I got goose bumps as I heard the words that came out of the constellation’s mouth. Those who were crazy about stories ate the stories. This was the nature of constellations.
当我听到从星座的嘴里说出的话时，我起了鸡皮疙瘩。那些对故事着迷的人吃掉了故事。这就是星座的本质。
[Death is the end of the story. Just as a cow that has become a steak can’t revive, the dead can’t revive. Their story is finished.]
死亡是故事的结局。就像一头牛变成了牛排就不能复活一样，死人也不能复活。他们的故事结束了
“I know there are exceptions.”
“我知道也有例外。”
[They are false folklore. There are no exceptions.]
这些都是虚假的民间传说，没有例外
It was a lie. There was a saying for this in Greek mythology. “Can you swear on the Styx River?”
这是个谎言。在希腊神话中有这样一句谚语:“你能以StyxRiver的名义发誓吗?”
She naturally couldn’t swear. For the first time, anger filled Persephone’s expression.
她自然不能发誓，珀尔塞福涅第一次感到愤怒。
[…The soul you believe in is just a crude lump of a story.] “I want that crude lump of a story.”
你相信的灵魂只是一个粗糙的故事“我想要那个粗糙的故事。”
[A person who looks backwards in the Underworld will feel regret. You need to understand that the time has passed.]
[在冥界回首往事的人会感到遗憾。你需要明白时间已经过去了。]
If she was taking such a hard line then I had to use the trump card I had saved.
如果她采取这样的强硬路线，那么我就不得不使用我保存下来的王牌。
“Queen-nim. Time isn’t necessarily about ‘going forward.’ I thought you knew that.”
“尼姆女王。时间不一定就是‘前进’。我以为你知道这一点。”
At this moment, the world turned grey. A vast killing intent filled the whole hall. For a moment, I felt that I had seen Persephone’s essence. My mouth didn’t open but I wanted to scream.
此时此刻，世界变得灰暗。整个大厅充满了大规模的杀戮意图。有那么一瞬间，我觉得我看到了珀尔塞福涅的本质。我的嘴没有张开，但我想尖叫。
Souls didn’t exist? Wasn’t it my soul that was feeling creeped out right now? Sweat dripped down my back as the killing intent disappeared.
灵魂不存在？现在不是我的灵魂感到毛骨悚然吗？随着杀戮意图的消失，汗水顺着我的背流了下来。
Persephone smiled like nothing had happened. [Huhu… how interesting. As expected from the child that Olympus calls a singularity.]
珀尔塞福涅笑了笑，好像什么都没发生过。[呼呼......真有趣。正如奥林巴斯所预料的那样，这个孩子被称为奇点。]
Her small was subtly different from before. I could feel it without speaking. From now on, I could get to my goal.
她个子矮小，与以前略有不同。我不用说话就能感觉到。从现在开始，我可以达到我的目标。
“I know it isn’t just that. I have seen the Giant Soldier in development in Tartarus. If you make a deal with me, you can shorten the time it takes to use it…”
“我知道不仅仅是这样。我在塔尔塔罗斯看到巨人战士正在发展。如果你和我达成协议，你可以缩短使用它的时间......”
[That is the story. Gigantomachia is an important issue but the Giant Soldier can be completed on time without your help.]
故事就是这样的。巨大的战士是一个重要的问题，但是巨大的战士不需要你的帮助也可以按时完成
I was speechless for a moment. She was a truly formidable goddess. It was Persephone’s turn.
我一时说不出话来。她真是一位令人敬畏的女神。轮到珀尔塞福涅了。
[However, I might consider this deal if you tell me how you know the information…] “It is difficult. To be honest, I don’t know how to explain it.”
[不过，如果你告诉我你是怎么知道这些信息的，我可能会考虑这笔交易......]“这很难。说实话，我不知道该怎么解释。”
I felt sorry for Shin Yoosung but this wasn’t possible. My plans for the future were finished if I revealed this. Persephone gazed into my eyes to gauge the truth of my answer. Then she muttered in a strange voice.
我为申友成感到难过，但这是不可能的。如果我透露了这一点，我对未来的计划就完蛋了。珀尔塞福涅凝视着我的眼睛，试图判断我的回答是否属实。然后她用一种奇怪的声音喃喃自语。
[Indeed, ■■■ ■■■…]
确实如此，■■■■■■■■■...]
…What? The next second, the messages of the constellations exploded in my ears.
...什么?下一秒，星座的信息在我耳边爆炸。
[The constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband is doubting his ears.] [The constellation Demon-like Judge of Fire’s eyes have widened.] [The constellation Scribe of Heaven points out the Queen’s rashness.]
[金发囚徒怀疑自己的耳朵][像恶魔一样的火焰审判者的眼睛睁大了。][天堂的抄写员指出了女王的鲁莽。]
[The constellation ‘Secretive Plotter’ is immersed.]
[星座‘秘密策划者’沉浸其中。]
Persephone frowned.
珀尔塞福涅皱起了眉头。
[The uninvited guests should stay quiet.]
不请自来的客人应该保持安静
I asked with a shocked expression,
我带着震惊的表情问道,
“What did you say just now?”
“你刚才说什么?”
[Ah, it isn’t a big deal.]
啊，没什么大不了的
I was really confused.
我真的很困惑。
…■■■?
■■■？
I couldn’t pronounce it properly but her words sounded like filtered information. It generally happened with information not made public yet in the scenario. However, the filtering wasn’t triggered if a person already knew the information.
我不能正确地发音，但是她的话听起来像是过滤过的信息。这种情况通常发生在信息尚未公开的情况下。然而，如果一个人已经知道了这些信息，过滤就不会被触发。
It didn’t make sense. There was information I didn’t know despite reading all of Ways of Survival? No, maybe… [I’m sorry but I’ll end the entertainment here. I have no reason to make the deal with you. I can use other methods to find out your information.]]
这说不通啊。有一些信息我不知道，尽管我读了所有的生存之道？不，也许......对不起，我要结束这里的娱乐活动。我没有理由和你做这笔交易。我可以用其他方法来找到你的信息
The light reflected in a creepy manner off the knife. I didn’t feel like knowing why.
光线从刀上反射出来，令人毛骨悚然，我不知道为什么。
[I keep thinking this but… you look delicious.]
我一直在想这个，但是......你看起来很好吃
Persephone suddenly approached and grabbed my chin. I refrained from pushing back my chair and smiled.
珀尔塞福涅突然走过来抓住我的下巴，我忍住没有往后推椅子，笑了。
“Will you be able to handle the storm that will occur if you harm an incarnation in the middle of the scenario?”
“如果你在剧本中伤害一个化身，你能够处理将要发生的风暴吗?”
[Hrmm. You are disrespectful. Do you think I can’t afford this probability?] “The constellations watching me also won’t tolerate it.”
“星座也不会容忍这种可能性。”
Persephone laughed. [Do you think the king will be afraid of such trivial constellations?]
珀尔塞福涅笑了。(你认为国王会害怕这种琐碎的星座吗?)
Of course, Hades deserved to be this arrogant. Still, the word ‘trivial’ shouldn’t be used in such a way.
当然，冥王哈迪斯应该如此傲慢，但是“琐碎”这个词不应该这样使用。
[The constellation ‘Prisoner of the Golden Headband’ swings his rod as if he has been provoked.] [The constellation ‘Demon-like Judge of Fire’ pulls out her sword with cold eyes.] [The constellation ‘Secretive Plotter’ is excited and encouraging the situation.]
[“金发囚徒”星座摆动着他的鱼竿，好像他被激怒了。][星座‘魔鬼般的火之审判者’用冷酷的眼神拔出了她的剑。][“秘密策划者”星座兴奋地鼓舞着局面。]
Persephone also pulled out her power.
珀尔塞福涅也切断了她的能量。
[I see. Do you want to try it now?]
我明白了。你现在想试试吗
The ceiling of the hall started to fill with dark clouds. Red and blue sparks occurred like a thunderstorm and white flames spread throughout the banquet hall. This was the battle between constellations.
大厅的天花板开始布满乌云。红色和蓝色的火花像一场雷雨，白色的火焰蔓延到整个宴会厅。这是星座之间的战斗。
A huge aura rose from Persephone’s symbolic body. I would explode if this continued.
一个巨大的光环从Persephone象征性的身体上升起，如果继续下去我会爆炸的。
I calmly opened my mouth. “You said you liked stories.”
我平静地张开嘴，“你说你喜欢听故事。”
The atmosphere of the constellations softened for a moment at my words.
听了我的话，星座的气氛暂时缓和了下来。
“Then how about a different deal?”
“那么，换个交易怎么样?”
[The constellation ‘Secretive Plotter’ is listening to your words.]
[“秘密策划者”星座正在倾听你的话语。]
Persephone stared at me.
珀尔塞福涅盯着我。
“If you help me, I will show you the most interesting story in the world. A story that is incomparable to the steak you just ate.”
“如果你帮助我，我将给你看世界上最有趣的故事。这是一个无与伦比的故事，就像你刚吃的牛排一样。”
[Does that mean I can eat it?]
这是不是意味着我可以吃它了
“If you like gourmet meals, I think no more meals are needed. This story will be enough.”
“如果你喜欢美食，我认为不需要更多的膳食。这个故事就足够了。”
Persephone noticed what I was trying to say and laughed.
珀尔塞福涅注意到我想说的话，笑了起来。
[…Are you planning to take the money without letting me eat?] “I will let you have a taste. However, if you eat me now, you will regret it for the rest of your life.”
你打算不让我吃饭就把钱拿走吗“我会让你尝尝的。但是，如果你现在吃了我，你会后悔一辈子的。”
[Why?]
(为什么?)
“You would think it would’ve been more delicious if I hadn’t eaten it.”
“你可能会认为，如果我没有吃它，它会更美味。”
Persephone looked intrigued.
珀尔塞福涅看起来很感兴趣。
[…How can you be so sure?]
你怎么能这么肯定
“I can stand against time-defying beings without a sponsor.”
“我可以在没有赞助商的情况下反对那些无视时间的人。”
Persephone’s eyes shook lightly.
珀尔塞福涅的眼睛轻轻地颤动着。
“I have destroyed a returnee and prevented disasters without the help of the god of this world. And so far, only five scenarios have passed.”
“在没有这个世界的神的帮助下，我摧毁了一个回归者，阻止了灾难。到目前为止，只有5种情况已经过去。”
Persephone’s bit her lower lip in a tantalizing manner.
珀尔塞福涅以一种撩人的方式咬住了她的下唇。
“As a living soul, I entered the Underworld and encountered you like this. Aren’t you curious about what I will do in the future?”
“作为一个活生生的灵魂，我进入了冥界，就这样遇到了你。难道你不好奇我将来要做什么吗?”
[You speak very well. But…]
你说得很好，但是.....
Persephone lowered her gaze and continued.
珀尔塞福涅低下头，继续说道。
[It doesn’t seem to be a deal?]
(看起来不像是个交易?)
“You can call it a courtship.”
“你可以称之为求爱。”
[…Huh?]
[...啊?]
I smiled.
我笑了。
“I’m serious. I’ll show you stories you have never seen before and stories that you can’t endure wondering about.”
“我是认真的。我会给你看一些你从未见过的故事，还有一些你无法忍受去思考的故事。”
Maybe it was wrong to think about making deals with constellations. They were those bound by eternity. They couldn’t make serious deals with trivial incarnations. If so, it was better to say ridiculous and far-fetched things. At the very least, it would make an impression.
也许，与星座做交易的想法是错误的。他们是那些被永恒束缚的人。他们不能用微不足道的化身做出严肃的交易。如果是这样的话，最好说些荒谬和牵强的东西。至少，它会给人留下深刻的印象。
Like all myths, the gods were more moved by a handful of sincere words than a hundred words of deceit. In fact, Persephone’s expression wasn’t bad at all.
就像所有的神话故事一样，比起一百个谎言，诸神更容易被一些真诚的话语所感动。事实上，珀尔塞福涅的表情一点也不糟糕。
[Hrmm, it is difficult. This is why males are…] “Of course, it isn’t courting you but courting the Father of the Rich Night.”
嗯，这很难。这就是为什么雄性会......]“当然，这不是追求你，而是追求富有之夜的父亲。”
Persephone’s eyes widened at my words and she burst out laughing. She stepped away from me and slowly crossed her legs to sit on the table. Her coy eyes swept over my body.
听了我的话，珀尔塞福涅的眼睛睁大了，她突然大笑起来。她从我身边走开，慢慢地叉起双腿坐在桌子上。她腼腆的眼睛扫视着我的身体。
[How interesting.]
真有意思
It was frightening that she was posing like this with Yoo Sangah’s body. Persephone stared into the dark air and slowly closed her eyes. It was only a moment but it felt like hours of heavy silence. I was about to choke on the weight of the silence when she spoke.
令人害怕的是，她这样摆姿势和YooSangah的身体在一起。珀尔塞福涅凝视着黑暗的空气，慢慢地闭上了眼睛。虽然只是一瞬间，但却像是几个小时的沉默。她说话的时候，我几乎被沉默的重压窒息了。
[I’ll give you a task.]
我会给你一个任务
It finally came.
它终于来了。
[You want to show me an interesting story? If you succeed, I will let you find the soul you want.]
你想给我看一个有趣的故事吗?如果你成功了，我会让你找到你想要的灵魂
Then a system message popped up.
然后一条系统消息弹出来。
[A new hidden scenario has been activated.]
[一个新的隐藏方案已被激活]
There were a few myths that came to mind when I heard her words. That reminded me, Hercules performed something called the ’12 Tasks.’ Persephone’s eyes shone.
当我听到她的话时，我脑海中浮现出几个神话。这提醒了我，赫拉克勒斯执行了一个叫做“12任务”的任务珀尔塞福涅的眼睛闪闪发光。
[I want to see it once. The children of Olympus often do it but I haven’t been able to watch it since meeting my king.]
我想再看一次。奥林匹斯山的孩子们经常这样做，但是自从我见到我的国王后，我就再也看不下去了
“What task is it?”
“这是什么任务?”
[Your task is to cut off the head of the snake.] “…Snake? Do you mean the snake with multiple heads?” I asked in a slightly timid voice.
你的任务是把蛇头砍下来“蛇？你是说那条多头蛇吗?”我略带羞怯地问道。
It was because ‘that snake’ was a 2nd grade monster. Persephone shook her head.
这是因为“那条蛇”是二年级的怪物。珀尔塞福涅摇了摇头。
[I’m not talking about the hydra. Only Hercules can kill it. The snake you have to kill is somewhere else.] “However, I can’t go far because of the scenario.”
我说的不是九头蛇。只有大力神才能杀死它。你要杀的蛇在别的地方“然而，由于这种情况，我不能走得太远。”
[Don’t worry. The snake will be wherever you go.]
别担心，你走到哪里蛇就跟到哪里
Persephone lightly flicked her fingers and a screen popped up in the empty air. There was the message that the channel was connected and I realized what this screen was.
珀尔塞福涅轻轻地弹了弹手指，一个屏幕在空中弹了出来。有一个信息，通道被连接，我意识到这个屏幕是什么。
…Was this how the constellations watched us? A vast green forest filled the entire screen. It wasn’t long before I figured out what this place was. It was the stage for the sixth scenario that was about to start. Wait a minute. What was this?
星座就是这样看着我们的吗？一片广阔的绿色森林占满了整个屏幕。不久我就知道这是什么地方了。这是即将开始的第六种情景的舞台。等一下。这是什么？
「 Ahjussi, pull out some of the wood over there and make a place to rest. Aren’t you good at that? 」 「 I’m not good at clearing land. Dumb female. 」
大叔，把那边的木头搬出来，找个地方休息一下。你不擅长这个吗?”“我不善于清理土地”。愚蠢的女性
I stared at the screen. The two people were the missing Gong Pildu and Han Sooyoung. How was this possible? The sixth scenario hadn’t started yet? I could feel Persephone staring at me.
我盯着屏幕。这两个人就是失踪的龚皮尔都和韩素英。这怎么可能？第六种情况还没有开始？我能感觉到珀尔塞福涅在盯着我。
[How about it? Do you want to try it? It might be hard but it is a worthy task.]
怎么样?你想试试吗?这可能很难，但是这是一个有价值的任务
I recovered my spirit. I could sense the ‘snake’ that Persephone wanted me to kill. I slowly nodded.
我恢复了精神。我能感觉到珀尔塞福涅想让我杀死的那条蛇。我慢慢地点点头。
***
***
The incarnation left and darkness came to the hall.
道成肉身离开了，黑暗来到了大厅。
Persephone remained alone, staring at the rest of the feast before opening her mouth.
珀尔塞福涅独自一人，在张开嘴之前凝视着宴会的其余部分。
[Clear it away. It doesn’t taste good.]
把它清理掉，味道不好
Hands appeared in the darkness and quickly took away the plates. Persephone watched as the food went straight into the garbage can. Sword master, SSS-grade hunter, 10th circle magician…
手出现在黑暗中，并迅速拿走盘子。珀尔塞福涅看着食物直接进入垃圾桶。剑术大师，sss级猎人，第十圈魔术师..。
She was already tired of these delicious tastes. Then a voice came from the darkness.
她已经厌倦了这些美味的食物，这时从黑暗中传来一个声音。
-Persephone. Why did you do that?
珀尔塞福涅，你为什么这么做？
It was like the space itself was talking.
就好像空间本身在说话。
[Oh, my shy husband is finally talking.]
哦，我害羞的丈夫终于开口说话了
-I asked you why.
我问你为什么。
[Hades, you wanted this.]
哈迪斯，这是你想要的
-I never said that.
我从没这么说过。
Persephone stared into the darkness.
珀尔塞福涅凝视着黑暗。
[You rarely like incarnations. I think you particularly like that child. Am I mistaken?]
(你很少喜欢化身。我想你特别喜欢那个孩子。我错了吗?)
-Why do you think so?
你为什么这么想？
[It was because you didn’t kill him when he entered the Underworld.]
那是因为他进入冥界时你没有杀他
The darkness was silent for a moment.
黑暗沉寂了一会儿。
[You always felt envious that Zeus had Hercules. This time, I read a bit of your mind.]
你总是嫉妒宙斯拥有大力神赫拉克勒斯，这一次，我读到了你的一些想法
Persephone looked down at her hands for a moment before making a fist.
珀尔塞福涅低头看了她的手一会儿，然后握起了拳头。
[Honestly, it was amazing. There were some constellations I couldn’t afford to go against. They are all chasing after one incarnation…]
老实说，这真是太棒了。有些星座我无法抗拒。他们都在追求一个化身......]
A screen appeared in the darkness. However, the channel’s signal was unstable and the video didn’t appear immediately. The darkness gazed at the screen and opened its mouth.
黑暗中出现了一个屏风。然而，频道的信号不稳定，视频没有立即出现。黑暗注视着屏幕，张开了嘴。
-There will soon be signs of the later days.
-很快就会有以后的日子的迹象。
The later days. Persephone listened to these words and opened her mouth with a mixture of distrust, doubt and anxiety.
