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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 57
Iolaus.
Nephew of Hercules and the man Hercules trusted most.
He had accompanied Hercules on two of the twelve labors: the slaying of the Hydra and the capture of the Erymanthian boar.
He had driven Hercules' chariot and supported his movements.
Even after the labors were complete, Iolaus continued to journey alongside Hercules, fighting in countless battles. He was a seasoned, battle-hardened warrior.
And among all those storied campaigns, Iolaus was famous for experiencing one miraculous event.
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In his old age, Iolaus achieved victory by defeating Eurystheus, the king of Mycenae.
And in doing so, he experienced a miracle and he regained his youth.
The most loyal servant of Hercules, and the mightiest warrior by his side.
—Euripides’ tragedy 『The Heracleidae』
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[PR/N: The children of Hercules are known as the Heracleidae and Euripides' tragedy, The Heracleidae, tells the story of the children of Hercules seeking refuge from Eurystheus, who seeks their deaths.]
In modern terms, this miracle was interpreted as ‘Returning to the Prime of Life’.
A state in which an Enlightened One, through revelation, reconstructs their body returning it to the condition of their prime.
An ability beyond even most S-rank Hunters.
Only a rare handful had ever experienced such a miracle.
Though his name remained in the shadows of Hercules, Iolaus eventually reached a realm beyond S-rank, a monster in his own right.
The man who conquered Troy before Odysseus ever set foot there.
While some portray him as a mere youth in certain media, that’s nothing more than a device to glorify Hercules. In truth, Iolaus was strong enough to crush most other heroes from myth beneath his heel.
He was simply overshadowed by the absurdity that was Hercules.
‘No wonder the gods only gave them solo missions.’
Hercules alone was terrifying enough but everyone around him was a monster too.
Not just Theseus, Hercules' close friend now even his nephew Iolaus turned out to be a superhuman.
If they'd been grouped into team quests, the gods themselves would have suffered headaches trying to balance the fights.
“This is Iolaus, nephew of Hercules.”
“It’s an honor to meet you.”
Seeing Iolaus in person, I now understood why he was the most trusted and powerful warrior Hercules relied upon.
A massive frame, muscles hewn like chiseled stone it was like looking at a living boulder.
“He’s not quite Hercules, but still, Iolaus is someone you’d best be careful around.”
Iolaus was such a powerful warrior that even Vanessa had to whisper quietly to herself.
Of course he wasn’t ordinary.
Anyone Hercules deemed worthy to bring to a Hydra hunt couldn’t be.
‘Even with two of them, it probably wasn’t easy.’
The Hydra, infused with remnants of Typhon, had grown even more formidable—its heads had multiplied to twelve.
Even for two veteran heroes like Hercules and Iolaus, it was a fearsome challenge.
Perhaps that was why the Moirai the Fates had set their peculiar condition: only those without a thread of destiny may offer aid.
Rules set clearly with me in mind.
But there was one thing the Moirai had failed to realize: I wasn't the only one without a thread of destiny.
“Benefactor, before we start the hunt, we should gather more intel on the Hydra and its environment.”
“Sir Seojun, the villagers in Lerna seemed pretty familiar with the Hydra.”
Vanessa and Jeanne neither of them belonged to this world.
As such, the Moirai had no way of perceiving their presence, no threads bound them to this world.
Even goddesses who observe fate can’t track those whose summoning was cancelled.
That’s likely why such a rule had been established in the first place.
“Then let’s start with gathering information.”
“A wise decision.”
With Vanessa, Jeanne, and even Hercules’ nephew Iolaus now part of the team, our group decided to first gather intelligence on the Hydra.
Perhaps because the creature had caused so much destruction nearby, it was relatively easy to obtain information about it.
“The Hydra roams the swamp at night and sleeps in its cave during the day. It would be best to strike during daylight.”
That was the advice we received from the village chief of Lerna.
“Lord Hercules. One of the creature’s heads is said to be immortal. That is the warning passed on by the goddess Athena.”
A priest of the temple relayed the goddess’s words.
—The Hydra’s heads act and think independently.
—They share one body, but you can think of them as twelve separate beings!
—They’re clever, but vicious!
Nature nymphs fluttered around Hercules, babbling all sorts of lore about the Hydra.
And so, over the next two days, we gathered a wide range of information.
The conclusion we arrived at was this.
“We should target and eliminate the heads one by one.”
Divide and conquer.
According to the nymphs, each of the Hydra’s heads could be treated as an individual life form.
They shared a single body, but each head had its own behavior and temperament.
They even had individual names for each head, apparently.
The strategy of isolating and destroying each head came to mind because of the sheer length of those necks it was just barely feasible.
‘Each head is at least 15 meters long.’
For reference, that’s about the length of a fire hose.
Each of the Hydra’s heads was like a weapon in itself, whipping around with terrifying reach.
Of course, this didn’t mean we could achieve a perfect divide-and-conquer. The Hydra’s heads shared senses and awareness.
So we created a strategy that took advantage of that very trait.
“Benefactor, if possible, we should lure the Hydra out of the swamp.”
“We’ll have to strike while it’s in the cave.”
We decided the operation would begin at dawn.
That brief moment when the Hydra had finished its nightly prowl and was returning to its cave to sleep.
It was the time when the creature would be at its most vulnerable off guard, lethargic.
But as expected, the biggest threat was the Hydra’s venom.
Touch it, and death was almost guaranteed. It was a deadly poison of the worst kind.
The core challenge was this: how do we sever the Hydra’s heads without getting touched by that venom?
“Leave that part to me.”
Hercules radiated confidence.
Well, in the myths, he’d never been bothered by the venom to begin with. The only reason he brought Iolaus was because the heads kept regenerating not because the poison concerned him.
“Then I’ll trust you.”
I decided to rely on Hercules.
***
The Hydra’s lair was nestled deep within the Lerna Marshlands, at the very heart of the swamp.
To approach it undetected, we made use of Vanessa’s power.
By linking with her, we could share her aura suppression her ability to mask our presence.
Even if we didn’t make direct contact with her, simply being connected through someone who had touched her allowed that power to pass along.
When Jeanne learned the truth, she turned to Vanessa with a sharp question.
“Then why did you tell me to hold your hand before?”
“It’s simply more convenient that way. If I’m at the center, I can also help Benefactor avoid stumbling in the dark.”
Jeanne puffed out her cheeks but didn’t say anything more.
Vanessa herself said it was easier to share her ability that way, so there wasn’t much room to argue.
And so, in the early hours before dawn, we set out for the Lernaean swamps.
The darkness over the marsh was wrapped in an eerie stillness.
Ssshh… ssshh…
Something massive was stirring at the heart of the swamp.
A pitch-black, enormous body. Twelve pairs of crimson eyes glinting in the dark.
Each flick of its tongue released venomous breath into the air…
It was the Hydra, spawn of Typhon.
Sss… sss… sss…
Each of the Hydra’s heads moved differently, slithering through the swamp.
They weren’t just limbs extending from one body.
Each acted like an individual being, with its own will.
The central head was cautious rising higher than the rest, it surveyed the area, sniffing the air.
The head to the left looked anxious. It bared its fangs and kept glancing around nervously. That one was jumpy and suspicious.
Another head seemed utterly uninterested its neck drooped lazily as it lapped at muddy water, bored.
One head was hunting, another keeping watch, another feeding.
We held our breath, silently observing the Hydra’s behavior.
How much time passed?
When the sky began to glow faintly blue, the Hydra finally turned and began heading toward its cave.
Once it disappeared fully inside, Hercules stood up.
“Let’s begin.”
He strode forward with long, determined steps.
But instead of heading to the cave itself, he turned toward one of the long necks that stretched out from within it.
Each of the Hydra’s twelve heads had its own tendencies, and even the way they slept differed.
Some slumbered deep within the cave, while others let their necks hang outside to sleep.
We were aiming for the heads that had extended beyond the cave.
“Iolaus, you take the one in the swamp.”
“Understood.”
Iolaus moved toward the marsh in accordance with Hercules’ instructions.
“We’ll take that one.”
“Yes.”
“Got it.”
We slipped into the underbrush.
Through the foliage, we could see one of the Hydra’s heads resting, neck stretched out in the open.
“Vanessa.”
“Yes.”
Vanessa began walking toward it.
I summoned Napoleon’s rifle and, hiding in the brush, aimed at the head and fired a magic bullet.
Bang—!
“Kyaaaaargh!”
The Hydra screamed, woken from sleep as the bullet struck its head.
Its crimson eyes blazed with rage, scanning the surroundings.
And what it saw… was Vanessa.
Fwoooosh!
The Hydra’s head lunged straight at Vanessa.
And then.
Tatadat!
Vanessa turned on her heel and ran.
“Kyaaaaargh!”
The enraged Hydra head gave chase at terrifying speed.
Crack! Sssshhh…!
Trees, rocks, and shrubs in its path were smashed or melted away by its venomous breath.
But it wasn’t enough to catch Vanessa, who moved like a ghost through the marsh, flitting from place to place.
Boom! Ssssshh…!
The Hydra’s head failed to catch her, destroying nothing but the scenery in its fury.
“Kyaaaaah!”
Having lost all sense, the Hydra’s head chased blindly after Vanessa, stretching its neck wildly.
Then, suddenly, its eyes widened.
—Kyaaaaargh!
Another Hydra head came charging straight at it from the opposite direction.
And leading it on was Iolaus.
Thud, thud!
From yet another direction, Hercules came running, shaking the ground beneath his feet. He carried on his back the limp, unconscious head of another Hydra, felled by his club.
The Hydra realized the situation and tried to pull back its neck, but it was too late.
Three heads, rushing in from three different directions, crashed into one another without a moment’s pause tangling together in an instant.
Vanessa returned to me once her role was complete.
I checked her condition first if she'd been touched by even a trace of the Hydra’s poison, we’d need Jeanne to purify her immediately.
“Vanessa, are you alright? No venom?”
“I’m fine. It didn’t touch me.”
Thankfully, she hadn’t come into contact with any of the Hydra’s poison.
Despite being chased by that monster, Vanessa hadn’t suffered even the slightest injury.
“You did a great job.”
“Then, will I get a reward?”
“I’ll… consider something appropriate.”
I looked away with an awkward smile.
“Kreeeek! Kreek!”
The Hydra heads, tangled together, were now snapping and attacking each other in a chaotic mess.
And the more they fought, the more entangled they became.
But that didn’t mean we could hunt the Hydra just yet.
Ssssshhhhh…
A hideous miasma of poison spewed from their mouths.
Where their breath touched, grass and leaves melted, and even puddles evaporated on the spot.
It looked impossible to cut through the Hydra’s twisted necks without being hit by that venom.
Of course, that wasn’t my job.
Cutting the Hydra’s necks was Hercules’ task.
‘How is he even going to cut that?’
I’d always wondered.
The myths never explained clearly how Hercules managed to sever the Hydra’s heads without getting poisoned.
They only mentioned that he beat them unconscious with his club.
What kind of trick did he use…?
While I stared on with suspicion, Hercules reached for the weapon on his back.
It was a scythe massive and heavy-looking beyond reason.
But Hercules lifted it with ease, like it was a twig.
Vroooooom.
A bluish aura wrapped around the scythe, and then his will was layered over it.
And then…
It began to grow.
“What the hell…”
The shape of the scythe grew endlessly stretching past the swamp and into the sky.
It became large enough to cut all the Hydra's necks in a single sweep and then some.
With that absurdly oversized conceptual weapon, Hercules brought the blade down.
Slaaaash—
The entangled necks were cleaved away.
The reason Hercules could cut the Hydra’s necks without being poisoned?
He simply swung a colossally huge weapon from outside the poison’s range.
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[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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