Me, Hydra

"You... are my brother's messenger? What are you doing here? It's been at least three hundred years since we've been in contact, haven't we, between him and me?"

At the news, Raze wasn't the least bit intimidated.

"A fellow named Hercules is coming like here, and behind him stand the gods of Olympus! One of his twelve trials was to pluck the fur from the skin of the Nemean lion! Though you do not fear Hercules, behind him stands Olympus! Hydra the Great had a contract with Olympus not to invade the other god's realm for 500 years! Please join us! The city-state of Sparta welcomes all and takes in all!"

Hearing Raze's words, the Nemean Fierce Lion didn't immediately agree, but shook his head silently after a moment's thought.

"Even if he has the gods standing behind him, even I would despise myself if I just ran away with my tail between my legs."

Upon hearing that, Raz shook his head helplessly, but didn't dissuade anything.

"Since Your Excellency's meaning is already decided, I can't say anything more. But destroying the Twelve Trials is a task that the Great Spirit has entrusted to me, so I hope Your Excellency will understand."

Upon hearing that, the Nemean Fierce Lion looked at the dark blue-colored Raze and nodded indifferently.

"As you wish."

Hearing that, Raze nodded and turned around to start setting up the Lunar Rune.

On the other hand, looking at Thor, who had become somewhat powerless in front of him, Mirotaunos snorted.

"You can't beat me, and while the hammer in your hand is powerful, you can't even release his energy with your current abilities. It's a little hurtful, but you'd better admit defeat, you'll get out of power if you keep fighting."

At the words, Thor pursed his lips.

"Don't be ridiculous... Asgard has never only been a god who dies in battle!"

As he said that, Tor wielded his hammer and rushed up without hesitation.

But Mirotaunos wasn't too sad in the face of such a charge, as Tor's breath was all messed up and his footsteps were unorganized.

"To survive in the gladiatorial arena, I have to go through daily death battles with blood directly in my face, and you look like a novice. A truly strong man is one who acknowledges his own weaknesses, and indulging in the glory of his ancestors will only make him more vain... You should go down and rest!"

As he spoke, Mirotaunos' gaze gazed, and the Lune rune inscribed on the totem pole in his hand shone brightly in passing.

During the exchange, Mirotainos had been deliberately concealing the fourth rune that Hydra had inscribed for herself, the rune hidden in the heart of the tree.

"Vibrations!"

Thor was hit hard in the head, and the force of the shock directly caused Thor to faint completely.

Because it was already a heavy weapon, this rune hidden in the heart of the tree had never been known by a third person. After all, being knocked unconscious by a club seemed like a normal thing to do.

Taking a glance at Thor who was lying on the sand, Mirotaunos shook his head indifferently.

"I've never heard of Asgard, but you're just a mortal now..."

As he said that, Mirotaunos turned around and prepared to collect the five hundred silver coins, plus the winner's reward, making a total of seven hundred silver coins, leaving himself quite a bit of money besides his expenses.

"Hehe~ Hot cow, here I come~"

Time flew by, and as soon as he woke up from his stupor, Thor opened his eyes to see Hydra sitting on the Great Throne.

Opening his mouth, as Thor tried to say something, the obvious words came to his lips and simply couldn't come out.

With a glance at Thor in front of him, Hydra didn't care. Instead, he said indifferently, "The wood that fits together is born in the smallest of millimeters; a nine-story platform rises from exhausted earth; a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. The one who acts loses, the one who persists loses. There is no need to be upset by a small failure. There are many different kinds of setbacks in this world, such as Jemengard sleeping in a bed of mud, Fenrir gnawing on chains, and the Frost Giants suppressing the gods. That's not a setback? Even your father, the great god Odin. He also went through countless setbacks to get where he is today. Odin gave his right eye to gain knowledge, and hung upside down from a tree for nine days and nights before he understood the mystery of knowledge. The Gunnar's spear in his hand is Odin's most sacred oath. And you? It's been smooth sailing from birth. Pride, vanity, arrogance. These are your flaws, you don't have the heart of a martyr or the shield of a guardian, which makes your aggressiveness your greatest flaw."

"I..."

He opened his mouth, but Thor couldn't even utter a word of defense. Eventually, Thor closed his eyes and quietly waited for Hydra's sentencing.

"I'm sorry...Father...I still disappoint you..."

As he thought about it, a helpless grin appeared on Tor's face instead.

"As expected, are you still too proud of yourself..."

As I was thinking, Hydra's voice came over.

"From now on, your identity is that of a Spartan."

"Huh?!"

Thor was surprised, but Hydra didn't care.

"But you lost after all, and from now on, you'll train three times as much as anyone else. There is no deadline and you can terminate at any time."

Without the slightest retort, Tor bowed respectfully to Hydra in front of him.

Not a word was spoken.

........

Volume I: Text-27-Collision

Seeing Thor coming out of the great temple, Socrates walked up evenly.

"Are you all right? Lord Hydra didn't say anything about you, did he?"

At the words, Thor shook his head with a smile on his face.

"Fine. Now I am one of the Spartans~"

As he walked, Thor explained like Socrates what he had seen in the Great Shrine.

Listening to Thor's explanation, Socrates was instead even more surprised.

"You're kidding! According to the records in the Great Library of Sparta, the amount of training an adult Spartan warrior had to do was already beyond human limits. And every half month the physical fitness is measured and then the training difficulty is ramped up! Three times the amount of training would kill you!"

At the words, Thor shook his head with a combative look.

"If I'd just backed down! Then I can't have enough power! I want to save my hometown! This is the trial that Mr. Hydra gave me! I'll finish it off beautifully! And then return to my hometown in style!"

As he spoke, Thor looked behind him at the Great Shrine.

"Then I will tell my father what I have seen here, and how I have grown. Also, my brother, the god of war, Tyr, has been reduced in battle because his right arm was bitten off when he sealed Fenrir. Only by growing up quickly can I support the Dawn Boat amidst the tides of twilight. And now, all I have to do is to grow as fast as possible!"

At the words, Socrates was silent for a moment, then shook his head sadly.

"Well, now that you've put it that way, as your friend I know you a little better. Go for it! No matter what questions you have, you can ask me! I'll tell you everything I know!"

Hearing Socrates' words, Thor blushed an old blush.

"Ahem, who takes you for a friend! Don't talk to yourself!"

At the words, Socrates shook his head helplessly.

"You're just as deadly arrogant now as you were in the book~"