## Chapter 6: The Beginning of a Misunderstanding

—

“What kind of nonsense is this now?”

The focus vanished from Hades’ eyes. Common sense had effectively slapped him across the face and walked out the door.

“Kyaaa! Oh my god!”

Seeing his expression, Hydra—who knows what she was thinking—clutched her cheeks and started hopping around.

“It really is true!”

No, what exactly is true? Do snakes usually have such wild imaginations?

Perhaps she was mindful of her boss, as she didn’t do the typical snake-like body twisting, but to Hades, it was simply distressing. It felt like only yesterday her neck was severed and she was making nothing but metallic growls, yet here she was with the face of a child in the throes of their first love. It was hard to keep up with the flow of the conversation.

*Is this what parenting feels like?* Hades placed his index finger to his lips.

“Please, just shut your mouth. This isn’t something to make such a fuss over.”

“Understood, I’ll keep it shut! I won’t say a word to Thanatos. Not even to Lady Nyx!”

Hydra grinned so wide it looked like the corners of her mouth might rip. She pressed the side of her hand to her ear.

“Instead, only tell me. Who is the lucky person?”

“…….”

“Ah, if you’re worried I might mishear, just write Her Majesty the Queen’s name on this paper! I will serve her with all my heart and soul!”

*I’m going crazy.*

‘I trust her even less than Hermes.’

It was clear as day: the moment Hydra left this room, her misunderstanding would spread as if it had grown wings. Hades rubbed the bridge of his nose and grabbed the tip of Hydra’s reed pen.

“No. A honeymoon home, a wedding… none of it is true, so calm down. Nothing like what you’re thinking is going to happen.”

“Huh? Why not?”

“What do you mean ‘why’? I’m not getting married, so of course there’s no honeymoon home.”

“But why aren’t you getting married?”

“…….”

*Ah, was I supposed to explain from that far back?*

Hades glanced at Hydra’s face, which was filled with disappointment, and let out a deep sigh.

“The guest who is supposedly coming is not my lover, and certainly not someone I’m marrying. They are literally just a guest. Don’t ask for details.”

“Hmm…….”

Hydra’s eyes were filled with doubt, but Hades waved his hand as if that were enough. She scratched her head with the end of the reed.

“So… we’re renovating the royal palace for an unspecified number of future guests to the Underworld? And this person you know will be the first guest.”

“Correct.”

“Fine, I get it.”

As if she had never been disappointed, Hydra calmly lowered her gaze.

“I can ask others about the renovation. How should we handle the decorations?”

“The Underworld is on the gloomy side, so it would be better to decorate it brightly.”

“Then I’ll pay extra attention to lamps and braziers… and it would be good to cover the stone walls properly with cloth. We can use the silk given to us by the Eastern Continent recently. I’ll try to go with bright, warm colors.”

“Yes. White, yellow, and red should be fine.”

Hades, picturing the guest room in his mind, added:

“Include some flowers, too. Like wreaths.”

“Yes, yes.”

“What about furniture, like tables?”

“I’ll use birch for those. I’ll cut them so the grain stays alive. Trust me.”

As Hydra winked, Hades’ eyes moved toward the paper.

‘Colors: mostly white, yellow, red. Braziers, lamps, silk, vases, flower crowns, tapestries, carpets, chairs, tables, and…’

Scanning the list she had written, Hades pointed to the empty space at the very bottom.

“One more thing is needed.”

“Eh? What is it?”

“Bedding (*Chim-gu*).”

Hydra’s reed pen froze. Hades tilted his head slightly, asking her in a questioning tone.

“What’s wrong?”

Hydra seemed to freeze for a moment in panic, then pulled the corners of her mouth up into a smile.

“A-ah, it’s nothing. I understood.”

Then, she began muttering as if whispering to herself.

“Right… even a guest would need that.”

Hydra rubbed the reed pen against the stone wall to sharpen the tip and nodded vigorously.

“I’ve heard humans—especially those stiff-necked ones—have something similar. Calling for bards or jesters? I’m not sure if that’s the same thing you’re talking about, Lord Hades.”

“……What?”

“Well then, I’m off! I’ll be back in a flash!”

Before Hades could even question her, Hydra’s legs were already heading for the exit of the office. Unlike a snake crawling slowly on the floor, she moved at a considerable speed. It was almost like an escape—the struggle of an overworked employee desperate for a breath of fresh air.

Left behind, Hades’ hand remained suspended in mid-air.

Beds and pillows. And bards and jesters.

‘How are those related to each other?’

A sense of foreboding flickered down Hades’ spine.

—

Hydra toyed with the edge of the papyrus. Her eyes scanned the list, lingering at the top before narrowing as they reached the end.

At the very end of the list was…

**[Friend (*Chin-gu*)]**

“Why would a guest room need a ‘friend’…?”

Instead of “Bedding” (*Chim-gu*), the word “Friend” (*Chin-gu*) was written.

Snakes have poor hearing. Unfortunately, as a water snake, Hydra’s hearing was also quite bad.

Hydra groaned and racked her brain, but no matter how much she thought, she couldn’t figure out why her lord had mentioned the word “friend.”

It was when she passed the Asphodel Meadows, the residence of the dead, and reached the banks of the Phlegethon where hot lava flowed.

【Hydra.】

A familiar voice called her name close to her ear.

“Ack! You scared me!”

Hydra jumped as if pricked by a spear. Startled, she reflexively tucked her knee to kick the other’s shin. The figure immediately hovered above Hydra’s head. Her gaze flew to the one who had called her.

The God of Death—Thanatos—was looking down at her.

Hydra swung her balled fists in the air and shouted.

“Why do you have to call me from so close! I thought my head was going to fall off again!”

【If I call from afar, you either don’t hear or pretend not to. What choice do I have?】

“In what world would anyone want to hear their name coming out of the mouth of a Reaper?”

【For someone who hears ‘Empathy’ as ‘Mussels,’ this distance is just right.】

At Thanatos’s jab, Hydra’s tongue tied. Everything Thanatos mentioned was a true story. It was true that she possessed disastrous hearing, so she couldn’t offer any rebuttal.

As Hydra shut her mouth, Thanatos’s pupils moved smoothly like a doll’s. His gaze landed on the paper Hydra was holding.

【What is that?】

He crossed his arms and scanned the list.

【A bunch of decorations and furniture… are you going to prepare something new?】

“Yeah. So I have to go to the surface.”

【Why are you preparing this?】

“Lord Hades told me to make a guest room. So I’m going to find where I can get suitable materials.”

Hydra scratched her cheek.

“But he asked for a really strange material too. Want to check it out?”

Hydra’s index finger pointed to the bottom, at the word ‘Friend.’

“He said a friend is needed to make the guest room. What could that possibly mean?”

【A friend?】

“Yeah. A friend. Does he want a soul to act as a companion for a guest who might find the Underworld uncomfortable?”

Hydra bit her lip, looking puzzled.

At that moment, a fatal suspicion crossed the mind of the usually indifferent Thanatos. Generally, the Underworld was known as a foul-smelling, disgusting place. A guest would likely want to finish their business and leave as quickly as possible. Thus, providing a conversational partner would be a useless gesture.

‘But he wanted a soul to play the role of a “friend” for a guest? *That* Hades?’

No matter how he thought about it, it was strange. Sensing an anomaly, Thanatos’s eyes fixed on the list.

‘Come to think of it, the colors are suspicious.’

White, yellow, red. And wreaths…

‘Aren’t those things used in weddings?’

In a wedding, the bride wears a yellow or red veil to ward off evil spirits, and finishes the look with a flower crown.

‘…It might not be a guest room he entrusted to Hydra.’

Thanatos, having reached his own “rational” conclusion, snapped his fingers.

【That thing you heard as ‘Friend.’】

“What about it?”

【Could it actually have been ‘Bride’ (*Sin-bu*)?】

“…….”

【I’m certain you misheard again.】

Hydra’s face contorted. Before a roar could erupt from her mouth, Thanatos quickly raised his hand like a dam.

【Think about it, Hydra. You’re the one who heard ‘Empathy’ as ‘Mussels.’ It wouldn’t be strange for you to mistake ‘Bride’ for ‘Friend.’】

“Hey, no! That word couldn’t have come up in that situation!”

However, Hydra had already been told by her lord long ago that he wouldn’t be getting married.

“And how does a bride fit into materials for a guest room, you lunatic! Are we going to bring someone else’s new bride to the Underworld and make her decorate the room?”

Just before Hydra could grab Thanatos by the collar, he spoke one last time.

【…What if Lord Hades lied to you?】

Hydra’s hand flinched for a second. Calming down, she rubbed her neck and snapped back grumpily.

“Why would he lie to me?”

【Don’t take it the wrong way and think carefully.】

Thanatos continued slowly.

【Unlike you, who loves to make a fuss, Lord Hades is a man of thorough preparation. He would want everything to be ready for the bride who is coming soon.】

“The guest room—no, the honeymoon suite—and everything else too?”

【Yes. For example, a Queen’s throne, a crown, or a hall.】

Hydra’s eyes widened.

【If you were to spread rumors and cause the whole Underworld to get worked up, the time to decorate this desolate place would become tight. Therefore, I believe Lord Hades, keeping your personality in mind, swallowed his tears and told a lie.】

Thanatos spoke with uncharacteristic passion. He explained as if stamping a seal of truth.

【Hydra, tell me honestly. Didn’t it feel like a room for a ‘specific someone’ rather than an unspecified guest? And didn’t Hades act particularly negative toward your excitement to hide that intention?】

“…….”

【Besides, if the colors are centered around white, red, and yellow… those are exactly the colors used in weddings. You said you suspected it a little too.】

“Uh…….”

Hydra’s judgment began to cloud. How much time had passed?

Hydra, whose ears were as thin (gullible) as they were bad at hearing, nodded.

“Now that I think about it, that might actually be the case.”