Zeus felt uneasy. He pushed the clouds away with his hand and looked at Achilles in the Greek camp, but what he saw made him angry.
Achilles harnessed the warhorse, pierced the holes in the heels and ankles of Hector's corpse with a leather belt, and tied Hector's body to the chariot.
"Snap."
With the sound of a whip, the warhorse pulled the chariot and galloped around the tomb of Patroclus, and Hector's body was dragged behind the chariot for three laps.
Hector's body was dragged with cuts and marks, which was a classic case of corpse abuse.
The gods on Mount Olympus were very sad and indignant when they saw this scene. They felt that Achilles' actions were too much and should not be forgiven.
Even Hera, who had always supported the Greeks, kept her mouth shut.
The gods had always been very taboo to abuse corpses, and Achilles had undoubtedly angered them.
Zeus' face was sullen, and he looked at Achilles in the clouds without saying a word. His heart was already burning with anger.
"Iris, go tell Thetis to tell Achilles that the gods, including me, are angry at him for wantonly abusing Hector's body and detaining it on the ship." Zeus ordered the Rainbow Goddess Elise.
"Yes, dear Zeus," Elise said, turned into a rainbow and disappeared from Mount Olympus.
This time, the horn was blown to summon the gods, mainly to tell them that the three goddesses of fate had issued an oracle, that someone among the mortals would become a new god.
This was a major event, and Zeus' biggest doubt about the mortals becoming gods was Achilles.
Not only was Achilles the most powerful among the mortals, but he was also the closest to the gods. More importantly, Achilles was the prophesied child of destiny who posed a threat to Zeus.
In the face of this threat and all kinds of accidents, Zeus had made a decision and said to Hermes, "Hasn't Memnon arrived yet? Send a wind for his journey so that he can reach the Trojan battlefield as soon as possible. "
"I understand, Revered Father." Hermes replied and sighed in his heart. Even if Achilles had the afterglow of fate, killing Memnon, the son of the Goddess of Dawn, would definitely consume it.
Zeus was determined to execute Achilles as soon as possible.
When the gathering was over and the gods dispersed, Hera called out to Apollo who was about to leave the hall.
"Your redoubtable father, Zeus is looking for you. Come with me," said Hera.
Apollo followed Hera back into the hall, and when he returned, he saw Zeus sitting on his throne made of ivory and gold, his face ashen.
Zeus had already made up his mind. With a sullen face, he said, "Apollo, I allow you to kill Achilles immediately with the help of a mortal. If that is not possible, kill him yourself."
"Yes," Apollo agreed.
With Zeus's permission, Apollo no longer had to restrain himself.
He had long wanted to kill Achilles, but it had been inconvenient for him to do so. Even when Achilles had insulted Hector's body, Apollo had endured it and not attacked Achilles. Now that he had Zeus's permission, he no longer had to be passive.
The palace of the Deepsea Thetis.
Following Zeus's order, Elyse quickly arrived at Thetis' palace.
"Dear Elyse, what brings you here?" Thetis said kindly.
"Thetis, Zeus asked me to come." Elyse said lightly.
When the sea goddess heard that Zeus asked Elyse to come to her, her expression became dignified.
"Zeus ordered me to find you and tell you to find your son, Achilles, and tell him that the gods, including Zeus, are furious at him for wantonly humiliating Hector's corpse and detaining the corpse on the ship to prevent it from being ransomed," said the Rainbow Goddess, Elyse.
Thetis's face changed. She didn't expect Achilles to make this mistake. What made her even more afraid was Zeus's tone.
She was just about to say something when the rainbow goddess Elyse issued Zeus's order. Her figure flashed and disappeared from the palace of Thetis in the deep sea.
Thetis was stunned for a moment and did not dare to delay. She immediately left the palace and arrived at Achilles' barracks in a short time.
Because she came invisibly, the soldiers outside the barracks could not find her figure.
Achilles was sitting in a daze in the barracks at the moment. He didn't even notice Thetis coming in.
Thetis slowly approached and sat down, saying gently: "Dear son, how long do you want to torture yourself by sighing and not eating?"
Thetis sympathized with Achilles, but there was nothing she could do.
Achilles looked at his mother and said: "Mother, although I killed Hector and avenged my good friend Patroclus, I am not happy at all."
"How much you miss your good friend Patroclus. Fortunately, you are not blinded by hatred." Thetis said with a straight face: "My son, listen to what Zeus wants me to say to you. He and the gods are angry because you mistreated Hector's body and kept his body on the ship."
"My son, ask for a generous ransom and hand over the body."
Thetis knew that if Achilles still disobeyed the will of the gods, he would be greeted with endless anger. At that time, he would not be able to live in peace even after death.
Achilles looked up and looked at his mother: "Mother, I respect the opinions of Zeus and the gods! Whoever gives me the ransom can take the body back. "
Achilles had seen how the gods had protected Hector's body during the day, and now his mother's words, he had thought it through. If he continued to hold onto Hector's body, the gods would definitely not allow it. He might as well be generous and hand over Hector's body so that he would not continue to offend the gods.
"My son, you will be happy with your decision today. The gods will forgive your rashness," Thetis said happily.
At this time, a messenger came in with a message: "Dear Prince Achilles, there is someone outside who claims to be King Priam of Troy. He only brought an old man with him."
"Oh? How dare he come to camp with only an old man. Invite him in, "Achilles said.
"Yes, sir." The messenger slowly left.
Not long after, King Priam was led into Achilles' barracks.
Achilles sat on a woolen mat and watched Priam walk in. He saw that Priam was a white-haired old man with many wrinkles on his face.
When Priam entered the barracks, he saw Achilles sitting on a woolen cushion, and Achilles was staring at him.
He quickly walked in front of Achilles, hugged his knees, kissed the hands that had killed so many of his sons, and stared at Achilles' face.
Achilles and his friends looked at the old man in surprise, not understanding why he would do such a lowly thing.
After all, Priam was the king of Troy. Even in the warring Greek camps, he would be respected.
The old man begged, "Holy Achilles, think of your father. He is as old as I am. Perhaps he is also hated and threatened by his neighbors. Like me, he is helpless and afraid. But he still longs to see his son again. He hopes that his son can return from Troy in triumph."
"You are right. My father, Peleus, has sent several waves of messengers, hoping that I will return in triumph. He misses me very much," Achilles said.
Priam listened to Achilles and continued, "Yes, your father, Peleus, misses you so much that he can at least send messengers to communicate with you. But what about me? When the Greeks came to Troy, I still had ten sons, but they all died in battle. "
"I'm the one who suffered the most in this war. Now you have taken away the only son who can protect us, the city, and the people. "
"These sons of mine, they will never come back. When I miss them, what else can I do but cry at their graves?"
"Holy Achilles, I hope you have pity on me. I've lost ten sons, and I can't even bury the body of the only son who could protect us. I'm so sad and desperate."
"Therefore, I have come to your warship, hoping to ransom my son Hector. I have brought you a large ransom."
"Son of Peleus, please listen to the advice of God. Think of your father, and have pity on me!"
This time, Priam had come to Achilles' warship with the determination to succeed or die trying, so he spoke his mind.
The effect of Priam's words was obvious. It aroused Achilles' nostalgia for his old father, Peleus.
Achilles gently let go of the old man's hand and helped him up. He said sympathetically, "Poor you. You have suffered so much. How dare you come to my warship alone to meet the man who killed your son?"
"Well, I am willing to return Hector's body to you, because my mother has told me the order of Zeus."
"And I also understand that God has helped you and brought you to my warship. Otherwise, no matter how brave a mortal is, he would not be able to come here."
In fact, this was the main reason why Achilles agreed. The Greek camp was very strict, but this old man came in without alerting anyone. This must be the direct help of God. Now, God's attitude was very clear.
No matter how confident Achilles was, he did not dare to go against the collective will of God.
When Priam heard that Achilles had agreed to return Hector's body to him, he was overjoyed. He had come here to find Achilles to redeem Hector's body. He had never thought that Achilles would agree to his request so easily.
"Dear Achilles, thank you so much for listening to my plea and agreeing to redeem Hector's body for me."
"I will give you all the ransom money I have brought to thank you for your kindness."
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