An Ominous Sign (1)
Even today, the Underworld refused to grant us any peace. Aphrodite, who had agreed to help manage affairs down here for the time being, was already exhausted again.
Until they reached the River Lethe, the dead still carried every memory from their lives above. That meant plenty of them refused to accept their own deaths and caused no end of trouble.
“Aaaargh! I’m not dead yet!”
“Please, just let me see my mother one last time! I swear I’ll walk back on my own two feet afterward!”
“Damn it, let me go!”
Those denying reality, those clinging to lingering attachments, those screaming their rage at the enemies who had killed them… and even the shades drifting helplessly along the River Acheron without a single coin to pay for passage.
The goddess had grown tired of maintaining any semblance of divine dignity. She had taken to simply charming the souls with her eyes when Charon, having just returned from ferrying another group across the river, delivered a message from me.
“Hades says he’s opening the Underworld for a full day of feasting.”
“A full… day?!”
“Hmm. I was rather surprised myself. I suppose the business with Thanatos last time must have weighed on him…”
The same news produced completely different reactions. The ferryman of Acheron was thrilled at the prospect of an entire day without work, while the Goddess of Beauty and Love looked horrified that it was only that much.
It made sense. What real labor had the Goddess of Beauty and Love ever done on Olympus? Love bloomed on its own. Beauty required no effort on her part. And Olympus was filled with gods who lived as idly as she did. Banquets were frequent, and leisure was the rule.
“Now that I think about it, you’ve spent all your time living comfortably on Olympus. This sort of work must feel completely foreign.”
“…I’m starting to understand why Athena always finds an excuse to leave the room whenever the Underworld comes up after the great flood.”
A sheltered flower suddenly thrown into an avalanche of bureaucratic hell… Her reaction was only natural.
“I… I was wronged… Lord Zeus forced me… hic… Why does Lady Hera only punish me…”
“…Right. Rest for a moment. We’ll continue later.”
Another human soul who had been raped by Zeus and then killed in Hera’s revenge. As the woman wept bitterly, Lethe quietly approached from behind and erased her memories of the living world.
When rendering judgment in the Underworld, souls who arrived still carrying their memories were not uncommon. Deep grudges could render the waters of Lethe ineffective, but still…
“Why are there so many victims of the gods up there?”
The gods were selfish. It wasn’t only Zeus, who thought with his lower half. Most of them were the same. The higher their station, the worse the tendency, but even lesser gods frequently abused mortals.
Just today, three new victims had arrived. All of them had come bearing memories of the living world and begged me for justice. As I sat clutching my head, Lethe, having just finished erasing the latest soul’s memories, drifted over.
“Still, you don’t do those things, Hades. And you’re popular, too…”
Of course I am. I am one of the three chief gods, after all. Marrying me would make any goddess queen of the Underworld and grant her immense power and authority. My face may be a bit gloomy, but I consider myself reasonably handsome. I am certainly better than Poseidon, whose legitimate wife Amphitrite rages every day because of his endless affairs, or Zeus, who sleeps with nearly every woman he sees. Quite a few goddesses have subtly expressed interest in me.
But…
“Sigh… After seeing nothing but victims of rape, adultery, and love triangles every single day, the desire simply vanishes.”
The Underworld received victims of every kind of sexual violence, infidelity, and jealous murder. After watching so many souls destroyed by a goddess’s curse or envy, any thought of marriage quickly died. Besides, the queen of the Underworld had to be chosen with great care. I had no desire for someone like Hera, Zeus’s wife and queen of the gods, who killed rape victims, or Amphitrite, who flipped the entire ocean when angered.
A servant approached just then to inform me that the banquet preparations were complete.
“The banquet seems ready. Shall we head to the hall?”
“Ugh… Fine.”
It had been a long time since we had a proper day of rest. Everyone would be pleased. I left my office with Lethe following quietly behind me and made my way to the banquet hall. Since I was holding a feast anyway, I had ordered that Dionysus’s wine be distributed to the citizens of the Underworld as well. Souls might not need food or drink, but perhaps they could still enjoy the festive mood.
“Have the Mousai arrived?”
“Yes! The goddesses are already in the hall.”
The nine Mousai, goddesses of the arts, were daughters of Mnemosyne and Zeus. When Mnemosyne heard I was holding a banquet, she had personally contacted Olympus and summoned her daughters.
As I entered the hall, music washed over me. Euterpe played the flute while Terpsichore danced gracefully to the melody. The other Mousai were each enhancing the atmosphere according to their own domains. I sat down and looked around. Everyone seemed delighted by this rare moment of relaxation.
But something felt off.
“Oh my…”
“How exhausted must he be…”
The gods were whispering among themselves, staring toward a corner of the hall. I walked closer and found an elderly god lying sprawled on the floor, trying to sleep.
“Krr… krrrh…”
Why was Hypnos sleeping on the banquet hall floor? Had he truly been that tired? Still, I had opened the feast so everyone could rest. I ordered the servants to carry the sleeping god to a quiet room and returned.
“Died of disease again? These frail mortals… tsk tsk tsk…”
In another corner, black divine energy of death flickered around Thanatos as he sipped nectar. Even at this moment, he was controlling his avatars to continue reaping souls. He could not rest.
“Lord Hades!”
Someone called my name. The voice was familiar. Ah!
“Oh my~! Lord Hades! How long has it been!”
“Erato. It has been a while.”
A goddess with long, pale turquoise hair and a beautifully draped tunic smiled at me with crescent eyes. Erato, one of the nine Mousai, responsible for love poetry and mime. She slipped her arm through mine.
Don’t cling so tightly, niece… Her coquettish behavior was cute, but the distance felt a little too close.
“Hades~ Seeing you after so long fills me with inspiration~”
“…?!”
I could feel the eyes gathering on us. This was enough. As if reading my thoughts, Erato cleared her throat and began to recite.
Humans speak of~
Phoebus with a smile bright as the sun,
Poseidon with a chest vast as the sea.
Dionysus of captivating form,
Hermes of cheerful wit.
Yet we know the truth~
The one all fear, the Hades of the Underworld…
Erato suddenly stopped mid-verse, staring at something behind me. She bowed her head in obvious panic and quickly backed away.
When I turned, Styx stood there with a faint smile. The smile did not reach her eyes.
“Hades… with another strange goddess again…”
“Pardon?”
“Sigh… It’s nothing. By the way, what possessed you to open a banquet? Do you realize how much damage will pile up if you rest for even a single day?”
Yes, yes. I am well aware.
“Everyone seemed to need rest…”
“But what if work backs up again like last time?”
“There is no need to worry. Look over there.”
We turned to watch Thanatos muttering darkly while manipulating his avatars. The busiest god in the Underworld was still fully immersed in harvesting souls.
“Next is this side… Oh dear, an entire family starved to death…”
Black wings kept dipping into his nectar cup, but the terrifying sight of him reaping souls in real time ensured no other god dared approach him.
“Thanatos continues to work diligently, and the three Minos brothers are taking turns resting as well.”
“So I can go back now, right? Hades?!”
Aphrodite burst into the conversation with an extremely irritated expression. The Goddess of Beauty had adopted an even more decadent appearance than before. I had certainly worked her hard enough. The reduction in Underworld workload had been noticeable.
“You’ve worked hard. If you ever feel like coming back…”
“R-really?! I can really leave?!”
The moment I gave permission, Aphrodite vanished from the hall. Styx watched her go and shook her head in disbelief.
“Goodness. All that complaining after just a little work on the River Acheron.”
Having grown used to a life of leisure on Olympus, Aphrodite had fled the Underworld with impressive speed. As I watched her retreating figure, an odd sensation washed over me.
…Someone was offering me a prayer.
A believer—no, a priest—in Thebes. But the desperation, the pleading, the terror contained in that prayer…!
“O Great Hades! Please, I beg you! A monster that is half serpent and half human…!”