Banda and Eres gave no effort to conceal their vigilant hostility. The quiet tension that followed started to grasp its suffocating hands around the stranger.

  “I’m one the people you saved, from the militia.” Takar blurted out as sweat started to form beads on his face.

  “Oh? So you’re here to thank us.” Eres replied. The look in her eyes had not changed in the slightest.

  Takar swallowed his nerves. He realized all too clearly that this was no time to drag out a conversation. “I know what Otto wants.”

  Banda’s eyes widened slightly at the sudden declaration, and Eres’ sharpened.

  “Explain.” She commanded.

  “I followed him and the beastwoman one day.” Takar found himself speaking more quickly than normal. “Saw them while I was hunting, took the opportunity hoping it’d be worthwhile. They headed to a dungeon at the base of the mountain range, used a jar to fill it with something then left. I went to inspect the door afterwards but nothing happened no matter what I tried.”

  “And why are you telling this to us?” The depth of Eres’ eyes rose in subtly intensity.

  “...I hoped you could. I want a share, for leading you to it. And more importantly…” Takar’s resolve seemed to firm. “I need an escort to the east town. I was born there, got lost after my hunting party got wiped out. Managed to make it to this town somehow, then I walked straight into Otto’s hands.”

  “Then you still have a Soul Seed, in case you’ve forgotten. We have no intention of going sightseeing just to die.” Eres pointed out.

  “The lord there is a shaman. She can removed curses and foreign aura on souls.” Takar declared.

  The atmosphere around the duo shifted immediately to one of keen interest. “Is that true?” Eres asked, more assertively than before.

  “I used to work for her.” Takar kept himself tall against the uncomfortable focus of the two powerhouses before him. “I’ve seen it done, on different kinds of soul afflictions. She might not be able to remove the Soul Seeds, but she can at least stop it from activating. It’s better than waiting for Otto to throw us down a mine day after day.”

  “Show us the dungeon, then we will decide.” Eres stated her terms and gave no sign that they were to be negotiated.”

  “It’s not far from here. Please protect me along the way.” Takar sprinted off and the duo followed close behind.

  ---

  Banda shredded a long clawed badger to pieces and returned to his position at the rear, his sharp eyes vigilant for any threat.

  “How much farther?” Eres asked.

  “It’s close. Just up here.” Takar looked around the base of a mountain as he tried recall his memories as well as he could. “There!”

  Banda looked to the direction of the man’s line of sight. Creeping out from within the indent of stone was a black surface too perfectly rectangular to be natural formation.

  They followed the man to approach it up close, and Banda saw what it was. A pitch black door as large as the town gate.

  Intricate carvings that he couldn’t see before from an angle were now revealed. Strange humans, one on each half of the door. A man golden like the sun, and a woman silver as the moon.

  Banda saw no significance in them beyond the odd feeling it the gate itself gave him, but the flare of Eres’ ambitions intent caught his notice. He glanced at her just in time to see her stifle the glint in her eyes.

  “I came back here a few times since, but nothing changed. Couldn’t find out what it is exactly either.” Takar rambled a little.

  “It must be an inheritance tomb.” Eres proclaimed with certainty. “The door will only open if they meet some sort of requirement…”

  “That was my thought too, but I wasn’t sure. So… about my offer?” Takar asked, with some worry in his tone.

  “We need to talk first.” Eres gestured at Banda as she walked a short distance away.

  Banda waited as she withdrew the small jeweled bell from her ring. She shook it to a sound of nothing, and he felt the invisible veil of mana spread over them.

  “Shamura can spy without the ritual.” Eres revealed without warning.

  Banda found himself caught a bit off guard. He opened his mouth to speak but she continued before he could.

  “I’m telling you what I know that I didn’t tell you before. It doesn’t do either of us any good to keep things to ourselves.” Eres explained. “Scar said she couldn’t, but neither her or Otto showed any reaction to my Guardian Arms or my Avatar. He also referred to you as a fellow bastard. Makes sense now that we know he’s a beastman. One of Gugal’s branch. He must think your Bull Form is part of that bloodline. And the only time you used that form here was against that harpy.”

  “Then they see us now.” Banda’s tension spiked as he thought of the consequences.

  “I’m not so sure…” Eres said. “I don’t think Scar was completely mistaken. They could have moved much better if they knew everything. It’s more likely that Shamura is able to make more limited use of her clairvoyance without the ritual. She wasn’t present when we returned from that hunt. It might make her fall into a coma each time. She wouldn’t be able to use it so thoughtlessly in that case.”

  “Guesses.” Banda accused.

  “Informed guesses.” Eres corrected. “I’m basing my theory on the fact that her trait wouldn’t be higher than high-grade. Maybe sacred grade. There has to be some significant limitations on it.”

  Banda was about to ask what if the ability was of a higher grade, but he stopped himself. If there was no such limit, then as Eres said before, it would have been much worse for them.

  “...then why did she not do the ritual? They could have forced us?”

  “She can’t.” Eres stated. “It’s the simplest explanation. That long look she gave us when we first met was probably some sort of test.”

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  “They let us live and give us this much freedom, why? It is foolish.” Banda grew frustrated for he could not figure out the answer himself. Threats should be dealt with the moment it is possible. To act otherwise conflicted with the very urge to survive.

  “I think they mean to use us to escape the Tower…” Eres said. “Defeating Humbaba is an unattainable dream for most. And no matter how strong or cunning a mortal is, their lifespan will reach its end one day. No one needs any deeper reason to seek immortality.”

  Banda fell silent as he could not argue with that reasoning. Though he was silent for only a moment as he turned his focus back to their situation.

  “The woman can read minds.” He revealed his own discovery.

  Eres’ eyes widened slightly. “Are you certain?”

  “Yes.”

  Eres fell into thought. “The town bell was probably her doing then. I did think the timing was too perfect… Everything makes sense if she could read minds.”

  She turned her sharp gaze back up to him. “There must be limitations on that too. Range the most obvious one. But more importantly, she clearly isn’t able to delve too deep into one’s consciousness. If she could read any deeper than surface thoughts, they would have acted every differently.”

  “Why?” Banda asked.

  “Our lineage and traits are far greater than you realize.”

  “I know my power is strong.” Banda asserted.

  “Yes, but you don’t know its significance. Ah…” A thought crossed Eres’ mind. “It’s about time I tell you this. You are the son of Enkidu and Shamhat. Well, to be perfectly honest I’m not entirely certain, but it makes the most sense by far.”

  “No.” Banda objected wholeheartedly.

  “Denying reality changes nothing.” Eres replied casually. “I told you of Gilgamesh before, didn’t I?”

  “...the king.” Banda remembered.

  “Yes. He is my father. Though I only know of him from tales and legends.” Eres revealed with no fanfare, as though it was deserving of nothing more.

  “Then how do you know?” Banda snapped back.

  “The bloodline is undeniable. Purity diminishes with every descending generation, even if just slightly. Mine is of the highest purity.”

  “Your golden power.” Banda surmised.

  “Yes. The Supreme Tyrant Bloodline. An arrogant name, but not inaccurate. It makes my mana superior to all other forms of mana. Though it has its drawbacks.”

  Banda thoughts turned to all the times she had wielded it. “You become reckless when your eyes are gold.” He accused.

  “Yes…” Eres did not deny it. “Anyway, as I said. Gilgamesh and Enkidu were the greatest pair of heroes in history. Among their many feats, they killed Gugal.”

  Subtly grandiosity started to seep into Eres’ tone as she slid into her stories.

  “World Titan souls are eternal. If they are killed, they will resurrect in time. Even if they are completely destroyed, they will reincarnate as someone new of their domain. They are embodiments of concepts more than anything else.”

  “Primordials are even greater. It is assumed they are similar to the Titans in that regard, but since none of them have ever been destroyed so no one certain.”

  “For tens of thousands of years, the world has wondered what became of Gugal. I initially thought you were his reincarnation, but since you have the same ability of Enkidu to freely devour souls, I thought of something more likely.”

  “What if Enkidu consumed Gugal after he was slain, and somehow passed the soul onto you?”

  “Gugal’s soul is intact within you, and you have your own soul. If you cannot be the reincarnation, this is the only explanation.”

  “Not to mention there’s also the fact that you were born from a stone egg. Shamhat was said to have given birth to a stone, the fate of which was unknown. And you have Feral Form, Enkidu’s most defining power.”

  “This is my power.” Banda frowned. He did not like the thought of another possessing it.

  “Yes, and it originated from Enkidu. Though by all accounts his was your more monstrous one, and it had no limit.”

  Banda disliked the thought of another wielding his power better than him even more. He wanted to reject the accusation, but he could not dispute the reasoning behind it.

  “So, I am human…”

  “Half human at best.” Eres said. “I don’t know what Enkidu was exactly, but he was a unique being created by Enki. Shamhat is human. A gifted oracle and renowned beauty. Fortunately, you seem to take after her.”

  “...what is an oracle?” Banda asked, ignoring her teasing smile.

  Eres’ smile settled slightly. “Someone who receives visions of the future. The degree and frequency varies from person to person… but even prophecies are not absolute. Fate can be manipulated and broken.”

  Banda waited as her presence simmered. At first it threatened to rise without end, but it settled quickly without incident.

  “I think that’s enough for now. We should talk about our next move.”

  Banda glanced over to the black gate. “What is an inheritance tomb?”

  “Sometimes when a monk or a god reaches the end of their life, they leave behind their intent to bestow knowledge or even their innate abilities upon a worthy successor who passes their tests. It is a coin toss as to whether it’s genuine or just a nefarious attempt to resurrect by some means. The latter is usually too difficult for mortals, as far as I’m aware.” Eres explained.

  “Like the wight.” Banda recalled.

  “More or less.” Eres confirmed. “In that case, I believe someone else set up the tomb, and the wight was essentially just the guardian. But that’s not important. The black gate isn’t an inheritance tomb. It’s a Demon Gate. A Gemini gate to be exact. Sacred-grade demons of miraculous power.”

  Banda frowned deeply. It had not even bee a full day since the demon ritual, so the memory was fresh in his mind. Individually, those demons were not strong, but the way their presence grated on his instincts bothered him.

  But the more pressing concern was its power. A high-grade demon would be bad enough. For this carved door to harbor something above even ogres and wights was something that filled him with violent apprehension.

  “Too dangerous.”

  “I understand the feeling.” Eres responded. “Demons are soulless, malicious creatures without exception. Never trust them. That said, this is an opportunity.”

  “Gemini are among the least directly dangerous. They bestow sacred grade gifts to male and female pairs without tainting the soul or requiring sacrifice. And if all else fails, I have my amulet.”

  Banda recalled the jewelry shaped into folded wings of pristine white metal that she had used to carry them to Humbaba and back. “You said you could not use that.”

  “The amulet’s teleportation is fueled by aether, and that did run dry. But it still has it’s other purpose. To banish demons back to the Abyss. I couldn’t use it during the Blood Feast Ritual, since the land became part of the Abyss, but it’ll work just fine in a demon gate.”

  “It’s not as if there’s no danger, but it’s a far safer deal than can be normally expected from demons. Otto and Shamura are undoubtedly aiming for this, but there’s no reason why we can’t also claim it.”

  Banda’s eyes narrowed in contemplation of the risks and reward, and of the necessity. “Then we should go in now.”

  “No point in rushing.” Eres doused his resolve. “There’s no cost to their gift, but there is a cost to opening the gate. An offering of souls. It’d be impossible for us, but clearly Otto has some means. We’ll wait until they open the gate, and slip in after.”

  Eres glanced over to the gate herself, paying close attention to the gold and silver light that nearly filled the carved patterns completely. “It seems almost open. Souls can only be offered to the gate on nights of the full moon, which gives us two weeks. We’ll stay at the other town until then.”

  She turned to Banda with firm resolution. “Every single moment we spend around Otto is a greater risk. This may be the only chance we get to rid ourselves of his clutches. Even if it is temporary, it will still buy us enough time to settle this more permanently.

  Banda agreed in expression and presence, if not spoken words. With that, they walked back towards Takar, who had been waiting anxiously all this time.

  “We’ll escort you in exchange for an introduction to the shamaness.” Eres stated.

  Vigor washed over the anxiety on Takar’s face. “I can’t promise she won’t ask for something in return, but she is at least more reasonable than Otto.”

  “Good. We head out at once.”

  Banda glanced back in the direction of the town, then ahead to their destination. The next day he returned, the next day he saw Otto, he vowed it would be the last.