Hestia's Hymn (11)
Ababababa~!
Jason was trembling with a face gone deathly blue, looking for all the world like some poor bastard who'd reincarnated into the wrong damn router. Ancaeus, at least, hadn't done anything stupid, so he seemed fairly composed—though a closer look showed his expression had darkened. Fortunately Hestia had only teased Jason a little before taking her leave; she claimed her hair had gotten mussed from the long journey and thoughtfully stepped out so she could wash up.
So in the end it was just the men left…
Thanks to that, Jason looked like an absolute wreck.
"What the hell is this, what is it, what is it… Why would someone like Lady Hestia come to a dump like this… Just what kind of crap have you been pulling out there that you've got a goddess tagging along… And last time too—do you have some kind of grudge against me or what?! Aang?!"
"Why would I? I told you not to do it, so why the hell did you?"
"An old friend shows up with a woman, so I just wanted to get friendly! Ever since I became king more and more people act all stiff around me, so I figured at least you wouldn't mind if I made a complete fool of myself—and of all people it had to be Lady Hestia?! I finally become king of Iolcos and you show up just to ruin meee~!"
"It's not like that. Lucky for you Lady Hestia just laughed it off, so relax. She likes the affairs of the lower world and enjoys pretty much everything, so if you apologize properly and swear you'll keep your promise she won't hold a grudge."
"But I already promised! I already promised!"
"Yeah, you did. Still, she won't ask for anything too outrageous, so count yourself lucky."
Jason grabbed my shoulders and shook me, demanding to know what the hell was lucky about any of this. Even so, the alcohol had worn off and he'd kept his life, so maybe he really did feel lucky—he caught his breath soon enough. If it had been any other god instead of Hestia, I couldn't even imagine what might have happened. Jason had gotten off easy.
"Damn it, I always thought any goddess would be obvious at a glance, like Lady Hera or Lady Hecate!"
"I thought the same thing until just recently! But once you start living in the world you find out it isn't always like that, you know? Hahahaha! Life's pretty funny, huh? Right?"
"Don't laugh!"
"How am I supposed to not laugh at this?"
I snickered and kept teasing him until Ancaeus finally caught his breath, got his composure back, and came over. He poured some of the wine he'd been drinking into my cup, sat down beside me, and slung an arm around my shoulders. Given his nature, the gesture was equal parts unnerving and friendly.
"Thanks to you, Perseus, I got to have a rare experience. Lady Hestia was even more beautiful than the rumors, and very kind."
"Jason's one thing, but what are you still doing here, Ancaeus? Weren't you supposed to sail off to Samos?"
"I left my hometown and make my living steering ships. Jason happened to take me into his service, so I've been staying here. Ah—I was just telling him about the time he met Lord Hades when you showed up. I never used to put much stock in the gods, but on the day he became king the gods themselves came down, so I've grown a lot more devout since then. Heh. Of course that's nothing to brag about in front of a true believer like you."
"Hey, Ancaeus~! Don't even bring up the gods around this guy! Look at him! He leaves his own wife somewhere and walks around with a goddess on his arm?! I'm going crazy here!"
"Hahaha. A hero of Perseus's caliber can probably get away with that much. I've heard Perseus is more devout than anyone and beloved by both gods and men. Just recently an old man who arrived in Iolcos was singing your praises until his tongue wore out, so by now your reputation has probably reached the Troad as well."
Don't tell me it was that old man from back then…
Haha…
"Anyone listening would think I just go around snatching up goddesses."
"That's rich coming from the guy who ditched his wife and showed up with Lady Hestia under his arm."
"Ah, come to think of it, Lady Hestia just mentioned something about Achilles's bond, didn't she? Yet Achilles herself is nowhere to be seen. Will she be joining us later?"
"……………………"
In the middle of taking a drink of wine my breath simply stopped. My expression turned serious and the mood sank; Jason and Ancaeus both grew serious right along with me. Jason especially stood up, came right in front of me, and peered at my face.
"Why the sudden dramatic pose? Did something happen?"
"Dramatic? I've always been like this."
I drew in another breath, swallowed hard, and knocked back more wine. Ancaeus must have found my double-breathing strange, because he pressed me too.
"You're joking, right? A joke that low is beneath even you. Just tell us when Achilles is coming."
"She's not. The only ones who came here are me and Lady Hestia."
"Something happened to her body, then."
"I haven't said a word yet."
"That's the proof. If it weren't, Lady Hestia would never have set that condition on Jason. She did it on purpose to help you—or Achilles—didn't she?"
"……………"
Ancaeus's sharp mind left me with both hands and both feet in the air. I was about to steady my breathing, finish the wine, and start talking slowly when Jason couldn't wait any longer; he clamped down on my shoulders and shoved his face right into mine.
"Perseus! We rode the same ship together! Even if I only made that promise earlier because I was scared out of my mind, I don't abandon my comrades! Back in Colchis you told me yourself! One of the virtues of a Greek hero! Friends are to be saved! ──You said those exact words!"
"I did."
"Then why are you hiding it?! I got free of Medea's curse thanks to your help, and on the day we returned from the voyage I even got the advice to offer the ship to Lord Poseidon from you! Or are you looking down on me because I only ever received help?! Is the 11th Jason, King of Iolcos, that unreliable?! Or is Greece's greatest helmsman Ancaeus not good enough for you?! If that's still not enough I'll bring soldiers and help you myself, so just spit it out!"
"Don't get so worked up. I wasn't trying to hide it."
"Then why won't you talk!"
"I needed a moment to settle my heart before I could say it. I'm a lot calmer now, but it's something I have to do before I can tell you this."
"Don't tell me…?!"
"No, that can't be. A woman like Achilles could never…"
While Jason and Ancaeus denied reality, I steadied my breathing and prepared to tell my friends the truth. Luckily Hestia had done a good job of filling the hole in my heart, so it wasn't that hard. We were already on a journey to save Achilles; the weight felt a little lighter.
"Listen carefully. Just like you guessed, my wife Achilles is dead. Two days ago a Medusa who called herself Andromeda walked into Argos, turned Lady Hestia and Achilles to stone, and fled. We managed to save Lady Hestia, but in the end I couldn't save my wife Achilles."
"Couldn't save her—you mean she died while she was still stone?!"
"Yeah. I even brought proof."
I showed them the piece of Achilles that sat in the basket. I'd covered the top with cloth because I didn't want anyone else to see it; neither of them had expected something like that to be here, and their faces twisted.
"H-hey! This is a joke, right?! I made a complete idiot of myself right next to a dead comrade?! That heroine died looking like this?! Tell me it's a joke! Please just say it's a joke!"
"I wasn't especially close to her, but seeing a shipmate end up like this still doesn't sit well."
Both of them carefully stroked and touched the stone fragment of Achilles while saying things that denied reality. Unlike Jason, who was genuinely shaken, Ancaeus stayed calm—as if he already understood why I'd come this far.
"'Doesn't sit well' doesn't even begin to cover it! She's dead! And in a ridiculous way like this…!!"
"Don't get flustered. Of the three of us, Perseus is the one who should be angriest, yet he's keeping himself fairly composed. Besides, Lady Hestia brought up Achilles, and he went out of his way to carry her remains this far—so he clearly didn't come just to visit."
Ancaeus stepped away from the seat beside me, stood in front of me, and held out his palm to help me up. Now all three of us were facing one another, so I cut straight to the point.
"Achilles isn't dead yet. Lady Hestia said she can be saved, so I was planning to go to Cyprus on the strength of that word."
"Cyprus—the island of whores?!"
"That's unexpected."
Both Jason and Ancaeus looked puzzled, so I recited the method of resurrecting Achilles that Hestia had told me. They nodded as if it made sense; Jason in particular didn't hesitate for a second and immediately started barking orders.
"Someone! Is anyone there?! Anyone at all, get in here!"
"Yes, my king! You called?"
"This is urgent! Prepare the finest ship we have and ready it to sail at once! This is more important than anything else—wake the men napping if you have to and put them to work!"
"Understood!"
He was already summoning soldiers before I'd even asked for a ship; the sight was thoroughly gallant. Jason was still a decisive man who knew how to keep faith.
"Are you really okay with this?"
"It's just one ship! And Greece's greatest helmsman happens to be right here, so take this guy along too!"
"I was planning to even if you hadn't said anything. Who else is going to get the two of you there if not me?"
They were both completely reliable.
The best friends a man could have.
But that wasn't the issue.
"No, wait—that's not what I mean. Lady Hestia made a promise with you, remember? She's definitely going to use you for the Medusa hunt too. You finally became king of Iolcos, and now you might get thrown into something that could cost you your life. Are you still fine with that?"
"Hah~! Fine with it? Not only do I get to personally crush the piece of trash who cast a shadow over my benefactor's face, I even get to shoulder the glory of slaying Medusa—why the hell would I refuse!"
"I feel exactly the same. For you, Perseus, that was a pointless question. Have you forgotten who we are?"
"………Comrades from the Argo?"
"No. We are Greek heroes. ……You mustn't forget that."
They laughed and threw their arms around my shoulders. I'd known they would react this way, yet I still couldn't hold back the wave of relief that washed over me. I knew full well that for a Greek hero, slaying a monster was a glory more precious than life itself—yet I'd still doubted their hearts, so I kept silently apologizing over and over.