The King of the Underworld is Tired

Episode 65: The Banquet of the Underworld – (2)

“Glory to the Underworld!”

All those who raised their golden cups high echoed Thanatos’ words and drank the nectar.

I too took a big gulp of the divine drink from my cup.

'Gulp, gulp – swallow.'

“Whew… So, this is what nectar tastes like… It's incredibly delicious…!”

“Hahaha! Mente, now that you’ve become a god, you’ll get used to it soon enough.”

“Heh. This reminds me of a long time ago… the first time I tasted nectar and ambrosia.”

“Hypnos, stop teasing the young goddess.”

“So, this is nectar…”

“Try some ambrosia too, Medusa.”

No mint tea or Dionysus’ wine can compare to this heavenly taste.

Since its flavor is not fixed, no drink can compare to nectar.

Nectar is not just delicious; it provides a sense of spiritual fulfillment to the gods.

There’s a reason why mortals don’t age while consuming nectar and ambrosia.

But… drink too much, and this is what happens.

“Hades… Let’s share a drink, it’s been so long… Hehe…”

“You’ve had quite a bit to drink, Lady Styx…”

Yes, like this—Lady Styx, who is staggering toward me with a cup in hand.

She walks toward me, her face flushed and wearing a seductive smile, seemingly having had plenty of nectar.

“Hadeeees… Hehehe.”

Honestly, it’s the kind of drunkenness that can be easily dispelled with just a little divine power.

Gods drink it much like humans do with wine, but…

She seems to have gotten herself deliberately drunk.

“Oh my!”

'Thud.'

Ah. So that was her plan…

She very unnaturally tripped and stumbled toward me with pleading eyes, making me catch her without thinking.

I held her arm and waist, intending to help her up, but then…

“Oh…”

Lady Styx closed her eyes and pursed her lips.

As if she was hoping for something awkward from me…

“Ugh! Get away, Styx! How many times do I have to tell you!”

“…Ah! Really, Lethe? Is that how you're going to be?”

The goddess Lethe swiftly approached, grabbed the goddess of oaths who had closed her eyes, and pulled her upright.

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And just like that, Styx, who had been so drunk she could barely stand, instantly sobered up and began complaining to Lethe…

Please, let’s all just share our drinks peacefully…

“Mente? Nectar is dripping from your mouth.”

“…What? Oh, y-yes…”

“Tsk, tsk… This is what happens when you don’t get married soon…”

“Zeus and Poseidon have so many wives and concubines, it’s impossible to count them all…”

“Hades, you seem to be quite popular.”

Ahem… Well, uh… sigh…

I walked over to where Medusa and the Erinyes sisters were standing.

The three goddesses of vengeance, with their bronze wings, eyes that wept blood, and serpent hair, have always been avoided for their terrifying appearance…

But they were willing to attend the banquet after refusing many times, so as the host, it’s only right I approach them first. It’s a gesture to show the minor gods and the underworld's attendants.

As the ruler of the Underworld, if I treat them with such respect and care,

…it sends a clear message that they should not be disrespected.

“Medusa, are you enjoying the banquet?”

“Yes. Thank you for looking after me.”

“Hmph! A flirtatious god, as always, I’m sure.”

Alecto, whose name means unceasing anger… why is she glaring at me and turning her head away?

And why are the snakes, which are her hair, looking this way…

Hiss, hiss.

“Ugh… Why are they acting like this again?!”

“Hades, as I’ve said many times before, please stop doing that…”

“Mmm…”

Alecto, scolding her own hair, flushed with embarrassment.

Tisiphone sighing as she speaks, and Megaera, nodding as she chews on a mouthful of ambrosia.

“Well… I’ll continue inviting you to future banquets. Will you come?”

“Hmph!”

“Well, I don’t hate it, but…”

For some reason, this feels familiar… have we been through something like this before?

Anyway, I’ve at least had a conversation with them,

so they shouldn’t be shunned at future banquets.

* * *

I approached Charon, the ferryman of the Acheron River, who was sitting to one side, sipping wine.

For some reason, he had set aside the nectar and was only drinking wine.

"Charon."

"Ah, Hades. Why don't you have a glass of this wine too?"

"Aren't you drinking the nectar?"

"Sometimes wine isn't so bad. Wasn't it Dionysus who made this?"

Charon, who wasn’t eating any of the food from the cornucopia or ambrosia, continued drinking his wine.

He suddenly spoke to me, as if he had just remembered something.

"These days, many of the souls coming to the underworld seem quite at ease."

"Why is that? To mortals, the underworld is..."

"Yes, a symbol of inevitable death and fear. But, you see… as the number of people who believe in you grows, more and more are contemplating life after death."

It seemed that the influence I could exert in the mortal world through my temples in Thebes and Argos was gradually increasing.

Though I thought my faith was still somewhat minor, if even Charon had noticed, it seemed I had more followers than I realized.

"I’ve even seen those who lived honest lives face death with surprising composure."

"That’s very good news."

"Your followers believe they’ll receive a fair judgment in the afterlife, don’t they? It seems that belief has spread throughout the mortal world..."

As the story of Medusa quietly spread around Thebes, a rumor began to grow that even a monster-turned-human could receive my mercy.

If I listen closely to the mortal world right now...

"Are you really alright with leaving this world under false accusations?"

"Don’t worry too much... Pluto is a just god..."

"Ugh... Those scoundrels will definitely be judged in the underworld!"

"Can you say the same thing—that you are innocent—before Pluto himself?"

"Of course! I could even swear it at the temple!"

"...Seeing how confident you are, I’ll reinvestigate."

Still, not many call me Hades.

No matter how much I am called the god of mercy and wealth rather than the god of the underworld… this is truly unavoidable.

For mortals, death is as terrifying as Zeus' thunderbolts, and so is the underworld... Hmm.

Proof of this can be seen in the fact that most of those who pray before Thanatos' statue in Thebes are old men.

Recently, even Perseus, the king, heard of Medusa's tale.

He came to my temple in Argos to pray to me back then.

"Oh lord of the underworld... Is it true that the Medusa whose head I severed was once human?"

Perseus' face was filled with slight disbelief, guilt, and inner turmoil.

I possessed the body of one of the priests and answered him.

"Yes, it’s true that she was transformed into that grotesque form by the whims of fate."

"What...! This can’t be..."

"Now a minor goddess of the underworld, she wishes to speak with you. Would you like to converse with her?"

"...!! Please, I beg of you!"

Just as Medusa, now a goddess, had requested, I allowed the meeting.

Even when Medusa, possessing a mortal body, met the man who had severed her head, she appeared to hold no ill will.

"It was you who cut off my head, Perseus."

"Is... is it really you, Medusa? I don’t know what to say..."

"...It’s fine. You were merely swept along by fate, and I do not resent you for it."

"But..."

Perseus was clearly flustered, struggling to apologize.

Though he had achieved great heroic feats, his character was not unpleasant.

As their conversation grew longer, I quietly slipped away.

Not long after, a small temple was built beside mine in Argos...

The deity of the temple was Medusa, now a minor goddess of the underworld.

* * *

‘There was even a rumor that King Perseus would occasionally visit Medusa’s temple to pray…’

As I reminisced about the story of Medusa and Perseus, I was snapped back to reality by a loud noise.

Thanatos, the black-winged god of death, came rushing into the banquet hall.

He had hurriedly left the hall earlier... Did he go to investigate something?

Maybe I should grant Thanatos a vacation sometime…

"Ceres, Moros, Charon, there’s big trouble! A war has broken out in the mortal world!"

"What?! Again?"

"Damn it! Let’s go, Moros."

"Have those mortals started another war?"

Charon, who had been chugging wine, threw down his cup and stood up in a rush.

The other gods of death, Moros and Ceres, also left the hall.

"A war in the mortal world...? How many souls will come this time..."

"Lord Hades. I’m sorry, but I must go as well."

Upon hearing the news, more than half of the minor gods and attendants hurriedly left.

Even the three judges, the sons of Minos, discreetly took their leave and headed to the courtroom.

"How is it that every time I try to rest, there's a great flood, a hero's rampage, or a war..."

"There’s no helping it. Hades... it's time to get back to work."

The goddess Lethe brushed past me, leaving a comment in her wake.

I was left speechless at the sight of her beautiful eyes, heavy with exhaustion.

"Lord Hades?! Is the underworld’s banquet always like this?"

"...?"

Medusa and Mente were frozen in place, watching the gods and attendants leave the hall so methodically, as if resigned to their fate.

Yes... this is the underworld. You never truly get a moment's rest.

Mente, locking eyes with me, swallowed a piece of ambrosia she had been eating and awkwardly asked,

"Lord Hades. Should I start working too..."

"Mente, why don’t you focus on finishing that mint dish we couldn’t complete earlier? We also need to figure out how to introduce it to the mortal world..."

Now that things had come to this, I might as well finish what I started before taking a break.

Unfortunately, the banquet is over.

As I was about to return to my office with Mente, who was sulking, I heard Medusa’s parting words.

"The underworld is... quite a peculiar place."

I agree.