(Greek Mythology) The Abyss
Chapter 50
"Your Majesty Tartarus…"
"Just call me Tartarus." Tartarus interrupted Hades.
Hades paused for a moment, then readily changed his form of address, "Alright, Tartarus."
Although it was his own request, to be honest, this form of address was quite novel to Tartarus.
Chaos always addressed him by his nickname Tar, his younger siblings called him Big Brother, and other gods would add "Your Majesty" after Tartarus, or simply omit the prefix and call him Your Majesty, because he was the master of the abyss, the creator of Hell.
Then there were titles like Uncle, Uncle, etc., but nobody called him Tartarus.
So what was the point of this name anyway? (A somber expression)
"The Underworld system is largely sorted out. The guidance, judgment, and reincarnation of the dead are all arranged. Only the candidates for some important positions still need to be examined…" Hades meticulously recounted the recent situation.
"Although I created Hell, you are now the King of the Underworld, so you don't need to tell me these things."
"I just felt you should know."
"Is there anything else?" Tartarus asked. Hades couldn't have come to the Abyss just for this trivial matter, could he? (Your Majesty Tartarus, you've hit the nail on the head.)
"No." Hades denied it. Could he say he didn't even know why he came to the Abyss?
The atmosphere fell silent for a moment. Both gods were quiet by nature, so they didn't find anything amiss. Although there was no conversation, there was no awkwardness.
"What do you think of the Underworld?" After a while, Tartarus asked softly, his blood-red eyes meeting the emerald eyes. His gaze was as calm as ever, making it impossible to tell whether he was serious or just asking casually.
Hades paused slightly, slightly taken aback. With the Underworld newly established, he was busy with various affairs and had little free time, but these days had been enough for him to understand the actual situation in the Underworld.
The Underworld was different from the Divine Realm; this was Hades' deepest impression. There was no intrigue or power struggles, no decadent extravagance or debauchery; the entire atmosphere of the Underworld was peaceful and harmonious.
The gods of the Underworld did not vie for power, and naturally, there was no ugliness or greed born of power. The Underworld was not as barren as outsiders believed; otherwise, Hades, the King of the Underworld, would not also hold the divine office of God of Wealth.
The world initially consisted of only four realms: the Abyss, the Earth, Night, and Darkness. Later, with the birth of various primordial gods, realms such as Sky and Outer Space were added. However, among these many realms, only the Earth and the Hell carved out from the Abyss were inhabited by living beings. The oceans inhabited by the beings of the Sea Realm and the sacred mountains inhabited by the gods of the Divine Realm were, in essence, just deep pits filled with seawater and towering mountain ranges rising into the clouds.
Previously, it was widely believed that countless mineral veins were buried only within the earth. But as one of only two habitable realms, why did they assume Hell didn't possess them?
Hell not only has them, but many, and some veins are even more valuable than those in the earth. They are simply rarely mined and therefore unknown to the outside world.
The reason for not mining is simple: humans fear death and hope for a better afterlife. Therefore, those who can afford it offer sacrifices to the god of the underworld. Humanity has existed for a very long time, and the wealth accumulated over that time is astonishing, so the god of the underworld is never poor.
As for the gods who aren't worshipped, Tartarus never cared about those veins. They could mine whatever they wanted; there was plenty, and no one would stop them.
With no struggle for power or profit, there are no conflicts of interest. And with several powerful gods holding the underworld in check, it would be abnormal for the underworld to be disharmonious.
Hades, having been swallowed by Cronus at birth and being the eldest son, naturally spent the most time there. Accustomed to its darkness and quiet, he genuinely disliked the light and bustle of Mount Kailash and was even more disgusted by the ceaseless power struggles of the gods. Furthermore, being of the dark element, he was extremely satisfied with the environment of the Underworld.
Therefore…
"The Underworld is very good."
Sensing the sincerity in his words, Tartarus's expression softened slightly. Even if he no longer interfered, Hell was still a place he had personally created, and he ultimately cared about it. The fact that Hades accepted the Underworld so quickly was good news for him.
"The Underworld is quite different from the rumors I heard before coming here." To be precise, not just a few differences, but many differences. Only after arriving in the Underworld did Hades realize how badly he had been misled by those rumors.
"Since they are rumors, how much truth can they possibly hold?" Tartarus's tone was tinged with sarcasm.
He didn't care about his reputation, but he certainly wouldn't be happy if he and the entire Underworld were demonized like that.
He had heard rumors about himself—cruelty and tyranny, a fondness for drinking human blood and eating human flesh—which made him utterly disgusted.
Cruelty and tyranny aside, he wasn't exactly a benevolent god, but drinking human blood and eating human flesh…
The Law knew he had barely even left the Abyss, at most encountering the undead; he had never seen a human. Where did he get such a bloodthirsty hobby from?
Tartaros didn't know, but it was still necessary to explain here where the rumor of drinking human blood and eating human flesh came from.
The rumor actually developed like this →_→
Initially, Eros told others that Tartarus liked blood-red spider lilies. → Then, this was spread to mean Tartarus liked blood-red. → Then, Tartarus liked blood. → Tartarus liked drinking human blood. → Tartarus liked drinking human blood and eating human flesh.
Well, that's the whole process of how the rumor formed. Thank goodness Tartarus didn't know, Eros, you're a master of self-destruction, otherwise you could have gotten yourself killed.
Eros (innocently): Is it my fault that people spread rumors?
As for the other gods of the underworld →_→
Although they're essentially a bunch of unreliable idiots → this is obviously something the outside world can't know. → Therefore, pretending to be aloof and deceiving outsiders is still necessary. → But it seems they've gone too far. → Oh well, so be it, as long as they haven't embarrassed themselves. → Then some wicked and cunning underworld gods have a penchant for scaring people. → Huh? Accidentally got too carried away and scared the gods away → Hahaha (awkward laugh), I really didn't mean to, I'll definitely be more careful next time (reflective) → Then another outer god came → Come on, come on, another one to scare! This time I'll definitely control myself (determined) → But the result… uh, oh no, I accidentally didn't control myself and scared the gods away again (glancing away) → It's all because they're too timid and easily frightened, it's definitely not our fault (shifting blame) → Finally, the reputation of the Underworld… (looking into the distance)
This is the sad story of the Underworld's reputation, it's really so bad.
So, Your Majesty Tartarus, please stop looking down on those gods for being intellectually challenged, blindly following the crowd, and lacking their own opinions. This is half their fault and half yours, okay?
"Indeed." Hades nodded in agreement with Tartarus's words.
Hey! Hey! Hey! Your Majesty, you can be a little more discerning! Being biased like this is wrong, you know?
Hades: I am the King of the Underworld, isn't it normal for me to favor the Underworld?
That makes perfect sense, I'm speechless. (Somber face)
Fine, anyway, one of you is the God of the Abyss and the other is the King of the Underworld, no god dares to object, you can do whatever makes you happy.