A sculpture, a sculpture of a woman. She was exquisitely beautiful, like a real, living thing, and when she was placed in the center of the great hall, all the gods couldn't help but be captivated by her.
With a keen sense of the statue's uniqueness, Hera felt a disturbance in her authority.
Zeus hadn't spoken to her about this so-called gift; she hadn't known of the sculpture's existence beforehand, if it indeed was a sculpture.
As the goddess of Fertility, the Heavenly Empress sensed a similar power within her. If nothing went wrong, it was propagation, the source of new life.
And a lifeless object should not possess such power.
"She is the gift I have prepared. I had the Cyclops sculpt her meticulously, and our new friend, the embodiment of love and beauty, bestowed upon her peerless looks. And I," Zeus said, "endowed her with a good heart—a desire to explore and learn about everything. I think that's not a bad thing, right?"
With a smile on his face, Zeus looked towards the gathered deities.
"Prometheus created man, so today we shall create woman. And you, Epimetheus, you shall be the origin of it all."
"You will awaken her yourself, and then marry her in the presence of me and Hera."
"Thank you for your gift, Your Majesty."
Giving a creation to a deity as a wife hardly counted as a reward, yet considering that Epimetheus and his brother always liked to be with humans, it didn't seem like an insult either.
In any case, the belated fool seemed quite content with it; he bowed slightly to express his thanks to the Divine King.
"If you're pleased, then who shall go first?"
Nodding, Zeus first turned to his own sister, who was also his wife.
Exchanging a glance with Zeus, and despite her dissatisfaction with his earlier secrecy, Hera remained silent.
After all, the Divine King always acted this way, at least the sculpture wasn't prepared for himself. However, sensing the blessings of Aphrodite on it, Hera couldn't help but feel wary of that goddess.
That Zeus had already privately discussed the matter with Aphrodite before today was what truly concerned Hera. She was very confident in her own beauty, but the other was the embodiment of love and beauty.
Not to mention her own looks, with Aphrodite's Divine Girdle alone, the wearer could become the center of attention for all males, and Hera did not wish for Zeus to suddenly have another child.
"I bless her marriage to be faithful and happy, never to face betrayal," Hera said.
With a double entendre, the Heavenly Empress first blessed the maiden statue.
With the first one done, the rest of the deities also bestowed their unique gifts.
Demeter gave her vitality and youth, and where she passed, flowers bloomed; Hestia gave her shelter and warmth, henceforth, there would be few things in the world capable of harming her; the Sea Emperor, who wasn't physically present, granted her different boons with his authority, enabling her to tread on water as if it were flat land, and to calm the waves.
Finally, when each deity had given their blessings, the Divine King also prepared another gift for her—Wisdom. For he found that excessive wisdom might not be a good thing after all; it could breed arrogance and pride.
But just as he reached out his hand, Zeus's expression suddenly changed.
Noticing the change in the person beside her, Hera couldn't help but ask.
"...It's nothing, I just have a bit of a headache," Zeus said.
Forcing a smile as though nothing had happened, Zeus withdrew his hand. The incident passed without further attention from the deities present, except Hera looked a bit skeptical.
Just now, she had sensed a very strange aura on Zeus, similar to when her sister was pregnant.
After Demeter had given birth to her daughter, she hid her in an unnamed valley, letting her grow up there rather than come to Olympus. Hera knew that she was being cautious, but she had known about it all along.
If the goddess of fertility didn't even know about the birth of the closest people to her, it would be quite ridiculous. Knowing that it was just a weak goddess, she had pretended to be unaware.
"What about Lord Hades? Should we wait for him?"
The deities had finished blessing, but as if noticing something, one deity spoke up to remind them.
As with past occasions, Hades hadn't come to Olympus and was still alone in the Underworld.
"There's no need for that," Zeus said.
Zeus shook his head slightly, having pushed past the earlier discomfort.
"Although Hades couldn't come in person, he has long been grateful to the benefactor of mankind. He and the gods of the Underworld have crafted a treasure; let it be the wedding gift for you both," Zeus explained.
With that, a beautifully ornate jar appeared in Zeus's hand, topped with a bronze lid and inlaid with magnificent gemstones.
Yes, a jar, not a box—that was its true form. Its image had simply changed over time through transmission and translation. Lifting it with his right hand, Zeus handed it over to Epimetheus.
"This is the gift from Lord Hades. The gods of the Underworld all contributed to it. It can absorb all disasters and misfortune that come near you both. But Hades has specifically instructed not to open this lid," Zeus said.
"Otherwise, he might have to collect additional compensation."
Smiling faintly, Zeus gestured with his hand.
"Now, you give life to your future wife yourself. She is born for you and will be your other half."