Jiang You witnessed a complete slaughter.
Although Tiamat was currently weakened from her duel, Gilgamesh wasn't in much better shape. As a Servant specializing in wide-area attacks, he had been the main force against the Lahmu. The prolonged, large-scale barrage of Noble Phantasms had taken its toll on him. On top of that, he had fought Kingu right after. Despite his nonchalant demeanor, Kingu, while not quite Enkidu's equal, wasn't far behind.
So, this was essentially a battle between the old, weak, sick, and disabled. Tiamat successfully crushed Goldie by leveraging the sheer mass of her Spirit Origin.
(?Д?)/
Tiamat, standing triumphantly on Goldie's back, raised her arms in a victory pose.
"Mother... Even though humanity abandoned you, you still choose to side with them?"
Seeing Tiamat appear here with Jiang You, Kingu understood her intentions. "Humanity denied your very existence."
"Enkidu?"
Tiamat looked at Kingu. The aura emanating from him felt familiar, yet slightly different. She tilted her head. "Mommy senses sadness from you. Do you want Mommy to hold you?"
"Enkidu..."
Kingu's legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees. He had always believed Tiamat created him and gave him his name. He never imagined she would even get his name wrong.
"But I'm not him..."
In truth, this Kingu wasn't the Kingu of myth. He was an Imposter—a new soul formed when the King of Magecraft, Goetia, stole the deceased Enkidu's body and resurrected it using the power of the Holy Grail. It was understandable that Tiamat didn't recognize him.
∑(?Д?)
Tiamat's expression turned to shock. "How could I mistake my own child?! ...I'm such an unfit mother."
And so, the three Mesopotamian "people" all ended up on the ground in different ways, creating a rather awkward scene.
Jiang You then explained the whole situation to Kingu and Tiamat.
"So that's how it is?"
Tiamat stood on her tiptoes and gently patted Kingu's head. "It's alright. You're still my child. Don't worry anymore. Mommy isn't sad now."
"Mother."
Kingu lowered his head, allowing Tiamat to stroke it more easily. After all, he was barely over a year old—an age when he desperately needed a family's love.
"But... humanity abandoned you..."
"That's not true."
Tiamat looked at Jiang You. "'Humanity' acknowledged me and needs Mother very much. So, as a mother, I must answer my child's needs."
Kingu followed Tiamat's gaze to Jiang You, his expression utterly bewildered.
Although Jiang You's nod was what allowed him to complete the final Summoning Ritual, Jiang You's stance had been completely opposed to Tiamat's before. Besides, he's just one "servant"—how could he possibly represent all of humanity?
What annoyed Kingu even more was Tiamat's attitude toward Jiang You. He was the one who had tirelessly worked for Mother. What had Jiang You done to deserve such affection?
"Jiang You!"
After much thought, Kingu decided to use a card duel to show Jiang You who was truly closer to Mother. He might not win, but his deck was deeply connected to Tiamat.
"Duel me!"
Jiang You instantly saw through Kingu's jealous expression. This kid is really starved for affection, he thought. Still, considering Kingu would "drop loot" (yield rewards), Jiang You had no reason to refuse.
"Don't come crying to me if you lose."
Besides, Jiang You had just obtained a ton of Tiamat-related cards and was itching for a chance to try them out. Tiamat's deck might not have had much synergy, but the individual card strength was top-notch.
"I'm not dueling for victory!" Kingu declared, believing that even a crushing defeat would be a win in its own way.
"In that case... Duel!"
Jiang You immediately deployed the Duel Space.
About five minutes later...
"My field, including [Tiamat], has a total of 12,000 ATK. Does your backrow have any way to counter this?"
The battle was utterly one-sided. Kingu's [Primordial Sea] was completely ineffective against Tiamat's deck, which was composed entirely of Beast-type monsters. In fact, it had only ended up helping Jiang You.
"How... How could this happen?"
Kingu had lost utterly, both in the duel and in every other aspect.
"Now, [Tiamat], deliver the final blow to Kingu!" Jiang You decided to twist the knife.
Kingu let out a wail of despair, his face contorting in a way it hadn't even when he'd torn out his own heart.
"Honestly..."
Tiamat, seeing Jiang You's twisted smile, couldn't bear to watch any longer.
"Don't bully Kingu so cruelly! Mommy's going to get angry, you know!"
"First the Knights of the Round Table, now Tiamat's cards," Goldie remarked from the sidelines, offering his sharp critique. "Is relying on others all you can do, Mongrel? What about your own history? You're a Heroic Spirit, for crying out loud—don't you have your own deck?"
"He does," Quetzalcoatl said, looking at Gilgamesh with a peculiar expression. "But I don't think you'd like the outcome."
"?"
Gilgamesh sensed a whiff of danger and decided to drop the subject.
Kingu was sent flying by Tiamat's attack. First, his heart had been torn out, then he'd been beaten by the Lahmu, then beaten by Goldie, and finally, he'd been utterly crushed by Jiang You in their duel. Now, Kingu's entire being had turned completely ashen.
"Oh, right, I almost forgot. Tiamat, give the Holy Grail to Chaldea."
With everything concluded, it was time to set things right.
"Hold on. We're not in a rush."
Gilgamesh interrupted Jiang You, glancing at Gudako and Mash. "Before that, allow this King to fulfill his duty as host and properly reward the visitors from Chaldea. Otherwise, future generations might hear of this and think this King couldn't even afford to host a single banquet!"
"Wait, there's a party? I'm going, I'm going!"
In truth, these two Singularities had been Gudako's easiest journeys. She'd rarely had the chance to properly bid farewell to other Heroic Spirits before.
"Before you do that, I need to remind you of something," Jiang You said with a malicious grin. He always enjoyed it when Gilgamesh was unhappy. "Your Uruk has already fallen."
"This land now belongs to the Faerie Realm, our dear Finance Minister."
"MONGREL!!!"
Gilgamesh's roar was laced with a wail of anguish.
-
Meanwhile, in the Underworld...
"Hasn't the final battle started yet?"
Eresh's frayed nerves were already twitching. After a brief moment of relaxation, she immediately straightened her posture. "No! I can't drop the ball now!"