[Greek Mythology] The Demons Under My Command - Chapter 23

“Please, take me with you. Anywhere will do.”

“Even if I turn into a pile of white bones, at least I’ll be free.”

Raindrops landed on her hair, rolled down to her shoulders, and bled into darker and lighter watermarks. Her voice was incredibly soft, even her gasps were light trembles. Curled up into a small ball, she looked like a drowned kitten.

Morphelia had never liked to meddle in other people’s affairs, especially when the affair involved a troublesome mortal girl. She had been summoned by the girl and should have ended this farce and turned to leave, but she stopped, as if compelled by a ghost.

Morphelia hesitated for a moment and helped the girl up from the ground: “Did you summon me because you have a request?”

Lorelei then told her the whole story—how Polkapus II intended to marry her off to a cruel and tyrannical despot as his sixth bride.

“There’s someone by the riverbank, go check it out quickly!”

Before she could receive the dragon’s reply, the palace’s royal guard arrived even more urgently and quickly. Lorelei’s only lifeline was the one in front of her.

She desperately clutched Morphelia’s clothing: “I beg you, take me away. Even if you devour me, it’s better than marrying a tyrant.”

Morphelia sighed: “How many times must I tell you, I don’t eat people.”

She removed the black glove covering her fingers and said to Lorelei: “If I take you, it’s unjustified, and you are a mortal body. You cannot enter the Eternal Rift with me. When I’m away, they will find you sooner or later.”

“So now you have one more option: marry me, become my wife, form a bond with me, and share the right to use the Eternal Rift. However, you must know this.”

“Firstly, I don’t want to deceive you. I am female. I cannot give you what a man can, including children, but I will try to live long and accompany you.”

“Secondly, I am a dragon, a natural villain. After forming a bond with me, you cannot marry anyone else, nor can you fall in love with anyone else. This is a punishment inherent in my blood and lineage. Every dragon can only have one wife, regardless of gender.”

“I have said all I need to say, so…”

“Lorelei Polkapus, are you willing to marry a dragon?”

The red-haired woman extended the black glove to the girl, offering her the right to choose.

The girl thought for a few seconds, took the black glove, and whispered: “I do.”

Lorelei’s voice was sticky-soft, her final syllable trembling with tears. The panic and fear she had accumulated now turned entirely into tears, but her heart was warm, like holding a freshly lit piece of charcoal. Even the tears she shed felt sweet.

“Go back. Go back with them.”

Morphelia wiped away her tears and promised: “On the day of your wedding, I will personally come to welcome you home.”

Lorelei put away the glove Morphelia had left her and obediently emerged from her hiding spot by the riverbank to face the royal guard. The guard escorted her back to the palace. From that moment on, Lorelei’s drifting heart finally had a destination.

Because she said she would take her home.

Their home.

So, on the day of her wedding, Morphelia kept her promise, hijacked the wedding carriage, and burned the cage holding her to ashes.

She transformed into her human shape and took Lorelei to the Temple of Marriage to form a bond and register it in the Marriage History.

In the partner column, it was written in black and white:

Lorelei Polkapus Morphelia Bonding Successful.

Once recorded in the Marriage History, no one could arbitrarily tamper with the bond’s record except the God of Marriage.

The God of Marriage was the most just and impartial. No one dared to challenge their authority.

She protected her well.

She would never again have to marry a stranger due to her parents’ orders or a matchmaker’s words.

Li Jia ‘s eyes were teary after hearing the story. This was too good!

Greedy, fierce, and ruthless female dragon × Princess with a difficult background.

If Li Jia were to tag this, she would definitely include ‘marriage first, then love,’ ‘rescue from arranged marriage,’ ‘redemption,’ ‘match made in heaven,’ and ‘growth.’

It was just that not many people read Yuri (girl-love) stories.

But Li Jia thought:

Do it!

Go for Yuri!

Yuri is the coolest!

“So you willingly married Morphelia? Even though you knew she wasn’t male, meaning there was no fraud involved?”

After hearing Lorelei’s description, Hera roughly understood the situation. The duty of the God of Marriage was to protect women’s rights. Since it was voluntary, she would not interfere with Lorelei’s choice unconditionally.

“Your Majesty, God of Marriage, I willingly became her wife.”

When Lorelei said these words while looking at Hera, her brows relaxed. Her eyes were now filled with utmost tenderness, the light in her pupils unwavering. She carefully yet firmly presented her feelings to Hera.

“Good, I understand. I will not erase your record from the Marriage History.”

A deity must listen to the people’s requests and fulfill the people’s wishes.

“Your Majesty, the Temple of Marriage will not intervene in the history of a marriage where both parties are willing, but Morphelia used means to impersonate a male and passed the (Qi Tong) marriage inspection without our detection. This is already a dereliction of the Temple of Marriage’s duty. This marriage is contrary to reason.”

Doreen, out of duty to the Temple of Marriage, felt obligated to remind Hera.

“Cheep, cheep, cheep!”

“Cheep, cheep, cheep!”

Hearing Doreen say this, the “little yellow chick” immediately became unhappy. Poking its head out from Hera’s chest with its beak open, it strongly voiced its opinion.

“What do you want to say?”

Hera restored its ability to speak. Li Jia, realizing she could talk, began to babble.

“How can you be like this? Isn’t the decision to form a bond and become partners based on liking each other?”

“Love is where the heart goes. Love knows no borders, no regions, and of course, no gender. Anyone who makes you feel happy is love.”

“Liking men, liking women, liking fictional characters, liking stones, liking flowers, liking grass, and so on—I think all of it is appropriate and reasonable. It’s not harming anyone else or disrupting social order.”

“The lifespan of mortals is a maximum of thirty thousand days. It’s hard for most people to die peacefully after living a full thirty thousand days. So, living in the present is the happiest way to live. Why insist on loving men or loving women?”

“Your Majesty, you are the God of Marriage. All marriage matters in the world are decided by you. Whether it is reasonable or not is all up to your thought. I think same-sex relationships are reasonable.”

The little yellow chick pecked at the goddess’s golden hair that fell onto her cheek, looked into her eyes, and asked: “Your Majesty, God of Marriage, what if one day you fall in love with a woman? Would you also consider it contrary to reason and push her away?”

Before Li Jia could react, Hera patted its little head and smiled: “Unless I die, no.”

“Hmph, do you have to push her away even if you die? Besides, you won’t die,” the little yellow chick rubbed against Hera’s hair, feeling a little ticklish.

“Your Majesty, according to Article 137 of the Marriage Code…”

Doreen tried to stop Hera’s absurd behavior.

Hera interrupted her.

She glanced at Doreen and said: ” Li Jia is right. The God of Marriage has the right to establish marriage systems.”

“I have confirmed your feelings, but I still don’t know if your partner, that female dragon, feels the same way about you. So, Princess Lorelei, let’s make a wager.”

“If you win, I won’t erase the records from the Marriage History. If you lose, I will take you away, and this marriage will be annulled.”

Hera whispered a few words to Lorelei. After hearing what Hera said, the girl nodded, conveying absolute confidence: “I will take this wager with you. I believe in her.”

“Your Majesty, what did you bet with her?”

The little yellow chick clumsily climbed out of her chest and lay on her shoulder, asking secretly.

Seeing the little fellow’s round eyes staring at her, Hera deliberately ‘shushed’ it, saying meaningfully: “A secret.”

Li Jia often couldn’t tell which was the real Hera. Why did she always love to tease her? Even now that she had turned into a little yellow chick, she was still ‘bullying’ a small animal.

She should clearly be a serious, solemn, and unsmiling god.

However, she was taking care of her food, clothing, housing, and transportation, so it was okay for her to provide some emotional value. Moreover, Jia Li noticed that Hera had a very low laugh threshold. Things that Li Jia  didn’t find funny, Hera found very amusing.

And she still had to maintain her composure and couldn’t show it in front of them.

Li Jia was too lazy to expose her; she wouldn’t bother arguing with a childish god.

To complete the act, Hera conveyed the plan to Winslow and Doreen using divine oracle. The two understood immediately.

Doreen casually conjured a hemp rope. Her movements were so fast that people couldn’t react. Lorelei’s wrists were bound by the coarse rope, which squeezed her bones painfully. The chafed skin caused a burning sensation.

Her ankles were bound in the same way, circled several times around her calves, tightly tying her up like a pretzel, making her unable to move. To make it realistic, Winslow stuffed a wet cloth into Lorelei’s mouth, preventing her from making any sound.

Seeing the three of them gang up and tie up the princess, the little yellow chick let out a sharp cry. Li Jia was frantic, ‘cheep, cheep, cheep’ing non-stop.

Damn it, Hera had silenced her again.

No! She couldn’t just watch them tie up the princess. Thinking this, Li Jia decided to jump onto the ground.

Hera saw her intention, glanced at Dorin, and Doreen instantly understood. In a flash, she took a bracelet and tied her up like a dumpling too, then tossed her into Hera’s sleeve.

Just then, outside the castle, dark clouds churned. The giant dragon folded her colossal black wings. The bony membranes of her wings slightly vibrated in the airflow, the ensuing gust of wind tearing at the withered vines on the battlements with a crackling sound.

Luckily, she carefully avoided damaging the flowers she cultivated; otherwise, she would have complained for a long time.

The wicked dragon transformed into human form and slowly descended to the center of the flowerbed. The golden glow of the setting sun fell upon her red hair, like a cluster of moving flames catching fire. Her brow bone was slightly raised, her eye sockets deep, and her grey-blue eyes looked like glass beads soaked in seawater, carrying an aloofness that warned people not to approach.

Morphelia felt strange as soon as she returned home. Usually, as soon as she heard the sound of her wings retracting, Lorelei would definitely smile and run to greet her home.

Why wasn’t she here today? Moreover, she sensed a presence inside the castle that did not belong to her.

Morphelia walked cautiously into the castle. Opening the door, she saw Lorelei tied up and the three people standing next to her.

The golden-haired woman leading the group released a pressure that made the membranes hidden beneath her skin stir restlessly—it was the aura of a deity.

“Morphelia, do you admit your mistake?”

Doreen took the two knives from her back and pointed them directly at Lorelei’s head, her voice as cold as ice.

This action scared Li Jia , the little slacker, half to death.

No way? Is this a matter important enough to kill someone?

Oh my god, she was a person educated in a law-abiding society. She couldn’t kill!

The little yellow chick struggled, but Jia Li was tied up tightly. She could only roll violently, trying to fall out of Hera’s sleeve.

While struggling, she also tried to listen to what they were saying outside.

Morphelia’s expression darkened: “Why should I admit any mistake? They are the ones at fault. What did we do wrong?”

“You deceived the Qi Tong, sneaked through the marriage inspection, and disrupted order. Do you admit your mistake?” Hera’s tone was flat, without any discernible fluctuation, as if merely stating a fact.

“Is it right to force Lorelei to marry someone she doesn’t know, someone she doesn’t like, Your Majesty, God of Marriage?” Morphelia retorted unwillingly.

Only the person in the Temple of Marriage could see the Qi Tong result.

Morphelia knew why she had come.

“But deception is deception. Polkapus II has submitted a bond-annulment request to us. He believes you deceived his daughter and demands that your bond be dissolved and the Marriage History be wiped clean, restoring a pure and flawless princess to Polkapus.”

Doreen remained businesslike.

“Morphelia, as long as you admit that you deceived Princess Lorelei, Her Majesty Hera will help you dissolve the bond and erase the Marriage History. From now on, the two of you will have no further relationship.”

Winslow, playing the objective mediator, analyzed: “The God of Marriage will not pursue your responsibility, and Princess Lorelei will return to the palace to remarry. Isn’t this a perfect solution for both sides?”

“No further relationship? You say that so lightly.”

Morphelia was extremely displeased and angry: “Are you suggesting she should marry someone she dislikes, someone she doesn’t know?”

Li Jia  also felt upset for Morphelia. They inexplicably trespassed into someone else’s home. Someone worked hard all day, came home from work, and was suddenly informed by the Ministry of Civil Affairs that they had to divorce their wife. Isn’t that insane?

To make matters worse, the silent demon finally spoke: “Or, kill her. Death settles all debts. If one of the two dies, I can go back and report.”

Li Jia’s hair instantly stood on end.

Boss, it’s bad enough that you broke into someone’s home, but if they don’t agree to a divorce, you are going to manually kill the person’s wife? What kind of logic is that?!

“If I must choose between them, then kill me. My lifelong wish is for Lorelei to be free, happy, and to do whatever she desires.”

“The key to the castle is the black glove I gave you when we first met. Our home will always belong to you.”

“The reason I formed a bond with you is because your courage flowed out before your tears that day.”

Morphelia finished speaking and smiled at Lorelei. Lorelei’s tears flowed uncontrollably, like broken strings of pearls.

She quickly broke off a bone spur from her wing, intending to commit suicide.

No sooner said than done, just as Morphelia was about to fiercely stab the bone spur into her heart, the little yellow chick quickly struggled and rolled out of Hera’s sleeve. While rolling, it ‘cheep, cheep, cheep’ed, trying to distract everyone.

Then, with a sudden “Thud,” it rolled to Morphelia’s feet.

Morphelia was suddenly hit. She lost her grip, and the bone spur fell straight down, approaching Jia Li.

Li Jia  closed her eyes. It’s over! The mission had just begun, and why did she have to restart again? Could she save her progress and reload a file? She didn’t want to start over.

The expected pain did not arrive. Li Jia opened her eyes to see a longsword interwoven with black and red blocking her path.

The sword was encircled by chains of lava-like fire, blazing like the gaze of divine law. Divine authority was inviolable.

The bone spur instantly carbonized upon approaching it.

The little yellow chick thought: It would definitely be burnt if used for barbecue.

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