170 – Nymph and Greek Roman Myth # 5
“Wow, it really holds a lot.”
Kkungkkungi’s newly acquired skill, “Squirrel Storage.”
Inside it were enough items to fill at least three or four backpacks.
“Now I can take out fruits during battle and eat them.”
Kkungkkungi, with its good stamina, could quickly recover from injuries by eating fruits like strawberries and almonds. Now that Kkungkkungi had a means to store fruits, its combat endurance had greatly improved.
That feeling returned as I arrived at the Parthenon.
Kalilnoi, who was waiting for me, ran over with little hops, nudging my body with its head.
“Huh, huh…!”
I had left Kalilnoi at the Parthenon during my journey to Jigori Village, which took about a day. It was simply because Kalilnoi liked this Parthenon.
By the way, Bang Bang and Ahn Ahn were also entrusted here.
“Did you do well?”
Slick-.
I patted Kalilnoi, Ahn Ahn, and Bang Bang on their heads and backs.
They all seemed to be doing well and hadn’t caused any trouble during that time.
“You’re such a good owl! The ant and spider are really well-behaved!”
Muse Guild’s bard, Erato, seemed to have grown attached to my animal friends while watching them for a day.
Soon, Erato spoke to me.
“I heard the news! You successfully dealt with the ancient species in Jigori Village, right? Now all that’s left is the Chimera Ant! They say S Ranker Hex has safely completed the subjugation of the ‘Emperor Lobster’!”
S Ranker Hex, huh.
I heard he was the second S Ranker in Greece, known as “Tempest Hex.”
A wind user, right?
According to the latest ranking, Hex was a prominent figure, ranked 13th in S Rank.
“That’s impressive.”
The capture of the ancient species seemed to be progressing more smoothly than expected.
The only one left was the “Chimera Ant,” which was said to have fled to the waters off Hios Island.
Plack-.
I showed Erato the paper with the prophecy I had acquired in Jigori Village.
“When ancient beasts once again exhale their breath into the world, the tempest awakened from the deep sea may create a great wind and turn the world upside down…!”
Erato frowned at the words.
“What is this?”
“It’s said to be an ancient prophecy of the nymphs. It feels like it fits the current situation perfectly. The ancient beasts seem to refer to the ancient species. And the tempest…”
I looked up at the sky.
In the distance, I could see a powerful Typhoon No. 35 approaching Greece.
The strongest typhoon in 300 years.
To prepare for it, people were nailing their windows shut and firmly securing or bringing in any loose signs.
“This friend’s name, Jigoriol, was a nymph who could accurately predict the weather with her short, pointy ears! She must have anticipated a great storm would come in the distant future…!”
The typhoon was expected to land in Greece sometime this evening or tomorrow morning.
Before that, it would be wise to evacuate people to safe locations.
However, the typhoon landed in Greece much faster than we had anticipated.
Whooooooo-!
A truly powerful wind struck, and we could only sit situated firmly inside the sturdy Parthenon, looking out the window, unable to move.
“It feels like the last day of the world…!”
Inoi trembled.
Soon, Coris and Illinois were also busy shivering under a blanket.
I had no idea nymphs were such cowards in the face of a storm.
“The wind is pretty fierce.”
I joked casually to Achilles, who was sitting next to me, trying to lighten the mood.
But Achilles didn’t respond and, when I turned to look, he wore a very serious expression while staring out the window.
“What did you say, Ildo?”
Noticing my gaze, Achilles finally relaxed his expression.
Before I could say anything again, he scratched his chin awkwardly and said.
“I don’t particularly like storms. They stir up all sorts of thoughts.”
“Is that why you didn’t participate in the Spacetime Typhoon?”
I recalled that Achilles hadn’t participated in the recent operation of the S Rankers known as “Argonauts.”
Kwarirung-!
At that moment, a fierce lightning struck.
It felt like it hit the very top of this Parthenon located high up.
—Iningyi.
Boom-.
Oinoin’s everlasting storm cloud, Iningyi, rubbed itself against the window frantically.
Was it trying to say it wanted to go outside?
Of course, Oinoin, who had been huddled under the blanket and trembling, moved its hands to grab Iningyi.
“You can’t go outside in this weather…!”
That was certainly a valid point.
Tiriiririri-.
At that moment, Achilles’ phone rang loudly with a rough ringtone.
After answering the call, Achilles’ expression changed moment by moment.
“There’s a crack in the storm…? Overload…?”
It was exactly as I thought.
I began to understand vaguely.
There seemed to be a crack opened within the storm, and this crack might create various crises due to the overload.
Could it be that ancient beasts like the Squirrel or Chimera Ant, and the Emperor Lobster also came from this overloaded crack in the storm?
That was my speculation, but it seemed somewhat plausible.
Thud-.
After hanging up, Achilles let out a sigh.
“Ildo, the S Ranker Hex from the Pantheon Guild has gone missing after heading into the crack within Typhoon No. 35. We’ve received requests for search and subjugation…”
# # #
Kwarirung-.
Intense lightning continued to strike.
At 5 PM, the warning alarms blared loudly amidst the noise of crashing waves.
The world was covered in dark clouds, making it seem as profound as the night, while only the sounds of the raging wind assaulted our eardrums.
Achilles recalled a time long ago.
When his father jumped into the sea to save a person and disappeared, the weather was exactly like this.
Wandering outside in such weather was practically a suicidal act.
“That Hex guy.”
Tempest Hex.
He was a person possessing a peculiar rivalry and competitive spirit toward Achilles, the second-in-command of Greece.
He was the first to dive into the storm to subjugate the crack found within and, as a result, he had gone missing without contact.
Thanks to that, Achilles had been given the task by the guild to save him and close the overloaded crack of the storm.
However, the thought of walking into a storm like this did not sit well with Achilles.
One could say that a subtle fear had quietly emerged within him.
In fact, everyone seemed to show a similar reluctance for that reason, and eventually, the request had circled around to get passed down to S Ranker Achilles.
Slick-.
At that moment, Haildo, who had been looking out the window, stood up.
“Where should I go?”
He seemed full of determination to head into the storm.
The Achilles Legion was greatly surprised.
“Mr. Ildo, it’s too dangerous to ask an awakened from another country for such a task…! No one would request such of you…! No one would blame you for it…!”
“But leaving the overloaded crack like this could lead to something even more dangerous! This might be the quickest time to act! We may need to finish this before it gets too late!”
Indeed.
Achilles felt he had come to know Haildo a little better.
He was a person similar to Achilles’ father.
Someone who could jump into the stormy sea to do what needed to be done.
And typically, people like that would be celebrated as heroes.
People would come to place flowers on their graves and shed tears for those who did not return.
“Ildo, I now understand that you feel anxious, as though you are chasing after glory. But if you end up dying in the process, what would wealth and fame even mean?”
“……”
Haildo fell silent.
Was my viewpoint respected?
Just when Achilles thought so, Haildo spoke.
“Legion, while you said no one would ask me for dangerous tasks and no one would blame me, that statement is wrong. If I shrink back, like a coward, in this storm, I’ll deserve to be blamed for the rest of my life by that person.”
“Who on earth…?”
“Myself.”
—Kkungkkungi…!
—Sazji…!
—Hioooong…!
Small animals clung to Haildo’s shoulders and back.
Before Achilles could even stop him, he stepped through the temple doors.
Whoooo-.
As the automatic doors opened, a fierce wind rushed in and then disappeared.
# # #
Kaooooo-.
The sound of the wind was akin to that of a wild animal’s roar.
The rain and wind were so forceful that when you turned your head, it looked like the raindrops were soaring up towards the sky rather than falling to the ground.
“Where should I go?”
I frowned, looking around to find the crack in the overloaded storm.
Just then, the peculiar storm cloud, Iningyi, that had been clinging to my shoulder flew up with a whoosh.
—Iningyi.
It seemed to be saying to follow it.
I ran hard after that Iningyi, but the fierce wind and rain made it difficult just to walk.
Pat-.
Something grabbed my back.
—Huh, huh…!
It was Kalilnoi.
The tiger owl was an expert flyer and was extraordinary enough to navigate through the Spacetime Typhoon with ease.
Kalilnoi was holding on to my back, following behind the storm cloud Iningyi, and I soon spotted the entrance of a crack amidst a particularly fierce burst of lightning.
Whoooo-.
Now that I looked closer, it seemed that this fierce storm itself was formed from the tumultuous winds pouring out from the crack!
In other words, if we closed that crack, this terrifying and intense storm might dissipate!
“Kalilnoi, let’s go in there!”
—Huh, huh…!
With all my strength, I dove into the crack floating in the sky along with Kalilnoi.
The space inside the crack looked like a deserted place where marble pillars lay in ruins and only remnants of structures remained.
A collapsed temple site.
An ancient relic.
That would be the best way to describe it.
Kwarung, Kwarirung-.
The tumultuous wind howled, and lightning struck just like outside the crack.
—Hioooong…!
At that moment, Bang Bang, with its unique spider senses, raised its front legs, as if it had discovered something, and pointed somewhere.
There was a man standing there, dressed in traditional priestly robes adorned with the Greek Orthodox Church’s symbol. His mane of hair glowed emerald, and he was quite tall.
“Hex! We came to save you! You are safe!”
“…Ugh, ah, no…! Why hasn’t Achilles come here! You must defeat me…! The only one who can defeat me in Greece is… that guy…!”
Thud-!
Hex stretched out his hand toward me as I approached.
Whoooosh-! Whooo-!
Suddenly, a fierce gust of wind struck, sending me flying about ten meters away.
As I felt a sense of confusion in this situation, Hex murmured.
“My… consciousness is fading…! Escape from here…! This crack… this crack is… different from the ones I have seen before…! I can’t… endure the control over my body anymore…! Hngh…!”
Thump-.
S Ranker Hex fell down to the mushy mud below.
Five seconds later.
Struggling to stand, Hex laughed while shaking his shoulders.
“It’s quite lamentable. I can’t even channel one-tenth of my power. But in a world without even the songs of deities, heroes, or fairies, this shall suffice as a vessel─.”
Hex’s eyes emitted a white glare.
This did not seem to be an ordinary situation.
“The long and painful time of sealing and enduring has come to an end. I am the terminator of the new divine age! The cataclysm of the world! Typhon! Apocalypse! I shall carve this world out─!!!”
Due to the roaring wind, Hex floated upward with a whoosh.
He was trying to escape through the entrance of the overloaded crack.
I instinctively felt that I couldn’t let that man leave this place.
I had to draw his attention toward me!
“Kkungkkungi, it’s time to use your new skill! Seed Bullets!”
Kkungkkungi loaded the seeds it had stored in “Squirrel Storage” into its mouth and spat them out in rapid succession.
—Krrrung…!
Dududududududud-.
The principle seemed simple, but its power was enormous enough to rival that of bullets, and the seeds ruthlessly struck Hex Pascal’s “Wind Barrier.”
“Aw, aah~”
