Chapter 219 Friends are now guilty? (4.6k)
Seeing that her best friend was actually planning to date Lorne, Thetis's face changed, and she immediately stepped between the two of them, as if facing a formidable enemy: "I don't agree!"
Persephone smiled nonchalantly and spread her hands lazily: "Then I can't help you."
"Your Highness, how about we change the deal and escape from Hades with us?" Lorne held Thetis's shoulder and walked forward with a smile. "This lifeless ghost place is nothing compared to the beautiful and colorful human world. When we get to the ground, we can stroll by the stream, feast in the valley, or enter the human city and enjoy the smell of fireworks. At that time, you can let me accompany you as long as you want, and no one will disturb you."
When Persephone heard this bold invitation, she was stunned at first, then she raised her hand to cover her cherry lips and giggled.
"You are so brave, aren't you afraid that Hades will kill you?"
"You'll protect me, won't you?"
Lorne blinked and a sincere and well-behaved smile appeared on his face.
Like a child who has gotten into trouble, he is seeking shelter from his mother.
In fact, Loen didn't think that the Queen of the Underworld in front of him was attracted by his beauty or had any bad intentions towards him.
On the contrary, what Persephone showed was more like a closeness to something that was out of reach.
To be more precise, it is the love between mother and child.
If I remember correctly, Zagreus, the predecessor of the god of wine, was the child born to Persephone, the queen of the underworld, and Zeus, the king of gods.
Even after the cycle of life and the replacement of souls, some indelible traces will still be left behind.
Perhaps Persephone sensed some qualities in him and wanted to keep him in the underworld to keep her company.
However, Persephone chuckled and waved her hand in response to Lorn's suggestion.
"Forget it. This body has already merged with the laws of the underworld. If I go out with you, I will be found sooner or later. I am not interested in going through this with you guys."
Then, the Queen of the Underworld pointed at the lingering deathly aura outside the garden, and smiled at her former best friend Thetis.
"Friendly reminder, it's best to make a choice quickly. If you delay any longer, when 'he' comes, none of you will be able to leave. I'm afraid you will all have to stay with me."
"Can't you be flexible? For the sake of the past..."
Thetis sighed, walked forward and asked again in a soft voice.
"Or should I stay here with you?"
Persephone raised her white index finger to her lips, made a prohibitive gesture, chuckled and shook her head.
"That won't do. I'm only interested in him now..."
"Okay, I understand."
Thetis nodded, and as soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly rushed forward and grabbed the snow-white neck of her close friend.
Lorne on one side followed suit, rushing forward like an arrow, and encircled Persephone from both sides.
This infiltration was meant to be something that could not be allowed in public. If the two wanted to escape unscathed, they could not stay in the underworld.
Since soft words don't work, we have to use hard tactics. We have to control the Queen of the Underworld before Hades, the God of the Underworld, arrives to prepare for the worst outcome.
The process went smoothly, and his two hands clasped Persephone's neck and shoulders respectively.
However, facing the hostage-taking, Persephone did not get angry but laughed instead, looking at the two people in front of her with amusement.
"What? Do you think I'm just a vase in the underworld?"
Seeing Persephone's fearless look, Lorne's heart trembled, and he couldn't help but think of some rumors about this Queen of the Underworld.
For the ancient Greeks, after Persephone became the wife of Hades, the god of the underworld, she changed from her former innocence to cold-blooded and extremely terrifying.
Persephone has great power in the underworld. She can command the demons and monsters in the underworld and sever the last connection between the dying and the living. At the same time, she is also the embodiment of a dark magic power that can mercilessly pull all life into the embrace of the dark abyss underground, so people call the tomb "Persephone's Room."
Gradually, the ancient Greeks dared not call her by her name, and were only willing to use "Kor" (κρη, girl) to refer to the other controller of the underworld.
Another ruler of the underworld? Could it be that...
Under Persephone's half-smiling gaze, Lorne felt a chill in his heart and subconsciously tightened his five fingers, trying to lock the other's shoulders.
However, the "Queen of the Underworld" in front of him turned into pink petals all over the sky, flying in all directions.
Illusion? No!
Looking at the pink in front of him, Loen couldn't help but feel alarmed, and he immediately pulled Thetis and retreated quickly.
But it was too late.
Hundreds of emerald green vines broke out from the ground and climbed up the bodies and limbs of the two men like entangled snakes and pythons, binding them tightly.
"It's not that easy to hold me hostage."
Persephone was playing with a golden curved ram's horn engraved with intricate runes inside and out, and she was walking towards them from the shade in the distance.
"The Horn of Plenty?"
Thetis's eyes fell on the golden ram horn in Persephone's hand, and her face changed slightly.
"You actually have this thing in your hand!"
Thousands of years ago, in order to protect her sixth child Zeus from being swallowed by her husband Kronos, Zeus' mother, the second-generation goddess of the earth Rhea, hid the infant Zeus in a cave, and Amalthea took care of the infant Zeus.
Amalthea is both a wet goat that feeds Zeus with milk and an ancient deity that represents the fertility of the earth, possessing a powerful divinity of the earth.
Later, Zeus asked the god of fire Hephaestus to peel off its sheepskin and horns and make them into the Aegis and the Horn of Plenty respectively.
In the end, the Aegis Shield, which had supreme defense, was split into two, one side belonged to Zeus and the other side belonged to the goddess of wisdom Athena.
The two horns of plenty, one is in the hands of Zeus, used to entertain the gods for banquets, and the other is in the hands of Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, symbolizing the inheritance of the Earth Mother and the god of agriculture.
Unexpectedly, one of them fell into Persephone's hands.
And judging by the divinity that controls plants, this should be the one in the hand of his mother Demeter.
The god of agriculture actually gave away all his original artifacts. He really loved his daughter.
"Not only that, I have more than just these..."
As if she could see through her friend's thoughts, Persephone smiled and gently raised her hand.
The lush green vines that bound the two men withered instantly, and the accumulated thick death energy turned into gray-black snakes, further tightening their limbs. Scarlet snake tongues flickered in front of them, emitting a strong smell of blood and death.
As her mother, Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, gave her the grace of life, and as her husband, Hades, the god of the underworld, shared the power of the underworld with her.
Seeds, harvest, underworld, death...these are all within the authority of this Queen of the Underworld.
Therefore, Persephone, who has become the Queen of the Underworld, is no longer the same as before.
"come over."
The goddess under the shade hooked her finger forward, and the Hades snake formed by the condensed death energy dragged Lorn to Persephone's front and hung him up in the humiliating shape of a "big" character.
Persephone walked forward, raised her arm lazily, and slid her white fingertips across Lorne's face inch by inch, smiling and murmuring.
"You broke into the underworld with the intention of kidnapping the dead, and you held me hostage. These are serious crimes. How do you think I should deal with you?"
"Well, this is a misunderstanding. I can explain it. How about letting me go first?"
Lorne coughed and twisted his body, trying to regain the initiative.
"Don't move!"
However, before he could think of a trick to play, Persephone's expression suddenly changed, and the hand that slid down to his chest immediately pressed down.
“Sizzle!”
Along with the sound of cloth tearing, Loen felt a chill on his chest. His shirt broke into pieces and flew everywhere, exposing his muscular and streamlined upper body.
Thetis was very anxious when she saw her best friend doing such an embarrassing thing in front of her.
"Persephone, you're crazy, stop it!"
However, before the sea goddess could continue scolding, the Queen of the Underworld in front of her suddenly raised her hand, and a vine whip that broke out of the ground hit Thetis's neck directly, knocking her unconscious.
Seeing the Queen of the Underworld turning her gloomy gaze back to his naked upper body, Loen felt a chill in his heart and couldn't help swallowing.
Is this going to... make a mistake for your friend?
Am I wrong?
Just when Loen's confused mind was almost turned into a mess, a faint whisper came to his ears.
"The Wheel of Hecate..."
Persephone's cool fingertips lightly touched a ring-shaped black mark that had appeared on Lorne's chest at some point, and her originally bright face gradually became gloomy.
"She found you again?"
"Hecate?"
Lorne subconsciously took over the conversation, his eyes flickering.
Judging from the reaction of the Queen of the Underworld, her relationship with Hecate does not seem to be as close as the legend says.
Perhaps, this is an opportunity!
Luo En's heart moved and he pretended to be sincere, giving a half-truthful answer.
"She saved me, raised me, and taught me a lot. She is half my mother and teacher..."
"Teacher? Mother?"
However, these words somehow touched Persephone's sore spot. The Queen of the Underworld murmured with a gloomy face, and then looked at Lorne who was hanging in front of her with some disappointment, and scolded him angrily.
"How many times are you going to fall for the same trick?!"
"?"
Luo En opened his mouth, and a trace of confusion appeared on his face.
Seeing this expression, Persephone suddenly became a little bored. She waved her right hand easily, and the Hades snake that had bound Lorne suddenly turned into mist and dissipated.
"Listen, don't trust that woman!"
"You mean... Teacher Hecate?"
"That's right, everything she did was all for herself!"
Persephone snorted coldly, then stretched out her cold hands and held Lorne's cheeks, an indescribable sadness overflowing in her eyes.
"Listen to me, live well and don't do anything. Whether it's inevitable fate or accidental opportunities, these are things you can't control. In their eyes, you are just a pawn..."
“…”
There was still a look of confusion and ignorance on Loen's face, but a hint of coldness gradually emerged in the depths of his eyes.
Sure enough, it was no accident that Hecate came to him.
Likewise, Poros who was never born, Zagreus who died and came back to life, Dionysus who was born and died again... these were not accidents. They were all choices made by Hecate in order to challenge the "inevitable fate" with the "chance possibility".
To be more precise, it is the chess pieces thrown on the chessboard and the chips thrown on the gambling table. With every fall of the dice, she wins the greatest benefit in the game with fate.
Perhaps she saw the shadow of her son Zagreus in him, which is why the Queen of the Underworld lost her composure and had such complicated emotions towards him.
Maybe this is an opportunity...
Loen's heart moved, and he took the initiative to hold Persephone's hand. He looked sincerely at the heartbroken Queen in front of him, and spoke sincerely.
"I don't know why, but when I see you, I feel like I see my mother."
"Your mother?"
"Well, she was very good to me, but she died very early."
Lorne nodded in response, then added somewhat sadly.
"I came to the underworld this time to see her, but even her soul no longer exists..."
When Persephone heard this, she looked at the lost young man in front of her, with a look of deep pity and helplessness on her face, wanting to say something but unable to.
Only gods can annihilate the soul.
Apparently, this child was still involved in the disputes among the gods in this life.
No matter how many times he repeats it, no matter what kind of changes he goes through, he cannot break free of the shackles and curse of fate, and is thrown into the center of the vortex again and again, until the [possibility] in him is completely wiped out.
At this time, Loen touched the mark called "Wheel of Hecate" that appeared on his chest, and took the initiative to defend the goddess of the underworld.
"I know you have no ill will towards me, but I think Teacher Hecate feels the same way. She probably put this curse on me just to prevent me from dying unclearly like my mother, and to try to preserve my soul."
"madness!"
Persephone snorted coldly, interrupting Lorne's defense and glaring at the "naive" and silly child in front of her.
"She doesn't want to protect your soul, but she covets the [possibility] in you!"
As she spoke, even stronger resentment appeared in the Queen's eyes.
"That woman wanted to complete the integration of her own divinity, but she was afraid of the power of [Fate] and did not dare to try it herself. She just used you who have [Possibility] as chips to pry [Inevitability], throwing you onto the gambling table again and again, hoping that you would bear fruit so that she could reap the benefits!
This is true for the unborn Poros, my little Zagreus, and you as well..."
"Loen, you can call me Loen..."
"Is that your name?"
"Um."
Loen nodded and looked at the Queen of the Underworld in front of him with a sincere gaze.
"Although I don't quite understand what you mean, and I'm not sure whether Teacher Hecate will harm me, but I believe you have no ill will towards me, because I feel the warmth of my deceased mother from you."
As he spoke, Loen looked as if he wanted to say something but hesitated, and he spoke nervously.
"If it's okay, can I call you mother?"
Upon hearing this, the Queen of the Underworld was stunned. She pursed her red lips and fell silent.
"Mother!"
Before the hesitation lasted too long, a sincere cry broke the silence in the garden.
As the title was called out, Persephone's body trembled, and she raised her head and looked at the sincere young man in front of her. Finally, she no longer suppressed her inner emotions, nodded gently, and her red lips slightly opened.
“Buzz!”
Just as the mother and son in the garden were about to recognize each other, a stream of deathly gray light cut through the dim sky of the underworld and rushed towards the lush green garden.
"He's coming! Go!"
Seeing this, Persephone's face changed slightly and she subconsciously pushed Lorne behind her.
At the same time, she casually broke off a golden branch from the garden, stuffed it into Loen's hand, and gave solemn instructions.
"Take this and follow the river to find Charon. He will lead you out of the underworld!"
The poem "Aeneid" mentions that Charon is mainly responsible for ferrying the souls of the dead, but if a living person gets a golden branch broken from the garden of Persephone, the queen of the underworld, and gives it to the ferryman of the Styx, they can send him to ferry themselves in and out of the underworld.
Loen looked at the [Garden Golden Branch] in his hand which was still warm, and the figure standing in front of him, trying his best to stimulate the breath of life and block the death energy of the underworld outside, and seemed to understand something.
Perhaps, the Queen of the Underworld never intended to force them to stay in the underworld.
All she had and revealed was a mother's longing for her dead son.
"I'll be back!"
Lorne declared loudly, a bright and genuine smile breaking across his face after he saw the blocking figure visibly shudder.
"When I'm done with my work on earth, I will come to see you in Hades! I swear to the River Styx!"
"Are you still not leaving?"
The Queen of Hell in front of him frowned and waved her hands backwards.
Suddenly, a gray-black vortex formed under the feet of the four people, instantly swallowing up Lorne, Thetis, Sisyphus, and Adonis. In the blink of an eye, it disappeared along with the rhythm of the earth.
(End of this chapter)
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