Imp to Demon King: A Journey of Conquest-Chapter 343: Judge’s Fury and the Furies’ Ire

Unaware of the horrifying pursuers Aeacus was about to unleash on his tracks, the plasma propelling Adam gradually thinned. He slowed down, his eyes widening at the scenery.

The underworld’s barren entrance was gone, replaced by fields of scentless white or yellow flowers that swayed with the gentle breeze. A few stalks of lush grass and a blue sky added their colors to create a clear vista he hadn’t expected to see in the realm of the dead.

He took his surroundings in for a few more kilometers before the sun’s bright reflection sparkled on a distant river’s clear waters.

Cloud-like sails rose from a Greek boat in purples, greens, reds, and whites. Dead men and women, judged worthy by Rhadamnathus, Minos, and Aeacus, held their hats from flying off their heads and danced on the deck to the entrancing melody of percussions, lyres, and bouzoukis.

Each step of their new bodies carried their delight and expectations for the future. But this scene also confused Adam. Why weren’t they souls like those he had seen in the court temple?

’Do they get eternal bodies upon entering the neutral zone?’ He landed on a mountain and lowered his hand to free Achilles and Garduck.

The two men observed him shapeshift back to his infernal formal, smiles curving their lips before Achilles broke the silence.

He raised his fists, his earlier doubts and rage against the judges vanishing in the face of their resounding achievement. "I can’t believe it! Do you know that no one ever infiltrated the Asphodel fields without godly assistance? We’re the first in history!"

Garduck let out a heavy exhale as he tilted his head to massage his tensed shoulders. "Even among demons, very few could have passed. But I knew you were among them, Adam." He sneered self-depreciatingly. "I could barely move against their commands. I’m a bur..."

Adam raised his palm, cutting him off. "I handpicked you both for a reason. Don’t let negative thoughts shackle your mind." The corner of his lips rose into a soft smile. "Let’s see if you don’t change your mind after we leave this place. Garduck..."

He paused, scrutinising the demon.

"Yes?"

"Embrace your dream until the very end." With those words, he pointed at the ship and shifted the subject. After all, they were in enemy territory and had to move. "Any idea why they have bodies and where they’re going?"

Achilles offered his knowledge with a nod. "The river of wailing, Cocytus. Its clear waters come from the tears of tortured souls. Sailing upward leads to Hades’ castle and the Empyrean fields. But our destination is down to the deeper parts, beyond Asphodel and the Styx, where the Phlegethon runs. Take my information with a pinch of salt, though. The underworld has as many representations as the number of poets who wrote them—too many to be reliable."

Adam nodded before Achilles continued. "Evil souls meet punishment while pure ones receive rewards. We should be close to the Empyrean fields so those people have youthful, eternal bodies reflecting their past good deeds. We’ll surely meet ghosts and specters the closer we are to Tartarus."

Adam tucked his fingers around his chin, a pensive frown creasing his brows. They could speed to their destination but would attract unwanted attention, especially by following those rivers. After all, they were each named after a divinity he had no desire to meet. Well, except for one.

His eyes narrowed on the ship before he nodded. "Let’s board it. I’d rather sacrifice time than risk our lives to save a few days."

A broad grin stretched on his face as he focused on Achilles. "Want to take a swim?"

Passing his arm over Garduck’s shoulders as if they were best friends, Achilles rolled his eyes and moved down the mountain. "Leave me alone with this stupid question. I’m not swimming in Muspelheim’s lava, the Acheron, the Cocytus, or any river!"

Adam followed him with a bright laugh, his features shifting to a plain human’s to blend in the crowd. "We’ll see soon."

Amused because Garduck’s no evolution policy came in handy, he covered his short horns and ears with a plain helmet. As for the rest? He had always looked like a handsome human, so he just winked and led the way toward the river.

As they infiltrated the boat and hid inside the hold, Aeacus walked out of a magic circle that flickered a blinding divine radiance.

Somber dust crunched beneath his sandals, smearing the polished leather with a layer of darkness as he approached a lonely house.

Its walls shimmered a faint divinity buried under coiling shadows. But his attention rapidly shifted to the creaking door and the figures emerging from its frame. Even if he came to request help, he didn’t enjoy interacting with those things in the slightest—no one did.

A woman, her hair as red and blazing as the fire burning in Hephaestus’ forge, approached him. A coquettish smile reached her longing red eyes as her wings, darker than the deepest parts of space, fluttered eagerly. "To what do we owe your illustrious presence in Erebus, my dear Aeacus?"

She covered her lips, her eyelashes fluttering and her eyes widening. "Don’t tell me you got bored by those two old brothers and finally decided to focus on more interesting..." She licked her rosy lips. "Things."

A blond woman sharing her features and lusterless skin-tight leather armor, leaned on the first’s shoulders, giggling in delight. "We’re so bored here. Come on, don’t glare at us like that and come inside."

The last one, a dark-haired beauty, snickered behind them. "Those three judges are so stern that I would believe it if you told me they have a broom stuck in their asses. Keep dreaming. We’ll always remain outcasts living in this shabby house beside Tartarus."

Aeacus’ brows twitched, his mouth opening then closing before he clenched his jaw. Refusing to enter their taunting games, he swung his palm before him, his voice solemn and his eyes focused on their faces.

"The situation is serious, Megaera, Tisiphone, Alecto. An unidentified creature infiltrated the fields of Asphodel. Acheron didn’t see it, and we found Cerberus unconscious by the gates, so we can’t count on Hades until it butchers hundreds of souls. You are to capture or kill it before it happens."

"Wow..." Megaera, the red-haired woman, raised an intrigued brow. "Sounds like you’re in trouble for failing to stop it three times." A devious smile split the three sisters’ lips as she raised her clawed fingers. "I wonder if you’ll treat us better if we let it slip between our claws."

A frown so deep that it almost dripped ink creased Aeacus’ brows. "Or we can relocate your unwanted existence inside Tartarus. The weather is a bit hot and the tortures itch at first." His eyes narrowed into slits. "But it only becomes worse."

They exchanged tensed glares, a heavy silence enveloping the shadowy region of Erebus before the sisters raised their hands with a light chuckle.

"Told you." Alecto shrugged. "Those old mortals can’t take up a joke. I even doubt they know anything besides their duties."

"Right?"

Tisiphone nodded, but Megaera raised her palms. "We’ll use our full force to catch the trespasser for you and Hades. But even if you forgot you once had a heart, ours is the only thing preventing us from doing something incredibly... stupid."

She waited for a second, then two.

Yet, Aeacus only glared at her before he decided he had enough of their shenanigans. "What are you waiting for? Hades’ handwritten command? Go now!"

The sisters sighed, their wings flapping as they lunged to the sky. This was their last warning, and sadly, it fell on deaf ears. Perhaps the next time Aeacus would meet them would be with an army of gathered gods to stop them. After all, solitude was a slow poison, and their own divine authorities only hastened its insidious effects.