King of Underworld

Chapter 180: Epilogue – 21st Century Olympus

A god is an immortal being.

Unlike mortals, no matter how much time passes, gods do not die.

Even if they lose faith from humans, are confined to Tartarus, or beheaded.

Before Christ. After Christ.

According to the arbitrary divisions humans created, it is now the 21st century A.D.

The gods of Olympus still exist.

That includes me, Hades, the God of the Underworld.

I have sired many children, and the underworld has become largely automated, leaving me with considerable free time.

Of course, there are occasional important judgments to make, but compared to the past, it feels like Elysium itself.

Naturally, faces like Charon, Thanatos, Hypnos, and other gods are filled with a sense of ease.

On the other hand, I have been troubled with something a bit complicated—issues regarding my children.

“Father, it’s me.”

I was leaning against the throne room, eyes closed, when I heard a voice calling from outside.

It was the voice of Zagreus, my son born of Persephone and me.

“Zagreus? Come in.”

“Yes, Father.”

The door to the throne room opened, and Zagreus walked in with deliberate steps.

He looked sharp in a crisp black suit, but his tired face and the way he rubbed his eyes betrayed another night of overtime.

He stopped a little distance from the throne and began lamenting to me.

Feigning an indignant expression and gestures—did someone cause trouble again?

“Father, please do something about Melinoe.”

“…?”

“She’s disappeared somewhere again after locking eyes with the god Morpheus. Of course, she abandoned her duties. Thanks to that, there wasn’t a single human who had nightmares last night…”

Melinoe.

The goddess of nightmares, ghosts, and madness—and my daughter.

Born from my union with the goddess Styx, Melinoe inherited her mother’s long, beautiful black hair, but her demeanor was often lax or careless.

Perhaps because she inherited part of the madness domain governed by Dionysus, she occasionally exhibited unpredictable behavior.

“Didn’t you see her in the underworld?”

“No. Goddess Lethe and I searched the entire underworld but found no trace of her. I’m sure she fled to Olympus.”

“Olympus? Could she have gone to the mortal world instead? Surely not Olympus…”

“No, it must be Olympus! Do you know how often she sang praises about Olympus? I’ve lost count of how many times she told me how much she prefers bright Olympus to the gloomy underworld.”

Actions like pursuing love and fleeing the underworld were typical of her.

But how much of an age gap is there between her and Morpheus, the god of dreams? No, I’m not one to talk, given my marriage to Persephone.

“Thanks to her, Makaria and I are the ones suffering! I honestly don’t understand what’s so unbearable about the underworld!”

“Ah, ah, fine. I understand. I’ll go up to Olympus and look for her myself.”

“Excuse me? You, Father, personally?”

“Yes. While I’m at it, I’ll meet Zeus again after hundreds of years. Take care of this place in the meantime.”

“Me again…?”

I decided to entrust the underworld temporarily to Zagreus and head to Olympus.

But perhaps I’ve made this request too often. Zagreus grumbled, his shoulders slumping.

“Can’t you assign this to Makaria or one of your other children instead?”

“Hmph. If not you, who else could I trust with this? Besides, you’ll only get accustomed to the duties of the god of the underworld through experience.”

“Y-yes… understood.”

I patted Zagreus on the shoulder a few times and left the room.

Among all my children, Zagreus was the most dependable.

Another daughter, Makaria, born from my union with Goddess Lethe, embodied the concept of peaceful death.

She was always busy assisting Thanatos with his duties.

That’s why I deliberately left the responsibilities of the underworld to Zagreus on occasion.

If Zagreus grew further, even if something happened to me, the underworld would remain stable.

In a way, he could be considered a successor akin to Triton, the son of Poseidon.

* * *

Whoooooosh—

Crossing the Acheron River on Charon’s boat, I ascended to the surface.

What greeted me was the sight of airplanes flying in the sky.

When those were first invented, the gods of Olympus had quite the reaction.

Because of my knowledge from a previous life, I wasn’t too surprised, but everyone else caused a fuss.

Comments like, “At this rate, they’ll soon reach Uranus’ domain in space,” or “Humans are flourishing just fine without heroes,” or “Shouldn’t the gods all retire?”

There was even a suggestion to turn the person who invented it into a constellation.

Of course, Zeus dismissed it, adhering to his policy of minimal involvement in human affairs.

“Oh? Uncle Hades? I was just about to visit you in the underworld.”

“Hermes. It’s been a while. Your outfit looks quite different.”

“Ah, haha. My outfit? Well, Hephaestus had to work hard on it.”

Hermes’ attire had changed significantly from what I remembered when we met at the entrance to the underworld.

A dress shirt and shorts, a staff disguised as an ordinary cane, winged shoes disguised as sneakers, and even a bag on his back.

“Is that the fashion of travelers these days?”

“By any chance, have you seen Melinoe in Olympus?”

“Oh, your adorable niece who loves to play with nightmares? Hmm… I think I might have seen her. Maybe you should check the banquet hall?”

“The banquet hall?”

“Yes. Lord Uranus has visited Olympus recently. He was talking about humanity’s ventures into space…”

After hearing a bit more news from Hermes, I made my way toward Olympus.

Of course, I ensured to conceal myself so that satellites or human detection devices wouldn’t pick me up.

I remember when Apollo was spotted near the sun while observing solar activity.

Back then, the mortal world erupted in chaos, debating whether it was a god or an alien, which prompted the gods to be more cautious.

* * *

The scenery of Olympus, which I hadn’t visited in a long time, had changed significantly.

The grand structures built above the clouds were still the same, but…

*Whirr* – *Shoo*

What appeared to be marble columns were actually intricately crafted mechanical devices.

Floating autonomous machines hovered near the rivers where the Milky Way seemed to flow.

There were humanoid constructs—almost indistinguishable from humans but without souls. Should I call them cyborgs?

These machines, with their beautifully humanlike appearances, bowed their heads toward me.

“Welcome, Lord Hades. Thank you for visiting Olympus.”

As I approached the grand steel gates, a voice infused with Hephaestus’s divine power echoed out.

Oh-ho. It senses my divine power. Hephaestus has been at it again, changing Olympus.

A small aperture emitted a brief red light before the gates automatically opened.

While similar to the automatic doors of human modern civilization, being situated above the clouds gave it a surreal, almost discordant feeling.

No matter how skilled Hephaestus is, he couldn’t have created all of this overnight. How much effort must he have put into this?

When I stepped into the banquet hall, the sight that greeted me was… truly astonishing.

I wondered for a moment if Zeus’s thunderbolt had struck me blind because I couldn’t believe how much Olympus had changed.

Even if it had been centuries since I last ascended to the godly palace, could it have changed this much?

*Ding-ding-ding~ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ ♫*

“Ahahaha! Drink up!”

“Apollooo! Turn up the music a little more!”

“Of course, Euterpe!”

“Haha! Hera, come here! You look exceptionally beautiful today.”

“Oh my, really? Then for a moment…”

The ceiling of the dimly lit Olympus palace was illuminated with divine power, casting multicolored lights.

Over to one side, DJ Apollo, wearing sunglasses and a sharp suit, manipulated equipment to play music, while Zeus and Hera kissed under the subdued lighting.

The most spirited one was Dionysus, dancing with the nymphs.

In another corner, goddesses were performing alluring dances.

“Hmph. They’re putting on quite a show. I must admit it’s somewhat enjoyable.”

A white-haired, petite girl wearing a simple white dress reclined on a chair, sipping nectar.

It was Uranus, the protogenos, gazing around with the detached curiosity of a spectator watching jesters.

When his eyes met mine, he addressed me.

“Hades, is it?”

Well, let’s start with a greeting.

“Greetings, Lord Uranus. What brings you to Olympus?”

“Zeus, that scamp, invited me. I was feeling a bit bored gazing at constellations, so I thought, why not?”

“Ah… But I hope you’re not being treated too poorly…”

“This isn’t bad. Don’t your creations, the humans, also enjoy this? They call it a ‘club,’ if I’m not mistaken.”

Ah, a club. That explains it.

The music, the ambiance, even Hephaestus’s machines walking around serving drinks—it all resembled a human club.

There was a time when gods spread culture to the mortal world.

Now, it seems the gods are the ones adopting human culture.

Humanity thrives and progresses, surpassing expectations without divine intervention… and I like that.

As I conversed with Lord Uranus, a nymph wearing a black dress called out to me from a distance.

Stacked shelves of bottles glimmering faintly caught my eye. Those didn’t seem to be entirely nectar.

“Lord Hades, may I prepare a cocktail for you?”

“A cocktail? Not nectar? Go ahead.”

“Yes!”

*Trickle—*

The nymph pulled out a glass, placing it before me, and began skillfully pouring various spirits with nimble hands.

Was this the floating method I’d heard about?

After her deft movements concluded, a vibrant cocktail filled with layers of different colors sat in front of me.

“…What’s all this?”

“Oh! At the bottom is nectar, above it is juice from the golden apples granted by Lady Hera, next is brandy personally brewed by Lord Dionysus, followed by honey syrup made from bees nurtured by Lord Aristaeus, and finally…”

They really put everything imaginable in here.