Chapter 137: Attitude Is Most Important
He teased, “Clearly, your two horns aren’t that good-looking either, right?”
“When Mother Goddess Gaia created you, she definitely didn’t put her heart into it; your divine form isn’t even perfect.”
“Your calves are still goat hooves, and there are goat horns on your head. You really should have Mother Goddess revise you again.”
Amalthea lifted her head and fiercely bumped Zeus’s palm with her remaining single horn, making his palm feel a bit itchy.
She huffed and retorted, “They’re clearly very pretty! It’s your eyesight that’s bad!”
“No no no, you have to restore my horns for me! You promised me.”
Watching the coquettish and noisy Amalthea, Zeus was endlessly amused and kept laughing.
Being with this silly nymph was always so relaxed and carefree, allowing him to temporarily set aside the heavy burdens of the God King.
Damn it! He hadn’t expected that not only were the gods working like oxen and horses, but he, as the God King, was too!
Zeus’s reaction infuriated Amalthea, who shrank her head back in again. Nearby, Adrasteia and Ida watched their playful antics, covering their mouths and giggling; their warmth made the two feel warm as well.
Only now did Zeus resemble the god in their memories.
Sunny and cheerful, playful and mischievous, gentle and kind, close to his loved ones.
Zeus toyed with Amalthea in his palm, still smiling dotingly, but his tone was clearly more serious: “Maia, I’m serious. Your essence has no further potential for advancement. I want to remake your Origin for you.”
“Mm, please believe me; it will definitely be even prettier.”
Amalthea lifted her small head, her cute and dazed eyes looking at Zeus, stunned for a moment, then lowering her head in contemplation for a moment, full of hesitation and reluctance.
She asked very cautiously, “Zeus, what kind of form do you want to change me into?”
“C-can… can it still have horns?”
Zeus looked at her naive and shy expression tinged with pleading and understood her little thought.
In her youth, she had used her goat horns to produce milk to nurse Zeus; she didn’t want that symbol to disappear.
Zeus said warmly, “Don’t worry; your appearance won’t change, and I’ll keep your beautiful horns, just modifying your Origin a bit. Mm, but only the goat horns will remain.”
The silly nymph pouted naively and shyly, her reluctant look exceptionally lovely, but she finally agreed: “Alright, I’ll listen to you.”
Zeus grinned and teased, “So bold; do you intend to defy me?”
Amalthea wasn’t afraid at all; she rolled her eyes at Zeus and fiercely bumped his palm again with her single horn.
At that moment, Zeus lifted his head to look outside, his sharp gaze piercing through layers of obstacles and locking directly onto the base of Mount Olympus.
There, a group of Gods was approaching slowly, led by Ocean God Oceanus with his entire family.
Seeing the young gods behind him, Zeus roughly guessed the Ocean God’s purpose and smiled faintly, instructing the Four Winds outside the Divine Palace: “Arges, honored guests have arrived; go welcome them.”
The four Wind God brothers accepted the order, transforming into four gales that howled down from the peak of Mount Olympus straight to the base.
Zeus gently stroked Amalthea’s golden goat wool and chuckled softly, “Look, Maia, you’re really lucky.”
“Hm????” The cute and dazed nymph completely couldn’t understand what Zeus meant; her small head was filled with question marks.
Zeus said nothing more, simply placing the palm-sized Goat Goddess in his embrace. Nearby, Adrasteia and Ida had already obediently stood solemnly behind him; this tacit understanding had lasted endless years.
When Oceanus reached the base of Mount Olympus, the thousands of gods awaiting the Assembly of the Gods all came forward to express their sincerest respect to this ancient and majestic Ocean God.
In the current Universe, even the most ignorant god knew that Daughter of the Ocean, the supremely wise Goddess of Wisdom Metis, was the god beloved by His Majesty the God King.
Thus, the Ocean God’s status naturally rose with the tide, becoming even more revered.
Though the Ocean God was the Leader of the Titans, he hadn’t received such treatment before.
After all, everyone had known that Oceanus was at odds with the Old God King.
Even though the gods respected the Ocean God, they didn’t dare get too close.
Oceanus was not an arrogant and rude god; even facing the salutes of many minor gods, he responded with nods and smiles.
Upon arriving at Olympus, he showed no disrespect whatsoever, controlling propriety perfectly.
He still waited at the base of the mountain for Zeus’s reception, not ascending directly, but sending one son up the mountain to request an audience, demonstrating humility and respect.
Even though he knew Zeus would certainly sense his arrival, the etiquette he ought to observe was flawless.
After the Four Winds descended the mountain together, the gales carried respect and reverence as they courteously invited Oceanus up the mountain into the hall. The God King’s courtesy toward the Ocean God was seen by all the gods present.
After Oceanus entered the Divine Palace, Zeus personally came to the front of the hall to greet him, his mild smile as warm and open as ever, as if utterly unaware of the Ocean God’s purpose, receiving not a Titan who needed to flatter him, but a close ally.
He stepped forward and gave Oceanus a hearty embrace, laughing loudly, “Respected Father of a Thousand Streams, Olympus welcomes your arrival.”
After releasing him, Oceanus bowed deeply in salute, with unprecedented piety and humility.
He smiled and said, “Great Zeus, His Majesty the God King, thank you for your welcome. Your mercy and enthusiasm honor me greatly.”
His children behind him, the gods of Clymene, knelt on one knee in grand salute: “Clymene（Pleione and others） pay respects to His Majesty the God King, great, merciful, generous, and compassionate!”
Zeus’s gaze swept over the gods, and he waved his hand, his voice calm yet filled with majesty as he smiled faintly, “No need for such ceremony; all rise.”
With that, he looked toward the Ocean God and invited him to sit down.
After the two gods sat down, Zeus occupied the high Divine Seat of the God King and asked amiably, “Respected Ocean God, what brings you to Olympus today?”
Zeus naturally knew Oceanus’s purpose, but he wanted to confirm the Ocean God’s attitude.
To see how this increasingly close Great God would plead, whether he remained humble and loyal.
Atlas and his brother were mere minor figures and unimportant, but the attitude of the god pleading for them mattered greatly.
The God King didn’t mind granting a bit of kindness to a close ally, but the ally had to be worthy.
Humility and loyalty—both indispensable.
I can give, you can ask, but you cannot demand.
Hearing this, a light sigh crossed Oceanus’s heroic face, and he stood up again.
His gaze full of pleading turned toward Zeus, seated in the central Divine Seat high above in the Divine Palace, and he nodded deeply, saying, “Wise God King, Oceanus has come to request one thing of you.”
Zeus’s face grew serious, his solemn expression instantly making the atmosphere inside the hall solemn.
He nodded and said, “Please, what is it? If it is within my authority and a reasonable request, I will not refuse; I will give your request the respect it deserves.”
The Ocean God raised his hand toward his children behind him, his voice filled with helplessness and grief: “Generous God King His Majesty, behind me are my daughters and their children.”
He paused for an instant, then continued, “They are also… the Sinful God’s family.”
As the Ocean God spoke, his majestic and towering body unhesitatingly knelt on one knee, lowering his noble head, his posture full of humility and heartbreak.
Tears already streamed down his resolute face, his humble pleading voice echoing in the Divine Palace: “Respected God King His Majesty, I have come to beg your mercy. For the sake of a father who loves his children and pities his Father God, please pardon these pitiable children and give them an opportunity!”
“My daughter Clymene is Iapetus’s wife, but she never participated in this war and always opposed Iapetus following Cronus, persistently advising him with heartfelt words to pledge allegiance to you.”
“But Iapetus was stubborn and unyielding; she was helpless. She had already done everything she could.”
“A wife who is loyal and loves her husband—what could she do? A wife cannot dictate her husband’s decisions.”
“She also kept advising her children to pursue the correct path, but her Eldest Son and Second Son were stubborn and unyielding, firmly following their Father God and straying into wrongdoing.”
“Only her other son, the wise Prometheus, chose the correct path, pledging allegiance under you and fortunately earning your favor.”
Zeus glanced at Clymene; her outstanding beauty among the Daughters of the Ocean impressed him greatly. He nodded imperceptibly, signaling his understanding, and continued listening quietly.
When rewarding merits, he hadn’t granted Prometheus honor—not out of forgetfulness.
Nor had he dealt with Atlas and his brother yet—not out of forgetfulness.
He had been waiting for Prometheus to come plead, but unexpectedly, this pitiable old father, the Ocean God, had come first.
He sighed inwardly: This pitiable old father truly embodies the parents’ heart worldwide.
The Ocean God pointed to Pleione, sighing and shedding tears, grieving, “My other pitiable daughter—Pleione, always the gentlest and most tender—her correct advice and pleas were cast behind the head by the violent Atlas.”
“The foolish and stubborn Atlas deserves his punishment, but my pitiable daughter can only wash her face with tears day and night; her lovely children can no longer enjoy the Sacred Order you established, no longer live under the sunlight.”
“All this is my fault; I chose the wrong marriages for them. They followed my teachings, were loyal to their husbands, loved their children—this is not their wrongdoing.”
“They did their utmost to dissuade, but a wife should respect her husband, support her husband. She could only advise—how could she firmly oppose her husband? Even if he strayed onto the wrong path.”
The Daughters of the Ocean watched their Father God so humbled, all for their sake, and began to sob softly.
