Shortly after, the severely injured Apollo arrived. The Sun God spotted Supergirl immediately, shrank his neck, and wisely found a seat without making trouble.
Not long after he sat down, Hephaestus the Smith God, Dionysus the Wine God, and Demeter the Goddess of Agriculture entered in succession.
The Wine God looked relatively normal—outwardly a rather dashing young man. The Smith God's appearance shattered Thea's expectations. The artistic physique, misty eyes, and distinct muscular definition she'd imagined were completely absent.
This Smith God looked squat and cylindrical, shaped like a chimney. His skin was rough like a severe burn victim's—red tinged with black. When he opened his mouth, it was full of sharp fangs. Change his clothes slightly and he could play a demon in Journey to the West next door.
The remaining Goddess of Agriculture resembled a tree person, her skin withered and dry, her demeanor radiating age and exhaustion.
Hermes, who'd been secretly colluding with others, didn't show up, disappointing Thea somewhat. She didn't know where this God of Speed and Thieves had run off to. Neither super-vision searches nor Chloe's compass could locate his trail.
The Moon Goddess Artemis remained sleeping in her divine realm. Her faith power, secretly bolstered by Thea, was more abundant than in the original timeline. No need to come wade into muddy waters. Heracles had never gotten along with the Olympian gods, and Hera didn't even know he still lived, so he wasn't invited.
As the first gathering after the Twilight of the Gods, the final attendees were: Apollo the Sun God, Ares the War God, Eris the Goddess of Discord, Demeter the Goddess of Agriculture, Hephaestus the Smith God, Dionysus the Wine God, and Hera—seven deities each harboring their own schemes.
Thea pulled Diana aside to watch from a distance. She eagerly awaited the spectacle, imagining how wonderful these gods' expressions would be when Hera declared succession to the God King's throne.
As for stepping forward to claim a seat among the gods—she had no such ambition. After finally extricating herself and Diana from this mess, jumping back in? That would be madness. Standing around a while wouldn't kill anyone.
Hera didn't disappoint her. After exchanging pleasantries with the gods, She finally reached today's main topic.
"Zeus has been missing for ages. The dignity of the Greek gods cannot be ignored. As your mother and Queen of the Gods, I have a responsibility to shoulder this burden at this critical moment." Hera paused here, observing the gods' reactions.
As always, having lived so long, no deity was foolish. As their nominal "mother," Hera's words seemed strange, but exactly how they were strange—no one could quite figure out immediately.
Apollo, who'd been brooding over how to kill Supergirl, turned his attention to Hera. The Sun God didn't understand the significance of Her words at this moment.
Feeling more attention than ever before, Hera solemnly spoke earth-shattering words: "I will inherit the throne of God King!"
What? Did I hear wrong? Apollo's head turned mechanically toward the Wine God seated on his left, finding him equally vacant-eyed. He looked to the right at the Goddess of Discord. Eris, who usually mocked and teased the gods with casual humor, was staring blankly at Hera, eyes glazed.
Apollo finally realized something. He flipped the table in front of him. "Nonsense! The throne belongs to me and only me!"
Nearly forgetting his own name from rage, Apollo wasn't bluffing. Divine power surged from his body in all directions. Scorching flames erupted simultaneously from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. He was utterly beside himself.
Hera felt somewhat intimidated. Not counting the Firstborn, Apollo's combat power was absolutely first among the gods. Fortunately, the Queen now had a way to restrain him. She beckoned behind her.
Thea quickly pushed the engrossed Supergirl forward. Hera had given the girl a divine bracelet that could store solar energy for use. Surely she should make some effort—what was this spectating nonsense?
Supergirl wasn't truly foolish. She quickly caught on, puffing out her still-modest chest fearlessly, blocking Hera's path and preparing to continue absorbing energy from this humanoid yellow sun.
Seeing her interfere, Apollo's heart went cold. Even now, he didn't know Kryptonians existed. He only knew this woman in the red cape completely countered him with no room for negotiation. No matter how the Sun God thought, he couldn't devise any countermeasures.
"Huff... huff..." Apollo panted heavily, forcing down his rage. Part of him wanted to leave in a huff, yet he also wanted to see whether Hera's ascension to the God King's throne involved something he didn't know. His body felt weighed down by tremendous pressure as he slowly sat back down.
"I will inherit the throne of God King. Who supports? Who opposes?" Seeing Apollo humiliated, Hera couldn't have been happier. She loudly asked for the gods' opinions.
The remaining "children" were somewhat incredulous. Even the Smith God, who usually only cared about his forge and ignored everything else, looked dumbfounded, his fang-filled mouth hanging open in stunned disbelief.
Diana was also slightly shocked. Thea explained the whole story—naturally the version minus Zeus and Athena's various schemes. Diana, who'd always championed gender equality, instantly accepted this explanation. Who said the God King must be male? A Goddess King was perfectly viable.
"Then... then where does this leave Zeus?" Demeter the Goddess of Agriculture spoke up. She too was Cronus's offspring—sister to Hera, Zeus, and Hades—an elder among the gods.
Hera didn't follow Thea's initial suggestion of swapping "King" for "Queen" and back again—that was too horrifying. She chose the prudent approach: playing word games with Demeter. Everything she said was ambiguous, not a single honest word after lengthy explanations.
The remaining deities fell silent. What else was there to say?
Hera wasn't alone here—if sweet talk failed, there was force. Mount Olympus now had at least a thousand of Hera's followers.
These deities might possess higher life levels, but in pure combat power, they couldn't achieve one-against-a-thousand feats.
Except for the overwhelmingly powerful Sun God and the aged War God, the rest didn't have particularly strong domains. The smith, the winemaker, the farmer—how could they possibly defeat Hera and Her followers?
Everyone lowered their heads in silence, keeping quiet. Hera rejoiced!
She immediately walked toward the high platform under everyone's gaze. The throne representing supreme authority seemed to await its new master.
Hera didn't know if she'd be accepted, but the situation left no choice. Turning her back, lifting her peacock-feathered cloak, she sat down calmly.
Hmm? The expected resistance didn't occur, but the throne didn't welcome Her either. What was happening?
Just as Hera felt uncertain, changes did occur. Her diadem was replaced by a crown. Her previously empty hands now held a scepter symbolizing authority.
The silent sky seemed to play some music, celebrating the birth of Olympus's new king!