Quotes / Virtuous Sons: A Greco-Roman Xianxia

Character Quotes

"Something as banal as lethal poison was no excuse for a legionnaire to stop marching."

— Solus, "The Last Son of Rome"

"If I was struck by tribulation lightning for my hubris, I would simply not die."

— Lio Aetos, "The Young Griffon"

"The tribulations are the best part."

— Lio Aetos, "The Young Griffon"

“If you won’t suffer with us, then you’re all worse than a corpse!” I shouted. My heart thrummed in fierce approval. “If you won’t step out from behind your curtain, then what use are your designs? If you won’t join us on the stage, then begone to the stands!”

— Lio Aetos, "The Young Griffon"

“Only a fool denies that the sun rises. And only a fool feels the need to point it out."

— Damon Aetos, " The Island in The Sun"

“There is nothing in this life that cannot be explained.”

— Aristotle, "The Father Of Rhetoric"

If you must break the law, do it to seize power.

— Gaius Julius Caesar, "The Tyrant Of The West"

“But not everyone is made of iron, Griffon. For some people, the fire only burns.”

— Selene, "The Scarlet Oracle"

“Our wedding will be about us,” she said imperiously. “And it will be better than Niko’s wedding in every way, or you will feel this mommy’s wrath. Do you understand?”

— Lydia Aetos, "The Young Miss-tocrat"

“The world would be a boring place if every man could understand it by the time he was twenty. Come, let’s do some sit ups.”

— Socrates, "The Gadfly"

“Good, that’s another lesson learned. Some say that cultivation only makes us more of what we are—that applies to women just the same. They only become more insufferable the further they advance.”

— Socrates, "The Gadfly"

“Life isn’t a competition to see who can layer more meaning into a single phrase. Give me clarity.”

— Socrates, "The Gadfly"

“In general, how a man refines the aspects of his virtue is less important than what that virtue is. It’s a common saying that the grandest monuments are built upon the strongest foundations. Virtue is that foundation—it is excellence of the soul, and it requires constant work. That is what cultivation is, stripped of all our proud descriptions. Refinement of the body and soul.”

— Socrates, "The Gadfly"

“These statues are memorials to the stories we were raised on.” What had at first been an unassumingly handsome face, when I marked him as an easy target, was now made just the slightest bit wild by his passion. “These are the stars in the sky that we looked up at as children, that our parents promised us we could grasp in our hands if only we gave it everything we had. These men and women, these giants and monsters and holy seers, they’re the curtain of heaven above. No matter who you are, no matter where you are, every son of Helen sees the same thing when he looks up at the cosmic glory.”

— Chilon, " The Obal Orator of Raging Heaven"

“If she’s old enough to be a wife, she’s old enough to get beaten.”

— Dona, "Oracle Of The Broken Tide Cult"

Conversations

Lio Aetos : "No."

Solus : "No?" I snarled

Lio Aetos : "You were lost", Griffon said simply. "But I found you".