The rainbow goddess Iris, who had been busy playing hide-and-seek with His Majesty the God-King, was momentarily distracted by an abrupt God-Net message.
In the next instant, the strongest arms in the cosmos wrapped around her.
"Caught you, my little rainbow."
A low, magnetic, teasing voice sounded by her ear.
Who else could it be but the utterly incorrigible God-King?
Iris's radiant face flushed crimson, and shimmering light rippled in her many-colored eyes.
She did not even have time to read the message before His Majesty had pinned her down for a thorough "lesson."
With His strong hands, the God-King "guided" His adorable Iris, letting her deeply experience the gulf that could never be crossed between sovereign and messenger.
Were it not for the inappropriate location, the God-King would certainly have "personally instructed" her to the fullest, pouring the profound "key points of the game" into her.
Even so, He did not let her go until Iris was soft all over, her divine power scattered, barely able to stand—only then did the wanton Lord relent.
The God-King, whose life was leisurely to the extreme, grew more and more unrestrained and hopeless.
Blushing to the roots of her hair, Iris slipped out of their play for the moment.
Only after her burning face had cooled a little did she open the God-Net and check that message.
When the dazzling rainbow goddess saw the words from her younger cousin Absu Naya, the rosy blossom on her cheeks slowly faded.
Her many-colored brows knit slightly as she sank into thought.
Absu Naya had detailed the entire matter, without any embellishment, in full,
and laid out her legal reasoning, asking Iris's opinion.
Iris glanced at His Majesty not far away, still blindfolded and romping through the temple with Atlas's daughters…
Shifting thoughts flickered through her prismatic eyes.
Her ties with Absu Naya were not particularly close, yet there was a cousinly bond.
Back then, inner sea and night gods had both "kept their heads down."
To huddle together for warmth, they had been relatively united.
Iris rapidly weighed the pros and cons.
On the matter of humankind, Absu Naya, having incomplete information, had indeed acted somewhat inappropriately.
But her behavior still fell within the bounds allowed by Order.
As for the goddess of epic erasing all her minions…
There was no question that, on this point, their side had more of the right.
However…
hoping on this basis for His Majesty to severely punish His beloved daughter was entirely unrealistic.
His Majesty doted on His daughters; a trifle like this would not even catch His eye.
Yet He would not wholly side with Calliope either.
His Majesty was still just.
And Absu Naya had, after all, acted with some desire to relieve His burdens.
He would not be wholly one-sided.
Even if He would not punish the goddess of epic, compensating the younger cousin somewhat was not impossible.
Iris's thinking slowly became clear.
Letting His Majesty see the inner sea's loyalty to Him would also be a good thing.
Even a little, obscure inner-sea goddess was always thinking of His troubles.
That heart, at least, was worthy.
If they did not let His Majesty see it, then Calliope's actions would leave Absu Naya not only taking a dumb loss but seemingly in the wrong if things were retold.
And if Calliope then spoke ill of the inner sea before His Majesty…
would that not mean losing both face and benefit?
Moreover…
After much thought, Iris still advised Absu Naya to make a bit of a fuss.
But the method had to be right.
And the main goal had to change.
They could not truly hope to make the goddess of epic pay, nor knock her down too far, and certainly could not afford to make a mortal enemy of her.
Nor could they appear overly aggressive and make His Majesty displeased or uncomfortable.
The true aim should be to use this chance, by another route, to win His favor.
Let His Majesty see the inner sea's absolute loyalty.
Let Him know of Absu Naya's grievance.
Although Calliope could not be punished, gaining some benefits for the younger cousin would still be a win.
As for how to do it, that was simple enough.
They must not file a formal complaint against the goddess of epic.
They must…
plead guilty.
Had Calliope not claimed that Absu Naya had ruined the surprise their Mother of Civilization and Memory was preparing for His Majesty?
True or not, since Calliope had used that as her justification,
then plead guilty.
That was the proper move.
Under the guise of confession, drag the goddess of epic's deeds into the light.
What to do after that would rest entirely with His Majesty.
In other words, it would place all initiative, humbly and respectfully, in His hands.
Iris explained all this in detail to Absu Naya.
The instant Absu Naya read the reply, it was like clouds parting and the moon appearing; sudden enlightenment.
"Elder Sister is truly amazing!"
"This consultation was worth it!"
"This approach is far better than my reckless plan to file a complaint!"
"This is the optimal solution!"
"At this point, rather than vent one's anger, it is better to gain something real."
"If I can use this chance to leave a good impression on His Majesty,
how could that be a loss?"
"So I lost a few foolish minions—if it means His Majesty will remember my name, will know my loyalty,
losing a few hundred thousand more would be worth it!"
Absu Naya thanked her cousin repeatedly, her heart full of genuine admiration.
She could not help but sigh deeply that this was what it meant to serve at the God-King's side.
Truly a close attendant of His Majesty.
Only now did she fully grasp what "political wisdom" meant.
Such skill and scope were far beyond mere cleverness:
they were consummate, step-by-step perfection.
Looking back at her own former, clumsy idea of a straightforward accusation, she felt it had been idiotic.
Following her sister's method would place her in an unassailable position.
It was perfect.
Whether or not Calliope faced any consequence, Absu Naya would certainly not have torn things to the point of the two becoming mortal enemies, and would almost certainly gain some favor from His Majesty.
That was profit, not loss.
What Absu Naya did not know was that Iris's help had deeper motives as well.
Motives concerning herself and her younger sister Arke, and the entire inner-sea pantheon.
The two of them bore heavy pressure.
The cosmos now had three major pantheons: sky, inner sea, and night.
Without question, the sky pantheon under Zeus was the absolute ruler.
It held the most gods, the greatest power, the strongest might.
Next came the night pantheon.
The inner sea was the weakest.
In principle, the night pantheon was no closer to the sky and inner sea than they were to each other.
After all, they all traced back to the Mother of All.
But that principle had already been broken.
The night pantheon had, in a sense, packaged itself and delivered it into the God-King's arms.
Now the so-called night pantheon was essentially the sky pantheon.
The Lady of Night, supreme and unquestioned ruler of the night gods, had not only rendered irreplaceable service in the God-King's war,
she had from beginning to end placed all her hopes on Zeus—going all in on Him.
She had later given herself entirely to Him.
That great primordial goddess, before the God-King, was devoted and obedient to the utmost.
His Majesty's love and respect for her were obvious (from most gods' perspective).
They already had two sons and two daughters—
each possessed of vast authority and power.
They were, quite literally, one family with the God-King.
The Lady of Night had truly offered up everything to Him.
Given His deep and loyal nature, a return of immense favor in authority and status was inevitable.
The night pantheon's current position had, in large part, been raised by His hand.
Once they had barely been presentable.
Back then, aside from the Lady of Night, whom other gods respected a little, which other night god had dared show their face?
Even the Lady of Night herself had held little more than an empty name, always excluded from the core of cosmic Order.
Now, night gods were indispensable to the cosmos—while the inner sea…
The inner sea houses still floated outside the true centers of power.
Once, when His Majesty had sought an alliance,
the inner sea's absolute ruler, the deep-sea Pontus, had wavered on the wall, daring only to watch.
That ancient sovereign had demonstrated the fence-sitter clan's highest instincts—and, in so doing, missed the best and perhaps only chance.
He had both hated and feared Kronos, yet had not dared rebel; his support for Zeus had been barely symbolic.
Offend neither side, please neither.
Thus, when Zeus became Ruler of the Cosmos, the inner sea remained a half-step lower.
Any god who had not fought in that war deciding the universe's fate had no right to vie for power.
To be allowed to keep their old honors at all was already the God-King's generosity.
The cost of their hesitation lingered on.
Now, in the pattern of the three realms and three domains, the inner sea, while not insignificant, was at best peripheral.
As for those permitted to serve by the God-King's side, to become His personal attendants, there were only the two sisters.
True, in the night pantheon only the Lady of Night could share the God-King's bed.
Two is greater than one—
but that was not how the account was balanced.
On one side, a pound of gold; on the other, two grams of bronze.
There was no comparison.
It was, after all, the Lady of Night.
Set the God-King aside and she alone counted for half the sky pantheon.
Her terror, power, and unfathomable depth were common knowledge among the gods.
Even if the night pantheon consisted only of her, no god would dare look down on them.
The inner sea, all told, could not equal a fraction of her.
As for comparing the inner sea to the sky pantheon, that hardly needed saying.