Episode 41: The King of the Underworld is Tired

Episode 41: Ominous Signs – (3)

A monstrous creature with the lower body of a giant snake and the upper body of a beautiful human woman. However, the true identity within that body is Cronos, the god of time and agriculture.

“Why? Did you think I wouldn’t return to this world?”

“More precisely, it’s surprising that Lady Gaia… that Gaia would summon you.”

“Ha ha ha! How desperate must Mother have been to call upon me?”

With Cronos's laughter, time around him flows chaotically. The divine power of the first-generation Titan gods radiates, distorting the surrounding scenery.

Damn Gaia.

Was it Cronos you were trying to summon by sacrificing dozens of humans? Were you so displeased with your children, the Titans, being sent to Tartarus?

At least I realized the hidden dagger Gaia had before it was too late. If I had ignored the ritual and killed Echidna… Olympus might have faced Cronos again someday after he recovered his strength.

“Gaia intends to make us fight, and then have you thrown back into Tartarus. Are you willing to be used only to end up there again?”

“Just breathing the air of this world is a reward in itself. Ha ha ha!”

Even though Cronos had weakened after being trapped in Tartarus for so long, he was still a god of time and a Titan. Once, he was the ruling god who held dominion over the world and remains a threat to us.

However, the conditions necessary to pull a god of Tartarus into this world… The sacrifice of dozens of humans, Gaia’s immense divine power, a body to possess, and a bizarre ritual circle.

These aren’t conditions that can be easily fulfilled multiple times without the gods noticing.

“Take a good look at the world one last time. You won’t have another chance to see it.”

“Haven’t you realized yet? I am gradually adapting to this body.”

As Cronos continued to raise his power, his presence grew stronger, and even Enceladus, who was holding a club and keeping his guard up, began to smile with satisfaction.

But…

“You weren’t the only one buying time.”

“What?!”

By raising your power like that, wouldn’t the sun up in the sky notice?

Boom!!!

A fierce beam of light pierced through the mountain and struck them. However, the impact stopped precisely before reaching me.

Thud. Thump.

The once-dark cave was blown apart, and bright sunlight now illuminated everyone. The powerful attack that obliterated part of the mountain, along with its precision in targeting only Cronos’s power, was unmistakable.

Above the clouds, Apollo stood with his golden bow, watching us intently. When he spoke, a majestic voice resounded in all directions.

“Mortals, close your eyes and do not look at the sky. If you gaze upon my true form, you will burn!”

If a human were to behold a god’s full glory, they would die. Semele, Dionysus’s mother, was a prime example, having died after witnessing Zeus’s true form.

Intense heat and radiant light emanated from Apollo, and the mortals trembled in fear, bowing their heads. But those present here were gods, Titans, and monsters who opposed the gods.

They all gazed directly at Apollo’s true form.

The Gigantes, who had been shaking off the attack, and Cronos, who had blocked Apollo’s assault, scowled in displeasure.

“Phew~! Nice to meet you, Grandfather!”

“You’re late, Apollo.”

“A sun god… You remind me of Helios. Are you the son of Zeus?”

“Lord Cronos! That’s Apollo, the god of the sun!”

* * *

Apollo, who had unleashed his full power during the battle with Typhon, descended to the Mortal realm. The bright rays of sunlight further illuminated the half-demolished mountain, highlighting his presence.

“I came as soon as I got word from Lady Styx! Should I call you uncle or, at this point, aunt? Haha!”

“Save the nonsense for later.”

Although Apollo, the god of the sun, threw out a lighthearted joke, his eyes, as the god of reason, were cold and sharp as he surveyed the corpses of the fallen humans on the ground.

With a sneer, Apollo once again nocked an arrow, imbued with the light of the sun, while Hades formed a spear made of dark shadows and charged at Cronos.

“Hades! Attacking your father again? You are an unspeakably unfilial son!”

“You have no right to talk, you who devoured your own children!”

As Cronos, possessing the body of a creature with the lower body of a snake, waved his hand, time slowed down. The movements of the advancing Hades became sluggish, and sparks flew as their powers clashed.

Crash! Crackle!

The clash between the lord of the underworld and the master of time accelerated the collapse of the already half-destroyed mountain. Nearby trees, fish, and other forms of life rapidly aged or were consumed by dark energy, dying in an instant.

“Do you think you can challenge me without that troublesome Kynee around?”

“Do you think I would lose to a decaying relic of the past, rotting away in Tartarus?”

But the clash of divinities was not confined to just this area.

“Raaaargh! Apollo! I am Enceladus!”

Enceladus, having moved to a slightly distant location to avoid interfering with Cronos, grew larger. As he roared, his already massive body swelled further, and his savagery intensified.

As the giant creature charged at Apollo with the lower body of a snake, the force of his attack was powerful enough to make even some gods retreat.

Whoosh— Sizzle!

Apollo’s response, however, was to face the attack head-on. As the god of archery, he shot rays of sunlight from his bow like arrows, halting the creature’s advance.

“Monsters and the like can never tarnish the glory of a god. Know your place and bow down.”

Arrows pierced the Gigantes’ arm, and the stench of burning flesh filled the air.

But only for a moment. The rapidly regenerating monster charged again, swinging its mighty fist at the god.

Boom! Crash!

The battle between the Titans, gods, and the monster caused the mountain to crumble, and the nearby city of Thebes began to feel the effects.

Rumble… Boom!

The humans who lived peaceful lives in Thebes felt the earth-shaking tremors and cried in fear.

The city was shaking from the earthquake, and buildings were collapsing in a terrifying disaster.

A murderous aura spread through the air.

The fear that gods had descended nearby to fight.

The chaos that rapidly spread among the people.

“The ground is shaking!”

“Didn’t you hear the words Apollo spoke when he descended earlier?”

“Bow your head and get inside immediately!”

“Dionysus, please help us!”

Even so, the sacred leopard, a divine beast associated with Dionysus and widely known in Thebes, appeared and began carrying the faithful, and several gods provided small measures of help to the humans, preventing the situation from escalating into total panic.

“The leopard… Dionysus is watching over us!”

“I need to go to the temple and offer a sacrifice later.”

“Zeus…”

The humans retreated to the temples of their respective gods or their homes, praying for mercy.

Praying that the gods above the clouds would withhold their wrath.

* * *

Whoosh—

Damn my father, Cronos is strong.

Even though many Titan gods sided with us during the Titanomachy,

“I must descend to the Underworld again to retrieve the Kýnee, must I not?”

“You’re powerless without your scythe.”

Until we received the Three Sacred Objects forged by the Cyclopes and the support of the Hekatonkheires, we could not defeat him.

Even then, it took several of us working together to repel him.

The heavy blow flying at me now must be a fragment of that power.

The power to manipulate time, shaking reality to its core, is unleashed at full force.

Tick. Tock.

The sound of sand falling from an hourglass echoed as time warped erratically.

Cronos’ laughter slowly resonated in the slowed world…

My son

You still

Cannot defeat…

In the slowed time, I could see the claws of Echidna, possessed by Cronos, slashing toward me.

Cronos, wearing a triumphant smile through the monster’s mouth, swung his hand.

The sharp and hideous claws approached right in front of me, but…

Thunk.

I moved my hand, now cloaked in ink-black divine power, and caught his wrist.

As the air shattered, time’s flow returned to normal.

“What the…!”

Both Cronos and I are in an incomplete state where we cannot unleash our full power.

But he has rested far too long in Tartarus.

When a god breaks an oath made on the River Styx, they are rendered comatose for a year and barred from participating in divine councils for nine years.

To an immortal, it’s merely a fleeting moment, but the reason why all gods fear this oath is simple.

Even a mere ten years of neglect can cause significant loss in one’s domain.

The more important a god’s domain, the stronger they become.

The fact that the three great gods rule over the Underworld, the sea, and the sky is no coincidence, but a necessity.

Now, with Olympus reigning supreme, most of the Titan gods have been weakened.

This is why Apollo, as a sun god, is stronger than Helios.

So, how powerful could Cronos be, a Titan who was defeated and then imprisoned in Tartarus for so long?

Squelch!

“Gah!”

The answer is ‘greatly weakened.’

Time is an immensely important and essential aspect of the world.

But since his defeat by us, Cronos’ power has drastically diminished.

Of course, even in his weakened state, he’s still a match for the twelve Olympians…

“I am the ruler of the Underworld. I won’t lose to some washed-up relic.”

“You… you bastard…!”

The distortion of time around me was something I could overcome with my power.

As I taunted him with my hand still buried in his chest, Cronos glared at me, his eyes filled with bloodshot rage.

“The walk is over. Time for you to return to Tartarus.”

“If… if only… this body…”

The light faded from his eyes, which had been filled with erratic time.

The Titan of time who had descended to this world was banished back to Tartarus by the King of the Underworld.

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