The Return of the Lord
Watching Sisyphus appear after a year, Clea’s mind was flooded with a torrent of thoughts. What should she say to him? There were mountains of questions she wanted to ask. Where had he been all this time? What had he been doing? How had he just taken down that monster? And why did he look so different?
His appearance. Yes. It was only because she had been with him since childhood that she recognized him at all; anyone else might not have known who he was at a glance. It had been a year—barely a year—yet the length of his beard and hair was certainly not something that could grow in just twelve months. Even at a cursory look, he seemed… more masculine. It wasn't just that his physique had changed. If one looked closely, his skin was covered in scars. His eyes held a wall of distance, hardened by whatever he had endured. She wanted, more than anything, to ask him first if he was alright. She was worried. Their relationship had been drifting apart ever since the day the monsters first descended, and now, it felt as if he had gone somewhere truly beyond her reach.
“…Si.”
“Clea, do you know where the family members are?”
She had hesitated too long, trying to choose her words. Clea’s concern was buried by his question. …What was this feeling of disappointment? Did Sisyphus not want to see her? No, of course there was no reason for him to want to see her. She was the granddaughter of the thief-god he despised, the daughter of his enemy.
Corinth was being overrun by a horde of monsters. It was only natural for him to worry about his family’s safety first. ‘Right.’ Clea clenched her fists, lying to herself. ‘I… didn’t really want to see him either.’ There was no way she had been waiting for this awkward fiancé who had put off their marriage indefinitely. Corinth was more important right now. Clea steeled her heart, widened her eyes, and answered.
“They must have evacuated to the Central Hall. There are still many Cyclopes swarming the area.”
“I see. Clea, you go to the temple.”
“Wait. Didn’t you hear me? It’s crawling with high-level monsters. What do you think you’re going to do?”
Seeing Sisyphus move to leave, Clea lunged toward him. “I’ve already entrusted the subjugation to a hero party. It’s a Beta-rank, the Theseus party. Leave it to them.”
“Is that so.”
“Are you really going to go in there with nothing but your bare body? What is wrong with you? You weren’t this reckless before. At times like this, you should judge things cautiously like an intellectual. Don’t you know that just jumping in is a death sentence?”
Clea grabbed his arm. Thud. For a moment, she was overwhelmed by the tendons bulging on his wrist and held her breath. ‘…Huh?’ Something was different. Of course, the last time she had grabbed his arm was a long, long time ago, when they were children. But it was as if she were facing a wild beast. Her senses—her touch, her smell, her very instincts—were telling her clearly that this was not the thin wrist of the boy from back then, but the arm of a sturdy man.
She slowly lifted her head to look up at Sisyphus. ‘Was he always this tall…?’ Amidst the scruffy, Spartan-like face, his black pupils shone with piercing clarity.
“It’s alright, Clea.”
His voice was calm, a tone she had never heard before, and it settled her own breathing. Sisyphus had always been this way. He was a man who would always carry out the actions he deemed right. Clea steeled her resolve.
“I’m coming with you.”
“Why.”
“It’s been a while, so you might get lost. I’ll take you through the shortcut.”
“That might be the case. I’ll leave it to you.”
Clea tapped his wrist and began to run. As strength flowed into her legs, her head cleared. The scenery blurred as it vanished past her vision. She climbed the hill with Sisyphus. Just like that time long ago when they went to watch the stars together. She turned her head slightly to peek at him. Even though they were running quite fast, Sisyphus didn’t break his form in the slightest, didn’t fall behind her, and kept his breathing perfectly steady. Really, truly. The words she wanted to say welled up to the very tip of her throat.
“Captain of the Defense Force, what should we do?” the soldiers, who were continuing the battle while positioned at the hall windows, asked their leader. Since the appearance of the giant Cyclops, the situation had been growing increasingly dire.
“He called himself Polyphemus. Normally, Cyclopes cannot speak so fluently. He is twice the size of the others; he must be their leader. There is no doubt he is commanding the other Cyclopes and calling them here.”
They were running out of hands to maintain the defensive line. The number of swarming Cyclopes was increasing.
“Ugh! My spear broke!”
“Should we block the windows with shields?!”
“Shields won’t help. We have to stop them from smashing the building!”
The defense captain, Oedipus, calmly assessed the situation. ‘It would have been better if Salmoneus had retreated here from the northern path instead.’ The captain had seen Salmoneus being defeated and retreating south after being picked off by the Cyclopes one by one. They were critically short on both manpower and weapons. It had seemed like the situation might reverse when the heroes arrived as reinforcements. It was a four-person Beta-rank party, no less. Most small city-states only dared to commission the cheapest Delta-rank heroes when monsters appeared. Gamma-rank was decent, but the cost was burdensome. Beta-rank carried a reliable sense of trust, ensuring the subjugation of high-level monsters. Parties could even subjugate levels higher than that. From Alpha-rank heroes upward, their numbers dwindled, making it impossible to commission them on demand, and they often refused requests if the content didn’t suit them. However, their skill was absolutely certain.
Sigma-rank was a phantom species; there were almost no cases of them being commissioned, so there was no precedent. They moved for their own feats, or appeared only during major crises for empires or kingdoms, or when the continent faced existential threats. Corinth, having received help from a Sigma in the past, could be considered truly lucky.
‘The Theseus party is one of the most famous hero parties on the peninsula recently. Their skill and reputation shouldn’t be empty rumors.’
Indeed, they had overwhelmed the high-level monster Cyclops until the giant appeared. But.
“Guh-hah, hah-hah-hah.”
The giant Cyclops let out an unpleasant laugh. In his massive hand, a hero warrior was held like a toy. He swung his hand, and CRASH! The hero was smashed miserably into the ground.
‘He’s playing with a Beta-rank party. Hero-level… perhaps even Disaster-level.’
The defense captain recalled when a Disaster-level monster attacked Corinth six years ago. Disaster. It meant that if one descended, like a tidal wave or a typhoon, a city could be razed to the ground in a matter of days. Unless one was at least an Alpha-rank hero, one could not respond to a Disaster. The fact that they had faced a Disaster twice might mean that Corinth had been abandoned by the gods and its fate was exhausted.
Theseus, the hero of the arrow-rain, stood up. ‘Fractured ribs and right arm. My vision is blurry.’ It wasn’t a good situation. Healing spells from party members were coming in, but they weren’t a panacea.
“Ah, that’s the look.”
The giant laughed, pointing at Theseus. “I enjoy it most when those who make a fuss calling themselves heroes fall into despair.” He laughed. “Did you feel like a god because you’re a demigod? Even so, in my eyes, you’re no different from a human. We Cyclopes are a race created directly by Father Poseidon. We are practically gods.” Flexing, the giant clenched his two fists. “Our innate strength is different. If only I had been permitted sooner, I would have proven our superiority long ago. Today, I fulfill that wish.”
Theseus scoffed. She stepped forward, brushing her bangs back. She didn’t care that she was covered in sticky blood. “I gave you a chance to run away, but I guess you didn’t understand.”
“Ah, what did you just babble? The sound of a beast crying is noisy, so I don’t really know what it is.”
“—Guh-hah-hah! You don’t know fear!”
“The word ‘monster’ means beast. A hero is one who hunts monsters. You have such low intelligence that you don’t even know who the predator is.”
Veins bulged on the giant’s forehead. It was when he responded to Theseus’s provocation and took a heavy step, THUD, that it happened.
“Well said, hero!”
FLASH! An intense light erupted from behind the two. WHOOSH! A light-spear, shot with supernatural speed, pierced the giant’s shoulder in one stroke.
“Wait, who is that?!”
“It’s a hero! Reinforcements have arrived!”
“That light-spear he just shot, could it be!”
The residents watching the battle from the windows were startled. There was only one hero who threw spears of light. “Is it the Light-Spear Perseus!”
“To have two masters of the Peloponnesian Peninsula in one place!”
Perseus, armed in bronze armor, joined the front line. Cyclopes rushed at him mercilessly. Perseus blocked their massive fists with his shield, swung his sword, and advanced to the hall in one breath.
“Ooooooh!”
“Perseus, don’t go too deep!”
A robed mage followed him, supporting him with combat spells from behind. It seemed to be a party member. They were reinforcements who had appeared at a good time. Theseus rained down arrows just as Perseus rushed the giant.
“Hup!”
Perseus rushed the Cyclops and collided with his shield. He leaped up coolly and struck down with his sword.
“You’ve become a nuisance.”
The giant swung his arm. BOOM! Perseus raised his shield to block the attack. His sturdy thighs supported him against the ground, holding firm with grit. In the brief gap of defense, Perseus returned his sword to its scabbard and gathered light in his right hand. He cast his technique once again.
“Ooooooh!”
He threw away the shield that had served its purpose and gripped the light-spear with both hands. Stepping on the giant’s knee, he leaped up and drove it straight into his chest.
“He pierced his heart!”
“Did he take him down?!”
His attack appeared to have landed perfectly. As all eyes were focused on the scene:
“The ‘techniques’ of you heroes are nothing but crude compared to divine power.”
A single, wide-open eye looked down at Perseus with terrifying intensity. Shadows fell over his face. “In the face of overwhelming power, this is nothing but a toy.”
The giant grabbed the light-spear with his hand. —CRACKLE!! A blinding light erupted from his hand as if it would explode. His skin burned, but the giant smiled as if he enjoyed even that.
“Ugh…!”
Perseus gritted his teeth and held on, but a monstrous strength overwhelmed him. Soon, SHUCK, he lost the power struggle, and the spear was pulled from the giant’s chest. He hadn’t been able to pierce it deeply enough to be a fatal wound in the first place. CREAK, Perseus was pushed toward the ground by the giant’s strength.
“Are you afraid, hero?”
To the Cyclops’s question, Perseus laughed heartily and answered. “As expected, you only have one eye, so your field of vision is narrow.”
“What did you say?”
CLANG! Something struck the back of his head. It was his shield, Aegis, which Perseus had thrown earlier. While the giant lost his balance and stumbled, Perseus rolled forward, grabbed the shield, and stood up again.
“You’re a guy who doesn’t know the value of his own life.”
“Why do you insist on destruction?”
“Guh-hah, what a foolish question. It is because my father permitted it.”
“What a truly foolish answer. There was a time when I, too, followed oracles. Fulfilling the tasks given by the gods is also one of the feats of a hero. However.”
SHING! Perseus drew his sword.
“Helping the people in crisis is the most valuable honor of a hero. I decide for myself where to spend my life. That is the most important realization my brother gave me!”
Perseus’s gaze locked directly onto the Cyclops’s eye. He began to sprint. “I, Perseus, son of Dictys, hero of Alpha-rank. I will surely subjugate you right here… Ugh!”
—BOOM! Sword and fist collided. The result ended in a ruthless victory for the fist. Perseus was driven vertically into the ground by the Cyclops’s massive fist.
“All talk and no bite.”
The giant laughed. “Do you see? Power! Overwhelming force! In front of this body bestowed by the gods, you humans are no different from ants. Use all the techniques and magic you want. You will only fall into further despair!”
The giant’s booming voice echoed. Indeed, just as he described, despair was encroaching upon the space. Even while Theseus was on the verge of defeat, Perseus had been overwhelmed. It was the moment it was proven that the monster’s words were by no means a bluff. It made one wonder if even reinforcements from Athens could subjugate this monster. Everyone intuited that Corinth’s fate ended today. That their own lives were over.
“Gather.”
At the giant’s signal, the scattered Cyclopes returned to the hall one by one. He intended to see the end. Theseus hardened her expression. She hadn’t been defeated yet. She steeled her heart to drag this bastard down to hell.
—WHOOSH!!
At that moment. Something brushed past her side at tremendous speed.
—THUD!!
An explosion. It was the Cyclopes. It was the sound of Cyclopes colliding with other Cyclopes and bursting. It took Theseus a moment to understand what had happened. Had that massive monster been sent flying? At a speed fast enough to collide and explode? From where? How?
Theseus looked back. Someone was walking toward them.
“…Spartan?”
Stomp, stomp. He said. His tone was slightly angry.
“Overwhelming power, I like it.”