"You! You're flying!"
Floating above Athens, it was just evening in the city. The whole city was illuminated by lights, and the sky was not yet completely dark, only a thin layer of night covering it.
Carrying Marika with the help of a strong wind, the two stood high in the sky, like gods, looking down at the city below.
Holding onto Nakano Yu's hand, Marika's face was red with excitement as she looked down at the city with a mix of fear and curiosity.
Yu also held the girl, remaining silent, waiting for her to calm down.
"Y-you… where are we, where have we arrived?"
After a long moment of calming down, Marika finally reacted and asked the young man where they were.
"This is Greece, and the city below is Athens."
With a slight smile, Yu answered.
"Gr-Greece?! We… we crossed that far in an instant?!"
Hearing that, Marika was clearly shocked. One had to know that was a distance of 9,411 kilometers! The young man beside her had actually crossed such a distance in just a moment?!
Yu didn't speak, he only looked at Marika's expression as if her world was collapsing and nodded.
"So Yu-chan has such an ability. You never came to see me before…"
Suddenly, Marika lightly struck the young man's arm, her tone full of grievance like a kitten left behind by Yu.
She had thought about Yu every day before. If Kikyo Chika hadn't forbidden it and her body hadn't prevented it, she would have long returned to Neon to find Yu.
But now Yu actually had the ability to appear abroad in an instant, yet he hadn't come to see her, which truly saddened Marika.
"I only recently obtained this ability, and besides… at that time I didn't know which hospital Marika was in, since she often changed hospitals."
Rubbing his arm, Yu explained. As for Marika's body, Kikyo Chika had indeed been very careful, traveling between various countries to find doctors and purchase equipment for her recovery.
Although it might also have been for Marika to inherit the Tachibana family in the future, for Marika it was still a good thing.
"Alright, I forgive Yu-chan!"
After hearing the explanation, Marika didn't care at all. She said that, then smiled and hugged Yu's arm again, asking:
"So where are we going now?"
"Parthenon."
Yu answered. The moment he arrived in Athens, Yu spread his perception to cover the entire city.
With that scan, Yu immediately found several Moon God Envoy who had lost contact.
However, contrary to his previous assumption that they were wandering Athens because they couldn't find the sign of the lucky snake, those Moon God Envoy were motionless, as if they had fallen into a deep sleep.
And their location was precisely the symbol of Athens—the Parthenon!
The Parthenon, also known as the Parthenon Temple, is the largest temple ruin in the world, dedicated to the goddess of wisdom and war.
Yu didn't know why the sign of the lucky snake would appear in the Parthenon, but he was not surprised.
Although Athena is the goddess of wisdom and war, she is also closely associated with the "snake," a symbol of the earth and darkness, and a representation of evil. Therefore, it was perfectly logical for the sign of the lucky snake to appear in her temple.
"Hold on tight."
After warning Marika, Yu suddenly controlled a strong wind, breaking through the night sky, and within a few breaths they arrived at the Parthenon.
"How exciting!"
After landing, Marika's hair was completely messy from the wind. Yu smoothed it with his hand and it returned to its original state.
"Why are we here, Yu-chan? You didn't come to pray to the goddess, did you?"
Coming back to her senses, Marika looked at the Parthenon and asked.
She wasn't interested in studying, but she knew what the Parthenon was: the largest temple in the world dedicated to the goddess Athena.
Unfortunately, due to time and wars, this temple had become ruined. Although Greece was carrying out repairs, it still looked like ruins.
"No, I came to take something, something that can help Marika regain her health."
Yu shook his head. He had no respect for those gods, so there was no question of praying.
"R-regain health?! Y-you, Yu-chan, you're not joking, right?!"
Hearing Yu's words, Marika's face was full of disbelief. She knew her body best. Although she tried to maintain it, it worsened year by year, especially in the past year, her condition had deteriorated sharply, to the point that even the hospital estimated she wouldn't live more than three years.
For Marika, had she accepted fate?
In fact, she had not. She was just a girl, in the prime of her life, with the person she loved, family and friends. How could she give up on life so easily?
She had just been pretending for a long time, pretending she had accepted it, pretending she had made peace with fate, always acting like she was fine.
But now Yu said he could cure her, which undoubtedly ignited a trace of hope in Marika's dark heart.
"Of course, but Marika can't go inside with me. Wait here for a moment, I'll be back quickly."
Yu nodded affirmatively. As he spoke, he summoned two Moon God Envoy to protect Marika.
"Then Yu-chan, be careful."
Looking at Yu, Marika knew her beloved was going to do something important. She wasn't foolish and certainly wouldn't cause trouble for the young man.
"Don't worry."
Ruffling the girl's hair, Yu turned and walked toward the temple.
Looking at the ruined marble entrance of the temple, Yu's expression was serious.
In his eyes, the entrance of the temple was covered in violent lightning, and behind the lightning was endless darkness. Clearly, something was wrong with the Parthenon.
However, he did not sense the presence of a Heretic God. Aside from the visible thunder, everything was calm.
"Let me see what's causing trouble!"
Thinking of this, Yu took a deep breath and stepped into the Parthenon.
In an instant, the aimless lightning seemed to find a lightning rod, wildly striking Yu's body.
However, this lightning was not strong. It could not cause much damage to Yu's body, only a slight tingling sensation.
But Yu's expression was serious. He was the only Demon King in this world, and he only felt pain during battles with Heretic Gods. And yet, this small amount of lightning in front of the Parthenon, from an unknown source, made him feel pain.
While he was still wondering what was causing this lightning, the lightning suddenly dispersed, and a ray of light appeared, dispelling the darkness before him.
The sudden light made Yu instinctively cover his eyes with his hand, narrowing his gaze to see the situation. At that moment, an ethereal and majestic voice resounded:
"Hm? Has someone come again to worship my exalted figure?"
Hearing the voice, Yu, who had somewhat adapted, looked in the direction it came from, and saw that the Parthenon was incredibly empty at this moment. There was only a high platform in the distance, and on it a golden throne.
And on the throne, a muscular, golden-haired, bearded middle-aged naked man, wearing a wreath and only a leaf, lay lazily.
Seeing the naked man, Yu frowned slightly.
What is going on here? And what is with that naked guy?
Thinking, Yu's gaze was drawn to the Moon Rock Giant kneeling beneath the throne.
That Moon Rock Giant was none other than the one Yu had sent to find the sign of the lucky snake. Only… looking at the current state of those incompetents, they seemed to be sealed.
For someone to be able to seal the Moon God Envoy, it seemed that the naked man was not ordinary. The strength of the Moon God Envoy was steadily at the level of a Great Knight, and as a product of authority, they possessed immortality. For that naked man to seal the Moon God Envoy, he must at least have the power of a lower god.
But… if the opponent was a lower god, why didn't he feel any Heretic God trace from him?
While Yu was thinking about the identity, the naked man suddenly spoke:
"Mortal… are you a Campione?"
"Who are you?"
Hearing that, Yu did not answer, but directly looked and asked.
"I am the beginning, I am the end, I am the Lord of Thunder, the King of Gods of Olympus!—Zeus!"
Seeing Yu question him, Zeus suddenly sat up. As he spoke, he raised his hand and summoned golden lightning, throwing it toward Yu:
"Let this be your punishment for disrespecting the King of Gods, Campione. I hope you learn your lesson."
However, looking at the golden lightning coming toward him, Yu's expression was strange.
Why did it seem that the attack of this lightning… was very weak?
The young man's heart stirred. Facing the attack, he did not move; he even took a step forward, allowing the lightning to hit him.
In an instant, golden-yellow lightning danced around him, covering his body, giving him a slight tingling, almost pleasant sensation.
After that, Yu looked at "Zeus" and formed a conclusion in his mind.
Within that lightning he indeed felt a divine trace, but very weak, absurdly weak!
As the third King of Gods in Greek mythology, Zeus should not be this weak, unless… the one in front of him was not the real Zeus, but merely a projection.
Roughly estimating his strength, Yu concluded that he currently only had the power of a lower god.
"Mortal, I give you a chance, get lost!"
Seeing that Yu was unharmed, Zeus became furious, striking the throne.
Hearing that, Yu raised an eyebrow. His figure flickered, and in an instant he appeared in front of Zeus, sending him flying with a light punch.
"Boom!"
With a dull impact, Zeus's body slammed into the marble wall.
"Campione, I've remembered you. I will come for you!"
After taking the hit, Zeus knew he was no match, so he tried to escape, but almost instantly Yu appeared in front of him.
Raising his hand, he grabbed his head like a mouse and squeezed. In an instant, Zeus exploded into countless bolts of lightning.
After that, Yu returned to the golden throne. He looked at the bronze circular mark the size of a bowl embedded in the backrest, and reached out to take it.
At this moment, the three divine tools to summon Heretic God Asclepius were complete!
-------------
Every 20/50/100 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter.
If you'd like to support me, check it out: patreon.com/_BlackRose
Enjoying the story? Read 100+ advanced chapters on Patreon.