Reenacting a legend

by davido747

In a world in which humanity never parted ways with the Gods and became the dominant species, an unexpected variable enters to disrupt its delicate order. After regaining his memories as the nameless hero King of Fakers, Emiya Shirou will have to teach this world why humans cannot be underestimated, and show them all what means to be a real hero.

12. Chapter 11: A 3000-years mistake

I'm alive! Yeah, as if the usual wait between my chapters wasn't already long, this last month basically kept me away from writing. Nothing bad happened, just local festivities and tons of alcohol. But now we are back with the good stuff! As per usual, I hit the 40k words so this is again a double update with one chapter as the build-up and the other being basically the climax fight. This one in particular I had planned for quite a long time, and I put all my effort into not letting down anyone, so prepare your favorite epic OSTs.

This doesn't mean this chapter is gonna be just walls of conversations. There's plenty of that, but I think this time there is a balance with action, as well as a prelude for what awaits you in the next chapter. Also, some of the issues addressed by some of you in the reviews will start to gain momentum starting with this chapter, as well as leaving some seeds for what comes next.

To not make the wait longer, let's get right into the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own any right over Type-Moon, the Fate Franchise, or High School DxD.

---

"Kuh!" A pained grunt escaped Nyaruko's lips as she desperately maneuvered through the night sky, trying to avoid the ruthless onslaught of magical beams and ice spears directed at her. The key word was trying, judging by the way her magical girl dress was in tatters, showing a good number of nasty wounds.

But what definitely hurt the most was the identity of the one trying to kill her in the most methodical way. Her brain tried to associate that familiar face with the girl who managed to beat her and unilaterally declared them best friends, but that was impossible. That wasn't Levi-tan by any stretch of the imagination. Her dress and wand were now black and purple colored, her former blue eyes were now of a pale yellow shade, and her cheerful expression was replaced by an ice-cold one.

Whatever happened to her, it must have happened after she insisted on going on her own to beat up that Luciram guy for the umpteenth time. Nyaruko never met him in person, but the image she had of him after hearing Levi-tan's stories was that of a cockroach who refused to die.

Then... how? Why?

"What in the world has gotten into you, Sera!? You can't tell me you were defeated just like that!"

After letting out that roar, Nyaruko stopped in her tracks before using a burst of magical power to throw herself directly at Levi-tan. She toughed out the attacks hitting her directly, commanding the "tentacles" around her magical staff to take the form of a blade.

Levi-tan created a blade of ice and welcomed her attack head-on with complete indifference. Despite putting all her strength into her swing, Levi-tan didn't even budge after blocking it and immediately answered in kind without mercy.

She should be excited by this. She could finally enjoy the thrill, the exhilaration of fighting against the only opponent in this sector of the universe that could match her. The only reason she agreed to Levi-tan's unreasonable request to stay on this planet is to play the "hero of justice".

But there was no way she could put her heart into this fight. Not like this. Not against this cold monster she could no longer call a friend.

"Is this is it!? You aren't gonna say a word, Sera!? You aren't even going to fight that corruption!"

"You talk too much." That blunt retort was followed by a powerful swing that flung her away like a rag doll.

She was unable to break her fall and ended up crashing through a roof and landing on a tatami floor. Not that an alien like her knew what that was, or had the time to appreciate the traditional Japanese style of the dojo she found herself. The only thing she noticed was that there was no one in the vicinity. But as expected, that didn't last long.

"Goddammit, the weather guy missed hard this time. A warning about random meteor strikes wouldn't harm."

A man? No, despite that old man speech, the person that entered the dojo with a mildly annoyed frown was a young boy around 16. Unkempt, cobber-auburn hair, golden eyes, and wearing attire of a style she had never seen that barely covered his chest, which actually allowed her to see some well-built muscles.

"No, there is no time to think about that." She shook her head as if to throw away those thoughts and focused on those hawk-like eyes that now observed her with surprise.

"Oya? Well, I'll be damned. A magical girl of all things barged into my property not even a couple of days after movin' in. Ain't this a hectic world? Well? Don't stay there openin' and closin' your mouth like a fish out of water. What's your deal, missy?"

His carefree words finally made her snap out of it and stand up in one jump. "Get out of here, now! She's coming!"

Her rushed warning only caused the boy to give her a look reserved for mentally ill people. "You're gonna have'ta be more specific. kiddo. Unless this is a really weird way to rob a house. I assure ya, the only thing of value you'll find here is my smithy and a buncha katana."

"A smith? Isn't that primitive even for this planet? No, that's not it! You're in grave danger, we need to-"

She had no time to finish as a black blur crashed into the dojo, creating another hole in the roof and causing a vein to pop on the boy's temple.

"Die." Levi-tan ignored his presence and rushed straight at the defenseless Nyaruko for the kill. However...

"The hell ya think you're doin'!?" The boy somehow reacted and swung at Levi-tan one of those katana he mentioned with an incongruous speed and strength, creating an explosion that repelled the corrupted magical girl.

Even Levi-tan's stoic expression morphed into one of surprise. The one that looked like just a regular human stood there unwavering against the once savior of this planet.

Perhaps... there was actually someone that could save her.

Those thoughts went quickly down the drain when the katana he was holding fell apart before crumbling into specks of blue energy.

"What the!? What kind of sword shatters in one clash!?"

"Hmph. It was inevitable. A flimsy human sword is no match against my miracle stick."

Their comments were met by a cocky smile. "Heh, are all those curses blinding ya? That was just an experimental blade. I made it like that. Now, I don't know what the hell is happening here, but someone corrupted by All the Evils of the World is definitely bad news. Let me handle her, missy."

The smith stepped in front of Nyaruko while another katana appeared in his hand. That was pretty much an invitation to keep going at it, which caused Levi-tan to frown.

"Don't get in the way human!"

The corrupted magical girl pointed her staff at the smith before unleashing another barrage of dark beams. But the human wasn't deterred and ran straight into the attack. With unbelievable agility and technique, he maneuvered through the attacks and sliced the ones that were unavoidable. In a matter of seconds, he was already in front of her, swinging his katana at her neck.

Levi-tan countered with her ice blade, and once again, the katana self-destructed, ruining her stance. The smith kept the pressure, swinging more swords that kept coming out of thin air with so much strength that they blew up in the first swing.

"Enough!"

The corrupted magical girl disengaged to avoid being overwhelmed in close quarters, and instead, charged her staff with a massive amount of magical power. Her body twisted in the air to gain momentum, just before she swung her stick with a lightning-fast movement, releasing a huge, crescent moon-shaped blade of ice the size of the building.

Shirou widened his eyes for a moment, before a flaming katana appeared in his hands.

"OOORRRRAAHHH!"

Camael was swung down with all his might, its hellish flames cleaving through the ice blade in a perfect bisection that allowed him and Nyaruko to stay safe while the two halves of the attack demolished the building.

"Haah..." Steam escaped the smith's lips as the flaming katana crumbled in his hand. Even with all the steam generated by the melted ice, he could still see the corrupted magical girl observing him with caution.

No second attack came, although, looking at her face, it didn't seem to be her decision.

"Hmph. Very well. You and that girl will get to live another day, smith." She left those words before flying away at the speed of a fighter jet.

"Kids these days..." The boy left an exasperated sigh before turning around to look at the still-stunned girl.

Golden eyes met emerald ones for a moment of silence before he finally spoke again with the moonlight bathing him. "The name's Muramasa Shirou. I guess I oughta ask, are you my guest?"

"Aaaaand that's a cut! Amazing work everyone! I think we can call it a day."

The director's announcement was followed by a round of applause and cheers. But Shirou ignored it for a moment in favor of wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"Fufu, See? I told you, you didn't have to worry, Shirou-kun." Nahida by his side shed the hot-headed teenager act while she rested her hands on his shoulders. Her face was dangerously close to his for some reason. "I must say, your acting as an old man is quite on point for someone who claims to not have lived past his thirty."

"You could say the real Muramasa rubbed off on me. And I could say the same to you. Your acting as a chunnybio is remarkable. And does Serafall often throw those massive attacks without a warning?"

"That's because I knew you could handle it, Shirou-kun." The one to answer his question was an approaching Serafall who was still taking off the colored contact lenses. "Isn't that what you thought when you started blowing up swords on my face?"

Those words came accompanied by a cute smile that sent chills down Shirou's spine.

"You can't compare some decent katana to an attack that can blow up a building."

"Shirou-kun, my dear, I'm starting to see why Sera says your standards when it comes to weaponry are a little over the top."

"But it's the truth. Those blades were just created with the purpose of polishing my skills."

"That's exactly what I mean. Even knights on the top of the Rating Games would pay fortunes for them."

"Bringing a sword that is synonymous with the downfall of a royal dynasty into a game that involves a king isn't the best idea."

The blank stares he received made him remember that he swung a bunch of those swords against one of the current maous.

"At any rate. Since we are good on time, why don't we go have some... drinks..." Serafall's cheerful tone died progressively as she looked at something or someone behind them.

And maybe it didn't cause a reaction from Nahida, but when Shirou turned around and saw Azazel of all people there, waving at him specifically, he couldn't help but share the feeling. And on top of that, Odin and his secretary were accompanying him, although the old man seemed more focused on appreciating the filming set.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting something, but can I borrow Shirou-kun for a moment?"

Shirou could literally hear Serafall's teeth grinding against each other as she glared a hole into Azazel's chest.

"Let me ask. Is this something confidential?"

"This isn't something you two can't hear." Odin cut in before Azazel could answer. "In fact, you should come with us, too. As the one in charge of external relationships, this concerns you as well."

The two super-devils exchanged a look before Serafall nodded reluctantly. But Shirou wasn't dropping his squinted eyes just yet.

"No one's going to ask my opinion in this matter?"

"I didn't take you for someone who would turn down the request of an old man, boy. It won't take that long, and this is something really important for you and your fellow youngsters."

The All Father ignored his grunt and turned around to walk outside the filming set, prompting everyone to follow suit. As it would seem, they had already prepared a teleportation circle that sent them right into Azazel's office.

"Well, before we begin, I apologize for the suddenness of this meeting, but given the current circumstances with the Hero Faction sending random attacks to key positions, this might be our best occasion."

Serafall snorted at Azazel's words. "You don't say. A group of those fanatics appeared right at the entrance of my set for crying out loud! I don't know if I should be more surprised about them knowing the location of one of my private proprieties, or the way Shirou-kun brutally dispatched them."

"Hoh? Do you perhaps feel responsible for those human insurgents?"

"Of course. They aren't just fellow humans. Their ideals aren't that far from mine, putting aside the completely deplorable methods they use. If I have the chance, I would like to be the one to settle this matter against their leader."

"But isn't what they are doing the essence of humanity? Fighting against impossible odds and prevailing."

His eyebrow twitched at that comparison. "Far from it, old man. Was Sigurd thrown at Fafnir before he even completed his training? What they are doing is applying Darwin's theory in the sickest way to exploit an anomaly in the system left by the Big Guy."

"But I'm afraid, the results are undeniable. They've already obtained over ten Sacred Gear users that achieved the Balance Breaker, and we have yet to extract a single bit of info from the one we've taken prisoner. Even after removing the snake wrapped around the Sacred Gear with your help, their memory was wiped clean with by a delayed spell implanted in their brains."

"They are meticulous if anything..." Nahida couldn't help but comment at the General Governor's somber conclusions. "I don't know if it would be prudent to assume they are desperate given their tactics."

"If you ask me, it's more like they are trying to replicate our fearless hero here." Azazel spoke with a soft chuckle. "More so after he defeated the Red Dragon Emperor's Juggernaut Drive in one hit."

"An impressive feat indeed. If my ears didn't fail me, the name you shouted before throwing that sword at the dragon boy was something like 'Bölverk Gram'. Quite a name you chose."

Shirou's face turned into a deep frown. He was expecting the theme to pop up eventually. His Gram and this world's Gram were too different despite originating from the same legend, and 'Bölverk' was one of the pseudonyms Odin went by. But what a way to link topics that didn't feel like a prepared interrogation at all.

"I can't think of a better name for the full release of Gram's power." He answered calmly with the first half-truth.

"That's a curious affirmation, Shirou-kun. Logic would dictate that that sword is something you forged previously to retrieve the real Gram from the Hero Faction. After all, Gram was never a 'Demonic Sword of the Sun'. However, the fact that that sword is a dragon-slaying sword that scared the shit out of Fafnir and somehow has ties to Odin here, would only lead to believe that sword is Gram."

"Kid, take this just as an old man's curiosity rather than a serious business, but can you shed some light on this contradiction."

Rather than tensing up, Shirou took a relaxed posture, with a leg crossed over his lap and his right resting over the chair's back.

"The answer is simple, yet complicated. How acquainted are you with parallel worlds theory?"

His words were followed by a silence, and the looks he received could only be described as if he had grown a second head. As expected, from his investigation, parallel worlds were a topic only investigated by science in this world. They were aware of the possibility of other worlds existing beyond the Dimensional Gap, but that was it. No one tried to travel to them with that Great Red fellow patrolling the only way.

"What an... outstanding affirmation. I take it that you mean that sword comes from a parallel world..."

"Yes, one in which Gram was shattered while being wielded by King Sigmund, and was later reforged by the hero Sigurd."

"And... you yourself come from another world?"

"That's right. At least my soul."

After all these months, they were more than aware that, whenever he started giving short answers with just enough sustenance, then there was no way they were getting more information from him. Even Odin reluctantly let go of the topic despite his increasing thirst for knowledge.

"Well, as interesting as it is, that's a topic for another time I'm afraid. Let's get to the point, shall we? Let's say that you youngsters gave me a lot to think about, and I decided to start negotiations with other factions, too. And Azazel here was kind enough to arrange a meeting with the representative Gods of the Shinto faction."

If Serafall drilled holes in Azazel with her glare previously, now the fallen angel felt like he could really die.

"Azazel... Regardless of our previous relationship with that pantheon, what kind of strategy is giving the first move to the competence?"

"Hey, things might not be completely official, but Odin is pretty much our confidant by this point, Serafall. Wait, don't tell me... you are actually mad because you think Odin wants to introduce Shirou-kun first?"

That caused Serafall's cheeks to take a healthy blush. And Nahida's chuckle wasn't helping. "Don't put words in my mouth! But if that isn't your intention, what does he have to do with this?"

"Remember when I mentioned that we have some... troublemakers inside our pantheon? I was planning on spending these days before the meeting getting acquainted with Japan's culture, and they will most likely try to intervene. Azazel offered one of his handymen to escort me, but I'm afraid it won't be enough. But due to our shortage of personnel..."

"You want to hire me as a bodyguard." Shirou completed Odin's words with a raised eyebrow. "It might have been brief, but I saw Rosewaisse there fight, and she is quite competent. Not to mention, Azazel's handymen must be around Kokabiel's level of power. What kind of "troublemaker" would require more than that?"

The way the Valkyrie tensed up and the God let out a sigh wasn't a good omen. But then Odin proceeded to answer his question with another one that he had seen coming but was still shocking, nonetheless.

"Boy, do you think you can defeat a God?" It was an honest question rather than a rhetorical one, and that only made it worse. And the silence that followed suit while everyone looked at him was likewise worse than when they tried to pry directly into his secrets.

"'God' is a word that encompasses too many possibilities. You're gonna have to be more specific. 'sides, didn't I already tell you I do have weapons capable of pulling it off."

"Having a weapon that can do it, and being able to do it are two entirely different matters, kid. You more than anyone know that, don't you? But to answer your first question, albeit not focused on combat, we are talking about one of the most famous Gods of my pantheon."

Shirou squinted his golden eyes. "Let me take a guess. Is it Loki?"

"Was it that obvious?"

"If there's a God that isn't okay with avoiding Ragnarök, it must be the one responsible for 90% of that prophecy. But in that case, can't you just ask a fellow God to take care of him?"

"That's the tricky thing, I'm afraid. When I said we avoided Ragnarök, what I actually meant was that we delayed it. That's what you get when an entire mythology is completely tied with the concept of "fate". Even Loki's "son", Jörmundgandr, was okay with doing something that wasn't already prophesized, but that doesn't mean all the bad blood from the past magically disappeared. The moment an event from the prophecy takes place, it'll be like a chain reaction. And Loki knows that."

The auburn-haired boy pinched the bridge of his nose. Yeah, Ragnarök being avoided because everyone put aside their differences was too good to be true. In a sense, their situation wasn't that different from the Three Factions some months ago. The self-loathing in Odin's tone told him more than enough.

"Haah... I can't say anything for sure since I don't even know what that guy looks like, but the fact that he isn't a God of war or death helps, I guess."

"Oh, and don't forget. Jörmungander and Hela might refuse to obey him, but you should expect him to come with Fenrir."

That caused him to choke with his own tongue for an instant, and the voices Serafall and Nahida let out indicated they shared his feelings.

"Are you kidding me? Odin, Shirou-kun might have defeated an incomplete Juggernaut Drive, but that thing is a natural God-Slayer."

"And what better than a human to take down a God-Slayer?"

"Do you realize that wolf isn't only strong against Gods?"

"The point is..." Azazel decided to intervene before the discussion spiraled out of control further. "You are the only... let's say "agent" we have on the zone. Maybe we can bring Griselda, too. But aside from that, your friends and Rias and Sona's peerages might have potential, but it's still too soon for them to face something on that level."

"You are basically asking for a miracle. But I guess there's no other choice but to make it happen." Shirou ended up conceding begrudgingly. "Very well, when will you start?"

A smile was drawn on the God's lips while he looked at his secretary, prompting her to answer.

"Oh, yes. This Saturday at 8:00 a.m. We'll pick you up, Lord Shirou."

He couldn't repress the tick on his eyebrow. He didn't need another person referring to him like a big shot. But at the very least, this will help him clear his mind from other... delicate matters.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt someone grabbing his hand. He turned around to see a Serafall with a really serious person.

"I know this will likely fall on deaf ears, but please, Shirou-kun, don't do anything reckless. If things get rough, don't hesitate to flee. This is entirely a matter between the Norse Deities."

He couldn't help but avoid looking at her blue eyes. "I can't make any promises. More so if the fight happens in the middle of the city."

His words got him a cute pout, but she already knew his answer before it left his mouth. This was going to happen sooner or later, but it was too soon if you asked her. Loki might not be anywhere near the Biblical God, but the devil race definitely knew what was to fight a God.

They could only pray for them, as ironical as that sounded.

---

"If I remember correctly, the annual field trip to Kioto is around the corner. We should start making the groups."

One of Issei's friends said after finishing his lunch, and that actually caught Shirou's attention. Well, more like it actually reminded him of that meeting with the Shinto deities he pushed into a corner in his mind.

"The groups have to be around 3 or 4 people due to the distribution of the hotel rooms, right?" Issei added his two cents, and at the same time, asked the others about that issue indirectly.

The presence of people unrelated to the Moon-lit World already made every conversation during lunchtime feel like they were walking on thin ice, but for him, it was worse. Irina's had been a wake-up call for him, and this wasn't even due to his usual reservations regarding romantic issues.

He was a foreigner and a heroic spirit, in other words, someone who shouldn't be here. A fleeting existence at best. Allowing that kind of relationship to take place would be the worst thing he could do to those girls.

"Well, we three will have to form one anyway since everyone else hates us." The other member of the perverted trio, the baldy, continued, getting an annoyed look from the other two.

In other words, as wrong as it sounded, his only option was to distance himself in a not-so-subtle way from now on. Which was easier said than done when they literally live in the same house, but fortunately, the mess he was thrown into yesterday will actually help in this matter.

"Heh, you can come alongside our group for the sightseeing. I bet it will be like paradise for you virgins." Kiryuu didn't waste the opportunity to make fun of them, but her teasing expression quickly changed to a pensive. "That's what I would like to say, but we are in a bit of a conundrum ourselves. Five is an awkward number in this case."

"As if that were a complication at all. Any girl in our class would gladly share a room with you guys."

"You're missing the point, baldy. You are supposed to spend the night time with your friends in your room. Adding a classmate we're barely acquainted would ruin the atmosphere."

"Really? Don't you think it's a good opportunity to make friends, Kiryuu-san?"

"Not everyone here is as extroverted as you, Shidou-san." Her blunt retort caused a certain couple of blue-haired and blonde girls to look away. "But aside from that, begging for allowing a group of five might be out of the question, but given our predicament, I don't think it would be unreasonable to form a mixed group with a certain groupless boy."

The moment those wicked eyes landed on him, the auburn-haired boy knew all hell would break loose. This girl... why did she insist so much on playing matchmaker?

"Actually, that's a goo-"

"That's a horrible idea." He cut in before Xenovia could even finish her sentence.

"Why? We live in the same house, Shirou."

"In different rooms, and in a pretty big house with more than one bathroom. You don't want to know how will that go when we are stuck in a really small room."

"You are making a fuss of this, Shirou-kun. It's going to be less than a week. And no one is going to do something naughty, right?"

His eyebrow twitched. Of all the times for Irina's optimism... Divide and conquer is it then.

"In the remote case no accident takes place and I can keep my mental health, tell me, who of you three will go with Asia and Kiryuu-san?"

That question struck them like a hammer. Xenovia and Irina turned to look at each other with literal neck-snapping speed, and everyone could see sparks flying. However, the member of the trio who wasn't that hot-headed opted to fire back instead of infighting.

"Then, who will you be sharing the room with, Shirou?"

The fact that she didn't stammer forgetting to not call him "Sir" told him she was serious about this.

"Well, if there's no other straggler of the same sex, I guess I'll have to be in the one for the teacher..." Having to share room with Azazel sounded just as horrible now that he thought about it. But having to constantly watch what he pours into his glass sounds less of a headache than having to be always cautious when he enters the room or the bathroom.

"Man, that's depressing even for our standards."

"I don't know if I should be angry or feel pity for you."

He ignored the comments of Issei's friends in favor of observing the reaction of this issue's perpetrator. And seeing her biting the tip of her thumb in frustration brought a small, smug smile to his face.

"Are you sure about that, Shirou-san? I believe Azazel-sensei wouldn't mind arranging for a mixed room."

Well, shit. He didn't account for that. That geezer was definitely doing it just for his own amusement, wasn't he?

"That's a bridge we can cross later. You and Kiryuu-san don't want to share room with me, right?"

"Of course not, you thick head!" Kiryuu's voice completely overshadowed Asia's embarrassed yelp.

"Well, wouldn't it be the easiest solution that you two to look for another girl and for Shirou to join our group- ugh!?" Issei's attempt at lending him an innocent hand was dismissed when Irina of all people sunk her elbow into her belly.

"What are you saying, Issei-kun? Shirou-kun has barely any relationship with your friends."

"Aren't you the one who said this is the best opportunity to make friends?"

She purposely decided to ignore Shirou's remark.

"I think we should ask the teacher before wreaking our heads more. I offer myself to do it after classes." Jeanne finally decided to mediate, and everyone accepted her logical proposal reluctantly.

It took her a lot of willpower to hide her own depraved smirk though. By agreeing to be the one to ask, the odds were in her favor. She too heard of what happened during the festival, and although a part of her felt inadequate, another bolder one was starting to grow stronger.

"Anyway... If we all form a group for the sightseeing, we'll still get to spend most of the day together, right, Asia?"

Those words from Kiryuu were more than enough to convince the rest of the girls despite the faces that Issei's friends were making. Shirou could only pray for them to not do anything stupid. A punch from Xenovia would surely make the beatings they've received from the Kendo club thus far look like a massage.

But aside from that, he couldn't help but notice that Issei and Asia were even closer after that traumatizing experience some weeks ago. The complete opposite of his situation.

However, it begged the question, how much of Issei's carefree attitude was real? Being told that you are going to die sooner than expected should have affected him. It wasn't that far from what it means for a human to be diagnosed with terminal cancer.

He hadn't had the opportunity to ask, or rather, he didn't know how he should approach the subject without ruining his mood. And perhaps it was best to leave it that way. If anything, Rias and the other members of the club should be the ones to comfort him, and they seem to have done a good job.

The bell rang before he could give it much thought, and he quickly put everything in the back of his mind, going back to thinking of ways to face a God of all things.

---

Later that day, he found himself walking the empty halls of Kuoh Academy in one of his usual patrols as the Fake Janitor. Not that there was much to do, since he had resumed them more often lately, but the chances of something coming up in a school with so many clubs were high.

And that seemed to be the case as he heard the ringtone of his cell phone. He expected a message from Sona about something related to the school or another group of recruits from the Hero Faction showing up, but one of his eyebrows shot up after seeing an unregistered number.

"Hello, Shirou. I am Rias. Would you happen to be free? If so, I would like to invite you to the Occult Research Club room to discuss some matters. I await your answer." He read the message in a whispering tone.

The first thing he thought was "Why so formal?" If he had to take a guess, the red-haired devil wanted something from him.

And he had a feeling that he wasn't going to like what she had to say.

At any rate, he texted back a "On the way" and immediately set course to the old school building. Upon reaching the door leading to the room in question, he could tell that the only one on the other side was Rias. In other words, this was a strictly private meeting, unless there was someone with a really high skill to conceal their presence, but that was just his usual paranoia.

"Enter." She answered swiftly just an instant after he knocked on the door, not even letting him say that it was him and not another visit. If you asked him, that was a sign of eagerness that betrayed the calmness in her tone.

The first thing Shirou saw upon entering the room was that the red-haired heiress was already waiting for him with a cup of tea in her hands.

"Good afternoon, Shirou. Sorry for calling you here so abruptly, and I hope I didn't interrupt anything important. Would you like some tea as well?"

He took a moment to digest her quick bombardment of courtesy while forcing himself not to squint his eyes. "Hello there, Rias. No, I was just about to go home with nothing to do really. And yes, I guess I have some room for tea."

He answered in quick succession as well while he sat in front of her and grabbed the offered cup of tea. To say the atmosphere was awkward would be an understatement, at least for him. This was the first time he was in a room alone with Rias, and to be honest, aside from her desire to avoid arranged marriages, he didn't know much about her.

But that also could be chalked up to him not wanting to know more about them as it would require deepening their relationship.

"So, how have you been doing? I've heard you already started filming with Serafall for her show. My brother also roped me into Ise's show, so I know it can be difficult for an amateur to be suddenly thrown into a main role in a super-production."

The way her eyebrow twitched when he mentioned her role in the "Oppai Dragon" show was almost cute. He could already see what was it about.

"Well, let's just say I'm basically acting as an old geezer version of myself, so it isn't that hard. And I can already tell you that the amount of CGI effects during the fights are minimal."

"Fufu. I saw that one coming. Why waste money on those when you can film the real thing?"

"Because the damage to the property during the filming is most likely more expensive, not to mention the risk of sending an actor to the hospital." He kept that thought to himself. Pure-blood devils, without a fault, had a distorted view of money, so it would be just a wasted effort.

"Umm... There's no one else in the club today?" He asked in an attempt to not let the conversation die.

"Ise, Koneko-chan, Asia-chan, and Gasper-kun already went home, the first two to attend a private matter. Kiba is most likely in the Kendo club, and Akeno... went on a shopping trip to buy some clothes."

Her mood plummeted quite hard after those last words. It literally looked as if life had been sucked out of her for a second. Having stepped on a landmine, there was no choice but to get to the point.

"So, what is it that you want to discuss, Rias?"

Shirou's words were followed by an even tenser silence as the girl in front of him took a deep breath and played with her long, crimson hair. Her cheeks even took a pinkish tone, and her blue eyes refused to look directly at him while she made up her mind.

But then, Rias looked at him with a really serious look. "Shirou, would you go out with me tomorrow?"

"PFFFTTT!" He eloquently spat the tea in his mouth and broke into a coughing fit, leaving the girl in front of him completely bewildered. He definitely wasn't expecting another declaration in less than a week, let alone one from Rias Gremory of all people.

"Where the hell did that come from!?"

"And what's with that reaction!? I know we had a rough start, but do you really detest me that much?"

"No, that's not what I mean. Even I can tell you are head over hills for Issei, so why are you doing this?"

She blinked owlishly for a second before giving him a puzzled look. "Wait, you can tell? I thought you were the one from whom Issei got rubbed off that massive density. So, you are actually aware of the crush all the girls in your house have with you?"

"Whatever do you mean?" He retorted almost instantly in a deceivingly innocent tone.

Rias couldn't help but frown. A part of her wanted to think that it was just a case of being able to see something better from a third-person perspective, but the other firmly thought that he was blatantly making fun of her.

"At any rate. Even if I was oblivious to it, I still have some urgent matters to attend to tomorrow. But for the record, would you tell me what happened between you and Issei?"

His words were met by a long, tired sigh. "Nothing happened between us... and that's the thing. I couldn't make it more obvious, but just making him call me by my name when we aren't at the club is proving to be a challenge."

"And that somehow led you to ask me out because..."

"He invited Akeno to go on a date tomorrow. I know it was just an incentive for her to defeat Diodora's queen and bishops, but it still stings that she's the first one to go on a date with him. Just forget I said anything. This wasn't a very good idea, but I guess I was desperate enough to give it a shot."

"Indeed. Knowing Issei, he would just say "Ah, of course Buchou would be in love with someone as manly as Sensei." or something like that, and then he would proceed to bottle up his feelings." He said casually, causing Rias to throw a blank stare at him.

"Just as I thought. You two are really close."

"He's the only one who straight up asked me to be friends and not just a coach or a 'bro'. That and... well, my case wasn't that bad since I had some previous training in magic, but I kinda saw myself in him when this side of the world suddenly hit me like a truck."

"Really? I find it hard to picture you as a rocky. What kind of experience did you live through?"

"Let's just say Britannia's forests during the First century would make the Amazon jungle look like an amusement park." He didn't know if it was the case of this world, but the isle of Britain in his was basically the place that clung to the Age of Mystery the most. He guessed having an 8 kilometers deep tunnel that almost made it to the reverse side of the world, and the carcass of the last pure-blood dragon could have had a hand on the matter.

"But speaking of Issei..." This was his turn to shift his expression to a serious one. "Is he alright? He's been his usual self ever since... that, but that's just the surface."

"I assume you're talking about the repercussions of using the Juggernaut Drive. Well, maybe at the beginning, but we actually found a way to make some... damage control. You see, thanks to Koneko's Senjutsu, we can somewhat heal the damage made to his soul. If you want the specifics, you'll have to ask her though, but despite it being a slow process, the results are visible."

"Wow, really?" He didn't think it was impossible to fix that. After all, Chaldea has dealt with almost shattered spirit cores a fair amount of times, but that was usually performed by their combination of technology and magecraft, Command Spells, or a Caster from the age of god. "I'm glad then. Adding another big trauma to the list so soon would have been horrible."

"Another trauma?"

He couldn't help but blink at her raised eyebrow. "His first and only girlfriend suddenly told him it was just an act and proceeded to mercilessly kill him. If you ask me, I'm surprised he isn't panicking just by having a girl within a ten-meter radius. I guess his perverseness kind of nullifies it to some extent, but that's something you can't get over just like that."

"That's... actually a good point. I never thought about it since, unlike the rest of my peerage, he didn't externalize it, but I think even he himself hasn't realized it..."

Her blue eyes stared at the boy gulping the reminder of the contents of his cup in front of her. She guessed that being someone who is used to hiding lots of things, including traumas, Shirou could understand Issei better than anyone, even herself, as much as she hated to admit it.

And just as she expected, albeit the conversation continued for some time, she wasn't able to pry any more little details from him, just like always. But she considered this a win, as she now had a change of perspective that gave her an edge over Akeno.

After all, her infatuation for Issei was the product of an urge to replace the parental figure she hated rather than a proper crush like hers.

Just as the auburn-haired boy left the room, she gulped down the last drops of tea while a mischievous smile showed on her lips.

"Fufu. I must make sure to be present when Koneko explains her method. Their faces will definitely be a sight to behold."

The other thing she also forgot to mention was that the "issue" the pawn and the rook were attending was actually that very same process.

---

*Gulp* Moving to Issei's massive house, the loud sound produced by the boy in question swallowing to moisten his dry mouth filled the room, accompanied by other sticky sounds.

His cheeks were so red he felt he was going to faint, but his brown eyes couldn't divert their gaze from the little girl on top of him. That gown she was wearing, which became almost see-through due to all the sweat, wasn't helping in the matter.

But despite how conflicted his mind was due to seeing Koneko of all people in such a... provocative getup, his body was completely relaxed. His fatigue was slowly going away, replaced by a really comforting feeling.

He didn't fully understand what this entailed, but it had something to do with her circulating his ki in a more efficient way, making his body replenish faster its lifeforce, and also healing his soul.

But that could only happen if their bodies were in direct contact, hence the current situation. This was far from the first time they did this kind of "ritual", but he had yet to get used to it. Just like the sessions to suppress the draconic power of his left arm.

"Do you feel better, Issei-senpai?"

The albino's timid voice brought the Red Dragon Emperor back to reality, their eyes meeting directly. Koneko's face was even more flustered than his, and that was already telling. For someone as reserved as her to be doing this kind of thing, he couldn't even fathom how hard it must be to repress her urge to punch him.

"Y-yes, Koneko-chan. I feel incredible as always."

A small smile was drawn on her mouth. "That's good to hear. Everyone was crying after hearing that you had only 100 years left at best from Ddraig, and I wasn't even sure this would work."

"Yeah, hearing that I wasted 99% of my lifespan as a devil in less than half a year was honestly horrifying. And if that thing happens again... I'll surely die. So, I have to get stronger. To not lose without that cursed power up."

He tried to sound motivated, but it was impossible to not sound somber. He was able to put this matter in the back of his mind for most of the time thanks to the existence of a solution, but it was still a pill hard to swallow.

"Actually... there's a way to heal your soul faster... I-it's called 'Bouchujutsu'."

Those were good news, but the way her embarrassment grew exponentially made him a bit suspicious.

"In that case, why don't we give it a try?"

"Well... this would be my first time..."

"Koneko-chan... what does this 'Bouchujutsu' entail exactly?"

"The male and female must... b-become one so the female can transfer her ki to the male directly. I think in Western terms it's called tantric ritual."

At that moment, Issei almost choked with his own tongue. "T-that's basically sex! We can't do that!"

"W-why? Am I not enough for Senpai? Is it because I'm small compared to Buchou and Akeno-senpai? I still have room to grow." The pout the nekomata made could actually kill men with weak wills.

"That's part of the reason, yeah! You shouldn't compare yourself to Buchou and Akeno! Koneko-chan is perfect as her current innocent self."

"I don't see you complaining about Asia-senpai doing it as well."

"That's neither here nor there! Besides, I thought the one you had a crush on was Sensei."

She opened her mouth to retort in her usual blunt tone, but the moment her brain processed his words, the air got stuck in her throat.

"It's good to be worried about a member of your family, but you shouldn't force yourself to such extents. I think I have already enough with the two Onee-samas and Asia clinging to me every night."

"Why do you have to be sharp now of all times..." The little girl let out a long sigh before meeting Issei's eyes again. Her eyes, though, revealed everything but certainty. "I honestly don't know what to say. Both of you are my precious senpais... but Shirou-senpai feels more like a... an Onii-chan. Yes... Shirou Onii-chan... That doesn't sound bad."

That was... too cute. But he wisely, for once, decided to not comment on it. Even he could tell why she, of all of them, would see in Shirou that kind of figure, and that was certainly a landmine better left alone unless necessary.

"But on the other hand... Chichiryuutei... Seriously, what was Sirzechs-sama thinking? That just spoiled all the work Shirou Onii-chan put into turning you into a decent person."

Ouch, what a way to return to her usual self. But the way she stuck to that way of calling Shirou... that was definitely going to give him a heart attack.

[Chichiryuutei? What's that? I have never heard of such a pitiful dragon. We are definitely the mighty Red Dragon feared by the Gods.]

And there went Ddraig with his depressing phase of utter denial of their current reputation, even some days after seeing the first chapter of the show. He wouldn't have minded being featured in a more mature show like Serafall's, but he honestly had fun recording the first chapters.

"Hey, that's who I am. Becoming a real man like Sensei doesn't necessarily imply forfeiting my dreams."

His confident words were met with a familiar blank stare. "There you go again. But I guess I'm partially an accomplice since I was the one who arranged your date with Akeno-senpai."

"Oh, right. That's tomorrow, isn't it?"

"Are you taking it seriously at all? Regardless of her usual mature and coquettish personality, don't forget that Akeno-senpai has her fair share of problems and traumas. Think about when and why she started to obsess over you."

After dropping those words on him, the Nekomata stood up and left the room. Most likely she had reached her limit of embarrassment now that the atmosphere was shattered.

But that still left him with a lot to think about.

---

The next day in the morning...

"Oryaaaahhh!" An uncharacteristically vicious roar came out of Irina's mouth as she swung a wooden sword at her opponent.

However, Xenovia seamlessly blocked the attack with her own wooden sword and immediately retaliated. The battle-hungry smile on her face was a complete contrast to the angel's fierce expression.

"Heh, so you've finally grown a spine, Irina! I like this side of you more!"

"Hmph! I'm just paying you back for ruining my moment!"

Despite keeping things civilized so as to not wreak Shirou's dojo, this could hardly be called a spar with such intensity. Even Jeanne, who was patiently waiting for her turn on the sidelines was starting to feel fired up.

It was an unspoken agreement that this was pretty much their way of settling who would be in the same room as Shirou during the trip to Kyoto, and now Irina brought another matter. She didn't get as close as Xenovia, but she did hear Iriana's confession... and how Shirou pretended to not have heard it.

If she was being honest, just thinking about that made her feel anxious. Not because her friends were getting ahead of her, but rather, the apparent reality of any advances up until now being meaningless.

To begin with, they were doing this because they hadn't seen the auburn-haired boy ever since breakfast. She could tell for sure that he was acting even more distant as of late, although she seemed more lost in his thoughts since yesterday.

Things were looking bleak. Attacking recklessly without even getting to know him more than just the surface he allowed them seemed to have been a bad call.

"...?" The sound of the doorbell ringing put an abrupt end to any activity in the dojo. None of them was expecting a visit, so it came as a surprise.

After exchanging a look, all three girls walked out of the dojo into the inner yard and circled the main building to see who it was. Before turning the corner, they already heard some familiar voices.

"Oho? What's with that getup, boy? You look more prepared for a date than an escort mission."

"The point of a bodyguard in the open is to blend smoothly, old man. Were you expecting me to show up with a tuxedo or something?"

"A formal suit should blend in any kind of crowd, Lord Shirou."

"It doesn't unless we're going to the part of the town where the office buildings are located."

"Hehe, you got us there, Shirou."

"Huh? What do you mean, Lord Azazel?"

The conversation was interrupted when they noticed the presence of the trio of former Church members. Aside from Shirou, they recognized Azazel, Odin, and Rossweisse, and there was a tall, muscular man with tanned skin a short black hair, dressed in a tuxedo.

"Oh, good morning, Lord Odin, Lord Azazel, to what do we-"

"What's going on here?" Xenovia's question interrupted Jeanne's formal greeting, getting a chuckle out of the elders.

"Didn't Shirou here tell you that we'd be borrowing him today?"

Their eyes darted toward the boy in question with looks of confusion and disbelief, and the twitching of his eyebrows betrayed his impassive expression.

"I guess it slipped my mind after you guys dropped on me you-know-what."

There was a visible staring contest between Shirou and their guests, which ended in Odin sighing and shrugging.

"I'm just going to have Azazel and the boy show me around to learn more about this country. There might be some scoundrels who are against the idea, but I think we have that covered."

No matter how they covered it up, the real meaning behind those words wasn't lost to them. There was only one reason for them to "hire" Shirou as a bodyguard.

"In that case, we're go-"

"No." The auburn-haired boy cut Irina without a single second of hesitation. "Bringing more people in would defeat the point of this being incognito."

His words were so blunt none of the girls could muster the strength to retort, and before they could react, the group was already leaving.

"Well, let us depart then. See you later, blooming beauties."

Shirou didn't even react to Odin's remark. Right now, the only thing in his mind was putting as much distance between him and his house as possible.

Once they were far enough, Azazel dared to break the silence. "You know, I agree with your decision to leave them out. They are too inexperienced to fight against a God. But wouldn't have been better to explain things rather than keeping them in the dark?"

"If I told them the entire context of the situation, there would have been no way to dissuade them from coming."

"Fair enough... I guess. By the way, this man here is Barakiel, one of my most trusted men."

The man in question took the clue en reached out for a handshake. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Emiya Shirou. Azazel is always talking about you recently, so I'm looking forward to working with you."

"Likewise." He replied curtly and accepted the handshake.

"He's also Akeno's father." And just like that, Azazel casually dropped that bit of information, as if to get back at him for speaking too much.

The way Shirou's golden eyes widened for an instant didn't go unnoticed, and Barakiel's professional demeanor suddenly turned deadly serious.

"Are you perhaps a friend of my daughter?"

"Calling us acquaintances would already be a stretch... I do know about your... predicament, but I don't have any idea of what caused it." He carefully picked his words. It didn't take a genius to deduce that this man was, in fact, an overprotective father.

"I see... Then, do you happen to know about this "Chichiryuutei" that threatens to do obscenities to my daughter?"

A single drop of sweat slid through Shirou's forehead as he did his best to keep his neutral expression. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"At any rate. What do you have prepared for me, Azazel?" Odin went to the point, his single eye emitting a glint that the Governor of the Grigori immediately recognized and shared.

"Well, if you want to get acquainted with this country's culture, the best place without a doubt would be..."

---

Some minutes later...

"What the hell am I doing here..." Those were the words that crossed Shirou's mind as he continued to stare at the building in front of them with dead eyes.

He honestly should have seen this coming. Of course, those lecherous geezers would go straight to a brothel in the red-light district. He managed to convince them to stay out and not using any kind of suggestion or hypnosis spell to let him enter despite his official age.

That didn't take away all the stares he was getting as an apparent minor in the red-light district of all places, and to top it all, Rossweisse decided to stay outside with him, making the image even more confusing.

Her face was so red one could swear her head was steaming, and her expression was completely dead. Now he could see where that self-loathing rambling back at the ballroom came from.

"So... does the geezer do this kind of thing often?" He threw a half-backed attempt to start a conversation and maybe dispel the awkward atmosphere.

"All the time... And he always leaves me behind..." She answered in a flat tone befitting her emotional state... and it was worse than he imagined.

"Have you ever thought about quitting?"

"Every second of the day. But I can't. I ignored all the warnings from all my predecessors and stubbornly applied for this job. That wasn't even a year ago, and I have no other choice."

"I see..." He decided it was best to not push it further and let the conversation die there.

Or so he thought, but it seemed that voicing her problems was enough to actually help get a hold of herself... to some extent. And that's when she made her move.

"Say... Lord Shirou, this is something that I haven't been able to get out of my head ever since I saw you perform magic, but what kind of formula did you use? I've never seen or heard about a magician using those circuit-like patterns rather than a magic circle, runes, or talismans."

He just raised an eyebrow at her. "Is this the best place to talk about that?"

"The people around already think of us as a pair of weirdos... and I can't think of another topic we share in common to pass the time. B-but you don't have to answer if it's too intrusive."

And that seemed the most sensible option indeed. But she had a point. Without something to make the wait more bearable, this was going to get very long. And since it was her and not someone like... say Odin, the tactic of just feeding her with a tad bit of information and letting her and the others draw their own conclusions might work.

"Those are not formulas, but rather, conduits to perform them. They refine my lifeforce and turn it into usable energy, namely magical energy, that acts as the fuel for the already loaded spells."

Her surprise was reasonable. Rather than the notion of a human with the capability to generate magical energy on his own, it was the notion of being able to quickly load magical formulas.

He didn't know if this world was connected to the Root or if it was just like with the Throne of Heroes, but due to humans lacking magic circuits, they couldn't access the already established spells in it. Meaning, that when a human performs a spell, they will have to construct the formula from scratch, regardless of the scale of it. That's why that Georg guy, who could cast dozens of spells so quickly, was revered as a one-in-a-million genius.

"But that's... revolutionary. Human magic would take on a whole other level with the introduction of such a concept. How did you acquire them? Did you create them-"

"I was born with them."

His short answer gave her a pause, her puzzled expression told him that his strategy was yielding results.

"Is that... a parallel world thing?"

"You could say that, yes."

"But even if those circuits allow for a reduced casting time and remove the complete dependence on the magical power in the atmosphere, how can you conjure swords so powerful with so little energy in comparison?"

That's a tricky question he couldn't fully explain without disclosing his reality marble. He could give her the incorrect and convoluted way he casted his tracing before understanding the real meaning and inner works behind his magecraft, but an expert in magic like her would be able to tell that's not how it works. He'll have to pick his words more carefully.

"The formula itself is the blueprint of the weapon, and I just give it physical form through magical energy. In a sense, it's just a really convincing illusion, or a fake as many like to call it."

"But wouldn't that create just a hollow reflection of the object?"

"That's just if the blueprint lacks the sustenance. In my case, the blueprint contains details of the materials, forging process, and even accumulated experience, making it, as I said, really convincing."

Judging by her expression, she didn't buy it completely. Most likely, she saw the big hole in that explanation. That is, where did he get those blueprints from in the first place? Most of them are way more intricate than any magic formula, so it was impossible for a human brain to retain all the time every single detail of all the sword at his disposal.

But she got the hint that it was a rather confidential matter and didn't push the issue further. Instead, she decided to speak a little of herself instead.

"My family is specialized in three styles of magic." Her face became a mixture of nostalgia and grief. "Runes, Seiz, and Gondol. However, due to my lack of talent with the Seiz style, I was unable to inherit my family's crest. So I decided to study all kinds of magics to make up for my shortcomings."

"I see. In my case, aside from not remembering my family, the reason I can only perform a few spells correctly is due to my origin and element being sword."

"That's... unusual. Why did you decide to become a magician then? In my case, rather than my family's expectation, I fell in love with magic itself ever since my grandmother taught me when I was a child."

"Well, in that regard, we differ. I admit I thought it was cool when I was little, but for me, magic has only been a means to an end. I needed to be strong enough to save everyone. Besides, the philosophy I was taught was that "being a magus is walking alongside death"."

Their point of view regarding magic was like day and night, but she didn't show the same repulsion he'd seen in other magi's faces when their views clashed. That also tended to end in blood-spilling, but Rossweisse didn't seem that kind of person.

"That is a way to see it. But even so, you still dedicated tons of hours to perfect that single magic. You must appreciate it to some extent."

"You... might be right. This magic is quite... personal in nature after all."

"You mean, there's more to it than the fact that you created the formula?"

"Let's say it involved understanding myself on a fundamental level."

"Really? That's the most rare and beautiful kind of magic there is. And basically, the goal of any magic user worth their salt."

He doubted that enthusiasm would last the moment she saw a certain lonely hill of swords. Just the aria made people question his sanity.

The sound of quick and hurried steps approaching them caused the pair of bodyguards to drop any semblance of calm and sharpen their senses. Of all the possibilities that crossed their minds, a familiar raven-haired beauty dragging a likewise familiar, brown-haired boy wasn't one of them.

"Fufu, I think we finally lost them, Issei-kun." Akeno chuckled happily after looking back for confirmation and judging by Issei's expression, it looked like he had been sentenced to death.

"Huh? What is a couple of youngsters like you two doing in a place like this!? It's completely unbecoming!" Before the auburn-haired could say anything, the Valkyrie by his side immediately lashed out at them in the same way Sona would as the Student Council president.

The other couple then finally became aware of their presence and looked around to see what kind of place they had ended up after their mad dash. While Akeno just let out an "Oh my.", Issei naturally blushed in shame.

"Oh shit! We need to get out of here before someone gets the wrong idea... wait! Sensei, what are you doing here!? Do-don't tell me are actually going out with Odin's hot secretary!"

While Rossweisse's brain apparently melted in a flustered mess at the prospect of someone thinking she finally got a boyfriend, Shirou outright facepalmed.

"Nothing like that! Let's just say her pervert boss chose this place to get acquainted with Japan's culture and he hired me as a bodyguard. I take it you guys ended here by accident? I mean, for a date to end here, I would say it's pretty advanced stuff."

"I wouldn't mind things ending that way. That is if some interlopers didn't ruin the mood after finally losing the others." Those words from Akeno were accompanied by an expression that promised tons of pain and even some killing intent.

"Huh? Really, you would-" Issei started in shock, but then, the words Koneko spoke the day prior.

After reflecting on it, it became quite apparent even for someone as dense as him. And judging by the face Shirou was making, he must have picked on it as well. This wasn't a bold movement, but one rather desperate.

"Excuse me, you said the boss of this lady was inside this establishment, didn't you?" A fifth, and this time completely unfamiliar voice, pierced through the lighthearted atmosphere like thunder despite its calm tone.

The golden-eyed boy was the first one to turn around, and the way those eyes squint, his legs spread slightly and his hands got in position to project, was more than enough to raise the tension even further.

"State your name and business, God." And if that wasn't enough, his words caused Issei and Akeno to widen their eyes in shock.

The man standing some feet away from them, dressed in extravagant clothes, and long, sky-blue hair, had indeed a unique and oppressing aura. However, despite that, none of them had noticed him up until he spoke.

The God in question showed a fairly creepy smirk, his eyes completely focused on the human and disregarding the other ones as part of the scenery.

"Heh, it's surprising to see a human talking up to a God like that. Color me surprised rather than annoyed as I thought I would be. I see father's decision to pick you as his bodyguard wasn't a product of him going senile after all. But to answer your question, I believe the Valkyrie by your side can tell you."

Shirou slowly turned around to look at Rossweisse, making sure to never leave the God out of his vision field. The sight that awaited him was a warrior maiden who was struggling to regulate her breath and doing her best to swallow her fear.

"There's no doubt, Lord Shirou... he is Loki, the God of mischief and the one Odin warned us about."

After confirmation, Shirou decided to ignore Issei and Akeno's eyes that implored for an explanation and face the God carefully.

"Did you come to pick a fight in the middle of a city with thousands of witnesses? Or did you come to talk things over a drink by some miracle?"

"If you are asking about Odin, then what I must do shall not change. However, if we are talking about you, Emiya Shirou, we might come to a better understanding."

Shirou raised an eyebrow at that. "Really? What makes you think I won't reject you just like I did with the Hero Faction."

The smile on the God's face didn't fade despite his words. "You are right. I can only theorize why you turned down your fellow brethren. My best guess is that, as hot-headed teenagers, their idea of parting ways with the mystics is overly idealized and their methods to achieve it clash with yours. But what I present here isn't a fantasy, but rather, righting a mistake made thousands of years ago."

"Ragnarök... Tell me, I know your view of good and evil as a God is different from us humans, but why would you wish for your own demise alongside the entire Norse Age of Gods?"

"Isn't it obvious? Look at the woman by your side. Valkyries were created entirely for the purpose of preparing for the Ragnarök. But since it never happened, they were left purposeless. They didn't even have human-like personalities like this one, but since it would have been a waste leaving them like dolls in vitrines and to atone for what happened with Brynhildr, Odin decided to give them a more refined one and have them live as if they had always been a proper species. The same applies to the rest of our pantheon, and pretty much every God, or the failed Three Factions those two devils esteem from. I think we both can agree how ugly it is to look at a long-since-dead story "

Shirou found himself having to reassess his reading on Loki's personality. He was no doubt trying to manipulate him, it was in his nature, but his motives were different from what he thought initially.

Given his insistence on destroying the Norse Pantheon, he thought his existence was similar to the Vortigern of his human history. A device created by the isle of Britain to destroy itself once the Age of Mystery started to decay. But after that explanation, it was obvious his intentions were the same as a certain fallen angel he had fought, albeit even more radical.

"I see. So you share the same vision as Kokabiel. Your pantheon overstayed its welcome, and you want to put an end to it."

"The old crow, huh? Yeah, we might have some points in common. However, I'm honestly not doing this for you humans like Kokabiel. Also, he was willing to make some sacrifices, mostly concerning himself or his kind, but he came short when it came to the greater picture. I just want my pantheon to fulfill its purpose and have the befitting burial that was foretold by the Nornir. And I won't stop at anything." The God emphasized each of those last words to an almost comical point

"Well, duh. Kokabiel was aware the war he wanted to start would have caused millions of casualties. What you intend to do might get the entire world burned alongside your nine realms. Do you seriously don't care?"

"If the world perishes then that just means it was too weak to accommodate a new era. Isn't this a common trope for your species, too? You humans constantly make sacrifices and leave things behind to keep advancing. You more than anyone should be aware of it, Emiya Shirou. This is the same. You can't seriously expect to change the current status quo while dragging on a dead weight. What is the source of your indecision? Did you become too attached to those little friends?"

Shirou gritted his teeth when the truth came to hit him in the face. He couldn't deny that he ended up having some attachment to supernatural creatures in this world, but the real reason he didn't want to fully cut those ties and start working to end the Age of Gods in a violent way was that...

His own image replaced the God for a moment. No, it wasn't him, but another possibility. A man who stopped at nothing to save the majority, even throwing away his cherished dream of saving everyone. A man who became a hero of justice in the truest and darkest sense, embodying the very human brutality he sought to end.

And thus, he became the final obstacle for humanity to reach their happy ending.

It wasn't the first time he was faced with this. But unlike that time, no rush of determination invaded his body to deny the person in front of him. After all, this time, he's just an outsider meddling with others' affairs. This wasn't the humanity he stood for, and he wasn't even sure if this summoning had a purpose...

"No, there is no time to hesitate now..."

"That's not it." He spoke after throwing aside his doubts for a moment. Lying to the God of Deceit would be a waste of time, so the only thing he could do... was to hit him back with his own truth! "You're right in that we humans can only move forward through an endless cycle of violence in which a lot of things are left behind. But that doesn't mean that's the best way. In fact, it is one of our greatest sins. One that everyone strives to right."

If that was already causing the God to frown, his next words definitely shattered any kind of peaceful resolution.

"Besides, I don't know why everyone thinks of me as some kind of beacon of hope for the future, or enlightened figure, but they are barking up the wrong tree." An ironic smile was drawn on his face as he spoke. "The hero that fulfilled that role died a long time ago. The one you see in front of you is just a shadow of that man. My duty is to help blazing a path to the future, but the ones with the right to decide that future are the living."

"I see. So that is your stance. In that case, we are completely incompatible."

Negotiations inevitably failed, and their words were followed by a silence so tense Shirou's companion started to have some trouble breathing.

A God was a threat way beyond any foe they had faced up until now. Loki's sheer hostility could easily match and surpass that of the Red Dragon that obliterated Shalba Beelzebub. More than ever, the only one who could shrug off the pressure and lead the charge was him, and that was the very reason Odin chose him.

"Trace, on!" Not giving any second to the enemy to attack, his twin swords and his servant attire were immediately summoned. His steel-tipped boots kicked the ground to cross the distance- "Huh!?"

His golden eyes widened as his muscles fought with all his might but to no avail. He was unable to move an inch from his position, and he could tell the others were in the same situation. Rather than being paralyzed, it was as if something around them was preventing them from moving an inch. In fact, Shirou had a vague memory of someone using a similar spell on him.

"Well, well. I apologize, but I took the liberty to fill this place with runes in advance while you engaged in meaningless conversation. No matter how many anti-magic tricks you hold, Emiya Shirou, there's nothing you can do if space itself is frozen around you."

The God nonchalantly approached them and entered the red knight's striking range. "Now then, what should I do with you? Killing a rare specimen like you might be a waste. Maybe-"

"Kuh... don't get too cocky! This formula might seem complex, but nothing compared to those of the All-Father! Why do you think I stayed behind!?" Rossweisse shouted with confidence as she activated her own set of runes carved around them. Her intention was without doubt to draw Loki's attention, which she effectively achieved.

"Foolish doll, do you think you can pull that off easily?" He raised his hand towards her and created a magic circle on his palm, but once again was interrupted, this time by Shirou.

"You should worry about dodging instead."

The God's blue eyes looked at the red knight with suspicion, but he was still immobilized. Then, why were alarms of danger ringing in his head?

"Wha-" The answer came from above as an arrow of light that pierced through the space his head had been mere instant ago, leaving a nasty burn on his cheek.

And more projectiles followed suit like rain, forcing the God to backstep and create a barrier. The arrows barely made a dent in the barrier, but that split second Loki had to divert his attention from them was more than enough.

"HNN!" With a grunt of effort, the red knight blew away Loki's already weakened spell with a combination of his magic resistance and a mana burst. His left hand immediately moved to throw Kanshou right at the God's neck, with him quickly trailing behind.

The blade only managed to sink some inches inside of the barrier, making the wicked grin return to Loki's face. "Don't get ahead of yourself, human! Just because-"

"Trace overedge."

The smirk was instantly wiped out the moment the red knight smashed the now longsword Bakuya into Kanshou's pommel in a perfect straight formation. Only his inhuman reflexes saved his neck from being sliced when the Yang sword pierced through his protection, stabbing his shoulder instead.

"Kuh! You insignificant-"

[WELSH DRAGON BALANCE BREAKER!]

Once again, the God was forced to shift focus as a massive explosion of power filled the place just before the Red Dragon Emperor clad in his crimson armor made a beeline at him.

"Tsk. This has nothing to do with you, foreign dragon!" With some quick movement of his still usable hand, he modified the runes composing his barrier, causing Griselda's arrow to be deflected rather than blocked. And now they went straight at Issei.

The Red Dragon Emperor had no choice but to forfeit his attack and put everything he had to block the barrage of holy arrows. That effectively put him and Griselda out of the fight momentarily, but he still had a more pressing matter to attend to.

The red knight swung his longsword at the God without hesitation, but it was caught by his reinforced bare hand, leaving only a small trail of blood sliding through his palm.

"Know your place, human!"

Using his foot, he drew a rune right under Shirou that immediately burst into a torrent of hellish fire, forcing him to let go of the married sword and disengage. However, at the same time, the red knight overloaded the sword with magical energy, setting it to turn into a broken phantasm just as he retreated, taking the God by surprise when the sword blew up on his face.

"YOU..." The God seemed to be a step away from losing his cool after having been damaged by a human for a second time.

[Boost Boost Boost Boost Boost Boost Boost Boost!]

"Dragon Shot!"

Without letting the God regroup, Issei ignored the burning pain all over his body and fired her strongest attack. Not just him. Akeno fired the most powerful lightning she was able to muster in a hurry, covered also in the holy light produced by her fallen angel heritage, and Rossweisse unleashed a barrage of offensive spells from several magic circles she managed to prepare.

The God was unfazed though, just extending his arm right before a massive explosion engulfed him and the part of the street he was in. They didn't pull back their punches in the least, and as a consequence, the buildings at the sides were caught in the explosion as well.

However, the inevitable panicked screams didn't start to sound near them, but rather some blocks away.

"I guess the old geezer actually put something of his part..." The red knight whispered as he observed the smoke screen without letting his guard then.

"Did we get him?" Akeno asked after releasing a long breath, not sure of what to make about the sudden adrenaline rush that flooded her body.

"I find it unlikely. Lord Loki is resilient if anything. The question is rather if we managed to drive him away." Rossweisse answered with her usual serious tone, but a few drops of sweat decorated her forehead.

"Sensei! Can you tell me what the hell is happening here!? Is that the same Loki as in the one from the superhero movies!?"

The red knight's eyebrow twitched when the Red Dragon Emperor suddenly came at him with a barrage of questions. "I don't know what movies are you talking about, but yeah, that's the God of mischief from Norse Mythology, Loki. Issei, get out of here now that you can."

His sudden request left the young devil in disbelief. "Huh? What are you saying, Sensei? That guy didn't seem that strong. As long as we both give him a good punch-"

[No, he is right, my partner. A God, regardless of their domain, is too much for us at the moment. Take a good look. Your combined attack alongside the two girls did nothing to him.]

"I see someone among you didn't blind himself with wishful thinking." The voice from the God pierced through the smoke just before a surge of magical power blew it away, revealing a barrier that, albeit having some cracks, withstood their attack without a problem.

"What the... That was my best shot..." With proof hitting him in the face, Issei felt a pit forming in his stomach.

"I shall admit it. I underestimated your preparations in case I came here. But no more games." The God reached to the married sword still stabbing his shoulder and pulled it out, allowing the blood it was containing to stain his clothes and the floor around him.

That same blood, filled to the brim with magical power, activated a series of runes he had been casting while the smoke obscured their vision. Numerous magic circles were drawn in front of him, taking the form of a cannon that was accumulating an alarming amount of energy.

"That formula... don't tell me-"

The God basked in the Valkyrie's alarmed reaction. "Oh yes. This is the spell that geezer likes to fire using his divine lance as a conduit. Maybe this way he will finally stop hiding and come out!"

As the spell massive beam of light started to come out of the formula, two options crossed the minds of the four teenagers. Either dodge and let the attack go straight where Odin was, and possibly, all the people inside the building, or take the attack head-on.

The decision became clear immediately for Rossweisse, who immediately put all her magical energy into a barrier in front of them. Akeno supported her decision, putting her magical power as well, and Issei used the "transfer" function of his sacred gear to boost the barrier even further. However...

"Eh? Lord Shirou!?" The three widened their eyes and their heart skipped a beat when they saw the red knight running straight into the beam.

His figure quickly disappeared amidst the light, but that was only from their perspective as the beam hit their barrier, effectively blinding them.

"Huh?" From Loki's, though, he couldn't help but honestly widen his eyes when a figure slid aside from the beam in the last second, having twisted his body to the limit to avoid the beam by the smallest of margins. In fact, his bandanna had been burned away, and blood was sliding down his forehead.

But most importantly, he was holding his massive black bow, and a familiar spiraling sword had been notched into the string. The same "arrow" that was able to pierce through a barrier built with the combined efforts of the Three Factions, and defeated the White Dragon Emperor in a single blow.

His golden eyes were completely fixed on the God's as the latter finally realized the lengths this human was going to defeat him.

"YOU-"

"Caladbolg!"

An even more massive explosion ravaged the ground and shook the entire city. Then the silence followed after the debris fell in place.

It didn't last long though, as a bloodied figure came crashing down just in front of the still silent trio. A Shirou that had seen better days, with his attire in tatters and bleeding from a lot of places, and Camael's flames working overdrive to put him together again.

After witnessing such a scene, the only thing they could do was to blink owlishly as their brain failed to process what just happened. They could only assume that he caused the massive explosion that interrupted Loki's attack... as well as turning the entire red-light district into a barren land.

"Haa... haa... haa... Remind... remind me to... to not fire... an A-rank broken phantasm... when I'm also... in the radius of the explosion- ugh!" Shirou tried to diminish the tension with a joke, but it only made things worse.

"Wha wha wha- Lord Shirou! Hold on there! I know some healing magic- huh? What are those flames?"

"Don't bother. I don't know how they work either, but those can heal him as fast as Asia-chan's. We should..." Akeno trailed, not exactly sure of what to do. The presence of the God could no longer be felt, but without seeing what lay at the center of the fuming crater, she couldn't make assumptions.

"Sensei!" Issei was the last one who snapped out of the shock, commanding his helmet to retract so he could see the red knight better. "Why did you just go full kamikaze!? We could have... we could-"

[That was your only chance of taking him out, partner. The best defense more often than not is a good attack. Emiya Shirou didn't hesitate at all to take it, but you on the other hand-]

"Shut up, Ddraig! You are the one who first said it's not worth it to take such risks if it ends up worrying your close ones!"

"Boy, I don't think taking a calculated risk and getting yourself lost in a curse can be compared." Odin's sudden appearance beside him gave him, once again, a micro-heart attack. This time though, the geezer seemed to be serious enough no as to make pervert jokes.

"But I must say, you certainly went all out there, Emiya Shirou. You're lucky I had the two fallen angels evacuating everyone the moment I sensed that idiot."

"It's precisely because... I noticed that... that I pulled all the stoppers. I had to... kill him before... he summoned Fenrir."

"That's a good strategy to deal with that problematic wolf. But about the "killing" part, we'll have to see about that."

On the other hand, the hybrid devil and fallen angel froze in the spot the moment she recognized the man walking alongside Azazel. "You... What are you doing here?"

"Akeno..." Barakiel uttered her name with a mixture of grievance and sorrow, but his friend and boss's hand resting on his shoulder prevented him from speaking further.

"There is no time for that, Barakiel. We have to first confirm our victory."

That said, everyone focused their attention on the already fading smoke cloud. Loki's figure was revealed, lying at its center, but... aside from some minor injuries, the only proof he had been fatally wounded at some point was the copious amount of blood on his clothes and around him.

"What the hell?" Shirou was the first one to react, forcing himself up despite everyone's warning. "When did Loki gain regenerative capabilities? No, scratch that. I'm pretty sure Caladbolg blew him to pieces."

"The rune of resurrection?" Rossweisse threw a shot in the dark, and Odin nodded in confirmation.

"Most likely. That idiot seems to have no intention of dying unless it is at the hands of Heimdall at Ragnarök. However, that rune might be able to revert fatal injuries once the heart stops, but completely fixing his body as if nothing happened from the condition the boy described is another matter. There must be something more to it..." The God ran his hand through his long beard as he scrutinized Loki's body with his only eye. "Hmm... Does anyone recognize the purple liquid covering some parts of his body?"

That description made everyone widen their eyes in alarm. There was only one kind of item that would match that description and provide miraculous regeneration.

"Phoenix Tears!? Damn it! We really need to destroy the black market providing those to the terrorists!" For once, Azazel seemed to be losing his temper due to his frustration.

"It's worse. I wasn't able to see it before, but now he's no longer concealing it." Shirou spoke in a grim tone that sent chills down everyone's spine. "The Phoenix Tears' effect was boosted by one of Ophis' serpents. And here I thought you didn't have ties with terrorists."

"Please, don't be silly." The God of mischief finally broke his silence and rose, showing his trademark smirk. "I just took advantage of that naive dragon to gain more leverage. Once Ragnarök starts, I'll get rid of it and play my part."

Despite having actually died for a second, the God wasn't angry or even fazed in the least. In fact, he was pretty much enjoying the frustration plastered all over their faces. And then, he started clapping of all things.

"I had that rune prepared just in case, but to think a human would be the one to force its use rather than that geezer or my brother. But I guess this way the sense of disappointment is way worse, won't you agree? Fight and resist all you want, fate will come eventually."

After giving Shirou one last disturbing smile, his blue eyes then focused on the All-Father. "For the record, I'll give you one chance, Odin. Leave this farce and accept your destiny. Of all the pantheons you could contact, another rotting corpse and one that has been completely hermetic up until recently. This is just disgrace after disgrace."

"Hmph. And you keep blabbering about fate this and destiny that. It is only due to morons like you that the Nornirs' prophecies seemed ironclad. Intercultural exchanges are just as important as leaving some things behind for the development of society. But I guess a brat that refuses to grow is unable to see it. Even the Japanese are learning from their past mistakes."

"The only mistake here is denying an entire mythological system from fulfilling its purpose. But don't worry. I'll start correcting it right now."

Loki's vexation was fleeting as he extended his arm, creating a massive magic circle in front of him. However, what came out of it was definitely more terrifying than any kind of conceivable spell.

First came a massive, wolf head with vicious yellow eyes and horrendous jaws that seemed to be able to crush through their prey no matter what they were. And the rest of its body was revealed to be around ten meters long after fully crossing the magic circle, covered in thick, ash-gray fur that turned white on its back.

The words "hideous monster" definitely fit that thing to a T. Its sole presence was able to freeze even the likes of Azazel and Odin.

"Well, shit. This Fenrir fellow is worse than I thought... That thing is on par with the five dragon kings or worse... Shirou-kun, remind me to not dismiss Serafall's insight when she's being serious."

"Are you really realizing that now..." Shirou scuffed at Azazel before steeling himself, his body mostly healed and his breath was finally steady again.

The image of a certain white wolf overlapped with the divine beast, but he immediately discarded that notion. That wolf was undoubtedly powerful and terrifying, but comparing it to the true apex predator of the planet would be unfair. Their chances were few, but they weren't a round 0.

"Oho? So you've done your homework investigating my cute little child. I suppose I can just skip introductions. Now, should we go for the main dish from the start... no, I think a meal to open your stomach first should work better." The evil God suddenly pointed his finger at Issei. "The Red Dragon Emperor of this generation should suffice. Now go, Fenrir!"

"OWOOOOOOOOO!" The God-eating beast let out a terrific howl before charging towards Issei like an unstoppable bulldozer.

"Wha- You gotta be kidding!" Issei quickly swallowed his panic as he could and took his stance, but Ddraig immediately advised him otherwise.

[No, you definitely shouldn't meet that thing head-on! Those fangs and claws will pierce through your armor just as easily as a dragon-slayer weapon.]

"What should I do then!?"

"You'll have to evade and play decoy then, Issei-kun! Barakiel!"

"On it!"

The Governor of the Grigori created a massive lance of light, while his right-hand man created one of condensed lightning, and both threw them in unison.

The legendary wolf didn't even bother changing its trajectory, receiving the attacks head-on. But despite the loud explosions, neither light nor electricity were able to pierce through Fenrir's defense. It seemed only attacks of the highest level or with special properties would be able to as much as scratch that fur.

And it was further confirmed when Akeno and Rossweisse tried their luck to no avail.

"Oi, Odin! This is a really good moment to bring out your Gungnir!"

Shirou's words were met with a raised eyebrow. "Didn't you hear my explanation? If I fight that thing directly, Ragnarök will truly start. Besides, you know how that fight'll go."

"Tch. Alright, I'll give it a try! Just keep making sure there are no witnesses or civilians involved!"

"Wait, Sensei-"

The red knight ignored Issei's voice as he once again dashed towards the enemy without a hint of hesitation.

"Trace, on!" Three pairs of Kanshou and Bakuya were projected into his hands before hurling them at the mythical wolf. Two of them drew curves to stab its back, which they achieved due to their anti-monster properties, but due to their size, the wolf most likely just felt some tickles.

However, the beast proved to have more intelligence than it let on as it flung away the pair of married blades aiming at its head rather than shrugging them off.

Nonetheless, Shirou kept projecting and throwing twin blades at the wolf despite how meaningless it seemed. The distance between them was finally crossed, and Fenrir changed its focus, hurling its mouth to squash the red knight. A lightning-fast attack that was barely dodged with the help of a mana burst, once again avoiding death by the skin of his teeth.

The red knight slid below the beast, all the while stabbing more Yin-Yang swords into its unprotected belly. Loki's child tried to relocate itself to get a clear shot at the red knight, but Shirou immediately moved to another blind point. In less than a minute, the wolf looked more like a porcupine, but there wasn't even a drop of blood shed.

And seeing the red knight doing something so pointless caused Loki to frown, until the realization hit him, remembering the versatility of those swords.

"I see. So this isn't your first time dealing with a huge monster either, huh? I won't let you then-" The God was about to attack the red knight, but was forced to redirect his spells to block another barrage of light and lightning spears, and even those light arrows from before.

"If we can't damage the dog, we'll have to go for the owner, don't you think?" Azazel taunted the God with a smirk as he and Barakiel prepared another attack.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Lord Azazel, Lord Barakiel." Griselda descended beside them, but rather than her bow of light, she had switched to a set of those rapier-like blades Shirou often used as arrows.

"I know Shirou-kun is going to kill me, but what about the reinforcements I asked for?"

"They are already coming. In fact, one of them should be here in some seconds."

Meanwhile, the God looked at them with some annoyance in his expression. "A bunch of angels dares to defy a God? Very well, I'll show you the abyss between our standings."

"Raphael!" With the God effectively distracted, the red knight shifted to the next phase of his strategy. Using the angels that commanded the winds, he elevated himself over the beast.

He now needed to find a good spot to canalize his magical energy towards all the blades and detonate them. He doubted it would be enough to kill it, but it should give him enough time to prepare the real finishing blow.

Fenrir must have sensed his intentions, as it reacted by jumping towards the red knight as if to catch an annoying fly. Shirou faced those God-killing jaws, and once again didn't change his trajectory, aiming for another last-minute dodge.

"OORRRRAAAAAAAA!" However, before the gap was closed a red blur smashed his fist on the side of Fenrir's face, leaving an opening for Shirou to capitalize...

Or that had been Issei's plan, but his heart stopped for a moment after seeing that the mythical barely flinched. Moreover, its attention now shifted back to him, and one of his claws was already coming at him at a blurring speed.

"Ah..." His brain basically shut down, aware of its imminent death. Those horrendous claws cleaved through his draconic armor like paper maché, and pulverized his flesh and organs, leaving a bloody mess falling to the ground

But there was a problem there. Why was he seeing himself die in a third-person point of view? And did he feel something really hot around his waist? No, it wasn't hot, it was literally burning him!

"Kuh!" A pained voice came out of his mouth when his back hit the floor, but the burning feeling disappeared. Then, a familiar face entered his sight, wielding a golden sword.

"Damn it, Issei. I know I'm not one to say this, but that was too reckless."

"Xeno-" He tried to voice the name of his savior, but a gush of blood came out of his mouth instead.

"Oh shut!" The former exorcist widened her eyes upon noticing the bleeding hole in Issei's breastplate. "Someone! Does anyone have healing magic!"

"Here, we had some Phoenix Tears prepared!" Fortunately, Rossweisse was near, and she was able to see through the illusion Xenovia created. But the same couldn't be said about a certain raven-haired devil.

"ISSSEEEEEEEEIIIIII!" Much to their horror, Akeno erupted in sheer fury and hatred. She recklessly flew towards the God-eating wolf while conjuring a literal storm of holy bolts of lightning.

It was certainly an attack that would have pulverized any lesser, wicked creature and ravaged the land around them, but her foe was no such being. Fenrir pretty much shrugged it off like all the other attacks so far, and his attention shifted to her, recognizing her as a pest that was interfering with its father's order.

The mistake she made due to letting her emotions get the better of her once again was only registered then, when the ten-meter-long beast was charging toward her. And this time, there was no fail-safe system to save her.

"BURST!" Amidst the commotion, the red knight managed to land on the wolf's back, stabbing a final pair of Kanshou and Bakuya. His magical energy spread through its body, applying reinforcement to all the other blades and forcing them to their overedge state before self-destructing.

"RRRAAAAAARRRRRRGHHHH!" The mythical beast this time let out a roar filled with a mixture of pain and anger as literal chunks of flesh were blown from its body, turning into cascades of blood.

But rather than stopping, Fenrir ignored the pain and kept running towards Akeno. Its divine fury manifested, making its aura even more oppressing.

"Damn it! This thing is just like the Bull of Heaven! In that case..."

The red knight jumped towards, his hands wrapped in a considerable amount of magical energy, and landed in front of Akeno just in time. Fenrir's mouth clenched with devastating strength but was stopped midway by a massive, stone axe-sword.

Akeno could see how the muscles of the red knight were budging, even with the reinforcement, the mana burst, and the reproduced strength of the indomitable giant that once wielded that sword. Only his voice muffled by the tremendous exertion of his body was able to pull her out of the near-death shock.

"GO!"

She didn't need to be told twice and spread her mismatched wings to put as much distance as she could. Then, both the golden eyes of the red knight and the God-eating beast met. Both knew the human wouldn't be able to hold longer, even with the strength of a demigod. Or maybe it was precisely because it was a power borrowed from a divine hero.

"Trigger off."

There was only one thing to change the tides. Those golden eyes took aim at eight objectives, and he pumped magical energy into every part of his body.

"Set: Nine Lives Blade Works."

The axe-sword disengaged and hurled towards the weak points created by Kanshou and Bakuya, his mortal body reaching the godspeed that was used to smash 100 heads in an instant. However, as absurd as it seemed, the divine beast reacted at a similar speed, striking back with its horrendous claws to block the red knight's attack.

The sounds produced by the collisions were like thunder, and the fact that the eight swings were made so fast they superimposed caused some eardrums in the vicinity to nearly shatter. The final clash was accompanied by the sound of the axe-sword falling apart, and the red knight getting blown away.

Fenrir didn't pursue him though. It was impossible, as the once deadly claws were turned into a shapeless mass of bleeding flesh. The battle ended as a stalemate, but neither of the combatants was ready to quit.

The red knight stumbled back on his fit, and the wolf did the same, their breath already ragged. Shirou's signature black bow appeared in his left hand again, but this time, the "arrow" he selected was even more powerful. The original sin.

"This is it! O' light of selection, cleave the wicked!"

The sword changed its shape to one more aerodynamic before wrapping itself in a blinding, golden light. The wolf knew it couldn't dodge that attack with its legs in that state, and so, it braced itself for the impact.

But then...

"Whoops, we can't have that."

Before Shirou could let loose the "arrow", a purple liquid splashed over the wolf, and to everyone's horror, all of Fenrir's wounds regenerated as if nothing happened.

"OWOOOOOOOOO!" With another howl, the mythical beast hurled at the red knight, who was a sitting duck.

Time slowed down from the red knight's perspective. He wasn't going to make it in time. And by that, he meant firing the broken phantasm with him outside the radius. He wasn't sure if it would do a thing to that monster now that its fur was intact so that gamble wasn't on the table.

His body then moved to follow the other course of action available. He stopped pouring magical energy into Merodach, and instead, poured it into his legs, preparing a mana burst. But that was just a futile effort. His battered body reacted a tad bit slower, and that time was crucial for someone like him without a magic core to prepare the amount of magical energy for a mana burst. And there was no one near to help him.

Shirou's face twisted as he faced certain death. Michael Muramasa's blueprint was loaded into his magic circuits as a last-ditch effort, not wanting to give up, but even with his speed, he wasn't going to make it.

However, as if to compensate for Loki's dirty play...

[HALF DIMENSION!]

The space around Fenrir warped and compressed, halting its charge at once. Now it was Loki's turn to make a grimace as he stared at the white figure flying in front of him.

"Even you came to meddle in my affairs, White Dragon?"

"Let's just say my boss wants to pay you back after finding out your intentions. That and she apparently would be sad if Emiya Shirou died here."

The God of deceit let out a grunt as he saw a certain group of nekomata, monkey yokai, and blonde siblings surround him. The geezer certainly had everything tied up.

"With you and your colleagues here things certainly have changed, and I know when to retreat. Very well, let's postpone this quarrel for a bit. I shall come for you in two days, Odin. And I'll do it way more prepared for the occasion. Make sure to rest up and rally your strength, for this battle shall be a worthy prelude to Ragnarök."

After leaving those ominous words, the God of Deceit retreated through a magic circle, followed by his "child". The tense atmosphere still remained some seconds, until the sound of the red knight's butt hitting the floor.

His breath became a mess, and he didn't try to fix it, letting his body relax even after the White Dragon Emperor landed right beside him.

"You've seen better days, Emiya Shirou. But I must say, you once again fail to let me down. You technically killed a God there, even if he came back to life."

Shirou just gave the white knight a side glance. "Cut the... flattery... If you aren't... blasting already... does this mean you... came to help?"

"You could said that. And given the circumstances, I don't think you guys are in any position to turn my offer down. Right, old man?"

Vali's words now were directed to a battered Azazel who was approaching them, followed by a pair of Barakiel and Griselda in a similar state.

"Well, you bet! We got our asses handed way worse than I expected. But at least we were able to get an approximate of what we are facing."

"I guess that kind of thinking unsuited for the battlefield was to be expected from you, Azazel-sama." The woman of cloth admonished him with a calm tone that betrayed all the pain she was feeling.

"Shirou!" But the red knight had to tune down their conversation as Xenovia finally reached him with a worried face. "The "little issue" you had to handle was a foreign God of all things!? I mean, I guess only something on that level would trouble you, but still..."

He could just let out the longest sigh as he forced himself up. "Yeah, that's why I didn't want to involve you. But I guess the "responsible adult" did it anyway."

The sheer anger in his rough voice was unfiltered. Having Issei and Akeno stumble upon them at the worst time had been already bad, but now Azazel did it.

"There's no use in crying over spilled milk." The governor of the Grigori talked back without a hint of regret. "At this rate, we'll have to involve any fighting force in this city anyway. Let's see... I think Issei-kun's place should be big enough to hold us all. Issei-kun, Akeno, call Rias and tell her to bring Sona, too."

"Okay... but, what are we gonna do at my house?" The Red Dragon Emperor asked with a tired voice, his tired mind not being able to keep up with the situation.

"A strategic meeting, what else?"

"If you want to defeat Loki and all the shit he's going to bring along, you are going to need a really good plan." Odin chimed in. He was the only one who wasn't that serious, but the fact that he was serious at all was already telling. "Seeing how he's using Phoenix Tears and Ophis' serpent, I'll throw any caution to the wind and give you a hand from our pantheon, albeit limited."

"What are we waiting for then? Lead the way, my rival."

"Are we just going to ignore the huge crater and the growing panic in the city?" Rossweisse was the only one who remembered the chaos around them, but she was quickly dismissed by Azazel.

"I'll make some calls to cover it up. You should focus on resting and thinking of any possible idea."

---

It was already evening when they finally got everyone in Issei's basement. To say the place was crammed would be undermining, and the tension could be cut with a knife.

The wary looks that Vali's group was getting were the least of the problems.

The mixture of emotions that filled Koneko's otherwise blank expression while she shot quick glances at her older sister was hard to describe. Her sister seemed to be in a similar crisis. However, the object of her attention was the red knight, who she was looking at with a mixture of craving and uneasiness. Rias and Sona were glaring at Azazel and Odin for obvious reasons. Xenovia and Kiba couldn't help but stare at the figure of the descendant of the Once and Future King. Akeno was sending murderous glares at her father, and Barakiel in turn was piercing holes on Issei's back even with his eyes closed. Issei was divided from avoiding Barakiel's eyes and glaring at Vali, who in turn shot back his trademark smiles. Bikou was glaring at Shirou from time to time for a reason only they knew, and surprisingly, Le Fay was alternating her stare between Shirou and Rosewaisse while pouting.

Could it be... did she overhear their talk about magic and feel jealous?

But if Shirou was being honest, what surprised him the most was that they didn't need to hypnotize Issei's parents for this. The excuse of this being a "massive school project" actually did the trick.

"...Now that we're all on the same page, I think we should go over our enemy's capabilities and ours." Azazel ignored all the bad blood in the room and continued with the exposition after explaining the situation. "I don't think Loki needs a presentation, so to make things simple, he's basically the wizard type. His physical parameters are high by virtue of being a God, but a fighter with experience in close combat would be able to win. The catch, of course, is his Norse magic of the highest level."

"I guess I should apologize for that. Teaching him primordial runes seemed like a good idea to keep him in control, but that backfired spectacularly. At least, Rossweisse here can counter his magic to an extent. And that little lady over there is the descendant of Morgan Le Fay, am I right? Even I know Merlin's archenemy wasn't to be messed with."

The girl in question blushed after hearing the praise of a God of magic and wisdom. "I don't think I can live up to those expectations just yet, but I'll do my best."

"There you have it. Comparatively, the God-eating wolf, Fenrir, is a more dangerous threat. It might not have a convoluted way of attacking, but a powerhouse like that doesn't need it anyway. Even Tannin would be outmatched in terms of sheer strength and speed. To top it off, Loki has one of Ophis' serpents to boost his power even more when needed, and somehow, has also an absurd amount of Phoenix Tears. I can't even begin to imagine what he means by "coming more prepared"."

"Well, I doubt he's produced other children as it would contradict the prophecy that idiot so much adores, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility of him being able to produce a clon or something like that. There's also Fenrir's offspring, the wolves that pursue the Sun and Moon. He might bring them even if they play a big role in starting the Ragnarök."

"I think that sums it up-"

"No, you two are missing a crucial point." Shirou interrupted Azazel, getting a raised eyebrow from him and Odin. "Loki's greatest asset isn't his magic or his children. It is his most famous power. His ability to morph into any kind of creature."

"Well, yeah, that brought us a lot of headaches in the past, but how is that going to be a problem? He mostly uses it to escape as a fly or a tuna."

Shirou sighed. He said he was going to help, so why was he still making others divulge the crucial information as a precaution to not start the prophecy?

"He can turn into a bear or worse, just like in his prophesized battle against Heimdall. That would outright remove the only weak point we can exploit."

"If you can even call that a weak point." Sona chimed in with a sigh of her own. "So yeah, we now know how outclassed we are against a God of all things. Honestly, I think this is a real emergency in which calling one of our older siblings is justified, isn't it?"

"And don't you think I would have done that if I could?" Odin's words hit the two groups of young devils like a splash of cold water. "The ones who already fought him, aside from the dragon boy and Barakiel's daughter, were the only ones available. And actually, they came quite close already. Now we have all of you, plus this group of revels. I would say your chances aren't that bad."

"That leads me to the question of the day." Azazel spoke as he brought out his artificial Sacred Gear and pointed it at Vali's group. "I know you already stated your reasons to be here, but those were just the reasons Ophis had to send you. Now, what personal reasons do you have to do this? Aside from the thrill of fighting a God, of course."

Vali sent his old man a knowing smile. "That is, of course, confidential. But I think knowing that we do, in fact, have our own reasons to help unlike a certain someone is already enough, isn't it?"

The Governor of the Grigori narrowed his eyes. "Usually, I would just kick you out, but regardless of Odin's optimism, we do need your help. And this isn't your first time going against your own organization either."

"I knew you would understand." The White Dragon Emperor nonchalantly crossed the room and stood in front of Issei. "We haven't even had our destined duel, but this seems to be the first time the two Heavenly Dragons cooperate in ages. So let's show that God why they were feared by his kind, my rival."

The brown-haired pawn blinked owlishly as he watched Vali's extended hand for a second until he shook it with reservations.

"I'm really not interested in all that complicated stuff, but yeah, let's beat the shit out of that bastard."

"You two are basically our best bet to defeat Loki. At least before he decides to transform as Shirou said. As the crown of our firepower, Shirou should be the one to face Fenrir alongside an elite team. Rossweisse, Barakiel, Rias, Sona, and Vali's team are all good options. The rest will have to either provide support to one of those teams, or deal with whatever other minions Loki brings. What do you think about that plan of attack?"

Once again, Shirou spoke quickly after Azazel finished. "If possible, we shouldn't waste resources in defeating Fenrir. It won't even secure our victory and will leave us exhausted for the real enemy."

"And what do you propose? It's not like anyone here can stall it. I was planning on calling Sirzechs to bring one of the members of his peerage at least, or someone like Tannin, but they won't be able to stall that monster until we defeat Loki."

"How much acquainted are you with the Epic of Gilgamesh?" The question he threw to answer the fallen angel's question was a familiar one for most of the people in the room, but it drew their curiosity nonetheless.

"Are you really that much of a fan of the first hero of humanity?"

Vali's teasing remark actually caused Shirou's expression to twist into a murderous one for a split second, which in turn got a high-pitched scream from Gasper.

"I did some research on it and other legends ever since you mentioned, yes." Sona admitted, although she kept to her the motive behind it. It would be embarrassing to say that she did it to try and guess the names of some of the weapons he used but didn't scream their names.

"Then, 'Enkidu, the Chains of Heaven' ought to ring a bell."

"Do you mean the being of clay the Gods created to punish Gilgamesh and ended up befriending him? What does that- oohh..." It seemed she realized what she meant, a satisfied glint shining through her glasses.

"Can you dumb it down for everyone else?"

Shirou nodded at Issei before explaining. "Enkidu was basically a living weapon created with the only purpose of binding Gilgamesh and forcing him to perform the role the Gods expected from him. In other words, an anti-divine weapon. Amongst their arsenal, the most notorious weapon would be the chains he used to bind the Bull of Heaven, a divine beast easily on par or superior to Fenrir."

"And you can bring out those chains?"

"I do have the blueprints, but as a divine weapon, it would be just too expensive to reproduce and the projections would be more flawed than usual."

The room was filled with an astonished silence for a second before Bikou suddenly lashed out at him. "Then what's the purpose of telling us that!?"

"Think about it. I can't reproduce those chains, and getting the real ones would be nigh impossible. But as I explained during the peace meeting, there are always equivalents between myths. There must be some chains used to bind divinities in other mythologies."

Those words were directly shot a Odin, who in turn smirked. "Gleipnir, huh? Yeah, we still have the chains we used to bind the dog until Ragnarök. However, Loki has already found a way to free his child, so I wouldn't put my trust in that option."

"Isn't there a way to strengthen them? Everything forged by the dwarves of your pantheon pretty much works on enchantments."

"I can't think of a method at the drop of the hat, but maybe Jormungandr might know a way. The Heavenly Dragons should be able to get where he rests with the help of a dragon King."

"Well, in the hypothetical case we manage to boost those chains and neutralize Fenrir, do you have a safe way to defeat Loki, Emiya Shirou?" Azazel finally decided to throw the metaphorical dart at him.

"You already saw it. Caladbolg has enough power to kill him if timed correctly. It is one of my powerful weapons, but I have more on the same level or greater." He answered calmly, but Azazel wasn't having that.

"You know that won't happen again. That God won't make the same mistake again. I'm asking about the weapons that will guarantee the kill even against a God you said you possessed."

The sigh Shirou let out already sent chills down Azazel's spine. "Fine, I'll go and say it. Just like the Chains of Heaven, I currently can't generate enough energy on my own to use them safely. As I said, those are an absolute last resort."

The tension in the room just increased tenfold as the fallen angel just plummeted on his chair. "Figures. There had to be a limit to your cheat-like magic. Tell me you do have another kind of ace in the hole or something."

The auburn-haired boy rested a hand on his chin, thinking of alternatives to just deploying his Reality Marble in front of everyone. "There's Harpe, I guess. Even if he uses Phoenix tears and that rune again, it will be useless if I loop his head off with that. But once again, it doesn't have an incredible firepower... The same could be said about the Longinus spear..."

His golden eyes suddenly darted towards Arthur and Le Fay, causing the two of them to straighten their bodies a little.

"Excalibur was shattered, by what about Rhongominyad? Your family won't happen to have it around, will they?"

While that mouthful name got everyone confused, the two siblings gave him apologetic looks. "I'm afraid King Arthur's holy lance was also lost in time. And even if it wasn't, I'm not exactly on good terms with my family."

"I guess I'll throw you another bone then." Odin intervened before morality dropped further. "You see, after losing a certain competition, the elves decided to share some secrets with the dwarves that forged Mjolnir and ended up forging a replica that is gathering dust in a corner. Furthermore, the Huldra brothers have just finished forging another masterpiece on par if I remember correctly. If you manage to wield them, you might have a chance."

"You just said it, old geezer. Who do you think can wield weapons of such magnitude here!" Azazel, for once, wasn't on board with Odin's crazy ideas. It must have finally dawned on him that their chances were never that great.

The God's gaze pointed directly at Shirou, but before he could utter a word, the golden-eyed boy shut down that notion. "It depends on their power, but most likely, I'll have the same problem as with my own most powerful weapons."

"Figures. Well, we still have the two Heavenly Dragons. Their Balance Breaker should do the trick."

"I haven't taken any formal training for anything aside from fist fights, but I guess it doesn't hurt to have an extra. If anything, I would prefer to be taught about Norse magic." While Vali just rolled with the idea, Issei seemed more troubled about it.

"Uhm... Isn't Mjolnir a weapon that can only be wielded by someone with a just heart?"

"Of course not. I don't know why everyone nowadays has that misconception, but as long as you can lift it and have some protection to not burn yourself with the lightning, there's no problem. Admittedly, it is a weapon hard to use as its weight was originally thought to be compensated by a longer handle, but you'll have to thank Loki for the blunder."

"And the elves didn't fix that mistake for the replica?" Shirou asked a really obvious question, but God just deflected the issue.

"Elves. Anyway, as for your request, White Dragon Emperor, that can be arranged after you go visit Jormungandr, if you're ready for a really intensive class."

"Heh, throw your best at me."

"With that out of the way, I have also a couple of things prepared ahead." The Governor of the Grigori continued without missing a beat, walking up to Saji. "Vitra's user. If you want to take the risk, I can give your Sacred Gear a considerable upgrade."

"Huh? Is that even possible?"

"Let's just say I decided to put together what has been separated for a really long time after your showcase against Issei-kun. What's your answer then?"

"I'll do it! It will be kinda cheap, but if Aniki's that beaten up, then I can't slack off." Saji stood up to the challenge without a hint of hesitation, causing a smirk to show on Azazel's face while Sona and the rest of her peerage couldn't help but feel a little worried about what that man had in mind.

"Very well, I'll be borrowing him right after we are done here, Sona. Next thing on the list..." He extended his arm in the direction of another blonde devil, but this time from Rias' peerage.

A magic circle formed in front of him, and the next moment, a bunch of swords with really ominous auras dropped from it.

"These are..."

"Sirzechs gave the OK for you to use those demonic swords, at least for now. I don't expect you to be able to use them perfectly, but those oughtta make a difference even so. We even have an expert who can give you the gist of it."

The Gremory knight shot a glance at the red knight, conveying his question without opening his mouth.

"That will depend more on your mental strength and adopting the right mentality. Well, unless you want to use Balmung's true name. That will leave you completely dry."

"Does anyone have another hidden power up for the rest of us?" Tomoe asked in a joking tone after their brief interaction ended. And to her surprise, Shirou was the one to stand up now.

"Actually, I guess this is a good opportunity..." He extended his arm and projected what seemed like a polearm at first glance. However, the pristine fabric wrapped around the blade revealed it as an actual flagship with its emblem drawn in gold.

And the one he offered the mysterious weapon turned out to be Jeanne, who gently took it in the same way one would accept a kitty. And the moment her fingers wrapped around the shaft, it emitted a dim light. She felt a connection with it almost instantly, as if it had been her weapon since forever rather than her Blade Blacksmith. Or more like she regained a part of herself she didn't even know she was missing.

With all that taken into account, she had a pretty good guess of what weapon she had been gifted, but she decided to look straight at Shirou and ask anyway.

"This is..."

"Yes, this is the banner that Jeanne d'Arc carried into the battlefield. After all, she never drew the sword she was gifted as she fought to protect her people. It still has a blade, but if its true name, Luminosite Eternelle, is released, its blessing will turn into one of the greatest defenses. I don't need to explain further why it is the weapon best suited for you, do I?"

A comfortable warmth invaded her chest, and her lips stammered as she tried to put those feelings.

"Th-thanks, Shirou. I... I never expected to come across Jeanne's legacy... Are you... Are you sure about this? I've been trained to be a weapon..."

"As long as your faith and conviction remain strong, there should be no problem. Besides, your ancestor saw her fair share of bloodshed, too. And even if I can cheat my way to use it despite not being the one meant to, my lack of faith would make it rather weak." He added that last comical remark with a smirk, blowing away any doubts she might have.

"Then I'll do my best to live up to the name I have been gifted. But... is there an easy way to carry it around?"

"You can put it in the same pocket dimension I have for Durandal." Xenovia suggested, but the boy had a better solution.

"You can shift it to spiritual form just like I do with my attire. I'll teach you later-"

His words were interrupted when he felt an annoyed glance pointed at him. Irina was almost making her cute pout look scary.

"First Excalibur for Xenovia, and now that flagship for Jeanne. Aren't you leaving me out, Shirou-kun?"

"It's not like I can give powerful weapons at random, you know?" He basically shrugged off her indirect request, causing her to deflate a little.

"Well, if anyone has something more to add, you should start planning your hyper-condensed training schedule for tomorrow. Every second is going to be crucial, but don't forget to rest properly."

And so, Azazel's words put an end to the meeting, and the massive group dispersed into smaller ones to start their preparations.

---

And here's the place to make the cut. This is actually an almost perfect half of the original chapter. As always, I'll leave the deliberations for the AN at the end of the next chapter to keep it condensed, so I'll see you in a moment... if you click the next chapter button I guess.