“……You eat better than I expected?”

A cough erupted from Hades’ lips as he swallowed the cake.

As he covered his mouth, Persephone hurriedly waved her hand.

“No, no. Just keep eating! I was just surprised, I never thought you were eating too much.”

“……Is that really true?”

“Of course.”

By now, only half of the cake remained.

Hades unknowingly made a skeptical expression.

He remembered when he went to her domain right after Persephone made Sisyphus her worker.

What did Persephone say to Thanatos and Sisyphus then?

She definitely called them ‘gluttons’…

Having thought that far, Hades quickly put down his utensils.

He had no desire to be treated as someone with a big appetite.

“Ah, are you full now?”

But strangely, when he put down his utensils, Persephone’s eyes drooped sadly.

In the end, Hades picked up his utensils again.

‘It’s not like I’m in an eating contest or anything…’

Humans occasionally have contests to see who can drink the most wine, but he never expected a similar situation to come to him, the King of the Underworld.

Will I be able to finish it all?

Hades doubtfully but busily moved his utensils.

“Wow, you ate the whole thing. That’s amazing!”

Of course, a god’s stomach was impressive.

Contrary to his self-doubt, it only took about five to ten minutes to finish the cake.

Hades wiped his mouth and let out a sigh of relief. He asked her a question.

“Don’t you also eat a lot at once? From our last meal, you seemed like a big eater.”

“I’m a big eater, but I’m also a gourmet.”

“What does that mean?”

“If I eat just one thing, I get bored, so I need to eat a variety. Also, my mother’s cooking is really delicious, so my palate has been raised.”

Swish, her lime-green eyes scanned Hades’ face – or more precisely, his entire body.

A murmur escaped Persephone’s lips.

“I’m really envious…”

“……”

“Being able to eat more delicious things in the same amount of time…”

……Is she perhaps jealous of my stomach?

I don’t know why she envies me for such a trivial thing, but compared to the selfishness of those who ruin even themselves with jealousy, it was a much cuter disposition.

Enough to make me smile without realizing it.

“Um, Persephone? Shall I tell you something comforting? Though I’m not sure if this can be called comfort.”

“What is it? Is it that as my divine power grows, I’ll be able to eat more without hesitation?”

“No, that’s not it……”

Hades shook his head and pointed to the empty plate.

“Even I have never eaten this much before.”

“……”

“So the fact that I became a big eater for a moment today is not simply because a god’s body can digest a large amount of food. It’s probably because the cake you made was delicious.”

Hades carefully scanned Persephone, who pursed her lips in surprise.

“And I’ve never received a gift timed for my birthday before, let alone a simple gift. You’re the first.”

“Really? Is that true?”

“Yes.”

Persephone crossed her arms and tilted her head questioningly.

“As one of the three major gods, don’t people usually bring bribes using all sorts of excuses…?”

“……What kind of daily life have you been living?”

Hades’ eyes narrowed at her words.

As Persephone averted her gaze as if she had nothing to say, Hades brought his fist to his mouth and cleared his throat.

“Ahem, anyway, whether it’s a bribe or a gift in the pure sense, it’s been quite a while since I received anything. As the King of the Underworld, that is.”

“What about when you weren’t the King of the Underworld?”

“It wasn’t much different then either.”

“Why?”

“The day I was born was in early summer when the day is longest, and summer is the barren season. There was nothing to receive.”

But Persephone raised her eyebrows even more strangely.

Hades shook his head slightly.

“Well, there’s no need to pity me. Everyone was like that when summer came. It wasn’t just me.”

“No, the premise is wrong from the start?”

“……Huh?”

Persephone’s voice rose.

“Who says summer is the barren season? Of course grains like wheat don’t grow well in summer, but fruits grow extremely well!”

“……”

“Grapes, apples, pomegranates, even figs… There are so many delicious things. If you pick them around autumn, they’re incredibly sweet.”

Hades blinked and countered.

“But still, you can only eat them in autumn, right?”

“No! If not fruits, there are grains. The time to harvest grains is around early summer.”

Hades’ gaze drifted down to empty space.

He slowly sank into thought. His mind rummaged through the past for a moment, and then recalled one memory.

“What, no strength? Shouldn’t you be used to that much by now, Aidoneus?”

……It was quite a long time ago.

The memory he just recalled was from before Zeus replaced the previous God King.

“……I see.”

Hades murmured as if he had realized something.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just remembered when I was Cronus’ disciple.”

Hades lowered his gaze to the plate he had scraped clean.

“In summer, Cronus wouldn’t let me eat.”

“Eat what?”

“Just, everything except water.”

Persephone’s eyes widened.

At that transparent reaction, Hades let out a dry laugh. He opened his mouth.

“My talent lay in invisible destruction. And Cronus knew that.”

“……”

“So he declared the summer I was born as the barren season, and under the pretext of honing my innate talent, he seems to have prevented me from eating.”

“B-but even so, not letting you eat……”

“Cronus pointed out that almost all the food we eat is made from seeds that symbolize life.”

In other words, seeds are the origin of life.

“The previous God King thought I shouldn’t receive anything that symbolizes life.”

Ah, so there was a reason why his friend dragged him around to taste the delicacies of various regions.

“……Well, I don’t really understand all this talk about the origin of life and whatnot.”

It was at that moment that Persephone spoke up in a disgruntled tone.

“After listening to Lord Hades’ story just now, there’s one thing I’m certain of.”

“What is it?”

“The previous God King, wasn’t he completely insane?”

Hades paused for a moment.

Persephone spread her arms like a lizard threatening its natural enemy.

“I mean, come on. When Lord Hades was his disciple, you must have been young, right? And he didn’t let you eat? Was he trying to kill you?”

“……”

“He should have his lower body cut off like his father to come to his senses!”

Persephone kept throwing punches into the air. After huffing for a while, she clenched her fist once more and showed it.

“Anyway, if he were in front of me, I would have punched him.”

The veins rose on her white knuckles.

Hades pulled up the corners of his mouth.

“Kuk……”

It wasn’t a situation to laugh at, but a smile kept flowing out.

Usually, he would have felt skeptical about himself for casually talking about an uncomfortable past that others might find awkward to hear.

But now, he didn’t feel that way at all.

“So, thank you.”

A gentle smile settled on Hades’ lips.

“As always, but especially for today. It’s really rare for me to eat so much that I feel full.”

Joy settled in Persephone’s eyes. They even became twinkling like stars were embedded in them.

Is she moved by just this much gratitude? Just as he thought she was quite a sensitive goddess.

“I think I just realized a parent’s heart.”

“……What?”

Persephone put both hands on her solar plexus.

“They say a child who eats well is the best filial child in the world, I guess that saying was true.”

“……”

“I’m really touched.”

This is crazy.

Is it because she was born as the daughter of the earth goddess, or is it her nature to care for and nurture others?

‘No, but it doesn’t make sense for me to be cared for, does it?’

For a moment, annoyance flashed across Hades’ face, but he skillfully erased the emotion. Instead, he asked her a question.

“By the way, when is your birthday?”

“Me? Are you planning to celebrate it?”

“If you want.”

Hades gestured with his chin as if to say ask for anything.

“Hmm, you won’t be able to celebrate it.”

But Persephone shook her head with a bright face.

A momentary disappointment passed over Hades’ pale face. He slowly added a question.

“……Why?”

“It’s in autumn. By then, I’ll have already left this place, right?”

Hades’ breath silently stopped.

……That’s right.

This woman was someone who would leave in less than half a year.