Book Eater

Theodore was convinced.

Ragnarok, the final war that marked the end of the age of gods, ended only after both gods and demons were wiped out.

It was an extremely fierce battle that would never happen again.

There were bounds to be signs before a big commotion. After all, as the saying went, there was a calm before the storm. It wouldn’t have been an easy task to steal a lover from a great god like Poseidon, so he must’ve conspired with Athena to send Medusa to Atlantis in secret.

The problem, as he said earlier, was after that.

What Poseidon did was put an innocent woman in a prison of eternity.

Theodore made eye contact with Medusa and let out a long sigh as he felt the throbbing sensation in his body. This throbbing was likely a resonance that occurred only when people with the same divinity met each other.

‘It seems like sending her to the refuge wasn’t enough. She even obtained a bit of his divinity... She must’ve suffered for thousands of years because of useless consideration.’

If she had been a human, she would\'ve died in less than a hundred years. However, she became a god in a clumsy way, so she couldn’t die.

That was probably why she hadn’t changed into a false god so far.

Unlike the minor gods, Medusa’s divinity originated from Poseidon and could last thousands of years. She was neither dead nor forgotten. She was sealed here in Atlantis since the Age of Mythology to the present day.

Was this encounter a farce for her? Or—

[It has been too long! Too long! You said it would only be a few years at the latest. Why did you come so late?]

Medusa’s angry voice rang high.

She was questioning Poseidon, who wasn’t here now. Unfocused eyes could be seen behind her black hair. In the past, her eyes would’ve shone with wisdom, but now, they were filled with deep madness.

“Tsk.”

Theodore clicked his tongue instead of answering.

She wasn’t in a condition where he could talk to her.

The divinity given by Poseidon might’ve preserved Medusa’s beauty and life, but it couldn’t preserve her meager soul and spirit. Despite the amount of rambling, Medusa had already reached the end.

It was the death of a soul that couldn’t be cured even with Theodore’s power.

“Darling, who is this crazy woman?”

Aquilo didn’t understand the situation and grumbled. Her words were harsh, but her voice trembled slightly. It was as if she was suffocated by the madness.

However, this seemed to provoke Medusa.

[—You, who are you?]

She, who had only been looking at Theodore, saw Aquilo.

Her dull pupils moved up and down for a moment. Before Aquilo could reply, Medusa threw a fit.

Medusa’s pretty face became ugly and distorted.

[You, you, you, it is because of you!]

“What?”

[Shut up! I know everything without you saying it! You’re a bitch who seduced my Poseidon! If it wasn’t for you, we would’ve met sooner!]

Aquilo had nothing to say, so she just twirled her fingers.

“Wow, she has gone crazy.”

“She might’ve been loved by a god, but she was an ordinary woman.”

Theodore looked at the rampaging Medusa with a bitter expression. Poseidon, who was just a fragment, seemed to be writhing inside his body. If Poseidon had been here in the flesh, he might not have been able to overcome his guilt and harmed himself.

Romances between gods and humans always ended tragically.

Even Poseidon and Medusa couldn’t escape that fate.

[Please, Poseidon! Don’t whisper with that bitch in front of me! My heart is broken and tired from waiting for so long...]

Medusa’s voice sank as she looked down at the two of them.

Killing intent was secretly overflowing. Feeling it, Theodore stepped forward.

“Aquilo, stay behind me.”

At the same time, Medusa’s eyes turned black.

[Ahhh, please forgive me. I will use this power you have given me! I’ll tear apart the one who seduced you and open your eyes!]

Aquilo pursed her red lips.

“Thousands of years of jealousy. Doesn’t it send chills down your spine?”

“Don’t joke around and stand back. If you stimulate her more than this...”

Medusa spoke before Theodore could finish.

[Come here, cursed snake! What woman consumed by jealousy?!]

The divine power contained in Medusa’s voice made their skin tingle. Thousands of years was long enough for a mere human to be able to control divine power. Madness fueled it.

Medusa’s divine power and hatred soon took shape.

[Scylla!]

An incarnation of a giant snake with six heads had appeared.

The body made up of divine power had shiny blue scales with poisonous fangs protruding from the corner of its mouth and polluting the air. Six pairs of murderous eyes stared at Theodore and Aquilo in unison.

Scylla, a demonic creature that existed in the Age of Mythology.

A huge presence weighed down on the two of them.

Kyaaaack!

Six mouths screamed together, causing the ground to turn over and a shockwave to shake the air.

It wasn’t much different in size than Aquilo’s main body.

Aquilo felt a sense of victory and smiled fiercely.

“Okay, let’s play for a round!”

The moment her fangs were exposed outside her lips and shone, the space around her started to distort.

Release Polymorph!

The image of the beautiful woman collapsed and the sea dragon that had been sleeping inside her opened her eyes. Unlike the dragons on earth, its shape without wings resembled the blue dragon that was revered in the East in the past.

[Ahahahahaha!]

She trembled in front of Theodore, but her innate nature was evil.

The killing intent in her laughter tore apart the Scylla’s roar.

An evil dragon and a demonic dragon. At the moment of confrontation between the two serpents, Theodore had already moved one beat ahead.

‘I need to subdue Medusa as soon as possible.’

She was different from the false gods who had lost their egos. Even though it was tainted with madness, the divinity belonged to Poseidon. The divine power accumulated over thousands of years had reached the boundary between a lower god and intermediate god.

If he missed the right timing, Aquilo might die without knowing it.

“Act quickly, as the command says!”

[Eh?]

Theodore made a seal and cast a spell. Then his and Medusa’s bodies were thrown several kilometers away.

He could see the two serpents colliding against each other in the distance.

It was the sealing spell that he learned from the memories left by Seimei. If the gods were the target, then it was more effective than magic based on the power of the gods. As expected, his judgment was correct.

It was just that the backlash from Medusa was beyond imagination.

[Poseidon, are you protecting that bitch?]

Theodore, not Poseidon, had nothing to say. As he silently increased his strength, Medusa’s eyes rolled and she became enraged.

[If you act like this, I won’t put up with it any longer!]

Dark blue energy flowed around her body.

That energy, which gave off an uneasy feeling, soon formed together into an elongated mass, which soon solidified into the shape of a trident.

It was an imitation of Poseidon’s divine artifact, the Trident.

The Trident was a weapon that was very similar to a spear, so it was fine to regard it as a spear. Medusa aimed the spear blade and a wave of divine power shot out from the three tips.

‘It is dangerous!’

It was an attack more powerful than expected.

Theodore felt his hair standing up on end and immediately stretched out his palms.

Wall of Void.

A horizontally imaginary space appeared and swallowed the wave.

In terms of power, it was worse than 8th circle magic, but divine power overwhelmed magic power. If he hit with the same amount of magic power, he would inevitably lose. Even if he mobilized more than four times the amount, he would be pushed back.

Theodore carefully selected his next move.

‘Magic doesn’t work well against divine power. It is also hard for me to subdue the divinity of a main god with my own abilities. Then...!’

Theodore decided on a plan and didn’t hesitate to move forward.

Rapid movement.

The magic activated without chanting allowed him to cross dozens of meters, causing Medusa’s eyes to widen. Theodore’s eyes, which had already come close to her, indifferently ignored her astonishment.

There was a blue flash from his hand and the trident Medusa was holding was smacked away along with a sharp noise.

Two tridents collided with one bouncing away.

[A-Ahh... Poseidon...]

Theodore held his trident in his hand and paused for a moment. It was good that she could imitate the Trident with the divinity she possessed.

It was also good that Medusa wasn’t skilled in the spear, allowing him to neutralize her.

‘Damn.’

At this moment, Theodore gritted his teeth.

It was because Medusa’s eyes had become wet and she had stretched out her arms the moment she saw him holding the trident.

She longed for the embrace of her beloved lover which made her become completely defenseless.

This wasn’t a fight.

Theodore erased all the battle moves he imagined in his head and took just one step.

Then three spear blades pierced Medusa.

[...Huh?]

She touched her stomach with a blank expression.

No pain was felt.

There was no blood.

But Medusa cried without saying a word.

After thousands of years of waiting, what she met wasn’t a loved one but the cold feeling of a weapon.

The madness and love-hate that filled her head were dissipating.

The divinity of Poseidon, which made Medusa a god, was sucked into Theodore through the trident.

It was the end of the tragedy.

“Cough.”

After barely returning to being a human, Medusa coughed up blood.

The end of her life, which should’ve ended long ago, had come.

The moment Theodore laid her on the ground, the six-headed serpent collapsed.

Medusa lost her power and the weakened Scylla was defeated by Aquilo.

‘It is up to here.’

Theodore closed his eyes with a heavy heart.

At this moment—

“...You, are...”

Medusa spoke with just a few minutes left before the end of her life.

They were eyes without even a shred of madness left.

Violet-colored eyes captured Theodore.

“...Who, are you?”

“I—”

There were only a few minutes left.

If he administered life-saving treatment, she might be able to last 10 minutes.

Theodore explained it to her.

***

“...I see. He, in that war.”

Perhaps Theodore’s magic had lessened the pain as Medusa lowered her eyes with a relaxed expression.

She seemed calm at the mention of the death of her lover.

No, she was expecting it.

This was Atlantis. It was where thousands of gods took refuge, not just her. If it wasn’t reopened then it meant the defeat of the gods. Even if they didn’t lose, they didn’t win either.

The woman who fascinated a god with her beauty also had intelligence.

Aquilo was twisting her hair with a strange expression, as if she couldn’t say something rude in front of someone who was about to die.

Soon, Medusa opened her eyes and smiled softly.

“I owe the two of you.”

She remained calm even when death was just around the corner.

“I thought about it a lot as I waited for years. Why did he make me a god, why did he promise to meet me again when he couldn’t return? I was loved so much, but that petty resentment didn’t continue to grow.”

“...It isn’t your fault.”

"I guess. But more than the waiting, it was unbearable for me to resent someone I loved so much.”

There was no eternal love.

This was especially true for a mortal with shallow spirituality.

As such, Medusa was amazing for preserving her love for Poseidon despite going crazy with jealousy and madness.

If she had followed the normal course then she might’ve become a real god.

“I’m sorry for the trouble, Theodore, Aquilo.”

“It’s okay.”

“It’s fine. It was nothing.”

The moment they gave their answer, Medusa closed her eyes with a gentle smile.

Then they never opened again.

It was a serene and peaceful death, worthy of rest.

They watched as thousands of years passed in an instant and the beautiful body turned into soil and dust.

But there was something that bothered Theodore’s eyes.

“Um?”

He carefully moved his hands and discovered something dark among Medusa’s remains.

It was a pointed iron rod around 30 centimeters long that was a bit crushed along the edge.

“...Poseidon, you are a very foolish god.”

Its identity caused Theodore to sigh.

A medium was needed in order to embrace divinity like Poseidon’s. He thought, ‘no way,’ but unexpectedly, Poseidon really did this.

Theodore grabbed the metal with his hand.

A divine artifact, the Trident.

One of its three spear blades was now in his hand.