Chapter 150: Sacred Robe and Holy Grail_2
That is to say, he could take advantage of these intervals when Zeus was sneaking out to have affairs and slowly prepare, nudging the development of events onto a trajectory that was advantageous for himself.
The two battles for Crete Island had contributed two divine incarnations to him.
Now, dealing with this group of relatives day and night, he estimated that with just a few more incidents, the remaining ten vacancies would soon be filled.
But now, with Zeus away, who should be his first target?
As Luo En pondered secretly, a gentle knock sounded from outside the door.
He immediately tucked the papers and pen into the Magic Circle Diagram, cleaned up the scene, and then opened the door.
Athena, dressed in a plain-colored gown, stood quietly outside.
"Come with me."
Without waiting for Luo En's response, she pulled him out of the room and, after several turns, they entered a fiery red temple.
As soon as he stepped inside, a scorching wave of air hit him, and the sound of constant hammering, resonating from a forging table engraved with secret inscriptions, reached his ears.
Hephaestus, wearing an animal skin apron and with his upper body bare, swung a forging hammer, repeatedly striking a metallic embryo beginning to take shape, while ordering several metal automatons to stoke the flames, intensifying the fire.
These metal beings were the size of a normal person, their movements full of stability and dexterity, and their obedience was extremely high.
If not for the knowledge that he was in an age of gods, Luo En might have thought he had entered a sci-fi world.
At this moment, sensing the approach of a familiar presence, Hephaestus immediately stopped his forging and hurriedly wiped his hands on his apron before turning to look behind him, his rugged face filled with smiles.
"Athena? What brings you here? Is it about those 88 sets of Sacred Robes that can be bestowed upon mortals?"
Immediately afterward, Hephaestus glanced at the barely formed metal embryo on the forging table and the scrap copper in the corner, scratching his head in slight embarrassment and distress.
"Sorry, the order was a bit large, and many of the designs were too idealistic; I've only completed three sets so far, and I need to ponder over the rest a bit more."
With that, the God of the Forge commanded the metal automatons beside him to open the underground treasury and bring out three half-human-height gold metal boxes.
The star charts painted on the exterior of the boxes corresponded one-to-one with the constellations of Olympus, and an aura that was imposing, sharp, or cryptic emanated from them.
As one of the automatons pressed a mechanism in the center of a box, a sound of metal scraping ensued, and the entire metal box automatically disassembled, dividing into a breastplate, arm guard, skirt armor, crown, and other pieces, which flew onto the automaton, merging with it to form a full set of armor.
Watching the scene before him and the gorgeous armor that matched his memories exactly, Luo En's gaze passed over the stack of familiar drafts on the table and he fell prostrate in admiration of the unattractive and even ugly God of the Forge before him.
The Sacred Robe had actually been brought to life by this guy! Impressive!
Indeed, the design drafts of these items had come from Luo En's own hand.
When Athena had procured a large quantity of materials from the God of the Sea's temple, it was to craft a batch of Divine Artifacts to enhance the strength of her warriors and avoid a repeat of the Crete Island debacle.
Upon receiving this news, he had volunteered to participate in the design of each set of armor and proposed integrating the armor's internal Magic Array with star charts to draw on the power of the stars and amplify the user's abilities.
Athena, skilled in embracing new ideas as the Goddess of Wisdom, naturally agreed to the proposal and even worked with Luo En to refine the initial designs.
After several revisions by Athena and practical applications by Hephaestus, the Sacred Robe, which had previously existed only in Luo En's imagination, was gradually realized.
And when the automaton clad in the Sacred Robe exhibited several times the combat power it had before, Athena nodded in satisfaction, first praising her friend's forging skills, and then, with a wave of her hand, she gathered the three gold metal boxes into the opened Magic Circle Diagram and spoke with a smile.
"We can put aside the matter of the Sacred Robes for now, I would like you to take some time to craft a Divine Artifact for him."
As she spoke, Athena pointed to Luo En behind her, stating the purpose of their evening visit.
Hephaestus, hearing this, couldn't help but show a troubled expression.
```
"Artifacts for mortals are fine, but if you're to forge weapons for the gods, the Father God...,"
Luo En caught the look Athena passed to him and understood immediately. He took the feather from Thetis out of the Magic Circle Diagram and handed it to Hephaestus.
Upon seeing the feather and sensing the familiar essence on it, Hephaestus's expression became serious. He stopped making excuses, and instead started to examine Luo En carefully.
The blacksmith god lingered on that handsome face for a few seconds, as if realizing something. Then he struggled to squeeze a friendly smile onto his rugged face, with his attitude turning unexpectedly warm.
"Little brother, tell me, what kind of divine artifact do you want me to create for you? I will do my very best to help you!"
When Hephaestus offered to take care of everything so grandly, Luo En didn't hesitate to reveal his prepared design, handing it over to the master craftsman.
"This? Are you sure?"
The usually stern-faced Hephaestus looked astonished after checking the design for a moment.
It was a large, wide-mouthed cup entirely golden in hue, its rim decorated with peculiar runes, and its solid gold base inlaid with 28 pearls, 2 rubies, and 2 emeralds.
Through the blacksmith god's estimations, the cup stood 5.5 centimeters tall with a 9.5 centimeter diameter and a 3 millimeter wall thickness. Including the base, the cup had a height of 17 centimeters and a width of 14.5 centimeters...
So, it's a wine cup?
Hephaestus had thought Athena brought this young man to see him late at night with an item from his foster mother Thetis, potentially to create something dangerous. He had even prepared excuses for future use.
But this was it?
For a moment, Hephaestus was utterly nonplussed and regarded the person before him with a somewhat strange look.
Under the light of the fire, Luo En smiled sheepishly and began to explain.
"My divine office is God of Wine..."
"Oh, I see now."
Hephaestus suddenly understood, and the last bit of caution in his heart dissipated like smoke.
After all that, he was just here to have a wine-serving vessel forged.
God of Wine, huh?
Hephaestus gave the new, still somewhat green deity before him a brief once-over, with a hint of disdain appearing in his eyes.
Olympus had several lesser deities of service every year, and this one was probably just another worthless one.
Well, just repay the favor and have nothing more to do with it, he thought.
Without giving it much more thought, Hephaestus asked for the detailed specifications for the commission and, true to his dedication to perfection, saw the two off before closing the door and immersing himself wholeheartedly in the creation of the new divine artifact.
Looking at the tightly shut fiery red temple doors, Luo En shook his head.
According to Athena, once Hephaestus secludes himself, it would be at least ten days to half a month before he appeared again.
No wonder his household's chariot was always full of passengers, and he was clueless about it.
Luo En made a self-mocking comment and followed Athena around the Love God's palace, whose sounds of male and female gasping could faintly be heard, before separating at the temple of Hestia.
As he watched the Goddess of Wisdom walk away, Luo En yawned and pushed open his own door, stepped into the bedroom, and prepared to experience his first night on Olympus.
However, as he lifted the covers, a vast expanse of enticing whiteness met his eyes, and he couldn't help but gulp down saliva at the sight of the tender lamb on the bed.
"Artemis?"
```