The River of Fire—Phlegethon.
The spirit of the River of Fire, a red-haired woman wreathed in flames, looked at Hecate after hearing her request. Then, her gaze shifted to the one beside her—
A twelve-year-old boy with golden hair and blue eyes.
Jason.
With an expression of disbelief, she asked, "Are you trying to kill this child? Forget about him—even some gods can't endure the burning of the inextinguishable Underworld flames!"
The Underworld had five rivers:
The River of Pain, Acheron, ferried by Charon.
The River of Forgetfulness, Lethe.
The River of Fire, Phlegethon.
The River of Wailing, Cocytus.
Circling Hades' palace nine times was the River of Hatred—Styx.
Each river had its own unique characteristics, and the second destination where Hecate brought Jason was the River of Fire, capable of nurturing flames that would never be extinguished!
"That's why I came to find you," Hecate said calmly. "As a god born from these flames, you should know how to use them to temper his soul, right?"
"It's difficult." The red-haired woman shook her head. "Not impossible, but… extremely troublesome!"
"Even with your help, we'd still need a god who wields the power of life to assist. And before that, he must stay in this area for at least three months, consuming Fire Lotuses daily to adapt to the flames."
"Three months of consuming Fire Lotuses… and a god with the power of life…" Hecate fell into deep thought.
Seeing her so serious, the Spirit of Flame couldn't help but ask, "Lady Hecate, who exactly is he to you?"
An illegitimate child?
The Spirit of Flame couldn't help but think so.
Of course, she knew that Hecate was a virgin goddess, unmarried, and had never been involved with any god.
Even Zeus, the so-called king of the gods, dared not lay hands on her lightly.
After all, Hecate had both power and status!
Even if this was now the era of the Third Pantheon, ruled by Zeus and his kin, the First and Second Pantheons were not entirely gone.
"My student," Hecate answered flatly.
"Student?" The Spirit of Flame blinked, glanced at Jason, and then asked in surprise, "Just a student?"
"Yes. And I also need him to help me test an experiment—to see if, with his mortal body, he can use the magic I've developed."
"A mortal body?"
The Spirit of Flame was puzzled. "If that's the case… isn't all of this a bit excessive, Lady Hecate?"
Even Jason himself was momentarily stunned.
Indeed, if this was just for an experiment, why first cleanse his body with the Underworld's river and now forge his soul with eternal flames?
After all this, could Jason even still be considered a mortal?
"Cleansing his body is to make it sturdier. Forging his soul is so he can withstand 'Divine Words'… Since he is already my student, he must learn ordinary magic, but also that which is beyond the ordinary."
Under Jason's gaze, Hecate spoke indifferently.
Divine Words was the higher-level incantation language used across different mythological eras—words that human vocal cords could not reproduce.
Such power was unbearable for an ordinary soul.
And if the essence of his soul was damaged, Jason would truly die, with no chance of resurrection.
It seemed that, despite Hecate's frequent remarks about Jason dying here and there, making her seem unreliable, the reality was quite the opposite.
Though taking a student was not her original intention, now that she had accepted Jason, she would naturally fulfill her role as a teacher.
After all, even Chiron had said—Hecate was a merciful goddess!
"Jason, from today onward, you will stay here for three months. I will return for you then. As for the god who wields the power of life… coincidentally, I haven't seen her in a while. I wonder what she's up to."
After making arrangements, Hecate muttered to herself before leaving.
Jason and the Spirit of Flame were left staring at each other.
"Um… Spirit of Flame, please take care of me." Left with no choice, Jason braced himself and greeted her.
Seeing his awkward expression, the Spirit of Flame chuckled. "Just call me Fire Spirit Sister… Hehe, you poor kid, having a teacher like that. I can't tell if you're lucky or unlucky."
Back in her temple, Hecate began reaching out to the god with the power of life. However, after receiving no response for a while, she simply threw herself back into her research.
Three months passed in the blink of an eye.
When the magical alarm Hecate had set finally reminded her, she procrastinated for another week before finally leaving her laboratory.
"Teacher, are you heading out again?"
Medea, seeing Hecate preparing to leave, asked curiously.
Although three months was a long time, Medea knew all too well just how much of a shut-in her teacher was.
"Yes," Hecate nodded casually. "I need to take care of something regarding my student."
"Oh… Wait, Me ?" Medea was momentarily dazed.
"No, Jason."
"Jason?" Medea blinked. "Who's that?"
"My student," Hecate said with a wink. "You didn't know?"
"...Teacher, aside from me and Aunt Circe, when did you take on another student?!" Medea was stunned.
"Huh? I didn't mention it?" Hecate looked confused.
Did I forget? …Come to think of it, I dove straight into my research as soon as I got back.
Medea nodded vigorously.
"I see… Three months ago, when I went out, I picked up a student."
"Picked up… Then why didn't you bring him back?" Medea asked in surprise. "And wait—three months ago… That means he's my junior disciple, right?"
"Junior disciple? …Hmm, I suppose so," Hecate replied indifferently as she prepared to leave.
"Wait! Teacher, take me with you!" Medea quickly said.
She was very curious about Hecate's new student and even seemed excited about having a junior disciple!
After all, since Hecate's temple was in the Underworld, Medea rarely went out, and even when she did, there wasn't much to do.
Moreover, because Hecate disliked hassle, aside from Medea, the entire temple was filled with magical puppets animated by divine power.
With Hecate often shutting herself in her lab for long periods, Medea hardly had anyone to talk to.
"You want to come? …Hmm, not this time. There's something I need him to do, and it wouldn't be convenient if you tagged along." Hecate thought for a moment before shaking her head.
"I see…" Medea's disappointment was obvious, but she wouldn't argue with her teacher—her goddess.
She could only comfort herself—It won't be long before we meet anyway!