The Ocean Goddess Thetis.
She is the daughter of the kind sea god Nereus and the great Oceanid Doris, and among their daughters she is the wisest and most beautiful.
If one spoke only of this, she would still seem rather unfamiliar.
But once her other renowned identity is mentioned, no one would feel that way anymore.
She is the mother of one of the most famous demigod heroes in all of Greek myth.
The name of that hero is Achilles!
Yes, the very same great demigod hero who was dipped in the waters of the Styx, tempered by heavenly fire, rendered invulnerable everywhere except his heel, which remained his fatal weakness.
Because of her own beauty and virtue, Thetis was actually quite famous among the gods.
Not only Zeus, but even the Sea King Poseidon had once pursued her.
Yet upon her rested a most famous prophecy, one delivered by the foreknowing god Prometheus.
The son she bore would inevitably become greater than his father!
For this reason, in the future Zeus would reluctantly give up his pursuit of her and instead marry the beautiful and virtuous Thetis to a mortal man.
That man's name was Peleus.
At this very moment, Peleus is still aboard the Argo. He too is a disciple of the centaur sage Chiron and Jason's senior brother.
In his youth, Peleus joined Jason on the quest for the Golden Fleece.
Only after they returned victorious did he receive an oracle from Zeus himself, commanding him to go and wed Thetis.
Thetis naturally refused, but with Zeus's assistance, no matter how she transformed (into a lioness, a serpent, or even seawater itself), Peleus held fast to her.
In the end, with no means of resistance left, she married Peleus.
The instant she gave birth to Achilles, she beheld her son's future.
That was why she took Achilles to be bathed in the waters of the Styx and begged Zeus to temper his body with heavenly fire.
Yet even so, Achilles would ultimately perish in the Trojan War.
After his death, Thetis wept every day, washing her face with tears.
Such was the original fate of this beautiful ocean goddess.
But now,
everything has taken a turn!
…
Knock, knock.
Two soft knocks sounded. Medea rose and opened the door.
"Big brother?!"
Her amethyst eyes reflected Jason's figure. Medea spoke with evident delight. "Big brother, why are you here!"
As she spoke, she quickly stepped aside to let Jason in.
"Medea, where is that white dolphin?"
Jason entered, closed the door behind him, and hurriedly asked.
"White dolphin?" Medea blinked, then pointed at the ceiling. "It's up there…
By the way, big brother, it doesn't seem hurt at all."
While Medea whispered this, Jason naturally looked up and saw the beautiful white cetacean.
At that moment, traces of magical sigils still lingered in the air above the room.
A small pool of water had been magically fixed to the ceiling by Medea.
Thetis, who had transformed into a white dolphin, was swimming back and forth inside it.
When Jason looked up at her, Thetis naturally looked back at him.
Their eyes met. Jason respectfully bowed and said, "Lady Thetis, you are safe now. The great King of the Gods has already departed. He noticed nothing unusual…"
Lady Thetis?
The great King of the Gods?
Medea, standing beside them, heard Jason's words and froze.
Then the white dolphin let out a melodic cry. She turned into faint blue light, descended before Jason, and revealed her true divine form.
She stood barefoot before Jason, wearing a beautiful long dress. Slightly curled blue hair cascaded over her shoulders. Her amber eyes gazed at Jason with deep gratitude.
Just as Jason had said, King Zeus had already left.
And he had left happily. He had nearly forgotten why he even came aboard the Argo in the first place, let alone discovering Thetis.
Because Jason had offered a bribe… no, a respectful tribute to the King of the Gods.
Several sets of black-silk maid outfits and bright cheongsams that Zeus had long coveted, plus all sorts of fireworks Jason had prepared in advance to deal with the gods.
Zeus, who had attended the wedding of the Lord and Lady of the Underworld and personally witnessed the devastating romantic power of those fireworks, was utterly delighted. He took the so-called tribute with great satisfaction and promptly departed.
From his impatient manner, it was clear he was eager to go test them on certain goddesses or nymphs in exchange for a night worth a thousand gold.
That was why Jason could now stand before Thetis.
"You need not bow to me. On the contrary, it is I who should thank you, hero Jason who wears the sacred white robes."
Thetis looked gratefully at the hero before her and spoke softly. "It is you who saved me from the sea of suffering."
"I am sorry, great goddess."
At that moment, Medea, having recovered from her shock, hurriedly stepped forward and bowed her head to Thetis. "Please forgive my ignorant rudeness earlier…"
"No, dear child. You were never rude to me. How could I forgive what was not a fault?" Thetis turned to Medea with a gentle smile. "Rather, it is I who must thank you. Thank you for saving me."
As she spoke, Thetis gently stroked Medea's head.
Then she looked at Jason with apologetic eyes. "I am sorry, Jason. I must leave now… Though I wish I could stay and express my gratitude properly.
But I would only bring trouble upon you. He will not let me go so easily.
If fate allows us to meet again, I will surely repay this kindness!"
With that, Thetis turned to leave.
But…
Jason stopped her.
"No, Lady Thetis. I cannot let you go."
Facing Thetis's surprised gaze, Jason spoke earnestly. "Since it was Queen of the Sea Amphitrite who sent you to me, I cannot stand by and do nothing!"
These words were true.
Yet the greater reason was that Jason knew full well he had already boarded the pirate ship.
For various reasons, he had saved Thetis right under Zeus's nose.
Letting her go now and pretending nothing had happened would, in Jason's view, actually be the most foolish course of action.
Because that would leave far too much to chance.
Who knew if Zeus had truly gone far? What if he encountered Thetis the moment she left the Argo and grew furious at Jason's audacity?
And who could guarantee that even if he saved her now, Thetis would not betray him later?
Keeping her here was indeed dangerous, but to Jason that danger had become controllable.
It was still a bomb, but at least he could see the fuse when it was lit.
Only by doing this could he buy more time and resolve the matter properly!
"Jason… Jason, are you truly willing to help me?!"
Thetis naturally had no idea what Jason was thinking. Hearing his words, surprise gave way to overwhelming emotion.
She rushed forward and seized Jason's hands, her expression agitated beyond measure.
She could not be blamed for reacting this way. She had begged many gods for help along the way, yet not one had been willing.
Even Poseidon, who had once courted her, now turned a deaf ear to her pleas.
Only Queen Amphitrite, unable to bear it, had secretly told Thetis to seek the sacred Argo sailing upon the sea.
She had especially instructed Thetis to find the captain of the Argo, the hero in sacred white robes, Jason.
Because only Jason could save her!
"Lady Thetis, if you do not mind, I too am willing to offer what little strength I have."
Jason had not expected Thetis to react so strongly and was momentarily stunned.
Medea spoke up, drawing Thetis's gaze to her.
Jason recovered and, with practiced ease, slipped free of Thetis's grasp, subtly putting distance between them without leaving a trace.
Thetis looked at Medea, then at the two children before her, and said with deep emotion, "Th-thank you… But no, I cannot stay.
I would only bring trouble upon you both!"
With that, she tried to leave again.
"Lady Thetis, you must understand that if you leave now, there is a very real chance you will run straight into the great King of the Gods who has not yet gone far."
One sentence from Jason halted her steps.
"Moreover, Lady Thetis, you are the younger sister of Queen Amphitrite. I once received great kindness from her, and thus I hold boundless respect and admiration for her. I wish to help you.
For this, I swear upon the River Styx of the Underworld!"
"And I too swear upon the River Styx of the Underworld!"
Seeing Jason take the oath, Medea followed without hesitation.
Faced with this, Thetis could only stay. Looking at Jason and Medea as they swore, her voice trembled slightly. "Jason… Medea… you…"
"Thank you… thank you!"
Before Thetis could approach again, Jason deftly seized Medea beside him. While Medea looked bewildered, he subtly pushed her forward into Thetis's arms.
And so Thetis embraced Medea instead.
"Thank you, truly thank you. All this time I did not know what to do…"
Thetis held Medea tightly, pouring out the fear and anguish she had carried, her whole body trembling.
Seeing this, Jason quietly turned and left the room.
Some time later, Medea emerged.
"Lady Thetis has fallen asleep…"
As soon as she answered Jason's inquiring gaze,
"I'm sorry, Medea." Jason rubbed her hair and sighed softly. "I dragged you into this trouble."
Medea blinked, thought for a moment, then asked in a small voice, "Big brother… does Atalanta know about this…?"
"Huh?"
Jason looked at Medea in confusion.
"Nothing."
Medea quickly shook her head, a beautiful smile blooming on her face. "It's nothing! It's no trouble at all!
Being able to help big brother makes me happy. It is my honor!"
"What are you saying?" Jason chuckled helplessly and patted her head again. "We're siblings."
"We're not blood-related… And even if we were, it wouldn't matter." Medea muttered in protest.
"Hm?"
Jason raised an eyebrow.
"Go find Lady Teacher quickly, big brother!"
Fearing Jason would launch into his usual lecture about "an elder brother is like a father" and "you must not tease your brother," Medea hurriedly turned back into the room. "I'm going to keep looking after Lady Thetis!"
Watching Medea flee and slam the door shut with a bang, Jason could only shake his head speechlessly. "This girl… sigh."
He let out a resigned sigh.
Truthfully, now that fate had been broken (and it was Medea herself who had chosen to spend three whole years firing that arrow), Jason no longer truly resisted her feelings.
He had even considered whether he should try to accept Medea's love.
But…
I'm sorry.
Jason silently apologized in his heart.
For now, he could only ignore Medea's love once more.
Because Jason was truly too timid. He did not have the courage to face the jealousy of the Goddess of Wisdom Athena!
"By the way, how did she know I was going to see Teacher…?"
While speaking, Jason had already taken out the caduceus.
With a thought, golden particles gathered, and the spirit of the Argo appeared beside him.
"Take this."
Jason handed her the Helm of Invisibility, a gift from Hades and Persephone.
"If anything happens, give it to that goddess immediately. Understood?"
After giving his instructions and seeing the ship spirit nod, Jason felt slightly more at ease. Surrounded by a swarm of underworld butterflies, he departed for the Underworld.
Soon after,
Jason arrived before the gates of Hecate's temple.
Just as he pushed the doors to enter…
"…Huh?"
He pushed hard two or three times, but the doors would not budge. Jason froze.
After thinking for a moment, he turned to leave and tried to climb in through a window.
Only to find the windows sealed…
"Teacher! Teacher, open the door!"
Bang bang bang. Jason began pounding on the gates.
"Teacher Hecate, open up!"
"Teacher, I know you're home! Hurry and open the door!"
No response.
Seeing this, Jason twitched at the corner of his mouth. "Teacher, if you don't open up… fine. If you don't, I'll go find Brother-in-law Hades and Sister Persephone!"
Still no response.
"If you still don't open, I'll go to the Goddess of Night Nyx!"
Inside the temple, Hecate heard Jason's threats and dark lines appeared on her forehead. She silently cursed her troublesome disciple but stubbornly refused to open the door.
"You still won't open…?"
Jason gritted his teeth and declared ruthlessly, "Teacher, if you don't open this door right now, I'm going straight to the Goddess of Falling Stars, Lady Asteria!"
BAM!
Hecate's eyes widened. She slammed the table and stood up.
The next second, she appeared before Jason, who had just turned to seek help from Hades and Persephone.
Before the delighted Jason could speak,
Hecate reached out, seized his ear in a vice grip, and hissed through clenched teeth, "You've grown bold, haven't you, you wretched disciple! You really think you can ascend to the heavens!
I don't open the door, and you threaten to tattle to my mother?!"
"Ow ow ow, Teacher, it really hurts! Stop pulling, it's going to come off!"
"And I haven't even gone yet! You're the one who wouldn't open the door…"
"Because nothing good ever comes from opening the door for you! It's always trouble!"
Hecate glared at Jason. "How long has it been since you left Hephaestus's temple? A few days!
My dear little disciple, can't you let your teacher have a moment of peace?!"
"Come on, Teacher, can't I just be visiting you?"
"Heh." Hecate gave a cold laugh and eyed him sideways. "Then do you dare swear it on the River Styx?"
Jason fell silent.
Seeing Hecate's face grow darker,
He immediately and expertly broke free of her grasp, dropped to the floor, and hugged her thigh.
"Teacher! My good Teacher! Most beautiful Teacher! You can't just watch your obedient student die!"
"Here we go again?! Let go! Let go right now… And you lot, what are you staring at?!
Wait, even Lady Nyx and Lord Erebus, you too…
Fine, fine, I'll help!
You wretched disciple, let go already! Or shut your mouth and follow me inside!"
Only then did Jason release her. He followed the fuming Hecate back into the temple.
At that moment, throughout the entire Underworld, the laughter of countless gods rang out across the heavens and earth.