Chapter 215
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 215
Chapter Title: Aphrodite's Wry Smile
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“...And so, your lover rushed off to the warriors with tears in her eyes. That's how things have come to this.”
Aphrodite gestured toward the scene reflected on the water's surface and sidled up close.
Under normal circumstances, I might have been lost in admiration of that rapturous feminine form and its silken touch, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from the vision playing out on the water.
'What the hell is that?'
Polyphemus had been monstrous enough from my perspective, but twins even a head taller than him?
“...Are there a lot of guys like that?”
“Well~ Poseidon's bloodline tends to be a bit... unique, like that Polyphemus you used as a villain. Probably because Poseidon himself is so free-spirited.”
“You see giants and Cyclopes among his children, and quite often ones like Triton who look more like mermen.”
Unlike Zeus's lineage, where most are born as demigods who go on to become heroes or kings, Poseidon's offspring take after their father's wild, untamed nature as ruler of the seas.
And since non-humans are common among them, they're often seen as villains or monsters.
Plus, they mostly operate in their father's domain, the ocean, so they're rarely seen on Greek soil.
“Among them, those Aloadae twins, Otus and Ephialtes, are especially special. Would you believe they're not even ten years old with faces like that?”
“That size? They look at least thirty!”
Even if they were thirty, does that bulk make any sense?
They're peering down at full-grown trees, a whole head taller than Polyphemus?
The biggest brute I'd seen back in the martial world was Yagul Cho-hyun, lord of the Southern Savage Beast Palace.
The largest men I'd encountered here in Greece were Heracles and Polyphemus.
I was pretty built myself, but those three were like walking statues or boulders...
And now these twins surpassed them all—and they weren't even ten?
“...My god.”
“Hee hee hee! Hard to believe, right?”
Aphrodite giggled throatily at my dumbfounded expression, just as the black-clad hunters—who had been darting through the forest to harass the twins—launched their assault.
“Oh! Those are the kids, right? The warriors from that Acis boy's group, the ones you taught swordsmanship to.”
“They call themselves the Phesakaenes.”
“Those who die but do not die... Fierce bunch. And some of them look downright delicious.”
Pretending not to hear that last bit, I focused on their battle.
Amid the chaos of countless figures weaving through the trees to distract the twins,
a few moved with unmatched speed, bucking the flow to charge straight at them.
Dressed in light training garb, swords gripped tight, they dashed across treetops with fluid grace,
closing the distance in an instant before leaping like lightning to strike at the giants.
Their exceptional lightness skill and exquisite movements gave them away even without seeing their faces.
“Jason and Idas. The top two among the fifty Phesakaenes.”
Thanks to intensive elemental training, I'd drilled swordsmanship into their heads, and they'd risen to leadership based on that prowess.
In true Demonic Cult fashion, they'd been selected through brutal competition, emerging as Jason and Idas.
Jason had always been exceptional and talented, blooming fully in this opportunity, while Idas had shown such martial promise during the endless duels that even Ares took notice.
“Wolf-pack tactics, was it? That Jason boy has a knack for strategy. When hunting something bigger and stronger, using the terrain like that is wise.”
“...You noticed that quick?”
“Do you even know who my lover is?”
Ah.
Aphrodite's weary tone drew a smirk from me as well.
Everyone knew Aphrodite's lover: Ares.
What else would the war god, who lived for battle, brag to his beloved about?
“He's always going on about wars, tactics, martial arts... Drags me to every little skirmish with stars in his eyes. What's so great about it...?”
The goddess of beauty shook her head like a woman exasperated by her baseball-obsessed boyfriend.
“But... it looks like they're hitting their limit.”
Wolf-pack tactics were straightforward.
Herd a large foe into terrain that restricted its movement, like a forest, and whittle it down slowly. Then, when it shows an opening, the fastest, strongest alpha strikes for the throat.
But if the enemy's stamina or skill far outstrips yours, or their defenses shrug off your attacks, you're out of options...
“Hmm...”
Jason sprang off the giant's thick arm toward its carotid; twisting mid-air, Idas rode the backlash of its swinging fist toward its heart, sword flashing.
“That should land.”
“We'll see~?”
As I felt certain the giants would crumple, blood spraying from throat and heart, Aphrodite smiled enigmatically.
“...?”
“Hee hee hee.”
Despite her cryptic words, Jason and Idas's strikes were precise.
Killing blades honed through countless brushes with death.
Sharp swords aimed at vital points, wielded by the mightiest hero generation in history.
No matter how tough the giants' hides or bones, their human-like anatomy meant larger, clearer vitals—and those two's pinpoint strikes would sever life.
...Or so I'd thought.
“Huh?!”
“Hahaha! See that?”
“No way, what the...!”
Was I seeing things?
For the first time in ages, I doubted my own eyes.
Their swords, aimed perfectly at throat and chest, bounced off before even touching skin, as if blocked by something.
'Rebound Aura?'
Besides Chiron, another transcendent master in this era?
I couldn't think of anything else.
The realm where one's mere breath coats body and surroundings in instinctive qi, foiling ambushes and assassinations.
Impossible to fake without surpassing the transcendent wall—and here it was, right before me...
“That's weird...”
But their wild swings lacked any subtlety or enlightenment worthy of transcendent or even fire-realm levels.
Crucially, no aura—no qi—was visible. Baffling.
Not martial artists, not even enlightened.
Yet something profoundly unnatural had happened?
“Divine blessing?”
“Not a blessing...”
“No need for twenty questions. Just tell me.”
“Aww~ Why so impatient? Unless you're jeal...”
“...”
“Ahem, can't even joke anymore.”
Greek innuendo slipping in even now.
Uranos my god. Should've managed your precious ones better.
“To be precise, Gaia issued an oracle.”
Poseidon, ever doting on his sons, took the extraordinary twins to Gaia right after birth for a prophecy on their fate.
And Gaia, seeing her lover's—and grandson's—sons, declared:
“No god nor human shall harm them!”
Any attack without their permission rendered void, and boasting strength none could withstand—the massive Aloadae twins.
Before turning ten, they'd dominated Boeotia and Naxos from those bases.
“Even Ares was stunned. Invulnerable to any blade or spear...”
Tireless stamina, mountain-like frames.
And cheat-like immunity to all weapons.
Poseidon had sky-high hopes for them, naturally.
“Poseidon must've been thrilled, with his endless love for his sons.”
“What's the point... when they ignore their father's words like that, drunk on their own power.”
“Ah...!”
Twins who grew nine finger-widths a day from birth.
Children not yet ten, unstoppable by any force.
Lost amid their insane strength and cheat ability, I'd forgotten:
They were still kids under ten.
Yes.
In the martial world, they'd be whining to mom for candy; in the 21st century, begging for a smartphone!
And they had unlimited might and defenses?
“My god.”
That was a catastrophe.
A pint-sized powerhouse with weapon-grade strength.
Asura my god.
“...Is Naxos even still in one piece?”
“Poseidon barely stopped them from splitting it in half.”
Now he was half-letting them run wild, figuring they'd mature eventually.
While I reeled, Jason and Idas—clearly aware of the defense—calmly withdrew from striking range and rejoined the group after their attacks rebounded.
“How long has this stalemate been going?”
“Hmm... Exactly three days today. You've been awake a bit over a week, and it's been two days since your lover and Zeus's hero charged off on the news.”
With a wave, the water rippled, showing two figures tearing through mountains near Tegea.
Atalanta bounded lightly over earth, trees, and rocks like a deer.
Heracles barreled forward in perfect marathon form, pulverizing anything in his path.
Just two days in, and they'd already reached Tegea's vicinity.
“...Time for me to head out too.”
“Already? So soon?”
“It was an honor sharing space with a goddess, a delight facing trials with her bare form before me.
But these are my students, led by my hand. I can't just watch from here as they face their greatest war.”
As I rose politely from the bath, Aphrodite grabbed my shoulder this time.
“Huh?”
-Splash!
My body teetered and toppled.
I plopped back down, absurdly undone by the goddess's delicate touch.
“?!”
“And you talk big when you can't even shake off this slender hand?”
Aphrodite smiled wryly down at me, thoroughly pleased.