At Gilgamesh's command, the rebel soldiers immediately surrounded the thicket where his arrow had struck.
However, uncertain if the beast within was a tiger or some other apex predator, they held their perimeter and did not rush in. Experienced hunters know that a wounded animal's desperate struggle only makes it bleed more profusely, weakening it further.
Gilgamesh, Siduri, and Ur-Namu reined in their horses at the edge of the woods. Gilgamesh narrowed his eyes, waiting for the thrashing within to cease. Finally, after a long silence, it became clear: whatever beast he had struck was no longer moving. Dead or alive, it no longer posed a threat.
"Advance!"
At the squad leader's signal, the soldiers of the Immortal Battalion moved into the brush in tight formation to recover the quarry.
"The struggle after that arrow hit was deafening; it sounded like the whole forest could hear it," Siduri said cautiously, still unsure what her foster father had actually taken down. "Father, you seem to have hit something even bigger than that wild boar. Could it really be a mountain cat?"
"..."
"Siduri, I don't know what I hit," Gilgamesh replied, his gaze fixed on the shadows of the trees. "But I have a feeling... I've struck a big one. Something unlike anything I've ever seen."
As they spoke, the search party emerged from the thicket. To everyone's surprise, the soldiers bore expressions of utter bewilderment.
"My Lord... uh... you certainly hit something big, but we aren't sure what this creature is," the squad leader reported, bowing as he approached Gilgamesh's horse. "Please, see for yourself."
Behind him, four soldiers emerged carrying the beast. It was a bizarre sight: the creature was neither a bull, nor horse, nor deer. Its body was covered in dense, shimmering scales that caught the dappled sunlight like gems, yet its head bore a striking resemblance to that of a goat, crowned with a singular, majestic horn.
"We couldn't identify it, so we brought it here for you to examine, King," the leader added, bowing again in apology for his ignorance.
"..."
Gilgamesh stared at the beast lying before him, momentarily stunned. He narrowed his eyes, examining every detail, but even he—a man of vast experience and Primarch-tier intellect—could not name the creature.
"..."
Gemini said
"..."
"Dammit... no, it can't be," Enkidu-Sa muttered under his breath, his face turning pale. He looked as if he had seen a ghost.
"Master Enkidu-Sa, what is it?" Siduri asked quickly. She realized that if someone as learned as Enkidu-Sa looked this shaken, the creature her father had shot was no ordinary animal.
"Lady Siduri, my mentor once taught me of such a creature, and I have seen it described in the pre-Imperial tablets," Enkidu-Sa replied, his voice trembling with gravity. "I never imagined I would see one with my own eyes... let alone hunted by the King."
"What? You don't mean to say... this is some divine beast from the myths?" Siduri asked nervously, glancing back at the creature on the ground.
"..."
"If I am not mistaken," Enkidu-Sa said after a long silence, his voice hushed with disbelief, "this is the Mušḫuššu. The Splendid Serpent—the creature that guards the very gates of the gods!"
"What?!"
The exclamation rippled through the crowd. The soldiers stood slack-jawed, and even Gilgamesh's stoic mask cracked with disbelief.
"Indeed," Enkidu-Sa continued, nodding slowly. "Look at the features—the scales of a serpent, the forelegs of a lion, and the hind legs of an eagle. It is the composite beast of the heavens, the creature that belongs to the lords of the sky. It is said that only a king of kings can walk alongside such a creature."
"Why would Father hit such a thing? He is just a general!" Siduri was utterly confused. She hadn't expected a simple hunting trip to end with the capture of a legend.
"..."
"Legend says the Mušḫuššu only appears when a true sovereign walks the earth," Enkidu-Sa explained, his eyes shifting toward Gilgamesh with a new, profound sense of awe. "Therefore, its appearance can only have one explanation..."
The surrounding soldiers followed Enkidu-Sa's gaze, their eyes filling with reverence. They began to believe that the King they followed was indeed the Sovereign of this era, the one destined to bring order to the world.
"Perhaps... perhaps I simply got lucky," Gilgamesh stammered. "I just happened to be in the right place at the right time!"
Seeing her foster father's embarrassment, Siduri let out a sigh and stepped forward to take charge.
"Listen up, you lot! Stop worrying about whether my father is a Sovereign or not!" she barked. "We've taken down a Mušḫuššu, and we need to get it back to camp immediately before something else finds it! Move it!"
"As you command, Lady Siduri!"