Beneath the starry sky.
Within the court.
The goddess who presided over justice sat with gravity on the judgment seat, lowered her light-veil-covered eyes, surveyed the parties present, and put forward a formal question.
"Hera. Did you commit any act that violated the principle of marital fidelity?"
Themis's opening move instantly stunned Hera on the spot.
If it were before, she could have answered with complete righteousness.
But now...
She pressed her lips together, instinctively glanced at a certain guy who traveled alongside her, and reluctantly let out a difficult answer.
"Yes..."
The moment the words left her mouth, Hera's expression turned somewhat ugly as she looked at the rays of starlight that draped over her body with great wariness.
Beneath the starry sky, the truth became visible.
Within the court, lies could not be fabricated.
This was why Themis pulled them into this sacred domain.
Having received her answer, the Goddess of Justice gave an unsurprised nod and continued her grave questioning.
"Did you harbor resentment toward your spouse and cause him harm?"
"Yes..."
"Has the feeling between you broken down? Do you feel a deep weariness toward this marriage?"
"Yes..."
Two simple subjective questions in a row that did not touch on privacy matters allowed Hera's tense nerves to relax slightly.
But while giving her answers, complex emotions still rose on the Queen of Heaven's face.
At some point in time, she and that man were symbols of a well-matched couple and the continuation of a household.
She never expected things to deteriorate so quickly to this state of outward harmony and inner rift.
Themis gave a nod, still without wasted words, and spoke with solemnity once more.
"Then the final question.
Are you willing to give up your supreme God authority and the position of Queen of Heaven?"
"...."
Hearing the words, Hera bit down on her teeth and bit through her lips.
However, she never made a sound.
But failing to answer was itself a kind of answer.
Who would give up power for no reason?
Themis nodded and rose, musing quietly.
"It seems I cannot accept this case."
After saying this, she turned the scales on both sides of the sword hilt.
The starlight that draped over Hera immediately dimmed and dispersed.
The invisible pressure crumbled and vanished.
But at the same time, the court of order also collapsed with it.
The Justice Goddess turned with sword in hand and walked away from the starlight toward the night.
The faint glimmer that appeared in the sky was swallowed once more by the thick darkness of night.
Obviously, even if the defendant Zeus was not clean, the plaintiff Hera was not necessarily innocent either.
Infidelity.
Yes, Zeus cheated on her many many times, before she could stand on the moral standpoint but now Hera had done the same.
So, both parties did it. Neither could lecture the other.
Domestic violence. Neither party had a clean record.
Strictly speaking it was "mutual fighting."
Feelings. Both parties perhaps once had them, but their current attitude toward such things was more or less the same.
As for the matter of interests at the end, one was willing to strike and the other willing to receive it.
What more was there to say?
So after hearing Hera's self-testimony, Themis clearly had no wish to intervene in the marital problems of Zeus and Hera.
As the dust settled, Hera, as the plaintiff, also realized this.
Watching the Lady Themis she respected walk further and further away, her expression turned somewhat ashen.
'Did she really do wrong?'
"Please wait. The defense counsel has not yet spoken. Is it quite appropriate for you to end the session so hastily?"
Just as Themis was about to step out of the dense forest, a quiet musing came from behind her, the kind of smile that was not quite a smile.
'Defense counsel?'
Themis turned around and looked behind her with a meaningful expression.
Lorne stepped forward with a smile and spoke with gravity.
"Regarding this case, I also have some questions I wish to put to you.
So shall we follow the proper procedure?"
Themis gave a calm nod, turned the scales on both sides of the sword hilt with her thumb, and once again used starlight as the foundation to construct the court of order.
She herself turned back into the dense forest and sat back down on the judgment seat.
Once everything was in place, Lorne drew a slight breath and spoke with solemnity.
"Should the party who first violated the rules of marriage be regarded as the primary party at fault, and bear greater responsibility as a result?"
'Primary party at fault?'
Hearing this fresh new term,
Themis gave a thoughtful nod.
"Yes!"
The facts were indeed so.
In this marriage, though Hera subsequently engaged in improper conduct, at the root of it all, Zeus was the one who strayed first.
Apart from his fondness for beauty, that God king also feared that his and Hera's bloodline might shake his own position.
So after his God authority stabilized, he rarely fulfilled his duties as a husband toward Hera.
In contrast, as a wife, Hera previously kept herself clean and upright, with almost no rumors of affairs or infidelity, forming a stark contrast with Zeus.
It was only because of the matter with Alcmene that both sides came to blows, and Hera gradually lost hope in her husband.
Only then, under the instigation of a certain chief culprit, she crossed the red line of the marriage law and grew increasingly self-indulgent.
"Besides the leadership of that God king, did the splendor Olympus achieved also include contributions from Her Highness the Queen of Heaven?"
"Yes!"
Themis gave another nod without the slightest hesitation.
It had to be acknowledged that in the position of Queen of Heaven,
Hera was at least reasonably competent.
The Gods held deep respect for her on major matters, and Zeus respected her, often deliberating things together with her.
Whenever the Gods debated an important issue, Hera often contradicted Zeus with opposing opinions.
But in the end, Hera often fell silent out of love and chose to yield and concede.
The fact that the sister and brother pair of Artemis and Apollo, the illegitimate son Hermes, and the ugly son Hephaestus all managed to ascend Olympus and become among the chief Gods, was all the result of Hera's tacit approval and nodding consent.
One could say that nearly half of Olympus's current system of twelve chief Gods related to this Queen of Heaven.
Of course, if one thought about it that way, one walked right into the trap.
At this moment, Lorne smiled slightly, his eyes flickering.
"Should [Wealth] jointly created be jointly divided?"
"Yes..."
Themis's answer this time came with a slight hesitation, her brow furrowing a little.
The groundwork was complete.
Lorne produced the blade from behind the map.
"Then, as the primary and chief party at fault in the marriage, should that party, in a situation where the marriage cannot be sustained, uphold the principle of receiving less or nothing of the jointly created [Wealth], and appropriately compensate the other party whose rights and interests suffered violation?"
Themis's heart gave a jolt.
She immediately realized the malicious intent concealed within that argument.
This was asking her to use the name of upholding justice to sever the marriage law between Zeus and Hera, while at the same time preserving as much as possible the Queen of Heaven's God position and God authority from being affected.
The Goddess of Justice looked quietly at a certain defense counsel below the bench. "You want me to stand on her side?"
"No. I only hope you stand on the side of justice, and put into practice the fairness you pursue!"
The defense counsel shook his head and countered gravely, then proclaimed loudly with righteous resolve.
"The sword of law should not only swing toward the weak!"
'Justice? Fairness?'
Themis gripped the longsword in her hand tightly.
The expression on her face was thoroughly complex.
From what point did she grow increasingly unfamiliar with these things?
"Since the marriage law you established cannot restrain one party from continuing to commit offenses, then it should not become a shackle on the other party's pursuit of happiness either."
Lorne voiced his point in a measured tone, then looked at Themis with a face full of sincerity.
"You know this. No matter how much hardship is endured or how hard one works at it, the position of Queen of Heaven is and will always be incompatible with the word 'happiness.' It will never become easier to sit in."
The Justice Goddess on the judgment seat fell into a long silence upon hearing this.
The first Queen of Heaven of Olympus was the primordial Goddess of Wisdom Metis.
But Zeus, to resist the Titan's curse, swallowed his wife while she was still pregnant.
Themis found this deeply repugnant.
So she created the laws of marriage, invented the concept of family, and established the duties and obligations between men and women to restrain Zeus.
In fact, she could have gone one step further, become the second Queen of Heaven, and personally constrained that God king's abuse of authority.
But at the final moment, she gave up.
She chose to leave Olympus, retreated into the Ocean of Oceanos, and lived in seclusion from that point on, asking no more of the affairs of the world.
The result was that the crown of Queen of Heaven passed around and around until it fell on Hera's head, and gradually stripped this niece of her former gentleness and purity, turning her ferocious and jealous.
In a certain sense, that marriage law with its limited power of restraint was one of the important causes of this tragedy.
Themis set aside the dignity and identity of a judge, rose from the judgment seat, walked to stand before Hera, raised her hand and touched the other party's cheek, and looked with loving concern at the niece who once showed her deep respect.
"These years must have been very hard for you."
"..."
Hera felt a pang in her heart, lowered her head, and said nothing.
Getting stuck with a husband this deep-scheming and this fond of cheating, these years were far beyond "hard" to describe.
First fighting the Titans, then fighting Typhon.
Once that finally settled down, still fighting mistresses and guarding against illegitimate children.
After the illegitimate children, still trading blows with her own biological children...
Under that husband's deliberate indulgence, her whole heap of children, every single one caused her no end of worry.
Ares was reckless and brainless.
Eris always stirred up trouble. Hephaestus held a grudge against her. Hebe spent every day doing nothing useful...
Worthy offspring of a God king, and what did they choose to learn?
Brewing and pouring wine.
Thinking of that household life strewn with mess and chaos, Hera felt her blood pressure rise.
The oppression in her heart grew heavier.
However, as her gaze swept over the figure who stepped forward on her behalf, made a passionate case for her, worked hard to protect her reputation, and fought for her rights and interests, the gloom that gathered in the Queen of Heaven's heart scattered away.
'At least, there was still someone in this world who understood her...'
And thinking carefully about it, those days of stopping and starting along the road were probably the most carefree and happy and relaxed days she knew.
"It seems you were indeed not living happily."
At the same time, Themis caught the change in expression on Hera's face and let out a quiet sigh.
"Very well. The mistake I made, I will personally break with my own hands."
So saying, the Justice Goddess drew the Sword of Judgment inch by inch from its sheath and brought its blade swinging down toward Hera before her.
"CRACK!"
A sound like shackles shattering echoed through Hera's body.
The Queen of Heaven immediately felt something lighten within her, as though some invisible restriction was quietly severed.
"CLANG!"
Accompanied by a clear and pleasant metallic ring, Themis sheathed the Sword of Judgment and spoke in a measured voice.
"It is done. I severed the restraint of that marriage law. You are free.
From this point forward, you remain Queen of Heaven. But not under that name as the God king's wife.
Rather because of the contributions you once made to Olympus. So you no longer need to depend on him, and you have the right to retain your own God domain and authority."
Hearing this, Hera trembled as she raised her hand, sensing the godhood and God power within her that barely diminished at all.
Disbelieving joy spread across her face.
Themis's action far exceeded her expectations, and swept away every last concern she harbored.
Since her marriage with Zeus was already a marriage in name only, there was no need to force it to stick together.
Each going their own way was fine.
At most, maintaining outward dignity.
Divorce without separation.
And the reason this outcome, which could be called nearly perfect, was achievable, was entirely because a certain person argued specifically and forcefully on her behalf before Justice Goddess Themis.
Hera's heart surged with emotion as she looked toward Lorne beside her with excitement and moved eyes.
As for this complete and total victory, Lorne the defense counsel also felt genuinely pleased.
On one hand, having Themis preside over this divorce dispute was equivalent to standing up for Hera and breaking with Zeus.
The pirate ship of the War God Mountain, she now had to board whether she wanted to or not.
On the other hand, helping his stepmother deal a blow to his birth father's reputation, while not enough to completely topple Zeus from his divine throne, at least did some damage to the roots.
His God authority would also suffer some imperceptible weakening.
All of the above, from whatever angle one looked at it, was greatly advantageous to him and to the War God Mountain.
With the dust settled, Lorne immediately produced a warm smile and gave a formal word of thanks.
"Your Highness Themis, thank you for upholding fairness and championing justice here today!"
"I was only entrusted with a task and did what I could."
Themis spoke lightly.
The expression on her face remained as cool and solemn as ever.
'Truly worthy of the Justice Goddess. When something needed to be done, she genuinely did it. Truly reliable!'
Lorne quietly gave Themis a thumbs-up in his heart, then said with a beaming smile.
"Right then. Since the case is concluded, you two continue your conversation. I will take my leave first and not disturb!"
Having said this, the defense counsel turned and headed toward the outside of the dense forest, preparing to bow out now that his work was done.
However, the moment he took his first step, a cool and low voice came from behind him.
"Wait. You cannot leave yet..."
"Mm?"
Lorne turned back in confusion, a trace of surprise on his face.
"Her case is concluded. Now it is your turn."
The golden scales on the sword hilt turned with a soft ringing sound. Brilliant starlight fell.
The court of order took shape.
Themis stood on the judgment seat, her gaze quietly fixed on the lone figure beneath the starlight, and she slowly spoke.
"Let me ask. Do you harbor ill intent toward Olympus and seek to commit an act of treason?"
"...!"
Lorne's body went rigid and his expression changed drastically.
'Exposed? It is over!'
Seeing the accused fail to answer for a long time, Themis spoke again, and this time she invoked the God law without mercy.
"Let me ask. Do you harbor ill intent toward Olympus and seek to commit an act of treason?"
In an instant, a mysterious and vast pressure poured down from the starry sky above.
A certain clear and transparent will pressed into his mind, and Lorne felt an instinctive urge to pour out his most honest thoughts.
At this moment, he finally understood what Hera felt when she faced questioning.
His lips pressed tight for a moment, then moved with difficulty, squeezing out dry words.
"Yes..."
Hearing this definitive answer,
Themis raised her hand and in a rare moment pulled off the light veil over her eyes.
Those eyes, bright as stars, fixed on the accused below the bench and deep disappointment spread across her face.
She thought she found a kindred spirit, someone who could work together with her to refine feasible laws, build a harmonious order, and put justice into practice in the world.
For this, she even broke the oath she swore on the River Styx, stepped out of the Ocean of Oceanos, and did everything in her power to provide help toward the grand plans of the person before her.
But the result was that this person harbored ill intent from the very beginning.
Everything he did was not purely to put justice into practice.
He used it as a cover to accomplish purposes he could not openly declare.
'Justice, justice. How many evils are committed in your name.'
A layer of frost settled over Themis's cool cheeks before let out a quiet sigh.
"Then. Do you have anything further to argue in your defense?"
"Perfecting the judiciary, building order, putting justice into practice... Everything I said before, I said in complete earnest. I had absolutely no intention of deceiving you!
Only these things require a certain amount of time and the right opportunity!"
Seeing things come to light, cold sweat broke out on Lorne's forehead.
He hurriedly raised his right hand and swore with complete sincerity before the Justice Goddess.
To be honest, he wasn't lying and he could not lie at all.
Themis gave a thoughtful nod and spoke with composure.
"So. Shaking the God authority of Olympus, overturning the old order, is a necessary part of this?"
"That is correct!"
Seeing the Goddess already grasped his meaning, Lorne's confidence grew greatly, and he opened his mouth to speak with eloquence.
"Without breaking there is no building. Break first then build!
The Gods have always abused their authority and severely interfered with the operation of laws in the mortal world and the implementation of its systems.
The God king Zeus is the foremost example among them.
If the structure of Olympus can be changed and the authority of the Gods can be restrained, a more stable order can be rebuilt, and from there the construction of the rule of law can be advanced."
"That sounds like a reasonable idea, and one with possibilities for implementation."
Themis gave a nod of impartial evaluation, but then looked quietly toward Lorne below the bench.
"But do you know. The same words, Zeus once said to me in those days..."
"..."
Lorne's face turned black as the bottom of a pot and he was speechless.
That damned scheming Zeus.
He actually took this road to a dead end long ago and stabbed him from across time.
Themis looked at the accused who found nothing to say.
The disappointment in her eyes grew deeper.
In those days of the Titanomachy, Zeus used the exact same reasoning to accuse the Titan Gods of Mount Othrys of abusing God authority, trampling on order, and violating justice.
He said God king Cronos was fierce and cruel, acting against fairness.
Under the rule of the old Titan Gods, the development of other species and the practice of law suffered severe restriction.
Once he held authority, he would certainly perfect the judiciary, build order, put justice into practice, and create prosperity shared by all species!
It was only after hearing that grand objective that Themis was willing to break with the Titan Gods, assist that young God full of righteous anger and ideals, and step by step win the Titanomachy and establish the glory of Olympus.
But what was the result?
The moment the divine war ended, the new God king she placed such hope in immediately moved against his loyal wife Metis, and through honeyed words swallowed her whole.
She was still pregnant at the time.
From that moment on, Themis saw through the true nature of that God king, completely extinguished the hope in her heart, and chose to leave Olympus, retreating into the Ocean of Oceanos to live in seclusion.
And afterward, things unfolded exactly as she foresaw.
Scheming against his wife. Scheming against his children. Scheming against mortals. Scheming against his rivals...
That God king pushed "conspiracy" to its absolute limit, eliminating one potential threat after another and manipulating everyone in the palm of his hand.
The glorious God realm remained foul and murky.
The corrupt mortal world remained perpetually in chaos.
The Justice Goddess looked at the handsome, clever, and eloquent Lorne.
The figure before her seemed to perfectly overlap with the one in her memory.
The strange sense of deja vu made her shake her head with a sigh.
'Another Zeus...'
The so-called divorce lawsuit, the so-called upholding of justice, was nothing more than using her to achieve his purposes.
The Sword of Judgment came out of its sheath inch by inch as cold sweat broke out on Lorne's forehead.
"You... what are you going to do?"
The goddess glanced at the accused and shook her head lightly. "I am a judge. Not an executioner."
However, before Lorne's anxiously held heart could settle, Themis swung her sword toward the stars and spoke quietly.
"The divorce lawsuit is concluded. Then as a party to the matter, Zeus is also entitled to the right to know.
Since you are so eloquent, the task of conveying the circumstances and outcome to him, I will not take responsibility for.
The trouble you caused, you clean up yourself."
Where the sword's edge passed, a pitch-black crack tore through the starry sky, reflecting the outline of holy Mount Olympus.
Seeing this, Lorne's heart hammered.
'If Zeus learned that I made him a cuckold, things would be truly finished.'
"Wait! Do not wash your hands of this. I can explain! I still have things to say!"
"I am sorry. Your one and only chance to argue your defense is already used up."
However, Themis made up her mind completely and had absolutely no intention of listening to the accused make excuses.
She grabbed Lorne by the shoulder and prepared to head to Olympus for a confrontation.
"Wait..."
At this most critical moment, a goddess in bronze serpent armor with silver hair and violet eyes came drifting from the depths of the starry sky.
"The accused has no right to speak on their own behalf.
So how about I act as his defense counsel?"
Looking at this completely unexpected savior before him, Lorne's heart surged with a hundred mixed feelings and he almost shed tears of excitement.
'Sister Na!'
(End of Chapter)