The Indomitable Hero is the 23rd chapter of the "Shuumatsu no Valkyrie: Record of Ragnarok" manga series.
Summary[]
In the city of Thebes, Greece, 2000BC, Humanity despaired before the Gods and they surrendered to the Gods' will, merely praying for mercy...save for one man. Alcides stood in front of the city gates, holding a wooden club. Castor shouted Alcides' name and questioned what he was doing. Alcides charged at Ares, only for the God of War to easily kick Alcides away, all the way back to the gates. The people of Thebes told Alcides to stop before he made things worse while Ares and his army began marching to the gates of Thebes.
Alcides tries to stop Ares from attacking Thebes
Alcides stood back up and refused to let them pass. Impressed by his potential, Ares ordered him to bow before him and promised to spare his life if he did. Alcides noted that the Gods' whim of sparing a life was quite similar to their whim of assigning sin.
Looking back at the people, Alcides said that Humans are weak beings. While they try their best to strive for good, at times, they must turn towards evil. By wavering through their lives, Humans are able to grow. The spirit of justice lies within all of Humanity, deep within their inherent weaknesses.
Alcides strengthens himself by drinking the Ambrosia
Alcides then said that despite their prayers for mercy, the Gods still opted to crush them under their feet and asked how they could keep claiming to be just. Alcides then declared that if that was the case, then he would oppose the Gods before bringing out the cup of Ambrosia he had hidden on him. Looking back at Castor, Alcides sighed about how he was glad he took this when he did before reassuring Castor that he would always be on the side of justice. Alcides then unhesitatingly drank from the Ambrosia, only for his body to suddenly convulse. His skin began to seemingly burn and Alcides was completely covered with smoke. Ares revealed the Ambrosia was a punishment for those who coveted divine power. Ares said he overestimated him and began to continue to go towards Thebes, only for an extremely muscular and pale long-haired Alcides to block his path, reminding Ares he wouldn't let him pass.
After Alcides embedded the end of his club into the ground, a strong force of wind emerged. Ares nervously recognized this kind of power and one of his soldiers charged at Alcides. Ares warned him not to but the soldier didn't listen, only for Alcides to dislodge his club and hit the soldier's jaw, knocking him out. Ares realized that this was strength on par with Zeus and the rest of the soldiers attacked, regardless of Ares' warning.
Alcides vs Ares
Later, all the soldiers were down and only Ares was left. As both he and Alcides huffed from the wounds they had dealt to each other, Ares attempted to punch Alcides but Alcides met it with a headbutt. After Alcides punched him, Ares was in disbelief that a Human took down his entire vanguard and was going toe-to-toe with him. As Alcides' sclera briefly flashed black, they both attempted to punch each other, only for Zeus to suddenly appear to stop their fists from colliding, resulting in the shockwave charring his clothes. He told them both to leave it at that and Ares was glad, since he would've been in danger if their fight continued any longer.
Zeus observed that Alcides drank the Ambrosia and as Alcides was surprised to see Zeus seemed to be a frail old man, Zeus made an offer to Alcides: become a God. Looking at the knocked-out soldiers, Zeus stated it may be problematic to let him stay on Earth before mentioning how Alcides called himself an ally of justice, which was a perfect fit for a God. Alcides accepted his offer but only on one condition: to never harm Humanity again. Zeus promised not to before asking if Alcides would guide them to righteousness in exchange. Smiling, Alcides fell back and claimed that to save Humanity, he would even descend into Godhood. Castor caught Alcides and called him crazy for even becoming a God.
Alcides becomes "Heracles"
Fist bumping him, Alcides told Castor he'd be heading off for a bit while Ares was shocked that Alcides calls it "descending" and Zeus stated that this was the problem with stubborn children. That moment marked the end of the age in which the Gods interfered with Humanity. Over the next 4000 years, Humanity never feared an invasion from the Gods. Around the time Castor died on Earth, Alcides completed the 12 Labors and was accepted as one of Zeus' children. Out of respect for Zeus' wife, Hera, Alcides was bestowed her name and became known as "Heracles."
In the present, Loki teases Ares by saying they're in trouble if Heracles is on par with him. Ares brings up how he was only able to fight Heracles evenly back then. Smiling, Hermes joins in on the teasing by saying Ares can't even reach Heracles' feet now, with how powerful he's become. Sighing, Ares tells the two to say whatever they like. Clenching his left fist and lightly tapping it against his cheek, Ares says that he is proud that Heracles was chosen to fight for them and he is proud that they got to know each other through their fists. Now in front of Jack the Ripper, Heracles destroys the last few knives he throws. Lifting up his club, Heracles tells Jack to begone, much to Jack's surprise at how Heracles endured all of his attacks.
Characters in Order of Appearance[]
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| Chapters & Volumes | |
|---|---|
| Volume 1 | 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 |
| Volume 2 | 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 |
| Volume 3 | 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 |
| Volume 4 | 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 |
| Volume 5 | 19 • 20 • 21 |
| Volume 6 | 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 |
| Volume 7 | 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 |
| Volume 8 | 30 • 31 • 32 • 33 |
| Volume 9 | 34 • 35 • 36 • 37 |
| Volume 10 | 38 • 39 • 40 • 41 |
| Volume 11 | 42 • 43 • 44 • 45 |
| Volume 12 | 46 • 47 • 48 • 49 |
| Volume 13 | 50 • 51 • 52 • 53 |
| Volume 14 | 54 • 55 • 56 • 57 |
| Volume 15 | 58 • 59 • 60 • 61 • B1 |
| Volume 16 | 62 • 63 • 64 • 65 • 66 |
| Volume 17 | 67 • 68 • 69 • 70 • B2 |
| Volume 18 | 71 • 72 • 73 • 74 • B3 |
| Volume 19 | 75 • 76 • 77 • 78 |
| Volume 20 | 79 • 80 • 81 • 82 |
| Volume 21 | 83 • 84 • 85 • 86 |
| Volume 22 | 87 • 88 • 89 • 90 • B4 |
| Volume 23 | 91 • 92 • 93 • 94 • B5 |
| Volume 24 | 95 • 96 • 97 • 98 • B6 |
| Volume 25 | 99 • 100 • 101 • 102 • 103 |
| Volume 26 | 104 • 105 • 106 • 107 • 108 • 109 |
| Volume 27 | 110 • 111 • 112 • 113 • 114 |
| Not Compiled in a Volume | E1 |
| List of Rounds (Manga) | |
|---|---|
| 1. Lü Bu vs. Thor | 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 |
| 2. Adam vs. Zeus | 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 |
| 3. Kojiro Sasaki vs. Poseidon | 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 • 17 • 18 • 19 • 20 |
| 4. Jack the Ripper vs. Heracles | 20 • 21 • 22 • 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 |
| 5. Raiden Tameemon vs. Shiva | 31 • 32 • 33 • 34 • 35 • 36 • 37 • 38 • 39 • 40 • 41 • 42 |
| 6. Buddha vs. Bishamonten/Zerofuku/Hajun | 43 • 44 • 45 • 46 • 47 • 48 • 49 • 50 • 51 • 52 • 53 • 54 |
| 7. Qin Shi Huang vs. Hades | 55 • 56 • 57 • 58 • 59 • 60 • 61 • 62 • 63 • 64 • 65 |
| 8. Nikola Tesla vs. Beelzebub | 66 • 67 • 68 • 69 • 70 • 71 • 72 • 73 • 74 • 75 • 76 • 77 |
| 9. Leonidas vs. Apollo | 78 • 79 • 80 • 81 • 82 • 83 • 84 |
| 10. Soji Okita vs. Susano'o no Mikoto | 84 • 86 • 87 • 88 • 89 • 90 • 91 • 92 • 93 • 94 • 95 • 96 |
| 11. Simo Häyhä vs. Loki | 98 • 99 • 100 • 101 • 102 • 103 • 104 • 105 • 106 |
| 12. Sakata Kintoki vs. Odin | 107 • 108 • 109 • 110 • 111 • 112 • 113 • 114 • 115 |