Where Did Aqua Come From?
Merlin glanced at Romani, who had just been cursing him, and silently made a mental note of the grudge. He also resolved to teach him a lesson he would never forget once he returned, using his True Magic Merry account.
"So, what exactly happened?"
Seeing that the matter had been successfully resolved, Ushiwakamaru, who had stopped fooling around, jumped down from the roof again.
"It's nothing serious, just a minor hiccup at most."
When he saw Ushiwakamaru come down, Rovey ignored him. He just glanced at the direction Gilgamesh had flown away in the distance. It seemed that he had just smashed a big hole in the roof of the palace. He also felt that he had indeed used a bit too much force.
After all, the boost from the Ten Commandments was too exaggerated. However, he believed that with King Gilgamesh's resilience, he should be able to recover in a short time. Even if he couldn't recover on his own, he had the invincible Gate of Babylon, so there shouldn't be any problems... right?
"..."
Even Rovey himself didn't believe what he said, but he was now certain that, given King Gilgamesh's personality, once he woke up and remembered that he had almost been punched into the Underworld, he would definitely raise his double axes and fight him to the death today.
So, after giving Rovey a few instructions about their departure for Mount Ebih, Ushiwakamaru hurriedly took Anna, Merry, Lev), and Barbatos and ran off. Merlin tried to join them along the way, but was kicked out and forced to continue searching for the Tablet of Destiny. This chaotic scene left Ushiwakamaru completely bewildered.
"So, what exactly happened?"
She was somewhat puzzled as she watched the group hurriedly leave. However, Ushiwakamaru wasn't the type to dwell on such matters. Seeing that apart from the large hole Gilgamesh had smashed in the palace roof, the floor tiles around the city gate were intact, she happily left, her tail wagging slightly behind her.
That was quite an interesting sight, but it's time to get back to work. After all, Leonidas can't be holding the line by himself...
Ushiwakamaru left with a happy stride.
"Um?"
Just as she was passing through a small alley, Ushiwakamaru's nose suddenly twitched, as if he smelled a familiar scent, and he looked inside.
Inside, a yellow figure, soaking wet and covered in slime, was crouching there, shivering, muttering to itself, "They can't see me, they can't see me..."
Clearly, the tentacle play that Barbatos had just performed on her, the kind of play that should only appear in True Magic girl doujinshi, had left Ibaraki-dōji with considerable psychological trauma. She no longer wanted to be the bandit king, nor did she want to cause trouble; she just wanted to go home, which is why she secretly ran here to escape.
"Almost there, almost there, as long as I can get to that place, I'll be fine..."
She ran shakily towards the end of the alley, the freedom she had always dreamed of was now within reach, except—
"Sorry, this place is full, you runaway."
At the end of the alley, Ushiwakamaru stood with his hands on his hips, looking at her with a smile.
"Don't come any closer!!!"
Then, a series of bloodcurdling screams, like the howling of pigs being slaughtered, suddenly echoed through the streets of Uruk, causing the Uruk residents who had just watched the battle of the strong to stop and exclaim, "Uruk is really lively today! It's been a long time since we've seen such energy!"
——
Gilgamesh felt unwell. While he certainly needed sleep, he needed to work even more. And his sleep today felt strange; why did he wake up feeling not refreshed, but instead with a sore back and aching muscles? How odd... Could it be that he'd slept on the throne and hurt his neck?
Even stranger, he had a dream, a very vivid one. He dreamt that two Demon God Pillars were fighting each other in his city, and he charged in with two axes to join the battle. But just as he was getting into the swing of things, a shooting star suddenly flashed before his eyes and sent him flying. And then...
King Gilgamesh glanced at the large, human-shaped hole in the ceiling above his head, then at the surrounding debris, and couldn't help but curse out loud.
"You bastard! How dare you ambush me! Let's fight again!!"
He was about to leave with his two axes when Siduri, who had seen him wake up, reported that the bastards who had beaten him while she wasn't looking had already left. This made Gilgamesh look like a complete idiot with his axes in hand, creating an awkward atmosphere.
Gilgamesh wanted to do something more, but Siduri, standing to his side, simply piled up the mud slabs accumulated over the past two days in front of him, creating a mountain-like structure that seemed to want to completely engulf him, and then emitted a sound that made the souls of all the Doctors tremble.
Siduri smiled and said, "You can't rest yet, King Gilgamesh."
"... Ah, I understand."
Gilgamesh glanced at Siduri, who was smiling in front of him, then at the work he had accumulated, and silently sat back down in his original position. With a pained expression, he picked up the top clay tablet and prepared to get to work.
Only...
"Report! Your Majesty!!"
Just as he picked up the clay tablet, the guards outside suddenly rushed in again. The suddenness of the situation angered Gilgamesh so much that he tightened his grip on the clay tablet and asked with a frown.
"What is it now?!"
At that moment, the guard said urgently, "There are two yellow figures over at the city gate! They've broken through the guards and entered Uruk! They're unstoppable!!"
"--What?!"
At this moment, King Gilgamesh, who was already extremely agitated, felt as if his heart was about to break.
Although Gilgamesh did not continue speaking, every inch of his tired face spoke volumes.
'Destroy me, I'm tired...'
Chapter 240 Where Did Aqua Come From?
The sudden appearance of the two Demon God Pillars without warning added two strange comedians to the already chaotic group.
On the way after leaving Uruk, Barbatos and Leif looked down on each other and clasped their four hands tightly as they moved forward. Their ferocious faces seemed to want to eat each other alive, and from time to time they began to spit fragrant fragrance at each other's mouths. As for their great goal of coming here, it was naturally replaced at this moment by trying to prove who is Solomon's strongest and most loyal Demon God Pillar. Coupled with the fact that Mei Li, who was watching the fun and not taking it too seriously, was fanning the flames, the style of the painting became very strange.
Rovey ignored the two idiots ahead who seemed to be itching to kick the Sand Sphinx away and carry him on their backs, and continued forward without looking back. He was completely helpless against these two fools who were ruining the entire atmosphere and the tone of the group. After all, he couldn't get rid of them; they were determined to follow, and even if he sent them back to the Temple of Time, they would definitely find a way to return. Moreover, their absence was extremely helpful in preventing Goetia from reaching its complete form.
And to be fair, these two idiots are not entirely useless. At least in terms of strength, each of them requires Servant Demon God Pillars subdue. In any case, they are much stronger than the three guards of Uruk, and are quite good fighters.
Upon closer reflection, Rovey realized that King Gilgamesh's gacha luck was inexplicably bad; few of the seven Servant he summoned with the Holy Grail were powerful. Ushiwakamaru and Leonidas were decent, but even in a typical Holy Grail War, they wouldn't be considered strong, let alone in the Seventh Singularity. They were no match for Gorgon; they'd struggle just to deal with the Demonic Beast army, let alone the subsequent Evils of Humanity. Benkei was purely a bonus, and he even took up an important spot. Of the others who had already perished, aside from Archer Class Tomoe Gozen and Assassin Kojiro who were still somewhat useful, the Saber Class enemy god Amakusa and the Berserker Class deserter Ibaraki-dōji were all far more formidable.
It can be said that, apart from Merlin, all the Servant summoned by King Gilgamesh's Holy Grail were from the Far East, and they were all Servant whose strength was not very strong and could not play a significant role. His luck in drawing cards was really bad. Otherwise, even if he had summoned Red Archer, it would have been much better than this situation. Even if it wasn't Red Archer, summoning Darius would have been enough. It seems much better than the current heavyweights.
Because he found it too annoying, Rovey originally wanted to send the two Demon God Pillars to the border. However, when he thought that the three Servant would not be able to control Lev and the other two, and might even be Lev, he could only keep them by his side as henchmen. With him watching over them, they could not cause trouble whether they wanted to or not.
However, it seems they've really gone blind; they've lost all the class and prestige a Demon God Pillars should have, and they've completely lost face.
So, with mixed feelings, the five of them continued their journey with the treasure they had prepared.
Fortunately, Mount Ebih wasn't too far from Uruk. Although there were Demonic Beast along the way, they all perished at the hands of Lev and Barbatos, the two Demon God Pillars who were eager to make their presence felt. They even went so far as to skewer and burn Demonic Beast in the surrounding area to see who was more loyal and trustworthy. Since the battle was still undecided, they decided to expand the search area. If they hadn't been called back, the two of them probably would have launched a surprise attack on Gorgon and brought back its head to claim credit.
This made Rovey sigh, "Sometimes, having too capable subordinates can really be a headache..."
He's now considering consulting Dr. Roman about how he managed to command these Demon God Pillars back then, and how they all turned out this way. Describing them as loyal dogs would diminish their purity.
However, it was precisely because of the competition between these two that the road became much easier to travel than expected, and the arrival time was reduced considerably.
Soon they began to climb up the mountain path of Mount Ebih.
Located halfway up the mountain is a small temple altar.
Anna stood on a large rock, barely managing to make herself the same height as Rovey beside her.
She glanced at the distant temple altar, then looked at Rovey and said, "That should be the altar of the goddess Ishtar."
"I see."
Rovey nodded upon hearing this.
According to his memory, the so-called Three Goddess Alliance consisted of Gorgon, the Beast Goddess; Ereshkigal, the goddess of death; Quetzalcoatl, the goddess of the sun. However, there was also Singularity in addition to this: Ishtar, the goddess of the sky.
The presence of the temple altar in the distance proved that this was indeed the stronghold of the sky goddess Ishtar, and that this was indeed Mount Ebih; they had not gone astray.
Although Gilgamesh had indeed given them a map, along the way they saw many traces of human habitation. Considering that Ishtar didn't seem like the kind of goddess who would protect humans and shelter them in her territory, Rovey couldn't help but wonder if they had gone to the wrong place.
However, this doubt was dispelled upon seeing the altar, since there wouldn't be any altar for Ishtar anywhere else except on Mount Ebih. Her reputation in Mesopotamia was notoriously bad.
According to Gilgamesh, her palace was located at the mountain peak, and her altar was halfway up the mountain. However, the goddess was a selfish and self-serving person who never listened to the prayers of her followers, and the followers wouldn't bother to travel such a long distance to offer her tribute. Therefore, the altar served no purpose other than gathering dust and adding to the facade; they still had to go to the mountain peak to find Ishtar.
Only--
"Waaaaah..."
"It's all gone! Everything's gone! Oh my god! How am I supposed to go back to see my Father God now? Waaah... It's all over. Not only is the cow gone, but my home has been stolen, and my followers have betrayed me! Everything is ruined!"
Near the mountainside, a mournful female voice began to wail.
Everyone: "..."
As the group climbed the mountain, a woman's mournful wailing voice came from near the altar.
The group exchanged bewildered glances, unsure of what to do.
"That voice is...?"
Upon hearing that familiar voice, Rovey, who was at the forefront, stopped the Sand Sphinx and prepared to step forward for a closer look. However, Lev stopped him, appearing loyal, and said, "My lord, as far as I know, the goddess on this mountain is extremely treacherous and violent. The weeping coming from beside the altar may be a trap! Although your power is unparalleled, let your most loyal servant, the one with the best eyesight among the Demon God Pillars, I, Flauros, serve you! Barbatos certainly cannot handle such a delicate task."
Seeing an opportunity to prove himself, Lev, who had spent the most time in the human world and was the most adept at interpersonal relationships among the Demon God Pillars, naturally wouldn't let it pass. He immediately lowered his head and spoke with utmost sincerity, not forgetting to take a jab at Barbatos, who was vying for his favor, while expressing his loyalty. Then, without waiting for Rovey's approval, he set off, infuriating Barbatos who exclaimed, "Sixth Brother's here!"
Although Barbatos wanted to catch up, Flauros was running too fast, and it was too late to offer his help. So he could only angrily criticize Lev's shamelessness and curse himself as a stupid pig for not thinking of that.
After walking forward, Lev observed carefully for a moment, then called out to Rovey behind him, "Your Majesty, it's a woman!"
"——"
Upon hearing this, Rovey was speechless.
Putting everything else aside, the title of "Demon God Pillars with the best eyesight" was definitely self-proclaimed by him.
This silly guy, he could tell it was a woman just by listening to her voice, did you even need to tell him?
After Lev signaled to the others that there was no danger, everyone followed.
But the woman's wailing voice showed no signs of disappearing.
When the group arrived at the front of the altar, they saw a beautiful woman sitting on the ground next to the altar, crying loudly.
At first glance, she had long, black hair and fair skin, which accentuated her beautiful features. She wore many gold ornaments, making her look extremely precious. Especially her gold headband and numerous gemstone jewelry added to her luxurious aura, making her seem like a goddess of wealth walking among mortals.
But the way she was crying so loudly looked just like a girl who had been teased by her deskmate, which was honestly embarrassing!
Upon seeing the woman wailing, Barbatos, seeking some validation, said to Rovey, "Your Majesty, it really is a woman crying."
Rovey: "Hmm..."
He suddenly felt a headache coming on. Rovey turned to look at Barbatos, and then at the black-haired woman who was still lost in her own tears. Especially when he saw that face that was so familiar that he recognized her immediately.
Rovey was a little confused. Why wasn't she counting her gold and jewels in her temple on Mount Ebih? Why was she sitting here crying? Was it because her cow was lost? And that's why she was so anxious?
It doesn't seem quite right. After all, given her personality, even if the cow were lost, she would definitely find an excuse to cover it up. How could she possibly be crying with self-blame? Come to think of it, she looks more like she was just bullied by someone.
"What's wrong? Let me see." At this moment, Merry, who had also looked over, couldn't help but exclaim in surprise when she saw the black-haired girl's true face, "Oh my, isn't this Ishtar? How come she's suddenly become so different after only a few days?"
Yes, the woman sitting on the ground beside the altar, wailing and wailing without any regard for her image, is none other than Ishtar, the famous goddess of Venus and the sky in Sumerian Mythology, the legendary goddess who is in charge of love and beauty!
However, her current disheveled appearance is completely at odds with the legendary grace, noble bearing, and divine aura of love and beauty. It's not that she doesn't resemble him, but rather that there's absolutely no resemblance. Furthermore, the fact that she's using Rin Tohsaka's face only adds to the bizarre and comical aura surrounding her current behavior.
Rovey glanced at the woman who remained oblivious to being approached and continued wailing, feeling utterly speechless at her. But before he could speak, Ishtar, sitting on the ground and sobbing, seemed to have recalled an even more tragic event. She buried her head in the ground and wailed loudly, just like Nobita after being bullied by Gian —utterly ridiculous!
Rovey turned to look at Merry, who was telling Anna about Ishtar, and was speechless. To be honest, he was also reluctant to admit that he had brought so much treasure to bribe such a shameful person. She was a complete money-loser!
Anna looked at Rovey with suspicion and asked, "Master, is she really the one we're looking for?"
Rovey covered his face and nodded. "Yes, it's her, Ishtar."
"Um?"
Seemingly hearing the discussion around her, the woman's ears twitched, and then her crying gradually stopped. She raised her head and looked at Rovey and the others who were waiting for her to finish crying, as well as Merry who was recording with a camera.
Merry: "Come on, say cheese."
In her opinion, it was unprecedented for a goddess to be so humiliated, so she had to film it to commemorate it. If she sold the videotape to Gilgamesh, he would definitely be very happy to pay a high price for it.
Ishtar, who was still crying, was completely dumbfounded when she saw Rovey and the others staring straight at her.
"!!!"
Ishtar suddenly turned her head, wiped her face a few times, then stood up and turned her head back.
In an instant, the tear stains on her face disappeared, replaced by a very dignified appearance. A huge, blue, crescent-shaped bow-like weapon appeared beneath her feet. This was her divine weapon, the Bow of Heaven, Maanna.
At this moment, Ishtar once again displayed a majestic and dignified demeanor, much like a dignified goddess.
Currently, the premise is that we can ignore her extremely embarrassing past.
"I am I, Ishtar, the mistress of Mount Ebih, the goddess of Venus who reigns over love and beauty, the mistress of the heavens! Humans, how dare you trespass into my territory! Are you prepared to face my wrath and punishment?!"
Ishtar stood on the Bow of Heaven, looking down at the crowd with an air of majesty.
Although the aura was strong, the tone was cool, and the presence was indeed that Divine Spirit Possession a genuine deity, why couldn't I feel even the slightest bit of pressure?
As expected, after being influenced by Rin Tohsaka's attributes, even the most terrifying goddess will become a comedian.
"You dare!!" Before Rovey could even speak, Lev, the number one professional lackey, jumped out, angrily pointing at Ishtar was floating in mid-air, and then began to hurl insults at her.
"A mere crybaby, a useless goddess! How dare she stand higher than our great king?! How arrogant! Who does she think she is in front of?!"
Barbatos, the second lackey, wasn't to be outdone and began to pledge his loyalty, determined to become the king's most trusted advisor. Since the idiom "left arm and right arm" (referring to both powerful allies) exists, he and Flauros each had one. As for the other Demon God Pillars waiting for him to return to the Temple of Time to report, he could only lament—"I'm too eager to improve."
"Flauros is right! And she's a desperate woman driven mad by poverty!!"