53 Spear Boy Playing The Poltical Game

(Cao Cao POV)

Appearing in front of the Empire State Building, I straightened out the suit I was wearing as a man who couldn't show up to a party without a suit. But that's just semantics, so as I entered the lobby, I looked at the man at the counter and showed him the card, and as he looked up at me, his eyes widened as I smiled down at him.

As he looked at the card, he shakily pointed to the elevator. I gave him a nod, and as I entered the elevator, I pressed the button with the large Omega symbol on it and waited as the elevator rose and rose. The music was not there, which I assume was due to Apollo pulling out of Olympus in search of me, but I consider that a good thing.

Eventually, the elevator comes to a stop, and the doors open, showing a large mountainside Greek City but to the extreme. Nearly everything was made of marble, and the gardens were all about as luxurious as you can make them. It was as picturesque as you could get.

As I look to the Palace, I begin walking my way through Olympus, noticing how the streets are still flooded with various beings, from humans to some demigods and even nature spirits. All of whom noticed me and immediately ran away, which I did not mind. I let them run. 

It even left me with an empty view of the place, and while it was certainly luxurious, it was missing something. It lacked warmth in a way and seemed a bit too impersonal, but maybe that's just how the gods wanted it as well. The allure of luxury is there. People here will understand that they are simply living under the Gods' table.

I even felt a small pull from the temples of Artemis and Ares, but I ignored them as I was not them, and their author ties held no sway over me. The Palace, however, simply called to me. Maybe that was due to the influence of Zeus and his authority, or maybe it was my own delusion. 

(You know this is the first time a spear user has entered a divine domain without getting attacked.) Celestine said as Cato nodded his head in agreement.

(You should feel proud, Cao Cao. You truly have changed the world. We will have to see for better or for worse, but this is truly a good start.) 

Cato, as he says this, observes the area around me. I had actually been practicing spiritual manifestations of the abilities from The Grail, and while they aren't physical and no one else can see them but me, they're not simply stuck in my head all the time.

Celestine then looked towards the Statue of Artemis with a frown but simply turned away as if it didn't matter, and it did not, but as I passed it, the statue was replaced by a statue showing Camp Half-Blood. They deserve some recognition here, and I also made it auto-repairing and strengthened the statute itself.

Runes are so much fun to mess with. It's like being a reality hacker, which made me wonder what would happen if a hacker were reincarnated here with a more tech-based gear.

Maybe when I grow stronger, I will be able to observe the Multiverse and find such an outcome. Right now, I am firmly in the class of the primordials, if not stronger so other than the heavenly dragons, Indra, Shiva, and the Dragon Gods, no one else is my equal. I don't even consider the Devils on the top 10 because of my holy nature, as all it would take is one blast of my holy Flames to turn even the embodiment of Destruction to dust.

Ajuka, even with his formula, would be unable to sue it when I negate his ability to use magic, especially after a clone of mine that followed Lavinia to the Underworld is observing the devils. 

So now all I need to do is wait as my clone observes the various pillar families and their abilities. He may also go on a bit of a stealing spree knowing myself, especially if he finds any forgotten battlefields.

Because if I own Solomon's Crest, I have to create my own pillars after all, and what better way to create them than using the original material? But I have to wait for my clone to dispel to learn the techniques so that it will take some time.

For now, though, the Palace comes into view as I see a woman standing outside the Palace, and as I see her, I decide to do a little trolling.

Activating concealment, I walk behind the Goddess of Wisdom, change my voice and energy signature, and then disable my concealment. I say, "You seem distracted, Lady Athena. May it have something to do with the news of the God Slayer?"

She then turned around and looked right at me, but as she turned around, her eyes widened in surprise as she asked carefully, "How did you do that? Even God's relating to the night and the hunt are not as sneaky as you."

I shrugged as she then bowed to me and said shakily, "I welcome you to Olympus, and if it means anything, I apologize for the transgressions levied against you." Now, it was my turn to be surprised as I had not expected this. I expected some posturing but was able to read the apology between the lines, not her directly stating an apology.

I then smirked, gripped her chin, and lifted her gaze to me. As she looked at my face, I said to her, "I do appreciate the welcome, but I still sense fear in you, goddess of wisdom. You are afraid, afraid for yourself mostly, but also afraid for Olympus. That is good. Fear not, as I have not come with conflict in mind; I just wanted to clear the air, so to speak. I am a firm believer in an eye for an eye, so as long as the Olympians do not attack or act against me, I shall not do so in return. Because you see, with all of the political language and double meanings, I find the most equal compromises are those found in simplicity. Don't you agree?" She then stood straight up and nodded as we entered the Palace.

"This truly is a wonderful view, Lady Athena; I assume you had an influence on the design?" My question is met with a confused nod as if she wasn't expecting me to ask.

"Although you have ever considered modernizing the architectural designs as well, this place truly is a shining Beacon of marble. It's a bit dull in a way. Where are the fantastical elements? The wonderful views? The homes for fantastical creatures? While it does project strength and class, it shows little else." Athena's eyes narrowed as I could feel her mind noting what I was saying.

"Well, God Slayer, my designs were rather limited by the times, and Zeus was never one for radical change." That makes a lot of sense, actually, as Zeus never seemed like the guy to take radical change. 

"Well, maybe it's time for a change; nothing lasts forever after all, especially in worlds like this." The statement leaves her in deep thought as we enter the throne room, and I see Demeter, Hestia, Hermes, and Dionysus sitting around the fire in their normal forms.

As we enter, they all turn to us, and I almost snicker, seeing them sitting around Hestia's fire roasting marshmallows. Hestia herself is deadpanning them as she is using her primordial fire as a means to roast snacks.

"Welcome to Olympus God Slayer; I hope Athena wasn't too stiff," Demeter says as I see the goddess in question frown in displeasure while the goddess of the harvest simply smiles in return.

I then walk up to all of them and say, "Well, do not worry, the goddess of wisdom has shown me good company, and since this is the first time we are meeting in a more peaceful setting, it would be remiss of me to visit without bearing gifts." I then summon a single seed in front of Demeter, and as she takes it, she looks at me in confusion.

"That seed is an entirely new plant breed that, when planted, will produce endless drinkable water that will cleanse any plants you wish to cultivate near it. I welcome you attempting to copy it using your domain over agriculture." She then takes it shakily as she looks ready to pounce on me with the rest already gathered around me. The seed itself was inspired by the same tree from the anime Mondaji but with some upgrades.

Looking at Hermes, he gives me a wink, and I then hand him what looks like a normal bag. As he tries to understand what it is, I explain, "Have you ever played D&D? This is a genuine Bag Of Holding, so anything placed in here will be categorically placed within the near infinite space, and all you need to do is think of the object you wish to grab from it, and it shall appear in your hand, and only you may access it."

As he takes the bag, I see it morph into what looks like a briefcase, and he starts to sniffle up. I then handed some rats to his snakes on his staff, and they sent me a mental thanks. For Hestia, I gave her a new chair, which she immediately melted into with a euphoric expression on her face.

For Dionysus, in addition to saving his kids from their future deaths, I hand him a never-ending bottle of wine of my one creation, and as he takes a swig, he then breathes out with an actual smile on his face and shakes my hand hard.

Athena then looked at me with excitement, and I simply chuckled and handed her a book; as she saw that it was blank, I told her, "Try infusing some of your Divine Essence into the book." 

She then does so, and on the pages appear various blueprints for improving Olympus and Camp Half-Blood. As she turns through the pages, she looks genuinely surprised.

I then look to all of them and say, "I know we may not have known each other on the best of terms, but I am not a bloodthirsty maniac. While I will not apologize for what I had to do, I will not seek out excess conflict. If you wish to contact me further, think of me as a merchant in a way, but if you want something from them, you must bring me something of equal value. Equivalent Exchange and all of that business. But I must ask one thing. "Where is the rest of you?"

Athena grits her teeth as I think she thinks that this may sour relations but says hesitantly, "Sadly, Hera, Apollo, and Aphrodite have gone AWOL since the deaths of Ares, Artemis, and Zeus. Hephaestus, being the obsessed smith she is, has not left the forge after seeing the beauty of the True Longnius. I do apologize for that. Poseidon is still recovering from that hit Zeus gave him while Hades has not left his realm." I nod at her answer but then ask.

"What of Olympus itself? Has there been any change with the domain itself?" My question is met with some silence as I then look to Zeus's old throne and see it withering away.

"Yes, there has been some degradation due to the lack of the presence of Artemis, Ares, and Zeus, but with time, it will repair." She was not lying but not telling the full truth either, but I respected her silence and nodded to her.

"Well, if you ever need me, simply crush this coin in your hands, and Demeter, if you want more plants, you need to grow that one first." 

I could see the goddess of agriculture shake in excitement at trying to cultivate this plant, and as I summoned a portal, Athena bowed once more, and I gave her a slight nod of respect in return. I then return to the Land Of Shadows to see Medusa and Valerie enjoying the view as Scylla trains with Scathach.

All part of the plan.