It sits in the family

by Flagarach

Though luck, will and sheer determination Kusanagi Shizuka managed to slay a deity, becoming the eighth godslayer in the process. Now she is forced to deal with mages, heretic gods and fellow Campione. But most importantly, can she keep her new-found powers a secret from her totally not also a Campione brother?

6. Arc 2-3:

Eighteenth of November, close to midnight

"Hoho, this knight will perform his final charge, obliterating all in his path! One thanks you for this final boost of strength, Gascoigne! One will use it well to exterminate your existence!"

Lancelot is escaping the black hole, his speed increasing bit by bit. The black prince has no authorities left for killing, and Athena too lacks simple instantaneous murder tools to dispatch of this knight before he starts his devastating charge.

Is this the end?

"Glorious lord of the sun, Mithra be praised!"

What's this? Athena looks around her, recognizing both the authority used and the owner of said authority. This power, there's only one king who wields that divine power: only her sworn nemesis, the seventh king who usurped the powers of Verethragna!

"That troublesome horse… Kusanagi Godou!" Shouting out the name of her greatest opponent she tries to discern why he showed up on the battlefield. Why would that king be here?

Okay, stupid question, why wouldn't he try to defend the city he lives in? Still, Athena did not expect him to enter the battlefield like this. Normally he's a lot more passive and reluctant to fight.

"To conquer all enemies, pray bestow upon my strongest self thousands of lights and thousands of swords!"

It is close to midnight, and Athena's [Darkness] decreases the brightness even further, until it becomes impossible for normal mortals to see more than a few meters ahead. But now, after a long night of battle rays of light shine on the horizon, taking the form of morning sun. Quickly it rises to the top of the sky, before plummeting downwards to incinerate the enemies of the user.

But who is it aimed at? Is Kusanagi Godou an ally or an enemy? Not even Athena can directly gaze into the sun, so she doesn't know the exact direction of the attack.

In that case defensive measures should be taken just in case. Summoning the legendary [Aegis] she creates a defense that should even be able to stop this authority!

Athena waits and waits, but there is no pressure placed upon her shield. In fact, someone else seems to be crying from the pain:

"Nuooooh! To be sneaked upon like this, one certainly failed to expect such tactics!" Instead of Athena being attacked it is Lancelot who gets swallowed whole by the enemy. Kusanagi Godou has joined Athena's side in the battle against Lancelot!

Eventually the flames burn out, leaving no traces of the war god. The attack was so powerful that the white knight couldn't even give some final parting words. Gascoigne, noting that his battle is over with the white knight's demise, deactivates his black hole.

"Kusanagi Godou, this goddess is pleased to see thee once more!" Athena speaks these words with a happy voice, sounding as if she is meeting a good friend. She walks over to Godou, who is also moving towards his nemesis with a brisk pace.

"Well I most certainly am not." Godou on the other hand mainly looks annoyed, irritated that he is pulled once more in a supernatural event. It has only been fifteen days since his incident with true lord Erlang, barely the length of an average vacation. If there is anyone toying with Godou's fate, can he please make this the last supernatural event of this year? "There are gods and Campione making a ruckus in my town, forcing me into a struggle I have no interest in."

Yuri, Liliana and Ena are standing beside their lord, but as expected Athena completely ignores them. Instead it is Alexandre Gascoigne who enters the conversation: "Kusanagi Godou." With a stern look he examines the self-proclaimed pacifist. "So, why did you decide to go against your claims of pacifism and suddenly help us in this battle? Did you perhaps finally shed your hypocrisy?"

Godou simply glares at Gascoigne, already understanding that mutual friendship with this man is impossible. He focuses his attention on his mortal rival, who might be arrogant but at least there's some form of shared respect for one another.

"Someone called me on my phone and told me what exactly was going on here." Thank you Renjou Fuyuhime for giving a detailed analysis. Otherwise there might have been a chance that Godou would join forces with Lancelot and accidentally caused an unneeded awakening. "I want to keep the supernatural to a minimum here in Japan, so of course I would side against those planning to resurrect some ultimate god."

According to what Fuyuhime told him the battle going on at the coast of Tokyo bay is between those for and against the resurrection of the so-called "strongest steel". Naturally Godou chooses against the resurrection of troublesome deities, meaning that he prefers joining the battle as Athena's reinforcements rather than facing against her.

Having chosen sides it is natural to fight against the ones you haven't sided with, in this case delivering a final blow on the knight of the lake. Obviously Pandora does not grant Godou a new authority for such a kill, but the number of authorities they possess is not something any of the kings care about, least of all Godou. All that is left is to talk it out with the winning party.

"Kusanagi Godou, this goddess wishes to finish our battle once and for all." However, Athena is not interested in mere talk. Her time is limited after all, so her life should end with a grand fight against her archenemy! "Come, takest up thy blade, and let us duel!"

"Like hell I will! This city has seen enough battle here, and so do I. Now go home, I've no interest in creating future trouble."

"Fu…" Athena sighs, looking with disappointment at her rival. "Thy face looketh quite unspirited. Insufficient, completely insufficient. Thou art not a warrior of the battlefield in that state, a ludicrous shame for all kings."

"Shut up, Athena. I've no interest in your idiotic Iron Age policies. The only thing ludicrous here is your desire for battle!" Godou gestures his girls to retreat, realizing that battle will probably happen. Stay back and wait for an opportunity to help. That's the best strategy against the likes of gods or kings.

"Then one shall simply awaken thy lust for bloodshed." Athena's eyes turn pitch black, a sign that she has activated her mystic eyes of petrification. "Bearers of lingering life, all shall cease activity completely! Ye shall be vanquished here!"

It starts under the feet of Athena, where the sand turns into natural grey stone. Godou realizes what Athena is doing, and raises his magical capacity. If there is one weakness about Athena's eyes it is that a Campione can resist them by raising his magical capacity. Godou is unaffected, just like Gascoigne.

However, they are not the only ones still standing here. Looking behind him Godou tries to scream at the trio that followed him to get as far away as possible… but it is too late: Yuri has turned into a beautiful stone sculpture. Ena turned into a stone sculpture fitting right in with nature. Liliana too turned into a fairy-like sculpture.

"Hoho… thy expression… 'tis better. Not enough, but better nonetheless." Athena simply laughs as she sees Godou's look on his face. She couldn't care less about those pawns of her enemy, but if they can be used to wake his lingering aggression then of course she will manipulate them in her favor.

"Of course. I'm not some kind of saint, but if you attack me I will strike back. Now I will do everything I can to drive you out of this country."

"Fool!" Athena shouts, mocking the ridicule of the king in front of her. "Drive out? Why canst thou utter words like slay or exterminate?!"

"It's my way of doing things! You've got no right to complain, Athena, even if you are a goddess of war!"

Athena simply stares at the ocean to her side, turning the sea into a stone plain. "Then one cannot avert anymore. Kusanagi Godou: One proposes a final duel, held on this sea of stone. One promises, this goddess shall neither rampage nor destroy the lands thou holds. Thy form of battle is surely still possible, but rememberest the damage to the surroundings, including the destruction of any nearby… statues." Spoken with a devilish charm the last word comes out of Athena's mouth, a word that holds a meaning Godou knows all too well:

This place will be destroyed by battle, and there is a chance that one or multiple of the girls following Godou will get literally shattered during the fight.

"Kusanagi Godou." The one who thus far stayed mostly silent speaks up. "Let go of your hypocrisy and duel Athena. I'll make sure that your followers will stay unharmed and recover." Gascoigne is basically giving Godou a thumbs up for this battle, as it will be the final step for the black prince to obtain his lifelong goal.

Godou dislikes this fellow Campione, but does thank him for taking care of the girls. Accepting the duel with Athena both prepare themselves for what will be their final battle.

-x-

The two duelists move to the middle of the lake, a short leisurely walk as a final calm before the storm. Most of the route is silent, but Godou has one question left:

"Athena, there's something that strikes me as odd."

"Hoh? Prayest tell, Kusanagi Godou, what is it thou percievest?"

"What isn't? Why do you challenge me already? Why are you specifically creating an area that prevents harm to the people living here?" Okay, Godou does not mind the latter at all, but it is still strange to him. Something about miss "When a god dueleth a god-slayer, 'tis only natural for the people to be sacrificed" actively trying to involve humanity as little as possible in this fight is still very weird to Godou.

"Correct. One seest that thou art not yet a fletched king, and one would wait for thy ripening. However, one lost time, and cannot exist thus for long. As this goddess hast lost her immortal body, doomed for death, 'tis only natural one lives without regret and finishes what was started."

"You're dying?" Godou wonders in surprise. He did not expect that something like that would've occurred. "How did that happen?"

"Unaware one is of thy desire for old tales. Fu, time existeth for such simple talk." Athena starts to explain about what occurred starting from nearly a month ago. Her fight with Lancelot back in Europe, how she got the grail stuck inside of her, and that it drains her life energy until she dies. "This goddess fearest death nor demise, long one dies without regrets. Perhaps one lastest not even to tomorrow, so today our epic shall meet decisive end."

"I… see." As much as Godou dislikes it Athena does not seem to want anything less than a full duel to the death. If the seventh king had a choice he would try to find a way to get out of this without fighting, but for now he should focus on one last point: "So Athena, why are you not rampaging in the city itself?"

"Fufu…" Interesting to tell, but there's no time for that anymore. "Deemest that a maiden's secret." The playfulness with which she spoke those words are not something Godou has seen before on this trinity queen. "Dost thou not see this place, here thou performest thy final duel with this goddess!"

Athena backs a few feet away from Godou, the sign that the duel has started.

"Sure, then I won't hold back either." Godou raises his magical energy, chanting the first verse of his battle hymn: "By the skill with which I wield spell words, may justice of the world manifest!"

"A cold tombstone that befits ye! That shall be this goddess' blessing bestowed!"

Athena too activates her spell word of [Petrification]. Normally these have no effect on a king, but if supplied with the full power of a deity then things like temporary partial petrification of a king or god is entirely possible.

The radius of petrified ocean becomes even larger, now affecting even the beaches closest to the duel. Even the air feels heavier than before, like it consolidated into lifeless mass.

"Now then, sleep. Simply wait to awaken at dream's end. However, one shall imprison ye in an eternal dream!"

How absurdly ridiculous those spell words sound! Godou absolutely cannot lose here!

"As the mighty and indomitable one, I shall vanquish all evildoers!"

Thousands of glowing spheres appear, filling the sky like the stars of the night. For the sake of defeating Athena the slayer of Verethragna prepares his sword of spell words. When Godou learned that Athena was part of the chaos he made sure to prepare knowledge for the sake of a possible battle. After all, what country only starts producing weapons after war has been announced?

"I know, Athena! Your past, your ugly myth, I know them all too well! How the queen of the pantheon, once a mother earth goddess, was overthrown by a new generation and forced to become the daughter of the new king! How the mother earth goddess was warped into the form of a monster, Medusa the gorgon! Snakes and petrification; these powers have been taken away from you, and given form to an evil that heroes slay!"

The sword is forged, a blade for the sake of slay Athena's [Evil Gaze]. Those authorities from Medusa will not hold sway any longer and will soon be sealed for this battle. The waves of divine power begin to be cut, severed, slashed and pierced by Godou's authority, greatly diminishing any effect they would have without harming the seventh king.

"Correct, Kusanagi Godou. However, thou art careless, openly playing this card! Dost thou think one hast not prepared counters for this trick?"

During the first battle Athena was outraged by the mere mentioning of her ugly past. But now… now her face shows a smug grin, as if she was expecting this. "Thy blade hast been crafted to slay Medusa. However, one is both Medusa and Athena. To wipe thee from existence, these two goddesses are separated once more!"

Next to Athena a second Athena manifests. This one looks like the prepubescent form of Athena, but she is equally dangerous.

If Godou's [Warrior] has one weakness then that has to be its inflexibility to attack multiple targets. Only one authority can be slain, so now that Athena has split in two he will be defenseless against at least one of the two!

"One is Athena, goddess representing darkness. Master of the underworld as queen of the night."

"One is Medusa, goddess blessing the land. Master of the stone chamber as queen of the earth."

"As such, humbly acceptest the curse bestowed by this goddess. Kindly turnst into an ice-cold corpse and layst thyself in the Underworld."

"As such, humbly acceptest the blessing bestowed by this goddess. Kindly turnst into an ice-cold statue and returnst thyself to ash and dust."

[Death], the grim reaper that sends everyone to the grave. This annoying power of Athena is the most dangerous of the two, capable of killing Godou even if he raises his magical resistance to the limit! Once infected by that curse the only cure is the [Ram], which will leave him open for several hours.

The [Warrior] should be used to seal that. However, his blade is currently crafted for vanquishing the [Eyes of Petrification]. While switching is possible it creates a burden on Godou of significant level that his magic defenses drop to the point where Athena's evil gaze can completely turn him to stone.

Either die or be turned into stone. Neither option is favorable to Godou. Perhaps if his allies were here they could provide backup to help him out of this peril. What can he do now that he is alone?

"King, since when are you alone? Use me!" Words spoken from inside Godou, he recognizes it as his second authority, the Kusanagi Ame no Murakamo no Tsurugi! "I shall deal with those words of death!"

Godou mentally nods, accepting the help from the ally unaffected by Athena.

"Blade of the wind! The divine metal of destruction!" Placing his golden sword in his left hand he summons his second authority in his right.

Ame no Murakamo. A divine blade that can copy authorities in its presence. Yes, Godou understands the plan that his blade is planning. A wave of death is approaching Japan's king, intending to turn him into a lifeless corpse.

To kill death one will use death. Ame no Murakamo copies that power given off by heretic Athena, becoming a blade infused with the power of death. A horizontal swing at this evil energy cuts it apart, literally killing it with the divine blade's power.

Another wave comes, this one from Medusa's stone gaze. Now Godou swings the sword in his left hand vertically, and three golden spheres drop down and sever through this power.

One blade in his left for countering [Stone]. One blade in his right for countering [Death]. With the Japanese sword guiding him in combat he is now dual-wielding these powers again the powers of Athena.

"Fu… one should've expected another usurpation of thee." The younger-looking of the two goddesses speaks, quirking an eyebrow out of interest.

"Thou hast obtained the blade of thy land's trickster. Congratulations are in order for that feat." Now the older of the two deities speaks up, and like a true goddess she somehow finds time in this important battle to compliment her opponent. Well, it's not like this is such a major setback for the goddess. Better to discover this newest authority now then to have it as a deadly surprise late in the battle.

The absurdity of this entire situation is nearly overwhelming Godou, so he decides to end this now before Athena can perform another one of her tricks:

"O sword, shine with brilliance for the sake of my victory and justice!" Accelerating the sword he performs an all-out attack on the older form of Athena, the one that wields the [Eyes of Petrification]. While [Death] may be more harmful to Godou it is the stone gaze that is holding the surroundings hostage. What if Athena suddenly decided to undo all of her petrification to trap Godou in the sea? While Campiones are granted multiple great attributes on ascension there's nothing that allows him to walk on water.

For that reason Godou seals the [Eyes of Petrification], preventing Athena from altering the battlefield in her favor.

Athena and Medusa fuse together once more to form a single adolescent goddess, one who is chanting the next verse of her attack:

"O Shadow, submergest. Sing of death, guide death, dance to death; Become Athena's servant, the underworld's messengers of death!"

As the words are spoken Athena's shadow turns into nine copies, and each of them changes into a snake of ten meters long. Nine snakes surround Athena, all attached with their tails to the goddess' back as if they were an extra arm, petals of a voracious flower. With this omnidirectional attacks can be executed, making even the strongest defense meaningless!

While the [Warrior] may offer some battle instinct it is useless in this situation, as it has already sealed an authority. Something else is needed to continue the fight, and Godou knows exactly what.

A professional strongman could generate a maximum pressure of around 760 psi with his strongest attack. These snakes of inhuman length can create a pressure of 4800 psi with their jaws, far stronger then what a human can do.

In other words, because of this overwhelming power that authority becomes available!

"As the one who holds all victory in my hands, I am the strongest. Man and devil; all enemies, all who harbor enmity will be vanquished. Hence I shall smash through all enemies in my way!"

To overpower his enemies Godou has switched to the form of the [Bull]!

Athena may encircle Godou from all sides. Athena may have an overwhelming advantage in skill and combat experience.

But does it matter?

Martial arts exist because humanity is weak, and they wanted to fill in that weakness. Technique is only a deciding factor if the level of strength is comparable. Even if Athena is a goddess, she cannot compare to the power currently flowing through Godou's body!

Godou lets himself get bitten in the arm by one of the snakes, but this allows him to grab the attacking serpent! With ease Godou rips off the lower jaw so it cannot try to bite him anymore. Now that he has a good hold over this monster he throws the snake over his shoulder, and since Athena is attached to the snake from her back she too gets flung in the air.

But Godou does not simply want to throw Athena away. Keeping hold of that jawless snake he slams it downward, throwing Athena with brute force against the concrete sea. And then he does it again. And again. And again. Godou has no intention of letting Athena go that easily.

It lacks finesse, technique, or anything else to optimize the damage dealt. However, with such overwhelming strength Godou is pretty sure that he is hurting Athena, considering that the stone waves form a small crater every time he smashes Athena into it. As a certain green-skinned hulk would say:

Godou smash puny goddess!

Athena tries to limit the damage from Godou's wild swings. First she tries to cushion the attack by placing her snakes of darkness in between herself and the ground, and while it may have lessened the damage it also destroyed two of the snakes, meaning that in three more swings Godou has immobilized Athena's entire authority before he can simply swing Athena many more times into the ground. That will not do.

Second option, attack Godou with the remaining snakes. The tides of battle have turned, and Godou is on the offensive. Athena must regain the initiative in battle. Bracing herself for a single blow to the ground she orders her remaining snakes to attack Godou. Now he is forced to let loose, and Athena can attac-did he just grab a second snake?

Oh. Damnation.

Now able to swing with both arms Godou's attack has become even more powerful. With destructive force Godou slams Athena into the ground, increasing her number of injuries even more.

Athena now admits that this round was her absolute defeat. Just before Godou can slam Athena into the stone sea again she dismisses her authority, causing her to be flung a few hundred meters away. With pain she stands up, realizing the damage that Godou has done. Some broken bones, some large bruises, a few internal organs are performing suboptimal and a very, very large amount of pain.

No, this time Athena chose poorly. She needs a new plan of attack for facing her eternal rival. She has been made painfully aware that getting close with Godou while he is using the [Bull] is foolish. Instead, Athena must make sure to snipe him from a distance!

There is only one problem with that idea: Athena's favorite long-ranged attack, arrows infused with the power of petrification, has been sealed by Godou's golden sword. While Athena has quite the number of authorities only some are useful in battle and even less are long-ranged weapons. As great as her powers over weaving and olive trees are they do not belong on a battlefield!

On second thought, there's… that. As much as she despises to use that authority it cannot compare to her will to defeat Godou. To win she will use this authority!

"Athena Hippeia Tritogenia {1}. One acceptest thy mockery, sea god. This goddess alterest her very being, so grant weapons upon this warrior!"

In front of Athena a large turquoise chariot appears, with 4 white horses in front of it. Athena's clothing also changes, her chiton changing into a panoply {2}, a golden helmet appears over her head and golden greaves decorated with blue cloth cover her legs. On her left arm a large shield appears, differing from the Aegis Godou has seen before, and in her right hand appears a long trident.

Athena has called upon another aspect of her legend. While temporarily sealing the powers of goddess of the underworld Athena and goddess of earth Medusa she gained the powers of her sea-born self!

Athena raises her trident in the air, thus causing an earthquake to happen. Godou can feel it, he's standing right at the epicenter. But what is Athena trying to do? It isn't as simple as just trying to perform an earthquake. While it might somewhat unbalance Godou it will not harm him. Since they are fighting on open sea there are also no buildings that could crumble upon Godou, so this tactic is not meant to harm. What could Athena be planning?

Athena steps in her chariot and disappears in a blur. Not good, that chariot can move at divine speeds! Now that Godou's footing is unbalanced by the earthquake not even his instinct allows him to prevent getting stabbed by an attack of Athena.

"Those that are evil, and those that are strong, fear me, for I have wings." If Athena decides to move at those inhuman speeds then the only way to counter it is to do exactly the same! "For my wings will punish you for your curse, and those that are evil will not be able to touch me!"

Switching forms to the [Raptor] Godou can see the world slow down around him. A side effect from using godspeed, it allows him to see Athena's chariot clearly. The earthquakes have also been slowed down to the point where they don't affect Godou anymore.

Seen from the world of divine speed Godou estimates that the chariot goes around seven meters per second, a distance that he can easily keep up with. Godou runs to his enemy, passing along the right side of the chariot.

Athena has gained heightened awareness of godspeed, now also able to see Godou moving at those speeds. Yes, she can clearly see him going past her right side, so Athena thrusts her trident in response.

While that stab comes at him with inhuman speed for Godou this is still more like watching an attack in slow-motion. Compared to a normal slash of Athena this is at least four times as slow as it used to be, so the king dodges this blow without any problems.

Now that Godou has passed the chariot it is time to use his ultimate advantage over that contraption: Mobility.

What would the turn radius of that Chariot be? Five meters or so? Way too large compared to a human with a turning radius of zero! Instead of Athena chasing Godou the seventh king has turned the situation completely around!

Best of all, a Greek chariot has no protection at the back, Giving Godou an unobstructed path to hitting Athena!

Summoning the legendary Ame no Murakamo back into his hands Godou swings his blade at his enemy. His blade cannot keep up with his master, its thoughts still outside of the world of godspeed. No, Godou cannot rely on his advice now. His swings are simple and amateurish, but from the eyes of Athena it is coming at inhuman speeds!

With the shield she parries his attacks, not once allowing that sword to taste blood. Even if there is a difference in speed Godou's attack patterns are too simplistic to land a hit on Athena! She even manages to get a few counters in, but with her current speed they are still easily dodged by Godou.

This pattern continues for a while, and as they move at break-neck speeds the battle has turned in one of attrition where Godou is still holding the advantage. However, a small little pang tells him that this won't last forever.

Godou can feel it, the limit of his authority is coming. Sure, he can continue using this form for a while longer but afterwards he will feel the side effects of doing so: extreme chest pain, temporary paralysis; Both are afflictions that will be quickly exploited by Athena.

This high speed battle needs to end soon. Godou must switch forms soon or else he will lose. But what can be used against this divine chariot other than his own divine speed?

Four authorities have already been used. That leaves six powers from Verethragna and the blade that is his second authority.

As Godou thinks about his newest tactic Athena decides to try and stab Godou once more. Godou should be able to easily dodge this attack, but for some reason… he fails?

The trident tastes blood, creating a gaping wound in Godou's left flank. Even Athena looks surprised, not expecting that the first strike of a combo would injure her opponent. If sound was not broken by Godou's perception of the world then he would hear Athena asking: "What is thy problem, Kusanagi Godou?"

The answer to that question: nothing. After all, is there not an authority that is only activated after receiving a major blow?

The seventh king increases the limits of his godspeed even further, now running neck and neck with the horses pulling the chariot. While Athena is preparing to strike Godou in this position the king himself doesn't care at all as he activates his next form:

"For I am gallant, and what is display is the sigil of the fierce camel!"

Switching to the form of the [Camel] Godou loses his divine speed for increased combat abilities, leg strength, battle instinct and recovery. In this form he cannot keep up anymore with that divine chariot of Athena.

But he doesn't need to.

With a single swift kick Godou strike the horse closest to him right in the head, with enough power to turn its head into a soft mush. Dead on impact, the rest of the momentum causes the chariot to be flown away like a crashing race car.

The divine transportation device makes many spins and turns before eventually coming to a standstill. After a long crash all that remains of the chariot is a wreckage and four dead horses, one missing a head from the original blow.

Athena managed to get off the chariot in time, being uninjured from Godou's sudden attack. However, that does not mean that she is safe as her enemy is coming straight at her!

A leg swings at her side, trying to crush half of the goddess' ribs. Placing her shield between herself and the attack she prevents her body from being broken.

How powerful this attack was. A normal human would die even if he was blocking, and Athena still struggled somewhat with this power.

Again Godou attacks, this time a low kick aimed to crush her legs. With her trident she parries, before trying to stab Godou's heart.

Godou ducks under the spear before launching a counterattack. A flurry of kicks from one side, while Athena defends against these blows while launching several swings of her trident in return.

With her chariot destroyed all Athena has left are the weapons in her hands. While her sea-born self has the largest connection to war, battles and fighting she lacks any form of back-up. Even the power to control earthquakes is useless as using that power leaves Athena open for long enough that Godou can use that opening for a destructive blow.

Athena cannot even easily counterattack. If she manages to obtain mutual destruction with Godou then his [Camel] would allow him to hang on for long enough to see Athena disappear before switching to the [Ram] so he can restore himself to perfect health.

If only she had kept that authority which she used against Godou's [Bull] in reserve, now would be a good time to use that power on this battlefield.

Athena has no direct answers to this form, so she simply keeps trying. This is the best that her sea-born self can do, Athena Hippeia Tritogenia only has the option left to show her battle prowess to the enemy king and try to obtain absolute victory, a ridiculously hard job.

But that's also where Athena realizes what she must do. If it is her current state that prevents her from winning then she needs to discard the useless parts!

"Enough!" Athena bellows out with loud voice. "This farce endest now!" Athena uses a shield bash to force distance between herself and Godou, and now that she has some fractions of a second to spare she can switch from sea-born Athena to earth-born Athena. Her armor switches back to her ordinary chiton, and her trident and shield become her iconic scythe once more. "Kusanagi Godou, this goddess showest ye: One shall reaffirm her rule of the sky!"

Brown, owl-like wing sprout from Athena's back, and she quickly sets off into the sky. Godou tries to chase her, but without any distractions or advantages in favor of the Campione he cannot do anything more than jumping up, getting parried by Athena and landing on the stone sea again.

The higher Athena gets the more difficult it gets for Godou to land a hit. Eventually he lets her do her thing, realizing that he is not going reach her using this form.

"O Messenger of winter! Extendest thy icy-cold hands, and stealest the warmth of life!"

The moment Athena finishes her spell words a violent blizzard begins to blow, with Athena at its center. Dark clouds gather in the sky which blot out the moon and stars, increasing the darkness of night even more in the area.

It is not merely a blizzard. It's the rioting wind of the underworld, turning the area colder than even permafrost. It's magical wind that shatters whatever it touches, its cold coming close to absolute zero.

Even a Campione with excellent resistance would not be able to withstand its full impact.

"Kusanagi Godou, showest this one thy defense against this power!" Taunting words from the Mediterranean queen, who is currently hiding herself in the frozen storm.

The [Camel] doesn't have the reach to attack Athena, nor does it offer any form of defense… but Godou can't help but smile in the face of this adversity.

"Who said I need to defend, Athena, when you're perfectly positioned for me to strike you?" Godou chants new spell words, those that will bring the final destruction of this evil queen:

"O guardian of the righteous, I invite you and offer sacrifice." Athena was absolutely right. Trump cards that you already used in previous battles aren't trump cards anymore.

"O guardian of the righteous, I praise you, and beseech you." During the battle with Athena Godou used [Wind], [Stallion], [Ram] and [Warrior]. Those obviously cannot deal a decisive blow against Athena. Because Athena watched his battle with Perseus [Bull], [Camel], [Boar] and [Raptor] also lost this role.

"One who supports the sky and develops new land, the one who grants victory and grace, I will perform justice, please grant to me the right path and light!" Therefore, the authority most useful for slaying Athena is none other than the [Goat]!

Thunderclouds were already gathered from Athena's blizzard, giving Godou an unlimited supply of weapons to act with. Were he to try and aim at the enemy he would surely miss. How can he hit a person in this storm where he cannot even see ten meters through these dark icy winds? No, the only way to strike Athena is by not aiming at all. Lightning will then take the route downwards with the least resistance, and that path goes straight through the goddess herself!

"Wowowowo!" Athena screams out in pain, realizing what Godou just did. "Of course, Verethragna's [Goat]! To think thou hast such surprises in thy sleeve and then strikest with such tactic, how fitting of thy title of devil king!"

"Shut up, Athena! You bought this all upon yourself with your own destruction, you know!" How many times did Athena use the eyes of petrification today? How many people other than Mariya, Liliana and Seishuuin were turned into stone statues here in Tokyo, wishing for someone to rescue and avenge them? How many people are there in Tokyo who are living in terror because of all the supernatural events around them, wishing for someone to stop all this? Because all these people exist Godou was able to access Verethragna's ninth form, landing these blows on Athena!

The thunder that continues moving down via the easiest road tries to enter the stone ground through Godou, but he doesn't want any of that. Catching the lightning in his hands he uses it to slices apart the blizzard, preventing its icy-cold touch from killing him.

More strikes come from the clouds of lightning, all coursing through Athena. Each blow is meant to kill, and the moment they reach Godou he uses the lightning to destroy the power of this deathly blizzard. Each strike is hurting Athena, destroying her a little more. If this keeps up then Athena is done for!

The wind starts to lose power, and Athena is getting ever closer to death. "This power would be completely unavailable to me if you didn't terrorize this city with all your fighting! If you had acted peacefully I wouldn't be able to beat you right here! You let this oh so important victory of yours slip right out of your hands!"

Suddenly a flash moves at Godou from the inside of the wind. Godou tries to see it for what it is, but in this dark storm visibility is still terrible. It could be dangerous, so the next bolt of lightning Godou receives should be used to exterminate that flash.

The upcoming bolt comes quick, and that flash won't make it. Without prior warning the sky turns clear, revealing the flash aimed at Godou: A worn-out Athena is charging at her enemy. A desperate tactic more fitting for the likes of steel, she is now purely trying to obtain victory.

And the blizzard did not just disappear. No, it is now lined up behind Athena, increasing her speed even more.

The lightning will not make it. Even if it hits Athena she will continue, the damage she takes be damned. Before Godou can catch that bolt and sent it back at Athena she will already have cut him in half.

Dodge it. Dodge Athena's final assault. Her wings are now literally on fire. She is not gliding or flying, she's falling straight at Godou for a final reckless gambit.

Her speed is insane. There is no way she will not hurt herself when she hits the ground. This kind of attack can only be made if survival is not an issue anymore.

But even so, as long as Godou can dodge it he should be fine. While the [Goat] does not hone combat instincts Godou still knows how to run away. Godou sprints away from the falling goddess, managing to get out of the range of Athena's scythe…

…except that that goddess is still charging right at him. Are those winds of death actually homing in on Godou? This is bad, Athena has entered striking range and Godou didn't manage to evade!

Like the grim reaper Athena swings her scythe at Godou, cutting through tissue and bone to deliver a destructive blow. Athena crash-lands on the stone concrete, rolling a good number of meters away from Godou.

When Athena finally stops moving she stands up, looking with relief and satisfaction at Godou. "And thy victory disappeared with that incessant yapping of thine, Kusanagi Godou."

With this blow the situation became hopeless for the Campione. He entered battle without the [Stallion]. [Bull], [Camel], [Raptor] and [Warrior] have all been used in battle. [Goat] is still active, but Godou is too heavily wounded to keep using it. [Wind], [Youth] and [Ram] have no use for him in this battle, and as long as Athena doesn't summon any large beasts Godou's [Boar] cannot be used either. Not even the sword of the trickster god can save him now.

"Therefore, t'would seem that this goddess hath obtained victory." Athena speaks out, her knowledge as a goddess of war clearly seeing when victory is at hand.

"Yeah, you're right. Today I certainly lost to you." However, even though Godou is heavily wounded, blood pouring out of the side of his body, why is there still a glimmer in his eyes? Why does he give off the aura of a winner? "While it won't chance this result, there's still one thing you said you were wrong about."

"Hoh?" Athena is bemused by this child, her mortal enemy. A mistake? It might be worthwhile to listen to before killing him. The last words of a worthy enemy are never in vain. "Prayest tell, what is this one's wrongdoing?"

"When I first met you today you told me that you wouldn't last another day. Too bad for you, but a new morning has arrived!"

Is that it? Thinking about it, it is true. The hour of the queen of darkness has ended, and the hour of witches {3} began. But why does that matte-Athena realizes it, her mistake! That damned brat pulled a fast one on her!

"For victory, hasten forth before me!" When the clock strikes midnight his authorities return, including that accursed [Stallion]! "O immortal sun, I beseech thee to grant radiance to the stallion. Oh stallion that moved godlike with wondrous grace, bringest forth the halo of my master!"

A sun rises from the east, even though it is only slightly past midnight. An artificial sun, created from Godou's authority. Darkness gives way to light, and a spear of incinerating light shoots out to kill the queen of darkness.

"Kuh, not this again!" Cursing under her breath Athena summons her strongest shield [Aegis] again and points it in the direction of the attack. That shield is so famous, so strong that even an attack directly opposed to her nature can be blocked… albeit barely. The sun will not hurt her.

However, that cannot be the true attack of this king. He must have another ace on his sleeve. That sword of his? No, the blade of the storm god is not something he can kill Athena with without being consumed by his own flames. Can it be, that blonde follower of his is hiding somewhere in reserve, and Kusanagi Godou is planning to reenact his first victory over Athena?

Looking at Godou Athena sees him standing with sword in hand, but it is not the legendary Kusanagi blade or that mortal magic sword.

"Through the ages, defeated goddesses of Earth would serve the hero of Steel that defeats their monstrous aspect, but to humiliate them even further the fallen goddess often plays a crucial role at her own defeat. Either they kill their own spawn, like how the goddess Nu Wa of the east slayed dragon and turtle, or they help the hero on their journey with blessings, like you Athena!"

That golden sword again! Where did he learn how to wield two powers at the same time? This is bad, the tables have completely turned. Athena cannot defend against those golden spheres of godslaying while blocking the sun at the same time. But where are they? Why is there only that single sword in his hand?

Suddenly a cracking noise fills the air and Athena sees her shield starting to break. How can this be, her shield is supposed to be stronger than that! And why do the flames of that sun look golden?

"This is irking…" He fused both authorities? When did he learn that? Now these flames aren't just meant to slay Athena, but also sever her authority of the divine shield!

"Afterwards the remnants of the beast are used by the goddess. Nu Wa build a pillar supporting heaven with the legs of the turtle, while you used Medusa's head for your divine shield Aegis!"

The spell words pierce through the shield, now reduced to worthless by the [Warrior]. Abandoning [Aegis] Athena swerves sideways, hoping to avoid most of the flames as they consume her shield. It doesn't work that greatly, but at least Athena survives the onslaught.

Her body burning and in pain many goddesses would've given up a long time ago and gotten it over with, but not Athena! She will not fall here like that! "O Night! 'Tis the time ruled by the queen of the underworld. Respondest to one's invitation and lowerest the curtains of the sky!" The brown wings sprout from her back again, and the sky becomes dark once more. The wounds on her body start to heal faster, her own darkness suppressing the remains of the sun. Now to get in the sky and bombard Kusanagi Godou from above, his [Goat] should not be available as he carried that over into the new day.

"Like hell I'm going to let you fly away again!" But before Athena can use her new authority Godou jumps in, having switched his [Warrior] and [Stallion] for the [Camel]. Using a flying roundhouse kick that would even make his sworn sister proud Godou slams onto Athena's heart with the power of a thousand camels.

Even greater goddesses would die from this kick. But sheer willpower and tenacity keep Athena alive. It is already impossible for her to go for the win. She will probably not die after her mortal enemy. That kick caused mortal injury, breaking her internal organs. Therefore the only solution left is mutual destruction.

"Death rules all, from the smallest human to the greatest goddess. King, acceptest this invitation and join this one in the grave!" Spellwords for [Death], Athena's final plan against this king. A cold darkness spreads from her body flowing in Godou's direction. If he gets hit he will either die or be forced to use that [Ram], leaving him defenseless for a final blow.

"Steel that breaks a thousand blades, winds that cuts the immortal earth; Ame no Murakamo no Tsurugi, grant upon me the power of the victorious wind!"

Godou's second authority has been fused with the avatar of [Wind]. The authority once dismissed as useless in battle by Athena is now transformed into a weapon for her demise. The mortal rival has disappeared, replaced by a warrior of wind wielding a divine sword, cutting apart her final attack.

"Nuoh! This one's attack has failed, but thine sword will not reach!" Yes, the [Wind] absorbed by his sword is mainly defensive, cutting apart attacks that draw too close. Absorbed like this it lacks the ability to teleport Godou over the battlefield, giving Athena a chance to perform a final attack!

"Those who are strong and unjust, fear the four winds, for they shall blow all evil away. O Mithra, breathe the victorious winds of change, for justice demands it!"

Using spellwords for the [Wind] Godou drops all defense and channels it all in his sword, pointing the tip of it at the Mediterranean queen. A large vortex shoots out, the edges of the wind cutting away at all in its path.

The goddess should be able to dodge it, but injured as she is from the battle the slashing wind cannot be evaded. Countless cuts appear on her body as her flying form gets flung further in the air.

Her wings are clipped by the wind, causing her to crash down on the petrified sea. The wings disappear and her form chances back from a eighteen year old maiden to a prepubescent girl. Athena lies down, but with her head held up she sees Godou walk up to her. He is also quite injured, both from the inside and the outside. Forced to use his sword as a crutch he falls down on all fours next to Athena.

"I think that I turned the tables on you, Athena. You may have won yesterday, but today is my victory." He speaks with rasped voice, but he is clearly in a much better state than his opponent.

"'Tis vexing, but that is truth. One shall take her loss with dignity." Athena looks at him, the king that finally gives off the aura of an warrior. "This battle hast been magnificent, Kusanagi Godou."

In the sky Athena sees a slender woman, with pink hair in twintails. Pandora? Is that woman truly here or is she an illusion?

Oh, it doesn't matter. Last moments should be spend on different things.

Godou stands up straight with strained movements that constantly hurt, and puts his blade at Athena's throat. "Since you don't have any time left on this world, let me grant you your final wish."

"Ah, truly, thou growst on the path of the warrior. Didst thou finally find the power to slay?"

"Don't compare me to your Iron Age policies, Athena. I'm not some random warrior who kills all who stand in his path. However, even I can grant someone her final wish."

"Fufufu…" Athena laughs, still hearing the folly of his rival. "Still so immature, Kusanagi Godou. But if thou couldst defeat me at this level, thinkest of how great thou can grow!" With her last power she takes a final glance at that black blade. "'tis a wondrous blade thou wieldst, but this goddess finds it still lacking. Perhaps this one's death will improve it."

"Pandora!" She shouts out at the apparition in the sky, "This child receivest one's blessing, for he hast vanquished the mighty Athena. Grant upon him this goddess' authority!" The figure in the sky nods before disappearing. Good, at least the legend of her battle lives on in this king. Now that it is all finished Athena turns to her slayer, giving him her final parting words:

"Fare thee well, Kusanagi Godou, one's mortal enemy."

"Farewell, Athena." And with that Godou pushes the blade through the throat. Athena gives off a last smile, and suddenly her body is gone.

-x-

Gascoigne walks towards the middle of the battlefield. Finally this whole mess of a battle is over. All those crude tactics and barbarian brawls are really not something the black prince would like to do twice.

Still, it cannot be said that it did not have results. Where once was Athena's body now stands a two meter tall cylinder of shelled flesh. A large number of protrusions stick out of the flesh, each the form of a white toe. This is the protection created by Kusanagi Shizuka to seal the grail. While the eighth Campione may have created this seal it was Athena who kept it powered. That is the more efficient way, of course, because otherwise that young king needs to be called upon to remove the seal while also being a constant drain of energy for her. No, it was better to give Athena that burden.

Anyway, now that Athena is gone there is nothing driving that draconic barrier to keep the secret content hidden away from the world.

In a brisk pace Gascoigne steps towards his objective, something that goes rather slow compared to his normal pace. He is so used to travel with his godspeed that this tempo became completely unnatural to him. He looks at his target, only a hundred meters ahead, and sees a certain other king trying to move towards and investigate the grail.

"I wouldn't touch that if I were you!" Alexandre shouts out to his fellow peer, trying to get him from touching that divine artifact. Gascoigne would prefer to take this item by force, but that's not a useful tactic in this situation.

While Godou may be in terrible physical state his number of authorities left is numerous. Counting his [Goat] form which he carried between these two days he only used 5 of his authorities. [Bull], [Boar], [Youth], [Raptor], [Ram] and [Ame no Murakamo] are all still available for this young king, and knowing Gascoinge's luck that doesn't even count his newest authority from Athena. Gascoigne himself only has his [Labyrinth] left, and while he could use it to escape his enemies it lacks any form of offensive abilities.

No, a battle between these two would be one-sided and in favor to the hypocrite barbarian, even if he is heavily wounded. To obtain the advantage here wisdom needs to be utilized.

Godou looks at the person who spoke those words. Recognizing that person as the other king currently in Japan he wonders what Gascoigne is doing here.

"Just lie down and rest. I've made contact with your organization to clean up this mess, so let me finish business here and then we hopefully don't have to meet in a very long time."

Yes, for Alec meeting with kings is rather annoying. They are all ruffians who want to battle, or worse, they're Madame Aisha. Direct meetings with them cause only unneeded strife. It would've been much preferable if he could've stayed neutral until now, but at least some effort is required for the sake of pursuing a dream. This time he can excuse himself for doing so.

Having reached the final resting place of the queen of darkness he is now only standing a few meters apart from the flesh barrier.

"Be faithful to me until death, and I shall grant you a crown of life!" A simple spell for raising the outward flow of magical energy, Gascoigne is flooding the flesh around the grail with his energy. Slowly that final barrier crumbles away, until the ultimate goal of Gascoigne is finally visible to all: A large cup of almost a meter tall, filled with magical energy.

Yes, the item Gascoigne's father spend his whole life searching for; the dream that he passed on to his son; the will that made the black prince the Campione he is today. Now, finally, after ten years of kingship, he has access to the ultimate prize!

Stretching his hand out to the grail Gascoigne is planning to bind that divine artifact to himself, giving him his well-deserved prize.

Slowly pouring his magical energy in he tries to make the grail familiar with his scent, as if he is teaching a newborn puppy.

But the Grail does not accept his magical power.

It's the opposite, that action caused the magical energy inside to well up! The divinity of slain [Earth] gathers together and is about to blow!

The grail collapses in on itself before releasing an incredibly powerful explosion. Had Gascoigne still his divine speed he could easily outrun the blast, but now he has nothing to protect himself with.

Shit, is this final swindle of Guinevere actually going to work? His right hand, the one that he stretched out to the grail, is already disintegrated by the blast. Within a second the rest of his body will follow, and he descends to his grave for eternity. Damn it all!

Gascoigne closes his eyes on reflex, even though it doesn't help him at all. No, he's dead. Guinevere played a final trick and it worked.

Soon his body will become nothing, and he has no idea if his mind will continue to exist. The afterlife? Bah, Gascoigne does not care about that, not when he is dying with regrets!

Yet something is strange. If his body were to become nothing, why does he feel himself falling on sand?

Opening his eyes Britain's king sees that no, he is not dead. Lying on the sandy beach of Japan he sees the clear night sky, proof that he is still among the living. Far away the once stone sea has been obliterated, before the leftover rubble sank to the bottom and was replaced with water once more. Yes, that explosion was no dream or hallucination, his lack of a right hand proves it. How is he still alive?

Gascoigne hears some wheezing to his right, and when he looks there he sees the most likely cause of his survival: Lying down on the beach as well is Kusanagi Godou, grasping his heart in pain, which according to the fourth king's research is a sign of overusing his [Raptor] form.

"Kusanagi Godou… why did you save me?" There should be no reason for comradery between these two kings. He should've simply escaped on his own!

"I remember someone safeguarding my friends." Is he talking about his many girlfriends that turned to stone? Indeed, Gascoigne did contact the HCC and his own Royal Arsenal, with both magic organizations now roaming in the area. "I'm simply repaying my debt here."

How absolutely foolish and ridiculous. "Yes, you did. I guess we are even now." Ridiculous as it sounds that hypocrite is responsible for saving his life. Thanks need to be given here.

But what should Britain's king do now? The grail is gone, his lifelong goal has ended. Does that mean that his life has no meaning anymore?

No, that's absurd. He miraculously lived on, which clearly shows that there's something else out in this world. All he has to do is to find it!

"Still… thank you, Kusanagi Godou." An honest confession, something that his entire heart agrees on, even if he would never say such things otherwise. "What you did back there… it's not something any other king would've done. While power cannot be judged easily, I do say that you are the most compassionate of all kings. I do not dislike that."

Looking over to his side he sees that the second-youngest king didn't get a word of that, having activated the [Ram] to heal all his mortal injuries.

Heh.

In that case the British Campione will take those words with him to the grave. There's no way he's saying those embarrassing words again. With a wide grin Alexandre decides to join his fellow king into the land of dreams. The night was long and the battle harsh, now rest is earned. Perhaps he might even find his next objective in that world… who knows?

-x-

Nineteenth of November, Morning.

"Ugh…" Shizuka wakes up with a bit of a headache. That fight yesterday took a lot out of her.

Looking at her own chest she sees that the hole from Karna's arrow has completely filled, there isn't even any scar tissue left. Good, this means the healing spell Fuyuhime used worked, at least she can function normally again.

There is only one question left in Shizuka's mind: where is she? Her memories from after the fight are a little bit fuzzy. She tries to recall them as best as she can, but the fragments that are left give her a small synopsis at best:

After the battle she got visited and healed by Fuyuhime, who took her to one of the undamaged houses in the neighborhood to rest up a bit. Then Shizuka explained a few things to Fuyuhime, which hopefully wasn't said in a delirious state. After that Shizuka simple fell asleep, eventually leading to this moment.

If the clocks are on time then it is now almost nine in the morning, way later than Shizuka usually wakes up. It's probably just like that saying, sleep is the best medicine: Thanks to her extended sleep, supernatural recovery and Fuyuhime's healing spell she has no more aches within her body. She feels completely fine.

Another advantage of kingship, Shizuka supposes.

Getting out of bed Shizuka sees a fresh set of clothing hanging over a chair, its size being a perfect fit for her. A small note from Sakura tells the young Campione that these clothes are meant for her to dress in.

Looking at her current clothing Shizuka can easily see why: While her body may be fine the scars of battle are still visible on her torn and bloodied clothes.

This school uniform can be thrown with the trash. Luckily Shizuka still owns a spare back home, because otherwise she would have to make a lot of excuses for destroying her own school clothes like this.

Shizuka switches her destroyed uniform for a new set of clothing, a striped red sweater with a pair of jeans underneath it. After changing Shizuka leaves the bedroom, and by descending a set of stairs she quickly finds herself in a living room.

"Shizuka-san/-chan!" The two followers of Shizuka greet the youngest king, both busy eating their own breakfast. There's a third set of food still untouched, which Shizuka assumes is hers.

Placing herself next to Sakura she starts eating her own food while discussing yesterday: "So, how much did I tell you guys yesterday?" Is there something that still needs to be clarified? Shizuka would rather not leave out some vital piece of knowledge for her allies and underlings.

"Well, according to Fuyuhime-chan you spoke about the duo who were rampaging in this place. There's heretic god Lancelot and divine ancestor Guinevere who were trying to resurrect a god, and you fought them together with heretic Athena and godslayer Alexandre Gascoigne." Indeed, a rather accurate summary of Sakura.

"Something like that, yes." However, there is one person missing from this explanation. "During my fight with Guinevere she managed to summon the divine spirit of the god Gawain."

"You mean that nephew of king Arthur who is perfectly chivalrous, Shizuka-chan?"

"…" Yeah, about that…

"I wish that were true…" Shizuka lets out those words in annoyance. What an irritating man that Karna is. "But he wasn't chivalrous at all. This probably has to do with his origin being Karna, from Hindu mythology." Shizuka may not know the Mahabharata {4}, but there were so many terms dropped that his Hindu origin is plain obvious. Karna was really bad at hiding his own identity.

"Oh, I studied somewhat on that!" Fuyuhime brightly explains, ready to show off her knowledge on this matter. "Karna, a villain from India's longest epic, he was the ultimate warrior who was defeated with trickery and deceit. Son of the sun god Surya, wielder of hundreds of authorities, and undefeated in honorable combat." Fuyuhime starts to give a short synopsis of his legend, before moving on to even more important parts: Karna's origin.

"Karna was most likely not an invention of the Indian people. In older myth a god akin to Karna has been seen: In the city of Sippar, which existed thousands of years ago in Mesopotamia, there was a cult following the sun god Utu. This god had a son, known as Amar-Utu, which means son of Utu. He quickly became popular in the neighboring city of Babylon as the god of Babylon itself. As Babylon conquered its surrounding area under Hammurabi the other city gods entered the Babylonian pantheon, ruled by their own patron deity, who was given the name Marduk."

Marduk, the god-king of Babylon. Who would think that such a deity could be Karna's origin?

"Marduk was a king, a warrior. He mastered many weapons and authorities for his most famous story, the slaying of mother earth goddess Tiamat. By defeating the followers of this goddess the Babylonian kingdom reigned supreme, making Marduk the official lord of the gods."

"Then how is he connected to Karna?" Shizuka asks the most important question: What binds these two gods? Why is this not some sort of lucky coincidence?

"…" Fuyuhime looks rather fidgety. In other words: "I… don't precisely know. N-Now, don't assume that this is baseless, there simply is no recorded knowledge left of that time period. Most likely there was a war between Babylonia and ancient India which was won by the latter, and it became the origin for the legendary epic."

With that explained Fuyuhime really does not want to stick on this topic anymore. As she sees Shizuka finish the last of her breakfast she remembers something else to talk about.

"On a related note, we of the committee would like to congratulate you for your help in keeping this land safe, and grant you this gift for your success in repelling the enemy." Fuyuhime pulls something out of her pocket, and places it on table:

A stick of around nineteen centimeters long, the size of an average pencil. On closer inspection the last quarter is actually a sharp blade, So it is more like a tiny naginata.

"Ah, what's this Fuyuhime-chan?" Sakura asks, examining the item with a puzzled expression. It looks like some sort of miniature weapon, and there is also a powerful divine feeling oozing out from it. "It's some powerful artifact, isn't it?"

"You're right Sakura-chan," Shizuka replies as she too eyes this divine artifact. "this does look rather powerful. What is this exactly, Fuyuhime?"

"Well, let me tell you." Proudly the witch talks about the exact nature of this blade. "Any Japanese worth his salt knows about creation of Japan, right?" Shizuka nods, aware of the story.

Izanagi and Izanami went to the floating bridge of heaven, and with the help of a jeweled spear they stirred earth's water. Lifting up the spear there was brine dripping down from the blade, and where this brine his the primordial earth's water islands would emerge. Thus the island nation of Japan was formed.

"This gift is none other than the legendary Ame no Nuboko, the heavenly jeweled spear used by the creator gods to shape these lands!"

"That famous spear, huh?" Even though Shizuka sounds disinterested it is merely to hide her own shock. She has just been gifted a one of a kind legend, a priceless artifact that could be considered the greatest treasure of many an organization!

How absolutely suspicious.

"So, why was it gifted to me? I doubt that the history compilation committee gives these trinkets away to their lord for every successive battle, or else they would run out of gifts fast."

Fuyuhime nods, agreeing with that statement. "Yeah, that's true. They didn't tell me why this was gifted to you, but if I had to guess it's an anti-theft measure. That British gentleman you allied with yesterday is a phantom thief of no equal, stealing whatever obtains his interest." Gascoigne would object to this, calling his crimes mere borrowing instead of stealing. Everyone agrees to this as much as people agree to Godou not building a harem. "The committee would like to keep this particular object in their grasp, and since our defenses cannot stop him the only possible defense left is to leave the divine artifact in the hands of one of Japan's Campione."

"In other words, me." Shizuka realizes that the committee is pretty much using her for their own benefit, but that's to be expected. Only a fool would think that an organization is blindly loyal to their king, they're simply trying to save their own hide.

Still, the gift might be useful someday. There's no reason not to do as that organization wants. "By the way, do you have some wire?"

Sakura searches a cabinet and finds some thin wire, and gives it to Shizuka. "But why do you need it, Shizuka-chan?"

"Look, there's a small round hole in the bottom of this artifact." Shizuka point to the end of the stick, where there is indeed a small hole "If I put a wire through that hole I could turn it into a keychain for my phone."

Nonono. There's something very much lacking in common logic with that idea. Reducing a priceless magic artifact to a mobile accessory? That lacks so much common sense that it almost makes Fuyuhime groan. Even Sakura gives this idea questionable looks.

Before Shizuka can use the wire to create her keychain she remembers something even more important.

"Say, Fuyuhime, Sakura-chan; what day is it today?"

"Friday the nineteenth, why do you ask?"

Oh no, this is bad. Shizuka looks with horror around her, remembering something terrible. "I should be in school right now!"

Both of the youngest king's followers gaze at their lord with deadpan looks. "Really?" Fuyhime speaks in flat tone, "That's what you're worried about? Not something like the outcome of the battle between the black prince, Athena and Lancelot, but it is your school attendance of all things which you are worried about?"

"We won." Shizuka explains with ease, "Otherwise we wouldn't be sitting here calmly eating our breakfast." Instead it would be more along the lines of a hurried wake-up followed by a nervous explanation that heretic Lancelot is on the loose.

"…" Shizuka's explanation cannot be refuted easily. Sure, there are some minor points that can be pointed out, but it's still mostly true.

Eh, both Sakura and Fuyuhime decide to roll with it.

"Yes, pretty much. Now, Shizuka-san, about school, it would be preferable to solve this without the use of magic. The best method is if we can grant you a valid excuse for not arriving in time, yet it must also be something not overly flashy.

"Oh, can't we say that Shizuka-chan was needed for help at our university?"

"A decent idea, Sakura-chan, but it needs some ironing out." The trio start discussing about a solution, helping Shizuka return to those common days.

Finally, it's time to relax and just worry about the ordinary stuff.

-x-

Twentieth of November, Saturday, late morning.

It's over. The battle over the holy grail has finished. As far as Godou knows it involved two gods, a divine ancestor and two godslayers, 3 of whom died: Divine ancestor Guinevere, who perished trying to revive her master and husband; Heretic Lancelot, who stayed with Guinevere until the very end and tried to enact her will; and finally Heretic Athena, who got her revenge against the retainers of the strongest steel and was defeated in a fair duel; The survivors are the two kings, Kusanagi Godou and Alexandre Gascoigne, of which the latter might need someone to lend him a hand.

The seventh devil king is celebrating his victory over heretic Athena and his help in stopping the revival of [The king who arrives at the End of Eras]. And with celebrating we mean getting dragged into the party by his entourage. Now he sits in Showa Kinen Koen {5}, an hour west of Tokyo, participating in the event of momijikari {6}. The only one left out here is Erica, who is still in Italy for some other business with her association. She won't be back until the day after tomorrow.

Godou looks around and takes in the beauty of nature. Ah, watching the autumn leaves fall really is one of the finer things in life. Taking another sip of his sake (alcohol-free, he's still a minor!) he sits down next to Amakasu, who congratulates him on his first victory without massive destruction.

"Come now, it can't be that bad. I'm a normal person at heart, surely I won more often like that." Godou cannot deny that he caused some destruction, but to be honest some of his authorities don't really help his cause, like that boar of his. He still feels guilty about destroying the Coliseum of Rome.

"At the current moment we have had to repair Hamarikyu gardens from your first battle with Athena, Tokyo Tower from your fight with Voban, Saitenguu temple from your fight with Her Eminence, the entire mountain around Saitenguu from your battle with Sun Wukong…"

"I will admit that Hamarikyu got destroyed because I brought the fight there, but I always tried to keep damage and casualties to a minimum! Tokyo Tower got destroyed due to Voban's manipulation of lightning, and that temple and its surroundings would be unscathed if nee-san was less whimsical! I do my best to lower the damage!"

"I'm afraid I have to disagree with you, Kusanagi Godou. The only thing you are more skilled at than wanton destruction is the charming of maidens, as your many works in both Italy and Japan show." His premier knight, Liliana Krancjar, is now opposed to her lord in this argument, but to add insult to injury she has to add a few more words. "In both of these abilities you are unmatched under the heavens."

"Hey, I completely disagree, I'm not some devil king sowing the seeds of destruction wherever I go!"

Completely disregarding Godou's words Liliana finishes off Amakasu's table: "While I can condone your destruction of the Coliseum of Rome there are a few other buildings that you have destroyed." Hang on, did she just forgive Godou for destroying one of the biggest tourist attraction centers in the world purely because that attack was aimed at Erica? "After becoming a Campione you destroyed Cagliari harbor for the sake of punishing an idiotic challenger, ruined Palermo Bay and the Soluntum ruins during your fighting with Melquart, The Duomo di Milana, Piazza del Campo and half of lake Garda in your fight with Sir Salvatore and the larger part of Naples in your fight with Perseus. Can you truly say that you do not equal a god of destruction in this regard?"

There are so many things wrong with that in Godou's imagination that he doesn't even know where to start. This is mainly because those words are the truth, and not refutable.

"Ah, don't forget about the Imperial Palace during the battle where your majesty fought Ena and our partner Ame no Murakamo!" The warrior hime-miko joins the conversation, putting another nail in Godou's coffin.

Liliana and Amakasu both nod, having forgotten about that particular incident. Indeed, there have been so many destructive battles that some are starting to slip past memory.

Godou racks his brain, trying to remember a battle that did not cause much destruction.

The battle against Erlang? No, that involved the destruction of a waterfall, completely altering the course of the river.

Ehm… wasn't there a battle against some dinosaur divine beast back when he first became a king? Oh wait, there's at least one battle without property damage!

"I can recall a battle with a divine beast of Artemis' creation back in Italy. It took place inside a church, and that place is still standing fine!" Speaking proudly of this feat Godou tries to sell his truth as real, but the others simply give him a pitying look.

"Kusanagi Godou, that level of opponent doesn't really count as fighting for the likes of you." For a king the only opponents worth noting are other kings and deities, something like that is at best a punishment.

"Even so, should we not celebrate his current success rather than pointing out his history?" Now another of Godou's close allies arrives, the one known as Mariya Yuri. "Even if his previous record of destruction is rather… bad, if he can keep this up then Japan's future will be bright."

Thank you Mariya for your calm observation. Godou fully agrees with those words spoken by the hime-miko.

"Yep, you do have a point there Yuri." Everyone else also agree that Mariya has a good point there, so Ena decides to change the subject of the conservation. "In that case, your majesty, could you show off your latest power you obtained?"

Godou would normally be completely against such a ridiculous proposition, using his powers for no reason at all. However, just this once summoning his third authority can be allowed, since it will not have any bad effect on the surrounding area:

"Armor made of goatskin, adorned with the head of the gorgon. That is Aegis, the darkness that shall not let anything pass!" In Godou's hand a shield appears, one that is labeled by the knowledgeable as an aspis. The shield is slightly more than a meter in width, and made entirely out of a material not known to common men. In the center of the shield the maidenly face of Athena is carved, eyes closed and muscles relaxed, as if she is asleep. This is Kusanagi Godou's third authority, obtained from the defiant deity Athena!

"A shield?" Mariya looks puzzled at this new authority. She wasn't expecting Godou to get something as simple as that. Compared to the ten forms of Verethragna or the multiple uses Ame no Murakamo offers something like a shield to protect from harm seems rather unfitting for Kusanagi Godou.

"Indeed, it's a shield." Amakasu also looks intrigued at this authority. "Is there nothing more to it? Something as pure and simple like this does not fit you at all, it sounds more like, well… that king."

Godou knows exactly who they are talking about. The sixth king, Salvatore Doni. Ugh, simply thinking about him gives Godou a headache.

"Your Majesty, think fast!" Suddenly Ena swings a sword at her lord, an attack created by the combined powers of the hime-miko and Japan's most famous blade, currently serving as Kusanagi Godou's second authority.

With haste Godou raises his shield, deflecting the strike.

"Seishuuin, what was that for?!" Godou shouts out in anger, not approving of this idea.

"Y-yes, Ena-san, that was unnecessary!" Yuri starts to scold her friend too, and the other two also give disapproving glances.

"Well, our partner agrees with Ena that it cannot hurt to test out your newest authority. Look, there isn't even a scratch, even though we went all out!"

"Hah…" Well, that is at least true. The shield is completely unharmed from the sudden strike. In fact, it seems to have become even stronger than it was before. "It seems that striking this shield like you did caused a new form of it to open."

Godou unconsciously has been pouring magic energy into the shield. Now that the shield has taken a heavy attack from a divine weapon, Godou's uncarefulness allows the second form of his newest authority has been activated:

The eyes on the front of the shield open, the face of the mother earth goddess has woken up from slumber. Everything that falls under Athena's evil gaze solidifies and turns into stone, be it grass, water, trees, or even humans. Everything turns in a temporary state of non-alive.

After overcoming the sudden shock of his actions a panicked Godou desperately tries to shut off his shield. All his mind tries to focus on unsummoning this evil weapon.

A second later, something that felt much longer to Godou then it actually was, the shield is dismissed. The shield shimmers for a moment but quickly disappears from the world. However, the damage is already done:

At least two or three acres of the park have been turned to stone, along with most animals and plants who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. While some of the mages managed to raise magical defenses in time against this petrification there are still a lot of them who became stone statues, along with a large group of unfortunate tourists. It will take weeks to return this park to normal state.

Mariya looks shocked that Godou just unleashed such destruction upon the park, and Ena looks with amazement at Godou's destruction, though not without a few pangs of guilt. Liliana simply sighs while muttering a few words about how she "should've seen something like this coming". And Godou?

He looks at the destruction he has caused, before throwing his head in his hands.

"You know, I take back what I said." Amakusa speaks with a slippery and snarky tongue, but his face reveals that he's also quite bothered by this situation, really disliking the mess just made. "Congratulations, your majesty: you have obtained another destructive victory."

Godou only lets out a whimper of despair in return.

-x-

{1} Athena Hippeia Tritogenia: Athena of the horses, child born of Triton. Technically, this would make Poseidon her grandfather, which is arguably even worse than being his child.

{2} Chiton, Panoply: The former is standard Greek clothing, worn by males and females alike. The latter is a type of breastplate worn by hoplites, weighing up to 32 kilograms.

{3} Hour of witches: Here it very clearly means midnight til 1 AM, and not 2 AM til 3 AM as some people would like to believe.

{4} Mahabharata: One of the two major Sanskrit epics of India. It tells the story of the Kurukshetra war between the Kauravas and the Pandavas.

{5} Showa Kinen Koen: Also known as Showa memorial park, it is popular in autumn because of its rich colors.

{6} Momijikari: A Japanese tradition where one views the scenery of falling leaves. Equally important to the Japanese as watching the cherry blossoms.

-x-

So, I assume that there might be a question raised here at the end of this arc: Why does Godou obtain a new authority and Shizuka not?

For Shizuka this is simple: It's way too early for her to obtain her second power. Kings do not rapidly gain one power after the other, it's a process that takes a while. Look for example at Godou: He obtains his second authority in the fifth volume of the series, having spent multiple battles with only 1 authority. In the first arc he became a king, in the second there's a mayor fight involving Athena, in the third he's at odds with another Campione, in the fourth he fights a showy Greco-Roman deity, and only in the fifth arc does he fight the deity that gives him his second power.

While it is true that characters develop over arcs not every development should end with a new authority. Smaller developments, like obtaining some artifact, gaining new wisdom or learning new ways to use an old authority can also work as rewards.

And let's be honest here, story wise it is for the better. The story would only grow dull and hard to follow if I distributed new powers every single arc to the main character, and the fight scenes would become uninteresting. All it does is make Shizuka an overpowered king who becomes less fun to read about.

Now as for why I give Godou a new authority even though I said all the above… remember the original volume 9 to 12? Remember how Athena and Circe gave Godou the knowledge to use [Sword of the Beginning and the End]?

Well, that doesn't happen due to the divergence of the story. Because Gascoigne knows what happened to the Holy Grail (it blew up) he will not search for what happened with that artifact, unlike in the original story. This means that he will not visit the island Circe sleeps on and will not rudely awaken her. Because of this Circe will continue sleeping and not bother Kusanagi Godou or anyone else. Because Godou is not bothered in this story he will never learn [Dawn Secret Archives], which is needed for that ultimate skill of the Kusanagi sword.

As recompense for Godou not learning that power I gave him an actual third authority, the all-famous [Aegis]. Below are the stats for this new authority:

[Aegis]

Obtained from heretic Athena. A shield with the image of adolescent Athena carved upon it, Godou has obtained the ability to summon it. It comes with two modes, a defensive and an offensive mode.

The defensive mode allows him to block attacks like a normal shield, capable of nullifying even something as powerful as his own [White Stallion]. It can be considered a defense on equal terms with Doni's [Man of Steel].

The offensive mode cannot block attacks like the defensive mode. Instead the eyes of carved Athena will open. Everything caught in the line of sight of these eyes will petrify, much like Athena's own eyes of petrification. While effective on humans, lesser divine beasts and the environment it is only moderately effective against stronger beasts while kings and deities are for the most part unaffected.

The main restriction of this authority is that offensive mode can only be used after Godou blocks a strong enemy attack with the defensive form. In offensive mode the authority can be unsummoned or returned to defensive mode at any time, but the restriction of offensive use is also reset.

There are no other true restrictions. Godou can use it as often as his mana allows him to and wield it together with other authorities he owns.

…

And that's Aegis. It's rather hard to come up with a fitting authority because Godou has no obvious theme, unlike the rest. Even Shizuka has a theme, being [Queen], where the five stones fulfill the role of "personal bodyguards".

So I had to think: What is Godou's style? After a ton of thinking I have finally figured it out! On one half he is a [Just Protector] who stands up for justice and his allies, and for the other half he uses [Counter-play], someone who plays his tricks after seeing the enemies' strengths and weaknesses. To clarify:

[Just Protector]:

[Gale]: Instantaneous travelling power obtained when someone who knows him is in danger and needs his help.

[Stallion]: Powerful fire attack only usable against evil opponents.

[Youth]: Followers of Godou gain enhanced powers as reward for their subservience.

[Goat]: Gain the power of lightning with power equal to the number of people willing to become Godou's strength.

[Warrior]: Seals authority Kusanagi Godou has obtained full knowledge about. In this group because it requires a follower of his to give him that knowledge, but can also belong to the [Counter-player] group if Godou obtains this knowledge himself.

[Counter-play]:

[Bull]: If enemy shows super strength, gain strength higher than enemy.

[Camel]: If injured, obtain powerful offensive kicking abilities along with improved endurance and recovery.

[Boar]: If enemy is gigantic, summon an also gigantic boar.

[Raptor]: If enemy has inhuman speed, counter with even higher speed.

[Ram]: If killed, gain single use resurrection.

[Ame no Murakamo]: If enemy uses attack with a certain attribute can copy that attribute and use it against the enemy.

And that's all the authorities of the seventh king. As you can see the authorities can be split up like that. [Aegis] is both: The former because it forms a shield that protects himself and his followers, and the latter because it can counter with the curse of petrification after being attacked.

Now what would be a good name for Godou's theme? Hmm… A protector… one who defends? And combine that with his style of fighting… Ah, I got it! His theme is [Counter Guardian]!

…

On second thought, let's forget about all this theming lest a white-haired Godou travels back in time to slay himself and create a paradox.