(Greek Mythology) The Abyss of the Underworld
Chapter Twenty-Two
The previous chapter mentioned Nyx, who was suspected of having pregnancy syndrome. (Not really!)
Then…
Staring dumbfounded at their father, Aether and Hermes wore identical expressions: Father, are you serious? Is it really okay to ask us something like this?
#Father didn't take his medicine today, he feels super cute, what should I do? Waiting online, it's urgent!#
"Hermes!" Erebus's voice was filled with gritted teeth.
Hermes, clutching her red forehead, looked up to see her father's dark and irritable face. Had she accidentally blurted it out? The thought was terrifying. (No, it was your expression that was too obvious, so think before you act, dear.)
And what about Mother Goddess? Father, you yourself have been quite irritable lately. Sigh, suddenly I feel so pathetic, what should I do?
Hemera inwardly grumbled, so... she still had to offer her father advice.
"The Mother Goddess in her rage is truly terrifying, sob sob." (Crying)
Yes, not only Erebus, but Hemera and the others were also victims of Nyx's wrath. Even the usually obedient Ether wasn't spared. It's a truly tragic story.
So Hemera said to Erebus: "Um... Father God, you and Mother Goddess have been married for so many years. Occasionally, you should reminisce about your youthful days, do something romantic, or make a confession. Maybe Mother Goddess will be happy and stop causing trouble. Even if it doesn't work out, Father Goddess won't lose anything, right?"
In other words, while treating the symptoms isn't ideal, since we can't find the root cause, let's treat the symptoms first. Let's not try to figure out why Mother Goddess is in a bad mood; let's cheer her up first.
Silently giving herself a mental pat on the back, Hemera felt incredibly clever for solving a problem even her father and the others couldn't.
But wait… what was with that surprised expression? Are you all looking down on my intelligence? Absolutely! Am I that stupid? (Please remove the "am I?", please have some self-awareness.)
#What happened to the basic trust between people? Even my own father doesn't believe in my intelligence, so unhappy#
Ignoring his daughter's resentment, Erebus seriously considered the feasibility of the suggestion and then happily decided to put it into practice.
But, Erebus, you're still too sweet. Don't you know there's such a thing as an accident?
The branches swayed gently, and petals, shimmering with a faint light, fell, scattering and dancing in the air. Tiny specks of light floated around, creating a hazy, dreamlike scene, beautiful and romantic.
Pure white daffodils bloomed quietly around them. A handsome man held a bouquet of fiery red roses, gazing tenderly at the woman before him.
"Nix…"
"Bang!!!"
The sound abruptly stopped. Erebus's face darkened as he looked at the fallen tree and his three children, who had been hiding behind it but were now exposed.
"Why are you looking at me? I didn't do it." The first to be suspected, the unreliable, mischievous child Charon, hurriedly explained.
"Um…that…Father, I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to…" Embarrassed and guilty, Hemera tried to shrink behind her brother Ether, silently weeping inside. She shouldn't have come up with the idea of a petal rain; oh dear, Father's expression was terrifying.
"So, focus, Hemera! Don't get all excited about confessions. I told you to shake the petals down, but you were only focused on gossip. Now look what happened! You didn't control your strength and knocked the tree down. You've caused trouble! Don't court disaster, okay?"
"Hemera, come here," Nyx's voice was gentle.
She stiffly walked towards her mother. Logically, she should be worried about her father, but… she felt a little creeped out by her mother's smiling face. What to do?
Watching Hemera finally reach her after her slow, hesitant movements, Nyx reached out and pinched her cheek, then looked on with amusement at her pitiful, suppressed anger.
Nyx's agitated mood suddenly calmed down. What was she worried about? She wasn't the ungrateful Gaia, Erebus wasn't the tyrannical Uranus, and her children weren't those scheming, scheming Titans. How could they possibly end up like that? "Erebus, let's go back."
"Okay." Just like the countless times before, how could I disobey your wish?
(Hermes, unfortunately relegated to the background and ignored, thinks: Mother Goddess, before you and Father God show off your love, can you at least remove my face first?!)
Having finished the Night Goddess version of "Even the First Gods Have Troubles," let's now continue with the God of Love/Desire version.
In the Abyss Temple, a mirror rolls and rolls on the ground, creating a rather eerie scene.
"Big Brother~~~" the mirror speaks, its tone resentful and its voice drawn out.
Remember Eros, who unfortunately messed up and ended up being stuffed into a mirror? Yes, that's right, this eerie mirror is him.
Eros is very bored, very bored, very bored. (Important to say three times)
Of course, anyone who's been stuck in a mirror for so many years would get bored, so the incredibly bored Eros made a decision: he was going to bother his older brother. (That feeling that Eros was courting death again was definitely not an illusion.)
"Brother, the weather is so nice today."
"..." Looking out the window at the "sky" that even he, the god of the abyss, found gloomy, Tartarus remained silent. But then again, does the abyss even have weather?
"Brother, are you hungry?"
"..." Maintaining his high-quality silence, Tartarus refused to answer this foolish question. He wasn't made of human flesh and blood; it would be a miracle if a body formed from laws were hungry.
"Brother, aren't you bored staying in the abyss all the time?"
"..." Looking around the room, the rows of bookshelves were impressive, with chessboards, drawing paper, and other items placed everywhere. Most importantly, there were two mirrors, one original and one replica. Tartarus felt his life was quite fulfilling.
"Brother..."
"Speak human language."
This time, the mirror stopped rolling around and started bouncing. Its jumping ability was so good that Tartarus began to wonder what his companion artifact was made of.
"I don't want to stay in the mirror. I can't do anything in the mirror, I'm so bored! I want to go out! I haven't seen so many of my nephews and nieces yet, and I haven't seen Gaia and the others in ages. Brother, you usually ignore me and even threw me into the warehouse..."
Eros became more and more agitated as he spoke, and the mirror's jumping height reached a new high, successfully creating a fine, net-like crack in the floor.
Looking at the crack, Tartarus was speechless. Very well, it seemed he no longer needed to doubt the material the Mirror of Life was made of; ordinary materials couldn't possibly break the floor of his temple.
"Uh…that…" Before he could finish speaking, the mirror, which had just popped out of the crack, accidentally rolled back and was suddenly stuck, slamming onto the ground with a thud.
#Even as a mirror, he's still so carefree, truly optimistic (and a bit off-key), my dear#
#What can save your IQ, my foolish little brother#
Unable to bear watching Eros act foolishly any longer, Tartarus promised, "I'll let you out in a hundred years."
"Really?" The mirror, which had been lying on the ground, instantly perked up.
"Really." After recalculating the time, confirming that the mess in the divine realm could be finished by then, Tartarus replied.
"Then, big brother, you can focus on your reading, I won't bother you anymore." Having achieved his goal, Eros didn't linger and quickly rolled away. (Please note the word "get lost," thank you.)
However, Eros, don't you realize your current behavior is like kicking someone after they've served their purpose? If you don't court death, you won't die. Now that you're running away, be careful you don't get held accountable later, my dear~~~ Chapter 22