Past and Present

The group urged their horses onward until they reached the Argo. From a distance, they could see that the ship was already surrounded by fully armed Colchian soldiers. The soldiers could largely guess that the group must have had something to do with the incident.

"Do you hear something?"

A Colchian soldier asked.

"What sound? You're hearing things."

"No, there really is something. Hoofbeats!"

Realizing they had been discovered, Jason immediately shouted, "We did it! Heroes of the Argo, come and get us!"

They wiped off the invisibility ointment, and the heroes of the Argo immediately spotted Jason and his companions. They grabbed their weapons and killed every Colchian soldier around them.

"Cover Jason and the others, hurry!"

Countless people came straight off the ship. They rushed ahead to meet Jason while holding off the pursuers. Most were nimble warriors, and some even had wings. They held the pursuers back until Jason and his companions leaped aboard the Argo.

"That's the Gold Fleece!"

The crowd saw the Gold Fleece in Atalanta's hands and immediately broke into cheers!

"My god, Atalanta, you're badly hurt! And Bai Ermo too!"

"Out of the way! Where are the wounded?"

Asclepius pushed his way through the crowd, while Jason swiftly directed everyone to begin the retreat.

"Cut the mooring ropes and raise the sails! Archers, stay alert! We're leaving!"

"Hooooo!"

Everyone roared. Nothing was more exciting than claiming an object of legend. Victory was theirs, and morale aboard the Argo soared to an unprecedented height.

The people holding the rear returned to the ship one after another and pulled at the oars with all their might. Carrying the Golden Fleece, the Agor sped away like an arrow.

They had arrived in style and departed with grandeur. The Argo had now insulted all of Colchis, and everyone on the shore was cursing them!

"Damn you, Jason! You despicable thief!"

"Damn it, they really took the Gold Fleece! What a disgrace!"

"Jason, one day I'll flay you, pull out your tendons, and throw you into a cauldron of oil as an offering to Ares!"

"Jason, you bastard! You'd better not fall into my hands, or I'll shove a bull's horn up your ass!"

That was not all. The news swept through every corner of Colchis like the wind. Everyone knew that Jason had sailed the Argo and led the heroes in stealing the Golden Fleece, and the news would spread even farther.

The curses were loud, but an enemy's curses were often music to the ears. The cheers and laughter aboard the Argo grew even louder.

Jason, however, felt no joy.

Jason cursed inwardly, Atalanta took the Golden Fleece, and Heracles and Bai Mo dealt with the venomous dragon. Why are you all cursing me? And the one who wants to shove a bull's horn up my ass-that thing wouldn't even fit, all right?

Jason was worried. Nothing those furious Colchians might do would surprise him, and the journey home might be even harder than the journey here.

The Argo was extremely fast, and the heroes' strength spoke for itself. Their attacks soon routed the few swift boats in pursuit. Afterward, the Argo was alone on the sea, sailing home toward the setting sun.

In the Agor's infirmary, Bai Mo lay quietly on a bed. His left arm had been treated with herbs and immobilized. With something of a headache, he pressed a hand to his trigeminal nerve, because Asclepius was currently chattering away at him.

"Amazing! What kind of recovery is this? I'd hardly ever seen you injured before, so I thought your body was simply tough. I never expected your vitality to be so strong too. So ordinary minor wounds hardly take any time to heal on you."

The way Asclepius looked at Bai Mo sent a chill down his spine. His gaze was full of desire, like a forensic examiner who had learned that dissecting a corpse would lead to a major breakthrough in a case.

Bai Mo shrank back. In his eyes, Asclepius was even more frightening than the venomous dragon right now. Bai Mo hated trouble.

"Bai Ermo, I don't know whether you were born with this or acquired it later, but for the advancement of medicine, I hope you'll cooperate with my research."

"I'm afraid I must refuse. Sorry, but I'm a selfish man. I don't intend to set aside any part of my life for it."

Asclepius wanted to say more, but Jason came in and called him away.

"All right, Asclepius, Atalanta still needs your treatment, doesn't she? Sorry, but please don't waste time now."

Asclepius sighed and said, "I'm sorry. My attitude may have offended you, but I hope you can understand the significance behind this research. If you have time, you can come to me whenever you like. I'm willing to pay any price."

Asclepius corrected his manner and spoke again as he prepared to leave.

Bai Mo felt no hostility toward the almost obsessed man. On the contrary, it was hard to dislike someone who could devote his entire life to what he pursued. But if that was true of Asclepius, wasn't it also true of Bai Mo?

"Asclepius, you have your pursuit, and I have what I insist on. I decided long ago where I want my life to go. I won't spare a second glance for anything around me, so don't harbor any unrealistic hopes."

Asclepius paused, then nodded.

"I understand."

With that, he left Bai Mo's room.

Jason sat down comfortably beside the bed and handed Bai Mo an apple.

"Thanks."

"I should be thanking you, buddy. I couldn't have done it this time without you."

Jason's sudden words took Bai Mo by surprise.

"What's wrong? Why do you look so troubled all of a sudden?"

Jason looked out the window. Night had fallen, and the waves kept beating against the ship. Where the ship would go and how it would end were hard for Jason to fathom, just like life itself.

"Bai Mo, honestly, I'm starting to regret it."

"Jason, you're saying that now? I thought you'd say it before we got the Golden Fleece."

"Yeah, buddy."

Jason sat down on the floor, leaned against the wall, and let out a bewildered sigh.

"Bai Mo, you know what? I used to think life was simple. Under my master's instruction, the days were always hard and ordinary, but I loved those days, those carefree days."

Jason sank into his memories, and Bai Mo didn't disturb him. He was bored anyway, so listening was a good way to pass the time.

"After that, I learned I was supposed to have been a prince, and that becoming king was my future. So I set out on that path, but what about now? Sigh, I abandoned the woman who loved me, and I bet everyone in Colchis wants me dead now. Just thinking about having to deal with things like that in the future gives me a headache."

Jason spoke slowly, and Bai Mo could empathize. In his previous life, hadn't he also thought life was as simple as school? But when he began to grow up, his troubles and pain nearly crushed him.

Bai Mo had always lived according to his own ideas. His life was exhausting and hard, but even so, he kept on living.

Did he have regrets? Yes. Did he have things he wished had gone differently? Those too.

He often tried to communicate with the system. Before, knowing that the Greek gods were basically a bunch of vermin, Bai Mo had resented the system for bringing him here. But after boarding the Argo, Bai Mo had changed. Though the system couldn't answer, he often thanked it when he was alone at night.

Because in his heart, this life was a windfall, a gain. Every day he lived was another day gained. So he wanted to live without regrets, even if he died tomorrow, even if the ending was tragic.

He would have no regrets. A second life was already an immense blessing, so of course he would spend every day living for his own ideas and according to his own vision.

Bai Mo broke the apple in half and tossed one half to Jason.

"Thinking about it won't help, my friend. Growing up always comes with pain. We don't have a choice, do we? But that's why life, with all its bitterness and joy, its sour and sweet, is wonderful."

Jason agreed with Bai Mo. Chewing his apple, he said, "True. At least I became captain of the Agor. That's something I dreamed about as a kid. Heh, now that I think about it, I have it pretty good. At least I don't end up in a sickbed every few days."

"Heh, I have it pretty good too. At least I'm not the one a witch has her eye on."

At those words, the slight relief Jason had just felt vanished again. Medea. Right, there was that problem too.

"Look, she gave up her family and kingdom for you. What do you call this?"

"Give me a break, Bai Mo. A dangerous woman like that just isn't my type. An innocent, completely harmless princess is the kind I like. Besides, I'm going to be king someday. How could I tie myself to one woman?"

"Scumbag."

"Hey! What man becomes king and loves only one woman? I'm learning from your great father god."

"You sure know how to pick Zeus's good points. Besides, I'm no son of Zeus."

"Tsk, I know. What kind of trial is this, anyway? You can't even give your name or acknowledge your own father. You really have it worse than I do."

"Heh, so what are you going to do about Medea? If you end up hurting her, something terrible might happen."

"Her... Honestly, she is a beauty, and she loves me so much. Ah, these really are the troubles a great man has to endure."

Bai Mo was speechless.

"Anyway, I wouldn't go so far as to betray her. She's very capable, isn't she? And she's the daughter of a royal family, so surely she'd understand me."

"You'd better not betray her."

"Huh, Bai Mo, could she be your type? Wow, I never would've guessed. Atalanta's going to be heartbroken."

"Are you in your right mind? What does this have to do with Atalanta? Sigh, forget it. It's not like I can't tell you."

Bai Mo then told Jason about the Thread of Fate.

"So right now, I'm basically at her mercy. If you betray her and she uses that thing to force me to take revenge on you or something, heh."

"Hey! Don't laugh about something like that! That's scary!"

Jason quietly resolved to find a way to get the Thread of Fate from Medea and give it to Bai Mo. It concerned not just his brother, but himself as well.

Besides, Jason didn't want to see anyone on this ship turn on one another. He absolutely didn't want that. He truly loved this ship; it was the realization of his boyhood dream of adventure.

He would never allow anyone aboard this ship to hurt one another.