(Greek Mythology) The Abyss
Chapter Eleven
"Hemera, what are you doing?" Ether was startled to see his sister training so early in the morning.
"Training, huh?" Hemera glanced at her brother, puzzled. It was so obvious, why ask?
"..." It was precisely because it was obvious that he had to ask. Ether knew his sister better than anyone. She was the type to sit if she could, and lie down if she could lie down. Her ways of slacking off were endless. Now, she was actually training on her own initiative. He almost thought he was seeing things.
"Brother, is something wrong? If not, I'll continue training." Ether remained silent for a long time, and Hemera grew impatient.
"Uh... nothing, you can continue." He wasn't seeing things; Hemera really was training on her own. Ether thought he must have gotten up the wrong way today.
"My brother's acting so strange today. Did Father scold him again? He's always getting scolded, it's so pitiful. What can you do? Father and son are natural enemies."
Hermera, feeling she'd figured it out, decided not to bother her brother. As a good sister, she should understand his unusual behavior. No need for words of comfort; she believed that with her brother's mental fortitude and familiarity with these kinds of situations, he'd recover quickly. (Hey! Hermera, is it really okay to make such wild guesses?)
Staying in a state of utter shock, Ether couldn't concentrate for a long time, further convincing Hermera of her suspicions. "Sigh, my brother's just too honest. A few words from Father, why is he so sullen for so long?"
Ether, of course, had no idea what his sister was thinking. So, after her training, he simply wiped the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief and urged her to shower and change.
What a considerate and exemplary brother! Thumbs up for Ether!
"Is Hemera slacking off again?" The goddess of night, as elegant and beautiful as ever, approached slowly, asking her eldest son softly.
"No, I'm not slacking off! I just finished training!" The little girl, her hair still dripping wet, was quite dissatisfied with her mother's words, pouting and retorting, before her brother immediately pulled her down to sit and dry her hair.
"Oh, really?" Nix clearly didn't believe her daughter's answer.
"Mother, Hemera really did just finish training," her good brother Ether explained, standing by his sister.
Nix's beautiful eyes widened in surprise. She trusted her usually reliable eldest son; Ether would never lie.
"Mother, you're biased! You only believe my brother, not me!" Hemera felt wronged. Was her credibility really that low?
Nix picked up Hermella and held her in his arms, amusedly poking his daughter's chubby cheeks. "Our little Hermella's angry! Mother Goddess, please apologize. I shouldn't have doubted you."
"Mother Goddess, you have no sincerity at all!" Hermella complained, pulling her hand away from Nix and jumping down.
"And, I told you not to call me 'baby'!" Hermella was very unhappy with the nickname; it was so childish, wasn't it? She felt embarrassed every time she heard it.
"Okay, okay, I won't call you 'baby' anymore," Nix agreed with his daughter, smiling.
But do you really believe she won't stop calling him that? If you do, you're too sweet. Nix wouldn't let go of this opportunity to tease his daughter.
"Hmph," Hermella knew how much of that was just empty talk, and snorted in dissatisfaction, "I don't want to stay with Mother Goddess anymore, I'm going to Uncle's."
"Go ahead, be good when you get to your brother's, don't cause trouble." She then instructed her eldest son, "Ether, take good care of your sister."
"Yes, Mother Goddess, I will take good care of Hermella." Ether answered earnestly; he was also worried about his sister's careless nature.
Although Hermella felt confident in her ability to take care of herself, she wisely remained silent, waved to her mother, and took her brother's hand as they left.
Nix, watching his children leave, was puzzled. Why did his daughter seem to love going to her eldest brother's place so much? Ever since he brought her home after she got lost, she went there every now and then. It shouldn't be like this. She understood the admiration and respect; her elder brother was indeed exceptionally talented in every way. But given his aloof and reserved nature, he wasn't exactly the type to be approachable. How could they possibly communicate if they barely exchanged a few words?
If Hermella knew her mother's thoughts, she would proudly proclaim, "My male god is just that aloof!"
Although she wanted to say "goddess" more, that was clearly a recipe for disaster, and she wasn't about to be so reckless.
However, inside, Hermella was sobbing, biting her handkerchief. "My male god, do you have to look like this? How are we women supposed to live?"
"Hermella, what are you thinking about again?" Tartarus could tell at a glance that Hermella was overthinking again.
"Uh, nothing… Your Majesty, you must believe me, I'm absolutely not thinking anything." Hermella tried to convey her sincerity to Tartarus with her eyes.
Ether, standing beside her, had already turned her head away, unable to bear looking at her sister who was about to say something wrong.
"Oh, I see." Tartarus, who had been watching Hemera intently until she was about to jump up from her chair, finally responded leisurely.
::>_<:: My god, how could you be so wicked? Do you even know how heartbroken she is?
"Alright, stop looking like that. How long can you stay in this illusion?"
"...Waaah, Your Majesty, I'm so sorry, I still haven't met your deadline. Please forgive me." She rattled off a string of words without pausing, making Tartarus feel tired for her.
"Then you'll have to continue training. If you can meet the deadline, I'll grant your request." Tartarus promised.
"Really? I'll definitely do it!" Hemera suddenly perked up, resurrected on the spot, full of fighting spirit.
Ignoring her brother Ether's bewildered gaze, Hemera clenched her fists, a blazing fire seeming to burn behind her. For that, she would fight to the death, she would absolutely do it.
Chapter 11