O Sons of Man, Sing Your Ballads!

Thunder, like spears cast from the heavens, struck the ground.

Without a word, Gilgamesh and Enkidu understood what it was.

Being no ordinary men, they were naturally unaffected by any hangover.

However, Enkidu's nose twitched suddenly, and he looked at Rovi suspiciously, a hint of confusion in his eyes. "It feels like something passed by?"

Rovi glanced sideways, feeling inexplicably guilty.

Is this what we should be focusing on right now?

Gilgamesh merely grinned.

"Let's go!" he stood up. "Follow behind this king, my friend—it's time to complete the great endeavor of the three of us!"

Enkidu rose without further thought.

Rovi also let out a sigh of relief and stood up.

The distant thunder continued to rumble and shake.

Since ancient times, in any region or pantheon, thunder has represented the wrath and judgment of the gods.

And at this moment, under the vast sky, countless humans and non-humans truly felt that undisguised killing intent.

The gods would show no mercy to those who dared to defy them—

A bellowing moo echoed to the east of Uruk. By the Euphrates River, the cage formed by black netherworld energy shattered with a low hum. A golden-hoofed leg descended from the sky, its massive horns suspended a thousand meters above, reflecting a shimmering gold, its radiance divine.

At the same moment, to the west of Uruk, on the border of the Monster Forest, the earth shook and roared. The chains Enkidu had left here to restrain the strongest monsters snapped simultaneously.

Black mist surged from the ground, and giant, elongated vines erupted, spiraling outwards. The colossal trees swayed violently, instantly transforming into a dense, dark cedar forest.

'The Bull of Heaven,' Gugalanna, and the 'Cedar Forest,' Humbaba.

Under the God King's command... they manifested simultaneously in the hazy dawn.

They were two completely different beings, one divine and one terrifying, yet they cast equally colossal shadows, towering thousands of meters into the clouds. A mere slight tremor from them could tear the entire land apart.

And at this moment—

They, one to the east and one to the west, or one to the left and one to the right, advanced simultaneously towards the city-state of Uruk at the center.

Their colossal forms, even from a thousand miles away, were clearly visible to the eye.

"Is that... the monsters the King spoke of, the ones the gods use to destroy the world?"

On the great walls of Uruk, soldiers clad in armor looked up, watching the shadows cast from the distant sky, unable to help but swallow.

Astonishment, fear...

It wasn't just the border soldiers; even the women, the elderly, and the children within Uruk began to stir in panic.

At this moment, the people understood that what they were about to face was different from the vast hordes of monsters before.

While the monsters were numerous, humanity's numbers were no less.

But now, the approaching figures, solely by their size, were enough to make humanity, which appeared as small as dust in comparison, feel despair.

Could ants defeat giants?

Could gnats cross the sky?

The answer was obvious...

"Hahahaha!" A startling sound, like thunder from a clear sky, rang in everyone's ears.

The voice came from behind the Uruk soldiers, from the center they all protected, from the highest and most distant palace in the heart of the royal city, in this mortal realm.

And it came from the three who had just returned.

Gilgamesh slowly ascended the steps, reaching the doors of the Royal Palace Hall.

Rovi and Enkidu followed closely behind.

The three stood together under the vast sky.

The three stood together in the hearts of all the people.

"My people!" Gilgamesh clasped his hands, his gaze sweeping over the city below, from near to far. His scarlet snake-like eyes fell upon each person.

"Are you—afraid?" The King's voice reached everyone's ears.

On the streets of Uruk, people stopped and looked up. An old man with white hair, who had been trembling, calmed down unconsciously upon hearing the voice. A woman holding a child walked out of her house, simply to gaze up at the figure high above.

The Uruk soldiers on the border also took a deep breath, their composure returning.

The King's prestige was deeply ingrained in everyone's hearts.

Of course, whether it was Gilgamesh himself, or Rovi and Enkidu, they all understood that this alone was not enough to truly inspire people to fight the Bull of Heaven and Humbaba.

It was only enough to calm them down for the moment.

Once those two strongest and most terrifying beasts drew closer, any courage they felt now would vanish in the face of such a massive difference in size.

The courage of the present moment was fleeting...

But fleeting, it was also real.

They were here, at this moment, precisely for this moment.

To guide this courage...

To halt the advance of the Bull of Heaven and the Cedar Forest!

"Hahaha!" Gilgamesh let out another booming laugh. "Forcing a calm facade? Pretending to be brave? Do you think that will fool the great King who governs all under heaven, this King?"

"Scum—"

Gilgamesh took another step forward before the gates of the Royal Palace.

He stepped to the edge of the stairs leading down to the main avenue of the city-state. His upper body was already clad in golden armor, his shining hair swept back, revealing a sharp and handsome face.

He spread his arms, wild and arrogant. "This King is the King of Kings, this King is the master of all phenomena. Under this King's rule, all order will be maintained. Nothing useless will exist, and everything will find its proper place."

"And now, this King will pass the ultimate judgment upon all things in this world, upon you—"

The King's voice reached everyone's ears.

The King's will spread throughout Uruk.

"Advance and fight, my subjects!"

"You may die. You may not be able to withstand this world-ending disaster."

"But, this King promises you."

"Your deeds will be recorded for posterity, your glory will be sung by future generations, your existence will be etched into the annals of history."

"For this is a battle to protect our homeland—"

"This King will always be here, standing with you!"

"This battle will be acknowledged by the King, permitted by the King, and borne by this King!"

The people were indeed afraid.

But similarly, they already knew that under the trampling of the colossal monster capable of destroying the world, no one could escape.

Fear? Or courage?

It didn't really matter.

What mattered was... they stood for Uruk.

Their homeland.

They protected the King of Uruk.

Their King, who bore and permitted and acknowledged everything about them!

"Now, roar your anger to the heavens!"

Gilgamesh waved his hand.

At this instant, the colossal walls surrounding Uruk's borders, thousands of magic cannons, under the soldiers' operation, slowly aimed at the dome where Gilgamesh pointed.

BOOM!

Ten thousand cannons roared in unison towards the sky.

Rovi stepped forward, a shimmering key appearing in his eyes.

The 'Key of Heaven' ability manifested.

An intangible concept was drawn from an opened, invisible gate and merged with the cannon fire.

At this moment, what was loaded into the cannon fire was no longer just the magic of the Earth Vein, and what erupted was no longer just an outpouring of energy.

It was humanity's struggle.

It was humanity's courage.

Enkidu also closed his eyes at the same time. As his pure white robes fluttered, the power of the Chains of Heaven was instantly displayed.

Invisible chains, centered on him, spread out in all directions... linking every person, every spark of fire.

He made the flames rise.

And then made them—

fall from the sky.

Sweeping towards the world-ending behemoth.

The Divine Construct praised loudly:

Children of man, Sing to the gods!

Let the gods know that humanity's song is a song of courage!

Gilgamesh let out another booming laugh.

Rovi looked up, the faint light of the key reflecting as he watched the falling flames of humanity.

He knew that at this moment, not just humans, but the gods in the heavens were also watching.

Their eyes reappeared.

In the chaos, no longer fearing being struck and destroyed.

But today, Rovi no longer pinned his hopes of 'death' on the means by which the gods crossed realms.

Ordinary death would ultimately only lead to the underworld.

With Ereshkigal here, he still couldn't die.

Therefore, Rovi hoped to thoroughly enrage the gods, to force out their final strength.

So at this moment, Rovi was also smiling, he raised his hand as if to provoke the gods—

"If you have the guts, come down?"

The gods: "..."

Damn it, how many times has it been? Still pulling this stunt?

What kind of sick joke is this?

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