Infiltrating the Enemy? (Continued)

"Aren't you waiting for Lord Rovey and the others to return?"

"Oh, you don't need to worry about that. I won't go too far. At most, I'll just stay outside the city and take a look around Ishtar. It won't be difficult for you to find me."

"I understand. Then I hope that King Gilgamesh will not go to strange places without saying a word, nor force the citizens to do strange things." Siduri gave this special instruction before leaving.

After all, Gilgamesh during his tyrannical reign had done some truly horrific things; he spared almost no one in the city, from men and women to children.

"No way! I've long since given up those worldly desires! Alright, I'm about to set off. You can take a break or go out and prepare some rewards for them. After all, I'm not the kind of tyrant who withholds others' rewards."

"Then I thank King Gilgamesh on behalf of everyone for his great favor."

Siduri bowed slightly, a smile on her face, and then left the temple.

—She had already figured it out. Although Gilgamesh still had a sharp tongue, constantly calling people mongrels and occasionally putting down Rovey, he had actually already accepted it in his heart, but he just didn't want to admit it.

'Wang is still not frank...'

After leaving the main hall, Siduri walked along the streets of Uruk. Because the battle on the Demonic Beast Front had been suspended for some time, Uruk was much more lively than before, and this vibrant scene pleased Siduri.

"Since the king said he wanted to reward everyone, then we must not hold back and offer you the best of Uruk. Delicious buttered bread and ale are clearly the best things to show Uruk's sincerity."

Thinking this, Siduri quickened her pace and headed towards the place where Uruk baked bread. But as she passed a street, she suddenly stopped, her gaze involuntarily shifting as if a very familiar figure appeared in her field of vision.

That is—?!

With her signature long green hair, wide white robe, and slender figure, she wore a strange mask, yet her appearance remained exactly the same as it had been many years ago. And no matter how Siduri looked at her, she was the great being who had lived in Uruk many years ago, helping Gilgamesh govern the country, helping the people of Uruk build houses, and living together as a community— Enkidu.

"Please wait a moment!"

Almost instinctively, upon seeing the slender green figure, Siduri quickened her breathing and then involuntarily started running, chasing after the figure who seemed to be waiting for something in the crowd.

"Um?!"

Kingu, who was standing outside waiting for Black Lancer Artoria and Tiamat to come out of the shop after picking out flowers, heard Siduri's call from behind and frowned slightly.

Under normal circumstances, if a human called upon her, Kingu would mercifully lash out with a single chain, let alone respond to a mere human's call. But this time...

Upon hearing Siduri's voice, a flash of blue light appeared in Kingu's eyes, and his body inexplicably stopped. He even turned around uncontrollably to look at the figure running towards him.

"Siduri ...?"

Kingu subconsciously called out her name, but because his voice was very soft, Siduri had hurriedly caught up, did not hear the name clearly. At this moment, her thoughts were completely attracted by the figure in front of her, and she could not care about anything else. When Kingu saw the figure approaching him, he also stopped and his expression behind the mask became thoughtful. Then he turned around and left without any politeness, not wanting to have anything to do with anyone related to Enkidu.

"No! Please wait a moment...!"

Siduri quickly reached out and grabbed Kingu's arm as he pulled it back, causing Kingu to stop and turn to look at Siduri with his purple eyes.

Kingu: "..."

Siduri: "..."

Neither of the two people standing on the street spoke, but both were simultaneously filled with the same thought and question, "What am I doing?"

For Siduri, Enkidu's death was something she witnessed firsthand, and she was even the one who helped Gilgamesh to his final resting place in the Underworld. This was an undeniable fact, and no matter how unwilling she was to believe it, it was the truth of everything.

But the moment she saw the person before her, from the very first glance at her back, that feeling she had only ever experienced with Enkidu surged forth involuntarily. Siduri's intuition screamed that this was Enkidu, but reason told her it was impossible. Perhaps it was just a prank by some citizen longing for Enkidu, or perhaps by one of Enkidu's admirers, to encourage everyone. If that were the case, then it truly was...

"They're similar."

Siduri muttered to herself.

But even though I knew it would be like this all along, I should have just smiled and said, "It really is similar," and left. But why couldn't I control my urge to chase after him and do something that would only make everyone more awkward?

"Humans..."

Kingu narrowed her purple eyes and stared intently at Siduri in front of her. The scene in her mind became clearer and clearer. In a daze, she seemed to see a memory of Enkidu and Siduri spending time together.

Hateful...

Shaking her head, Kingu suppressed Enkidu's memories once again. To her, she was definitely not a puppet like Enkidu; she was her mother's child, a new life, merely using Enkidu's body.

Everything about me is completely different from that guy's.

I have no connection whatsoever with Uruk or Gilgamesh.

He is Kingu, a punisher tasked with destroying these vile civilizations and the new humans who betrayed their mother.

That's how it should be.

But in reality, from the moment she arrived in Uruk with Rovey and her mother, countless fragments of memories began to flash through Kingu's mind, giving her a splitting headache and making her want to escape as soon as possible. However, seeing her mother walking so happily in the streets, her smile made her unable to resist staying there.

She had been able to suppress this feeling, but after seeing this woman, she completely lost control—those memories weren't her own; Enkidu was influencing her. She knew this all along, but the length of this street, the face of the vendor over there, and the aura of that guy in the distant hall all echoed before her eyes. All of this made her involuntarily start to recall, and the feelings of peace, nostalgia, and longing to connect with him were also affecting her mood. In an instant, Kingu's mood became extremely irritable.

'So that's why that damned scum let himself into the human city? What a bastard...!'

Kingu covered his face with his mask, then looked coldly at Siduri with his purple eyes, without saying a word, trying his best to suppress the feeling.

"... As expected, Enkidu."

Siduri looked into those cold, purple eyes, so different from Enkidu's eternally gentle ones.

Even though I already knew the outcome, I still felt incredibly disappointed.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, I apologize for my rudeness just now..."

Siduri showed an apologetic expression, then bowed slightly to Kingu and said gently, "I saw and felt an extremely familiar and lingering aura on you, and in your back, an aura of utmost respect, so I couldn't suppress my impulse and chased after you. Although I knew long ago that it was wishful thinking on my part, I still hoped for a miracle to happen. I'm truly sorry for any inconvenience caused."

"I am yours—"

Kingu wanted to reveal his identity and send Siduri back, but for some reason, even though the words were on the tip of his tongue, he couldn't bring himself to say the word "enemy."

This wasn't just because of Rovey's warning not to cause trouble, but more so because she couldn't bring herself to say such things to Siduri.

'Damn it, it's all that scum's fault...'

Although it had absolutely nothing to do with him, Kingu still shifted the blame to Rovey.

Yes, you can verbally express it to others, but you would never feel it.

That heart that should have been still, that memory belonging to Enkidu, still echoed within her, even though she didn't actually possess such a fragile organ as a heart.

Although she was unwilling to admit it, she had actually developed feelings for the city of Uruk, which she had gazed at countless times from afar and commanded Demonic Beast attacks. She had developed empathy, or rather, attachment, to Uruk city. These were clearly not her own memories, so why could they affect her?

"Damn it...! This is utterly absurd."

Kingu covered his head and muttered to himself, while taking steps backward.

"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?"

Seeing that Kingu condition, Siduri hurriedly stepped forward to help her.

"Leave me alone! I don't have such a meaningless and fragile function!"

Kingu shook off Siduri's hand—she wanted to angrily berate these humans, to tell them that those who had betrayed their mother had no right to speak to her. But the words wouldn't come out, and she could only quickly leave. However, Siduri's words behind her made her pause involuntarily.

At that moment, Siduri, standing at the back of the street, bowed to Kingu, who was about to leave, and then sincerely called out, "I'm very sorry to have disturbed you, but please hear me out, Lord Enkidu— "

"Thank you so much for everything you've done for Uruk, for your contributions, and for the changes you've brought to Gilgamesh. Now I want to tell you that everyone in Uruk and Gilgamesh are living well, so please don't worry anymore."

"——"

The sudden gratitude struck Kingu like an electric shock, and she froze, not turning around, but speaking to Siduri in a trembling voice.

"What... what are you trying to say? I didn't mean it—"

At this moment, in order to suppress her emotions, Kingu's face under the mask had become somewhat ferocious, and her tightly clenched fist was the best proof of that.

"I know that this is just wishful thinking on my part, and it's just what I wanted to convey to you."

Siduri shook her head, clutching her chest, and said, "It doesn't matter if you aren't. Perhaps these words are misplaced, but this blessing is still offered to you. Regardless of who resides in that body, I hope you can find true happiness. This isn't for Enkidu, nor for anyone else. Simply, please find happiness that belongs only to you. That alone is enough to be praised. Finally—"

"May you have good fortune in battle, you green-clad person."

"!!!"

Kingu's expression suddenly stiffened, and his tightly clenched fist slowly loosened at that moment.

"What... boring human emotions! And they're meaningless! Don't think I'll hold back just because of that!"

Kingu muttered to himself, then fled the street at breakneck speed, leaving Siduri standing there watching intently.

Clearly, although she knew that it wasn't the Enkidu she knew, the body definitely belonged to Enkidu; she just didn't know why it was still active.

"Lord Enkidu..."

While Siduri was still muttering to herself.

"Aaa?"

Suddenly, a strange yet pleasant sound reached my ears. A beautiful woman dressed in clothes that were clearly not of Uruk, and even ahead of this era, had just walked out of the flower shop next to me. She looked around as if she was looking for something.

"May I ask who you are...?"

Looking at the woman, Siduri couldn't help but feel a sense of goodwill, or rather, closeness, so she thoughtfully asked her.

"Aaaa".

However, she couldn't understand Tiamat's words. Fortunately, at that moment, a familiar figure came into her view.

"Oh my, isn't this Siduri? What luck to run into her here!"

Merry walked over with the Black Lancer Artoria who was munching on Uruk butter bread behind her, and greeted the High Priest.

When Siduri saw them, she was taken aback for a moment, and then asked in surprise.

"Mage Merry, you're back?"

"Yes, I'm back."

Merry nodded, then gave Siduri an OK sign and said, "Don't worry, it's all taken care of. My dear has already taken Anna to see King Gilgamesh."

"Oh, that's great... That's wonderful."

Siduri nodded, a smile appearing on her face upon hearing the good news. She then looked at the Black Lancer Artoria with dragon horns behind Merry, and Tiamat, asking with a slightly puzzled expression, "Who are these two...?"

"Forehead..."

Looking behind her and finding the child missing, Tiamat began searching for Kingu. Merry scratched her head, then leaned close to Siduri and whispered a few words in her ear. Siduri, who had been happy to see Enkidu's body again, involuntarily widened her eyes.

She asked cautiously, "Then... does the King know now?"

"Forehead..."

There was no answer, but Merry's expression spoke volumes.

Siduri: "..."

——

Meanwhile, Rovey and Anna had returned to the palace in Uruk and told Gilgamesh everything that had happened.

"Yes, just as I expected, that useless goddess has indeed succumbed to my wealth. As I said before, a shameless person like Ishtar can be used as a tool instead of a god just by giving her enough treasure. However, your operation of embezzling 20% this time has truly pleased me. Since this is an achievement you have accomplished, then this 20% that you obtained yourself will be yours. The specific payment will be given to you after the war ends."

'If you dream that the war is over, your Gate of Babylon will probably have been emptied by cannonballs long ago...'

Looking at Gilgamesh sitting on the throne in a good mood, Rovey thought to himself, after all, those cannons on the walls of Uruk were not just for show. However, he did not point it out directly, but silently mourned for Ishtar, who was working hard, for a few seconds. No one knew what she would feel when she looked at the empty treasury.

However, now is not the time to care about that useless goddess. When Rovey thought about what he was going to report, he didn't know how to start.

"Um, King Gilgamesh, there are actually some things I want to tell you."

"Hmm, what is it now? Has something unexpected happened? Or do you need my help?"

Gilgamesh seemed to notice Rovey's hesitant expression, so he laughed a few times and continued, "If there's anything you need, just say it. I remember you're not the type to be so polite with me..."

"..."

Seeing King Gilgamesh's appearance, Rovey and Anna exchanged a glance, neither knowing how to explain things to him, a sight that only added to his displeasure.

"What's wrong? What are you two worried about? Why can't you just say it to me directly instead of looking like you want to say something but can't?"

"Um... King Gilgamesh." After glancing at Gilgamesh, Rovey sighed, then waved his hand as if resigned to his fate, and cautiously said to him, "Don't get excited or afraid about what I'm about to say."

"Scared? Humph!"

Upon hearing Rovey's words, Gilgamesh revealed a disdainful smile, then shouted, "I have never been afraid in my life!"

"You mongrel, are you doubting my courage? Or my magnanimity? Speak freely, whatever it may be, I will not be aroused in the slightest!"

"Really?"

Rovey confirmed it again.

"Indeed, I speak without falsehood."

Gilgamesh tapped the chair impatiently, then squinted at Rovey and spoke coldly.

If it had just been a simple report before, things have changed now, because of what Rovey just said, which has completely piqued his curiosity.