King of Underworld-Chapter 185

Bearing envious, jealous, and bewildered gazes, we finally reached the throne room.

“Hehe. There are quite a lot of interesting people here in the Underworld.”

As Aphrodite flipped her golden hair and smiled, I felt countless troublesome thoughts rush into my mind.

She truly was beautiful. If I had left her on Olympus, war would have broken out eventually.

Bringing her to the Underworld, where there were fewer gods and where old gods like Thanatos had little interest in women, seemed a safer choice... But would she manage her work properly?

Well, if I left it to her for a few centuries, she would grow accustomed to it.

“The work you’ll handle in the Underworld is paperwork. It will feel unfamiliar at first, but you’ll get used to it over time, so don’t worry. Also, as someone mentioned earlier, do not eat any food from the Underworld.”

“Why shouldn’t I eat the food here?”

“Those who consume the food of the Underworld become bound to it. That is the rule. If the Goddess of Beauty and Love were to belong to the Underworld, it could cause strange misunderstandings for mortals.”

“What do you mean by misunderstandings? Why shouldn’t I be here?”

“It could make death itself seem beautiful.”

The gods who belong to the Underworld all have domains befitting its nature — death, sleep, dreams, oblivion, rage, hunger, and so on. From a mortal perspective, none of these are particularly pleasant.

But I understood this truth.

Death must not become familiar or attractive. Mortals march toward death as it is, but if they neglect the present and fixate only on the afterlife, the mortal world would fall into chaos.

This was precisely why I pushed away the Goddess of Beauty and Love.

“Hmph. Still, you could at least tell me what type of goddess you prefer, couldn’t you?”

“One who works diligently and devotes herself to only one god. Now that I’ve answered, take these papers and get to work...”

I could not let my personal feelings sway me into accepting her.

But how did things end up like this?

“Hades! There’s trouble. Another war has broken out in the mortal world!”

“What? Aphrodite, head to the Acheron River and bring order to the souls. Charon...”

Aphrodite adapted to the Underworld surprisingly well.

Though she occasionally grumbled and visited Olympus, and gods would frequently come to the Underworld to court her, she somehow managed to settle in with her natural charisma.

Did the Goddess of Beauty’s allure also affect other goddesses?

Whenever I saw her chatting cheerfully with Eris, the goddess who once looked at her with jealousy, I couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of discord.

“I heard the Goddess of Beauty and Love now belongs to the Underworld.”

“Does this mean death is beauty and love as well...?”

“Hey! Didn’t you hear Pluto’s oracle? The reason the Goddess of Beauty resides in the Underworld is to symbolize the love sent by the families of the dead in the mortal world.”

“Some say it’s Pluto’s mercy, bestowed upon souls passing through Charon’s ferry...”

“Hmm? I heard it symbolizes parental love sent by the merciful god to mortals?”

Of course, strange rumors spread in the mortal world as Aphrodite spent more time in the Underworld...

But I managed to suppress them with oracles. Fortunately, Pluto’s image in the mortal world wasn’t entirely negative.

Perhaps these rumors even served to soften the fear of death.

One day, after finishing paperwork and resting on my throne, Aphrodite approached, her chest slightly exposed.

Had I grown used to her presence? My gaze instinctively lingered on her seductive movements.

“Hehe. Do you still not find me appealing, Hades?”

“...Ahem.”

The Goddess of Beauty leaned close, brushing my face with the fingertips she had touched her lips with.

I couldn’t find the words to reply. Perhaps it was the soft, full curves of her body pressing against me, or the bond that had naturally formed from working together all this time.

In truth, I might have been captivated by the fact that, while rejecting countless gods, she showed this side of herself only to me.

If the most beautiful goddess in the world were to gaze at me alone, who could possibly refuse her?

“Hm~ Hades? Why so quiet all of a sudden? Have you finally started to appreciate my charm?”

“...Get back to work.”

“Hmmph...”

I gently pushed her shoulders back, and she pouted her lips with a faint whine.

Staring at her complicatedly, I spoke.

“When Ares proposed to you, why did you reject him? Ares would make a decent husband.”

“Well... The God of War is handsome and strong, but he’s just not as good as you, Hades.”

“There were many gods who wanted only a single night with you. Frankly, I found it surprising.”

When word spread that I hadn’t married Aphrodite and merely made her assist with the Underworld’s affairs, countless gods visited.

They offered gold, treasures, divine beasts, and even artifacts of divine power to spend just one night with her...

“Why?”

“I simply didn’t expect the Goddess of Love to refuse being loved.”

Yet Aphrodite had consistently turned down all of their advances.

She adamantly declared that she only had feelings for me and rejected them all.

She even avoided eating the food of the Underworld as I had advised, instead regularly bringing nectar and ambrosia from Olympus.

Over the centuries, some began to call her a foolish goddess clinging to an impossible love, but she never wavered.

This chapter is updat𝓮d by freēnovelkiss.com.

“...What value do I have for you to go this far? You could choose any god.”

“But the god I want to love won’t accept me.”

She crossed her arms, her posture emphasizing certain curves that made it hard to know where to look.

“And there’s one more reason. It’s actually the most important one.”

“What?”

“You once said you preferred a diligent goddess who devotes herself to only one god.”

“What... Did you remember that?”

“Of course! I am Aphrodite, the Goddess of Beauty and Love. When I choose love, I will always see it through to the end!”

Watching her puff out her chest proudly and smile, I was left speechless.

From the very moment we first met, all the way until now... Had her thousands of years of work in the Underworld been part of this effort?

Had she avoided eating the Underworld’s food all this time just to stay faithful to her love for me?

“A Goddess of Love who gives up on love does not exist. Ever.”

Smiling softly, Aphrodite reached for a bunch of grapes nearby.

With a light plop, she picked one grape and placed it between her lips, slowly walking toward me.

Wait. That grape wasn’t from Olympus — it was food from the Underworld.

One step. Then another.

The playful goddess drew closer, her face nearing mine, until her breath brushed against my skin.

And then, she kissed me.

Between our softly touching lips, the grape rolled, back and forth, making its presence known.

“...Hmph.”

Would I swallow the grape, or let her eat it?

In this moment, I could feel the depth of Aphrodite’s love, her earnestness accumulated over the years.

Indeed, she truly was the Goddess of Love.

Was the sweetness I tasted because of the grape?

Or the heated air in the throne room, charged with a new atmosphere?

Or perhaps... the love carried by Aphrodite’s kiss?

Either way, I didn’t mind.

As the kiss, short yet infinitely long, ended, Aphrodite swallowed the grape.

Her face, flushed red, clearly showed she was waiting for something.

Gulp.

“Oh dear. It seems I’ve eaten the food of the Underworld.”

Seeing her hopeful gaze, I couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly.

So this is how it would be. Ares had once come to me for advice on how to win her over. My apologies, Ares.

“Now I have no choice but to live here forever... Is there any lonely god who will take responsibility for this poor goddess?”

“Well... There just so happens to be a lonely god of the Underworld here. If someone like me is good enough, then so be it.”

Before I could finish, Aphrodite leapt into my arms.

Fwoosh.

“I love you, Hades!”

“I love you too, Aphrodite.”

It seems I’ll need to set a date for our wedding.