Three days later,
"This is... for me?"
Aphrodite looked in surprise at the two people who had disappeared for three whole days and then suddenly appeared in front of her, as well as the item Promise held out to her.
Promise presented her with a ring, forged by his own hands with help from Hephaestus, the god of craftsmanship.
It wasn't a divine artifact after all, he didn't have the skills for that.
However, because it was created with the help of Hephaestus, it possessed a very special ability, which was indestructibility!
The ring was exquisitely crafted, engraved with a bright red rose and surrounded by thorny vines.
When Aphrodite took it and gently touched it, she could feel the sharpness of the thorns.
"Yes, Goddess Aphrodite, its name is The Fidelity of the Rose."
When Promise said this, the beautiful goddess who was touching the ring in doubt was suddenly stunned as she raised her head and looked at the young man in front of her with some astonishment.
"It represents the beauty and loyalty of love, as well as the thorns and betrayal that come with it... Goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite, I ask you, are you willing to accept this ring?"
Promise smiled, his green eyes calmly meeting hers, "It is a gift from me, a student of Hephaestus, to you."
Later that evening,
A meteor streaked across the starry sky and landed in front of the young man.
It unfolded its silver wings, carrying him on its back, soaring through the sunset-lit sky.
Outside the doors of the bronze temple, Hephaestus, the god of forging, Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty, and and several puppet ladies who had a good relationship with Promise, looked at the young man's figure as he departed.
And in Aphrodite's hand, she wore the thorned ring.
The thorns pricked her gently, causing a faint pain, but it was precisely because of this pain that her gaze towards Promise's back appeared complicated and somewhat gentle...
This ring wasn't forged by Hephaestus for Aphrodite, but rather a gift from Promise to the goddess of beauty. Thus, it symbolized both punishment and a promise.
Because Hephaestus couldn't ignore the ring that Promise had crafted, from now on, her gaze would be firmly fixed on Aphrodite.
Regardless of what their future would be like, Promise, with his gift he made, had mended the subtle rift between them that had lingered for so long in the simplest and most direct way.
"So, what was it you wanted to say to him all this time?"
As Promise's figure disappeared into the sunset and nightfall descended, Hephaestus blinked her amber eyes in curiosity, glancing at the goddess beside her.
This time, Aphrodite didn't conceal her intentions, though she hadn't planned to keep them hidden, she simply hadn't found the right moment to say it yet.
"To be honest, it doesn't matter anymore, because I already know the answer."
As she spoke, Aphrodite stared down at the beautiful ring in her hand and smiled radiantly. "Hephaestus, I have to admit that this child...he is indeed so outstanding that it is difficult for us to take our eyes off him."
"You're only realizing it now?" The latter scoffed slightly.
Aphrodite didn't mind Hephaestus's tone.
She moved closer, taking hold of Hephaestus's wheelchair and guiding it back toward the bronze temple.
"The reason I came to him was actually because of Helen's matter… But now, that's no longer necessary. When he gave me this ring, I understood that whatever the final outcome may be, he will give Helen an answer she can be content with."
He wouldn't run away, and he had promised that gentle goddess of fate that every future she foresaw would be a beautiful one.
"You seem particularly invested in your follower," Hephaestus looked at the goddess of beauty Aphrodite with some surprise.
How could she feel concern for someone?
"Not really. To me, she has always been more of a plaything and a means to satisfy my own desires."
The goddess of beauty shook her head and answered Hephaestus frankly, "It's quite simple, really. My painting… it's already finished, isn't it?"
When Promise offered her the ring, not actually...perhaps even earlier, Aphrodite understood that her painting painting had already been completed.
"So I don't want any flaws on my painting. Since that's the case, I've decided to show the girl a bit more kindness and grace."
As she spoke, the goddess of beauty Aphrodite stretched out her hand and took out a painting from the sky.
And the painting was, as she said, already half completed.
Beautiful, thorn-covered red roses filled the canvas.
Now, this painting of the goddess of love and beauty needed only one final stroke... the arrow shot by the most beautiful woman in the world!
.
.
.
.
And that final arrow arrived sooner than expected.
Late the next night, aboard the Argo, Helen lay sleeping beside her sister, long accustomed to the gentle rocking of the ship.
When suddenly, a melodic sound filled her ears, a beautiful lyre melody, as refreshing as clear spring brushed over her body and mind, as if cleansing her whole being.
Moreover, this wasn't the first time Helen had heard this beautiful piece of music.
She'd heard it once before in the labyrinth, so she knew immediately who was playing.
Helen opened her eyes, and as she turned her head and glanced toward the window, she saw Pegasus hovering silently, waiting for her.
After a brief moment of daze, Helen realized what was happening and gradually her beautiful purple eyes opened wide.
The magic eyes that could make anyone's heart flutter just by looking at them were now unusually bright as she carefully slipped out of bed, taking care not to disturb her sleeping sister.
After changing into a white gown and carefully combing her soft, slightly curled golden hair, Helen stepped out of her room.
She mounted Pegasus, who then took off, transforming into a silver meteor as they flew away.
However, when they left, countless heroes on the Argo opened their eyes at the same time and looked at the departing Pegasus from afar.
It wasn't long before Pegasus brought Helen to a small island, landing on a sandy shore.
There, in the moonlit shallows, sat a young man, cradling a golden lyre, his fingers dancing over the strings in a gentle melody.
The moment she dismounted from Pegasus and saw him, Cupid's magical arrow appeared in Helen's hand.
It was the enchanted arrow that the goddess of beauty, Aphrodite had bound to her, a bow and arrow powerful enough to affect even gods.
The golden arrow could turn love toward marriage, while the lead arrow would make even two people feel hatred for each other, even if they were lovers.
When Promise had left the Argo temporarily for something, Helen had declared, that she would release the arrow that symbolized love upon his return.
So now, at this moment, with Pegasus watching her expectantly from the sidelines, Helen drew her bow and aimed at the young man playing his lyre in the distance.
However, to the surprise of the Pegasus grazing nearby, the girl finally put down the golden arrow on the bowstring and even pouted her lips with a look of grievance.
"Brother Promise, if you keep ignoring me, I'll really cry in front of you tonight... Even though I know you don't like unreasonable girls, I really will cry tonight, and it'll be loud, too!"
As soon as those words left her lips, the light melody on the lyre came to an abrupt stop.
Promise put down the golden lyre in his hand, opened his clear green eyes, and looked at Helen with a hint of helplessness.
However, he also shared the same doubt as Pegasus so, he asked, "Are you... not going to shoot that arrow at me?"
"When you left, Brother Promise, I swore to the gods that I would release this magic arrow of love upon you," Helen replied.
Hearing this, Promise couldn't help but twitch slightly at the corner of his mouth.
He felt that maybe this kind of thing didn't need a vow…
"But I'm not foolish," Helen continued. "The goddess of love and beauty only gave me a single golden arrow symbolizing love. Since I know it won't hit you, Brother Promise, why would I waste such an opportunity now?"
Hearing this, Promise looked at Helen with even more curiosity as he said. "How do you know it won't hit me?"
Hearing his words and looking into his confused eyes, the latter rolled her eyes at him, still looking amused.
Then she moved waking towards the young man before settling down beside him, her gaze lingering on his body before finally resting on the silver pendant around his neck.
"Brother Promise, you have no idea how much the gods favor you. I'm not blind; besides, I knew from the start that I was a trial prepared for you by the goddess... This trial is love, isn't it? If you pass, you'll receive the goddess's painting."
Helen replied in a very calm tone.
Even if she didn't figure it out at first, several weeks had passed and she had naturally figured it out clearly.
After all, just like Atalanta and Medea, Helen also knew Promise's ultimate goal was to collect the twelve paintings of the Olympian gods.
And the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite, was undoubtedly one of them.
"And at the same time, I also know that Brother Promise is really powerful. I think you must be the greatest person in this world."
Without waiting for Promise to respond, Helen, who was sitting beside him, continued,
"Even though you're really gentle—so much so that you're probably weaker than me,
Brother Promise would never disappoint anyone, not even the gods. So, everything was pretty clear."
"Brother Promise, you specifically chose this time to call me and even picked such an open place, trying to get me to shoot you. So it's obvious that you know everything and are sure the arrow won't hit you, right?"
With that said, the golden bow and arrow disappeared from Helen's hands.
Under Promise's somewhat speechless gaze, she raised her head and looked up, full of guarded determination as she said, "That's why I won't shoot. I only have this one golden arrow, and I swore to the gods that I would definitely hit Brother Promise!"
"Hmm... but is there a chance that maybe I really don't know anything, and you could actually hit me if you shot..."
Promise tried to seduce Helen again, but seeing the speechless look in her eyes that was slowly growing and forming into a disdain, he quickly shut his mouth halfway through.
"Sure enough, I'd better cry for a while." Helen lowered her head and said, "I knew it was like this.
To you, Brother Promise, I'll always be just a little kid."
But aren't you a little kid?
Promise thought to himself as he instinctively looked at the girl in front of him.
The breeze from the seaside blew her dazzling golden hair, and the pure white gown perfectly showed off her beautiful body.
In the moonlight, she looked like someone who had just stepped out of a painting, ethereal and dreamlike.
At that moment, looking at the little beauty in front of him, Promise felt certain: even without those alluring magic eyes, in just a few more years, when she grows up....no she didn't even have to wait for that long, she just needed to reach the stage of girlhood and when she did, she would be unquestionably the most beautiful woman in the world.
As he gazed at her and felt entranced for a while, Helen, who had been pouting unhappily, broke into a joyful smile.
"I thought, Brother Promise had no interest in me at all."
It was clear she had noticed his gaze.
Promise instinctively wanted to deny it, but as he met her captivating violet eyes, when he opened his mouth he found himself saying, "After all, I am still a man, and you, Helen, are destined to be the most beautiful woman alive in the future. Everyone will want you."
Well...you would be so wanted that People would be willing to start a decade-long war, a battle immortalized in Greek mythology, the Trojan War—just for you!
"But I only want you, Brother Promise."
Helen replied without a second thought, "I don't care if I'm the most beautiful woman in the world. I only want to be the most beautiful person in your eyes."