Chapter 4 The Story of the Gigantes – (1)

 

This is the Underworld, the subterranean realm ruled by the god Hades.

 

It is a cold and dark place where dead souls come to find rest.

 

Because of the nature of this image of the Underworld, most gods also avoid this place, making it a very quiet place.

 

I kind of like this Underworld.

 

The silence I feel when I close my eyes brought me peace rather than loneliness.

 

However, there were bad and wicked intruders who invaded Hades’ sanctuary…

 

“Just as Mother Gaia said, there really is an Underworld!”

 

“Let’s all attack! Let’s kill Hades, the king of the Underworld, and liberate Tartarus!”

 

“Brothers of the Gigantes! Let’s free the Titans!”

 

They were hideous monsters with the lower body of a snake and the upper body of a human.

 

These gods, who called themselves Gigantes, were surely sent by someone to attack us.

 

If you listen carefully to what they are saying…

 

It seems that grandmother Gaia is very displeased with us for imprisoning the Titans in Tartarus.

 

The Earth Mother, who married the Sky God Uranus and gave birth to our father Cronus, is not someone to be taken lightly.

 

Although she has her dignity and would not directly move to expel us…

 

[Huff… I’m sorry, Hades. I couldn’t possibly stop them with my power!]

 

The urgent voice of the goddess Styx echoed in my head.

 

These creatures causing havoc in the Underworld right now were all born from the power of Mother Gaia.

 

Since dozens of hostile beings had gathered, it was obvious that the goddess Styx could not handle them alone.

 

I also sent a message to her, urging her to take refuge in a quiet place for the time being.

 

[I will run to Zeus and ask for reinforcements! If your brothers all gather, no matter how many of those things there are…]

 

The goddess Styx’s intention was appreciated, but it would be useless to ask for help.

 

These beings, who called themselves Gigantes, invaded the Underworld on the orders of grandmother Gaia.

 

That means they surely attacked not only the Underworld but also the sea ruled by Poseidon and Mount Olympus where Zeus resides.

 

[Th-then, aren’t the other gods in danger as well?]

 

It depends on how many of them there are.

 

But Styx, you don’t need to worry. The Underworld will not fall to such creatures.

 

The entrance to the Underworld is narrow, and without powerful weapons like Poseidon or Zeus, they sent only a few dozen, underestimating me.

 

I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity. Despite being gods, I could not sense any immortality in them.

 

Not to mention, they were attacking me in my home ground, which is no different from fighting Poseidon in the sea.

 

I ridiculed the audacious intruders to my heart’s content.

 

Since the workers to manage the Underworld have come in on their own,

 

I will kill them all and make their souls my slaves.

 

As I stood up from my throne and put on the transparent helmet, the Kynee, my figure was perfectly hidden from this world.

 

I drew the sword forged in the River Styx, the evidence of a promise that even gods must keep if sworn upon.

 

The darkness naturally adhered to my body, forming armor, and I climbed up the fortress wall to observe the invaders.

 

The dozens of power clusters madly pounding on the gate were the Gigantes.

 

Thud! Thud!

 

I scanned the half-god, half-serpent giants, the Gigantes, who were pounding on the gate and quietly jumped down to the ground.

 

Though it would be easy to sweep them away using divine power or authority, they were strong enough to rival the Titans.

 

Not knowing how many more enemies might be outside the Underworld, it would be less taxing to cut their throats one by one with the Styx sword.

 

Just like this.

 

Swish-

 

“Argh!”

 

“What the… I was suddenly attacked!”

 

“I didn’t sense anything!”

 

I moved to another position and cut down another Gigantes from the waist.

 

I averted my gaze from the Gigas falling with a look of disbelief and turned to the next enemy.

 

“Aaaah!”

 

“I can’t detect any presence! What kind of trick are you using, Hades?”

 

The Gigantes stood back to back, wary of all directions, but it was futile.

 

These monsters, who seemed to have been born not long ago, had strong powers but didn’t know how to use them.

 

“Throw the ground rocks! Brothers!”

 

“Spray blood to locate him!”

 

If they had the experience of surviving long in a battlefield, it might have been different, but now they were just naive youngsters.

 

For me, who had years of war experience with the Titans, killing them was too easy.

 

“Why…! I was sure of this direction!”

 

“Argh! My waist… my waist…!”

 

Did they really think my helmet, rivaling Astraphe and Trident, would reveal my location so easily?

 

As I whispered into the ear of a frightened Gigas and simultaneously pierced his heart with the Styx sword.

 

Now that there were enough corpses, it was time to make some minions.

 

[Arise]

 

“Uh… uuh…”

 

“…Uh”

 

“The souls of our dead brothers are rising! It’s the power of the god of the Underworld!”

 

“We should have brought more brothers!”

 

The dead Gigantes, shrouded in black smoke, rose as white figures and attacked the other Gigantes.

 

All souls that come to the Underworld belong to me, Hades. There are no exceptions, even for gods.

 

“Argh! Spare me!”

 

“Our mother is Gaia! We are your kin!”

 

So what? You came here to kill me, didn’t you?

 

The last remaining Gigas trembled and begged for his life as I quietly removed the Kynee.

 

Wearing a helmet is quite stifling, especially since this Kynee surrounds me with an intangible aura, making me feel like I’m wrapped in something.

 

As the last intruder finally spotted me, he shook with fear and pleaded for his life.

 

Did he not imagine this would happen when they boldly invaded the Underworld?

 

“W-wait a minute! If you spare me, I will never return to the Underworld again…”

 

Slash. Splurt!

 

Time weathers all, transforming the soul of a fragile modern man of the 21st century into the ruthless god of the Underworld.

 

The audacious Gigantes who dared to step into the Underworld were all reduced to mere spirits.

 

* * *

 

[Hades, you have killed all the intruders who came to the Underworld.]

 

[You can come out now.]

 

[What a mess this is…]

 

I commanded the Gigantes, now in soul form and bound to my will, to clean up the Underworld and called for the goddess Styx.

 

Soon, a stream of water rose from the River Styx, and the goddess Styx, with one arm bleeding, appeared before me.

 

“Wow… It seems Mother Gaia really wants a war.”

 

“Maybe the Earth Mother has been quiet all this time because she was pouring her energy into creating those Gigantes.”

 

This era is not yet established with the Twelve Olympian Gods.

 

No, it is an age where not even humans exist yet.

 

Though my knowledge of the future and myths was gradually fading from my mind, one thing I remembered was that just like Odin in Norse mythology preparing for Ragnarok, Zeus also raised human heroes to aid us.

 

However, there are not many Olympian gods now, and there are no human heroes to side with the gods.

 

This is indeed the perfect time for Gaia and the Titans to seize an opportunity for rebellion.

 

I ordered the spirits who dreamt of sweeping away the Underworld to guard this place well and prepared to go to Olympus.

 

With the invasion of the Gigantes happening now, the most urgent place is not the sea where Poseidon flaunts his invincible power, but the palace of the gods on Mount Olympus.

 

“Are you going to Olympus now? Then I will go with you…”

 

I told her to stay and guard the Underworld, as they might come again.

 

If Tartarus were breached, our defeat would be certain, so someone had to stay here.

 

“Then why don’t I go, and you guard the Underworld?”

 

The Gigantes who gathered in the Underworld were strong gods, but there were only a few dozen.

 

Grandmother Gaia must have known that they alone would not be enough to defeat us.

 

Surely, hundreds, or even more, Gigantes were rampaging on Olympus.

 

The only way to send meaningful reinforcements that could affect the war was for me to go there myself.

 

Well, I wasn’t expecting Zeus to help anyway.

 

“Ugh… Be careful.”

 

I consoled the goddess Styx, who was about to cry, and crossed the five rivers surrounding the Underworld to head to the surface.

 

The warm sunlight and vibrant plants of the surface world greeted me after a long time, but the air was very heavy.

 

It was proof that a great war of gods was affecting the world.

 

I must hurry to Mount Olympus.