The Moon Is Clearly a Fool (4)
And so Artemis and Atalante set out on the hunt.
At first Atalante had been whining, but once she settled down she decided it was a fine opportunity and threw herself into it in earnest. The hunter duo racked up a spectacular record. The two of them worked so seamlessly together that they casually shot and killed animals far larger than themselves, and every time they hauled a carcass back they were met with cheers from the crowds.
But then another problem cropped up.
You might wonder what could possibly be wrong this time — and it wasn't a bad thing, exactly, but it was an important problem all the same.
The meat is rotting from sheer excess!
They mainly hunted beasts and monsters that killed people, and creatures like that tended to be enormous. In a world where city-states operated in isolation precisely because of monster disturbances, finding and killing them wasn't difficult — but Artemis and Atalante were hunting a little too enthusiastically.
"Lord Perseus, what are we supposed to do with all of this?"
"Have you distributed it to the vagrants?"
"Yes. There happened to be people who'd fled this far after suffering at the hands of foreign enemies. We handed them whole carcasses to fill their stomachs."
"And over there?"
"We've even given a chunk each to today's guests…"
"And there's still this much left?"
"That's right…"
We offered tributes every single day without fail. The throngs pouring in day after day were dumping their surplus wealth into faith without a second thought. We'd already had to regulate how much could be offered each day and ask the believers to show some restraint — and now, with this flood of meat crashing in on top of everything, we'd finally reached an unmanageable level.
In this era, having meat as a side dish every day was already excessive, and on top of that we were burning meat as offerings almost daily. Anyone looking on would think we were lunatics, and that was exactly what we were doing. If this were some modern conception of ancient Greece it might be one thing, but this was a world crawling with monsters, so there was no hesitation about hunting them — which only made the problem worse.
"Who even transported all this meat? We agreed to keep this secret from the Spartoi, so it couldn't have been them… And Sisyphe or Agamemnon wouldn't have the range to move it…"
"Well… it was Lord Perseus's eldest son…"
"Eldest son?"
"Lord Epiphos."
"Ah."
For a moment, when they said eldest son, I wondered who they meant. Even the attendants who followed me wouldn't casually call a black horse the eldest son, so I bowed my head.
"Thank you for calling that child the eldest son. Epiphos will be happy too. He's secretly self-conscious about not being human."
"Oh, no! At first we were doubtful ourselves, but communication was so smooth we couldn't dare ignore him… If anything, he's smarter than us uneducated ones… He even helped us out today…"
"Helped?"
"Many of us attendants never learned our letters, so he helped with the calculations…"
"I wasn't calling him smart as empty flattery. Come to think of it, I haven't seen Epiphos today — is that related to this?"
"Lord Epiphos carried Lady Artemis and Lady Atalante on a chariot and raced off. All the meat piled up from yesterday and today must be thanks to Lord Epiphos's hauling ability."
"I'm not praising him just because he's Lord Perseus's son, but that child seems at least ten times stronger than an ordinary stallion. Even with a load that made the chariot creak, he didn't pant once."
"I'm not joking — he's been seducing every mare in the vicinity."
"Good grief. He disappears for a while and that rascal…"
A child with legs that could race from Argos to Mount Olympus in a single stretch. We didn't share a language, but we had plenty of ways to communicate, and we'd built up a great deal of affection — our family's eldest son. Every time the attendants recounted what had happened, the proud image of my son rose vividly before my eyes.
"Should I praise my son for being amazing, or call him a fool… With that nature of his, he treats running around as pure instinct, so he must have gladly escorted the two of them…"
More than that — a chariot? Where did he get that?
Sounds cool.
I want to ride it once myself.
"Can't be helped."
I'll ask him to give me a ride later.
"Yes… They really are hopeless."
"Right?"
"Seeing the three of them heading out together so amicably, I just couldn't bring myself to stop them…"
That wasn't what I'd meant, but the attendants who didn't know my inner thoughts gazed at me with admiring eyes as I pondered seriously. They seemed to believe everything I uttered carried deep significance — but unfortunately I was a man too, so of course I had yearnings of that sort.
The citizens spread rumors about the last incident and seem to hold my character in high regard, but I get the feeling the attendants have started idolizing me right along with them.
It wasn't just a feeling.
It was actually true.
So I resolved once more to watch my mouth and made a request of them.
"Even if it's a monster that harms people, food ingredients shouldn't be wasted carelessly. I happen to have something in mind, so we'll use it all up today. Starting tomorrow, I'll convey my intentions to just the two of them, set a fixed quantity, and reduce what they bring in."
"You already have something in mind — as expected of Lord Perseus."
The attendants laughing and puffing me up were terrifying. They were speaking out of goodwill, but unfortunately it was just an idea that had popped into my head, so I'd rather they not inflate me.
"It seems difficult to directly reconcile Lady Artemis and Lord Zeus, so we'll need a god to mediate between them. Here, I'll try asking the one who's on bad terms with Lady Artemis yet closest to her."
"Lord Apollo?"
"Yes. The day isn't dark yet, so we need to move quickly. We'll be short-handed, so please use my name to request help from the believers. We'll hold a festival and use up all the meat."
"Then we'll need something to drink…"
"We don't have any stockpiled. Just enough for us and our families for the moment…"
"That's not nearly enough…"
I shook my head. I had the attendants follow me and pointed at something tucked in the corner of the warehouse, and their expressions turned very surprised. Of course they did — what was stored there was something even the attendants couldn't casually touch.
"Besides the river water I received from Lord Hades, I also have wine I brought back from Lady Demeter's forest. The quantity isn't huge, but it should be enough for a day's use, so let's use this."
"What?!"
"You must be joking!"
"Does it look like a joke?"
"Of course it does! Lady Demeter's wine — you said it was the one Lord Dionysus himself cultivated! How can we use a miracle elixir that restores even old men's vitality for a festival?!"
"Medicine is meant to be used. I didn't bring it intending to monopolize it myself, so don't hold back. Also, anyone who tries to monopolize this wine — I'll take their life in the names of myself and Lady Demeter, so tell them to enjoy it in moderation."
"Y-yes, understood."
"And is the person who sold Pasiphaulos's hide last time here?"
"Yes!"
At my words, a maidservant jumped out from among the attendants and stood proudly with one hand raised. She was quite clever and had her uses.
"You did well back then. Even though I permitted a bit of luxury, you returned it properly, so I trust you to a degree. I'd like to entrust you with a task this time as well — is that alright?"
"Of course! I'll accept it as an honor!"
Her appearance, even more fired up than last time, was comical. As my name value rose, the attendants' attitudes had changed too. I had hoped for a softer, more laughing atmosphere like before — how had it ended up like this?
"I'll distribute some of my wealth to you, so use it without holding back and gather those who sing well and have good spirits. If you say we're holding a grand festival to honor Lord Apollo, most will understand. Emphasize that this is a festival held in my name, and that since Lady Artemis descended during the last trial, Lord Apollo will surely look down as well."
"That's a sweet proposal no courageous poet could resist."
"Exactly. There will surely be many who rush over to show off their talent."
Then suddenly the face of one of my acquaintances came to mind. When it came to stories about song, you couldn't leave out the man with that childhood name. A handsome fellow with golden hair and blue eyes, a bit comical yet with absolutely solid singing skill, and a good personality besides — the master of the lyre.
No way.
No matter how lucky I was with these things, there was no way Orpheus would suddenly appear here.
But…
"Ah, before you go."
"Yes?"
"If there's a handsome man with golden hair and blue eyes who plays the lyre well, please ask his name. If you ask his name and my prediction is correct, tell him that this Perseus needs his friend Orpheus and to lend me his strength. He's a man deep in camaraderie, so he'll understand with that. If that man is there, we won't need any other riffraff, so keep that in mind."
"Surely he wouldn't be in Argos with such perfect timing? Even for Lord Perseus, that's hard to believe."
"You never know. Fate is mysterious, isn't it? They say humans entrust suitable positions or duties to those with appropriate talent. If he's one loved by the god of music, he'll surely be here. At a festival held in the dead of night when even the sun doesn't rise, where one can taste the miracle of Lord Apollo descending — wouldn't it rather be strange if there were no such musician?"
"And if he's not?"
"It may sound like an excuse, but if he's not, then he simply wasn't that great a person."
"Ahh—!"
At my words she seemed to realize something. Her eyes went round and she dashed off like a shot. Her footsteps were so fast that after one blink even her back was gone.
Did I say something profound? It didn't mean much.
In the end it was just "nice if he's there, fine if not."
"Haha. What's wrong? Surely he won't be there? If he is, I'll call myself a prophet."
The attendants still remaining all looked at me curiously. They were busy pondering among themselves whether I'd said it as empty words or if there was really something in my heart.
Wait… I went and told them to call him, but if he actually shows up in this atmosphere, it might cause more problems…?
No way.
Surely not.
I hate more baseless rumors spreading, so don't you dare appear.