Poisonous women?

At the banquet, Heracles drank placidly, but he had not taken off his weapons, and he glanced from time to time at the nearby temple of the goddess of love. Everyone was immersed in the cheerful atmosphere. Watching them, Atalanta could not help feeling sick.

"Are you sure this will work? I don't want to be taken for a madman."

"Why ask that now? Since you've come here, you already have your answer. What, is that queen really so wonderful that you can't bear to leave her?"

For a moment, Jason did not know how to respond. He was certainly no fool. He wanted to preserve the Kingdom of Lemnos while getting his crew away, but now he had no choice but to break openly with them. He could not help blaming himself. Why had he done nothing when he had guessed the truth from the start? Why had he not persuaded the crew to leave in the rain? As captain, he alone had that authority.

He had once had a choice, but now, because of his indecision, things had taken a turn for the worst.

Jason gritted his teeth and walked with Bai Mo through the rainy night toward the women preparing to damage the Argo.

"You poisonous women! You killed us! We built a kingdom and cities for you, trusted you completely, yet this was how you treated us! We've come for revenge!"

Bai Mo's voice, amplified by an electric current, pierced the patter of rain and rang out like a thunderclap. The women carrying hammers and saws were so frightened that they dropped their hammers. Terror filled their hearts in an instant. Those words-could the men they had murdered have returned to claim their lives?

Bai Mo raised the dagger, its sharp blade gleaming coldly in the darkness.

"This is the weapon you killed me with! This is proof of your crimes! We've come! To claim your lives! To take our revenge!"

One woman immediately collapsed to the ground. The rain was too heavy, but she had seen that dagger. It looked just like the one she had used to kill her husband. Sitting in the rainy night, she screamed with fear and resentment, "No! We didn't mean to kill you! You betrayed our love! You abandoned us!"

Jason stood beside Bai Mo, taking everything in.

Now everything was settled. He could refrain from investigating because of how the queen had treated him, but once it all unfolded before his eyes, he could no longer turn a blind eye. Now, standing in the rain, Jason looked at those women and the tools in their hands meant to destroy the Argo, and silently drew his sword.

"What are you going to do?"

Bai Mo asked. Only then did the frightened women notice that these two were no vengeful ghosts. They were the hero Jason and that unsmiling Bai Mo from the ship.

"Judge these poisonous women. They not only killed their husbands, but they also meant to destroy my ship. I must fulfill my duties as a hero and captain."

"Not so fast."

"Why? You showed me all this, only to ask me to do nothing?"

"No. I merely wanted you to understand everything behind this, but you still haven't fully understood."

Jason looked at Bai Mo, a faint light flickering in his eyes amid the downpour.

Bai Mo said calmly to the woman on the ground, "Tell us everything. Whatever you say tonight will be drowned in this rain."

The woman looked at Jason and Bai Mo and slowly told them the truth.

Late that night, the Argonauts slipped away one by one. They were reluctant, sorrowful, and some even wore pained expressions, but not one of them looked back. By the beach, Jason leaned over the railing, gazing into the distance as though waiting for something.

"If you can't bear to leave her, you might as well say a proper goodbye."

Bai Mo appeared beside him. Next to them was the flag that still shone in the night, lighting the two of them like a lamp.

"Forget it. I don't know how I should face her. I..."

As Jason and the queen, they could of course say a proper goodbye. But as a hero and a poisonous woman who had killed her husband, Jason ought to fulfill his duty.

"Buddy, you only get one chance. Don't do something you'll regret. Besides, she's about the only person on this island with a conscience. That queen is the only one here with clean hands. Go on."

Bai Mo glanced into the distance. A woman in magnificent clothing was riding swiftly toward them. Giving Jason a look that said he was on his own, Bai Mo left.

Inside the cabin.

Heracles meditated with his eyes closed. On his way there, Bai Mo had stopped to retrieve the lead-colored arrow from Atalanta, then knocked on the door. Hylas opened it, and Bai Mo handed him the arrow. Hylas stared at Bai Mo blankly, feeling that this means of self-defense was less useful than a dagger.

"Young man, being Heracles's attendant is your best defense. This is to guard against certain special dangers."

"Special dangers? Lord Bai Ermo, I don't understand."

Bai Mo sighed and looked at Hylas with a strange expression. "Boy, if I were you, I'd watch my backside. You're so cute, and there are people in this world who swing both ways. You wouldn't want your rear end blossoming, would you? Those people are generally as brawny as Heracles."

Young Hylas instinctively clenched his sphincter, then left with the arrow. As though he had made some great resolution, he tucked it inside his clothes.

But when Bai Mo walked into the cabin, he saw Heracles struggling to hold back his laughter.

"All right, Hylas is gone. You can stop holding it in."

"Hahahahaha!" Heracles's laughter echoed through the room. Then he sat on the bed, clutching his stomach, and said while struggling to control his laughter, "You really are something. You've really done a number on Hylas this time. I'm afraid he'll be inexplicably wary of any man who treats him kindly from now on."

"I didn't say anything wrong. You can't guarantee that sort of thing won't happen either, can you?"

The two continued chatting. The three of them had grown considerably closer during this time. However, once the Agor was no longer their "exclusive territory," Atalanta stopped visiting so often.

Heracles's laughter gradually faded. Looking at Bai Mo, he said, "After what happened this time, is Jason all right?"

"He's fine. Jason is strong at heart, and the root of this whole incident was trouble stirred up by the goddess of love. Poisonous women, betrayal-people push the blame onto one another, while the true culprit sits high above them on Mount Olympus, watching those who faithfully worship them fall into suffering and taking pleasure in it. How disgusting."

As Bai Mo spoke, his tone was firm and his expression calm, as though he had no fear at all that his words might bring down the gods' wrath.

Heracles said, "The gods rule the world. To a god, humans are like ants. Why do you blame the gods and speak up for humans?"

"Because I am human."

Heracles shook his head. "With the power you possess, you can no longer be called human. I don't know which god on Mount Olympus gave you that power through their bloodline, but words like yours will anger all the gods."

At that, Bai Mo laughed and said, "My power? Yes, someone else gave me this power, but to train it to where it is today, I relied on myself and my master's teachings. I will respect only my honored master. As for those gods, they never show humanity any respect, so why should we respect them?"

Heracles fell silent. There were two voices in his heart. One said, Yes, what gives those gods the right to stand so high above us? What gives them the right to toy with our fates as they please? The other roared, This is a grave affront to the gods! Seize him with your hands, twist his neck, and kill him!

Heracles said nothing. Seeing this, Bai Mo knew he had done enough, so he turned and left.