Chapter 761: The Unconscious Eve of the Storm
My name is Ishtar-Rin, and a lady never reveals her age. I reside in an ultra-luxurious temple atop Mount Ebih, single, patrolling my divine territory daily aboard the celestial boat Maanna until sunset before returning home. I go to bed at 10:30 PM sharp, ensuring a full eight hours of sleep. Before bed, I drink a warm glass of milk offered by my devotees, followed by twenty minutes of gentle stretching to warm up, then sleep atop a mountain of gemstones. I sleep as soundly as a baby until dawn, never carrying fatigue or stress into the next day. Even my most favored priestess says I'm perfectly normal.
All I want is to live freely without a care. Victories, defeats—none of that concerns me, because they only bring trouble. As long as I have endless jewels and skies to roam as I please, I'm perfectly content.
But if someone dares provoke me, I won't lose to anyone.
Why, you ask? Because the heavens and earth of this world favor me!
See? The moment I face a problem, the solution comes to me.
"So, what exactly does the goddess mean by this?"
In a temple that screamed, "I conquered Mount Ebih," Fujimaru's eye twitched as he struggled to ignore the abysmal architectural taste, focusing instead on the black-haired goddess whose cascading locks and revealing attire somehow managed not to look indecent. "What do you mean by 'someone controlled your body'?"
"Huh? Exactly what it sounds like?" The goddess fiddled with her hair, avoiding eye contact. "While I was asleep, someone borrowed my body and did... something shameless..."
"That's precisely the issue, Goddess Ishtar," Merlin interjected, puzzled. "What kind of being could hijack a divine body without the deity even noticing?"
"H-how should I know?!" the dark-haired goddess snapped. "Isn't that your job to figure out?!"
Unfortunately, she didn't realize how terrible she was at lying. Fujimaru and Merlin exchanged a glance and nodded in silent understanding.
"Then, please describe the incident in detail, Miss Goddess."
"Eh?" Ishtar's eyes widened slightly. "But I'm the victim here?"
"So when exactly did you realize you'd become a 'victim'?"
"Ugh... Fine." The goddess fidgeted before finally pursing her lips, as if steeling herself, and turning away. "Follow me."
After exchanging looks, the group trailed after Ishtar.
Moments later, the goddess's private chambers.
"Listen well—not just anyone gets to visit my inner sanctum. You should feel honored..."
Ignoring Rin's haughty remarks, everyone quickly surveyed the room. As they took in the sight, Fujimaru couldn't help but mutter, "Is Ishtar secretly a dragon or something?"
Golden window frames, a golden dressing table, a golden bathroom... and a pile of glittering gems heaped on the bed, nearly forming a small mound.
"This is the mountain of gems I've carefully collected, you know," Ishtar declared proudly, puffing out her chest. "And it's also the key evidence I discovered."
"Where exactly is this 'mountain'? It's not even big enough to cover me..." Anna muttered under her breath, glancing sideways. The moment she finished speaking, the goddess stiffened—whether she heard or not was unclear—but she stubbornly continued:
"This morning, I noticed two gems in the mountain had changed positions. That's right, my favorite lapis lazuli from yesterday and the tear crystal I planned to favor today mysteriously swapped places while I was sleeping on the mountain, causing the mountain to—"
"Alright, alright, we get it. Your hard-earned gem pile is a mountain, not a small mound. I mean, even artificial hills count as mountains..."
"It's not artificial! This is a real mountain! My lifelong dream is to sleep on a mountain of gems as grand as Mount Ebih, and now I've already achieved half of it!"
"Uh, right, Goddess... Could you maybe let go of my collar now...?"
While Ishtar-Rin was tearfully grappling with Fujimaru, Merlin sidled up to Sakatsuki and whispered, "The one who can control the goddess Ishtar's actions... Could it be—?"
"Should I praise you with a 'you know too much,' Merlin?" Sakatsuki snapped out of his wandering thoughts, smiling faintly.
Merlin froze. Though his question had been answered, deeper doubts arose. "Then why did that goddess come out? Is there something she needed to do in secret?"
"You're overthinking it," Sakatsuki shook his head. "I just thought, while there's still time, I'd let her see more of this world."
"But why was it today that Ishtar noticed? Is there something special about today...?" Merlin's voice trailed off before his expression turned incredulous.
"Could it be... it's about to begin?"
The only response was a casual "Mm."
"Isn't it too soon?" The white-haired sage's face twisted with urgency as he lowered his voice. "Fujimaru might not be ready yet..."
"Maybe he isn't prepared, but he certainly has the resolve," Sakatsuki cut off Merlin's protest. "Now that Gorgon has turned over a new leaf, and little Tiamat won't be lost upon awakening, once we handle this freebie, Ishtar will also become our ally. Add to that the Sun Goddess who's long been 'in Cao's camp but loyal to Han'... The [Three Goddess Alliance] is already entirely under Uruk's banner."
A shadow of gravity flickered in the young man's eyes. "After this, we'll have no more potential allies left to recruit. No matter how hard I try, I can't possibly bring Baal Lahmu to our side. Delaying further is pointless—it would only widen the gap between us and the enemy."
"Merlin, you don't want to face a fully recovered [Beast] and the hordes of 'offspring' it spawned during its dormancy, do you?"
Merlin, as a sage, naturally understood this well. He paused, then couldn't help but sigh: "That sounds truly chilling. That's precisely why I wanted to delay that cruel moment, to push it back further and further..."
"Facing a festering wound that's rotting for the second time, what we must do isn't to turn a blind eye, but to resolve with the determination of a warrior cutting off his own arm to completely excise it... Moreover, time isn't on our side." Sakatsuki left these meaningful words before walking forward.
"Eh? You—I remember you..." Ishtar finally noticed this pervert who had chased her while swinging a pillar, immediately growing tense. "What do you want? This is my temple! If you dare lay hands on me again, I—I'll fight you to the death!"
"Relax, we're not here to fight you this time." Sakatsuki ignored the goddess's aggressive posturing. "About the 'deity' using your body—you must already have some idea who it is, don't you?"
"Th-that, I..."
"Knowing the answer isn't enough. If you want to completely resolve this issue, then head to Uruk." Watching the stammering Ishtar-Rin, Sakatsuki smiled faintly.
"Otherwise, who knows—you might wake up one day to find yourself lying next to a pig."
"You—you're a devil!" The black-haired goddess paled at the mere thought of that possibility. "Fine! I'll go to Uruk, alright?!"
"OK, settled." The young man snapped his fingers, calmly turning away. After taking a few steps, he glanced back at the dumbfounded group.
"Why the stares? If we don't head back to Uruk soon, it'll be dark."
"O-oh." Fujimaru responded blankly, the three fundamental questions of life swirling in his mind.
Wait, that's it? That solved everything?
This whole goddess-subduing operation feels way too rushed...
The boy's bewildered expression didn't escape Merlin's notice, drawing a silent sigh from him.
It's not rushed, Fujimaru.
It's just that someone has decided to wait no longer.
Though still harboring concerns, Merlin couldn't help but feel anticipation rising.
A hero who nearly defeated two Beasts and almost saved humanity, now making his comeback after a long silence.
Having gained new power without expending a single soldier.
This time, what will the outcome be?
"Artoria..." whispered the 'Kingmaker,' the 'Hero Sculptor.' "You've chosen quite an extraordinary final knight."