An emergency was declared among the Dark King’s closest aides.

As Hermes left the office faster than the north wind, Hades stood up abruptly.

Hydra and Thanatos also jumped from their seats to follow their superior.

Birthday, birthday.

According to Persephone’s calendar, her birthday was tomorrow. There was no proper way to prepare.

His hands and feet grew cold. His mind went blank.

How long had he walked without even darkness?

“…Wait.”

As if suddenly remembering something, Hades turned to Hydra and Thanatos.

“What exactly do you do on a birthday anyway?”

His subordinates all averted their gazes at once.

“A-actually, I don’t know. I’ve never celebrated one, and I don’t even know when I was born…”

[I don’t know either.]

Hades had lived for several thousand years, and Thanatos was a god who had lived even longer than that.

Moreover, Hydra was a monster rather than a civilized being, so the concept of ‘birthday’ was extremely vague to all of them.

Hades’ expression darkened even further. Thanatos hurriedly added.

[Is a birthday even that important in the first place? I don’t really understand.]

“Then why did you follow me here?”

[I just followed because everyone else was going.]

Hades took his eyes off his two subordinates who immediately started bickering. He stroked his chin and spoke.

“Persephone will be spending the birthday she always celebrated with Demeter ‘of all places’ in the underworld this time.”

Hydra and Thanatos froze like statues in their places.

“Yes, in this place full of air so damp or dry you can’t tell which, gloomy without Lady Hemera’s blessing, she’ll be spending her birthday…”

Hades’ shoulders slumped.

“Do you all understand what this means?”

Thanatos nodded.

[Then I’ll go to the surface. It seems humans are dying again.]

“Right. Thanatos, go to the surface.”

Hades nodded towards Hydra, who had a determined look in her eyes.

“Hydra, you come with me to the warehouse.”

[This is the timeline separator]

The massive warehouse deep underground was in a completely separate location from the palace due to its size.

Hades and Hydra decided to choose something there that could be a gift for Persephone.

“Lord Hades, will you be alright going in alone?”

“Yes. It’s fine.”

Hades was to search through the warehouse filled with all sorts of treasures, while Hydra was tasked with keeping watch outside in case anyone approached.

Hades took his gaze off the back of Hydra’s head and sighed as he looked at a pile of gold coins.

‘A birthday gift…?’

Ah, he had entered the warehouse, but still didn’t know what to do.

Persephone was only 20 years old, so he understood that her birthday was important, but they weren’t earth gods after all.

Persephone probably wouldn’t consider them as important as Demeter, so he thought she might not be as happy even if they gave her a gift…

‘Will this do?’

He had already given her gold coins. For a birthday gift, she’d probably want something more special, but he didn’t know if what he had would be enough.

Walking further in, he found things other than money, but most didn’t seem like useful gifts for Persephone.

Hades picked up a ring from a jewelry box and looked up in bewilderment.

Suddenly, his vision went black.

“…What.”

Before he could react.

Thwack, something struck Hades in the face.

“…Ugh.”

Hades slowly opened his eyes after removing whatever had hit his face.

His reaction was slow, perhaps because it had been so long since he’d received an unexpected attack.

Hades turned his head to identify what had dared to attack him.

‘…A gold bar?’

It was a massive gold bar.

Putting aside where it came from for now, did this just fall on his face?

Just as Hades looked up at the ceiling in disbelief, he caught sight of something.

Pink hair swaying like the wind appeared at the edge of his vision.

“…Persephone?”

There was a hole in the broken tile ceiling, and at the very top of that hole, Persephone was staring down – specifically at him – with a shocked expression.

“…Uh…”

She stood frozen in place, unable to make a sound.

She was holding something shiny in her hands…

‘Gold coins? Jewels?’

Whatever it was, it looked valuable.

Hades furrowed his brows in confusion as he looked at Persephone, then spread darkness from his fingertips like a spider web.

He wrapped the darkness around Persephone’s ankles and arms, then carefully pulled her down onto the darkness as if laying her on a bed.

She began to struggle wildly in midair.

“It’s alright, it’s okay. I won’t let you fall.”

Hades soothed her as he brought her down into the warehouse and looked at Persephone directly.

“…”

She smiled at him as if painted and looked back at Hades. Persephone tilted her head and asked innocently.

“What’s wrong?”

“No, I was wondering how you came to drop a gold bar through a hole in the ceiling.”

“…”

“Did you perhaps make that hole in the ceiling?”

Persephone’s shoulders jumped at Hades’ question. For a moment, her neck shrank like a turtle’s.

Persephone straightened her bent back and said in a quite confident tone.

“I fell while digging a well.”

“…”

“So… I was piling up gold bars and coins like stairs to escape from here. I was throwing away the gold bars I had brought up to that well.”

She raised her index finger and smiled brightly.

“…I see.”

Although there were some awkward parts, Hades generally accepted it.

In fact, if it were any other time, he would have been suspicious for a sufficient amount of time, but now he didn’t have the leisure to do so.

“I’ll block that hole, so try digging a well somewhere else. Alright?”

“Ah, Lady Hemera said she would block the hole. I’m sorry for always causing trouble.”

Persephone bowed politely.

It was then that Hades was about to send her back to the surface.

“But why the sudden ring?”

Hades’ face stiffened.

Persephone, who had been looking around as if distracted by the splendid treasures, pointed to the ring in her hand.

“Did you wear jewelry like this, Lord Hades?”

His pupils dilated slightly at her sharp observation.

“…Wait, don’t touch it.”

Flustered, Hades grabbed Persephone’s hand with darkness. When she looked up at him as if to ask why, he hastily made up an excuse.

“It belongs to the dead. There might be an unresolved curse on it.”

Of course, it was a lie. This wasn’t a burial good, but a new item.

“…!”

However, it seemed to work well on Persephone. She let out a silent scream and fluttered.

“T-then why are you holding such a dangerous thing, Lord Hades?”

“I’m fine—”

“No, and where is this place anyway?”

Persephone, her eyebrows drooping helplessly, made a fuss as if she wanted to leave this place right away. She pointed to the large bronze door.

“Um, is that the exit?”

“Wait, so—”

“Even if it’s you, Lord Hades, you shouldn’t stay in such a gloomy place for long. You might get cursed and turn into a mushroom. Let’s go out together.”

Persephone started pushing Hades’ back.

…Good heavens, an even bigger problem had occurred!

If Persephone and he left the warehouse together like this, how would Hydra look at him?

”You were ‘alone’ in the warehouse? Ah, I see. Yes, Persephone must have fallen. Did she look like an angel with fallen wings? You know, like Yahweh’s messenger. Not like that, you say? Yes, I understand…’

Imagining the worst possibility, everything before his eyes, in his mind, and in the future turned dark.

‘Urgh…’

Hades tried his best to put strength into his feet and calves. As if that was his original body weight.

“What’s this, why are you so heavy? Did you eat a lot?”

“…No.”

“T-then, did you get cursed and become heavy…?”

Although he felt sorry for Persephone who was grunting and trying to push him, he swallowed his tears inwardly.

“P-Persephone.”

“This is crazy, we need to get out quickly— Yes?”

“Wait a moment.”

Think again, Hades.

Just now, he was at a loss for words and couldn’t answer in time, but.

‘As long as I don’t mention looking for a gift, it should be fine.’

His mind worked quickly.

If he just gave a plausible lie, they wouldn’t find out that they were looking for a gift for Persephone.

“A rat got into the warehouse.”

He opened his lips.

“I came here to catch it.”

At that moment.

“…A rat?”

Persephone’s breathing quickened.

She rubbed her arms as if getting goosebumps and moistened her lower lip with her tongue.

“Maybe, you know, it’s something cute like a squirrel… Could it be?”

“No, that’s not what I meant. I mean a thief broke in. I was looking for evidence of the thief.”

Persephone’s gaze hardened.

“…Oh, is that so?”

Her eyes, fixed so unnaturally that it felt unnatural, shifted to one side.