The moment Hades declared he would catch the thief.

Persephone’s hands became drenched with tension.

‘Oh, what should I do…!’

Hades came to the warehouse to catch a thief?

Surprisingly, that thief was right here!

Persephone screamed “Ahhh!” in her imagination while grabbing her head.

‘I thought I’d just discovered a treasure trove like a shipwreck!’

The gold coins in the leather pouch still on the ground tantalizingly flashed before her eyes.

[This is the timeline separator]

The detailed circumstances were as follows.

Persephone, wanting to somehow repay Hades who adamantly refused compensation, decided to use a trick.

It was to give him a gift on his birthday.

Think about it. Giving a gift on a birthday is ambiguous to count as ‘repayment’, isn’t it?

On one’s birth day, they should naturally be congratulated, and it’s a day when others give gifts to the birthday person, separate from repayment.

【Hmm, Hades would have an early summer birthday.】

Persephone asked Hemera and learned that Hades had an early summer birthday.

Knowing that it was just before early summer now, she made plans to somehow give Hades a gift on the first day of early summer – unfortunately, she couldn’t know the exact date.

The gift she would give was relatively simple. It was a honey cake.

However, wanting the simple honey cake to be even more delicious, she had been secretly experimenting with various ingredient combinations since the first day marked with a wedge.

But!

The first thing to consider when preparing such a gift, number one.

‘Never let anyone know you’re planning to give a gift!’

That was maintaining secrecy.

It couldn’t be found out by Hermes, Sisyphus, Hydra, Thanatos, and of course not by Hades.

Persephone even asked Hemera to keep the secret and sought her advice on other excuses she could use in the meantime.

Hemera thankfully pondered as if it were her own matter, and then…

【How about digging a well?】

She suggested a pretty good solution.

【They say plants need light, wind, and water to grow well…】

“Oh…”

【You don’t have water right now.】

Persephone thought Hemera was wise for suggesting such efficient work.

So on the first day, she decided on a location to dig the well, and continued digging down from there.

Of course, she told a white lie to Hydra who visited every morning that she was digging a well.

But while digging, marble appeared at the very bottom.

“Huh? What, why is it so hard… Ahhh!”

Not knowing it was the ceiling tile of the underground warehouse, Persephone broke it with her shovel.

“Wow, what is all this! This is crazy!”

When she fell through, inside was a treasure vault full of gold coins, jewels, and artifacts.

Mesmerized by the golden spectacle of treasure, she took a few things and escaped out of the well – or rather, the vertical tunnel.

【Oh my! What is that?】

“Evidence of exploring ancient ruins.”

【Where are there ruins here?】

Persephone proudly held out the treasure she was hugging.

“It was probably someone’s slush fund anyway.”

【S-slush fund?】

“Yes! And stealing – no, excavating such corrupt assets isn’t theft, it’s justice!”

【…I’m sorry, but those jewels belong to Hades. You should drop them back through the well.】

And so Hemera hurriedly sent her back to where she had dug the well, which was the whole story.

Yes, honestly, when she first discovered the gold and silver treasures, she was excited at the thought of stea- no, acquiring them.

But she now knew these belonged to Hades, and she had even broken the warehouse ceiling.

Whether she misunderstood the origin of the treasure or not, if her actions were discovered…

‘Wow, no matter how worldly I’ve become, this doesn’t seem right.’

Though explaining each misunderstanding might make her actions understandable, the other party was the one she wanted to give a gift to.

She greatly wanted to avoid giving any negative impressions before then.

She hoped the birthday person would purely enjoy receiving her gift without any ulterior motives.

Persephone wanted to show only her best side to Hades, who had given her so much.

This was also why she tried to hurry Hades out of the warehouse.

“Lord Hades?”

As Persephone anxiously stared at Hades, Hydra’s voice flowed through the gap outside the warehouse.

“Is someone there?”

“…”

Hades’ cold gaze fell on her.

His eyebrows were crumpled like sheets of paper, as if suspecting she might be that ‘rat’, which stung her heart, but…

“…No, there’s nothing.”

Fortunately, Hades spared her from a public execution.

Wow, truly the most merciful of the three major gods!

As Persephone bowed her head, swallowing a sigh of relief.

Hydra’s question was heard through the gap in the door.

“Ah, then did you find the gift properly?”

…Gift?

It was a sudden word without context.

‘Gift? Are they looking for a gift too?’

Hades said he came to the warehouse to catch a thief, but was that not true?

Moreover, whose gift could it be that the lord of the underworld himself was searching the warehouse for?

As Persephone narrowed her eyes in confusion.

Hades’ fingertips, biting his lip, quickly yet carefully touched her forehead.

Pop!

“Huh?”

Persephone’s body rose to the surface in the blink of an eye.

Persephone, sitting dumbfounded in place, looked around.

What happened was, as soon as Hydra asked if the gift was prepared, Hades seemed to have sent her up to the ground.

As if Persephone shouldn’t hear that question itself.

“…Hmm.”

Persephone stood up and walked closer to the well.

The inside was already blocked with dirt and stones.

“Surely, they said gift, right?”

An expectant light shone in her green eyes.

Her gaze turned to the leather pouch containing gold coins right next to the well.

Picking up the pouch again unavoidably, she stumbled as she walked, but eventually put strength in her steps as if she had decided something.

[This is the timeline separator]

The next day.

“…”

“…”

【…】

Hades, Hydra, and Thanatos were sprawled out with haggard faces in the office.

They had investigated the warehouse all night, racked their brains, and devised everything they could do for Persephone, but.

In the end, they couldn’t properly decide what to give her, or even her birthday.

Hydra, with her head buried on the desk, mumbled.

“Lord Hades has already done so much for her…”

“Yes, it’s all my fault…”

“That’s not it…”

Hades sighed and placed his loosely interlocked hands on his forehead.

“Is a meal really the only answer…”

“Sorry to the chef, but her food seems to taste a bit better than theirs…”

…Then this won’t work either.

Just before they were about to roll around groaning like slugs from anxiety and guilt.

Thanatos, who had become the only vertebrate, suddenly stood up.

【There’s no other choice.】

Hades’ weak gaze turned to Thanatos.

【Take the gold coins.】

“…It seems lacking in sincerity. Aren’t those everywhere?”

【Gold coins have good exchange value, so she might actually be happier. I hear there are occasionally humans like that.】

“…”

【If you’re worried she might be disappointed, you can take a larger amount. Don’t put them in a pouch, put them in a box.】

Hades imagined tearing his hair out as he stiffened his lips.

“…Alright, let’s do that.”

Hades nodded with difficulty. Looking into the distance with a serious expression, he cleared his throat and asked the two.

“So which of you will go to Persephone’s quarters?”

【…】

“…”

No one answered.

“Thanatos?”

【I am an even stricter principled person than Lord Hades.】

“What does that mean?”

【It means I do not carry out missions in areas outside my jurisdiction.】

Being a stricter principled person than himself, isn’t that just an excuse used only when it suits him?

But Thanatos shamelessly turned his head. As if there was absolutely no help to be expected from him.

Hades had no choice but to call his aide’s name.

“Hydra?”

“…”

“Hydra, your morning schedule is to meet Persephone.”

“The morning has already passed, Lord Hades.”

Hydra pointed to the hourglass on her desk.

Oops, Hades’ face darkened. He swallowed a painful groan and shook his head.

I have to go myself…

[This is the timeline separator]

Hades, holding the box of gold coins to his chest, moved sluggishly while hiding his body in the shadows on the floor.

It was truly a snail-like speed.

The wandering spirits in the palace were startled and broke out in a cold sweat trying to avoid him, but honestly, he didn’t care at all. He rather wished they would step on him.

Even if his face got squashed while passing by, he didn’t feel bad. He was just constantly in a daze.

“…Hah.”

Hades, who had been sighing deeply, took a deep breath.

Having arrived in front of Persephone’s room, he knocked on the door.

“Persephone.”

“…”

“Are you there?”