What occurs during the Supreme Ordeal in Theseus's journey?

• A. He escapes the maze with Ariadne.
• B. He negotiates a truce with the Minotaur.
• C. He fights the Minotaur and kills it using its own horn.
• D. He defeats the Minotaur using a magic sword.

Answer: (C)

The most important moment in this journey phase is the hero’s life-or-death confrontation with the central danger. In Theseus’s path, that supreme test is the battle with the Minotaur inside the labyrinth. This is where he must summon courage and skill under extreme threat, and the outcome transforms him as a hero. In the version reflected here, he defeats the Minotaur and uses the creature’s own horn as the weapon, turning the monster’s power against it. That act embodies the climactic victory that marks the turning point of the quest and leads to escape and the next rewards. The other options miss the essence of this moment: the rescue or escape with Ariadne happens after the decisive clash, diplomacy isn’t the core crisis, and a magic sword isn’t the weapon described in this account.