At the same time.
The Tohsaka Residence, Fuyuki City.
Rin stared blankly at the video, her face alternating between red and pale, her composure completely shattered.
"Ahhh! How can this goddess be so embarrassing? Could she possibly be any more humiliating?"
She gritted her teeth, wishing she could drag the other party out and give them a beating.
This is beyond shameful!
How could the goddess presiding over beauty and war be so utterly useless?
Are you some kind of blue-haired idiot goddess too?
Damn it, Aqua!
Sakura tried to comfort her: "Sister, calm down! Grace! Poise! Remember the ancestral teachings of the Tohsaka family!"
"I can't help it! This is too embarrassing. When I go to school, I'll definitely have people laughing behind my back!" Rin grew angrier the more she thought about it.
Everyone acknowledged that Ishtar was her previous incarnation as a goddess.
And now, everyone had also seen Ishtar holding up a sign that read [I'm a useless goddess].
Public execution!
How in the world did you manage to lose the Bull of Heaven, something as massive as a mountain?
Did some alternate timeline version of you come and take it away?
If you hadn't lost the Bull of Heaven, would we have needed Gilgamesh to sacrifice himself and Enkidu to give their lives blocking Tiamat?
Gilgamesh stole the show in the Singularity, undoubtedly gaining countless fans.
Which means, Ishtar is now universally recognized as a useless goddess!
"But, why do I feel like Ishtar's tendency to drop the ball is actually sister's..."
Sakura trailed off mid-sentence.
Her elder sister, ostensibly the perfect noble young lady, actually had a habit of failing at critical moments.
And that goddess from the Age of Gods in Uruk seemed to have descended to the mortal world by borrowing her sister's body as a vessel.
Could it be that the goddess was actually influenced by her sister?
"Impossible!"
Rin immediately refuted the idea.
She was the most graceful and perfect young lady—how could she possibly possess such a ball-dropping attribute that could affect a goddess?
Rin ground her teeth: "Whatever, gods can't descend to the mortal world anyway. People will forget about this after some time!"
This is the most humiliating thing ever!
"That's true, sister, you could... Huh?"
Just as Sakura was about to continue, she suddenly sensed an earth-shattering change in the other's aura.
So powerful it made one tremble, so powerful it shouldn't exist in the mortal world at all!
She took a deep breath, forcing herself to remain calm as she asked, "May I ask who you are?"
This aura definitely belonged to a god!
Her sister had just said gods couldn't descend to the mortal world, and now one had abruptly appeared.
Just like how her sister had previously said Ishtar would shine brilliantly, only for her to immediately lose the Bull of Heaven.
Truly, this is the elder sister we're talking about!
Should I consult her before buying lottery tickets next time?
The other party smiled. "Ereshkigal, Queen of the Underworld in Sumerian mythology."
"G-Greetings!"
Sakura grew even more nervous.
No matter how gentle and kind she appeared in the videos, she was still the goddess of death representing the underworld.
Her earlier vague premonition had been correct after all—
Both sister goddesses could descend to the mortal world by borrowing her elder sister Rin's body!
"Don't worry, I mean no harm to you or your sister. I just want to fulfill one thing," Ereshkigal said with a gentle smile.
"What thing?"
Sakura grew even more tense.
Could it be... she wanted to take Emiya away directly?
"A promise I made with Nameless," Ereshkigal replied with a smile.
Faint points of light suddenly bloomed in her hand.
A tiny illusory figure lay quietly sleeping within.
"Is this actually Siduri's soul?" Sakura couldn't help but exclaim in shock.
In the Singularity of Uruk, 4,600 years ago—
Siduri, originally the high priestess, had known full well that death awaited her, yet she unhesitatingly chose to save more innocent people.
The King of Heroes had seen the future, yet he still chose to let go.
It was arguably one of the most heartbreaking scenes.
In the end, she was captured by the demonic beasts and transformed into a terrifying Lahmu.
But!
This gentle high priestess, even after becoming a monstrous creature, still retained the kind heart of a human.
From beginning to end, she never harmed a single person.
She even sacrificed herself to save Enkidu!
If the Singularity of Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia were adapted into a game where players took on the role of a Chaldea Master—
They'd probably leave behind a Lahmu that never attacked them.
And when players, thinking it was just a harmless fool, mercilessly struck it down—only to later learn its tragic backstory—wouldn't that be even more heartbreaking?
"Yes, it was a promise I made with Nameless before."
Ereshkigal looked down at the tiny soul.
Back then, Nameless had once again asked her to preserve the soul of this priestess.
By human reckoning, 4,600 years had already passed.
Now that Alaya had released the exposé video, she could finally descend into the human world once more—
To fulfill the promise she had made all those years ago.
Hmm~
With a gentle breath from Ereshkigal—
Mysterious and vast power surged forth, converging onto the soul.
This was a remnant of the creative power left behind when Nameless had used the authority of the Primordial Goddess to revive her.
The tiny soul suddenly began to rapidly expand, transforming into the familiar figure of the high priestess.
She stared blankly at the two people in the room. "What... happened to me?"
Siduri's memories remained frozen at the moment she had thanked Enkidu before her death.
"See for yourself."
Sakura took out a tablet and played the Absolute Demonic Front video.
After watching it, Siduri let out a long sigh and bowed deeply.
"Thank you, Goddess, for reviving me."
No matter what, she had to express her gratitude to this kind and benevolent goddess of the underworld.
Had Ereshkigal not been willing to expend her own essence to protect her, Siduri's soul would have long since crumbled away in the passage of time!
"No need for thanks. This was my promise to Nameless," Ereshkigal said with a smile.
Since she had made a promise to Nameless, she would naturally see it through.
Nameless had once said he wanted to give the King of Heroes a massive surprise.
Well, now—the surprise had arrived!
After delivering this surprise to the King of Heroes, she would also go and give Nameless a surprise of her own.
That infuriating man had been avoiding her all this time!
***
Fuyuki Grand Hotel.
At the very top floor, Gilgamesh sipped wine from a golden goblet.
After the video aired, the entire city of Uruk had erupted into celebration.
Countless people praised his strength and wisdom.
But after the spotlight faded, only endless loneliness and emptiness remained.
He found himself wondering if he should go bother Souma for a meal.
It wasn't about the food—it was about the loneliness!
Perhaps Souma, too, had adopted that terrifying little girl out of sheer boredom and solitude.
Just then, a messenger arrived—
"My King, an old acquaintance of yours requests an audience!"
***
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