The Story of the Underworld - (3)
"Old man Charon, you can row less than before, you know..."
"Cough. What do you know! Anyway, I moved with my powers before, so I didn’t have to row much. The important thing is that I must continue to ferry these mortals across the Acheron River! Even though the boat has a mechanism to move on its own, why must I keep rowing..."
It seems that carrying souls has always been quite tiring for him.
Such is the nature of work in the underworld.
"Still, isn’t it better than Thanatos? Cheer up."
"That doesn’t comfort me at all..."
The ferryman of the Acheron River, no, Captain Charon, began to row on his newly acquired boat.
His oars had also grown long to match the size of the massive vessel.
"I will exert some influence in the mortal realm and try to increase the coins that the dead receive."
"... I don’t need money, just let me rest."
Still, I should at least say something through the priests of my temple.
No matter how poor the deceased's family is, if the guests at the funeral contribute a little, Charon's pockets will surely become fuller.
Perhaps in the future, this will be known as condolence money... or funeral money.
"Get on, you lot! I will take you across the Acheron River!"
The boat carrying the souls drifts away again, propelled by Charon's rowing.
Even though an automatic motor was made for the bottom of the boat, the laws of the underworld dictate that Charon is fated to keep rowing.
"Hades. Can you not hear me...? I want to have some warm moments soon..."
Aphrodite, who was controlling the souls on one side, approached and placed her hand on my chest.
The goddess of love seduces me with a gentle smile.
Hmm, go away.
"More importantly, there is a soul that has come to see you since hearing you arrived in the underworld."
"What? A soul that wants to meet me?"
As I waited with a puzzled expression, a man emerged from Charon's boat after dropping off souls on the opposite side of the Acheron River.
He rushed over and bowed down as soon as he saw Aphrodite.
"Ah... you are certainly the human I remember."
"Aphrodite, goddess... I, Pygmalion, offer my gratitude for your grace, blessing, and mercy."
The man's name is Pygmalion.
The world’s greatest sculptor, who was able to marry the statue he created thanks to Aphrodite’s grace.
Pygmalion presented himself before the goddess with a serious expression, more so than when he was making a statue.
Even the goddess of beauty and love straightened her posture at the sincerity radiating from the mortal.
Aphrodite placed her hand on the shoulder of her devotee.
Pygmalion lowered himself even further, as if overwhelmed with emotion.
"You are the sculptor from Cyprus who prayed to me while making your statue."
"Yes! Thanks to your blessing, I have lived a life without regrets with my beloved wife!"
"I have seen the pure love you held for that woman, whom I breathed life into... until your last breath."
The way she referred to the statue as a woman made the sculptor tremble.
"I wanted to express my gratitude for all this, for helping me achieve my love."
"Think of it as a reward for your desperate longing for love."
I quietly listened to their conversation without interrupting.
Aphrodite now wore a compassionate smile, not just that of the goddess of beauty.
Pygmalion, who was shedding tears of gratitude, departed.
Now that I think about it, there was something I was curious about...
"Back then, what were you thinking when you breathed life into the statue?"
"Oh~ that time?"
Aphrodite fell into thought for a moment.
The goddess's beautiful figure, even while pondering, reflected in the Acheron River.
Soon, she opened her mouth with a playful smile.
"Isn’t it the role of a god to fulfill the impossible wishes of mortals and respond to their earnest prayers?"
Impossible wishes and earnest prayers.
Our gods live for eternity, but we do not become numb to emotions or merely repeat our duties like machines.
Should I say we maintain our formed personalities? It would be correct to say we are deified beings with human traits.
That is why incidents like Zeus's assault, the tragedy of Phaethon and Helios, the rebellion of the gods, or Thanatos's strike occur...
"Well, if we really get down to it, it might just be a whim. Who would have thought that a human could move my heart..."
Perhaps such heartwarming tales occasionally arise.
As I nodded to myself in understanding, Aphrodite shot me a sharp glare.
"By the way, I’ve been asking since earlier. Now, let’s have some fun together..."
"Oh, if you like warm moments, I could assign you to the Phlegethon River."
"No! Why should I have to work in the underworld!"
"...? Didn’t you want to come to the underworld?"
The expression of the goddess of beauty crumpled as she became angry.
"Exactly! That’s not what I meant! I wanted to have a joyful time with you...!"
"Didn’t you enjoy meeting Pygmalion and working here?"
"Ahhh! I just want to go back!"
What? You want to go back? Not a chance.
I already received permission from Zeus to bring the desired goddess.
You must work a bit longer here.
"By the way, Zeus also allowed me to bring you."
"What...?!"
"I protested about Thanatos and decided to send some of the Olympian gods."
Aphrodite's expression went blank upon hearing that Zeus had sold her out.
She was unable to accept the reality that had befallen her.
"Since it has come to this, I will leave the souls in the Acheron River to you."
"Hah... Hades!"
Aphrodite, who is working hard in the Acheron River.
Thanks to her, I can feel many changes happening in the underworld.
As Charon quickly transferred the souls, Thanatos's work efficiency improved, and the number of souls reaching the River Cocytus increased, ultimately giving all the gods of the underworld some breathing room.
Even the number of those who could not accept their death and caused disturbances has decreased...
"Hades! This is not what I expected!"
Anyway, after encouraging Aphrodite, who was toiling in the Acheron River, I returned to the fortress of the underworld, leaned back on my throne, and tilted my head back.
So many incidents have occurred recently...
But with Aphrodite helping in the underworld, I thought I would have some time...
Pooof.
A presence that I felt behind the throne quietly approached and embraced me.
Soft silver hair, gentle hands.
"Lady Lethe, how is the management of the souls in the Lethe River going..."
"I entrusted it to my subordinates."
"Then how about the selection of the newly appointed attendants..."
"Don’t think about such things."
The tiny goddess's touch gently covered my vision, so I simply closed my eyes.
The feeling of touching something soft from my comfortably tilted head... hmm.
I tried to escape from the embrace of the goddess Lethe behind the throne, but I failed.
Um... your grip is tightening...
"Zeus and Poseidon don’t seem to have as much work as you, Hades."
"... It’s due to the nature of the underworld, so it can’t be helped."
Zeus, who rules the sky and the entire world, might be the busiest, but that’s exactly why he distributes tasks among many gods.
The sun and the wind, nature and the earth, art and madness...
Except for major events like the threat of Gigas or war, other matters are handled by the Olympian gods.
Poseidon, who rules the vast seas and waters, also entrusts most of his work to numerous sea nymphs, the Nereids, and divine beasts.
In fact, unless something happens that affects the entire ecosystem of the sea, there’s no need to worry.
Whether an earthquake occurs on the ocean floor or a shark catches a fish in the sea, all of these are natural deaths and part of the ecosystem's cycle.
But the underworld where I am is a bit different.
It is the position that adjusts that cycle to ensure it proceeds normally.
If problems arise for the souls coming to the underworld, it becomes difficult to assign souls to newly born lives.
If the space in the underworld is lacking or becomes saturated, it becomes hard to receive the deceased.
If judgments for sins are not properly carried out in the underworld, the laws of the world cannot be established.
And the most important issue is...
"All the gods are far too busy. Just look at Charon and Thanatos..."
"That’s true..."
Unlike Olympus, the effectiveness of task distribution is not great...!
There are hardly any idle gods, so how can work be divided?
Moreover, it’s not like we can ask the vengeful goddesses, whom everyone avoids, for help.
"Should I clear your head with my power?"
"... I would appreciate that."
The goddess Lethe whispered with a worried voice.
With her power of forgetfulness, it should be possible to make me forget my fatigue for a while.
Should I say she would lighten the unnecessary memories in my head for a moment...
Peck.
...?!
For a moment, the soft touch on my forehead,
From that spot, my head cleared, and my mental fatigue melted away.
No, more than that, just now she kissed my forehead...
"Shh. Ah... don’t say anything, just rest."
When I opened my eyes, I saw the goddess's face, flushed bright red against her silver hair.
I gazed at her face, which looked like it would burst if touched, for a moment before closing my eyes again.
"... Should I?"
My face likely looked no different from Lethe's.