"Shirou! You finally came to see me!!"
The blonde girl with red eyes, Ereshkigal, rested her face against Shirou's chest with a look of pure contentment, completely ignoring the strange stares around her.
Meanwhile, although Ishtar had shrunk to the size of a palm, her voice was as loud as ever.
"W-who are you!? Let go of Shirou!"
Ereshkigal glanced at the tiny golden Goddess of Venus making a racket in midair. "Oh? I was wondering where that noisy flapping was coming from. Why, if it isn't that pitiful goddess. You can certainly shout for someone with a body even more fragile than my fingertip... Just wait a moment. Once I've finished my touching reunion with Shirou, I'll come over and crush you to death."
"Wh-what did you say!?"
Ritsuka and Mash exchanged bewildered looks, while Gilgamesh also appeared rather surprised.
"Um, you wouldn't happen to be..." Mash asked timidly.
The blonde girl finally stepped away from Shirou's embrace. "Mash, it seems you possess some discernment after all."
"Ah... I do? Thank you."
The blonde girl proudly placed a hand against her shapely chest. "I am precisely the person you suspect. Tremble in fear and sink into despair, humans. I am the Ruler of Death, the Mistress of the Underworld, the One Who Tramples the Peak of Spirits, one of the pillars of the 'Three Goddess Alliance,' Ereshkigal."
"What?"
"No way!"
"You're kidding!?"
The chorus of astonished exclamations made Ereshkigal puff out her chest with pride.
As expected of the smartest goddess in the Sumerian world, namely herself! Her carefully planned entrance had been flawless.
"Ishtar, you called me ugly earlier, didn't you? You didn't even know my true appearance as a goddess, yet you still had the nerve to speak so arrogantly! And you call yourself my other half?"
"Guh...!"
The grim look on Ishtar's face left Ereshkigal deeply satisfied.
She raised her head and looked at the boy she had waited so long to see.
"It's been a long time, Ere."
"Mm! It's been a long time, Shirou!"
The girl beamed happily.
...
"I always thought there was something strange about Shirou-san returning from the Underworld. I never imagined this was the truth... I'm trembling."
"Ah, even the goddess Ereshkigal has fallen victim to Shirou-san... Is this the legendary 'Godslayer EX (Goddess Special Attack)'?"
The girls whispered to each other, keeping their voices low enough that only they could hear.
"Ereshkigal, set aside your flirting with your lover for a moment..."
"L-lover!? Shirou and I don't have that kind of relationship!"
Gilgamesh spoke. "You took this king's life. What exactly are you plotting? Surely you did not do all this merely to lure Shirou here to see you."
"Yes, you are correct, King Gilgamesh."
The lovestruck expression vanished from the Goddess of the Underworld's face. "My intention to kill all of you here has not changed. The deadline for Gorgon's attack on Uruk is almost upon us. Before then, I will conquer Uruk and seize the Great Cup of Uruk. Once I do, humanity in this world will be finished. I already had Shirou convey my intentions to you, but allow me to repeat them. I will imprison every human on the surface in the Underworld without exception and make them my personal property. This is my choice, the choice of the goddess Ereshkigal. It is the first resolve I have ever reached through my own will. No matter who tries to stand in my way, I will show them no mercy!"
"Since you are willing to go that far, matters are simple. Fujimaru, Mash, prepare for battle."
"Ah, right... Yes!"
The girls switched from spectator mode to combat mode in an instant. Gilgamesh also produced his combat tablet, the Seal of Divine Authority (Dingir).
The golden King of Heroes spoke calmly. "Ereshkigal... Though you are the city goddess of Kutha, you chose to join forces with the 'Three Goddess Alliance.' Your sin far outweighs that of the other goddesses. Although I am now among the dead, my kingship still grants me the authority to pass judgment upon you. Invaders must be driven away through force, but the betrayal of one's own people must be judged by the world itself. That is the nature of kingship, and you should understand it well."
A king who possessed divine authority (Dingir) could punish even a god, provided he was willing to sacrifice everything.
That was also one of the laws of Mesopotamian mythology.
Ereshkigal snorted. "So what? Do you intend to sacrifice your life to kill me?"
"That will depend on your answer. Answer me, Goddess Ereshkigal! Why have you joined forces with the Goddess Alliance? Do you intend to reject your duty to protect Sumerian culture and the people of Sumer!?"
The Goddess of the Underworld raised one graceful eyebrow. "I expected you to ask something else! How disappointing, King of Uruk! My responsibilities and duties have not changed in the slightest! I am Ereshkigal, the goddess entrusted with the Underworld...! Bringing all humans and all souls into the Underworld is my reason for existence, my destiny! I feel neither regret nor guilt for devoting myself completely to that duty! You are the ones who dare to obstruct me, so you should be destroyed by my divine authority!"
"Oh? Those are bold words. In that case, there is no need to put you on trial! Simply surrender your head! Your defeat shall serve as the judgment for your transgressions!"
Even after Gilgamesh's thunderous declaration, Ereshkigal did not back down. A crimson spear of lightning appeared in her hand.
"Gladly... I will cast aside all restraint and pierce every one of you with my judgment!"
"Um... I know you two are getting rather worked up, but before that... I have a question..."
Ritsuka Fujimaru looked toward the boy with red hair whose arm was still tightly embraced by the Goddess of the Underworld.
"Shirou-san, which side are you going to support?"
"Huh? Shirou is obviously on my side. Why else do you think he came here? He lured all of you into the deepest part of the Underworld so I could wipe you out at once."
Ereshkigal had absolute faith in her bond with Shirou. She even twisted the facts as though her version of events were perfectly obvious.
Gilgamesh immediately snapped at her. "Fool! Shirou came to rescue this king and bring me back to the surface! He is a hero of Uruk. Why would he ever consider joining forces with a fallen goddess like you?"
Shirou was speechless.
That was not what you said earlier, Gilgamesh.
"Shirou... I have one final question for you."
Ereshkigal's expression turned serious as she looked at Shirou with visible nervousness.
"For countless years, I have remained here, tending to the souls of the dead. I had no happiness, joy, sorrow, friends, or anything else of my own. All I could do was gaze at my other half as she soared freely through the sky. Do you intend to condemn me for that? Even now, will you insist that gathering souls was wrong? Will you deny the efforts of someone who was never praised by anyone, yet continued to carry out this duty alone?"
After a brief silence, Shirou removed the goddess's hand from his arm.
"Shi... rou...?"
"Ere, that was what you were supposed to do in the first place, wasn't it?" the boy said without expression.
"......Eek!"
Ereshkigal's mouth fell open in disbelief.
The apparent betrayal of the boy she loved felt like a knife plunging into her chest.
"You were born into this world as the Goddess of the Underworld, so it was only natural for you to fulfill the duties entrusted to you. If you resented those responsibilities, you could have lamented them or abandoned them to seek another path. But... you have no reason to belittle the obligations you never fled from and continued to fulfill. That would mean denying the long years Ereshkigal has endured until now, and I will never allow that. No matter how painful or lonely that mission was, you persevered for tens of thousands of years, didn't you? Why deny the person you once were now that everything is coming to an end? If it truly is that painful... then I'll remain by your side until the very end."
"Shirou... I... Huh!?"
Ereshkigal's eyes widened.
What had he just said?
Shirou took the goddess's hand and held it tightly.
"I once said that I wished I could remain here in the Underworld in your place, didn't I? I'm sorry. I hadn't thought it through and completely failed to consider your feelings. Ere, let me stay with you in the Underworld. Once everything is over, I'll return to the Underworld to find you... What do you think? This time, I won't let you become a living sacrifice to the gods all by yourself."
"..........."
Tears streamed down Ereshkigal's face.
This was only the second time she had cried in her tens of thousands of years of life, and merely three months had passed since the first.
Overwhelmed by happiness she could not express in words, the girl wept uncontrollably. The spear slipped from her hand and fell to the ground.
"Goddess Ereshkigal's hostility has completely disappeared..."
"Mm, that's Shirou-san for you..."
The girls stared in astonishment.
...
"Yes! I'm back to my original size! My Divinity has returned too!"
Ishtar had finally recovered from her absurdly shrunken state.
And so, Ereshkigal successfully joined Uruk's side.
In truth, however, it was not quite that simple.
Ereshkigal stubbornly refused to join them. She believed she had taken too many lives and no longer possessed the right to stand beside them.
"Ere, you didn't actually kill the people of Kutha, did you?"
Shirou continued, "Because Kutha is so close to the Underworld, after imprisoning their souls, you brought their bodies underground as well. And since the temperature in the Underworld is so low... their bodies were properly preserved. Isn't that what happened?"
Ereshkigal bit her lip. "Even if that's true... there are still the people of Uruk..."
"If you mean the bodies of Uruk's citizens who grew weak and died, this king already stored them in the basement of the Divine Tower. Once you release the souls from those spear prisons, everyone will be revived immediately. Let this king be blunt. Judging by the total number of casualties, you are unquestionably the weakest of the Three Goddesses!"
"Th-that still hurts!" Ereshkigal protested indignantly. "I put more effort into this than I ever have before!"
"I look forward to working with you, Ereshkigal-san."
Mash approached the goddess and held out her hand.
"I knew it... I still can't do it..."
"What are you sulking about now?"
Ishtar folded her arms and rolled her eyes.
Ereshkigal glared at her, prompting Ishtar to immediately hide behind Shirou.
"Even if I wanted to become your ally, my body would not allow it. The pact of the 'Three Goddess Alliance' binds me. Unlike Quetzalcoatl, I cannot break it merely by sacrificing half of my Divinity."
Although Ereshkigal was invincible within the Underworld, her Divinity alone was far inferior to Ishtar's.
"If that pact is what binds you, then I'll break it. I'll give Ere her freedom."
"Shirou...?"
Ereshkigal looked at Shirou in surprise and saw that a massive black sword had appeared in his hand.
Despite its plain and ancient appearance, the Goddess of the Underworld could sense an overwhelming aura of death radiating from it.
"Shirou? What is that sword?"
"A suspicious old man gave it to me," Shirou replied.
Back in Fuyuki, old men often gave Shirou pocket money or brought him fruit, so he had long since grown accustomed to such things.
Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes.
The Gate of Babylon contained the prototypes of every treasure in human history, yet this sword was clearly not among them.
It could not even be called a treasure. It was merely ordinary iron that had absorbed the ominous aura of countless owners over its long history, tempering it into what it had now become.
"Shirou-san, can you sever the pact of the 'Three Goddess Alliance'?"
"I've never tried. I won't know until I do... Since this is the Underworld, a realm filled with 'death,' it may be easier to succeed here."
"Whoa... That doesn't sound very reassuring."
Ereshkigal stepped forward and stood before the others.
"It's all right. I believe in Shirou... Shirou can definitely do it."
Their eyes met, and Shirou gave a slight nod.
"All right."
He stepped in front of Ereshkigal and raised the greatsword high above his head with both hands.
"......"
Ereshkigal took a deep breath.
She had sounded confident a moment ago, but there was no way she could avoid being afraid.
At this point, all she could do was trust Shirou.
The boy's golden irises changed into an eerie pale blue.
"Oh..."
Gilgamesh did not appear particularly surprised.
After all, Shirou was the man who had once defeated him. It was only natural that he would continue to grow and acquire new strength afterward.
Even so, when Merlin had said he would bring back new combat strength, Gilgamesh had never imagined this day would come.
While the king remained lost in thoughts of the 'future,' Shirou swung the greatsword down.
"......!"
"Waaah!"
Ereshkigal's body trembled. She opened her eyes and hurriedly clutched her neck.
Mash, who had watched the entire process with bated breath, stared in disbelief. "The blade passed straight through Ereshkigal-san's neck... I don't understand how it worked, but that was incredible..."
"The pact of the 'Three Goddess Alliance' is gone... Thank you, Shirou!"
Ereshkigal happily threw herself into the boy's arms once again.
"Don't use this as an excuse to get close to my Shirou!" Ishtar protested.
"Your Shirou?"
"That's right. I've already formed a contract with Shirou. What about you? Are you going to form a contract with him too?"
Upon hearing the Goddess of Heaven's words, the Goddess of the Underworld gave a disdainful snort.
"A contract? Isn't that something only an insecure person like you would need? Shirou and I no longer need some superficial Magecraft ritual to confirm our relationship... I'm a goddess who takes action. I'll show Shirou through my deeds exactly who his No. 1 (goddess) is."
Ishtar raised an eyebrow. "Hmph. That's a bold claim. What exactly do you plan to do?"
"I... I'll think about that as I go! There should be plenty of opportunities, right? Probably!"
The Goddess of the Underworld lowered her voice, her face turning red. "I'll step forward whenever Shirou is in danger... So that settles it! All of you should hurry back! Don't stay here any longer unless you have some other business!"
Ereshkigal's embarrassment had nearly reached its limit, so she ordered everyone to leave.
"I'll keep a close watch on the battle against Gorgon... Oh, right, Ishtar? If you do something foolish and get yourself destroyed, I'll use this vessel in your place. Feel free to die after accomplishing nothing. Well then, see you later, Shirou♡"
With those words, Ereshkigal rose onto her toes.
In full view of everyone, she planted a quick peck on Shirou's cheek.
The goddess thought wistfully that once she had become a goddess worthy of Shirou, she would ask him for a proper kiss on the lips.