(Greek Mythology) The Abyss of the Underworld
Chapter 82
"How interesting!!" Hermera's eyes sparkled as she looked at the chair woven from vines, curiously pressing it a few times; it seemed quite sturdy.
After poking at it on the left and pressing it on the right, satisfying her interest in the vines, Hermera ran around wandering about, plucking leaves here and picking flowers there amidst the magical-looking plants, thoroughly enjoying herself.
Thanks to the eternal youth of the gods, Hermera appeared as a teenage girl; if one didn't overthink it, she could be considered innocent, lively, and adorable.
Otherwise… considering that Hermera's daughter, Thalassa, was already so grown up, her hopping and skipping around like this, pretending to be young, would be completely jarring.
Tartarus watched silently, showing no reaction to Hemera's ruthless behavior and feigned innocence. In a sense, Tartarus was quite indulgent towards Hemera, ignoring his occasional mischievous glints.
After all, a silly, adorable girl like Hemera, with her inherent comedic appeal, was truly rare.
"Hemera, you weren't scared to tears by the scene of humanity's extinction this time? That's surprising." While saying this, Tartarus wasn't surprised at all when Hemera's previously smiling expression froze. Tartarus was immediately satisfied.
Sure enough, every time he saw Hemera so carefree, he couldn't help but want to poke at her sore spot, Tartarus thought to himself. (So, Your Majesty Tartarus, you just can't stand seeing others happier than you, right?)
"Your Majesty, can you please not bring up my embarrassing past? And what do you mean by being scared to tears by a scene of human extinction? I was clearly scared to tears by you back then!" Hemera inwardly refused to acknowledge her embarrassing past.
"I didn't scare you." Tartarus claimed innocence, stating he was simply telling the truth; it was Hemera's fault for having such a weak constitution.
"Anyway, you made me cry." Hemera insisted on this point.
"It's as if I'm bullying a child."
"Your Majesty, compared to you, I've always felt all gods are children." Trying to ignore Tartarus's unchanging boyish appearance over billions of years, Hemera bravely uttered these words.
Ever since learning Tartarus's true age, Hemera felt she could no longer look directly at this truly ancient, monstrous, abyss god, born in the primordial chaos, much older than his younger siblings. Even his devastatingly beautiful face couldn't save her broken, bewildered heart.
"What am I? Chaos is the truly old one," Tartarus reminded Hemera of a god she'd forgotten.
Chaos, as the creator god, had an even lower profile than Tartarus. Even Hemera, one of the earliest second-generation gods, barely remembered him—quite pitiful, really.
"Is it really appropriate to call your father by his name behind his back?" Such insolence in private—be careful, your father might give you a good talking-to if he finds out. Hemera herself had never even considered calling her father Erebus by his name.
However, speaking of which, only Chaos has the qualifications and strength to teach Tartarus a lesson. The thought of Tartarus, who's always causing trouble for others, being troubled himself is quite exciting.
"I've addressed him by his name directly to his face too," Tartarus said, immediately shattering Hemera's illusions without hesitation.
Hemera stared at Tartarus with a look of utter disbelief. So unceremonious even before the creator god! Your Majesty, you're quite something.
Speechless at Tartarus's words, Hemera decisively continued her previous activity: admiring (and destroying) the plants (flowers).
"What kind of flower is this? It's so big! Is it a man-eating flower?" She circled a flower that resembled a lotus, but whose bud was taller than a person, and asked curiously.
"It's not a man-eating flower, it's a god-devouring flower." Tartarus gave Hemera a half-smile and explained.
"God-devouring...what does that mean?" Hemera's smile froze. Could it be what she was thinking?
No, how could there be a flower that could harm a god? She must be overthinking it, Hemera reassured herself.
Then she was proven wrong the next second.
"Literally, a god-devouring flower, a flower that devours gods. I think that's easy to understand."
It was precisely because it was so easy to understand that she couldn't believe it, Hemera silently thought, while quickly moving away from the flower. Although it looked delicate, "god-devouring" sounded incredibly ferocious—no, far too ferocious.
In Tartarus's explanation, the god-devouring flower was a giant flower that specifically devoured gods. Although the gods who were swallowed only had their divine power absorbed, it was still terrifying enough.
Because this flower possesses high resistance to both physical and magical attacks, once trapped within it, escape is nearly impossible. One can only watch helplessly as their divine power is absorbed until it withers away, leaving them no different from a mortal except for their remaining divine essence.
The arrogance of gods stems from their immense power; therefore, for a god, losing power is far more painful than death.
"Ugh, it's incredibly ferocious! Earth is terrifying! Mom, I want to go back to Mars! Σ( ° △°|||)︴"
"Has the Law gone mad? It actually allowed this flower to exist!" Startled by the God-Devouring Flower, Hermella blurted out without thinking.
The Law, who had been observing all along: ...This little one will remember you."
A hint of a smile flickered in his eyes. Tartarus glanced subtly at the void before speaking slowly, "To gods unfamiliar with the God-Devouring Flower, this flower is indeed dangerous, but once its weakness is known, it's nothing."
"What weakness?"
"It cannot absorb too much divine power in a short period. So, if a large amount of divine power is inputted into it at once, exceeding its own capacity, it will explode and die. Most gods can do this." He paused, then continued, "And, it's ticklish."
Yes, the God-Devouring Flower has a rather endearing weakness: it's ticklish. In the very center of the flower is a slightly lighter-colored area. Scratching this area will make it unbearably itchy, causing it to spontaneously open its petals.
Hahaha…no…ha…okay…I'm dying of itchiness! The intense mental fluctuations perfectly reflected the God-Devouring Flower's current miserable situation.
As Tartarus moved his hand away, the Devouring Flower immediately closed its petals, the entire flower tilting away from Tartarus.
"Interesting, isn't it?" Tartarus smiled, clearly in a good mood.
Hemora, still stunned by the series of events, nodded subconsciously after hearing this.
The Law, having witnessed the entire process from a godlike perspective, was speechless. Tartarus, you're becoming more and more childlike. Is it fun to bully a flower?
Looking at the plants that were practically driving him crazy with stupidity, and then at Hemera, the Law seemed to have discovered something extraordinary.
Either you're exceptionally intelligent, or you're refreshingly stupid. Tartarus, are your standards really that extreme?