Apart from the brave Annanu and the wise Enkidu, who had been accepted and unanimously praised by the people of Uruk, there was one other thing that had finally emerged from its period of resistance and gained complete acceptance.
That was the "army."
This highly professional combat corps, created single-handedly by Annanu, had initially been met with extreme rejection and incomprehension from Uruk's citizens.
An army, established at the king's behest—what did that represent?
War.
War might bring wealth and status to those in high places, but what about those beneath them?
Without enough luck, all that awaited you was death, hatred, a heart riddled with scars, and shattered earth.
No common people liked war. No one did.
Once you had set foot on a battlefield, you could never possibly "like war." It was a hell that would drive even the most deranged madman to collapse.
Yet Annanu had formed an "army" at King Gilgamesh's command, supported by the people and exempt from production. What exactly was he planning?
Was he going to launch another war abroad?
This was not merely a stereotype. In nearly every conflict between people throughout the Mesopotamian region, the city of Uruk had indeed played an inglorious role—and it had been no less inglorious in incidents involving the gods.
That's right, Ishtar, I'm talking about you!
You screwed over Enki, who had treated you like his own daughter. Who in all Mesopotamia could possibly think highly of you?
With a guardian deity like that and a king like that at the same time, should one say this city was lucky or unlucky?
In any case, the people of Uruk were filled with disgust and confusion toward the army. Yet because of King Gilgamesh's authority, as well as Annanu's pretty face serving as its ambassador, no