Miracle Summoner

Enkidu's death was indeed something Ishtar bore undeniable responsibility for.

If not for her demands, if not for the gods' excessive indulgence of her, then Enkidu would not have perished.

It could be said that Enkidu's death was entirely orchestrated by Ishtar—this goddess was the true culprit behind it all.

In the past, Ishtar had never believed she had done anything wrong. But now, after hearing Siduri's words, even this goddess felt a twinge of guilt.

On one hand, Siduri—being the Head Priestess of Uruk's temple of rituals—had always been devout toward her as the Urban Goddess of Uruk, even more so than the High Priestess of the temple of priestesses, causing Ishtar to always regard Siduri as one of her own.

On the other hand, in the current Ishtar's view, her past actions were indeed excessive.

This was, of course, because she now carried a fused human personality, giving rise to such reflections.

Still, for the present Ishtar, a thought like 'Why did I go so far?' did exist.

So, faced with the stares of the others, Ishtar was both flustered and embarrassed, not knowing what to say. She simply averted her gaze, pretended not to notice, even put her hands behind her head and started whistling.

Seeing this, the group could only fall into a speechless silence.

However, everyone also understood—there was no point in blaming the current Ishtar.

After all, Enkidu was originally a weapon forged by the gods, meant to bring Gilgamesh back to the side of the divine.

In the end, not only did Enkidu fail in that mission, but he even fell in with Gilgamesh, aiding humanity in breaking free from divine control—a complete betrayal of his creators.

In this way, Enkidu incurring the wrath of the gods and being recalled, having his life and soul reclaimed, had already been a foregone conclusion. Even without Ishtar's request, the gods would have eventually taken back what they gave.

Moreover, Enkidu's death would drive Gilgamesh to descend into the underworld in search of immortality, ultimately reaching enlightenment and awakening as a wise king—laying the most important foundation for the future development of human history.

It all seemed like destiny, and no one else could be blamed.

One could say that Enkidu existed to shape humanity's oldest king—for the sake of all humankind.

Without his death, Gilgamesh would never have awakened, humanity would not have flourished, and the gods would never have been severed. It was all fate.

Though Ishtar did play the villain's role, at least the present version of her was no longer the jealous, capricious, and domineering goddess of mythology. There was something redeemable in her now.

As such, no one intended to criticize her. Only the ever-scheming Magus of Flowers, Merlin, couldn't resist teasing her a little.

Rozen also rolled his eyes at Ishtar, then turned his gaze back to Siduri.

"Since you've said that," Rozen said, "if I get the chance, I'll ask him for you. Besides, I'm quite curious about this so-called Kingu myself."

"Curious?" Siduri blinked slightly.

"Yes," Rozen nodded. After thinking silently for a moment, he said suddenly, "Is he really just a fake Enkidu?"

That question made everyone furrow their brows.

And for good reason.

"You mean he might not be?" Merlin looked as though he wanted to read Rozen's thoughts, casting a knowing gaze as he smiled and said, "If it were really Enkidu, there's no way he'd help the Beast goddess destroy humanity—especially when Enkidu is already dead."

Given that, this Enkidu was undoubtedly a fake.

That was what everyone believed.

Siduri included.

Ishtar included.

Merlin, of course, included.

However—

"If he's just a fake, then the level of authenticity is far too high, don't you think?"

Rozen shared his perspective.

This was a doubt he had held ever since his clash with Kingu.

"While in terms of personality, Kingu and the Enkidu of legend are wildly different, if you ignore that part, then Kingu is astonishingly similar to the Enkidu described in myth."

Rozen calmly pointed out several key issues.

"For instance, Kingu can act as the embodiment of nature and the earth, able to observe across vast distances."

"For another, his combat style is nearly identical to that of King Gilgamesh and Enkidu—indistinguishable, in fact."

"More importantly, he can use the Chains of Heaven —a Noble Phantasm specifically effective against divine beings. The higher the target's divinity, the stronger the shackles. I find it hard to believe that something like this could be simply copied or imitated."

"Then there are things like treating his whole body as a weapon in battle. All these abilities match Enkidu to such a degree that 'imitation' just doesn't cut it."

Rozen glanced around at the group and spoke.

"So I suspect Miss Siduri's intuition may be right. That Kingu and Enkidu are deeply connected. Whether he's a fake or not is still uncertain."

The group's expressions shifted visibly at Rozen's words.

Especially Siduri, who clenched a hand tightly at her chest, her face—shrouded by her veil—turning visibly pale.

"But if Kingu really is Enkidu, then why has he become like this?"

Mash hurriedly asked.

But it wasn't Rozen who answered this time—it was Anna, who had been silent the whole time.

"Both human nature and divine nature can be altered," Anna said quietly. "Just like many monsters in mythology—who started off innocent, but due to various curses or tragedies, eventually blackened, lost control, and turned into real monsters, killing even their closest family."

The implication was clear: Enkidu could have suffered the same fate, thus becoming Kingu.

"If he was a divine weapon crafted by the gods, it's possible they could destroy him at will—or restart him at will, too."

Anna said this with a heavy tone, her feelings unclear.

And yet, no one could argue with her.

In truth, Rozen was thinking the same.

"Among Servants, there are what's known as reverse states—conditions where a Servant's personality is completely altered, doing things they would never have done normally," Rozen added. "Maybe Enkidu went through something like that. Who knows?"

At that point, Rozen didn't continue further.

"I see," Merlin stroked his chin and said, "In that case, aiming for the Beast goddess really might be the best breakthrough."

Both she and Kingu carried unsolved mysteries.

Was the Beast goddess truly the primordial goddess Tiamat?

And was the person calling himself Kingu really the already-deceased Enkidu?

These mysteries still needed answers.

"In any case, I'll keep an eye on this matter," Rozen said to Siduri. "If I find anything, I'll let you know immediately."

"I'm counting on you," Siduri said, bowing her head to Rozen, expressing both thanks and apology.

"Then let's get ready to move."

Rozen's eyes swept over Mash, Merlin, and Ishtar, then finally landed on Anna. "Anna, are you planning to come with us?"

"...Yes," Anna was silent for a while, then nodded. "My goal is to kill the Beast goddess. Please let me join you."

"Alright," Rozen agreed readily. "Then let's set off now."

The group nodded immediately.

And so, under Siduri's watchful gaze, they all departed from Uruk.

Their destination: the Cedar Forest in the north.