Ishtar's slightly swelling chest heaved violently.
She even wondered if Rovi had gone mad, leaving her frozen in place for a moment. After the anger came confusion; she did not know how to react.
Siduri rubbed her forehead at the same time.
To call a goddess of beauty ugly and say she did not understand beauty to her face... even as King Gilgamesh's Aide, this was the first time she had seen such a thing.
Even that willful king would never do something like this.
Though Rovi was not exactly wrong.
Ishtar, who governed beauty, had never brought humanity any so-called beauty. With her overwhelming divine authority paired with her reckless nature, every time she descended into the human world, she brought horrors resembling hell itself.
Beautiful?
How could she possibly be?
But something so many people knew could not be made public, much less said to her face.
No wonder the king admired this man so much...
They had the same problem.
Siduri's head began to ache.
But no matter how much this aide's head hurt, it could not change what Rovi had truly done.
Within the broad and magnificent temple, dust gradually settled as faint light flowed across the flat stone floor.
The place fell into a brief, deathly silence.
Rovi continued to stare directly at Ishtar.
To some extent, this goddess beloved by all the gods was actually rather similar to Gilgamesh.
Both had been extraordinary from birth and had encountered virtually no setbacks after they were born.
So neither had ever been reprimanded to their face.
It was only natural that she did not know what to do for a moment.
But Rovi believed even more that this instant of blankness was merely the sign of an approaching storm.
Could she endure something like this?
Of course she could not.
So Ishtar quickly came to her senses. Her black hair lifted, and her crimson eyes fixed tightly upon the young man before her.
"It seems you really do not value your life, mortal!"
The goddess's voice no longer rose and fell as it had before. It was exceedingly steady, exceedingly calm.
This was the calm born of divinity.
It was also the indifference and anger born of divinity.
More than that, it was the wrath of a god.
"What do you think, ugly goddess, Lady Ishtar?" Rovi poured fuel on the fire and pressed on. "Admit it!"
"You're nothing but a fucking ugly bitch!"
Rovi burst into laughter.
"Damn you... bastard... ignorant, foolish human!"
The calm Ishtar had maintained through her divinity shattered instantly beneath Rovi's mocking words and laughter.
"I'll kill you—this goddess will definitely kill you!"
The light in her hand grew even more dazzling. Venus glittered and flared, the bowstring trembled, and only ten meters separated them. At that distance, if Rovi was hit, he would likely be reduced to nothing in an instant.
Yet Rovi remained standing there, still staring at Ishtar.
He faced death without flinching.
Though he was not dying to remonstrate with a king, as someone who had openly mocked a god, Rovi believed his death would be enough to enter epic poems and mythic legends.
That was enough.
If he could enter the annals of history, he could ascend to the Throne of Heroes.
What did death matter?
What Rovi did not know was that Siduri did not want him to die.
Setting aside Gilgamesh's instructions to her, Rovi's current display alone had strengthened Siduri's resolve.
An aide's duty was to assist the king.
Siduri treated Gilgamesh almost as though he were her faith.
Whatever he wished to do, she would obey without condition and carry it out perfectly—and in Siduri's eyes, Rovi's existence might be the same.
He could become someone who understood Gilgamesh.
Because they both disdained the gods, both were reckless and bold.
He might be overestimating himself somewhat, but with such common ground between them, it was enough.
Thus, in that instant, Siduri decided to act. Streams of light emerged around her slender figure.
As the king's close retainer, she could not possibly be powerless.
The treasures Gilgamesh casually bestowed could grant tremendous increases in strength.
So comparatively speaking, Siduri was not weak.
"Even at the cost of my life... I will save Priest Rovi from Ishtar!"
The woman's gaze was steadfast and pure.
Her body bent slightly as she gathered strength, ready to rush forward at any moment.
At the same time, Ishtar's arrow burst forth. The dazzling stream of light was clearly a frontal strike, yet it seemed to fall from the heavens, raising vast waves of radiance. Scarlet and gold mingled together, filling the sky like fire.
It was even more like a falling star.
At last, it became a force no mortal could withstand—
The furious strike of the Venus Goddess.
Yet just as Siduri was about to move forward, she suddenly stopped, because a voice by her ear halted her.
"Wait, Siduri."
It was the king's voice.
She abruptly turned her head and only then realized that Gilgamesh, who had just left, had suddenly reappeared upon the throne. He rested his chin on one hand, his crimson eyes watching below with great interest.
"Watch!"
Gilgamesh said.
Siduri fell silent and looked.
Below, Rovi still faced the goddess's strike.
He closed his eyes and did not move.
—BOOM!
The thunderous blast spread in an instant. Dust flew up, and the entire royal palace hall shook violently.
Amid it came the goddess's furious cry: "...Those who defy divine majesty shall suffer heavenly punishment!"
The fleeting impact came rushing in. The sound of it tearing through the air made Rovi's scalp tingle, and he felt his entire body trembling with it.
Under an attack like this, death would probably come in a single instant, right?
There would not even be pain... wonderful!
Rovi smiled even more happily.
Then a sound suddenly rang in his ears.
Click.
Like a key entering a keyhole and turning gently, setting the lock's mechanisms spinning one after another until it opened.
What was that sound?
Though it lasted only an instant, Rovi could not help but freeze. Then he saw something appear before him.
Golden ripples, emerging from nothing.
What was this?
This was...
"The Treasury of Babylon, a treasury forged from treasures gathered from across the entire world by this king, an embodiment of this king's noble and magnificent wisdom—though it still lacks the supreme treasure that would suppress its core and has not yet been fully completed, it is still an unparalleled treasure that only this king can possess in this age!"
Upon the throne, Gilgamesh's crimson eyes stared intently. He tapped the armrest with his finger and said, "Though he is merely a barking stray dog from filthy earth, ugly beyond measure, his fearless spirit in openly rebuking the rotten gods is indeed worthy of this king's praise."
"Look, even the Gate of Babylon forged by this king recognizes him. It has presented its gate before him for his use!"
Siduri looked at the rather delighted Gilgamesh.
You gave it to him yourself, didn't you...
Siduri turned back toward Rovi.
Though there was still some distance between them, he had clearly heard the words coming from the throne.
Gate of Babylon?
This was the Gate of Babylon?
He was slightly startled. The golden ripples before him spread outward, and they did indeed resemble the manifestation of the Noble Phantasm wielded by Gilgamesh in his memories.
Wait.
Then... didn't that mean he could not die?
Fuck.
No—
What should have been a moment of relief startled Rovi again, but it was already too late.
Venus fell in dazzling radiance.
Countless Noble Phantasms were launched at once from the golden ripples manifested by the Gate of Babylon.
The explosion erupted between them, becoming an invisible barrier.
Dust and smoke rolled even more wildly.
There was smoke, but no injury. Rovi stood within it, expressionless.
Why didn't I die again?
Before you continue