When Callisto, the woman with a ponytail, introduced herself, I was momentarily dumbstruck, staring at her. Though my memories were fading, I still knew exactly who Callisto was.
Originally a devotee of Artemis, she was driven out when Zeus raped her, then turned into a bear by Hera. She nearly got killed by her grown son, who had become a hunter, and in the end they both became constellations... Even I, with all that history, would want to avoid that fate.
Yes, I understood it in my head. I knew that Hera's jealousy was as dangerous as nuclear fire. I knew the miserable path Callisto was destined to walk... But the important thing now was figuring out which point in time I was dealing with. In other words, I needed to find out exactly when this was.
"Hmm... Let me ask first... Why were you here in the forest all alone?"
"I—I..."
She seemed reluctant to speak, bowing her head with a dark expression, stammering over her words. But at that moment, a cry sounded through the forest.
Somewhere in these woods, a baby was crying. Hearing it, Callisto's somber expression vanished, replaced by surprise, and she dashed toward the sound.
The gloomy, listless girl I had seen a moment ago was nowhere to be found as she sprinted off toward the cry. To see what was happening, I quietly followed behind Callisto. And there, following after her, I saw Callisto holding a child inside a cave.
"Waaaaaaaah!"
"Ah... I thought so..."
In Callisto's arms lay an infant, and she was trying to soothe the baby. But she was inexperienced, and the child wouldn't stop crying.
Seeing the child, I realized exactly what point in her life Callisto was in, and I understood the depth of her sorrow and despair.
"Is this your child?"
"...!? Y-you followed me...!?"
When I asked from behind Callisto, she turned in surprise, staring straight at me. Naturally, the sadness I had seen moments ago was gone as she wrapped her arms tight around the baby.
Hmm... she was still clumsy in many ways, but she was very clearly a mother. ...Well, since Hera was terrifying, I figured she could leave anytime, but it would be okay to help her a bit. I couldn't just stand by and watch.
"Phew... No wonder the baby was crying. It looks like you haven't changed them yet."
"J-just a moment—!"
My memories of a past life were fading more and more, but I had done plenty of volunteer work before. I did it to help in any way I could, and that included caring for children.
I'd gained childcare experience before marriage, but I never expected it to be useful here. There were no modern diapers in this age, of course, but with a clean cloth, you could manage. I laid Callisto's child down and checked the cloth underneath.
Hmm... no wonder the baby was crying. I poured some water from my flask, used clean grass I'd prepared to wash my hands, and wiped the baby's bottom.
"Babies can't speak, so they have fewer ways to express discomfort. Even if something bothers them, crying is the only 'word' they know, right?"
"I-I see."
"Hey there, little one. You don't like being dirty, do you?"
"Goo~!"
The baby who had been wailing nonstop suddenly stopped crying as soon as I cleaned them and freshened the cloth. They cooed, answering with little sounds.
Wow, packing all my supplies from Calydon really paid off... Ah, so that's why all my supplies are disappearing... I blamed it on my bad habit of overpacking.
"You're really good at this..."
"I had experience caring for children back then..."
Of course, it was more than just once... Finally, I finished setting the makeshift diaper and handed the child back to Callisto. She took the baby, bowed to me, and spoke.
"Th-thank you so much... Iskios...! Thanks to you, I'm alive...!"
"It's okay, it's okay. But... why did you leave your child behind?"
"I went out to gather food. Then I ran into the centaurs..."
...Right, Callisto had once worshiped Artemis as a huntress. It made sense for her to hunt for food, but bringing a child along would be impractical.
Branches could snag on them, she'd move slowly... But even so, leaving a baby alone in a cave was far from ideal. Plus, today she had nearly been assaulted by centaurs...
"You were reckless to go out there with a child."
"...I...! I didn't become a mother out of choice!!!"
Angered by my comment, Callisto's eyes filled with tears. Her sorrow was genuine and deep. Then she began to tell her story—what had happened to her...
This was just like the myth. Zeus had gotten her pregnant, Artemis had driven her out, she'd given birth... But after giving birth, Callisto confessed her torment to me.
There were days she tried to kill her child with a stone but couldn't do it, days she considered abandoning the baby in the woods but gave up mid-step, and in the end she raised the child. She carried unbearable darkness and anguish, yet she never relinquished her child. She was already a remarkable mother.
At first I planned to leave her be... but I couldn't just stand by. I'd thought I'd do a quick favor and move on, but my conscience shouted, 'You can't leave them like this!' Besides... Callisto, despite everything, was committed to her child. She didn't give up.
"All right... Callisto...? Is it okay if I call you that? I have a proposal for you. What do you think?"
"A proposal...?"
"How about this: while I go out to secure food, you devote yourself entirely to raising your child?"
"Wh-what!?"
Startled by my sudden, unilateral declaration, Callisto stared at me. Her gaze said she hated the idea—but not as much as she disliked the notion of another man stepping in.
I... I guess I need to immerse myself fully in whatever I do. It's always been that way.
"Your dedication as a mother is top-tier. But you're still inexperienced in childcare. What if centaurs harass you again? We can't have that, can we?"
Even if I couldn't prevent death, I would help within my means. Even if I'd never met her before, I could never abandon someone so kind.
"Zeus... if you let this woman's life be ruined and no one else saves her, then I will."
"You... you truly... thank you, Iskios...! I, I will repay your kindness—"
"Just call me Iskios. And repay me by raising your child into a proper human being."
And so, what I had never planned—living together with Callisto and her baby in a cave—began.
***
-If you truly love someone, you won't hold them back, but childcare is much harder than you can imagine.-
Half a year passed since Iskios had unexpectedly started living here to help Callisto with her childcare. During those six months, Callisto, with Iskios's help, finally had some breathing room to care for her son.
Originally she'd stayed alert inside the cave thinking about their survival, but once Iskios took over the outside watch and gathered food and supplies, Callisto could focus solely on raising her child. She even named him Arcas.
During the day, Iskios went hunting and foraging, and at night he stood guard. While Arcas slept, Callisto learned childcare techniques and know-how from him. Though he was strict, to her, Iskios had become a ray of hope in her despair.
"When the teeth start coming in, that's the moment to graduate from milk. From then on, you switch to solid food."
"I understand. You can't feed just milk forever."
"Once the teeth come in, they'll drool a lot. You have to keep wiping it clean."
Callisto, who'd once devoted herself to Artemis and paid no attention to worldly rumors, had heard only the most famous stories.
The tales of Apollo pursuing Iskios, Heracles's Twelve Labors, the Argo expedition, Theseus's slaying of the Minotaur, and most recently, the Calydonian Boar Hunt.
At first she'd assumed the rumor's hero, Iskios, was just another Greek champion, but behind that bizarre stone mask and that boyish voice, she realized he was fundamentally different.
Always standing up for the weak, valuing compassion as a human—he was unlike any other Greek hero. He was gentle yet merciful.
—If you look for flaws, there's only his extreme aversion to showing his face and his prickly sensitivity to gazes, but to Callisto, those weren't faults.
"Today marks the start of his new teeth. We need to change the diet. I'll bring the ingredients—let's learn how to prepare and cook them together."
"Y-yes...! Please come back safely."
"All right, I'll be back quickly."
Iskios gave a small wave and headed into the forest under Callisto's watchful eyes. She saw him disappear among the trees before letting go.
After Iskios vanished, Callisto turned to her son Arcas, gently watching over him, then used the supplies he brought to fashion new arrows.
Her old bow had broken, and with Iskios handling the hunting, she gave him the new bow and arrows she'd just made.
"Heh heh... I couldn't have this kind of peace before..."
Caressing Arcas's cheek as he breathed softly beside her, Callisto smiled. Until now, she hadn't been able to smile like this, but now, watching her child and waiting for Iskios, she found herself laughing often.
Though he'd never shown his face, Callisto had grown aware of Iskios. After months of living together and raising a child, Callisto had opened her heart. And then...
"Wh-what am I thinking...!"
As a strange longing crossed her mind, Callisto shook her head desperately to chase it away. She held onto a hope she never would have imagined before.
She'd once hoped to live her entire life serving Artemis in purity, but Zeus ruined that path, and even her goddess abandoned her. Remembering that brutal life, she felt she had no right to despair anymore.
"Still... I'm no longer Artemis's follower now... maybe it's okay to—"
"—There you are, impious woman."
Just as Callisto discarded her past regrets, looked forward, and allowed herself to hope, time seemed to freeze. She noticed the sky darken and stepped outside.
An ominous cloud descended overhead, and standing with folded arms atop it was a goddess. The moment Callisto saw Hera, Queen of the Gods, every tremor in her body returned, and terror filled her once more.
—Queen of the gods, Hera appeared, and Callisto's smile vanished, replaced with the same fear she had before meeting Iskios.