"Who's this Goddess of the Underworld? And who's the Goddess of Venus?"
In a room within a quiet courtyard beside Uruk's royal palace, rays of sunlight spilled through the window panes, highlighting specks of floating dust like glowing embers. Enkidu, seated beside Rovi, stared at him accusingly.
"Rovi, did you secretly go fight the gods without telling us?"
The divine construct in the form of a girl tilted her delicate face upward, her voice clear yet tinged with displeasure.
Well, but…
Why does it sound so natural when a divine construct like you talks about fighting gods? Rovi was momentarily at a loss.
Of course, he knew that despite being a divine construct herself, Enkidu held no reverence toward the gods because she hadn't first encountered the devoted holy maiden who worshipped them. Instead, she had met Rovi, who openly challenged the gods. To her, the gods were simply enemies.
For Enkidu, who was innocent and straightforward, things were quite simple.
"It was nothing much—just meeting some…new friends," Rovi carefully chose his words.
There was no reason to hide it. After all, En was practically raised by him, their relationship akin to siblings. She was simply worried about his safety. Nothing more.
Unfortunately, Gilgamesh immediately ruined the moment.
"Hahaha—New friends? Your relationship with these new friends seems rather intimate, huh?"
"So intimate you were practically kissing mouth-to-mouth!" Though he could only vaguely infer events from his clairvoyance, Gilgamesh had clearly seen two blurry figures very close together.
"So, a king is basically just a glorified peeping thief now?" A vein twitched visibly on Rovi's forehead.
"Peeping? Ridiculous!" Gilgamesh scoffed arrogantly. "This king rules over all things under heaven—this world is merely my backyard! Do I need permission to oversee my own property?"
Yet, unfortunately for him, Rovi's single retort instantly silenced the king.
"So is that why you shamelessly declared you'd take the first night of every citizen of Uruk?"
That incident really had happened.
Shortly after reaching adulthood, Gilgamesh transitioned abruptly from a pious child who worshipped the gods to a rebellious youth who realized the gods saw him merely as a pawn.
To express his rebellion, he rapidly transformed from a wise ruler into a notorious tyrant, his first outrageous decree being to claim "first-night rights."
Naturally, it failed miserably.
Gilgamesh quickly realized a critical oversight: Uruk was a grand city-state surrounded by countless towns and villages, with a population of hundreds of thousands. Even just counting young people, the number was enormous.
Forget being a demigod—no ironclad kidneys could handle such a task!
Barely two days later, the absurd decree was quietly rescinded, buried in shame as a dark chapter in his past.
Now, Rovi had ruthlessly dug it up—
"Mongrel!" Gilgamesh finally snapped, unable to hold back.
"Who's the mongrel calling?"
"The mongrel is calling you!"
"Oh, greetings, Mongrel-san." Seeing Gilgamesh instantly fall for the oldest trick in the book, Rovi couldn't help but smirk.
Old tricks truly are the best.
"Bwahahaha—!" Rovi laughed aloud mockingly.
This damned mongrel… dares imitate even my royal laughter?
Gilgamesh's eyes widened in disbelief.
Somehow, Enkidu, having gone from interrogating to simply watching, glanced back and forth between Rovi and Gilgamesh, tilting her head curiously.
Her delicate face reflected a thoughtful look.
This was completely different from the quiet life she had experienced in the forest.
A little noisy, perhaps.
But it wasn't bad at all.
Her earlier dissatisfaction with Gilgamesh quietly faded. En smiled gently, shifting her small figure to lean lightly against Rovi.
Sunlight continued to fill the courtyard outside.
It was truly a pleasant day.
'The King quarreled with the Sage that day.'
'The Divine Construct silently listened to the whispers of wind and humanity.'
'Thus, beneath the radiant sunlight, the three primordial beings officially met.'
'Yet soon after, calamity would follow close behind.'
— Epic of Gilgamesh
Suddenly—
Bang!
"What was that?"
A loud noise from outside interrupted the two's bickering, prompting all three in the room to glance sharply toward the doorway.
Enkidu quickly straightened, emerald-green hair rising softly without a sound.
Outside, the source of the noise swiftly rose from the ground.
Pale arms gleamed brilliantly under the sunlight, dazzling to behold, though most of her captivating figure was now covered by a flowing red cloak that modestly fell past her thighs. This attire was closer to the style of the Netherworld goddess, perhaps intentionally chosen in hopes of further catching Rovi's attention.
"Ishtar?"
Rovi and Gilgamesh simultaneously froze. Enkidu's expression turned slightly wary, her gaze cooling considerably.
There was no doubt—the figure standing there was Ishtar, the Goddess of Venus, whom Rovi had parted with just recently.
"Cough, cough…" Ignoring the trio's surprised reactions, Ishtar quickly composed herself and stood proudly before the doorway. Crossing her arms, backlit by the sun, she declared loudly, "Hmph! Gilgamesh, Rovi, and you, divine construct!"
"I, the mistress of heaven, Ishtar, hereby formally declare war upon you!"
"My true self in heaven has requested permission from Lord Anu to unleash the strongest divine beast—the Bull of Heaven—and the mightiest monster Humbaba, to punish you sinners who defy the gods!"
"Tremble and fear, mortals!"
"This is purely a warning—no, it's a declaration of war! Absolutely not a helpful reminder or anything!"
"Don't misunderstand me!"
Well… that's definitely a tip-off, Rovi thought wryly.
Clearly, Ishtar, influenced by human emotions, had come specifically to warn them, even if her method was hilariously indirect.
But it suited her perfectly.
After all, the part of Ishtar influenced by humanity now carried Rin Tohsaka's stubborn traits. If the gods truly unleashed such disasters, this "Ishtar-Rin" likely couldn't remain calm herself.
Humans and gods truly were different creatures.
---
In the heavens.
Above the human realm, in a dimension parallel yet unreachable by mortal hands.
Inside the radiant hall of the gods, deities gathered to deliberate.
"Everyone has heard Goddess Ishtar's proposal." Sitting atop the throne at the head of the hall was the Sky God, Anu, crowned and gripping the divine scepter. He swept his eagle-like eyes around the assembled gods seated on their thrones. "Since she has willingly offered the Bull of Heaven under her authority—then I, Sky God Anu, shall make this declaration:"
"We, the gods, shall deliver the harshest punishment upon those who defy us!"
"I shall simultaneously unleash the mightiest divine beast, the Bull of Heaven, and the most fearsome monster, Humbaba."
"Gugalanna, the Bull of Heaven, the very vortex of storms, the embodiment of drought—he shall trample every inch of land, bringing ruin wherever he treads!"
"Humbaba, Guardian of the Cedar Forest, manifestation of the eternal grievances of the earth's countless souls, the incarnation of death itself—he shall grant everlasting sleep to all living creatures!"
With Anu's powerful chant, two beams of light—one black, one white—descended simultaneously from the heavens into the mortal realm.
One from the east, one from the west.
Both swiftly converged upon Uruk.
---
T/N: gilly was so scared of humbaba