Step by step, Sparta walked across the blood-soaked earth. His expression remained utterly calm, as if he had no emotional reaction at all.
Death!
War!
Two divine forces surged through his body, gathering around him. However, something still seemed to be missing. Sparta could not yet fully absorb these powers and integrate them into his own divine strength.
Yet, Sparta did not care about this at the moment. He gazed into the distance, as though seeing the heavens, the seas, the stars, and even the Black Sea.
For a moment, the gods felt an overwhelming sense of danger. They seemed to sense the grim reaper standing silently beside them, holding a scythe that could claim their lives with a single swing.
In an instant, that boundless divine power seemed ready to devour everything in its path.
But as Sparta withdrew his gaze, everything returned to calm.
His voice was soft, almost like a murmur to himself, "It's over. This expedition should return now. Our war is finished."
Sparta turned and began to walk away, his expression still filled with an eerie calmness, as though nothing that had just happened mattered to him.
None of it did.
For Sparta, the most important thing was completing his expedition. The time had come to return to the Hades Temple in the far north. He had a promise to fulfill.
"Everyone!"
"The expedition is over. We have delivered death and war to Lord Hades. It's time to go home!"
"Roar!"
The response to Sparta was a deafening roar, driving everyone to madness. They were not shouting in excitement over the return.
Rather, for them, it meant they could finally go back. They had fulfilled their promise to Lord Hades. Their long expedition had come to an end, and they had kept their vow.
It was time to go home.
Sparta and his army began their return.
At that moment, the divine powers of war and death that surrounded Sparta began to condense into laws, slowly merging into his body. This was Sparta's ascension.
He had fulfilled his promise to Lord Hades, whom he worshipped.
Now, he would complete his ascension through that vow. By the time he returned to the far north, his divine power would reach the pinnacle of the Chief God of Titans, and this would be Sparta's glory and ascension!
On that day, Sparta would advance even further, stepping into the realm of the God-Kings in record time.
And this was something all the gods who witnessed the battle knew. Yet, none of them could stop it. Sparta's ascension was sanctioned by the mythological world.
Who would dare interfere?
If they did...
Then that earlier sensation of death closing in would not just be a feeling. It would become reality. And that was no joke, but cold, hard truth!
…
In the heavens.
"Hades..."
Zeus narrowed his eyes slightly, his voice quiet but filled with gravity. "I see now. Everything was part of your plan. You've ensured that no one can stop Sparta's ascension."
No matter how exceptional Sparta was, he was still just a human from the Golden Age.
In other words, as long as an opportunity presented itself, he could be stopped—perhaps even destroyed. It wouldn't have been that difficult.
But now?
That was no longer possible. The reason was simple. Sparta now represented the mythological world.
As the one chosen to end the Golden Age and play a part in this apocalyptic event, Sparta was protected by the mythological world. If anyone attempted anything at this point...
The mythological world would retaliate without hesitation, utterly destroying them. There would be no mercy, no second chances.
Given the current circumstances, the outcome was already clear.
"Your Majesty..."
Hera whispered softly, "So we can only watch..."
Before she could even finish her sentence, she suddenly felt a force targeting her, as if her life was being watched by something. It was a terrifying power, one that could instantly tear her apart.
"Did you feel it?"
"I did!" Hera nodded in terror, unable to hide her fear.
Zeus remained expressionless, but Hera was visibly shaken. Zeus, though a suspicious and volatile god, was undeniably capable of great courage and strength when necessary. There was no question about that.
To put it another way, Zeus was the kind of person who thrived in adversity. The worse the situation, the more terrifying his abilities became, striking fear into all who witnessed them.
But when everything was going well for him, it was a different story.
"It seems..." Zeus thought to himself, "Prometheus was right. Since it can't be stopped, it's better to perfect the plan. Only by doing so will everything work out for the best."
Zeus was no longer in a rush. He understood that many things could no longer be prevented.
So rather than trying to stop what couldn't be stopped, he would let things unfold as they must. That was the most important thing—the core of the matter.
Zeus knew this well.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Prometheus watched Sparta and shook his head in resignation.
He had his own plans, but weakening the powers of the Underworld and the Seas was no longer possible.
It was time to let things be.
________________________
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