— In the Underworld —
"HONEY, YOU DID WHAT??!? TO A WHAT?!?" asked a beautiful young maiden, outraged. Adorned with dried flowers and a pastel dress, she flipped her jet black hair backwards, revealing her fair and delicate skin.
The young maiden popped a few pomegranate seeds into her mouth with an aura of grace and elegance before shouting, "HADES, I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!! YOU GAVE A MORTAL BOY YOUR ASCENSION TRIAL?"
The Death God's body tensed as he swiveled around to face his wife, who pouted and crossed her arms.
"Wait…Wait honey, hear me out!" Hades said in a panic.
Persephone crossed her arms before sitting indignantly next to her husband.
"Quick, you have three seconds. Explain to me what you were thinking."
A wave of silence dispersed across the throne room as Hades rubbed his chin and tried to recall why he had done what he had done.
"3…" his wife counted, voice dripping with malice.
"2…"
"Wait!"
"1…"
"Well, I thought he was pretty funny...and he's got guts," Hades said timidly as he looked at his cute wife with an innocent gaze before adding, "Plus, among the Islesians, that boy is the closest to death yet still manages to maintain a pure heart."
"Please. Don't be mad?" Hades continued. "I did it for us and our relationship. After all, the quicker I find someone suitable, the quicker we can go on our vacation."
"Hmph," responded Persephone as she calmed herself down a little. She knew that her husband was blinded by his love for her and would do whatever it took to please her. However, this was also one of his greatest flaws since it meant that the powerful Death God often acted without thinking, creating ripples across the Heavens whenever he moved — one prime example being when he had kidnapped her.
"You know he's only 18 right?" asked the beautiful maiden cautiously. "Did you even get his background checked by HR beforehand?"
"N-No. But he's almost 19?" Hades stammered like a child that had been caught eating candy by his mother. "Sorry, I forgot."
"And what will you do if he loses all of his lives in the second trial? You know that the Chimera outranks him in almost every capacity. Even the time limit, which saved him last time, will be extended, and he may not even be able to stall with his remaining lives."
"Yeah but when I faced it, it was so weak. I crushed that beast within seconds…"
"FOR YOU, HADES! NOT FOR THE BOY. DID YOU FORGET? HE IS A HUMAN CHILD. YOU ARE A DEITY, BORN FROM CHRONUS AND RHEA."
Hades's eyes flickered with distaste as a powerful aura swept through the room, chills running down his wife's spine. He lowered his voice, now stripped of all emotion, and said frigidly, "Don't mention them."
"Sorry honey. You know that I…" her voice quivered as it trailed. She stood up and gave her husband a big kiss before sitting back down. "My bad, honey."
The Death God's face relaxed, and his original smile slowly returned to his face. "No, I'm sorry too. You know how I get when I hear their names. But I think that the boy will be able to handle it. He still has a few months until the next one, right?"
"Just make sure that you don't get any bad rumors this time, okay? Promise me? You don't want the other gods to complain that you killed someone on the Isles just because you wanted to retire early."
"Seffy hun, you worry too much about the little things," the Death God said with a feeble smile.
"AND YOU JUST DON'T CARE ENOUGH," she said as she punched him on the shoulder.
Hades winced, and his smile began to grow as he used his age-old tactic,
"Relaxxxxx. All that stress will cause your beautiful face to wrinkle and age. Come on, I'll buy you a boba if you forget about it?"
"Ugh fine," the goddess slowly agreed with a pout. "Again, just make sure you don't get into trouble," she said with a sharp glare.
"What kind of boba are you getting me anyways?" she asked, her hazel-brown eyes sparkling like a child's on Christmas morning.
"I promise, sweetie. Whichever flavor you want," replied Hades happily.
The Death God breathed a sigh of relief and stretched backwards, putting his hands behind the support of his throne, and performed several consecutive hand signals.
Within seconds, the shadows around him stirred, and a large demon commander appeared from within.
"My Liege. You called?"
The terrifying demon commander got on one knee and bowed before his almighty king.
"Yes, Koros. I would like you to deliver this package to the boy as soon as possible. Oh, and, tell him not to die," Hades said as an evil grin spread across his face.
"If he does, he shall suffer a fate worse than Death when he arrives."
— Nemesis's Throne Room —
The beautiful blond goddess restlessly paced around her room as she bit her bottom lip.
"Only a few more days," she muttered to herself like a chant. "Only a few more days, and I can get my revenge."
An image of the hate reader's revolting and taunting face popped into her mind, and she immediately threw a thunderbolt at the wall, causing it to dissolve.
She had been put under house arrest for far too long, and the boredom was beginning to gnaw at her. Yes, she was a minor goddess that had lived for millennia, but her inability to punish the arrogant teenager was like an itch that she just couldn't get rid of. And like most itches, it continued to grow exponentially the longer she held it.
The Goddess of Retribution sat down and peered into her looking glass labeled "The Isles - Punish him!" In it, she saw the hate reader with a soft and caring expression, still dazed from his first kiss and reminiscing about the beautiful elf.
Beside him stood a worried silver-haired vampire in search of her father and a Doom Monkey who cursed at the guards in front of Garlacia. As the trio stepped foot into the stronghold of the South, a smile grew on Nemesis's face as she thought about Jason's second curse condition.
"Soon," she said, a wide smile beaming on her face. "Soon, you shall taste despair."
—
END OF VOLUME 1