Arthur stared at the completely lifeless expression on Gilgamesh's face for a few seconds.
Then he simply couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Pfft—" A laugh escaped immediately, but it didn't take long before it turned into full-blown laughter.
"Hahahahahaha!"
He covered his face with one hand while laughing without the slightest intention of hiding it.
"That expression..." Arthur said between laughs. "That is genuinely hilarious!"
The veins on Gilgamesh's forehead slowly began bulging.
"You—"
Before he could finish, Arthur reverted the color of his eyes and hair back to normal.
"..."
"..."
"..."
The entire hall froze for several moments.
The silence was only broken when a clay tablet fell to the floor.
CLACK.
A nearby soldier nervously rubbed his eyes.
"...H-Hey..." someone muttered quietly.
"...There are two King Gilgameshes now...?"
"...No..." another replied with a trembling voice. "That's impossible..."
"...No, wait... Am I dreaming?"
Gilgamesh slowly looked around as his expression darkened in a terrifying manner.
Then—
"GET OUT."
His voice exploded throughout the entire Ziggurat.
"LEAVE THIS PLACE IMMEDIATELY!!"
"YES, SIR!!"
Within seconds, the gigantic hall became practically empty.
Only Gilgamesh, Arthur, Ritsuka, Mash, Merlin, Anna, Siduri—who until now remained silent in pure bewilderment—and Fou remained behind.
Gilgamesh took a deep breath while closing his eyes and massaging his forehead.
Only then did he slowly turn his gaze back toward the group.
"...Very well."
He rested his face against one hand while crossing his legs.
"What do you want?" he asked.
The following conversation proceeded relatively normally.
Or at least, as normally as possible in a situation where two identical individuals existed in the same room.
Ritsuka explained Chaldea's situation while Mash occasionally added details, and Arthur remained practically silent the entire time as he observed the conversation.
After a short while, Gilgamesh closed his eyes.
"...I understand. But words alone hold little value," he said with a serious look.
"You wish to save humanity? Then prove that you possess worth."
His gaze fell upon Mash and Ritsuka.
Gilgamesh pointed at Arthur.
"You stay out of this."
"Why?" Arthur raised an eyebrow.
"If you participate, it stops being a test," Gilgamesh replied flatly.
Arthur stared at him for a few seconds before shrugging.
"...Fair enough."
Beside them, Merlin raised a finger.
"Ah, in that case..." she commented with a calm smile. "Anna should participate too."
Anna slowly turned her head.
"...Huh?"
"You need more strength."
"...I don't remember agreeing to that."
"You just agreed."
"...I literally said nothing."
"See? Silent consent."
"..."
Anna stared at Merlin for several seconds before sighing.
"...I hate you."
"I like you too~"
And so, a grand spectacle between Gilgamesh against Mash and Anna began, and as expected, it became a completely one-sided defeat.
Mash could barely keep up, while Anna tried creating openings.
But every single one of them was crushed immediately.
Gilgamesh didn't even seem serious during the "fight."
He was merely testing their strength, yet even so, the difference was overwhelming.
In the end, Mash fell to her knees while supporting herself with her shield, and Anna breathed heavily.
Gilgamesh sighed.
"...This is pathetic. Is this all the power Chaldea possesses?" he said while looking at Ritsuka.
Ritsuka immediately tried arguing back.
And thus, another long discussion began.
Some time later, as though the chaos still wasn't enough, an explosion erupted outside.
BOOOOM!!
"FUHAHAHAHA!"
An arrogant voice echoed through the hall as a wild goddess appeared to cause trouble as usual.
She possessed red eyes and long black hair tied into twin braids with two black ribbons.
On her head was a black-and-gold tiara, along with a golden necklace and matching O-shaped earrings.
Her clothing was extremely revealing: her top was a white bra with golden details that exposed part of her chest, lower back, and abdomen. On the lower half, she wore a black-and-gold jeweled thong. She also wore a dark blue stocking with golden ornaments on her right leg, a golden anklet on her left ankle, and nothing on her feet. Her left arm was covered by a black-and-gold glove extending over her forearm, while her right arm displayed a golden bracelet around the upper arm.
But the instant she saw Arthur, she froze completely.
"..."
"..."
"...You."
Her voice sounded completely different from the loud and arrogant tone she had used upon entering.
For several seconds, she simply remained floating atop Maanna while staring at Arthur.
More specifically, she stared at his appearance while her mind completely stalled for a few moments.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"What?" Arthur finally asked after seeing she wasn't saying anything.
Ishtar blinked once.
Then twice.
Then slowly pointed a finger toward him.
"Y-You...!"
"Me?" Arthur pointed at himself.
"YOU!!"
The next instant, she violently turned her head toward Gilgamesh.
Then back to Arthur.
Then to Gilgamesh.
Then to Arthur.
Gilgamesh.
Arthur.
Gilgamesh.
Arthur.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Her expression gradually began dying.
"Wait."
She placed one hand over her head and started scratching it.
"No."
She added her other hand and scratched furiously.
"No, no, no, no."
She kept repeating herself endlessly in despair.
After several more seconds of staring at both of them, she roared:
"WAIT A SECOND!! WHAT KIND OF TERRIBLE JOKE IS THIS?!"
Ritsuka immediately covered her ears.
Gilgamesh slowly closed his eyes with a completely exasperated expression.
But Ishtar wasn't paying attention to anything else anymore.
She immediately descended from Maanna and began circling Arthur with quick steps.
"The hair is the same... The eyes are the same... The height is the same... Even the terrible fashion sense is the same..."
"...Even the smell is the same?!" she exclaimed in utter disbelief.
"...Were you sniffing my neck?" Arthur asked after noticing her actions.
"I WASN'T SNIFFING YOU!"
"Then why were you so close to me?"
"BECAUSE—"
She froze.
"..."
Her cheeks slowly began turning slightly red.
"Because... Because... ARRRGH! SHUT UP!"
Arthur stared at her for several seconds.
Then revealed a small smile.
"...Ishtar."
The instant she heard that, she froze completely.
Hearing someone with Gilgamesh's exact appearance speak to her in such a soft and gentle tone stirred something deep inside her.
But before she could react, Arthur continued:
"You still make ridiculously dramatic entrances."
"W-What?! I-I'm a goddess! Grand entrances are mandatory!" she replied.
Arthur nodded seriously.
"...I see."
"Fufufufu~! Exactly! Good thing you understand my greatness!" she said proudly.
"...But it's still excessive," Arthur interrupted her arrogant laughter.
"YOU—"
She roared while immediately raising her arm, only to stop midway.
Because only at that moment did she realize something strange.
Very strange.
Very, very strange.
She slowly turned her head toward Gilgamesh, then back toward Arthur, and froze.
Because she realized something absolutely terrifying.
Subconsciously, she had been arguing normally with this stranger who looked incredibly similar to Gilgamesh.
While she hadn't even insulted the actual Gilgamesh yet.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Ishtar's eyes widened as she pointed desperately toward Arthur.
"WAIT! NO! SOMETHING IS WRONG HERE!"
Ishtar started frantically pointing between Arthur and Gilgamesh.
"WHY DON'T I WANT TO PUNCH HIS FACE?!" she roared while pointing at Arthur.
Gilgamesh slowly opened his eyes as veins appeared on his forehead, clearly showing how irritated he had become.
"...So you want to punch mine?"
"YES!" Ishtar shouted, only to freeze instantly as cold sweat ran down her forehead.
"...hehehehe."
She laughed awkwardly while slowly turning her head.
Gilgamesh was smiling at her.
The kind of smile that meant certain death.
"...Ishtar."
"...Y-Yes?"
"Come here."
"...I don't want to."
"COME HERE."
"...MAANNAAAAAA!!"
And she immediately screamed while fleeing the scene.
---xXx---
After Ishtar's desperate escape, things finally calmed down again.
Eventually, after several more discussions, Gilgamesh crossed his arms.
"Very well. You will begin with basic tasks."
He then looked toward Siduri.
"Siduri. Take good care of them."
Siduri respectfully bowed her head.
"Yes, King Gilgamesh."
Ritsuka, Mash, Merlin, and Anna began leaving the hall.
Arthur also started walking away.
"You stay."
Gilgamesh's voice echoed immediately.
Arthur stopped and looked directly at him while the others continued leaving.
Only once the hall became empty—
Gilgamesh slowly turned his eyes toward Arthur.
His gaze was now completely serious.
"...Very well... Who exactly are you?"
(End of Chapter)