The Giants' Tale - (1)
The Underworld. A cold, dark realm ruled by me, Hades, god of the dead. It is the place where departed souls come seeking rest. Because of its grim reputation, most gods avoid it, which makes the realm exceptionally quiet. I rather like that about the Underworld. The silence I feel when I close my eyes brings me peace rather than loneliness.
Yet even my sanctuary had been violated by some very rude and very stupid intruders.
“Just as Mother Gaia said! The Underworld really exists!”
“Everyone, attack! Let’s kill Hades, the so-called King of the Underworld, and free Tartarus!”
“Brothers of the Gigantes! Let’s liberate the Titan gods!”
They were hideous monsters with the lower bodies of snakes and the upper bodies of humans. These divine beings who called themselves Gigas had clearly been sent to attack us. Listening to their shouts made it obvious—Grandmother Gaia was furious that we had imprisoned the Titans in Tartarus.
The Earth Mother who had married the sky god Uranus and given birth to our father Cronus was not someone to be taken lightly. Still, she had her pride. She probably wouldn’t step forward herself to overthrow us.
Hades… I’m so sorry. My power wasn’t enough to stop them!
Styx’s urgent voice rang inside my head. The creatures rampaging through the Underworld had all been born from Gaia’s power. Dozens of them had come with clear hostility. It was only natural that even the goddess of the boundary river couldn’t hold them back.
I sent my will to her, telling her to hide in a safe place for now.
I’ll run to Zeus and ask for reinforcements! If all your siblings gather, even these things…
I appreciated her heart, but asking for help would be pointless. These Gigantes who called themselves Gigas had invaded the Underworld on Gaia’s orders. That meant they had surely attacked Poseidon’s ocean and Zeus’s Olympus as well.
Then… are the other gods in danger too?
“It depends on how many of them there are,” I replied calmly. “But don’t worry. The Underworld will not fall to the likes of them.”
The entrance to the Underworld was narrow. They must have looked down on me since I didn’t possess overwhelming weapons like Poseidon’s trident or Zeus’s thunderbolt, and only sent a few dozen. I couldn’t help but let out a dry laugh.
Because although they were divine beings, I couldn’t sense even a trace of true immortality from them. They had dared to invade my home ground instead of fighting on the surface. Was this any different from challenging Poseidon in the depths of the sea?
I openly mocked the arrogant worms. Since workers had willingly walked into the Underworld, I might as well kill them all and turn their souls into obedient slaves.
I rose from my throne and placed the Helm of Invisibility, Kynee, on my head. My presence vanished completely from the world. Then I drew the sword forged in the River Styx—the very river that bound even gods to their oaths. Black darkness naturally clung to my body, forming armor. I climbed onto the ramparts and looked down at the invaders.
Dozens of massive lumps of divine power were pounding madly on the gates. Those were the Gigantes. With a heavy boom, the half-god, half-serpent giants struck the gates again. I quietly leaped down from the walls.
It would be easy to sweep them away with raw divine power, but these creatures were as strong as the Titans. I had no idea how many more enemies waited outside the Underworld. Using the Styx sword to sever their necks one by one would consume far less of my strength.
Just like this.
Slice—
“Graaaagh!”
“W-what? We were suddenly hit!”
“I didn’t feel anything!”
I shifted position again and slashed through another Gigas’s waist. The creature collapsed with a look of utter confusion. I turned my eyes to the next target without pause.
“Uwaaaaagh!”
“I can’t detect any presence! Where are you, Hades?!”
The Gigas pressed their backs together and scanned every direction, but it was useless. These monsters looked like they had been born only recently. No matter how strong their power was, they didn’t know how to use it properly.
“Throw rocks from the ground, brothers!”
“Spill blood to find his position!”
If they had survived many battles, things might have been different. But right now they were nothing more than newborn pups. To me, who had waged war against the Titans for years, killing them was laughably easy.
Had Gaia not told them about Kynee, or did they simply believe their own eyes would be enough to see me? Their confidence had crossed into pure arrogance.
“Why?! I definitely checked that direction!”
“Graaagh! My waist… my waist…!”
Did they really think my helmet, equal to Astraphe and the trident, would reveal my position so easily? I whispered into the ear of one terrified Gigas and drove the Styx sword straight through his heart.
Now that I had enough corpses, it was time to create some subordinates.
Rise.
“Ugh… ughhh…”
“…Uuuu…”
“The souls of our dead brothers are rising! It’s the power of the Underworld god!”
“We should have brought more brothers!”
The fallen Gigas were wrapped in black smoke, then rose again as pale white spirits and began attacking their former comrades. Every soul that entered the Underworld belonged to me. There were no exceptions—not even for divine beings.
“Uwaaaah! S-spare me!”
“Our mother is Gaia! We’re your blood relatives!”
What difference did that make? They had come here to kill me. What nonsense were they spouting?
The last remaining Gigas was surrounded by translucent spirits. I quietly removed Kynee. Wearing that helmet on my head was more stifling than I remembered. Especially since its formless energy wrapped around my entire body.
The final intruder, who had only now spotted me, trembled violently and begged for his life. He clearly hadn’t imagined this outcome when he charged into the Underworld so boldly.
“W-wait! If you spare me, I swear I’ll never come back to the Underworld agai—”
Slice.
Splurt!
The passage of time had turned even the weak soul of a 21st-century modern man into the cold-hearted god of the dead. The Gigantes who had dared set foot in the Underworld without fear were all reduced to nothing more than handfuls of wandering spirits.
Hades. You have slain all the intruders who entered the Underworld.
You may come out now.
What in the world is going on…
I ordered the souls of the Gigantes—now bound only to my commands—to clean up the mess in the Underworld, then called for Styx. Soon a stream of water rose from the River Styx, and the goddess appeared before me, bleeding from one arm.
“Haa… It really seems Gaia wants war.”
“The Earth Mother has been quiet until now. Perhaps she was pouring all her strength into creating these Gigantes.”
This era had not yet seen the establishment of the Twelve Olympians. In fact, not only were the gods still few in number, humans themselves had not yet appeared. Although my future knowledge and memories of the myths were gradually fading, one thing remained clear.
Just as Odin of Norse mythology prepared for Ragnarök by raising human heroes, Zeus would also cultivate heroes to aid us. But right now, there were few gods on Olympus, and no human heroes existed to take our side.
This was the perfect time for Gaia and the Titans to attempt their rebellion. I commanded the lingering spirits who had dreamed of wiping out the Underworld to fortify the realm, then prepared to head for Olympus.
With the Gigantes invasion underway, the most urgent place wasn’t the ocean where Poseidon displayed his invincible strength, but the divine palace of Olympus.
“Are you going to Olympus right now? Then I’ll come with—”
I told her to stay and guard the Underworld in case more of them came. If Tartarus were breached, our defeat would be certain. Someone had to remain here.
“Then I’ll go. You protect the Underworld.”
The Gigantes that had gathered here were powerful, but there were only a few dozen of them. Gaia must have known they alone couldn’t defeat us. Hundreds—perhaps even more—were surely rampaging across Olympus right now.
If I wanted to send meaningful reinforcements that could affect the tide of battle, I had to go myself. Not that I expected anything from that fool Zeus.
“Ugh… Please be careful.”
I comforted the teary-eyed Styx, crossed the five rivers surrounding the Underworld, and headed for the surface. The warm sunlight and vibrant plants of the surface welcomed me after so long, but the air felt incredibly heavy. It was proof that a massive war between gods was already influencing the world.
I needed to reach Mount Olympus as quickly as possible.