62: Chapter 62 Lord of the Underworld, Ereshkigal

Inside the Uruk Temple, the atmosphere was oppressive to the extreme.

Several priests, drenched in sweat, laid King Gilgamesh's remains on a stone bed.

Just a few minutes ago, this peerless Hero King had literally died of overwork on his throne after working for six months straight without closing his eyes.

"This is simply absurd to the extreme..."

Dr. Roman was frantically scratching his hair in the Chaldea communication screen, his dark circles appearing even heavier. "But it's not just physical shock; King Gilgamesh's soul signal has completely vanished from the surface! It's as if... it was forcibly extracted by something!"

"It's the Underworld."

At the entrance of the hall, the Goddess of Venus, Ishtar, gave a cold snort and walked in with her arms crossed.

"That guy is annoying, but he is a King with divinity after all; a common sudden death couldn't make even his soul vanish instantly. The only explanation is that my stubborn sister who stays underground year-round away from the sun—the Mistress of the Underworld, Ereshkigal—snatched his soul while he was weakened."

"To face the upcoming Monster Mother Goddess, Uruk absolutely cannot lose Gilgamesh."

Ishtar glanced at everyone. "Let's go, Master of Chaldea. I know where the entrance to the Underworld is. Go to the City of the Dead, 'Kutha'. If you want to snatch back that Gilgamesh's soul, you'll have to take a trip down to the Underworld yourselves."

...

As the plot progressed, A-Dai and Mash, under Ishtar's guidance, stepped into the bottomless dark abyss of the City of the Dead, Kutha.

After a strong sense of weightlessness, the system notification sounded in their ears: [Entered Special Area: Underworld (Kutha)].

"Phew... so cold..."

As soon as she landed, A-Dai couldn't help but shiver.

Under the unreserved 100% holographic sensory simulation of "FGO", the chilling cold of the Underworld seemed to pierce directly through the virtual character's skin.

All around was barren, cracked earth, and the air was filled with blue-green ghostly light and faint wails.

There was no sun in the sky, only the oppressive phantom of a giant cage shrouding everything.

"Wuwuwu, guys, I'm actually a bit scared now."

A-Dai swallowed hard, looking at the bullet chat in the stream which had also become somewhat silent, affected by the atmosphere. Her voice even carried a hint of trembling. "Old Thief Gu is truly a Master at making these 'hellish' maps."

"Tell me, that Mistress of the Underworld, what was it... Ere... Ereshkigal, what kind of terrifying monster must she be? Will she suddenly jump out and one-shot me?"

The bullet chat also chimed in: "She's definitely a skin-and-bones Grim Reaper! Or one of those giant skeletons covered in black mist!"

"After all, she's one of the three goddesses in charge of death. To be able to sneak attack and snatch Gilgamesh's soul at this critical juncture, she definitely can't be underestimated!"

"To be safe, I've swapped the whole team's Craft Essences to those with [Guts] and [Invincibility]. This wave is definitely going to be a hard-fought battle!"

Just as all the players had their hearts in their throats, preparing for an epic and painful Boss battle...

From deep within the dark hall, a series of crisp footsteps accompanied by the sound of dragging chains slowly approached.

"Foolish living beings, how dare you step into my domain without permission..."

The voice was ethereal and majestic, carrying an unquestionable pressure of death.

Then, the blue ghostly fires deep in the hall suddenly flared up!

Millions of eyes across the internet stared intently at the screen, preparing to catch a glimpse of this terrifying Reaper's true form.

A-Dai was so scared she simply closed her eyes, fearing that a sanity-dropping terrifying monster would jump out for a jump scare in the next second.

However, when the light illuminated the figure on the throne, A-Dai peeked with one eye and was stunned.

The bullet chat in the stream also experienced a three-second vacuum of silence.

There were no withered bones, no lifeless monsters, and no hideous demons.

Sitting on that Underworld throne made of giant beast bones was unexpectedly a beautiful girl with dazzling blonde hair tied in twin tails!

She wore a magnificent red and black dress and held a giant spear-blade that emitted a ghostly light.

Not only was her face identical to Ishtar's, who had led the way, but although she was trying hard to keep a straight face and act cold and heartless, those eyes as clear as rubies revealed a hint of panic she couldn't hide.

"Ahem!" The girl on the throne cleared her throat, slammed the spear-blade heavily onto the ground, and lifted her fair chin. "Since you've come, don't think about leaving alive! Hand over your souls... Atchoo!"

What was originally a majestic declaration of death turned into an incredibly cute sneeze because of a sudden gust of cold wind underground.

The girl's fair cheeks instantly turned visibly red. She hurriedly rubbed her nose and shouted stutteringly:

"T-that one just now doesn't count! Redo the scene! Anyway, you disrespectful lot, I-I will definitely roast you on my spear!"

Silence.

The hall was still dead silent, but the stream's chat was like a nuclear bomb had been dropped, instantly igniting an unprecedented frenzy!

"WTF?! This is the Reaper?!"

"Tsundere! Blonde! Twin tails! And she even has the same face as Ishtar?! Old Thief Gu, you call this a 'terrifying Boss'?!"

"Oh my god! Her sneeze is too cute! That panicked little look in her eyes—my HP bar is completely drained!"

"Sorry brothers, I'm not defending when the fight starts. I'll just withdraw all my Servants and let her pass! Whoever wants to save Uruk can save it, I'm not leaving the Underworld today!"

Looking at this "Reaper" who sounded lacking in confidence even while making threats, A-Dai's maternal instincts flooded in, and her previous fear of the high-difficulty stage vanished instantly.

She subconsciously blurted out: "Wow! Little sister, you're so cute!"

As soon as these words came out, Ereshkigal on the throne froze.

In the next second, visible steam rose from the goddess's head, and her already rosy cheeks turned red all the way to her ears.

"Huh?! W-what nonsense are you talking about! Who's a little sister! I am the Goddess of Death! A cold and heartless devil! D-do you think saying a few nice words will make me go easy on you when the battle starts?!"

Though she shouted fiercely, the spear-blade in her hand had already lowered unconsciously, and her eyes were darting around frantically, not daring to meet A-Dai's gaze at all.

"Checkmate! Brothers, the lethality of a blonde twin-tail tsundere is invincible!"

"A-Dai with the god-tier assist! Old Thief Gu, I unilaterally declare that from now on, you are my big brother! You understand exactly what kind of villains we want!"

"Forget that overworked Gilgamesh, let him stay dead! I'm staying in the Underworld with my waifu!"

Inside VR pods all over the world, countless players who had been so nervous their hands were sweaty, staring at the screen waiting for the battle to descend, all broke into silly, infatuated smiles.