Backstab
"Completely without any strategy. It's laughable!"
Kingu descended from the sky. The golden chains beside him directly pierced through several Honkai Beasts before he turned to look at the Lahmus behind him.
"With such a numerical advantage, you don't even know how to use it!"
Looking at those Lahmus soaking in the sea and merely watching, he became furious.
Wasn't it hard enough for him, fighting desperately on the front lines against all these monsters and demons, all for Mother's descent?
After finally achieving that goal, these new models had actually started slacking off!
There were at least two hundred million Lahmus soaking in the Persian Gulf right now. If all those troops charged together, no matter how powerful that woman was, there was no way she could stop every single one of them!
Even now, Kingu had not forgotten his goal: exterminate humanity and bring victory and rebirth to Mother.
So in his eyes, although they had already been thoroughly outmaneuvered before, it was still far from defeat.
As long as the Lahmus launched an attack, everything would get better!
This was a full two hundred million Lahmus. Just taking flight would blot out the sky. Mother's black mud was still continuously giving birth to new siblings. In Kingu's view, all they needed to do was attack.
If two hundred million of them rushed forward in one wave, then no matter how strong that person was, she had only summoned a million monsters at most. The Lahmus might not pose a threat to her directly, but they could completely use the main force to hold her down while smaller units raided Uruk!
Even a small detachment would be numerous enough when drawn from a base of two hundred million. They could simply drown the people of Uruk.
Once all humans in this world were dead and Humanity Order collapsed, Mother would naturally fulfill her wish. No matter how powerful that person was, she could not protect all of Uruk by herself.
But what were these Lahmus doing?
Although the battle on the Persian Gulf front was intense, a single glance revealed that the Lahmus were practically slacking off. Every moment, hundreds of thousands of Lahmus would land on the beach and begin a frenzied meat grinder battle with the Honkai Beasts.
Yet compared to their total numbers, a few hundred thousand was far too little. Kingu's veins bulged from anger.
Who fought wars like this?!
Even a lion uses its full strength when hunting a rabbit.
Not to mention that thing on the other side wasn't even human. It was absurdly powerful!
These Lahmus really were...
Kingu looked at the Lahmus soaking in the sea, his gaze trembling.
He actually saw from the movements of those faceless monsters that they were simply watching the show...
Watching batches of their own kind die while enjoying it immensely!
This isn't right. The new humanity of my dreams isn't like this!
A crack appeared in Kingu's heart.
In his imagination, the new humanity should have been a nobler form of life, not these things!
If they weren't on the same side...
He truly wanted nothing to do with these deformed creatures whose insides were filled with violence.
But he had no choice.
Mother was still in self-sealing, and he was the only one here capable of carrying the burden.
"Using such a piecemeal strategy..." He glanced toward the Lahmu beside him. "What a waste of your countless brethren!"
"You aren't even as good as the lowest Witchbeasts!"
Kingu shot the Lahmu beside him a look.
"For defective products like you to be my brothers is truly pathetic!"
Upon hearing this, the Lahmus all stopped moving.
Even the Chaldea group rushing over halted their steps.
"But forget it."
Kingu turned around and looked at the group from Chaldea.
"From now on, I will command. All of you will obey my orders!"
He completely exposed his back to the Lahmus.
"Brothers?" Fujimaru Ritsuka couldn't help asking.
"Not the same kind of brothers and sisters that you understand."
Kingu nodded and sneered.
"We are all lifeforms created by the same Mother. Although our forms differ, we're still the same species."
As he spoke, the Lahmus raised their sharp tentacles and moved before the Chaldea group. On the surface they appeared to be defending against strong enemies, but they had already silently surrounded Kingu.
Only this foolish child still didn't know what was about to happen.
"Wait, Kingu!"
Hearing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka shouted.
"You aren't a child of Goddess Tiamat!"
"You're still saying that?"
Kingu shook his head.
"What proof do you have?"
"In the Underworld, King Gilgamesh once said it!"
Mash shouted as well.
"Enkidu's corpse disappeared!"
Ishtar also spoke.
"You weren't created by anyone. You're different from both the Lahmus hatched by Tiamat and the humans of this land."
"You're nothing at all."
Ishtar looked at him.
"Just a counterfeit made using Enkidu's corpse."
Kingu froze for a moment upon hearing that, but he still refused to relent.
"How boring. No matter what, I am still a child of Goddess Tiamat. That will never change!"
"A puppet that exists solely for Goddess Tiamat!"
The moment he finished speaking, a wet piercing sound came from ahead.
Kingu lowered his head in disbelief.
A sharp limb had pierced through his chest.
Fresh red blood dripped from it.
Before he could react, the Lahmu lifted him high into the air.
"You're really so boring! Hahahahaha!"
"Mo...ther..."
Kingu spat out a mouthful of blood, his face filled with disbelief.
"Hehehe... hehehehehe!"
The circle of Lahmus began losing their minds. Mocking laughter filled the surroundings.
On all fours, their giant mouths atop their heads flailed wildly as they laughed.
"What's so funny?!"
Kingu desperately tried to pull out the sharp limb.
"Do you even need to ask?"
A tall Lahmu sneered.
"Because you look funny. Doing this makes us happy."
"So happy so happy so happy!"
"Killing humans is the happiest thing!"
The Lahmu laughed toward the sky.
"Too bad someone has separated us from humanity. But one day! That moment will come!"
"And you too!"
With that, it pulled the limb out of Kingu's body.
In an instant, Kingu collapsed uncontrollably.
Meanwhile, that Lahmu had already dug a Holy Grail radiating golden light out from within him.
"That glow... it's a Holy Grail reaction!"
Mash immediately raised her great shield, ready for battle at any moment.
"So the one storing the Holy Grail really was Kingu."
Ishtar frowned.
She was probably the one who least wanted to encounter Kingu—or rather, Enkidu.
Once the Chains of Heaven appeared, how many lesser gods could withstand more than a few exchanges against him?
His anti-divinity specialization was simply too overwhelming.
Moreover, she had old grudges with him.
She wasn't at full strength either, merely a Heroic Spirit.
Fighting him would have been troublesome even for Ishtar.
"It seems Gorgon obtained the Holy Grail through him and thus received its blessing."
Pfft.
Kingu could no longer withstand his injuries and collapsed onto the ground.
"Lahmus, why are you taking the Holy Grail?"
He gritted his teeth and asked.
The Lahmu that had stolen it immediately swallowed the Holy Grail into its stomach.
"You are no longer needed here."
The Lahmu's muscles bulged piece by piece. Its bones also began changing, becoming increasingly ferocious and powerful.
"Awakening Mother is our job!"
"You outdated relic!"
As it spoke, two wings suddenly sprouted from its back. With a flap, it rose into the air.
"This is... flight?"
Mash immediately looked toward Ishtar.
Not bad.
"Be careful."
The big sister from South America also spoke.
"That cup contains a magical energy furnace. It won't be easy to take down."
But Ishtar didn't care.
Riding Maanna straight at the enemy was her usual style.
Yet after looking at the Lahmus covering the entire ocean before her, she obediently retreated.
A wise man adapts to circumstances.
There were simply too many.
She couldn't kill them all!
Kingu was not so fortunate.
He slashed at the Lahmu's leg, yet it emerged completely unharmed!
"Without the Holy Grail, and unable to hear Mother's voice, you're useless now!"
The surrounding Lahmus shouted.
"Kingu, you're useless now. Kingu, so pitiful, so pitiful!"
"Shut up!"
Upon hearing this, golden ripples formed before Kingu and the Chains of Heaven shot toward them.
Unfortunately, when the chains struck them, they couldn't even break their defenses!
"So pitiful, so interesting."
The Lahmus grew excited.
"Kingu. Obsolete. Kingu!"
Kingu finally snapped.
"What did you say, you mere mass-produced models?!"
But after charging in and exchanging several blows, he was beaten back.
"No... impossible!"
Kingu clutched the huge hole in his chest.
"This can't be happening!"
"I am clearly the strongest weapon of this era..."
In the end, he chose to flee.
The Lahmus did not pursue.
Well, they also didn't dare venture deep into the Honkai Beast horde.
"That Lahmu is completely gone now."
Fujimaru Ritsuka looked helplessly toward the Persian Gulf, packed densely with black dots.
"Now Tiamat has obtained the Holy Grail too..."
"This is really troublesome..."
Mash sighed.
"Let's share this information with King Gilgamesh."
Fujimaru Ritsuka released the familiar for communication.
"Um..."
Mash asked.
"How is Uruk doing right now?"
"Mm. Those unable to fight have already been relocated to the Northern Wall."
Gilgamesh nodded.
"And we've installed 360 Dingirs along Uruk's walls to deal with Tiamat."
"However... sigh."
Disappointment was impossible to hide in his eyes.
"Even the Holy Grail has been taken back..."
"This couldn't be worse."
"Forget that. There's no time for it."
Gilgamesh spoke seriously.
"Let's exchange intelligence first."
"First, the Holy Grail's contamination has turned it crimson, and that blackened seawater is Goddess Tiamat's Authority."
"It erodes all matter it touches, copying its Authority onto cells and turning them into her subordinates."
"Whether human or Servant, no one must touch that black mud!"
"Mother... no, Goddess Tiamat possesses all kinds of divine authorities such as self-modification, individual proliferation, and life fusion."
Ishtar spoke.
"But the most powerful is Cell Quality Enhancement. Once swallowed by the black mud, there is no saving you."
"Anything will be corrupted and become humanity's enemy."
"Second, the abnormal water level."
Gilgamesh continued.
"Ever since the Holy Grail was taken from you, the Black Sea has been rising minute by minute."
"A great flood once destroyed Mesopotamia. Something even worse is happening now—a black ocean capable of turning any life it touches into monsters."
"If it truly reaches Uruk, humanity will have no hope left."
"That's right."
Ishtar nodded solemnly.
"The birthplace of civilization, one of the Four Great Civilizations, Mesopotamia, is becoming Tiamat's world."
"And the foundation of Humanity Order will collapse completely."
"Now then, the most important matter."
Gilgamesh looked up at the sky.
"That woman's attitude."
"Actually, Big Sister Kiana's attitude wasn't bad."
Fujimaru Ritsuka spoke carefully.
"She said she would hold back the Lahmus, but Tiamat would be something we had to overcome ourselves."
"I see..."
Gilgamesh furrowed his brows, seemingly trying to find hidden meaning within those plain words.
"Wait, something happened in the Persian Gulf!"
At that moment, the Doctor suddenly shouted.
"Just now, a Spirit Origin reaction was observed on the sea surface at the center of the Persian Gulf!"
"Mm, and there are Holy Grail readings too."
"The magical energy output surpasses all seven Holy Grails combined!"
"It's an ultra-ultra-super magical energy reactor core!"
"Mm. We estimate it to be the Spirit Origin of Tiamat, the Beast of Origin that gave birth to the entire Mesopotamian world!"
"Then it's obvious."
Gilgamesh relaxed slightly after hearing that.
"If this anomaly continues, then this ocean... as long as we defeat their true body, we can win."
"So now, I have a very difficult task for all of you!"
"Go to the skies above the Persian Gulf and see exactly what kind of monster Tiamat is!"
"Fujimaru Ritsuka, I'm not some heartless person."
Gilgamesh's expression turned complicated.
"The Primordial Goddess. Her strength is completely different from any opponent you've defeated so far."
"Even so, will you still go?"
"Yes!"
"This is exactly why I came!"
"Soon. Very soon."
From the Throne of the Sky, Xia Yu looked at Tiamat, who was restrained in the distance.
"Don't be so impatient. It takes time to deal with this many Lahmus."
Far above the distant sea, a massive cloud cover shrouded the sky.
Below it, occasional rays of sunlight pierced through the clouds and fell upon her body.
It was an enormous humanoid female.
Cross-shaped pupils.
An indifferent expression.
Her hands were bound before her chest.
Two exaggerated horns grew from her head.
Behind her stretched a boundless sea of blood.
The crimson black mud nearly covered the entire surface of the Persian Gulf, and Lahmus were continuously being born from it.
That was the Daughter of Destiny—Tiamat in her self-sealed state.
Or rather, the real Tiamat was still trapped within Imaginary Space.
What appeared now was merely a manifested thought-body extending outward.
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