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/Just as Daphne and the others made their way to the Soma Familia…/
/Zips.../
"... I'll be taking my leave now." A fat man said with a satisfied smile as he left a luxurious room, zipping his pants as he did so
/Clack…/
"..."
/Breath out…/
'Atop her home, Ishtar smoked with a depressed expression as she saw the fat man leave.'
'She breathed heavily, looking at the ceiling as her disheveled hair fell on her chair.'
'Her ragged appearance spoke volumes of what she just went through...'
"Just how low have I fallen?"
From being the one to choose to be the one chosen…
Such a disgusting man… If it wasn't for his money…
'She let out a sigh as she put her smoking pipe to the side.'
I cannot act as the queen anymore, I lost all of the Berbera, I am in debt, and now half of the entertainment District wants to gut me alive.
I luckily managed to maintain my position as my competitors do not possess the necessary power to forcibly overtake me, but they do excel at being annoying.
At every opportunity, they strike, nibbling away at my possessions one person at a time.
Worst of all, I cannot defend myself, and they know that.
Piece by piece they try to take something mine using excuses, and if they can't through those, they'll use underhand means.
They are so numerous that if I were to use my limited resources to deal with them, then another 10 problems will arise...
I'm severely understaffed and overworked.
If they all act at the same time, then I won't be able to deal with it.
The Berbera used to comprise over 70% of all income of the Familia alone…
With the rest coming from the noncombatants, the valiant workers below, the strong woman that work day in and night.
They alone allowed me to once control 40% of the income of the District, yet now, in less than a week, I lost nearly 15% of it.
I lost over ⅔ of my total income, and I face one of the greatest debts in all of Orario's history.
/Grab…/
'She grabbed a bottle of wine, but stopped after a lot of reluctance.'
"I have no time for this… Neither do I have any furniture left to stain."
'Albeit her repaired room was still as beautiful as it was before Silver demolished it, the rest of her home was as empty as a newly built home.'
'To make money, she sold all of the furniture the Berbera were unable to bring with them… And what wasn't damaged by their clash with her loyal force, her man slaves.'
'She was lucky her house didn't go in flames.'
'To make matters worse, she had to give up many brothels or individual workers due to the multiple ploys of the people in the dark.'
'And even if she wanted to make use of Tammuz to put an end to this mess, she couldn't, the Guild had a tight grasp of her movements through the Ganesha Familia who were "guarding" the Entertainment District.'
'Don't get them wrong, the Ganesha Familia was the de facto Familia in charge of international communication and negotiation in the name of the Guild, and given his personality, unless strictly necessary, Ganesha would never kick her like this.'
'It's just that this time, Ishtar felt his actions to be… Suffocating.'
'To have his 6 of his Level 5s at all times in the District was a clear warning from the Guild, they wouldn't accept her to make use of violent methods, and this pushed her even further down the drain.'
'At this point, Ishtar had already started to see how the Guild was against her, she couldn't understand why though, if it was only to maintain a certain level of stability in the District, or as a form of punishment, then they would be suppressing the other forces from messing with her as well, but they weren't, it was a complete unilateral treatment.'
'It was as if they wanted her to shut up and rot silently.'
'And albeit this greatly angered her, she had to persist through the humiliation and march onwards as she didn't have the power to voice out complaints anymore.'
"That boy…"
'Ishtar rose from her seat and stared below, she couldn't even muster the energy to change her expression.'
'The people came and went on the streets, their lives had barely changed, if she was here or not, who cared?'
'Mortals were like that, they would beg in their knees, then the next day, they would kick you out without remorse.'
/Knock knock…/
"Lady Ishtar, your next appointment is due in half an hour."
"Sigh, already?..." She spoke tiredly
It's earlier than scheduled... They're starting to abuse it.
But I can't refuse them.
'Ishtar looked at herself and bit her lips.'
"Call some servants and have them clean up the room asap, I'll take a shower in the meantime."
At least I must make myself presentable, the day I lose my beauty is the day I stop being me.
"Understood." The man on the other side of the door replied as he left
"..."
'As the footsteps of the man echoed into the distance, she turned around to open a small vault on the side.'
/Crunk…/
'As the coffer opened, a sorry sight reflected onto her pupils, an almost empty and boring vault, no shiny items, just piles of paper, a few expensive wines, and a few other accessories and miscellaneous items, things she would never even think of putting inside.'
'She had become so poor that, to make herself feel a bit better, she stuffed her coffer with useless items to make it seem a bit fuller.'
'And the moment she set her eyes on them, her expression went fierce again.'
"Plunging me down wasn't enough to you, was it?... You had to go and steal everything I had as well didn't you?!"
I swear everything was here after he destroyed this room, so when did they vanish?!
/Bam!/
'Her hand smashed against the wall, but the only thing it did was hurt her.'
I thought about this time and time again ever since the War game, but the last time I checked was the night before the Denatus, and then, the next time I checked it was 2 days after the War game.
During that time, the vault was raided, the gems stolen, some of my precious documents vanished, and even… The Key.
'She could withstand the loss of her money and documents, but the key was something irreplaceable…'
'In fact, the key was prime evidence of a crime she could never allow to spread… And this was the very reason why she hadn't reported its theft to the Guild as of yet.'
'One of the reasons why Silver didn't steal everything in her main vault after the War game ended was because he was sure she would report him, and even with his boosted reputation, if Ishtar were to share that, he wouldn't be able to protect himself from some of the repercussions.'
'Neither would the Guild give him a helping hand.'
'That would've been the perfect excuse for her to rid herself of her current troubles, something he couldn't allow.'
'But now… The key… Vanished!'
"Dammit… Damn it all!!"
'She clenched her hands tightly as she slammed the door of the safe.'
'Every time she opened it, she expected the key to just re-appear magically as if it was all just an illusion or tucked away in the corner, but it never did.'
If the Guild realizes what the Key is and what it means, then… It'll be truly over.
I have no idea where the key is, I have no leads…
My only clue is the suspicion he has it, yet even if that's the truth, neither I nor any of my troops can seek him out.
I can't solicit the black market, they can't know of it.
I can't even contact them to relay this… And even if I do… What would they do to me?!
'She rested her head on the wall with a twisted gaze as she closed her eyes to think.'
I lost my money, and my usefulness, my army is gone, and I now remain powerless...
I lost Phryne, my lifeline!
Once they arrive… They'll just cut me down and throw me away for safety, there can be no loose ends...
There has to be a way… A method to guarantee my Familia's safety at least until…
/Knock knock knock/
"Hum? Is it the servants? You sure were fast this time…"
I lost myself in thought for so long they're already here, I should hurry as well.
"..."
/Silence/
"Why aren't you saying anything?" She asked with a frown, noticing something was wrong
/Creak…/
"?!"
'The door slowly opened, revealing a hooded man in a black-purple robe whose face couldn't be seen, followed by two assassins that acted like guards.'
'Behind them laid the fallen body of one of her servants, it was unsure if he was dead or alive…'
"You?!"
'She almost jumped behind, taking a few steps back in fear.'
So they already came after me?!
'Ishtar immediately recognized the person in front of her, the person she had been sponsoring, the "mastermind" she once thought to be in control of…'
'Once a mere pawn in her hands, or so she believed.'
"Thanathos!!"
/Grin.../
"My… Please, do not use my name outside of the appropriate facilities. There are… Ears around us after all." Thanatos replied with a sharp smile as he took a step forward
(Image?)
'He and his guards walked into the room without a care or drop of courtesy, closing the door behind them as they did so.'
/Silence…/
'He looked her up and down, not paying attention to her haggard look, much less to her nudity.'
"My… Ishtar, how much have you changed?"
"Everything is so... Wrong... You used to speak so domineering with us before yet now you remain wordless..."
"Has something changed?"
"You… Did you come here to mock me?" She spat out with some resentment
'Since she had no one to lash out to, he ended up receiving her locked anger.'
"No no no… You misunderstand, I wouldn't do that." He replied as he shook his head
'The purple-haired God looked around before smiling.'
"Ishtar… You were of immense help to us, and I can't bear to watch you decay like this under the heavy hands of the Guild…"
'He raised one of his hands.'
"Come to us, this time, not as a bystander, but as…"
'Ishtar took another step back.'
"Wait… You don't mean… I-I can't!"
If I join them definitively, I'll never be able to rule under the light unless… Everyone is taken out!
I would become an enemy of everyone, not just Freya, I can't do it!
'Thanatos did not retract his hand.'
"Allow me to explain it better then."
'As he walked around the room avoiding the messy environment of toys and clothes, he stopped near the window, but not moving too close to it, just enough for him to point outside.'
"Ishtar, as of now, you are slowly being gutted out by your ferocious competitors…"
"..."
'She couldn't deny that.'
"The Guild who was supposed to be neutral won't move, the people that once worshiped you turned their backs on you, those that were once at your feet now order you around as if you were theirs…"
'That was the bottom line!'
"...! You were spying on me!"
From where?! I barely left my room!!
"It was due to me worrying about you!" Thanatos said with a wide smile as he raised his hand
'In other words, there was no need for him to think too hard, her condition was obvious...'
'But for the neurotic Goddess, the worst possibility was the most likely.'
"Ishtar! Can't you see that at this rate you'll be devoured whole before you have any chance to rise again?!"
"Your Familia can't leave the confines of their home, they can't grow, you can't make money… It's over."
"Without power, you'll never rule Orario."
"I…"
'She clenched her fists, unwilling to accept it.'
"The world already sees you as their enemy, even though you did nothing wrong but dream big… This is the kind of place Orario, the city of adventurers, is."
"There is nothing else you can do, so as you did in the past to us, allow me to extend my hand to you."
'Ishtar gazed at Thanatos' hand with a deep and somber expression.'
"If you chose to remain, what awaits you is nothing but a slow and pitiful death as your Familia rots…"
The only way would be to cut the rotting parts off and regrow them slowly... But she'll never accept that.
"I can already see it, you'll either be reduced to something like those pathetic Gods that serve mortals rather than rule them, become a toy, or become...Their woman."
'He continued to walk around the room, speaking to her slowly:'
"You'll be played with, every day until they grow tired, then, you'll be exiled, forever."
"And once outside, there is no way you'll ever recover, the only thing left will be to carry this humiliation with you for all eternity."
"Is this what you want? To be made fun of by all of Heaven?"
"..."
'Thanatos continued.'
"Why not choose to struggle with everything you have left instead of succumbing?"
'Thanatos expression turned dark suddenly…'
"Especially since you already are the Guild's enemy."
"?!?!"
"W-What do you mean?!" She asked as she took a step back in shock, and unknowingly, she touched the glass of her window
/Gulp.../
'She gulped down as she stared at the city below, so far... So... Tall.'
"Ishtar… Don't make a fool of me, do you really think the Guild would act like this to you without a cause?"
"They already treat you as an enemy… A liability to the safety of the city."
"They already see you… As one of us."
"!... Wait?! Don't tell me!"
'Her expression went to her vault, and she slowly understood the impact of his words.'
'The Guild wouldn't act without a serious cause, and the last thing that attained such heavy reactions from them was…'
'Evilus.'
'It all made sense now.'
"It can't be…"
From the very start... Was there no chance for me to recover?...
/Tremble.../
'This revelation made her weak on the knee.'
"There is nothing else you can do, the Guild has already started to follow the clues…"
'But his expression turned mischievous.'
"I wonder how they learned of this… My, I wonder!" He spoke with a smile
'He spoke in a vague tone using empty words, letting Ishtar fill the gaps…'
'There was no way to know what she was thinking, but as long as she agreed…'
"?!"
Did they… Did they ditch on me?!
No, this would only bring them down…
This means…
'Her expression turned ferocious.'
"That brat…"
'Thanatos smiled with extreme amusement as those words left her mouth.'
"Exactly, it is all…"
"His mistake."
'As Ishtar stared at the ground with anger, Thanatos' smile widened.'
"Come to us before it's too late, the Guild wishes to sacrifice you for the greater good, I cannot accept it."
"Ourano's dominance over this place has already gone past just rulership, he is a tyrant, messing around with our lives in the mortal world."
"Let us rebel, together."
'Ishtar thought, again and again, until she finally arrived at an answer.'
'And just when she was about to grab his hand…'
/CRACK!/
""?!""
'The windows of her room broke apart as 4 shadows jumped in!'
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Notes