If someone had told Lorne a month ago that 996 (9 AM to 9 PM, 6 days a week", meaning employees work 72 hours per week) was a blessing from the company, as an overworked laborer, he would have definitely said "yes, yes, yes" with his mouth, while continuing to work overtime to meet deadlines.
In his heart, he would have been engaging in some extra-curricular activities with the immediate female relatives of his balding boss, hoping to add a few more pages to their family register.
However, at this moment, Lorne found that his "blessing" seemed to have really arrived.
It's just that the process seemed a bit too underworldly...
In the yew wood crib, Lorne looked at his chubby little hands in front of him, pressed his soft chest, and sighed helplessly.
Cardiac arrhythmia leading to sudden cardiac death..well it's unavoidable.
It's an old killer of social animals and nearby office buildings had been visited before.
But Lorne didn't expect this year's underworld quota to land on him.
'Damn it, couldn't you hold on for a few more days? My year-end bonus for perfect attendance!'
Lorne, laying on the crib, clenched his fists full of resentment, his heart filled with grief and indignation.
But then, looking at the surroundings, his mood that had been gloomy for over a month lightened a lot.
After all..the majestic and elegant palace was made entirely of white marble, with walls carved with exquisite and delicate patterns and dynamic figure reliefs.
The rough pottery bottles on the table were inlaid with large gemstones, and the luxurious gold and silver tableware gleamed.
Even the crib had crystal wind chimes hanging from it.
It seemed that as compensation for his early demise in his previous life, he had successfully transitioned from a kneeling soldier to a Roman noble, born with an independent seaside villa.
Lorne stretched out his little hands to grab the edge of the crib, poked his head out, and his highly spirited eyes looked out at the lush lawn outside the window.
Several maids in linen dresses were carefully surrounding a beautiful young girl of the same age, treating her like the center of their universe.
The girl's rosy face radiated youthful vitality, her sparkling eyes brimming with innocent naivety, and her smooth neck and chest exuded temptation.
Her elegant white tunic was unable to conceal the wildness in her bones.
Under the anxious gazes of the maids, the beautiful girl ran barefoot on the grassy hill, sometimes humming tunes to the melodious sounds of the old shepherd's double-pipe flute in the woods, and sometimes coming to the dangerous cliff, facing the rolling waves, stretching her waist, and dancing...
No one would have guessed that this was a young woman who had given birth just over a month ago.
"Your Highness, please slow down! Please, Your Highness..."
The maidservants' anxious cries followed repeated attempts to persuade the beautiful princess, who reluctantly chose a safer postpartum recovery activity: strolling through the garden.
For example, they took turns placing ivy wreaths on each other's heads, or when the lowing of wide-horned bulls echoed from the pasture, they amused themselves by imitating the sounds and responding with light, shared giggles.
'It seemed that in this life, I had ended up with a rather high-spirited mother.'
Lying in his crib, Lorne muttered a few complaints under his breath and turned his gaze to his surroundings.
This was a lush, green hill.
To the west, it was close to the sea, where the azure waves rose and fell like a vast piece of jade.
To the east, it bordered a city, with stone buildings of varying heights exuding an ancient charm.
In the distance, a few simple sailboats were docked at the harbor.
Clearly, the world Lorne now found himself in was not the era he was familiar with.
Judging by the architectural style and environmental features, it seemed to be an ancient society with a Greek influence.
Fortunately, he had been reborn into a good family didn't have to continue to work like a cow or a horse.
Otherwise, surviving in a feudal era would have been a nightmare.
*Whoosh...*
The moist sea breeze blew open the delicate curtains by the window, carrying with it the faint, salty tang of the ocean as it filled the room.
"Oh, it turns out my little lion is awake."
The graceful figure approached the crib with light steps, picking up the little one clinging to the edge and gently cradling him in her arms.
She paced the room, her smiling face now softened with the gentle warmth of motherhood, shedding the wildness of her youth.
The baby, being playfully coddled, struggled to lift his head from his mother's embrace, his lively eyes betraying a deep sense of frustration.
Though he had been fortunate in his reincarnation, what troubled him most was the fact that there was an adult soul living in the body of this baby.
Facing a "mother" who was younger than himself in his previous life, Lorne couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable.
Thankfully, the postpartum recovery had also drained much of his mother's energy.
So, the brief mother-son interaction didn't last long.
And Lorne was placed back in his crib, while the beautiful princess sat by the windowsill, gazing wistfully at the sky.
It seemed she was waiting for something.
*Boom!*
Thunder crackled, and a fierce wind swept across the sea.
Thick clouds gathered in the sky, and the low rumble of thunder echoed from the heavy, overcast heavens as the entire hill gradually darkened.
'Is it going to rain?'
Lorne, lying in his crib, yawned, feeling drowsy.
However, the princess by the window stood up excitedly, her amber eyes filled with joy as she quickly touched up her makeup and hurried toward the doorway.
At the same time, a strong muscular figure appeared at the door, smiling as he opened his arms and embraced the young woman who rushed into them.
The princess blushed, looking up at him with eyes full of admiration and delight.
"Lord Cronides, you... you've finally come!"
Oh, so this is the name of his so-called father.
Lorne, who was eavesdropping from the edge of his crib, looked at the "father" who appeared outside the door for the first time since he was born, frowned, and a hint of inexplicable murmur rose in his heart.
Cronides?
Wait, why does that name sound so familiar?
Have I heard it somewhere before?
"I'm sorry, Semele, my love. There have been so many trivial matters lately, but as soon as my journey ended, the first thing I thought of was coming to see you."
On the corridor, the handsome young man with silver shoulder-length hair and star-like eyes spoke sweet nothings while sharing amusing stories from his travels.
The masculine charm he exuded in every move had completely captivated the lovesick princess.
She leaned weakly against her lover's chest, her eyes filled with increasingly intense and passionate love, her cheeks flushed like a blooming rose.
At this moment, through the gauze curtains, Lorne, lying in his crib, watched his parents, who seemed to have eyes only for each other, with an expression of disbelief.
Holy crap, no way?
As everyone knows, addressing one's master by their name directly, regardless of the era, is considered quite rude and offensive.
In addition, it seemed that his birth had been deliberately concealed by his mother.
For the past month, the castle had seen no outsiders, so it was only today that Lorne officially learned his mother's full name.
And the moment he did, corresponding information began to surface in his mind.
Oh well...Ancient Greece..
Semele, daughter of Cadmus, the founder of Thebes, and Harmonia, the goddess of harmony, a descendant of Ares, the god of war...
As fragments of text and memories flooded his mind, Lorne finally remembered the origin of the name "Cronides."
Cronides, meaning "Son of Cronus," was an alias used by Zeus, the king of the gods, during his illicit affairs in the mortal world.
So, it's the alias of that Olympian serial philanderer, no wonder there was an inexplicable sense of familiarity...
By the way, in his previous life, the company where he worked, was a game company that created content based on heroic epics and folk legends from various countries.
As the employee of the year, he naturally had a decent knowledge of myths and legends.
After deducing the illustrious identities of his parents from their names, Lorne couldn't help but look at his tiny hands, feeling a wave of astonishment.
If the names were correct, then wasn't he the legendary Dionysus?
—The god of wine, who was cursed by Hera, went mad for half his life, but miraculously replaced Hestia, the goddess of the hearth, in the future to become one of the twelve Olympian gods?
The absurd thought didn't last long before Lorne immediately shook his head with doubts in his mind.
After all, this clearly didn't add up.
According to Hesiod's Theogony and other ancient Greek myths, Zeus had an affair with Semele, the princess of Thebes, which was discovered by his lawful wife, Hera.
Hera, consumed by jealousy, disguised herself as one of the princess's relatives and persuaded Semele to ask Zeus to reveal his divine form as proof of his love.
Unable to refuse the princess's request, Zeus revealed his true divine form.
Unfortunately, the sight of Zeus in his full godly glory burned Semele to ashes.
At that time, however, Semele was already pregnant and Zeus managed to save the unborn Dionysus by sewing him into his own thigh until he was ready to be born.
This made Dionysus a unique god—one who was twice-born (once from Semele, then from Zeus' thigh).
Because Zeus was carrying the baby in his thigh and walked with a limp, the child was named Dionysus, meaning "the limping one of Zeus."
In short, Dionysus, the god of wine, was born after his mother Semele's death.
'Could it be that I remembered wrong?'
'Or are my parents' names just a coincidence?'
Unable to make sense of it, Lorne began to doubt his own judgment.
At this moment, as Princess Semele nestled against her lover in admiration, the silver-haired "Cronides" scooped his delicate beloved into his arms and carried her into the grand hall.
But then, he suddenly stopped, his brows furrowing as he looked toward the crib in the room.
"Ah, I was so happy to see you that I forgot to mention the baby's birth."
Semele snapped out of her reverie, her cheeks flushing as she shyly jumped out of her lover's arms and pulled him by his large hand to the crib, proudly showing off.
"Look, his eyes and hair, they look just like you!"
However, the silver-haired young man in the room did not respond.
Instead, he stood there in a daze, staring deeply at the new life in the crib.
"Are you not happy?"
The unexpected silence left the princess bewildered as she turned to look at him.
"How could I not be? This surprise is just so sudden, it caught me off guard."
The silver-haired young man snapped out of his thoughts and offered a charming smile, though a hint of confusion flickered in his eyes.
"Last time, didn't the doctor say the pregnancy still had a few months to go?"
"Yes, the delivery was much earlier than expected, but this child was very well-behaved and didn't cause me much pain."
The princess nodded in explanation, sweetly leaning against her lover's shoulder.
Meanwhile, Lorne, watching his "parents" flaunt their affection in front of him, couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth.
Well, isn't this just great...
So, this counts as a premature birth, and it's my fault?
After getting a clear answer, Lorne's tiny mind felt like a tangled mess.
He never even won five cents in a lottery before, and now he'd hit the jackpot with this reincarnation.
Not only was he a divine-blooded royal of ancient Greece, but he was also a candidate to become one of the twelve Olympian gods in the future.'
Of course, if he wanted to successfully ascend and live a stable life, first he have to deal with Hera, the queen of the gods, who's known as the "Mistress killer" and the "bane of illegitimate children."
After all, the number of mistresses and illegitimate children who have died directly or indirectly at her hands could make a football team of their own.
'But don't panic, as long as my teammates don't throw, there's still a chance to turn this around.'
Lorne glanced at his clearly lovestruck princess mother and muttered to himself.
'Please, for the love of the gods, don't let Hera trick you into demanding to see Zeus's true form.'
'Of course, just in case, if it really comes to that, I'll use every ounce of strength I have to stop you.'
'As long as we can survive Hera's wrath, the hard times will be over.'
As Lorne plotted, he sneakily glanced at the legendary king of the gods, Zeus, feeling a bit conflicted.
'Should I try to get on good terms with this cheap father of mine early on?'
'If I can latch onto him, I won't even have to fear Hera's pursuit. It'll be easy mode.'
The more he thought about it, the more tempted Lorne became and his gaze couldn't help but drift toward Zeus—the thickest thighs in all of Greece...
"You've really been through a lot these past few days, my dear."
At the same time, the god king, who had taken on the alias Cronides, seemed to snap out of his shock at suddenly having a son.
His initially tense face softened into a smile, and his gentle voice whispered into his lover's ear.
"By the way, my dear, now that I've returned from the journey, I've prepared the most glorious gift for you as proof of our love."
The princess, immersed in her passionate love, couldn't help but light up with excitement.
"Really? Where is it?"
Zeus lovingly stroked his lover's hair, and spoke in an exceptionally tender voice.
"First, close your eyes."
The princess nodded gently and closed her eyes, her cheeks flushed with anticipation.
Boom—
Thunder roared across the sky, and outside the window, the clouds churned violently as a flash of light illuminated the room for a moment.
The handsome face, turned away from the princess, was cast in a cold, steely light by the lightning.
In the crib, Lorne, who had been think about how to hold his nose and cling to Zeus's thigh, caught a glimpse of this and froze for a moment.
'Wait, why does this cheap father of mine seem...'
Crack!
In an instant, a series of explosive sounds approached from afar.
Dozens of lightning bolts struck down, piercing through the roof and converging on the two tightly embraced figures in the center.
The beautiful and fragile young girl melted like snow under the scorching sun.
The fierce thunder continued to rage, and scorching flames erupted, bearing witness to this fiery love.
Everything was disintegrating, everything was melting.
Crack!
The majestic palace was torn in half and collapsed.
The hill that could not bear the weight disintegrated, carrying the wreckage of the palace and falling into the turbulent ocean.
The cradle made of yew wood, carrying the newborn, tumbled down with the collapsing palace and rocks, plunging into the icy, bone-chilling waves.
Before he could even react, Lorne's world was engulfed in cold and darkness as a wave of grief and anger welled up in his tiny chest.
Fuck?!
I'm going to die, just like that!!!
Boom—!
At the edge of the cliff, illuminated by flashes of lightning, the silver-haired figure paused and looked at the pieces of yew wood floating on the foam, frowning slightly and took a step forward.
"Buzz, buzz, buzz!"
At the same time, several star-like lights flickered to life in the night sky, revealing the outline of a towering mountain in the clouds.
Someone lit the sacred fire?
Zeus seemed to realize something and his expression froze for a moment.
He instinctively retracted the step he had taken, and his majestic figure vanished as the lightning faded.
(End of Chapter)
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