The Story of Eros and Psyche - (3)

Apollo, the god of the sun, arrived after being summoned by Morpheus, with an expression that suggested he felt wronged.
Ah, just by looking at your face, I can tell you’re involved in this mess.

“Apollo, speak the truth. Why did you give such a prophecy?”

“Uncle... it’s...”

“As far as I know, there isn’t a single mortal woman destined to marry a monster in this era. You, as the god of prophecy, should be well aware of that.”

“......”

“Do you know what rumors are spreading among mortals in various cities? They say that the gods, jealous of Psyche’s beauty, are forcing her to marry a monster, and that pity for Psyche is growing. Isn’t this the kind of thing that damages the dignity of the gods?”

After a moment of silence, Apollo finally spoke up.

“Well... it’s all because of Eros.”

“...Eros? What does he have to do with this?”

Hadn’t he returned to work in the Underworld and learned some restraint?

“Eros is infatuated with that mortal woman, Psyche.”

“Explain yourself.”

“As you know, I am the god of prophecy, so I’m aware of a few things. I noticed that a bitter scent came from Psyche’s mouth, and a sweet fragrance from her hair. Isn’t that the bitter and sweet water from Aphrodite’s fountain? Aphrodite hasn’t moved from Olympus, so... it must have been Eros, that wretched boy, who became infatuated with Psyche and caused all this. That’s why I gave such a prophecy.”

So, it turns out Apollo gave the prophecy out of personal spite.
Having been struck by Eros’s golden arrow and fallen in love with the nymph Daphne, Apollo must have harbored resentment against Eros.

Hence, he interfered with Eros’s love by claiming Psyche was destined to marry a monster.
But Eros... isn’t he a god with the appearance of a young boy, uninterested in goddesses? Why would he become so taken with Psyche?

His mother, Aphrodite, is the goddess of love and beauty... Did she put him up to this?
But why would she bother harassing a mere human... Wait a second.

“I’ve heard she’s incredibly beautiful...”

Goddess Lethe had said that, hadn’t she? There were rumors of Psyche’s great beauty.
And the goddess who rules over beauty is Aphrodite. Hmm...

“This isn’t something I can resolve just by talking to you. I’ll have to summon Eros and Aphrodite as well.”

“Yes...”

The three—no, the three gods—gathered in the Underworld.
As soon as they were brought together, it seemed they all knew something about this situation and began to argue.
I tried to intervene, but...

“Eros! Isn’t this all happening because of your wretched golden arrows?!”

“What?! You could have just told Psyche she was destined to marry me!”

“Hmph... And why would I do that? So, how does it feel to have your punishment come full circle after you shot me with that golden arrow?”

I stayed quiet and watched. Let’s see how far this goes.

“Eros, didn’t I tell you... you should’ve just quietly shot that wretched human with the lead arrow! Now, thanks to you, I’ve had to come down to the Underworld again...”

“Well, Mother, you didn’t exactly handle it well either! Jealous of a human who won’t even live for a hundred years!”

“Your body may have grown, but you’re still as immature as ever. Controlling other people’s emotions as you please...”

“Apollo, are you saying you want me to shoot you with my golden arrow again? Couldn’t you just have given a simple prophecy instead of getting all upset?”

“Go ahead and try. I’ll show you what it’s like to taste the arrows of the sun.”

Look at them... not a single one of them is innocent in this mess.

Aphrodite, who had Eros cast punishment out of jealousy for a human,
Eros, who fell for Psyche’s beauty and used magic to make her his,
And Apollo, who couldn’t let go of an old grudge and gave a false prophecy to block Eros’s love.

“Enough! All of you, shut your mouths.”

“But Hades!”

“Aphrodite. Do I need to repeat myself?”

This is a complete disaster. What a mess, all of them.
Well, at least they’re quiet now. How am I going to clean this up?
If this situation blows up, the mortals’ faith in the gods will crumble to dust. I need to resolve this smoothly...

“Eros. Do you love this mortal woman, Psyche?”

“Yes... I can never give her up.”

“If she loves you in return, take responsibility. But give each other enough time to get to know one another.”

“Ah...! Thank you! I will!”

“However, it wasn’t right to pour bitter water on an innocent mortal. We’ll discuss that later.”

The young god—no, the god of love, who had now grown into a man, his face contorted in anxiety, slowly nodded.

“Aphrodite. I won’t stop you from testing this mortal, but don’t go overboard. I understand you may be angry if your temple starts to gather dust from a lack of worshippers.”

“Hmph... fine.”

“Still, don’t push it too far. Do you understand? Don’t harass your son’s bride excessively.”

“But... that wretched girl...”

“Aphrodite. Is your renowned beauty so fragile that it can be shaken by mere mortals? In my opinion, no matter how beautiful Psyche may be, she could never surpass you. As the goddess of beauty and love, show a little grace.”

“Y-You’re right, of course! Compared to me, someone like her...!”

I managed to persuade Aphrodite, but why is she blushing?
You’re the goddess of beauty—of course you’re the most beautiful. Why are you so embarrassed?

Lastly, I turned to Apollo.

“Stop using your prophecies for personal grievances. You know that mortals see your words as law, absolute commands.”

“I understand, Uncle. But it’s because Eros keeps carelessly firing his golden arrows...”

“I only shot Apollo with a golden arrow because he provoked me first!”

I had, of course, heard the story.
Apollo had teased Eros about his little bow and arrows, so Eros, in anger, shot Apollo with a golden arrow...
And then shot a lead arrow at Daphne, the nymph Apollo fell for, ruining his love.
In the end, Apollo’s love failed, and Daphne turned into a laurel tree to escape him.

“Eros. If you had an issue with Apollo, you should’ve settled it directly with him. Why drag an innocent nymph into it...?”

“Hmph... Uncle is right. Toying with someone’s heart like that, your golden arrows...”

“Apollo. You weren’t entirely blameless in that matter, either.”

[You’re quite petty, aren’t you? I’m sure Orion’s death was your doing, too.]

[Uhm. Uncle, that... well...]

This incident was a tangled mess of old grudges, pride, and divine rivalries.
If one of us—myself, Poseidon, or Zeus—didn’t step in and settle this, it could escalate.
Not just this issue, but a cycle of grudges creating more grudges could spiral out of control.

Should I make them all work in the Underworld? A little punishment might set them straight.
No, I can’t keep doing this. I’ll leave it to Zeus to handle.

“How long do I have to keep cleaning up after your messes from the Underworld? I’ll inform Zeus of this matter as well.”

“Yes...”

“Understood, Hades...”

“...I’m sorry, Uncle.”

“I’ll tell Zeus to punish all three of you severely, so prepare yourselves.”

I looked at the three gods, now subdued, and gestured for them to leave.
I’ll take some time in my office to think about this...
While I can’t undo what’s been done, I still need to think of the best solution for Psyche and her parents, who are still praying...
Apollo claims to be the god of reason... tch. Maybe he needs a proper punishment.

“Hades. A messenger from Olympus has arrived.”

“What is it?”

“Lord Poseidon has summoned Apollo. What should we do?”

“Tell him I’ll send Apollo back once we’ve finished here.”

It seems Poseidon has discovered what happened with Orion.

Upon hearing that, I glanced at Apollo, whose face had turned pale. Seriously, why did you do it...?

The next day, Psyche’s parents, who had been pleading and praying in front of Pluto’s temple, lit up as if they had met their savior.
The high priest of Pluto approached them directly, inviting them inside to hear the oracle.

“Lord Pluto has decreed that to avoid the fate of marrying a monster, Psyche must spend 100 days on the mountain without seeing her husband’s face even once.”

“If... if we do that... will my daughter truly be able to marry a normal man and live a happy life?”

“Indeed. Lord Pluto has said she will live a life of great happiness if she does so.”

Psyche’s parents breathed a sigh of relief and offered prayers to every god in the temple...
Thankful that a way had been given to avoid their daughter’s monstrous fate, they rushed back to the kingdom.

“If I stay on the mountain, my husband will come... for 100 days?”

“Yes, Psyche. Lord Pluto himself gave this prophecy, so you must do this... sob.”

“Please don’t cry, Mother. I’ll be fine wherever I go.”

Psyche left the palace and climbed to the top of the nearby mountain.
But no matter where she looked, she saw nothing. Was her husband somewhere around here?

Whoosh-

“...?! Kyaa!”

A sudden gust of wind knocked Psyche off balance.
But instead of falling off the mountain, she was carried by the wind, whisked away to an unknown place.
It wasn’t a mere windstorm; it felt as though a mysterious power was pushing her far away...

“I don’t know why Lord Hades asked the god of the east wind, Eurus, instead of any other wind god...”

“Heheh... So, all I have to do is deliver the bride to the groom, right? This is my specialty, Eros.”

“Lord Eurus? By specialty, you mean...?”

“Kheheh... Don’t worry. Just wait for her at the mansion.”

...Let’s leave the gods’ affairs aside for now.

Psyche closed her eyes tightly as the landscape shifted rapidly around her.
After a while, she finally felt solid ground beneath her feet. Had she landed somewhere?

Relieved, Psyche didn’t have time to think about the strange wind that had just carried her.

“Wow...”

In front of her stood an incredibly luxurious mansion, where she would spend the next 100 days with her husband.