The King of the Underworld is Tired

High above, where humans look up in awe, the banquet of the Olympian gods isn’t so different from theirs.

“This time, humans prayed to me for wind, so I granted them a little mercy…”

“Lady Artemis, you are as beautiful as ever today!”

“I’ll have something to say to the nymphs once this banquet is over.”

“Could Typhon really have been that strong?”

While enjoying ambrosia and nectar, the food of the gods, they conversed.

“Hmm… Would you like to go somewhere quiet and continue our conversation?”

“Whenever you desire.”

When a man and woman caught each other’s eye, they would leave for a more private spot.

“I heard that a nymph under your command offered a rather useful weapon…”

“Hmm? Are you talking about my sword?”

“How about betting it on a round of pankration? I’ll wager one of the buffaloes I’ve been raising.”

“Are you two about to fight? In that case, I’m betting on…”

They made amusing wagers through pankration, the combat sport.

“Hahaha! Terpsichore! You truly are amazing.”

“You flatter me, Lord Poseidon.”

“That dance was fitting for one of the Muses who governs the arts and sciences!”

They also enjoyed the arts by listening to music played by Apollo or dancing.

In the midst of this divine banquet, I, Hades…

“Hmm… Are you really not going to play with me?”

“And would you please take off that girdle? It’s giving me a headache.”

“But without it, you wouldn’t even give me a glance…?”

…was resisting the temptations of Aphrodite, the goddess of beauty and love, whom everyone else admired.

Of all things, she had worn the 'Cestus' (the magic girdle of seduction).

Because of that, my head was throbbing—just get away from me, please.

Still, I knew she wasn’t using her full power to charm me but was only half-seriously toying with me.

“Tsk… How boring. Are you really going to keep this up?”

“Go back to your husband, Hephaestus.”

Although, it seemed like she was half-serious, which was a bit troublesome.

I mean, why are you doing this when you already have a husband?

“Please, stay as far from me as the distance between the Underworld and Olympus…”

“Hah? Must you really be like this when the goddess of beauty is going this far?”

Aphrodite crossed her arms, striking a sultry pose that emphasized certain areas.

The male gods around couldn’t take their eyes off her.

“One day, this is going to end in disaster.”

“I’d rather receive affection than worry… I’ll be taking my leave for today.”

From her perspective as the goddess who governs the powerful emotion of love…

…she probably found it unsettling that a god who ranks among the top three deities seemed to be completely out of her reach.

Annoyed by the fact that her beauty and love couldn’t touch me, Aphrodite frowned deeply as she left.

“Wow… Did I just witness that? Did you really just reject the goddess of beauty, Uncle Hades?”

Hermes, holding the caduceus, approached me, marveling with his mouth agape.

The snakes on his staff were also turning their heads in the direction Aphrodite had left.

“I don’t think I would’ve rejected her. Wouldn’t it be fun to spend a night with her?”

“Sigh…”

Hermes whispered slyly with a lewd expression, but I wasn’t interested at all.

Why would I enjoy a tryst with a goddess who has both a husband and children?

Besides, Hephaestus has done nothing wrong to me.

“So, why did you come?”

“Hephaestus was working in the forge and said he wanted to see you, Lord Hades. I am, after all, a messenger.”

Zeus ordered Hephaestus to craft my weapon, didn’t he?

It seems there’s something he needs my help with in the process.

“I’d better go, then.”

I put down the golden cup filled with nectar and walked out.

Wasn’t Hephaestus’s forge on this side of Olympus?

 

* * *

After passing through a makeshift Milky Way, presumably created by Iris diligently drawing water…

…walking through densely packed white clouds for quite some time…

“Hahaha!”

“Haha! Please, slow down a bit!”

…just as some lower-ranking gods, who seemed to be in love, passed by me, I saw Hephaestus’s forge.

Clang! Clang!

The sound of metal being struck, heat so intense that even a god could feel it, and flames soaring high into the sky.

The forge walls were filled with all sorts of divine weapons, the kind that could spark wars if they fell into human hands.

That sword over there emits flames with every swing, and that blue metal armor seems to harden more with each impact?

“You’ve arrived, Uncle.”

“Hmm.”

While admiring the weapons touched by Hephaestus, he appeared and welcomed me.

Despite his limp, he was a muscular and robust god, holding a hammer in his hand.

"All of these are failures, so I'm embarrassed to show them to you..."

But no matter how you looked at it, even one of these could cause chaos if it fell to the mortal realm.

Still, given that he's the blacksmith god who made Aphrodite's magical girdle and Hermes' winged sandals, it was understandable from his perspective.

So when I asked him why he sought me out,

Hephaestus scratched his cheek with a simple expression and said,

"I was making a bident—a spear—for my uncle, and I was hoping you could imbue it with some divine power..."

"A bident...?"

I did use spears a lot during the war with the Titans.

Did Zeus order him to make one after seeing that?

"Are you going to make my weapon a trident like Poseidon's?"

"No, this is a spear with two prongs."

"But I already have this Styx sword, so I don't really need a weapon..."

I unfastened the sheath from my waist and handed the Styx sword to him.

The blacksmith god examined the blade for a moment and then smiled at me.

"This sword is quite exceptional, but it's not on par with the Trident or the Thunderbolt. However, the bident I’m about to show you will easily stand comparison with those."

"Oh...?"

Hephaestus spoke confidently, then donned his iron gloves and brought out the bident from within the forge.

I reached out to the still-red-hot spear, which retained some heat.

Ssss...

As the dark and shadowy divine power emanated from me and touched the bident, its surface was slightly shaved away.

But only for a moment, as the bident soon accepted the power and turned black.

It was clearly extraordinary, even at a glance, but this wasn't the end.

"Please wait a moment; the finishing touches are still left."

Hephaestus carefully took back the spear and went back inside the forge...

Soon, I began hearing the sounds of metal being struck and the clash of different forces.

Clang! Ssssss... Bang! Clang!

Only the Cyclopes trio who crafted my Kynee could rival Hephaestus, the god of blacksmiths.

I waited patiently for the work to be completed.

By the time Helios' sun chariot had reached the world's edge and it was now the turn of the moon goddess Selene,

Hephaestus, who had been deeply engrossed in his work, called out to me.

"It's finished! Give it a swing!"

The spear had a shiny black surface.

Just looking at it emitted a chilling aura, but to me, it felt like the familiar presence of the Underworld.

As if entranced, I grasped the bident with my right hand.

The spear emitted a soft resonance, as if recognizing its owner.

As I infused it with a slight bit of power, it unleashed an aura several times stronger.

The ominous black divine energy enveloped the bident, and after a moment of staring at it, I swung it fiercely toward the sky.

Kwaaaaang—

A massive hole was torn through the clouds over Olympus, and the bident shot straight beyond the sky with overwhelming force.

Truly, this is the best.

I don't envy Poseidon's trident at all.

"Do you like it?"

"It's more than just liking it..."

"And with the divine power inscribed, you should be able to summon it from anywhere, no matter how far away it is!"

Wait, it has a feature like that too?

I'll never lose this thing.

It’s really not inferior to Poseidon's trident at all...

I feel like I should give him some kind of reward for this.

When I asked the satisfied Hephaestus if he had any requests, he replied,

"I'm glad you like it. There is one favor I have, though..."

"Go ahead, if it's a wish I can grant, I'll do my best."

"Please use that bident often and spread the word that I, Hephaestus, crafted it!"

Isn’t that a given?

"I hope that it becomes widely known that this bident, which rivals the three great divine weapons forged by the Cyclopes brothers, was crafted by Hephaestus, the greatest blacksmith in the world!"

Seeing the blacksmith god speak with sparkling eyes, I assured him that I would definitely fulfill his request.

Since he seems to desire the honor of creating an outstanding weapon, that shouldn't be difficult to accomplish.

But considering that he's the best in the world, aren't the Cyclopes brothers a notch above...?

Ah! I'll find out if I pit it against the Kynee that Arges made for me!

* * *

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Back in the Underworld, I clashed the bident against the old and shabby-looking helmet I held in one hand.

The two weapons, nearly equal in strength, sparked as they collided.

"Kyaaah! Hades! You're testing your weapons on that precious helmet again!"

The goddess Styx, passing by, shrieked and scolded me.

But just a few more times...

"The sword I made, too—who tests their weapons on such a thing?!"

"Oh, by the way, this bident was crafted by the greatest blacksmith in Olympus, Hephaestus—"

The goddess Styx stormed toward me, furiously rebuking.

Her hands flailed, and she stomped her feet so much that the Underworld might end up with a hole...no, never mind.

"Bident or not, you should be carefully storing your Kynee in a treasure vault, not constantly subjecting it to abuse! I told you that last time too—"

I tried to change the subject naturally, but it didn’t work.