Prophet Prometheus - (4)
I immediately returned to the underworld and returned the necklace I had borrowed from Pandora.
I summoned all the gods residing in the underworld.
Upon hearing the news that many gods had received prophecies from Prometheus, they stopped what they were doing and hurriedly came.
Even the busy god of death, Thanatos, seemed to rush over.
Once everyone gathered in the office, I brought up Prometheus's prophecy.
"... No matter how well we prepare, it is said we will be struck by Gaia's blow."
"It is a predetermined future, so we cannot change it..."
"I worry about how painful that blow will be for us."
"Isn't it a good idea to set up defenses in truly important places?"
"Styx. That is impossible. Trying to avoid the prophecy will only..."
As soon as I spoke, the office became noisy.
If this were Olympus, controlled by the strong authority of Zeus, it would not be like this.
However, here in the underworld, it is different.
Aside from the fact that I hold the main decision-making power and respect the ancient gods who have lived for a long time, all the gods are somewhat equal and can freely express their opinions.
In fact, this was not the case in the early days of the underworld, but thanks to my efforts to ease the stiff and rigid atmosphere, this horizontal environment has formed...
"Hades?! Why are you silent?"
"What did Prometheus say this time?"
"Ah! Get a grip, Hades! I'm much more tired!"
"Lord Thanatos... let’s have another drink of nectar here..."
"Ah, I’m sorry, everyone... I was lost in thought for a moment."
...
Oh dear.
Before I knew it, everyone had stopped talking and was looking at me.
I gathered my thoughts and spoke about another prophecy that Prometheus had revealed.
"And Prometheus said, [If the worlds of the living and the dead are connected afterward, the gods will win.]"
"How can we connect the worlds of the living and the dead?"
"It’s too vague to say how, how much, or where we should connect."
"I can’t understand it at all..."
"Does it mean we have to create complete chaos in the world to win?"
Even if we cannot change the fact that we will suffer great losses, how we are supposed to connect the worlds of the living and the dead is giving me a headache.
While all the gods were pondering the prophecy, I heard the voice of the goddess of oblivion, who had been staring blankly into space.
"Hades, can we take our time to think about that issue?"
"Goddess Lethe?"
"Isn't it true that we are given a reprieve to connect the worlds of the living and the dead until we are struck by Gaia?"
It is certainly true that Prometheus said so.
If we suffer great losses from Gaia's attack and then connect the worlds of the living and the dead...
"Surely, you don't mean for me to mobilize the entire army of the underworld and charge forward..."
"Of course, that wouldn’t be the prophecy... or could it be?"
"Shall we check how many forces can be mobilized in the underworld?"
"... Was there no other prophecy, Hades?"
As Morpheus was about to speak about checking the forces of the underworld, Hypnos, who had been quietly folding his arms, asked me.
"Oh... by the way, what else did Prometheus say..."
Hades, you should be a bit more careful with your lower half! Tsk tsk!
...
What on earth did he mean by that?
It sounds like a prophecy that would be more fitting for Zeus... no, he said to be careful with your lower half...
"What a charlatan of a prophet..."
"What did you say, Hades?"
"What did Prometheus say this time?"
The two goddesses, Styx and Lethe, asked with curious faces.
After glancing at the innocent gazes of the goddesses, I answered appropriately.
"... It’s nothing. He was just playing a prank on me."
"Well, Prometheus does have that kind of personality."
"That guy always had a sly smile and laughed mischievously."
...
Why do I feel like I’ve done something wrong?
In the midst of this strange atmosphere, a low-ranking god entered the office.
"Lord Hades, the messenger who went to Olympus has returned."
"What did they say from Olympus?"
Naturally, the prophecy of Prometheus should be known in Olympus as well, so I had sent a messenger to get a response from the divine palace of Olympus.
"Yes. They said that no matter what preparations are made, they cannot avoid the attack of Gaia mentioned in the prophecy, so they will maintain the status quo."
"That would be reasonable. Even if we try to avoid the prophecy, there’s no way to escape it."
If we concentrate our forces to defend one area, they will attack another place.
Even if that place is the divine palace of Olympus, it would be the same.
"According to Goddess Athena, it is speculated that the losses from Gaia's attack will create a necessity to connect the two worlds."
"A necessity to connect the underworld and the world of the living?"
"Are humans going to die en masse?"
"Requesting Hermes to periodically gather information might be a good idea..."
"At this point, I can’t even guess."
"Could it be that we will lose the Omphalos stone currently used by Demeter?"
If that’s the case, then it’s not something we need to worry about right now.
Trying to prepare for the prophecy in various ways might actually bring it to fruition.
"For now, let’s pause the meeting here. However, it would be good to maintain close communication with Olympus as we are now."
That’s all I can say for now.
To win, we must connect the underworld and the world of the living...
As I was about to end the conversation with the gods and leave, the goddess Mnemosyne called out to me.
"Hades, a newly born god has been assigned to the underworld."
"To the underworld? Is someone forcing this?"
"I’m not sure about that... It was news passed down from Olympus..."
There are various reasons for a new god to be born.
First, if a mortal achieves great deeds and is recognized by the gods, they ascend to Olympus and become a god.
Second, if both parents are gods, their child grows rapidly from birth and becomes a god.
Third, there are cases where a mortal who has achieved great deeds is revered as a god by humans after death.
Fourth, if a demigod like Dionysus gains the faith of humans, they can be promoted.
In any case, there are many ways to become a god, but...
Among all the gods born so far, not a single one has been assigned to the underworld.
The reasons are numerous.
First, the gods of the underworld have no time to create children, so no new gods are born.
Second, the underworld is a place that most gods avoid.
Even if it is a dark space where the life force of the living cannot be felt at all...
"Oh, after thousands... no, tens of thousands of years, is a new face coming in?"
"Finally, our workload might decrease a bit."
"A new god... what should we have them do first? First, let’s make sure they can’t escape the fortress..."
"I hope they can help me harvest souls."
There was too much work in the underworld.
It was notorious enough to be known even in Olympus, so who would want to come to the underworld?
But now there is a new god assigned to the underworld?
It’s clear that someone either pressured the new god or that a god who doesn’t know the circumstances applied.
"Then I will truly end the meeting now. I will go to meet the god who has come to the underworld, so everyone, please continue your work."
"You don’t have to say that; I’m already working..."
"Ahem. I apologize, Thanatos."
Thanatos, whose eyes were darting around as if he were seeing something strange, spoke up.
Well, Thanatos must have many avatars operating in the world of the living.
I sat on the throne in the audience chamber inside the fortress, waiting for the god assigned to the underworld.
What kind of peculiar god of madness hopes to work in the underworld?
Creeeak.
The massive doors of the audience chamber slowly opened, revealing...
A man holding a staff entwined with two snakes and wearing winged sandals, the messenger god Hermes...?
He bowed to me with a playful smile, as if exaggerating his gesture.
Such a smile from the messenger god was a sign of something fun happening...
"Hello, great uncle! I am Hermes, the messenger of all. Today, I have brought a new god!"
I thought you were working here.
So you brought the new god yourself?
The entrance to the underworld is difficult for a newly born god to find, but having the messenger god, who can freely traverse the boundaries of the world, help would be nice...
Tap.
Tap.
Hermes, with a playful face, knocked on the now-closed doors of the audience chamber a few times.
As if that was a signal, I sensed a divine presence moving outside the door.
Who on earth is coming that requires such antics?
No matter how playful Hermes is, he has never committed such rudeness...
Creeeak.
The door opened once more, and a beautiful goddess slowly entered.
With bright, light turquoise hair, a refreshing aura, and a scent I had smelled somewhere before, that face is?
"Menthe? Why are you here in the underworld?"
"Uh... Hehe... Ah... Hello, Lord Hades."
She was one of the Naiades, the water nymphs, and a priestess of my temple in Thebes.
The founder of mint, which has become my symbol in this life, was Menthe.
Wait a moment, did Menthe become a god?