Eutostea, the third princess of Thebes, is visited by the mysterious guest calling himself the God Apollo in bed. In pitch-black darkness, only an outline of him said, “I have come to share a one-night love with you. Once the night passes, you will not remember me, nor shall we meet ever again.” Soon, the three princesses band together to reveal his face while he is sleeping. But the candlewax melts off the tip of the candle in Eutostea’s hand and falls on the god’s shoulder. Apollo wakes, grabs the second princess, declaring, “Princess of Thebes, admire to your heart’s content. ‘Tis the face of the mere shell you sought so dearly.”

The bride and groom met in the middle of the virgin road, bowed at each other, and then kneeled in front of the podium where Eutostea was standing. There was a ritual of applying olive oil to each other’s bodies in the sense of purification. Machiades poked his finger into the small bowl of oil and then drew a circle on the back of Askitea’s hand holding the bouquet.


The bride’s eyes sparkled. She lifted the cumbersome veil, pulled it back, applied olive oil on her lips, then grabbed the groom’s stiff neck and pulled it toward her to kiss him enthusiastically. Machiades fluttered his arms bewilderedly like a fish. 


But Askitea pretended not to hear his complaint and just continued kissing him shamelessly. Eutostea held up the papyrus sheet stealthily to block her sight and turned a blind eye to what was happening. 


Chapter 78 - Chapter 78