Miracle Summoner

The Next Day.

When the sun rose once again from the east, Rozen's group finally arrived at the city of Uruk.

As the central city of this era and the largest walled city in the world, its grandeur and splendor were beyond doubt.

Because the Sumerians had appeared on the historical stage as early as 4000 BCE, after more than a thousand years of development, their civilization had already matured.

The Sumerian civilization, humanity's oldest urban society, formally emerged after the Sumerians moved beyond village communities of several thousand people. Through irrigated agriculture, grain production increased, and urban states with populations in the tens of thousands began to form.

Though not comparable in scale to modern nations, once such a national scale was reached, writing naturally emerged. Higher education systems also appeared. Although they were not blessed with abundant timber, the fertile land between two great rivers produced rich soil. From this soil, the Sumerians extracted clay to build various tools, structures, and even fortified cities.

Thus, this was a land of mud, clay, wheat, and sheep.

And as humanity's oldest walled city, Uruk's prosperity was likewise unrivaled.

Even now, in the midst of war, Uruk's marketplace remained bustling.

Cries of vendors echoed through the air.

The clanging of hammers striking metal rang ceaselessly.

Smoke from the forging of weapons rose from every direction.

People clad in coarse garments bustled about the city—some manned stalls and shops, calling out to potential customers; others hurriedly worked in blacksmithing and transportation. The result was a marketplace scene more vibrant than even modern urban centers.

"""S-So lively!"""

Standing at Uruk's gates and taking in the vibrant city, everyone—from Rozen to the members of Chaldea—was stunned, voicing their awe uncontrollably.

Even Anna, who had remained silent and kept her distance from everyone along the journey, was left speechless by the sight before her, her face blank in surprise.

"This... this is ancient Mesopotamian Uruk!?"

"How can it be this bustling!?"

"We're in the middle of a war, and against gods no less. Yet the people here still maintain such energy—it's unbelievable!"

Olga Marie, Da Vinci, and Roman's voices echoed over the communicator, clearly as shocked by the scene as the others.

"Is this truly the environment of a civilization from 2600 BCE?"

Even Rozen's face couldn't hide his astonishment.

Originally, he had thought that since this was a civilization from nearly five thousand years ago, even if they had developed cities, things would still be crude and primitive.

And to some extent, the scene before them was indeed far from modern: there were no paved roads, no towering buildings—only streets of compacted sand, and almost all the buildings were made of mud, resembling earthen huts. The market stalls and shops were also simple, making it clear they had indeed arrived in the ancient past.

But both the marketplace and the fields were filled with energetic people working in an incredibly orderly fashion.

The vibrancy and organization rivaled even modern times.

"What do you think? Eye-opening, isn't it?"

Merlin asked with visible satisfaction, clearly enjoying the shocked reactions.

"This is Uruk. Don't doubt it. As the cradle of human civilization—both the oldest and the origin of all future societies—its vibrancy and vitality are only natural, wouldn't you say?"

After all, future civilizations were built upon the foundation of this one. Traces of later societies could already be seen here.

"In the future, such civilizations will continue to develop until they become the world you know. To witness the origin of it all—you should treasure this moment."

Saying so, Merlin raised his staff and pointed ahead.

"Look, that tower in the heart of Uruk is the city's temple. It's also the royal palace and formerly served as a place of worship. But with the city god absent, it's now practically become King Gilgamesh's residence."

Hearing this, everyone looked in the direction he indicated.

What came into view was a ziggurat-style temple, situated at the very center of Uruk. As Merlin said, it looked both majestic and sacred.

The main streets of Uruk all led toward it, converging on the plaza surrounding the temple. The closer one got, the grander the buildings and more refined the layout. Stone bricks even paved the streets near the temple, making the city center especially magnificent.

"Let's go pay our respects to the king." Merlin smiled at the group, offering this suggestion.

"But be prepared, all right?"

Prepared for what?

Of course, to face the difficulty of conversing with humanity's oldest hero and king.

"Though he's awakened as a wise king after seeking immortality from the underworld and achieving enlightenment, he's still that King of Heros—the most fearsome tyrant, the proudest and most merciless judge. Having an equal conversation with such a king is no easy task. You might even be seen as enemies and struck down on the spot. If you don't want things to end badly, think carefully about your approach."

Merlin warned seriously, making Mash nervously swallow and tense up.

Rozen's eyes narrowed in thought.

As for Anna, having recovered from her earlier shock at the city's vibrancy, suddenly lowered her head.

"I'm not going."

She spoke softly.

"Going into a human settlement, meeting a human king—I want no part of that."

With that, Anna turned to leave.

Merlin didn't try to stop her.

No—in fact, he had expected this reaction all along.

And so—

"Oh my, are you sure about that?" Merlin asked, shaking his head theatrically. "If you leave now, you won't even get to see the Goddess of Beasts, let alone defeat her. You don't have the strength to break through the demonic beast army alone. Are you still going to walk away?"

At those words, Anna stopped.

"Your goal is to defeat that goddess, right? That's why you made a deal with me, wasn't it?" Merlin said persuasively. "If that's the case, you should stay here and fight with us against the Goddess of Beasts, using Uruk's strength. That's your only chance to reach her—and defeat her."

"...That's not what you said before." Anna turned back and glared. "You told me you'd take me to see the Goddess of Beasts."

"I did." Merlin nodded matter-of-factly, smiling. "But I never said I'd march in with you alone, now did I?"

Anna was speechless.

"Well? Coming with us?"

Merlin smiled slyly.

"...Sigh."

After a long silence, Anna sighed and walked back.

"One day, I swear I'll kill you."

Leaving behind those words, Anna stepped into Uruk.

"Yes, yes." Merlin shrugged indifferently, then turned to Rozen and Mash. "Well then, shall we go too?"

"Y-Yeah..." Mash replied awkwardly.

Rozen rolled his eyes.

And with that, the group entered Uruk, making their way toward the tower at its heart.