The King of the Underworld is Tired

Chapter 29: The Story of the Dead

The underworld, the final destination and resting place of souls.

In this realm, many gods exist, as humans are aware.

Starting with Hades, the king of the underworld, there is Thanatos, the god of death, Lethe, the goddess of oblivion,

Styx, the goddess of the absolute oath, Hypnos, the god of sleep, and Morpheus, who governs dreams...

However, they are not the only ones who dwell in the underworld.

For example…

"Ferry fare."

"Uh... What?"

Despite being a high-ranking god as the son of Erebus, the god of darkness, and Nyx, the goddess of night...

"If you don’t have it, I can’t let you cross."

"Oh... uh? There’s something in my mouth..."

"You've got it there. Open your mouth. I’ll take it myself."

He is plagued by the unrelenting labor of rowing the boat every day...

Charon, the ferryman of the River Acheron.

"Yes, 1 obolus (1/6 of a drachma) is correct. But again, just one coin, huh. Tsk."

A white-haired, weary-looking old man, bearing the appearance of a worn-out sailor.

Isn't Charon, the ferryman constantly burdened with duties as demanding as those of Hades or Thanatos, the true worker of the underworld?

* * *

When someone dies in the world above, they first encounter a manifestation of Thanatos, who brings their soul to the entrance of the underworld...

After that, they meet the first river in the underworld, the Acheron.

As they wait on the wide and quiet riverbank, an old man rowing a boat calls out to the souls.

"I’m dead… Ugh... B-But who are they?"

"Why are you asking what you already know? If you don’t pay the fare, I can’t let you cross the river."

Charon, the ferryman of the River Acheron.

He will never let a soul cross the river without receiving a coin (1 obolus).

Because of this, the banks of the Acheron River are always filled with wandering, sorrowful souls.

The story of Charon has spread even in the world above.

So when someone dies, it’s customary for the family to place a coin in their mouth.

But for travelers who die in foreign lands and are devoured by animals,

Those who die on the battlefield and whose bodies are never recovered for a proper burial,

Or those who, due to divine punishment, leave no trace of their bodies,

Such souls can never find peace, even in death.

One might think that Charon must be incredibly wealthy, as the dead flock to the River Acheron every day…

Whizz—splash.

But in fact, Charon can only keep the second coin and beyond; the first coin he receives must be thrown into the River Acheron.

This is the law of the River Acheron, which is why Charon is always poor.

"Sigh... I work to death, yet my pockets are always empty."

Let's take a moment to consider Hades' past life...

Isn't this what we call exploitative labor, almost like being an unpaid slave?

"We’ve arrived. Get off, you wretches."

"Sniff… Yes..."

"Mother... I'm sorry."

"Damn... I should’ve dodged that bastard’s knife..."

It hadn't been long since the souls had boarded Charon's boat when they arrived at the other side.

Thus, after dropping off the souls, Charon rowed a few times and then drifted away again.

After crossing the Acheron, the next is the River of Lamentation, Cocytus.

"Ugh..."

"Mother... Waaah!"

"It’s so cold..."

This river reflects the past appearances of souls, causing them to fall into sorrow.

Regretful memories from the world above, moments of love, cherished memories.

And the current situation of facing death after leaving all those things behind shakes the hearts of the souls.

The souls, crossing the River of Lamentation with a gloomy expression, now face...

The River of Fire, Phlegethon.

"What the... the river is on fire?"

"It’s flames all around..."

"But it’s not hot?"

In the world above, fire is hot.

Though the souls hesitated for a moment at this memory, they soon realized that they didn’t feel any heat.

"It’s really not hot?"

"Yeah, I guess because we’re already dead."

The bodies of the souls catch fire, but there’s no sensation of heat.

Instead, like scrubbing away old dirt, a refreshing feeling envelops them as they cross the river once more.

Having been purified of the filth of the world above by the River of Fire, Phlegethon, they now face the River of Forgetfulness.

The River Lethe.

"Go that way..."

The beautiful silver-haired goddess Lethe occasionally appears by the riverbank to guide the souls.

Following the hand of the goddess who points across the river, the souls plunge into the river.

"How much farther... Ah... Uh..."

"This river isn’t much different from the world above... Eh..."

The souls do not suffocate, but the water of forgetfulness that naturally enters their mouths causes their memories of the world above to fade.

Sometimes, souls with intense grudges retain their memories of the world above, but this does not apply to the ordinary.

Following their instincts, the souls finally reach the last river before entering the underworld.

The River of Hatred, Styx. A long and wide river that winds around the underworld nine times.

Sometimes, the goddess Styx guides the souls, but today, one of her attendants hastens them along.

After crossing the river and walking a short distance, the souls finally see Hades' fortress.

* * *

"Eek…"

"Uh... Uh..! Over there…"

Hades' fortress, stretching across the entire underworld,

Its imposing grandeur, visible even from afar, intimidates the souls.

As they walk along the wide road that leads from the River Styx to the fortress,

A massive gate leading into the fortress appears.

And in front of the gate, Cerberus, the three-headed monster, was baring its teeth.

"Grrrr…"

"Grrrr…"

The foam dripping from its sharp fangs was laced with poison.

The dignity of this divine beast, born from the storm god Typhon and empowered by Hades, terrified the souls.

However, when Cerberus saw the approaching souls, it stepped aside as if uninterested in them.

The loyal beast of the underworld, faithfully following Hades' orders, only devours souls trying to leave through the gate.

As the souls cautiously passed through the massive gate guarded by Cerberus,

The underworld’s attendants appeared and guided them somewhere.

"Come this way, humans. There are others still being judged, so wait here for a moment."

"And most of you will be living in the underworld, so here are some things you need to know..."

"You must have lost your memories of the world above after crossing the River Lethe, right? We'll explain the gods to you again."

The souls were led to a building or a square-like space, where they listened to explanations.

As new knowledge entered the minds of the souls who had forgotten their memories of the world above,

The dead began to understand the situation they were in.

"Judgment…?"

"Was I a good person in the world above?"

"I'm anxious…"

As the souls were busy absorbing the new knowledge, an attendant approached them.

"Now it’s your turn. You there, from here to here, follow me."

The souls got up one by one and followed the attendant in order.

They were now being led to the place where Hades would pass judgment.

When about a hundred souls had gathered in a vast open space, their eyes fell upon a dark-haired, dark-eyed god.

Holding a parchment in his hand with an extremely weary expression was Hades, the lord of the underworld.

He was sorting through piles of documents stacked on a platform, receiving reports from his attendants.

As the god of the underworld waved his hand dismissively, black winds swept through the crowd.

The emotionless voice reached the souls, who staggered as the black wind brushed past them.

"There are no souls bound for Tartarus or Elysium, so next…"

"Move to this side."

"You will now be taken to the judges."

After Hades finished his brief sorting, filtering out criminals, heroes, and special individuals, the souls were sent to be judged by the three judges of the underworld, the Minos brothers.

The Minos brothers meticulously examined the severity of the crimes the souls had committed in the world above and sentenced them accordingly.

Occasionally, the procedure was reversed, with the Minos brothers judging the souls first and sending those difficult to sentence to Hades.

"You killed three neighbors and committed theft in the world above..."

"Then let's sentence you to hard labor on the outskirts of the underworld, repairing the fortress."

"Is the next soul that old man?"

'Minos'.

A son born of Zeus and Europa, who was once the king of Crete in life,

In death, he became one of the judges of the underworld alongside his two brothers.

Their judgments were renowned for their fairness, and so Hades entrusted them with the judgment of the souls.

Those who have committed great sins must serve their sentences in the underworld,

While those found to have little to no sin by the Minos brothers' judgment will live in Hades' fortress.

The landscape of the underworld isn’t so different from the world above.

The only difference is that all the dead souls are semi-transparent and do not consume food.

Even here, there are laws and order, professions, and rules.

In the vast expanse of the underworld, just as wide as the world above, the souls who have not yet been reincarnated engage in conversations.

"Will I also be reincarnated soon?"

"I'm planning to stay here and become an underworld attendant."

"Lady Lethe is truly beautiful as always today…"

"Watch your mouth, she's the mistress of the underworld."

"Wasn't that Lady Styx?"

After cleansing their sins, the souls prepare for reincarnation in the order they arrived in the underworld.

If, during this process, a soul refuses reincarnation and wishes to stay in the underworld, they are allowed to remain, considering the circumstances.

If they remain in the underworld, they are usually assigned jobs by the attendants or lower gods.

They might become guards patrolling the underworld, attendants, or maids to gods like Hades or Hypnos.

Or they might be tasked with repairing the vast fortress or building homes or spaces for souls to reside in.

"It seems a lot of dust has accumulated here... I should do some cleaning."

"A hole has appeared in the fortress? This must be repaired quickly."

"I heard one of Hades’ maids has been reincarnated?"

"Really? Then they’ll be recruiting again soon. Should I apply?"

Additionally, the souls of the underworld, having adapted to the dark, gloomy underworld, could see ahead even without light.

Hestia's hearths scattered throughout the underworld provide the souls with comfort and warmth, but the light itself is of little use.

Because of this, they are more familiar with night than day, and with darkness rather than light.

This is the daily life of the souls living in the underworld.

A part of the massive system where life and death are repeated.

But if this cycle were to break…

Wouldn’t that be a disaster?