Seven Days of Changes

Seven days was neither long nor short, but at a time when the situation was changing by the hour, it was enough to bring many changes to this land.

Rovi still did not know exactly what those changes were.

But as he turned back toward the royal capital of Uruk, he saw land that had fully regained its lush vitality, with villages scattered across the wilderness.

Yet there was suddenly not a single person in sight.

Those who had been waiting for his "resurrection" obviously could not have remained where they were for seven whole days.

But aside from their departure, there was no trace of anyone in the surrounding villages or settlements, large or small.

Not even a single head of livestock remained.

The houses stood empty.

There were no signs of battle or destruction. Instead, countless footprints and wagon tracks had been left across the land.

It was as though a massive migration had taken place during those seven days.

He felt it was necessary to get to the bottom of it.

He walked on, observing as he went.

A moment later.

Rovi stopped beneath the bright blue sky and gazed over the verdant wilderness before him, blanketed in fresh green shoots.

He still did not know exactly what had happened.

But from these few traces, he could still infer many things.

Such a massive, spontaneous migration could theoretically have only one cause—the order of Gilgamesh, ruler of this land.

And at this moment, the young King of Uruk, who had cast aside his former tyrannical manner to display the qualities of a wise ruler in his struggle against the gods, would not act without reason.

"Fortify the walls and clear the fields... preparing for an all-out battle?" Rovi arrived at that conclusion easily.

Clear the wilderness, bring all civilians behind the walls, gather all supplies in one place, and prepare for the enemy's arrival.

But at present, neither the Bull of Heaven nor Humbaba had completed their final manifestation—especially the former, which had been tightly restrained.

Rovi had not sensed the complete descent of their presence.

So Gilgamesh's urgency was probably not simply for dealing with the strongest divine beast and the strongest monster.

But Rovi soon found the answer to that question.

It was still the wilderness.

Among the rolling plains and hills, enormous figures moved in scattered groups.

They resembled beasts, but were not entirely beasts. Setting aside their colossal forms, far beyond anything ordinary, the dazzling radiance on their scales, the tremendous gusts stirred by their spread wings, and the supernatural flames and lightning brought forth by their howls all made one thing clear: these were absolutely no ordinary beasts.

Just like the "animals" in the Monster Forest to the west.

These were creatures born under the influence of the Aether of the Age of Gods, which supported the manifestation of the gods' true forms and formed the foundation of the Mythic Age. Normally, they could only be seen in large numbers during the Age of Gods.

Yet now, they had appeared again in great numbers.

Using the power of the Key of Heaven, Rovi concealed his aura and hid his form. From a high point, he caught sight of them, then turned to glance toward the eastern shore of the Euphrates River.

He looked up at the vast heavens, at the Bull of Heaven still enveloped in the aura of the underworld against the clear azure sky.

Only a wisp of cloud remained.

But what had been dispersed was ultimately only its shell. As time passed, more and more of its essence gradually gathered.

The other effects it brought naturally began to emerge as well.

For example, the gathering of "aether."

The environment's "return to antiquity."

There was no doubt that the birth of these monsters came from the aether scattered by the Bull of Heaven.

The same was likely true on Humbaba's side.

At that moment, the monsters scattered among the plains and hills seemed to sense something and abruptly raised their heads.

They looked toward the sky, toward the Bull of Heaven, and mournful howls rose one after another.

They were not wolves, yet they resembled gray wolves howling at the moon.

The ground began to tremble.

Dust rolled, gravel bounced over the earth, and the beastly shadows scattered across the land began to move.

Their footsteps shifted, leaving mark after mark in the soil. Their sharp claws and fangs raked across the ground like tiny blades, leaving vast swathes of destruction behind.

The monster packs began to gather and surge forward at increasing speed.

Just like the Monster Tide Rovi had seen before.

Guided by some inexplicable force, they thundered toward a single direction.

And that direction...

"Uruk City-State." Rovi did not even need to think about it.

They were going to attack Uruk.

Attack the place where humans gathered.

Otherwise, Gilgamesh would not have needed to "fortify the walls and clear the fields."

"Looks like I have to hurry back—" At the Present Moment, even if he stood still, these monsters could not kill him, so Rovi had no intention of dying beneath this Monster Tide.

He had to return.

He had to reunite with Gilgamesh and Enkidu.

Only then could they carry out the "strategy" they had decided upon before—complete the carefully planned, step-by-step "suicidal mission" he had cultivated all this time!

The moment he thought of it, Rovi acted. He immediately turned eastward and followed behind the monsters.

But before he reached the Uruk City-State.

At a point dozens of li from Uruk, he saw a city wall.

It stood dozens of meters high, towering over the earth like a mountain range—a colossal wall capable of holding back any flood.

Uruk's soldiers stood in stern ranks atop the wall, fully prepared for battle.

Massive cannons had also been mounted there, aimed at the Monster Tide surging forward below.

The sight was so familiar that Rovi, as a transmigrator, could not help freezing, his pupils contracting.

This was... the Seventh Singularity, the Battlefront of Beasts!?

A scene from one of the Nasuverse stories he had once seen.

The Uruk in that story had likewise built an enormous wall to fight monsters!

No, that was not right—

Perhaps it was merely similar.

A Singularity Point was a "fictional history" that had diverged from normal history and was destined to be repaired.

And since it was destined to be repaired, none of the great achievements created within it would be recorded by the world. Naturally, the people who created those achievements could not ascend to the Throne.

Rovi believed that his former self at the Root would not choose such a place as his point of transmigration.

So it could only be a coincidence.

Or a change in history caused by him.

But no matter what, the high wall had been erected in a short time. As one of Uruk's leaders, theoretically equal in status to Gilgamesh, the King of Uruk who ruled Uruk, Rovi could hardly stay out of it.

The plan they had decided upon earlier gave him even less room to stand aside.

Then...

"First, I'll drive off these monsters. Then I'll see exactly what earth-shaking changes have happened over these past seven days!"

Rovi waved his hand.

Golden ripples spread behind him, and countless blades and swords burst forth from within.

Cold light filled the air, dense and imposing as a forest, chilling to the bone.