I Became Fu Hua at the Start in a Multiverse

Gilgamesh said gravely, "But the enemy's situation is troublesome compared to Quetzalcoatl's—no, even more troublesome than Quetzalcoatl's."

"What level of Divinity does Ereshkigal possess? Is it higher than Ishtar's?" Roman took the opportunity to gather information.

"She is the goddess sent to the Underworld as its foundation when it was created, because a god had to govern the Underworld." Gilgamesh said, "As a goddess who has remained in the Underworld for tens of millions of years, she has never stayed upon the earth or in the heavens... But in exchange, when she is in the Underworld, Ereshkigal is invincible. Even the gods cannot defy her laws."

"But as long as she is outside the Underworld, her Divinity is probably only average."

"So... we need to find a way to lure her out of the Underworld before we can fight her?" Roman frowned.

"That is impossible."

Ishtar denied Roman's idea. "She does not remain in the Underworld because she does not want to leave. She cannot leave. Whether it is her own will or not, she is bound to the Underworld."

"This..." Ritsuka and Mash exchanged glances. Didn't that make her invincible?

If they wanted to take King Gilgamesh out of the Underworld, they had to gain the goddess's approval. But they could not stake everything on her willingness. Without a way to deal with the goddess, they had no right to negotiate.

"It is not entirely without a solution."

Gilgamesh said, "If the opponent is living, then they will not be restricted by the law of 'must be killed' in the first place. In other words, within the Underworld, Ritsuka, Mash, and Crimson Kite are all targets upon whom she cannot impose her laws. Although her own enhancements will remain, at least they will not be killed in a single blow."

"So that's how it is..." Only then did Roman and Ritsuka understand why Ishtar had insisted on bringing Amber along.

They were not surprised that Amber, clearly a living person, had appeared here as a Servant. After all, Merlin was in the same situation. For top-tier Heroic Spirits like them, rules had never been so rigid.

Besides, as Shenzhou's ageless and immortal Immortal, it was not strange that she, not being a god, had survived until now.

As they talked, the group arrived at the lowest level of the Underworld, at a "palace" surrounded by the Sea of Nothingness.

"Although they call it a palace... it looks more like a wilderness... If this counts as a palace, then it is just too... sad..." Mash looked uneasily at the flat expanse, which had only a stone floor and several pillars, without even a proper building.

"This is what they call the Underworld."

Gilgamesh was equally expressionless. "There is nothing splendid here, only eternal solitude and the Sea of Nothingness, whose waves resound at every moment."

"You speak as though you understand it well, demigod king."

A voice identical to Ishtar's, yet far gloomier, rang out as everyone surveyed their surroundings.

When they came back to themselves, Ereshkigal, clad in a red cloak and possessing golden hair, was already standing in the center of the palace.

Sorrow tinged her voice, utterly lacking Ishtar's flamboyance. "So you came after all. Let me introduce myself. I am the mistress of the Underworld, the one who tramples the spiritual peaks, Ereshkigal of the Three Goddess Alliance."

Ereshkigal looked toward Amber and Ritsuka. "Let me make this clear first. I will not let you take that king away. Not only him, but all of you must remain here as well. Then I will obtain Uruk's Holy Grail, and humanity's world will come to an end."

"So you want to imprison us?" Ishtar mocked. "That really suits your usual style. As the one who gathers all ugliness into herself, behavior with no sense of beauty at all is only natural for you."

"You always do this! That mouth of yours never stops chattering! When you fall into my hands later, you will remember the terror of having once fallen into the Underworld!"

Hearing her demean herself before her friends like this, Ereshkigal immediately flew into a rage.

"What are you getting angry about!? You are already acting like it is a fight to the death!" Ishtar said helplessly.

"Wait, let this king interrupt." Gilgamesh said.

Ereshkigal had been about to retort when she was interrupted, putting her in an even worse mood. "What is it? King of Uruk, who fell down here on his own even though I had not intended to make a move against you yet?"

"Heh, what stubborn pride. You clearly need my Holy Grail very badly, do you not?" Gilgamesh smiled. "You are as childish as that Ishtar."

"What do you mean, we are the same!? I am not some embarrassing little girl!" Ishtar had no intention of accepting that comparison. She had never considered destroying humanity, and what did he mean by comparing her to such a filthy, ugly god?

Ereshkigal could not hold it in any longer. "How am I embarrassing!? I am the terrifying goddess of death! You are the one who was so easily manipulated by humans for the sake of treasure! It is unimaginable behavior for a goddess!"

"Hah!?" Ishtar bristled too.

"Enough! The Uruk comedy show ends here! Perform however you like somewhere this king cannot see!"

Gilgamesh interrupted the two goddesses' argument once again. "Ereshkigal, as the city god of Kusa City, you have colluded with the other two pillars of the Three Goddess Alliance. This sin is far beyond that of the other goddesses. Even though I am now among the dead, I can still judge you in the name of kingship."

"Invaders are repelled by force, while the betrayal of one's own people is judged by the world. You understand, do you not? That is kingship."

"That is right. In this world of Divine Right of Human Granting, if you, as the King of Humans, abandon everything, then of course you can punish a god. But so what? Will you kill me at the cost of your life?" Ereshkigal's expression darkened.

Gilgamesh's move was useless against the other two goddesses, but as a native god, she would be constrained by it.

"That will depend on your answer, Ereshkigal."

I bought a new keyboard today, but it turned out to be less comfortable than the one I am using now. What a waste of anticipation...

But this keyboard is quite stiff, and my left hand has been hurting a little lately. I need to replace it soon. Does anyone have recommendations? 6

There will be three updates today as well, and this arc is almost over. Around chapter fifty-five, maybe? 1

The Gate of Imaginary Space

"Why did you collude with the Three Goddess Alliance!? Are you planning to deny your duty to protect Sumerian civilization and the Sumerian people!?"

Gilgamesh's loud question echoed through the empty palace. Anyone could see the fury written plainly across his face.

"I wondered what you wanted to ask."

Ereshkigal's expression did not change in the slightest. "My responsibility has not changed at all. I was entrusted with the Underworld. As its mistress, it is my fate and meaning to collect human souls into the Underworld. What is wrong with what I have done?"

As she spoke, she raised the spear in her hand and pointed it at Gilgamesh. "I have no regrets over anything I have done! As for you, if you dare stand in my way, then prepare yourselves!"

"You have already left us no way out, so why are you telling us to prepare ourselves!?" Ishtar complained.

Gilgamesh's expression turned ugly. Nothing in the other party's words had wavered, and her actions were recognized by the world. This also meant that his kingship had lost its intended effect.

"Then there is no need to accuse you! Hand over your head directly! Your defeat shall be the judgment for all that you have done!"

Though he shouted those words with great force, Gilgamesh immediately placed Amber in front of him after finishing.

There was no helping it. If kingship was ineffective, then as one of the dead, he could not do much against Ereshkigal. It was not as though he was completely useless in battle, but if even Crimson Kite could not solve the problem, then one more of him would not make much difference.

Amber felt somewhat speechless, but she still stepped forward two paces.

"Just what I wanted. I will cast aside all reproach and pierce every one of you with my spear!" Ereshkigal did not care at all about Gilgamesh's harsh words. In her eyes, victory was already assured. As long as she was in the Underworld, nothing could harm her, so she treated his words as nothing more than wind past her ears.

However, she still had something to say to her friend.

"Before we begin, I have a question for you." Ereshkigal turned her gaze toward the living. "Throughout the long years, I have managed the souls of the dead here. I had none of my own joy, happiness, sorrow, or friends—nothing at all. I could only gaze upon my other half soaring freely through the sky."

"Will you condemn me as well? Even now, do you still intend to claim that gathering souls is wrong?"

"Does no one wish to praise me for carrying out my duty alone all this time?"

At this moment, she did not seem like a goddess.

Her fragile expression made it impossible to imagine that she had just been shouting about killing them all. Yet whether it was Ritsuka or Amber, both could see that she truly wanted to kill them, and that she also genuinely hoped they would praise her efforts.

Amber fell silent.

"I cannot praise you." Ritsuka's expression did not waver in the slightest because of Ereshkigal's words. "That is... your duty."

"Eh...?"

Having never possessed friends, she had developed limitless yearning for them. Naturally, she also hoped the other party would respond with a weight equal to that yearning.

Yet the answer she received was completely different from what she had imagined.

"Did you not understand? Fool. Even this Master understands that one should not praise things that are simply expected." Gilgamesh explained expressionlessly. "You may lament your duty, or abandon it and seek another path."

"However, the obligation you did not flee from, the obligation you continued to fulfill while belittling yourself—this is evil, even to you yourself."

"To praise that suffering would be an insult to you for fulfilling your duty."

"—How arrogant!" Ereshkigal's expression did not improve at all. Instead, obvious anger appeared on her face. Then she looked at Amber, who had remained silent. "Do you think the same way!?"

This scene somehow feels familiar...

Amber's feelings were actually complicated, because she had wanted to praise Ereshkigal.

For Amber, simply staying alive already required giving everything she had. Doing something that one found difficult, even if there was nothing to complain about, yet wanting encouragement for it—that was normal, was it not?

No matter how sound the reasoning was, the burden upon one's heart could still torment a person into madness.

"I think... you have done well..." Amber's words seemed to silence the air itself.

Everyone's gaze turned toward her. Amber took a deep breath and continued, "A chef has a chef's work, and a doctor has a doctor's work. Since one chose that job, complaining about it is certainly not good, and it is also... cowardly."

Ereshkigal's hopeful expression immediately turned ugly.

"However..."

Before Ereshkigal could grow angry, Amber spoke first. "However... I think... there is nothing wrong with cowardice. The strong have their place to stand, and the weak have their place to stand too."

Ereshkigal said, "This is..."

Those were the words she had previously said to Amber and Ritsuka.

But soon, her expression darkened again. "Even if you understand, you will not agree with what I have done, will you?"

"..." That silence was undoubtedly an admission.

Gilgamesh and Ritsuka also withdrew their gazes from Amber.

Gilgamesh: I see. This girl is far more sentimental than this king imagined...

Ritsuka: As expected, the Immortal is not cold-hearted. Before friends and companions, her heart is incredibly soft. Even knowing the other party is wrong, she will still offer understanding and acknowledgment.

"If you do not agree with what I have done, then do not say you understand me!" Enormous crimson lightning flashed within the palace, gathering immeasurable magical power in an instant.

Tears spilled from Ereshkigal's eyes. "Sing of your pain in the depths of the Underworld! Let me see how you will correct my so-called errors! If you do not intend to become my dead—my possessions—then do not try to understand me!"

"It seems a battle is unavoidable."

Gilgamesh retreated farther back, while Ishtar retreated even farther, even using Gilgamesh as a shield.

"A sky without light, land without radiance, soil without flowers—there is nothing here!"

The golden spear in Ereshkigal's hand bloomed with light. The Underworld granted Ereshkigal numerical corrections at maximum speed. Lightning originally as thick as two people had, in the blink of an eye, gathered upon the spear in her hand, dyeing it red and white. Unstable magical power was compressed together to its limit. Everyone felt as though their bodies had sunk into a swamp, unable to move easily within this space filled with mana.

Master...

I have already opened the gate to Imaginary Space for you. Fu Hua's voice did not rise or fall. She did not dislike Amber's actions. If anything... she admired them.

Just as she herself had known the danger posed by the Herrscher of Void, yet had still allowed emotion to rule her at the end.

Since words cannot bring understanding, then let this strike explain it. Amber closed her eyes, freely drawing upon endless Imaginary Energy.

"God is the ultimate of transformation, speaking through all things in wondrous ways, beyond the reach of form."

What needed to be severed, what could not be severed, and the strength needed for severing—it all became clear to her without reason.

"Tai Xu Sword Qi—Divine Aggregate."

I spent quite a while looking up information today, so the third update might be gone.

The main issue is that I write too slowly... 1

Ti Ma will be appearing soon too. 1

I actually really want to write Hina, but among anime that are both popular and set around an academy, there does not seem to be one... Jujutsu Kaisen's academy is a bit too niche, since the story does not revolve around the academy. 5

High School DxD would be good... but I have not watched it... 2

Tiamat

The golden sword shadow swallowed Ereshkigal's figure in an instant.

This golden greatsword, which seemed to connect heaven and earth, had appeared before Gilgamesh for the third time. Yet this was the first time he had truly observed it from such close range.

The sensation of death pressing close made every hair on his body stand on end. That was not power from this world, but power originating beyond the world itself—of that, he was certain. Yet when he remembered that the Crimson Kite Immortal was originally a Heroic Spirit fabricated from fiction, he felt considerably more at ease.

However... that was the aura of Imaginary Space. This was becoming troublesome...

At the same time—

On the surface, Merlin, who had been watching the battle with a relaxed expression, suddenly changed expression. The backlash from the spell on his main body caused problems even for this illusionary clone.

The Herrscher of Reason and Quetzalcoatl also noticed the issue here. Only then did they stop fighting and stroll over leisurely.

Neither of them had a good impression of Merlin. Seeing him injured did not stir them in the slightest; instead, they began discussing their previous battle.

"I did not expect you to have been born so recently and yet possess such formidable strength. I wonder what Crimson Kite would be like if she went all out." Quetzalcoatl smiled.

"You are not bad either. It seems you have not lived all these years for nothing. What a pity, though. When it comes to martial arts, that wrestling of yours is far inferior to our Tai Xu Sword Qi." The Herrscher of Reason puffed out her chest. She offered praise first, but quickly added, "But do not misunderstand. I am not weaker than that old fossil. If the two of us fought, who knows who would win!"

"Oh? That is true. After all, you are also her—just another side of her."

Quetzalcoatl nodded thoughtfully.

"Hey! I am not her!"

The Herrscher of Reason immediately refused to accept that, shuddering all over. "You originally lost to me by thirty moves, and I was even planning to graciously let you tell others you only lost by fifty! Now you can only state it exactly as it was—whatever the number was, that is the number!"