"So… you already knew, huh?"
Inside the small wooden cabin of the wise centaur, Teacher Chiron gazed at Jason, who was filled with guilt, but his own expression remained gentle.
"I want to change my fate!"—when Chiron heard Jason say these words, the doubts in his heart naturally cleared up.
In fact, Chiron had already suspected as much.
After all, in an era where gods walked among mortals, knowing one's own fate was not particularly rare.
Heroes like Cú Chulainn of Ireland or Achilles, who shone brilliantly in the Trojan War, had long been aware of their destinies.
Chiron's suspicions could also be seen in his decision to keep Jason as his student.
For a mentor like Chiron, if Jason had truly given up on his studies, he would have respected his decision, even if he felt regret.
Yes, Jason may have loudly proclaimed his desire to drop out, but deep down, he was uncertain.
As a transmigrator, Jason had felt fear and resistance when he learned his name and the fate that awaited him.
He had no intention of becoming a hero—it sounded far too exhausting.
But this was Greece.
The Age of Gods!
Jason knew that if he wanted to survive, truly survive in this world, he needed power. Power strong enough to keep him alive.
The problem was that the stronger he became, the more attention he would attract from the gods—because he was Jason, the Jason of legend.
His fate was inevitably entangled with both gods and heroes.
Thus, Jason's situation was precarious: the stronger he became, the more the gods would notice him.
But if he remained weak, he wouldn't even be able to survive.
On top of that, he had another duty—to reclaim the throne of his father, King Aeson of Iolcos.
Even though he wasn't emotionally attached to his parents, since he had arrived in Jason's body, the memories remained in his mind.
Under all these circumstances, Jason saw only one opportunity to change his fate—
The Goddess of Opportunity, Hecate!
"Hecate is the Goddess of Opportunity, as well as Goddess of Magic… Taking her as your mentor is indeed a wise choice."
Understanding immediately, Chiron smiled and gave Jason his approval.
"…I'm sorry, Teacher Chiron."
"It's alright."
Chiron gently shook his head and said, "Being able to choose your own path makes me happy as your teacher. But… let's not bring up the matter of dropping out again."
Smiling, Chiron continued, "With the way Lady Hecate is, she won't care about such trivial matters. When you return, I hope you will have grown in a new way. And by then, you'd better be ready—if you don't meet my expectations, I won't let you graduate."
Indeed, Chiron lived up to his reputation as Greece's greatest mentor.
Though Jason had only been under his tutelage for a couple of months, Chiron had genuinely cared for him.
Instead of being upset, he felt truly happy for Jason.
That night, under Chiron's guidance, Jason arrived at a quiet meadow.
Gazing at the bright moon hanging in the night sky, he took out a black feather that emitted an eerie glow.
Softly calling Hecate's name, Jason watched as the feather grew brighter and brighter. Eventually, in a dazzling flash of light, Hecate materialized before him through the medium.
"You've already made up your mind? …Huh? Why are you here too?"
Dressed in a flowing black gown like the night itself, with long black hair cascading down her back, Hecate quickly noticed the centaur standing nearby.
"Esteemed Lady Hecate, good evening."
Chiron greeted her respectfully.
"Enough of that. You know I don't care for formalities, and your status doesn't require you to act this way."
Waving a hand dismissively, Hecate turned her gaze toward Jason. "Now, state your wish."
"Lady Hecate… I wish to become your student from this day forward!"
Taking a deep breath, Jason spoke with seriousness.
"…Become my student?"
Hecate blinked in mild surprise.
This was clearly not what she had expected.
Frowning slightly, she studied Jason for a moment before glancing at Chiron.
"Please, Lady Hecate." Jason bowed once more.
"You know I hate trouble, Chiron." Hecate was blunt.
"Jason is a bright child. I swear upon my father, Cronus, and my mother, Philyra—he will not cause you any trouble."
Chiron spoke earnestly, and Hecate's gaze deepened.
Such a statement was practically an oath…
"…But I'm not interested." Hecate replied. "Besides, he doesn't have the necessary bloodline to learn magic—"
She suddenly paused, looking Jason up and down carefully.
"…Actually, this could be interesting. A perfect test subject! I've always wanted to see if my magic is truly universal!"
Her eyes lit up with curiosity.
After all, Greek heroes and gods alike primarily relied on the divine power of their bloodline. Most trained their bodies and mastered combat techniques like archery and swordsmanship.
But Hecate was different. Her focus had always been magic—or rather, sorcery that could wield extraordinary power without relying on divine strength.
And her research was evidently correct—otherwise, she wouldn't have reached a position where even the gods hesitated to provoke her.
Though she had two disciples, they were different cases.
Circe, for instance, was the daughter of the Sun God Helios and the Oceanid Perse.
Meanwhile, Medea called Circe aunt.
That was bloodline inheritance.
"…Fine, I'll take him as my disciple."
Hecate agreed readily.
Her gaze toward Jason was filled with approval—she found him quite sensible. He had promise!
But at that moment, Jason regretted everything.
Because the way Hecate was looking at him… it wasn't the gaze of a teacher toward her student.
It was the gaze of a scientist toward a lab rat.
"…Teacher Chiron…"
"Can I regret this?"
Seeing Jason's pitiful expression, Teacher Chiron couldn't help but smile and say, "Don't worry, Goddess Hecate is a kind deity. She won't let anything happen to you… probably."
Yes, Chiron had never really taken Jason's repeated talk of wanting to drop out seriously.
"Relax, you'll be fine," Hecate added with a smile. "At most, you'll just die a few times. I'll go talk to Hades and have you revived."
"..." Jason was speechless.