I've Possessed Persephone (9 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 3
“Why are you like this?”
Hermes tilted his head slightly to the side.
At that moment, a gray shadow that had been crammed into the corner suddenly burst upward like smoke and enveloped Hermes entirely.
The figure revealed from the darkness was the King of the Underworld, sunk deep in sorrow.
“…I’ve wronged Demeter’s daughter.”
Hermes, whose gaze had been wandering among the fluttering leaves, turned his eyes toward Hades’ face.
His expression, usually cold and distant, now looked troubled somehow.
“That wrong you speak of—is it perhaps…?”
“Yes. On the cliffs of Sicily, I ran over Kore with my chariot. But that child fled at once, bleeding profusely.”
Hermes’ eyes widened like a rabbit’s.
“Oh… Well, you really did cause an accident, didn’t you?”
He stepped closer to Hades, who couldn’t hide his gloom.
“But isn’t that something we can just let go of?”
“What did you say?”
The instant Hermes spoke, Hades snapped his head up.
“How can you say ‘let it go’? Are you mocking me? Are you telling me to just stand by again while Demeter’s child suffers?”
“No, wait—”
“The god who rules the Underworld is only meant to receive the dead—how could he deliberately harm a living soul? I must take proper responsibility for this. That’s the ‘rule.'”
“Alright, alright, I get it—just calm down.”
“How can I possibly calm down now?”
Finally, a spark of yellow light flickered fiercely in Hades’ eyes.
“Demeter will surely think I’m the hit-and-run culprit!”
Hermes, who had been stepping backward, frowned at the odd word he’d just heard.
Hit-and-run?
‘Didn’t he mean “hit-and-run” as in fleeing the scene?’
He stared at Hades as if looking at something bizarre, but Hades only gazed back at him, clearly puzzled by his reaction.
Seeing the usually talkative Hermes fall silent, Hades belatedly sensed something was off and tilted his head.
“…Wasn’t it ‘hit-and-run,’ then?”
“‘Hit-and-run’ is military slang used only in Sparta! It’s ‘hit-and-run,’ as in fleeing the scene!”
He wasn’t normally this careless—clearly, he was extremely flustered.
After all, the King of the Underworld was famously a ruthless stickler for rules.
For such a being to nearly turn a mortal—or even a god—into one of his own subjects must have shaken him deeply.
And on top of that, the one he’d run over with his chariot was Demeter’s child—it was no wonder he was acting so uncharacteristically frantic.
Hades gave a slight nod.
“Right. Regardless, since I caused that hit-and-run accident, it’s safe to say things have gone terribly wrong.”
‘It’s “hit-and-run,” I tell you…’
Hermes looked at Hades with pity and gave a sympathetic nod.
After rolling his eyes for a moment, Hermes added cautiously,
“The reason I asked if we could just let it go is because Kore is Demeter’s daughter herself.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Demeter is an immensely powerful goddess. Her daughter wouldn’t care at all about being brushed by a mere chariot. Kore herself would consider it a trivial wound. After all, she’s a goddess—such a thing wouldn’t kill her.”
“…”
“Just contact Hecate, Demeter’s attendant, first. Tell her to fetch Kore from somewhere near the island. Offer compensation through mutual agreement.”
Hades swallowed hard and crossed his arms.
His fingers, dusted with dark volcanic ash, tapped his forearm as though plucking a lyre string.
“No, it doesn’t actually matter how badly the child was hurt.”
“Why not?”
“There’s a chance that child will tell Demeter about this incident. Their mother-daughter bond seemed incredibly close.”
“…Ah.”
Hermes sighed, his eyebrows drooping.
Demeter had always loved every child she bore with fierce devotion. Her daughter Kore would be no exception.
If Demeter ever learned that Hades had run over Kore with his chariot, the throne of the Underworld might very well end up belonging to Demeter herself.
Shadows gathered between Hades’ brows.
“I must find that child and offer proper compensation before she tells Demeter. Otherwise, it won’t be Kore’s sorrow I face—but Demeter’s wrath.”
“You’re right. Now that I think about it, you absolutely must find her first.”
Hermes slowly nodded, frowning and blinking several times.
“Well… Since you now know the girl you ran over with your chariot was Kore, you can just ask the nearby nymphs and spirits about her whereabouts.”
“…”
“Cheer up!”
Hermes grinned widely and clenched his fist.
But Hades’ gaze looked slightly odd—strangely pitying, as if looking at someone pitiful.
Hermes, confused, scratched his cheek.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“…I’m truly sorry, but…”
“Yes?”
“You’ll be included among those who face Demeter’s wrath too, Hermes.”
Hermes, who had been blinking slowly, jumped in alarm.
“What? Why am I being held jointly responsible?”
“…Because I’ve just asked you for help and explained everything to you.”
“…”
“You must remember that the sun is currently right above our heads.”
Hermes’ eyes flicked quickly toward the sky.
There floated the sun, said to watch over all things in this world.
So that’s what he meant—the sun god must have witnessed the entire incident.
“You’re not seriously suggesting I have to search for Kore together with you, are you?”
Hermes gritted his teeth and stared hard at Hades.
“…”
The King of the Underworld offered no reply.
After a brief silence, Hermes finally let out a hollow laugh.
“Fine. So you’re determined to drag me down into hell with you! Ha, hahaha!”
“Hermes.”
At that moment, Hades sighed as if resigned.
“You’re primarily the messenger god—but you’re also the god of thieves.”
“…”
“I know you stole a golden cup from my palace. If you help me find Kore, I’ll overlook your theft.”
A cold sweat ran down Hermes’ neck, his words stuck in his throat.
He bit his lip, glancing cautiously at Hades.
Hades pointed at him, as if there was nothing more to say.
“You belong to the world above.”
Then he pointed at himself.
“I belong to the world below.”
“…”
“Do you understand?”
Hermes swallowed hard and nodded solemnly, gripping his staff tightly.
“Understood.”
* * *
At that very moment, what was Persephone—the one sought by the King of the Underworld and the messenger god—doing?
“I’m lost—where should I go?♪”
…She had become a lost child somewhere in the Underworld.
Persephone looked around at her surroundings, which grew steadily darker.
‘I thought if I hid in the shadow of the cliff and kept moving, I’d naturally find a spot to climb back up to the surface…’
Originally, she’d planned to walk along the cliff and climb up using any protruding rocks she could find.
But the farther inward she went, the fewer handholds appeared. Instead, the sky closed off into a rocky ceiling, and before she knew it, a ravine had opened up before her.
It was the upper stream of the River of the Underworld.
Persephone dipped her toes into the nearby river water and instantly shivered from head to toe at the cold that shot through her.
Despite it being nearly summer, the chill that cooled the valley so thoroughly felt unmistakably like the source of the Underworld’s river.
She couldn’t tell which of the many rivers of the Underworld this was.
‘Maybe I should just retrace my steps.’
Persephone sharply turned around and stared into the darkness behind her.
Though she stood there for a long while and sensed no movement from the crevice she’d just passed through, her heart fluttered anxiously.
“…Was he serious?”
Persephone shuddered as she recalled the flash of light that had just swept past her black eyes.
“Ugh…”
A groan escaped her lips.
‘What if I go back and run into that guy again?’
She’d never seen eyes that sharp and menacing in her life.
Even back when young Persephone had mischievously caused trouble nonstop, Demeter herself had never sounded so ominously dark.
Persephone scanned her surroundings like a guard dog wary of intruders.
After all, this was Hades’ domain. If she wasted even a moment, that madman might catch up to her.
If going back the way she came wasn’t an option, she’d follow the river downstream and look for another path.
‘Never thought I’d end up using the same method humans use when lost in the mountains.’
Demeter had once told her that if you get lost in the mountains, just follow any flowing stream downhill along the slope.
Doing so would eventually lead you out of the mountains, as long as you didn’t encounter any beasts.
Persephone began walking downstream along the river.
As she followed the winding path of the ravine, a confident smile curved at the corners of her lips.
‘There it is!’
Just as her mother had said—she was right after all.
In the distance, Persephone spotted a river with a ferryboat moving across it.
Judging by the sight, it must be the River Acheron, where the ferryman transports the dead to the other side.
‘Since this is the first river the dead cross, reaching it should bring me closer to the surface…’
Delighted, Persephone quickened her steps.
Fortunately, bluish lights flickered in the air like sparks, making it easy to see ahead.
Midway through her walk, she encountered steep, sheer cliffs—she’d nearly fallen off after staring only ahead—but as long as she endured the pain, she thought she could manage to climb down.
Just then—
“Oh…!”
An astonished exclamation slipped from Persephone’s lips.
Into her field of vision stepped a god with jet-black hair.
‘Why is that guy over there?’
There, by the River Acheron, stood Hades, King of the Underworld.
Male lead says he’s pregnant — and it’s female lead’s child
Something seems a bit off about this world.
Wang Zhao thought as she watched a pregnant man walking towards her…
Intro
Female lead finds herself in a world where the men who possess the ability to bear children.
As she navigates this unfamiliar reality, she is caught off guard by the sudden appearance of her boyfriend, who reveals that he is pregnant.
Is this truly her boyfriend?
Why can’t she recall any details about their time together?
She begins to doubt whether the child her boyfriend is carrying is even hers.
Is there a hidden reason behind her amnesia, or could it be a side effect of her sudden arrival in this strange new world?
Just when it seems the protagonist’s life couldn’t become any more entangled, her ex-boyfriend makes an unexpected appearance, raising questions about the protagonist’s past.
__________
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MANGA DISCUSSION
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Chapter Comments (4)
Oh my God, poor, pitiful Hades! I hope he finds happiness with Persephone.
Oh, poor Hades! He’s so sweet. Why doesn’t anyone like him? I hope Persephone likes Hades and brings spring into his world.
Poor Hades, how can a little child be hungry? How sweet, how his expression changes upon hearing Persephone speak.
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Miioo
They’re not telling us the most important thing: is he really her uncle?