The King of the Underworld is Tired Chapter 9 (9/82)
The Story of Life - (4)
After Zeus finished his story, he disappeared in a flash of light. Only then did I call the gods waiting outside my office.
Both Zeus and I knew that many were curious about our conversation, but we didn't care. I had used divine power to block any sound from escaping.
"Hades, will the workload increase even after the Great Flood ends..?"
"Did Lord Zeus give you any additional tasks..?"
I calmly explained to them, who were tense.
Zeus had sworn by the River Styx that he would never again destroy the earth without consulting the Underworld. Additionally, during the Great Flood, he would send the goddess of wisdom, Athena, and her attendants to assist the Underworld.
"Phew... It's a relief in the midst of misfortune."
"I was already worried about the workload, but with Lady Athena.."
The Underworld became lively again. Sighs of relief echoed, and the gods dispersed with slightly brighter faces.
Three days until the Great Flood.
* * *
The day of the Great Flood.
The king of the gods, Zeus, called Boreas, the god of the north wind with giant wings, in a solemn voice.
"Boreas, do not stir the wind from now on. Stay in Aeolus's cave for nine days. I will not hear any objections."
"...I will follow your command."
Boreas, the god who confines the wind, entered Aeolus's cave and stopped his duties.
Thus, the rain clouds that filled the sky would never disperse.
Next, Notus, the god of the south wind, stood before Zeus.
He symbolized the summer south wind and rain, always appearing drenched.
"Notus! Rain as much as you like until I tell you to stop. Even if the entire world is submerged."
Notus, whose body and wings were dripping wet, obeyed Zeus and manipulated the clouds in the sky.
Soon, intense thunder roared, and a torrential downpour began on the earth.
Rushing down—
Iris, the goddess of the rainbow, who had received Hera's command, drew water from the Milky Way to add moisture to the clouds.
The rain clouds would only disperse when Hera's command was withdrawn.
"Hermes! Tell Poseidon that the time has come. Athena! Go down to the Underworld with the selected attendants to assist Hades."
Hermes, the messenger god, who carried the caduceus and was dressed as a light traveler, quickly flew to the sea.
He was Zeus's son and also the god of thieves and travelers.
"For the next nine days, any god who helps the life on earth out of personal feelings should be prepared!"
Flash, boom!!
Zeus's powerful cry echoed through the Olympian palace with the thunder.
The gods, hearing the cry, were afraid and dared not act rashly.
Who could dare to stop the king of the gods from punishing humans?
* * *
Poseidon, who received Hermes's visit, raised a massive wave that overturned the earth.
Human settlements along the coast sank to the bottom of the sea in an instant.
Next, he summoned all the river gods.
The great sea god's command to the river gods was simple.
"Open all the floodgates and let the water flow as I wish."
Among them, some river gods who cared for humans could not disobey Poseidon and opened the floodgates.
Life near the rivers was quickly sucked into the deep water.
When Poseidon's trident struck the earth, the immense power opened all the waterways.
A terrifying flood covered the entire world.
Human settlements, temples, orchards, and fields were almost unrecognizable in the sudden disaster.
Humans desperately climbed to the mountaintops to survive the wrath of the gods.
"Zeus, Lord Zeus! Why are you doing this!"
"I don't want to go to Hades yet! What have I done wrong!"
"I have offered so many sacrifices to Poseidon.."
"Ah, ah, I still.."
Those who escaped the danger of drowning were temporarily relieved but soon had to scream at the world turned into a sea.
Weak humans would die if they missed a few meals and did not drink water.
The only ones smiling in the Great Flood were the sea nymphs, the Nereids.
No human survived the nine-day Great Flood.
* * *
When the world was almost entirely covered by water, the Underworld was busier than ever.
Countless souls flooded through the five rivers that separated the Underworld and the living world, heading to Hades's fortress.
"Lord Hades! The area where the souls are gathered is full.."
"Let's see.. next to Elysium, I'll take immediate action, so receive them in another place for now."
"The ferryman Charon's boat sank, and souls fell into the Acheron River!"
"Send a messenger to the goddess Lethe to retrieve the souls and assist.."
In my office, I, Hades, was overwhelmed even if I had three bodies.
With one hand, I reviewed reports from various parts of the Underworld on parchment.
With the other, I exercised my authority across the Underworld, busy with the judgment, allocation, and trials of souls.
My eyes were busy overseeing the entire Underworld,
and my mouth was drying out from responding to the messengers' reports when I heard the news I had been waiting for.
"Lady Athena has arrived with the attendants from Olympus.."
"Send the attendants to the goddess Styx outside and bring Athena here immediately, quickly!"
Soon, Athena, clad in full armor and holding a spear, entered the office and bowed.
"Lord of the Underworld, Uncle Hades.."
"Since you're here, sit down and start working."
I glanced at Athena and turned my gaze back to the mountain of scrolls.
Of course, it was natural to move half of the piled-up work to Athena.
"This.. is..?"
"Your divine aspect of war is not needed for work, so take off that armor quickly."
Athena, the goddess of wisdom, war, and civilization, seemed to have realized her future.
She smiled wryly and slowly took off her armor, sitting in front of me.
Outside the office, the shouts of various gods and the busy movements and murmurs of souls could be heard.
Fortunately, with the goddess of wisdom joining the battle with paperwork, we would surely win.
After being buried in the pile of scrolls for a while, Athena cautiously spoke.
"Uncle, if you lend me your name, I have a way to get through this crisis."
"Since the goddess of wisdom is speaking, there will be no loss. Proceed."
After Athena's suspicious statement, I saw her doing something but ignored it due to the workload.
After a time equivalent to the ferryman Charon's boat breaking a few more times..
"Lord Hades! The god of war, Ares, has come to the Acheron River!"
Athena, who met my eyes, smiled wisely from behind the pile of scrolls.
Soon, a handsome, muscular male god with a cheerful smile entered the office.
Ares, the god of war, son of Zeus and Hera.
"Uncle Hades! Where is the war I should lead.."
"Good, as a war god, you must be good at command. From now on, guide the souls crossing the Styx River to here."
"Excuse me? What do you mean? Isn't Athena here.."
Ares's bewildered expression was truly amusing.
He had been loafing around when Athena sent him a letter saying, "If you come to the Underworld now, you can participate in a massive war," and he rushed over.
She even guaranteed that her words were true by swearing on my name.
So, even if he had doubts, he believed and came.
In a situation where every god counts, I had no reason to consider his situation.
"....Athena! You tricked me again!"
"I only said you could participate in a war with the work in the Underworld. What's the problem?"
Ares, who was screaming, was suddenly grabbed by a minor god who appeared behind him and disappeared.
He couldn't resist because I was watching with wide eyes.
* * *
Finally, the long nine days of the Great Flood ended.
The gods of the Underworld could finally rest a bit, and just as everyone was about to drink nectar, another message came from Olympus.
"Prometheus's son, Deucalion, has survived the Great Flood and wishes to revive humanity. Lord Hades, please reincarnate the souls.."
Prometheus, who had the power of prophecy, must have told his son about the Great Flood.
So, he built an ark and survived.
However.. souls? You want to recreate humans right now?
Focusing my eyes and ears on the earth, I heard Deucalion and his wife, Pyrrha, talking.
"Hmm.. dear, the oracle of Lord Zeus says... to throw the bones of a great mother over our shoulders to revive humanity."
"O gods! We cannot commit such a sin! Please withdraw the oracle.."
"Wait a moment. Perhaps the mother refers to the earth, and the bones to rocks?"
"Oh..! That could be it!"
Seeing them start to pick up stones from the ground, I immediately shouted to the gods.
Quickly select souls for reincarnation and send them to the earth.
"Damn! The work isn't over yet!"
"Hypnos! The goddess Lethe has collapsed. What should we do?"
"I didn't put her to sleep; she just collapsed from exhaustion!"
"Quickly select the souls!"
The Underworld, which was just becoming peaceful, turned into a chaotic battlefield again.
Meanwhile, on the earth, Deucalion and his wife threw stones to create human forms.
"Hmm..? The stones turned into human shapes, but why aren't they moving?"
"Hmm, let's wait a bit. The gods must be busy."
"Souls, move quickly, it's time to reincarnate!"
"Are the sinners properly categorized?"
"Send them to the living world in order!"
The souls from the underworld, guided by the gods, entered the human forms.
Only then did Deucalion and Pyrrha sigh in relief and start throwing stones freely.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
The stones fell continuously onto the earth, successfully turning into humans, but..
The gods of the underworld were even more frustrated.
"Damn! Throw them a bit slower!"
"What's the rush? Why are they throwing stones so quickly?!"