUFF for good deeds done in anonymity.

Even if Ares projected his consciousness into the King of Thracians, he would be affected by the intense "chance" and "divinity of memory" at the scene, influenced to make the wrong judgments.

And there, everything played out just as he had rehearsed.

The only thing he miscalculated was being saved by the Ocean Goddess Thetis.

And to top it off, this woman was the wise Nymph herself, and his shameless framing of the ocean gods was caught red-handed.

Troublesome...

Luo En raised his head and stroked his chin, gazing pensively at Thetis before him.

Feeling the two gazes upon her, the Ocean Goddess was startled, instinctively stepping backward, planning to use her innate Art of Transformation to dive into the sea and escape.

However, before she could take a few steps, a hand pressed on her shoulder, pulling her weak body back in front of the fire.

"Don't be nervous, you are my savior, how could I possibly repay kindness with malice? Besides, if I really wanted to harm you, would I have waited for you to wake up?"

That was indeed the case...

After a moment's thought, Thetis slightly lowered her guard and asked coldly.

"What do you want, then?"

"It's not about what I want, it's about what you want."

Luo En smiled, extending two fingers, showing a gesture of openness.

"Now you have two choices: First, run out and snitch, hand me over. Of course, I won't admit to it, and I'll erase all evidence against me."

Without hesitation, Thetis discarded that option.

It'd be easy to betray this guy beside her, but it would be tantamount to directly offending Hestia, who was extremely popular, as well as several goddesses with whom he was deeply connected.

Like Athena and Artemis...

The state of the Sea of Okeanos at the moment could not withstand even a single ruckus caused by Ares.

What's more, if the other three Chief Gods got involved?

"The second option, pretend you know nothing and keep the secret to yourself. In return, I'll leave first thing in the morning, and I'll also draw Ares's attention once, but after that, the matters of the Sea of Okeanos are none of my concern."

Thetis pursed her lips and turned her head to look at the raging crimson sea in the distance, instantly grasping Luo En's meaning.

Concerning her own safety, the chance of this rascal boldly admitting guilt and willingly taking the blame was impossible.

His largest concession was just to lead Ares away once, increasing the number of potential suspects.

But that was a temporary fix, not a cure. Once the pursued disappeared, the blame would still fall on the ocean gods.

At that time, who knew what kind of revenge that fooled brute would seek?

Without Poseidon to hold the Sea of Okeanos together, and with the pressing down by His Majesty the King of Gods, it simply could not withstand more turmoil.

Moreover, at the forefront were her sister and father.

So, this wasn't a very good way out either.

After a moment of silence, Thetis slowly spoke.

"What about a third option? You should have another plan you haven't mentioned."

See, it's very comfortable to communicate with smart people.

At this moment, a pleasant smile crossed Luo En's face, as he raised his hand in applause for the sharpness of the Ocean Goddess.

"The third, well, is for us to work together to solve the trouble in the Sea of Okeanos."

The trouble in the Sea of Okeanos? Isn't that something you framed up!

Looking at the shameless facade of the original schemer, Thetis suddenly felt an anger that had no place to vent.

But ultimately, her usual rationality cooled her down quickly, leading her to question the feasibility of this plan.

"I'm no match for Ares, and as for you... you don't seem up to it either, right?"

"There's no need to fight to the death, just a tiny sacrifice will be enough."

Luo En shook his head, beginning to speak with a smile, his eyes now fixed on the Ocean Goddess's figure.

Thetis felt a chill in her heart, instinctively standing up from her seat, clutching her chest tightly.

"See, you're nervous again."

Luo En's eyes showed a teasing rebuke, as he pulled the Ocean Goddess, her face full of wariness, back to the negotiation table, while he reassured her with a smile.

"Relax, it's not you, nor any of the ocean deities, it's someone else."

"Really?" Thetis was skeptical.

"You're my savior! Would I harm you? If you don't trust me, then I might as well leave."

Luo En put on a stern face, pretending he would leave the island.

Seeing that the culprit who dumped the blame was about to flee, Thetis immediately pulled back this self-proclaimed man with a remedial plan, her pretty face slightly darkening.

"Speak!"

However, Luo En didn't rush to explain, but instead asked meaningfully,

"Do you know the fastest way to cover up an out-of-control lie?"

Thetis fell into thought for a moment before she slowly spoke, "A bigger lie?"

Luo En smiled without replying, instead turning his gaze towards the crimson sea, and spoke with a profound meaning.

"I've heard that the God of Love, Aphrodite, has a beloved lover in Cyprus named Adonis, but he has always been at odds with that War God..."

"!"

In an instant, Thetis's expression froze, realizing the true intention of the man before her, and she was shocked into speechlessness.

"Are you insane?"

"I haven't done anything."

Luo En spread his hands, an innocent look on his face.

"I saw our Lord Ares descending to the mortal world several times, looking to pick a fight with Adonis, but he has never been able to find the Prince's shadow. I just kindly offered him a little help."

"..."

Looking at the so-called old-school enthusiastic "good-hearted person" before her, Thetis was speechless.

Without thinking, she understood what this guy was plotting.

It was clear he planned to use the matter of Adonis to incite a conflict between Ares and Aphrodite, the two Chief Gods.

That way, the War God naturally wouldn't have time to loiter over the Sea of Okeanos or continue to cause trouble for the sea deities.

A few years later, when Poseidon's sentence ended and he returned, Ares might remember the old disputes but would not necessarily have the opportunity to cause trouble as he did now.

But, this required a prerequisite.

Whether it was covering a lie with another lie or quelling one conflict with another.

The affairs on Cyprus Island must be stirred up to be bigger than those on the sea!

That is to say...

Thetis looked at the young deity across the firelight, smiling broadly, and felt a chill in her heart as she bit her lower lip.

"Let me think about it..."

"No rush, Ares won't dare to make too much of a fuss for now. You can take your time to decide," Luo En replied nonchalantly, smiling and gesturing with an inviting hand.

"Or maybe, if you think about it optimistically, maybe he's a reasonable God."

As Thetis with the complex expression returned to her own chamber and closed the door, Luo En picked up a few branches from different trees lying beside him, threw them into the fire, and watched with interest as they burned, turning into indistinguishable ashes in the flames.

In ancient China, when green forest heroes recruited allies, to add a layer of security, they would often make those with a clear conscience commit a deed to prove their loyalty.

——That's to say, commit a crime together.

By doing so, they had something against each other and could trust each other more.

Similarly, this was actually what Luo En was doing as well.

Given that Thetis had seen through some of his secrets, it was safer to take the opportunity to bring her onto his ship of thieves.

And the charming Prince Adonis was their proof of allegiance.

Of course, even if she did not agree, Luo En, even if not seeking revenge for a favor with vengeance, wouldn't kill the Ocean Goddess who had just aided him.

If necessary, he could simply use "Memory Divinity" to confuse or alter some of her memories.

But comparatively, he would much prefer to have the sufficiently clever Ocean Goddess stand by his side.

In front of the crackling fire, a scheming man contemplating how to drag a respectable goddess into the water chewed over the previous exchange, stroking his chin and revealing a thoughtful amusement in his eyes.

She didn't outright refuse?

So, she likely knows where Aphrodite is hiding Adonis?

What an unexpected pleasure.

"Die! Die! All of you die!"

The blood-red figure atop the sea continued to vent its fury upon innocent beings, with swathes of crimson quickly spreading across the sea surface, and the mutilated corpses of Sea Beasts surfacing.

On the island, however, the real culprits and the complicit who got swept into the mess, fell into their respective contemplations through the long night.

~~

The next morning, Thetis emerged from her chamber looking exhausted, with red veins threading her eyes and a crestfallen spirit indicating that the Ocean Goddess had been tormented by troublesome matters all night.

Luo En, who was sitting in front of the dying embers, didn't hurry to chase answers, instead he pointed towards the freshly heated barley soup, thoughtfully asking,n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Would you like some breakfast?"

Thetis opened her mouth to speak, but seemed to hear a high-pitched sound, her face changed, and she immediately turned and rushed towards the shore.

Was there trouble?

Luo En was taken aback, quickly set down his soup bowl, and immediately got up to follow.

As they moved through the dense forest to reach the shallow waters near the sea, several snow-white dolphins, covered in wounds, congregated in the blood-stained bay.

And around them, the bodies of their kind along with seahorses, whales, octopuses, and other sea creatures were washed up in great numbers onto the shore.

Seeing Thetis arrive, the surviving sea creatures seemed to cry out to their mother for shelter, letting out pained cries, accusing some brutal perpetrator.

But as life ebbed away, their responses gradually weakened.

Seeing this, Thetis hastily summoned clear seawater to moisten and heal their wounds before escorting these innocent victims back to the sea for resettlement.

However, compared to the almost crimson-covered vast sea area, the efforts of the Ocean Goddess seemed a drop in the ocean.

What was worse, the bloodied storm raging all night on the sea showed no signs of stopping but was instead following the escape routes of the sea creatures, heading straight towards the island where Thetis was.

A reasonable God? I'm afraid even if I hand over the person, I may not end well, right?

Thetis, looking at the blood-red wave closing in fiercely, just shy of a hundred miles away, while also considering the sea creatures suffering due to misplaced anger, reflected on the comforts offered by someone the previous night, and found it supremely ironic.

I have stepped back time and again, yet you still press on relentlessly.

So be it, then I must seek justice in my own way.

As she saw the blood-red sky that seemed to touch the heavens now within a hundred miles, the Ocean Goddess made up her mind and turned to look at Luo En behind her.

"At the Rock of Aphrodite, near the Bay of Polis Forest!"

Hearing the answer, Luo En revealed a pleased smile and extended his hand cordially yet formally to Thetis.

"Pleasure doing business with you..."