The Greece Antagonist

Seeing the three vicious dog heads wreathed in flames drawing ever closer, Sisyphus couldn't help but panic.

"Got honey cake? Throw it to him quick!"

Ancient Greeks had a custom of placing a honey cake in the coffin of the deceased, aiming to appease Cerberus, the Hellhound. They hoped that after feeding this monstrous dog, the soul of the departed would not be harmed by Cerberus.

Fortunately, as a lesser deity serving Hestia, the Goddess of the Hearth, Luo En's magic circle diagram was well-stocked with this easily preserved food.

As Sisyphus was cornered to the edge of the river Styx, Luo En decisively sketched out a line of Hermes script and flung a honey cake into the air.

"Woof!"

Suddenly, Cerberus, previously glaring menacingly at Sisyphus, abandoned the bipedal creature in front of it and, drawn by the sweet scent, leapt up with a low growl, swallowing the falling honey cake.

Even then, due to an uneven distribution, the three heads started to snap and collide with each other.

It actually ate it?

Seeing such a reaction from the notorious Hellhound, Luo En narrowed his eyes and immediately threw several more honey cakes.

The previously quarreling heads stopped their dispute, excitedly galloping on all fours to precisely catch each falling honey cake, their fierce jaws opening wide to welcome the delicious treats from the sky.

This batch of honey cake was not only exceptionally tasty but also carried a rich scent of grapes.

Left, right, up, down, left, right...

Luo En, while throwing the honey cakes at tricky angles to exhaust Cerberus's energy, observed the demonic hound's movements and reactions.

As the Hellhound began to stagger and its gaze grew unfocused, a certain feeder with a nefarious plan cracked a sinister smile and threw the last piece of honey cake into the distance.

"Let's go!"

"Woof!"

Cerberus, unsuspecting, leapt as usual toward the honey cake in the air and captured it in its mouth.

However, the next moment, the suspended Hellhound traced a graceful parabola and with a "plop" fell into the churning waters of the river Styx.

The dark and foreboding waters of the river Styx rolled violently, the changing miasma outlining twisted, wailing faces that, driven by the scent of living flesh, swarmed frantically towards the submerged Cerberus.

The Hellhound could only stop paddling its limbs and issued a series of low whines, trying to shake off the specters that had swarmed it.

But amidst the confusion, it was dragged down into the depths by a multitude of departed souls, bobbing with the waves.

Could it be that simple to get rid of Cerberus?

This stupid dog is truly as dumb as they come!

Sisyphus, standing on the shore of the river Styx, watched the string of bubbles rise in the river and couldn't help but mock in schadenfreude.

"Splash!"

However, before he could revel for long, a crisp splash came from behind him.

What followed was a colossal creature standing straight up behind him, casting a fierce shadow forward.

Sisyphus caught sight of the familiar outline of three heads, stiffened up, and then his legs bolted—

"Boom!"

However, with a dull roar, before Sisyphus could take a step, he was pinned down by the Hellhound.

"I was coerced! Those two are the ringleaders!"

At the critical moment, Sisyphus hastily closed his eyes and attempted to shift the blame.

But the anticipated barking and pain did not come; instead, a series of muffled snoring sounds filled his ears.

Snoring?

Sisyphus carefully cracked his eyes open a slit and gazed at Cerberus, who was sound asleep on top of him, his face a picture of astonishment.

"Asleep?"

"More precisely, drunk."

Luo En emerged from the swirling mists of death with a smile, providing an answer.

"The honey cakes I threw were soaked in wine."

Truth be told, using the wine-soaked honey cakes to outsmart the silly dog was not his original idea.

In the Aeneid, the sibyl Sybil enticed Cerberus to eat cakes containing a sleep-inducing herb;

In The Golden Ass, Eros's lover Psyche also used a cake laced with sleeping potion to put Cerberus to sleep;

In another legend, the nymph Proserpina used a piece of bread to divert Cerberus's attention...

In any case, the Hellhound had frequently been knocked out due to indiscriminate eating.

And upon hearing this, Sisyphus suddenly had a moment of realization.

No wonder the Hellhound, in its eagerness for the honey cake, plunged headfirst into the river Styx without a second glance.

At that moment, Luo En approached the riverbank, taking an interested look at the famous Hellhound.

Perhaps due to being soaked in the waters of the river Styx, the Hellfire that originally surrounded it had been extinguished, and its terrifying image had vanished altogether. In its place was a drenched house dog that seemed no different from an ordinary pet, just scaled up several times and with three heads.

Moreover, those three heads with their black-and-white coloring and goofy demeanor gave Luo En a strange sense of familiarity—as if he'd seen them somewhere before.

After a moment of thought, he slapped his forehead, suddenly enlightened.

Alaska huskies and Siberian huskies! These three heads looked exactly like those two breeds of dogs, exuding an air of intelligence.

No wonder the Hellhound had been petted by all the gods in Greece, turning into the comic relief in various scripts and legends—it was all in the genes.

And if the Netherworld was counting on this breed to guard its gates, no wonder it had been farmed by heroes across generations.

Luo En shook his head, kicked the Hellhound that was snoring heavily on the ground, grabbed Sisyphus who was pressed beneath, and smiled radiantly.

"Oh, right, what were you saying just now?"

Sisyphus stiffened, looking at the hand clamped on his wrist like iron tongs, and declared righteously.

"I'm the mastermind, you two are just coerced. If anything happens, you guys go first, I'll cover for you!"

"Hmm, true friendship indeed!"

Luo En nodded in satisfaction and then looked behind him.

"Got all that?"

"Every single word."

Thetis raised the conch shell in her hand, which was faintly glowing, and stepped forward to ask "kindly."

"Anything else you want to add? Friend?"

"No, nothing else..."

Sisyphus made a mournful face, shaking his head repeatedly, and suddenly realized he was again at the mercy of the shady trio standing before him.

Having successfully intimidated the shady fraudster, Luo En also took the opportunity to remind him.

"If that's settled, then continue leading the way."

Sisyphus nodded reluctantly and pulled out three gold coins from his person, tossing them into the River Styx.

Soon, ripples spread across the water's surface, and an ancient boat emerged from the dense mists of death.

The boatman aboard, clad in a black robe, hunched over with a long pole in hand, appeared gloomy and sleazy.

Charon, the Ferryman of the Underworld River, a professional boatman ferrying souls between the realms of life and death.

To ride his boat, one had to bribe him with money.

Thus, placing two coins on the eyes of the deceased became a burial custom in Greece.

At this moment, as the ferry neared, the waters of the River Styx boiled, and contorted departed souls scrambled over each other to climb aboard the small boat.

Charon stirred the long pole in his hand as usual, the ripples he created in the River Styx quickly shattered the discontented specters.

However, the departed souls still refused to give up, and the closer they got to the shore, the more violently the ferry seemed to rock.

Quickly, Charon located the source of the disturbance, frowned, and looked toward the two figures on the shore, muttering hoarsely.

"Living people?"

"Cut the crap, just tell us if you'll ferry us or not!"

Sisyphus stepped forward, shielding Luo En and Thetis, taking on the negotiations himself.

Charon fell silent for a moment, then looked up seriously, scrutinizing the two living people before him.

In the midst of the tense atmosphere, Luo En signaled Thetis with a look, and both simultaneously reached behind them.

"...More Money!"

The emphatic response nearly threw Luo En's back out.

Yet Sisyphus, as if accustomed to this, extended a finger.

"One grand sacrificial offering..."

"Two grand sacrificial offerings! Plus thirty Golden Zeuses!"

Charon reached out his shriveled palm, scooping up the three gold coins from the waves of the River Styx and held them greedily under his nose to sniff.

A pale gold stream of light flowed into his body, seemingly fleshing out the sleazy old man a bit more.

The power of faith?

Witnessing this scene, Luo En came to a realization.

Even though both the God of Death Thanatos and the Sleep God Hypnos, as well as Charon, the Ferryman of the Underworld River, were created by the Authority of Nyx, the Goddess of the Night, and were brothers in a sense.

The God of Sleep and the God of Death were somewhat acceptable, as they possessed clear and powerful divine Authority.

Charon's life was quite miserable, though. Without clear devotees and offerings, he had to resort to ferrying, scraping whatever power of faith he could from the mouths of passing departed souls, just to maintain his half-dead appearance.

And the source of this power of faith was often the coins placed over the eyes of the dead.

Thus, Charon developed the bad habit of demanding money, even to death.

According to legend, as long as the money was enough, even living intruders into the Netherworld would be ignored by him as he continued to ferry them across the river.