"A bunch of weaklings like you dare challenge the wrath of god?" Zeus sneered. "Then, die where you stand."

He raised his hand and conjured a sphere of lightning, then hurled it into the sky. Thunder cracked as bolts of blue lightning rained down on the monks below.

"Leave them alone!" came a shout, the voice crisp and clear.

At that instant, a golden octagram array appeared above the monks' heads like a giant mirror. It blocked all the blue lightning bolts, then shattered with a deep, echoing crack.

Grace had conjured the array. Though she blocked the strike to protect the monks, the effort had drained her energy.

"Oh? I didn't expect to find a master among you." Zeus raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised.

Even though that was just a casual strike, it wasn't something a typical grandmaster martial artist could've blocked, especially not someone so young.

"Greetings, Lord Zeus, Lady Hera. I am the Princess of Ariella. What could've provoked such wrath? Surely, we can talk this th