Chapter 51

The maiden of the spark, the harbinger of calamity, the mischievous goddess of discord and strife.

Nyx’s daughter, Eris, who instills fear in Olympus and Greece, felt as if she were floating on clouds.

Earlier, at their mother’s call, Nyx’s sons and daughters gathered in Tartarus for the first time in a while.

Among them, the mysterious Three Sisters of Fate, the Moirai sisters, caught her eye.

The solemn sister Nemesis, the taciturn brother Thanatos, the ferryman brother Charon, and even Hypnos, who was dozing off at the entrance of the abyss.

All the siblings who were active in Greece and maintained their consciousness had gathered.

Nyx’s children, who instill fear and shock in both humans and gods if they encounter even a single one.

The words of the Night Mother, who rose from the deep, deep Tartarus, were indeed shocking.

She said that after thousands of years, their sibling had been born.

Even Nemesis, who was like a stone, couldn’t close her mouth in astonishment.

The usually taciturn Thanatos had his eyes wide open.

Charon, the boatman, lost his grip on the oar.

And Hypnos was so startled he woke up from his sleep.

Even the Three Sisters of Fate, who were spinning their wheels at that very moment, almost dropped their tools.

It was clear how significant this news was without needing to say more.

Moreover, the additional comment from their mother, that he was now wandering the land of Greece in a human body, left the siblings feeling as if they had been struck on the head.

Why? How? For what reason?

After a brief reunion with her children after hundreds of years, and leaving behind an extraordinary bombshell, the old Night Mother silently disappeared into the abyss once more.

The reason for their shock was not because their mother had created a new sibling after thousands of years.

The problem was that she had fashioned this new child as a human.

Humans were beings granted inherent uncertainty and endless potential by the Primordial Chaos.

They were finite but evolved through generations, and occasionally, the emergence of unprecedented beings among them could lead to rapid advancement for all humanity.

Unlike the gods, who were eternal, immortal, and whose essence remained unchanged unless succeeding divine duties, humans were entities of unpredictable potential even beyond the gods’ foresight.

Olympus’s grand prophecy that a human hero was needed to prevent the war foretold by Gaia also meant that when divine power and human potential combined, there was a chance to overcome the curse of the Protogenoi.

Even the old god-king of the previous Titan age was so afraid of the potential granted to humans by Chaos that he tried to destroy that potential itself, degrading humanity to trample it.

But.

The offspring of the Primordial Night, whom even the mother of fate and the god-king of Olympus feared, was born in a human body?

“By Chaos…”

“Mother, what on earth…?”

“Sister, we…”

““We’re doomed.””

The goddesses of fate collapsed in unison, leaving behind death and the ferryman, who were surely pondering useless thoughts.

Eris laughed quietly to herself, stamping her feet.

‘This will be fun!’

Between human and god.

Though fashioned as a human, its essence clearly belonged to the Primordial Night, undoubtedly heralding the beginning of an immense upheaval.

True to her nature as the goddess of discord and strife, Eris was about to make her move, sensing the scent of an enormous conflict.

-Crack!

“What?!”

A black scale sword struck down on her hem just as she was about to spread her wings.

Following this, she looked up to see a pair of stark white eyes glaring at her.

“S-sister? What’s wrong?”

“Eris, you were clearly thinking something strange again, weren’t you?”

The Goddess of Judgment and Causality, the stern protector of justice.

Nemesis.

Eris called her a rigid, unyielding woman, and her elder sister was glaring at her with stern eyes.

The six fiercely fluttering black wings, as black as the long hair that contrasted perfectly with her snow-white skin.

And the sharp, gleaming white eyes that seemed to pierce through all the world’s lies were so devoid of pupils that even her younger sibling, Eris, was sometimes startled.

“What? What did I do?!”

“Just try to deceive Mother instead. Don’t even think about telling me such nonsense.”

“…Tsk!”

As her sister Nemesis said, Eris was planning to leave the Underworld immediately to find the youngest sibling she had never seen before.

How much had she been tormented just because she was the youngest of the siblings?

Now she had a wonderful younger sibling to whom she could fully pass on the hardships she had endured. Would she just stand by and watch?

However, the Goddess of Judgment, who had been in charge of her since childhood, had already seen through her entirely.

“Sigh… Here. Eris, take this.“

“What is this… huh?”

What Nemesis handed over was a pitch-black wooden plaque.

Occasionally, those who committed unforgivable sins received Nemesis’s plaque, and the pitch-black plaque was only given to those who had committed the gravest of sins.

“Oh… Orion? Ah! The bastard child Amphitrite tried to kill and save when he was born?”

“Yes, a foolish sinner who committed a grave sin.”

“He caused quite a stir in the Forest of Heroes. Chiron used to look for Orion every time he came to greet me, but it quieted down after that Hercules guy came in.”

But what had this bastard done to have his name listed in the Nemesis’s judgment hall?

“He even attempted to harm and violate the daughter of Oceanus. But that is nothing.”

“Nothing?”

-Bang!

Unable to contain her rage, Nemesis drew her balance sword that had pierced Eris’s hem and struck down again.

At her ferocious demeanor, Eris couldn’t even think of fleeing at this moment.

“How dare he…? To insult our revered Mother, the Primordial night and darkness, without even knowing her, to insult our sibling burdened with mortal sins, and to make these blasphemous acts known to me during the night when darkness is cast, is his crime!”

‘…Oh, no.’

Eris thought that this scoundrel named Orion might prefer a clean death.

At that moment, Eris noticed a fact from the words of her enraged sister.

“So… this is about our youngest sibling?”

And the fact that you’re telling me this means?

Seeing her younger sister, who was suddenly full of enthusiasm and urging her to tell the next part of the story, Nemesis could only clutch her forehead.

“…Hoo, is this really the right thing to do?”

From Nemesis’s perspective, who revered and loved their mother more than any other sibling, Orion was a heinous criminal.

In her heart, she wanted to rush to the Forest of Heroes right away and subject that young and impudent criminal to a life more painful than hell.

However, Poseidon, upon learning that his son’s name had entered her judgment list, had blocked her path just before entering the Underworld.

At first, he stopped her with a massive wave, wielding the mighty name of the Three Great Gods of Olympus.

Her balance sword struck down the tyranny, wielding a trident that caused an earthquake and clashed with the balance sword.

No matter how much he was one of the Three Great Gods, there was no way to stop Nemesis from carrying out her divine duty.

In the end, Poseidon, as a last-ditch effort, threatened by blocking all entrances to the Underworld with earthquakes and tsunamis.

From Nemesis’s perspective, her divine duty was important, but with her mother calling after hundreds of years, she couldn’t delay any longer, so she swore to Poseidon that she would negotiate with him after receiving her mother’s summons.

But before the criminal could escape or be hidden by Poseidon, she had to infiltrate the Forest of Heroes and capture the audacious criminals.

“Hmm… So you’re telling me to go deal with that Orion fellow and take care of our unfortunate…”

“What did you say?”

“…our unfortunate sibling who was insulted?”

As Eris’s shoulders shook with excitement and amusement, the scale sword trembled in response.

The poor youngest, who could neither win by strength nor by age, well, not the youngest anymore.

In any case, the beautiful and pitiful maiden of strife and discord could only keep her mouth shut.

Satisfied with the now quiet Eris, Nemesis nodded and continued speaking.

“That’s exactly it. No matter how great and kind our Mother is, or how much Olympus fears our Nyx’s children, it’s been only three days since our sibling entered the Forest of Heroes. He cannot stand against Poseidon’s son, who has already wielded tyranny against numerous minor heroes. Go and capture the sinner, and protect our weak brother!”

That was only a few minutes ago, and now the maiden of strife and discord was facing a life-threatening crisis at the hands of that very weak sibling.

-Whoosh!

“Eeek?!”

A black sword of immense power, reminiscent of Nemesis’s scale sword, grazed her forehead.

“Huh? Dodged?”

In her younger days, Nemesis, being Nyx’s daughter, underwent hellish training, being stabbed and slashed countless times by that scale sword in the abyss of Tartarus. This tear-soaked memory was now shining through.

“Uh, hey? Little one? I was wrong, let’s talk this out…”

But she could tell.

This kid was no ordinary young hero.

If she wasn’t careful, she might get beaten to the brink of death by her younger sibling today and spend ages recovering in the abyss of Tartarus.

Thus, the Goddess of Discord and the Maiden of Strife, who had ignited the conflict herself, ended up demanding negotiations, an unprecedented miracle.

“I told you, I never had a sibling like you.”

…The beneficiary of this miracle seemed to have no intention of accepting it.

-Whoosh!

Grinding his teeth savagely, the youngest sibling added pitch-black flames to the sword in hand.

How could anyone see this as a frail sibling, a novice who had only entered the Forest of Heroes three days ago?

Eris, with a tearful expression, resented her sister, who was not present.

As her sister said, capturing that rookie named Orion was not difficult.

The distant aura of vile jealousy and discord wafted through the air. Following it to the Forest of Heroes, she descended, avoiding Chiron’s gaze, only to find a fallen young hero in a complete mess.

First, to avoid the eyes of Poseidon and the other Olympian gods, she borrowed her mother’s power to isolate this forest from the outside world. It was when she personally arrived to punish the sinner who dared to insult her mother.

Poseidon’s brat had some sense in his eyes as he looked up at her with lustful desire.

The sight was so outrageous that she subdued him somewhat forcefully, but since she completed the task Nemesis entrusted to her, it was time to enjoy the long-awaited reunion with the youngest.

Even from high up in the sky, she could tell it was the youngest, the lovely black-haired young hero.

Overall, with black hair and a fair, pretty face, she had the silly thought that maybe Nemesis looked like that when she was young.

Moreover, she cleverly just gave a slight signal, and he came running to find his sister on his own.

Like a little girl raising a puppy, she found it endearing and cute, and she thought she wouldn’t put him through hellish training like Nemesis.

But what is this?

Now Eris was the one being overpowered.

-Bang! Bang!

“Keep… dodging?”

How was he displaying such divine skills? Holding the unconscious nymph in his arms, her younger brother swung the black sword and black flames menacingly.

“Eek! Dodge, dodge! Otherwise, I’ll die!”

“That’s why you shouldn’t do things that will get you killed. It’s tiring for both of us!”

At first glance, it seemed like an ordinary sibling quarrel, but the way the youngest wielded the black sword was beyond comprehension. It completely sealed off her attempts to take flight or hide.

Like a songbird being driven into a cage, the youngest’s sword thoroughly pressured and constrained her.

Eris was confused as to what kind of martial arts or magic could bind the daughter of Nyx.

Though the opponent was born in a human body, he was undeniably the son of Nyx.

Moreover, he was a rare singularity endowed with the latent chaos of humanity and the power of Nyx.

In a way, it was not entirely incomprehensible.

“But still! How could you use this on me?!”

Tears welled up, and Eris whined as she would to any other sibling.

But in the youngest’s eyes, there wasn’t a trace of pity.

“Nine Demon Sword – First Fire Mirror.”

Black Flame Ten Thousand Forms.

“Black Flame… what?”

While uttering something that sounded like a magic spell, the youngest, who hadn’t even introduced himself yet, swung the sword engulfed in black flames.

The pitch-black flames melted everything in their path as they lunged toward her.

-Fwaaaaaah!!

“Aaaargh!”

And when the seemingly endless surge of flames finally ceased.

At the end of the black flames, Eris staggered and stood up.

“Oh…?”

“You… you…!”

Watching the youngest, who seemed amazed that she had stood up, the Goddess of Discord glared and dispelled her shield.

“You, to your sister… h-how could you…?”

“For someone who says that, you’re the one who crossed the line first.”

“Th-that was just a joke!”

“You drained her energy with some unknown trick and brazenly flapped your wings to provoke Neri. Isn’t it natural for you to get beaten?”

Even while swinging his sword in her direction, the youngest still didn’t let go of that white nymph, causing Eris to tremble with anger.

I am the older sister.

I am the elder.

I am no longer the youngest, and I am a senior goddess who must teach this youngest before me like Sister Nemesis…

“With the Black Flame gone, is it now the turn for the Fearsome Fire?”

The youngest slowly placed the nymph behind him and took a stance with the black sword in both hands.

The sword, which had been blazing like a torch, suddenly calmed.

No, it hadn’t calmed.

It was merely compressed on the surface of the sword, making it not visible on the outside.

“The Black Flames were blocked, but what about the Hellfire?”

For the first time, a smile appeared on the cold, sculpture-like face of the youngest.

A very cold and very cruel one.

It was an incredibly cruel smile that perfectly suited her taste.

“Nine Demon Sword – Fearsome Flames…”

The black sword rose high and slowly descended toward Eris from a distance.

A smile that pierced the heart and a sword that was so beautiful.

In that moment, Eris forgot to evade, mesmerized.

-Clang!

“That’s as far as you go, sibling.”

A judgment sword engraved with a white scale and karmic cycles stopped the black sword.