The Anatolian Peninsula, A War Sparked by a Golden Apple!

Is this something a carbon-based life form can even conceive?

Even with the cheat-like Simulated Universe that shares growth experiences and accumulates years,

The stats he would have upon entering the Simulated Universe would still be those of an ordinary person.

At best, his mental willpower might be stronger than average, and he might have some undiscovered talents...

But thinking of the worst-case scenario, Night didn't have high expectations.

For an ordinary human to grow to the point of casually blowing up a star, well...

Even the demigods and great heroes in Greek mythology at their peak couldn't casually blow up stars.

If he ever reached that level,

Who knows how many years would have passed...

This can't be considered a small goal by any measure.

After asking Herta how to use the Simulated Universe and understanding the relevant information,

He simply decided to ignore the unreliable 'Herta'.

He was going to try the Simulated Universe on his own.

Rather than setting a far-off, grand goal like blowing up stars, it's better to be practical and grounded for now.

'I hope it's a world where I can change my current situation and quickly gain strength...'

Thinking and Praying to whatever God that was, he walked through the portal of light.

And then—

With a sudden blackout of his vision, Night's consciousness was abruptly transported into a serene, pitch-black starry sky.

Countless stars twinkled in the darkness,

A tremor of realization ran through his mind: these glimmers represented countless universal concepts.

Instinctively, he moved toward the closest starry light.

The starlight suddenly intensified, transforming into a beautiful world!

At that moment, many pieces of information and the external voice of 'Herta' appeared in his mind.

"First time in the Simulated Universe,

Don't die too quickly,

I still have some residual power from the Stellar Core; though it can't directly make you stronger, it can help you reshape your destiny at critical moments.

Seize the opportunity, choose your goals wisely, and you can contact me through the relay station anytime.

Then—

I will help you, reborn."

As the ethereal voice faded,

Night's consciousness fully immersed into the Simulated Universe.

When he regained awareness, he found himself in a completely unfamiliar world.

[Simulation Start—]

[Identity auto-conversion, successful randomization.]

...

Time: 1193 B.C.

Location: Western end of the Anatolian Peninsula, Hellespont Strait,

In a city southeast,

Night's consciousness gradually awoke, along with the brief information and memories from his simulated identity,

He quickly understood the world he had entered.

Heracles, the most famous hero of ancient Greece, had defeated the Spartan king, Hippocoön, and killed all his sons.

Far away, Hippocoon's exiled brother, Tyndareus, returned to Sparta with a foreign princess, becoming the new king of Sparta.

The princess, Leda, bore him four children.

However, two of them were not his biological children.

This obviously involved the greatest playboy of the Greek mythological world—the king of the gods, Zeus.

Undoubtedly, this was another instance of the god-king descending to the mortal realm, seducing a mortal woman, and siring children, putting a cuckold's hat on the Spartan king.

Among these children was one girl, Helen, renowned as one of the most beautiful women in Greek history.

If one were to ask who was the most beautiful among the Greek deities, they wouldn't be able to choose.

After all, there were many...

Noble goddesses like Hera, Athena, and even the widely celebrated goddess of beauty, Aphrodite, Artemis,

And many others—

There were many goddesses famed for their beauty, making it hard to choose.

But if one were to ask who was the most beautiful among humans, they would be able to answer easily.

In ancient Greece, only two women could be said to be the most beautiful.

First, there was Pandora, who was blessed by the gods and brought calamity to the world.

Later, there was Helen, whose beauty sparked a famous war involving many Greek heroes,

Absolutely deserving the title of the most beautiful woman in Greece...

Renowned for her beauty, stirring the world's turmoil...

And that war was the famous Trojan War.

Helen, the lady whose beauty was unmatched in Greece...

Even the hero, Theseus from the Attica Peninsula, once attempted to abduct her.

Suitors trampled the threshold of the Spartan king,

Among them was the wise and naturally commanding hero, Odysseus.

As the suitors' numbers swelled and internal conflicts arose, causing King Tyndareus of Sparta great distress, the clever Odysseus advised the kind: "Decide who can marry Helen by drawing lots and have all suitors swear an oath never to attack Helen's husband and to aid him whenever needed."

After all suitors agreed, the Aegean Sea's chieftains chose Menelaus, the handsome son of Atreus, by drawing lots.

Upon Tyndareus's death, Menelaus became the king of Sparta.

The story should have ended there as another tale of a hero winning the maiden.

But then, Eris, the goddess of discord, who was not invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis(the parents of Achilles), sought revenge.

And so, she brought a golden apple, inscribed, "For the most beautiful" (Ancient Greek: τῇ καλλίστῃ," and threw it into the wedding, provoking a squabble among the attendant goddesses over for whom it had been meant.

The goddesses thought to be the most beautiful were Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite, and each one claimed the apple.

They started a quarrel, so they asked Zeus to choose one of them; however, knowing that choosing any of them would bring him the hatred of the other two, Zeus did not want to take part in the decision.

He thus appointed Paris, the prince of Troy, to judge and select the most beautiful.

They each offered power, wisdom, and the world's most beautiful woman—Helen—as bribes.

(Hera offered ownership of all of Europe and Asia.

Athena offered skill in battle, wisdom and the abilities of the greatest warriors.

Aphrodite offered the love of the most beautiful woman on Earth: Helen of Sparta..)

Paris succumbed to the allure of beauty and chose Aphrodite, who promised him Helen.

This led him to Sparta, where, with the goddess of love's enchantment, he abducted Helen and stole vast treasures.

When King Menelaus returned and found out, his fury ignited the spark, starting the war.

And Helen's suitors, who between them represented most of Achaea's strength, wealth, and military prowess, were obliged to help bring her back.

Thus, the whole of Greece moved against Troy in force,

Setting off the famous Trojan War...

.

.

At this moment, Night found himself in the city of Troy.

His identity was merely one of the many Trojan civilians,

Recently conscripted into the army due to the impending storm of war—battles between heroes,

Drafted into the defensive forces to resist the Greek army led by heroes like Achilles...

Night: …!

In this grand war, he was not on the side of the eventual victors but with the inevitably defeated Trojans.

Not to mention soon facing the invincible hero Achilles...

What kind of jinx is this Herta?

He might very well lose his life in his first Simulated Universe attempt here.

But—

Thinking about the many famous heroes that would appear in this war,

Night recalled the voice of Herta right before entering the Simulated Universe,

An opportunity to reshape fate...

It sounded mystical, but putting it simply,

It was a chance to acquire the template of a hero he came into contact with.

Inheriting that hero's talents, skills, and conceptual weapons (whether Noble Phantasms, divine artifacts, or mere arms),

Completely transforming a hero's achievements into his own nourishment.

Sharing growth experiences, accumulating years...

The power of the template wouldn't grant him the peak strength of the hero directly,

But it could alter his talents from the soul to the body,

Allowing him to grow rapidly, reaching the same level as that hero, and eventually... surpassing them!

.