[The next day.]
[Still bleary-eyed, you rub your eyes and look toward the nursery door, where a maid stands with panic written all over her face.]
[She screams and runs out the door, which wakes you from your sleep. Of course, your brother still seems not to have awakened and continues enjoying the bliss of his dreams.]
[After a short while, a whole crowd comes pouring into the nursery.]
[At the front is your birth mother—Alcmene.]
[Apparently, after hearing the maid describe the grisly scene, she came with a squad of Thebes's finest royal guards behind her.]
[No matter what kind of enemy it was, they would destroy it—even the fierce lions roaming Mount Cithaeron.]
When Alcmene saw the chaotic state of the nursery, she bit down on her tongue in secret, forcing herself to stay absolutely clear-headed.
Only when she saw that her two tiny children, still far from grown, were both sleeping peacefully and unharmed did she finally let out a breath.
But when her eyes fell again on the room's arrangement—on the corpses of the two emerald-green venomous snakes lying in the cradle—she rushed forward at once to check Iphicles' body.
She feared this was Hera's revenge. Feared that, because of her, her child had been innocently dragged into disaster.
That was the way of the gods.
Fortunately, with only the most basic examination, she could feel the lively beat of the child's heart.
"Thank goodness... thank goodness..."
she murmured.
After that, Alcmene waved for the maids to begin cleaning the room. Then she turned her gaze toward Tia, who had long since awakened. Those innocent crimson eyes looked back at her with pitiful helplessness.
"You did this, didn't you?"
She mouthed the words without making a sound.
[Your mother still possesses the extreme sixth sense mothers have for their children. At a glance, she realizes that this gruesome scene was your doing.]
[In her heart, she silently thanks you—and thanks Zeus, the Father of Heaven, for giving her such a heaven-blessed child.]
[At the same time, her opinion of Hera falls to rock bottom.]
[Clearly, these two snakes were sent by the Queen of Heaven, meant to force her to stop privately calling Heracles by the name Alcides.]
[Alcmene feels bitter inside.]
[She decides that until you are grown, she will only call you Heracles.]
[Of course, as a mother, she has no desire for either of her children to live under threat from the outside world.]
[Even if they grow up to become no great heroes, she will still love her children just the same.]
[Until the end of the world.]
This little episode quickly spread throughout the palace, and before long even General Amphitryon—who had recently returned in glory from war—learned of it.
He immediately ordered security across the kingdom to be strengthened. Never again would beasts or assassins be allowed to enter the palace grounds.
And because of that order, Tia spent a peaceful childhood.
[Once you become somewhat capable of moving on your own, you begin the period of study every child must go through.]
[What is more, in ancient Greece, writing is done on stone tablets, the characters carved directly into them.]
[For you, learning a third language proves extremely difficult. You end up mastering Ancient Greek a full year later than even your unfortunate brother.]
[This causes Alcmene to worry a little about your intelligence.]
[However, once you fully master the language, your progress in other areas begins skyrocketing.]
[In only two months, you drive a chariot as if it were a car. In wrestling, you beat up primitives with ease. Even though your strength is like that of a heavenly bull, you still choose to win through technique.]
[Swordsmanship goes without saying. But when you hear that the young man standing before you is your sword instructor—]
[—and that his name is Castor, one of the famous Gemini, your half-brother by the same father—]
[The very first thing you say to him is not the usual teacher-student greeting, but a question asked out of pure curiosity.]
"Where is your sister, Pollux?"
In the palace courtyard, an open space had been turned into a spacious fencing ground.
About fifteen-year-old Tia asked the man before him. That man's build was not especially mature, but retained the youthful freshness of a boy.
According to the myths, the teacher guiding him at this stage should have been around thirty-five.
But perhaps because he was a demigod, he still looked young.
"She'll be your boxing instructor, responsible for teaching you after this lesson."
Castor smiled as he drew his sword.
He had long heard stories of the child personally blessed by Athena, but only now, seeing him in person, could he truly sense the terrifying potential hidden within that innately gifted body.
If this were a battlefield—true, lawless slaughter—then perhaps the person before him could effortlessly shatter the skills he had spent years tempering.
"Now then, let's begin your swordsmanship lesson." Castor casually flicked his blade in a flourish. "I'll attack. You defend."
The moment he finished speaking, he shot forward like an arrow from a bow. Castor's sword came slashing straight for Tia's throat as though seeking to take his head in one blow.
Tia's reaction was just as swift.
Within his limited field of vision, he captured the motion with the greatest dynamic focus possible. To him, his sword instructor's movements seemed slowed down several times over.
He easily shifted his body just enough to evade the strike.
But just as Tia was considering whether or not to counterattack, the blade came again—from an angle so strange it bordered on impossible.
This time, Tia was the careless one. With no other option, he used the strength of his body itself to stop the attack.
The sword was knocked flying by his forearm, the blade snapping cleanly into two pieces.
The hilt, however, still remained in Castor's hand.
"Hah?"
Though the weapons of this era were not of especially high quality, they were still made of real ore—fine weapons, sharp enough to cut through iron for ordinary people.
But compared with the bodies of demigods, they were still far too fragile.
To contend with iron weaponry using nothing but the flesh... perhaps only his sister, or the famed Amazon Queen, could do such a thing.
Castor stood frozen in place for a moment, uncertain.
He had accepted Amphitryon's invitation to teach the boy how to survive.
Swordsmanship was only one part of that. The true purpose was to teach him the weight of life itself.
But from the look of things, that might prove difficult.
Castor walked off to the side, looking somewhat shell-shocked.
"Brother."
A voice like a songbird drew him slightly back to himself.
He turned toward the newcomer and saw short golden hair much like his own.
"Pollux, why are you here?"
After Castor voiced his confusion, he quickly received an answer.
"I sensed my brother's confusion, so I hurried over from my room. Ehehe~"
Was this what one should expect from one destined to become part of Gemini?
Even emotional troubles seemed to be something she could immediately detect.
Watching the scene, Tia found it a little incredible.
"So, this is Mr. Heracles?"
Pollux asked her brother curiously.
There seemed to be an inexplicable glimmer in her eyes.
-------
April Special Days *Sale 20%*
patreon.com/RuneA
-------
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (400 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (254 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (140 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (158 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (400 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (140 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (172 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(80 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (261 Chapter) (Ending)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (200 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (120 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (96 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (140 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (160 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (Ending)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (70 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (80 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (140 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (165 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (70 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (100 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (100 Chapter)
Heartbreak Simulator: I Broke Them and Made Them Cry (80 Chapter)
The Talentless Trainer Doesn't Want to Restart (80 Chapter)
A Journey Starting as a Quincy (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: The Master of Romance Obstruction (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: You Can't Be a Hero Without a Little Chemical Enhancement (40 Chapter)
Honkai Impact 3rd Your Boyfriend is Really Amazing (40 Chapter)
Warhammer 40K: My Fiancée, Fulgrim (180 Chapter)
Classroom of the Elite: Trying to Capture Me! (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact My Named Senji Muramas (150 Chapter)
A Chef, the Vice-Captain of the Rocks Pirates? (160 Chapter)
Naruto : My Uchiha Girlfriend is Too Tsundere (130 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Reincarnated in a Lostbelt, I Became the Alien God (90 Chapter)
The Way These Horse Girls Look at Me Is Terrifying! (160 Chapter)
Naruto: Tsunade's Deskmate (130 Chapter)
I Just Want to Live a Normal (50 Chapter).
Genshin Impact: A Hundred Confessions? It's Just a System Task (70 Chapter)
OnePiece : Starting as a Veteran of the Roger Pirates (60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : I Have Special Horse Taming Techniques (190 Chapter)
Uma Musume : My other self is a Horse Girl (130 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen : All Affection Stats Maxed Out (200 Chapter)
Satou Kazuma's Decision to Live by Swindling, Starting from Re:Zero (60 Chapter)
Bleach : Ichigo! Take Over the Soul Society (89 Chapter)
Crossover Anime: The Master of Plagiarism with a 'Love Obstacle (140 Chapter)
Arknights Succubus Nurturing System, But I'm a Quiet Office Worker (90 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: Using My Personas to Break the Hearts of Players (50 Chapter)
One Punch Man : i am King? (150 Chapter)
Genshin: My Stats Are Irresistible (70 Chapter)
Naruto: Master of Dream Fulfillment! (70 Chapter)
Why Are All My Chat Group Friends Spin-Off Characters? (130 Chapter)
Arknights : Batman System (30 Chapter)
Chat Group: Swapping Bodies with the Bad-Ending Herta from the Start (80 Chapter)
DanMachi: Why Did My Dungeon Turn Into a Soulslike Game? (130 Chapter)
Losing Money on Uma Musume...What Do You Mean You Actually Won? (120 Chapter)
I'm Gotou Hitori—Who Are You? (40 Chapter)
Were You Ever Even a Uma Musume? Stop Making Things Up! (78 Chapter)
Moon Project: A Full-Time Love Adventure for the Lobotomy Corporation (75 Chapter)
The Leisurely Days of the Hyuga Main House (65 Chapter)
Arknights : A Draco Surviving in a Matriarchal Terra (189 Chapter)
Arknights: What if My Luck Is Too Good? (135 Chapter)
Honkai: The Romance System Only Shows Up After I Marry Mei (55 Chapter)
Arknights: Who Are You Calling Repressed, X?! (145 Chapter)
The Chat Group Only Arrived After I'd Cleared the Game (102 Chapter)
Gojo Satoru Flat-Out Refuses to Admit He's a Supporting Character (40 Chapter)
Chat Group Isn't Supposed to Be Like This! (30 Chapter)
If You're Moriarty...then Who Am I? (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: Since I "Can't See," They Take Turns Stealing My Underwear (50 Chapter)
Arknights: Why Are All My "Brothers" Girls? (54 Chapter)
Danmachi: Start Training Haki (59 Chapter)
Emiya Shirou's Rebirth (30 Chapter)
I Can Get Stronger Just by AFK'ing—So I Joined a Chat Group (50 Chapter)
Endfield: I Can Always Pull Out One Yuan (65 Chapter)
Limbus Company : I Started a Company in Project Moon (50 Chapter)
Lobotomy: Do Cooks of Alley 23 Dream of Bloodfiend Knights? (50 Chapter)
DanMachi: Freya Familia's "One-Blade Shura" (60 Chapter)
DanMachi: Emiya, the Great Hero Becomes the Protagonist (90 Chapter)
TYPE-MOON: One Special Instance Every Week (40 Chapter)
From Danmachi: The Abundance Apothecary (70 Chapter)
Lord Shadow Descends on DanMachi (90 Chapter)
Fuse with Me, Exusiai! (41 Chapter)
Honkai: Star Rail — After I Die, I Forge Their Madness (60 Chapter)
DanMachi: The Last Zeus Familia (95 Chapter)
Endfield: Arknights Heroic Spirit Summoning (75 Chapter)
Toyokawa Family Finances (105 Chapter)
Starting From DanMachi to Become Stronger (90 Chapter)
DanMachi: My Familia Is Made Up Entirely of Heroines from Every World! (75 Chapter)
Arknights: My Intel Refreshes Daily (110 Chapter)
Digimon : I Never Meant to Do Evil, Even Though I Wasn't Chosen (40 Chapter)
Miss Holmes Could Never Be the Losing Heroine! (40 Chapter)
Takayama Gamu at Tracen Academy (40 Chapter)
Legendary Trainer Takes on MYGO (40 Chapter)
Arknights : Yandere Game: The Operators Have Come Knocking (100 Chapter)
Arknights: This Dating Sim Is Seriously Wrong! (120 Chapter)
Arknights : Ch'en Hui-chieh, I'm Done Being the Good Guy! (50 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Wasn't This Supposed to Be a Family Simulator? Why Am I the Family Heirloom? (40 Chapter)
Honkai: Star Rail : The Trailblazer Only Wants a Peaceful Life (45 Chapter)
Arknights: The Unlucky Dad? But I've Got the Chronicle of Time! (55 Chapter)
The Wheelchair War God Is Speedrunning Hogwarts (50 Chapter)
DanMachi: The Elemental Blaster of Orario (45 Chapter)
Playing Honkai in Star Rail (30 Chapter)
As an Alien, I'm Solo Leveling in Warhammer 40K (30 Chapter)
Arknights: A Symbiote's Survival Guide (70 Chapter)
My Yu-Gi-Oh! Deck Is Built Entirely from Stuff I Picked Up (30 Chapter)
I Can Hear the Thoughts of Uma Mutsume (30 Chapter)
Dead-Men Chat Group: Winning the Resurrection Bracket (40 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero: Saving the World While Falling in Love! (40 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: My Breathing Techniques Can Be Leveled Up (50 Chapter)
Type-Moon Age of Gods: Starting with a Simulation as Heracles (10 Chapter)
Terra Love Trap: They All Want Me to Themselves (10 Chapter)
Dimensional Ranking: Top Ten Saviors (10 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen: Naoya Zen'in Wants to Stay Alive! (10 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it