After the chief gods agreed to contribute troops and Athena blessed their weapons and equipment, Ares finally accepted Zeus's command.
In the God Kings Hall on Olympus, he thumped his chest and declared to the Gods that this battle would surely be victorious, then he gathered his troops and departed from Olympus, heading towards the Pallene Peninsula.
Words like "this battle will surely be victorious" were definitely said by Ares in jest.
After leading his troops away from Olympus, he was already a general with vast authority and heavy troops, free to do as he pleased.
Thus, leading this army, Ares directly arrived at the Pallene Peninsula and set up camp at the entrance to the mortal world in that region.
When setting up camp, his chosen positions were deliberate: Hephaestus, Hera, and the servants of Apollo's siblings were placed in the rear, responsible for logistics; the core was handled by his own army, composed entirely of Spartan soldiers, including many lower and mid-level monsters intimidated by Hydra and Cerberus; and the troops of other deities were all dispatched to the front lines, serving as cannon fodder to absorb the first wave of impact once the Snake-Footed Giants appeared in the mortal world.
Although the subordinate deities and followers of other Gods grumbled about this, they dared not say anything directly to Ares. Ares currently held command of the army, and if his subordinates dared to refuse his arrangements, the God of War had the authority to execute them on the spot.
Of course, while they outwardly obeyed the arrangements, privately, they were quite active. On the very first day of setting up camp, Ares had already detected no fewer than ten subordinate deities secretly investigating the seal on the Pallene Peninsula, wanting to confirm whether the seal was truly naturally weakening or if someone had intentionally caused it.
Ares had no desire to restrain these probing actions by the subordinate deities. The weakening of the Pallene Peninsula's seal was, of course, something he and Hecate had done. However, if Hecate's methods could be discerned by these subordinate deities, then she, the Goddess of Magic, might as well retire and marry in the Underworld.
Therefore, after setting up camp, his divine power avatar ostensibly commanded the army, making various arrangements and layered deployments to ensure Olympus's army constructed various defensive works against the Snake-Footed Giants at the entrance of the Pallene Peninsula. Meanwhile, his other avatar concealed his form and quietly arrived in the Colchis Kingdom.
At this time in the Colchis Kingdom, the Heroes of Argo had already eaten and drunk their fill under Medea's hospitality, and had comfortably stayed in the royal palace for a night. However, during this period, Aeetes, the King of the Colchis Kingdom and Medea's father, had never summoned them.
This was a very strange phenomenon. Medea had not concealed her return upon arriving back at the palace; she had also entertained her companions with grand attire and much fanfare, making it known throughout the entire Colchis Kingdom that the Heroes of Argo had arrived. Yet, Aeetes seemed as if he were dead, showing no reaction whatsoever.
On the third day, King Aeetes finally sent his messenger to invite Princess Medea and the Heroes of Argo to meet in the royal palace's banquet hall.
"None of you speak later; just let me do the talking."
Medea turned and reminded the Heroes:
"Although it's not good for me to say this as a daughter, my father is truly a very petty person. He will most likely make things difficult for you."
"What are you afraid of?" Jason laughed, "With Heracles here, if he dares to make things difficult for us, we'll deal with him!"
Medea's eyes widened, and she asked, "You want my senior nephew to kill my father?"
Heracles quickly shook his head, saying, "I never said that; it was all Jason."
Seeing Heracles back down, Jason also quickly chuckled apologetically, "I'll listen to you, I'll listen to you…"
Medea snorted, turned her head, then quickened her pace, leading the Heroes into the banquet hall.
Inside the banquet hall, the long table used for entertaining guests had bright candles lit, but no food or wine was set on the table. Clearly, the King of Colchis had no intention of hosting a banquet for them.
At the head of the long table, Aeetes, King of the Colchis Kingdom, was already seated. He wore a blue robe with gold trim and a crown on his head. His grayish-white beard gave him an air of stern authority.
Upon seeing him, the Heroes immediately greeted him under Medea's guidance. Afterward, Medea arranged for the Heroes to take their seats. Throughout this process, Aeetes silently observed the Heroes until Medea finally sat down, at which point he slowly spoke, calling out:
"Medea, you don't need to cover for them. If I had intended to make things difficult for them, do you think they would still be able to bathe, dine, and rest peacefully in my palace?"
The smile on Medea's face instantly stiffened. Her eyes darted around, and she could only finally say to her father with an awkward chuckle, "Father, you'd best not make things difficult for them; the Gods stand behind them."
"I know," Aeetes said to his daughter, "I know more than you do. Of course, I am here also to announce another matter to them. Who is Jason?"
The young blond man sitting in his seat looked at Heracles next to him, then somewhat nervously stood up and nodded, "I am Jason."
"Hmm." Aeetes looked Jason up and down, then said, "Why do you look so timid? Are you really the captain of Argo?"
"He is," Medea explained for Jason, "Father, don't let his usual timid appearance fool you; if he's really pushed, he'll also jump over the wall… It's just because Heracles is here, he feels no pressure, which is why he looks like this."
"What kind of description is 'jump over the wall'…" Jason weakly protested from the side, but neither Medea nor her father paid him any mind. Aeetes casually said, "Fortunately, Medea doesn't fancy you, otherwise I would definitely cut you into pieces and put you in a jar, then send you to my sister's island for her to slowly torture you."
Aeetes's sister was Circe, a particularly famous evil Goddess among Greek Heroes. Men who fell into the hands of this Goddess almost always met with eternal damnation. Jason recalled the matter of Eros that Medea had told them about yesterday, and couldn't help but shiver, secretly thinking how fortunate he was.
"Never mind, Jason, no matter what kind of person you are, you can have my golden fleece," Aeetes continued to say to Jason. "Of course, I will give you a trial. Only after completing this trial can you obtain the golden fleece."
"What kind of trial?" Jason asked.
"I want you to go to a place," Aeetes said. "That place is called the Pallene Peninsula."