"Mr. Russell."
President Karolos, who had already caught his breath, turned to William and asked:
"You're showing me this not just to let me know... that those children were killed by a giant beast, right?"
"Correct." William didn't deny it as he operated the computer between them.
"Because the Agents were connected via a real-time livestream with the Athens branch of Umbrella, you and I are able to know the enemy... or enemies we are facing."
"Enemies?" Karolos was taken aback.
"Exactly." William operated the computer again, bringing up the murals and ancient scripts from the ruin's corridor onto the screen.
He said, "Umbrella Corporation didn't recruit any full-time experts in ancient civilizations before this incident.
Combined with the suddenness of the event and other factors, I hope that as one of the most knowledgeable people regarding Greece, you can help translate this content, Mr. President."
"Hmm..."
Hearing this, Karolos took off his glasses, rubbed his eyes, put them back on, and nodded.
"No problem. Although I'm a Dr. of Law, I followed my uncle to visit various ancient ruins when I was young, so I suppose I'm half an archaeologist."
"I'm counting on you, sir," William said with respect.
"As it should be. After all, that hair-raising monster is slaughtering people on my beloved land.
Assisting your Umbrella with containment is also my responsibility, haha."
Karolos gave a bitter smile and then began to carefully read the content on the screen.
William, meanwhile, remained silent.
Having a national President help analyze anomalous phenomena was truly an act of desperation for William.
Before this, Umbrella indeed hadn't recruited experts specifically for such events.
That was because, aside from medicine, engineering, and physics, Halsey was also a top scholar in ancient civilizations.
Halsey could easily decipher the Forerunner Ruin and the various technologies recorded by the Forerunners in halo.
Therefore, there was no need for Umbrella to recruit those 'old timers' who were experts in name only.
It was better to save that money to upgrade the Agents' equipment.
However, Halsey was currently on the secret Minos island.
The situation was urgent.
Since Karolos was Greece's most prestigious scholar, entrusting the translation to the old President was a reliable choice.
A few minutes later;
"Unbelievable, it's truly... truly too... My God!"
When Karolos finished reading all the murals and text, he held his glasses frame with his right hand and pointed at the computer screen with his left in disbelief.
"Mr. Russell... do you know what is written here?!"
"Uh..." Hearing this, William shrugged with a hint of embarrassment.
"If I knew, I wouldn't have sought your help, Mr. President."
"Oh, right, my apologies."
Karolos apologized, took off his glasses, put them in his pocket, and asked with ill-concealed excitement:
"Mr. Russell, are you familiar with Ancient Greek history or greek mythology?"
"Well..."
William pinched his chin with his left hand and remained silent for a moment. "I heard some stories from my Grandpa when I was a child.
It's just that I don't have a very good impression of Zeus, the chief god in greek mythology. I won't go into the details."
"Ah, Zeus, an old lecher." Karolos chuckled.
The old President continued, "greek mythology is different from the legends and religions around the World.
Like Buddhism in ancient India, or christianity, and so on.
Deities in other religions rarely have personal desires and occupy a supreme heights, right?"
"Yes." William nodded.
Karolos went on, "But the gods in our culture have human emotions and desires. They are more like... people.
Like the Zeus you mentioned.
He frequently engaged in carnal pleasures with mortals, fathering many offspring—the demigods.
Various demigods born from the union of gods and humans are exceptionally active in our legends and culture.
The most famous among them is Achilles, the son of the sea goddess Thetis.
And what we are seeing is precisely the tomb of that hero."
"Wait."
William said in disbelief, "Mr. President, you're not joking with me, are you?
As far as I know, Achilles is just a fictional character from the Homeric Epics and the Trojan War.
Besides, even if he did exist, wasn't Achilles' end to be cremated and ascend to heaven? How could there be a body or a tomb?"
William had thought the old President would be more reliable.
He didn't expect him to talk about myths and legends.
"Young man, calm down."
Karolos gently patted William's right shoulder and explained patiently, "Cremation is only one of Achilles' many endings.
(Looking at the screen) The original words recorded here are... 'Here lies the great warrior, the great hero, the Tomb of Achilles.'
The hero was never injured in past battles and knew not what pain was; his body was invulnerable to blades and spears, and even the gods could hardly harm him.
But the coward Paris launched a sneak attack with an arrow, piercing the hero's only weakness, his heel.
When the war ended, the people held a funeral pyre for the hero.
The fire burned for three days and three nights, but it could not cremate the hero.
In the end, the hero slept eternally at the Gates of the Underworld to deter all evildoers.
If one wishes to see the hero's body, they must pass the test of the three Tomb Guardians.
Mortal, if you lack courage and strength, then begone!"
"..." William fell silent.
Anomalous phenomena.
They represented phenomena that were beyond the understanding of ordinary people.
'If you remain skeptical of everything, you won't be able to move forward~.'
Recalling Halsey's previous advice, William smiled unconsciously.
He then looked at Karolos and said calmly, "Alright, Mr. President, I believe you.
According to the records, besides that mutated lion, there should be two other anomalous phenomena.
But this Underworld... I hope it's not truly the Underworld from the myths."
"Hmm..."
Karolos didn't know why William's attitude had changed, but he didn't think much of it and instead pondered the question.
He said, "I don't think so.
In 1650 BC, the Santorini Volcano had the largest eruption on Earth in ten thousand years, causing a devastating disaster that wiped out several Greek civilizations.
The Trojan War occurred around 1200 BC.
Technology wasn't advanced then, and they didn't understand crustal movements, so they concluded that the Santorini Volcano might be the entrance to the Underworld.
So, people had the hero who died back then guard it to ensure the peace of the Earth."
...{If you're interested, you can watch 'Troy (2004)'; it's best to find the uncut version~.
The movie's content is unrelated to this book's plot; it's just to introduce Achilles' story.
Also, the lead role is played by Brad Pitt at his peak.
Here's a piece of trivia... Coward = Paris.
Paris (the city) = Paris.
So (manual doge face).}
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 70 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
[patreon.com/TripleCrown07]
Thank you so much for your support!!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"