"Kryon has agreed to meet with us."
"He'll agree."
Pericles just nodded slightly to indicate that he had heard it.
And beside Pericles.
Rhodes looked at Pericles nervously and said, "I can feel a strong divine power here. Yes, that must be Cleon. He is not lying."
"I know Cleon is not a fool. He knows very well that impersonating an oracle is a serious crime and not a good thing." Pericles shook his head helplessly, and then continued to say to Rhodes, "From now on, my safety will be in your hands, because there is no guarantee that Cleon will not turn into a lunatic, so you must be careful."
"Yes, don't worry."
Rhodes also clenched the trident in his hand.
Now that Rhodes said this.
Pericles was relieved.
"Come let us go and see Cleon properly."
So, Pericles brought Rhodes to the Temple of Apollo in Athens. Apollo was the god of light and music, and many people in Athens believed in him, even though this place was originally the territory of Athena. Therefore, the Temple of Apollo became quite grand and magnificent in the hands of the wealthy Athenians. Even when they came here, they could feel the oppressive feeling coming from the temple.
Obviously, this force.
Derived from Creon.
"Is Cleon strong?"
"I don't know..." Rhodes shook her head, but she took a deep breath and began to explain, "However, this is different from what I saw when I met Sister Sissi. Sister Sissi is also an oracle, but the feeling she gives people is a very comfortable divine power that will not repel people or be aggressive. However, the power coming from Cleon is weaker than that from Sister Sissi, but it is more aggressive and makes people feel a little uneasy."
"Does divine power have anything to do with a person's personality?"
"No, I don't know."
Hearing this answer, Pericles could only sigh.
It seems that it is just Cleon's problem.
After all, Apollo shouldn't be a dark god like Creon.
Afterwards, Pericles took Rhodes into the temple. After they entered, they saw Cleon kneeling in front of the statue of Apollo, looking very pious. But even when Pericles arrived here, Cleon did not change at all. Seeing this situation, Pericles also felt absurd. After all, this guy had never been so respectful to these gods before. Now that the true god appeared, his attitude changed all of a sudden.
This is too...
Rhodes didn't say anything either.
The two of them just waited quietly.
After a moment, Creon finished his prayer.
"Ah, my old friend."
As soon as he turned around, he gave Pericles a bright smile.
"Finally I see you coming out of your big house!"
"Cleon, congratulations on becoming the oracle of Lord Apollo." Pericles also saluted in a friendly manner and expressed his congratulations. "In this way, we in Athens now have two oracles. It is simply the favor of the gods on Mount Olympus to us. Now, I can come out. My purpose is to have a good talk with Cleon, who has become an oracle, about how to solve the dilemma of Athens in the future."
"Negotiation?"
Cleon stroked his chin.
Then he glanced at Rhodes.
"But Miss Rhodes seems to be very alert..."
"Please don't mind it."
Pericles looked back at Rhodes.
Signaled to Rhodes not to be so nervous.
Rhode quickly changed her mind, took two steps back, and pointed the trident in another direction. Under such circumstances, Cleon walked in front of Pericles and said with a smile: "Dear Archon, now that I have become the oracle of Lord Apollo, you must want me to go out of the city to fight Brasidas, right?"
"That's not true."
Pericles also said calmly:
"I don't have such stupid ideas."
"Ah? What do you think?"
"Brasidas has been through many battles. He has been trained since he was a child and has become a brave warrior. Now he has obtained the power of Lord Ares. In terms of fighting ability, I'm afraid neither you nor Rhodes can match Brasidas. Therefore, if I ask you to go out of the city to fight Brasidas, I'm actually sending you to your death."
Pericles expressed his thoughts calmly, but his answer was obviously not satisfactory. After hearing this answer, Cleon was stunned for a moment, and then frowned. Because he heard the ridicule from Pericles' answer, as if in his eyes, he was a person who could not defeat Brasidas at all, and he was just a weak oracle.
"Then you don't have to worry about it."
Cleon sneered.
"The divine power bestowed upon me by Lord Apollo is not as simple as you think."
"Cleon, you and I have always had grudges. You may have different opinions about what I said, which is fine, but the problem is that we are all Athenians and we are all people who are considering the future of Athens. So, you should know better than me what we should do. Now, we must put aside our personal grudges."
Pericles took a deep breath.
"So, I hope you can calm down."
"I'm very calm!"
"No... I can sense your hostility. Shouldn't we be calm when discussing this?"
The power that cannot be let go
Pericles could understand that Cleon was very excited. After all, he suddenly became an oracle, which was something that no one could remain calm about. Moreover, the two of them had always had a feud. Now that the local government had the upper hand, it was natural that they needed to expand their power.
But Cleon was not an incompetent man. If he continued to be so excited, he would not be able to achieve his desired goal. When he calmed down, he spoke to Pericles in front of him:
"I was indeed too excited just now... But you are right, we really need to calm down and have a good talk about what's going to happen next. Now is not the time to waste time."
"Then what do you want to say?"
Originally, it was Pericles who came to find Cleon.
As a result, Pericles gave the right to speak to Cleon.
"Of course, right now Athens is surrounded by the Spartans and is in a dangerous situation. As you said, we must unite at this time. Brasidas is indeed a brave warrior, but I don't think we will fail because of this."
"Then what exactly are you going to do?"
"Becoming an oracle is a gift from Lord Apollo, but this gift is also conditional. Lord Apollo wants me to be the ruler of Athens. At the same time, he hopes that the temples in Athens can worship Lord Apollo instead of Lady Athena who has abandoned us. You have also seen that your daughter Hilde is now the king of the Byzantine Kingdom. She is a citizen of another country and does not care about our life or death at all."
"But she joined our Delian League."
Pericles answered very calmly.
"At least she's on our side."
"Oh! My brother! Do you really think that things are as simple as you think? If Hilde really stood on our side, she would not occupy Eraeus and not return it to us! And you have heard about the Ionian incident, Hilde's true wolfish ambition has been exposed. She joined our Delian League not to help Athens resist the Spartans, but just to gain more for her own benefit through us!"
"..."
What Creon said.
Pericles had little rebuttal.
"But in general, a strong Byzantine Kingdom is not bad for Athens. At least now the Byzantine Kingdom is still providing us with various kinds of help, such as food and weapons. Besides, the Persian attack on Ionia is true. You should know this very well. Why don't you talk about the Persians, but instead blame Hilde? Does the current Delian League have the ability to help our Ionian compatriots get rid of the shadow of the Persians? We can't. Now it seems that only Hilde can."
Hearing this, Cleon sneered.
"Oh, so Hilde is the savior?"
"That's not the case, but Ionia controlled by Hilde's Byzantine Kingdom is more helpful to us than Ionia occupied by the Persians. Since we have no way to change the status quo, we should not complain too much about the existing situation. Cleon, I think you need to understand this, otherwise, you will suffer a great loss in the future."
"I don't need your preaching."
Cleon turned around and looked at Rhodes.
"Respected Lord Rhodes?"
"If you have anything to say, please speak to Lord Pericles." Rhodes had a faint smile on his face. "I'm just a girl from the countryside. Don't let me speak in this kind of occasion."
"You are amazing, Pericles! How could I not have realized that you are so amazing? It has only been a short time, but you have already made Rhodes completely devoted to you and even given you the right to speak. If you were so amazing, Hilde would not have left Athens."
“That’s not what we’re talking about today.”
Facing Creon's provocation.
Pericles' attitude remained very calm.
"In short, you heard what I was about to say. Lord Apollo gave me power in the hope that I could replace you and become the one who saves Athens. At the same time, we need to build more temples of Apollo in Athens and convert the Parthenon to worship Lord Apollo. Only in this way can we be worthy of Lord Apollo's assistance to us! Otherwise, once Lord Apollo gets angry, I'm afraid our situation in Athens will become even worse."
"I know, but..."
I saw Pericles was a little hesitant.
Cleon couldn't help but frown.
"Don't you believe me?"
"It's not that I don't believe it, but this matter still needs to be discussed. After all, when Rhodes became the Oracle, Lord Poseidon didn't tell Rhodes these words, and Lord Apollo didn't tell anyone else about this matter except you. The temple matter is a very important matter. If it is not handled well, not only will Lord Apollo not be happy, but other gods will also be angered. What will we do then?"
Creon only realized it at this time.
Pericles changed the subject.
You have to know that Cleon said so much just now. His main point was actually to make Pericles clear in his mind that he should give up his current power and hand over the position of consul to Cleon. However, Pericles did not mention anything about this just now. Instead, he shifted the topic to the issue of temple offerings.
"Pericles, you don't need to worry about this kind of thing. Now I have obtained the power of Lord Apollo and his promise, which means that I am the one chosen by God and I am the one who has the ability to save Athens! So I advise you to give up your position as consul to me now. When the time comes, I will save Athens from the dire straits, and you will also be credited with a contribution. Otherwise..."
"Athens' democracy has its own procedures. If you have become an oracle, you can easily defeat me in the election of the Citizens' Assembly and get the position of archon you want. But I tell you, I am Pericles, the archon of Athens. I must be responsible for Athens, so I cannot casually hand over power to someone I cannot fully trust during this special period. Even if you are an oracle, it is impossible for you to get the power you want from me before you contribute to Athens as an oracle!"
The Dilemma of the Fourth Section of the Seventh Tune
On this issue, Pericles' attitude was very firm and he did not give Cleon any chance to ease the situation.
Pericles had this attitude: you can win in the democratic process of Athens through formal means and then get what you want. Anything that violates the democratic process of Athens is completely unforgivable in Pericles' eyes. Therefore, when Cleon made his request, Pericles pretended that he didn't hear anything at first. Then Cleon pointed it out again, and Pericles couldn't help it and had a good argument with him.
In the heart of Pericles.
Athens' democracy had its sacredness.
He also knew very well that he was the guardian of Athenian democracy. No matter if someone persuaded him to become a tyrant before, or Cleon's request now, as long as it had a great impact on Athens' politics, Pericles would never agree. Therefore, facing Pericles' attitude, Cleon was stunned at first, and then couldn't help laughing.
"It's you, Pericles. Only someone like you can say such words. Well, just wait. I will definitely defeat you at the Citizens' Assembly and then take over the position of consul from you. After that, I will exile you from Athens and make sure you will never be able to come back here!"
"As you wish."
Bolick nodded expressionlessly.
"But compared to all that, how are you going to deal with Brasidas?"
"I'll think about this question after I become the Archon!"
When Pericles heard this answer, he understood clearly that this guy was indeed quite unreliable.
Cleon was a pure ambitious man who didn't care about the future of Athens at all. He only cared about his own rights and goals. Because of this, Pericles was more determined that the power of Athens must not be handed over to this guy, otherwise he would drag the whole of Athens into the mud.
It can be said that today's negotiations did not produce any valuable results. Pericles took Rhodes back to his mansion, and neither of them spoke along the way.
Pericles looked to be in a very bad mood.
But he didn't say anything.
After returning to the mansion.
Rhode couldn't help but ask, "Lord Pericles, is it really okay to just go on like this?"
"I have been in Athens for so many years, and I have been the archon for such a long time. I don't need to say much about my reputation in Athens. Don't worry, even if Cleon becomes the oracle, it will take some time for him to replace me, judging from how much people hate him. Of course, it is not ruled out that he will use some disgusting means to deal with us, so by that time, I may need to rely on you."
"Don't worry, I can sense Cleon. If he really intends to do something to you, you will not be in any danger as long as I am here." Rhodes patted his chest and said proudly, "Although I don't know what Cleon's ability is, I think it should be no problem to deal with him."
"Just your words are enough for me."
Pericles couldn't help laughing.
"It's great to have you by my side."
"I'd be embarrassed if you said that."
"Ah... Actually, every time I look at you like this, I wonder if I have really done something wrong all these years. In fact, Hilde is my biological daughter, and my cold treatment and even disdain for her over the years have actually caused Hilde and I to drift further and further apart. If I had not considered those rumors and the so-called prophecies from the beginning, but treated her uprightly as a father, would she and I now be like you and me now?"
"Of course I will! And don't give up, there is still a lot of time in the future. Maybe what you did before was indeed a bit excessive, but what if Sister Sissi forgives you in the future? By then, won't you two father and daughter be reconciled?"
