"Gods… sealed?"
Only after Ishtar's light had vanished did Ophis finally have time to process the goddess's parting words.
The Age of Gods… ended just like that? Quietly, without a single echo?
No curtain call. No divine judgment on the humans who had forsaken them.
…No. That couldn't be right. Retribution must simply not have begun yet.
Recalling Inori's words about the coming calamity, Ophis lowered her gaze, her mind fitting together fragments of thought.
The key detail: Gaia was the one who sealed the gods.
Even for someone as prideful as Ishtar, there was almost no chance she was lying. And Ophis had noticed for some time—the world's suppression of the mystical had weakened drastically. If Gaia had been preoccupied with sealing the gods, that would explain it.
Only—the roles didn't align.
By all logic, Gaia, as the will of the planet, was herself one of the gods. Why would she act to seal her own kind?
And according to Inori's prophecy, the coming calamity bore the shadow of divine hands. But if the gods were now sealed, unable to act directly, how could they still be the cause?
Too many pieces, and none fitting cleanly.
Ophis quietly handed the whole problem to Inori.
[Haa… maybe try thinking for yourself once in a while. Never mind. Considering how few chances we have left, I'll spell it out for you this time.]
"Chances?"
[Nothing. Anyway—Gaia's case is simple. She's… unique among the gods. She seized part of the planet's authority for herself, becoming a higher-ranked being. She acts less as a god and more as the embodiment of the world's will.]
"But… humans and gods…"
Ophis still couldn't reconcile it.
The "standpoint of the world" was to seal the gods? That was a cruel destiny for a deity.
Besides, if Gaia was the planet, then humanity posed the greater threat to her, not the gods. The gods should have been her allies.
[That's where your logic trips. Let me ask you this—if another dragon like yourself appeared and sought to wipe out humanity, whose side would you take?]
Ophis's eyes fell shut. The answer was too obvious to bother speaking aloud.
[Exactly. For you, your kind doesn't matter. The one you care for is Enkidu. Gaia's reasoning is similar. Humans are her children, born of her body. The gods, on the other hand, are rivals—beings capable of usurping her power at any moment.]
At last, Ophis understood.
To Gaia, humanity was the planet's offspring; the gods were parasites threatening its life.
For now, then, humanity was her chosen side.
Even so… if the choice came down to saving either the planet or its people, Ophis knew what she would choose.
She would destroy humanity—for the planet's sake. Because Enkidu had loved the world itself more than humankind.
But for now, she would fight for humanity—against the gods.
Which brought her back to the most pressing question.
"If the gods are sealed, then why—?"
[Even with their true bodies sealed, they can still descend through special means. This world's descent-rituals are highly developed. A descended god can't use its full strength, but if the ritual or vessel is powerful enough, it's still formidable.]
Ophis nodded slowly.
So the coming enemies would be descended gods.
That made things… slightly easier.
Every descent ritual carried weaknesses—its caster, its vessel, the ritual itself, or flaws introduced during descent.
Still, only slightly easier. Rituals weren't her forte. More research would be needed.
Her mental list of tasks grew longer again.
And another issue followed naturally.
"If gods are being summoned by descent, then there must be summoners, right?"
She asked without much hope. If Inori could name them, this future wouldn't have been inevitable.
As expected—
[Even if I knew who they were, it wouldn't matter. It can't be stopped. The enemy also possesses a powerful "eye," so I've severed both sides' vision—you can't see them, they can't see you. It reduces interference at least.]
A fair trade. If she couldn't act against them directly, then she would make sure they couldn't act against her.
[You know, you don't have to handle everything alone.]
"What do you mean?"
[If they can summon gods… then why can't we?]
"You're suggesting we summon our own gods?"
Her brow furrowed faintly.
Even if successful, a god wasn't something that could be controlled. What if it defected to the enemy's side?
[No need to go that far. Even if not gods, this world has a convenient system for summoning—something like a "Throne of Heroes."]
"If it will help, do it."
[Ah… I can't.]
"…"
[Ahem. Don't glare at me like that. Magecraft was never my specialty. My domain is results, not process. I could design the ritual, but without a proper "linking channel," your current abilities would summon something unstable—or too weak to matter.]
"A linking channel?"
[Right. Preferably something tied to the materialization of souls. Got anything like that?]
Ophis tilted her head slightly and produced a golden chalice from her treasury.
"From here."
The Third Magic—Materialization of the Soul. A Holy Grail overflowing with immense magical power.
With that, even a full-scale descent ritual could succeed.
[You could've mentioned that earlier…]
"It holds vast power, but it's useless to me."
[Of course. If you can't use it, you just ignore it—typical you. So why bring it out now?]
"I saw it."
[Ah, so you're already at that stage… Fine. With that relic, you can perform a true descent ritual. Time for you to learn something new.]
At last, Ophis reached the foot of the Grand Temple. She raised her head, gazing up at the towering temple.
"Mhm… for the sake of protecting Uruk."
A faint gleam of determination flickered in her eyes as she stepped through the great doors.
She was a dragon. She was a king. She was also a god.
If the day came when the king's power could no longer save Uruk—
Then the god would take its place.
Even if divine power would crush everything in its path.
Including Uruk itself.
---
T/N:
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