I had a terrible nightmare.
The moment I woke up, I checked my identity. I didn't feel any pain in my buttocks.
I had protected it. I had protected my identity as a heterosexual man.
Tears of relief streamed down my face.
I heard that after I fainted, Ereshkigal had followed and stopped Enkidu from... doing things to me in my sleep.
Ereshkigal. Is she a god?
Yes.
She is the one true god.
From today, I've decided to believe in the Church of Ereshkigal. I am a follower of Ereshkigal, down to my very roots.
“I've never received faith from a god before… Such immense power is flowing into me. To possess this much power on the surface…”
Ereshkigal seemed burdened by it, but she also liked it. The way she couldn't suppress her smile was really cute.
And then there was the problem child, Enkidu.
Standing in a corner with his hands up, Enkidu was still looking at me and licking his lips.
The meaning of that expression was this: ‘Why would he reject something this good?’
Enkidu was seriously thinking that.
I told him there was no way, but he couldn't let go of the idea.
“I can change into a female form. If you don't like men, in this form…”
“I just don't like it. Got it?”
“…I understand. I don't want to do something that Marduk dislikes.”
Enkidu was noticeably dejected, but I had no desire to comfort him.
I was the one who was almost violated. The goosebumps on my body still hadn't gone down.
Wasn't this going to be a lifelong trauma? I was scared.
Still, I couldn't be too harsh on someone so ignorant.
“Put your arms down. That's enough.”
After ending the punishment, I handed him some clothes.
“Here. First, put some clothes on… and go back to being genderless. Get rid of that dangling thing.”
“I understand. Since reproductive organs are meaningless to me, I'll do that.”
The whole commotion was finally over.
I sent Enkidu to the next room to get changed. Ereshkigal came over and whispered to me.
“Are you okay?”
“He did it with good intentions, so… I'm not going to say anything more.”
“Marduk, you're too nice. If it were me, I'd immediately…”
“Immediately?”
Ereshkigal blushed and trailed off. I wonder what she was about to say.
What was certain was that the look in her eyes as she watched Enkidu was strange.
It wasn't dislike… but full of interest.
I was afraid to ask her true intentions, so I decided to back off.
“If you don't want to say, it's fine.”
“Okay.”
The divine weapon. Now that Enkidu, who was once just clay, had taken human form, Shamhat's job was done.
“I will be taking my leave now. I wish you well.”
“Right. Say hello to Gilgamesh for me.”
“I will do so.”
Shamhat immediately left the forest. As I watched her retreating back, unspoken words swirled in my mouth.
I was curious how Gilgamesh was doing.
Of course he's doing fine, but I wouldn't be at ease until I checked for myself, right?
“…Though I guess I don't have the right.”
My relationships with women… there's never a peaceful day.
It's all my fault, I guess. As I let out a deep sigh, Ereshkigal was startled.
“W-What is it? Is it my fault?”
“No. It's not your fault, I'm just in a bad mood.”
“Why? Because of Enkidu? Should I punish him for you?”
Holding a spear she pulled from who-knows-where, she was full of motivation.
It suddenly made me wonder, if Ereshkigal and Enkidu fought, who would win?
I asked the person in question directly.
Ereshkigal, despite her motivation, judged coolly.
“In the underworld, I'd win. But on the surface… I'd lose.”
“So if the location is advantageous, you'd definitely win? Then I guess your powers are about even.”
“No. Enkidu is stronger. He has more abilities, too. The reason I'd win is because there is no god who can defeat me in the underworld.”
Enkidu is a weapon made to kill Gilgamesh.
And who is Gilgamesh?
He is strong enough to swat away ordinary gods with one hand. His treasury-unleashing attacks are something no one could withstand for more than ten seconds.
Naturally, to take him down, a weapon possessing strength that surpasses his is necessary.
“Ishtar can't defeat Enkidu either. The weapon was made that way. However…”
“However?”
“Curse-type abilities would be a different story. Enkidu is a weapon to hunt gods, but he isn't a god. He can't repel curses like you can, so the moment he's no longer needed…”
A hunting dog is abandoned once it's outlived its usefulness.
Was that what would happen to Enkidu?
“Is there a possibility they'd keep him alive and use him for something else?”
“It would be difficult…”
The air grew heavy. Ereshkigal and I stared wordlessly at the room Enkidu had entered.
He was a being forced upon me by the gods, but we had already spent half a year together.
I couldn't just let him die like an idiot.
And there was no guarantee that Enkidu would even defeat Gilgamesh.
I felt conflicted.
“This feels like a parent sending their child off to war. Though I don't even know where my real child is.”
“…Huh? You're married?!”
“I was. No, wait, was I not? We never had a ceremony, though.”
The ceremony isn't what's important. In modern times, you're considered a married couple as soon as you sign the papers.
Let's list the facts one by one.
We had a child and we lived together. I gave her a ring.
Both I and Johanna considered each other husband and wife.
Yes, we were married.
Ereshkigal seemed deeply displeased with my conclusion.
“Who? With who? When? I didn't know? Why?”
“What do you mean, why? We did it because we loved each other…”
Ereshkigal shook my shoulders, firing off a rapid stream of words.
I wondered what was wrong with her. Honestly, it was annoying.
The one who saved me was none other than Enkidu, the one who had almost killed me.
Enkidu, now dressed, asked with his characteristic innocent expression.
“What are you two doing?”
“It's a lie. You, you're obviously still a virgin. People with children aren't like that. It's a lie, isn't it? You lied to me, right? Huh?”
“Enkidu. Can you pull Ereshkigal off me.”
Enkidu nodded willingly and quickly dragged Ereshkigal away.
It was quite surprising to see the goddess of the underworld captured without any resistance.
Once separated from me, Ereshkigal collapsed to the floor and began to emit a gloomy aura.
“It's a lie. Marduk wouldn't do that to me. This is a dream. Ishtar, whom I have bound in the underworld, must be playing a trick on me. Yes. That must be it. I'll have to go and punish her again.”
What's with her. That's scary.
Ereshkigal, who had been radiating a gloomy aura, suddenly stood up.
“…Are you okay?”
“Yes! It was a trivial problem!”
Behind that bright smile slept an unconcealable fury.
“I'm going to pop over to the underworld for a bit. I think I've been away for too long.”
“Okay. Take care.”
I felt I should send her on her way quickly.
Ereshkigal was more burdensome than Enkidu.
I felt it would be fine if she didn't come back.
Ereshkigal, just like Enkidu, closed in on me.
She instantly grabbed both my hands and whispered in a love-struck voice.
“I'll definitely! Be back, okay? You'll wait for me until then?”
I found myself nodding before I knew it.
The moment I refused, I felt like she would collect my head with that spear.
Then I would just become one of the countless 'Corpse A's in the underworld.
Ereshkigal left the house. She didn't even close the door, so I could hear her muttering to herself.
“…When I come back. Yes. I must make Marduk mine for certain. So he can never say such strange things again, I'll cut out his tong…”
I closed the door.
I need to escape the Church of Ereshkigal.
They said she was Ishtar's other half, and I see now she's no different.
My heart has been betrayed yet again. It's sad.
The innocent Enkidu peeked his head in.
“Why are you trembling, Marduk?”
I kindly answered his clueless question.
“…Because it feels like Gilgamesh's curse is working quite well.”
“Marduk is a god, can curses affect you?”
“I don't really know either.”
How would I know when I've never been a god?
Enkidu didn't seem particularly curious, as he quickly changed the subject.
“I have many questions. This thing with the strange texture, I was most curious about this.”
“That's paper. Just ordinary paper.”
What he picked up was a letter envelope.
In ancient Sumer, they wrote on clay tablets, so he would have never seen paper before.
Is it okay to show him a new technology that won't appear for several thousand years?
“How is it made?”
“Unfortunately, I don't know.”
“Then what is it used for?”
“It's similar to a clay tablet. It's used for recording things. It can also be used for communication. This particular piece of paper is called a letter, and it's mainly used to communicate with people who are far away.”
Enkidu's eyes sparkled as he turned the envelope over and over.
I let him look at it to his heart's content, but I stopped him from opening it.
This letter was something my master (one I fabricated) had given me, to be read right before my death.
The contents were nothing special. It was enchanted with a self-hypnosis spell that would cause my beastly power to explode.
It was a self-destruct technique that would ensure I took my opponent down with me, but since I'd never had a reason to use it, I had it stashed away in a corner of the house.
“Am I not allowed to see it?”
“It has things written in it that I'm not supposed to see. Don't open it.”
“I understand.”
Enkidu's curiosity immediately shifted to another object.
“What's this?”
“That is……….”
I was playing the role of a teacher, something I never expected, but it was surprisingly fun.
Everyone I had met was smarter than me.
Tamamo, who showed her brilliance from a young age, of course,
and Tonelico, a fairy of paradise, goes without saying.
Even Johanna, who seemed dazed, was an ultra-elite who was educated in Athens and rose to the position of Pope.
They all had more knowledge than me; none had less.
Because of that, teaching Enkidu was quite entertaining. I learned the joy of teaching.
He understood quickly and was good at applying what he learned. He was a student I was fond of.
Enkidu's only flaw was his regrettable social skills.
“Let's sleep for today. You can ask more tomorrow.”
“I don't need to sleep.”
“Normal people sleep, so you should too.”
“Marduk, you're not a normal person.”
He's not wrong, but he's only saying things that are right.
“…Fine. Do as you please.”
“Then I'll try to sleep. I'm interested in sleeping.”
“I oughta just…!”
He's an infuriating, bizarre guy, but,
I don't hate him. I've grown fond of him.
‘A weapon to kill Gilgamesh, huh.’
And so, a small desire formed in my heart.
Gilgamesh and Enkidu. Is there a way to save them both?
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