Chapter 81
Bellerophon, riding Pegasus, flew urgently in search of the Chimera.
The monster's trail was consistently visible.
'Damn it... That monster...'
Towards Lycia, the very city where he had received his mission.
The ground where the Chimera seemed to have passed was horribly scarred by the monster's sharp claws...
The grass and trees along the way had withered due to the deadly poison dripping from the snake head's fangs.
Neigh!
He hurriedly drove Pegasus towards Lycia.
But as he got closer to the city, he could hear people's screams and the sound of buildings collapsing.
Was he already too late, despite pushing Pegasus to its limits? Which direction should he go?
"Ahhhhh!"
"Monster! It's a monster! O Goddess Athena!"
"Quickly, take shelter this way!"
The temple of Goddess Athena, built on the outskirts of the city, was engulfed in flames.
The statue imitating the beautiful Goddess of Wisdom was split in half and scattered on the floor,
creating chaos as fleeing people and heavily armed soldiers surrounding the temple ran about busily.
Whoosh-
"That crazy monster!"
"O Goddess Athena... Forgive us for failing to protect the temple..."
"It's just spewing fire from inside the temple now... but our arrows definitely didn't work!"
"We need to get inside somehow, but it's not easy!"
"Damn these relentless flames...!"
Once again, intense flames erupted from the center of the temple.
Bellerophon searched around the burning temple on Pegasus, but the monster was nowhere to be seen.
It was clear that the Chimera was inside. But to enter the narrow temple, he would have to dismount from Pegasus.
Without Pegasus, though, Bellerophon was just an ordinary human. Could he defeat that monster?
Could he really... without Pegasus... avoid that steel-like skin and thrust the spear into its throat?
***
Soon, many people spotted Bellerophon pondering while mounted on the celestial horse in mid-air.
Those exposed to the monster's threat desperately sought a lifeline.
"Sir, have you perhaps received divine help? That monster has been inside the temple for a while now!"
"A winged horse...? Have the gods sent a messenger?"
"Please, whoever you are up there, help Lycia!"
The hero gritted his teeth as he looked at the people covered in ashes and horribly disfigured by burns.
Then, he heard the urgent voice of King Iobates.
King Iobates was visible among the numerous soldiers surrounding the temple.
"Bellerophon! You truly must be beloved by the gods!"
"King Iobates?! How did you come here..."
"What kind of king wouldn't personally handle a crisis when a temple in his country is in danger!"
King Iobates was the one who had sent Bellerophon to his death, believing his son-in-law's letter.
However, upon seeing Bellerophon riding the winged horse, he immediately realized his mistake and called out to him.
"Bellerophon! Come here for a moment!"
"Huh? Understood!"
He abruptly handed over a letter from his pocket to Bellerophon, who had briefly dismounted from Pegasus.
His eyes were full of apology and regret.
"No... This is...!"
"Yes, the truth is... the letter from my son-in-law said you had seduced his wife and asked me to kill you..."
"You mean when you told me to kill the Chimera... This is a misunderstanding! I..."
"...How could a hero who received such words from the gods covet a married woman? I've only now realized my mistake, I'm truly sorry..."
King Iobates approached Bellerophon and placed a hand on his shoulder.
The old king's eyes met those of the hero.
"I've done you a terrible wrong, but... could I ask you to deal with that monster?"
"...!"
"...Please. You're the only hero here."
The surrounding soldiers were shocked to see the king bowing his head to a commoner.
Bellerophon, biting his lip until it bled, knelt on one knee before the king and shouted:
"Of course! The gods gave me Pegasus to kill that monster in the first place... I will complete my task!"
Although it was a mission he had received full of ambition, he was still a hero.
Seeing the burning temple of the goddess and people dying, his heart was strongly moved.
The final push came from the king, who put aside his pride and bowed his head for the safety of his people.
Without waiting for the king's response, he took up his lead-tipped spear and entered the burning temple.
Step, step.
Without the god-sent Pegasus, facing that monster with just a lead-tipped spear,
he would surely die. Probably a painful death, his entire body burning.
But a hero is...
"Bellerophon!"
"Please... be safe..."
"May Athena's protection be with you!"
A hero because they do not retreat even in the face of inevitable death.
***
As Bellerophon entered the temple, pushing through the flames, all he could see was a sea of fire.
As if the lion-headed creature had gone berserk, intense heat pressed in on him from all directions.
"Ugh..."
Black smoke and flying ash, fleeing people and fierce flames obscured his vision...
Where is that monster... where is it?
As he went deeper into the temple, he discovered the Chimera staring at him with bloodshot eyes.
He immediately dove behind a marble pillar.
Whoosh-
Although he had hidden to avoid the flames that shot out as soon as the Chimera spotted him,
the environment here was too unfavorable for him.
Even without being hit directly, the environment was unbearably hot, and the acrid air seemed to burn his chest with every breath.
The god-given winged horse was outside, and there were no allies inside the temple.
It was truly a desperate situation where his life hung by a thread.
Whoosh-
"Ugh!"
He swallowed hard as he threw himself aside once more.
He couldn't keep dodging forever. Such a precarious balancing act was bound to fail eventually.
He was already out of breath, and his back felt hot.
Had he been grazed by the flames? The monster's growl was terrifying.
Growl-
The Chimera was slowly approaching, searching for Bellerophon who had hidden behind the pillar.
The monster's reaction speed far surpassed Bellerophon's.
Even if he could throw the spear accurately into its mouth, he wasn't throwing from atop Pegasus...
It would melt in mid-air, engulfed by those tremendous flames.
So there was only one way: he had to thrust it directly into the monster's mouth.
But if he did that, he would be engulfed in flames by the enraged monster...
Growl-
Bellerophon, hiding from the monster while leaning against the hot marble pillar, squeezed his eyes shut.
He had always wanted to become a hero, and beyond that, even a god. That's why he had planned to go to Thebes as the oracle proclaimed to the whole world...
But because of the sin of accidentally killing his brother, he had to seek refuge in another kingdom.
There were rumors that if you went to Thebes, the gods would train you directly, that you'd receive divine blessings and weapons and undergo intense schedules...
Even if only half the rumors were true, it was clear that those who passed the tests there all became heroes.
Then, did it mean that he, who hadn't gone to Thebes, couldn't become a hero?
Thud.
The Chimera's footsteps grew closer.
If it discovered him soon and breathed fire, he would be dead on the spot.
Through Bellerophon's gritted teeth flashed images of people dying in the burning flames and...
King Iobates bowing his head to him.
And the dream he had harbored deep in his heart for so long, the ambition to achieve remarkable feats and become a god.
Stand!
Growl!
Bellerophon didn't wait for the approaching monster but stood up abruptly and ran out.
Hot flames gushed from the Chimera's open mouth as it spotted him, but he didn't stop.
Whoosh-
"I, Bellerophon, will prove that one can become a hero without going to Thebes!!!"
His body was engulfed in burning flames. Hot. Hot. Hot. Too hot!
His skin, hands, arms, legs, his entire body was burning.
His trained muscles melted, and strength left the hand holding the spear.
He couldn't see ahead as if his eyes had melted, and his legs cried out in pain.
But the hero didn't let go of the spear in his hand until the very end.
Thrust.
Roar-!!!
Until it was lodged in the monster's mouth, his target.
***
After a while, the monster's agonized screams from inside the temple subsided, and the flames died down.
The soldiers surrounding the temple brought water to extinguish the small embers and entered.
Then, the soldiers at the front discovered something.
"This is!"
"Y-Your Majesty! You should... see this!"
King Iobates, who had entered once it was deemed safe, discovered two corpses in the center of the temple.
The Chimera, with a spear lodged in its mouth, lay fallen, emitting black smoke from its maw...
And what appeared to be Bellerophon's charred figure stood dead, having thrust that spear into the Chimera's mouth.
Everyone was solemn at the tragic yet noble sight.
"He didn't let go of the spear in his hand until the end..."
"Your Majesty, it seems the lead attached to the spear lodged in the Chimera's mouth melted in the flames and entered its stomach."
"With molten lead entering its stomach, even a monster would die..."
"He truly was a hero..."
From the circumstances, it appeared that the lead on the spear lodged in its mouth had melted in the flames the Chimera breathed,
and that molten lead had flowed into its stomach... killing it on the spot.
"Hmm... Recover Bellerophon's body."
"Yes!"
Rustle-
Bellerophon's body, or rather, the black figure too pitiful to be called a body...
Crumbled into ashes as soon as the soldiers lightly touched it.
Neigh...
Pegasus, who had somehow entered, let out a short cry as if lamenting his death.
King Iobates, who had been staring at the dead Chimera and Bellerophon for a long time, spoke in a heavy voice.
"...Erect a statue of Bellerophon, the hero who saved our Lycia."
"Yes! Understood!"
"May Pluto's blessing be with the hero."
"O Athena..."
May he receive his reward, at least in the afterlife.