Chapter 10

Chapter 10 – The Tyrant Hero, Hercules

The groaning patients silenced under the tyrant’s command, and the two defeated generals, who met the tyrant’s gaze head-on, ground their teeth.

“Weak! Weak! And you thought a snake trap would work? Ha ha ha!”

“Ugh!! Th-that crazy boar bastard...!”

“May the crow take you away!”

The trap was set last night with the full effort of Hephaistos’s sons and the craftsmen of the engineering department.

A strategy devised using all the devices studied in the Forest of Heroes, and the war histories of past heroes.

The tyrant’s mocking laughter at all their efforts made Theseus and Jason grit their teeth, but they had no choice.

The tyrant’s power was such that even mockery was tolerated.

“Hahahaha! As promised, tonight’s ration of wine is mine, right?”

“Ugh!! Tyrant! Go away!”

“Bloodline cheat! Monster!”

“Down with the tyrant!”

“Thanatos, what are you doing? Take away that monstrous brat!”

“Hahaha! Yes, wail all you want, losers! The wine is mine anyway!”

Even while facing the resentment from the infirmary head-on, the young tyrant laughed loudly without losing an inch of confidence.

His eyes, arrogantly laughing with black hair fluttering like a lion’s mane, shone intensely with intoxication from victory.

Son of Alcmene and prince of Mycenae. The man who strangled a snake to death at birth and the tyrant of the Forest of Heroes.

Hercules.

He was a tyrant that ignited the fighting spirit of everyone here and a warrior recognized by all.

Even his arrogant remarks and condescending gaze had to be acknowledged because he was Hercules.

Who would dare to oppose him? At his age, his martial arts skills were already on par with his teacher, Chiron, and his titanic strength was so overwhelming that no one could stand against him.

“Hercules... just wait and see. I still have about seventy-two strategies left to capture you!”

“Tactics Department, think hard today! We need to come up with a strategy that makes that bastard surrender with both hands up!”

“I’ll accept it anytime! Bring it on!”

The cheers of the warriors heated up the air in the infirmary.

On one side, as an arrogant king, and on the other, as a challenger, they always burned with fierce competitiveness towards each other.

“Who broke the door? Which bastard?”

“Heik?!”

The arrogantly smiling king was now gone, and Hercules shrank back at the voice flying from behind him.

It wasn’t just Hercules.

“Snore.”

“Mumble, mumble.”

The warriors, who had raised their voices against the tyrant, collapsed like corpses and closed their eyes.

“Oh, my dear Jason, the pain of battle torments me. Ah, it feels as though Hephaestus is hammering my head as if it were an anvil.”

“It must hurt a lot, my friend. May Apollo soothe your pain.”

The hero, who led them with his wit and intelligence, theatrically examined their wounds as if nothing had happened, not even glancing at the entrance where Hercules stood.

“It rang three times, right?”

The huge horn sound echoed throughout the forest.

Once, it signified the appearance of a monster; twice, the occurrence of an intruder; and thrice, the arrival of a new student.

“A new student?”

“A new student!”

“It’s a new student!!”

The students, who had been lying around like corpses, suddenly sprang up like the dead rising at the command of Hades and ran to the entrance.

“A new student! Hahaha! Who is it?! Is a new challenger finally arriving?!”

And at the very front, a man with incredible strength was running, laughing loudly with a face that looked alive.

With a sense of relief that he was alive, he made a firm resolve to never mess around in the infirmary again.

“Huh... What is this?”

I was now in the Colosseum.

As soon as Chiron arrived at the forest, the gatekeeper saw me and blew the giant horn trumpet three times.

Seeing that, Chiron immediately took me to the armory to choose a weapon I liked.

Then he brought me to the colosseum, where nearly a thousand students with gleaming eyes cheered.

Freshman! Freshman! Freshman!

“Wow... Is that a girl? She’s really pretty.”

“Hey, don’t you have eyes? It’s a boy.”

“But something seems off about him.”

Students, who seemed to be around their teenage years, murmured in the stands with various emotions.

However, three presences stood out the most.

“Oh, someone with that kind of aura again. If we can win him over, our tactics will be twice as effective.”

“Doesn’t that guy seem to know some unique strategies or skills?”

“......”

The brown-haired boy with an air that reminded me of the Jin-wi general and the bright-eyed handsome boy that brought to mind Gwi Hyun-sa, my strategist from my previous life as the Heavenly Demon Divine Emperor.

And the black-haired boy, who, at a glance, looked eager for a fight.

“Just by looking, you can tell who is who, right?”

“Theseus, Jason, and Hercules, in that order.”

Names that appeared countless times in novels, books, games, and on the internet.

Seeing them in person was a new experience.

‘They look like extraordinary kids.’

I must be really old.

Whether they were mythical heroes or not, they just looked like kids with a promising future.

But one thing was certain—the power I felt from them.

Each of them had a force similar to the divine power and aura I felt when I clashed with Artemis a while ago.

“Well, I can deal with the young ones later...”

At present, the seasoned half-human, half-horse, in front of me was the one I had to deal with.

In my current state, he was a very tricky opponent.