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Evening smoke curled up.

Warm fires were lit, and sumptuous meals were served on dining tables, with enticing aromas spreading from house to house.

In the central square of the city, which served the purpose of worship, priests in white robes held torches, lighting fragrant woods and spices. They offered bulls, cows, pigs, fruits, beehives, fruit trees, rice ears, and chestnuts to Demeter, the Goddess of Agriculture, as symbols of the festive and bountiful harvest. They prayed devoutly, hoping for the deities\' blessing for the coming year, for favorable weather, and abundance.

As sisters, Demeter\'s likeness was similar to Hera\'s, only with a more amiable appearance, lacking the majestic aura of that queen of the gods.

In the flickering firelight, the worshipped statue of Demeter was that of a gentle-looking woman. She wore a circular crown woven from golden wheat and carried a basket laden with wheat ears, daffodils, torches, fruit baskets, horns of plenty, or sickles, symbols of abundance.

From a distance, it seemed as though a hazy and warm glimmer had appeared in the night.

As the ceremony gradually ended, residents who had finished their dinner began to step out of their homes in small groups, sharing homemade sweets and horn-of-plenty-shaped bread with their neighbors.

The festive hustle and bustle, along with the aroma of food, even reached beyond the outer walls and into Hestia\'s courtyard.

However, the Goddess of the Hearth wasn\'t enjoying the festive atmosphere as usual this year; instead, she hunched over in the back garden, muddy-handedly planting seedlings, her bright white teeth grinding in the starlight.

Curse Athena! Breaking things as soon as she arrived! I\'ll definitely never let her in again!

As Hestia busied herself, she was filled with complaints about her restless great-niece.

The time around the Harvest Festival was the best season for planting and tilling.

She needed to quickly plant the new seedlings and restore life to her ravaged courtyard.

Fortunately, though she had to spend some time closed off for planting, the celebration of the Harvest Festival would last seven days. Once she was done with this urgent task, she would still have a chance to enjoy the festivities.

Comforting herself with this thought, Hestia planted the last bunch of seedlings she held, stood up, turned around, and looked towards the center of the courtyard.

On the ground covered with withered leaves and broken branches, a guest from afar lay straight and immobile.

Although nearly a hundred gruesome wounds on his body had begun to heal and scab over, he still hadn\'t awoken. His fists were clenched tight, his muscles were taut with tension, and his brow was deeply furrowed as if he was still fighting forgetfully and fiercely in his dreams.

And beside him, a little girl with purple hair crouched next to the man, waiting motionlessly.

It had already been two days...

Did Athena really need to be that harsh?

Hestia shook her head and muttered another curse about her trouble-making great-niece. She then walked over, patted the little girl\'s shoulder, and smiled as she pointed towards the door.

"Anna, the Harvest Festival is here; it\'s a rare occasion, so go out and have some fun."

The laughter from the streets and the wafting scent of food tempted Little Medusa, still with the heart of a child, to yearn for it.

But soon after, she gently shook her head, her gaze falling back on Luo En, who lay like a corpse on the ground.

Immediately understanding, Hestia slapped her chest and assured her magnanimously.

"Don\'t worry, I\'ll keep an eye on things here. He\'ll be fine."

Yet, Little Medusa still shook her head, resolutely watching over Luo En before her.

"I\'ll wait for him to wake up..."

Seeing that she couldn\'t persuade the stubborn little girl, Hestia could only give up sulkily and inwardly cursed her big niece who had left a mess for her to clean up.

Days turned into nights and then back again.

Since Luo En, who had been lying there like a corpse, showed no signs of waking up for several days, Little Medusa took the opportunity to settle down in Hestia\'s residence.

However, living there without contributing didn\'t seem right.

To repay the kindness, Little Medusa, who valued simplicity and morals, began to help with the housework during her spare time; she also followed Hestia around, helping to water the seedlings and loosen the soil...

The Goddess of the Hearth, although she didn\'t say it out loud, undoubtedly grew fonder of the warm-hearted and sensible little girl. She often engaged her in long conversations to alleviate her boredom, and even made her the official critic of her cooking.

Even several nights in a row, Hestia extended sleepover invitations, practically dragging the adorable little Anna into bed to cuddle fiercely.

Unfortunately, no matter how enthusiastic the Goddess of the Hearth was, the first thing on Little Anna\'s mind was always the guy lying in the courtyard.

Whenever she finished with the housework, Little Anna kept a very regular schedule of watching over Luo En, eagerly awaiting his awakening.

Moreover, when the sun was scorching, she would set up a partition for him;

when wind and rain threatened, she would set up a big umbrella for him;

and when the nights got cold, she would move the brazier from inside the house and sit quietly by his side until dawn.

Even though Hestia had persuaded her several times, adamantly assuring her that the tough guy wouldn\'t be harmed, the stubborn little girl was still determined to do things her own way.

Tsk, when the heck is this guy going to wake up...

Inside the house, just as Hestia had finished tidying up the living room and was sitting by the fire as usual, gazing into the backyard and muttering to herself, there came a crisp knocking at the door.

The bored Goddess of the Hearth got up to open the door almost reflexively.

As the door cracked open to reveal that familiar smiling face, a wave of frustration washed over Hestia. Without another word, she slammed the door shut and huffed at the person outside with arms akimbo.

"I\'m not here! No one is!"

"Are you sure?"

The playful inquiry came from Athena on the other side of the door, who, with a grin, twirled a small crystal bottle between her fingers, her voice tinged with teasing.

"I\'ve come with the \'Elixir of Life\' that was so hard to get from Aunt Demeter. If you really aren\'t in...

"Bang!"

Before Athena could finish, an impatient Hestia flung open the door and snatched the crystal bottle filled with clear liquid from Athena\'s hand, rubbing it against her cheek lovingly.

This was the \'Elixir of Life\', imbued with the Divinity of the Agriculture God, capable of reviving all things! Finally, there was no need to worry about the seedlings in the courtyard not surviving winter!

"So, can I come in now, Auntie?"

Athena stood outside with a smile, looking at a content Hestia and gently asked.

The Goddess of the Hearth\'s mood lifted, and she begrudgingly eyed her big niece who had dumped a mess on her, but she huffed and stood aside to let her in.

"You do have some conscience at least!"