The Return of the Lord
"What was that just now...?"
"I saw a Cyclops fly through the sky..."
"Right? I thought I was seeing things."
The residents peering out the windows were buzzing with confusion. The group of Cyclopes that had been surrounding the hall had been wiped out in an instant. These were monsters that had charged in with ignorant, fearless aggression. To them, this place was a hunting ground, and the residents inside the hall were prey in a birdcage.
Of course, there were those who resisted the Cyclopes' advance. Soldiers continuously countered with spears, and heroes possessing powerful mana threatened them with their techniques. But to the monsters, that was nothing more than child's play. The hierarchy of the food chain was absolute.
However, the scene that had just unfolded before their eyes was on a different level. A comrade had been sent flying at a speed the eye couldn't track. The sight of the colliding group being sucked in and shredded as if caught in a rift between dimensions—it was far too irrational to be considered the result of simple technique or magic.
Because the Cyclopes were of low intelligence, they felt it all the more acutely. Something about the atmosphere had changed. Seeing them hesitate, the residents also began to wonder. Surely, this was a desperate crisis where they were being hunted. Yet, a strange shift in the flow gave the illusion that the playing field had been leveled.
There was only one change.
—Thud.
A single man had appeared on the scene.
'Is he a hero?'
Theseus's gaze turned toward the man. She briefly harbored hope that he might be reinforcements, but the spark was extinguished just as quickly.
'He's a Spartan.'
Black hair, barbaric appearance. Theseus immediately pegged his origin. She had once performed a commission in Sparta with her party. It was an ignorant nation that shunned knowledge and civilization, cultivating only martial strength. In reality, it was a tribe of barbarians. Only the ruling class was barely capable of rational speech, which allowed it to function as a nation. The only reason Sparta was maintained despite having almost no intellectuals was thanks to the countless slaves they kept under their thumb through wars of conquest.
'Even if he's a warrior or a hero, he's a Spartan.'
Cooperation was impossible since they couldn't even speak the same language.
"Is the monster subjugation a failure?"
She was thinking of her next move when a voice came from nearby. A platinum-blonde woman. It was the Lord's wife, who had given Theseus the commission. When did she get next to me? She was a fast one.
"You're rude, mistress. We are still in the middle of battle. Don't use words like 'failure' so carelessly."
"Then when should I judge it a failure? When you're all dead?"
"You're a spunky lady. I'll let it slide because I like you for now, but watch your tongue in the future."
"I will entrust you with a different request."
"A different request?"
Clea pointed toward the hall. "You must stop the monsters swarming the hall. Please focus on blocking the entrance with your party members."
"What about the big one?"
"There is a way. Probably."
What kind of clever trick does she have? Theseus wondered. It was an opponent against whom even her B-rank party and the A-rank Perseus fighting together seemed to have slim chances of victory. Unless they borrowed the wisdom of Prometheus, it would be difficult to turn the tide with ordinary schemes. What kind of move would they make? Theseus called her party members together. She decided to keep watching the Spartan who had intruded on the battlefield and retreat to the hall.
In truth, Clea hadn't received a clear plan from Sisyphus either. She had simply followed Sisyphus's request to position Theseus's party for the defense of the hall. She couldn't imagine how they could counter that one-eyed giant, so large that his face wasn't even visible. But since it was Sisyphus, he must have surely come up with some ingenious wisdom. Clea trusted him.
'Sisyphus, don't do anything reckless.'
Though she prayed that in her heart, she knew well that he was the type to risk danger whenever he felt it was necessary. Hadn't he even been to the Underworld before? She didn't know the exact circumstances of why he went, but it was certain he had done something dangerous then, too. He had barely returned to Corinth. What had happened to him during that time, why he had to leave, and besides that... didn't he miss her? She still had so much to ask, and if he went off to the Underworld again, she decided she would never forgive him.
Amidst the gazes of Clea, Theseus, and countless citizens and soldiers focused on him, Sisyphus walked toward the Cyclops. It was as he was walking.
"Sisyphus, where have you been?! I thought I was going to die, seriously. You said it was a nice city. Is it okay to just throw me into a battlefield?"
A mage wrapped in a robe came hopping toward him, fuming with anger.
"......? What did that mage just call that warrior?"
"She definitely said the Lord's name..."
"The Lord? Is the warrior the Lord?"
"No way, surely... Huh?"
The citizens frowned in unison and focused their attention. They looked at his features—the messy hair and beard, the thick eyebrows. The defense captain was the first to jump up, grabbing the windowsill.
"My Lord! The Lord has returned!!"
Centered on his shout, the buzzing spread in an instant.
"Did he say the Lord?"
"Are you saying Lord Sisyphus has returned?"
"Where, where! Let me see too!"
People flocked to the windows in a rush.
"It really is the Lord! Look at his face!"
"My god, I couldn't recognize him!"
"Who said the Lord abandoned Corinth?"
"I knew he would return!"
"The Lord is standing in front of the one-eyed giant!"
"How brave of him!"
The rumor that the Lord had returned and stood on the front lines for Corinth spread through the hall in an instant.
"My brother has returned?!" Alcyone, who had been caring for the wounded in the hall, and Sisyphus's family also heard the news.
"Acting Lord, young masters. It's dangerous here. Please step back."
"They said my brother is there. Is it true? Brother!"
"Brother!"
"It's really him! Look over here!"
"Brother!"
Although the defense captain tried to stop them, Sisyphus's family all huddled together at the window, peeking their faces out. Unfortunately, from the outside, their shouts were mixed with the cries of the Cyclopes and could only be heard as noise. Sisyphus could not hear them calling his name.
Cassandra, running toward Sisyphus, stumbled as she collided with the pile of fallen Cyclopes. "Ouch, seriously annoying. My robe." As her robe slipped off, her brilliant blonde hair was revealed, sparkling in the sunlight.
"Wait, who is that beauty...?!"
"Wasn't she just calling the Lord earlier?"
"Don't tell me he took a mistress while he was away?"
"Wasn't the Lord unmarried?"
"Was that so? Didn't he have a mistress?"
"No, he is definitely unmarried."
"How could he have such a peerless beauty..."
And that scene was clearly imprinted in Clea's field of vision as well. Naturally, her brow furrowed. 'Who is she?' Without realizing it, she put strength into her eyes. It was no wonder the residents were making such a fuss, as that mage was a beauty who appeared once in a century. 'Why does she call Sisyphus so casually?' No, now was not the time to worry about that. Clea shook her head vigorously. That giant Cyclops right there. If they couldn't deal with that, there was no future for Corinth.
"His appearance is pathetic for a Lord. Is he a human?"
The giant laughed after seeing Sisyphus walking toward him. There was a spoonful of mockery in it. "I will ask you slowly how you dealt with my comrade a moment ago. You insignificant human. What will you offer to this mighty Polyphemus to beg for your life?" the giant asked.
Sisyphus did not answer and just kept walking. He arrived right in front of the giant and bowed his waist.
"Ah, I see. A noble sacrifice. A request to spare the city since you, as the Lord, will take responsibility and offer your life. Truly a pathetic idea." Polyphemus laughed heartily. "Those who call themselves nobles or royalty are mistaken. They mistakenly believe that because they are superior to the commoners, their own lives can substitute for hundreds or thousands of lives. I will correct you, foolish Lord."
He bent his body to look down at the human. "A single human can only save one life by sacrificing themselves. And that only works when the negotiation is between equals in power. Your life has no value to me. I can kill you, and I can kill other humans, so why should I accept your sacrifice?"
The residents who heard the giant's words trembled. Fear seeped into them naturally. Clea was the same. Could it be that Sisyphus went to make an absurd deal to save the city by sacrificing himself? She could never allow such a thing. It was when she put strength into her legs.
"Oops."
Sisyphus straightened his bowed waist again.
—Swoosh!
From his hand, Perseus, who had been buried in the ground earlier, was being pulled out like a radish.
"Oh my. Thank you, brother."
"Are you even an Alpha?"
"I only just got promoted... I let my guard down. Please look kindly upon me."
"Throw that shield away. It's useless."
"I still have installments left to pay on it."
Sisyphus had only bent his waist to pull out Perseus. The Cyclops was nowhere in his sight. He had been completely ignoring him from the beginning.
"...Heh-heh."
Polyphemus, realizing that fact, laughed until his teeth were exposed. "Human, arrogance is an enemy. The price for ignoring your station does not end with death. Your soul will pay the price for your sins..."
"Sisyphus, my robe is torn. Can't you buy me a new one?"
"You're the one who tore it, why should I? Buy it with your own money."
"We're in the same party. You can cover this as an expense, right? Right?"
"He's the party leader. Talk to him."
"Huh? Oh my, brother is here, how could I take on such a position? You should do it, brother."
"I'm not doing it, kid. More importantly, Cassandra. Where is Hermes? The whole place is crawling with beasts. You said it wrong."
"My prophecies are never wrong. It must not be the time yet. I told you, Hermes will never appear in Corinth."
"Hmm, I see."
Polyphemus's face twisted, turning red and pulsing. He could not tolerate the three people before him who were chatting peacefully while ignoring him, a mighty threat. "You must be dying to die!"
Whoosh!
The giant fired an ignorant fist in an instant. It was a terrifying blow that would turn the human it hit into meat paste in an instant.
—Paaaang!
Midway. Polyphemus twisted his eyes, feeling the impact on his arm and shoulder as if he had hit a spatial distortion that should never be passed. The fist wouldn't move forward. It was blocked by just a single finger—the index finger lightly extended by the barbarian in front of him.
"Hey."
He turned his head slowly. The hostility contained in the black pupils was now clearly recognized.
"I'll give you exactly one chance to answer." Sisyphus's low voice struck the giant's ears hard. "Was it Hermes who sent you here?"
Instinct. The instinct of survival warned him. To turn his back right now and run away from the human in front of him. But Polyphemus had never felt such fear even once in his life. As the strongest Cyclops, he had always been at the top of the food chain. He chose to reject his instinct.
"Even if I was, what does that have to do with you? You're the one who's going to die here!"
Polyphemus swung his massive body again. This time, twisting his waist, he prepared a blow to crush the enemy in front of him with all his might. Ultimate martial power. With overwhelming force that would tear through any technique or magic!
—Kuaaaaang!!
And. The giant forged by the gods exploded into pieces from the fist swung by the human. Polyphemus, bringing down that massive body, learned the valuable lesson that one should not ignore instinct. But it was already too late.