Though Goddess Thetis did not fully understand, she felt she had clearly gained something.
On any ordinary day, Jason would never rely on her like this.
This dispelled the irritation and tension she felt from Achelous's arrival, and a happy smile bloomed on her face.
Yet moments of happiness are always fleeting and hard to hold.
"God of light Apollo..."
Achelous approached cautiously, but before he could finish,
"Silence! Achelous, you are not worthy to speak my name directly!"
Apollo, turning away from the gentle kindness he had shown Jason, looked at Achelous with anger and disgust.
"Do you realize that daring to speak to Jason with such insolence is the same as insulting me and insulting my mother Leto!"
Achelous's face changed dramatically at this. "I did not, Lord Apollo. I absolutely did not mean..."
"Hmph. Do you know how great a trouble this child resolved for my mother? Before I came here, my mother repeatedly instructed me to take good care of him.
Not to mention, this child brought both the one I love and my children to my side..."
The more Apollo spoke, the darker his expression became.
Achelous, facing Apollo's wrath directly, grew increasingly pale.
He no longer showed any of the arrogance he had displayed toward Jason moments ago.
While Apollo's gaze fixed on Achelous, Jason finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He then realized he had been gripping Thetis's hand very tightly and, startled, quickly released her.
This brought a flicker of regret to Thetis's eyes, as she had not yet reacted and failed to hold on to him.
"Goddess Thetis, may I ask who he is..."
"He is Achelous, son of the ocean god Oceanus."
Thetis whispered to Jason.
The ocean god Oceanus was one of the original twelve Titans and father of the first goddess of wisdom, Metis, who was Athena's mother.
He possessed terrifying divine power and held considerable status.
Long ago, enraged when Zeus swallowed his daughter Metis, he had left Olympus in fury and returned to the sea.
Hearing Thetis's words, Jason felt his headache worsen.
He soon noticed that though Achelous was suppressed by Apollo, the gaze he directed at Jason still carried anger.
It had even turned to resentment because of Apollo's rebuke.
This made Jason frown slightly and sigh inwardly. What kind of mess is this?
After scolding him further, Apollo spoke darkly to Achelous, "Get out! And when you return, tell everyone.
From now on, anyone who dares show disrespect to Jason disrespects me, Apollo, god of light!"
Achelous's face completely changed at Apollo's words.
"...I understand. I will leave now."
Glancing at Thetis and Jason, Achelous suppressed his anger and turned to depart.
Helen, who had stayed close to Pegasus and been too frightened to speak, was about to breathe a sigh of relief.
"Wait, Lord Achelous."
To everyone's surprise, Jason suddenly called out to him.
But instead of addressing Achelous immediately, Jason first approached Apollo, bowed, and said, "Lord Apollo, I have felt your great favor toward me, and for this I am deeply grateful.
However...
What Lord Achelous said earlier is correct. I am a man, so this matter must be resolved by me personally!"
Jason looked up seriously at Apollo. "This marriage was granted to me by the great Queen Hera and King Zeus.
Though I cannot accept it due to the oracle and my difficult mission,
They have not withdrawn the marriage because of this.
Thus, it is my responsibility!"
He then turned to the stunned Achelous. "Goddess Thetis is an extraordinarily beautiful and virtuous goddess.
She rightly deserves pursuit by powerful male gods.
Thus, I can understand you.
But precisely because of this, I will not hand Goddess Thetis to anyone!
I will accept any challenge.
I will prove that Queen Hera and King Zeus made no mistake in their choice!
So come, Achelous. I accept your challenge.
Under the witness of great Queen Hera, King Zeus, and god of light Apollo, I will defeat you with my own hands!"
Troublesome matters should be avoided if possible.
But if they cannot be avoided, resolve them with lightning speed!
Never wait passively. Strike first!
Jason had sensed Achelous's resentment toward him and knew there would be consequences.
Achelous would never let him go easily.
Jason had briefly considered secretly killing him at some point or imprisoning him in the endless abyss of Tartarus.
But he had just learned the man's identity from Thetis.
Undoubtedly, troublesome.
The best and simplest solution now was to drag more people into the matter.
To leave Achelous and anyone behind him no room to speak!
At the same time, after meeting the foreknowing Prometheus and learning that Zeus had suddenly abandoned his pursuit of Thetis and betrothed her to him, Jason was well aware.
Zeus would never sit idly by and watch this unfold!
Thus, almost the instant Jason's words ended,
A bolt of thunder flashed across the clear sky above the sea, accompanied by a deafening roar.
At the same moment, a trident flew from nowhere and landed before Jason and Achelous.
It was the trident of sea god Poseidon!
The flying trident pierced the ground outside the temple. Then a breathtaking scene appeared before everyone present and Helen.
The ocean, under the immense divine power of the trident, slowly parted, exposing Thetis's deep-sea temple to the brilliant sun.
Then a goddess in deep blue robes and the Queen of Heaven in a golden luxurious gown appeared simultaneously and arrived here.
Queen of the Sea Amphitrite and Queen Hera...
Their expressions were exceptionally dark.
They had been nearby.
Because of the Golden Fleece journey, Amphitrite and Hera had built a good relationship.
Hera had heard Jason's words and learned of the situation.
This angered not only Hera, who had sworn to grant Jason the most beautiful marriage, but also Amphitrite, who wished to pair Jason with Thetis.
Thus Amphitrite had directly used her authority as Queen of the Sea to borrow Poseidon's trident.
She and Queen Hera had appeared here together.
Everything unfolded in an instant.
Even Jason was stunned by these developments.
Not to mention Helen, who clung tightly to Pegasus.
She was nearly frightened into a daze.
Whether by the shock of the ocean splitting in two, the appearance of Queen of the Sea Amphitrite and Queen Hera,
Or the thunder roaring in the clear sky,
All of it deeply shook Helen's young heart.
Achelous was equally stunned.
In this moment, after Jason's words,
He suddenly faced terrifying divine pressure from several fearsome gods.
King Zeus, Queen Hera, Queen of the Sea Amphitrite, and the god of light Apollo present here.
Achelous's mind exploded. He went blank!
But before he could remain dazed long, the terrifying pressure from the gods made his body feel immensely heavy.
He nearly failed to stay standing and almost knelt.
The ground cracked with terrifying fissures.
Fortunately, a soft sigh sounded at that moment.
A burly elder with white hair and white beard suddenly appeared beside Achelous.
He shielded Achelous from the pressure.
"These are matters for the younger generation... Hera, Zeus, and Amphitrite, doing this is somewhat inappropriate."
"Oceanus, I did not expect you to come."
Hera's subsequent words, her expression dark, made Jason realize who this god was—the one who had suddenly appeared and could withstand the divine pressure of so many gods.
Oceanus.
One of the twelve Titans, the great ocean god. He was the river belt that encircled the cosmos, where end met beginning.
The great ocean river was the Greeks' imagined vast river encircling the entire earth, representing all the world's seas.
"Yet you dare show yourself, Oceanus!"
Facing Oceanus, Queen Hera still showed no kindness. "The marriage of Jason and Thetis was decided after discussion by me, Zeus, and the Olympian gods.
And I have sworn to grant this child the most perfect marriage!
Yet he, knowing this, still dares provoke my child and even thinks to defile Thetis.
Does he truly believe Zeus and I do not exist?!"
Boom!
Thunder exploded in the sky.
Zeus expressed his anger as well.
Zeus was indeed furious about this.
Letting go of the beautiful and virtuous Thetis had already been immensely painful for him.
Yet someone dared to come here and rub salt in the wound!
Seeing this, Oceanus could only turn his gaze to his other child present... Queen of the Sea Amphitrite.
Yes, Amphitrite was indeed Oceanus's daughter.
After all, Oceanus had three thousand daughters and three thousand sons.
Incidentally, though Thetis called Amphitrite "sister," she was not Oceanus's daughter.
She was the daughter of the kind sea god Nereus and the ocean goddess Doris.
"Father, I see nothing wrong in what child Jason has done."
Amphitrite was silent for a moment, then without even glancing at Achelous, said, "But Hera and King Zeus, everyone, calm down a little. The matter has reached this point, and child Jason has accepted Achelous's challenge.
At the same time, child Jason is right. Thetis is the most outstanding goddess in our sea pantheon.
Even though Thetis is willing to marry Jason, many still pursue her. Similar incidents are inevitable.
Thus, today's events may be a good opportunity!"
"Opportunity?" Hera looked at Amphitrite in puzzlement.
"Yes." Amphitrite nodded with a light smile. "We are all here, and everyone knows Achelous's strength.
If child Jason defeats him, he proves his worth.
And we all witness it.
Then, if similar situations arise in the future, even you, Father, would surely not allow it."
Oceanus's face showed a strange expression at this.
He understood Amphitrite's words. They were entirely based on the assumption that his son Achelous would definitely lose.
Her words completely favored Jason.
Moreover, Amphitrite's actions greatly pushed Jason and Thetis together.
Oceanus's gaze then turned involuntarily to Jason.
Truthfully, Oceanus was not unfamiliar with Jason.
During the Golden Fleece voyage, many sea gods had secretly observed.
Oceanus also knew Jason had good relations not only with Amphitrite but also with his former pride—his daughter Metis, mother of the current goddess of wisdom Athena.
Thus, Oceanus naturally had no ill feelings toward Jason.
He rather liked him.
After brief thought, Oceanus quickly nodded agreeably. "Very well... If in this battle, this child truly defeats Achelous, I will swear by the Styx.
From this day forward, anyone who dares approach Thetis will have to face me, great ocean god Oceanus!"
Thus the matter was settled.
And no one consulted the person involved—Jason, whose mouth had gradually opened wider, clearly stunned.
This...
This!
Facing the scene, Jason's mouth twitched twice.
At this moment, he truly did not know what to say.
The situation had developed far too quickly, like a rocket, completely beyond expectation!