The Tumultuous Tale of the Underworld (1)
After Dionysus quietly descended to Naxos Island... Zeus and I began observing the situation below the clouds.
"Is this Naxos Island?! Artemis~!"
"I can't see anything."
Naxos was an uninhabited island with no humans living on it. That was probably why the Gigantes had set their trap here. The humans who offered us their faith served as our eyes, after all.
"Come out already, you Gigantes bastards!"
"I'll crush you all in one go, hahahaha!"
Crash. Crack.
Two enormous giants, who could flatten everything on the island beneath them, shouted as they smashed trees apart. They looked overflowing with confidence, as if no monster existed that could possibly oppose them. But these Gigantes were monsters created by our grandmother Gaia to overthrow Olympus. Even they would have enough caution against us, who had once defeated Typhon.
"I still don't see Artemis?!"
"Monsters! The Aloadae brothers have arrived!!!"
They certainly wouldn't be letting their guard down like those fools. They had to be preparing an ambush somewhere or readying a trap powered by their divine authority...
At that moment, Naxos Island trembled.
Rumble rumble rumble—
"Is that the trap the Gigantes prepared?"
"An earth authority far surpassing Demeter's... It seems Gaia herself created it."
A deafening roar echoed across the entire island as the ground split apart. The terrain was utterly destroyed, just as it would be if Poseidon's Triaina had struck the earth.
Crash! Boom!
"Kuh! What the hell is this?! Is this the Gigantes' doing?!"
"Aaaagh! These cowardly bastards!"
The giant brothers who called themselves the Aloadae lost their balance and fell. Ephialtes, whose ankle I had struck, rolled across the ground clutching his head. Even Gaia's trap shouldn't have been able to render such powerful giants completely helpless. There had to be something more.
"Ugh! Blegh. What is this..."
"A trap?! Did Lord Zeus lie to us?!"
From what I could see, it was a combination of deadly poison, hallucinations, and an authority that made the very earth reject them. Gaia had dug this trap with clear intent.
"Oh... I'm glad I didn't send Hermes to scout ahead."
Zeus looked down at Naxos Island with a serious expression. The trap, seemingly aimed at the Twelve Olympians, left the giant brothers unable to regain their senses. As the massive earthquake reduced the island to ruins, Gigantes began pouring out from underground like bamboo shoots after rain. Hideous monsters that were a fusion of snakes and humans emerged from the wide fissures in the earth and charged at the giants.
Then one particularly massive Gigante shouted first. Had the Gigantes gained a commanding entity...?
"Hahaha! Just as Mother said, we've caught a big fish! I am Agrios, under King Eurymedon!"
"Die, you dogs of Olympus!!!"
"Attack!!"
"...These bastards!"
"You cowardly monsters who took Artemis!!"
King Eurymedon? Did that mean their forces had grown strong enough to claim a king? And this commander-level entity was a face I'd never seen before. Zeus, standing beside me, hardened his expression the moment he heard the word "king." Since the human hero mentioned in the prophecy hadn't been born yet, avoiding an all-out war was the right move, but...
Soon, Naxos Island became a bloodbath between giants and monsters. The Gigantes hurled boulders and swung trees.
"What gods are you?! Ares? Apollo?!"
"Kuhk!"
"You insect-like monsters! Hand over Artemis!"
Boom! Crash!
The giant brothers countered by wildly swinging their muscular bodies, sending Gigantes flying. Though the Gigantes caught in their rough hands burst apart, wounds gradually accumulated on the brothers' bodies as well.
"Krrgh!"
"Ephialtes! We need to escape first and then... Kuhk!"
"Otus!"
First they used the earthquake to disrupt their balance, then weakened them with poison and the earth's authority. Then hundreds of Gigantes hidden underground launched a simultaneous ambush. Even the strongest among the Twelve Olympians couldn't defeat that many Gigantes alone. The biggest problem was Gaia's authority—the very earth itself was rejecting them.
The Gigante who introduced himself as Agrios under Eurymedon leapt onto Otus's back and wrapped his arms around his neck. Otus struggled before finally collapsing, and Ephialtes let out a roar.
"So giants can be killed after all. The Gigantes are closer to monsters than to the divine race."
Zeus stood up briefly and quietly retrieved his Astraphe. The blue lightning in his hand radiated intense power and a destructive aura, but this was one of the weaker bolts among those he possessed.
"Otus! Kuhk!"
"We just need to kill this one!"
"Crush him with your bodies!"
After the fierce battle, the number of Gigantes had dwindled to dozens. They hurled boulders at Ephialtes, climbed onto him to crush him with their weight, and struck his ankles to bring him down.
"No... don't..."
"Hahahaha!"
Thus, the Aloadae brothers who had challenged Olympus met their deaths. Though they had defeated hundreds of Gigantes, their end felt hollow compared to the power they had wielded.
* * *
Once the fierce battle on Naxos Island ended, Zeus rose holding his lightning bolt. He intended to annihilate the Gigantes who were exhausted from fighting the giant brothers.
"Now that it's over, shall we clean up?"
"Throw it gently so it doesn't affect the sea too much."
Crackle crackle—
Rumble rumble!
Lightning sparked from Zeus's entire body, including his eyes. The King of the Gods who ruled the sky raised his arm for a moment, and then...
Flash—
BOOOOOOM!!
A single bolt of lightning struck Naxos Island. But that one strike sank the entire island and wiped out the Gigantes completely. The island had been torn to shreds, so many lives must have perished as well. I wasn't the god of prophecy, but I could already picture Thanatos coming to complain to me again in the future.
"Zeus, I'll be returning to the Underworld now."
"Come visit Olympus again next time, hahaha!"
"I'd prefer it not be for something like today."
I could see Aphrodite over there, drinking nectar and chatting with the goddesses. I needed to take her back to the Underworld with me.
"Hades!"
From a corner of the banquet that was slowly winding down, Aphrodite, who had been watching me, met my eyes. Was she smiling because she was looking forward to working in the Underworld? She walked over and naturally stood before me.
"Let's go quickly. We have somewhere to be, don't we?"
"We do."
Aphrodite followed me with an expectant gaze. But the whispering around us was rather concerning.
"Gasp! Lord Hades again..."
"During the great flood... I worked in the Underworld, you know..."
"Poor Lady Aphrodite..."
...That goddess over there shuddering while claiming she worked in the Underworld was definitely assigned to an easy job, if I recalled correctly.
* * *
"Hm~ Hm hm~"
Humming a tune, Aphrodite and I entered the entrance to the Underworld, where I saw Thanatos's avatar. Seeing two giant souls bound with ropes, it seemed...
"To think we'd fall to mere monsters! Untie this at once!"
"Hic! L... Lord Hades?!"
So Otus and Ephialtes, who had just been killed by the Gigantes, had arrived in the Underworld. I'd have to tell Minos to put them to work on hard labor. They recognized me standing with Aphrodite and began struggling.
"Untie this, Lord Hades!"
"Send us back to the living world!"
But that was impossible. If they were still alive under the prophecy's protection, maybe, but they were already dead and had become souls. Did they really think they could escape Thanatos's grasp?
Thanatos's avatar roughly tossed the two giant souls, sending them tumbling across the ground. Even so, they continued spouting nonsense about demanding Artemis be returned and insisting they be sent back to the living world. At this rate, it would interfere with Charon's work.
"Aphrodite, can you make those two lose their minds?"
"That's easy~"
The goddess of beauty and love smiled brightly. Soon, her gaze, filled with desire, turned toward the giant souls.
"Get us out of here right now... Ah..."
"Cowardly Zeus! Surely with Artemis and... Huh..."
It wasn't the first time souls dragged to the Underworld had caused trouble. If the goddess of beauty and love took charge of controlling the dead, everyone's workload would definitely improve. Where should I assign this goddess? The Cocytus River, so cold that souls hesitated to approach? Or the banks of the Acheron River, where troublemakers like these were common? Or the Pyriphlegethon River, where souls hesitated to cross because of memories from their living days?
As I looked at the goddess standing with her hands on her hips and her nose in the air, Charon spoke to me. The ever-tired ferryman of the Underworld grumbled.
"Hah. These ones don't even have coins. Do I have to ferry them?"
"They're serious criminals, so they need to be judged. I'll pay the drachma in their place."
"Tsk... Fine. Get on quickly, you lot!"
The two giant souls, their minds already gone, climbed onto Charon's ferry one after another. First, Otus's soul boarded...
Rock—
Tip.
Hm? Had Charon's ferry always been this fragile? It was definitely built to remain stable no matter how many souls boarded.
"Uhh? Why is this so heavy? Hey, you get on the other side!"
Charon seemed to have the same thought as me and tried to balance the boat by placing them at opposite ends. Next, Ephialtes's soul boarded the ferry...
Crack—
CRASH!
Huh...?