I've Possessed Persephone (9 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 13

Hades’ thought process came to a halt.

His mouth hung open as he flapped his lips like a goldfish.

However, the soldiers—believing Hades was dodging responsibility by refusing to treat Kore as his bride—lit a fierce fire in their eyes.

Even those who had been swallowing nervous gulps out of fear for their superior now gathered courage and stepped forward.

“Yes, you really must treat your future bride with kindness!”

Soon, fierce protests burst out.

“Let us serve Her Majesty the Queen!”

“Don’t you realize, Lord Hades, that you’re already old enough to get married? You should wed!”

“What on earth are you doing with that handsome face of yours!”

“Even if you refuse to take her as your bride, you still have to take responsibility!”

Hades’ aura began to be overwhelmed by the soldiers’ voices.

Unable to endure it any longer, he snapped sharply,

“Argh! Didn’t I already say I won’t marry!”

The soldiers recoiled like seaweed swept away by a tidal wave.

Having calmed the commotion with his own divine power, Hades turned once more toward Hydra and Thanatos.

“Hydra, Thanatos. I ask you again—bring that girl to my palace.”

Yet what he received in return were looks clearly implying, “Do we really have to step in ourselves?”

For someone who’d been praised as a model child since youth, such glances were unbearable.

‘Just where did things go wrong?’

Why did the soldiers think he had to marry Kore, and why did Hydra and Thanatos now see him as an irresponsible scoundrel?

This was beyond what he could handle.

Meanwhile, Hydra, who had been muttering something under her breath, walked toward Persephone. Taking a deep breath, she approached near the fortress wall.

“Um, Lady Kore! I—I wouldn’t dare be so presumptuous as to speak plainly, but!”

Her knees gave way suddenly, crashing onto the ground.

“Our superior! We sincerely apologize!”

At last, Hydra bowed deeply, pressing her forehead to the earth.

* * *

Persephone, clinging to the wall, blinked slowly.

She didn’t fully understand, but judging by the woman—who seemed to be Hades’ subordinate—bowing to her…

‘It seems things have worked out favorably for me?’

Thinking positively, Persephone leapt off with a flourish. Descending the opposite wall swiftly with practiced timing, she dashed toward the boundary.

Glancing back, she saw no one pursuing her.

Great—now only one last hurdle remained.

Arriving breathlessly at the boundary, Persephone steadied her panting breath.

A three-headed hound of massive size stood firmly before her.

“Cerberus…”

She suppressed a sigh and examined the monstrous creature before her eyes.

The guardian of the Underworld, known for standing watch over the border between the realms of the living and the dead.

With its grotesque form—a single body bearing three heads—it was said to crush the will of any spirit trying to escape the Underworld right from the start.

Persephone locked eyes with Cerberus, whose eyes were half-lidded and drowsy.

How much time had passed?

As she scrutinized his sleek, well-shaped snout, Persephone scratched her chin.

“Now that I look at you longer… you’re kind of cute…?”

Right. It wasn’t the dog’s fault—its master was to blame.

At that instant, as if saying, “I don’t want your cuteness,” Cerberus began to growl.

Persephone slowly lowered both hands toward the hound, ready to bark.

Crouching low, she circled Cerberus like a fly.

‘Should I try barking along with him?’

She recalled hearing somewhere: if you crouch down and growl alongside a barking dog, it quickly becomes docile.

There was no need to overthink it.

“Woof!”

An actual dog bark escaped Persephone’s lips.

‘…Why isn’t he reacting?’

Could it be—she succeeded on the first try? Expectant, she stared at Cerberus…

“….”

Cerberus simply gazed at her with pitiful eyes.

“Woof…”

She barked once more, trying to convey, “We’re the same kind!”

“….”

Naturally, the result wasn’t favorable.

All that remained was silence.

And a goddess who had just lost her divine dignity.

Without hesitation, Persephone stood up.

As if she’d intended to do so all along, she brushed dust off her hem and straightened the brooch on her sleeve.

Wiping the sweat from her brow, she cheerfully greeted,

“Hello!”

“….”

“Since we’ve met like this, it must be fate—could you let me pass?”

WooOoo—!

In response, Cerberus let out a deep, rumbling howl—as if to say her “woof” was a fake dog sound, and that he, the true dog, would now demonstrate a real one.

The air pressure from his mouth made Persephone’s clothes flutter violently.

“Ugh, you’re ridiculously strong…!”

Persephone blurted out something villain-like.

‘I guess I have no choice.’

She’d have to use the method she’d planned ahead…!

She turned around, making exaggerated munching sounds as though hiding food.

Simultaneously, she lifted her sleeve where she’d hidden seeds.

Among seeds, some carried special properties.

Growing herbs that induced sleep or hypnosis was one of Demeter’s specialties.

Indeed, among the various seeds adorning her hairpiece, she had one from a sleep-inducing herb.

She still had plenty of strength from earlier—if she gathered a bit more divine power, she could sprout a sleeping herb right now.

“…Huh?”

…But there was one problem.

No matter how hard she searched, the seed was nowhere to be found.

“Did I drop it?”

Rubbing her neck, Persephone bit her lip and murmured like a prayer, “Please, please…”

Her mind rapidly scanned the past for her sake—and realizing the cause of this mishap, she let out a sharp gasp.

‘Could it have been when I confronted Hades beneath the wall earlier?’

Now that she thought about it, her feet had felt oddly strange then…!

‘That must’ve been the sleeping herb seed!’

Thunder crashed inside Persephone’s heart—KA-BOOM!

To make matters worse, a large shadow writhed around her. Cerberus, as if he’d been waiting for this moment of vulnerability, pounced.

“Kyaaah!”

Instinctively, Persephone slammed into the ground.

Ah! Oh no! The goddess of seeds is dying! Being eaten!

“Cerberus, are you a herbivore or a carnivore!”

“Chomp!”

“Right! You’re a carnivore! Aren’t you?”

“Grrrgh!”

“I’m the goddess of seeds—you can’t eat me! Wheat will sprout inside your belly!”

Dodging wildly, Persephone babbled desperately.

But Cerberus no longer listened to her.

Well, to be precise, he wasn’t in any state to listen—he was thrilled, having encountered someone challenging him at his duty for the first time in ages.

“I’m not meat, I told you—!”

Finally, Persephone yanked the shovel strapped to her back and swung it, her sleeve torn at the edge by Cerberus’ jaws.

Startled by her sudden attack, Cerberus leapt far away. She covered her own mouth.

“Oh no! I’m sorry!”

Did I just hit a puppy? I’m trash!

…Of course, such self-loathing lasted only a moment.

“But I want to go home with all my limbs intact!”

Swinging her shovel wildly, Persephone put more distance between herself and Cerberus.

For now, it was a tactical retreat.

* * *

Dodging the frenzied Cerberus, Persephone ran mindlessly.

So absorbed was she in her panicked sprint that…

“Where on earth am I now?”

She found herself in a dense forest, thick with trees and undergrowth.

Perhaps because she herself was the goddess of seeds, she’d instinctively headed toward lush greenery.

Rubbing her dry eyes, she muttered,

“They say leaving home leads to dog-like suffering.”

Sob sob—indeed, old sayings never lie.

“I should’ve listened better to Mom…”

Reflecting on her past, Persephone splashed some dry water on her face. As she sighed, she suddenly noticed something odd beneath her step and looked down.

Lifting her shoe, she saw red moisture staining the sole.

‘A fruit…?’

It seemed a fully ripened fruit had dropped to the ground.

Persephone raised her head.

Into her view came a plump, red fruit with split skin.

‘A pomegranate!’

Alarmed, Persephone took a step or two backward.

Tension stiffened her posture.

Staring fiercely at the innocent fruit—as though it were a beast’s claw—she suddenly wiped her lips with the back of her hand.

“Ugh.”

Swallowing hard, she furrowed her brows.

“…What?”

She stared at the back of her own hand.

It felt strangely moist…

‘Don’t tell me… I actually salivated at the sight of a pomegranate?’

Grumbling resentfully, she muttered that myths clearly never changed their fate.

Yet, like midnight snacks taste best when eaten secretly behind Mom’s back, her eyes kept drifting back to the pomegranate.

Her steps grew slower and slower.

Unconsciously, she thought,

‘I want to eat it.’

Would it really be so bad to take just one bite? Just one?

“No! Absolutely not!”

Persephone slapped her own cheek.

‘Are you crazy? Have you finally lost it?’

In the myths, whoever ate food from the Underworld could never return to the surface.

Knowing this, Hades of myth had tricked Persephone into eating a pomegranate grown in the Underworld, binding her as one of the dead.

That king of the Underworld truly was a bastard. She couldn’t possibly go to a realm ruled by such a scoundrel.

‘I need to stay focused.’

With regretful longing, Persephone trudged deeper into the forest.

If she hid just a little while longer, she could escape the Underworld without Hades ever noticing.

Just then, a fountain came into view as she scanned her surroundings.

Blinking at the suddenly appearing structure, Persephone approached the fountain where clear water flowed, pushing aside the surrounding grass.

[Healing Spring]

A bronze plaque was attached to the fountain.

Only then did her body begin to cry out in pain.

Until now, entirely focused on escaping the Underworld, she hadn’t noticed her wounds, soreness, or even her thirst.

‘I shouldn’t drink it… right?’

Persephone swallowed painfully.

Perhaps because she’d been running nonstop since being hit by that train, she desperately needed even a little water.

But if food from the Underworld couldn’t be eaten, surely its water couldn’t be drunk either.

“…Ugh.”

Swallowing dryly, Persephone teared up like a fox staring at unreachable grapes.

The water flowing from the fountain looked so refreshingly cool.

She wanted to drink.

She really, truly wanted to drink.

Still gazing at the fountain with longing, Persephone lowered her head.

At that moment, her eyes caught the notice beside the bronze plaque.

[Immerse your body to receive healing effects. —Asclepius, God of Medicine]

Her voice trembled faintly.

“…It’s not for drinking?”

Persephone ran her hands over the fountain’s smooth marble and let out an awed gasp.

‘So that’s why it’s shaped like a fountain instead of a well…!’

It was meant for soaking one’s body!

Her eyes sparkled brightly. Hugging the fountain’s rim as if it were her lover, she exclaimed,

“Thank you, gods! I knew there couldn’t possibly be a ‘just die’ rule!”

Beaming, Persephone leapt into the fountain without hesitation.

…Next to the bronze plaque, several more words had been written—but blinded by her eagerness for cool relief, the goddess failed to notice them.

* * *

[Healing Spring] [Immerse your body to receive healing effects. —Asclepius, God of Medicine] [Dedicated to my wife, five daughters, and two sons.] [Ingredients:

Purified water 85%

Mint extract 4%

Various beneficial compounds 10%

……

……

……

Underworld pomegranate tree sap 0.001%

Underworld pomegranate juice 0.00001%]