Chapter 171: The Calydonian Boar Hunt (13)
Bloodshot eyes and grotesquely twisted limbs—the possessed finally tore through their ropes and pounced on the momentarily off-guard heroes.
“Gwaaaaah!!”
“These damn things!!”
“Kill them!!!”
In an instant, the banquet hall turned into a hellscape of blood and flying flesh.
The twisted figures—no longer recognizably human—sank their teeth into the heroes with relentless obsession, refusing to let go.
“Argh! Damn it—let go of Peleus!!”
Clang!
Of course the heroes weren’t going to just take it lying down. They immediately counterattacked, this time aiming to kill by severing the necks of those clinging to them.
But their skin had become thick and steel-like, just like a monster’s. The heroes’ weapons bounced off instead of cutting through.
“Grrraaahk… s-save… me…”
In the chaos of surprise, confusion, and the sudden monstrous transformation, the first fatality occurred on the heroes’ side.
“Damn it—Peleus!!”
“Fight! We have to kill them now!!”
“Someone bring weapons! We can’t do this like this!”
“Crush their heads! That’s the weakest part!!”
Even Meleager was momentarily stunned by the sudden turn of events and couldn’t immediately restore order to the scene.
He had been certain he hadn’t let his guard down even for a second…
Yet cruel fate—beyond all logic and comprehension—had closed in on him in an instant.
Who could have predicted that tonight was the night of the waxing crescent, when Artemis’s blessing would fully manifest? That the blessing would twist them this way? That it was contagious and needed to be contained?
Even for Meleager—a hero candidate acknowledged by both Poseidon and Artemis—or the hero yet to be born in the future, it would have been impossible to foresee.
The people here were still unfinished potential—not yet completed heroes.
At that moment, two figures lunged at the dazed Meleager from behind.
Swish!
They looked like deep-sea creatures: bulging, protruding eye sockets, ears torn open, mouths filled with densely packed needle-like teeth, arms atrophied to near nonexistence, while their thighs, calves, and feet had swollen grotesquely.
With speed Meleager only registered too late, sharp tongues shot out like arrows from their mouths, aimed straight at his head and chest—poised to deliver fatal wounds.
Too late!
Meleager realized the danger a split second too late.
Just as the tentacle-like tongues were about to strike—
Slash! Thud.
A black-haired huntress carrying a massive bow on her back appeared, wielding a dagger shaped like a ‘u-do’ (a type of Korean cleaver), and severed the tongues in one clean motion.
“Snap out of it, Meleager!! If you lose focus here, what are the rest of us supposed to do?!”
With a sharp shout, the black-haired huntress Atalanta saved the stunned Meleager.
Amid the chaos of the banquet hall, she had been the first to regain her senses. She quickly secured a weapon and rushed straight to him.
“…Haa. Thanks. You saved my life.”
“Forget that—something’s seriously wrong. I ran all over the palace looking for weapons, and I didn’t see a single servant. Not one shadow.”
“What…? Weren’t there attendants carrying food just a moment ago?”
“Exactly! That means they were all fake! We’re trapped in someone’s scheme right now!!”
“!!!”
***
What they thought was a trap was indeed a trap—but not in the way they imagined.
It was simply that Artemis’s blessing had spread throughout the entire palace.
Those already harboring the latent blessing had rapidly disseminated it across the whole building.
Most of the transformed—those who had lost their reason and become grotesque—were Calydon’s nobles.
Once they began roaming the familiar halls of the palace, Artemis’s blessing saturated every corner in moments.
And when the waxing crescent rose—
Everyone in the palace transformed.
To fulfill their desires…
“Brutal, as expected.”
A blue-haired mage walked calmly through what had become a den of no-longer-human creatures.
Strangely, no one noticed him.
Even though he simply strolled through.
“Tsk tsk tsk. Is this the end of Calydon’s fortune?”
The mage muttered to himself as he arrived before the most ornately decorated door in the palace.
There were traces that guards had once stood here—but now only blood-soaked torn skirts and shredded armor fragments remained.
“Well then… entering.”
Without a care for the gruesome remnants, the mage flung the door open.
Inside stood a beautiful noblewoman, clutching a charred log tightly to her chest.
As if it were her most precious child.
“Hm… No signs of forced entry. It seems even the people inside the palace instinctively protected this place unconsciously?”
The mage scanned the interior, but unlike the rest of the palace, this room remained perfectly preserved.
As if no one had ever entered.
“Well then… shall we get to the point? Hey—you over there. Are you Althaea, Meleager’s mother?”
“…….”
The mage asked, but the woman clutching the charred log to her chest gave no reply.
“Hm… this is inconvenient. I’d appreciate a straightforward answer. Honestly, from what I’ve seen, Calydon is already doomed. So at the very least, shouldn’t we save Meleager—that boy? I’m holding things back for now, but soon Toxeus and Plexippus—or whatever their names are—will come looking for that log.”
The woman, who had remained silent until now, finally reacted at the mention of someone targeting the log.
“…The log… they’re… targeting… it…?”
“Yeah—I’m not the one after it, but it seems like your brothers are. Their tongues got cut off by Atalanta, and they vanished somewhere.”
“…The log… they’re… targeting… it…?”
“Yes, that’s what I said.”
“…Targeting… the log…?”
“Hey, is conversation even possible here? Just what kind of blessing did you accept? Your body’s still intact despite everything, so either your desires are minimal or your willpower is exceptionally strong—that much is clear.”
Njord sighed at Althaea, who kept repeating the same phrase.
Whatever desire or purpose she held, meaningful conversation seemed impossible.
Perhaps she had no real desire at all, which was why she had remained relatively intact until now.
“Sigh… fine. Atropos wouldn’t have told me to come here if it wasn’t necessary. I’ll set up a barrier around this place. Just stay inside—don’t come out.”
“…The log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target… the log… target…”
Njord shook his head at Althaea, who now seemed fully consumed by madness, repeating “target the log” over and over.
He turned away.
The terrifying thing about Artemis’s blessing was exactly this: normally there was no sign of anything wrong, but the moment a desire or purpose emerged, the person would transform completely. And worst of all—it was a blessing.
“Of course, with the power of the waxing crescent, it’s become an even stranger and more powerful blessing… Anyway, since someone’s after that log, I came to tell you: absolutely do not leave this room—”
Crunch!
Before Njord could finish, wriggling hair surged toward the spot where he stood.
Drip… drip…
A pool of blood formed where the hair struck.
The dull gray strands writhed like decapitated snakes gone mad, rapidly filling the room.
“…The log… I will… protect… it…”
The once-beautiful woman had become a monster shrouded in black hair. She glared somewhere, still cradling the charred log protectively, then stepped out of the room.
***
Meanwhile, at the moment the mage was brutally overwhelmed—
Meleager and his group were locked in a desperate struggle.
“Gah! Theseus—get this thing off me! It’s poison!”
“Tch. Even in this situation, you’re still joking around, Jason.”
“What?! You think this looks like a joke to you, you lunatic?! These monsters are the most grotesque things I’ve ever seen in my life!”
As Jason said, the creatures attacking them were utterly bizarre.
Some exploded in self-destructing blasts; others opened their stomachs like gaping maws to devour; some swung their lower bodies wildly; others tore off the heroes’ skin to wear it themselves.
“I hate to agree with Jason, but the monsters inside the palace right now are all abnormal. Honestly, it’s hard to believe they were ever human.”
“Hm. I agree with Ancaeus. Even in Lapith history, no record exists of monsters like these. It’s probably… a divine curse.”
“You guys… aren’t you treating me a little too harshly…? Anyway—this isn’t just whining. Meleager, the situation feels unprecedentedly grave. For your kingdom and for us.”
“…….”
Meleager remained silent at his companions’ words.
The people who had been fighting in the banquet hall had scattered in the sudden explosions of corpses. His closest companions had regrouped, but…
(‘Why… why are these people… here?’)
He recognized the grotesque monsters before him. They were all people from the palace.
The woman who exploded and sprayed poison on Jason was Delphi, the palace poison specialist.
The one Theseus had just cut down was Kalkas, the palace janitor.
The woman laughing with her mouth torn open in front of him—without even attacking—was Electra, a palace maid.
(‘Why… why have the palace family turned into this? But…’)
“…I suppose I should tell you all. The grotesque monsters in front of us right now… were all people from our palace. I recognize every face.”
“““?!”””
Meleager tried to speak calmly. If he showed panic now, the others would lose composure too.
But though he didn’t realize it himself, his fist was clenched so tightly that his nails had dug into his palm—blood dripping steadily.
“““…….”””
***
Shocked into silence, the companions stood frozen behind him.
Meleager approached the only monster that still hadn’t attacked—simply staring at him.
“…Electra. You always used to say your melancholy expression was your complex. Isn’t this a bit much?”
“I… smile… so… pretty…”
“How did that spirited young lady end up like this?”
“I… pretty…”
“Yes, you really are beautiful. But your face has always been beautiful too.”
Meleager took the hand of Electra—the palace maid who had grown up with him since childhood—and spoke gently.
She didn’t seem to understand his words. Her grip was so tight it could have crushed his hand, yet she made no move to attack.
Still, he didn’t want to abandon the maid who had been by his side his whole life. Even if she could no longer comprehend him.
“I… pretty…”
“You were quite popular in the palace, you know. Even as the prince, I used to get jealous looks just because you were always by my side.”
“I… pretty…”
“And you know what? Father finally gave permission for you to learn the secret mana techniques you’d always wanted. You used to envy me so much—saying that if you mastered them, you’d become as beautiful and elegant as Mother. I always thought you was plenty beautiful already.”
Electra’s grip remained painfully tight, and no words seemed to reach her.
Yet perhaps his desperate wish, his longing, somehow reached her.
The maid who had become a monster—whose eyes had been lifeless as a corpse—suddenly regained a flicker of life in her gaze.
“Really…? Prince… am I… really… pretty…?”
“Electra—you’ve come back to yourself!!”
“Yes… your eternal maid… Electra… at your service…”
“You’re back! There really was hope!!”
“Prince… no… this is… only… for a very… short… time…”
“But—!”
The maid Electra, now lucid, gently loosened her crushing grip on Meleager’s hand and stroked it softly.
It felt like comfort, reassurance—and a final farewell.
Meleager sensed her heart and couldn’t speak.
As if understanding her master’s feelings, Electra—now smiling not out of madness but with heartbreaking natural beauty—asked softly:
“Prince… so… am I… beautiful…?”
“…….”
In that moment, Meleager didn’t know what words to say.
Letting go of someone who had been precious to him his entire life was too heavy a burden for a young man like him.
Yet even so, through the hand she still held, he understood. He learned what he needed to do.
So Meleager did not cry. He did not grieve.
He straightened his shoulders, wore the faint smile he had always shown, and answered calmly:
“Yes, of course you are. But you were always such a spirited girl. Why are you making such a sad face now?”
“Yes… we palace maids… must always… be spirited… in front of the prince… but just a little…”
“I see… so that’s why you’re smiling like this.”
“Yes… this is… my last… moment… as your maid… I can no longer… hold on… Prince… please… take care… of the palace…”
“…Yes, Electra. Leave it to me.”
Slash!
With those final words of farewell, Meleager severed the neck of Electra—who had smiled at him until the very end.
The head of the one palace maid who—among all he had encountered—never once attacked and never lost her sense of duty as a servant rolled to the ground.
Meleager gently lifted her severed head as though cradling it, laid it beside her fallen body, and closed his eyes for a moment.
He looked like a candle flame about to gutter out—but no one dared approach.
None of them could understand what he was feeling in that moment.
“““…….”””
A short while later, Meleager opened his eyes again—now burning with fierce determination—and looked at his companions.
“It seems… neither I nor the kingdom of Calydon have overcome Lady Artemis’s trial. Most likely, the entire palace has been twisted by my wrong judgment and this unknown force. From Electra, it’s clear that once someone transforms, there’s little hope of return. So the only thing I can do now is grant them all a peaceful end. The rest of you—leave this place immediately. This burden is mine to bear.”
With those words, Meleager began walking toward somewhere—his steps unwavering.
His companions saw in him the image of firewood determined to burn brightly until the very last moment.
_____________________________________________
TL Note:
This novel is fully completed.
You can either:
- Unlock this novel individually through its Collection "Poseidon's Chonicles" and access all remaining 96 Chapters for only $3
Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/cw/Vritratls
____________________________________________