Chains of Heaven

You...

While everyone was focused on the explosion, Fujimaru Kyoya had already moved behind Anu and brought his club down on him.

But a Chief God was worthy of being a Chief God. He had not been knocked unconscious by a single blow. I should've stolen one of Gilgamesh's weapons.

"Why would you?"

"Old fool, did you really think this king had been blinded by rage and could no longer tell what mattered? Even without Clairvoyance, this king's wisdom is beyond your reach."

Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon contained the crystallization of humanity's dreams, so naturally it held medicine capable of instantly restoring its drinker to peak condition.

"Have you been putting on an act all this time, waiting for this opportunity?"

Anu could not believe it. As the creator of two Heaven's Wedges, he understood that like poles repelled each other. Gilgamesh and Fujimaru Kyoya should have been born to loathe one another.

"No. If you hadn't come, we really would have kept fighting until one of us died. But you old dog just couldn't resist sticking your head out."

Anu's prediction had not been wrong. Fujimaru Kyoya and Gilgamesh truly did find each other irritating. What he had not expected was that the Gods were even more universally despised.

"This king still wants to kill this spare, but this spare did say something quite interesting. Something about making the Gods obey."

Golden rays launched attacks around the Gods. Gilgamesh fully opened the Gate of Babylon to restrict their movements, and in that instant, moonlight fell upon Fujimaru Kyoya. Restored to perfect condition, he immediately entered the Sacred King of the Bright Moon state.

"Moonfall."

Fujimaru Kyoya directly pulled down a bright moon from the heavens. Unlike his earlier bluff, Moonfall in his complete state immediately made even the Gods feel crushing pressure.

"Wretch, is that all you've got? One moon alone can't send this old bastard to heaven."

Gilgamesh mocked Fujimaru Kyoya. Even though they had joined forces temporarily, their relationship was anything but harmonious.

"Gilgamesh, you should know that men generally have two."

Fujimaru Kyoya ignored Gilgamesh's mockery. Then, with his other hand, he reached toward the river and actually scooped up another bright moon from the water, crushing the Gods from below.

Already disrupted by the Gate of Babylon and unable to evade, the Gods could only take the pincer attack of the Two Moons head-on. They were left unable to move.

"How was that?"

"Not bad. But you have two, while this king has one."

They said that men only truly understood each other when discussing politics or dirty things. Gilgamesh and Fujimaru Kyoya were no different at this moment.

The pincer attack of the Two Moons gave Gilgamesh an opportunity—an opportunity to use Enuma Elish.

[You watched Gilgamesh take out that strange sword once more. In Gilgamesh's hands, even Gods were powerless before it.]

[You and Gilgamesh walked toward the defeated Gods. Faced with the threats of the two of you, even the Gods could not help lowering their noble heads.]

[You and Gilgamesh suppressed the Gods, but you understood that this was not a long-term solution. Their surrender was merely an expedient measure, and you needed to find a way to break the deadlock.]

[You brought the results of the battle back to Ur. You saw Ishtar's panic and could feel the people's jubilant cheers. The effect of "Benevolent Dark Emperor" increased.]

Name: Shadow

Gender: Male

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: A

Mana: C

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: EX

Divinity: A++

Backup of Heaven's Wedge. Two-thirds God and one-third human, Gilgamesh's biological brother from different fathers and mothers.

Infinite Martial Arts: A

The martial arts you learned had fused into your body. No matter what state you were in, it would not affect your ability to wield them.

First Before First: A+

Thought Before Action was First Before First: anticipating the enemy's moves and striking later while arriving first.

Benevolent Dark Emperor: EX

A benevolent one who fought for the people; a dark emperor who would stand forth when a king became unjust. The more revered you were by the people, the stronger you became, and the greater your Divinity. Thus, it could not be ranked.

Sacred King of the Bright Moon: EX

A Saint King born in accordance with the era after sensing the wishes of the people. Like moonlight, you grew stronger the more you stood with the people and weaker the more you strayed from them. Thus, its Noble Phantasm rank could not be assessed.

Mana Burst (Moon): C~A++

An ability usable only in the Sacred King of the Bright Moon state. It used moonlight to construct armor against attacks and Magecraft, and Mana to create moons for attack.

Bounty Results

They were out! Let me see, the initial monthly vote count was 483, and now it was 2,188. That was 1,705 in total, so rounding up, I needed to add 12 chapters.

Recommendation votes were 5,685, and now they were 28,438. That was 22,753 in total, so rounding up, I needed to add 16 chapters.

That made 28 chapters altogether.

This was going to kill me. I never expected everyone to donate so much, but could we discuss something? Let me save up some chapters first, and let me talk with my editor on Monday about how to update.

I only signed my contract this month, so I don't get a full-attendance bonus. No matter how much I write, I don't get one... Can you all let this kid earn a little full-attendance bonus?

At the latest, I will definitely pay it all back next month.

Gou Huo guarantees it~

Chains of Heaven

Most of the Gods' temples were demolished, with only the bare minimum left behind.

More treasures were used to build cities, strengthen military power, and support foreign trade between nations. Naturally, the Gods dared not voice their anger.

Fujimaru Kyoya even mocked Ishtar's father right in front of her.

"If you Gods have nothing to do, go bite a Noble Phantasm. Gilgamesh has plenty. Otherwise, get to work properly."

Between biting Noble Phantasms and working, anyone even remotely normal would know which to choose.

Soon, an astonishing sight appeared across Mesopotamia: Gods, under the coercion of kings, served humanity.

Whether in Uruk or Ur, national strength was rapidly rising, but that did not mean the crisis had been resolved.

"The more stable the nation becomes, the stronger you seem to grow."

Atop a mountain, Gilgamesh and Fujimaru Kyoya looked down upon the prosperous city below.

Gilgamesh sensed that Fujimaru Kyoya's power seemed tied to the people. The stronger the nation became and the more beloved he was by its people, the stronger Fujimaru Kyoya grew.

"Are you going to make your move?"

"Hmph. Though this king hates to admit it, if I let you continue, you will surely become my greatest threat. There is no room in this world for two kings."

"You're right."

Fujimaru Kyoya naturally understood that there could not be two suns in the sky. But once war broke out, would they still be able to suppress the Gods' counterattack?

The people would once again be plunged into war. Their wails would once more bore into Fujimaru Kyoya's mind. Fujimaru Kyoya hated that feeling.

He had drawn his sword not for the people, but for himself.

Their alliance had only existed to fight a common enemy. They might have held the mutual respect of rivals, but there was absolutely no complete trust that would let them entrust their backs to one another.

"I'll wait for you."

"This king will not make you wait long."

Gilgamesh left. Both of them understood that after this battle, they would be severely weakened, and the threat of the Gods would become difficult to contain.

But so what?

Mesopotamia was too small—too small to allow both of them to exist beneath the same sky.

[You and Gilgamesh both prepared for battle, but you did not wish to start a war. You did not wish to hear the people's cries.]

[You understood that Gods were not creatures so easily tamed. Even you and Gilgamesh together were not enough to wipe them all out.]

[You needed a perfect plan.]

Inside Anu's temple, the aged Anu panted heavily. After witnessing Fujimaru Kyoya's philosophy of "if it's useful, use it to death," he felt the world's malice for the first time.

"To treat Gods this way... Damn Gilgamesh, damn Shadow. You will both suffer retribution."

Anu pondered how to fight those two.

When the two had joined forces that day, under the threat of the Two Moons and Ea, he had already felt an immense sense of danger. His surrender had merely been a temporary measure, because he knew this era could not permit two kings.

Gilgamesh and Fujimaru Kyoya were destined to fight.

"I must make them go to war as soon as possible. And the one who can tip the balance of that battle..."

Anu intended to create another fighting force no weaker than Gilgamesh. But this time, he absolutely would not make any mistakes.

He had to be able to control the life and death of this creation, and he could not grant it any Divinity.

"That's right. That thing does not need Divinity. It only needs to become a weapon—a weapon to deal with Gilgamesh and Shadow."

Anu would use the lowest-quality mud to create the most powerful weapon. It needed an anti-God specialty, as well as the ability to change form and display its greatest strength wherever it was.

"Ishtar, how did your Sister respond to us?"

Ereshkigal had never had much presence among the Gods of Mesopotamia, but because of Fujimaru Kyoya, this Goddess had drawn attention once again.

"She said the child had grown up and become rebellious, so she couldn't control him."

After finishing a day's labor and then making another trip to the Underworld, Ishtar lay sprawled on the floor like a dead dog.

"Rebellious? I think she's the rebellious one."

According to Anu's original plan, Fujimaru Kyoya was supposed to remain in the Underworld as a Backup of Heaven's Wedge that could be activated at any time. Yet now, he had become a traitor allied with Gilgamesh.

"Forget it. I now require you to help Shadow with all your strength. With your support, he will go all out against Gilgamesh. As for Gilgamesh, I will arrange a helper for him as well."

Anu had already designed the situation. When the two fought at their fiercest, Ishtar and Anu's other creation would directly betray them and deal both men fatal blows.

Then the era of the Gods could return.

"Hehehe~ I will repay every humiliation you inflicted on me a thousandfold, ten-thousandfold."

Within the dark temple, Chief God Anu played with a lump of mud. He poured power into it and granted that mud life.

He would make it a powerful being capable of rivaling Gilgamesh, then have it assist Gilgamesh against Fujimaru Kyoya.

"Your power comes from the people, so I will make every last one of your people die."

Once war began, the Gods would seize the opportunity. He would slaughter humanity until they no longer dared resist, until they regretted their arrogance.

The mud gradually took on a human shape, but it had no distinct face. Then Anu had it mate with a Sacred Prostitute for three days and three nights. Gradually, it came to understand human ways and gained a human appearance.

"Enkidu, that is the name I give you."

"Enkidu?"

The green-haired youth looked highly androgynous. He seemed not to know what had happened, innocent and pure like a newborn child.

"Go to Uruk. Challenge the strongest person there, become his friend, and then help him with everything you have."

Anu left Enkidu with only those words before sending him away, because that was enough.

Only Gilgamesh in Uruk could fight Enkidu. Once Gilgamesh received Enkidu's help, his strength would surely rise dramatically.

When both sides had increased their combat power, war would become unavoidable.

Could Gilgamesh notice that something was wrong?

He could. Even without Clairvoyance, Gilgamesh's wisdom would certainly let him sense the danger within it.

But he also knew that his battle with Fujimaru Kyoya could not be delayed any longer. The longer it dragged on, the stronger Fujimaru Kyoya would become.

Even if it was a trap, he would step into it.