(Apollo POV)

"We are in Nemea, Lord."

Hearing Axiothea's voice, I couldn't help but be surprised

Nemea?! The legendary Nemea.

Why is this place legendary? Well, let's say that in Greek mythology, there is something that made this place famous—something quite dangerous by chance.

While I was thinking about this, Axiothea was looking at me strangely and Cypselos still stood in front of her.

Things are becoming very interesting.

With that thought, I look at the couple and ask:

"Oh! That's quite interesting, but what was that about such a ritual mentioned earlier?"

I could already make some conjecture as to why a woman dressed ornately was being guided by several men.

Axiothea, hearing my question, made an expression of hesitation. Her blue eyes went to the left, looking at the bald man, who was unconscious.

"Was he someone important?"

"It depends on what you consider important. This man is the leader of the recent Cleonae village." She said, being a little calmer.

Leader of a village. So humans have already started to create a hierarchy in the villages.

Hmm! While Greek society is beginning to crawl, Delphi is a few years ahead, as it already has a noble class and Sword Maiden is already a religious leader.

"I understand! So, could you tell me what this ritual is? And don't worry; I promise no one will get hurt for telling me."

I looked at all the men who looked at Axiothea with a reproachful look, but upon meeting my gaze, they lowered their heads.

"Mn... well, it's a sacrificial ritual that occurs almost everywhere in this region." Her body moved restlessly.

"Let me guess; you're a sacrifice, right?"

This is the basic script. You sacrifice someone in Nemea and you gain protection in your village.

"Yes. When the leader discovered that I possessed a large amount of mana I was selected as the sacrifice for 'protection', and my beloved decided... not to let me die alone." Her voice, which was always strong, began to crack, and tears gathered in the corners of her eyes.

Her beloved grabbed her hand tightly, trying to convey his good feelings to her.

To be honest, I already expected it to be something along these lines, the theme of a woman being sacrificed for something is quite common in Ancient Greece.

"You two are pretty strong." I said it with a gentle smile.

"T-thank you." She said, wiping away her tears, while the man just shook his head.

"But to whom would you be sacrificed?"

Even though it is rare, it could be to some gods, but I highly doubt it, generally, the sacrifices are related to monsters, even if that monster is the gods' pets.

"To the Nemean lion." Her delicate hands hold her lover's hand even tighter.

Although it was obvious to whom she would be sacrificed, I couldn't help but gasp in surprise upon hearing the rather famous name that fell from her lips.

The Nemean lion in Greek mythology was one of the 12 legendary labors of Hercules, or, to be more precise, his first labor.

From my knowledge, the Nemean lion's skin is invulnerable to mortal weapons, plus its claws are much sharper than any mortal weapons.

But was the Nemean lion supposed to exist at this age? Well, there is no data on when the Nemean lion existed, with the only report about it being only in the Heroic Age and no report about its existence in the Silver Age.

Not that this is a very important thought at this point.

Stopping to think about the ages, I turn my gaze to Axiothea.

"The sacrifice, how is it done?" I asked with a serious expression.

"The sacrifice is basically the Nemean lion feeding only on humans with high amounts of mana, in return, it offers protection to the villages, which in reality is just a lie."

Axiothea's expression was no longer one of sadness, but of anger.

In short, then, this is a sacrifice that offers nothing in return but sadness and mourning.

That's quite Greek, actually.

"Well, now you can go back to your village; that guy is a bit out of touch now, and I guarantee you that none of these guys here will stop you."

"I appreciate it, but I can't; that's not how things work, if it's not yours it will be my little sister." She gave a slight smile.

This really won't solve the problem. Send her back; it just means that she will be excluded from the village and that someone else will take her place.

Nemean lion.

I have to admit, this is a little exciting. I really am a busybody and trouble-seeker.

"It makes sense, so Ms. Axiothea wouldn't mind me following you guys, right?"

"I do not see a problem." She said, a little confused.

"Then, gentlemen, continue on your way." I said, with a slight smile.

The men looked at us confused, and Chiron let go of the man's hand.

"OK." One of the men said, going to his leader, trying to wake him up, but he was still passed out.

Not seeing much choice, he takes the leader and throws it on his shoulders.

"We're already late; let's continue." He shouted, making the men stand around the two lovers again.

I took a few steps back, standing next to my two students.

The group began walking, entering the savannah.

"It seems that in the end, the teacher will still meddle in other people's problems." Chiron said, standing next to me as I began to follow the group of men.

"This time, if I said no, I'd be lying."

"Lord Apo-"

When Casca was about to say it, I put my finger on her lip.

"Don't speak my name; I don't want them to know that I'm a God for now."

Since these humans can't control their mana very well, they can't feel that I have divine power.

But if they hear my name, it will be a different story.

"I understand, Lord." Casca shakes her head without asking why, but a certain centaur ends up asking that question.

"Why don't you want them to know your name, Teacher?" Chiron asked, and even though Casca didn't ask, I could see that she had a spark of curiosity.

"Simple, this could prevent them from taking us to the Nemean lion, since apparently some of these men seem to worship this monster as a god." I said, muttering.

As I was further back, they couldn't hear what I just said.

"Which of them are followers of this monster?" Casca asked, looking intensely at this group.

"I'm not really sure, but at least six of them are, needless to say, but the bald guy is without a shadow of a doubt one of them."

The way some of these men seemed offended that I knew about the ritual, almost as if it were something extremely sacred to them, said a lot.

"I understand, but then why are they taking a stranger who is strong to where their "god" is?" Casca asked.

"That question can be answered with another question." When I said that, Casca looked at me in confusion.

"Casca, do you think I would lose to someone?" I asked her.

"Of course not; the lord wouldn't lose to anyone, that would be impossible." The Casca words possessed great confidence.

"Ready, your previous question has been answered."

"Oh! They think the Nemean Lion would not lose the Lord."

Well, that's the power of fanatics. I thought with a smile.

As we walked, Chiron seemed quite thoughtful.

"What's on your mind, Chiron?"

"The Nemean lion, to be more accurate, his power level. Probably his strength level shouldn't be much different from that of a God."

"Why do you think that, Chiron?" Casca asked.

"Because this creature is feared throughout the region, even earning the name of Nemean Lion, but the main reason is for the simple fact that this creature has been feeding on a high quantity and quality of mana for some time."

"You're right, the Nemean lion's strength shouldn't be inferior to a God, but it's still nothing more than a monster." I couldn't help but say with a slight smile.

Hercules, without being at his peak, managed to beat him. So I can't see any reason for me to lose to this creature.

Unless in this world the Nemean Lion is even stronger than the original, which I really can't doubt. And honestly, I would prefer it to be that way, after all, that would be more exciting, for me of course.

Taking into account that, so far, there are some differences that I have noticed in this world compared to classical mythology.

Just like Adamas, the god of conquest, who shouldn't exist in this world. Furthermore, there were other factors quite different from the original Greek mythology.

Therefore, I should not rely 100% on my somewhat limited knowledge of Greek mythology.

The moment I had this thought, I felt a terrifying aura.

The aura was that of a beast, proud, arrogant, and violent.

The owner of this aura was undoubtedly the Nemean Lion, who was spreading his aura almost like a warning.

"So you noticed me, kitten." I muttered quietly.

And as I murmur, I notice a creature emerging from a cave.

The creature looked up and looked at me. And without thinking twice, he walked towards me. The men stopped, and some of them kneeled in worship.

As I thought, their leader was also a fan of the Nemean Lion, because the same second he woke up, the leader had already knelt down.

These fangirls nowadays.

I thought mockingly.

Even though I was calm about the monster's approach, Casca and Chiron were another story.

You could see the cold sweat coming down from these two. I don't blame them, since his terrible aura is falling on me, which consequently falls on both of them too.

For a human, that aura is something frightening, and even for Chiron, that aura is something abnormal.

Thus, I release my divine power, completely relieving the oppression that fell upon them.

Meanwhile, the Nemean lion was already in front of us, fully revealing its appearance.