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The moment he was choked by Hercules, Ades was shocked. The five fingers clasped his jaw like vises, with amazing force. His mandible made a faint creak under the force, as if it would be crushed at any moment.
Adès' hands instinctively lifted, grabbing Hercules' forearm, trying to break the hand,
But the moment he touched the arm, his hand seemed to be burned, and the finger he had just held suddenly shrank. Hercules' forearm was surprisingly hot, as if it was not blood flowing in his veins,
but boiling magma. The heat came through his skin, making Adès' fingertips tingle slightly. His gaze moved up the arm and landed on Hercules' face. Then, his body trembled uncontrollably. It was a face he had never seen before, and it was the face he had hoped to see.
The calm and restrained boy on weekdays is gone. Standing in front of him at this moment was a completely enraged lion.
Hercules' eyes widened, his golden eyes were amazingly bright, and the golden light seemed to burst out of his eyes. In the depths of his pupils, the golden light was beating wildly and surging, as if it would turn into a substantive flame at any
time, burning everything in front of him. His brows furrowed tightly, and the deep gully between his eyebrows looked like a carved knife mark. The wings of the nose moved, the breath was as heavy as a cow, and every breath was scorching hot. That face, the face that was always as calm as water on weekdays, was distorted almost hideously at this moment.
Behind him, Hercules' long hair is windless and automatic. Those brown strands of hair stood up one by one as if they were coming to life, trembling slightly in the air. They floated slowly behind him, like the mane of a lion when it was angry.
At that moment, Ades felt like a rat pressed under his claws, a prey targeted by a beast. Those golden eyes locked him tightly, making him dare not even Fear rushed up from the deepest part of the spine and flowed through the blood.
He was the son of Apollo.
He had seen God.
He thought he knew what God was like.
But at this moment, staring at these golden eyes, he really understood
What is a child of God?
What is meant by bloodline suppression?
Hercules did not speak.
He simply pinched Ades's mouth shut and stared into his eyes.
He can endure a lot.
Those harsh insults, those biting sarcasm, those condescending looks—he could endure them, because…
Those things were directed at him; it was his own business. He knew the beast within him, so he learned to endure. But there was only one thing.
He would never allow anyone to insult his family.
his mother.
Alcmene.
The woman who gave birth to him. The woman who was the first to hold him and weep when he opened his eyes. The woman who abandoned him in the wilderness, yet felt guilty for half her life. The woman who always smiled when she saw him, a smile so gentle.
He knew how that night had happened.
That was her shame.
That was a shame she could never speak of.
Even though she doted on him, even though she always smiled so gently whenever she saw him, even though she never...
He knew that he had never shown any unusual behavior in front of him.
He knew that incident was like a thorn, still embedded deep in her heart. He knew that every time she thought of that night, she felt ashamed of her innocence. He knew she didn't even have the courage to recall it, to face it, to accept it.
recognize.
That's his mother.
She was one of the people he loved most in the world. And now, this despicable thing before him, this thing he had tolerated for months, dared to use this very incident to humiliate her!
Burned through. Ades's jawline creaked even more clearly, those golden eyes seeming to want to devour his soul. Ades's mouth was being squeezed shut, he couldn't speak at all, he could only stare wide-eyed at the distorted face before him.
Hercules's reason was like a candle flickering in the wind, and his fingers began to tighten as his emotions surged.
His face, staring into those burning eyes, staring into that lion that seemed poised to pounce and tear him to pieces.
fear.
He never imagined that this boy he had always looked down upon, this boy he had insulted for months without ever retaliating...
The boy with the mouth, the boy who always kept his head down while playing the piano —
It was something that could terrify him so much.
Ades' fingers were still on Hercules' forearm, but he could no longer exert any strength. He could feel...
The power surging beneath his skin was like a raging river, ready to burst its banks and engulf him at any moment.
With Ades's provocation and Hera's magic, the beast that had been sleeping for many years finally opened its eyes.
Since fate has already come rushing towards me—
So what is there for me, who bears the name Hercules, to hesitate about!
Then let fate take its course!
With the roar of the Hercules bloodline, the golden light in his eyes reached its peak, the light emanating from the depths of his pupils.
It exploded open, like two suns rising from the ground, so dazzling that people dared not look directly at it.
Golden light coursed through his body, surging wildly along the veins, illuminating his skin almost completely.
Transparent. The light shone through his skin, forming a faint golden halo around his body, enveloping him entirely.
His long hair danced wildly behind him, like black flames whipped up by a storm.
Dancing before a sleeping lion —
Then be prepared to be slapped to death!
If the other person wants to die, then let them die!
Hercules suddenly exerted force with his palm.
At that moment, the veins on his arms bulged, his muscles taut to the extreme, a power powerful enough to tear apart a ferocious beast and shatter the ground.
All the power was concentrated in those five fingers in that instant.
Golden light emanated from his palm, illuminating Ades's terrified and contorted face.
Adez's eyes were so wide they almost bulged out of their sockets. His mouth was still being choked, preventing him from making a sound.
He could hear her voice, but his eyes were filled with fear.
Those golden eyes. That violent power, that beast breaking free of its chains. His fingers were tightening...
Tight, that power is exploding. The next second, Ades' head will be like a ripe watermelon, bursting from his palm.
My heart exploded.
Then—
Snap!
Hercules clenched his fingers into his palm, and the air exploded in his hand! Ades's entire body shattered like a phantom before his eyes, like something being struck, into countless pieces, and then...
It dissipated into the air.
Only that crisp, cracking sound still echoed in the courtyard.
Hercules paused for a moment.
He looked down at his hands, the hand still in a clenched position. There was nothing between his fingers, only...
Nothingness.
Ardes is gone.
Woodlands outside Thebes.
Ades' body appeared out of thin air and then crashed heavily to the ground. He slumped there, panting heavily, cold sweat streaming down his forehead and stinging his eyes.
It hurt terribly, but he didn't bother to wipe it. He just sat there, feeling his still-beating heart, feeling himself...
His body is still alive.
It worked.
He survived.
He looked down at his chest, where a small badge was slowly crumbling. It was a wondrous little gadget Hera had given him, a treasure capable of teleporting him away in a life-or-death situation. Now, the badge was completely destroyed.
It had fulfilled its mission and was gradually turning into dust, drifting off his clothes.
Ades looked at the powder, a smile of relief slowly spreading across his face. Then, that smile turned into a maniacal laugh.
"Hahaha—hahahahaha—!"
His laughter echoed through the open woodland, startling several birds that were roosting there. The birds fluttered into flight.
They came and disappeared among the treetops in the distance.
After laughing his fill, Adez stood up, leaning against the tree trunk. His legs were still a little weak, but his eyes shone with an astonishing light.
He succeeded, he did it,
The red light that Hera had cast upon him had completely transferred to Heracles, who was in Thebes.
For the past few months, every day, every curse, every harsh look, has been fueling the fire in that boy's body. And those words just now, those insults about his mother, were the final spark that ignited the flame.
At this moment, the flames had already started burning.
What will the crazed Hercules do next?
Ades turned and looked towards the city of Thebes. Through the gaps in the trees, he could see the city.
Outlines were visible; the towering roofs of the palace and the densely packed houses were visible.
He will ruin it all.
Ardes thought.
He would be enraged, he would lose control, and he would use that power to tear everything in front of him to shreds. Those mortals, those buildings, everything he coveted—all would turn to ashes in his uncontrollable rage.
This was the "mistake" that Ades designed for Heracles.
Destroy a city.
Kill countless people.
That should be enough, right?
Ades clenched his fists, his eyes burning with a fanatical fire. Next, he would be able to successfully climb...
Mount Olympus!
Above the clouds, Hera sat enthroned on her golden throne.
She looked down at the earth below, her gaze piercing through the clouds and mountains, settling on the city called Thebes.
superior.
She saw it.
Seeing the flames within the boy finally ignited, seeing the beast that had slumbered for so many years finally open its eyes.
eye.
She narrowed her eyes slightly.
Ades thought she had done what she wanted him to do. That fool thought that having Hercules destroy a city was the "wrong thing" she wanted.
Hera's lips curved into a smile.
During the sixteen years Hercules grew up, she considered making a move several times. Each time, the old man would stand in her way, with those high-sounding reasons—he was a destined hero, he was useful to the gods, his…
Life has not begun yet.
She endured it.
I tolerated it time and time again. 1r5Rp
But she kept waiting.
Wait for a suitable reason.
A reason that even Zeus could not stop.
And now—
She looked down at the boy, whose body was burning with golden light, at his eyes that were completely consumed by rage, and at the violent power surging around him.
Her gaze shifted to the woodland outside the city.
He moved toward Ades's ecstatic face.
All the gods know that Hera recently took someone to Mount Olympus.
That's no secret. The Empress doesn't need to explain herself to anyone. She can bring whomever she wants up the mountain.
The mountain can bestow its grace upon whomever it desires.
So, everyone knows————
Ades was a man of Hera.
These were believers personally led up the mountain by the goddess.
He was Hera's loyal servant.
Hera's fingers tapped lightly on the armrest of the golden throne.
She looked at Ades kneeling in the woods, at his face filled with ecstasy, at his burning eyes.
With ambitious eyes.
Then her gaze returned to Hercules.
Kill her followers.
This reason——
Is it enough?
Hercules looked at the air in his palm, and the light of reason in his golden eyes was teetering on the brink of collapse.
However, that faint light clung to itself, refusing to be extinguished no matter what.
Sixteen years.
From the moment he was born, he was in a state of restraint. Restraining his power, restraining his anger, restraining the beast within him that could burst forth at any moment. He learned to be a good son, a good younger brother, a good student. He learned to write...
Learning to draw, learning to play music, I'm learning to gradually suppress those violent impulses deep inside my heart.
He thought that this would allow him to preserve those ordinary days.
He thought that if he was patient enough, fate would come later.
But fate still came.
It followed in Ades' footsteps, carried Hera's magic, and shrouded in malice, smashing through all his defenses.
So be it.
Hercules raised his head and looked into the void.
Since fate has already arrived—
Then let fate take its course!
The lion in chains should take off its disguise.
At that moment, the townspeople stopped what they were doing and stared blankly in the direction of the palace. Farmers in the fields straightened up, their sickles slipping from their hands. Street vendors forgot to call out their wares, standing there dumbfounded. They didn't know why their hearts were pounding.
All they knew was that something had awakened.
"Hercules!"
Alcmene's voice came from the end of the corridor.
She was the first to arrive. Her footsteps were hurried and disordered, her skirt billowing and falling as she ran. She turned around.
At the last corner, I saw my son standing there.
Then she suddenly stopped in her tracks.
An invisible force blocked her way like a wall, as if some extremely majestic being was releasing its power.
The pressure made it impossible for her to take another step forward.
That was something emanating from her son. She could only stand at the end of the corridor, watching the ever-increasing distance as he was enveloped in golden light.
figure.
Is that her son?
The usually gentle and kind boy, who always looked at her with those tender eyes, now stood amidst a golden light.
Within the light, his eyes shone with an astonishing brightness, golden light emanating from the depths of his pupils, like two burning suns.
Yang. His long hair danced wildly behind him, like a lion.
He was surrounded by a golden halo, so intense it almost burned one's eyes. Alcmene wanted to rush over, to embrace him, to pull him back from that light. But she couldn't move.
That invisible pressure was so strong that even breathing became difficult for her.
Eyes. He had looked into those eyes for sixteen years. Every time he called her "Mom," she would look into those same eyes.
She could only stand there, across the corridor, watching her child.
"Hercules!" she called his name, her voice trembling, "Calm down—"
Hercules turned his head and looked at her.
Across that long corridor, across that ever-growing yet seemingly never-before-seen distance, he met those eyes.
He was gentle and warm, possessing all the qualities he cherished most in his life.
He suddenly smiled.
"I'm awake, mother."
His voice was calm, unlike that of someone who was angry. The voice traveled down the corridor, through the invisible aura of power.
The pressure, clear and distinct, fell into her ears.
He is sober.
He was looking at everything in front of him as if he were in the third person.
The anger still surged within him, the power still roared in his veins, but it was no longer what he needed.
The things that suppress him. They are him, a part of him, the fate he has borne since birth.
He turned his head and looked out the window.
Looking in that direction, the direction where Ades disappeared.
His eyes pulsed slightly.
In those golden pupils, a figure laughing wildly in the forest was reflected, soaring over walls, across the woods, and through all obstacles; he saw it. Hercules withdrew his gaze and looked back at Alcmene.
He wanted to say a lot.
He wanted to tell her he loved her. He wanted to thank her for her companionship over the past sixteen years, and he wanted to say sorry, that he could no longer be the one who made her...
She has such a good son who doesn't cause her any trouble.
But he said nothing.
He just looked at her, at the face etched in his heart, and then—
He suddenly exerted force with his feet.
For a moment, the world seemed to stand still.
Then---
Boom!!
That was the sound of the earth being trampled, the sound of the entire palace wailing.
Centered on where Hercules stood, the earth suddenly caved in. The entire courtyard sank! The stone slabs shattered like fragile biscuits, and huge stones were thrown into the air, breaking into even smaller fragments mid-air.
The earth churned, as if a colossal beast were about to burst forth from the ground. Cracks spread outwards from him in all directions, like countless black serpents writhing across the earth. They tore...
They cracked the ground, tore apart the walls, and ripped apart everything that stood in their way.
The entire courtyard is collapsing.
The pillars collapsed with a deafening roar. Roof tiles rained down, shattering into countless pieces on the ground. Cracks appeared all over the walls before they crumbled completely. In that instant, the buildings were reduced to rubble.
Ruins.
Smoke and dust billowed into the sky, engulfing the entire palace.
Alcmene stood at the end of the corridor, watching helplessly as the cracks surged toward her. They were like a roaring flood.
The stream, carrying the force of destruction, reached her feet in the blink of an eye.
Then it stopped.
The very tip of the crack stopped just before her toes. She stood there, separated by that crack.
Look at your children.
Hercules was no longer in the same place.
The instant she lowered her head, the instant the cracks spread to her feet, he had already soared into the air. The ground beneath his feet exploded into powder; the force of the recoil was so immense that the entire...
The entire palace trembled. The walls that still stood shook violently, more tiles fell in a flurry, and huge plumes of dust billowed out.
It rose from beneath his feet and slowly spread into the sky.
And he, using that power, streaked across the sky like a golden meteor, heading towards the direction outside the city—
Jump.
The speed was so fast that it was almost impossible for the naked eye to perceive. A golden afterimage trailed behind him, the light tracing a long path across the sky. Alcmene looked up, watching the golden figure recede into the distance.
The wind blew through her hair, blurring her vision.
She opened her mouth, wanting to call his name.
But she didn't shout.
Because she knew—
That's not the way she can call back.
She stood on the edge of the bottomless crack, in front of the collapsed ruins, and
watched her child disappear into the sky like a shooting star.
The smoke and dust slowly dissipated, and the sun shone again on the mess.
The crack started where Hercules jumped, spread all the way to her feet, and then came to an abrupt end. It's like that child who remembers to control his
power at the last moment.
Don't let it hurt her.
Alcmene's tears finally fell.
The ordinary days are over.