King of Underworld

Chapter 22 The Story of Rebellion

The divine palace atop the clouds of Olympus.

The palace of the gods, revered by mortals who look up in awe.

This place, which had once been half-destroyed by Typhon, was once again in danger.

Was it because of some external enemy as formidable as that powerful Typhon?

Was it due to the invasion of Cronus, the Gigantes, or the Titans?

“Damn it… What are you doing, Uncle!”

No, it was none of those.

“Can’t you see, nephew? This means Zeus is finished.”

“Brother Apollo! Why are you standing with them?”

“My dear sister, our father, who chases after mortal women instead of our mother or Lady Hera, is no longer…”

It was due to the civil war over the throne of the king of the gods.

While Zeus slept, his thunderbolt was hidden, and his muscular body was bound with tough leather straps.

Although Zeus woke up in a panic, the tide had already turned.

Poseidon, Apollo, and Hera imprisoned the bound Zeus in a building on Olympus and summoned the gods.

This was to depose Zeus and declare a new king of the gods.

“Don’t be ridiculous! I oppose this!”

“Ares, one dissenting voice won’t change the situation.”

“Mother!”

“No, Apollo, stop this and think carefully.”

“Hermes, I’ve already acted after thorough consideration.”

“Aren’t you the god of reason? Is this really…?”

“Do we really have to fight among ourselves? Poseidon? We still face the threat of the Gigantes…”

“A Zeus who lost to Typhon, despite being the god of the sky, has no right to stand above me, Hestia.”

The mighty gods of Olympus were divided into two factions.

One side supported crowning Poseidon as the new king, while the other sought to rescue the imprisoned Zeus.

“What are you all doing? We need to fight and rescue Father!”

The god of war, Ares, was so agitated that he seemed ready to charge at any moment.

The other gods also tensed, gathering their divine powers and reaching for their weapons.

Athena’s spear glinted, and Hermes breathed power into his caduceus as if he had made up his mind.

But…

“Hmm. That’s good. Don’t just talk—show your will through force. I’ll face you with this trident.”

“Ugh…”

“Uncle! Are you really going to do this?”

“Damn it, how can we defeat Lord Poseidon…”

When Poseidon casually brandished his trident with an indifferent expression, everyone hesitated.

Zeus, Poseidon, Hades.

These three major gods possessed power that set them apart from the other gods.

So much so that they could win against all the other gods combined, excluding the other two major gods.

“Argh! We won’t know until we try!!”

Ares, who had been glancing around at the gods on Zeus’s side, shouted in frustration.

Intense red divine energy flared from his body as he drew his sword and charged at Poseidon…

Clang! Boom!

“Tch…!”

“You’re quite disrespectful to the new king of Olympus, nephew.”

Poseidon swung his trident with invisible speed.

Blue divine energy scattered like waves and struck the challenger’s body.

Ares’s precious sword was shattered in a single blow by the sharp trident, clearly demonstrating the difference in power.

In the end, the god of war could only retreat, sensing the heavy scent of defeat.

“Is there any other god who opposes me becoming the ruler of that seat?”

Poseidon’s booming voice filled the air as he raised his trident and pointed at the golden throne.

However, that was the high seat among the twelve thrones, where Zeus usually sat.

The seat that only the king of Olympus could occupy.

Seeing this, the gods on Zeus’s side fell into a miserable silence, and a suffocating stillness hung over Olympus.

Seeing the now silent gods, Poseidon stroked his beard with a satisfied expression and declared.

“Then, from now on, Zeus will be exiled…”

“I oppose this.”

* * *

“I oppose this.”

“No..?”

“What? There wasn’t any sign of anyone!”

“I heard nothing from the wind either…”

At the sudden voice, all the gods of Olympus stirred.

The voice came from an empty space where no one could sense any presence.

“Are you really going to hinder me…”

But the seasoned gods who had fought in wars against the Gigantes and the Titans recognized the voice’s owner.

This invisibility, which perfectly eluded the senses of gods, was allowed only to one god…

“This is the Kynee…! The lord of the underworld!”

“I told you I would treat you well…”

“Uncle Hades!”

A dark-haired, dark-eyed god, holding an old, worn helmet, a spear, and a bident, appeared.

The male god, who appeared shabby due to his lack of adornment, had a very gloomy look and an exhausted expression, but no one could disregard him.

“Hades! Come to my side even now, and I’ll give you dominion over the sea, excluding the sky!”

“I don’t need that. Just stop the rebellion.”

Because he was Hades, an equal to Poseidon as one of the three major gods.

* * *

I barely made it in time.

It was fortunate that I hurried up to Olympus after hearing from Thetis.

If I had been a bit later, Zeus might have been exiled before I could intervene.

Where is Zeus?

“Lord Hades!”

“…Uncle! Uncle Poseidon has gone mad!”

“Phew… Did you come straight from the underworld?”

I could see the gods on Zeus’s side looking at me with expressions of relief.

Ares, why is your body covered in dust, and why is your sword broken…? Did you rush at Poseidon and get knocked down?

Meanwhile, Hera and Apollo, who were on Poseidon’s side, wore embarrassed expressions.

What? Did you think I wouldn’t intervene this quickly?

“Hmm…”

“Poseidon, do you want to fight me as well?”

When I pointed my bident at him, I could see Poseidon gritting his teeth.

If he could defeat me, the throne of the king of the gods would be within reach.

But Poseidon wasn’t foolish enough to do that.

A fight between Poseidon and me, in a place that was neither the sea nor the underworld, would end in a stalemate.

Even if I gained a slight advantage with the Kynee, he was still one of the three major gods.

But Hera and Apollo couldn’t possibly defeat all these other gods.

In terms of forces, Poseidon was clearly at a disadvantage.

If I handled Poseidon while the other gods subdued Hera and Apollo and freed Zeus, the rebellion would be over.

“Judging by the situation, it seems Zeus is imprisoned in that building.”

“How did you get here from the underworld…?”

“Thetis informed me.”

Hera, do you have any reason why I shouldn’t be in Olympus?

“No… Uncle Hades.”

“What.”

Apollo, wipe that expression off your face—the one you had when Typhon’s severed head was thrown into Tartarus.

The ferocious momentum that Poseidon had exuded like a stormy wave slowly diminished.

His trident gradually lowered toward the ground.

“Damn it… Fine. I’ll withdraw.”

“Poseidon!”

“What else can we do, Hera? Since we couldn’t exile Zeus before Hades intervened, it’s our loss.”

With a face as if he’d just bitten into a stone while drinking nectar, Poseidon stepped back.

Is Zeus imprisoned in that building?

As I entered, I found Zeus bound tightly by tough leather straps, reinforced with divine power.

When he saw me, his face lit up.

“Brother Hades, have you come to rescue me?”

“You’re making my life difficult.”

“No, if not for the surprise attack while I slept…”

The leather straps were cut by the bident, and Zeus regained his thunderbolt.

Thus, the rebellion on Olympus was quelled.

* * *

“Even with Poseidon always being so ambitious, how could you do this, Hera! And you too, Apollo!”

“I’m sorry, Father…”

“Silence! You will descend to the mortal world for a year and work as a slave under a human king! Poseidon too!”

With dark expressions, Apollo and Poseidon left Olympus.

Zeus’s eagle would monitor them to ensure they truly lived as slaves.

“And… Hera, you will wear an anvil around your ankle and shackles on your wrists for a year!”

“…Do as you wish.”

The fact that his wife’s rebellion nearly succeeded.

This enraged Zeus, and thunder roared continuously across the sky.

Mortals would tremble in fear, thinking, “Zeus is angry at us again…”

In reality, it was just the god of rape throwing a fit because his authority was threatened.

After fuming for a while and finally calming down, Zeus looked my way.

“Phew… And I must once again thank you, Brother Hades.”

“No, this wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t been so unfaithful to Hera.”

“Regardless, I can never forgive those who challenge my throne.”

Isn’t this just your own fault?

Though, admittedly, Zeus is more fitting as the king of the gods than Poseidon…

“If even your son has rebelled against you, perhaps you should reflect on your conduct…”

“Ahem! I never expected Apollo to turn against me…”

As I conversed with Zeus, the other gods began to gather here.

It seemed the cleanup of the building damaged by the rebellion was complete.

“Uncle Hades! We are truly grateful this time.”

“I didn’t expect you to appear on Olympus to help Zeus.”

“If the lord

of the underworld hadn’t intervened, we could have been in real danger.”

Many gods gazed at me with shining eyes, like chicks looking at their mother hen.

So, you’ve finally awakened and stopped despising the underworld, haven’t you, enlightened gods?

Now is the time to fulfill Hephaestus’s request.

With great satisfaction, I summoned my bident and showed it to them.

“Ah… That’s the weapon you held when you appeared without the Kynee…”

“I’ve never seen a weapon like it, but it seems extraordinary.”

“Hades, was that made by the three Cyclopes brothers?”

As expected, they were curious about the origin of my powerful weapon.

Then, I shall tell them all.

Unfortunately, Hephaestus isn’t here, but…

“This is a bident forged for me by Hephaestus, the world’s greatest blacksmith, who far surpasses the three Cyclopes brothers and is one of the twelve gods of Olympus. By the way, it has a very useful feature: I can summon it to my hand from a distance at any time. Unlike Ares’s sword, which broke in one blow, it is in no way inferior to Poseidon’s trident. After clashing with my prized invisible helmet, the Kynee, several times…”

Seeing everyone, including Zeus, staring blankly at my mouth…!

They must be quite envious of my bident.