King of Underworld

Chapter 68 The Story of Persephone – (3)

As I hurriedly drove the chariot northward, I soon discovered the Gigantes massacring the nymphs.

Nymphs were dying amidst screams, and there was a blonde-haired goddess struggling to resist.

Crunch!

“Kyah!”

“Save me! Lady Demeter!”

“Ugh… I don’t want to die…!”

She was a goddess I hadn’t seen before at the banquet held in Olympus.

Judging by the power I felt, her appearance, and her lack of battle experience…

She appeared to be a young goddess born less than 200 years ago.

Her divine power suggested that her parents were powerful gods, as her strength seemed to be just below that of the Twelve Olympians.

Thud thud thud thud-

Although it was a bit far, the phantom horses swiftly galloped across the land, and I quickly arrived.

What I saw was a Gigas, a commanding figure, lifting the goddess by the neck with a sadistic smile.

“It seems you’re a young god, so curse your fate.”

The power emanating from him was slightly below that of Apollo or Ares, close to the level of the Twelve Olympians.

And there were three others with power comparable to his.

The Gigantes clinging to Mount Etna and digging into Typhon’s body were at the level of minor gods.

A monstrous army that seemed to number in the hundreds to thousands.

A swarm of pests had gathered.

Puhwak-

I summoned my Bident and struck with all my might.

The Gigas’ head exploded instantly, and blood splattered across the ground.

I drove the phantom horses forward, gently lifting the exhausted goddess and placing her behind me on the chariot.

This chariot of Hades was the safest place on the battlefield.

“Are you alright?”

There was no response, but it didn’t matter.

Judging by the ichor flowing profusely from her body, it was clear she had suffered severe injuries.

“Who are you?!”

“Even if you’re an Olympian god, it’s just one more! Attack!”

“What can you do alone…”

Countless pests, realizing the death of their comrade, swarmed towards me.

Mount Etna was not an ordinary mountain.

Any god with a certain level of power could destroy a mountain.

Especially if it was Typhon’s body.

Yet the seal that imprisoned him was still intact because…

Mount Etna’s immense size, Zeus’s divine power, and the seal crafted directly by the gods were all measures that had been put in place.

Judging by the state of Mount Etna…

“Take this-”

“Do you think you can do anything alone!”

Boom!

Where was I in my thoughts? Oh right, I was thinking about the state of Mount Etna.

Given a little time, those terrible monsters, the Gigantes, seemed capable of digging out the mountain.

But since I was obstructing them, the commanding figure would rush to block me…

And those with power comparable to minor gods…

“Eurytus! Let’s cooperate!”

“You create an opening, Toas!”

Three of the Gigantes, with power far superior to the others, surrounded my chariot.

Even so, they were no more than what Dionysus and Ares could handle.

Now that I’ve arrived, the situation is already under control.

There’s no need to rush, so I might as well kill them slowly.

I drove the Bident into the ground, using my divine power to create a path to the Underworld.

Crack crack crack-

It seemed I was causing too much damage to the land, which was Demeter’s domain.

But since the Gigantes had attacked, she should understand to some extent.

The Underworld was not just an underground world.

It was a completely separate realm from this world.

One could never reach it by simply digging down.

“Dammit! It’s Hades, the god of the Underworld!”

“Aaah! Die!”

“Even if he’s one of the Three Gods, he’s alone!”

“The already dead shall return to the world!”

Unless I used my power to connect the worlds like this.

A wave of translucent spirits crawled up from the ground and clung to the Gigantes.

These were an army that could not die, continuously resurrecting unless the Underworld was completely annihilated.

Even though their plan to snatch Typhon under the noses of Olympus had failed…

The three Gigantes before me still seemed to cling to hope.

“Take- this!!!!”

A giant wooden club swung down above my head.

Oh. He’s got some strength, I thought as I drew the Bronze Sword from my waist and thrust it forward.

Clang!

Even if you grit your teeth and strike with all your might, it’s useless.

It wasn’t as if Zeus or Poseidon were swinging the club…

One of the others’ gazes landed on my smirk, and they charged at me in a frenzy.

Gigantism, super strength, rapid regeneration, divine blessing from the earth, and so on.

“Damn it! Don’t underestimate us, Hades!”

“Wait…! Eurytus!! Don’t charge in so recklessly…”

Oh, wasn’t it considered impolite to smile on a battlefield?

Seems like he’s really angry. But…

Slice- Splat!

“Aaaargh!”

The fact that you guys still held onto the delusional hope that you could win was just too amusing.

Shouldn’t you be running away by now instead of trying to defeat me?

Did you think you’d stand a chance just because I didn’t have the Kynee, my invisible helmet?

If this were an all-out war, I might lose.

But this was just a skirmish, so the prophecy didn’t trigger.

* * *

As I watched the souls slay the remnants of the Gigantes, I sensed the rapidly approaching presence of a god.

Flying from the sky towards this place was… Hermes?

Hermes, holding the Caduceus, quickly surveyed the area and met my eyes.

The messenger god approached me with a somewhat relieved expression.

“Uncle Hades! Did the Gigantes attack?”

“Yes, I believe it’s Gaia’s strike, as foretold by Prometheus.”

“They came to seize Typhon’s body. If you hadn’t been here, it would have been really dangerous.”

Hermes, who was examining the surroundings a bit more, was startled when he looked at the peak of Mount Etna.

I did blow it up a bit during the fight…

“Gasp…! The entire peak… Did you do this, Uncle?!”

“…It was an accident.”

“…Typhon’s body almost got released.”

I tried to minimize the impact on Typhon’s seal, but those creatures were quite strong, so it couldn’t be helped.

“However, I don’t think this is the end of Prometheus’s prophecy.”

“I summoned the forces of the Underworld earlier, so I suspect it might mean that victory will come if the worlds of the living and the dead are connected.”

“Hmm… That’s one way to see it, but I still feel uneasy.”

Hermes frowned in thought.

Could this really not be the attack foretold by the prophecy?

“For now, you go to the Underworld and report the situation on Mount Etna. Also, let them know that all the enemies have been dealt with and that no further support is needed.”

“Are you going to check Typhon’s seal?”

“I’ll inspect it for a while, so tell Olympus not to worry and to prepare for any other threats…”

There could be additional attacks from Gaia, hidden ambushes, or more remnants of the Gigantes.

It’s better if I personally reinforce the seal.

This place, the seal of Typhon, was a critical point.

Therefore, I should check the state of Mount Etna, reinforce it with divine power to make it even stronger…

“And also, ask Demeter if she found out the Gigantes’ base.”

“Yes. Understood…”

“I’ll ask! She’s my mother, after all!”

The blonde-haired goddess, who had been listening to my conversation with Hermes, suddenly interrupted.

She looked at me with bright eyes…

“Are you Demeter’s daughter?”

“Yes! And my father is Lord Zeus!”

So she’s the daughter of Demeter and Zeus?

* * *

After Hermes left, I found myself face to face with the blonde-haired goddess.

Looking at her smiling as if inviting me to ask anything I was curious about, I was reminded of someone…

“Hermes, the messenger god, can take care of it… You don’t need to ask Demeter yourself.”

“Lord Hades, but I think it would be better if I spoke to my mother…”

“Enough, if you’re the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, you can just call me uncle.”

“Yes! Uncle Hades!”

The blonde goddess, who reminded me of a warm spring day, answered with a bright smile.

…? Why is she so happy about that?

Well, I do hold a certain status…

“So, what should I call you, niece?”

“Call me Kore! That’s what everyone close to me calls me!”

A nickname? Why are you asking me to use your nickname?

We just met today.

“What’s your real name?”

“Call me Kore!”

“…I meant your real name, not a nickname.”

She seemed to pout for a moment, but then she smiled brightly and answered.

“I’m Persephone! Uncle Hades!”

“What… did you say?”

For a moment, it felt like I had been struck in the head with a blunt object.

An old, long-forgotten memory of my past life… resurfaced along with the scent of mint.

Knowledge flooded back like a river breaching its banks.

In my past life memories, wasn’t Persephone the wife of Hades?

Eros, the god of love and son of Aphrodite and Ares…

He accidentally shot Hades with one of his love-inducing arrows while practicing archery.

And Hades, upon seeing Persephone, fell in love with her and abducted her to the Underworld…

“Uncle Hades? What are you thinking about? Is there anything I can help with…”

If that’s the case, could it be that Eros is practicing his archery around here too?

As this thought crossed my mind, I used my divine power to scan the surroundings…

Shuuuu-

Soon, I detected an arrow flying towards me from close range.

Love, that hot and intense emotion, always comes suddenly, without warning.

That’s why Eros’s arrows were swift and subtle.

But being on guard meant it was not something I couldn’t dodge.

I quickly twisted my body to avoid the arrow coming from behind.

Whoosh-

Wait, if I dodge the arrow, that means…!

Thud.

“Huh?”