Ereshkigal and Ishtar

Damn you, Lord of Mount Tai... Damn you, Houtu... Tamamo no Mae, who fell straight from the sky, shook her head and made whimpering noises.

The ceremony was halfway through, and Amaterasu Omikami had already been partially revealed.

Although it ended abruptly, it still led her to step into the present again.

Because of this abrupt stop... Tamamo no Mae descended, but Amaterasu did not.

The power belonging to the gods of the East remains on the High Heaven.

"Wow! What a beautiful fox!"

"Much prettier than the foxes at the Inari Ōkami!?"

"Stop talking, hurry up and start preparing for the new ceremony!"

"..."

Tamamo no Mae stared with her golden fox eyes at the few shrine maidens who approached her but then quickly left.

Its fluffy tail wagged behind it, and its ears twitched from side to side.

Yes, Present Moment, she doesn't even have a human form anymore.

It's just a simple 'fox'.

Although as Amaterasu, she would not be in any real danger because her divine essence resides in Takamagaru, she would not be harmed in any way. She would simply wait for the right opportunity and naturally return to Takamagaru.

However, this state of affairs is absolutely terrible, Migu!

No matter how bad Tamamo no Mae's mood was, or how poor her condition was, she could not change the interrupted Amaterasu descent ritual, nor could she stop the upcoming ' Lord of Mount Tai Festival'.

Ise Grand Shrine, the offerings originally used to pray for the Amaterasu Omikami were all removed in a short period of time, and replaced by incense altars, flower-patterned stone platforms, and other items used in the ' Lord of Mount Tai Festival'.

In the land of Japan, the deity who truly governs the three realms is undoubtedly Amaterasu Omikami.

The fact that the deity rules over the three realms does not mean that he is supreme. Countless gods from China also have sacrifices in Japan. Their status is no less than that of Amaterasu Omikami, and some of them are even above Amaterasu Omikami.

Such as the Heavenly Emperor of the Divine Land and Queen of Heaven of China, the ' Lord of Mount Tai ' is undoubtedly one of them.

Mount Tai, ranking first among the sacred mountains of China, is the hub of all landforms, governing Yin and Yang and ruling the underworld. It is a true deity of China.

Not to mention this Lord of Mount Tai, who, in addition to his position on Mount Tai, also manifests the status of ' Houtu Pingxin,' the embodiment of the will of the Divine Land.

Given the vastness of the land of China and the mystery and Human Order brought about by the ideological foundation that has never declined over thousands of years, Amaterasu Omikami is simply incomparable to it.

The so-called "Lord of Mount Tai Festival" is a ceremony to worship the god of Mount Tai and to request an audience with the Lord of Mount Tai, and it is naturally more elaborate than the ceremony Tamamo no Mae.

And so, at this moment, the fox could only watch resentfully as the group of priestesses danced gracefully in the very Ise Grand Shrine was dedicated to him, watching them burn incense and kowtow to another god during the very festival that had just honored him...

In an instant, the light of day appeared.

White robes fluttered, red skirts swayed, and the shrine maidens bowed their heads in unison.

"Whew, I've finally made it back to the present!"

"Ishtar, don't take my spot!"

What does it matter?

"Hey—wait a minute!"

Two voices rang out in succession, one in front and one behind.

Tamamo no Mae instinctively shrank back, avoiding looking at the figure that appeared at the top of the shrine.

The priestesses bowed their heads to the ground, none of them daring to raise their heads.

According to ancient legends, Mount Tai, the Houtu Divine Land, is a dualistic deity.

They are sister deities worshipped by an ancient civilization from another land. By chance, they arrived in China and were assimilated and integrated into the civilization of Divine Land Huaxia, where they ascended to divine positions.

Her name is ' Ereshkigal '.

The second one is named ' Ishtar '.

The two are one and of the same origin, which is why they can simultaneously occupy the positions of ' Houtu ' and ' Lord of Mount Tai '...

"That's why I said, I'm clearly the mistress of the heavens, so how did I become the goddess of the earth?"

"If you don't like it, you can leave."

"That's impossible—Mesopotamia has already been occupied by that Golden Pikachū, there's no place for a god there anymore!"

"..."

Ereshkigal, who had descended and manifested, breathed a sigh of relief and glanced at the priestesses bowing their heads below the shrine.

She narrowed her crimson eyes slightly.

Two thousand years is not a long time for her, who was born as a god, so she is no different from the one who appeared here two thousand years ago.

Golden hair cascaded down her back, adorned with crimson butterfly clips at the ends. Her bright red eyes and lips remained unchanged, and she wore a long black dress that cinched her waist, her soft, curvaceous hips undulating beneath the skirt, her legs only partially covered by black stockings.

Opposite her was, without a doubt, Ishtar Rin, whom she had found from the Sea of Imaginary Numbers after Rovi left China for Rome.

The former mistress of Mesopotamia sat on the roof of the temple, swinging her long legs, her skirt swaying, her red coat fluttering in the wind, and her slightly open collar revealing half of her rounded breasts.

She tossed her long black hair and snorted, "So, where is that guy?"

The reason she followed Ereshkigal into Shenzhou and became a pair of ' Twin Goddesses ' belonging to the Shenzhou pantheon, and the reason she appeared here, is undoubtedly to search for Rovi's existence.

"Rovi ...yes, that's true." Ereshkigal turned her gaze from the Subordinate God: "Finding Rovi is the most important thing!"

"I will settle that score from before!" Ishtar jumped up and stood up, her hands on her hips, her crimson eyes, framed by her black hair, narrowed slightly.

They tricked her into fighting against the Mesopotamian gods, but the promised treasure was never delivered...

Ishtar Rin won't let Rovi off so easily!

"You mortals, it is your honor to be able to look up to the radiance of the beautiful goddess. Now, disperse!"

"The reward from the most beautiful goddess will come naturally in the future!"

No matter how much time has passed.

Ishtar Rin's personality, as the 'goddess of beauty' in Mesopotamia, remains unchanged.

"That's right, disperse!"

Ereshkigal, with her gentle nature, shares the same origin as Ishtar Rin, so it's only natural that they resemble each other.

The priestesses looked up in surprise, only to find that the two goddesses on the roof of the shrine had vanished.

The rolling clouds in the sky resembled a huge 'ox'.

"They've finally left...?"

As Tamamo no Mae exhaled, she looked down at her current fox-like appearance.

They didn't realize it.

Without careful observation and investigation, Tamamo no Mae at this moment appears to be nothing more than a pure fox with White-faced Golden Fox, whose appearance is perfect to the extreme.

Even gods of the highest caliber, rulers of the pantheon, could not detect her true existence...

At that moment, the fox suddenly realized that it didn't look so bad after all.

"Approaching Rovi under the guise of a fox..."

"That's right, this is the plan I devised from the very beginning, Migu!"

Turn mistakes into the greatest help.

This is Tamamo no Mae's grand plan... a complete success!

Ereshkigal and Ishtar, who had left, were unaware of the sudden restlessness and excitement that Tamamo -Tamamo no Mae. After leaving the Ise Grand Shrine, they set out to search for the source of the manifestation of Rovi's existence.

"Is this really the direction? Could we have gone to the wrong place?"

"Hmm... it shouldn't be, right?"

There seem to be some marks here...

Of course, they couldn't find Rovi.

Because at this moment, Rovi, along with Aika and Abigail, briefly traveled back to the scene at the very beginning of the planet's creation.

He still stood alone against the ultimate abyss that led to the outer reaches of the universe, where the old gods resided.

Using human bodies to block out unspeakable terror.

As a human being, one must confront countless terrifying beings.

The Machine God and Chaos unveiled the pre-heaven landscape, and the great power to create stars manifested in the universe.

Rovi faced it head-on.

Even at this moment, I slowly move forward.

"Big brother, aren't you afraid of dying?"

Behind him, Abigail, the 'gatekeeper', looked puzzled.

Touching the 'door' will save you from death.

It is impossible to make contact with the 'door'.

Even if he is very strong.

He could not possibly be stronger than the Old Ones.

"I'm afraid, but I won't die." Rovi glanced at Abigail.

I will not die.

It will only become... infinitely strong!

Rovi reached out, his raised palm wanting to touch the ultimate abyss beyond the Star Gate.

The Star-making God, Rovi, is already incredibly powerful.

But if one 'dies'.

He will become stronger by reclaiming that power.

Of course, once that power is regained, the power at this moment will not disappear, but will remain with it.

To achieve the maximum expansion.

The Machine God that has reached its limit, the chaos that has reached its limit...

Perhaps it could truly become the end of the Atlantis Civilization and the source of the Old Ones?

Rovi was full of anticipation.

The Star Gate oscillated slightly.

Just a touch away from my fingertips... then a crash.

The door is closed.

It's closed.

"?"

Is it you guys who are acting strange, or am I?

Rovi choked up.

"Huh? Father said... you can't go in?" Abigail exclaimed in surprise. The 'father' she was referring to was none other Yog-Sothoth, one of the Three Great Gods Old Ones.

"Father said... eh?" Her words trailed off, then abruptly stopped.

Because she heard a rapid knocking on the door.

The blows pounded on the door again and again.

"Open the door!"

"Demolition team, prepare—"

"I'm here to deliver food, check the water meter, or deliver packages..."

"..."

What is he doing?

Aika, the Atlantis mecha, sat on the edge of the furnace, swinging her silk-covered legs, tilting her head in confusion.

Abigail looked completely bewildered, as if to say, "I don't understand, but I'm deeply shocked."

You are facing Star Gate leading to the ultimate abyss.

It's not the door to your toilet that someone else is using!

Tap it like this.

Isn't this underestimating the Old Ones?

"Big brother, big brother, stop knocking! Father said they won't interfere with Earth for the time being..."

Abigail tugged at Rovi's sleeve.

As Old Ones 'shrine maiden' who ruled the earth, this was the first time she had ever witnessed such a scene...

I've learned something new.

After knocking on the door for a long time without any response, Rovi came to his senses and thought, "Damn it... I've been underestimated."

Numerous evil gods. "..."

Who was really underestimated? Don't you have Heracles in your heart?

Being blocked at the door like this... oh, it seems like this isn't the first time?

Beyond the universe, in the ultimate abyss of endless void and chaos, numerous Divine General silently focused their 'gaze' on the 'Great Wall' composed of Immortals and Gods radiance that blocked their true forms from entering the universe.

Is this a tradition of your land?

China.

They're all a bunch of lunatics!

But since his knocking failed, Rovi had no choice but to give up.

"I'm looking forward to it..."

He regained his composure and turned to look at Abigail, who was clutching his sleeve.

"So, what did Yog-Sothoth say?"

"My father said they don't want to have any contact with you... They said that after you die, something terrible will happen."

After a moment of silence, Rovi rubbed his temples. "Forget it, I'm not looking forward to them anymore—"

"A bunch of useless trash!"

"..."

Abigail: Should I laugh?

She didn't laugh, but another kind of laughter rang out, echoing across this vast expanse of nebulae.

"As expected of Mr. Rovi, such an unexpected development!"

Aika leaped from the machine and walked over.

She walked right up to Rovi.

"As expected of me." Rovi tapped his temples, the Core of Chaos disappeared, and the machine vanished.

As the world lines merged, the appearance of the planets before their birth and the early stages of the nebula quickly disappeared and faded away.

"A, Sa, To, Si... When He awakens, the infinite universe will return to chaos."

"We can't let Him wake up yet."

He cannot die yet.

The evil god's murmurs carried a hint of darkness and chill, echoing in the cold, pitch-black abyss.

But Rovi, Aika, and Abigail could no longer hear.

They returned to the present world.

Back in Japan, to Tokyo and Shibuya Ward.

Another failed attempt.

But at least the disaster has been resolved.

At least...

"It seems this game isn't over yet, Mr. Rovi, my Prince?" Sajyou Manaka grabbed Rovi's hand, causing Rovi to freeze instantly as he tried to rein in his presence.

She held it tightly to her chest, pressing its slender fingers against its softness, and gave Rovi a bright smile.

Abigail's eyes lit up, and she grabbed his other hand. "What game? Big brother, I want to play too!"

"Found it!"

Almost at the same time, a crisp sound rang out from the sky.

And then...

"Rovi, how could you do this at such a young age?"

"Hello, is this the police station?"

"..."

Rovi looked at Ereshkigal and Ishtar Rin, who appeared and surrounded him from the front and back, and at Ishtar Rin's pretentious manner.

Sajyou Manaka shook her head, revealing a sly smile.

"There's more than one way to make Mr. Rovi 'die,' you know?"

Even if someone dies, it's still a kind of death, right?

That brat.

It was definitely done on purpose!

"This child looks a bit simple-minded. Did you take him in from somewhere, Rovi?" Ereshkigal blinked, somewhat confused.

Aika's expression instantly turned serious, and she could no longer smile.

Then it was Rovi's turn to laugh.