The King of the Underworld is Tired

Chapter 101: The Expedition to Mount Athos – (4)

Orion, the son of Poseidon, the god of the sea, was grappling with Orthrus again and thought:

‘If things go on like this, we will win. The crow divine beast is helping the other heroes capture Chrysaor, and if I can just kill Orthrus...’

Orthrus, the son of Typhon, was the strongest opponent he had ever faced.

The two dog heads constantly snapped at him, and the snake head on its tail aimed for his legs whenever there was an opening.

And what about its hide? It boasted a thicker exterior than any other monster or beast Orion had ever hunted.

Growl! Snarl!

“Huff... You're getting tired now, aren't you, you beast.”

Still, as a demigod and a giant hunter, this was not a fight he couldn’t win.

Although Orion was bleeding from bites all over his body, and the pain from taking the monster’s forepaw strikes surged through him...

It was still better than Orthrus, who had to fight with a leg pierced by an arrow.

Panting...

Orion looked down at Typhon's child, who collapsed, tongue lolling out, losing a lot of blood.

The beast's once-impenetrable hide now looked pathetic. Its once-glossy fur was ragged from Orion’s relentless strikes with his club.

Soon, the son of the sea god would slay the monster and achieve a mighty feat.

If only he hadn’t gotten entangled with the sister of Apollo, the sun god.

As Orion staggered toward the exhausted monster to deliver the final blow…

The divine crow of Apollo flew toward him.

Just as the crow, flying in a straight line toward Orion, suddenly spread its wings and soared upwards...

Chrysaor’s golden sword, which had been fiercely chasing the crow, couldn’t change direction and flew straight toward Orion.

“What the…!”

Thud!

By the time Orion turned his weary head, he already felt the sharp sensation of metal piercing his body...

The cold touch of the golden sword deeply embedded in his side made Orion realize the end was near.

“No! Orion!”

“Damn it! Focus on the monster in front of you!”

“I’ll be there soon...! Tsk!”

He was the son of a sea god. If treated by a skilled healer, he could have survived, but this was a battlefield.

With battles raging between heroes and monsters on all sides, there was no time to care for just one.

Realizing this, Orion stared at Orthrus with all his remaining strength.

He was already finished. The hope of survival had long been abandoned. If that’s the case...!

“You’ll make a fitting companion to cross the Acheron River with...”

With the last of his strength, he lifted his club, tearing the wound in his side even wider and causing excruciating pain.

But the blow aimed at the monster’s head remained steady and struck true.

Thwack!

At the moment Typhon’s child, who had devoured countless people, finally fell into eternal sleep.

The hero who had accomplished this astonishing feat staggered and dropped to one knee.

“Ugh…”

Caw! Caw!

The cry of the divine crow echoing from the sky tickled the ears of the dying hero.

Everything around him seemed to slow down. Was this his life flashing before his eyes?

The black crow, Apollo's sacred animal, followed only the sun god's orders, serving as his loyal servant.

So he had believed the crow would help the expedition by diverting Chrysaor's sword...

How could he have foreseen that by suddenly changing direction in front of him, the golden sword chasing the bird would end up piercing him instead?

He bore no particular grudge against the sun god… so why?

A goddess suddenly flashed through the troubled hero’s mind.

The moon goddess Artemis, who had befriended him through their shared love of hunting.

And her older brother was none other than Apollo.

Ah. Ha. Haha... As expected, dealing with gods never ends well...

Realizing this, Orion let out a bitter smile, overcome with a sense of futility.

Even though his body was growing colder, he didn’t feel the desire to survive.

‘I... don’t know. I’ll have to keep... thinking in the afterlife…’

Even as the giant scorpion monster approached from behind to stab him with its venomous tail...

He did not move at all, quietly accepting death.

* * *

Above the Clouds, the Temple of Olympus.

The beautiful goddess of the moon glared at her brother as if she wanted to kill him.

However, the sun god Apollo merely shrugged, unbothered.

“You ordered the death of Orion, didn’t you, brother?”

“Sister, you don’t understand. War is always like that. A moment’s carelessness leads to death.”

“Why did you kill the human I cared about?!”

“Why would I kill that man? What would I gain from it?”

The moon goddess glared even more fiercely at the sun god.

It was clear that the crow, which had diverted the golden sword, changed its course right in front of Orion due to Apollo’s influence.

But she couldn’t press the matter any further.

There was no concrete evidence that he had manipulated the crow, and Apollo had no clear motive to kill Orion.

She wanted to demand that he swear by the River Styx that he hadn’t killed Orion, but...

Forcing another god to swear was an immense insult. Not even Zeus, their father and king of the gods, would compel such an oath by the Styx.

“Why are you so angry over the death of just one human? And even if I had killed him, what does that matter to you?”

“Orion was...”

“Are you saying that mortal was more important to you than your own brother?”

Her voice trembled with suppressed anger as she bit her lip until it bled.

He was right. Confronting the sun god over a mere mortal was absurd... Especially since, even among the twelve Olympian gods, the versatile Apollo was far stronger than her.

“Tch! I’m leaving now!”

“Ah, Artemis.”

As she hastily tried to run off somewhere, Apollo grabbed her.

For a moment, the sun god’s gaze toward the moon goddess turned icy.

“Don’t give them too much of your heart.”

“......!”

“You are a goddess sworn to chastity, are you not? If you keep concerning yourself with such mortals, it will only bring you more suffering.”

* * *

Back at the battlefield, where the expedition to Mount Athos fought fiercely against the monsters.

When Orthrus and Orion, both of them, fell dead side by side, the battle took a new turn.

The heroic efforts of the Thebes' warriors, who had ample experience battling both deceased heroes and fallen monsters, were making a difference.

Thanks to them, the surrounding monsters were gradually being defeated, which in turn placed even more pressure on Chrysaor, the wielder of the golden sword.

Slash!

For the first time, they managed to pierce the giant serpent’s scales, leaving a long gash.

Unlike the previous attacks, which had barely scratched the monster, this was the first meaningful wound.

Red blood splattered everywhere, and the half-divine creature howled in pain and fury.

Hisssss!

“Finally, the sword is getting through! Focus your attacks on that spot!”

“Damn it, Orion is...”

“While the crow is dealing with the flying golden sword, let's inflict as much damage as we can!”

Chrysaor had killed a fair number of heroes, but the number of monsters that had fallen was just as countless.

The ground, now soaked in red blood, held the body of Orthrus, the child of Typhon.

In Chrysaor’s sharp mind, which held not only great strength but also some wisdom, he could see it—the numerous humans charging toward him.

Along with the echo of horn blasts and the thick scent of metal in the air.

Bwoooo!

“Gasp, gasp. Reinforcements from the Kingdom of Macedonia!”

“The kingdom sent an army! Hold out a little longer! No, let's kill them all here!”

“Glory to the gods! Let us honor the fallen Orion with the bodies of these monsters!”

An army appeared in the distance, brandishing spears and shields. It seemed the kingdom had mobilized all its forces, and their numbers were considerable.

The heroes cheered, while the monsters snarled, baring their fangs.

Realizing the battle had turned against him, Chrysaor used all his strength to push the surrounding heroes away.

The expedition members flinched in fear as his massive body pulsed with power, but his aim was not to fight—he intended to flee.

Swish!

“Wait... He’s escaping!”

“He’s diving into a fissure in the earth...! But we can’t follow him...”

“Damn it, we have no choice but to let him go. We can’t go underground.”

Despite his massive size, Chrysaor moved with astonishing speed.

The monster, carrying his golden sword, vanished into the ground like a defeated warrior.

The Macedonian army arrived just in time, and the exhausted monsters, worn down from their battles with the heroes, were overwhelmed by the army’s onslaught.

Unless they were as powerful as Chrysaor or Orthrus, the army, along with the remaining heroes, could easily handle the rest.

Roar! Scream!

Thanks to Apollo’s assistance and the efforts of the Thebes' heroes, most of the monsters were defeated, but the expedition had suffered heavy losses.

Many heroes, including Orion, had died or were grievously wounded, and there were even a few who were left maimed.

However, with Orthrus, the child of Typhon, dead and Chrysaor fleeing with his tail between his legs, and the rest of the monsters eradicated, could this be considered a half-success?