The Moirai visited a god’s child? This was an unexpected story.

“They made a prophecy about me while I was in my mother’s arms. I must have been destined for greatness, right? But mother thought they were placing a curse on me. So she drove them away before they could finish their prophecy.”

“What was this prophecy?”

“Want to know?”

He whispered in a deliberately lowered voice. It sounded somewhat sly, more like a skilled man than a child. Like a man who knows what he wants and doesn’t hesitate to use seduction to get it.

I hid my curiosity and replied curtly.

“Don’t tell me if you don’t want to.”

“I knew you’d react this way!”

His voice immediately brightened again. Only then did I inwardly sigh with relief.

Persephius cleared his throat. Standing with his legs shoulder-width apart and his hands proudly on his hips, he looked quite grown-up. I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

“Growing into a young man like spring, he shall leap into dark death.”

“What?”

“Funny, isn’t it? That’s why I grew up as Persephone. From ‘like spring’ onward, mother believed I would seek death if I grew up as a son. So she raised me as a maiden instead.”

I opened my lips but couldn’t find the right words. I felt the mask I was wearing contort.

“Leap into dark death?”

“Yes. But I’ve been thinking about it these past few days, and doesn’t the situation strangely match up? I really did come leaping into the underworld, into death. True, you snatched me away, but I wanted it too, and I jumped off your chariot of my own free will. So I did leap into this dark underworld. I was destined to come to the realm of death. My goodness! Mother misunderstood the Moirai’s prophecy! She bound and hid me my whole life, but fate couldn’t be changed!”

This immature boy clearly had no idea what he was saying! 

I had to clench my fists to keep from shouting.

He would leap into dark death?

‘If I leave him here any longer, he might die!’

My whole body froze. What if he had caught my fever? 

It was a vicious disease that struck those born in the living world who couldn’t withstand the toxic energy accumulated in the underworld. And wasn’t Persephius also a child of the gods who came from the living world?

‘Even I fell ill, so he certainly wouldn’t be immune. What if instead of helping me recover, he merely transferred the seeds of illness into his own body? There’s no guarantee he won’t collapse at any moment, writhing in terrible pain.’

“Hadeia?”

Persephius, who had been excitedly telling his story, suddenly stopped.

“Are you okay? You look pale. Are you sick?”

He cupped my cheek. Warmth and fragrance. A fresh scent that might waft from daffodils grown under sunlight. Chillingly sensual. 

If possible, I wanted to melt away right there. I closed my eyes.

I needed to send him back as soon as possible.

I decided to go to Olympus. I planned to tell Zeus or Hera the truth. That I was annoyed when Zeus mentioned marriage to me, so I planned to steal his daughter to give him a headache. 

That I didn’t know the child was a young man rather than a maiden. And that I tried to return him to his mother immediately, but the child, enchanted by no longer needing to pretend to be a maiden, stubbornly insisted on staying.

I didn’t even consider approaching Demeter. Not because I was shameless or without conscience. It would be nothing short of foolishness, like carrying kindling and jumping into fire. 

Demeter would try to chop off my head with a sickle before listening to me. And rightfully so. I had taken her only child, one prophesied to leap into death, to the underworld itself, which was death incarnate.

Anyway, Zeus or Hera would be appropriate. They would mediate between Demeter and me. And they could pull the stubborn Persephius out of the abyss. 

Even he wouldn’t be able to refuse Zeus’s command. I wondered if I had been too yielding with him. Perhaps I had been, from the beginning.

Without telling anyone, I harnessed my horses and attached the carriage. Instead of noisily splitting the ground, I spurred them toward Acherusia Cave. 

The sensation of flying through the quiet underworld. A void like a night sky without stars or moon. My stomach tightened. Even deep breaths didn’t calm the queasiness. I could still smell the scent of daffodils on my cheek, near my ear.

‘Can I do this? I’m not good with words. Can I handle this flexibly without inviting ridicule or suspicion? If they ask whether I touched that child, how should I answer? To appease Demeter’s anger and maintain my dignity, I should say such a thing never happened. But eventually, Zeus or Hera will face Persephius. Will Persephius give the same answer then?’

My hands tightened on the reins.

‘To speak honestly? That would be unconscionable. Not for my sake, but for Persephius. I would merely suffer humiliation. Zeus would laugh holding his belly, and Hera would despise me. I don’t even want to think about Demeter. But I am Hades. I’ve already borne many infamous titles, so I can endure. I can ignore it from the depths of the underworld. But Persephius… he’s still young. He could do anything. He could become an adventurer or a sailor. But if rumors spread that he was deflowered by Hades, he would gain nothing but shame and humiliation.’

Persephius would refuse to be called Persephone again. And that’s how it should be. Persephius, son of Demeter, should be praised as a brave man who survived the underworld. 

Then our one-night mistake must be forgotten. If I, being Hades, took his purity, he would be seen as the pitiful Persephone.

I bit my lip. The sound of black horses’ hooves galloping through the void deafened my ears.

‘Let’s focus first on meeting Zeus and Hera. Persuading Persephius can come later. He’s only being stubborn and flirtatious because he thinks he just needs to win me over, but if his father or mother understands the situation and calls him back, he’ll make a mature decision quickly. He’s not a foolish child, just spoiled. In fact, he’s quite clever.’

In the distance, I saw a light as small as a mustard seed. The light of Acherusia Cave leading to the surface. The horses grew excited and increased their speed. The cool wind endlessly swept my hair back. 

“Your hair would look good braided up. No, not just good. It would be incredibly beautiful…” 

I forced myself to blink.

An unfamiliar droplet brushed my cheek. It spread from my eye to my cheekbone before falling uselessly into the underworld due to the strong wind. 

It must have been water dripping from a stalactite. That’s what I thought. That’s what I believed.

Like an arrow shot upward, my chariot headed for Olympus. The atmosphere of the living world was no longer refreshing. I looked down while racing through the turbulent gray sky. 

The land that should have been rippling with blue and gold was devastated with dark red wounds and dried pus. Gray smoke from burning corpses rose from everywhere. 

I could feel the final breaths of humans too weak to wail or plead. Those dying of starvation crawled on emaciated limbs, too weak even to reach Charon. All this was my fault. 

I could almost see Demeter’s screams. I couldn’t breathe.

I was lost in thought watching the earth. Suddenly, my two horses reared up on their front legs and stopped galloping. They neighed with excitement and pawed in place. 

I grabbed the front of the chariot during the sudden stop. As I staggered, my long hair swayed like snakes and covered my face. I couldn’t see properly. What was happening?

“What an amusing sight!”

It was an unfamiliar voice. If poisoned honey could speak, it would sound exactly like that. Just hearing it would melt a man’s insides and make him salivate with desire. 

That alone gave me a rough idea, but I didn’t respond hastily.

When the horses calmed and stopped shaking, I let go and swept back my hair. Only then did I see the two deities standing before Hades’s chariot. A pair of golden-haired figures.

The goddess’s undulating golden hair gleamed red like freshly dipped metal. Her crown of golden fleece and roses emitted a strong fragrance that could be sensed from a thousand miles away. 

What need was there to describe her face? 

Her large eyes were perfect diamond shapes like oak leaves, and her pupils were as enchanting as a thousand violets gathered together, a captivating purple. Her pupils, which appeared violet depending on the light, formed an exquisite harmony with her arrow-shaped red lips.

Perhaps that’s why the pink that Persephius was forced to wear to the point of hatred suited her skin so well. Her rose bud-like seductive pink chiton seemed to reveal more than it concealed. 

Whether this was the current fashion or she was setting trends herself was unknown. In any case, the body visible through the thin, clinging chiton looked like it had been molded from ivory and gold.

The boy standing next to the goddess with a perplexed expression had wings as small as a robin’s. His reddish-golden curly hair closely resembled the goddess beside him. 

Though still a child, his balanced features were similar. Above all, the quiver and bow slung over his bare chest.

“Aphrodite Kytherea.”

I spoke briefly. The goddess of beauty and desire and the god of death could never be close. 

Aphrodite had not the slightest interest in the underworld, and I always avoided attention whenever I went to Olympus, so I had never encountered Aphrodite, who always caused excitement and commotion.

“I don’t know why you stopped my urgent journey.”

“I hear you’re having fun these days?”

Rose-red lips shot out thorns, unexpected ones at that.

Instead of answering immediately, I adjusted the drape of my cloak. From her perspective, she could see nothing but my face and hands.