Prometheus’s request for fire made Zeus’s expression harden.
“To ask for fire…”
“Yes. Please grant them fire.”
“Do you even understand what that means?”
“How could I not understand?”
Fire.
For thousands of years — from Uranus to Kronos — it had never been given to any race on the earth.
That was why fire itself was the reason mortals feared the gods and revered them.
It was the single most essential thing for the development of civilization.
But the gods understood this:
The more civilization advanced, the more beings appeared who took the gods lightly.
“To demand such fire… Prometheus, only because you fought for us in the Titanomachy am I even listening to these words.”
Zeus looked at him with an expression suggesting that, if Prometheus were anyone else, he would have slaughtered him on the spot.
“Yes, I know. But, King of the Gods, the time has come for even the gods to change. Look at the sea. Look at the civilization of the merfolk and mermen. Is their progress not astonishing? They have already built their own cities and nations. And yet they still revere and respect the gods of the sea.”
“……”
“The races of the earth must become like that as well. If not, they will be eliminated. And the first ones to build the civilization of the earth will be the humans I created.”
Prometheus’s resonant, persuasive voice shook some of the gods.
The gods had visited the city-states under the sea, and they had envied the offerings brought by those races — incomparable to what the surface gave.
Because of that, some gods sympathized with Prometheus.
—Honestly, the cities of the merfolk and mermen really are impressive.
—Right? And did you see the Sirens’ performances? They were incredible.
—Mm… And those beautiful scales and that smooth tail, that’s definitely exciting.
—What is wrong with you…?
As the murmurs of the gods grew louder, Zeus stomped his foot.
Boom!
“Silence. You know well that the sea is not the same as the earth.”
With Zeus’s words, the hall quickly quieted, and Zeus asked Prometheus in a solemn voice:
“The sea is ever-changing. Its danger cannot be compared to the earth. Meanwhile, the earth is peaceful unless disturbed by the pranks of gods. In such circumstances, will humans not become arrogant? Will they not look down on the gods?”
Prometheus understood this was the turning point.
Normally Zeus would have refused under any circumstance, but seeing the nations Poseidon created under the sea had shaken him, even if only slightly.
‘No matter what happens, humans will face destruction at least once. But Zeus is slowly, just slightly, changing after seeing the sea. That is where I must strike.’
“Well…”
* * *
Time passed, and humans began establishing roots across the earth.
They used fire to build civilization, and they began to flourish.
And with them, fire spread to other races as well, who interacted with humans and formed their own vast, interconnected civilizations.
“Hmm… humans are prospering more and more.”
“You’re that happy about it, brother?”
“Of course. Can’t you see how beautiful and magnificent they are? Humans will eventually rule the world.”
Epimetheus recoiled in shock at Prometheus’s words.
He hurriedly looked around; thankfully, no one seemed to be listening.
“Are you insane? First you managed to get fire approved, and now what? Humans will rule the world? Are you trying to get yourself thrown into Tartarus?”
Prometheus didn’t care at all about his younger brother’s panic.
If he had been the type to be frightened by saying something like this, he would never have asked Zeus to give humans fire in the first place.
“Epimetheus, do you know what gods have that humans do not?”
Epimetheus gave him a strange look.
His brother was sounding increasingly unhinged.
“……”
As Epimetheus silently stared at him like he was a madman, Prometheus answered calmly, as though he expected this reaction.
“Stop looking at me like that. I’m not insane.”
Then, watching the humans joyfully helping one another, laughing and living energetically, Prometheus spoke as if chewing over his own thoughts:
“What they lack is falsehood and deception.”
Epimetheus stared at him, dumbfounded beyond the point of being surprised.
Prometheus didn’t react to Epimetheus’s expression.
Because he already saw everything within his mind.
* * *
Soon after, a meeting was held in Mekone to establish the rights and duties of the earth’s races and the gods.
It was a meeting led by Zeus, who was deeply interested in humans, and the representative of humans — Prometheus.
In short: once a year, this was the meeting that evaluated humanity and decided their fate.
Prometheus, as the representative of humans, stepped forward first and spoke:
“King of the Gods, Zeus, please clearly decide what offerings humans must bring.”
The agenda of the Mekone meeting was offerings.
Humans had to present offerings to the gods, but different gods wanted different things, which caused confusion among humans.
So Prometheus stepped forward to request that Zeus establish a universal offering to be brought once a year.
Zeus agreed easily, and led the gods to hold the meeting at Mekone.
“Lord Zeus, here are the offerings humans can present.”
Following Prometheus’s guidance, humans had prepared three offerings.
One was the bones of livestock and the parts the gods did not eat.
The second was clean, bright-red cuts of meat and large chunks.
The third was pale-colored pieces, smaller than the red cuts but still edible.
Zeus examined what the humans had set out.
Then he looked at the offerings with a satisfied expression, glanced at Prometheus with a meaningful look, and said:
“Hm… with this level of sincerity, how could the gods take the food of humans?”
“I shall choose the pile of bones and the parts that cannot be eaten.”
“From now on, humans shall offer the things gathered there.”
As Zeus finished speaking—
Humans began whispering among themselves.
Hearing their murmurs, Zeus curled his lips in a meaningful smile, recalling the report from his trusted informant on earth.
—So, you’re saying Prometheus is plotting tricks to deceive us gods?
—Yes, Lord Zeus. I heard it clearly.
—Then this proposal Prometheus suggested must be a trap.
—If what I heard is correct, yes.
—I heard that Prometheus told humans to hide the edible, nutritious parts among the bones to fool us, my lord.
One of the Pan-folk, assigned to spy on Prometheus and the humans under Zeus’s command, had overheard the scheme and informed Zeus.
‘You traitor… trying to betray the gods for the sake of humans. Once this is over, I’ll strip you of your seat on Olympus.’
Zeus smiled in deep satisfaction, believing he had uncovered and defused Prometheus’s trick.
But then strange voices rose from the humans’ side.
—See? I told you, it’s not that gods can’t be deceived.
—Prometheus was right. We beat the gods.
—Exactly. The meat inside the bone-pile is edible, but it’s old and smells terrible.
And in that instant Zeus realized he had been fooled.
“Prometheus!!!”
Boom!
Realizing he had walked right into Prometheus’s deception, Zeus was consumed by rage.
But all he could do was shout Prometheus’s name — nothing more.
Because when he chose the bones, he had declared:
“How could gods take the food of humans?”
“Lord of the Gods, why do you react so? Everyone is simply praising your generosity.”
Prometheus spoke calmly, without mocking Zeus or flaunting victory — merely stating the truth.
That calmness enraged Zeus even more.
His expression — as if he already knew everything — felt like an insult, as though undermining Zeus’s authority.
Unable to stay any longer, Zeus rode a cloud and flew away.
The gods who had accompanied him, now grasping what had happened, left one by one with awkward expressions.
When all the gods had departed, the humans — who had been prostrated in fear of Zeus’s anger — finally lifted their heads and rushed to Prometheus, worried.
“What will you do? Lord Zeus’s fury is reaching the heavens.”
“Yes, at this rate something terrible may befall you, Lord Prometheus.”
“If other gods move as well, then both you and we humans…”
The humans were deeply worried.
Having witnessed Zeus’s furious reaction up close, they wondered if they had committed a sin that should never have been committed.
Prometheus looked at the humans as if he found them lovable, then planted his staff firmly against the floor and said:
“From this moment, every manner of hardship will fall upon you. Lord Zeus will attempt to destroy you.”
“Hieek!”
“I know what someone here is worried about. But remember this: if you choose to become slaves of the gods, you will face even greater suffering and hardship than now.”
The humans fell silent at Prometheus’s heavy words.
They did not fully understand, but they sensed that their creator and prophet would soon be gone.
Understanding the meaning of their silence, Prometheus gently took each of their hands and gave his final advice — as both their prophet and their father.
“Revere the gods. Always offer sacrifices and stand in awe of them. Give good offerings to the High Gods. Treasure what happened today as experience. I have merely shown you necessity. Do not become arrogant. Arrogance alone will kill you.”
Prometheus taught humans deception and falsehood.
But it was not to encourage them to mock the gods.
He knew a god — a child of Zeus — would someday be born who would wield deception and falsehood masterfully.
And if humans survived until that god’s birth, Zeus would have no choice but to acknowledge them.
He did not want to insult or defy the gods. He simply believed that deception and falsehood were the minimum weapons humans needed to protect themselves.
If there was any unpredictable variable, it was the lord of the sea.
“I pray storms, tsunamis, and earthquakes will not destroy them…”