A blue beam of magic—strong enough to blast a hole through Uruk's city walls—shot straight toward Ophis.
Without visibly moving, she flicked her sleeve. A flash of silver streaked through the air, unfolding into a gleaming shield that intercepted the attack head-on.
The beam struck, split apart, and scattered harmlessly into the open plains beyond the city.
Only then did Ophis slowly lift her gaze toward its source.
Hovering in the sky was a young "girl" in a revealing outfit, lounging lazily atop a crescent-shaped flying craft, waving at Ophis with an impish smile.
Ophis tilted her head slightly in thought, then raised a hand—and fired a massive silver-white cannon blast back at her, easily a meter across.
"Hey, hey, hey! Is that how you greet someone after so long?"
"It's only been a month," Ophis replied evenly. "Besides, this method of greeting was something Ishtar herself taught me."
"…I knew it—you really are black-hearted deep down, aren't you?"
Ishtar's forehead darkened with throbbing lines of irritation.
"Your imagination," Ophis said flatly.
"King Ophis, did you just say…this is Lady Ishtar? Goddess Inanna herself?"
At Ophis's side, Siduri's eyes widened at the sight of Uruk's guardian goddess.
The goddess's clothing was as scandalous as ever, though her once-golden hair had turned pitch-black. Her eyes remained the same, but her form had clearly changed—noticeably smaller… especially in the chest.
Of course, a goddess could assume any appearance she wished. But as the goddess of beauty, Ishtar typically chose a body at the height of human allure.
…Granted, opinions on what counted as "peak" beauty varied. Some preferred twenty-somethings, others favored adolescence, and a few even the wizened grace of age. Still, the divine consensus placed the human prime somewhere around the twenties—and Ishtar rarely deviated from it.
The sudden shift in both age and hair color was strange indeed. Yet Siduri forced herself not to dwell on it. Priestesses who'd tried to fathom a goddess's logic in the past hadn't exactly remained sane.
Her brief surprise didn't escape Ishtar's notice.
"Oh my, if it isn't our little priestess. What's with that face? Shocked by this form? Granted, it's not as voluptuous as before, but it's still top-tier quality. I don't mind lowering my standards a little to accept it~"
"Ish—Ishta," Ophis corrected herself mid-word, recalling their prior agreement. "When I saw you just now, I wasn't completely certain. But it really is you, isn't it?"
Hearing that, Ishtar narrowed her eyes.
"Oh? That's what I should be asking. Back then, you asked me to help with that bizarre request, and I couldn't figure out why. Even up to a moment ago, I wasn't sure… But now that you've brought it up—so you really can see the future, huh?"
"…"
Ophis didn't answer.
"But even knowing that, you asked for my help before—while I stand against you now. Meaning your foresight has limits. Did you not foresee this? Or did you already know I'd oppose you here, and still saw that you'd need my help back then?"
A teasing smile curved Ishtar's lips.
"So tell me, Ophis—can you see clearly whether I'm heading south to reclaim my divine authority?"
"You can't," Ophis said simply.
Her sigh was almost weary. This troublesome goddess couldn't be ignored, yet dealing with her was endlessly exhausting.
"Ishta is a Servant. No matter how close you are to your original self, you'll never equal your true form."
Ophis had already discerned the truth. This Ishtar was an incarnation—summoned much like a Servant, possessing the body of a human vessel. That explained both the altered appearance and the diminished presence.
Even if she neared her divine power, she was still not the true goddess. Undoing what the original had wrought would be far beyond this avatar.
At the very least, it gave Ophis time.
"Tch. You're no fun."
Seeing Ophis remain unmoved, Ishtar pouted.
"Ishta… why are you doing this?"
After a moment's silence, Ophis voiced the question she'd long held back.
She had assumed the calamity was divine punishment for humanity's defiance. Yet Ishtar wasn't one of the gods who despised mankind.
For all her contradictions, Ishtar loved humanity. She had no reason to destroy it.
But Ophis also knew—gods needed no reason for their whims.
To act as one pleased—that was divinity itself.
"Huh? That's a dumb question. Do gods need a reason to punish humans? Isn't it more fun to watch whether they fight to survive or die pitifully?"
Ishtar flicked one of her dark twin-tails with a careless laugh.
The moment she finished, she sensed something wrong.
She glanced down—dozens of radiant weapons had materialized around Ophis, gleaming from golden ripples, all trained squarely on her.
"In that case," Ophis said coldly, "kindly exit the stage."
Her words fell, and a storm of weapons surged through the air.
"Hey hey hey! Who attacks right after one line of banter?! You're supposed to trade a few more speeches first! W-wait, hold on!!"
Ophis didn't even blink.
She had no idea where Ishtar's absurd expectations came from. Once someone was confirmed as an enemy, conversation was meaningless.
Despite her ditzy act, Ishtar's mind was ancient and sharp. Extracting information would never be easy—
"You shouldn't be acting alone," Ophis said evenly, loosing another volley. "Who else is with you?"
"Huh?"
Dodging frantically aboard Maanna, Ishtar answered before she could stop herself.
"Just those two creepy snake-looking guys who keep making exaggerated evil faces—"
Ishtar froze.
"Ah—! Damn it! Forget I said that! You'll regret this, I swear! I'll definitely be back!"
With that, she spun Maanna around and sped off into the horizon.
Ophis tilted her head slightly.
"…She really just went ahead and said it."
---
T/N: was gonna update earlier but got lazy, so im just doing 4 chapters for today's update, should be an update tomorrow too maybe 4 maybe not
Hello. I'm Enkidu.
Before you start… thank you for coming this far. Stories are strange things—once they leave the hand that wrote them, they become part of the world, like water joining a river. If this chapter keeps you company for even a moment, I think that is worth something.
If you'd like to support the translator (only if you truly want to), you can find them at patreon.com/wisetl. Early access is included as a small bonus. Also—starting tomorrow, there will be a 25% discount code for 12 days, lasting until the end of Christmas.
And if you enjoy a clear exchange—rewards are simple here: Every 100 Powerstones = 1 Bonus Chapter
(100ps = 1 chapter, 200ps = 2 chapters, 300ps = 3 chapters, and so on.)
If you'd rather talk than simply read, you can also join the translator's Discord: discord.gg/wisetl. It's easier to share thoughts when you're not speaking into the void.
That is all. Please enjoy the chapter.
guys say thank you to enkidu or i kill you