Instantly, the desiccated divinity within her was nourished, and the gash in her abdomen torn by the Deicide divine tools also showed slight signs of healing, even her pale face gained a flush of healthy color.
It must be said, the Golden Apple with the [Immortality] attribute was definitely an excellent supplement for healing life.
"Gurgle~~"
Just as Hera began her self-healing, a faint sound of swallowing saliva approached her ear.
She looked up following the sound and saw three Nymphs at the cave entrance holding sour wild fruits, staring eagerly at her, or rather, at the Golden Apple in her hand.
The Nymphs smacked their lips, their eyes brimming with desire.
"Want some?"
Hera smiled teasingly and raised her hand to split the Golden Apple in her palm in two, tossing the side she hadn’t bitten to the three Nymphs at the entrance.
"This half is for you. Take it."
Looking at the half of the Golden Apple that fell into their hands, the three Nymphs were somewhat flabbergasted.
"This is what you’re using to heal, and you’re sharing it with us..."
"My injuries are too severe, the Deicide divine tools crafted by the Old Gods are extremely targeted against the New Gods. A mere Golden Apple can only slightly alleviate the impact of the injuries. Eating a bit more or less doesn’t make much difference."
Hera spoke with a light smile, then her gaze softened as she looked at the three little ones with wing injuries and dirt-streaked faces.
"As for you, you’ve exhausted yourselves creating diversions to help me and Ladon escape. You should especially take some supplements."
Upon hearing their mistress’s comforting words, the three Nymphs settled down and excitedly shared the half of the Golden Apple, nibbling away eagerly and swiftly devouring the delicious divine fruit, not even sparing the core and the juices.
Seeing the Nymphs looking like they still wanted more, Hera simply handed over the other half as well.
The three Nymphs initially wanted to refuse, but ultimately they couldn’t control the cravings in their stomachs, both ashamed and excited as they accepted this gift from their mistress.
"You seem to have changed a lot?"
Ladon leaned against a column inside the cave, tilting his head as he sized up the queen before him, whom he found somewhat incomprehensible.
In his memory, this woman was never known for her generosity or forbearance; she was always bitter and vengeful, brooding over how to eliminate her rivals and their illegitimate children.
How come, after not seeing her for so long, she had suddenly changed? Not only had she sacrificed herself to send off her own daughter, but she had also freely given away the precious Golden Apple to three little ones. It was as if she had become a different person altogether.
"Nothing is unchangeable, not even gods."
Hera replied with a gentle smile, her face smeared with some dust and blood, but her dignified and elegant demeanor seemed even more pronounced, like a loving and gentle mother from the mortal world.
"After letting go of those obsessions as he suggested, I’ve found that I possess more, and can gain more, than I’d realized."
"He? Who is he?"
Ladon blinked, somewhat curious.
Who exactly could be that capable, to turn Hera from being a deeply vengeful woman into the figure she was now?
"A pretty interesting little guy, someone very important to me..." Enjoy exclusive content from freewebnovel
Hera murmured softly, her eyes showing a hint of reminiscence while her face displayed a calm and sweet smile.
"Psh, you might as well have said nothing..."
Ladon grimaced and murmured a complaint, then extended his other hand to Hera.
"Take this, don’t give it away anymore."
The familiar sensation and contours settled into her palm, and Hera looked down to find another Golden Apple, causing her to twitch her lips slightly as she looked at Ladon with a wry expression.
"How many of these do you have hidden?"
"Found..."
"Then how many did you find?"
"Three, I used one on the way to restore my vitality, the other two are all here."
Ladon replied irritably, reluctantly gazing at the two Golden Apples he had contributed.
Although she had teamed up with some thief who frequented the Sacred Garden to pull off a big heist, her share of the Golden Apples wasn’t much. With a hundred heads, almost one bite per mouth would nearly deplete her stock, and these two were indeed the private stash she had left between her teeth.
If only she had known that the Sacred Garden was going to be raided by giants and Magic Beasts, she would have plucked all the Golden Apples from the trees!
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Better yet, dig out the tree itself!
Missing such an opportunity to strike it rich was a huge loss.
Thinking this, Ladon somberly turned to look at Hera holding the Golden Apples, seriously reminding her.
"You owe me! Eat one, pay back two…three…no…ten!"
"..."
Hera, about to bite into a Golden Apple, was suddenly speechless.
How could eating her own things mean she still owed a debt, and a usurious one at that?
However, considering that this was a dragon, whose nature was to be insatiably greedy, and who had just extended a helping hand to her, Hera reluctantly nodded, agreeing to this humiliating loan agreement.
Hearing that her losses could not only be recovered but even turn a future profit made Ladon’s face light up with joy, and her gaze towards Hera was filled with warmth and affection.
"Don’t worry, as long as I’m here, I won’t let them touch a hair on your head!"
Hera felt a warmth in her heart, just about to speak when Ladon clenched her fists, her face full of excitement and anticipation.
"After all, you still owe me thirty Golden Apples!"
"..."
Hera’s face darkened, grumbling inwardly.
Is this considerate attitude merely for reaping benefits from me?
And should the debt not be twenty by contract? How did it turn into thirty?
She couldn’t possibly be adding the one she ate to my debt, could she?
Under the watchful eyes of a creditor, a victim, and a former boss, a certain insatiably greedy dragon suddenly felt a little guilty and coughed as she moved towards the cave entrance.
"You rest well, I’ll go out and see what’s happening out there."
This girl...
Hera shook her head and swallowed the Golden Apple, just about to absorb its contained divinity and vitality, when the sky outside the cave was covered with a scarlet blood light.
"Get down!"
As Ladon just stepped out of the cave, her pupils dilated sharply, she transformed into her original form of a giant dragon with a hundred heads, and hurried back into the cave, knocking down the three Nymphs and Hera, protecting them under her.
"Boom!"
The next moment, a fierce beam of light plummeted from the sky, the explosive aftermath surged around, causing nearby fires to flare up, wood shards and soil to fly about, and the sounds of rocks shattering pierced the air, flattening much of the cave.
As the spreading smoke cleared,
Ladon flapped her wings, shook off the debris on her, raised her head to look at the dense masses of beasts in the sea and sky, as well as the leading three-headed Poison Dragon that instilled in her an inexplicable fear and pressure, a terrifying figure sealed in her memories long ago emerged.
—Typhon, the Demon Progenitor!