The God of Thieves and the Speed of Light
The heroes of the Perseus and Theseus party could not hide their awe at the scene unfolding before them. "Big Brother!" Sisyphus stood in direct confrontation with a god. While the five heroes had been forced to their knees, unable to resist the divine pressure, Sisyphus walked forward with dignity, completely unaffected.
"How is that even possible?"
"Does he possess mana that transcends even the realm of Hermes?" the mage and the warrior exclaimed in disbelief. Soon, strength returned to their legs, and they began to move. They had finally slipped out of Hermes's sphere of influence.
"Everyone, our defensive line is being pushed back. We must leave the thief god to Big Brother and join the guards," Perseus commanded. As he said, the front line was indeed retreating, overwhelmed by the skeleton soldiers.
"It hurts my pride to leave it all to him. That petty bastard, look at him returning the favor just because I hit him once," Theseus spat, his saliva mixed with grit.
"For now, we must do what we can."
"I know, I'm not going to abandon the contract I took. Let's go." The heroes ignited their mana and plunged into the battlefield.
"Hahaha, this is fun! It's so much fun!"
The two men faced off. Behind them stood the contrast of two beings: one with golden hair reflecting the brilliant sunlight, and the other with black hair that seemed to swallow the light itself.
"Hold the line! Do not collapse!"
"The heroes have joined us! We must protect the defense line at all costs!" The desperate battle between the guards and the skeleton soldiers raged on.
"Hahahaha!" Hermes cackled and began to run. He moved erratically, circling Sisyphus.
"I don't know what kind of story you have, but your appearance before me must be some kind of fate. Sisyphus, you clever human! I don't know what power you've obtained, but realize how foolish it is to defy a god!"
Golden mana began to burn in his pupils. It was the manifestation of a 'Technique' that only those with mana could wield. Hermes's technique was High-Speed Movement. He utilized a god-like speed that was difficult for the naked eye to track. It wasn't just his running speed; he could accelerate individual parts of his body to unleash devastating destructive power.
"I'm so fast you can't even see me, aren't I? You slowpoke!"
―BOOM!
Following the provocation, Sisyphus stomped the ground and lunged.
'Got you. Perception Acceleration!'
He activated his technique.
―Vwoooong….
As if time had begun to flow slowly, Sisyphus's terrifying charge appeared sluggish. The mana of acceleration was not merely for moving the body quickly. By using this technique, there was no risk of being hit due to delayed reactions. Hermes curled his lips, sensing victory. Sisyphus must have obtained the mana of 'Strength.' Seeing him toss a Minotaur or the punching power he displayed earlier, it was obvious. He might be able to execute a mindless charge, but he couldn't match Hermes's physical speed or reaction time.
'I was running slowly on purpose. Just to make it look like your strength could catch up.'
He made it look like he was barely within reach, and the moment Sisyphus lunged, he would strike his back. It was a perfect strategy.
'Acceleration. From God-Speed to Super-Speed.'
The speed of his legs increased.
―Swish.
He effortlessly dodged Sisyphus, who was charging with a headbutt, leading with his shoulder. Hermes pulled a staff from his robes. He pressed the snake's eyes, and with a click, a poison-coated blade shot out from the tip, turning it into a dagger. If he stabbed the back of the neck with this, no matter how strong the body, the target would be poisoned and die within a minute.
Hermes raised his arm forcefully. All of this had happened within 0.28 seconds from the moment Sisyphus jumped.
At that moment.
―Flash!
Sisyphus's pupils snapped toward him, glaring at Hermes with a terrifying intensity.
'Gasp.'
Hermes swallowed hard, instinctively intimidated by that beast-like gaze. The arm swinging the dagger was suddenly… thud. It was caught by a fist as hard as a rock. A massive wall flew toward the center of his face.
―CRASH!!
Perception Acceleration was canceled. Hermes tumbled backward, face-planting into the floor.
"Ugh, ughhh." A whistling sound leaked from his nose. Drip, drip. Blood was spilling onto the dirt floor.
"Missed," Sisyphus said, approaching while rolling his shoulders.
'Th-this guy. He was hiding his own speed…!'
The moment Hermes tried to stab him, Sisyphus had shifted direction at an even faster speed and thrown a punch. He had completely read Hermes's strategy, waited for the perfect timing, and countered with the exact same strategy.
Technique 'Headbutt' activated.
Ultimate reaction speed attained through limit-enhanced ocular muscles. Enemy movement tracked.
'Headbutt' canceled to trigger 'CRASH'.
COUNTER! A powerful blow!
Thief God Hermes used 'Sonic Speed' to mitigate damage.
'If I hadn't increased my speed the moment he hit me, I would have died…'
Hermes's fingertips trembled. What am I thinking? Dying? Me, a god? The existence standing at the very pinnacle of all things? Haha, there's no way that could ever happen.
"Sisyphus―!!"
Whoosh! Hermes let out a roar of rage and erupted with golden mana. There was no way the emotion of fear could exist in him, a god. He burned it away, transmuting it into fury. His goal was singular: to annihilate the enemy before him.
"Fine, fine, I'll give you credit. It's been a long time since I've seen someone blaspheme against a god like you. Haha, Olympus will remember the name of the sinner that is you for a long, long time. Consider it an honor!"
Whoosh!
Hermes accelerated his legs. KRAAANG! A sonic boom erupted. Having entered the realm of the speed of sound, he lunged toward Sisyphus. He still held the dagger in his hand.
"Ha― Hahahaha!" He lunged with a bizarre laugh. He struck from the front. It was a confident move, believing Sisyphus couldn't possibly react to his speed.
Sisyphus watched Hermes's movement clearly.
Grab!
He caught his wrist. But it wasn't the Hermes in front of him. It was toward the 'main body' of the thief god, who was lunging from behind his back.
"How…?!"
Hermes fell into confusion. He had used 'Afterimage' in conjunction with his sonic speed technique. He had used his high speed to create an optical illusion, making it seem as if he were lunging from the front. Sisyphus should have been fooled. He hadn't shown any sign of looking back. He had been staring straight at the afterimage. Yet, how? How did he notice him jumping from behind and catch his wrist so accurately?
"The cheap tricks you use are obvious."
Sisyphus's low voice rang in Hermes's ears like a death sentence. A strange eyeball popped out from the back of his head.
"Wh-what…!"
"Certainly not a bad trait."
The moment Hermes realized what had happened.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
He was slammed against every surface while held by Sisyphus.
"…Ugh."
A weak groan escaped him. He struggled to escape his grip, but the demon-like strength wouldn't let go. After being slammed a few times, every bone in his body was pulverized. He could barely even stand.
"Hup."
Squeeze.
Sisyphus still held his wrist with his left hand and clenched his right fist. 'D-dangerous.' He must never be hit by that. His instinct warned him. Even if his bones were shattered, blood burst, and his soul corrupted, he had to avoid that fist at all costs. Hermes judged quickly.
―Vwoooong!!
Blood sprayed. Sisyphus's fist carved through the air. It wasn't that he had let Hermes go. Hermes had cut off his own arm with the dagger to escape. Sparks flew as Hermes put distance between himself and Sisyphus.
"Haha, hahahaha, hahahahaha!" He began to laugh like a madman. Sisyphus threw away the skeletal arm of Hermes left in his hand, looking disgusted.
"You're tough."
"That's my line, Sisyphus. What the hell are you? Why are you resisting me, a god, like this! I even issued an oracle. Die, die, die! Why won't you die! Why are you trying to kill me!"
"You ask because you don't know?"
"You're the one who's strange! We raised you humans, didn't we? If we made you live well, you should be devoted to us! Why are you rebelling!"
Sisyphus scoffed. He felt it wasn't worth the effort to continue the conversation.
"Let me ask you one thing. Why does Olympus need a hero?"
"If I answer, will you spare me?"
"Yes."
"Titans! We're at war with the Titans. Gaia, that insane Earth Mother, released all the Titans of Tartarus along with the God of Death!"
'Thanatos?' Sisyphus furrowed his brow.
"Olympus is on the verge of being occupied. It's reached the point where even Zeus-nim cannot return."
"Why?"
"Because of an oracle. Gaia used an absurd oracle! 'No Olympian god can defeat the Titans!' Does this make any sense?"
"So, you need a hero to subjugate the Titans."
"Yes, yes! You understand what I mean, right? Sisyphus, if you understand, apologize to me now. If you kneel like the others, I might forgive you as a special favor. I could even introduce you to Olympus. It's a good deal, isn't it?"
It was a chance to become the greatest hero in human history. No one would refuse such honor. He should have told him this sooner. Hermes, having found a breakthrough, held onto hope. But Sisyphus just stared at Hermes blankly.
"Why that reaction?"
"You have a bad memory."
"What?"
"Are you a goldfish? I'm not a hero."
Hermes's forehead grew hot. You were toyed with by an ordinary human who isn't even a hero. It was a statement containing such an insult.
"Haha, fine. So you want to see this to the end."
Hermes leaped into the air. His winged shoes flashed, and the sparks became even more intense.
"Consider it an honor. You are the first mortal to see this realm!"
Hermes was dyed in gold. He scraped the very bottom of the mana left in his soul, burning it to push his speed to the limit.
"Acceleration. From God-Speed to Super-Speed, from Super-Speed to Sonic Speed, from Sonic Speed to… 'Light Speed'!"
Whoosh! A ring of light formed in the sky. It was the trajectory of Hermes's movement. Crackle, the space in the center began to distort and warp. It was a phenomenon occurring because his speed had increased too much. The space itself was warping and collapsing.
'Hmm, did I tease him too much?' Sisyphus scratched the back of his head. He guessed it was something like an explosion caused by a particle accelerator accident. It would probably blow up in a moment. The problem was, since it was happening in the sky, there was no way to stop it.
'He's become faster than me, too.' He could barely keep up with sonic speed, but light speed was crossing the line. A god was certainly a god. Even if he reached the guy, he wouldn't be able to land a punch.
―Rumble!
"Look at the sky!"
"What is that?"
"It looks dangerous, it's going to explode!"
Maybe I should just throw a rock. Just as Sisyphus thought that.
―Crackle!
Sparks erupted. It was a flash he had seen familiarly while fighting Hermes until a moment ago, but for some reason, the color was slightly different. A slightly pale platinum color. It was a calmer light than the flashy Hermes. The light cluster that sparked appeared from afar, rushed to where Sisyphus was in an instant, and leaped toward the sky.
Whoosh― Flash!
"K, Aaaaaaagh!"
The next moment, Hermes was bounced out of his orbit and collapsed, embedded into the floor.
"Haa, haa, haa."
Flash. Leaving behind platinum sparks, she stopped in front of Sisyphus. In her hands, Hermes's equipment, the winged shoes, were held neatly. Beads of sweat were forming on her forehead. As she caught her breath, her shimmering platinum eyes looked up at Sisyphus and said,
"Sisyphus, do you happen to need these?"
He shook his head. Her lips drooped as if disappointed. Sisyphus approached her and wrapped his large hand around her shoulder.
"I need you, Clea."
Clea's wide-open eyes shimmered.