“Wow…”
Keres’ reaction to Hades’ newly functioning work processing abilities was nothing more than a small gasp.
Well, I guess that’s all she could do besides just gasping.
With Hades analyzing the lives of souls about to be judged, summarizing their sins and good deeds, handling the judgment of hundreds of thousands of souls wouldn’t be too difficult.
However, even Hades wasn’t perfect in every way.
“Uh, this judgment seems a bit harsh.”
“Let me take a look… Ah, I see.”
Hades had punished a woman for stealing bread to feed her starving child by stoning her to death.
Other death gods might have shown some compassion and reduced the sentence, considering the mother’s motives, waiting for the child to arrive in the afterlife to pass judgment. But Hades didn’t have that kind of mercy.
“It’s good to make quick judgments, but this part is a bit of a problem.”
“Well, this system was created to assist you after all.”
I had sacrificed part of my divinity to create it, but I definitely didn’t intend to make it an independent god.
“Still, it’s fast, summarizes well, and will definitely be a huge help.”
“Yes, that’s right! With this guy around, even if just one of you is here, Hades can handle the work of three.”
Before, two out of three had to be present just to keep the afterlife running smoothly.
And the most crucial point…
“By using this guy to keep the trials going and inputting the results, Hades will actually learn from the trial outcomes.”
“Learn?”
“That’s right. Based on all the trial results, it will learn and get faster, eventually being able to manage the ever-growing human population. When that time comes, you’ll definitely praise me for creating Hades.”
“Is that so…?”
I nodded slightly. The human population hadn’t even reached hundreds of millions yet. But in a few thousand years when it reaches billions… it’s gonna get really messy.
Maybe a war will break out, and tens of millions will perish… No, that can’t happen. It absolutely must not happen.
I can’t allow such a horrifying war to occur.
Anyway, as time goes on, more humans will be born and die.
I was just preparing ahead of time.
“Anyway, if you could create something this good, I wish you’d done it sooner.”
“This was the result of ongoing research.”
I gazed at the black obelisk. A version of me without dragon horns and black hair, working busily.
It looked kinda cute.
“But will this Hades get tired or anything?”
“Since it’s my avatar, its power source is linked to me, so as long as I’m okay, it won’t run into any problems.”
Unless I cut the connection from my end.
And by using that connection…
[And like this, I can link my consciousness to Hades.]
When the me inside the black obelisk spoke, Keres was taken aback. Didn’t see that coming, did you?
[If there’s an urgent matter, just call me through Hades.]
“That’s pretty handy. Sometimes I’d like to ask the Goddess of Life’s opinion on certain judgments.”
[But don’t summon me for every judgment. Only if there’s a problem you can’t handle without me.]
“Got it. I’ll let the other two gods know.”
Good. Now I don’t have to worry too much about the afterlife.
With this, I’ve alleviated a huge worry… Un!
Awesome! Next, I’m going to further improve the automated prayer processing system for the Goddess of Life so I can delegate even more tasks!
Basically… the plan is to hand over all duties of the Goddess of Life! Bit by bit, if I keep dividing the work among my avatars… one day the world will just run itself without my intervention!
When that time comes! I can hibernate as much as I want without any issues! I could sleep for hundreds of years straight!
Eventually, I’d be free from at least some responsibilities.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
As Keres and I were running tests on Hades while helping with the soul judgments…
“Ah, found you.”
A different voice came from behind.
“I’ve been searching forever. Mom! If I hadn’t met Moros, I wouldn’t have known!”
“Sagarmatha…?”
“Yep, it’s me.”
What the?! Sagarmatha?! Why are you here?!
We had already passed the time we agreed to spend together! Even if I left early because of an obligation in the afterlife, the end date was already past!!
“One year. The time we agreed to spend together. But Mom left even before the year was up… You broke the promise!”
“No, the set date has passed, so that means it’s over, right?!”
“But Mom, you left in the middle! No matter how important the afterlife work was, you had promised me first.”
“Well, the affairs of the afterlife are extremely important for maintaining the balance of this world…”
“But you said you’d spend a year with me, Mom. That was an important promise. It’s not like you to break a promise.”
Ugh… I only left a few days early! And now I’m being lectured about it…
But it’s true. I didn’t fulfill the full time I agreed to spend with Sagarmatha. Hmmm…
“Ugh. So what do you want me to do?”
“One year. Stay with me again. That’ll be enough.”
“You came all the way to the afterlife just for that?”
“Yep. Because a mom’s job is the most important.”
Seriously, what a troublesome kid.
“Alright, I can’t really complain since I broke the promise first. I’ve pretty much wrapped things up here in the afterlife anyway.”
“Okay, then let’s go back, Mom.”
I sighed quietly as I watched Sagarmatha tugging at my arm, then turned to Keres,
“Since it ended up like this, I’ll leave the remaining matters related to Hades to you. Just give the other two a rundown on how to use it, and that should be enough. If anything comes up, call me through Hades.”
“Ah, yes. Goodbye…”
Keres could only see me off, perhaps a bit overwhelmed by Sagarmatha’s presence. I guess it’s understandable. To the dragon Keres, Sagarmatha, one of the dragon ancestors, would feel like a far more significant figure.
Leaving the dully staring Keres behind, I was swept away by Sagarmatha’s hold.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Nidavellir.
The grand dwarven city located deep beneath the massive mountain range surrounding the sacred Mount Sagarmatha.
A city where other races cannot enter without a proper invitation. I was strolling through the streets of this city.
The underground city was so brightly lit it was almost hard to believe it was underground. Illuminated by lights containing luminescent stones.
Such an unreal view that ordinary humans could never witness, even if they died and were reborn.
Oh, but this really wasn’t the time to be admiring the city’s scenery.
I referred to the signs around me and headed toward my target.
Building 11 on Road 75, southeast district. 75-11. Hmm, this must be it.
I took a deep breath in front of the sizable mansion, then grabbed the ring on the door and knocked.
Thud! Thud!
The metal ring and door collided, creating a loud noise, and after a brief moment, a voice came from beyond the door.
“Who is it?”
“Is this the house of Hwangdonggyeong?”
“A human? Why are you looking for the master?”
The wary voice owner. A pretty expected reaction.
Hwangdonggyeong. That dwarf who’s called “false gold” by those who despise him… was a dwarf involved in less-than-honorable dealings.
But he had amassed a gigantic fortune.
“Tell him an archaeologist has come to see him.”
“An archaeologist?”
“Yep, that’s enough.”
I said that and fiddled with the paper I had tucked into my pocket.
No need to show this. I had to pull it out when entering Nidavellir, but the paper—a testament to the favor I had done for Hwangdonggyeong—was something I couldn’t easily pull out.
For a stubborn dwarf who doesn’t take advice from others, especially a wealthy one, proof of kindness done to him is worth as much as a mountain of silver.
After a short time, the heavy door swung open.
“Please come in. The master is waiting for you.”
“Okay.”
I was then allowed entry into the grand mansion.
After passing through a corridor adorned with extravagant sculptures and artwork, I walked by a statue of a dwarf clutching a gigantic hammer planted into the ground.
Hmm, this hammer… the one I found! The Ground Crusher, a weapon that could be considered an artifact. How interesting to see it merely used as decoration for the statue of an ancestor.
Well, apparently, it was a precious heirloom crafted by Hwangdonggyeong’s ancestors. It probably can’t be used carelessly as a weapon, so displaying it makes sense.
I then passed through a slightly smaller door for humans and entered the room.
And,
“Ah, it’s been a while! Archaeologist! You’re still the same old frail thing!!”
“It’s been a while, Hwangdonggyeong.”
The old dwarf with a golden beard, Hwangdonggyeong, welcomed me.
Indeed, if I could rely on Hwangdonggyeong… could I find clues about Baal?
I don’t know. I really don’t. But I hope I can find them.
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