Gilgamesh
Kingu looked toward the distant land that had already been burned into scorched earth by the intense heat, his brows furrowing.
A trace of contemplation surfaced within those deep violet eyes.
Such a powerful Noble Phantasm... and it didn't match the intelligence of any Heroic Spirit currently in Uruk...
Could Proper Human History have started sending people over again?
That shouldn't be possible...
There hadn't been any abnormal data detected these past few days. But if it was someone originally from this era... then there were no traces whatsoever.
This was no insignificant figure.
With a single strike, they had incinerated dozens of kilometers of land, burned to death tens of thousands of demonic beasts, and slain four Children of Tiamat comparable to Heroic Spirits...
Within the Babylon Singularity, the only being capable of something like this was that Feathered Serpent standing at the pinnacle of the South American pantheon.
Was it her making a move?
Didn't seem like it.
Whether she was pretending or not, she wasn't the sort to do something like this.
No one understood how sincere the Three Goddess Alliance truly was better than Kingu.
After all, although he was nominally under Gorgon's command, in reality he possessed far more initiative than Gorgon herself.
Kingu deeply glanced once more at that distant scorched wasteland before turning around and leaving.
The fastest way to discover who had caused all this would naturally be to go there personally. One look would reveal everything.
But he wasn't stupid.
What if he went over there and couldn't win?
He wasn't in a hurry anyway. In a tottering Uruk battered by storms from every side, someone like this could never remain hidden forever. Sooner or later, they would reveal themselves.
Unfortunately, today's plan had failed.
Originally, the idea had been to use a surprise assault to tie down the other Heroic Spirits, then use the remaining forces to surround and kill one Heroic Spirit first.
Who would've thought an uninvited guest would suddenly ruin everything?
Kingu gave a signal, and the demonic beasts attacking from the other directions also began retreating.
Since the plan had already failed, the Heroic Spirits here would now be free to support the other fronts. If the attacks elsewhere didn't withdraw soon, they'd simply be delivering themselves to the enemy.
Cutting losses in time was enough.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Xia Yu held Tomoe Gozen's hand.
"I've long admired your name, Miss Tomoe Gozen."
She spoke with a cheerful smile.
"I've read your story before. Never would've imagined I'd actually meet the real you. The Throne of Heroes really is something miraculous."
"Cough, Miss Kiana, you're being too polite..."
Tomoe Gozen seemed somewhat overwhelmed by her enthusiasm.
"You've even read my story? I'm truly honored."
"Well..."
Before she could finish speaking, a sturdy figure rapidly rushed over from the distance with the mobility unique to Heroic Spirits.
"Miss Tomoe Gozen, are you alright?"
Leonidas anxiously looked at her.
"I'm fine. Thank you for your concern."
Tomoe Gozen nodded gratefully. After all, the moment he freed himself up, he had immediately rushed over to support her.
At the same time, Xia Yu was also sizing up the King of Sparta before her.
Wearing Sparta's iconic bronze helmet, holding a spear and great shield, with blood-red war patterns tattooed across his bronze-colored skin...
The man who had used three hundred Spartan warriors and favorable terrain to hold back Persia's two hundred thousand strong army.
Well, although the historical records mentioned another three thousand assorted auxiliary troops, the achievement was still incredible.
"I saw the commotion over here earlier. Truly remarkable."
Leonidas said this while turning toward Xia Yu.
"By the way, this lady is...?"
"This is Miss Kiana."
Tomoe Gozen hurriedly introduced her.
"If she hadn't arrived in time earlier, I probably would've had no choice but to sacrifice my life to perish together with the Scorpion Demon."
"Hello, legendary King of Sparta, the hero who led three hundred warriors in defending Thermopylae."
Xia Yu nodded toward him.
"I'm Kiana Kaslana. Just call me Kiana."
"Greetings, Miss Kiana."
Leonidas nodded in return before carefully examining the girl before him.
Without question, this person had absolutely nothing to do with Heroic Spirits.
She was completely alive.
"Those flames just now... were they yours?"
"Mm. I happened to see the demonic beasts attacking the city."
Xia Yu replied,
"So I acted a little hastily."
"Then you truly are a powerful warrior!"
Leonidas happily slapped his great shield.
"I saw those flames and this scorched land. Even ordinary Heroic Spirits couldn't accomplish something like that."
"It's not that powerful."
Xia Yu answered modestly.
Though she wasn't wrong either.
For a Herrscher capable of burning an entire continent, that earlier attack counted at most as a slightly stronger normal attack.
"Since the demonic beasts have retreated, let's hurry back to the city."
Tomoe Gozen looked toward Xia Yu.
"We need to report the battle situation to King Gilgamesh. Miss Kiana, if you're willing..."
"Sure, let's go."
Xia Yu nodded indifferently.
"After all, there aren't many people left in Mesopotamia anymore. Once you leave civilization, even wanting a bit of salt means starting from manual extraction."
"Uruk may be primitive, but at least it isn't lacking basic supplies like that."
Naturally, she didn't actually lack salt. She was merely going along with Tomoe Gozen's words.
"That's wonderful."
Tomoe Gozen immediately grabbed Xia Yu's hand.
"I'll bring you to meet King Gilgamesh right away!"
Leonidas also expressed his intention to accompany them.
Meanwhile, as Xia Yu was being dragged along by Tomoe Gozen, her expression turned slightly strange.
Meet...
Well, how should she put it?
Tomoe Gozen was ultimately an ancient military commander and was accustomed to that sort of loyalty-to-one's-lord mindset. Since Gilgamesh had summoned her, she naturally had to remain loyal to him.
But for Xia Yu...
Loyalty and things like that...
Heh.
Not to mention she'd already killed Gilgamesh before, so inwardly she couldn't help but feel somewhat unconcerned.
Of course, this Gilgamesh was a little different.
He wasn't as infuriating as the Streetlight King, so Xia Yu had no intention of doing anything to him.
This time, they were on the same side.
Very quickly, the three entered the city of Uruk.
Along the way, residents continuously bowed respectfully toward the Heroic Spirits.
Looking at the simplistic clothing style from the ancient BCE era and the prosperous cityscape full of vitality, Xia Yu nodded.
Seems Gilgamesh had governed Uruk rather well.
Sumer had first stepped onto the stage of history four thousand years BCE. Though primitive, they had already invented irrigated agriculture. The increase in grain production had allowed cities to gradually form across the Mesopotamian plains.
Uruk was one of them, and now the last remaining Human settlement.
They already possessed their own written language, and the people of Uruk had begun using clay to construct their buildings.
Most people curiously observed Xia Yu.
After all, they had already seen the other Heroic Spirits many times as the city's guardians, but this was their first time seeing Xia Yu. Combined with the technological feel of her outfit, she was exceptionally eye-catching in this era.
"Up ahead is the Ziggurat."
Tomoe Gozen led Xia Yu all the way to the center of Uruk.
The towering structure built layer upon layer from stone, adorned with various trees and flowers...
One glance was enough to tell it was a wonder of the world. It looked incredibly similar to the Hanging Gardens from Civilization VI.
Various sculptures were carved upon it, overflowing with religious symbolism.
"This is Mesopotamia's altar and temple."
Tomoe Gozen explained,
"It also serves as King Gilgamesh's workplace."
"But isn't Uruk's patron deity Ishtar?"
The corners of Xia Yu's lips curved upward.
"If I remember correctly, the relationship between those two isn't exactly good, right?"
"Ishtar can tolerate Gilgamesh working inside her temple?"
"Well..."
Leonidas awkwardly turned his head aside.
"That goddess naturally isn't very willing."
"She's caused trouble many times too."
Tomoe Gozen continued,
"It's just... it never really accomplished anything. King Gilgamesh still does whatever he wants."
Oh, so she simply couldn't beat him.
Xia Yu nodded to show she understood.
Though that was normal.
After all, without the Bull of Heaven, Ishtar genuinely couldn't defeat Gilgamesh. That's how it was even in mythology.
"By the way, Miss Kiana."
Right before entering the Ziggurat, Tomoe Gozen hesitated while watching the interested Xia Yu glance around at the surroundings.
"What is it?"
Xia Yu tilted her head toward her.
"Well, King Gilgamesh can sometimes be rather... unrestrained in his speech."
She phrased it as tactfully as possible.
"Please bear with him a little."
Unrestrained?
His mouth was downright poisonous.
Strictly speaking, Child Gil, Chuuni Gil, and Caster Gil were all the same person displayed at different stages of life.
Child Gil wasn't as innocent as his appearance suggested either. He was simply very skilled at disguising himself in front of others. His so-called dislike for Chuuni Gil stemmed from the latter being too straightforward, displaying every thought openly on his face.
As for Chuuni Gil, he truly lived up to the name.
He hid absolutely nothing and acted without restraint.
Meanwhile, Caster Gil—or rather, Wise King Gil—had already walked the path in search of the herb of immortality and experienced the grief of losing his closest friend. Those experiences made him more mature. He had seen through life and death, through all the different states of humanity, and thus became steadier.
His youthful recklessness was gone, but the rest of his personality remained unchanged—his arrogance, delight, straightforwardness, and his own principles and values.
These three aspects were all reflections of Gilgamesh at different stages of his life. Fundamentally, they were still the same person.
"Oh, you mean that broken mouth of his."
Xia Yu waved her hand dismissively.
"It's fine. Of course I know what kind of person he is. Even at this stage, where he's somewhat more restrained, he can still piss people off, right?"
"I can adapt."
And if she couldn't adapt, then Gilgamesh's face could adapt to her fists instead.
"You've dealt with King Gilgamesh before?"
Tomoe Gozen looked somewhat surprised.
"Oh, I met him during a Holy Grail War once."
Xia Yu smiled.
"That broken mouth of his, always starting with 'mongrel.' So I sent him back to the Throne of Heroes."
"But that was Gilgamesh before he experienced the journey for the herb of immortality. Young and reckless. This version should be better. As long as his mouth isn't too venomous, I won't do anything to him."
That was a threat, right?
That was definitely a threat, right?!
Tomoe Gozen and Leonidas exchanged glances.
Sure enough, they had been right to escort her personally rather than letting ordinary people bring her over.
If a fight broke out later, they could at least help stop it.
Under normal circumstances, generals like Leonidas would remain guarding the city walls even after the enemy attack retreated.
The reason both of them had personally escorted Xia Yu this time was entirely because her strength was simply too terrifying. If she attempted to assassinate King Gilgamesh, the consequences would be unimaginable.
They weren't naive fools either.
As heroes whose names were recorded in Human History, they possessed at least this level of common sense.
Although she had saved Tomoe Gozen's life, certain precautions still had to be taken.
What if the tens of thousands of demonic beasts and five Children of Tiamat she had killed were merely a token of allegiance meant to get an assassin close enough to Gilgamesh for a strike?
Of course, if Xia Yu had been weaker, she likely wouldn't have received this treatment.
For example, Fujimaru Ritsuka's group had simply been brought over directly.
And besides, having both of them guide her together also displayed the importance they attached to her, didn't it?
Xia Yu naturally understood their intentions and didn't feel displeased.
At the end of the day, this was simply a necessary procedure.
Uruk was already teetering on the edge of destruction. They truly couldn't afford even the slightest accident.
Thus, she was escorted all the way to the council chamber at the very top of the Ziggurat.
Gilgamesh sat upon the throne in the center, his eyes fixed tightly on the extremely relaxed-looking Xia Yu.
"You seem to be in pretty good spirits."
Xia Yu looked at the Gilgamesh above her.
"I thought the moment I walked in, I'd see you collapsing from overtime work."
"Ridiculous! How could This King possibly die from a mere amount of work?!"
Gilgamesh snorted disdainfully.
"A king is not such a fragile creature!"
"You sure about that?"
Xia Yu burst into laughter.
"Hmph, you really are..."
Gilgamesh warily glanced at Xia Yu.
This person...
He could tell clearly that if he fought her here, Uruk would probably cease to exist...
As a result, he restrained himself considerably in terms of verbal sparring.
"Outsider, This King permits you to state your name!"
"Kiana Kaslana."
Xia Yu introduced herself.
"A perfectly ordinary Valkyrie, and also a Herrscher."
"Valkyrie?"
Gilgamesh deeply examined her.
"There's not the slightest trace of Rune Magecraft on you, yet you're a Valkyrie?"
"The real deal."
Xia Yu shrugged.
"I just don't work under Odin."
"And what is this 'Herrscher'?"
Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes as he asked.
"An Enemy of Humanity."
Xia Yu smiled brightly.
"Oh, no, to be more precise, an Enemy of Civilization."
"If you want an analogy... mm, you can think of me as a Beast. A Beast with Anti-Civilization Special Attack. So? Scared yet?"
"You? A Beast?"
Gilgamesh sneered.
"Don't speak such baseless nonsense."
He could tell that although she was powerful, she had absolutely nothing to do with Beasts.
"Believe it or don't."
Xia Yu spread her hands.
"Then may This King ask this esteemed Miss Beast..."
Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes.
"What business do you have in my Uruk?"
"Naturally, I'm here to enjoy civilized life."
Xia Yu smiled cheerfully.
"Living alone out in the wilderness is miserable. Want meat? You hunt it yourself. Want salt? Refine it yourself. Even vegetables have to be personally planted."
"The civilized world is much better. With trade, all resources can be purchased from others instead of doing everything yourself."
Xia Yu smiled.
"Being a Herrscher is work. Being a Valkyrie is life. Even an Evil of Humanity still has to eat, right?"
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T/N: If you spot mistranslation, do tell me.
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