But after saying that,
Thaumas walked into the midst of the souls, then respectfully said to the King of the Underworld:
"Honorable King of the Underworld Hades, I am guilty!"
Then, together with everyone kneeling on the ground, he shouted loudly. Their overwhelming momentum crashed forward:
"Great Lord of the Underworld! We are guilty."
Hades was stunned by the sight.
Weren't they supposed to be giving him flowers? Why were they kneeling now? What was this supposed to be?
Were they acting in some kind of play?
Though he thought that, Hades did not interrupt them.
Because Nyx and Athena's divine power had him firmly restrained, warning him to watch the whole scene.
So this was a gift for him, Hades! Why were the two of them getting involved?
Meanwhile, Thaumas continued:
"Lord Hades, humanity is the children of the gods!
"But as children of the gods, we have brought shame upon the gods time and again!
"Our goodness has brought glory to the gods, yet our evil has destroyed that glory with our own hands!
"And I am guilty. I committed a grave offense and dared to shoot through the Hell Gate, offending the gods!"
Then,
The crowd began chattering, all sorts of voices rising:
"I am guilty. I abandoned my wife..."
"I am guilty. I murdered my father and brother..."
"I am guilty. I devoured my own kin..."
All kinds of human sins spilled from the souls' mouths.
Greed, selfishness, pride, rage, lust, envy, brutality, abuse, murder, deception...
There were no shortage of utterly wicked people among them, each with all manner of bizarre excuses.
Countless evils played out here. In truth, all of human history had repeated these sins over and over, yet corresponding to each of them were virtues as well.
Thaumas had instructed them