The King of the Underworld is Tired

Chapter 72: The Story of Persephone – (7)

Demeter's face flushed red as she pointed a finger at me.

“Hades! Did you conspire with Eros to shoot an arrow at my daughter?”

“I swear I didn’t! I dodged a golden arrow that flew at me from behind, but unfortunately, it ended up hitting Persephone…”

“Then why did you take her to the Underworld and make her eat food there? In the end, you’re no different from Zeus or Poseidon!”

“What? You’re comparing me to those scoundrels?”

No matter how enraged she was because her daughter ended up in the Underworld, comparing me to them was too much.

Phew… No, I need to calm down.

“…Think about it rationally. Do I seem like the kind of god who would scheme against a daughter I didn’t even know existed? This was all a coincidence.”

“Ugh…! So, are you saying this was all Eros’s fault? But no matter what, how could Eros have the nerve to shoot an arrow at you…?”

Gods do not interfere with each other's realms.

Even if one commits a wrongdoing or lacks the qualities of a god, a god is still a god.

If Poseidon were to fall into despair and let everything go, the sea creatures would gradually die.

If Ares stopped initiating wars, the number of mortals would increase excessively.

If Aphrodite’s love was suppressed for being too free-spirited, no new mortals would be born.

Not interfering with another god’s realm is an unspoken rule among the gods.

Because of this, if a god's personality is unpredictable, it often causes trouble for other gods.

However, the higher the divinity, the more lenient this unspoken rule becomes.

Few dare challenge the three gods who rule the world.

This is why Dike, the goddess of justice, cannot point out the crimes of those with high divinity.

Demeter was referring to just that.

“Eros must have made a mistake while practicing archery.”

“A mistake?”

“Right after your daughter was struck by the arrow, I looked all around, but Eros was nowhere to be found.”

“What… No, even so, such a coincidence is unlikely… Unless?”

Demeter, who had been standing still to catch her breath, turned red again and gathered clouds to fly off somewhere.

Could she be going to confront Eros? Or complain to Zeus?

I quickly followed after her.

* * *

“Aphrodite! Did you have your son Eros shoot an arrow?”

“What? Why are you accusing me? What’s even going on in the first place?!”

When I rushed over riding a cloud, I saw Demeter arguing with Aphrodite at her residence.

I guess what I had said to Aphrodite last time worked.

Beside her wasn’t Ares, but Hephaestus.

Well, even if they don’t get along, they are still married… At least in official settings, it’s proper for them to appear together.

A little further away, Hephaestus looked at me with a puzzled expression, as if to ask what was going on.

“Uncle… What’s this about Eros's arrow now?”

“It’s nothing. Eros shot a golden arrow at me, I dodged, but it hit Demeter’s daughter.”

“What?!”

“That… I mean, did that really happen? This is the first I’m hearing about it…”

“So you didn’t order it either? Was it really Eros acting on his own…?”

“If I really did plan something like that, I would’ve told him to shoot when I was passing in front of Hades!”

After hearing my explanation to Hephaestus, it seemed Aphrodite and Demeter's misunderstanding was resolved.

But what did she mean by "shoot when passing in front of someone"?

I glanced at Aphrodite, and she sheepishly avoided my gaze.

“No… I was just saying…”

“Quiet, just call your son here. We need to find out if it was really an accident or one of Eros's pranks…”

“Fine! I’ll go ask Eros!” Aphrodite muttered irritably, and went off to fetch her son.

As I watched Demeter, who stood waiting with her arms crossed, Hephaestus called out to me from beside her.

“Uncle, does that mean Persephone fell in love with you?”

“It seems so… You know her as well? She seems to be quite a young goddess.”

My nephew truly seemed young. Eros hadn’t been born for long either…

How old could Persephone be? 200? 300 years at most?

“I live in the halls of Olympus, so I’ve heard of the goddess of spring and seeds, though I’ve never seen her at the feasts.”

“What rumors?”

“They say she is incredibly beautiful, having inherited her parents’ looks perfectly.”

“I see…”

“Is she really that beautiful? I heard her golden hair and eyes are as lovely as the color of grain blessed by Demeter.”

Is he fond of all beautiful goddesses?

Well, he hasn’t had a proper relationship with Aphrodite after all…

“Ugh… I’m truly jealous, Uncle. I swear, this must be Aphrodite’s blessing upon you!”

“…My niece falling in love with me is not exactly something to celebrate.”

“What? Why’s that a problem? Persephone’s parents are siblings, and most of the gods of Olympus were born from unions between family members…”

Judging by the bewilderment in the blacksmith god's eyes, it was clear he genuinely didn’t understand my point.

“In fact, sometimes even Athena looks beautiful to me. Don’t you think so too, Uncle?”

“Hephaestus.”

“Her impressive figure is undeniable, even with the armor and helmet she always wears… Yes?”

“Let’s stop this nonsense here.”

“…? Understood…”

Of course, Lady Lethe or Lady Styx are also distant relatives…

But Persephone is too close of a blood relative.

Even if incest isn’t considered a sin among the gods, this feels a bit wrong.

* * *

Eros’ golden arrow really was a mistake.

One of the arrows he shot while wandering around outside of the Olympian palace had, unfortunately, flown in this direction.

“It was a real mistake! The arrow flew towards Mount Etna, but I didn’t think it would actually hit someone…”

Aphrodite, who had fully grasped the situation, scolded her son with her hands on her hips. Judging by the red mark on Eros’ forehead, she had already given him a few whacks.

“I’ve told you so many times! Practice your archery on designated targets only!”

“…I’m sorry…”

“Hmph! You may be a young god, but just saying sorry isn’t enough after hitting my daughter, is it?”

Eros looked pitiful, holding his cute little bow, thoroughly dispirited. Though he appeared to be about five or six years old from a human perspective, he had small white wings on his back.

“I told you that arrows are dangerous and should only be used when absolutely necessary, and you keep doing this?!”

“Uh… I got it, but, Mother…”

“This kid! What is it now? What about me?!”

“…You told me to shoot a golden arrow when passing in front of Lord Hades! So why am I the only one being scolded?”

“What?”

Demeter, whose anger had not yet subsided, looked at Aphrodite with an expression of disbelief.

“Ha… So it turns out the son is just like the mother.”

“T-this… this is a misunderstanding!”

“Pft, misunderstanding my foot. Not too long ago, you also told me to try to shoot Lord Hades… Mmph!”

“Oh dear! What nonsense is this child saying…?!”

The goddess of beauty, wearing an awkward smile, hastily covered her son’s mouth.

Using Eros now, and not just content with wearing the Cestus, are you?

“…If Eros’ arrow comes flying next time, I’ll consider it your doing.”

“T-this… it’s all your fault, Hades! How could you ignore the goddess of beauty who wants you so badly, even once?!”

Seeing Aphrodite, her face flushed, suddenly blaming me made me feel a headache coming on.

Really, a married woman—who even has a lover—should behave like this?

“It’s all Hades’ fault anyway!”

With that, Aphrodite flew away hastily, tears welling up in her eyes.

Luckily Hephaestus wasn’t here to witness this.

If he had seen this, wouldn’t we have witnessed a different version of the Ares and Aphrodite episode that happened during the last art festival?

The god of blacksmiths might have ended up joining Gaia, shedding tears of blood…

The goddess of the earth, who had been watching Aphrodite’s retreating figure, seemed to come to a realization, nodding as she mumbled.

“Now I see, Hades, you really weren’t trying to pull anything with my daughter. I never thought there’d be a man capable of refusing the goddess of beauty’s advances…”

…It seems like it was better to be in the underworld, struggling with endless paperwork.

“Anyway, I apologize for misunderstanding you.”

“…Alright. Now that you understand, it’s fine.”

I then turned my gaze to Eros, who stood there with drooping wings and a dejected expression.

It might have been a mistake, but it seems necessary to teach him not to shoot love arrows carelessly…

“Uh… can I go now, Lord Hades…?”

“Eros, if you need a place to practice archery, the underworld can provide it.”

“Really…?!”

“Come to the underworld later, and I’ll let you shoot to your heart’s content.”

“Wow! Really? I’ll be right there!”

Without knowing what awaited him, Eros flew away happily.

Since Aphrodite also holds the authority over love, the balance of the world shouldn’t be affected too much even if Eros stays in the underworld for a long time.

Finally, I can lessen the burden on the souls responsible for tormenting major sinners day and night.

I’ll make sure he learns not to shoot arrows carelessly again.

Even if it means shooting until his fingers fall off…!

* * *

“Even if it’s because of Eros’ arrow that she fell in love with you, I must still try to convince Kore.”

“Do as you wish. I was about to return to the underworld, so get in the chariot.”

“My daughter eating the food of the underworld…”

As we were about to descend to the underworld together, someone approached, walking on the clouds.

A mighty divine presence comparable to my own, a male god with blue hair.

It was my brother, Poseidon, the lord of the sea, who looked at us with eyes full of regret.

I had a bad feeling about this.

Demeter spoke to him.

“Poseidon? What brings you here this time?”

“Ahem. Ahem. Demeter, I heard your daughter had gone missing, so I came to offer my condolences…”

“Where did you hear that? And what kind of condolences are you talking about?”

“Cough! Seems I’ve arrived a little late. Hmph. Anyway, I’ll be going.”

Poseidon glanced at Demeter regretfully before disappearing.

Demeter’s daughter had been playing near Mount Etna when she boarded my chariot to head to the underworld.

Poseidon must have heard that from the nearby nymphs.

Condolences, huh… ‘Condolences’… Hmm.

Knowing Poseidon, he wouldn’t have simply intended to offer comfort through conversation…

Could it be that he thought Demeter, grieving over her missing daughter, would be vulnerable to… comfort of a different kind?

For a moment, silence fell between us.

Soon, realizing the same thing as me, Demeter clenched her fists and gnashed her teeth.

“Zeus, Poseidon, they’re all the same! Ugh…! All male gods are just alike!”

“…That’s an insult.”

This was the current state of Olympus, the place where the gods, revered and feared by all mortals, resided.