Chapter 109
The stern gaze directed at her.
The dignity emanating from the lord of the Underworld and king of the dead.
Dike, kneeling before Hades, the king of the Underworld, thought.
That only the god before her was qualified for the divine status of fairness.
Naturally, in her eyes that could discern good and evil, not many gods were given such qualification.
Regardless of high or low positions, most gods had self-centered and arbitrary thinking.
There were frequent cases where they showed mercy one day, but became angry the next day claiming their divinity was blasphemed.
Since gods generally maintain the personality they were born with unless something extraordinary happens... mortals had to suffer endlessly.
Needless to say, unfairness was rampant even among gods themselves according to the logic of power.
Only a few gods, including Goddess Hestia, consistently showed mercy.
On the other hand...
A remarkable character, or rather divine nature, standing out among the many capricious divine beings who were like natural disasters.
Instead of bullying mortals, he showed the aspect of a chief god who admonished gods and upheld justice.
Mortals sing of his mercy, as his hand reaches not only the dead but also humans in the living world.
Isn't Hades the one who receives faith comparable to Lord Zeus, with his mercy widely known on earth?
Surely, if Lord Hades accepts her, she would be able to spread justice in the world much more than now.
***
"I, Dike, the goddess of justice, request to follow the lord of the Underworld and god of fairness."
I couldn't answer easily.
First, because I felt the weight and responsibility contained in Dike's words.
As the goddess of justice, she chose to borrow my power as a way to uphold order.
Certainly, if Dike becomes my subordinate deity, even the high-ranking deities of Olympus would restrain themselves in my presence.
As the goddess of justice, she also partly oversees the concept of fairness.
But she wants to transfer that concept to me and enter as a subordinate deity...
It's not difficult to accept one lower concept, not making a mortal into a god, but for me who is already one of the Big Three.
It's not a power that doesn't suit me, nor a position I can't handle.
She has the justification. I agree as well.
It's not a bad judgment to become the backing for the goddess of justice.
However...
"Do you think I'm qualified to be the god of fairness?"
"Pardon? Of course..."
"When humans started calling me the god of mercy at some point, I remained silent. Because it meant that the gods were that harsh to humans."
I suppose the little mercy I showed resonated greatly with them.
However, I think the divine status of fairness is a bit different.
"I'm not perfect enough to oversee the concept of fairness. Do you know how many mistakes and wrong judgments I've made while judging souls? I always regret and constantly worry. The god of fairness you're thinking of surely isn't like this."
"But, Lord Hades, don't you always strive to make fair judgments?"
"......"
"There can't be a perfectly fair god, but isn't Lord Hades the one who strives to pass perfectly fair judgments on mortals?"
Certainly. I think I had a similar conversation with Goddess Lethe.
Although only Dike and I are in the audience chamber now, I seemed to hear an auditory hallucination of Goddess Lethe speaking to me.
What she said to me as I strived to make the fairest judgments possible...
Isn't it natural that Hades isn't Chaos, the primordial god?
My heart feels a bit heavy. Of course, she might have the purpose of receiving my protection...
But as the goddess of justice, she must be doing this because she thinks I can fulfill the duty of fairness.
Deities have the responsibility to maintain the balance of the world and fulfill their assigned duties.
Can I also manage well the aspect of fairness... not just the aspects of the Underworld, wealth, or mercy?
I closed my eyes and fell into thought.
As I immersed myself in thought without paying attention to anything else, I naturally heard the voices of believers in the living world calling me.
I could have chosen not to listen to the believers' voices, but I just quietly listened to the sounds coming in.
The place where the most voices were heard was, of course, Thebes.
Then Argos and Ethiopia, and the kingdom where Psyche was...
"Great God Pluto! We beseech your mercy!"
"May our son who died on the battlefield be happy in the Underworld..."
"Thanks to your grace, I was able to amass this wealth, so I'll offer 20 cows as sacrifice!"
"Thanks to the mint that the God of Mercy sent to the living world..."
"Pluto, please protect me..."
"Oh god... I've been wronged. Please resolve my grudge."
"I swear to Pluto, I really didn't commit any crime!"
Humans praying to me in all sorts of situations.
There were those who called me as the god of wealth, but lately, more people have been seeking my merciful aspect.
That's understandable... This is a world with mythical monsters, absolute royal authority, and gods with human hearts.
The only thing powerless humans can rely on is gods, and only those gods who are somewhat favorable to humans.
How pitiful. How sad.
***
After some time passed, I opened my eyes again and looked at the goddess of justice.
"I still think I'm not suitable for the divine status of fairness."
"Ah..."
The goddess of justice drooped her shoulders with a mixture of disappointment and sadness.
But my words weren't finished yet.
"However..."
"...?"
"I'll trust your judgment to uphold justice to the end in this world."
"Does that mean...?!"
"I'll accept the divine status of fairness you proposed."
Her face brightens again. Hmm. Even if she's that happy.
Won't she regret it after working in the Underworld for a few days?
As I accepted the divine status of fairness, I felt various powers and abilities arising.
Unlike the divine status of mercy that was naturally called upon by humans, this was similar to a transfer of divine status.
"Thank you! Lord Hades! As expected, a judgment befitting the god of fairness...! From now on, if you order me to do anything..."
"Then start with this first. This much is expected of gods belonging to the Underworld."
"...?"
Thud.
I handed over a pile of parchments that were stacked right next to me.
Is this too little for the capable goddess of justice? Maybe I should add a bit more...
"Lord Hades...? What is all this?"
"Hmm? Can't you tell by looking? The parchment on top is a report reviewing the Underworld's financial status and offerings sent by believers..."
"No, that's... there's more work than I thought..."
"More work? That's just the afternoon's worth. And that's much less compared to what's been processed by lower gods before being reported to me."
"......"
Clang-
The sword and scales fell powerlessly from the hands of the goddess overseeing justice.
It seems she has no hands to receive them as she's fully holding up the parchments I gave her. She should just float them in the air...
"By the way, when you finish all that, stop by Goddess Styx to receive new work."
"......"
A dark cloud appeared on Dike's face, which had remained expressionless even when seeing any injustice.
***
At Hades' temple in Thebes.
The high priests were seen bustling about suddenly from the morning.
"An oracle from Lord Hades has come down to the High Priest?!"
"What kind of message did he give this time...!"
"Could it be that he's giving us a plant like mint again, like last time?"
They rushed to the High Priest's room to hear the content of the oracle, then quickly left the temple and moved in all directions.
The reason was...
"Lord Hades said that the goddess of justice, Lady Dike, now belongs to the Underworld!"
"What?! Why is the goddess of justice in the Underworld...!"
"Anyway, since that's the case, we need to make a new statue of the goddess quickly! Call a sculptor and get high-quality marble..."
Some priests went to the scholars and the palace to explain the change.
The rumor spread instantly throughout Thebes...
The discussion about the mistress of the Underworld that was happening in front of Hades' temple turned into a debate about divine status.
"The goddess of justice in the Underworld...?! Can anyone understand what this means?"
"I think we should accept the oracle as it is."
"Then... does this mean justice belongs to the domain that God Pluto oversees?"
"Since Pluto is the god of mercy, it's not strange."
"But justice can't be under mercy? Something's odd. The divine status of Pluto that we knew..."
"Then could it be... judgment and fairness?"
"If it includes the divine status of justice, could it be that he oversees the law?"
After discussing for a while, they reached a new conclusion.
It was because there was a case of a monster dying and being elevated to a goddess.
"Wait, don't we all know the story of Goddess Medusa?"
"The story of Pluto making Medusa, who was unjustly turned into a monster and killed, into a goddess?"
"When we go to the Underworld, don't we receive punishment for sins committed while alive, and rewards if we did good deeds or died unjustly?"
The citizens of Thebes gathered here thought.
Judging the dead fairly and justly, giving appropriate punishments and rewards, and mercifully caring for mortals...
"Then is God Pluto the god of justice, fairness, and judgment...?"
"...Actually, what if we assume that all these concepts are included in the concept of the Underworld?"
"Fair judgment awaiting at the final destination of mortals... That sounds right."
"Those who have sinned fall into Tartarus, so this is judgment, and the example of Goddess Medusa is fairness and mercy?"
"Somehow... don't the three goddesses of vengeance also belong to the Underworld!"
"Since judgment must be carried out fairly, the divine status of justice and fairness also..."
And so, once again from Thebes...
The rumor that God Pluto oversees justice, judgment, and fairness began to spread widely.
Surprisingly, there were hardly any people who expressed opposition or different opinions, because this newly discovered fact... matched with the actions of God Pluto they had seen so far.