A boat was ominously floating in the river towards Adrian and Charon. Adrian could see that the boat only had a single passenger and that was the ferryman himself. He was cloaked in a dark robe, but one could see that it was incredibly high quality.
The ferryman was not even looking at the souls wailing as they were actually avoiding him. One could visibly see the souls of the damned trying to swim away from the boat. The boat is even adorned with gold and precious jewels contrary to the belief that it should be old and rickety.
Any dark colored clothing would look gaudy and old in the underworld, but this ferryman actually has his robes glistening despite the dark color. If one looked closely then they would also see that the ferryman was heavily decorated with jewelries. Gems, precious stones, and precious metals could be seen adorning this robed ferryman.
[You are in the presence of the Ferryman of the Dead, Charon.]
"Greetings, Charon." Adrian stated as the underworld gods did not like being referred to as god before their name when he is speaking to them.
"Greetings, Equinox. I heard that you called for me." The God Charon stated.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"I actually did not call for you as I summoned my soulbound that I named the same as you." Adrian stated as he pointed towards Charon that is still absorbing power from the River of Phlegethon.
Adrian did not know what the God Charon would feel towards him naming one of his soulbounds like him. Charon is the enigmatic one of the three children of the Goddess Nox. He is the eldest of the three, but he is also the most silent.
The God Thanatos is like the cold guy that is actually a nice guy on the inside. The God Hypnos, the twin of the God Thanatos, is a more laid back and lazy but still an extrovert. The oldest of the three, the God Charon, is like the silent and mysterious one as he rarely talks.
The God Charon might be silent, but Adrian knows that he is very loaded. The God Charon's duty involves ferrying worthy souls to the underworld. He has grown very rich due to this job as the souls that he ferries pay him the currency of the underworld called the drachma.
People think that one cannot bring their riches to the underworld, but they are wrong. The riches could be brought to the underworld but not the monetary ones. The only riches that one can bring to the underworld is the riches of the heart or good deeds.
Upon the death of the person, they will enter Limbo first as they will be judged there. When they pass through the gate of the afterlife, they will get drachmas upon their arrival in the underworld where they can use to have the God Charon ferry them to their destination. Those that have done good deeds all their life will be rich and treated like a VIP while those that did not even do anything remotely good will suffer on their way to reincarnation.
"The God Charon has got that bling bling. I am so jealous. I hope that my job in Limbo actually paid me or something." Adrian thought as he stared at the God Charon.
"I see. I have thought that you summoned for me." The God Charon stated as there was a hint of sadness in his tone, but Adrian cannot pick up on it due to the way the former speaks.
The God Charon does not have much intonation in the way he speaks which means Adrian cannot pick up the extremely subtle changes. Even the God Charon's brothers cannot pick up on these tone changes as they are incredibly difficult to pick up on. Still, the God Charon seems to be happy as an extremely small curve could be seen on his face.
If one were to describe what the God Charon looks like, then they will have different descriptions. The Ferryman of the Dead actually changes his appearance based on the person looking at him so that the soul will have a comfortable journey to the place they will be before they get reincarnated. Only a select group of people could see his true face and one of those is Adrian.
Charon looks like a man that is at the age of forty but still looks good. The only thing that makes him look older is the aura that he is exhibiting as he is usually gloomy. Even the flexing of his jewelries cannot change this stoic and gloomy aura around him but the residents of the underworld call that his charm.
"I am sorry about that if you were mistaken that I called for you. You must have been incredibly busy, and I actually bothered you by calling my soulbound's name." Adrian stated.
"I am not bothered by the slightest. I am actually glad that I came because I experienced something that does not happen." The God Charon stated.
"What is that?" Adrian asked.
"To think that a being would be named after me. It brings me so much joy as it is always my brothers that get beings named after them. My brother, Thanatos, always get people named after him when they wreak havoc on the battlefield or war.
My brother, Hypnos, would have people named after him when they like to sleep too much. He even got a sleeping disorder named after him even though he does not want to. I, on the other hand, am either forgotten or looked passed by. The only recognition I receive is when people need my expertise in the afterlife." The God Charon stated but Adrian does not know if the former is actually sad or just saying a story.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"Well… I am glad to say that I named my soulbound after you. Charon has gotten a fanbase in the mortal realm as well." Adrian stated even though he actually picked the name because he was fascinated by the name he read in a book about mythology. He actually did not expect that the Ferryman of the Dead, Charon, is also a god in Pandemonium.
"Is that so?! I am actually glad as some people are also praying to me because of your soulbound. My name has been spread because of you which is a great feeling. A name that was forgotten by the people of the mortal realm is now being spread because of the name you picked for your soulbound." The God Charon stated.
"You are not angry that I named him after you?" Adrian asked as he feared the story of gods punishing people named after them.
"I am not as selfish as those well-known gods. I think other gods that have been forgotten will share the same sentiment as well. Also, I am a Chthonic god. I do not gain power from the faith of the people, but it is a warm feeling that you are being recognized." The God Charon stated.
The God Charon is right as there are a special category of gods that do not gain power from the faith of the people. They usually refer to themselves as Chthonic gods or gods that have existed before mortals existed and now live in the underworld. Even if they do not gain power from mortal faith, some of them like the love that is being sent to them and they send something in return as well.
Those that pray to the God Charon would be given the blessing of safe passage when they are travelling. Since the Chthonic gods do not need the power of faith, they use all the energy given to them by the mortal and turn it into a blessing if they deem them worthy. This means that their blessings are more powerful than other gods that need the power of faith.
If this was the case, then why are the Chthonic Gods not well-known? This is due to the fact that they do not need the power of faith hence they do not need a representative in the mortal realm. No representative means there is no church or temple dedicated to them which is why they are forgotten in time.
Adrian cannot spread this belief as well as he cannot speak of the matters of the underworld to mortals. He can only speak about the Twin Gods and nothing else as it is taboo to talk about the happenings in the underworld.
"If you like it that much then can I ask you for a favor?" Adrian asked.
"Since you have given me warmth, then I shall agree to the favor as long as it is within my means." The God Charon stated.
"Can you give your blessing to Charon?" Adrian stated as he pointed towards his soulbound. The God Charon is considered as a Greater God in the hierarchy which means he would get the last requirement for Charon's evolution if he gets the blessing.