The King of the Underworld is Tired

Chapter 116: Holiday in the Underworld – (1)

After receiving a definitive answer from Lady Nyx, I sat on the throne of the fortress and sighed.

I knew it wouldn't be easy to persuade those who had withdrawn from the world, but I didn’t expect her to ask me to bring back proof from Lord Uranus.

The feather in my hand felt heavy.

Some gods might question whether it was truly necessary to convince Lady Nyx, but...

I imprisoned all of the Titan gods in Tartarus,

Separated Typhon’s head from his body and sealed him away,

Killed countless giants birthed by Gaia,

And recently, Hephaestus even impregnated Gaia.

Yes, Gaia's fury must be reaching the heavens.

Convincing Lady Nyx is undoubtedly a necessary task.

"Hades, Lord Hermes and the Horae goddesses have arrived from Olympus."

"They’ve come to visit Dike in the Underworld? Let them in."

The Horae goddesses consist of three sisters, daughters of Zeus and Lady Themis.

Besides Dike, there’s Eunomia, the goddess of order, and Eirene, the goddess of peace, if I recall correctly.

As expected of Dike’s sisters, their personalities are similar.

Eunomia laments over the disorder of the living world, and Eirene isn't particularly fond of Ares.

"Uncle Hades! Greetings! This time, I’ve brought all the Horae sisters with me!"

"Hello, Lord Hades..."

"It's been a while, ruler of the Underworld."

After exchanging greetings, they quickly got to the point.

"May I ask where Dike is? I wonder what hardships she’s facing..."

"We tried to stop her, but she insisted on coming here to carry out justice in the Underworld..."

"You there. Lead them to where Dike is."

"Thank you so much, Lord Hades!"

"I wonder if Dike is doing well?"

I left it to my attendant to guide them to Dike, proving how deep the bond between the sisters was as they hurried to meet her.

Now I turned to the messenger god who was still standing there.

"Hermes, deliver this message to Olympus: To stand against Gaia, we need to secure Lady Nyx's assistance, but for that, we must first obtain proof from Lord Uranus."

"What?! Lady Nyx, the goddess of night? And Lord Uranus as well...!"

Hermes' eyes widened in shock, and the more I explained, the more his expression turned into one of utter disbelief.

"It just ended up this way. After some persuasion, I managed to meet with her privately, and she gave me a definitive answer."

"And her condition is to retrieve proof from Lord Uranus..."

"Yes, tell Zeus that we now need to find Lord Uranus, who has gone into hiding."

"Understood! I’ll hurry and relay this news to Father!"

After sending Hermes on his way and seeing the Horae sisters visiting Dike, I thought I might as well check how she was adjusting to the Underworld.

Knowing Dike, who tirelessly worked to implement justice in the living world, she was probably doing just fine...

* * *

"Hades, this amount of work is far from just."

"...I should’ve expected this."

"I appeal to you, the god of fairness, that the Underworld deserves the same fair rest days as Olympus."

In the office of the Underworld, I found a haggard-looking Dike.

She was so eager to come to the Underworld back then... though I suppose she hadn’t known the reality of this place at the time.

"Hic… Sniff. Dike, you look like a shadow of your former self..."

"You see now why we tried to stop you from coming."

Next to Dike were Eunomia and Eirene, crying sadly. Every so often, they threw resentful glances my way.

"Lord Hades... no, Uncle. Please save our sister, Dike."

"Hic... She looks as if she’s just returned from Tartarus..."

A little farther away were the gods who reside in the Underworld, all of them looking as if they saw no issue at all.

The goddess Styx, Medusa, Persephone... and especially Thanatos had quite the expression on his face.

"Hmph. We’ve always been like this. How easy life must’ve been up on Olympus."

"...? I’ve never been to Olympus, so I wouldn’t know, but is it really that comfortable up there?"

"This place is nothing like Olympus..."

"She’s barely experienced this workload, but if she had to collect souls for just a month, I bet she’d pass out. Tsk, these young ones..."

Gods who came down to the Underworld always reacted the same way.

I had wondered if Dike, who came for the sake of justice, might be different, but alas, she’s no exception.

"Eunomia, Eirene. If you’re so worried about Dike, why not come to the Underworld yourselves? Order and peace would fit well here, I’d think."

"Ah. Ah. No! This place is... far from peaceful... no, that’s not what I meant!"

"It’s almost impossible to find any sense of order in the office... excuse me."

What? The Underworld isn’t peaceful, and there’s no order to be found?

I must’ve narrowed my eyes without realizing it, as they both shrank under my gaze.

Sigh... Anyway, to gods who’ve lived on Olympus, the Underworld is certainly a difficult place.

Given Dike’s appearance, it’s clear that the constant issue here is the overwhelming workload.

"...We may need to establish a day of rest."

"A day of rest? Hades, even taking a single day off could cause serious problems..."

"We could certainly use some rest, but if we stop working for even a day, the management of souls would fall apart."

As soon as I muttered to myself, the gods immediately responded with concerns.

The gods of the Underworld might grumble every day, but they never stop working, and this is why.

Souls, death, reincarnation, and judgment—these are the domains of the Underworld. If work were to stop for a day?

The very cycle of the world would break down, Olympus would file complaints, and...

Newborns wouldn’t receive souls, and the dead would be stuck waiting endlessly before the River Acheron.

So...

"Thanatos, wouldn’t things be a little easier if fewer mortals were dying?"

“Well, yes, but…”

“Let’s coordinate with Olympus and declare a global day of rest. We could command the gods of war to halt all battles, and issue an oracle stating that anyone who commits murder on that day will face consequences in the Underworld.”

“Hmm… Would Olympus agree to that?”

"Eirene, as the goddess of peace, you’ll need to help out a bit, too."

We may not be able to rest completely, but at least if we could lighten the workload once a month, we’d get some relief.

Even old Charon, the ferryman of the Acheron River, would be quite pleased.

“Let’s contact Olympus first. If we tell Poseidon to ensure fewer souls are lost at sea that day…”

Messages were soon sent out in all directions to establish a rest day, and responses quickly came back.

Since this concerned the world itself, Zeus replied that we should meet on Olympus to discuss it.

And so, on the day I prepared to head to Olympus, I was encouraged by many voices.

“Hades, we’re counting on you. Please secure a day of rest from Zeus!”

“Oh merciful and just god…!”

“If they don’t agree, we’re prepared to make the worst possible decision.”

“…The fate of the Underworld rests on Hades.”

Their earnest and heartfelt words filled me with warmth, almost moving me to tears.

“…I’ll persuade them, even if I have to resort to threats.”

If push comes to shove, I’ll just have to threaten to open up Tartarus.

* * *

A little while later, at the Olympus Palace.

The gods of Olympus, summoned by the message from Hades, gathered to discuss the proposal for a day of rest to reduce the number of souls entering the Underworld.

The moment they arrived, they took in a deep breath, sensing the heavy atmosphere.

“Ahem…”

“Uh…”

The ruler of the Underworld who had sent the message, Hades, was making it very clear that he was determined to establish a rest day.

Seated at the vast table in the meeting hall, his fingers interlaced and face resting on his hands, Hades' gaze gleamed ominously.

He didn’t even use his divine power to exert pressure, yet the gloomy atmosphere he brought with him made everyone shudder.

After a glare from Hera, Zeus began the meeting.

“Ahem! Let us now begin the discussion regarding the proposal for a day of rest, as suggested by the Underworld.”

“The sea doesn’t really care. Zeus, as long as I don’t stir up a great storm, isn’t that enough?”

“I understand how difficult things are in the Underworld. I support the idea. Even the blacksmiths should have a day off…”

Poseidon and Hephaestus readily agreed.

However, the god of war seemed somewhat conflicted…

“W-well, Uncle Hades. But stopping a war in the middle of battle is a bit…”

“Then will you come help out in the Underworld? Thanatos would be delighted.”

“Gasp…! No, thank you.”

…He quickly backed down.

“If there’s a rest day, would that mean I have to cancel my festivals as well?”

“Every time you hold your regular madness festivals, the number of souls that arrive in the Underworld surges. Old Charon grinds his teeth…”

“…I’ll issue an oracle to postpone them so they don’t interfere with the rest day.”

Dionysus, the god of madness, cautiously raised a point, only to quickly lower his eyes again.

Zeus, the king of the gods, conferred with Hera beside him, then looked around and spoke up.

“So, how often do you think these rest days should be? Once or twice a year?”

“Once or twice a year is absolutely unacceptable. You know how much the gods of the Underworld are overworked, don’t you, Zeus? At the very least, we need a day off once a month.”

“Uncle Hades is right. I visited the Underworld recently, and it’s clear that regular rest is necessary.”

“Athena, then when do you think the rest day should be held?”

“But the gods who are tasked with watching over the giants must continue their duties. They can rotate shifts…”

“Does that mean I’ll also get a day off?”

“Hermes, you should fulfill your duties as the messenger.”

The gods gathered in the Olympus Palace debated for quite some time to narrow down their opinions.

Will there finally be light for the gods in the Underworld? Only time will tell.

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