Chapter 157: Tricking the Devil Lamb
Following the footsteps of Pan, we walked about a hundred steps inward, and the scenery suddenly became clear, and a natural valley came into view.
There are gurgling water and green shade everywhere. Snow-white sheep are eating in the valley, strong horses are strolling leisurely on the hillside, and hundreds of fat and strong bulls and cows are drinking water by the clear stream... There are thousands of livestock of all sizes, making this valley full of vitality and everything is in order.
Once the livestock leave the specific activity area, dozens of hunting dogs scattered at the valley entrance or on high ground will rush over like the wind, barking wildly to drive the stray livestock back to their original place, and do their best to guard the property entrusted to them by their owners.
From their heroic posture, it is obvious that they are top-notch hunting dogs.
"Dang~~"
As the god Pan appeared at the entrance of the valley, he gently tapped his staff on the stone at his feet. Dozens of hunting dogs came over upon hearing the sound, surrounding their master with their tongues sticking out and barking happily.
"Look, these are all good dogs that I have carefully trained!"
The half-human, half-goat shepherd proudly opened the magic circle diagram, and under Loen's strange gaze, he skillfully fed some fresh mutton to the dogs around him. Then he pointed at the few that were most eager to grab the food and introduced them proudly.
"The best ones will surely be liked by Her Highness Artemis. I am going to present them all to Her Highness!"
"Okay, I will give these to Lady Artemis on your behalf."
Lorne smiled and nodded, raised his hand to take a few selected hounds from Pan and made friendly suggestions.
"However, you were injured tonight, so it is inconvenient for you to travel a long distance. You should stay in the temple and have a good rest."
However, upon hearing this, Pan's face suddenly changed, and he quickly stepped forward to block Lorne from walking towards the cave entrance.
"no!"
"Don't believe me?"
Looking at the god Pan standing in front of him, Loen smiled slightly, raised his hand and patted the other's shoulder, showing a warm smile.
"Don't worry, it's just a few hounds. I can handle it."
Feeling the tremendous force falling on his shoulders, Pan, whose half body was numb, could not help but freeze his face and feel regretful in his heart.
Sure enough, this guy still remembered the little action I did on the road before.
Finally, under Lorne's half-smiley gaze, Pan tried hard to force out an expression uglier than crying, and shyly revealed the real purpose of his courtesy.
"In fact, I would like to take this opportunity to ask Lady Artemis to marry one of her nymphs as my wife."
As expected, those who show kindness to others for no reason are either treacherous or thieves.
As the offspring of Hermes, it was impossible for this lustful sheep to give away the hunting dog that he had raised with great effort.
The group of beautiful nymphs under Artemis were what attracted Pan to come.
Loen listened to the shepherd's intentions with a smile, then spoke slowly in a low voice.
"Do you want to die?"
Provoked by this, Pan's face changed instantly and his expression became gloomy.
"What do you mean?!"
"Lady Artemis and the hunting nymphs around her have all sworn to remain chaste. Even the God King Zeus was driven out for touching a chaste nymph. But you want to use a few hunting dogs to exchange one of her hunting nymphs and make her break her oath..."
Loen glanced at the god Pan in front of him and asked meaningfully.
"So, are you more noble than the God King? Or is your head harder than the arrowhead of the hunting goddess?"
Hearing this, Pan was stunned, with fear and hesitation in his eyes.
Although he was lustful, he was not stupid and naturally understood the other party's implication.
Artemis would not easily marry her nymphs to him just for a few hounds.
Moreover, if she was really annoyed, the goddess of hunting might shoot it like a rabbit in a fit of rage.
I don't have the noble status and powerful strength of His Majesty the God King. If the time comes, not only will I not get to eat the meat, but I will also get myself involved.
But then, Pan's mind reflected the graceful figures and beautiful faces of the nymphs under the firelight, and he immediately made an unwilling defense.
"Lady Artemis has accepted my gift, shouldn't you give me some reward?"
"Then you can try and see if she is willing to give it to one of your nymphs, or give you an arrow!"
Loen rolled his eyes at this pervert who had bad intentions from the beginning and snorted in annoyance.
"Don't blame me for not reminding you. Do you know why Lady Artemis originally had 20 hunting nymphs, but now there are only 19?"
"Why?" Hearing the sinister voice, Pan subconsciously moved his dry throat and asked,
"It is said that there was a sea nymph named Aura who was encountered by someone from the Oceanus Sea when she was in Sicily. Then, almost all the sea beasts in the outer sea were killed, and even the father of sea monsters became a trophy."
When Pan thought of the hunting scene between Apollo, Artemis and Athena, as well as the recent rumors about the Sea of Oceanus and the imprisoned Lord of the Sea, he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.
I just met a nymph, it can’t be that exaggerated, right?
"Of course, I'm just talking casually. Believe it or not, it's none of my business anyway."
As he said that, Loen threw the dog leash back into Pan's hands, looking as if it had nothing to do with him.
But when it really came to Pan's turn to make the decision, this lustful shepherd god revealed his timid side again. He led a few hunting dogs and was reluctant to step out of the cave.
"Take my advice and pretend nothing happened. Drink this pot of wine and have a sweet dream."
Loen gave earnest advice, took off the wine flask from his waist and threw it to the god Pan behind him, showing his goodwill.
The shepherd god, with a gloomy expression on his face, took the wine jug, took a few big gulps, and muttered in dissatisfaction with his neck stiff.
"Then aren't all my livestock products given away for nothing?"
However, he held the dog leash tightly in his hand unwillingly, with no intention of handing over these beloved dogs, and seemed unwilling to suffer another loss.
Loen looked at this lustful, stingy, treacherous and cowardly shepherd with disdain and snorted coldly.
"If you really want to marry a beautiful goddess, there are ways."
"What method?!"
In an instant, Pan became alert and stared at the man in front of him.
Lorne rolled his eyes and reminded unhappily.
"Who told you to keep staring at those immobile nymphs? Aren't there goddesses you can marry at the scene?"
The speaker may not mean it, but the listener may take it seriously.
"Muse?"
When Pan thought of the Muses' unrestrained dance and joyful singing, his eyes lit up and he instantly came up with new ideas.
"Yes, they are much prettier than those nymphs, and they have great figures too! Wouldn't it be more profitable to marry one of them?!"
The lustful half-man, half-goat god became more and more excited as he spoke, his eyes flashing with excitement, and his heart seemed to be burning with a fire.
However, just as Pan was daydreaming, Loen next to him once again poured a basin of cold water on his overheated sheep brain.
"Hehe, even if Muse can get married, it seems that it is not your turn, right?"
"What do you mean? Do you look down on me?" Pan's eyes were red, he was breathing heavily, and his face was full of indignation.
"I'm just stating a fact." Lorne said lazily, "They are Apollo's subordinate gods. Not only does the god of light have a good appearance, but he is also very accomplished in music, poetry, and medicine. How can you beat him and make him willingly give up his subordinate gods to you?"
“…”
Hearing this, Pan was suddenly speechless.
Apollo is the recognized male god of Olympus and he has earned his reputation for nothing. It is almost a pipe dream to want to win the beauty from the god of light.
"unless……"
The unexpected turn of events made Pan, who had just lost his temper, feel hopeful again, and he couldn't wait to look at the person in front of him.
However, Loen did not respond, but just spread his hands behind him.
Immediately, Pan understood, smiled awkwardly, and quickly and attentively handed the dog leash back.
But after taking the dog leash, Loen still didn't say anything. Instead, he looked at Pan with even more contempt.
"Haha, that's just something I asked you to pass on to Lady Artemis. I'm sure you won't make this trip in vain!"
Pan suddenly realized and spoke immediately.
"What do you like in my ranch? Take your pick!"
When Loen heard this, his face suddenly turned cold. He immediately grabbed the dog leash and walked out of the cave without hesitation.
“Stop!”
Seeing that the situation was not good, Pan hurriedly stepped forward and grabbed Lorne who wanted to leave. Then after searching his body, he gritted his teeth and took out two black goat horns from the opened magic circle diagram.
This was a divine object that he shed when he was growing up. It contained rich power of the shepherd god and was originally intended for him to forge divine weapons.
Now, in order to win the beauty, I can only reluctantly give these two valuable things to this guy in front of me as a thank you gift for asking for advice.
Seeing that this stingy sheep was finally willing to cut some meat, Loen took the two sheep horns with satisfaction and spoke leisurely.
"You want to marry Muse, it's not like you don't have a chance. Just make a bet with the God of Light and marry Muse. If you win, you can win."
"How could he agree to this competition?"
"Of course. As long as you question his authority in his professional field, such as music, poetry, medicine, etc...."
When Pan heard this, his eyes lit up and he nodded as if he understood something.
That’s right, given the arrogant character of the God of Light, he would definitely not tolerate outsiders questioning his professional level.
But Pan, who is suspicious by nature, is still a little worried about this.
"But what if he disagrees?"
"Why don't we question first, then compete, and finally wait for the dust to settle before taking the opportunity to propose conditions?"
"What if he defaults?"
"So, you must not only win, but also win fairly. You must not only defeat the God of Light in his area of expertise and leave him speechless, but if you are still not satisfied, then find some witnesses."
Loen rolled his eyes at the god Pan beside him, then waved his hand and walked towards the cave entrance yawning.
"Okay, I still have to send these hounds back. It's up to you whether you want to give it a try."
As he spoke, he took a few hunting dogs and walked out of the valley, his figure gradually disappearing into the thick night.
After watching the new god leave, Pan recalled the hot bodies and beautiful looks of the Muses, and his mouth became dry, so he took a few gulps of wine.
Faint sounds echoed in his head, and gradually a ball of heat rose from his lower abdomen and rushed straight to his sheep brain.
Muse! How could such a beautiful goddess be monopolized by Apollo?
As long as I can set up a bet and beat that guy, I can have those things!
Pan paced and murmured in the cave, his red eyes flickering in the darkness, gradually brewing a sense of confusion and madness. He finally slammed the ground heavily with his staff, and a proud sneer appeared on his face.
That’s right, in some aspects, I may not lose!
At the same time, outside the cave covered by vines, Loen carefully checked the several hunting dogs around him, then looked back at the stone wall that had returned to its original state, with the corners of his lips raised.
His wine was not so delicious, it was permeated with the ecstasy of his divinity.
So, little lamb, you better hold on a little longer.
~~
The next day, early morning.
The sound of rough horse hooves and the loud neighing of war horses woke everyone up from their sleep.
Centaurs? Enemy attack?
In an instant, everyone was on alert and rushed out of the camp.
However, in the tense atmosphere, they saw the god Pan, who had visited last night, actually arrived in front of the camp early in the morning.
Moreover, behind him were dozens of majestic war horses.
"Lord Apollo, I only had time to pick out a gift for Lady Artemis last night, and forgot to prepare one for you. So today I brought the warhorse that I carefully bred, ready to present to you."
Looking at the smiling sheep face in front of him and the war horses behind Pan, Apollo was stunned at first, then he showed an enjoyable expression and nodded with slight satisfaction.
Although he didn't care much about the shepherd's little gift, Apollo still felt unhappy that his younger brother was ignored in front of his sister.
However, since Pan had already shown a humble attitude, Apollo's displeasure was finally dispelled.
Yes, he is as sensible as his thief father.
In the past, Hermes, the god of speed, had offended the god of light because of stealing.
Later, however, Hermes admitted his mistake and gave Apollo his lyre made of tortoise shell, asking for his forgiveness. Apollo was delighted to receive the lyre because of its beautiful sound, and he also forgave Hermes.
From then on, Apollo had the lyre and became the god who mastered the art of music. Because of this, they became brothers and friends.
Later, Apollo wanted to help Hermes live in Mount Olympus, but he had to get the consent of Hera, the queen of the gods who had always hated the goddess Maia. For Hermes, Apollo personally went to persuade Hera. In order to persuade Hera successfully, he changed Hermes into the appearance of Hera's son, the god of war Ares. Finally, Hera was moved and agreed to let Hermes enter Mount Olympus.
It can be said that the reason why Hermes has his current status is inseparable from the assistance of Apollo. The two sides are a model of turning hostility into friendship.
If this son of Hermes is as sensible as he is, he wouldn't mind giving him some blessings to make his path to becoming a god more convenient.
Just as Apollo was thinking, Pan came forward with a silly smile, rubbing his hands.
"Lord Apollo, my father has always praised your musical attainments. I also happen to have some accomplishments in music."
"Oh? Really?" Apollo smiled and did not comment.
"It just so happens that you are visiting Arcadia today, and I would like to seek your advice in person."
Pan continued to smile foolishly, and seeing that Apollo was not angry, a hint of imperceptible cunning flashed in his lowered eyebrows.
"If I win by chance, I hope you will give me a small gift."
You want to beat me in music? Just you?
The moment the person on the other side said this, Apollo narrowed his eyes, and a hint of pride appeared on his handsome face. He didn't pay any attention to the so-called "little gift".
(End of this chapter)
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