Episode 4: The King of the Underworld is Tired

Episode 4: The story of the Gigantes – (1)

This is the underworld, ruled by Hades, the god of the dead.

A cold and dark place where deceased souls come to find rest.

Due to the nature of the underworld’s image, most gods also avoid this place, making it a very quiet realm.

I quite like this underworld.

The tranquility I feel when I close my eyes brings me peace rather than loneliness.

However, there were some bad and wicked intruders who dared to invade Hades’s sanctuary...

“As Mother Gaia said, the underworld does exist!”

“Let’s attack! Let’s kill Hades, the king of the underworld, and liberate Tartarus!”

“Brothers of the Gigantes! Let’s free the Titans!”

They were grotesque monsters with the lower body of a snake and the upper body of a human.

These beings, who called themselves Gigantes, were undoubtedly sent by someone to attack us.

From what they were shouting...

It seems Grandmother Gaia is very displeased that we imprisoned the Titans in Tartarus.

The earth goddess, who married the sky god Uranus and gave birth to our father Cronos, is not someone to be underestimated.

She may not personally step forward to overthrow us, as she has a reputation to uphold, but...

[I... I’m sorry, Hades. I just couldn’t stop them with my power!]

A desperate voice from the goddess Styx echoed in my mind.

The creatures rampaging through the underworld were all divine beings born from the power of Mother Gaia.

With dozens of these hostile creatures swarming in, it was no wonder that the goddess Styx couldn’t handle them.

I sent her my thoughts, telling her to retreat to a quiet place for now.

[I’ll go to Zeus and request reinforcements! If your brothers all gather, no matter how many of those creatures there are...]

Though I appreciated the goddess Styx’s intentions, asking for help would be pointless.

These creatures, who call themselves Gigantes, invaded the underworld on the orders of Grandmother Gaia.

This means they likely attacked not only the underworld but also the sea ruled by Poseidon and Mount Olympus, where Zeus resides.

[Then... doesn’t that mean the other gods are in danger too?]

“That depends on how many there are.”

But you don’t need to worry, goddess Styx.

The underworld will not fall to such creatures.

The entrance to the underworld is narrow, and they must have underestimated me since I don’t have powerful weapons like Poseidon or Zeus. It seems only a few dozen of them came.

I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself. Although they are divine beings, I didn’t sense any immortality in them.

They weren’t even fighting on the surface but had foolishly invaded my home ground. How is this any different from fighting Poseidon in the sea?

I laughed heartily at these reckless worms.

They had walked right into my domain, so I might as well kill them all and enslave their souls.

Rising from my throne, I donned the invisible helmet, 'Kynee', which completely concealed my form from this world.

I drew the sword forged in the River Styx, a symbol of the oaths that even gods must keep when sworn upon, and the embodiment of my promise.

The darkness naturally clung to my body, forming armor as I climbed the fortress wall to observe the intruders.

There were dozens of divine beings pounding on the gate with all their might—these were the Gigantes.

Thud! Thud!

I surveyed the half-god, half-snake giants, the Gigantes, as they pounded on the gate, and then quietly jumped down from the fortress wall.

It would be easy to wipe them out using divine power or my authority, but they are beings as powerful as the Titans.

I didn’t know how many more enemies were outside the underworld, so it was wiser to conserve my energy and decapitate them one by one with the Styx Sword.

Just like this.

Slash—

“Argh!”

“What... what was that? I was suddenly attacked!”

“I didn’t sense anything!”

I moved to a new position and slashed another Gigantes below the waist.

Ignoring the bewildered expression on the fallen Gigantes, I turned my attention to the next enemy.

“Ahhh!”

“There’s no trace of him! Where is he, Hades?”

The Gigantes stood back-to-back, trying to guard all directions, but it was futile.

These monsters seemed to have been born not long ago, and although they possessed great power, they didn’t know how to use it.

“Brothers, throw the stones from the ground! We’ll splash blood to find his location!”

Maybe if they had experience surviving on the battlefield for a long time, but at this moment, they were just naïve pups.

For someone like me, who had years of experience in the war against the Titans, killing them was all too easy.

“How can this be! I checked this direction for sure!”

“Argh! My waist... my waist...!”

Did they really think that something on par with Astraea’s thunderbolt and the Trident could expose my location that easily?

I whispered into the ear of a terrified Gigantes before piercing his heart with the Styx Sword.

'Shall we start creating some minions now that there are enough corpses?'

[Arise.]

“Ugh... ugh...”

“They’re rising... the souls of the fallen brothers are rising! It’s the power of the god of the underworld!”

“We should have brought more of our brothers!”

The dead Gigantes were enveloped in black smoke, and only their white forms rose to attack the other Gigantes.

All souls that come to the underworld belong to me, Hades. Even divine beings are no exception.

“Ahhh! Please... spare me!”

“Our mother is Gaia! We are of the same bloodline!”

So what? You came here to kill me, and now you’re begging for your life?

The last remaining Gigantes was surrounded by translucent souls as I quietly removed my helmet, the 'Kynee'.

Wearing a helmet on my head is more uncomfortable than I thought.

Especially this 'Kynee', which covers me in an intangible aura, making me feel as if my entire body is wrapped in something.

The last intruder, who finally noticed me, trembled and begged for his life.

Did you not anticipate this when you boldly invaded the underworld?

“W-wait! If you spare me, I swear I’ll never return to the underworld...”

'Slash.' 'Splash!'

The passage of time turns even the soul of a weak 21st-century modern human into a ruthless god of the underworld.

The Gigantes who dared to step foot in the underworld without fear were all reduced to a handful of spirits.

* * *

[Hades, you’ve killed all the invaders who came to the underworld.]

[You may come out now.]

[What on earth is going on...]

I ordered the souls of the Gigantes, now bound to obey only my commands, to clean up the sullied underworld, and I summoned the goddess Styx.

Soon, a stream of water shot up from the River Styx, and the goddess Styx, bleeding from one arm, appeared before me.

“Phew... it really seems like Gaia wants war.”

“It’s possible that the Earth Mother has been quiet all this time because she’s been using her strength to create those Gigantes.”

This era has not yet established the twelve Olympian gods.

No, it’s not even an era with humans.

Though my future knowledge and understanding of mythology are gradually fading from my mind, I still remember one thing.

Just as Odin of Norse mythology prepares for the Ragnarok war, Zeus too is supposed to train human heroes who will aid us.

However, there aren’t many Olympian gods now, and there are no human heroes to side with the gods.

Now is the perfect time for Gaia and the Titans to seize the opportunity for rebellion.

I ordered the ghosts, who dreamed of foolishly sweeping away the underworld, to guard this place well and prepared to head to Olympus.

In this situation, with the Gigantes’ invasion underway, the most urgent place is not the ocean where Poseidon wields invincible power, but the Olympian palace.

“Are you heading to Olympus now? If so, let me come with you...”

I told her to stay here and protect the underworld, as the creatures might return.

If Tartarus is breached, our defeat is certain, so someone must remain here.

“In that case, how about you stay and guard the underworld while I go?”

The Gigantes that gathered in the underworld are powerful divine beings, but only a few dozen.

Grandmother Gaia must have known that they wouldn’t be enough to defeat us.

Surely, hundreds, if not more, of the Gigantes are rampaging on Olympus.

The only meaningful reinforcement that can impact the outcome of the battle is if I go there myself.

Not that I have any expectations for that Zeus, anyway.

“Ugh... be careful.”

I reassured the goddess Styx, who looked on the verge of tears, and crossed the five rivers surrounding the underworld to head to the surface.

The warm sunlight and vibrant plants of the surface world, which I hadn’t seen in a long time, greeted me, but the air was heavy.

This was evidence that the massive war between gods was affecting the world.

I must head to Mount Olympus quickly.

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