Fate: I Heard After Death, You Can Ascend to the Throne of Heroes?

Name: Promise

Age:16

Era: Age of the Gods, Ancient Greece

Identity: Transmigrator

Heroic Spirit Class:Unconfirmed

Heroic Legend Events:

- Met the future King of Athens, Theseus, and became a student of the centaur sage, Chiron.

- Completed Queen Hera's trial after being mistaken for Jason and gained her favor.

- Demonstrated incredible adaptability in near-impossible situations, single-handedly pulling a nearly out-of-control scenario back on track, becoming the one prophesied by Clotho, the goddess of fate, to bring glory to Hera!

Heroic Spirit Rank Improved: E (Somewhat Famous)

.

.

.

Afternoon

In a private room of the palace, Promise looked at the Heroic Spirit Class Card in his hand, nodding in satisfaction.

"As expected, just as I thought, the quality has improved... I guess this is the benefit of the Age of Gods. Harvesting the blessings of the gods is indeed the best shortcut to improving the quality of a Heroic Spirit!"

"Even though on the way here, I, uh, reformed more than a hundred bandits and taught them to sing my praises, it didn't increase my legend at all!"

As Promise muttered to himself, feeling slightly indignant,

"Promise, I'm going out. Do you want to come with me?"

Jason pushed the door open, his face full of confidence as he walked in.

He had changed into a luxurious outfit, and it had to be said that Jason's appearance was quite impressive—a typical blond, blue-eyed Western prince image.

"Where are you going?" Promise looked at him, puzzled, not bothering to hide the Heroic Spirit Class Card in his hand.

After all, he had already tested it, and only he, the host, could see the card; others couldn't.

"Of course, to experience the customs of my country properly!" Jason said proudly. "Promise, you wouldn't believe it. Just now, I stepped out for a bit, and everyone suddenly became so enthusiastic towards me, calling me the future king.

And so many beautiful girls were giving me flirtatious glances..."

Hearing this, Promise instantly lost interest. 

He casually put away the Class Card and turned his head. "Not interested, you go have fun yourself... Oh, and don't get too carried away. Remember, Queen Hera is still watching you."

Jason's expression froze at his words. 

He muttered something under his breath, looking disappointed as he left.

Watching his retreating figure, Promise couldn't help but think about his future.

In the original history, Jason passed Hera's test with the help of Athena, becoming her devotee and favorite.

Hera then did everything in her power to give hom what he wanted.

She gathered almost all the great heroes of the era, had Athena help build the Argo—a ship that would never sink in the sea—and supported the decade-long voyage. Hera's influence was evident throughout.

Those years were the most glorious times for Jason.

All of this lasted until he retrieved the Golden Fleece and returned to his kingdom.

In the end, Jason brought back the Golden Fleece, but his uncle, Pelias, went back on his word and did not give the kingdom to Jason.

If Hera had still been supporting him, Pelias wouldn't have dared to defy the oath witnessed by the queen. 

But by then, Hera had already abandoned Jason.

Because Jason had betrayed Hera... to be precise, he had committed the one act Hera could not tolerate.

Jason had betrayed Medea, his wife.

He had betrayed their marriage!

On must know that Jason and Medea's marriage was personally arranged and officiated by Hera herself!

As mentioned earlier, Hera in Greek mythology symbolizes chastity. 

She is the absolute defender of monogamy, the goddess of marriage and childbirth.

Therefore, her taboo is very clear—she cannot tolerate such betrayal.

This is also why Hera often appears as a malicious antagonist in Greek mythology.

In Greek mythology, Hera's reputation isn't very good, leaving behind many villainous images.

Whether it was tormenting Heracles or transforming her rivals into mad gorgons, casting curses on entire nations, causing various natural disasters, or bringing suffocating plagues that turned lands into hellscapes, her temper was clearly bad.

However, despite all this, when Promise had asked Chiron about the Olympian gods' temperaments during his lessons, Chiron had told him,

"Hera is a gentle and kind goddess."

Thinking about it, it makes sense.

Of course, he wasn't glorifying the goddess afterall she was still a greek goddess and no one among them was a good person. 

But Hera's her evil deeds have a huge premise—Zeus, the king of gods...

And Jason's misbehavior wasn't a one-time thing, but until the wedding, Hera tolerated it, turning a blind eye.

It wasn't until he betrayed Medea that Hera was thoroughly disappointed and left him.

"That's also why I want to be her devotee. After all, I don't plan to get married..."

Hera's biggest taboo was betrayal in marriage.

And Promise had no plans to marry in this era. 

His goals were always pure, so much so that Chiron had been reluctant to let him leave the mountain.

After all, how could someone so single-mindedly seeking death, wanting to die a glorious death, possibly think about romantic entanglements?

"Besides, this is the Nasuverse. Who knows where we'll meet again in the future, and a harem situation... Ugh, women would only slow me down!"

The thought of getting himself into trouble and having a bunch of women come after him with swords made Promise shiver.

For this reason, the chaste Hera became the best choice for him.

"I thought it was impossible, but because of Clotho's prophecy, it seems I still have a chance..."

While he was muttering and thinking about these things, he felt bored being alone in the empty room after Jason left.

So he turned and pulled out a paintbrush from his luggage.

This was not an ordinary paintbrush but a gift from the sage Chiron.

As mentioned earlier, Promise had an exceptional talent in the arts, particularly in painting.

When Jason had left earlier, it was to get a painting from him, which led to many subsequent events.

On that day, Chiron had noticed that Promise' painting skills had surpassed his own and had given him this paintbrush.

It didn't require any dye; just a bit of water was enough to draw the colors Promise needed... Yes, it was a divine artifact and currently the only divine artifact Promise possessed!

To be precise, this was Chiron's graduation gift in painting, though Chiron would never admit it, to prevent Promise from using it as an excuse to leave the mountain.

Promise also took out a canvas from his luggage.

After having servants set up the easel and bringing in some water, he sat by the window. 

Bathed in the afternoon sunlight, he pondered over the canvas.

What should I paint...

Oh, right, if I want to get Hera's attention, I might as well make a vow like in many stories, promising to dedicate everything to her and never marry.

As he thought about what to paint, his mind wandered, and he naturally picked up the paintbrush, dipped it in some water, and began sketching on the canvas.

'And come to think of it, I've always overlooked something very important for a Heroic Spirit.'

'That is... Noble Phantasms!'

'Yes, I still don't have a Noble Phantasm!'

Legendary deeds often ascend to form Noble Phantasms. 

Currently, do I have any legends that could ascend into a Noble Phantasm...

Well, it seems that there really aren't any?!

Oh my god, that was a close call, luckily I didn't die.

If he had died only to find out that hia Noble Phantasm was his second-rate archery skills, I would have really cried!

'If I think about it this way, for the sake of the Noble Phantasm, whether it's the Twelve Trials of Hercules or the Calydonian Boar, I really have to find a way to sneak in...'

With the paintbrush in hand, he gently outlined the figure of a person on the canvas.

.

.

.

At the same time,

"Huh?"

Athena, who was still lingering in the palace, suddenly looked up with a puzzled expression.

"Who's been calling me…"

In the Age of Gods, it's best not to call a god's name or think about them too much because they can truly hear and sense it!

"Wait, could it be…?"

Athena's eyes lit up with joy, and in the next moment, she disappeared from where she stood.

Then, she reappeared behind Promise.

But as she was about to greet him, she quickly covered her mouth.

Because she saw the young man sitting by the window, bathed in the afternoon sunlight, with a gentle smile on his lips, peacefully and elegantly moving his brush.

He seemed very relaxed yet serious at the same time.

Promise hadn't noticed her arrival at all.

She saw her image slowly forming on the canvas.

Exquisite painting skills… Athena blinked, then looked at hom with even more interest.

Whether it was his performance this morning or the prophecy from the Fate Goddess Clotho, Athena was already greatly intrigued by Promise.

Now, she discovered another side of him.

She stood silently, watching him paint her.

When Promise finally snapped out of his thoughts and saw the half-finished painting of the silver-haired, golden-eyed goddess, he was slightly startled.

"Why did I paint her…? Maybe because our first meeting left such a deep impression, or perhaps because she's the first goddess I ever met?"

Hearing his muttering, Athena, who was about to pat his shoulder, stopped.

She noticed his expression change, and his brows furrowed seriously.

Promise looked at the goddess in the painting, who smiled so gently, and suddenly felt a strong sense of incongruity.

"…No, this isn't right."

What's not right?

Athena tilted her head.

"This isn't her." the boy said to himself.

Then, to Athena's bewilderment, he used his brush to erase the image on the canvas.

This time, he fully immersed himself in the painting.

Now, Promise painted slowly.

But Athena didn't feel bored. 

She stared at the gradually forming image, her mouth slowly opening in astonishment.

As Promise got more absorbed, he lost track of time.

The goddess in the painting now held a shield in her left hand and raised a spear in her right.

The white dress was now covered in golden armor.

The painting depicted dawn breaking through the night.

She stood alone outside a grand temple, bathed in the first light of day, looking down with her golden eyes at the world below.

She was still smiling, but unlike the gentle image before, her gaze now was filled with pride and confidence. 

Her golden eyes seemed to control everything in the world.

The breeze brushed her face, making her long silver hair flutter gently.

The light of dawn adorned her, like the brightest star in the galaxy.

After a long time,

As the sunset's glow bathed Proms, he finally put down his brush.

And stared at the figure in the painting for a while, and then…

"Goddess of Wisdom, Athena…"

He softly spoke Athena's name.

At that moment, Promise finally realized who the goddess he first met truly was.

And at the same time,

"Hmm."

The goddess responded softly and leaned closer, whispering in Promise's ear with a light laugh, "Yes, it's me."

"You've really surprised me again and again, Promise."