Myth: The Ruler of Spirituality

“The remaining few, to varying degrees, rely on force, but he never once used force. That’s why I sent him out and promised him that within a thousand years in the outside world, the more satisfactory the answers he could bring me, the higher the reward I would give him.”

He poured himself a cup of tea and then drank it all at once. The Lord of the Nine Hells felt that perhaps this beverage was no worse than nectar.

“He told me that humans understand humans best. Although he is from the Silver generation and not of the same kind as Bronze Humanity, I reluctantly believed his explanation.”

“Let’s see then, what kind of answers he can give me, and whether he can win half of the realm from my hands as he claimed.”

…

“You are not of the Deity Race.”

The initial shock of their meeting had subsided, and irritation gradually surged in Keto’s heart.

Though the farther one was from Mount Olympus, the weaker the Divine Power one could wield, once calmed, Keto still discerned the true nature of the being before her.

However, the result was surprising to her. The other party did indeed possess divinity, but it seemed not to come from authority. To her, this power felt somewhat like that of a territorial god.

But she was certain she had never seen this kind of territorial god—not a River God or Lake God, not a God of Stars or Mountain God, but an unfamiliar presence, considerably stronger than those, yet seemingly being subtly rejected by the present world.

This sensation was a bit like the time Keto had crossed the sea’s edge, beyond the long river encircling the world, to a place outside the jurisdiction of the present world.

It was an incongruity, while not being hard-pressed, many of the powers of the present world seemed to not function well there.

“Of course, lady, I am not of the Deity Race. I was not in the past, am not now, nor do I plan to be in the future.”

He turned back with a polite smile, but seeing Mephisto’s smile, Keto felt he was mocking her.

Not a god, yet with a few words he deceived her—did that make him self-satisfied?

“So, are you mocking me, mocking the great child of the King of All Gods, Uranus of The Sky!”

The little remaining Divine Power surged, bearing down on Mephisto in front of her. But in the next moment, this special ‘territorial god’ blocked the probing attack.

Black mist swirled around him, dispersing slightly but not completely collapsing. He didn’t block it effortlessly, proving his strength was not strong, but he didn’t struggle too much either, indicating he did indeed possess a power close to that of a True God—even if only at Divine Power Level 1.

“Although I myself have not been born for long, but lady, the King of the Nine Hells recounted the past of the present world to me before I left.”

Turning around, Mephisto paused; he planned to persuade the goddess before him before continuing on his journey.

In the past, he used to discuss with old friends that given the chance, he might persuade a deity himself. Now, it was time to prove it.

“As far as I know, even in the last epoch, the King of All Gods had already changed. And Uranus, The Sky, never had you as his child.”

“If I’m not mistaken, whether it’s you or the lady beside you—you should—cough cough…”

Seeing the other’s expression as though she wanted to take action, Mephisto raised his hand, gesturing that they could change the subject.

“Hmm, in any case, on the day when the Divine King marries the Queen of Gods, you not only did not go to Olympus, but instead left alone. I’m afraid it has something to do with a certain deity who is about to arrive, am I wrong?”

“…Why can’t it be that I have a dispute with other deities of Mount of the Gods, or that I have something to do?”

Keto was certain that aside from herself and the Divine King, no one else could have sensed the birth of Aphrodite from halfway across the continent, so how did this fellow before her know what she was thinking upon their first meeting?

“The likelihood of the former is slim,” Mephisto shook his head slightly, composed, “After all, the deity invited by the Divine King would certainly have been notified earlier. If you had enmity with some deity before, you simply wouldn’t have come.”

“If the enmity had just arisen—excuse my frankness, madam, but you likely don’t have the ability to make an enemy on the Divine King’s wedding day, disrupt his banquet and leave unscathed afterward.”

“So the only possibility is that there’s someone who shouldn’t have been here but was invited on a whim, and she is probably someone you quite dislike, and fear.”

“As for the latter,” Mephisto blinked, smiling, “if you really had something to worry about, you wouldn’t have followed me here just because of my little test earlier.”

“…”

Before she knew it, her anger had subsided. Although it seemed like she was easily led by the other’s casual remark before, Keto now felt a stir of curiosity and expectation.

Since he could see things so clearly, daring to call her here must mean that he indeed had a way to help her.

“So who’s behind you, that ‘Lord of the Nine Hells’?”

“Among the principal gods with great divine power in current times, I don’t recall such an entity.”

The circle of gods around Chaos was not vast; a hitherto unheard-of deity suddenly emerging was theoretically implausible. Moreover, Keto didn’t believe that mighty divine power alone could transform a non-deity into a deity.

As for the Primordial Gods, even though the title ‘Nine Hells’ reminded her of Tartarus, all gods knew that the Abyss did not possess wisdom.

“Heh, as for the greatness of the Lord of the Nine Hells, I shall elaborate later. But now, there’s something we can do together, if you are willing,” Mephisto said smilingly, making an inviting gesture.

“Bronze Humanity, you’ve heard of it, haven’t you?”

“Yes, it’s the mundane matter the Divine King has been greatly concerned with recently.”

Nodding, Keto wondered why he would bring up such a topic.

“Then come along with me, let me show you why the Divine King is so attentive to them, and what secrets humans harbor.”

Although dissatisfied with the way he only ever told half the story, Keto was no longer the same as she was thousands of years ago.

Now, her wild side was greatly suppressed, and she had become more like a deity.

Moreover, she had to admit that what this mysterious being called Mephisto had to say was indeed tempting. Who wouldn’t want to know the secrets of the Divine King?

“You had better not be deceiving me.”

“I will be watching you!”

Uttering a cold threat, Keto knew without looking that he didn’t take it to heart.

And so, the three of them rose into the air once again, speeding toward the East.