The Return of the Lord (2)
"What did you say about Sisyphus?"
The air in the room grew heavy. Clea’s grip tightened on Salmoneus’s collar. "Sisyphus is dead?" Golden fury flared in her eyes. "Say that unlucky nonsense one more time, and you’ll find out just how hateful a mouth that speaks without thinking can be."
Salmoneus averted his gaze. It was, in effect, an admission of defeat. When Clea released him, he brushed off his clothes and stood up, his demeanor filled with dissatisfaction. "I don't know why you're being so hostile. Anticlea, isn't it because Sisyphus ruined your father that you're tied to this land?"
"Didn't I just warn you to watch your tongue?"
"If it weren't for Sisyphus, things wouldn't have become this twisted. Aren't you and I in the same position?"
"You really have no idea of your place, do you, Salmoneus?"
"I don't know my place? No. I am here to reclaim the compensation I am owed. Corinth should have been my territory. The people of the land would have been better off that way, too."
"Quiet, Salmoneus!" Aeolus could bear it no longer and roared. "I have no need for someone who only makes noise with their words. Do you not even know what Sisyphus has done for this territory?"
"Words, you say? I have a plan for everything..."
"While you were busy flapping your gums, Sisyphus had already moved ten times over!"
Salmoneus was cowed by his father's majestic roar. Aeolus turned to look at Clea. "Anticlea, I have heard the stories. I hear you have been filling the void left by Sisyphus."
"...It is not quite that much."
"I have known for some time that you have been helping the family bit by bit. Of course, there were issues between our house and Autolycus, but that is separate from you. I hold no ill will."
"...I see."
Clea answered in a small voice. Salmoneus let out a scoff. "This is absurd. Not only do you favor the second son over me, the eldest, but now you even treat his fiancée better than me?"
"What Corinth needs is someone who will work for Corinth. Salmoneus, not a selfish man who only cares for himself like you."
"How dare you insult the king of a nation...!"
Just as Salmoneus’s forehead began to flush a deep red, Alcyone burst in from outside the door. "It’s a disaster! A demonic beast has appeared!"
Demonic beast. At those two words, the atmosphere in the room shifted instantly. Clea asked with a sharp gaze, "Location, rank, and numbers?"
"They are coming down from the northern riverbank. I don't know the exact rank, but they said there was a giant that looked like a high-ranker. There are at least twenty of them!"
Aeolus spoke with gravity. "In the last year, the attacks have been too frequent. That is why I sought a guild cooperation treaty with Athens." He raised his head. "Salmoneus, I will give you a chance, based on the last shred of trust I have. This will be the deciding factor in whether Corinth forms an alliance with Elis."
"What do you mean?"
"You have enough troops, I assume. You have always been diligent in martial arts, after all."
Salmoneus nodded. If there was one field where he had been able to beat Sisyphus since childhood, it was martial arts. His skill with the sword and spear had always been superior. That was the reason so many soldiers had followed Salmoneus when he left Corinth; he had been close with the guards.
"One thousand fully equipped soldiers are ready for immediate deployment."
"Then go and stop the beasts. If you achieve this feat, I will at least acknowledge you as a king."
"Ha, you said it yourself!"
Salmoneus left the reception room with confidence. Clea moved to follow him.
"Sister, where are you going?"
"Mind your own business."
"You aren't thinking of fighting the beasts, are you?" Alcyone felt a flicker of worry. She had heard that Clea had occasionally helped the villagers when low-rank monsters appeared. Clea scoffed.
"I'm not a hero; how could I do that? All I know how to do is run." She tied her hair back and added, "A hero party stayed in our territory yesterday. I should still be able to catch up to them."
"Really? Who is it..."
Clea didn't wait to answer and bolted out of the mansion like an arrow.
Tap, tap, tap.
The scenery blurred past her eyes in an instant. The air entering her lungs refreshed her entire body, turning into rhythmic breaths as she exhaled. The sensation of strength surging into her calves with every step, the feeling of her body being supported—it was almost like flying. Clea loved running the most. She was born with a talent for it. Ever since she was young, whenever her siblings tried to steal her bread, she could always outrun them.
"Haa, haa, haa."
The heavier her breathing became, the clearer her mind grew. The thoughts that had felt like tangled knots of yarn began to unravel, little by little. "Acting like he knows everything, spouting off about other people's business, that unlucky bastard."
Salmoneus’s words resurfaced. The frustration of not having scolded him harder to his face rose up belatedly. He had been like that since they were children. Whenever she and Sisyphus were developing a new invention or studying, he would always interfere.
"Sisyphus."
The face of her missing fiancé surfaced once more. She didn't need to force the memory; she hadn't forgotten him for a single day. "That idiot." She called him that out of habit. Though, she hadn't called him that even once since that day.
Clea had been running since she was a child. She ran, and ran, and ran again. If someone asked why she ran so much, it was surely because she wanted to escape that wretched household.
—Fast feet and a cunning mind, you are the perfect talent. Anticlea, you are still young, but you must help your father with his work.
Clea's father, Autolycus, was the son of the thief god, Hermes. The family she was born into made thievery their family business and considered plunder an honor. Autolycus had forced Clea to dress as a boy and sent her to the market to steal when she was only five. Clea, with her fast feet, was never caught, but she hated the act itself. Clea didn't want to be a thief; she wanted to be a hero. A hero who achieved truly honorable feats and was praised by the people.
So, one day, Clea intentionally ruined a job. The grand plan to rob the Athenian arsenal was completely botched, and Clea was caught by the soldiers. Autolycus, fearing suspicion from the soldiers, pretended she was a total stranger and abandoned her.
—I know nothing of this. What did you say the child's name was? Ah, 'The one who is angry,' is it? We have no child with such a name in our family.
Clea had given the alias her father had told her to use. After being scolded by the Athenian soldiers for a while, Clea, being young, was eventually released. Since she had been cross-dressing, there was no one who would recognize her. When Clea returned home a few days later, she said she didn't want to steal anymore, that she wanted to be a hero. But when she said that to her father, the response was cold.
—Nonsense! Your name is Anticlea. It means 'The one who has abandoned fame.' Isn't that a fitting name for a master thief who will never be caught? Plunder is a blessing and a family business bestowed upon our house by my great father, the god Hermes. How can a child be so ignorant of a father's heart?
Clea left the house that day and ran blindly. She ran, and ran, and even when she reached a river, she ran to the end of it and ran along the other side. And then, one day, she arrived in an unknown land.
—Wow, you're really fast.
She met a boy who was herding cattle. —That's killer. How can you run so fast? It was the first time her running skills had ever been praised.
"Haa, haa."
She didn't know how to express the feelings she held for him now. Perhaps the feelings she had during their childhood friend days were still frozen in time. The look on Sisyphus’s face when he realized she was a girl after all those years was a sight to behold. He had grown into a brilliant intellectual. A friend she could be proud of anywhere. Seeing him gain recognition from more and more people made her believe that she, too, could one day walk the path of a hero. She gained strength. If possible, she wanted to remain his friend. Perhaps... even more than that. She had harbored greedy, selfish desires.
"Haa, haa, haa. Ah, really!"
Her pace quickened. Crack! Golden sparks flew from Clea’s footprints as she kicked off the ground. But how did it come to this? How did things get so twisted? When her father’s thievery was exposed, she had even thought it served him right. He was a man who had to be punished one day. But what did her family have to do with it? She never imagined her own destiny would be ruined because of that. She never thought her dream of being a hero would be blocked before it even began.
'It wasn't... Sisyphus's fault.'
It wasn't, but at the time, she was so emotionally volatile that she wanted to vent her anger on anyone. As Salmoneus had said, at the time, it felt as if Sisyphus had done it to destroy her family and ruin her. She was young then. Now, she knew well that Sisyphus had no responsibility for it. In fact, it was because her father, Autolycus, had summoned Hermes to ask for revenge that Corinth had been completely destroyed. A horrific, unforgettable tragedy had befallen Sisyphus as well. Sisyphus must have hated the sight of her, the daughter of his enemy. As things went from bad to worse, Clea found it impossible to even speak to him.
Five years. Five years had passed in that uncomfortable state, and Sisyphus had become an adult first. She had also become an adult this year. But Sisyphus could not attend the ceremony. Her heart had raced when he said he had visited the Underworld last time. Where on earth was he now?
'Still, he is Sisyphus.'
There was no way he would have fallen off a cliff and died a dog's death. There was no way that wise man was destined to die so absurdly. That would be the fault of the Moirai goddesses. So, she would do what she could until he returned. Even if she couldn't fill all the holes he left behind. Even if she couldn't fill the holes he had made.
"Hey, you in front! Wait!"
Clea, who had sprinted through the forest and onto the road in an instant, spotted a group of men and women and shouted at the top of her lungs. The four of them turned their bodies at the sound of her voice. She had barely caught up. They were the heroes who had stayed at the inn. If it were them, they would surely be able to subdue the demonic beasts that had appeared in Corinth.
"Who is it?"
"What is your business?"
Clea caught her breath, wiped the rain-like sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand, and straightened her waist. How should she introduce herself? She was momentarily at a loss for words, but there was no time to waste. She shouted with dignity.
"I am Anticlea, wife of the Lord of the Corinthian house. I am formally requesting that you take on the commission to subdue the demonic beasts."
"Subdue demonic beasts, you say."
"It seems they appeared while we were away."
As the heroes murmured among themselves, one woman stepped out from among the burly figures.
"Subdue demonic beasts. Is this a formal commission, miss?"
Neat bangs cut at a clean angle. Armor with side slits that emphasized her slender waist and long legs. The tear mole beneath her cold eyes exuded a mysterious charm. She was a young woman with a sharp jawline that contrasted with Clea, who still had the softness of youth, giving the clear impression that she was an adult.
"It hasn't been registered with the guild yet, but I promise you a certain reward."
The hero unfolded a fan made of sheep's wool, covered her mouth, and declared, "I always welcome the subjugation of demonic beasts. As Theseia, daughter of Aethra, granddaughter of Poseidon, and as Theseus, the hero of Beta, I accept your commission."