On the Greek side,
After the extraordinary events of the day before, it turned out to be a false alarm.
Whatever the moon goddess had been furious about, since nothing came of it, the battle continued as before.
Agamemnon gathered all the heroes and led the army forward toward the walls of Troy.
Every hero had that eager, restless look, each hoping to be among those chosen to participate in the fighting.
The only one who probably didn't want to be chosen was Night.
When all of Greece's heroes and all of Troy's heroes came together on the battlefield,
It was meant to bring a finale to a war that had raged for so long, a perfect closing act.
Every hero believed this.
At least those who had no idea what the gods were thinking assumed this duel would decide the fate of both sides and all the nations behind them.
None of them could have guessed that the gods were hoping the war would last much longer.
But the heroes, fully convinced this was the final great battle,
Stood ready under divine witness, fully prepared to let the earth drink its fill of blood and let the sky burn to ash.
The winner takes all; the loser gives everything.
Everyone was going to use their blades to cut down the other side, leaving no one standing.
Warriors looked silently across at the enemy, recalling the final words their lords gave them before they marched.
Victory or death.
If their heroes fell at the front, to protect the homeland behind them, even against the gods' will, they would fight to the last.
At minimum they would hold long enough for their families and people to pull back safely.
They looked at the faces across from them, old men, kill them. Young men, kill them. Men, kill them. Women, kill them.
Any living thing that stepped onto this battlefield, other than their own allies, could be killed.
No unnecessary hesitation.
That would bring destruction.
At this point on the Greek side, with the exception of Achilles, who was still in a cold standoff with Agamemnon, every hero stood with Greece, positioned near Agamemnon's royal chariot.
The heroes rode in a line on horseback, and when Palamedes appeared on the battlefield wearing Achilles's armor, a visible ripple of alarm ran through the Trojan side.
The soldiers who had sworn to themselves there would be no hesitation or fear, that they would give everything to this battle, still felt afraid when they saw that figure again.
They remembered what it was like when Achilles was still on the field, when no one could stop him, when any part of the battlefield he entered became a place where survival was impossible.
Fortunately, at that moment Hector rode his horse to the very front of the Trojan forces.
When the invincible commander appeared,
Remembering the legend of how Lord Hector drove back Achilles at Thebes, the soldiers finally steadied, and their spirit returned.
The chosen ground for the duel was outside the walls of Troy.
Night, positioned on the Greek side, looked at the scene that reminded him of a certain piece of history.
While everyone else was focused on the powerful heroes on the opposing side, he pulled his hood low over that face of his, raised his head just slightly, and looked toward the city walls.
Since receiving the fate weight of Adonis after a night's sleep, he had followed through that morning on the agreement with Briseis and played her a piece of music at dawn.
He had also brought a small cake and gone down to check on the poor girl in person.
It was very early, the sun only just beginning to rise, with few heroes out and about.
He had kept the musical stealth technique running the whole way over, only dropping the disguise once he reached the cellar and was in front of Briseis.
And that second visit brought something that hadn't happened the first time.
Briseis fell under his influence.
For a moment, those already-red eyes of hers shifted to a rosy pink.
Her skin flushed warm when she spoke, and compared to the previous visit when she kept a reasonable distance, she came close to pressing herself against him this time before catching herself.
Briseis was mortified by her own behavior and told Night she didn't know what was wrong with her, apologized for acting in such a shameless way, and asked him not to think badly of her for it.
She kept unconsciously doing things that were too forward without realizing it until it was already happening.
If it were just a case of genuine affection growing between them over time, Night could believe that.
But this was clearly beyond the range of normal growing affection.
And this finally made him realize that the supernatural magnetism of Adonis had apparently activated in him.
The extraordinary magnetism from mythology's child of sin, the kind even goddesses couldn't resist, had reached the level of divine authority.
Even in its earliest awakening, it was beyond what any mortal could withstand.
It was fortunate he noticed early.
After that, he found a white hooded cloak and put it on.
It covered his appearance.
Now, even though he gained that supernatural beauty, he found it difficult to control the authority that came with it, so for the time being it ran as a constant passive ability with no way to turn it off.
This was even more absurd than a succubus.
He had no desire to draw attention everywhere he walked.
If it only attracted beautiful women, that would be one thing, but he was really afraid it might affect male gods too, and someone would try to do something regrettable.
He could only hide himself more thoroughly.
Having kept his face low and hidden under the cloak the whole time, Night now raised his head slightly and revealed just the lower half of his face and his eyes to confirm something.
If this duel, moved so far ahead of schedule and changed so dramatically in form, still followed certain patterns and had elements that remained unchanged,
Then at this moment,
The most beautiful woman in all of Greece, Helen, should appear up on the city walls.
What Helen actually looked like, even after his time in Troy, Night still didn't know.
He had never had contact with that unfortunate woman.
After seeing the goddess of love, the moon goddess, and the twin sisters Chryseis and Briseis along with countless other beauties, to be honest, he felt no particular curiosity about Helen specifically.
But if Helen really appeared on those battlements, it meant the goddess who disguised herself as the old Trojan king Priam's daughter had also come down to play a role.
At this point in events, that goddess should have had no reason to get involved.
But it was better to be safe than sorry.
Only by understanding the balance of combat strength on both sides and who had shown up on the field could he properly manage the situation and make sure everything moved according to his plan.
The goddess Night had in mind was none other than Aphrodite, whom he had turned down three times over the past few days.
On the battlements crowded with male soldiers, any unusually small figure would stand out immediately.
He looked up, and his pupils narrowed slightly.
Two slight figures, both wrapped in brown cloaks.
They were actually there.
Had a god already entered the game?
.
.
.
(End of the Chapter)