『Quetzalcoatl,』 Dr. Roman's voice chimed in over the comms. 『The conqueror of the Maya, the sun god of the Toltecs. An undisputed chief deity. Wait… wasn't Quetzalcoatl usually depicted as a male god?』
Ishtar clapped her hands together to explain. "The South American mythos—what you call Mexico—is a total oddity. Their divinity didn't originate on this planet; they are said to have fallen from the sky."
—From the sky? You mean… from space?
"Hoh. Now that is a curiosity," the Heroic King mused. "South American gods value death and rebirth. It seems their origin is just as strange as their legends."
Ishtar continued. "An asteroid struck the earth, and something attached to that rock survived by parasitizing the local flora. Eventually, it became a microorganism that could rewrite local lifeforms into gods, building the civilizations of that land. South American divinity is something that 'transfers from human to human.' One of those vessels must have been a woman."
—…???
"In short, the gods of the South are from a far-flung, alien realm. They are not like us," the Heroic King clarified for the bewildered Ea.
（Divinity?）
—Oh! Right!
『Thank you for the incredible info, Goddess! This planet is deeper than I thought!』 Rikka cheered.
"Quetzalcoatl…" the Wise King's voice trailed off. "Before you Chaldeans arrived, she attacked Uruk alone multiple times. My staff members fought her one-on-one to repel her, but…"
His silence spoke volumes.
"You mean… they barely held her off?" Rikka asked.
"Against a chief deity of a foreign land, a god who follows the path of supreme authority, a draw was the best they could manage. They couldn't defeat her. Her power is nonsensical. She punches holes in Uruk's walls with her bare hands. No matter how many times we blew her away, she'd return at incredible speeds. She's been knocked into other dimensions and made it back in seconds. In terms of pure martial prowess, she is likely the strongest of the goddesses."
The room went quiet. A goddess that the entire Uruk staff couldn't overcome…
"And I… promised to fight a goddess like that…" Rikka's body began to tremble. Her shoulders shook with small, rhythmic jolts.
"Wait, don't tell me you're getting scared now—" Ishtar began.
"Silence, you fool. Do not insult my Master," the Heroic King interrupted. Mash and the others nodded firmly.
"I'm… I'm getting fired up!!" Rikka shouted, her eyes blazing. "I have to give it my all to honor the fact that everyone fought so hard to buy us time! A Luchadora…! A worthy opponent! MUCHO!!"
Rikka was practically vibrating with combat instinct. Only Ishtar looked confused.
"Wait, why are you fired up? This is the part where you're supposed to despair! Are you even human?!"
Rikka cracked her knuckles with a loud crack.
"How could I not be?! The martial arts of a chief-class deity? That's Master-class! In any walk of life, it's an honor to be tested by someone who has reached the pinnacle! Whether it's model-building, piracy, or martial arts! I get to experience that first-hand! I'm burning up! I'm ready! I'm the villainous Evil Dragon here, so who cares?! Let's do this!!"
"Gilgamesh… is your Master always this much of a combat junkie?"
"It's good to see some backbone, isn't it?" the Heroic King smirked. "Haven't you realized? This one is a Beast of Humanity—a true Evil Dragon."
"What?!" Ishtar turned to Marie and the others. They all nodded in unison.
『It's Rikka, after all,』 Marie said simply.
『Rikka-kun isn't really in the category of "human" anymore,』 Da Vinci added.
『And honestly, no human man could ever handle her as a bride—』
"PLEASE STOP SAYING THAT!!" Rikka cried. "Wait, why is Quetzalcoatl-sama doing Lucha? Is she the Goddess of Lucha?"
"HAAAII! That is because after being summoned somewhere, I was moved by the sight of Luchadores who fly through the air freely without wings! I saw the future in them, and that experience was burned into the Throne of Heroes!"
A woman's voice came from behind Rikka. Hands reached out to wrap around her in a hug.
"! Scouts! What were they doing?!"
"I put them to sleep for a bit! I just came to say hello! Haaai☆ My lovely little Ruda Dragon-chan? Big Sister came to see you! Ciao☆"
Mash and Ishtar immediately went into combat stances—but the Heroic King raised a hand.
"Stand down. Let her be."
"But…!"
"If she calls herself a Luchadora, and she has accepted a challenge… she won't do anything as uncouth as a sneak attack."
The woman laughed brightly. "Si! Of course! Now that the terms are almost set, I won't play dirty."
"You're… Quetzalcoatl-sama!"
"'Big Sister' is fine. My lovely Master-san? Did you enjoy your month in the Yucatan?"
Rikka nodded. Quetzalcoatl smiled with pure satisfaction.
"That's wonderful! I've been looking forward to this too! I've built a ring and I've been warming up my body! I am… PREPARADO!!"
"The ring… is ready?"
"Yes! Eridu has been transformed into a perfect environment for Lucha! It is now the stage where I can accept your challenge! And so…"
With a graceful movement, she performed a handstand right on Rikka's shoulders, supporting her entire weight with ease.
"Let us enjoy ourselves to the limit! You and me, body against body! It will be a wonderful time! Ah, but…"
She hopped down and began patting Rikka's limbs, checking her muscle tone.
"Hmm! Such practical, high-quality muscle! You can certainly crush enemies like this, but you might be a bit too heavy to fly through the air… You might not be built for Lucha!"
"Too heavy…!" Rikka felt the mental damage, but she kept her eyes locked on the Goddess.
"Pancration… Greek wrestling… You've been drilled in techniques that have zero waste. It's not quite right for pro-wrestling, but it'll do! We'll make it work! Now, one piece of advice."
Her tone shifted, becoming calm and instructional.
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