Chapter Text
The goddess of wisdom met her most proud student again after many years of separation.
A mortal and a god stand at either end of the hourglass, seemingly close yet separated by the vast stream of time.
The goddess is still dazzling. She stands there with her head held high, yet her proud head is bowed. She removes her helmet and pays homage to the ordinary person in front of her. The lead-gray eyes are no longer filled with the anger and confusion from their separation twenty years ago. Her expression is compassionate, and her eyes contain an emotion that Odysseus cannot describe.
Seemingly regretful, seemingly heartbroken, or perhaps both.
Looking back to Odysseus, he is unkempt and in rags, with his body, hands and face all stained with blood. He laughed sarcastically and wanted to ask the goddess whether he had become the person she wanted to see. However, when his eyes met the goddess's gaze, he swallowed the words that were about to be spoken.
It's really funny. He thought he wouldn't care about the useless emotions that led him to where he is now.
But why does he still keep the owl-shaped cloak clasp left by Hermes?
"I can't help but wonder what this world could be,"Athena was the first to break the silence,"if we all held each other with a bit more empathy…"
The goddess threw a question at the man, as if hoping he would provide her with an answer:"I can't help but feel like, I led you astray…What if there's a word where we don't have to live this way?"
Odysseus caught some words from the goddess's speech and realized that she seemed to blame herself for the reasons of his suffering. His lips trembled, but ultimately he said and did nothing, only mechanically answered the goddess's questions, taking this opportunity to express his feelings:"If that world exists, it's far away from here. It's one I'll have to miss for it's far beyond my years."
"You might live forever so you can make it be…" Odysseus estimated in his heart that his son would soon return, and the desire to see his wife whom he had been separated from for twenty years urged him to end the conversation quickly, even though it might be his last exchange with the goddess.
"…but I've got one endeavor there's a girl I have to see." With these words, Odysseus instinctively stepped back, his voice filled with anxiety and regret. His eyes darted behind him, blinking apologetically at the goddess.
The smile on Athena's lips faltered, as the scene before her overlapped with a memory from the past.
The young man in the memory, who was deeply in love, couldn't bear to be apart from his beloved girl for a single day. Even when talking to the goddess, his mind was elsewhere. The goddess, who didn't understand love, saw that his heart was not in it and simply let him go.
The young man jumped up as if granted a reprieve and was ready to slip away. But after turning around and taking the first step, he reluctantly returned to his original spot, stood up straight, looked up at the goddess, and sincerely apologized and made a vow:
"Athena! Don't worry, when Penelope goes back to Sparta, I will definitely double up on my training these days!"
How similar they are... similar reasons, similar gazes, similar people.
But,it's still different.
The goddess seemed to casually glance at the man's step backward, and then observed the surroundings slightly.
It's no wonder he's the descendant of the god of lies and deception...
Odysseus, your art of fraud is becoming more and more skillful. Even I was almost deceived by you.
Unfortunately, even the god of fraud, who uses lies as his daily communication, cannot successfully deceive the Goddess of Wisdom.
Not even once.
This time, she really hopes she can be deceived for once, but fate always seems to be against her.