King of Underworld

Chapter 150: Side Story – The Strange Stories of Heroes

(Theseus is related to the main story, but Heracles is entirely unrelated and purely a side story!)

The Hero Theseus

Theseus, the son of King Aegeus of Athens and Princess Aethra of Troezen, was a hero.

After spending the night with Aethra, Aegeus instructed her to send their child to him if a son was born and hid a token under a large boulder before departing.

“Hnngh! Mother! Are you sure this is what my father left behind?”

“Yes. There’s a token beneath it… but it seems it’s too much for you right now.”

After Theseus was born to Aethra, he attempted to lift the boulder at a young age but failed.

Determined to gain the strength to lift the boulder, Theseus went to the Hero Training Ground in Thebes.

“Arghhhh!!!”

“Tsk. There goes Theseus, getting flung by Python’s tail again.”

“Wonder what broke this time? At least he didn’t hurt his head, I hope.”

There, he endured grueling training, fighting monsters and fallen heroes from the underworld.

When Theseus returned to Troezen as a grown man, he glanced at the boulder and…

“Haap!”

*Crash!*

He shattered the boulder with his bare fist, retrieving the sword and sandals hidden underneath.

Aethra then informed him that his father was King Aegeus of Athens.

Thus, Theseus set off for Athens to find his father.

Of course, on his journey, he encountered and defeated many monsters and villains.

—

#### The Villains Theseus Defeated

**Periphetes (the Club Bearer):**

Hiding in the woods, Periphetes used a bronze club to kill travelers.

However, Theseus caught the swinging club with his bare hands, wrested it from him, and killed him.

—

**Sinis (the Pine Bender):**

Sinis tied travelers to bent pine trees and killed them by releasing the trees, tearing the victims apart.

Theseus pretended to fall into Sinis’s trap and allowed himself to be tied to a pine tree.

When Sinis bent the tree back, Theseus uprooted it entirely.

*Snap!* *Crash!*

“Hey.”

“Eek! No, please!”

“This is decent training. Want me to give you a try?”

Sinis met his end the same way he had killed others.

—

**Sciron (the Kicker):**

Sciron robbed travelers and forced them to wash his feet at the edge of a cliff, kicking them off to their deaths.

Theseus beat Sciron senseless, made him wash his feet, and then kicked him off the cliff.

—

He also defeated:
– **Cercyon**, a cruel king who killed travelers in wrestling matches.
– **Procrustes**, who killed people by either stretching them or cutting them to fit his iron bed.
– The vicious **Phaia**, a wild boar terrorizing the region between Megara and Corinth.

With his reputation cemented, Theseus was recognized by King Aegeus, who made him the prince of Athens.

—

#### The Minotaur

“Father, I’m going to kill the Minotaur in Crete.”

“Hmm…”

“If I return alive, I’ll sail back with white sails; if I die, the sails will be black.”

Theseus journeyed to Crete, killed the bull-headed monster Minotaur, and returned with Princess Ariadne.

Though Dionysus attempted to take Ariadne from him along the way,

The intervention of the goddess of justice allowed Theseus to return safely with white sails and marry her.

—

#### The 12 Labors – The Strange Tasks of Heracles (1)

The great hero Heracles.

No one could deny that he was the greatest hero of Greece.

But even Heracles, hailed as invincible, had his struggles…

Specifically, the 11th labor: retrieving the golden apples.

“Hah… If you were to fight the dragon Ladon guarding the golden apple tree, neither of you would survive.”

“Then what should I do?”

“You must ask Atlas, who holds up the sky, to retrieve them for you.”

After saving Prometheus from the eagle that tormented him, Heracles followed the titan’s advice and sought Atlas.

But Atlas, holding up the sky, had this to say:

“Hah! You want golden apples? My daughters, the Hesperides, guard the tree, so I could fetch them for you.”

“Then…”

“Hold the sky for me while I do it. I’ll be back soon.”

Heracles agreed and took on Atlas’s burden.

For the first time, the mighty hero felt the weight of strain.

“Hnngh!”

The sky’s immense weight made even Heracles falter.

Wait… strain? For him, feeling exertion meant one thing—it was training!

When Atlas returned with the apples, he was shocked by the sight before him.

The mortal son of Zeus was using the sky as an exercise tool.

*Rumble…*

“Huff, huff… You’re back? This is excellent… Huff… training!”

“…Are my eyes failing me because of Zeus’s thunderbolts?”

Heracles was squatting, rising and lowering the sky to build his leg muscles.

The fact that a mortal wasn’t crushed by the sky was already a feat nearing the divine.

Yet using it for exercise?

Atlas stopped Heracles with a nod and took back the burden of the sky.

Heracles, puzzled by Atlas’s willingness to reclaim the weight, asked.

“…?”

Seeing Heracles’ confusion, Atlas chuckled.

“You wonder why I didn’t leave you to hold the sky? Thought I’d betray you?”

“Honestly, yes. Prometheus warned me you might.”

“He probably told you to adjust your lion pelt or reset your grip to stall for time.”

“…How did you know?”

Atlas laughed heartily at Heracles’ stunned expression.

Prometheus, dulled by years of pain, must have been overly cautious!

“No matter how strong you are, mortal, you couldn’t hold the sky indefinitely. Only an immortal titan can do that.”

“…Why, then…?”

“Because I have too much at stake.”

Atlas gazed into the distance, his overwhelming presence pressing down on Heracles.

“Under this sky are my daughters, the Hesperides, and Calypso. Countless mortal descendants also live and thrive below.”

“Hmm…”

“How could I abandon the sky when so many lives and descendants flourish beneath it?”

The titan, bearer of the heavens, resumed his original position.

Moved by Atlas’s words, Heracles bowed deeply before leaving with the golden apples.

—

#### The 12 Labors – The Strange Tasks of Heracles (2)

Heracles’ final labor was to bring back Cerberus, the guardian of the underworld.

To do so, Heracles descended into the underworld.

As he wandered near the River Acheron, Charon, the ferryman, spotted him.

“A living man. I cannot let you pass.”

“I am Heracles, a mortal tasked by Hera to enter the underworld. Please, allow me through.”

“Leave, mortal.”

Most would give up or plead at this point, but not Heracles.

Furious, he raised his club, pointing it at Charon.

“You won’t ferry me across? You’ll soon change your mind!”

“Hoho.”

The imposing aura of Heracles, as if he’d strike down even gods, did not faze Charon.

Despite his appearance as a simple ferryman, Charon was the son of Erebus and Nyx.

An ancient proto-deity predating even the Olympian gods, Charon could not be intimidated.

But…

“Fine. I’ll ferry you across!”

“…?”

“On one condition: beat me up a little.”

“What?”

“You look strong. If you injure me enough, I can rest under the excuse of being incapacitated. What do you say?”

Heracles’ eyes widened in disbelief.

“Do you know how long I’ve rowed these waters? You can’t even imagine! So stop talking and hit me already. With your strength, even Hades will believe I’m truly hurt!”

“…I… see.”

“Good! And if you break our deal, I’ll toss you into the Acheron!”

A sinister air emanated from the unassuming ferryman.

Realizing Charon’s divine nature, Heracles nodded.

“Here. Hit me on the head.”

“…Like this?”

*Crack.*

“Ha! That’s it! Use those muscles for something worthwhile! Hit harder—enough to fool Hades!”

“O-okay…”

*Boom!*

Beaten unconscious by a mortal, Charon collapsed with a bright smile.

He abandoned his oar and lay sprawled between the Acheron and Cocytus Rivers, snoring.

“Snore… Zzz… Snore…”

“…Unbelievable.”

Charon’s first rest since the dawn of time, however, was short-lived.

Hades, finding him napping between the rivers, ended his break.

For shirking his duties—not ferrying souls, or rather for letting a living man pass—Charon was sentenced to be bound in chains for a year.

—

Heracles, having crossed the River Acheron, moved deeper into the underworld.

There, he encountered the three-headed guardian Cerberus.

The massive beast’s heads bared their fangs, drool dripping to the ground as it growled menacingly.

“Let’s do this, Cerberus!”

Heracles, rather than drawing his weapons, simply cracked his knuckles.

Without hesitation, he leapt onto the monstrous hound, gripping one of its heads by the throat.

Cerberus lunged at him with the other two heads, but Heracles, unrelenting, held his ground.

The struggle was fierce, the air thick with growls and shouts.

Even the underworld trembled slightly from the battle between the hero and the beast.

—

Watching from afar, several lesser gods of the underworld gathered.

“Why isn’t Lord Hades intervening?”

“Isn’t that Heracles? He has Hera’s sanction for his labors. Perhaps Hades is allowing this as a test.”

“Still, poor Cerberus. Heracles is treating him like a wrestling opponent.”

The gods watched in disbelief as the hero subdued the ferocious guardian with sheer brute strength.

—

Cerberus, eventually overpowered, whimpered and lowered its heads in submission.

Heracles patted the beast.

“Good boy. Now, come with me.”

With Cerberus subdued, Heracles prepared to lead the massive hound to the surface.

But before he could leave, the air grew colder.

A deep, authoritative voice echoed around him.

“Heracles.”

Heracles turned to see the lord of the underworld, Hades, standing before him.

“I am aware of your task, but Cerberus is not merely a beast to be taken.”

“I am Heracles, son of Zeus. I have come to fulfill my labors, and I must bring Cerberus to the surface.”

Hades regarded him silently for a moment.

“Very well. You may take Cerberus… on one condition.”

Heracles frowned. “What is your condition?”

“You must bring him back unharmed. The underworld cannot lose its guardian for long.”

Heracles nodded.

“I give my word. Cerberus will return to his rightful place.”

With the agreement in place, Hades stepped aside, allowing Heracles to proceed.

Cerberus, now calm, followed the hero obediently.

—

After successfully presenting Cerberus to King Eurystheus as proof of completing his final labor,

Heracles honored his promise to Hades and returned the guardian to the underworld.

Hades, true to his nature as a god of fairness, acknowledged the hero’s effort.

“You have fulfilled your promise, Heracles. Go with my blessing.”

Heracles departed, his legendary labors finally complete.

Meanwhile, Cerberus resumed his eternal duty, growling softly as if annoyed by the disruption to his routine.

“Next time, warn me before sending mortals down here,” the beast grumbled, much to the amusement of the lesser gods.

—

Thus concluded the strange and extraordinary tales of the hero Heracles and his labors.