Chapter 64
The day after witnessing Hades and Persephone's marriage, Hera voluntarily resigned from her position at the Temple of Marion, allowing Doreen to take over as her successor.
“I’ve watched you grow up, and I believe you will only do better than me.”
Hera removed her divine robes and crown, changed into a plain dress, and smiled as she spoke to Doreen.
Hera left the hot spring.
In the three thousand years after she left, Hera did many things. She used the divine power she had given herself to help Hades purify the souls in Hell and the afflictions beneath Mount Meru, so that these homeless souls could return to their destined cycle of cause and effect.
Hera wasn't sure if the little guy would blame her for misusing the divine power she had left behind, but she knew he was a very interesting person.
She loves eating, drinking, and having fun, and she's always saying, "Lie flat."
Then she has to maintain the order of this world where she can lie down and relax, so that when she returns one day, she can continue to lie down and relax, and do whatever she wants.
Hera went to the Gap of Eternity.
This time, she concealed her divine features and wore a cotton-padded jacket with a little yellow chick sewn for her by the goddess of weaving. The round and chubby style made her look less divine and more naive.
The wind was biting cold, so she wrapped her cotton coat tighter around herself and slowly walked across the icy plain above the Demon Cave, heading towards the familiar castle in the distance.
After thousands of years, the castle is no longer the terrifying and imprisoning place it once was.
The city walls are covered with dense flowers, including magenta roses, pale purple hyacinths, and even the green ivy exudes vitality.
The once impenetrable gate was now wide open, and ordinary people came and went. Girls carrying bouquets laughed and bargained with vendors, while children chased butterflies across the stone path, creating a lively scene.
Hera stood frozen at the doorway, not having a chance to look away, when a woman in a floral dress emerged from the flower bushes.
It's Lorella.
She looks exactly the same as she did back then, except that her eyebrows are more vibrant and her complexion is better, which shows that she has been living a very smooth life these past few years.
"Your Majesty Hera!"
Hera was about to slip away quietly when she heard a call from behind.
She turned around, and Loreira had already run up to her, bowed deeply, her eyes full of surprise: "I felt your aura was familiar just now. Your divine aura is so strong that it can't be concealed no matter what."
Seeing that Hera wasn't displeased, Loreira began to chatter on and on, her tone full of excitement: "Did you come alone today?"
Hera was wearing the same yellow chick-patterned cotton-padded jacket as Li Jia, so Lorella assumed that Li Jia had also come. She looked around behind her, but there was no one in sight.
“She didn’t come,” Hera replied.
"The four of you came together last time and helped me change my fate. Mophilia has also changed a lot. Among them, the one I should thank the most is Li Jia."
"Um?"
Hera raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of surprise in her eyes.
"Don't you know?"
Lorella blinked and continued, "Li Jia said that the flowers I grow are very beautiful, and that it's not good for Morpheus and me to always hide in the castle. We need to open our hearts and communicate more with humans and animals. She also suggested that I start by selling flowers."
She pointed to the flower stalls under the city wall, her eyes crinkling with laughter: "I listened to her, and now the Eternal Rift is no longer a lifeless place. Everyone calls it the Eternal Flower City, and Morpheus has also withdrawn the treaty that mortals cannot enter."
"As Li Jia said, this is a win-win situation."
As she spoke, Loretta bent down and picked a white lily of the valley from the flowerbed, handing it to Hera: "Look, this is a new variety I planted, called 'Forget-Me-Not Bell.' I'm giving it to you, hoping you'll never have any worries or troubles."
Hera took the lily of the valley; the petals were still covered in morning dew. The cool touch traveled through her fingertips, yet it warmed her heart.
Looking at the lively scene before her and at the sincere smile on Loreira's face, she understood that someone's wish had brought forth even more beauty from this land.
They chatted for a long time until the red-haired woman walked up to Lorella, nodded slightly to Hera, and Morpheus took her hand and said, "It's time to go home."
Loretta reluctantly ended the conversation, adding, "Next time you must bring Li Jia along. I'll prepare some steaming hot flower cakes."
"must."
Before leaving, Hera went to see the goldfish in the fountain; they were still swimming around in small groups.
...
Hera then went to the East Pondassia Strait, to the fishing boat where they had stayed together.
She didn't know how many successors had come and gone. She was greeted by a little girl, and Hera glanced at the wooden sign at the ferry landing behind her.
"I want couple's room number 32."
The little girl asked curiously, "Sister, if you live alone, you can ask for a single room. We have single rooms available now, and the price is much cheaper than double rooms."
"So you now have single rooms? When I came before, the smallest room could only accommodate two people."
"Sister, are you staying in a single room tonight?"
"No, it's the same room. My wife had something come up and can't come. I'll bring her next time. The fishing boat number 32 is the room we stayed in together. I'm a bit picky about beds."
Hera laughed and asked for the key to the "number 32" small bronze plaque.
Hera, the goddess of marriage, changed the laws of marriage, and same-sex marriage has long been commonplace.
Stepping onto fishing boat number 32, the wooden deck creaked and groaned from the sea mist.
Hera entered the room, and the salty sea breeze rushed in through the open porthole, lifting the corners of the curtains, much like how Li Jia had tugged at her clothes with a smile on a certain morning many years ago.
The room was much more furnished than I remembered. The original single bed had been replaced with a double bed, the old fishing net hanging on the wall had been replaced with a newly woven tapestry, and a succulent plant was placed on the windowsill with its thick leaves gleaming with a healthy green.
Hera went over and placed the forget-me-not on the bedside table. The morning dew had long since evaporated, but the petals remained upright.
Turning to the porthole, she gazed at the East Ponastia Strait, where the azure waters merged with the horizon, and distant fishing boats moved slowly, trailing shimmering silver waves—a scene that overlapped with the image of them setting sail in their small boats years ago.
Back then, Li Jia always loved to sit at the stern of the boat, swinging her toes and humming off-key songs, while she would lean against the mast, watching the sunset turn Li Jia's hair golden, and listening to the waves crashing against the hull.
I feel that the most peaceful time in the world is nothing more than this.
As night deepened, Hera lay on her single bed, covered with a thin blanket that smelled of sunshine, the sound of the waves becoming a natural lullaby.
She slowly opened her eyes only when she heard the first birdsong outside the window. She was alone in the room, with only the forget-me-not on the bedside table emitting a faint fragrance in the morning light.
The ferry crossing came alive in the early morning. Hera walked up to the little girl with key number 32 and placed a shimmering seashell in her palm: "Please take good care of room number 32 for me. I'll stay here again next time I come."
The little girl held the seashell, looking at the shimmering light on it, and nodded vigorously: "Don't worry, sister, I'll definitely keep it for you! You must bring your wife with you then."
Hera smiled and waved goodbye, then turned and walked towards the other side of the strait.
She eventually went to the North, where the winds were still fierce.
Hera lived there for many years, and the Stuart crown prince was always a daughter-only successor, so the Chisko surname was perfectly inherited by the empress.
Here, women's education is protected by law. They can choose to join the army and become a warrior like Catherine, or they can choose to do business, farm, or do whatever they want.
She stood in the square of the Stuart Palace, watching the female knights in their silver armor march past in formation. Their armor reflected the thin sunlight of the midnight sun, and the sound of their boots clattering on the stone pavement was pleasing to the eye.
As the new admiral led the way, Hera noticed the epaulettes on her shoulders, which were exactly the same as Catherine's, except that they had an extra ring of olive branches symbolizing peace around the edge.
Night falls, the moon casts its shadows across the land, and a cold wind howls.
Hera ordered a bowl of steaming noodles from the stall. She took a bite of a slice of meat and whispered, "If people don't eat, they'll die."
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