A certain crossover anime's nuclear-powered sword immortal

Merlin's expression froze upon hearing this.

"That's impossible! He's a man who foresaw the future and voluntarily became a magician. To avoid dying on the battlefield, he always stayed on the throne to command. That was our agreement! How could such a king possibly die!"

At that moment, Roman's voice, who had also heard these things, came through the communicator.

"You're right! Death from overwork is just too outrageous!"

Leonardo da Vinci's voice also came from it.

"Romani, if you don't deny it soon, I think your life is in danger!"

But Roman retorted dismissively.

"If he could die from something this bad, he would have died countless times by now!"

“Indeed.” Gudako nodded in agreement.

"Well... because it was used so suddenly, I lost my composure a bit. Now that I think about it carefully, it really doesn't feel right."

After a brief moment of bewilderment, Merlin regained his composure and then looked at Siduri.

"Siduri, has anything unusual happened in Uruk since we set off for Ur?"

“This…” Siduri thought carefully for a moment, then suddenly widened her eyes, “That’s right! There were many reports at the time that there were cases of people dying from exhaustion in Uruk.”

"Death from weakness?" Ishtar asked, puzzled.

"Yes, although I was thrown into disarray by the king's passing, the number of similar reports I received was indeed unusual, as if the entire Uruk was shrouded in the aura of death."

Siduri replied.

At this moment, Quetzalcoatl, who had been quietly standing beside Ishtar, spoke up.

"This is so abnormal; this must be the work of the 'Three Goddess Alliance.'"

"But who could it be?" Gudako wondered.

Upon hearing her question, Quetzalcoatl replied definitively, "It can only be Ereshkigal, the 'Mistress of the Underworld'."

"Huh? You mean Ereshkigal!?" Ishtar exclaimed in surprise upon hearing her sister's name.

It seems she is unaware that she transforms into Ereshkigal at night.

Although what happened at dawn that day should have made her understand something, well, Yumi Rin is such a stupid goddess.

Shirou shook his head at this.

At the same time, Quetzal Koyater spoke in place of Ishtar.

"The whole of Uruk is filled with the deathly scent of Ereshkigal. The Garula spirits she commands will steal the souls of those who have lost their strength. King Gilgamesh's soul was also taken to the underworld by the Garula spirits."

Upon hearing Quetzalcoatl's words, Mash's expression turned puzzled.

"Wait a minute! Isn't the 'Three Goddess Alliance' Gorgon, Lady Quetzalcoatl, and..."

As she spoke, Mash turned her gaze to Ishtar.

The rest of the words were self-evident; she believed Ishtar was also...

One of the goddesses in the "Three Goddess Alliance".

It would be too strange if the "Three Goddess Alliance" had four goddesses.

Seeing the questioning look Mash gave her, Ishtar shook her head.

“I’m not.”

"Eh!?" Mashu exclaimed in surprise.

Then, Quetzal Koyatl explained to her.

"The members of the 'Three Goddess Alliance' are Gorgon, myself, and then there is Ereshkigal, the 'Goddess of the Underworld.'"

Ishtar then asked, looking puzzled, "Never mind that, Ereshkigal has also been resurrected! What's going on?!"

"Doctor, do you know what's going on?" Gudako asked into the communicator on her wrist.

"Hmm... the last pillar goddess, Ereshkigal, has also made her appearance."

“But isn’t Ishtar the only one in this era who retains the Sumerian divinity?” Mash asked.

Ishtar chimed in, "That's right! I was here first!"

Chapter Thirty-Four: Ishtar's Shameful Past

Roman then began reading from the documents.

"In Sumerian mythology, Ishtar is the 'mistress of the heavens,' while Ereshkigal is the 'mistress of the underworld.'"

"Ah, I see, I see, I understand the principle now."

Merlin nodded, then looked at Ishtar and said, "When you were summoned, Ereshkigal was also summoned."

"Huh!?" Ishtar's surprised voice echoed in the Great Hall of the Divine Tower.

Mashu asked doubtfully, "Was Ishtar summoned by the priestesses?"

"At that time, the priestess who successfully completed the summoning died, probably killed by Ereshkigal."

Roman also spoke at this moment.

“Ishtar is the goddess of harvest, while Ereshkigal, who represents human death, is the mother goddess of fear.”

Leonardo da Vinci then chimed in.

"These two goddesses are one and the same, so they can be said to possess the same divinity."

Hearing Da Vinci's words, Gudako asked with some confusion.

"But isn't that goddess of the underworld in the same body as Ishtar?"

“Although Ishtar’s summoning will lead to the chain summoning of Ereshkigal, and they share the same divinity, thus making it ‘only one pillar of Sumerian gods’ in calculations, it doesn’t mean that they are fixed in this body,” Roman explained.

"I see..." Gudako suddenly realized.

"Hey...you're not going to the underworld, are you?" Ishtar's face fell immediately, her body language clearly showing her resistance.

"It seems this is the only way," Gudako said. "Please lead the way, Ishtar!"

Quetzal Koyatl also stepped forward and patted Ishtar on the shoulder.

"Let's go."

"Seriously, I know! I'll take you there!" Ishtar replied helplessly.

As she spoke, Ishtar looked at Merlin and the others.

"You should stay in Uruk to avoid any unexpected situations."

Quetzal Coyatt also came to Shirou's side at this moment, took his arm and said.

"Sorry, I'm really no use in the underworld, so I can only wait for you to come back here."

Shirou nodded upon hearing this.

"In the meantime, let's protect Uruk City from here."

“Okay~” Quetzal Koyatl agreed.

……

The target was Kusa City, and Ishtar used her greatbow to carve a large hole leading to the underworld right near Kusa City.

After Ishtar did this, and then acted arrogantly, seeking praise, Shirou suddenly said something.

"Actually, I have control over the underworld, so I can go in directly."

"Huh? Why didn't you say so sooner!?" Ishtar gritted her teeth and glared at Shirou.

Because of that sentence, everything she had just done seemed somewhat ridiculous and shameful at that moment.

"You didn't ask?"

Shirou shrugged innocently, and the instant Ishtar's face turned red, he activated his powers and took everyone to the Underworld.

A purple light enveloped them, and the four figures vanished from the ground.

In the blink of an eye, they arrived in the dark and deep underworld.

Gudako exclaimed in amazement as she observed the vast underground world.

"I never imagined that the underworld was beneath Kusa..."

“It’s not in some other dimension, but genuinely connected to the soil of this world,” Mash said.

“Of course,” Ishtar said matter-of-factly. “In the Age of Gods, the heavens, the earth, and the underworld were all on the same cloth.”

Along the way, Gudako looked curiously at the cages that appeared at intervals on both sides of the road, and inside those cages, a ghostly blue light flickered.

"These are the souls of the dead humans on earth, the souls imprisoned inside, even those that have disappeared..."

"None of that is allowed. Ereshkigal will lock her favorite human souls in cages and keep them by her side for tens of thousands of years."

Ishtar said.

"So... those souls who weakened and died on Earth are here too?" Mash asked.

Ishtar nodded and said, "Probably. There are more of them than before. It must have increased after they joined the 'Three Goddess Alliance.' Is that guy trying to build a kingdom of the dead?"

"Where is Ereshkigal?" Gudako asked after looking around.

Upon hearing this, Ishtar raised her hand and pointed in a direction.

"After passing through seven gates ahead, there is Ereshkigal's palace, and Ereshkigal is there."

“Speaking of which…” Gudako suddenly looked at Ishtar with some curiosity, “Miss Ishtar not only knows the exact location, but also knows the rules of the Underworld very well.”

“So that’s true…” Mash also cast a curious glance at Ishtar.

“This…” Ishtar’s expression turned slightly embarrassed, as if her secret had been exposed, and she quickly explained, “Well… look, this is the power of the goddess!”

"But isn't it said that divinity is ineffective in the underworld?" Mashu asked, puzzled.

“This…” Ishtar’s expression suddenly froze.

Ishtar once visited the Underworld, but although she was stronger than Ereshkigal in the outside world, she was no match for Ereshkigal, the ruler of the Underworld.

At that time, Ishtar coveted Ereshkigal's position as the ruler of the underworld. She prepared a set of divine armor, adjusted her strength to its best state, and went to the underworld to challenge Ereshkigal.