The Holy Grail War Blessed by the Gods

However, here, Kur lies deep underground, a desolate and dark land of no return.

"Be grateful for the mercy of the cliff; only sincere prayers to God will reach His ears."

It is a blessing to have the opportunity to meet the great Enlil. Your will is the guiding light for us. We constantly pray that your radiance will illuminate our bodies and protect us in this world. (iv)

Those below exclaimed with great joy, and Manjushri waved his hand, pushing them out of the temple.

"Pray and give thanks; do so in the temple below." Si

Manshu, who pushed them out, thought for a moment about what he was going to do. He thought of Ninurta below, and also of Enlil's other son. (II)

That is Nergal, who is also a god of the underworld, but is worshipped to a greater degree than Ereshkigal. ⑨

Nairgal was the god of death worshipped throughout Mesopotamian history, with records indicating that his worship continued into the Achaemenid Persian period. (Lin)

Nergal is the child of Enlil, and governs the elements of war, death, and disease. His city is, of course, Kuta, and Ereshkigal is his wife in mythology; however, two other goddesses were also considered his wives before him.

However, in Type-Moon, his existence was obviously removed, or rather, most of the goddesses' husbands were rendered non-existent.

Nergal's cult influence was much greater. Initially, he was worshipped only in the north, but by the Third Dynasty of Ur, he had also become a major deity in the south. In the Neo-Babylonian pantheon, he was the third god after Marduk and Nab.

The Akkadian god of death, Era, had long been fused with him, and he was worshipped by the Ugarit, the Ebra, the Eran, and the Julians, partly because his attributes also included war.

His attributes as a warrior god and a death god allowed him to be highly revered in his time. During the ancient Babylonian period, Nergal already possessed over 50 divine titles, a number only a handful of deities could boast.

Nergal's right to rule the underworld comes from his parents, Enlil and Ninglil. People believe that his way of deciding the fate of the dead is derived from what Enlil did to the living.

In ancient Babylonian poetry, Nergal was referred to as Enlil of the underworld, and sometimes as Enlil the lesser. Of course, this title was also a nickname for the god Enki.

Q. Because of his identity as a warrior god and a god of death, he is sometimes called the King of Peace, and he is often called upon in exorcising rituals to protect the target from harm, using his power of death to repel evil.

Some scholars even believe that Nergal is, to some extent, a sun god, and is sometimes regarded as Shamash, who is considered to represent a certain phase of the sun.

The main sources indicate that Nelgar is associated with sunsets. Ancient Babylonian poetry describes him as a judge at sunset, and some works refer to him as the King of Sunset.

Manshu felt he could try things out with these attributes, whether it was sunset, death, or warrior, these attributes were still within his grasp.

However, since the area of ​​the main entrance had already been carved, Manshu turned around and walked to the back of his seat, where he began to work on the back of the chair.

The classic image of Nergal is that of him holding a sickle-shaped sword and a club with three lion heads, standing on a mountaintop with the corpses of his enemies under his feet. This image comes from Larsa's cylinder seal.

The image of Si further highlights his attributes as a god of war. Rather than saying that in the Sumerian world, the god of the underworld was not an important attribute, and war was obviously more necessary for people.

The ancient Mesopotamian inhabitants had a rather vague concept of the underworld, believing that the dead, after falling into the underworld, would spend long, boring years there without end.

There is no final judgment for the dead there. The deceased are neither punished nor rewarded for their deeds in life, but simply spend their eternal years in that dark and dreary world.

The three of them focused more on the present life and did not have much imagination about what they would experience in the afterlife. They believed that after death they would simply remain in the dark realm of the dead forever.

Although there were simple trials later on, they were nothing more than ensuring that someone could live a bearable life, have access to clean drinking water and normal food, and be able to hibernate.

⑹ Other than that, people can only be all kinds of filth, drink abnormally salty sewage, and endure being unkempt and dirty.

Since the underworld is not valued, how can the god who governs the underworld be valued? Nergal is valued because he can protect war and control plagues and diseases.

But Manju didn't seem to need his warrior's strength that much, so after thinking for a while, he also engraved the symbol of the underworld on it, and made the mountain he was standing on be Kur, and the corpses of the dead he was stepping on.

After doing all this, Manju didn't bring Nergal back to life. Instead, you channeled your own power into this false shell, twisted it into a small ball, and threw it into the distance.

The energy required to create those extra creations is not nonexistent, and there is no need for that at the moment. So, I'm just going to take a look at Ereshkigal's underworld under a disguise.

“Uruk has lost all its vitality; the construction noise that used to be so loud is gone. Let’s hurry into the city, Master; something must have happened.”

Fujimaru Ritsuka and her three companions successfully completed their mission and returned to Uruk from Elidu. They noticed something was amiss at the city gate.

"Lord Merlin, you've finally returned! Ah, but... it's too late..."

The soldiers panicked as if they had lost their leader. They perked up at the sight of Merlin, but then shook their heads in disappointment.

Chapter 164 Entrance

"A funeral is really being held?! What on earth is going on?"

Upon learning of Gilgamesh's passing from grieving soldiers by the roadside, Fujimaru Ritsuka and his companions quickly rushed to the Tower Temple in the center of the city, where a funeral was being held to bid farewell to the king.

"Ah...everyone...everyone's...back safe and sound..."

Hearing the incredulous voices from behind, Siduri turned around and spoke to the crowd in a low sob.

"But...it's a pity. King Gilgamesh...is already..."

"What exactly happened? How can I kill him for the king in the future?!"

Seeing this scene, Fujimaru Ritsuka asked incredulously.

“That’s right, King Gilgamesh cannot be killed! He is a man who foresaw the future and voluntarily became a magician! He should have made thorough preparations to deal with assassination long ago!”

To avoid dying on the battlefield, he and I made a promise that he would stay on the throne and command! Who on earth could possibly kill Gilgamesh, and by what means?!

Merlin responded in the same manner, loudly and fiercely questioning him.

"Regarding the cause of the king's death, that is..."

Siduri calmed herself down and slowly recalled what had happened to the crowd who were eager to know the truth about this strange event.

Gilgamesh was handling affairs in the palace as usual, and on that day, he was excited that the design for the Fang of Nabistine had finally been completed.

Having successfully transformed his masterpiece from imagination into reality, Gilgamesh wasted no time in his excitement. He handed the design to Siduri and asked her to send it to the weapons company, instructing her to turn the blueprints into a real object within two days.

However, amidst his excitement, Gilgamesh also experienced some physical discomfort, feeling dizzy from time to time. But he attributed it to his excessive focus on handling government affairs and designing weapons over the past few days and didn't take it seriously.

Even this wise and sagacious king, who possessed eyes that could see into the future, still failed to notice the abnormal phenomena occurring in the city.

Several days ago, there were reports of citizens dying from weakness, dying without any apparent reason.

Therefore, the dizziness felt by the body is not due to excessive fatigue, but rather the goddess of the underworld beneath the Sumerian earth carrying out her plan as stated in the alliance of the three goddesses.

Despite feeling dizzy, Gilgamesh finished dealing with everything and took a short rest. But once he closed his eyes, he never opened them again.

"...That's how it happened. When I returned, the king was already asleep on his throne forever..."

Siduri slowly recounted what had happened the day before, but it still felt unbelievable, even hard to believe.

"It was... death from overwork!?"

"No, no matter what, this is just too outrageous! To die from overwork? That's King Gilgamesh! If he could die from that, he would have died countless times by now!"

Even Dr. Roman from Chaldea couldn't help but complain that although death from overwork is not impossible, the person who did it was clearly not someone who would experience such a thing.

“That’s true. I also lost my composure because it happened so suddenly. Thinking about it, the situation in Uruk is indeed very strange. Since we arrived in Ur, has anything unusual happened in Uruk, Your Excellency?”

Upon hearing Romani's question, Merlin also came to his senses from the news of Gilgamesh's death and asked Siduri for more useful information.

"...Let me think. Although the monster attacks have subsided, there have been several reports of people dying from exhaustion in Uruk. I've been too busy with the king's funeral to pay attention, but this is definitely unusual. Could it be—?"

Siduri now connected the two things together; Gilgamesh's death from overwork seemed no different from those who died from neurasthenia.

"In other words, this is very unusual. King Gilgamesh did not die from overwork, but was murdered. That is to say, this must be the work of the Three Goddesses Alliance. I don't think anyone else besides them could kill King Gilgamesh."

Quetzal Koyatl chimed in, saying that as one of the members, she naturally knew more about the Three Goddesses Alliance.

Ereshkigal described his method of devouring Sumer during the meeting of the Eighth Alliance, information that had been shared among the three goddesses.

The reason why the people present could not immediately connect the three goddesses to the alliance was due to a cognitive error.

"That's true, but does the Goddess of Warcraft possess the ability to indirectly kill others?"

"After all, Quetzalcoatl is a melee fighter, and Ishtar doesn't seem like a goddess who can assassinate."

Fujimaru Ritsuka nodded in agreement with Mashu's words.

"Yes, even within the Three Goddess Alliance, there shouldn't be any goddess capable of carrying out this kind of assassination..."

But Quetzal Koyatl, listening to their remarks, merely wore a peculiar smile, knowing where the problem lay, and couldn't help but interrupt them.

"Wait, Mashu-chan, Fujimaru? Ishtar isn't a member of the Three Goddesses Alliance, you know. Isn't that kid always getting in our way?"

"Ah, that makes sense! Miss Ishtar has been defeating the Beast Goddess's beasts, only accepting payment for it, which violates the Goddess Alliance! But... but then, who exactly is the Third Pillar Goddess!?"

"Is that even a question? Of course it's Ereshkigal! Didn't you know? She is the land goddess of Mesopotamia, the mistress of the underworld, and the ruler of the dead and the spirits of the dead."

Quetzal 2 Koyatl was surprised that no one knew about this matter. He could only say that Aisan Reshkigal's actions were too low-key, making it difficult for people to notice.

"The underworld still exists... Ah, I see. Is that so? So that's the mechanism."

Upon learning that Ereshkigal had awakened in the world of Sumer, Merlin immediately showed a knowing expression, as if his doubts had been cleared up.

"The entire city of Uruk is filled with the deathly scent of Ereshkigal. The Garula spirits of Ereshkigal steal the souls of those who have lost their strength. King Gilgamesh's soul was also taken to the underworld by the Garula spirits."

Quetzal Koyatl then revealed the truth to everyone.

"If that's the case, then it's not too late! The king's body hasn't been buried yet! As long as we can free his soul from the prison of the underworld, the king will surely be able to awaken again!"

Siduri raised her hand to her chest as if to breathe a sigh of relief, and said happily.

“That’s right, Lady Siduri. In fact, King Gilgamesh’s departure is quite troublesome now, and his command is essential here.”

"So, the next step is to head to the Underworld and retrieve Gilgamesh's soul! Right, senior!?"

“That’s right, Mashu!”

The group quickly determined their destination, and the remaining question was how to get to the Underworld, since none of them knew its location.

Even the local Sumerian priestesses were unaware of this matter, as the written records were too vague in their descriptions of the underworld, with countless variations on its location, many of which were merely references or allusions.

"If anyone knows the location of the underworld, it must be Ishtar. In Sumerian mythology, Ishtar, the mistress of the heavens, once ventured deep into the underworld, where she was stripped of her divinity by the seven gates and was ultimately killed by Ereshkigal."

"So the question still comes back to whether we need to find Ishtar first?"

"Regarding the goddess Ishtar, the king has located her in the past few days. She is currently staying on the reed plains east of Uruk, where she is being worshipped by the shepherds."

Siduli promptly reported the known intelligence.

"It's not far from Uruk, and it only takes a day to go there and back. We can still make it to the Underworld after getting the location from the goddess Ishtar."

"Okay, then..."

Knowing Ishtar's location, and that it's not too far away, we can adjust our plans and prioritize completing the preliminary tasks that seem necessary.

However, just as the group was about to settle their affairs and prepare to change direction and set off to find Ishtar, a man wearing a horned hat arrived at the palace gate.

"Let the search for Ishtar be left until after the retrieval of Gilgamesh's soul. If you do not know the exact direction, I think the knowledge of Nergal can help you."

Appearing at the palace gate was none other than Manshu, who had come from afar. He threw the Nergar he had carved directly and forcefully toward Uruk City, which was how he was able to arrive here so quickly.

"Nergal?"

The name was still unfamiliar to Fujimaru Ritsuka, prompting her to immediately look at Mash and Merlin beside her.