Chapter 118: The God of the Sky, Uranus

Chapter 118: The God of the Sky, UranusThe Eagle constellation lies beyond the sky, far above the path where the chariots of the sun and moon travel.

In the dark expanse of the night sky, which gave me the strength to fight the Titans, Uranus is hiding.

“I understand. I wish you success, for the sake of Olympus.”

“…If the divine power attacks me, tell Zeus, he don’t need to help.”

If he is not friendly toward me, Zeus’s intervention might provoke him. I may have to be ready to take a few hits if necessary.

After the goddess of persuasion departed, I stood to gather my Kynée but hesitated.

I originally planned to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances, but… would the Kynée even work against Lord Uranus?

During the Titanomachy, Cronos didn’t detect my invisibility with the Kynée. However, it surely wouldn’t work on Lady Nyx or Gaia, and though Uranus is weakened, he would likely sense it…

Thud.

I set the Kynée back down. I also placed the Styx sword from my waist next to it.

If anything happens, I can summon my bident, so I’ll leave the other weapons behind.

I’ll be heading far beyond the night sky, so

I’ll need to ride Pegasus from Elysium to get there.

— Whinny!

I exited the underworld, mounted the winged horse Pegasus, and ascended into the sky.

My destination: the Eagle constellation, glittering in the night sky.

Whishhh—

The white clouds below me grew more distant as I flew higher.

The landscape below appeared tiny, and far off in the distance, I could see the palaces of Olympus.

Ah. I made eye contact with Zeus, who was watching me.

Was he concerned and keeping an eye on me?

Though Zeus might have wanted to handle this persuasion of Uranus himself, his position as the king of the gods meant he couldn’t act recklessly.

Beside him stood Hera, arms crossed, also watching this way.

Swoosh—

I turned my gaze away from Olympus as I neared the constellation.

Beyond lay the Orion constellation, which I had requested be placed in the sky, the dolphin that helped Poseidon woo Amphitrite,

and the constellations of Andromeda, the mortal princess Perseus rescued, as well as the Great Bear and Little Bear…

Sigh. Now that I’m up here, I can feel that Zeus’s power doesn’t reach this far.

Though Demeter is the current goddess of the earth, Gaia, the primordial mother, still holds the first claim over it.

And as I followed the gaze of someone watching me, I turned my head.

A girl who appeared to be in her teens, with white hair, was crouched in the dark sky, staring down at me with a divine presence.

She looked like an ordinary goddess just recently born, but…

“Are you Cronos’s child?”

The moment I met her expressionless blue eyes, I felt as though I was being hurled beyond the distant heavens.

Compared to Cronos, whom I fought during the Titanomachy, the difference in power felt vast. Slightly weaker than Lady Nyx…?

It’s difficult to gauge just by sight. After all, she’s a Protogenoi.

“Yes. I am Hades. Lord of the Underworld, it is an honor to meet you.”

Before me stood Uranus, the god of the sky.

* * *

Though I thought I’d gotten off to a good start,

the next words out of Uranus’s mouth were entirely unexpected.

“I see. I thought so. But thinking of you as that one’s child suddenly makes me sick.”

“…!”

Whoooosh—

At his gesture, a sudden storm of divine power rushed toward me.

A massive wind, flowing between the stars, surged forward. Can this even be called wind?

Uranus, the god of the sky, also symbolizes the order and harmony of the universe.

The power of the Protogenoi, who greatly influence the cycles of the world, is truly overwhelming.

Even the very space of the sky, where I stand, feels as though it is turning against me.

I cannot back down here.

This is surely a test from Uranus. I cannot afford to look weak now.

I am the ruler of the underworld, one of the three great gods who govern wealth and fairness.

Summoning my now-familiar weapon, the bident, into my right hand, I grasped it firmly.

As the black substance of the universe surged forward like a wave, I put all my strength into thrusting the spear forward.

■■■■■—!!!

An indescribable shockwave erupted in front of me.

My hand, which held the bident, trembled. Even though I was protected by the divine power of the underworld, the sacred beasts were howling in terror from fear.

The storm—or rather, the concentrated mass of power—dispersed and shattered, scattering glimmering fragments of light that dazzled my vision.

If this clash had happened on the surface, a terrible disaster would have befallen the mortals.

Whooo—

I retracted the bident and subtly lowered it.

Indeed, it was the right decision not to send another god.

As I caught my breath, I felt a gaze piercing into me.

The ruler of the sky looked down at me, no longer attacking.

In those eyes—no, her eyes—there was a faint hint of curiosity.

"You used considerable power, and you even protected that beast you're riding."

So, it really was a test.

"You have earned the right to stand before the sky. I assume you came here because you have something to say to me?"

I sent the unconscious Pegasus back to the ground with a gust of wind and slowly pulled out a feather from my pocket.

Holding out the black feather Nyx had given me so it would be visible, I began to speak.

“We are currently opposing Gaia, who incited your child to rebel. We sought the assistance of Lady Nyx, and she said that if I brought a token from you, she would be willing to help us.”

“Nyx's feather?”

The space moved on its own, carrying the feather I held over to Uranus.

The Protogenoi observed it for a moment before speaking again.

“It’s indeed Nyx’s feather. You managed to bring her out.” Sёarᴄh the NôvelFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

//“It was thanks to her pity for us.”

//“Chasing out that wretched son Cronos was the right thing to do. Tartarus is the perfect place for a scoundrel who would do that to his father.”

A long time ago, Uranus, the god of the sky, had been ambushed by his own child, Cronos.

He lost his manhood as a result and fled, leaving behind a prophecy: “You too will be driven out by your own children.” That prophecy came true.

However, his severed manhood never regenerated,

and the fact that an immortal god’s body remained incomplete without recovering led to an identity transformation.

With his masculinity gone, his fall from the throne of the gods, and the generational shift, Uranus…

“When I first became like this, I was consumed with burning revenge… but over time, I realized revenge was impossible.”

In the end, Uranus had become a goddess.

* * *

Once the ruler of the world, now looking at me with a slightly softened expression and tone.

Would she agree to cooperate with us?

“It’s sad that I have to rely on youngsters like you, but humiliating Gaia is the only method available to me.”

Tuk.

She plucked a strand of her hair.

No, that was no longer her body. It was light, like the stars in the sky.

If you could visualize the material of the sky itself, it would probably look something like this.

A glowing thread of light drifted toward me. I gently caught it with both hands and tucked it into my pocket.

So, she wasn’t going to test me any further? It felt like things had ended a bit too easily.

Sensing my unspoken question, Uranus smirked.

“If Nyx doesn't intervene, only Gaia would benefit, and I have no reason to help Gaia.”

“…Thank you.”

“Now, go. Don’t bother me any longer. The sound of those kids searching for me has been annoying for a while.”

So, she had sensed the other gods searching for her.

Does that mean she deliberately showed herself to me?

“Thank you, Lady Uranus.”

* * *

Before descending back to the underworld, I stopped by Olympus to report that I had obtained a token from Uranus.

“So now we can get Lady Nyx’s help?”

“Of course, she won’t step in directly to assist us. But if we wipe out the Gigantes and Gaia refuses to acknowledge us…”

“Ah, so that’s what this was for.”

“Exactly. Hermes. If we kill all the Gigantes and Gaia remains hostile, we’ll have no choice but to seek Lady Nyx’s assistance.”

As Hermes nodded, Zeus approached and placed a hand on my shoulder.

Seeing the flash of lightning in his hand before it disappeared, I could tell he had been torn about whether or not to help me during the clash with Uranus.

“…Olympus owes you a great debt, brother.”

A debt, huh? But for now, remove your hand.

“Hah. I’m a god of Olympus too, Zeus, so what are you talking about?”

“Hm? Right, right. You’re always in the underworld, so it just slipped my mind. Hahaha!”

As the conversation continued, sighs of relief came from all around.

Quite a few had been watching, nervous about my dealings with a Protogenoi. Even Hera was over there.

The queen of the gods met my gaze and spoke in a low voice.

“Now that we have Lady Nyx’s assistance, it doesn’t matter who we bring to the battle with the Gigantes, right? Perhaps Cadmus…”

“Ahem… Dear.”

“Zeus, be quiet. Hades, you wouldn’t stop me from assigning a task, would you?”

It does feel like the need for a hero has diminished now that I’ve persuaded Lady Nyx.

Perhaps that’s why she still harbors thoughts of killing Heracles.

“…Fine. A task about killing a monster or something seems fitting.”

It will be a fitting trial for someone who seeks to challenge the gods.