How could the stalemate be broken? The issue was time. No one knew when Kronos, the invincible Titan King, would break free from his limitations. It was certain that if the delay continued, significant problems would arise.
"Zeus," Hades finally spoke up after a long silence.
The gods turned their attention to Hades, who rarely involved himself in such matters. Usually, he acted more like an enforcer rather than a strategist. Hades, unlike Zeus, and much like Poseidon, did not pursue power for its own sake. The two brothers seemed to act out of necessity rather than ambition, whereas Zeus aimed to become the ultimate god-king.
This difference was critical, and now that Hades was speaking, it indicated something significant.
Hades ignored the attention and said, "Zeus, you should ask Mnemosyne about the number of Earth Temples present on the land."
The atmosphere grew tense, and Zeus's expression stiffened. In that moment, he wanted to turn and question Metis and Prometheus. The fact that Mnemosyne had defected to him was supposed to be a secret known only to them.
Why did Hades know?
Zeus was confused, while Poseidon, Hestia, and Euribia were all staring at him. None of them could believe that Mnemosyne, one of the Twelve Titan Gods and the goddess of memory, had sided with Zeus.
How was this possible?
However, since Hades mentioned it, it had to be true. Hades was not one to joke about such serious matters.
"I understand," Zeus replied after a brief silence. He would ask Mnemosyne, though he was baffled by how Hades knew. Metis and Prometheus felt uneasy, unsure of how Hades had come by this knowledge. Hades's revelation planted a seed of suspicion that could change everything.
Hestia smirked, thinking her brother was being shrewd and protective, even if he claimed to ignore the actions of others. In critical moments, he made strategic moves.
Zeus continued, "Hades, activating the Earth Temples with the god-king's power would make them difficult to breach, given the vastness of the earth."
He chose not to dwell on this issue, recognizing that it was not productive to do so. Internal strife could become a significant problem if not managed carefully.
"The number of Earth Temples is not the issue," Hades said calmly. "The core issue is that each temple uses faith as its power source, with six Titan gods to operate them, maximizing their power."
Hades, although he hadn't attacked the underworld, was aware of the fundamental issue. Through his exploration of Coeus's memories, he had learned about the construction of these temples.
"Faith!" Zeus pondered. "Are you suggesting we eliminate the source of their power?"
"Exactly," Hades confirmed. "The faith stored in these temples is the core. To disrupt their power, we must destroy their faith storage."
"But..." Euribia hesitated, "Lord Hades, isn't the faith stored within the temples? How would we locate and destroy it?"
"No," Hades replied, "the faith storage isn't in the temples. Each temple was built by Coeus. Zeus, ask Mnemosyne; she should have information from Coeus's memories about the locations of these faith storages."
Hades shifted the responsibility back to Mnemosyne, avoiding direct involvement.
Zeus's face remained calm, but internally he was seething. Why did Hades know so much? What was going on? Zeus, naturally suspicious, began to doubt Metis and Prometheus even more.
Still, as the god-king, Zeus suppressed his suspicions and said, "Hades, I will ask her. Your plan is to destroy the faith storages?"
"Not destroy," Hades corrected, "but ignite them. Destroying the faith alone won't eliminate the Earth Temples as strongholds. However, if we ignite them, the temples will become traps for the Titan gods."
Hades's plan was to ignite the faith storages, creating chaos among the Titan gods. This would make further advances much easier. However, they needed to act swiftly and ignite all storages simultaneously. Otherwise, if the Titans realized what was happening, the plan would fail.
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