The Thief God Hermes (6)
In the heart of the battlefield, Clea stood face-to-face with Sisyphus, as if time itself had frozen. "Sisyphus, I..." She tried desperately to choose her words, but they simply wouldn't come. Whenever she tried to convey something to him, it felt as though something were lodged in her throat, choking her. It hadn't been like this in the past. She was so frustrated she was on the verge of tears. Who was she angry at? What was she angry about? Probably herself.
Sisyphus was once again defying fate, fighting against an absolute being—a god. Yet she had been delayed, wasting time fuming over the curse of her own family. The opponent was a god, for heaven's sake. She might have just made the mistake of losing him forever. And yet, she was frustrated with herself for caring this much, for being so concerned, and for harboring the desperate hope that he would acknowledge she had run to him faster than ever before.
Clea’s gaze dropped. She saw the winged sandals in her hands. A hollow laugh escaped her. She had spent her whole life denying the blood of the thief god, yet she had stolen the very symbol of that god from the man himself. It was proof that she had inherited that talent more deeply than anyone else. Certainly, the situation had been reversed thanks to her actions. But she hadn't achieved the feat of slaying an evil god; there was no way she could repay her debt to Sisyphus just by stealing a pair of shoes.
She had always teased Sisyphus mercilessly as a child and claimed she wanted to be a hero, but the one who truly fit the title of a hero was Sisyphus. The sacrifices he had made could never be repaid. She was no longer on equal footing with him. That was why no voice came out. She couldn't bring herself to speak.
"That's... no, it's nothing..."
"You're incredibly fast."
Sisyphus’s voice brushed against her ears and flowed through her entire body. She lifted her head and met his eyes. "It's killer." She saw the faint smile on his face. Somehow, she found herself wearing the same expression.
"Lift your feet."
Sisyphus knelt before her. For a moment, her heart pounded as if she were receiving a marriage proposal. He supported her feet with his hands. They were covered in wounds. The shoes she had been wearing hadn't been able to withstand her speed; they were tattered, the soles worn completely through.
"Use these."
He placed Hermes’s winged sandals onto her small feet. It was hard to look away as his large hands delicately tied the knots.
"Ah, th-thank..." Her voice trailed off. In contrast, something large and fluffy surged and overflowed within her heart. Sisyphus stood up again and glared at Hermes.
"He's coming."
―BOOM!
Hermes rose, sending debris from the rocks flying. "SISYPHUSSSS!!" He was a wretched sight. He was missing an arm, and his entire body was drenched in blood. With neither bone nor muscle left intact, he was barely moving through the sheer force of his mana.
"You'll regret this! You'll regret it! How dare you scar my face—me, a god? You sinner, you have committed an unforgivable crime! Don't think that crying and begging later will do you any good!"
Flash. With a spark, he left a trail and vanished. He had chosen to flee.
"Where do you think you're going!"
Another trail appeared, chasing right behind him. It was Clea.
THUD!
Sisyphus also kicked off the ground. The chase had begun. Hermes was heading toward the center of Corinth. He intended to lose them in the city, where there were many people and buildings. He wove through the complex market alleys.
"Good heavens, what was that?!"
"Danger ahead, get out of the way!"
The market turned into chaos in an instant. Cargo flew through the air, and goods were shattered.
"Annoying brat. Making a scene until the very end." Sisyphus clicked his tongue as he pursued him. "Clea, do you happen to know much about oracles?"
"Ah, yes. To some extent." As an intellectual who aimed to be a hero, Clea was well-versed in such matters.
"Do oracles always come true?"
"Not necessarily. An oracle is a bit different from a prophecy. It’s more like a coercive force that determines the direction of fate. For instance, if an oracle is given to someone saying, 'You will die if you participate in the war,' they just have to not participate."
"So there's a choice. That guy earlier gave an oracle that Corinth would pay the price."
"I heard it too. There's no room for choice there. Since it's a high-rank magic, it will have the effect of a forced execution. It will probably even manufacture natural disasters that didn't exist before."
"Is there a way to stop it?"
"Well. With magic, the effect usually disappears if the caster dies, but..."
"Simple enough."
At Sisyphus’s words, Clea swallowed hard. He really intended to do it. He intended to kill a god and change fate. '...Wait a minute. There is one more fate that will change.' It was the fate her biological father, Autolycus, had contracted on his own whim. The declaration that she must live as the wife and mistress of the Corinthian family would also vanish if Hermes died. It meant Clea could walk the path of a hero once again.
'But, if that happens.'
Her engagement to Sisyphus. It would be broken. ...Why was that? The path of a hero she had longed for so much had unexpectedly arrived right before her eyes. She had unlocked her mana and her techniques. Yet, she felt no joy. No, she was definitely happy. Especially when Sisyphus had told her she was fast a moment ago. '...First, I have to catch Hermes.'
If that bastard turned Corinth into a mess, these worries would be meaningless anyway. Clea put strength into her legs.
"You're fast, Clea."
"Oh, huh?"
"I still can't beat you."
"No, what are you..."
"You really are the fastest."
The corners of his mouth crept upward. She was certain. She felt best when she was praised by him.
"You can't keep up, can you? Dummy." Clea stuck out her tongue, teasing Sisyphus. Crackle! Clea’s speed increased even further. The new shoes supported her feet pleasantly.
Running along the walls of the buildings, she caught up to Hermes in a single bound.
"Stop right there!"
WHAM! Clea’s knee, launched into the air, struck Hermes in the side.
"Gaaah, when did you...!"
Hermes rolled ungracefully across the floor and crashed into a fruit basket. The residents gathered around.
"Oh my, how grotesque!"
"Isn't that Hermes, the god who was shouting earlier!"
"This bastard was saying this and that about Corinth, and now look at him!"
"The Lord has arrived!"
"My Lord, finish him off!"
"Finish him! Finish him!"
Sisyphus approached with heavy steps. To Hermes, every step he took looked like a death sentence.
"Stealing the Pteronpedilos, you cowardly bastards...! There's no way I could be caught. Damn you, you bad people. I can't look at you as cute at all. Not at all!"
Hermes stood up, trembling. He pulled out his staff. "Huff, huff. I've decided. Sisyphus, and Corinth. I command the most miserable destruction upon you! You will realize that the monsters you've seen so far were nothing but child's play."
Hermes began to pour his mana into the staff. The golden light inverted, turning purple, and WHOOSH! The smoke rising from the two snakes formed a massive magic circle.
"I command in the name of Olympus. Manifest from the heart of me, the great thief god, and devour all the unbelievers, you ruthless predator. Caduceus!"
Flash! The magic circle activated.
―RIIIP!
It happened in an instant. A bulge of flesh protruded from the center of Hermes’s heart, expanding and beginning to change its form.
"Wh-what on earth is that?!"
"Run away!"
The nearby residents tried to flee, but Hermes was expanding much faster. At this rate, they were going to be crushed to death.
"Tsk."
Sisyphus charged. He intended to end it before Hermes could pull any more tricks, whatever they were. But Hermes was a bit faster. He transformed into a massive, two-headed snake form and began to swallow the surroundings. In that split second.
"―Huff."
Clea flashed past Sisyphus’s side. The surroundings seemed to slow down, as if time had dilated. She exploded the muscles in her legs and dove in at full speed. She grabbed the citizens of Corinth who were about to be crushed by the giant snake, one by one, and moved them outside.
The formed snake head revealed its fangs and spewed flames. Clea didn't care; she broke through the flames and ran. When the rescue of the last citizen was finished.
―WHOOSH!
Perception returned to its original speed.
"Whoa!"
"That startled me!"
"When did we get here?!"
"W-we're alive!"
The citizens who had escaped to the outskirts of the market were stunned. Clea, drenched in sweat, gasped for air as if she were about to collapse from exhaustion.
―Ha, hahahaha! You're struggling in vain until the very end. Whether you die now or later, it's the same thing anyway. Ah, what tremendous power. This monster transformation isn't bad at all! The two-headed snake, Caduceus, laughed wildly as it mutated.
Suddenly, a storm raged in the sky, and lightning struck. The power of that giant snake that had swallowed the market street in an instant was nothing short of a natural disaster. If it swung its tail once, it was on a scale that could wipe out a village in Corinth in one go. When a goddess-level being like Medusa was transformed into a monster, a terrifying beast called a Gorgon was born. A monster using an Olympian god as a medium was on a completely different dimension.
Hermes sensed victory. It was a desperate move made while cornered, but at this level, even Sisyphus wouldn't be able to do anything about it. In the first place, there was no reason for him to be cornered. If it weren't for that bug still sparking and moving on the ground.
One of Caduceus’s heads lunged toward Clea.
―That mana, that speed. Are you my direct descendant? Ah, could you be Autolycus’s daughter? What was your name again. No, there's no need to know the name of a traitor. You dirty traitor. I will devour you cruelly as well!
The giant snake head charged. Clea, standing before it, retied her hair and widened her eyes.
"I have never betrayed anyone. On my honorable name."
―Honor? Where is there honor in the name of a girl who is nothing? You should know when to stop joking!
Flash! Sparks flew.
BOOM!
A split second later, the head of Caduceus erupted with wounds and flames, as if it had been struck by something invisible. Thud. The platinum-blonde woman, who had somehow climbed onto the snake, stomped on its head and shouted confidently.
"Remember this clearly. I am Odysseus. The name of the hero who will shatter the fate you have ordained!"
―KABOOM!
The giant snake lost its balance and collapsed from her kick.
"Well said, Clea."
A man was waiting at the spot where the monster was falling. With his strength concentrated in his right fist.
―WHOOOOSH!
The fist was clenched so tightly that the surrounding space appeared distorted.
'Th-that's not good.'
Hermes sensed it. That fist looked strange no matter how he looked at it. Something was different. It wasn't just a matter of being so strong that it would hurt if he got hit. He couldn't even dodge because he had lost his balance.
―Hey, wait a minute...!
"Boom."
―BOOOOOOM!!
The man’s fist was fired toward the sky.
The storm cleared.