At this moment, Uruk could only be described with two words:
Total Chaos.
Of course, it wasn't that enemy forces had broken into Uruk.
However, the entire city had already entered a state of full-scale mobilization.
Not only were groups of soldiers rushing toward the South Gate in large numbers, but the sound of blacksmiths forging weapons was louder than usual, filling Uruk with an oppressive atmosphere—like the calm before a coming storm.
In fact, the war had already begun.
As for other fronts, Rozen wasn't certain, but at the South Gate alone, countless fluctuations of spiritual energy surged up and down, telling him that the fighting there had already broken out.
The soldiers originally stationed inside Uruk, as well as Rozen's familiars, had now all been redeployed to the South Gate to meet the enemy.
And from the feedback of his familiars, Rozen knew that at present, the battle there was progressing with Uruk at a disadvantage.
This greatly surprised him.
"Wasn't it just yesterday that Uruk was said to hold an overwhelming advantage?"
Whether at the Northern Wall or the South Gate, as of yesterday, Uruk should have been winning on all fronts.
But today, it seemed the tide of battle had turned.
Rozen used Wise Eye to observe the South Gate while communicating with his many Beast Vassals to gather information, all while leading the group toward the direction of the ziggurat.
Originally, Rozen had wanted to head straight for the South Gate, but upon entering the city, the gate guards told him that Gilgamesh had ordered him to come to the ziggurat first.
So Rozen had no choice but to set aside his impulse to rush to the South Gate and, together with the others, enter the ziggurat.
Inside, countless soldiers were delivering reports to Gilgamesh, stopping only when Rozen and his companions burst into the throne room.
"Everyone!"
Seeing Rozen arrive with a group of Servants, Siduri—who had been busy to the point of panic—was both shocked and relieved.
Relieved because they had managed to return in time.
Shocked because, aside from Rozen and Mash, there was a completely unfamiliar Servant with them—and even Ishtar had flown in on Maanna.
Even Gilgamesh raised an eyebrow.
"Well now, what a surprise. Looks like your trip to the Underworld not only left you unharmed, but also yielded an unexpected harvest."
Gilgamesh spoke with a faintly amused smile.
But before Rozen could respond, Ishtar cut in.
"Enough of your smugness. What happened?"
"Why? The willful runaway goddess is suddenly concerned about Uruk's fate?"
Gilgamesh, naturally, would not obediently accept questioning and instead sneered back.
"Uruk belongs to me. If I wish to ignore it, I can toss it into the farthest corner of the world, and if I wish to care about it, I will. You have no say in the matter."
Ishtar pointed at Gilgamesh, yelling.
"Listen to this—what an outrageous argument! But then, an unreasonable goddess's head can only hold unreasonable arguments. With such a city goddess, Uruk is truly cursed by misfortune. In the end, having me as king is still the best—goddesses are utterly unreliable!"
Gilgamesh laughed heartily, making Ishtar clench her fists as veins appeared on her forehead.
"Both of you—this is an emergency! Please don't fight among yourselves!"
Siduri finally came to her senses and hurried to mediate.
Rozen stepped forward.
"What exactly happened?"
He looked to Siduri, hoping to get information from her.
But there was only one answer.
"The goddesses had appeared."
Siduri spoke with a bitter expression, making everyone's faces harden.
"Just this morning, as the usual defensive battles at the Northern Wall and South Gate began, when Uruk was enjoying an unprecedented battlefield advantage, a goddess finally showed herself."
Siduri's heavy voice continued.
"First, at the Northern Wall—the Beast Goddess calling herself Tiamat burst forth from the earth and stormed into the battlefield, launching a devastating attack on the front."
This assault nearly destroyed the entire front line.
Ordinary soldiers could not hope to fight the Beast Goddess.
Rozen's familiars could only use their immortal nature to entangle her and slow her advance.
Even Okita had personally entered the fray, attempting multiple times to cut down the Beast Goddess—only to draw the attention of Kingu, leading to an intense battle between them.
Fortunately, at the Northern Wall, there was also Nobunaga.
Using her unique traits, Nobunaga somehow managed to block the Beast Goddess single-handedly, finally halting her advance.
However, she could only hold her off—not drive her back. With countless monster troops pressing the attack, the Northern Wall's situation quickly became dire.
"To support the Northern Wall, the King immediately ordered Ushiwakamaru and Benkei to lead forces to the monster front, even redeploying most of the soldiers stationed inside Uruk and many of Lord Rozen's familiars. That barely allowed us to withstand the Beast Goddess's assault for now."
But then came another blow.
"At that moment, battle also erupted at the South Gate—the Goddess of the Jungle appeared, instantly shattering our defensive line with her terrifying power. After killing a hundred men, she suddenly retreated, leaving her army to continue the assault. This left the South Gate on the verge of collapse."
Thus Uruk seemed as though a massive army was pressing at its gates—the suffocating chaos was because the South Gate was almost overrun.
If the Goddess of the Jungle hadn't suddenly withdrawn, the South Gate would already have fallen.
"Right now, the South Gate holds only thanks to the great aid of Lord Rozen's Dragon Legion, but the enemy also appears to have a Servant. After the jungle goddess's retreat, this Servant took her place on the battlefield."
"On our side, with Ushiwakamaru and Benkei already dispatched to the Northern Wall, aside from the dragonkin, no one can stand against that Servant."
"And with the enemy's wyverns in play, the situation is extremely bad."
"At present, Merlin and Miss Anna have followed the King's orders to head to the South Gate to face the Servant, but it's said the two of them cannot stop her charges at all."
"The opponent seems to be a very powerful warrior—Merlin and Miss Anna alone cannot hold her."
Siduri's anxious words laid out the full situation for Rozen and the others.
If, before yesterday, all the reports from Uruk's battlefields had been victories, now they were nothing but disasters.
The Northern Wall was still resisting the Beast Goddess, but the situation was extremely perilous.
The South Gate's goddess had retreated, but with the defensive line broken and an enemy Servant now on the field, its condition was also dire.
At this rate, Uruk's fall was only a matter of time.
"You've returned at just the right moment!"
Gilgamesh rose to his feet, stretching out his hand toward Rozen and the others.
"Go, warriors of Chaldea! The South Gate of Uruk is yours! Bring back victory!"
Mash, Ryougi Shiki, and Ishtar all turned to Rozen.
To this, Rozen had only one reply:
"Let's go."
With those calm words, the group's destination was set.
Next stop—the South Gate of Uruk.
The enemy was waiting there.