"Upon the nations of Israel, got it?"
Samael bared his teeth in a sly grin, his expression steeped in malice.
Their eyes met, and everyone nodded in tacit understanding.
All they had done was bestow a small blessing on the queen who worshipped Babylon's gods. Nothing more. They hadn't interfered in humanity's struggles, leaving their hands clean.
Even if Marduk held the Tablet of Destinies, it wouldn't be easy to trace anything back to them.
As for why Semiramis was chosen as Israel's indirect counter…
The ancient serpent, ever the one to foresee, let the corners of his lips curl upward.
In the Old Testament, it was the Assyrian Empire that, during its expansion, wiped out the ten tribes of the divided Northern Kingdom of Israel. They exiled 27,000 of Samaria's wealthy citizens—the capital of the Northern Kingdom—scattering them across Assyria.
The southern Kingdom of Judah, however, was spared. Protected by Jerusalem's lofty, fortified walls and abundant supplies, it was difficult to take. On top of that, the king willingly offered 2.4 tons of gold to preserve his kingdom, narrowly avoiding disaster.
Thus, ensuring the safety of the Assyrian empress was the same as digging Israel's grave, undermining the continuation of monotheism.
A small effort with such massive returns in war—of course he'd take it.
And truth be told, this was thanks to lessons borrowed from a future lighthouse nation—stirring trouble was their specialty.
Though he respected Solomon's self-sacrifice, both by logic and by sentiment, Assyria was still a follower of Babylon's pantheon. Helping one's own drive out Israelite heretics was only natural.
The gods of the Underworld weren't personally butchering Israel. By giving humanity the chance for fair competition, they were already being generous.
With that hidden piece now in play, the crushing weight that had loomed over the Underworld's gathering slowly dissipated, and the atmosphere grew light again.
Conversations soon flowed freely. Some whispered with the now-grown Ana, while laughter and warmth gradually spread among the tea party's guests.
Through the long night, they spoke of many things.
Sometimes they reminisced about the days of standing shoulder to shoulder in Uruk. Sometimes they shared memories of Mesopotamia's unforgettable cuisine. Sometimes they spoke of the humans they had once sheltered, how those mortals aged step by step, and how they peacefully approached death...
And among the many questions, two were asked most often: the current state of Mother Goddess Tiamat, and Ana's development.
Medusa, already self-conscious about her figure, was mortified to death.
Rumors about "rubbing your chest to make it grow" began to spread and were about to land on her. With a black look, Samael, acting as the Shepherd King, signaled Siduri to take action.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
Three crisp thuds later, the culprit Shamhat—and the all-too-credulous Ereshkigal and Ishtar—were left clutching their heads, silenced and sulking.
With the tea party's air properly "purified," Medusa returned to the girls' circle, chatting about things they all enjoyed.
Meanwhile, after grinding through several baskets of clay tablets for most of the night, Gilgamesh finally eased the furrow in his brow and stretched with relief.
This isn't a nine-to-five, nor is it 996—it's a full-on 007, twenty-four hours, nonstop! Tough doesn't even begin to cover it.
Seeing the wise king's current state of life, Samael's eyes softened with pity, and he felt a bit guilty.
"Hey! What's with that look? Are you pitying this king?!"
But that faint expression was instantly caught by Gilgamesh's sharp gaze.
Already simmering with pent-up frustration, the King of Heroes' face darkened like the bottom of a pot. Pressing his lips together, he let out a low, sinister laugh.
"Birthday, is it? I recall having just the right kind of cursed Noble Phantasm for the occasion..."
He turned his head, golden vortex blooming open, reaching as if to rummage through his treasury of cursed relics.
"Uh—it's Ana's birthday, not mine!"
"You'll be the one handling it anyway. Worst case, I'll just use the curse on you next time."
"Be human, for once!"
Facing Gilgamesh's restless eagerness, Samael rolled his eyes and smothered any lingering sympathy.
It wasn't as if anyone was going to die. The earthly nations' traditions were mostly tied to Sumerian culture, so those spirits could all be considered honorary Sumerians.
Your own people—deal with them yourself.
"Speaking of which, you didn't go to all the trouble of setting up long-range spirit-particle communication just to celebrate that girl's birthday, did you?"
Having vented some of his irritation, Gilgamesh propped his chin on one hand and gave a cool, sidelong glance at one of Uruk's twin kings who had so neatly shifted all responsibility onto him. His tone was low and probing.
Samael hesitated, then glanced toward Medusa, who was chatting casually with Ishtar and the others, before slowly nodding.
Establishing spirit communication across world eggs was not only immensely difficult but also burned through resources at an alarming rate.
The ritual formula running continuously consumed the divine cores he had painstakingly gathered—cores originally meant as supplements for refining divine power with Tina.
After steadying his thoughts, the ancient serpent explained his situation to Gilgamesh.
The others around him, with their unstable intellects, couldn't be relied on much. But from Gilgamesh, he could at least hear sound opinions.
"So, Typhon, King of Monsters, has set his sights on your Arima Caverns, watching and waiting..."
"And your choice is to strike a deal with Zeus, King of the Gods, side with Olympus, and use him to check Typhon?"
Gilgamesh tapped his knuckles against the floor, frowning in thought.
Samael gave a small nod, looking resigned.
"Compared to Zeus, Typhon's threat is far greater. That King of Monsters intends to drag Greece back into chaos."
"And at least Zeus can be reasoned with. Typhon, on the other hand, wants to devour Ana and Athena to complete his divinity."
"Tch. I thought I could just sit back and watch the two beasts tear each other apart, Zeus and Typhon clashing first. But that bastard showed up too soon."
"Since I was forced to pick a side, I chose the lesser of two evils."
"But it's only temporary."
Hearing the serpent complain, Gilgamesh's lips curved upward, his mood much improved.
Knowing you're suffering too makes me feel better.
Still, the King of Heroes, clinging to the last shred of conscience, cast a heavy glance at the little birthday girl on the other side of the spirit link. His brow furrowed.
"If you side with Olympus, won't Ana and the Mother Goddess be in danger?"
Samael raised the crystal dew, took a slow sip to moisten his throat, and replied with seriousness.
"Relax. Once their initial doubts are cleared, being under the shadow of the lamp is actually safer."
"Besides, siding with Olympus is only a gesture—a false front meant to mislead Typhon. Do you think I'd be stupid enough to reveal my whole hand?"
"The Mother Goddess, Athena, and Ana—their identities are too special. If I exposed everything now, Zeus would strike me down before Typhon even arrived."
"So I only pledged the Arima Caverns' allegiance to Olympus in the names of the Mother of Serpents and Themis."
The ancient serpent paused, coughed lightly, his gaze turning aside.
"And think about it! Olympus is an official institution—the biggest faction in Greece! Their terms are generous."
"Permanent positions, no trial period, straight to full employment. Perfect for solving the job placement problem of those divine offspring."
"The little ones are already grown. This swamp is too small; they're bored stiff here. The Mother of Serpents wants to push them out to stand on their own..."
"See? Isn't this convenient?"
The more the schemer spoke, the harder Gilgamesh's eyelid twitched.
It felt like he himself had once been conned into one of these so-called "job placements." He couldn't shake the sense that this snake was up to no good.
In that moment, the King of Heroes longed to throw back the very words this creature had once shouted at him.
"Be human!"
...
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