Lerna's Hydra (2): Iolaus

Iolaus, Heracles' nephew, was the man he trusted most in the world. He had stood beside the demigod for two of the Twelve Labors—the slaying of the Hydra and the hunt for the Erymanthian Boar—driving the chariot that carried Heracles into battle. Even after the labors ended, Iolaus remained at his uncle's side, a battle-hardened veteran who shared in countless adventures and wars. And among all those conflicts, Iolaus was famous for one astonishing "experience."

In modern times, scholars interpreted the event as Iolaus achieving reversion to one's prime. It was the transcendent realm where an enlightened awakened being reconstructed their body to return to the peak condition of their youth—a miracle only a handful of the highest S-rank hunters had ever experienced. Though overshadowed by Heracles' legend and rarely remembered, Iolaus was a monster who would one day ascend beyond S-rank. He was the man who conquered Troy a step ahead of Odysseus.

Some popular media portrayed him as a mere boy, but that was nothing more than a narrative device to make Heracles look better. In truth, Iolaus was a formidable warrior who could have crushed most mythological heroes without breaking a sweat. He had simply been eclipsed by the absurd existence that was Heracles.

No wonder they only gave me solo tasks.

Heracles alone was a nightmare, but every single person around him was a monster. His best friend Theseus was bad enough, and now even his nephew Iolaus turned out to be a superhuman. Handing this group an assignment would have given the gods themselves a headache.

"I am Iolaus, nephew of Lord Heracles."

"A pleasure to meet you."

The sheer presence of Iolaus in the flesh made it instantly clear why he was the strongest warrior Heracles trusted above all others. He possessed a frame every bit as massive as Heracles, his body layered with muscle so dense it resembled carved stone.

"He's not quite on Heracles' level, but you should still be careful around his nephew Iolaus," Vanesha whispered quietly to me. That alone told me how powerful the man was. After all, he was someone Heracles had chosen to bring on a Hydra hunt. There was no way he could be ordinary.

Still, with both of them, it should be doable.

The Hydra, strengthened by Typhon's remnants, had grown even more ferocious, its heads now numbering twelve. Veteran warriors though they were, even Heracles and Iolaus would have struggled to face the beast alone. This was surely why the Moirae had added the clause permitting aid only to those without a "Thread of Fate." The rule had clearly been written with me in mind.

But there was one fact the Moirae didn't know: I wasn't the only one without a Thread of Fate.

"Lord Seojun, before we begin the hunt we should gather information on the Hydra and its habitat."

"Mr. Seojun, the villagers of Lerna seemed quite knowledgeable about the creature."

Vanesha and Jeanne were beings who did not belong to this world, after all. The Moirae had failed to notice their existence. No matter how deeply those goddesses observed fate, they could not have known about two people whose summoning had been canceled. That was why they had established such a rule.

"Then let's start by collecting information."

"Sounds good."

Our party—now including Vanesha, Jeanne, and Heracles' nephew Iolaus—decided to gather every scrap of data on the Hydra first. Because the beast had inflicted so much damage on the surrounding area, information proved surprisingly easy to obtain.

"The Hydra hunts in the swamp at night and retreats to its cave to sleep during the day. Targeting it while it rests would be wisest."

That came from the village chief of Lerna.

"Lord Heracles. Legend says one of its heads is immortal. The goddess Athena bids you to beware that one."

That message was delivered by a priest from the temple.

The nymphs swirled around Heracles, chattering away with everything they knew about the monster. Over the course of two full days we gathered every piece of information we could. The conclusion we reached was simple.

"We should eliminate the heads one by one."

Divide and conquer. According to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the nymphs, each of the Hydra's heads had to be treated as its own independent lifeform. Though they shared a single torso, their personalities, habits, and behaviors were all different. They even had individual names.

The idea of picking them off separately had come from the sheer ridiculous length of those heads. Each one is at least fifteen meters long. For reference, that was the standard length of a fire hose. Every head was as long as a fire hose. You could mistake any single one for an imugi.

Of course, a perfect divide-and-conquer wasn't possible. The heads shared senses and awareness with one another. So we crafted a plan that took full advantage of that fact.

"Lord Seojun, if possible we must lure the Hydra out of the swamp."

"We'll strike while it's inside the cave."

The operation was set for dawn—the moment the creature finished its nocturnal activity and slipped into the cave to sleep. That was when the Hydra would be most vulnerable.

The obvious problem, however, was its poison. A single touch meant certain death. The real question was how to sever the heads without ever making contact with that lethal venom.

"Leave that part to me."

Heracles spoke with absolute confidence. In the original myths he had only brought Iolaus along because of the heads' regenerative ability; the man himself had never cared about poison in the first place.

"I trust you."

I chose to believe in him.

*

The cave that served as the Hydra's lair lay in the deepest part of the Lerna Swamp. To reach it without alerting the beast, we relied on Vanesha's power. As long as we remained linked to her, we could share her ability to erase our presence.

The effect extended even if we weren't touching her directly—so long as we stayed connected through someone who was. When Jeanne learned this truth, she immediately confronted Vanesha.

"Then why did you insist I hold your hand last time?"

"It is simply more convenient. If I stay in the center, I can also support Lord Seojun and keep him from stumbling when the light is poor."

At Vanesha's calm, composed answer, Jeanne could only puff out her cheeks. Since Vanesha herself stated it made sharing the ability easier, there was nothing more to argue.

And so we set out for the Lerna Swamp in the dim hours before sunrise.

The swamp lay beneath a blanket of unnatural silence.

Slither. Slither.

Something enormous moved at the center of the mire.

A colossal black body. Twelve pairs of crimson eyes gleaming in the darkness. With every flick of its tongues, breath laced with deadly poison spilled forth.

It was Typhon's offspring—the Hydra.

Sssssssssss—

Each of the Hydra's heads moved in its own distinct pattern as they prowled the swamp. They were not mere extensions of a single monster. Each possessed its own will and behaved like an independent creature.

The central head was cautious, rising higher than the rest to scan every direction and taste the air. The head on the left seemed restless, constantly baring fangs and glancing about—suspicious and impatient. Another head appeared utterly bored; it drooped lazily and lapped at the muddy water with its tongue.

Some heads hunted. Some stood guard. Some fed.

We held our breath and watched their every movement in silence.

When the sky finally began to show faint traces of blue, the Hydra turned and withdrew into its cave. The moment it vanished completely, Heracles rose to his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠feet.

"Let's begin."

He strode forward—not toward the cave entrance, but toward the long necks that stretched out from it. The twelve heads each had unique personalities, and their sleeping habits differed as well. While some slept inside the cave, others extended their necks outside to rest.

Our targets were the ones sleeping in the open.

"Iolaus, take the one in the swamp."

"Understood."

Iolaus moved off at Heracles' command. We slipped into the tall grass on our side.

"Lady Vanesha."

"Yes."

Vanesha walked calmly toward the sleeping head. I summoned Napoleon's Rifle, took aim from cover, and fired a magic bullet.

BANG!

"Kiaaaak!"

The Hydra woke with a furious shriek, red eyes blazing with rage. The first thing it saw was Vanesha.

With a terrifying whoosh, the head shot toward her like a spear. Vanesha spun and fled.

"Kiaaaaa!"

The enraged head gave chase at terrifying speed. Trees, stones, and bushes in its path were crushed and melted. Yet catching the ghost-like Vanesha as she weaved through the swamp proved impossible.

BOOM!

The Hydra only succeeded in melting the innocent landscape. Its reason gone, the head mindlessly pursued Vanesha, stretching its long neck to its limit.

Then its eyes widened.

From the opposite direction, another Hydra head was charging straight at it—with Iolaus standing boldly in front as the lure.

Thud. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Thud.

From a third direction came Heracles, the ground trembling beneath his feet as he carried a knocked-out Hydra head over one shoulder.

The first Hydra realized the trap and tried to stop, but it was far too late. Three massive serpent heads rushing from three different angles tangled together in an instant.

Vanesha returned to my side. I immediately checked her condition—if she had touched even a drop of poison, I would need Jeanne's purification.

"Lady Vanesha, are you unharmed by the poison?"

"Yes. It never touched me."

Thankfully she was completely unscathed. Despite being chased by a monster, she hadn't suffered so much as a scratch.

"Thank you for your hard work."

"Does that mean I get a reward?"

Her teasing question made me smile awkwardly and look away.

"Kiek! Kiek!"

The tangled Hydra heads were now fighting among themselves, only becoming more knotted with every thrash. But we still couldn't kill it. Terrible poison continued to spray from their mouths. Grass and leaves melted on contact. Puddles boiled away into steam.

Cutting those tangled necks without touching the venom seemed impossible.

Of course, the actual cutting was Heracles' job, not mine.

How the hell does he do it?

I had always wondered. The myths never explained exactly how he severed the necks without being poisoned. They only said he beat the heads unconscious with a club.

As I watched with puzzled eyes, Heracles reached for the weapon slung across his back. It was an absurdly large, heavy-looking scythe. He lifted it with one hand as easily as if it were a twig.

A low hum filled the air as blue energy coiled around the blade. Then Heracles' will overlaid it.

And it began to grow.

"Insane."

The scythe expanded without limit, stretching past the swamp and into the sky. It had grown massive enough to slice through the Hydra's necks with room to spare. Heracles brought that ridiculously enormous blade of pure will crashing down.

Swoooosh—

The tangled necks were severed cleanly.

The reason Heracles could cut the Hydra's necks without succumbing to its poison was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠simple: he had simply swung an absurdly gigantic weapon from far outside the venom's reach.