Slowly flowing from his lips was the spiritual fluid belonging to Hephaestus.

Aphrodite reached out her finger and wiped her mouth; that kiss—the kiss not of his willing consent but forced upon him—left her with mixed feelings.

The beautiful goddess stood by a pillar until Poseidon's voice roused her.

"Terrifying, isn't he?" Poseidon stepped up from behind Aphrodite; the earth-shaking ruler wore an inscrutable smile. "Truly Zeus's child—just as overbearing as Zeus."

Poseidon made an ambiguous remark about Hephaestus. The god who shakes the earth gazed intently at the motionless Aphrodite: "Will you come to my sea? Since marriage is inevitable, why not come indulge with me?"

Aphrodite stood in place, her beautiful golden eyes unblinking.

For some reason, Aphrodite remembered what Hephaestus had just said: "Aphrodite neither respects the gods and humans nor herself."

Indeed, as the deity of desire, Aphrodite was certainly indulgent, but he never… Aphrodite never entrusted his true heart and body to anyone. His body remained chaste; this chastity was observed since he was worshiped in Knossos and on the island of Crete. Born from the sea, Aphrodite was not only worshiped by nymphs and sea goddesses, he was also nursed by Dione, one of the sea goddesses. In a sense, Aphrodite’s relationship with the sea ran deep—his temples were even strewn with conches and shells, and he was worshiped as the god of love and beauty.

Although Aphrodite appeared naturally licentious, he was actually the god who valued “sincerity” the most; it was just that he had grown accustomed to feints and mockery. He had grown used to flirting with Olympus and the gods wandering the earth or to speaking ambiguous words—this was how Aphrodite protected himself. He had no other choice, did he? He was the god of “love” and “beauty,” born to be competed for and adored. Apart from protecting himself this way, what else could he do?

Aphrodite clenched his fist. His beautiful golden eyes fixed on Poseidon, who stood beside him; unusually, he showed no smile and did not cast coquettish glances.

The handsome golden-haired deity wore a chiton, with snake-patterned armlets and bracelets coiling his arms. Aphrodite appeared radiant, but in this moment was icy cold.

“Your Majesty Poseidon, forgive my rudeness, but I am not feeling well and cannot go to the sea with you.” Aphrodite’s voice was indifferent and soft. A look of solitude appeared in his eyes, yet at the same time he displayed a pitiable, delicate demeanor. Aphrodite, rarely without a smile, freed his wrist from Poseidon’s grip and shook his head. “Even Your Majesty Poseidon, the earth-shaking king, cannot force a god whose body is unwell, can he?”

“…Ah, indeed.” Poseidon nodded, a smile that did not reach his eyes. The king subtly turned his gaze to the shrubbery in the palace garden where the Telchines resided, and his smile deepened. “But even if you were with me, after one night you could bathe at the Canasae Spring near Argos, and then your chastity would be restored… The Canasae Spring once restored Hera’s chastity; if I accompany you…”

Poseidon had offered a very tempting proposal: for gods, restoring chastity required only bathing in a sacred place.

Argos was a place of Hera’s worship; there stood Hera’s temple. Ages ago, before she was queen of the gods, Hera had pitied an injured cuckoo and cradled it, earning Zeus’s favor. After a three-hundred-year honeymoon, Hera, now queen, restored her chastity at Argos’s sacred Canasae Spring… So it did not matter; even if one were about to marry, there was always a way to restore chastity, a way to restore bodily purity.

This was the power and the consistent creed held by the gods of this land.

But Aphrodite refused Poseidon.

"No."

The resplendent god of Love and Beauty spoke a word of refusal.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, I really don't have the heart..."

Aphrodite pressed her fair fingers to her forehead. "Please let me go."

Poseidon silently turned his body aside. Aphrodite walked past him and headed for her temple.

The earth-shaking god of earthquakes narrowed his eyes and looked at the body covered by Deïphylus; a brilliant smile appeared on his face. "Looks like there's a good show to watch."

Hephaestus's body was concealed by those woodland nymphs. Standing not far away, he gazed at the scene of Aphrodite and Poseidon together. The god of fire and craftsmen clenched his weapon—in spite of Hephaestus's limp and his golden prosthetic limb, he habitually gripped his cane. Hephaestus did not know why he cared so much about Aphrodite. Even though he had not heard the exchange between Aphrodite and Poseidon, he could clearly see Aphrodite's expression. The goddess, who always wore a seductive smile, was unusually not smiling; instead she showed loneliness and sorrow.

'Did I hurt him?'

Hephaestus stood in the shadow of flowers and trees, thinking this.

'Did I hurt Aphrodite? Were my words too harsh?'

The Flame and the Craftsman's hands gripped the scepter tightly; the scepter forged of gold and steel could pull out its hilt, thereby spinning out a slim, sharp sword.

Hephaestus saw Aphrodite speaking with Poseidon, and Poseidon gripped Aphrodite's wrist.

Gritting his teeth, Hephaestus instinctively unclasped with his thumb the slender "shortsword" at his side; if Poseidon made a move, Hephaestus would rush over immediately—this was to ensure his "bride" would not have her "chastity" taken by another person or another god. Hephaestus told himself it was for him.

Hephaestus swore to make Aphrodite suffer. In this marriage he would defile Aphrodite, inflicting pain on that arrogant and foolish goddess of beauty. The bonds of marriage were not mere words; if Aphrodite dallied with others, as her husband Hephaestus had the right to control his "wife"... even if that so‑called "wife" were male, who cared? Which of the Olympian male gods hadn't fallen for the same sex? Which had not lain in the same bed with a man?

...even if being a "wife" was indeed an insult to Aphrodite.

But this was revenge.

Hephaestus was convinced of that.

The red‑haired god of craftsmen, standing beneath the flowers and trees, slowly relaxed his thumb and sheathed the slender sword back into his staff. He did not breathe easy until Aphrodite turned and left.

Although Hephaestus did not understand why he... was so anxious.

Aphrodite returned to her temple, sullen.

She was attended by three goddesses who served the deity of love and beauty: the goddess of victory on the athletic field, the goddess who presided over all joys, and the goddess who bestowed glory and honor upon warriors and competitors.

Three goddesses serving Aphrodite greeted their mistress, but saw Aphrodite looking sullen.

Aphrodite sat dazed on a chair, pursing her bright red lips; those blood-pigeon red lips formed a displeased curve. The golden eyes of Aphrodite no longer held any joy. This gorgeous male deity, clad in a chiton, sat expressionless in the chair, and only after a long while did he utter a single word: “Damn… damned Hephaestus!”

Aphrodite cursed Hephaestus. He reached out and bit his nails: “This marriage must never be taken seriously… How could I become some god’s wife?”

Aphrodite’s complexion was deathly pale. The goddesses of glory, victory, and joy came before Aphrodite and asked him what had happened.

Seeing his handmaidens, Aphrodite’s expression softened slightly, but he was ashamed to speak of Zeus’s arrangement. How could he tell his handmaidens that Zeus had just appointed him as Hephaestus’s “wife”?

This was simply a humiliation!

Aphrodite took a deep breath and smiled at his handmaidens: “Nothing happened, yes, nothing happened…”

Biting his nails, Aphrodite was anxious. Though he now smiled at his handmaidens, his face was pale and his demeanor was nothing like before.

The goddess of glory looked at her mistress with concern.

Hephaestus’s words echoed in Aphrodite’s ears. Aphrodite wanted to tell Hephaestus that, as the holder of “love” and “beauty,” how could he not understand what love is? How could he not understand what precious feelings are?

...But this kind of thing.

This precious "sincerity," this precious "love," since the birth of Aphrodite, has never been received; he has never seen such a thing, nor has anyone ever offered "sincerity" and "love" to him... Therefore such things, this so-called "feeling," simply do not exist!

Ridiculous — the god who best "love" and "beauty" does not believe in the existence of "sincerity." Aphrodite thought that were only "desire" and "beauty." After all, all the gods harbor "desire" for Aphrodite, even those who appear respectable, such as Poseidon and Apollo. Those so-called respectable, worshipped gods have always wanted only the shallow thing called "desire"!

...There is no pure "love" or "sincerity" in the world!

Aphrodite thought so, and came to resent Hephaestus.