Before him stood a pristine white temple.
Naoki gazed at the structure in front of him, knowing exactly where he was.
The Final Singularity, the Grand Temple of Time, Solomon.
The final battlefield he would inevitably reach in the future.
(Why am I here?)
The question arose in Naoki's mind. As it did, the figure sitting upright on a pure-looking throne in the distance caused his expression to turn serious.
King Solomon.
Or rather, Goetia, occupying his corpse.
The greatest enemy he had fought for twenty years, the one he would face soon.
The day of their decisive battle was approaching. The second round of their fight, which he had waited ten years for. This time, he had to settle it, no matter what. That would truly be the end of everything for him.
"Keep waiting on that throne, Goetia."
Naoki extended his hand and clenched it tightly toward the figure on the throne.
"I… no, we will defeat you soon."
"It won't be long."
As the declaration ended, Naoki's consciousness faded in the next moment.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Inside an empty house in the city of Kutha.
Opening his eyes under the glow of the setting sun, Naoki sat up from his earthen bed, clutching his head: "I… what happened?"
"You're awake?"
Merlin, sitting near the window, turned and laughed: "You fell asleep the moment you got the Tablets of Destiny. Were you influenced by the 'future' recorded on them?"
The Tablets of Destiny.
Naoki looked at the clay tablet he was clutching in his arms.
Right, he remembered that after parting with Merlin, he spent about two hours searching for the Tablets of Destiny in Kutha. After that, he seemed to have passed out.
The tablet was written in a language Naoki couldn't understand. Even with the three or four languages he had mastered, deciphering Sumerian script from this period was far beyond his reach.
"Was the future Gilgamesh saw recorded here, and did I accidentally synchronize my consciousness with it?"
"Something like that." Merlin nodded. "What did you see?"
"Goetia, sitting proudly in the Grand Temple of Time, waiting for his plan to succeed."
As he spoke, Naoki tossed the Tablets of Destiny to Merlin and got off the bed: "You take this. It's already evening. I'll send you back to Uruk, then head to the Underworld to see if I can deal with Ereshkigal. After that, I'll go to the Persian Gulf to complete the water quality investigation—report it to Gilgamesh like that."
"You're really busy. I'd say you're taking on too much work alone, but since it makes things easier for me, I'll leave it to you."
Merlin laughed as he spoke, confidently stepping into the spatial tunnel Naoki manifested. On the other end was the outskirts, about three hundred meters from Uruk's city walls. Due to Uruk's barrier, he could only teleport there.
Gilgamesh had originally given them three days. It was now the evening of the second day since they set out, about one and a half days having passed.
"One and a half days left? The Persian Gulf might only take half a day, which means…"
Naoki had one day to descend to the Underworld and deal with Ereshkigal.
(I recall there's an underground tunnel leading to the Underworld beneath one of the houses in Kutha… Or should I mimic Ishtar and blast a huge hole in the ground to head straight to the Underworld?)
Leaving the house, Naoki hesitated slightly as he looked at the ground beneath his feet.
And at that moment—
*SWISH!* *SWISH!* *SWISH!*
Multiple sounds of piercing air came from the distant sky.
It was a barrage of Magecraft attacks from someone—Naoki could sense it.
Turning to face the volley of magical projectiles shot toward him, he raised his hand and summoned a layer of ice to block them all. Naoki's gaze fell on his attacker: "Is it normal to just attack without saying a word?"
"Tch, it failed…"
Ishtar, riding Ma'anna, muttered softly as she descended into the air above Naoki: "It was just a simple greeting. It's only natural to give a little punishment to an impudent guy sneaking into my territory without permission. Besides, it's you—even my full-power attack wouldn't matter."
(If it wasn't me, you'd have killed them on the spot.)
Naoki grumbled inwardly.
"So, you came all the way from Mount Ebih just to greet me?"
"No way. I just saw you while coming back from a stroll and stopped by to say hi." Ishtar waved her hand casually. "You, on the other hand—just a few days ago, you had a massive fight with the Sun Goddess in the dense forest, and now you're here in my territory. Are you planning to fight me too?"
Because Naoki and Quetzalcoatl's battle was so massive, most of the Goddesses in the Mesopotamian land had noticed it to some extent, and they all realized one thing—a foe capable of matching them had appeared.
Naoki smiled: "What if I said I was?"
*BOOM—!*
A magical cannon blast instantly fired from Ma'anna's muzzle, only to be deflected by Naoki, soaring far into the sky.
Ishtar sighed softly: "I thought that'd work. Your reactions are just outrageous. But now you know—if you really want to fight me, I won't hold back, even if you have a connection with this vessel."
(After that, I'll win gloriously and use the victor's rights to order her to erase all my debts!)
Seeing Ishtar's expression, as if she were scheming something, Naoki smiled: "I'm here only at Gilgamesh's request to find something. I found it earlier and sent someone to deliver it back. Now, I'm planning to head to the Underworld."
"Eh?"
Ishtar froze: "You're going to the Underworld?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Why, you ask… Why would a living being like you go to the Underworld? Are you trying to kill yourself? You're a fairy—you can't die. If you die, you'll just reappear as a new you."
Naoki laughed: "It's nothing much, just to deal with the Three Goddess Alliance's matters. Quetzalcoatl's attacks are no longer a concern. After I deal with Ereshkigal, two pillars of the Three Goddess Alliance will be neutralized, and we can fully focus on the Magical Beast Goddess."
"Wait—Wait, wait, wait! What did you just say?!"
Ishtar immediately flew in front of Naoki, bringing her face close to his and demanding in a shrill voice: "You said you're going to deal with who?! Who?!"
"Ereshkigal… Oh, you didn't know?"
Naoki briefly explained the conclusion he and Merlin had reached to Ishtar.
The chain summoning of Goddesses, two sides of the same divinity…
After listening, Ishtar's face cycled through shades of green, purple, and white before she let out a heavy sigh, as if she couldn't bear it: "Haaaah… Damn it, I didn't expect this situation to happen… She was summoned and manifested too, or whatever—there's no worse news than this."
"No, what's worse is that she's actually a member of the Three Goddess Alliance. What was that idiot thinking—Hey, Natsukawa, if you're going to the Underworld, I'm coming with you."
The sudden proposal surprised Naoki slightly: "You want to go to the Underworld too? Why?"
"No big reason, just a whim. Besides, if what you said is true, Ereshkigal might occasionally use my body to act. I need to go settle the score with her."
"She dares to use my body without permission—I'll teach her a lesson she deserves."