Chapter 63
After killing Medusa, Perseus was passing near Ethiopia when... he discovered a woman offered as a sacrifice to a sea monster.
The woman's name was Andromeda, and Perseus turned the sea monster to stone, rescued her, who was a princess, and became the son-in-law of Cepheus, the king of Ethiopia.
However, while Perseus and Princess Andromeda were about to hold their wedding ceremony, someone barged in with soldiers.
"Who is this upstart stealing my place! I am Andromeda's original fiancé!"
"Father-in-law...? What do you mean? Fiancé?"
"Ha! Don't worry about it, Perseus. That man agreed to sacrifice my daughter."
"I see. A coward who fled from the sea monster's threat and now comes late to seek power."
So Perseus, holding Medusa's head in his pocket,
prepared to take it out at any moment and shouted.
"All those on my side, close your eyes!!!"
"Hahaha! What nonsense..."
"Wha..?!"
When Medusa's head, which turns all mortals who haven't reached divine status to stone, was revealed in the hall.
All those who didn't close their eyes were petrified.
However...
"Fa... Father! Mother..."
"Father-in-law and Mother-in-law... Ugh.. I'm sorry..."
The Ethiopian king and queen, who closed their eyes too late, were petrified and met their deaths.
Greatly saddened, Perseus returned to the island of Seriphos and found King Polydectes threatening his mother Danae.
King Polydectes was terrified when Perseus, whom he thought had died by Medusa, returned.
"What...! You returned alive from Medusa? Don't lie!"
"See for yourself whether I'm lying or not!"
Thus, the king obsessed with women turned to stone and met his death, and Perseus brought his mother Danae.
"Perseus... Although your grandfather abandoned you because of the prophecy, he still misses you."
"Yes, Mother. I'll send a letter to Argos and meet him."
But his grandfather, Acrisius, abandoned the throne of Argos and fled in the night.
Perseus became the king of Ethiopia and Argos, with Andromeda as his queen.
The first thing Perseus did after becoming king and returning the borrowed divine objects to the gods was...
"I will sponsor the temples of the Olympian gods who helped me in the name of the royal family. Goddess Athena, God Hermes, and..."
"Your Majesty. However, there is no temple for God Pluto in our Argos."
"Then we should build one, shouldn't we?"
It was an act of repaying the gods who lent him the divine objects.
***
This is the underworld, ruled by me, Hades.
Since Medusa became a new god of the underworld, I ordered the believers to make a new statue of her.
And a few days later, when I listened to the mortal world...
"I thought Medusa was a monster, but the priests of God Pluto are telling a slightly different story."
"She was originally human but became a monster due to unfortunate fate and died...?"
"Is that the truth? I only knew her as a monster too."
"I don't understand it well either.. but God Pluto is no ordinary god, he must have understood the truth and restored her honor."
"Well... There's no reason for the god of the underworld to lie."
"So even the sad and unfortunate are rewarded in the underworld... Oh merciful god..."
It seems Medusa has slightly modified her story and conveyed it to the mortal world.
Did she think directly cursing Athena and Poseidon would harm me?
Anyway, my believers are half-doubting but trending towards occasionally praying to Medusa's statue as well.
The position of being one of the Big Three is very helpful at times like this.
A response came from Olympus saying it wasn't quite right to make Medusa a god, but...
I conveyed my opinion well through the messenger god Hermes. Probably.
"Tell Zeus to mind his own business and stop raping."
"Uh... Uncle Hades.. Should I convey that exactly?"
"...Do as you see fit."
Anyway, as Medusa's matter was coming to an end,
I heard a voice calling me from the mortal world, not from Thebes.
"...God Pluto..."
There aren't many ways to convey will to me when I'm not paying attention to the mortal world...
Is it from Argos? Is this Perseus?
Perseus, now a king, was building a huge altar and offering sacrifices to me while speaking.
As the king of two countries, the amount of burning offerings is enormous.
"God Pluto! I have built a temple to repay the grace of lending me Kynee, please send your priest!"
Perseus personally presided over the burnt offering on a high wooden platform.
Despite having many servants he could command, the hero conducted the ceremony himself.
"Your Majesty. This is something we should..."
"Ah, it's fine. I'll do it myself."
As I was watching his humble figure despite becoming king, I remembered the prophecy about Perseus.
It's a terrible prophecy that he will kill his grandfather,
but vague prophecies have many loopholes, so if I can alleviate his predetermined tragedy...
I can give a little advice.
"Tell Hypnos and Morpheus that I'm looking for them."
"Yes! Understood!"
***
Perseus, who was offering a burnt sacrifice to God Pluto in the underworld, felt a strange sensation.
His mind became momentarily hazy, and then he saw a winged young man standing before him.
"I am Morpheus, the god of dreams. I will now convey Lord Hades' message to you."
"...!! It's an honor!"
To Perseus, who knelt down, the god before him spoke with a mysterious air.
"Prophecies cannot be changed, but you may choose the path that leads to their outcome."
"...?"
Morpheus disappeared, leaving behind these puzzling words.
Prophecies cannot be changed, but one can choose the path leading to the process...
What does this mean? Aren't prophecies absolute fates that even gods can't change?
What exactly did God Pluto want to say?
Could it be... because of that prophecy about killing his grandfather?
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Are you alright?"
"Hmm?! What's the matter?"
"Huh? Your Majesty just fell asleep while standing!"
When Perseus looked around, the citizens and servants watching the burnt offering were murmuring.
They seemed confused about what had just happened to their king.
He quickly gathered his thoughts.
The hero's clever mind accelerated his judgment,
Zeus, watching this from Olympus, called upon Tyche, the goddess of fortune, to bestow a small blessing.
Athena, the goddess of wisdom, also understood the situation and shared a bit of her wisdom.
"...People of Argos!"
And... the hero who had been standing still in contemplation finally opened his mouth.
To mitigate the tragic fate given to him as much as possible.
"You all know why the former king, Acrisius, abdicated the throne!"
The numerous people gathered here whispered among themselves.
The prophecy involving Perseus and Acrisius was very famous, so many knew about it.
"As you know, there is an oracle that I will kill my grandfather, but just now I received an oracle from God Pluto, the lord of the underworld!"
"So Your Majesty falling asleep just now was..."
"Did Had... Pluto reward you for building the temple?"
"About that terrible prophecy...?"
The hall became noisy, but the king continued speaking, undeterred.
"The god's words were that while prophecies cannot be avoided, their process can be different!"
Everyone listened to the king's words.
"I... I swear by the River Styx that I will respectfully treat my grandfather Acrisius until he meets his end according to his predetermined lifespan, and just before he passes away... I will help him meet a peaceful rest by my own hands!"
!!!!
People clamored as if divine punishment had descended.
A vow by King Perseus, who had just ascended to the throne!
The absolute oath on the River Styx that even the high gods of Olympus cannot break.
If a human breaks it, they will be dragged to Tartarus after death.
Has the prophecy changed a little with this?
Wait a minute... What if the king can't keep his vow...?!
"Wa.. Wait! No.. No!"
Someone appeared from the noisy crowd.
He was a shabby old man, but somehow had a familiar face.
"How dare you carelessly swear on the River Styx...! What if you can't keep the vow..."
"Huh? Perseus! That's your grandfather...!"
"Mother, is that true?"
"Wait.. That person is!"
"The former king... King Acrisius?!"
Acrisius had secretly returned here, curious about his grandson's face,
and stepped forward as soon as he heard his grandson swearing on the River Styx.
"Are... Are you really my grandfather?"
"...You look just like Danae, who made a mistake.. The prophecy... No, why did you carelessly swear on the River Styx in the first place..."
"With mother's words and seeing how much you worry about me... Please come this way, grandfather."
"I'm sorry... Perseus..."
They embraced each other, savoring the joy of reunion.
Watching this, Danae burst into tears, and the people prayed at this sight.
"Seeing that nothing happened even though they met... Could this be!"
"Has the absolute prophecy... changed slightly due to the power of the River Styx?"
"Ah.. The gods are merciful. To witness such a scene..."
It's certain that Acrisius will meet his death by Perseus's hand, but now he will live comfortably to a ripe old age before heading to Hades' embrace.