The goddess had never experienced the games of later generations; she would not know how frustrating and dissatisfied a person who was about to perfectly complete a level would feel in the face of a low-level mistake. She only knew how much energy she had invested before and how intense her desire for destruction was now.
"Sorry, Moira, I didn't know you were doing this for him—"
In front of Demeter, Metanira still wanted to explain, but the goddess no longer wished to listen. The queen's voice only caused her annoyance, the more she cared for the child, the more it made the goddess realize that the other was a mother, whereas she was not.
So the game of pretense ended here... Since it was no longer perfect, it had no reason to exist.
The next moment, sacred power that had reached a demigod's realm burst forth, instantly enveloping the entire Eryxis. The lamps that had just been lit were suddenly snuffed out, and as she watched a queen overwhelmed and brought to the ground, Demeter's appearance began to change.
Age receded, youth returned. Luxurious ornaments adorned her, and the attire of the gods replaced that of mortals; at this moment, the true form of the goddess was so dazzling and so noble and untouchable.
However, in the eyes of Clytius, who had finally arrived outside the door, the goddess revealing her true form was terrifying. The pressure from the essence of life caused him to feel fear, but the king still stepped forward, trying to calm her rage.
The king was interrupted, and facing the two in front of her, the goddess's voice was like eternal frost.
"I am a principal god of Mount Olympus, the deity that presides over the growth of all things."
"Foolish mortals... You have made a grave mistake."
"I could have granted your beloved son immortality, but now, he cannot escape the fate of death!"
Silently, the vitality within the infant, originally meant to counteract the sacrificial fire, suddenly boiled over. It had been the treasure mortals dreamt of, capable of rejuvenating the old and healing the dying. But now, its power acted like a deadly poison, snatching away Demophon's life in an instant.
The baby's cries stopped abruptly, and the queen, who had been pinned to the ground, suddenly widened her eyes. She brought her cheek close to her young son's face, but now, he was devoid of life.
A piercing cry once again rang out in the palace, yet this time, the goddess did not even glance at her.
The boon bestowed upon Demophon had come at a whim, and so it was natural that it end with a whim.
Therefore, she looked toward the king outside the door, quietly waiting for his reaction.
In the gaze of Demeter, Clytius's hands clenched tightly. His wife's reaction made him realize something. He even pressed his hand on the long sword at his side for a moment, but in the end, the king still put his hand down.
He knelt on one knee, by the queen's side. Then, with a slightly trembling voice, he expressed his utmost loyalty to the deity before him.
"...Thank you for your boon, goddess. If this is your decision, then it must be his best fate."
Nodding her head, as the fury was vented, Demeter's emotions also began to calm. Looking at the king before her, she could sense his pain and resentment, but the goddess did not care.
Not every mortal was as powerful as the one who swung a sword at the divine child on the day of the Great Flood... Besides, even that human was facing only a demigod, and against a being like Triton, even one who was not adept at fighting, the goddess could easily erase.
So at this moment, a hint of pity arose in Demeter's heart—having just caused the outcome, she now felt reluctant; this seemed contradictory, but it was actually not.
The human heart is always complex, and the deities of Chaos, in this regard, are no different from humans.
Standing in the room, Demeter thought of many things: the moment she first came to the city and was warmly received by the king's daughters, the first time she saw Demophon and remembered her daughter with a heavy heart, being amused by an old servant's joke in the palace, and the pleasant days she had spent in Eryxis.
Looking at the queen lying on the ground, who had already lost hope and voice, a sense of condescending benevolence rose from Demeter's heart. No matter what, she was but a mortal.
Her ignorance was the reason she had disturbed Demeter, and now, she had paid the price for it.
So, looking at the King before her, Demeter slowly began to speak:
"Your queen has disturbed me, mortal king, but in my benevolence, I forgive her transgressions. And now that the misdeed is over, your merits should not be erased."
"Starting from tomorrow, send your other son to me. Though your second son's fate is not to be with the gods, to your eldest, I shall still bestow the glory closest to that of a deity."
His blood seemed to turn icy cold, and Clytius opened his mouth but could not find the words to speak.
He did not know what Demeter truly intended this time, or if she actually meant to give a reward. He only thought he was about to lose another child. But in the end, the King simply bowed his head slightly.
"Your Highness, thank you... thank you for your boon."
Waving her hand, Demeter turned away. The royal christening had been tiring, and everything that followed had worn out the goddess even more.
She walked toward the inside of the house and said faintly to the two behind her:
"Let's call it a day... I'm tired, you may leave."
"...Yes, Your Highness."
With a soft reply, the king took the hand of his dazed wife and silently left the room.
He was going to bury his child... who had come into this world for only a spring and fall.
Unlike the surface world, compared to the past visits, the core of the Underworld had become somewhat livelier.
In recent years, the mortal realm's winters have grown more severe, resulting in the deaths of many mortals. Moreover, due to the rapid and rampant propagation of humans, the vast majority of them actually held little faith in the gods.
Thus, in accordance with the covenant made with the gods above, the bones of a great number of mortals arrived in the Underworld. The losses originally caused by Gaia were quickly replenished, and even exceeded.
At this moment, within the Divine Palace of the Underworld, Hades sat quietly on his throne, enjoying the rare delicacies of the bleak Underworld, and by his side sat Persephone.
Demeter's worries were justified; her daughter had inherited her beauty and had even surpassed her. However, contrary to many deities' expectations, this goddess, who had been in the Underworld for more than a hundred years, showed no signs of coercion. In fact, she seemed to be in quite a good mood.
And the reason for her good mood was naturally the cold winters that afflicted the world above.
All of a sudden, the ruler on the throne uttered a light exclamation. He put down the cup in his hand and looked upward.
Yet he could not see through the layers of earth; he merely sensed something faintly, a faithless newcomer in death... But to Hades's surprise, the presence was not quite like that of a deity, and probably not much like a mortal either.
By his side, Persephone was not at all surprised by this. She casually tasted a piece of fruit, then asked:
"What is it, has another powerful mortal passed away?"
"Then you go. As for dealing with the body... I have no interest in it."