Chapter 246
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 246
Chapter Title: Blue Giant Antaios
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Antaios.
In the original myths, he was the giant slain by Heracles on his way to steal Geryon's cattle.
His father was Poseidon, his mother Gaia.
The problem was, what on earth was that kind-hearted Earth Mother thinking, handing out plot armor like candy everywhere.
Like the Aloadae who spilled blood until they were sick of it at my hands, Antaios too had dominated his era thanks to his innate physical prowess and the blessings of the Proto-Genoi, only to meet his end at Heracles' hands.
And the Antaios I heard about directly from Poseidon in Greece wasn't some brute villain relying solely on brute strength—he was a tragic figure with a truly poignant backstory.
His own sister, Charybdis, had visited Olympus just to pay her respects, only to tumble from grace due to Zeus's petty nitpicking, seized by madness and turning into a calamity.
Feeling resentment toward such an Olympus himself, he voluntarily relinquished his divine seat and settled here in distant Erytheia.
Antaios was a lord whom Poseidon endlessly boasted about, and one deeply respected by demigods with nowhere to return to, forced to headbutt bare earth.
In contrast, in the distant future, he was just a somewhat notable extra slain by Heracles.
Thanks to his hospitality, we instructed Karkinos to follow along by sea, accepted the invitation, and boarded his ship.
"That pretty little thing is the guy who kneaded Heracles like dough?"
"Our boss's half-brother twins? He tore them into a thousand shreds and fed them to the dogs."
"And it's true he's Atalanta's lover and mentor, the one who made her a great hero?"
"He just looks tasty and appetizing..."
As I scooped up Neri in a princess carry and leaped straight onto the deck, we were greeted by giants so massive I had to crane my neck to look up at each one.
Somehow my reputation had spread even to these treacherous seas, and they recognized me, murmuring among themselves.
Their sheer size made it feel like we'd dropped into a land of giants.
'And they're not just any giants.'
With my divine dantian awakened and my divine seat opened, my five senses and intuition had sharpened even further.
Just glancing at them revealed the divine power and auras surging through their bodies—nothing to scoff at.
"Quiet, all of you."
-Drip!
A deep, resonant voice silenced the giants, who had been chattering like a marketplace, with a single word.
"You must be Dianes."
"Poseidon's Antaios?"
Taller than the already enormous giants by a head, a colossal man stepped forward.
As he moved, the giants in front of him parted like the sea, clearing a path in an instant.
Worth of a son of Gaia and Poseidon.
Skin tinged bluish like Poseidon's, barley-stalk hair and short beard likely inherited from Gaia, fiercely glowing brown eyes, and a muscular frame towering a full head over Heracles.
Not to mention the raw, churning aura rippling through his entire body like an earthquake shaking heaven and earth.
I could see why Poseidon insisted that giant—not Apollo—should have claimed a seat among Olympus's elite.
"Hoo."
"!"
As we faced off, sizing each other up, Antaios smiled faintly, and on instinct, I shoved Neri behind me and stepped forward.
"As expected, you're sharp."
-Kugugugu!
At that moment, a colossal wave of pressure bore down on me.
It swept through everything like a tsunami crashing in.
"Uwaaak!"
"B-Boss!"
"Brooo!!"
The surrounding giant sailors erupted into chaos.
The aura was so fierce that anything not tied down went flying every which way, while the secured ones groaned against the rocking hull.
If I hadn't shielded Neri, we would've been swept up too.
"Heh, not bad. To wrangle not one but three of Poseidon's sons... impressive."
Ignoring the chaos around the rocking rails, Antaios stroked his beard and grinned.
Ehew.
A sigh escaped me naturally.
"Seriously... why are all non-fighters so damn alike."
Suddenly throwing punches or drawing blades just to gauge someone's level.
Once they reached a higher realm, they all defaulted to blasting aura like this—universal, it seemed.
I'd seen the stance occasionally back when I was campaigning for cult leader votes...
"Fine, it's nostalgic. I like it."
A fight that comes to you doesn't need dodging.
Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.
Aura for aura.
"Besides, this kind of aura clash is our tradition anyway."
"What do you mean by that?"
What else?
"Means hold on tight."
And with that.
An unnatural darkness fell over the nearby sea.
The floor was covered in lion pelts, the walls held a taxidermied eagle and a massive map of Greece pinned in place.
Ornate decorative weapons plated in gold and silver, magical artifacts radiating ominous auras— the captain's cabin was opulently decked out.
It reeked of a pirate king's quarters.
There, I met Antaios one-on-one.
"...You could've gone a bit easier. I would've gotten the point."
Still reeling from the shock, he clutched his forehead, sprawled on a bed big enough for a king, whining.
"For your size, that's some weak complaining."
I lounged back comfortably too, chuckling, while the eight-chi-tall bluish giant glared at me in astonishment.
"Everyone was puking and passing out—total pandemonium! Not just this ship, the other vessels' crews came rushing over in a panic asking what happened!"
"So why start a fight from the greeting? Especially with Neri here."
Antaios pressed his eyes hard, arguing, but I brushed it off like a yapping dog.
Who picks a fight with raw aura against the original master?
"Urgh... Father's words were spot on."
"What'd Poseidon say?"
"That you stroll around all leisurely like a well-fed lion, but cross your line and you flip out like an enraged dragon and charge."
...What rumors is this pirate king spreading?
Regardless, whether he had no choice but to acknowledge me or not, Antaios now looked at me with curiosity and a strange admiration, rather than rivalry.
Strength recognizes strength, huh?
'Actually, types like this are easier for me to deal with.'
The overly brainy ones with big ambitions came loaded with schemes—headaches to handle.
Zeus was prime example; even cloaked as a beast, his vibe screamed he was scheming to steal our hand.
Super off-putting.
'Personality-wise, Poseidon and his family are way easier.'
Neri's queenly big sis Amphitrite, the youngest Phesakai Polyphemus hustling hard...
Those bratty twins? ...Even Poseidon gave up on those jamminis, so pass.
And the pirate king calling himself father-in-law? No need to explain.
"Whew, in my fifteen hundred years, that was the most terrifying sight I've ever seen. Even sneaking into Father's training grounds as a kid and facing that mountain-sized giant moray eel didn't scare me that bad!"
"Oh, the one you saw was bigger? The one I saw was just backyard-hill sized."
"...No wonder the rumors aren't exaggerated—that you enthroned Atalanta as queen and handed her a great hero's power. Harmonizing at that level? Elevating a demigod is child's play for you."
Like his father, despite getting utterly crushed without a peep, he laughed heartily and owned his defeat—enough to win my favor.
"If you want, I can let you pick something decent. Though you probably don't need it."
"Kuhahaha! Much appreciated. Oh damn, Poseidon strike me—I've left my guest sitting without offering anything!"
Throwing his head back in booming laughter, Antaios jumped up and personally poured me some wine.
"Dionysus 16-year. The finest and oldest around these days."
"Graciously accepted."
No more reason to refuse offered wine than an incoming fight.
-Clink!
We sat across the table, the giant and I toasting massive goblets and draining them in one go. Antaios spoke first.
"So. You have business with my kin, Geryon?"
"Precisely, with his companion, the two-headed divine hound."
"Orthrus? Typhon’s blood kin?"
From his wary glance, he'd gotten the rundown from Poseidon and even knew about Geryon— no point hiding my situation from this giant.
"I-Is that true?! Hera's blessed ancient beast gods... you're gathering them...?"
"That's right. Problem?"
"..."
After hearing my goal and its origins, Antaios gaped in shock before suddenly clamping his mouth shut.
His stunned expression lingered as he stole glances at me, ominous mutterings slipping through his lips.
"...Could it be, truly... that time has come?"
"That time?"
He'd meant to mutter, but with his massive build came a huge larynx and mouth—everything came through clear.
"Ahem!"
At my question, he snapped his mouth shut, eyes resolute, then stood abruptly before a large painting on the wall.
Antaios, Poseidon, and between them a vibrant, beautiful woman.
Unlike the two hulks, the woman in the portrait was goddess-like in beauty, and both men gazed at her with dripping affection.
"A beautiful goddess, isn't she."
"Mm, certainly."
For some reason, Antaios's voice, with his back turned, seemed to waver emotionally.
Unable to see his face, I could only guess until he stroked the woman in the painting and spoke in a voice thick with longing.
"My sister, Charybdis. You've heard of her, surely?"
"Uh...?"
Who wouldn't know that name.
The goddess-turned-monster ruling the seas opposite these treacherous waters, in Helios's domain.
Poseidon's aching finger he'd teared up over, the Charybdis who terrified every Greek hero.
That colossal sea beast swallowing whole straits was once such a beautiful goddess?
"Did Father tell you? The truth behind the monster cast into the sea for the sin of gluttony. The tale of us siblings, reduced to this by that vile Zeus's greed?"
Antaios trembled with a voice full of grudge, fist clenched.
Through it, I learned a hidden side of the myths I'd never known.