(Greek Mythology) The Abyss of the Underworld
Chapter 46
Recently, the king of the gods, due to a prophecy, swallowed the pregnant goddess of wisdom, Metis. Upon hearing the news, all the living beings remained calm, showing no surprise whatsoever.
Given the precedents of Uranus, the first king of the gods, who imprisoned his child back in his wife's womb, and Cronus, the second king of the gods, who swallowed his child, Zeus, the third king of the gods, who swallowed his wife and child together—while more ruthless and a more despicable king—it still didn't surprise anyone.
After all, she was his original wife, with whom he had shared hardships, and Zeus was still heartbroken. So he decided to go for a walk to relax, and there he encountered his third sister, Hera.
Hera's most outstanding feature was her fair and delicate skin. It is said that "fair skin covers a hundred flaws," and Hera was already a beauty, so Zeus was captivated and decided to pursue her.
Zeus's method of pursuing Hera was quite in line with his usual style: transforming into various animals to relentlessly pursue her, and once he caught up…
Ahem, too shameless to describe, but you all probably understand.
And so, the unfortunate Hera fell into his clutches, though she herself hasn't realized it yet, because Zeus at least married a goddess and gave Hera the title of Queen.
Let's silently feel sorry for Metis for thirty seconds. Her husband, who had supported her with all his might, swallowed her and their child whole, and before her body was even cold, he married another goddess. This goddess definitely deserves to be ranked first among the ten most tragic figures of the year; let's light a row of candles for her and shed a tear of sympathy.
After marrying his new goddess, Zeus was unusually well-behaved for a while. However, before the gods could even exclaim that their king of the gods had finally changed his ways, he resumed his philandering, not only revealing his true colors but also becoming even more brazen.
Therefore, Zeus was a complete scoundrel. Looking at the three kings of the gods, the first king, Uranus, while a terrible father, was still good to his wife, faithful and honest. Gaia, on the other hand, not only had an affair but also fathered several children with her lover, a slap in the face to the king of the gods. The second king, Cronus, didn't have the same high moral character as his father, but while he was promiscuous, he had no illegitimate children and never brought his lovers home to cause Rhea distress.
Looking at the three lords of the sea, Hades, the god of the underworld, was chaste and clean, without even a scandal. Poseidon, the god of the sea, was less so, but while his reputation for womanizing was known throughout the three realms, his deep love for Amphitrite, the queen of the sea, was also widely known. Amphitrite's immense power in the sea, sharing rule with Poseidon, was due not only to being the daughter of Nereus, but also, importantly, to Poseidon's love for her and his willingness to grant her power.
Zeus, well, he had seven wives—yes, you read that right, wives. Although only two became queens of the gods, that doesn't negate the fact that the others were also Zeus's wives. As for lovers, they were countless; Zeus himself certainly didn't know how many he had.
Oh, and one more thing I forgot to mention: Zeus wasn't just a womanizer, he was indiscriminate in his relationships with women—a definite bisexual scumbag, no explanation needed.
Metis, with his good temper, turned a blind eye to the king of the gods' numerous lovers as long as none threatened his position. But Hera was different. She was always strong-willed and intolerant of infidelity. She relentlessly pursued her rivals, showing no mercy. Her ability to destroy love was unparalleled, creating a family feud that lasted almost the entire reign of three generations of god-kings, a spectacle that onlookers found endlessly fascinating.
Among them, the gods of the underworld were the most notorious. If it weren't for Hades keeping them in check, who knows, one of them might have skipped work to go and watch the gossip.
The gods of the underworld, with innocent faces: "Is it our fault? The underworld is just too peaceful (and gossip is scarce), and it's the excitement of the divine realm. It would be a shame not to watch!"
Hades: "Shut up, all of you get back to work!"
But Tartarus, the culprit who had led the entire underworld astray, wasn't in the mood for any good show lately. Although he had no work, he was trying his best to correct his little sister's misconceptions.
Looking expressionlessly at the equally expressionless Ai Miya across from him, before she could make her signature fingernail-biting gesture again, Tartarus mentally cursed his father's unreliability for the ten thousandth time.
Using his daughter as a cook was one thing; at least she could learn some good cooking skills. But randomly misleading her about her beliefs was absolutely intolerable.
"Brother Tartarus." Ai Miya tilted her head, looking at Tartarus with some confusion over his actions.
"Nico, don't bite your nails like that."
"No, it's not just any nails, these are my own nails." Ai Miya answered matter-of-factly.
No, the emphasis was on "biting nails," not "like any." Tartarus, having his words misinterpreted for the umpteenth time, sighed and rubbed his forehead. So, Father God, how exactly did you raise Ai Miya?
"Anyway, just remember not to bite your nails like that." Tartarus gave up on explaining, which was pointless.
"Okay." Ai Miya answered obediently. (Note: "answered," not "agreed")
"Brother, does Sister Nicholas really not need to go out every day?"
"What did Father God tell you?" Tartarus had a bad feeling.
"Father God said that Nyx and Hemera lived in the same dwelling, but they never stayed there at the same time. One always came in while the other went out. When Nyx shrouded the earth in darkness, it was night; and daylight came when Hemera dispelled the darkness. Their alternation of coming and going created the alternation of day and night."
Chaos, you're really something, telling your daughter about mythological accounts written by humans, the veracity of which is questionable.
"They even use years as the basic unit for calculating time when they hold tea parties. What do you think?"
With the gods living at such a leisurely pace, if that were really the case, the world would have been in chaos long ago!
"So, I've been fooled again," she calmly stated. Because this had happened so many times, Ai Miya had long since learned to remain composed.
"Just believe one out of ten things Father God says."
Ai Miya nodded, deeply agreeing.
"Those natural phenomena will occur automatically as long as the corresponding deity is still alive."
"Hmm, I understand." Ai Miya silently corrected her misconception, which had been distorted by her father. "But I still think it's a bit of a shame."
"Nix is bothering you to change clothes again?" Tartarus understood immediately; he knew Nix's personality very well.
"Yeah." Ai Miya was a little troubled. "I really don't want to wear those cat costumes."
Heaven knows why Nix's sister is so adamant about looking like a cat. It seems Nix's sister really should go out every day.
"So you just dumped Eris on Nix, right?" Tartarus didn't believe Ai Miya would actually cooperate. Come to think of it, Eris hadn't visited him in a long time. Given Eris's personality, that was impossible. So, was there any need to guess the truth?
"Yes, because I don't want to wear cat costumes." Ai Miya's tone was frank, her expression utterly innocent.
Shifting the blame was a good method, in every sense of the word.
Chapter 46