King Of Underworld [EN]: Chapter 136

The King of the Underworld is Tired 136 (136/140)

The Argonauts – (3)

The heroes of the Argo felt uneasy with the monotonous days.

For them, who had been trained in the Underworld, the monsters they encountered during the expedition were too weak.

Monsters occasionally appeared, and unexpected incidents occurred, but nothing they couldn’t handle.

Everything was taken care of without Hercules even needing to lift a finger.

But based on past experience, this was not a good sign.

If the expedition was going too smoothly, it meant something else was brewing.

“I’m uneasy because it’s too easy.”

“Even those giant rocks that crashed into each other last time, we could have destroyed them if we had really wanted to…”

“Maybe the goddess of luck is watching over us.”

The heroes rowed, discussing the lack of challenge in the expedition.

A quest should at least be somewhat challenging.

♪

“Tsk. At this rate, no one will even get a scratch… There’s no point in being on the Argo.”

“Haaa. Asclepius… are you hoping we get hurt?”

“Leave him be. It’s not just a one-time thing.”

“Whether he’s researching medicine or not, he should at least care about our well-being first…”

They continued sailing, enjoying pleasant conversation.

How nice it was to chat leisurely with their heroic companions.

~♪ ♫

Yes, and there are sweet sounds coming from around us.

It sounds really good, doesn’t it? I want to listen a little longer… Ah, it’s a song sung by beautiful women.

They’re sitting on the rocks, looking this way.

The song is sweet, their appearances are beautiful, and it makes me feel good.

But they’re too far away to hear clearly. Just a little closer…

Wouldn’t I be able to hear them well if I got a little closer?

~♬ ♩ ♬ ♫

Look, they’re teasing and tempting me like that.

What could possibly happen if I get closer to them?

…

……

………

Orpheus, who was always attuned to music, was the first to notice the strange aura enveloping the expedition.

With trembling hands, he picked up his lyre and began to play with all his might.

Dripping ~ ♬ ♩

Soon, the clashing notes jolted everyone’s minds.

Saliva dripped from the heroes’ open mouths, and some even cut the backs of their hands with knives to fight off the compulsion.

The fierce mental battle, where neither swords nor spears could be used, soon ended in Orpheus’s victory.

The three women on the rocks.

No… three monsters with the bodies of birds and the heads of humans.

They closed their mouths and glared at Orpheus.

Only then could the heroes exhale and speak.

“Damn it! Those are Sirens! Monsters that lure sailors to their deaths with their voices!”

“Haa… we would have been in serious trouble if it weren’t for Orpheus.”

“There’s nothing wrong with my hearing, so is it some kind of unique power in their voices that affects the brain?”

“Are you thinking about medicine at a time like this, Asclepius!”

The only one who could somewhat resist the song just now was the great hero Hercules.

He grabbed his iron club and tried to get up, but awkwardly sat back down.

“Hercules! Save us at times like this! Stop worrying about stealing Orpheus’s glory and save my life!”

“No… I just believed it would be resolved when Orpheus came to his senses and played the lyre, Jason.”

“Hercules is really amazing. Even though my father is a god, I couldn’t resist the song just now at all.”

“Is Hercules really becoming a god like he keeps saying? Haha!”

“No way! Then I should believe in Hercules right now. To successfully complete this expedition!”

The heroes’ jokes eased the tension, and everyone smiled wryly and rowed.

Orpheus was still holding the lyre with a tired face.

His face showed a sense of accomplishment from winning the song contest with the Sirens, and a hint of enlightenment.

As the hero of music glanced back at the Sirens they had already passed and subtly raised his lyre,

The monsters’ angry screams echoed in the distance.

“Iolcos isn’t far now!”

“A little further and we can get the Golden Fleece.”

* * *

A hero. Moreover, about 50 elites including the prophetic hero Hercules.

Their saga was naturally being watched by many gods.

Olympus, the Underworld, and even the Protogenoi [primordial deities] who had little interest in the world.

A play watched with interest as they gazed upon the lower realm.

But taking advantage of the fact that everyone was watching this play, a problem arose again in one country…

“Lord Hades. The sun god Apollo has kidnapped a human woman and is confronting her fiancé.”

“…Again?”

“Princess Marpessa, the daughter of King Euenos, is the one who was kidnapped by the god Apollo.”

I was enjoying watching the Argo expedition from the throne of the Underworld.

The goddess of justice, Dike, approached and reported Apollo’s crime.

Seriously. Apollo is the god of reason, so why does he do this so often?

Is his reason wavering as the battle between the gods and the Gigantes [Giants, offspring of Gaia] draws closer? Another woman problem.

“Like with Daphne and Coronis, Apollo loses his reason when it comes to women.”

“He’s fighting a human man named Idas in the sky with a chariot…”

“A human is fighting Apollo?”

No human can dare to stand against the great sun god.

Even Hercules would have his whole body burned black and end up in the Underworld if he fought Apollo.

Perhaps his conscience pricked him at stealing his fiancée and risking his life.

No… if he had such a conscience, he shouldn’t have stolen a human’s fiancée in the first place, right?

Showing himself in the mortal realm would only cause more chaos, so he concealed his presence and quietly went out.

Recently, the Underworld hasn’t been that busy and there’s not much to do. I should take my nephew with me and go on a trip to the mortal realm.

While I’m out, I should also check on the status of Mount Etna, where Typhon’s body is imprisoned.

* * *

Idas.

A demigod son of Poseidon, and a very bold and courageous man.

King Euenos, the son of Ares, used to hold chariot races against Princess Marpessa’s suitors and execute those who lost,

But after the goddess of justice, Dike, appeared in his dream and warned him, he stopped doing that.

And Idas drove the winged chariot he received from his father, Poseidon, defeated King Euenos,

And became engaged to his daughter, Princess Marpessa, but…

“Ugh! Heat from the sky…! A chariot is descending from above!”

“Wh-what?!”

“Your beauty is magnificent. You are mine now.”

Apollo, who was captivated by Princess Marpessa’s beauty, drove his chariot and kidnapped her.

In Greece, it is very common for beautiful women to be kidnapped by gods.

“Even if you are a god, how can you steal another man’s wife!”

Idas, undeterred by the fact that his opponent was the sun god, chased after Apollo in his chariot.

He himself was a demigod, but the fact that he could be burned to a crisp with a single glance from the sun was already out of his mind.

Apollo’s face contorted as he saw Idas following him, grinding his teeth,

And he was about to kill him, but…

‘Damn it. That guy is Lord Poseidon’s son. Like the time I killed that Orion guy and got punished… Tsk.’

Apollo, who had killed Poseidon’s son Orion and was punished, couldn’t lay a hand on him.

If he made the problem bigger here, the sun might be covered by the moon again [a reference to eclipses and divine displeasure].

In the end, the sun god tried to knock him down with his chariot driving skills alone,

But the winged chariot that Poseidon gave to Idas was also a divine object, so their battle dragged on.

“Give up! This woman is mine!”

“She is my rightful wife! Please return her!”

They roamed the sky, causing a commotion everywhere…

Zeus, annoyed by the constant noise, looked down.

And just then, I, Hades, appeared and scolded Apollo.

I glanced up at Zeus looking this way for a moment and then said to Apollo again.

“A sun god who kidnaps a human, especially a woman who has a fiancé…”

“……;”

“Good. You can come to the Underworld this quarter [a form of punishment or duty].”

Apollo’s chariot faltered, and the sun god bowed his head hesitantly.

And Idas and Marpessa prostrated themselves on the ground.

When Apollo heard my voice, he slowed down and lowered himself to the ground…

The humans seemed to quickly realize that another god had intervened.

“Unlike you, that human is not immortal. Even you, the sun god, cannot always be by that woman’s side.”

“I’m sorry…”

Just in time, Hermes was sent down by Zeus to assess the situation, so I explained everything and sent him back.

Incidents happen almost every day… Could someone have cursed Olympus?

* * *

Around the time Hades scolded Apollo, the Argo expedition finally arrived at its destination.

After a long expedition, they reached Colchis, where the Golden Fleece was said to be.

The expedition members all disembarked and looked around.

Late at night. The time when the skirts of Eos, the goddess of dawn, begin to paint the world.

“Is this Colchis? It’s dark, so I can’t see anyone.”

“Still, a ship the size of the Argo is quite large, so it should be visible from afar, and the message should have been delivered to the King of Colchis…”

“Something’s wrong… the smell…”

“Wait… shh! I hear something over there!”

“I heard it too. Was that a scream?”

What greeted the expedition members after their long voyage was a faint scream and…

Sounds of something being chased, burning, breaking, and people running away.

As they hurriedly left the beach, crossed the dense forest, and headed in the direction of the sound, before their eyes…

“Kyaaaa! Save me!”

“Run this way quickly! The city is on fire!”

“Mommy! Waaaa!”

People were seen fleeing from a city engulfed in flames.