Chapter 39 Journey to the Underworld (Part 6)
It turns out that it wasn't him who was telling the new kind of ghost stories, but her.
The gates of Hades' palace opened automatically, as if its master had known they would come.
Hermes felt a chill run down her spine; she sensed that something was amiss.
She wondered, "Could it be that the goddess Themis had already informed Hades about our arrival?"
"Perhaps," Apollo sighed. "It's not exactly a secret mission."
“Indeed, even the goddess Demeter knows.” Hermes sighed, mimicking his mature demeanor. “Damn it, this is the first time the goddess Gaia has asked me to do something. How can I mess up such a great task!”
This guy is grumbling again, oblivious to everyone around him. What a child.
Besides, does she really like Mother Earth that much?
Apollo felt a little conflicted, which led him to completely ignore the girl who was angrily flying up and banging her head against the wall, and walk through the door toward the torch-lit palace corridor.
Hermes quickly released the wall she had smashed into, which had cracked slightly, and flew towards that tall, profound figure.
"Hey! Wait for me, Brother Apollo!" She added, "Why don't you help me repair this fragile wall?"
Apollo, his mood growing increasingly complicated: "...I won't clean up your messes every time, you brat."
Why did he call her that brat again? Besides, she didn't cause any major trouble, so why is he portraying himself as a miserable victim caused by her?
Hermes was baffled.
"Fine, if you won't help, then don't!" She followed this guy who was indeed as unpredictable as her snakes had described, muttering, "At worst, if they find out, I'll just say you bumped into him..."
Apollo, who had heard her words clearly, rubbed his temples, somewhat regretting his decision to come specifically to find her as his partner.
After all, getting involved with her is quite interesting, but it's also extremely troublesome.
She also continued to work to harm him.
Apollo felt that his divine life was about to be ruined by Hermes.
The reason is that even though she is so despicable and shameless, he still chose to go with her without hesitation.
Hades' palace was not as luxurious and dazzling as the divine abode on Mount Olympus, filled with laughter and joy. It was very quiet, perhaps because it was built on a vast and tall scale, or perhaps because there were very few gods and spirits living in the palace.
Along the way, Hermes and Apollo did not encounter any other gods; all they could see were old, yellowed stone pillars and one locked room after another.
Even the locks and chains made of gold were engraved with purple patterns.
This seems to be some kind of symbol, present both at the gates of the underworld and inside and outside the palace of Hades.
"How strange, why do I see these patterns everywhere?" Hermes couldn't help but mutter. "Do they have magic power? Or are they just for decoration and to look nice?"
Apollo said, "Perhaps."
Hearing that familiar reply, Hermes glared at him: "Are you just brushing me off? Listen to me properly, Brother Apollo!"
Upon hearing this, Apollo raised an eyebrow: "How come I wasn't listening to you properly?"
He even became interested in making a joke.
"It's been good from beginning to end!" Hermes puffed out her cheeks, clearly unhappy because she disliked being ignored and dismissed. "Didn't we already say that partners should trust and cooperate with each other?"
Apollo was amused, but he didn't show it; his handsome face remained expressionless.
"Okay." He nodded. "Sorry, I won't do it again next time."
Hermes was taken aback by Apollo's reaction and, after a moment of stunned silence, had the hallucination that he had grown a dog's fluffy ears and tail again.
They're actually quite cute...
Hermes' cheeks flushed slightly and her heart raced.
In her panic, she flew right over him and sped towards the end of the corridor.
No, it's that damn feeling of being smitten again!
Why did he act like a big dog—causing her to lose her composure like that?!
At this point, Hermes still firmly attributed her loss of composure to her love of dogs, and therefore blamed Apollo for making her hallucinate as a dog.
She flew towards the entrance to the hall that had finally brightened up at the end, entering the final destination of her journey.
The hall of Hades' Palace was square and spacious. Apart from the long torch burning with the holy fire of the underworld and the crystal chandelier in the center of the ceiling, there were only high steps and the throne on the steps.
This black throne also features purple markings, and the armrests are carved with statues of Cerberus.
But the seat was empty; there was no Hades, whom one had imagined.
Hermes froze for a moment, then flew around the hall, trying to find Hades's presence and figure. But even after she flew onto the throne and carefully examined it, she found no trace of him.
It wasn't until Apollo stepped into the area that he witnessed the wondrous sight of her crestfallen, squatting beside the throne, embracing the statue of Cerberus.
"What are you doing?" Apollo couldn't help but ask, walking down the steps to look up at her. "Did you steal Hades too?"
Who knows what new kind of nonsense he's spouting!
Hermes stood up irritably and angrily waved her scepter a few times.
“Yes, I stole Hades.” This time she jumped onto the throne and squatted down. “Even I don’t know where I hid him.”
Apollo: "...Oh."
It turns out that it wasn't him who was telling the new kind of ghost stories, but her.
That's precisely why these words still seem to have about 50% credibility.
Then again, why isn't Hades here? Is this a trap designed to lure them in?
Hermes and Apollo both considered this possibility.
At that moment, a faint sound of shifting came from behind the throne, causing them all to look over at the same time.
As the marble on the wall twisted and turned, revealing a hidden passage, a handsome man with black hair and black eyes emerged from it.
Hermes was stunned again, for the god, whose entire body exuded an aura of darkness, stood beside the throne, looking down at her.
—And she was crouching on the throne.
Perhaps due to living underground for many years without seeing the light, Hades' face is pale and thin, with a kind of sickly beauty, but his figure under the black royal robe is tall and strong, creating a strong contrast.
Those narrow, dark eyes stared intently at the audacious god of deception and theft.
"..."
"..."
No, how did he suddenly appear?!
He happened to catch her being so rude!
Hermes quickly jumped off the throne, not forgetting to brush off non-existent dust from Hades's head with an apologetic yet fawning smile.
"I am deeply sorry, Your Majesty the King of the Underworld. I have just humbly offended you. Please forgive me."
Hades remained silent, leaving the two of them unable to discern his true emotions.
Hermes was on the verge of tears, utterly exasperated. She had come to negotiate with Hades to release the Seed Goddess, but now things had turned into this awkward situation.
If only she had controlled herself earlier, that little bit of pleasure would have ruined her life!
Even Apollo worriedly defended her, saying, "Please forgive Hermes's rudeness; she is kind by nature and did not mean to offend you."
"Yes, Your Majesty, handsome and majestic King of the Underworld, the most beloved king in this world!" Hermes pressed on, once again employing her most adept form of flattery. "Because I could not find you, whom I have long admired, I felt deeply anxious. So I wanted to carefully savor the traces of your presence on this beautiful throne, which is so fitting for you. I apologize again, but I truly admire you too much, Your Majesty, King of the Underworld!"
Apollo: "..."
Help! He regretted pleading for her earlier.
Hermes continued to work tirelessly.
"To be honest, there is another matter that annoys and disappoints me. Before coming to your kingdom, Apollo and I were entrusted by Zeus, the king of the gods, to bring back the goddess of the seed."
Apollo was taken aback upon hearing these words.
What does she mean by this?
She actually replaced Gaia with Zeus!
“I happened to witness you taking the Seed Goddess away. I think, Your Majesty, you are so kind and virtuous, you must have had your own reasons for doing so, but they actually used this to maliciously speculate about you, thinking you are tyrannical and vicious, which is really unacceptable to me.” Hermes, as always, chose to take the initiative, she would never let herself fall into a passive position. “As you can see, we came to your underground kingdom as messengers to apologize again for that loyal three-headed dog that we had to hurt! This was our mission, it was not our own intention, so after opening the gates of the underworld, we also healed the poor and lovely Cerberus.”
"Fortunately, there are still righteous deities who share our attitude. They also believe that what you did was not evil, but absolutely justified. After the Earth Mother gave us a new mission, another righteous being enlightened us."
She seems to be playing a grand game.
“We hold you in the highest esteem, Your Majesty Hades. Therefore, I will not concern myself with the goddess of the seed that you brought to the underworld. I merely dare to offer you a suggestion as an admirer: you may use things from the underworld to keep Persephone by your side, but to appease Demeter, the goddess who has lost her daughter, you should also allow Persephone to return to her mother for a period of time.”
Before entering Hades' palace, Hermes asked Apollo about whether living beings could bring things from the underworld to the world of the living.
Apollo's answer was no, because it was a rule set by Hades himself.
In fact, this was the will of the underworld.
Hermes has always been ruthless in achieving her goals. She used to dare to steal from Apollo and use him, and now she dares to distort the truth and steal the name of someone in a higher position.
After all, since Demeter found that neither Themis nor the Moirai could uphold justice for her, the only person she could turn to in the end was Zeus.
Hermes sensed the presence of a goddess beyond the secret passage from which Hades emerged. The vigorous and thriving power that could awaken and grow grains and flowers came from the daughter of Demeter, the goddess of agriculture.
She sensed something unusual in the atmosphere surrounding this important destination.
For example, Persephone's father was Zeus, the king of the gods, and she no longer cried or felt fear.
At that moment, Hades yawned, looking rather lazy.
He sat back on his throne, his lifeless black eyes fixed on the rather cunning other daughter of Zeus.
Upon seeing this, Hermes immediately knelt on one knee before Hades. Through the gaps in her hair that had fallen down as she bowed her head, she could see the lower half of the black robe that accentuated her long, straight legs.
Hades remained silent.
Hermes, however, was not flustered. On the contrary, she smiled brightly: "If Persephone does not return to the earth, Demeter, who is in charge of agriculture, will surely make it impossible for grains to grow and ripen, and the earth will be devastated. Although I am glad that your kingdom will have many more people, I think you are indeed a benevolent and virtuous king, and you will not turn a blind eye to the suffering of the living."
"Most importantly..."
Hermes paused, and under Hades's deep gaze, finally decided that she had to mention the Seed Goddess who was hiding in the secret passage.
"In any case, someone as noble as you would surely respect Persephone's wishes, wouldn't you?"
If this intuition is correct... Persephone is holding a pomegranate from the underworld in her hand.
Inside its belly were already three pomegranate seeds.
Hermes possesses the natural power of the earth shared with Gaia, and she has long since obtained power that many other gods cannot attain.
This is the source of her confidence in achieving her goals.
[Author's Note]
Due to differing versions, some accounts say Persephone ate four pomegranate seeds, while others say three or six. However, for the sake of this story, I have chosen the version with three seeds. The most accurate version is likely four seeds, because early Greeks lacked comprehensive information technology. They (especially the Athenians) believed there were only three seasons: spring, summer, and autumn. Therefore, three goddesses were responsible for governing the seasons. After spending eight months on Earth, Persephone would return to the Underworld to spend the last four months of the year with Hades—this is autumn.
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