Half a month had passed since Jason returned to the sacred Argo. Reflecting on the recent days, the heroes had gathered in the kingdom of Iolcus. The Argo, forged by the gods, had set sail under the blessing of a kiss from his teacher Hecate. They arrived at the island inhabited only by women to express their determination to the goddess Athena, faced the goddess Hera directly, entered the endless abyss, and ascended the sacred mountain of Olympus.
Even now,
Jason could not help but feel a sense of daze. He felt that the past days were like a dream, like an illusion.
He even could not help but wonder, "Did I really do all these things?"
"What are you doing?" At that moment, the wise centaur Chiron suddenly approached and asked Jason, who was standing on the deck, letting the sea breeze blow through his hair.
"...Unknowingly, half a year has already passed."
Jason, who came back to his senses upon hearing this, gently raised his right hand, allowing the seabird perched on it to spread its wings and fly away.
"Half a year? ...That means it has indeed been half a year since you gathered the heroes and set sail," Chiron nodded lightly and said.
"We have experienced so much along the way. Looking back now... I cannot help but admire myself a little." Jason shook his head. Facing Chiron, his teacher, he naturally had no need to hide anything and spoke frankly: "I admire myself for actually holding on.
Especially the matter with the goddess Hera... There was a time when I really wanted to give up."
"Give up?" Chiron was slightly stunned and looked at Jason.
Clearly, this was the first time he had heard of it.
"Yes. If it were not for Teacher Hecate and Sister Persephone... I probably really did not want to persist.
Not to mention entering the endless abyss."
Recalling the events of that trip to the underworld, the things he saw and heard, a smile appeared on Jason's face.
"At that time, I finally understood that... there were already so many people who cared about me and worried about me."
"What are you talking about?" Chiron walked over, taking advantage of his height to lightly tap Jason's head, and said: "What do you mean by that? Does that mean I do not care about you? ...For whose sake do you think I came aboard this ship!"
"Hehe, that is not what I meant, Teacher Chiron."
Jason turned his head and gave Chiron a fawning smile.
Chiron was naturally not truly blaming Jason, so he also smiled and continued: "Then, is that not good?"
"Yes... If there were fewer troublesome things, it would be even better."
Jason nodded, then sighed deeply again.
After the matter with Queen Hera finally had a resolution, although a heavy stone weighing on his heart had lifted, it did not mean Jason was free of worries.
The last meeting with Athena... Even thinking about it now, Jason still felt quite puzzled.
What exactly was Athena doing by coming to see him that day?
Was it really just to take away the demon spear?
It did not feel like her style. She had clearly gone to the trouble of welding the door shut, only to leave so suddenly...
In any case, during that reunion with Athena and hearing from her once again about the God-Slaying Sword, Jason had realized something.
The Ancestor of All Demons, Typhon... was most likely preparing to emerge from the endless abyss!
Because she had said long ago that she had been waiting, waiting for the day when the sword capable of slaying gods would be born in Jason's hands!
And this matter was undoubtedly the second heavy stone weighing on Jason's heart, aside from Hera.
After all, no one knew what events or changes might occur when the Ancestor of All Demons, Typhon, went to war with the king of the gods, Zeus!
Do not forget, although Jason was the white-robed great hero prophesied by the Three Fates to assist Zeus in defeating the Ancestor of All Demons, Typhon.
At the same time, he was also the God-Slayer who wielded the God-Slaying Sword and bore the fate of slaying all gods!
A storm is coming...
Thinking of this, Jason sighed again without pretense.
His eyes gazed at the seemingly boundless sea before him. Under the clear skies spanning ten thousand li, a layer of gloom still clouded his vision.
Until Chiron patted his head, interrupting him.
Jason tilted his head and looked at Chiron with confusion.
Chiron smiled and said: "I do not know what you are thinking right now, but when you are dwelling on those matters, I think you need to look around you.
Many things may not be as troublesome as you believe. You should also know that you are not alone."
Hearing Chiron's words, Jason's mind could not help but recall what his teacher Hecate had said to him when he first set sail.
Even if the sky truly fell one day, as his teacher, she would hold it up for him...
As the light gradually returned to his eyes, Jason looked at Chiron before him and said: "Yes, I understand, Teacher... By the way, Teacher, I also want to consult you on one thing."
"What is it?"
"It is actually an old question... Teacher Chiron, lately I have been feeling heavier and heavier."
Jason rubbed his forehead in distress and said to Chiron: "Especially after the matter with the goddess Hera... Teacher Chiron, what should I do? I am getting more and more afraid that one day they will take a golden apple and force me to say who it belongs to!"
"As for what you said back then, that they would not bear to... I am starting to think it is nonsense!"
As he spoke, Jason even complained to Chiron: "Because as I get to know them more deeply, I have discovered that no matter which goddess it is, even Teacher Hecate who seems desireless and detached, their possessiveness... is so strong!"
"Teacher Chiron, help me quickly!"
"This..." Chiron retracted his smile and said to Jason with some embarrassment: "I am afraid I really cannot help you with this."
"Teacher Chiron, you cannot just stand by and watch me die!"
"Ahem." Chiron cleared his throat lightly and said: "Keep your voice down. Do not let them hear."
Seeing Chiron's expression of refusing to get involved no matter what, Jason could not help but pout.
"Teacher Chiron, you have changed... You were just saying that I am not fighting alone!"
"On this matter, it seems you really have to fight alone."
As Chiron replied, facing Jason's resentful gaze, he himself inexplicably felt that his words were a bit cruel.
But if it was cruel, so be it. Chiron wisely changed the subject, gazing into the distance, and said: "By the way, Jason, you were just asking the seabird for directions, right... How is it? Are we almost there?"
"...Yes, we are almost there."
With his mouth pursed, under Chiron's somewhat amused gaze, Jason turned his head and looked ahead again.
"The destination of this journey, the kingdom of Colchis where the rare treasure, the Golden Fleece, resides, is almost here..."
At this point, that person's figure could not help but emerge in Jason's mind.
For this reason, a faint smile appeared on his face as he said: "Speaking of which, it has been half a year since we parted in the underworld.
I wonder how my little sister is doing now."