Chapter 324 Acropolis of Athens
The further south the road goes, the more vegetation and water systems there are.
Perhaps it was because there were often people cleaning or patrolling, but when he crossed a wide river and came to the plains, Ryan encountered no more trouble.
Even if they occasionally met some teams with the same goal, most of them would avoid the alchemy carriage and have no idea of getting closer. Such expensive things are not affordable for ordinary people, and Ryan is happy to be clean.
So when the positive position of the starry sky moved to the position of the sixth house of the zodiac, the outpost of Athens, the human sanctuary of the goddess of wisdom, and the Acropolis of Athens were finally in sight.
…
The carriage reached a hill, and Ryan opened the curtain and looked at the Acropolis in the distance.
The real Athens is still further away - maybe in real history, the distance between the two is not far, but in the mythical world, this is not the case.
It is the barrier of Athens, the core of the church, and a city built on a hill, or a fortress built on a hill.
Its real name is Acropolis, which is translated as 'city on high' or 'city on high hills' in the language of the Athenians.
In its original trajectory, this was just a small city covering an area of no more than four square kilometers, and it was passed down to future generations only because of the existence of the temple. But looking at it now, it's a truly magnificent spectacle.
The city wall was built against the mountain and divided into several layers of barriers. The natural mountain made people only climb up to the Acropolis from the west side.
There are cliffs to the east, south and north, and the terrain is very steep. Doric and Oeanian columns are cleverly interspersed and juxtaposed in front of the city gate, making people feel the solemnity and charm of the city.
The city gate was crowded with people, but the scene inside the city was blocked by the city wall, making it difficult to see directly with the naked eye. There were only two huge light pillars rising into the sky, which were still clearly visible even in the daytime.
One rises from the center of the city, where towering stone pillars are far taller than the city walls. There is no doubt that it is the Parthenon, the sanctuary of Athena.
It is said that there is also the Erechtheion Temple opposite it, where Athena and Poseidon once let the people of the city choose their own beliefs. Nowadays, it enshrines some main gods of the Olympian pantheon that have no obvious contradiction with Athens, but these gods have not invested their power in it.
As for the location of the other light pillar, it is probably a little north of the city. Although he couldn't see the style of the building, Ryan had heard before that it was the Temple of Artemis, and it was also one of the few places in the world where the Lord of the Wilderness, the Goddess of the Crescent, was publicly worshiped.
As for the reason...it is said that this goddess is hostile to the God-King of Mount Olympus, but few people know why.
"Andrea, how much do you know about the Crescent Goddess besides what is in the books?"
Signaling the carriage to continue moving forward, Ryan asked.
The records in the Panathenaic Museum are rich, but mostly restrained. In many places, it seems to be superficial, such as the story about Artemis.
Although this crescent moon goddess is to a certain extent another patron deity of Athens and a good friend of their main god, the story of how she came to Athens clearly uses the Spring and Autumn style of writing.
There is a vague hint in the book that Artemis has a conflict with a certain god. But why there is a contradiction, what are the causes and consequences, that will not be recorded in the book.
"Well... if you ask this, ahem, it's said - I just heard about it."
After coughing twice, Andrea was sure that if she had been before she was kidnapped, she would never have discussed matters between gods.
But now, after thinking about it, she still didn't refuse to discuss this gossip among the gods.
"I once heard it said in a bedtime story told by my father that the respected Her Majesty Artemis originally lived in the southeast of the continent, living in seclusion by the Luo Xing Lake."
"She hunts and shoots arrows there every day, runs in the wilderness, hone her skills, and does not develop her own followers. If a mortal is lucky enough to meet her, he will be tested by the goddess - if he can hunt the goddess If he is the designated prey, the goddess will give him an extra gift.”
"Of course, gods are always noble, and Her Highness Artemis will naturally not live alone. In addition to the Moon Goddess who often rides a silver car to play with her, because of her identity as the Lord of the Wilderness, there are many people born in The nymphs among the rocks, trees, waters, flowers and grass spontaneously gathered around her and worshiped her as their master... Just like what is depicted in the story, this period of life is so beautiful, and all of this should have continued forever. Until one day, the king of the gods came here with thunder, lightning and dark clouds, looking for his children. "
Speaking of this, Andrea stopped, with a slight smile on her lips, as if she was waiting for Ryan to ask her what was behind.
However, Ryan, who was sitting in the car and heard this, already got the answer. He just nodded slightly and said with some emotion:
"Sure enough, no matter how you change, a dog can't change its habit of eating shit."
"ah?"
She didn't expect to hear such a sentence suddenly, and Andrea couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.
"Is not it?"
"So the second half of the story is that the child the God King is looking for is actually Artemis, but the other party is not at home on the day he came - so the 'respected' God King had to wait here for a while, and ended up running into her beautiful maid. Just like the Crescent Moon Goddess herself, her maids all swore to remain chaste, so the God King changed into Artemis's appearance to approach her, and finally succeeded, just like he once changed into a cuckoo to deceive Hera's trust."
"After returning and discovering all this, Artemis was naturally furious. She refused the God King's recognition of her relatives, but she was no match for Zeus and could not punish and expel this annoying guy. So she made a prompt decision and moved directly to Athens to accompany the goddess of wisdom - this is what happened, right?"
"...You know it and still ask me!"
With a light snort, Andrea expressed dissatisfaction with this.
"No, I didn't know before... at least I didn't know it would happen here, but this is also in line with the character of the God King. He can always release his energy that has nowhere to vent in any situation, whether there is something serious to do or not."
Spreading his hands, Ryan would definitely not say that there was such a passage in the original myth, and the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper were born because of it. He just attributed it to Zeus's character.
The God King's defects in this regard have been widely circulated, and even for most mortals at this time, if the existence of Queen Hera is not considered, Zeus's romanticism is not even a defect. After all, most of their ancestors came from this way, and now it is naturally impossible to blame this behavior in turn.
Another doubt was solved during the chat, but the frame did not stop. Not long after, the alchemical carriage arrived at the foot of the hill where the Acropolis was located.
Not far away, the huge ring-shaped building was basically almost completed, and it looked a bit like the ancient Roman Colosseum. It's just that the venue for selecting people of "fairness and wisdom" is circular, and there is a suspended alchemy platform in the center.
I don't know if it is prepared for the "judges" or for the contestants, or Athens is going to play the characteristics of the classical republic and directly cancel the judges and let the audience decide the winner...
"Evan, are you sure you want to take me in like this?"
Andrea raised her eyebrows outside the circular archway that was still some distance away from the city gate.
"You mean this [Spell Invalidation Barrier] solidified on the portal, right? Don't worry, in order to give you a permanent disguise that cannot be broken no matter how high your "magic penetration" is, I have specially held a divine ceremony."
Ryan didn't know if there was a game term similar to "magic penetration" in this world, but this kind of made-up word can be understood literally.
"Besides, wouldn't it be great if you revealed your identity? You can go back to your palace and be a princess soon."
"Humph, as long as you are not afraid of being killed as a kidnapper."
Andrea puffed up her cheeks and drove the carriage through the archway called the [Gate of True Vision].
As a city built in the form of a fortress, it is natural that there is such a magical device that can identify non-human life, break invisibility, stealth and appearance change. However, as Ryan said, until passing through this door, Andrea still did not change.
Following the flow of people and going up the ramp, Ryan and the others entered the city without any surprises.
Passing through the towering city gate, Ryan noticed the tall spires on both sides. The power of the elements gathered at his bottom, and at the top of the tower there were two things like "lightning rods".
Looking at this shape, Ryan couldn't help but think of a magical creation that he had discussed with Hecate through the [Book of All Laws]. At that time, he just recalled the weapon used by the Arcane Empire in a game before coming to this world, but now, has it been realized?
Without personal contact, it is not easy to draw conclusions. After all, this thing has probably not been used since it was created, because no enemy has really hit the gate of the Acropolis, and I don’t know if there will be a chance in the future... Turning his eyes away, Ryan looked at the scene behind the city gate again.
The bluestone paved road goes all the way inward, connecting the main roads and alleys in the city. The flashing crystal lamps hang on the side of the road, but because it is daytime, they are not lit.
At a glance, there are residences, public baths, and various workshops. And not far from the city gate, there are bronze statues of contemporary kings Theseus and Phaedra.
Well... seeing this, I have to mention Chaos's outrageous operation of going from gods to mortals.
The father of the current Queen of Athens, Phaedra, is actually the King of Crete, the son of Zeus and Europa, and the King Minos who was previously called "fair and strict" by the priests of Olympia.
But in fact, Minos and his son-in-law, King Theseus of Athens, did not have a good relationship.
According to legend, although Minos was an excellent king, he was probably not a person with an online moral level - this is also the norm among Chaos mortals. In short, his throne did not come from inheritance, but usurped the position of his brother Rhadamanthys.
After ascending the throne, perhaps out of worry or because of uneasiness in his heart, in order to prove the legitimacy of his ascension, the King of Crete naturally set his sights on God.
Needless to say, Zeus, although theoretically his father, on the one hand, the situation between him and Europa is well known, on the other hand, Hera is famous for being jealous, not to mention that he usurped the position of his brother... So Minos finally chose the head of Poseidon, the king of the sea, as the object of sacrifice.
Poseidon was also very happy that the son of Zeus prayed to him, so that not only did he not embarrass the king, he even took the initiative to send him a sacrifice to himself - a head from the sea. White bull walking out.
It stands to reason that as long as Minos sent back the cow, which was obviously sent by Poseidon himself, as a sacrifice, everything would be happy and nothing would happen, but the gods and people of this era were so arrogant.
Just like Tantalus who killed his son and feasted on the gods, the son of Zeus thought he could hide from the eyes of the gods, so he was reluctant to sacrifice such a beautiful bull to the gods. So he secretly replaced the sacrifice and kept the white bull given by the Poseidon.
As for the result... of course Poseidon discovered it. The enraged Poseidon thought he had been mocked, so he cursed Minos' wife, causing her to suffer from zoophilia.
In human terms, it changed her gender from female to male, to the unique aesthetic concept of a certain Mauryan dynasty.
