The Argonauts of the Argo (Chapter 4)
The fighting itself was skipped over, but in this clash, Bellerophon and the brother-sister pair Zetes and Calais had shone far brighter than Heracles. Of course Heracles had fought valiantly too and left his mark, yet when set against the trio who could fly through the skies, their display in naval combat had been notably feeble.
Naturally, that “feeble” level still placed them shoulder-to-shoulder with any ordinary hero. They had literally charged straight into the jaws of Charybdis—a descendant of that monster—gripping its throat right at the vortex of swirling sea water, ripping out every tooth and tearing off the tongue with their bare hands. The episode was recorded in glowing detail by the Argo’s chronicler.
Of course they also recorded the magnificent performances of the other three precisely.
“Bellerophon on Pegasus, Zetes and Calais spreading their wings, slashing through the waves while the enemy thrashed about like a fish on dry land— it was nothing short of a one-sided slaughter.”
“Oh, impressive stuff.”
“I wish I could write in that style.”
“You can’t be saying you actually wrote one of Hades’s myths.”
“Damn it, I’m going to shine next time!”
“Hehehe!”
This was none other than what Perseus 2 had been writing, and his comrades were praising his talent.
“Though achievements are wonderful, I’m grateful no one died. With their lives still intact, they’ll get another chance to shine on the next voyage.”
“That’s true—!”
Whoa whoa whoa!
The crew of the Argo was laughing loudly as they took a short break. Perseus 2 watched them, chuckling himself, then continued writing while sitting right beside his wife, Achilles, in the middle of the current situation.
“After defeating the descendant of Charybdis, they immediately set sail and anchored at an island.”
“A strong wind blew in—almost like a lie—and pushed the ship forward. The waves themselves seemed to help, lifting the vessel like it was being carried by the gods. The speed was so swift that even after the heroes left the oars, the ship kept moving. Every time Orpheus played his proud lyre, the pace quickened, and they reached a place no one had expected.”
“This was also the very spot where Jason’s ancestors had arrived. It was Lemnos Island, where the ancestors of the Argo had supposedly lived for more than two years. The island was cursed by the goddess Aphrodite, so only the smell of women lived here. But thanks to the ancestors of the Argo who had once seeded the place, male residents had multiplied greatly, and it no longer teemed with only women like when the ancestors first arrived.”
“The line of Hippolyte the queen still ruled here, and the descendants of Lemnos welcomed us as if they were grateful for the legends of the Argo.”
Perseus 2 paused, head tilting. Achilles rose beside him and shot the noisy companions inside the palace a jealous glare. This was the palace of Queen Hippolyte of Lemnos, yet even at night the noise showed no sign of stopping.
“Done?”
“As long as it’s outside of battle records, tomorrow is fine.”
“Then hand over the parchment. I’m taking it back to the ship.”
“Sleeping?”
“Yeah… I’m tired… Hwaaarm…”
The moment night fell she had been demanding sex, but now that the women’s attendants were taking her to bed, Perseus 2 straightened up too, his exhaustion plain to see. In his childlike form he yawned age-appropriately, while the other heroes—tired or not—were tearing into meat and drinking, laughing loudly and boasting to one another while pulling women onto their laps.
Perseus 2 thought they looked happy and joined in, tasting a few of the dishes prepared especially to welcome the heroes. The feast was lavish, satisfying even his modern palate. He wondered, Isn’t this better than fast food?
“Oho! Perseus! The fight’s over already?!”
“Just finished. How about Heracles? Was he having fun? There are lipstick marks all over his face.”
“Haha! The reason is I’m just that popular! This too is a blessing from my ancestor!”
He waved at the group he had been playing with earlier, and the girls squealed with delight. Though he felt a twinge of jealousy, he remembered Achilles had already gone to bed and shook his head, speaking calmly.
“You’ll write that Heracles 4 also has outstanding stamina, worthy of the name of all those Heracles?”
“That’s fine, but the sight of everyone else sleeping while he’s scribbling away alone is a bit pitiful. He may not be as tired as the rest since he didn’t fight, but he missed his chance to earn fame! I feel sorry for him and let it slip. Hehe!”
“Thanks for worrying. Still, this is my role, so it’s fine. To be honest, being surrounded by so many heroes is more than enough for me.”
“You’re not greedy~! Well, that modesty is why Hera praised you!”
“You’ve met Hera?”
“Of course! The one who gave Heracles his nickname is none other than Hera. To check if I was worthy of the name, she performed a bloodline test and bestowed my deeds along with it. That’s why I joined the 11th Argo. Iolaus helped me meet her in the middle.”
“I always thought the ancestors Heracles and Iolaus met from the start, but apparently not?”
“Not at all! You know this part better than I do, but most temples were closed until recently, right? Finding a priest to speak with the gods was like reaching for the stars. The only one we found was Iolaus. She, too, had received a nickname from Hera, but since she was a woman it was difficult to perform deeds, so she was ordered to follow me instead.”
“Oh? There are many reasons to receive a nickname.”
Danae, who had received Perseus 2’s name as her own, was a special case too. From a young age she had been destined to give birth to the successor of Perseus, so she immediately gave him the name. In that sense Perseus 2 was a rather easy case for receiving a nickname.
“There are cases where a name becomes the throne. Like Jason, who led our expedition.”
From the direction Heracles had nodded, Jason was also enjoying the night here. Having greeted the queen and politely sharing drinks with her, he looked ready to bed down at any moment.
“He’s the 11th one, but unlike us quite a few people have taken the name Jason. Was that nickname especially popular? Excluding ancestors, that’s about ten changes…”
“Hey, Perseus? Don’t ever say that in front of Jason.”
“Why?”
“Obviously, just because the front number is higher doesn’t mean it’s always good. Especially on that side, because of Medea the bloodline was cut off. Receiving a name also meant being forced to set out on the Argo expedition to pass the throne. Think about all the dead Jasons. Actually, it’s almost a pity that so many guys named Jason died.”
“I see… so that’s why he mentioned the 11th…”
Jason the ancestor… Jason the 2nd…
3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10…
‘…How many of those ten Jasons actually survived to become kings of Iolcos?’
Perseus 2 realized once again how dangerous this expedition really was. Achilles had been running around saying the voyage would be fun, but for normal people Charybdis’s descendant was basically unbeatable. Merely taking part in the Argo expedition was enough to raise one’s name high.
“Unlike you, our bloodlines are still connected, so we’re practically brothers. They say a descendant of Perseus fathered Heracles, and our families still maintain our blood ties? We’re just distant relatives who happened to meet.”
“Ah… I see. Then should I call you older brother? Heracles-hyung?”
“Don’t! You’ll make my hair stand up! I was only saying ‘just like that’!”
Perseus 2 stroked the hair on his hand and let out a soft laugh. Looking up at the giant Heracles—twice the height of an adult man—Perseus 2’s neck quickly ached. He shook his head a few times, transformed into his adult form, and Heracles gladly patted his shoulder and moved to his place.
“Can you drink?”
“Well, I’ve never tried. Unfortunately, I’m not just a facade priest.”
“What?! Really? You serious? Then drink with me until we die! Hahaha!”
“I have a wife… but is it okay?”
“Of course!” Perseus 2 clapped him on the back. Every time Heracles arrived, red handprints left marks on Perseus 2’s back, but they were not unpleasant. In the end Perseus 2 joined the wild night party of the rowdy group and headed to the place where the lyre sounded. The crowd he had first met was already drunk and welcomed him warmly.
“Hey~! Perseus~! Perfect timing!”
Especially Peleus and Bellerophon were making a ruckus. One side was furiously scratching his coarse brown beard, and the handsome blond next to him was hanging off his mare, Pegasus, in a state of Hera-be status.
“What were you doing that you’re so noisy?”
“Hey hey! Listen to me! Bellerophon here got completely drunk and has been repeating the same battle story from earlier! He’s always been the type who lives on self-importance, but he’s been spouting the exact same lines non-stop, and I’m about to punch him when he gets on my nerves! So what now?”
“Mwahaha~? No way~! I can beat the three of you alone~!”
“You said you were done, you drunk! If we’re being logical, Heracles could beat the three of you too!”
“What?! No way~?! Uhhh?!”
“Even when sober he’s irritable, but drunk he’s even more irritable!”
Everyone laughed heartily at Peleus’s words.
“This old man~! Full of beard~! Ugly—?!”
“PRRRRRR!”
“—Gueh?!”
After seeing their master’s disgrace, Pegasus suddenly kicked Bellerophon in the rear with its hind legs, burying his head in the ground. A huge sound came from a human skull, and the atmosphere immediately dropped. Yet Peleus still looked delighted.
“Well done! We’ll clean up—throw him inside and come back!”
“Prrr… prrrr…”
Pegasus bit Bellerophon’s blond hair and dragged him away. Seeing it, Perseus 2 remembered leaving his son behind on the ship when he took Pegasus instead of bringing him to Iolcos. The black-haired boy who had been sneaking glances at Pegasus out of curiosity had seemed strangely lonely today.
“Heracles. Can we set sail looking like this? Jason’s already drunk too.”
“No rush. We’ve got plenty of time—let’s take it easy for one more day.”
“You don’t plan to stay two years like ancestor Jason, do you?”
“Don’t even joke! If anything like that happened, I’d shout and drag everyone along. Just like ancestor Heracles.”
Laughing, Heracles claimed the spot Bellerophon had occupied and called Perseus 2 over. In the end, to fit the mood, he sat down and drained his cup. The spicy taste of the wine had never touched this body before, so the drunkenness hit fast, and he worried whether his earlier fears were about to come true.
‘We really can’t set sail tomorrow. They’ll all pass out.’
Yet while his vision blurred, he worried about how long until departure. Luckily his worries were groundless, and it didn’t take long for them to leave Lemnos Island.
At most a week.
Compared to the ancestor Jason’s group who had stayed at least two years, it was shockingly short.