The temples on Olympus were completed.
Blessed by the rich mineral deposits of the Underworld, Hephaestus spent a full hundred days and nights to finally make the entire Olympus look brand new.
The architecture—which condensed his architectural aesthetics from his previous life and his current inspiration—made all the gods marvel.
“This is amazing!
Absolutely amazing!
Hephaestus!
You have not failed my trust!”
Inside the brand-new temple, Zeus happily patted Hephaestus’s shoulder.
A joyful smile spread across his handsome face—clearly indicating that Hephaestus had given him a perfect answer, making him very satisfied.
In fact, this magnificent yet exquisitely noble palace perfectly suited his taste.
Especially with many novel designs that piqued his endless curiosity.
If it weren’t for the need to maintain the majesty and composure of the King of the Gods, he would have already explored this new temple.
Facing such warm praise, Hephaestus showed no particular reaction.
He merely bowed slightly to the King of the Gods without uttering a word.
Knowing his nephew’s taciturn and honest nature—and moreover, that this nephew was the beloved younger brother of his most cherished Queen of the Gods, Metis—Zeus did not mind.
Instead, he turned to the gods and announced the start of a new round of revelry.
“OH!
OH!
OH!!!”
The entire Olympus was instantly filled with cheers.
The gods were already immersed in a sea of joy.
The greatest improvement from this renovation of Olympus went to the lesser gods—excluding the chief gods.
As mentioned before, during the war with the Titan gods, Olympus had essentially been a frontline base, primarily serving the war effort.
The chief gods, as the primary combatants, were fine—their living conditions were not too bad.
But for the lesser gods, who served as servants and cannon fodder, their living environment had been far from pleasant.
Of course, it wasn’t to the extent of dozens of people living in one big communal room—each lesser god still had a temple of their own.
However, those temples had truly been nothing but stone.
Even sleeping involved directly lying on a stone bed.
Conditions had been extremely difficult.
But now it was different.
Although this new “temple” was a bit strange, it had completely revolutionized their understanding of what a temple could be—teaching them the meaning of enjoyment.
Soft, large beds.
Thick carpets.
Self-illuminating gems.
Faucets that automatically dispensed clear water.
Magical settings that could change the indoor temperature.
And other such wondrous items—all of them made the lesser gods incredibly happy.
But while all the gods were so happy, there was one goddess who remained sullen.
Her gaze toward Hephaestus—who stood beside Zeus—was filled with anger.
Hera.
Her heart was filled with intense anger at this moment.
A hundred days.
She had waited a full hundred days for this rebellious son to come and beg her forgiveness.
Yet, this rebellious son not only failed to come crying and wailing to admit his mistake—he had completely ignored her.
The chief gods—her siblings—had all been consulted for their opinions.
Even the weak nymphs had been personally questioned by Hephaestus.
Only she.
Only Hera had been ignored.
To Hera, this was undoubtedly an insult.
And the kind that slapped her face repeatedly.
The temples of the other gods each had their own unique characteristics, perfectly suiting their respective tastes—but only hers, only Hera’s temple, was so ordinary.
She couldn’t say what was bad about it—but she also couldn’t say what was good.
This caused Hera to even feel resentment toward Hephaestus—but at the same time, she felt a faint trace of annoyance.
As for what exactly she was annoyed about—she didn’t know.
Nor did she dare to know.
“!”
Suddenly, Hephaestus seemed to notice her gaze.
His masked face turned toward Hera.
In that brief instant, Hera clearly felt their eyes meet.
At this moment, her heart suddenly leaped.
An indescribable feeling surfaced within her.
It was as if it was joy—and also as if she was relieved.
But this emotion, just as it began to brew, was extinguished.
Because Hephaestus turned away again—completely ignoring Hera.
At this, Hera truly felt like exploding.
However, no matter how annoyed or resentful she felt, Hera ultimately knew that the current environment was not suitable for her to lash out.
It wasn’t because of the lesser gods immersed in revelry, nor was it the chief gods of equal status to her—but because she was worried about spoiling Zeus’s mood.
Looking at Zeus, who was beaming with joy among the gods, Hera had no choice but to swallow this burning anger.
Suppressing her fury, she let out a cold snort and turned to leave.
Little did she know that as she stormed off, the beautiful Queen of the Gods beside the King of the Gods gazed deeply at her retreating back—her eyes filled with profound and intriguing meaning.
But then, the beautiful Queen of the Gods withdrew her gaze.
A happy smile bloomed on her lips, and she opened her arms to embrace her most beloved younger brother.
“Very good, very good, very good—well done, Hephaestus~~”
Stroking her brother’s fluffy head, Metis praised him very happily.
“It’s nothing.
It’s what I should do.”
Hephaestus’s somewhat muffled voice came from beneath the mask, as if shyly requesting, “Sister, I don’t really like such noisy places.
Can you take me somewhere quieter?”
Metis understood immediately upon hearing Hephaestus’s words.
She smiled and nodded, then said to her husband beside her, “My love, my dear brother cannot adapt to such a boisterous atmosphere.
I need to take him somewhere quiet—and also praise him properly.”
“Oh?
Oh!”
Zeus, who was about to raise his cup for a toast, paused slightly, then reacted.
Glancing at the smiling Metis and the masked Hephaestus, a gentle, understanding smile appeared on his face: “Of course, my love.
Your dear brother is the great hero of today.
You must praise him well—on my behalf too.”
Zeus readily agreed—without the slightest hesitation or thought.
This was his trust in Metis—and also his trust in his own charm.
“Let’s go, my dear brother.”
Having received Zeus’s permission, Metis playfully winked at Hephaestus, then took his hand and led him back to her temple.
She dismissed the maidservants serving in the temple, granting their long-awaited wish to join the grand revelry.
As these nymphs joyfully departed, only Hephaestus and Metis remained in the entire temple.
Leading Hephaestus to her most private bedchamber, Metis happily pushed open the door and walked directly toward the reception sofa.
“Come, sit down.”
Metis sat down on the sofa—feeling the soft sensation beneath her—and happily beckoned to Hephaestus, praising him.
“This sofa you made is really good.
And these other little gadgets are also very interesting.”
How could they not be interesting?
Hephaestus had decorated Metis’s space according to the highest standards of luxury mansion decor in his mind—absolutely high-end, sophisticated, understated, luxurious, and meaningful.
Both beautiful and practical.
Of course, in addition to these, Hephaestus had also prepared some devices for necessary situations in this room—and even in the King of the Gods’s bedchamber.
And the reason he had asked Metis to take him to a quiet place was to tell these things to his most beloved sister.
“Sister Metis.”
Hephaestus solemnly held Metis’s right hand and said, very seriously and gravely, “I am not exaggerating.
I am telling you what will surely happen in the future.
Zeus will act against you.
For his status, for his power—you and the child in your womb are, in his eyes, things he can abandon for power!
Do you still have any illusions about him?”
“Wake up, Sister!
Zeus loves you, yes—but for him, the power of the King of the Gods is more important!”
“I will not allow such a thing to happen.
If Zeus really intends to do this, I will—”
Suddenly, Metis’s left index finger gently pressed against Hephaestus’s lips—interrupting his gradually escalating emotions.
“Shhh~”
Metis playfully winked at Hephaestus.
Her smile was gentle and composed—yet carried an undeniable aura of authority.
“My dear brother—from now on, I speak, and you listen.
Understood?”