Just as the will of Hades and Metis was focused on the great game of the Norse world, their home base, Hades in the world of Chaos, was plunged into absurd chaos due to the 'absence' of its supreme lord.
And the instigator of all this was little Eros, always over-energetic and with a mischievous soul burning with fiery passion.
At first, under the threat of Hades's deadly glare and the footage of the 'public execution', Eros was honest for a while.
She conscientiously 'promoted unions' on Earth and worked hard to increase the number of demigod 'beacons'.
But as Hades's will was long immersed in Northern Europe, the suffocating sense of oppression gradually faded, and the laziness and desire to cause trouble in Eros's bones flared up like a wildfire, intensifying.
To make matters worse, the Cyclopes had carefully crafted a batch of artifacts as gifts to celebrate the birth of the princes and princesses of Hades.
And what was given to Eros was a set of magnificent golden bows and silver arrows.
This was, without a doubt, a first-class tool for causing chaos, a destructive toy placed in the hands of a troublemaker.
Eros was overjoyed with her new toy and completely abandoned her work.
She roamed the Underworld and even the earth with her golden bow and silver arrows, and whenever she saw someone who caught her eye, she would shoot an arrow, utterly unconcerned about the consequences.
Thus, a catastrophe that would go down in the annals of Hades occurred.
On this day, Thanatos, the god of death, had just finished his arduous work of extradition on earth. Dragging his scythe, he was quietly walking along the only path back to Hades with a long chain of dazed souls.
He was surrounded by an aura of silence that would make any sensible being retreat.
However, just as he was passing through the Asphodel Meadows, a silver light, swift as a meteor, tore through the sky and struck with extreme precision—it hit his chest, covered by his black robe, where theoretically there should be no 'heart'!
Thanatos's figure suddenly froze.
He slowly lowered his head and looked at the arrow of light dissipating in his chest.
A strange and turbulent feeling he had never experienced in hundreds of millions of years, like a flood bursting a dam, instantly shattered his cold reason!
He raised his head, and his eyes, which once held only death and silence, now burned with two almost mad, fiery flames.
His gaze was fixed not far away across the vast meadows—
His brother, the sleep god Hypnos.
Hypnos was lying lazily on a huge, soothing poppy, half asleep, half awake, his silver hair hanging down.
Perhaps sensing his brother's return, he was about to greet him as usual, then continue his sleep.
However, he was not greeted by his brother's silent nod, but by a figure like a hungry wolf pouncing on him!
"Hypnos! My dear brother!" Thanatos's voice was no longer the hoarse, low tone of before, but full of eerie passion.
He threw away the scythe symbolizing death, spread his arms, and lunged at Hypnos with lightning speed.
Hypnos was instantly wide awake, completely alert, and looked at his mad brother in horror: "Thanatos? What's wrong with you?! Your scythe! Pick it up! The shades are escaping!"
"Shades? Let them wait!" Thanatos grabbed Hypnos's wrist with astonishing force, his eyes flashing with twisted love.
"I finally understand, Hypnos! In the long life of a god, the goal I have been pursuing is not the silence of death, but the peace of your embrace! You are my water lily, my sweet dream, my eternal desire!"
"Have you gone mad?! Let me go!" Hypnos desperately tried to calm the other with his sleep divine power.
But the death god, who had fallen fanatically in love, was terrifyingly stubborn in his willpower, and the sleepy mist seemed to meet the scorching sun; its effect was greatly weakened.
"I'm not mad! I've never been so clear-headed!" Thanatos tried to embrace Hypnos.
"Accept me, brother! Let our powers unite; death and sleep are the perfect match!"
"You belong in the River Styx! We are brothers! And you—you are the god of death! I am the god of sleep! This is not a match at all!"
Hypnos was almost in tears; he had never been so embarrassed. His own brother pursuing him was a Tartarus-level nightmare!
On the main thoroughfare of Hades, the strangest scene since the beginning of the world was unfolding:
the death god in black robes, symbolizing eternal peace, was frantically chasing the silver-haired sleep god, who symbolized peaceful slumber.
Wherever they passed, shades were stunned, and the spirits of the Underworld hid their faces, unable to watch.
And the culprit of all this, Eros, was hiding behind a boulder on the banks of the Styx, holding her stomach, laughing almost breathlessly, pink light trembling all over her body.
"Hahahaha! This is so fun! Look at that icy death god chasing the sleep god! Hahahaha! This is the power of love! ♡"
Finally, Catia, who could no longer stand it, appeared.
She had just finished sorting through a pile of shade dossiers that had been backlogged due to the 'absence' of the death god, and her face was so dark it could drip water.
Looking at the absurd scene before her, the moon ornament on her forehead flickered slightly with anger.
"E-ros!" Catia's voice was like a cold wind from the polar regions, instantly freezing Eros's laughter.
Eros was startled, poked her head out from behind the rock, met Catia's violet eyes blazing with anger, and her heart skipped a beat.
"Ca... Sister Catia..." Eros tried to play the cute fool to survive.
Catia didn't waste words; she immediately raised her hand, and the laws of Hades constricted again, instantly yanking Eros from her hiding place and pinning her to the spot.
"It seems the lesson from last time wasn't deep enough," Catia's voice was cold.
"Interfering with the order of the Underworld, abusing your power, and even affecting the performance of the core gods' duties... Eros, do you want to go to the edge of the Tartarean abyss for a few days to 'cool down', or do you want to experience the 'family law of Hades' again?"
Looking at the light whip hovering in Catia's hand, made of pure punitive divine power, Eros finally felt fear, and the memory of the pain from her last burned bottom instantly returned.
"I was wrong, I was wrong! Sister, spare me!" Eros cried out.
"I'm going to remove the arrow's effect from Thanatos! Right now! Immediately!"
Catia snorted coldly and loosened some of the restraints: "Don't move yet!"
Eros rushed over to Thanatos, who was still pestering Hypnos, hastily took out the golden bow, fitted a lead arrow, muttered something to herself, and aimed at Thanatos.
Whoosh...
The lead arrow precisely hit Thanatos in the back.
The death god's frenzied movements suddenly stopped, and the fire of love in his eyes seemed extinguished by ice water, quickly dissipating, replaced by the familiar coldness and...
A hint of deep daze and indescribable embarrassment, just awakened.
He looked at his brother Hypnos, who was tightly held, disheveled, and frightened, and then at the strangely expressive... inhabitants of Hades gathered around him.
Thanatos silently released his grip, silently picked up the scythe thrown aside, pulled up his hood, and buried his whole face in the deeper shadows.
Then, without a word, like a black ghost, he instantly vanished, probably seeking a secluded corner to digest this unforgettable dark history.
Hypnos, terrified, straightened his clothes and glared venomously at Eros, but in the end, he sighed wearily, transformed into a wisp of smoke, and slipped away, deciding to sleep for a hundred years.
Catia saw that the farce was finally over and rubbed her aching brow.
She looked at Eros, who looked guilty and was trying to sneak away quietly, and coldly uttered a phrase:
"Your golden bow and silver arrows are temporarily confiscated by me. Don't even think about touching them again until you understand what 'responsibility' and 'proportion' mean. Now, right now, get out of the Underworld and finish your work! If I hear again that you are lazy or mischievous..."
She didn't finish, but the threat in her eyes made Eros shiver, and she nodded rapidly like chopping garlic, transformed into a pink light, and hastily fled the Underworld.
Catia looked at Hades, which had returned to 'order', and sighed heavily.