After that, time passed, and we returned to the ship, but Jason, utterly smitten with the women of Lemnos Island, was the last one who still had not boarded.
As a result, the others grew increasingly uneasy, and in the end—
Boom!!
"W-What's going on...?! "
"...Jason."
"A-Astellon...?"
"Get out here. We're setting sail right now. It's already been three days. You. Do you actually have any intention of becoming king?"
"Y-Yes, understood...!"
I went in person, dragged Jason back, and only then did we finally depart.
"Thankfully, it didn't come to the point of using force."
Passing Lemnos Island at last and setting sail safely, we pressed onward without incident.
Then we arrived at the land ruled by King Amycus.
"Hahaha! So more travelers have arrived here! Welcome, strangers! If you wish to pass through this place, one of you must fight me in a boxing duel and win!! The best boxer among you, step forward! And come face me in a boxing match!!"
Seeing us arrive, he bellowed that unless someone defeated him in a boxing duel, none of us would be allowed to pass.
Jason, hearing this, voiced his displeasure.
"Grr...! What is this nonsense when time is so urgent...?! "
"...And you say that after enjoying yourself so thoroughly on Lemnos Island?"
"Khm...!!"
"Haa... Still, what can we do? If we want to go forward, it looks like we'll have to take him up on his boxing match..."
"Then we'll need a fighter. ...Astellon. Are you any good at boxing?"
"I've trained in hand-to-hand combat as well as weapon arts, but... there are probably others better at boxing than I am."
While we were debating who should step into the match, Jason was trying to send Heracles into the ring.
"Um... then, would it be all right if I went?"
At that moment, someone aboard the ship spoke up and offered to go, and all our gazes turned that way.
It was Pollux. At her words, her older brother Castor responded with fervent approval.
"Mm! If it's Pollux, victory is only natural!!"
"Well... then let's have Pollux go."
As Pollux stepped forward with confidence, a strange tension and anticipation settled over the deck of the Argo.
Her gaze, inheriting the blood of the god Zeus, did not waver, and Castor's voice, cheering on his younger sister beside her, rang with certainty.
I folded my arms and leaned against the hull, looking back and forth between the massive King Amycus and Pollux, who seemed slender but possessed a body of steel.
When Pollux stepped out, King Amycus snorted contemptuously and struck his fists together.
"Hahaha! Is there really such a lack of men aboard this Argo? To send out such a frail woman! Don't blame me if she's crushed by a single blow from my fist!"
"Don't worry. The one who'll be crushed is your arrogance."
Pollux replied languidly and loosened her body with a light stretch.
Her movements were as smooth as if she were walking upon waves.
And so the boxing duel began.
The instant it started, King Amycus charged like a boar and thrust out a massive fist.
Even the wind pressure from that swing was enough to scatter the sand around them.
But Pollux let the attack pass by with barely a handspan to spare.
"Hey, Astellon. Do you see that?"
Atalanta, watching from beside me, murmured in admiration and asked me.
"Yes. Pollux isn't meeting his strength head-on. The moment his power reaches its peak, she's cutting the flow."
I lightly toyed with the hilt of the holy sword and foresaw the end of the duel.
The instant Amycus lost his composure and tried a huge swing, Pollux's fist drove into his jaw like lightning.
Thud—!
With a heavy sound, King Amycus's huge body lifted slightly into the air before slamming into the sand.
One blow.
With Pollux's flawless strike, free of all excess, King Amycus's body reeled and collapsed, blood spilling from his head.
As soon as King Amycus fell, the warriors of the Bebryces tribe surrounding us all drew their weapons and threatened us.
"Those bastards killed the king!!"
"Cut them down!! We must avenge His Majesty!!"
Then, weapons in hand, they rushed at us.
"You cowards!"
Jason shouted in panic as he drew his sword.
The other heroes aboard the ship also seized their weapons.
But Pollux was still catching her breath from the duel, and the enemies' arrows and spearpoints were already aimed at her.
At that moment—
Shiiing—
The sound of my sword being drawn rang out across the battlefield.
"The duel is over."
My voice was not loud, yet it spread with uncanny clarity.
"Charging in without accepting defeat is... no longer the way of a warrior."
But the warriors of the Bebryces tribe did not stop.
"Shut up! They killed our king!!"
"Kill them all!!"
"Revenge! We must avenge His Majesty!!"
Yet their fury had already lost all reason.
"...Haa."
With a short sigh, I stepped forward.
And then—
Kwoooom—!!
The silver radiance pouring from the holy sword spread outward like a tide.
The sand on the ground was driven back, and the air itself seemed to sink under the pressure.
At that overwhelming force, the warriors in the front rank stopped dead in their tracks.
"This is... a warning."
I tilted the sword slightly and looked down at them.
"If you take even one more step..."
For an instant, it felt as though my eyes had gone cold.
"Then I'll really cut you down."
The warriors who had been raging only moments before froze as if they had struck an invisible wall.
Some of them trembled, gripping their spears, and others took a step back.
But those who had hardened their hearts gathered themselves and charged at us again.
"...This can't be helped."
With that, I disembarked from the ship and swung my sword toward them.
And behind me, the other heroes also leapt down from the Argo and joined the battle.
As the Bebryces warriors, bereft of reason, surged forward, the air filled with screams and the clash of steel.
Yet even amid that chaos, my movements remained eerily calm and precise.
Each time the blade of the holy sword Athena cleaved through the air, silver flashes burst outward in a fan.
Slash—!
"Aaaagh! My spear!"
"I can't see it! What just happened...!"
The warriors blocking my path fell like dead leaves.
They stared in shock as their weapons were shattered before their attacks could even land.
"Astellon, you planning to hog all the fun by yourself?"
From behind me, with the sharp whistle of wind, an arrow shot past my side and pierced an enemy shield.
Atalanta lightly sprang from the ground and loosed arrow after arrow, while Heracles swung his enormous club and quite literally smashed the enemy formation apart.
"Hahaha! This is what a battlefield should be like!"
Pollux, too, regained her composure and joined Castor, unleashing a dazzling series of coordinated attacks.
The ragtag warriors of the Bebryces tribe collapsed in an instant before the overwhelming might of the heroes of the Argo.
"Astellon! As expected, you're incredible! Thanks to you opening the way, we cleaned them up without a single loss!"
After the battle, Jason came up in high spirits and slapped my shoulder.
I answered with my eyes half-closed.
"Just get us sailing again, Jason. If we stay here any longer, all that'll grow is resentment."
We hurried back aboard the Argo. The ship pulled away from the shore, and once again we pressed onward.
But Hylas, who had come along with Heracles, was struck in the shoulder by a poisoned arrow fired by the enemy, and Heracles declared that he would leave the ship with Hylas to tend to his wounds.
With Heracles—the strongest fighter aboard—gone, Jason lamented the loss more than anyone else.
"Astellon. If the chance comes, let's meet again someday. ...We'll have our duel then."
"Yes. Farewell, Heracles."
I saw Heracles off as he departed with Hylas.
After Heracles left, we continued eastward, and in the end, we reached Colchis, the destination of this expedition.
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