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

In the temple of the goddess of fate,

In an ancient temple woven from the fate threads of all things in the world, Promise, still in his dark hunting attire, sat within the hall.

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His clear green eyes reflected the figure of Clotho, the goddess of fate, kneeling beside him.

Her delicate body was clad in an ancient Greek white robe, a few strands of elegant white hair falling from her hood. 

Her eyes, all white, could only see the future and not the present.

Her exquisite face showed little emotional change, appearing quite calm... if you ignored the crystal ball she was slowly removing from Promise's head, that is.

Fully awake, Promise rubbed his head where he had been hit, looking at Clotho, who was sitting beside him with her face turned slightly away, as if nothing had happened and couldn't help but laugh.

"So, this time, Goddess Clotho, have you seen the future that is destined for me?" Promise asked with a light laugh. 

He didn't really understand why every time he met Clotho, he seemed to make her angry.

If it were other goddesses, like Athena or Artemis, he would be more concerned, even a bit afraid, worried about being choked in the future.

But Clotho...

Promise could only say, she was very dignified!

"And you're referring to the trial that the goddess Athena has given me next, right?"

Promise had sought the hunt for the Calydonian Boar from Artemis, intending to follow the traditional story and ride on Meleager's legendary achievements.

But due to a few words from the smiling Athena, he now had to personally defeat the Calydonian Boar... though this wasn't entirely a bad thing.

Whether it was the significant increase in legend points from slaying the Calydonian Boar or altering Meleager's fate, he had no reason to refuse.

The problem was, that boar was no ordinary beast.

The tale of hunting the Calydonian Boar is a very famous story in Greek mythology, with heroes like Heracles, Jason, and Theseus needing to help to finally bring down the enormous creature.

Currently, Promise had three significant items.

First, three golden apples. 

Second, a painting of the river goddess Aegina... Promise had painted quite a few back then.

Third, and most precious to Promise, the Sword of Judgment from the goddess Themis.

If he used the Sword of Judgment, the Calydonian Boar would naturally be no problem, but Themis had made it clear when she gave him the sword that it was meant to protect his growth, not to provide an easy solution or hinder his progress.

Thus, Athena had given Promise a new oracle, instructing him to seek the river god Asopus, the father of the river goddess Aegina.

He would help him gain the power to defeat the Calydonian Boar!

After a moment of silence under Promise's gaze, Clotho, the goddess of fate, finally nodded slightly.

"When the night goddess Nyx suspends the stars in the night sky, and you soar through the vast sky with the silver comet, Promise, you... will fall with the comet!"

She once again informed Promise of the future she had seen and, after a slight pause, said coldly with no expression, "But now it seems I made another mistake. I shouldn't have met with you, annoying guy!"

Although her face showed no change, it was clear she was angry.

After all, she didn't even bother to maintain her image of authority as the goddess of fate.

"Um... right, Goddess Clotho, did you see me change Actaeon's fate?" Promise tried to change the subject.

"...Are you trying to embarrass me again?"

This seemed to make Clotho even angrier.

Before Promise could explain, Clotho continued, "And our bet is not over. You did face the goddess Artemis and successfully saved Actaeon, but his fate is still intertwined with Meleager. 

They have met and are traveling together..."

As she spoke, she extended her hand and gently plucked a thread from the fate strands that filled the temple, passing it before Promise.

In it, Promise saw Actaeon, transformed into a giant deer, walking with Meleager.

"That fate now converges on the Calydonian Boar... The goddess of wisdom certainly lives up to her name. She gave you this oracle, knowing well what you must do next to have a chance at breaking fate."

Promise watched the scene presented by the fate thread, then looked at Clotho kneeling before him and couldn't help but ask, "Goddess Clotho, are you actually hoping that I can embarrass you... I mean, break this tragic fate?"

After all, rather than convincing Promise of the power of fate and making him give up, it seemed Clotho was guiding him on how to break these fates.

Clotho didn't respond, her expression unchanged, but she kept lifting and lowering the crystal ball containing Promise's fate.

Finally, worried that her power might slip and accidentally kill Promise, making him wake up in front of Hades, she put down the crystal ball.

Thus, whether Promise would fall with the comet was unknown for now, but he had almost died just moments ago.

While Clotho might be delicate, she was still a goddess!

Promise could be knocked down, not Clotho!

Also, due to the nature of his Heroic Spirit class card, if Promise died, he wouldn't report to Hades but return directly to the Clock Tower in the future.

This was why, after swearing an oath to Athena, Promise was always worried about accidentally dying and, upon choosing a Heroic Spirit summon, seeing Athena smiling at him and getting choked again.

In the end, Clotho, having put down the crystal ball, did the same as last time—she reached out and pinched Promise's cheeks firmly.

"So this time, will you choose the same as always?"

After pinching his cheeks, Clotho asked again.

"Falling with a comet on the path to becoming a hero... doesn't sound too bad!" Promise replied with a smile.

Clotho was silent for a moment, her voice colder, "So you're saying that our bet and Queen Hera's trial don't matter to you?"

"Of course not." The latter quickly replied. After a slight hesitation, he added, "But as you said, Goddess Clotho, the oracle from the goddess Athena is to have me hunt the Calydonian Boar..."

"You could seek out Queen Hera," Clotho said. "Though she has been busy with marriage lately, you just need to meet her and tell her everything. Athena won't be able to find you for a while."

"But I've already accepted the gift from Artemis. If I go back on my word, even if I'm not in danger, Meleager and Actaeon..." Promise shook his head gently.

"This time is different," Clotho said urgently. "This time I truly saw your death in the comet's fate!"

"However, in my view, it has always been the same." Upon hearing this, Promise smiled and, with a relaxed expression, said to Clotho, "Because every time, I've always embraced the possibility of dying.

So even if you, Goddess Clotho, tell me about my fate of death, it makes no difference to me."

At the very beginning, when he descended the mountain, at Jason's hometown, on the tower where offerings were made to Hera.

Later, in the cursed kingdom, offering everything he had to Queen Hera, seeking her blessing.

In the pure white courtroom, where he judged Hera and the river goddess Aegina guilty.

And last night, because of Actaeon and Meleager, standing before the moon goddess Artemis, whom he least wanted to face.

Promise knew exactly what he was doing, and thus, he had always been prepared for the possibility of dying.

After all, during his three years under Chiron's tutelage, having interacted with almost all of Chiron's disciples, he had long understood the weight of being at the bottom of the class.

Hearing this response, Clotho was momentarily stunned, recalling everything about Promise up to this point.

And finally, she realized why her 'gaze' had always been fixed on Promise.

Because, in truth, everything had started a long, long time ago.

When Queen Hera first came to the temple of fate, asking the goddess of fate how to punish the king who had insulted her.

Clotho's sister, another goddess of fate, had told Hera that Jason would accomplish everything and bring glory to Hera, without ever mentioning Promise.

Only Clotho had seen him.

From that moment on, Clotho had seen him.

She fell silent once more.

Just as Promise was wondering if he had once again embarrassed the goddess and hesitated about what to say, Clotho suddenly reached out and pinched Promise's cheeks twice.

"...Annoying guy," she said, then took out a golden apple she had prepared earlier and placed it in Promise's hand.

And the lightly pushed him, sending him tumbling backward.

In the next second, Promise felt as if the world was spinning, his body plummeting as if falling into an endless abyss. 

After what seemed like an eternity, he suddenly opened his eyes and found himself by the campfire, jumping up from the golden-horned deer.

Atalanta, who was on watch, looked up with her bright green eyes, puzzled at the sight of Promise, who seemed to have woken from a nightmare, clearly unaware of what had happened.

Only the golden-horned deer noticed the disappearance of the fate thread from his body and let out a gentle call to him.

Hearing the sound, Promise instinctively looked at the golden-horned deer, then at Atalanta, who tilted her head in confusion.

Finally, he came to his senses and, looking down at his hand, saw that he now held a brand-new golden apple...

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Meanwhile, in the ancient temple woven from fate threads,

The goddess of fate, Clotho, sat quietly beneath the countless threads of fate, her head bowed, holding the crystal ball containing Promise's fate which looked as though it repelled all the world's destinies outside of itself.

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