Chapter 34: Ishtar's Shameful Past
Roman recited the data at this moment. "In Sumerian mythology, Ishtar is the 'Mistress of Heaven'; conversely, Ereshkigal is the 'Mistress of the Underworld'."
"Ah, I see, I see. I understand the principle now." Merlin nodded, then looked at Ishtar and said, "When you were summoned, Ereshkigal was also summoned."
"Ha!?" Ishtar's voice of shock echoed through the main hall of the God Tower.
Mash asked, puzzled, "Ishtar was summoned by the priestesses, wasn't she?"
"At that time, the High Priestess who successfully completed the summoning died. She was likely killed by Ereshkigal," Roman said at this moment.
"Ishtar is the Goddess of Harvest; conversely, Ereshkigal, who represents the death of humanity, is the Mother Goddess of Fear." Da Vinci continued.
"These two goddesses are two sides of the same coin. In this case, one could say they share the same divinity."
Hearing Da Vinci's words, Gudako asked, somewhat confused, "But isn't that goddess of the Underworld in the same body as Ishtar?"
"Although Ishtar's summoning would chain-summon Ereshkigal, and they possess the same divinity—meaning they are counted as 'only one Sumerian deity'—it does not mean they are fixed within this body," Roman explained.
"I see..." Gudako realized in an instant.
"Hey, hey... don't tell me you're going to the Underworld?" Ishtar's expression collapsed, her body language clearly showing her resistance.
"It seems that's the only way," Gudako said. "I'll trouble you to lead the way, Ishtar!"
Quetzalcoatl also stepped forward and patted Ishtar on the shoulder. "Let's go."
"Geez, I get it, alright! I'll take you there!" Ishtar replied helplessly.
As she spoke, Ishtar looked at Merlin and the others. "You stay in Uruk to prevent any unexpected situations here."
Quetzalcoatl also came to Shirou's side at this moment, linking arms with him. "Sorry~ I'm really of no use in the Underworld, so I'll just wait here for you to come back~"
Shirou nodded upon hearing this. "During this time, protect the city of Uruk."
"Alright~" Quetzalcoatl agreed.
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Their target was the city of Kutha. Ishtar used her great bow to blast a massive hole leading to the Underworld directly near the city. After she did this, appearing all high and mighty as if demanding praise, Shirou suddenly added, "Actually, I have control over the Underworld and could have just gone in directly."
"Ha—? Then why didn't you say so earlier!?" Ishtar gritted her teeth and glared at Shirou. Because of this sentence, everything she had just done seemed slightly ridiculous and shameful.
"You didn't ask?" Shirou shrugged with an innocent look. The moment Ishtar's face turned bright red, he activated his authority and took everyone to the Underworld.
Purple light swirled, and the four of them vanished from the ground. In the blink of an eye, they arrived in the dark, deep Underworld. Observing this vast underground world, Gudako exclaimed in wonder.
"I never thought the Underworld was right beneath Kutha..."
"It's not a realm in another dimension, but genuinely connected to the soil of the present world," Mash said.
"That's only natural," Ishtar said in a tone of self-evident truth. "In the Age of Gods, the heavens, the surface, and the Underworld were all on the same piece of fabric."
On their way, Gudako looked with curiosity at the cages that appeared every so often along the sides of the road; within those cages, a faint, eerie blue light shimmered.
"These are the souls of humans who died on the surface. Trapped inside, these souls aren't even allowed to fade away. Ereshkigal... she captures the souls of humans she fancies, keeps them by her side, and toys with them for tens of thousands of years," Ishtar said.
"So... those souls who died of exhaustion on the surface are here too?" Mash asked.
Ishtar nodded. "I suppose so. The numbers are higher than before; it must have increased after she joined the 'Three Goddess Alliance.' Is that woman trying to build a kingdom of the dead?"
"Where is Ereshkigal?" Gudako asked after looking around.
Hearing this, Ishtar raised her hand and pointed in a direction. "Beyond the seven gates ahead is Ereshkigal's palace. Ereshkigal is there."
"Come to think of it..." Gudako suddenly looked at Ishtar with curiosity. "Ishtar-san not only knows the exact location, but is also very clear on the rules of the Underworld."
"Now that you mention it, that is true indeed..." Mash also cast a curious look at Ishtar.
"This..." Ishtar's expression became slightly awkward, as if a secret had been exposed, and she hurriedly explained, "That... you see, this is the power of a goddess!"
"But, isn't divinity said to be ineffective in the Underworld?" Mash asked, confused.
"This..." Ishtar's expression suddenly froze.
Once, Ishtar had come to the Underworld. Although Ishtar was stronger in combat than Eresh outside, her combat power in the Underworld was simply no match for Eresh, the Mistress of the Underworld. At that time, Ishtar had coveted Eresh's position as Mistress of the Underworld; she prepared a full set of divine gear and adjusted her strength to her peak state before going to the Underworld to challenge her.
Originally, Ishtar could have fought Eresh in the Underworld relying on the power of her divine gear, but due to Eresh's deliberate design, Ishtar had to pass through seven gates to enter. For every gate she passed, one piece of divine gear would be stripped from her. By the time Ishtar entered the Underworld, her divine gear had been stripped away completely.
Without the support of her divine gear, Ishtar naturally could not contend with the Mistress of the Underworld, Eresh. She was tragically killed by Eresh, then resurrected by her, and her soul was kept in the Underworld forever. It wasn't until she found a scapegoat to take her punishment that Eresh let Ishtar go, and she slunk back to her own domain in disgrace.
In reality, as a high-ranking goddess, Ishtar could summon the Bull of Heaven to augment her combat power, and could easily crush Eresh, a mid-ranking goddess, outside the Underworld. If Ishtar had made a sufficient plan to lure Eresh out of the Underworld, she could have won easily. Unfortunately, Ishtar's temper was even more willful than Rin Tohsaka's; she just wanted to grind against her sister on the other's home turf. This kind of "fountain-camping" behavior is the easiest to reverse; Ishtar was simply stripped naked piece by piece while in her full-form divine gear, leading to a humiliating end.
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