Chapter 26: Hercules

Pankration stance.

An ancient Greek primitive mixed martial art based on wrestling.

Hercules lowered his stance, preparing to grapple like a wrestler.

He kicked off the ground and rushed towards me, so fast that afterimages appeared.

I faced Hercules in a boxing stance and tracked his rapidly approaching figure.

I threw a jab at his face.

-Swish

The punch grazed his cheek.

He dodged with beast-like intuition and immediately rushed to grab me, but….

I sidestepped diagonally and delivered an uppercut to his ribs.

-Crack!

But Hercules didn’t seem to take much damage.

He immediately recovered his stance and rushed to grab me again.

He chased after me at incredible speed, but… I matched his speed, backstepping and maintaining distance.

A gap of about 1m formed between us, a distance that wouldn’t close.

Yet Hercules moved with all his might to catch me.

Just before he could increase his speed further, at the moment he exhaled, I landed a precise uppercut to his chin.

-Whack!!!

A clean and concise strike.

But the impact was greater than it looked; sweat and blood droplets flew from his skin, soaring towards the clouds.

The hero, caught off guard by a counter while rushing in, staggered.

Then I approached him and delivered a one-two-three combo: jab, straight, uppercut.

“Kuh…”

Hercules looked confused.

He must be bewildered by the unbridgeable gap, even though he was fighting with all his might.

Pummeled by my fists, he gradually retreated.

After creating some distance, he looked at me… and then he finally realized the reason for the gap between us.

“…Such mosquito-like finesse. Annoying.”

It was the difference in the completeness of our techniques.

Hercules, born with outstanding talent and having always lived as a strong being.

Although he learned from a master, his techniques were merely primitive martial arts from ancient times.

If Hercules had fought someone stronger than himself and developed his skills, it might be different, but….

“Damn it, all the excitement is gone! You were much better before -!!”

That wasn’t the case at all.

Not only were there few beings stronger than him, but he fought by exploiting the weaknesses of monsters he couldn’t overpower.

Like a predator reigning at the top of the ecosystem, he didn’t train.

His combat power had stagnated in the past.

And me?

A world f*cked up by the gods.

I could die at any moment, and the world was full of things stronger than me.

I lived in a hellish world, thinking, ‘Survival itself is the greater good.’

I was broken, shattered, lost loved ones, cried, and repeatedly grew stronger.

The difference comes from that.

A vast gap, not just in strength, but also in skill and experience.

Even if my strength were far weaker than Hercules’s, I could still win.

I will win because I was weak, and Hercules will lose because he was strong.

“……Hmph! Techniques are only for weak cowards!”

Hercules tensed his muscles, making them bulge.

Then he spread both arms wide to the sides.

“Behold the power of Hercules, the god of strength!”

Hercules declared his ambition.

The sky that only Atlas, the strongest among the Titans, could hold.

A hero with strength rivaling Atlas, whom even Zeus couldn’t defeat with strength and had to seal.

He simply clapped his hands with all his might.

-Craaaaaack-!!

A deafening roar that could shatter the eardrums of humans on the other side of the Earth.

The surrounding air fled from the impact, creating a vacuum, making it impossible to breathe.

Power strong enough to make my 145kg body float in the air.

And when I looked up at the sky, I saw an amazing sight.

“Wow, I can see space.”

The sea parted, and the sky tore.

The shockwave from the clap had sliced through everything from the sky to the ground in a straight line.

As all the air in the sky fled, the blue sky tore, revealing space.

As I watched in awe, Hercules kicked off the ground and flew towards me.

He clenched his boulder-like fist and smashed my right jaw.

This time, a full-power punch.

-Craaaaaaaack!!!

When Zeus ‘pushed’ me, I flew 20km and crashed.

And Hercules, stronger than Zeus, delivered a full-power punch that was far more powerful.

I must have flown at least several hundred kilometers before crashing into the deep sea.

Then I rubbed my bruised jaw and spun around in the water.

“Ouch…!!”

I felt pain in my jaw.

For the first time in a long while, the sensation of pain returned.

The electrifying sensation that traveled through my nerve cells and awakened my brain tormented me, but….

–Hiss….

White steam erupted from my mouth, even underwater.

My torn lips, hit by the punch, regenerated instantly, emitting steam at over 8000 degrees.

Reactive Regeneration, an ability that triples pain but allows regeneration by consuming stamina.

It really is trash.

If I had given it to Arin or Chaerin, wouldn’t they have resented me?

Ham Yui would have cursed me out long ago….

Thinking that, I looked up from the depths of the deep sea.

Above the sea surface, Hercules was flying towards me from faaaaar away.

Since he couldn’t see my location, it seemed he was planning to smash the entire area with his fists.

“Alright, power up.”

I’ve played around enough.

The audience must have confirmed that Hercules is in top condition.

Zeus won’t be able to make excuses anymore.

I kicked my legs vigorously to ascend from the deep sea.

Water, strangely, has the property of becoming more solid the stronger the impact.

Therefore, I swam quickly, kicking my legs towards the sea surface.

The angle of my legs, which had been kicking like a butterfly stroke, widened.

Soon, it became like climbing stairs underwater.

As I increased my speed, it changed to running up through the water, and my body broke through the sea surface.

“Puha!”

I plucked the seaweed stuck to my head and threw it away.

Then, along with the fresh air, I saw the vast sea and the wide horizon.

I continued to accelerate, running across the water as if it were a concrete floor, towards Hercules, who was flying from afar.

Running on the sea horizon as if it were a concrete floor, and when we were somewhat close….

I kicked off the sea surface and jumped high towards the flying Hercules.

And Hercules, preparing to throw a full-power punch.

I also threw a punch.

-Craaaaaaaash -!!!

Our two fists collided in mid-air.

The air distorted, and a shockwave spread out like an explosion.

The vast, endless sea below us parted in a circle, as if struck by a meteorite.

So much so that the seabed, thousands of meters below, was visible.

And Hercules, whose fist collided with mine….

-Crack

“Kuh…”

With the sound of crushing meat, his shoulder dislocated.

Hercules, visibly flustered as he was overpowered in a contest of strength.

However, befitting his title as a hero, he grabbed my waist with his uninjured arm, kicked off the sea surface, and leaped far away.

And he was about to slam my body into the ground at the base of Mount Olympus, where we had returned, but….

“A useless act.”

I grabbed his wrist, which was wrapped around my waist, and pulled it off with force.

And this time, I grabbed Hercules’s waist instead, and then….

-Crash!!

I executed a back suplex, a modern wrestling technique.

Hercules, landing headfirst vertically, was embedded in the ground.

His body trembled and was about to collapse, but I kicked him and pulled him out.

-Whack!

Hercules, sent flying into a large rock, crashed and collapsed on the ground.

After gasping for breath for a moment, he stood up and popped his dislocated shoulder back into place.

Then he took a deep breath and looked at me.

“Phew… I admit you’re stronger than me.”

“Thank you.”

Then he raised both fists, like in boxing.

Is he trying to replicate the fighting style I used?

Hercules looked at me sharply and assessed.

“A physique tougher than the Nemean Lion, skills superior to Master Chiron, and an obsession with victory greater than the Hydra.”

Ah, so this is it?

Like how he strangled the Nemean Lion because its strength was equal to his and his attacks were ineffective.

Like how he cauterized the Hydra’s severed necks with fire because he couldn’t defeat it with strength.

Like how he became Chiron’s disciple and learned from him because he was technically inferior.

He acknowledged me as a mythical monster.

In other words, not an opponent he could defeat with strength alone.

And like those monsters, he would find a way to defeat me, ‘as always.’

“I will consider you the final labor of my story.”

I chuckled and took the same boxing stance.

“You’re going to try and figure me out?”

“Of course. A hero always wins, no matter what.”

At his words, I snorted, approached him, and threw the same one-two-three combo I had shown him before.

Hercules, unable to dodge, was hit and staggered.

I delivered an uppercut to his chin.

-Whack!

Hercules couldn’t react.

His legs buckled, and he almost fell, but he stood up again and got into a stance.

Then his blue eyes, so similar to Zeus’s, began to shine like jewels.

Again, I threw a punch with the same pattern as before.

“Oh?”

This time, Hercules dodged all of them.

Like a hero, he had analyzed my boxing once and successfully figured it out.

And then, he swung his massive fist at me.

Unlike before, it wasn’t just a punch with brute force… but a punch with definite skill.

It was similar to the sharp punches I had just shown him.

Not just swinging with force, but using sharp, honed techniques. A remarkable improvement, but….

“How cute.”

Before his fist could reach me.

I drove the pointed tip of my foot into his solar plexus.

My kick, with all my strength concentrated in my big toe, became a sharp spear and pierced his abs.

Hercules, the impact reaching his internal organs, vomited and stumbled backward.

“Kuuuh…”

But he stood up again.

The god of strength and heroes, who should have been rolling on the ground, screaming in pain.

He endured the pain with willpower and got into a stance again.

Then his blue eyes shone again.

He must be trying to figure this out too.

This time, I changed my pattern and attacked with my arms and legs.

A more complex attack.

“I see it…!”

Hercules, gritting his teeth and enduring, eventually dodged all my attacks.

Like memorizing a boss’s pattern in a difficult soulslike game.

Hercules, showing exponential growth.

Unlike the fighting style he had shown so far.

He wasn’t just using strength; he was displaying proper martial arts.

Hercules, who had grown to the point where he could exchange blows with me.

His blue eyes shone brilliantly as he analyzed me.

“I am Hercules, the hero of Greece.”

Successfully blocking my kick, he grabbed my neck in the opening created.

The modern martial arts he had copied by watching me, used to exchange blows with me.

But at the last moment, with a thunderous roar, what he unleashed was….

“I will always win in the end -!!”

The technique that killed even the Nemean Lion.

A chokehold, proudly displaying his glory.

Hercules, grabbing my neck and squeezing as if to crush my head, looked up at the torn sky.

Is he looking at the Constellations watching the fight?

Or is he looking at the sky of Mount Olympus, filled with glorious memories from his time as a god, before becoming a Constellation?

I don’t know.

I’m just a fledgling god, a butcher who has never been worshipped by anyone.

Still, I waited a moment for Hercules, who was reminiscing about the past, and tapped his forearm.

“Had enough fun?”

“……Yes.”

Hercules, smiling as if resigned.

He smiles as if he has no regrets and says:

“You are truly strong.”

He must have vaguely sensed it.

Although it was mostly bullying the weak, he was a hero who had been through countless battles.

As our fists met and clashed, he must have vaguely sensed the gap.

The fun and games are over.

I smiled and opened my mouth wide.

And….

–Crunch!

I bit his thick forearm, which was choking me.

Hercules flinched greatly and moved to pull his arm away.

But my teeth were deeply embedded in his flesh, so he couldn’t break free.

-Rip…

“Kuaaaaaaaah -!!!”

The god of strength and heroes screamed in pain.

I chewed the mouthful of flesh and then swung my head like a spinning top.

Hercules’s massive body was flung through the air like a piece of paper and then…

-Thud, thud, thud…

With the sound of tearing tough meat, he was thrown nearby.

Hercules, with a dumbfounded expression, not understanding what had just happened.

And when he lifted his arm, he finally seemed to see it.

His wrist, with a bite-sized chunk torn out.

“Ah… Uwaaaaaaaaah -!!!!!”

A deafening scream.

He instinctively clutched his wrist, trying to stop the bleeding.

At the same time, he howled like a beast, rolling on the ground, splattering a huge amount of blood.

I approached Hercules.

To think that a being who was once a god could cry like a beast.

“W-wait…! Surrend…”

-Whack

Before he could finish his words, I kicked him in the face, stopping him.

A kick with a bit more force than before.

Hercules’s thick neck muscles snapped back and forth like a spring, and he rolled on the ground.

“The match is over…. I…”

“Shh.”

I grabbed Hercules’s neck, who was lying on the ground, lifted him up, and covered his mouth.

And looking at his face, I said:

“The winner decides when it ends. You have no freedom whatsoever.”

Hercules’s eyes darted around wildly.

Whether he realized I had no intention of ending the fight or it was his innate combat sense.

He suddenly threw a headbutt at my face, but…

“The freedom to surrender, too.”

-Whack!

“Kuaaaaaargh….”

I carefully kicked him in the groin.

Judging by the feeling in my shin, one of his testicles must have been crushed.

I looked down at Hercules, who was foaming at the mouth and collapsing.

“The freedom to die, the freedom to wipe away tears, even the freedom to breathe is not permitted to the loser.”

Hercules is very sentimental.

He chose Mount Olympus, the place of his glorious moments, as the fighting venue.

To draw out my full strength, he kindly shared information and did his best.

And at the last moment, realizing he couldn’t seize victory, he put on a show of choking me, a display of his glorious past for the spectators.

A god full of humanity.

Yes, that’s the problem with being full of humanity.

If he gets angry, true to his ‘magnanimous personality,’ he’ll crush anyone’s skull.

Hundreds, thousands of people will cry or laugh depending on his emotions.

“Huh? Isn’t that the lesson you gods taught?”

“Kuaaaaaah!”

I pinched his cheek and lifted him up.

His facial skin stretched, and he struggled like a child.

Yes, mere beings like this were ‘gods’ in the sky.

Beings who cry, laugh, grieve, feel wronged, and play pranks like humans.

-Whack!!

I punched him in the face.

Hercules, driven headfirst into the ground.

He looked at me with hazy, unfocused eyes.

“Isn’t it sad? Some, just because they’re sons of gods, receive all sorts of protection from fate.”

When he killed his family due to Hera’s curse.

Even though he wandered around, seeking death, Zeus saved him for the sake of fate.

He quickly forgot his sins like a single-celled organism and happily embarked on adventures in the name of labors.

In the process, he killed and destroyed humans, kings, and countries if he didn’t like them, and readily devoured princesses. That’s this guy.

“And some, the gods try to kill, try to take everything away from? Huh?”

Artemis.

A foolishly generous, and honestly, cute and likable goddess.

And the space shaped like my house, the happiest moment of my life, however brief.

Although I acted mostly dismissive, interacting with a few gods seems to have softened me too much.

Perhaps not all gods are bad? That hope.

But no, it shouldn’t be like that.

Gods should be thoroughly rational and act like systems.

Suppose Charles, a farmer in rural California, has a bomb switch that can destroy the Earth.

He’s a person full of humanity and highly regarded by those around him.

So, because he’s good and kind, is it okay for him to have the bomb switch?

Absolutely not.

No matter how good or evil.

As long as there’s humanity that can be swayed by emotions, someone like me… or a world on the brink of destruction, like the one I lived in, could emerge.

And Hercules, writhing in pain beneath me, is such a person.

The dwindling disgust and anger towards gods began to burn again.

My insides churned….

“Are your eyes closing? Are you sleepy?”

I grabbed Hercules’s large, fallen face with both hands, preventing him from moving.

Then I placed my thumb on his right eyeball and smiled.

“Fighting is fun, isn’t it? Huh? When you’re about to die, your precious gods and fate protect you, right? If I didn’t fight, I would just die…”

–Squeeeeze….

“Wai…”

Before Hercules could finish his words.

A sickening sound echoed from Mount Olympus, now reduced to its base.

The sound of a powerless rubber balloon being squeezed and deflated.

“Kuaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah -!!!!”

And then, a scream no different from that of livestock.

A ladleful of dark red blood splattered on my face.

And seeing his human-like form writhing in agony and begging made me feel guilty.

At the same time, disgust welled up at the thought that beings with emotions could commit such cruel acts without a shred of hesitation….

“Stooooop…!!!”

‘From now on, I will descend to the lower world and destroy everything precious to you.’

“I was wron…”

‘The price for challenging the gods will be everything you hold dear.’

“Surrend…”

‘Your bloodline is a sin merely for being born.’

He overlapped with the Hercules of my original world, like a hallucination.

Guilt created hallucinations.

The disgust from the hallucination turned into anger.

Anger became fuel, and once again, I committed destruction in the name of violence.

Without any change in expression, I slowly bared my teeth like a beast.

It was a cruel act, just like when I fought the gods…

But since I didn’t intend to kill him, isn’t that an improvement?

-Crunch

Drunk on anger, engaging in foolish self-justification.

I committed an act of cruel destruction with utmost ease.