Chapter 47: Ishtar: Where Is My Bull of Heaven?
At night, the Pleasure Quarter was at its most bustling. After all, once the sun dipped below the horizon, low-level adventurers immediately swarmed out of the Dungeon.
There were even some less-than-respectable deities who spent their days wandering nearby and their nights refusing to return to their Familias—veritable loafers of the Entertainment District.
And their purpose for coming here was singular.
What else does one do in the Pleasure Quarter?
Engage in deeds of pleasure, of course!
Same-sex, opposite-sex, or even genders never heard of before—the Pleasure Quarter was a place of diverse talents. As long as you were willing to look, you would surely find someone who met your requirements.
A Pleasure Quarter like this was indeed a prime location to evade pursuit. Aside from those rats in Evilus, who would dare to kill in a place with so many people? Not to mention slaying a god!
"I'm almost there!"
"As long as I reach that spot, I'll be safe!"
After discovering that Barbara intended to move against her, Ishtar immediately abandoned her plan to hide in a secret chamber. After all, the abilities of a Child of God far exceeded those of ordinary people; she might have a way to track her down.
Thus, Ishtar did the exact opposite, heading directly toward the most crowded parts of the Pleasure Quarter to leave Barbara with no way to strike.
As the goddess of the Pleasure Quarter, as long as she walked the main streets, she would inevitably draw countless eyes. In such a state, she was at her safest!
It wasn't as if she were in the United States, where one might encounter an assassination during a speech surrounded by onlookers, right?
Although Ishtar was a goddess, it was still difficult for her to dodge a bullet with a flick of the head. If she were actually hit by such an attack, her fate would certainly not be pleasant. She might even be forced to trigger the protection of her Divine Power due to the severity of her injuries, resulting in an immediate deportation...
However, as Ishtar sprinted, the situation nearby caught her attention.
'Isn't it... a bit too quiet?'
The noise coming from the direction of the Pleasure Quarter was immense, which was normal given it was a gathering place for people.
But why... had she not seen a single member of her Familia on her escape route?
Ishtar looked around. The buildings were familiar, yet there wasn't a single Familia member in sight, to the point where she couldn't even find a scapegoat to die in her place.
Furthermore, for some reason, the sound of the wind had grown louder, giving Ishtar an ill omen. She couldn't help but quicken her pace.
"Almost there!"
Just one more corner and she could vanish into the crowd. Once there, those who cherished their reputations would certainly not lay a hand on her!
Just as Ishtar rounded the corner, something slammed violently into her face, causing blood to spray from the nostrils of this already pathetic goddess.
"Ugh—!"
Suffering a heavy blow to the nose would be unbearable even for a goddess. After all, without the protection of Divine Power, they possessed only a Mortal Body.
"I'm sorry, the Pleasure Quarter is already full. It can't accommodate any more people."
Barbara held the barrel of the Skyward AK like a baseball bat, dealing Ishtar a frontal blow that sent the goddess—who was on the verge of escape—tumbling back into the unseen shadows.
"Where are they? Where did everyone go?"
"Phryne, and the rest of you—why aren't you coming to save me?"
Ishtar called out the names of every high-ranking member of her Familia, but there was never a response, as if she were not the primary goddess of the Ishtar Familia at this moment.
"Don't bother calling. Those people are no longer in this world... For them, this might already be the best possible ending."
Barbara's tone was calm, as if she were stating a trivial matter.
The Ishtar Familia committed countless evils; to her, there was nothing worth remembering about them. They were memories that even Fuli would find distasteful!
Barbara had simply flown in the sky, simply aimed at the majority of the Ishtar Familia members, and simply eliminated them. It wasn't difficult at all.
After all, how could adventurers with the status of mortals block Barbara, who was bolstered by Aeolus Divine Power and the power of the Shade of Time?
Under the guidance of time, the majority of the Ishtar Familia had returned to the initial state of their lives, as if they had never come into the world at all...
To put it in more common terms: 'I should have just sprayed you on the wall to save everyone the cost of the rice you ate.'
"How is this possible? In such a short time, how could you possibly take out my Familia..."
Ishtar wanted to say more, but after sensing the power radiating from Barbara, her expression shifted instantly.
The reason a Child of God was special was that they could use the power of deities without worrying about being deported by the detection of Divine Power.
Setting aside whether the gods of the Genshin Impact world and those of the Danmachi world shared the same type of Divine Power, even if they did, Barbara's status as a human would prevent her from being bounced back to the Spirit World.
"It's 'Wind'... and 'Time'? How could you possibly possess both these powers?"
Any deity could easily see the powers surrounding Barbara.
The wind element might not be much; after all, this world possessed Magic, and it wasn't strange for most Mages to know some wind magic.
But 'Time' was different. How could a terrifying power involving the very rules of existence be so easily obtained by a human?
Even a Child of God shouldn't be able to!
"Let me go! I can act as if this never happened. Don't force us into a mutually destructive end!"
Ishtar's expression was distorted, which also meant she was bluffing. After all, those who truly intend to win do not have such looks on their faces.
Only losers become hysterical.
"I think you've misunderstood something, Goddess Ishtar."
"It seems I'm the one with the advantage right now!"
Barbara's approach represented an absolute threat to Ishtar. If she couldn't stop her advance, then she would become the final sacrifice of the night!
"There's no other way. I didn't plan on using this so early... You forced my hand, Deliverer!"
Ishtar had spent many years entrenched in the Pleasure Quarter and knew it like the back of her hand. She had even made several preparations to pull the other Goddess of Beauty, Freya, down from her throne... Since Barbara had ruined everything now, Ishtar saw no reason to hold back!
"Come forth, my Bull of Heaven!"
Ishtar urgently pulled something from her bosom and tossed it forward, looking like Ash Ketchum throwing a Poké Ball.
Soon, a 'Pokémon'—the Bull of Heaven—appeared before Barbara and launched an attack without hesitation.
"Didn't expect this, did you? This is a product of combining a Corrupted Spirit with a monster, and I paid an enormous price for it!"
"Its Strength is comparable to a Level 7 adventurer. You can't possibly defeat my Bull of Heaven!"
Ishtar's tone was brimming with confidence, but what met her eyes next was the movement of Barbara raising her gun barrel.
"A formidable monster, yet it appears so fragile before the truth..."
"A-da-da-da-da..."
"I am Justice Man!"
What appeared to be a powerful monster lasted less than five seconds before Barbara. It directly turned into a Magic Stone and dropped to the ground, leaving Ishtar standing nearby in a daze.
"Where is my Bull of Heaven?"
"Where did my huge Bull of Heaven go?!"
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T/N: If you spot mistranslation, do tell me.
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Shilling time!
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