Night One Arrives (Seeking Follow-up Reads!)

"It feels just like a dream."

Looking at the completely transformed Kumu Street, Renji Abarai could not help but sigh with emotion.

Not long ago, he would never have believed that Kumu Street—the most backward, impoverished, and chaotic area in all of Inuzuri—could turn into this bustling, hopeful, and vibrant place filled with people coming and going.

Beside him, Rukia said nothing, merely casting a look of admiration toward Gilgamesh.

Rukia felt a stir of emotion in her heart.

At first, neither she nor Renji believed that Gilgamesh was truly a king; they had followed him only on a whim.

Who could have imagined that Gilgamesh was actually a king in reality?

The aura surrounding Gilgamesh was so mysterious that legends about him had already begun to circulate throughout Inuzuri.

Some said that Gilgamesh was the Sun God, who rode a giant bird radiating solar brilliance to patrol Inuzuri every night.

Others said that Gilgamesh was a king ordained by the heavens, sent to lead them out of their sea of suffering.

Still others claimed that Gilgamesh was a top-tier noble from the Seireitei who, unable to bear the suffering of the Rukongai, had defied his family's opposition to come and save everyone.

Watching the palace that was already beginning to take shape, Renji Abarai seemed to recall something and couldn't help but ask Gilgamesh, "My King, I remember you saying that you once served as the king of a human kingdom."

"Could you tell me about that past? I want to understand the kingdom you once ruled."

Ever since he had sincerely accepted Gilgamesh's status as a king and witnessed his capabilities, Renji Abarai had always addressed him with honorifics.

Even though Gilgamesh told him to keep using his name and not to be overly formal, it was to no avail.

As time passed, Gilgamesh stopped insisting.

The same was true for Rukia.

Rukia also wore a look of curiosity at this moment.

She was curious about everything regarding Gilgamesh and wanted to learn it all.

Especially about the kingdom he had once ruled.

Rukia believed that the kingdom Gilgamesh ruled must have been incomparably glorious and brilliant.

Hearing this, a look of nostalgia flashed across Gilgamesh's face.

After merging with the Young Gil template, Gilgamesh had also integrated his memories.

Thus, the ancient and magnificent Kingdom of Uruk existed within Gilgamesh's mind.

However, Gilgamesh did not know if the Kingdom of Uruk existed in the Bleach world as well.

With this thought, Gilgamesh spoke slowly: "The kingdom I once ruled was called Uruk, and it was..."

Just as Gilgamesh began to speak of Uruk's past, a construction engineer ran over and said, "My King, I apologize for the interruption, but there is an emergency over there that requires your decision."

The construction talents sent by the Omaeda Clan had also been conquered by Gilgamesh before they even realized it, and they had sincerely accepted his status as their king.

The main reason they respected Gilgamesh was his own mastery of architecture.

It could be said that his architectural skills were art, magic, and a miracle, leaving them in awe and reverence.

Seeing this, Gilgamesh said, "Renji, Rukia, I will tell you next time. I must go now."

With that, Gilgamesh left directly with the construction engineer.

Renji Abarai and Rukia knew that Gilgamesh had important matters to attend to, so they said nothing more, merely watching him depart.

In Renji Abarai's eyes, Gilgamesh's figure grew further and further away.

This distance was not a physical one, but the gap between Gilgamesh and himself.

Renji Abarai knew very well that if things continued this way, one day, he would no longer even be able to see Gilgamesh's back.

Renji Abarai was unwilling to accept such a future.

Because he and Rukia were Gilgamesh's first subjects, they ought to follow him until the very end.

After Gilgamesh's figure disappeared, Renji Abarai suddenly said, "Rukia, we must work harder, or we won't be able to keep up with Gil's pace."

Rukia understood what Renji Abarai meant and said with a firm expression, "In order to always stay by Gil's side and help him create his ideal kingdom, I will definitely work hard!"

Not far away, Yoruichi Shihouin, in her black cat form, sat lazily on the roof of a thatched hut, watching this scene with great interest. She whispered to herself, "This brat named Gilgamesh seems quite charming; he actually managed to capture the loyalty of these two."

"Once served as a king of a human kingdom, and the kingdom he once ruled..."

As she spoke, a thoughtful look appeared on Yoruichi Shihouin's face, and she murmured, "Uruk... why does that name sound so familiar..."

Now, Yoruichi Shihouin was becoming increasingly interested in Gilgamesh.

She felt that Gilgamesh was like a massive puzzle, waiting for her to solve it piece by piece.

Not lingering there, Yoruichi Shihouin began to wander around Kumu Street.

Gradually, her heart was filled with shock.

She found it hard to imagine that this place, where everyone had a smile on their face and was filled with hope and vitality, was actually South Rukongai District 78.

Furthermore, through the conversations of the people, she learned that all of this was brought about by Gilgamesh.

It was Gilgamesh who transformed Inuzuri from a place of deathly silence and chaotic disorder into what it is today.

Yoruichi Shihouin could sense the heartfelt approval, reverence, and adoration the people held for Gilgamesh simply by listening to their conversations.

Suddenly, Yoruichi Shihouin recalled what Rukia had said just moments ago.

'To build an ideal kingdom.'

At first, Yoruichi Shihouin had paid it no mind.

Because she knew all too well that establishing a nation within the Soul Society was an utter impossibility.

If nothing else, those rigid and self-serving nobles would never permit such a thing to occur.

Even if the site of this kingdom were in Rukongai, a place they looked down upon and held in utter contempt.

But now, that conviction of Yoruichi Shihouin's had begun to waver.

It was not that she believed Gilgamesh could actually succeed in founding a nation.

Rather, she began to imagine: if Gilgamesh were truly to succeed, would Rukongai not bloom with a brand-new vitality under his rule?

The mere thought that Gilgamesh could establish an ideal kingdom where everyone lived in happiness, filled with hope and vitality, stirred an impulse within Yoruichi Shihouin—an impulse to assist Gilgamesh in realizing his dream of nation-building.

Yet, no sooner had this impulse been born than Yoruichi Shihouin snuffed it out.

Her serious cat-like face could not help but reveal a look of shock and horror.

Yoruichi Shihouin had not expected Gilgamesh's charisma to be so potent that it would cause her, without her even realizing it, to entertain thoughts of submission.

Daring not to linger here any longer, Yoruichi Shihouin departed immediately to return to the human world.

She needed time to settle her turbulent emotions, and she intended to research human history while in the human world.

She would see if there truly existed a king named 'Gilgamesh' in human history, and whether a kingdom by the name of Uruk had ever existed.