Starting in the Multiverse, Transforming into Fu Hua

"I didn't really mind."

Quetzalcoatl's smile did not change much.

Of course, she was not limited to wrestling techniques. Although every move of Tai Xu Sword Qi was exquisitely refined, she was also a goddess who had stood at the pinnacle of the world for tens of thousands of years. Her skills had likewise returned to simplicity. So rather than a sparring match, this battle had been her letting loose and having fun.

Thus, she had no particular opinion on victory or defeat this time. She only felt immensely refreshed after fighting without restraint.

"You two!"

Just as they were chatting and laughing, Merlin's voice rang out with difficulty. "Go find Anna! Then deal with the Beast Goddess! There's no time left!"

"!"

Quetzalcoatl immediately realized something. "I see, so you're an illusionary duplicate!"

"It would be best if Marduk's Hand Axe could remain intact, but Gogh will definitely come and find a way to destroy it. In that case... I have to stay in Uruk..." Her expression immediately darkened. Then she looked at the Herrscher of Reason beside her. "How confident are you about dealing with the Beast Goddess?"

It was not as though she could not deal with Gorgon.

With her supreme Divinity, she could forcefully kill Gorgon even while enduring the backlash of the Three Goddess Alliance Pact. But in the coming crisis, her strength was an important resource and could not be sacrificed carelessly.

So she could only place her hopes on the Herrscher of Reason.

"Hah? Are you underestimating me?"

The Herrscher of Reason's face darkened. "What's there to be confident or not confident about? Taking her down would be easy."

"But she possesses top-tier immortality, so it would be best to bring Anna along." Quetzalcoatl nodded, then ran toward Uruk. "Then I'll leave that side to you!"

Merlin's body was gradually breaking down into Spirit Particles, and his expression was exceptionally grim. "Anna should be near Nippur... I can still suppress Tiamat's illusion for the time being, but I truly can't help with anything else."

The Herrscher of Reason had initially wanted to say that she did not need help, but after thinking carefully, she indeed had no way to counter immortality. If she could use that Noisy Superior artifact, she might still be able to give it a try.

"Fine. The great Herrscher of Reason is not someone who doesn't know how to adapt. I'll bring that little girl along when the time comes. I don't know what's going on, but you'd better die slowly." Although the Herrscher of Reason was somewhat confused, she did not ask further questions.

It was just a fight, after all. She had not had enough fun earlier anyway.

Watching the two leave, Merlin spat out another mouthful of blood.

"The backlash is worse than I imagined...! What exactly happened in Imaginary Space?"

—On a lush, vibrant island.

Countless humans and animals frolicked everywhere. Noisy voices and commotion never ceased, and the entire island was filled with an astonishing vitality.

This was an illusion.

Amber, who wielded Feathered Dust, immediately recognized the unreality of this place.

As she watched the living beings around her notice her presence, only glance at her briefly, then continue with their own affairs, she walked toward the center of the island—or rather, the center of this illusion.

"Singing?"

The faint song in her ears grew clearer as Amber continued forward. The dense forest around her gradually thinned until she finally arrived before an open grassland.

Compared to the other areas, this grassland was much quieter. It was not because there were fewer living beings here, but because they were all gathered in a circle, seemingly dozing off—or perhaps listening, listening to the singing of the woman seated at the center of the grassland.

There were no lyrics and no instruments, yet the pure voice seemed capable of expressing the singer's feelings.

It was clearly joyful, yet sorrowful; as if cherishing something, yet also carrying the resolve to sever herself from the world at any moment.

The one singing was a woman with enormous horns atop her head and long blue hair. Amber had seen this appearance before: Tiamat, the Earth Mother Goddess, Mesopotamia's creator god, the being affectionately called Ti Ma by her friends.

Noticing Amber's presence, Tiamat stopped singing and looked toward this "intruder."

A smile instantly bloomed across her face, like a mother seeing a child who had been away from home for a long time. Amber had never seen such an expression before, yet she could be certain that Tiamat loved her deeply.

"Tiamat..."

"Come... here..."

Tiamat's enunciation was unclear and her speech slow, but Amber did not feel impatient in the slightest. Even if it took her a long time to say a single sentence, Amber could quietly wait for her to finish.

Why was I here? Why was Tiamat here? Where exactly was this place?

Those questions flashed through her mind, but she still walked step by step until she stood before Tiamat.

The woman sitting on the ground, her expression incomparably gentle, tried to stand. However, her enormous horns made it somewhat difficult for her to exert strength.

Amber unconsciously helped her up and waited for her next move.

"Good... child..." Though she had been helped by someone she had met for the first time, Tiamat carried a familiarity as though it were only natural. She seemed to think it was perfectly normal. The smile on her face grew even more loving as she reached out to touch Amber's cheek. "Don't... be afraid..."

"Mother... will soon... be able to come... out..."

I'm definitely doing three updates today! Sigh, I really don't know how to pick keyboards. That KZZI 75 everyone recommended feels too... like pressing plastic? (Though keyboards are all plastic.) 1

It was light, sure, but it still didn't feel quite right.

I returned two keyboards in three days. Picking keyboards is so hard... Why are there so many switches...? 4

Oh right, this book really is yuri! But don't rush, everyone! Amber is still a little brat. How could she figure things out that quickly? And getting all cuddly so easily feels a little frivolous. I want to write the sort of relationship where they go through many things together and naturally end up together. (Though my writing ability probably isn't enough.) 4

But I'm working hard to improve too!

Amber's Conflict

"Come out?" Amber had not expected her to say that.

That not only meant she would soon appear in reality, but also meant she knew Amber was currently in a dream.

"You are... a good child... who came to awaken Mother..." Tiamat was slightly shorter than Fu Hua. There was no trace of time's accumulation on her face; she looked like a girl on the verge of adulthood. Yet through her movements and demeanor, she genuinely gave others the feeling of a "mother."

"I didn't come to awaken you."

Although Amber did not dislike the goddess before her, she still ruthlessly interrupted her. "I... don't want you to awaken."

"Do you hate... Mother?"

There was no frustration or anger on the goddess's face. It remained full of love. Though her voice was slow, it conveyed even more emotion because of it.

"I don't."

Amber had never disliked Tiamat before. Even knowing that Tiamat was the world's greatest boss had not changed that. Because her friend had once greatly admired Tiamat, Amber had become curious and learned a little about her. So she knew very well just how gentle, and how sorrowful, Tiamat was.

Thinking of this, she said, "I... think you're wonderful, but your appearance will bring disaster, so I don't want you to appear."

"Thank you... my... child."

Tiamat nodded, withdrew the hand resting against Amber's face, then held the hand Amber had used to support her. "Everything... will... get better..."

"Mother... will... create a... more beautiful... world."

Amber did not know what kind of more beautiful world Tiamat meant, but she knew very well that if Tiamat intended to destroy the current world for the sake of a new one, she would undoubtedly act against her.

If possible, she did not want to attack this "mother" who gave her such a warm feeling, but she had principles she believed in as well.

Amber could only persuade her. "Could you perhaps choose not to awaken? That way, humanity would be more at ease."

"...That... is not possible..." Tiamat spoke softly. "Children... cannot leave... Mother... Do not... leave... Mother's side."

"..." Amber realized something was wrong as soon as the words left her mouth.

Her words had undoubtedly been selfish. Leaving "Mother" on her own was undoubtedly cruel.

That was right. Tiamat loved all life. She wanted them to stop leaving her, so she wished to return the world to its beginning, reset it, then nurture it anew herself—turning her children back into children who needed their mother's care.

"Existence is reasonable."

Tiamat's purpose in existing was to give birth, raise children, and give them motherly love. Those purposes had been necessary at the beginning of creation, but once everything had taken shape, those functions became unnecessary to the ecosystem—perhaps even functions that needed to be removed.

Therefore, her existence had lost its purpose, and her natural fate had been exile.

"..." She wanted to point out that Tiamat's existence would hinder humanity's survival, but the words caught in her throat.

Whether it had been Ereshkigal or Quetzalcoatl, Amber had been able to understand them and still stand against them. This time was naturally the same. No matter what, she could not accept Tiamat's methods. Yet only this time, she could not bring herself to calmly say, "This is humanity's choice."

No matter how clearly she understood that what she was doing was not wrong, she could not say it before this goddess.

"Don't... be sad..."

Tiamat gripped Amber's hand more tightly. As if she felt that was not enough comfort, she rose onto her toes and drew Amber's head into her embrace. "There will be... no pain... Soon... everyone... will find... happiness..."

A scent like soil and flowers filled her nose. It was not particularly fragrant, but it was not unpleasant either.

"I have to leave."

Amber spoke.

She still did not know what had happened outside. The instant she used Sword God, she had felt her consciousness separate from her body, as though something had pulled her away. By the time she came back to herself, she was already here. She could still see the system panel, so she had not been in a hurry.

Still, as a farewell, she asked Tiamat in a declarative tone.

"We will... meet again... soon."

Tiamat could sense what Amber meant and knew she wanted to leave. Her previously happy mood sank somewhat, but when she thought of the new world she would soon create, and how they would meet again in that new world, she cast that sadness aside.

The next moment, black mud surged up beneath her feet and quickly flooded the entire illusion.

As the illusory world shattered, Amber's consciousness was rapidly pulled back toward reality.

To Amber's surprise, everyone was not in the Underworld. They had already arrived at Uruk above ground and appeared to be heading toward the Divine Tower.

"?" Amber was confused.

'You're awake?' Fu Hua's voice sounded the next moment.

'What happened?' Amber could not help asking. 'Why did we suddenly end up here? Weren't we in the Underworld just now?'

'Just now?' Fu Hua frowned. 'It's been nearly a day since you lost consciousness. Since I suddenly lost contact with you, I had no choice but to temporarily take over the body... What happened just now?'

Was the flow of time in Imaginary Space different from the outside?

Amber guessed inwardly. Without revealing anything, she followed the others while explaining to Fu Hua. 'I just met Tiamat... After opening the Imaginary Gate, I absorbed a large amount of Imaginary Energy. Then Tiamat noticed me and pulled me into an illusion.'

'Tiamat?' Fu Hua was also somewhat at a loss. "I'll give you my memories from this period first. Then explain everything that happened to you in detail."

'Explaining is too much trouble. Master, just watch directly!'

The two directly shared their recent memories through Feathered Dust.

'I see...'

After exchanging memories, Fu Hua nodded gravely. 'So Tiamat has already awakened?'

As the greatest threat in this Singularity, according to Quetzalcoatl, Fu Hua would not arrogantly believe they could simply ignore her. But as before, they were strangers to this world and had enormous gaps in their knowledge of many things here.

Under such circumstances, there was no point in her trying to devise a solution alone. It would be better to tell Gilgamesh and Merlin about this.

Amber thought the same. She had initially believed that after mastering Imaginary Energy, she was already invincible. But Tiamat, a being who lived within Imaginary Space, might not necessarily fear Imaginary Energy.

It would be better to ask someone who understood this stuff.

It was just that... whenever Amber thought about having to fight Tiamat, her heart felt unbearably heavy.

Sigh...

The next chapter will probably be a little late. This volume is starting its countdown too.

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Tiamat Awakens

As Amber pondered this, she failed to notice Ritsuka and Mash beside her quietly breathe sighs of relief.

For some reason earlier, although neither her attitude nor appearance had changed, the Immortal seemed somewhat cold and distant, as though she had returned to how she had been when they first met. Although the Immortal had always spoken little, Ritsuka knew that there had always been warmth in her eyes when she looked at people.

However, after defeating Ereshkigal in the Underworld, the Immortal had seemed not to care about Ereshkigal's condition at all.

No, it had not merely seemed that way. She truly had not cared.

Ishtar, Ereshkigal, and even Gilgamesh had all been distracted by the suddenly appearing old man, but Ritsuka had noticed something was wrong and kept watching her.

The Immortal from earlier had seemed like a completely different person.

But now, she appeared to be thinking about something, right? After all, she had looked preoccupied the entire time.

"You're back."

As they entered the Divine Tower, Gilgamesh was already seated upon his throne. There was no joy at his rebirth on his face, only an obvious gloom.

"Did something happen, King Gilgamesh?" Ritsuka glanced around and did not see the Herrscher of Reason, the other two, or Anna. He asked in confusion, "Where are Anna, Merlin, and the others?"