The heavy footsteps echoed through the silent palace courtyard as four strong servants slowly carried a heavy wooden chest adorned with golden edges. The lid was slightly ajar, revealing a glimpse of the shimmering gold coins and jewels inside, their dazzling light catching the attention of the surrounding nobles and soldiers.

Eurystheus’ face was dark as a stormy sky, his veins bulging with suppressed fury. He stood frozen, unable to act nor dare to speak out. Finally, he remained silent, watching as the servants placed the gold before Alex.

Alex nodded in satisfaction. Under the sunlight, the surface of the gold coins gleamed with a warm luster.

Step one, securing funds, complete.

Just as he was about to have the chest moved to a safe place, a deep, resonant voice rang out—

"Honorable god."

Alex looked up to see a tall, burly man approaching, his muscles rippling like sculpted bronze. Heracles.

The legendary hero’s gaze was firm, devoid of fear, but filled with a certain sincerity. He walked straight up to Alex, lowered his head slightly, and spoke with a respectful tone—

"My name is Heracles. I revere the gods, and I respect your power."

Alex raised an eyebrow. Unlike the others who either fled in terror or knelt trembling before him, this man stood tall. He carefully studied Heracles’ expression and noticed that although his words were polite, there was not even the slightest trace of fear in his eyes.

Makes sense.

Heracles was a demigod, after all. His entire life had been spent fighting gods and monsters. Unlike the terrified king, he was more inclined to respect the strong.

"You have a good eye," Alex said with a casual smile. "At least you’re more polite than this king."

Hearing this, Eurystheus’ face turned an even darker shade of blue, his lips trembling with rage. But in the end, he swallowed his anger and said nothing.

Heracles looked slightly embarrassed. He had come to mediate, but now it seemed he had only deepened the king’s humiliation.

"Honorable god, please forgive this mortal king’s ignorance. He did not realize your greatness, and that is why he offended you."

Alex cast a glance at the king, who still didn’t seem to grasp the gravity of his situation. He sneered inwardly.

To face an unknown and clearly powerful being like himself, and yet still be filled with arrogance and anger instead of caution—

Weakness is not the greatest obstacle to survival. Arrogance is.

"And what happens if I let him go now, only for him to offend me again the moment he stands up?"

As he spoke, he reached into his pocket with his free hand and pulled out a folding knife, flipping it open and lightly pressing it against the king’s temple and throat.

He had never killed anyone before, but he knew that at this moment, he could not afford to show weakness.

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"I will never offend you again! Please, grant me mercy!"

Just moments ago, the king had been seething with rage, but now, as the cold blade traced his throat, he instantly regained his composure.

"I am the son of Zeus. I will vouch for him," Heracles said seriously. "Honorable god, if he dares to offend you again, I will be the first to defend your honor."

So this really is the legendary Heracles, not just someone with the same name.

For the sake of gaining Heracles’ favor, Alex decisively withdrew his sword and released the king and his ministers.

The king and his court had been kneeling for so long that their legs were completely numb, but none of them dared to complain. They could only struggle to their feet and quietly slip away.

Now that things were settled, Alex turned to Heracles and, as if casually, asked, "So, what were you all doing before I showed up?"

Heracles seemed slightly surprised by the question but answered without hesitation, "I am fulfilling my Twelve Labors. This was my fourth task."

The fourth task? The Ceryneian Hind?

Alex’s mind worked quickly, piecing together the timeline of Greek mythology.

"I see…"

Since it was still during Heracles’ trials, it meant that the Olympian gods were still actively involved in the world. Zeus still ruled the heavens, Hera was still tirelessly tormenting her stepson…

A plan began to take shape in Alex’s mind.

Step one, acquiring wealth, was complete.

Step two, ensuring that events followed the timeline he knew.

He needed to keep the story moving in a direction he could predict. If history started to deviate, he would lose his ability to anticipate future events—and that would be far more dangerous than anything else.

With this in mind, Alex narrowed his eyes and turned his gaze to Eurystheus, who was attempting to slip away unnoticed.

"Stop."

The king froze mid-step, his expression turning stiff.

Slowly, he turned back, forcing an awkward smile. "Honorable god… do you have further orders?"

Alex smiled, but there was an undeniable sense of authority in his tone.

"Aren’t you the king? Aren’t you the one responsible for assigning Heracles his trials?" He patted Heracles on the shoulder and spoke lightly, "If that’s the case, then where do you think you’re going? Get back to your throne and continue assigning his tasks."

Eurystheus’ face twisted in humiliation.

This was outright degradation!

A king, being ordered around like a servant by some unknown foreigner? If it were anyone else, he would have had them executed on the spot!

But he didn’t dare.

This enigmatic being had just humiliated him in front of his entire court with a single sword swing—and now he was forcing him to keep issuing challenges to Heracles…

For a moment, Eurystheus felt like his heart was going to explode from sheer frustration. But in the end, he gritted his teeth and forced out a response:

"…Fine. I will assign Heracles his next trial."

Alex’s eyes grew cold. "I said, get back to your throne and assign his trial from there."

The king had never been so insulted in his life. First, he was forced to yield, and now, after reluctantly agreeing, he was still being publicly humiliated?!

But as he glanced at the sword in Alex’s hand, he had no choice but to stiffen his body and take slow, reluctant steps back to his throne.

"You heard me, didn’t you?" Alex called out.

The ministers and guards snapped out of their daze and scrambled back to their positions as if their lives depended on it.

Alex sat back down with a dark expression, his commanding presence leaving the entire court in an unbearable silence.

He didn’t care. As long as the plot got back on track, that was all that mattered.

His next goal was to accompany Heracles on his trials and find a way to meet the gods of this world.

But before that, he needed to travel alongside the demigod himself.

With that in mind, he turned to Heracles and said casually, "I let him go as you requested. Now, shouldn’t you keep your promise to protect me?"

A long pause followed.

Then—

"Yes, honorable god," Heracles finally replied.

"No need to call me that. Just call me the Sword God," Alex said with a grin. "And since you’ll be protecting me, we might as well travel together."

The already awkward atmosphere grew even heavier.

Alex, is that really how you interpret ‘protection’?!

But Heracles, after a moment’s hesitation, finally nodded. "If that is your wish…"