Chapter 152: Bent Bow

Heracles left Thebes.

He took a horse that Krei-weng gave him, some food and water, and his gear:

Hermes gave him a sword, Apollo gave him a bow, Hephaestus gave him a golden quiver, Athena gave him a bronze shield, and also a leather armor made from the hide of the lion he had slain.

He stood on the road, took one last look at Thebes, turned and strode forward.

Ahead lay Delphi, the site of the Apollo Temple.

He had a premonition that he needed to go there.

He flipped onto the horse and slapped its rear.

The horse whinnied once, carrying Heracles forward, and soon vanished from here.

And just as he was heading toward the Apollo Temple.

Sitting on the city wall watching Yu Lin depart, she suddenly turned her head aside and said:

"Anything?"

Beside him, a figure had appeared at an unknown time.

Tall and slender, she wore a plain white robe whose edges were embroidered with dark olive‑branch patterns, a silver belt at her waist, golden hair fluttered by the breeze, shimmering softly in the sunlight.

She held no weapon in her hand, nor exuded any hostility,

She simply lowered her head to meet Yu Lin's gaze, a faint smile lifting the corner of her lips:

"Yes."

"Outsider," she said, "why do you approach Heracles?"

Yu Lin did not answer directly, but asked back, "Are you Athena?"

"Hmm, what is your name?"

"Yu Lin."

"Yu Lin." After Athena repeated it, she nodded and said, "I have remembered it."

"Then, can you now tell me the purpose of approaching Heracles?"

"Nothing much." Yu Lin rose from the wall and said casually:

"I, like you, am here to help him."

"Do not worry that I will harm him; after a while you will know why I have come."

Yu Lin was not too surprised by her arrival; after all, Athena could be called Heracles' guardian before his apotheosis, both gifting equipment and appearing personally to aid him.

Now that there was an oddity like Yu Lin, she naturally came to see.

Athena, listening to Yu Lin's words, grew more puzzled and asked, "Then where do you come from?"

"From the East?"

Yu Lin nodded, "Yes."

"Any other questions? If not, I will leave now."

Athena watched him walk toward the wall stairs, did not call him, but watched him descend the stairs and disappear around the corner.

In the end, she did not know where he went.

It was as if she did not know where he originally came from—strange indeed.

"I hope you truly are as you say," Athena whispered, and as a gust of wind passed, her figure dissolved into the breeze.

When she appeared again, she was already back in her own temple.

At dusk, the afterglow of the setting sun gilded the earth with a layer of gold.

Heracles stood on a small hill, gazing toward Delphi in the distance.

This holy site was not a bustling polis but resembled a religious sanctuary built against the mountain.

Its permanent population numbered only a few thousand, mostly priests, officials, craftsmen and staff, who kept the temple running and received pilgrims from across Greece.

Delphi lacked a strong military and an independent economy; its existence relied entirely on donations from believers and offerings from the city‑states.

Heracles' gaze finally settled on the central Apollo Temple.

The temple rose on the steep slope, and in the sunset it seemed coated with a layer of gold leaf, shining brilliantly.

Carvings on the building depicted Apollo driving the Solar War Chariot, golden light flowing over the statue's outline, like a Divine Miracle.

Around it were a theater, stadium and treasury—structures built by the city‑states to store precious gifts offered to Apollo.

The whole of Delphi resembled a massive religious complex rather than an ordinary city.

Heracles took a deep breath, urged his horse forward, and headed toward Delphi.

The hooves struck the stone pavement, producing a crisp sound.

As the distance closed, the temple's outline grew clearer, and the air seemed suffused with a faint incense scent, mingling the fragrance of pine and olive oil.

Along the road to the temple, on either side, pilgrims could occasionally be seen kneeling by the roadside to pray, or someone having placed wreaths and offerings.

Heracles' arrival merely caused them to glance his way; pilgrims from Mycenae and Thebes who recognized him gave a slight nod and then continued their own prayers.

He did not stop, marching straight toward the temple.

Until he reached the temple.

Heracles stood at the temple entrance, where two tall Temple attendants waited.

They stood motionless like statues, eyes lowered, lips tight, only raising their heads slightly when Heracles approached.

"Honored Heracles," one said, his voice low, "Enter, the Priest Pythia is inside waiting for you."

"Thank you." Heracles nodded his thanks to them, then stepped into the temple.

Inside, the temple was brightly lit, especially the central Apollo statue, whose material was unknown, perhaps imbued with Apollo's divine power, as it radiated light.

Below the statue, a woman knelt on the ground, clad in a white robe; her face was neither beautiful nor ugly—she was the Pythia Priest of Delphi.

She slowly raised her head, eyes as deep as an ancient well, her voice ethereal:

Heracles.

Heracles stepped forward, kneeling on one knee:

Priest, please tell me, how can I rid myself of the sin on my body?

The Pythian Priest rose from the ground and looked at him:

The god said: "If you wish to rid yourself of sin, you must return to Mycenae and complete the Twelve Tasks for Eurystheus."

Heracles suddenly lifted his head, his pupils constricting sharply, a flicker of surprise appearing on his face, which instantly turned into surging anger.

Because Eurystheus had once humiliated him, saying he treated him as a subject but actually as a slave, giving him many difficult tasks, his relationship with Eurystheus was very bad.

One could even say they are irreconcilable.

Therefore.

Heracles growled low, like distant thunder: "My dignity tells me——"

"It will never let me be that guy's slave!"

He glared angrily at Apollo's statue, his eyes burning with unwillingness and hatred.

"Sun God——" he said through gritted teeth:

"This is humiliating me!"

Before his words even faded, he snatched the longbow from his back—a gift Apollo had once given him.

His fingers gripped the bow tight, about to snap it——

"Heracles, stop!"

Suddenly, Golden Light flourished within the temple.

Apollo's statue burst forth with dazzling light, and an illusory figure emerged from within.

Please grant me leave; I'm returning home to attend a funeral.