SDM 10

Chapter 10. Day 354 — Labyrinth (2)

Splash, splash.

The river rises.

The pitch-black water slowly climbs higher, coming to devour my body.

The water level wasn’t particularly high. It rose to about my chest and stopped there. It was shallow enough that I could simply walk across it.

Seeing me leap into the River Styx without hesitation, Hades let out a hollow laugh.

“You truly are insane. They say ignorance makes one brave, and you are the perfect example. The living lose all their memories in the River Styx. Soon, you will become an idiot who won’t even know your own name, let alone why you were crossing the river.”

Hades burst into a hearty laugh.

Gods really did have strange hobbies. Was tormenting the weak really that entertaining?

Splash!

I lost my balance, slammed my head against the riverbed, and sank underwater.

“Hahaha! Looks like you’ve lost your memory. That’s more like it. You were nothing but a loudmouth after all.”

But a moment later—

Swoosh.

Slowly, my head rose back above the surface.

“No…?!”

Hades recoiled in shock.

I slowly began walking across the river again.

One step at a time, calmly.

“Yes, that’s it, Sisyphus.”

Tana cheered me on. She was floating in the air, clinging tightly to the top of my head.

“That can’t be. An ordinary human shouldn’t be able to cross the River Styx…!”

Splash!

“Hoo.”

After finally crossing the river, I reached the opposite bank and rolled onto the ground.

I breathed heavily.

The ferryman, who had been watching me with interest from the riverbank with his arms crossed, slowly raised his thumb.

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“You did it, Sisyphus! Of course! I knew you could do it!”

Tana hopped around me, performing a little celebration on my behalf.

“Thank you. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

My heart was still aching badly, and my head felt foggy from the lack of oxygen, so I couldn’t stand up right away.

“How… How did a human cross the river?!”

Hades screamed from the other side.

After resting sufficiently, I slowly stood up and answered him.

“The god of the underworld said that the living could never cross this river.”

“That is correct. It is an absolute rule of the underworld.”

“Then wouldn’t it work if I crossed it in the body of a dead man?”

“What did you say…?!”

Hades’ eyes widened.

Tana teasingly spread her palm toward him. A purple magic circle that had finished casting sparkled brightly.

Hades finally realized what had happened.

“You left your body and crossed the river as a spirit?!”

Just as he said, I had asked Tana to kill me.

More precisely, you could call it a near-death experience.

I temporarily separated my soul from my body and remotely controlled it.

It was somewhat difficult, like trying to move while dreaming of astral projection, but with Tana’s help, I managed to cross the river.

My heart had stopped for a while, so it hurt quite a bit.

“What… What kind of creature are you?! Are you really human?”

A shadow fell across Hades’ face.

I bowed my head respectfully.

“I am honored that you granted me an audience. Until we meet again, ruler of the underworld. When my life has finally come to an end.”

With that, I left the underworld.

This time, I properly said goodbye to Tana as well. She said she would keep Hades in check from now on.

She sympathized with my situation, having been unwillingly caught up in a conflict between gods, and promised to help me whenever another problem arose.

I’d gained a good friend.

It had certainly been an unlucky experience, but when I thought of it as having insurance for the afterlife, perhaps it wasn’t so bad.

The only problem was that the exit from the underworld brought me out near Mount Olympus.

It took nearly half a year to get back to Corinth.

“Oppaaaa! We were so worried about you!”

Still, the moment my family welcomed me back, all memories of the hardship vanished in an instant.

“You crossed the River Styx?”

“Whoa, that’s insane. Then did big bro lose his memory?”

My twin younger brothers, Cretheus and Athamas, made such a huge fuss that it was almost ridiculous.

“Memory loss…? Really?”

After hearing that, Alcyone put on a frightening expression, sent the other family members out, and spoke to me.

“Oppa, there’s something I need to tell you. Actually, you and I are promised to each other. The others don’t know. You loved me so much that you confessed your feelings to me.”

“Do you want to die?”

I gave Alcyone plenty of noogies, and I was finally able to return to my ordinary life.

“My lord! You’ve returned from the underworld?!”

“Did you hear the news from Athens? This is the level of Corinth!”

“Let us serve our great lord!”

Thanks to my brothers spreading the news all over town, the aftermath was that my standing in the territory rose even further.

Come to think of it, because of all that, I also got to hear that person’s voice for the first time in a long while.

“…You went to the afterlife?”

The day after I returned from the underworld, for some reason, Clea was standing at my door, glaring fiercely at me.

Her eyes were swollen, and her clothes were disheveled, which was quite unlike her usual self.

“Just where have you been going and what have you been doing… No.”

Clea clicked her tongue and turned her head away from me.

“Just try disappearing like this again without saying a word. Next time…”

Her voice trailed off, and she slowly lowered her head.

“…Never mind. Who am I to say anything?”

Leaving those words behind, Clea abruptly disappeared.

She was still fast on her feet.

I couldn’t really call that a conversation, though.

And that’s more or less how the incident ended.

Well, it should have ended.

The incident that came to be known as the “Ten Days of Immortality” had much greater repercussions than expected, and the gods of Olympus demanded that Hades resolve the matter and provide compensation.

Whether because he was incapable of doing so or simply because he wanted to avoid responsibility, the incompetent Hades remained silent for an entire year.

Then, during a meeting, Ares apparently explained what had happened and happened to mention my name.

Ares had mistakenly believed that I had kidnapped Thanatos, and he had no intention of changing his mind.

That barbarian had muscles where his brain should have been.

After hearing this, Zeus brought me to the Palace of Olympus to determine who was responsible.

That was the beginning of how I ended up working with Wilson.

Thinking about it now, perhaps Zeus knew the circumstances all along but chose me as a scapegoat to save the dignity of his brother Hades.

It’s a common tactic among those in power.

“Even thinking about it pisses me off.”

But what could I do just because I was angry?

What else could I do besides roll a rock?

“Then I guess I have to roll it.”

Let’s keep things simple. Simple.

I’ll do what I can do first.

I’ll think about the next thing later.

The task currently in front of me was to get through this luck-based crossroads puzzle.

“I didn’t use the conventional method even when I left the River Styx.”

I’d found an unconventional route called the Path of Souls.

“Maybe it’ll work here, too.”

At the center of the crossroads was a pole separating the path on the left from the path on the right.

It was a narrow space that I could barely step onto with my feet, but if I passed through here, perhaps I could skip the luck-based trial altogether.

“The problem is that I can’t roll Wilson up here.”

I thought about it for a moment.

…

The answer was simple.

“Wilson, come here.”

🙂 ?

“I’ll carry you.”

🙂 ?!

“Hup!”

[Activating Endure.]

I placed my back against Wilson and lowered myself into a squat.

I didn’t know how many squats I could do at this point, but surely I could carry Wilson on my back for a short while.

“Hrrrgh!”

I tensed my waist and slowly stood up.

“Yaaah!”

Flash!

Wilson’s body lifted off the ground.

[You have realized the skill Hoist Over Shoulder.]

“Huff, huff.”

Wow, this was no joke.

Wilson, seriously, lose some weight.

I slowly climbed onto the pole.

With trembling legs, I barely managed to keep my balance.

One step.

Two steps.

It was precarious, like moving across parallel bars.

I carefully moved forward without falling.

And finally—

BOOOOM!

“Haaaa.”

I successfully crossed one section.

There was no phenomenon that sent me back to the starting point.

“This is it.”

If I carried Wilson and stepped onto the divider, I wouldn’t have to solve the puzzle.

I’d found the method.

“The problem is strength and balance.”

I needed to train my core and lower body more.

It might take a long time, but considering that it could take several months just to overcome the puzzle once, investing that time now would be worthwhile.

“Core. For now, it’s all about the core.”

I went down to the altar with Wilson and began doing dead squats.

“Hup, hup, hup.”

I repeated five sets each of deadlifts and dragon flags.

Since I was applying resistance by hanging Wilson from myself and tilting him, I didn’t know exactly how much weight I was working with.

The first set was easy, just enough to warm up my muscles.

By the third set, I made sure to feel the strain properly.

“One more!”

By the fifth set, my limbs were trembling, but I pushed through to the very last repetition.

[Erector spinae has increased by 1.]

[Rectus abdominis has increased by 1.]

[External oblique has increased by 1.]

“Basic exercises are important, too.”

I didn’t forget push-ups and sit-ups either.

[Transversus abdominis has increased by 1.]

[Multifidus has increased by 1.]

These exercises were especially convenient because I could do them anywhere without much strain, making them perfect for doing while taking a break.

“Next, lower body.”

Leg extensions, leg curls, and leg presses.

Five sets each, followed by thirty minutes of rest.

Then another five sets to add more load.

[Warning: A physical transformation has occurred.]

“Ah, shit! That hurts!”

Whatever.

So what if it hurts a little?

It’s not like I have anything else to do besides exercise.

If I do it, I can.

One day, two days, and I’ll get stronger.

If I get stronger, I can push.

If I can push, I can climb.

[Strength has increased by 1.]

“Haaaah!!”

Sweat poured down like rain.

I couldn’t even tell whether it was sweat from my body or water I’d spilled while drinking.

I also didn’t forget to periodically hunt roe deer to replenish my protein.

The fat was too gamey to eat anyway, so I mainly grilled the lean meat.

The human capacity for adaptation was truly fickle.

Even the roe deer that had tasted so delicious the first time gradually became nothing more than repetitive manual labor after eating it every single day.

Little by little, I began wishing for some salt.

Here I was, in hell, asking for all sorts of luxuries.

“Hnnngh!”

Still, there were results.

After spending several months relentlessly training nothing but my core and lower body like a madman, I finally developed enough strength and stability to carry Wilson on my back and walk around without much trouble.

BOOOOM!

“Whew. What do you think, Wilson? Getting carried around like a baby must be pretty exciting, huh?”

😀

Wilson’s markings had spread out, changing the expression on his face.

What a funny guy.

It was about time.

I arrived at the fifth-floor labyrinth area again with Wilson.

“Hup.”

I carried Wilson on my back and climbed onto the pole.

I was able to cross it much more steadily than during my first attempt.

“Totally doable!”

One, two, three sections cleared.