Alle Kapitel von I Was Reborn and Refused the Sun God’s Heir: Kapitel 1 – Kapitel 8

I had just stepped out of Zeus's western study when I met Apollo and his companions in the Hall of Eagles.The corridor was lined with white statues and braziers of blue flame. Apollo stood between them like he owned the light itself, his golden mantle falling from one shoulder. The sons of the old houses went quiet when they saw me, then one of them gave a lazy laugh."Look who came back to beg again. Persephone really cannot stay away from Apollo's sunlight.""A daughter of Zeus chasing a man like a lovesick mortal. Olympus must be proud.""If the old king knew she was using his oath to force a marriage, even the thunder would be ashamed."They didn’t bother lowering their voices. To them, I was only the girl who had loved Apollo too openly for too long. In my last life, every word would have cut me. Now, I looked at Apollo and felt nothing but a clean, cold distance.He looked me over with familiar contempt. "What are you doing in my grandfather's wing? Asking Lord Zeus to plead for

The Moonfall Festival came three weeks later, and Zeus turned Olympus into a theater of light.The great terrace floated above the cloud sea. Bronze torches burned without smoke, musicians played beneath columns wrapped in laurel, and a tower of crystal cups rose beside the central fountain, each cup filled with pale nectar that shimmered like captured stars. Doves of light circled the upper balconies, and the daughters of the old sea houses trailed silk over the marble steps. Every noble house had come to watch the oath finally become a betrothal.They expected a clean triumph for Apollo. The Sun Court had already placed golden ribbons on its banners, and several courtiers had begun whispering about which chambers I would occupy after marriage, as if my life had been arranged by people who had never asked me a single question.I entered with Demeter's gifts and found Celeste waiting by the fountain. She wore pearls, dawnstones, and a golden girdle I recognized from Apollo's private tr

Celeste was waiting in Demeter's garden when I returned.Moonlight silvered the glass roof, and the flowers around her had closed for the night. Without Apollo beside her, she looked less like a sacred blossom and more like a girl whose tricks had stopped working."You are cleverer than I thought," she said. "Choosing Cassian to provoke Apollo was bold."I walked past her. "Go to bed, Celeste."She followed. "Do you truly think the Hadeion can satisfy you? His blood smells of tombs, his wings are ruined, and Olympus will never love him. You will spend your life beside a shadow while Apollo still burns for me.""Then enjoy the heat."The garden doors flew open before she could answer. Apollo strode in with his laurel crown crooked and his ceremonial robe half-fastened, as if he had run from one end of Olympus to the other. Servants gathered at the edges of the hall.Celeste brightened at once. "Apollo, did you come for me? I knew you would not let them shame us."He pushed past her so h

Months passed, and Olympus changed its prayers quickly.The same courtiers who had called Cassian a shadow began sending him tribute in silver bowls. The brothers who once mocked his wings asked for places in his council. Cassian accepted the useful ones, refused the rest, and never wasted anger on men who had already revealed their worth.Cassian tasted every cup before I drank and changed half the guards around our chambers after I was pregnent."You are making the palace nervous," I told him one night.He rested his hand gently over my belly. "Good. Nervous people make fewer bold mistakes."Our child kicked. He looked so startled that I laughed for the first time that day."She knows your voice," I said."She has excellent judgment."Those small moments healed more than grand vows ever could. Apollo had once filled rooms with speeches and left me starving. Cassian remembered medicines, meals, closed windows, and which flowers made me tired. He learned which healers I trusted and whi