Chapter 34 A Journey to the Underworld ①
“I’ll go with you, Hermes.”
It's really baffling.
What do you mean by 'I knew you'd go to her'? This guy is always speaking in riddles!
Hermes pouted and flew straight past Apollo.
"Who cares about you, you damn Apollo! Don't bother me while I'm doing my business, get out of here!"
She has important business to attend to and needs to complete the task assigned to her by the goddess Gaia. As for the God of Light, who has nothing to do with this, he should hurry back to Delphi and continue his lonely life!
Unexpectedly, the back of her clothes was grabbed by a large hand, and with great force.
Hermes turned her head angrily and glared at the annoying guy.
What exactly do you want?
It's so annoying!
She almost couldn't resist throwing a scepter at him and smashing his beautiful head.
"I think I taught you not to swear." Apollo didn't let go, his chilling words coming from above Hermes' head, "And why don't you call me brother anymore?"
Hermes' eyes widened as she broke free from the hateful clutches. Enraged, she floated the Scepter of the God of Commerce to the other side and waved her arms, intending to scratch the face of this bastard who was clearly a bit off.
You really want me to call you brother, don't you?
“Alright, my dear Apollo!” Hermes grinned wickedly, her fingers grabbing Apollo’s exceptionally handsome cheek. “Then—hmm? Wait a minute?”
Her wicked smile froze on her face.
The reason is... Apollo didn't stop her hands from touching him, which were clearly meant to do something bad?
Has he gone mad from trying to outsmart her? How could he let her run wild like that?
"Well……"
Now Hermes had her hands on Apollo's face, unsure whether to advance or retreat.
After all, she was puzzled by his indifference, and she really didn't want to let go of him who was always getting in her way.
But... this situation is strange too...
Hermes glanced away hastily, not wanting to meet his light blue eyes so close to hers. Beneath her hands lay his warm skin, both firm and soft to the touch—a truly strange sensation.
So this is what it feels like to touch his cheek?
"What?" Apollo suddenly said, "Aren't we going to continue?"
His ivory-white face held a half-smile, making it unclear whether he was provoking or joking.
Hermes suddenly snapped out of her daze, quickly lowered her hands, and hurriedly moved away from Apollo.
Oh my god! Why did she lose her composure because of this annoying guy?!
Most importantly, he was actually mocking her again! The more she thought about it, the angrier she got!
but……
Thump thump thump thump—
Hermes covered her chest with her left hand, quite certain that the sudden, clear, rapid heartbeat was coming from her own heart, and even strangely, it kept echoing in her mind.
Just like her, she really... isn't right!
Hermes raised her hand and patted her cheeks, trying to regain her composure from her erratic state, but even her cheeks were burning hot.
Oh no, she must be blushing!
"...Anyway! I hate you! Brother Apollo!"
Amidst the chaos, Hermes mustered her courage, raised her head, and resolutely shouted at the God of Light, who was calmly watching her with his arms crossed.
I absolutely, absolutely, absolutely hate you!
So how could I possibly like you? Apollo, the worst man in the world, bar none.
Hermes added this to herself.
Upon hearing this, Apollo nodded: "I know."
Just as she breathed a sigh of relief, he suddenly curled the corners of his mouth into a faint smile.
This time, he wasn't laughing in anger or sneering, but treating her—Hermes—with genuine sincerity.
That smile, which didn't fit the image of the God of Light as someone devoid of joy or sorrow in the minds of all beings, appeared unusually on Apollo's indifferent face.
He was already bathed in dazzling golden light, and as his perfectly shaped eyebrows softened, he looked even more charming.
Vibrant and lively, full of hope and tenderness.
This wasn't the first time Hermes had seen Apollo smile at her, but for some reason, she always felt that he was special at this moment.
Perhaps it was his dazzling golden light that was so captivating that she found herself mesmerized.
Then Apollo said gently, "I'll go with you, Hermes."
As she stared in shock, the heat in his eyes intensified.
“The entrance to the underworld is difficult to find and enter. Moreover, I am not comfortable with you going to the extremely dangerous underworld alone. Not only does it house Hades and many Titans, but also three incredibly powerful creator gods.”
The underworld is a place of hell, containing both the palaces and residences of the gods of the underworld and prisons for the most heinous criminals. The Titans, led by the former king of the gods Cronus, were cast into this abyss.
But if one truly wishes to reach the gates of the underworld, one must traverse the misty darkness—Erebus.
Not to mention Nyx, the goddess of night, and Tartarus, the god of the abyss, there are also those vicious monsters, such as Cerberus, the watchdog of hell, and Echidna, the half-man, half-serpent...
Apollo could hardly imagine how Hermes would deal with these terrifying forces from the underworld.
He admitted that he was indeed worried about her, that brat who never gave him a moment's peace.
“I suppose I should take responsibility for you, after all.” Apollo paused, reluctantly recalling what Hermes had said to the pregnant nymph, “just like you did for Periop.”
Hearing these words, Hermes was even more shocked.
She knew all too well how dangerous the underworld was.
But Apollo actually said he would accompany her to the underworld? And he even used such ambiguous language as "I don't trust you" and "I'll take responsibility for you"?
What the heck? This is getting weirder and weirder!
She hadn't even found the passage to the underworld yet, so why did she feel that monsters had already escaped from there?
Hermes wanted to reach out and tap Apollo's handsome head to see if he had really lost his mind. But because of some inexplicable feelings, she didn't dare to touch him so intimately again.
So all she could say was, "You...you must be another god disguised as the despicable Apollo, right? How could that number one scoundrel in the world say such a thing to me?"
But even as she spoke, she still dared not easily meet his gaze.
"..."
"...Stop talking nonsense, you brat."
Okay, now she dared to do it.
Hermes tremblingly raised her eyes, looking at the tall, handsome man in front of her with a mixture of surprise and caution.
That's great. Apollo's expression remained unchanged; he no longer smiled in a way that terrified her, nor did he utter those strange words.
"Let's go to the Underworld now." Apollo reverted to his former cold indifference. "I'll go with you."
However, that stubborn persistence, seemingly etched into their very bones, was still maintained by the God of Light.
Before Hermes could react, Apollo waved his hand and took the scepter of the god of commerce that was floating on the other side, and then rode the white clouds westward.
There are many paths to the underworld; clues can be found in any treacherous canyon or deep cave.
But the most traditional, and also the closest, passage is to the far west of the earth—the very route Hades would have taken to abduct Persephone.
Going in this direction, you might just stumble upon a valuable mineral vein.
Charon, son of Nyx and Erebus, and ferryman of the River Styx, was known far and wide for his stinginess and love of treasure.
It just so happens that some brat is in charge of commerce and recently led humanity to create money.
Apollo was always rational and far-sighted; he considered many things and was always filled with countless benefits.
The newly born Hermes was clearly unaware of these complicated matters. She hurriedly caught up with Apollo ahead and stepped onto his cloud.
Of course, this also included the triangular cauldron and crow that she had stolen from him.
"Give me back my scepter!" Hermes raised her arms, trying to snatch it back. "Damn it, why are you always so childish, Apollo? You're supposed to be the older brother!"
This time it's his turn to steal her things, isn't it!
As expected, the stingy and petty Apollo wanted to compete with her for the title of god of thieves!
Upon hearing this, Apollo raised the arm that held her scepter, refusing to return it to her.
"Okay, you little rascal."
Apollo skillfully dodged Hermes's relentless attacks, no matter how high she flew or how agile she was, he wouldn't let her succeed again.
—He swore.
Then he felt something being ripped off his body. Upon closer inspection, he saw that Hermes had actually come up with a wicked plan and had simply torn off his cloak from his shoulder.
She clutched his blue cloak as a prize, and even the ruby brooch that served as its fastener fell to her feet. She kicked it up with her leg and held it firmly in her palm along with the other object.
“My dear brother Apollo,” Hermes said, her head held high, a sly glint in her clear, bright green eyes. “I told you, didn’t I? You can never beat me in terms of speed.”
Even without the aid of winged shoes, she was lightning fast, a natural agility and speed god.
Apollo was speechless.
"If you don't return the scepter to me now, then the next one won't be..." Hermes looked Apollo up and down meaningfully, who seemed quite calm, her lips curving into a wider and wider smile. "I've thought it through. Next, I'll steal your clothes!"
She spotted his white robe with its magnificent gold patterns at first glance.
"The God of Light, who shines with golden light, must be shining with golden light even if he were completely naked, right?"
Apollo: "..."
What inappropriate and lewd things is she saying?
Moreover, he truly did not expect her to be so despicable and shameless as to say such shameful things in front of him!
The most outrageous thing is that, as the goddess of theft, she actually has a very real chance of doing the heinous things she claims to do.
Apollo returned the Scepter of the God of Commerce to Hermes, even though it was originally a gift from him, as it now contained all of her divine power.
He had promised Hermes that if she could remove all the divine light he had imbued into it, he would give her this deep golden scepter.
When Apollo's fingers touched this vibrant force of nature, he knew—Hermes had truly done it.
She is intelligent and strong, yet her smile is sweet and lovely, so incomparably attractive.
Apollo paused, a strange light flickering in his pale blue eyes.
He thought that perhaps this wasn't such a bad thing after all, and there was no need to treat it as a major crisis.
However, Hermes completely failed to understand his thoughts.
"How naive you are, Brother Apollo. Do you really think I'd give your cloak back?" She chuckled and shook the item in her hand. She was indeed the same woman he knew. "Same as always, if you want it back, come and get it with your own strength!"
After speaking, Hermes leaped down from Apollo's cloud, and the triangular cauldron and raven cage that had followed her like a master quickly floated toward her.
"And if you can catch up with me, then let's be partners again, Brother Apollo!"
Hermes didn't forget to look up and wave at Apollo, as if saying a final goodbye.
Even without the help of the God of Light, Hermes was quite confident that she could find the entrance to the underworld and ultimately complete the task given to her by the goddess Gaia.
If I remember correctly, the direction from which Hades abducted Persephone from Enna was the far west, right? At that time, in the cracks that opened up in the earth, one could vaguely see deep holes that seemed to have no end.
She possesses the natural power bestowed upon her by Mother Earth, and is born with the ability to perceive everything related to her.
Therefore, Hermes was full of confidence about this trip to the underworld.
Just as she was about to land on the forest floor, she heard the voice of the God of Light coming from the sky above.
"If you can get through Erebus and Cerberus smoothly, then go ahead."
That was clearly Apollo speaking.
That's incredible! He even used his divine power to amplify the volume, making it echo across the land, as if afraid she wouldn't hear it.
Hermes pondered his words carefully, then paused, taken aback.
She knew that Cerberus was the three-headed dog guarding the gates of the underworld, but Erebus... wasn't that the dark incarnation of one of the five creator gods?
What did Apollo just say? Does it mean we'll encounter Erebus on the way to the underworld?
Um……
Hermes pondered for a few seconds, then hung the blue cloak on her scepter.
She made a painful decision and shouted at the cloud in the sky, "Why don't you come down and come with me, dear brother Apollo!"
In an instant, the God of Light and his cloud appeared before her.
“Okay, I accept, Hermes.”
Apollo nodded and stepped down from the cloud, not even glancing at the cloak that was hanging on her scepter as a banner.
Seeing this, Hermes twitched her lips violently.
Why does his statement sound a bit strange?
No, no, it should be that his whole demeanor is strange!
"There is a mine at the end of the forest. You can go there first to create a full bag of coins to help us on this journey."
But at least most of the time, the God of Light is very reliable.
Hermes obediently did as she was told. When she flew to the mine that stood in a ring shape at the foot of the valley, she not only demonstrated how to dig and mine for silver coins, but also made a money bag out of leaves and soil.
She placed them in front of Apollo, raising her head with great pride.
She looked as if she was waiting for his praise.
"That's amazing."
So Apollo actually praised her.
Great! She became even more excited and even flew around him ten times.
"Yay! I knew I was the best!"
Hermes was so happy she was practically dancing with joy; her lively and cheerful appearance was truly adorable.
Apollo unconsciously curved his lips into a smile, as he was infected by her precious joy.
As I said before, his life became much more colorful after he met her.
Hermes was getting tired of flying, and her feet finally touched the ground.
She put her hands behind her back, tilted her head, and smiled at Apollo.
Actually, it feels pretty good to have him by my side to help me~ At least I can save some effort!
"So what do we do next?" Hermes asked curiously, wanting to hear his opinion.
Apollo replied, "There is a passage right where you were mining."
His gaze fell on a flawed section of the mineral vein not far away. Just as he was about to continue speaking, he felt the ground beneath him shaking violently.
In an instant, tiny cracks appeared on the soles of my feet and spread rapidly.
Apollo instinctively grabbed Hermes's wrist tightly, pulled her into his arms, and leaped into the air onto a layer of white clouds that had been summoned.
Although he wasn't as fast as her, he still performed the series of movements with ease.
The next second, a huge crack appeared in the ground, revealing a seemingly endless, dark hole inside.
A chilling wind howled past, sounding like the roars of monsters from ancient times; everything was so terrifying.
However, what I heard was her warm, moist breath.
"Th-thank you, Brother Apollo." Hermes was forced to lean against him, completely bewildered. "But are you... misunderstanding something?"
Hermes just used her divine power to split this land open, because she remembered the scene in Enna when Hades abducted Persephone. Perhaps she can use this method to find the gate to the underworld now.
Thanks to Mother Gaia, this time she also fulfilled her wish through the power she bestowed.
But what about this certain God of Light?
Apollo realized what he had done and quickly released her, taking a few steps back to distance himself from her.
He turned his face slightly away, trying to hide his panic that was about to be revealed.
"It's nothing," the God of Light said calmly. "The earth was disturbed just now, and I did that to protect you. Don't misunderstand."
Hermes, snapping out of her daze upon hearing this, stammered, "...Huh?"
What the heck, Brother Apollo?!
[Author's Note]
I forgot to mention earlier! Happy National Day to all my lovely friends!
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