In Paradise Lost, the all-night revelry at the Uruk Embassy finally came to an end just before dawn.
The room was a mess. A thin silk quilt lay half-covering the bed, and three graceful figures nestled against one another beneath it, the lingering flush of pleasure not yet faded from their smooth, fair skin.
As twin goddesses who had returned in flesh, Ere and Ishtar had changed completely from the ancient Sumerian Divine Spirits after all the upheaval of the Three Storms and the Seven Days of Judgment. It was as if they had begun new lives, and this was their first taste of intimacy between man and woman.
So, after giving themselves for the first time, Ere and Ishtar naturally could not endure the boundless demands of a certain long worm. Faint tears of pain still clung to their fair cheeks.
In the moonlight, the sisters who loved and fought each other held their fingers together, supporting one another as they endured the absurdity of last night. Like reflections in a mirror, they curled up on either side in Mother Goddess Tiamat's arms, creating a striking beauty that felt both misplaced and profane.
Tiamat slept deeply like a nursing mother, holding her two bullied children close. On her elegant face rested a quiet smile that seemed to embrace everything.
Of course, this Mother of Origins had not escaped the hands of her own divine child either.
Last night, she had not only needed to "demonstrate" for her two daughters, but also had to bear part of the impact on their behalf.
There was also the matter of holding down her two daughters' hands and feet, helping the villain have his way.
All of that absurdity and intimacy was not something to speak of to outsiders.
Before dawn, the figure in the room quietly rose from the bed.
The man stood before the bed and gazed tenderly for a while at the warm, soft bodies curled beneath the covers. Only then did he lightly push open the door and gradually melt into the lingering darkness of night.
However, the instant the man left the Royal Capital of Uruk, the sleeping figures on the bed suddenly opened their eyes. Three pairs of eyes met.
The three goddesses froze for a moment, then all laughed softly at the same time.
So everyone had been awake...
"Mother Goddess, Samael..."
Ere raised her head and looked at the faint morning light outside the window. Her pearly teeth lightly pressed against her lips, and her brows unconsciously drew together as she murmured.
"Trust him! Samael is the strongest. No matter what happens, he won't lose!"
The Mother of Origins gently stroked her daughter's golden hair and comforted her earnestly, her beautiful cross-shaped star pupils showing not the slightest wavering.
"That's right! That guy is the snake who bit Marduk! The king who created countless miracles! If every Divine Spirit and human on this planet were wiped out, he would definitely be the last one to fall!"
Ishtar, confident and spirited by nature, also clenched her fist and declared it with utter certainty. It sounded like she was answering Ere, yet also like she was answering herself.
Smack!
Just as the somewhat pessimistic Ere, the gloom still lingering between her brows, was about to speak again, a crisp sound came from a particularly pert part of her body.
"Enough whining!"
Ishtar smiled teasingly, her pale hand taking the opportunity to grab that same spot on her twin sister, both to test the feel and to tease her a little. The more reserved Goddess of the Underworld could not help letting out a startled cry.
"Instead of worrying about this and that, we should do something useful. Mother Goddess, Ere, time to get up and work!"
Ishtar immediately rolled out of bed, mischievously grabbed the blanket, rolled it up, and yanked it away. Then she planted her hands on her slender waist and gave a solemn command, showing a hint of the dignity of a War Goddess.
Crazy woman! I'll settle this with you later!
After being teased like that, Ere grumbled and recorded the grudge in her little mental notebook. Even so, she did not delay for long. She quickly dressed herself and walked out of the bridal chamber together with the Mother Goddess.
As the three goddesses set out, the whole of Uruk seemed to wake like a machine wound tight, stirred by an invisible rhythm and beginning to operate with precision.
...
At the same time, in the dim valley, Ziusudra stood in loose linen robes, holding a vine staff. Sensing the flow of Ether and the shift in the surrounding currents, he slowly raised his head.
"Your Majesty, on such a joyous day, you could have stayed with them a while longer."
"Forget that. Let's discuss business."
Samael walked out of the fading night, his expression turning solemn. He declined the Old Man's kindness and quickly entered work mode.
If love was meant to last, why must it cling to every morning and evening?
A temporary parting was only for a better reunion. Besides, he had already left one-third of the time for himself. He could not afford to squander the remaining two-thirds so extravagantly.
Seeing that the Lord of Darkness had made up his mind, Ziusudra nodded. His fingertips brushed over his staff as he spoke in a low voice.
"Your Majesty, I assume you sensed it during the battle at the Sea of Oceanus?"
The Ancient Serpent nodded slightly and raised his head to look at the chaos and vast emptiness beyond the World Tree, his gaze meaningful.
"That's right. It seems Marduk's Titanification isn't complete..."
"On one hand, as the wedge that pierced through the world wall and anchored the Broom Star Velber, the [Covenant] suffered a slight crack from the combined strike of His Majesty Ozymandias and the holy man Moses. On the other hand..."
Ziusudra closed his eyes briefly to organize his thoughts. When he opened them again, his gaze was sharp, and his tone was grave.
His Majesty Ozymandias? In the past, the Old Man used to call that Pharaoh "boy."
Samael sighed softly, inexplicably melancholy. Then he quickly gathered his thoughts, furrowed his brow, and continued.
"On the other hand, Marduk was too impatient. He didn't wait for a new Velber vanguard to be deployed and mature. Instead, he chose to synchronize with Altera, directly controlling Sefar's data and shell from the last Titan War, raising the Giant God's strength to the seventh tier on the spot. Unfortunately..."
"Unfortunately, Sefar is Sefar, and Altera is Altera. Once a weapon develops a will, it becomes difficult to control, and it is no longer suited to being a weapon."
Ziusudra recalled his previous experience on the Sea of Oceanus and exposed the White Giant's current weakness in a single sentence.
The Old Man paused, then asked quietly, "Do you think there's any chance..."
Samael thought for a long time before slowly shaking his head. Of course he understood what the Old Man was asking.
But that kind of unrealistic fantasy was useless...
That faint consciousness born in a mere Velber vanguard, let alone breaking free from the rule of Broom Star Velber, would likely find it almost impossible just to maintain its own self.
After the earlier loss of control, Marduk had probably already grown suspicious and would inevitably be on guard.
Thinking they could use that to shift the entire battle was nothing but a fool's dream.
Still, how much worse could things get?
The descent of a seventh-tier Velber vanguard loaded with Velber's will had originally been a hopeless situation.
The generous sacrifice of the brothers Ramesses II and Moses had won them a one-in-ten-thousand hope.
The selfhood budding within Altera was also a one-in-ten-thousand hope.
At least now, he had a two-in-ten-thousand chance!
And what he had to do now was find every possible way to improve those odds.
After a short silence, Ziusudra looked up at the gray dome, his tone low.
"Your Majesty, what is it like outside the World Tree now?"
Samael sighed and parted his hands slightly, forming a model of a blue planet between them.
As far as Ziusudra could see, apart from the Nine Ages of Gods linked together by the World Tree, the planet's entire surface had already become a vast wasteland. The tide of nothingness corroded everything in every direction, and angels swept across the land like passing locusts, erasing all life.
On the first day, the surface creatures and humanity were wiped out together.
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