The Greece Antagonist

"Boom!"

Just as the towering waves stirred up by Charybdis, the "Great Whirlpool," were about to come crashing down in a frenzy, a dull thud emanated from deep within the army ranks, clear and powerful.

Golden light flowed and spread out, dividing into thousands of strands, surging into the bodies of every Minosian, soothing the tremors of their flesh and dispelling the fear in their spirits.

At the same time, the ground in front of the citadel resonated in response, as a golden barrier instantly rose, forming an indestructible shield that forcibly contained the assault of the sea waves.

"Roar!"

Charybdis, the "Great Whirlpool," blocked on the outside, let out an angry roar, lifting its arms made of thousand tons of sea water, hammering at the golden barrier time and again, determined to shatter this shell and devour everything clean within.

"Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!"

With each powerful strike, the golden barrier reverberated with louder and louder booms, and irrepressible cracks began to appear.

The people sheltering beneath the barrier on the citadel couldn't help but have their hearts leap back into their throats, their gaze unconsciously turning back to look at the figure in the coarse white robe, an old man with a hunched back, within their ranks.

"Boom!"

The golden scepter struck the ground once more, and before Charybdis, the "Great Whirlpool," the figure who seemed so insignificant not only didn't shrink back but instead puffed out his chest and took a step forward, delivering a proud declaration.

"I am a scion of Zeus!"

"Roar!"

Charybdis, furious, swung its arm, and the cracks on the golden barrier grew even wider, the web-like fractures spreading outwards, causing several bricks on the citadel to shatter from the intense vibrations.

A flying pebble grazed the old man's cheek, cutting a fine wound on his brow, and golden-red blood flowed forth.

"Boom!"

Even as his vision blurred from the blood, the old man remained unfazed, striking the ground with his golden scepter once more. Synchronizing with the rhythm of the earth's tremors, he took another step towards the edge of the citadel, loudly proclaiming once again.

"I am the son of the Divine Consort Europa!"

Suddenly, the golden barrier that was on the brink of shattering quickly mended and stabilized, even pushing forward as the old man stepped, resisting the onslaught of the waves.

Splash—!

The sea churned heavily, and Charybdis, now a giant humanoid of water, was forcefully pushed back.

Its legs, standing amid the waves, stumbled and retreated, and before this seemingly ant-like small entity, the immense body of the Siren could only dodge out of the way.

The sight was like that of an insect, brandishing a blade of grass, driving away a tyrannosaurus rex.

The people on the citadel were dumbstruck, their emotions surging tumultuously.

Unforgivable! Unforgivable!

A torrent of humiliation surged forth, and the raging demonic nature instantly overwhelmed Charybdis's already scant rationality; boiling with killing intent and the desire to destroy, these emotions coalesced into its mighty fists and a deafening roar.

"Die!"

"I am the King of Crete!"

King Minos, standing at the edge of the citadel, his hair and beard bristling, lifted his golden scepter high and swung it forward. His deep voice boomed like thunder, instantly drowning out the roar of the waves.

"—I command you, get off my land! Beast!"

"Rumble—!"

At the same time, several thunderbolts as thick as water barrels fell from the sky, drawn by the scepter, like golden javelins shooting forth, piercing straight through the body of Charybdis, the "Great Whirlpool."

"Splash!"

In an instant, the hundred-meter-tall illusory form of water outside the wall was shattered and dispersed by the golden thunderbolts, turning into a sky full of scattering droplets.

"Wuu~~"

The gravely wounded creature could no longer maintain its humanoid shape, leaving only a broken visage that emitted a pitiful wail before disappearing beneath the undulating waves, vanishing into the sea below.

We won? We won!

The relief of surviving disaster moved every soldier to exhilaration, their faces aglow with feverish excitement as they gazed toward their king. One by one, they raised their hands to beat their shields, creating a deafening cheer.

"Bang bang!"

"Minos!"
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"Bang bang!"

"Minos!"

Looking upon the figure standing before the citadel like a towering wall, and at the soldiers around him, all uplifted and cheering, several princes in charge of commanding the battle couldn't help but have mixed feelings, a bitter taste in their mouths.

No matter how hard they tried, no matter how exceptional they were, in front of their own father, they were like fireflies trying to outshine the bright moon, ludicrous and utterly self-unaware.

Yet to the gods, such people, such an almost unattainable peak, were nothing more than slightly stronger ants.

In the midst of the great upheavals in their hearts, a strong sense of defeat brewed in the hearts of the several princes and finally turned into a trace of despair on their faces.

The old man witnessed this with an imperceptible sigh, feeling a faint sadness within.

His sons, although a few were not bad, were far from truly excellent.

They lacked not only the qualifications to advance to godhood but also the courage to contend with the gods.

He feared that after his death, the prosperity he had painstakingly built would fall into their hands and decline;

His arduous defense and efforts would turn to nought.

"Look quick! Something's coming up!"

"In the water!"

Just as the father and sons each harbored their own thoughts, there came the soldiers' exclamations from beside them.

Everyone turned toward the sound and saw, in the marsh that had become of the citadel's front beach, slender and enchanting figures twisting and wriggling, shimmering with large patches of dazzling luster.

They had round spots of crimson, gold, cyan, and blue.

Stripes like zebras, spots like leopards, eyes like peacocks, all with deep red lines;

They were suffused with the luster of the silver moon, as they breathed, this silvery glow would fade or brighten, or weave its brilliance with the duller patterns, as their bodies seemed interwoven with rainbows...

Luo En gazed at the familiar light pollution in the water ripples and the sinuous contours underneath, his eyelids drooping as he murmured softly.

— The Serpent of Greed, Lamia!

Although King Minos had struck a severe blow to the rushing Charybdis, his gradually aging body meant he ultimately failed to slay the sea monster with one blow, letting her escape back to the embrace of the sea to regain the protection of divine oceanic authority.

After suffering greatly at King Minos's hands, Charybdis decisively did not dare to surface rashly again but instead stirred the tides to submerge the coastal lines to create more advantageous landing and combat conditions for the sea beast army gathering near Crete Island.

Luo En looked at the Lamias that emerged from the water, sticking out their tongues, slithering up against the walls, and creeping ominously towards the citadel's ramparts. His gaze, growing somber, then shifted to the night sky, landing on the chattering flock of bird-like Sirens, his heart promptly filled with surges of unease.

It's not the enemy's assault he feared, but their ability to think.

It appeared that the divine-blood kindreds of the Sea of Okeanos were slowly learning to cooperate.

The battle before them seemed to be getting increasingly difficult.

"Priests and magicians, maintain the magic barrier, responsible for air suppression!"

"All garrison troops, form ranks! Face the enemy!"

In that moment, the eldest prince, acting as the commander, gazing at the dense divine-blood kindreds in the water and sky, gritted his teeth, drew his bronze long sword from his waist, and bellowed with a hoarse roar.

And this time, the soldiers had grown accustomed to facing the Sea Beasts, to facing fear, and strived to stand erect, brandishing their swords, raising their spears and shields, to retaliate against the invading enemy.

Because their king was here.

Their home was right behind them!

"Stab!"

"Retract!"

"Stab!"

"Retract!"

"Swords and shields forward! Archers, 45-degree volley fire!"

As the eldest prince repeatedly barked the battle commands, once-dull combat training incessantly sprang to the soldiers' minds.

With a sense of progression from awkwardness to familiarity, and from familiarity to mastery, the Minosian soldiers followed the orders, assembled the ranks, and surrounded and isolated each sea monster that had climbed their defenses, their weapons thrusting forward both accurately and mechanically.

The splattered flesh and blood and the Sea Beasts' shrieks could no longer shake their morale.

As one warrior fell, new ranks moved up to fill the gap.

They stood atop the citadel, guarding King Minos, becoming an orderly and solid whole, like a finely tuned machine of slaughter.

It wasn't just the Sea Beasts' cooperation that was improving, the Minosians' will to fight and combat skills were also fully honed in this trial by fire and blood.

Seeing his soldiers holding steady without panic, successfully warding off the assault, Luo En finally eased his heart.

Thought and learning were things humanity should excel at after all.

Witnessing their prolonged inability to overcome the enemy, with their momentum gradually waning and the last of the nightsky about to fade, the divine-blood kindreds commanding from the rear grew restless.

Scylla, with her six heads and twelve feet, moved her massive body like a doomsday tank, crushing her way over the front beach towards the coastal citadel, not even half as tall as her stature.