The air just…vibrated, right? Not like a nice breeze or anything. More like when you're standing next to a speaker at a concert and every bone in your body is buzzing, and you're not even sure if it's from the music or your own nerves. That's what the throne room felt like—tense, humming, like something huge was about to break.
And then, boom, reality split open. Dead center above the throne, a golden tear ripped the world like someone got careless with a cosmic boxcutter. Light poured out—way too much, way too bright, like someone cranked the sun up to "show-off" mode. It was the kind of light that didn't warm you, just dared you to look at it and feel small.
The hole widened with this godawful shriek, like metal screaming, and out of it floated a dude who looked like he'd just rolled off the cover of a myth. He was basically wrapped in sunlight, chest bare and gleaming bronze like he'd been dipped in the stuff. His eyes? Forget about it. Blue and glowing so hard it looked like they were going to leak right out of his skull—molten sapphire, dripping onto the floor.
And he didn't even wait for the dramatic entrance to finish—just started booming orders like he was the opening act and the headliner at once.
> "Underworld Lord, you've gone too far."
Classic. The kind of line you rehearse in the mirror for centuries just hoping you'll get to use it.
Hades didn't so much as blink. Seriously, he just sat on his throne, totally unfazed. If anything, he looked bored, like he'd seen a thousand gods try this routine and none of them had stuck the landing.
Around him, the Hall of Chains went nuts. The chains rattled, probably excited for a little action. The skulls in the walls started chattering, like a teeth-grinding applause. Shadows? They noped out, shrinking from that flood of divine light like it was radioactive. Can't blame them.
This sunboy floats forward, feet never touching the ground. Not a single speck of Underworld filth dared get on him, which—honestly—just made him look even more out of place. There's a sword behind him, hovering—no scabbard, just pure arrogance. It looked like someone had taken a sunbeam and hammered it into a blade, then scribbled holy runes all over it just to make a point.
> "I am Solian, Minor God of Light and Judgment. By decree of the Upper Pantheon, you are to be cleansed."
The "minor" part really stuck out, didn't it? Like, buddy, you're coming in hot, but you're not even in the main cast. Anyway.
Hades just exhaled, like, "Here we go again," and stood up. No cloak, no crown, just raw, boss-level power that made the floor thrum with every step. Not that he needed props to look intimidating—the whole room seemed to lean in when he moved.
"You broke through my realm's seal for this?" Hades deadpanned. "A golden boy with daddy's sword and borrowed righteousness?"
Oof. Right in the ego. Solian's face twitched, eyes narrowing, and you could feel the smug certainty start to crack.
"I expected corruption to mock truth," Solian spat, like he'd practiced that one too.
> [System Update: Divine Trial Triggered]
Opponent: Minor God – Solian, Heir of Light
Victory Condition: Subdue or Destroy Target Within 10 Minutes
Warning: Divine Energy is 300% stronger than Infernal Magic in open combat.
Dungeon Core Empowerment: 40%
Recommended: Guerrilla Suppression / Psychological Warfare / Trap Chain Initiation
So, basically, Hades is getting told the odds are stacked against him. Does he care? Nope. He grins, and it's the kind of grin that makes you wonder how many other gods he's already sent running back to their pantheon with their halos between their legs.
> "Then we don't fight fair."
He slams his palm down. The whole room shudders—glyphs, black as the void, light up and pulse beneath their feet. The Hall of Chains starts to shift, walls sliding, columns grinding out of place, transforming into a labyrinth that's clearly not OSHA compliant.
Solian—our self-proclaimed hero—tries to take off, wings flaring, but instead they just combust into black fire. Like, "Welcome to the Underworld, where your powers mean squat."
> [Curse Applied: No Heaven Here – All Flight Nullified in Dungeon Territory]
Solian staggers, obviously rattled. "How? This realm should not—"
"This realm obeys me." Hades lifts his hands, and you can just feel the room lean into the drama.
Chains burst up from the floor, glowing red, runes etched in betrayal. Solian manages to cut one, but another lashes around his leg, then his arm—just relentless, like the world itself wants him gone.
> [Fear Level Reached 5 – Unlocking New Skill: Crown of Dread]
Crown of Dread: Instills visions of death in divine enemies. Causes instability. Duration: 30 seconds. Cooldown: 3 minutes.
Hades leans in, voice like broken glass. "See me."
And Solian does. The crown forms, all jagged and burning, spun from the dying memories of mortals. For those thirty seconds, he's not a god anymore—just a scared kid, watching everything he loves burn. Temples—gone. Worshippers—vanished. Even his own father, the big cheese upstairs, turning his back.
> "STOP! STOP—WHAT ARE YOU—?!"
Hades moves in, quick and silent, and the scythe isn't just a weapon. It dives into Solian, not slicing flesh but something deeper—his divine essence. That's the kind of wound you don't heal from.
Solian's glow gutters out, collapsing to one knee, gasping, unable to meet Hades' eyes.
> [Divine Essence Extracted: +1 Core Fragment Acquired]
You have earned a Divine Memory.
New Lore Unlocked: The Pact of Eternal Exile
Dungeon Expansion Triggered: Throne of Echoing Judgments Unsealed
Hades steps back, watching as the so-called god twitches and collapses, panting, all the fight gone out of him.
"I won't kill you," Hades says, voice cold with a satisfaction that's honestly scarier than any threat. "I want them to know what happens when they send children to challenge me."
Solian coughs up black ichor, halo flickering, and just like that—some unseen force yanks him back through the portal, out of sight and out of luck.
And then, because the universe apparently loves drama—
> [System Message: You Have Been Marked by the Upper Pantheon]
WANTED: HADES
Divine Bounty: 100,000 Soul Crowns
Status: Outlaw of the Realms
Response Expected: A Greater God Will Descend.
Hades just drops back into his throne, crown still blazing, eyes fixed on the portal's ragged edge.
"Let them come," he mutters, almost daring the cosmos. "Let them all come."
And if you're watching, you can't help but think—maybe the Pantheon should start sending apology notes instead of gods. Because Hades? He's just getting started.