Chapter 112: Perseus (4)
“Thank you for coming.”
“Haha. Of course. How could I miss the wedding of someone who has never married before?”
“Absolutely. Here, this is my wedding gift.”
“Oh, such a precious thing—thank you.”
King Polydectes greeted the guests at the wedding celebration.
Above all, this was Polydectes’s first official wedding, so it was held with particular splendor.
While Polydectes was busy welcoming the envoys and nobles who had come to celebrate, Hermione quietly approached from behind.
“Your Majesty, as planned, we have invited not only the nobles inside and outside the castle but all those close to us.”
Polydectes, exchanging greetings with foreign nobles in front of him, glanced at Hermione and whispered discreetly,
“And Perseus or Dictys?”
“Ahem… Dictys did not come, but Perseus arrived as their representative.”
“What?”
Polydectes’s expression hardened at the news that Dictys and Perseus had not come together.
Startled by his reaction, Hermione hurriedly explained,
“B-but Perseus alone should be sufficient. Moreover, with the news of Your Majesty marrying Princess Hippodameia of Pisa, they must have let their guard down somewhat.”
Polydectes fell into thought at Hermione’s words.
It was regrettable that he couldn’t lure his brother Dictys into the trap at once, but Perseus alone might be enough.
‘At a royal celebration, if I play my cards right, I can definitely trap that brat.’
Dictys might cause trouble later, but as before, Polydectes figured it wouldn’t be a big issue.
***
As the guests began to feel bored after eating, drinking, and reveling for a while,
Polydectes gave Hermione a subtle signal.
Receiving it, Hermione suddenly stood up and shouted,
“Everyone! Since this is the first wedding of our esteemed King Polydectes, wouldn’t it be fitting for us nobles to present a grand gift together?!!”
The guests at the celebration were dumbfounded by Hermione’s abrupt words.
What the hell is this all of a sudden?
Their individual gifts should have been enough, and for the notoriously tyrannical Polydectes…
Moreover, saying this just as the celebration was winding down filled the attendees with bewilderment and irritation.
—Really…?
—Doesn’t seem like a good idea.
—…Coming here should be thanks enough.
—Tsk tsk tsk.
Above all, though this was Polydectes’s first marriage, he had frequently held similar banquets under various pretexts before, so the reactions were far from positive.
Hermione had anticipated the nobles’ response.
Even he sighed every time he saw Polydectes—how much worse for others?
Accordingly, he had planted several shills inside the palace.
“Oh! That’s a truly excellent idea.”
“Yes. I think we should all offer one horse each to Lord Poseidon, who rules our island.”
“That’s perfect. If we all pool one horse each, perhaps Lord Poseidon’s blessing will descend upon this land and the nobles here.”
“…”
The nobles in attendance wore sour expressions.
How many could smile in the face of this sudden forced contribution?
However, since the gift was said to be an offering to Poseidon rather than Polydectes, refusing would be unbecoming of a noble.
—Ugh… If we refuse and some sea or river god finds out…
—Before that, that greedy bastard will probably devour all the horses we offer.
—Well, those of us from outside have already offered sacrifices to Lord Poseidon.
—True. The locals would naturally offer anyway.
—But what choice do we have… That guy will probably spread rumors on purpose.
—…
Knowing Polydectes’s character, he would certainly spread tales far and wide—twisting the truth as needed.
If that happened, those who had to return home could easily imagine the treatment they’d receive until they explained themselves.
“Ahem… Since it’s a joyous occasion, offering one horse each to Lord Poseidon should be fine.”
When one noble spoke with a resigned expression, the others soon nodded in reluctant agreement.
“Yes… if it’s an offering to Lord Poseidon.”
“I agree as well. Then I will offer a horse…”
“Me too.” “Me too.” “Me too.”
One by one, the nobles consented, leaving only Perseus at the end.
His circumstances made it impossible to offer something as expensive as a horse.
Unlike other priests, Poseidon’s priests had virtually no wealth.
There were few priests to begin with, and temples to Poseidon on land were almost nonexistent. Sacrifices to Poseidon were mostly personal matters.
Above all, Poseidon’s priests could not be greedy, extravagant, or lazy.
Even Perseus—son of a god and possessing heroic qualities—had taken ten years to borrow Poseidon’s powers. What chance did ordinary people have?
In short, they were little different from ascetics.
And naturally, King Polydectes and Hermione had dug this trap knowing that fact.
‘As planned.’
‘Yes, Your Majesty. Exactly as planned.’
The two exchanged covert signals with their eyes and looked at the flustered Perseus with amusement.
Perseus was now nothing more than a poor fawn caught in a snare.
“I’m sorry, but please understand our circumstances. We are merely fishermen living day to day.”
At Perseus’s earnest plea, the nobles nodded.
They too knew how Poseidon’s priests lived.
“Forcing a young priest to offer a horse is indeed a bit much.”
“True. And does a priest even need to offer a horse to Lord Poseidon?”
“After all, it was Lord Poseidon who sent horses to humans.”
Hearing the nobles’ murmurs, King Polydectes curled the corners of his mouth.
Everything had gone according to plan so far.
“Ahem… The priest’s words are certainly correct. As my brother is also his priest, I am well aware of their circumstances.”
“Then—”
Just as Perseus’s face brightened at Polydectes’s unusually reasonable remark,
Polydectes shouted with a predatory grin,
“Then! How about bringing the head of Medusa?!!”
““…!!!””
The celebration erupted into uproar.
Everyone was horrified by the king’s absurd demand.
Only then did those present realize: this celebration was not for the king’s wedding.
It was the king’s plot to kill the young priest.
“He’s insane. We knew he was unhinged, but…”
“Yes, this insane…”
“But the young priest is cornered. Now that we’ve all publicly agreed to prepare one horse each, he has to obtain one somehow.”
“Exactly. And when the priest was in trouble, the king struck first.”
“Oh no… We should have found an excuse not to attend.”
Like the whispering nobles, Perseus also realized he had fallen into a trap.
He should have agreed from the start to procure a horse.
Since the king had yielded once, refusing a second time would be a grave insult.
Above all, refusing something unanimously agreed upon by all attendees violated custom.
And naturally, the repercussions of breaking custom were not negligible.
Taught by two royals, Perseus knew this well.
That vile Polydectes would surely use this as bait to seize his mother Danaë.
‘Damn him. Even if I die, I’ll never hand Mother over to a man like you.’
***
“Good gods!!! Bring Medusa’s head?”
Hearing the news Perseus brought from the celebration, Dictys lamented.
“My mistake. I should have gone instead of you.”
Danaë, beside Dictys, could not hide her despair.
It was all because of her that her son had been burdened so heavily.
“This is all this mother’s fault. I should have gone to that ugly king back then.”
“Mother, don’t say that. Even if it means fleeing this island, I won’t let you go to a man like him.”
“My son…”
“…”
Dictys watched the resolute mother and son, deeply troubled over what to do.
‘The best option would be to get these two off the island…’
The problem was that his brother, King Polydectes, was obsessive and tenacious.
The moment he learned of their escape, he would surely use his wealth and connections with allied kingdoms to relentlessly hunt and harass them.
“What to do…”
As Dictys’s worries deepened,
“Priest Dictys. I will bring Medusa’s head.”
“What?!”
“No matter how I look at it, Polydectes and I will have to settle this eventually. Either I die, or that king does.”
“You…”
Dictys gazed at Perseus—the boy he had raised like a son—with a hardened face at the clear resolve shining in his eyes.
Seeing that look, Dictys knew he could not dissuade him.
“…Fine. If your resolve is that strong, there’s no other way. We can only do our best.”
***
Reading Perseus’s determination, Dictys used every resource at his disposal to research the Gorgon sisters.
Yet the problem remained: information about the Gorgons was extremely scarce, and the more he learned, the more hopeless it seemed.
To humans, the Gorgon sisters were known as monsters—powerful ones from whom no one had ever returned alive.
However, according to the materials Dictys had gathered as Poseidon’s priest, they were not monsters but gods.
Granddaughters of Gaia and Pontus, no less.
Their father Phorcys was imprisoned in an undersea prison for siding with Pontus, but their mother Ceto had helped Poseidon win the war. As a result, Ceto’s authority and prestige were immense.
Naturally, the Gorgon sisters—who had joined their mother in that great war barely recorded by humans—held recognized positions as gods, at least in the sea.
“This makes no sense. How did such goddesses come to be known as monsters to humans?”
“Is something wrong? Is there an error in the materials about the Gorgon goddesses?”
At Dictys’s bewildered exclamation, the mermaid Azur—who had brought the materials—asked with a puzzled expression.
Dictys realized his mistake.
How rude to react like that in front of someone who had brought such precious documents.
“Sorry. I was lost in thought in front of you.”
“No, no—it’s nothing. More importantly, why were you so shocked? Tell me. Who knows—I might be able to ease your worries.”
Dictys glanced at the mermaid Azur, hesitated a moment, then finally spoke.
The mermaid before him was capable enough to lead Poseidon’s envoy delegations and had her power recognized. She might even be able to advise Perseus.
“Well…”
After hearing Dictys’s full story, Azur flew into a rage.
“How can all humans be like this! Just like with Argos Island.”
Dictys merely nodded at Azur’s greater-than-expected fury.
As Poseidon’s priest, he too knew about the Argos Island incident.
“Sigh… Sorry. Hearing about you and that priest candidate brought back old memories.”
“No, it’s fine. You have every reason to feel that way.”
Azur apologized again to Dictys, who kept reassuring her it was okay, then fell into thought before cautiously speaking.
“…This is just me talking to myself. You just happened to overhear my mutterings.”
Dictys swallowed hard at Azur’s caution and turned his head, pretending not to listen.
Azur was about to reveal a secret for his sake.
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