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————————— Hades's POV —————————
After years of silence, pain, and endless darkness, I had finally found someone within that living prison.
She stood in the small cave, a strange light cradled in her hands, her presence soft yet steady.
My heart—no, my very essence—stirred. I did not know her, yet something deep within whispered that her presence was familiar. Like a name forgotten at the tip of the tongue, or the scent of a home once known.
A thousand questions swirled in my mind.
Who were you? Why were you here? Why did I feel this pull toward you?
But when I opened my mouth to speak, the words would not come. My voice cracked—low and broken—barely more than a grunt.
Years of silence, of screaming into acid and loneliness, had dulled my ability to speak and reduced me to something closer to a beast than a god.
Frustration tightened in my chest. So many thoughts, so many emotions, trapped behind a wall I could not yet break.
She held warmth in a world that knew only pain, and her gaze made me feel like I was not merely a monster struggling to survive. Still, all I managed was a strained voice, rough and awkward.
"Y-you… who…?"
It sounded pathetic. Primitive. Barely human. But it was all I had.
She did not laugh. She smiled softly.
"I know you have many questions, but first, come sit and let your body rest a little."
I hesitated, still guarded, but the gentleness in her voice disarmed me. Slowly, I stepped forward and sat across from her, the warm light between us casting a faint glow on the cave walls.
It was then that I truly became aware of myself and my appearance. The acid had long since burned away anything that could be called clothing. I was completely naked.
Instinctively, I curled forward, both hands quickly covering my groin. Embarrassment surged through me like a wave of heat. I looked away, my expression tense, unsure how to deal with this unfamiliar vulnerability.
She noticed.
She smiled with understanding and gracefully extended her hand. Divine energy shimmered from her palm—pure, gentle, and radiant.
In moments, it twisted and wove itself into fabric, forming a white chiton, light and soft as a breeze, appearing from nothing.
I stared in awe. She had created something from nothing, breaking every law of physics I had once known. Then I remembered—this was not Earth. This was another world, a divine realm. The girl before me—no, the goddess before me—was not bound by human rules. This was normal here.
I was the strange one.
She handed me the chiton with a kind smile.
"Here. You will feel more comfortable."
Clumsily, I took it and tried to wrap it around myself. The fabric was soft and warm, but I had no idea how to wear it. In this life, I had never worn clothes. In my previous one… nothing like this. After several awkward attempts, I managed to drape it around my waist and shoulders in a way that preserved at least some dignity.
She watched quietly—not mocking, just patient.
"First, let me introduce myself properly," she said. "I am Hestia, goddess of the hearth, home, and bonds."
"Daughter of Cronus and Rhea…" Her gaze lowered, sorrow written across her face. She faltered for a moment before continuing, "…and your elder sister." She placed a hand gently on her chest, as if steadying herself, her words carrying both pride and quiet sadness. "And you?"
My throat was dry, my voice strained, but I managed to answer in a broken tone.
"H-Hades…"
Her eyes softened at the name, and for the first time in that wretched, acid-ridden hell, I felt not pain—but family.
As we sat together, the tension slowly melted away. We began to talk, clumsily at first, like learning to walk again after being broken for so long. My speech was fragmented and slow, but with every sentence, every shared word, it began to return. My thoughts grew clearer. The numbness faded. And my voice—my voice came back.
I started asking her everything.
"What was this world? Who—what were we really? What was divine energy? What were the laws here? The customs? The history?"
Like a flame that never flickered, she answered patiently and openly, with no hint of annoyance.
She explained divine energy—how it was primordial power from which the universe itself had formed, and how every divine being was born with it. She spoke of the sacred customs of the Cosmos, of our parents Cronus and Rhea, and of the balance that had been shattered by fear.
She told me why we had been swallowed.
And I listened—truly listened—for the first time in what felt like centuries.
As I gathered the knowledge my sister shared, I noticed something unsettling.
The memories of my past life were fading.
I could no longer remember my name from that world, the face I once wore, or the people I might have loved. My identity—who I had been—was slipping away like a dream forgotten upon waking. The fragments of Greek mythology I once knew, the stories that had guided my choice when Kaos offered rebirth, were mostly gone, reduced to faint, blurred echoes. I remembered the name Hades, but not the god's full tale. Not his rise. Not his fall.
Yet not all was lost.
I still retained fragments of modern knowledge—science, logic, and practical skills—that clung stubbornly to my soul.
My body was now divine, molded by power and energy, but my mind still held pieces of a human shaped by another world.
As Hestia continued to speak, full of grace and divine wisdom, I quietly layered her teachings with what I still remembered. This world was not bound by the laws of my old one—but understanding both could give me clarity, perhaps even an advantage.
As our conversations deepened over days and weeks, Hestia taught me about the hierarchy of divine existence.
According to her, all beings in this world were categorized in ascending order:
Mortals:
The lowest tier—humans and other sentient beings without divine essence.
Demi-humans / Nymphs:
Partially divine or nature-bound spirits. Nymphs, satyrs, and beings with partial godly ancestry or spiritual origin. They lived far longer than mortals and possessed minor magical or elemental abilities.
Low-Level Gods:
Newborn gods or those without fully awakened godhood. They possessed divine energy but lacked control and understanding, often bound to vague or limited concepts.
Mid-Level Gods:
Beings capable of influencing specific natural forces, emotions, or domains in limited ways.
High-Level Gods:
Gods of elite strength with a refined understanding of their divine roles. Many ancient mythic figures belonged to this tier.
Chief Gods:
Gods who held authority over a specific domain. Their godhood was unique and tied to a governing force, making them recognized leaders within divine society.
God Kings:
Rulers among the gods. Their domains were either supreme—governing multiple related domains—or absolute, granting total control within their boundaries.
Primordial Gods:
Not beings, but concepts given form. Time, chaos, darkness, creation, destruction—these entities were their domains. They were never born and could not die in any conventional sense. They existed before the world and would endure after it.
At that time, I was only a low-level god.
But I would rise through that hierarchy.
And I would claim my rightful place.