The faint glimmer of hope that had just ignited was instantly extinguished. Ishtar's lovely face twisted in frustration again.
Anger, embarrassment, and indignation—emotions utterly alien to her surged chaotically through her heart.
Truthfully, for a being like Ishtar, this experience was unprecedented.
The gods of Mesopotamia were manifestations of natural phenomena.
At their core, they were indifferent planetary existences, granted only superficial intelligence by mortal worship.
Yet beneath this superficial veneer lay their true nature—cold and detached.
That coldness was precisely what humans called "divinity."
But right now, Ishtar was genuinely experiencing emotional turmoil.
This feeling…
It's so shameful, damn it!
Watching the goddess's face contort into something reminiscent of Munch's The Scream, Rovi pressed his palm to his forehead.
Then, to his surprise, Ishtar suddenly calmed herself down.
"No, wait!" She seemed to realize something, pounding her left palm decisively with her right fist. A look of sudden enlightenment spread across her face. "You're just being contrary on purpose, aren't you?"
"I've heard humans do that a lot—they pretend to dislike something precisely because they care too much!"
"Oh-ho~? I never imagined you'd be the tsundere type~!"
Ishtar covered her mouth with her hand, revealing an oddly smug grin, accompanied by a strange giggle.
She looked exactly like some sinister old witch.
Rovi: "..."
He knew that Ishtar, who believed she'd already mastered "human nature," would absolutely refuse to acknowledge her own defeat.
And admittedly, the goddess desperately finding excuses to justify her failures was indeed very "human."
It made her oddly lively and charming.
But since she obviously had no intention of killing him, there was no point in Rovi continuing this game any longer.
It seemed he'd have to return home disappointed…
"Hmm~? Why so quiet now? Did I hit the nail on the head?" Ishtar was clearly growing more confident, as if victory was already firmly in her grasp. "I knew it! I'm the goddess of Venus, after all! Not to mention I have a sister who rules over the Underworld. Matters of the heart are nothing to me!"
She proudly listed off her supposed "glories."
Rovi, who had just taken a step away, abruptly halted, his gaze sharply turning toward her.
Ishtar was still laughing smugly.
But under his intense stare, her confidence slowly crumbled into nervousness. Her expression stiffened, and her smile gradually turned into an awkward twitch.
"W-what are you looking at, you rude mortal?" she asked, cheeks turning faintly pink again.
"You just mentioned... the goddess of the Underworld, didn't you?" Rovi's voice was deep and serious.
"S-so what?" Ishtar struggled against her embarrassment, raising her voice to cover it. "You were a priest serving the gods—how could you not know this?"
Of course, Rovi knew.
Ishtar was the daughter of Anu, the most favored among the gods of Mesopotamia.
But she had a sister very similar to herself—Ereshkigal, or simply "Eresh."
Yet despite being sisters, Eresh was completely different from Ishtar, who roamed freely between heaven and earth, indulging her whims without restraint.
Ereshkigal was the ruler of the Underworld, the place where souls rested after death. She remained in a cold, silent realm beneath the earth, forever gazing upward at the distant lights of the mortal world she desperately yearned for, yet could never reach due to her duties as goddess of the dead.
Indeed, under normal circumstances, Ereshkigal could never interact with the world of the living.
This had always been the case since ancient times.
According to later mythology—and even according to Rovi's own previous experience as a priest—Ereshkigal was essentially a forgotten goddess, an abandoned deity rarely mentioned even among the divine pantheon.
Even her closest relative, Ishtar, rarely spoke of her.
Yet now, perhaps influenced by her host's humanity, Ishtar had carelessly mentioned her.
This reminded Rovi—
He still had a chance.
Ishtar never spoke of Ereshkigal—not out of indifference or hatred, but precisely because she cared deeply. The stark contrast in their fates, despite being born from the same source, filled Ishtar with complicated emotions she preferred to bury deeply.
They were sisters, after all.
Born from the same origin, the same essence.
She cared so deeply that she could never openly acknowledge her feelings, never tolerate outsiders speaking of them—let alone anyone insulting Ereshkigal.
Rovi's lips curled into a smile.
"What is it now? Why are you smiling like that? It's honestly… kinda creepy," Ishtar said, feigning disgust, though her flushed cheeks betrayed her embarrassment.
Could this guy… really have fallen for me?
The more she thought about it, the more nervous—and hopeful—she became.
Yet beneath that anticipation, fear lingered.
"I've finally realized why I've always paid so much attention to you," Rovi began smoothly.
Since when did you pay attention to me?! All you've done is insult me every time we meet!
Ishtar's eyes widened in shock.
Then she heard Rovi let out a familiar, bone-chilling laugh.
"Bwahahaha!…"
Wait, wait, wait! Isn't that Gilgamesh's trademark laugh?!
Ignoring Ishtar's internal screaming, Rovi's actions were actually simple to understand.
He needed to clearly show the goddess his "true feelings."
Show her that he…
"It's your sister, Ereshkigal, whom I've always admired!"
Crack—
Ishtar clenched her teeth so tightly it seemed something might break.
Her scarlet eyes went wide with disbelief.
Although his words were far from an outright confession of love, they were close enough—but not directed at her. Instead, they were directed at her older sister.
Ishtar would surely be angry now, right?
Even if she wasn't angry, it didn't matter.
Ishtar and Ereshkigal, being born from the same divine source, shared a mysterious spiritual resonance.
Though this resonance might have faded with the decline of the Age of Gods, if Rovi remembered correctly… the recent event—when he'd combined the [Wedge of Heaven], [Key of Heaven], and [Chains of Heaven], shaking the foundations of the three realms—might have rekindled their connection.
Speaking these words aloud to Ishtar might very well allow Ereshkigal to hear them too—and spark her curiosity.
After all, throughout countless years, even when mortals did speak of the goddess of the Underworld, it was only in fear or hatred. Never before had anyone praised her, let alone openly expressed admiration.
And since Ereshkigal couldn't normally leave the Underworld…
The most likely outcome was that she would bring him down into her realm.
Entering the Underworld meant dying.
For the goddess of death, taking life was simple—even for someone wielding the [Key of Heaven].
Once there, he'd linger in the Underworld long enough to ascend to the Throne of Heroes.
And even if Eresh didn't respond in that way—it was still worth the attempt.
Rovi hadn't expected guaranteed success.
But if it did succeed… being the first mortal to "confess" to a goddess and then die because of it would be an unmatched historical achievement, wouldn't it?
Besides, now he had another reason to journey to the Underworld someday.
Two birds with one stone! His plan was perfect!
Rovi's smile grew even brighter.
He repeated deliberately:
"The one I truly admire—is your sister."
Those words echoed clearly through the shadowed alley, amidst the dying sunlight and falling red leaves.
They echoed powerfully into Ishtar's ears, stunning the goddess of Venus.
And also, deep beneath the earth, shaking the goddess of the Underworld.
"What… was that sound?"
From the deepest recesses of the Underworld, Ereshkigal lifted her gaze toward the distant fissure above, staring into the faint, precious light that had recently appeared from the human realm.
Through that crack came the sound—
Soft, yet unmistakably clear.
It stirred something within her heart.