Thanatos clearly did not realize just how much confusion his previous words had caused his elder brother.
Seeing Hypnos's dazed state, he assumed his brother was simply not fully awake yet, so he took two steps forward and restated his demand.
“I said, I want Aergia to come to my Temple of Death and be my subordinate deity.”
Hypnos looked at him quietly, his half-lidded, pinkish-purple eyes slowly cracking open as the heavy drowsiness within them faded slightly.
He then glanced past him at Aergia, who was standing behind Thanatos.
The young goddess was hanging her head helplessly, clearly just as speechlessly exasperated by the turn of events.
Sensing Hypnos's gaze, the young goddess raised her head and offered a slightly embarrassed smile.
Hypnos immediately understood.
This was almost certainly another one of Thanatos's sudden whims, and Aergia had likely had little to no say in the matter from beginning to end.
Hypnos never expected that simply letting his younger brother take Aergia to the surface world to fulfill a divine duty would result in him scheming to snatch away his subordinate deity.
And right to his face, no less.
Hypnos remained silent for a moment before slowly sitting up from the obsidian couch.
“Thanatos.” Hypnos's voice lacked a bit of its usual casual drowsiness. “Do you know what you're saying?”
“Of course I do.”
Thanatos crossed his arms, meeting his elder brother's gaze without an inch of retreat.
“Aergia possesses peerless talent in the domain of death. Merely by witnessing a few scenes of weeping souls and the reaping of life, she condensed two godheads on the side of death!”
“Do you know what that means? She can now independently cast death spells! She is a genuine God of Death.”
Hypnos raised his eyes slightly.
Rest, Cessation?
Another two brand-new concepts...
For a moment, the God of Sleep could not help but re-evaluate the young girl standing not far away.
Thanatos quickly pressed on, “For her to remain in your Temple of Sleep is an utter waste.”
Hypnos's gaze shifted back to his brother.
“A waste?”
“Is it not?”
Thanatos retorted with utter self-righteousness.
“Your authority over sleep has long been near complete; finding a gap in the laws like Sleep Induction was already extremely rare. But death is different. There are still many things even I haven't studied in detail. Following me will clearly offer her far more opportunities to grow.”
“You spend all day sleeping in your temple and can barely be bothered to step outside. What can you teach her? She would be far better off following me on patrols across the land; at least she could encounter new laws of death every day.”
Aergia silently averted her gaze.
Here it came.
She knew it.
She hadn't expected that Thanatos would not only criticize his elder brother behind his back, but now actually repeat the exact same words right to Hypnos's face.
His Highness's courage was indeed admirable.
Hypnos gently set down the bunch of poppies in his hand, his tone remaining unhurried.
“Thanatos, don't you feel you are taking too much for granted?”
The young God of Death paused slightly.
“Aergia is a subordinate deity entrusted to me personally by Mother Goddess. She was born in the Temple of Sleep and grew under my protection. Now that she has finally achieved some success, you take her out once and expect to directly carry off my subordinate deity?”
A rare sharpness finally glinted in Hypnos's pinkish-purple eyes.
“Have you forgotten what her original divine portfolio actually is?”
Thanatos fell silent for a moment.
“Sloth.”
“Since you know that, you should understand that sleep is likewise one of the domains best suited for her.”
Hypnos picked up the bunch of poppies once more.
“The birth of the godhead of Sleep Induction has already proven this. She completed the path of transition from wakefulness to slumber.”
“She accomplished the same in the domain of death.”
Thanatos was clearly unwilling to yield.
“So what if she did?”
Hypnos leaned back onto the obsidian couch, his pure white wings folding slowly with the movement.
“She is my subordinate deity.”
“She is a subordinate deity given to me by Mother Goddess and raised by my own hands.”
“Where she belongs is not something you can change with a single word.”
Hypnos spoke very calmly, without even a noticeable pressure of divine power, yet the atmosphere in the hall grew considerably heavier as his final word fell.
Thanatos's brow furrowed.
That tone was a refusal leaving no room for negotiation.
Aergia was currently Hypnos's only subordinate deity.
Although he usually felt she was a bit too diligent—at times so diligent she hardly seemed like a goddess of sloth—he had to admit that ever since Aergia arrived at the Temple of Sleep, many trivial matters he used to handle personally were gradually taken over by someone else.
Someone sorted the dream crystals.
Someone tended the poppy fields.
And those law fragments scattered along the margins of the sleep domain, which he couldn't even be bothered to tidy up himself, finally had someone willing to actively research them.
How could Hypnos possibly let go of such a subordinate deity so easily?
Thinking of this, the gaze Hypnos directed at Thanatos acquired an inexplicable undertone.
This younger brother of his...
Why hadn't he noticed before that he had such a habit of trying to snatch other people's things?
Meanwhile, Aergia, the subject of the struggle between the two ancient deities, appeared quite calm.
The dispute between these two ancient gods was not something she could meddle in; she was the "object" over which they were fighting, possessing no right to speak up and choose a master for herself.
Relax, Aergia. No matter the final result, you won't lose the opportunity to keep studying the laws, right?
Since she was standing here either way, Aergia simply submerged her consciousness back into her body, continuing to organize her newly condensed godhead of Cessation.
The extremely dark godhead floated quietly within her divine core, a faint glimmer flickering slowly inside it. Many of its subtle laws were not yet fully stabilized and required her careful sorting.
“Hypnos, can't you be a little more reasonable?”
Hypnos flicked his eyelids up.
“In what way am I being unreasonable?”
“...”
Thanatos took a deep breath.
He suddenly realized that his elder brother was actually even more stubborn than he was.
Especially that persistently unhurried tone of his.
It made one want to drag him right off the stone couch.
Thanatos suddenly recalled something.
“Wait.”
He looked at Hypnos, his previously irritated expression shifting.
“Aergia was personally assigned to the Temple of Sleep by Mother Goddess!”
Hypnos narrowed his eyes slightly.
“So?”
“So this isn't something for you alone to decide in the first place!”
As if he had finally found a reason that could convince his brother, Thanatos's tone instantly turned confident.
“Since Aergia was personally entrusted to you by Mother Goddess, then let's go to the Temple of Night and let Mother Goddess decide whether she should stay in the Temple of Sleep or transfer to the Temple of Death.”
Hypnos did not answer immediately. He looked quietly at Thanatos, and only after a moment did he slowly speak.
“Then let us go.”
Hypnos slowly stood up and placed the bunch of poppies beside the obsidian couch, the pair of pure white wings on his back naturally unfolding with the movement.
Thanatos immediately turned around.
“Aergia, keep up.”
Hearing this, the young goddess hurriedly withdrew her consciousness from the godhead of Cessation.
She raised her head, took a glance at the two deities who were already preparing to leave, and briskly followed them.
The three deities walked slowly along that ancient path deep within the Underworld.
Rate on N.U.
