Scathach looked at the man in front of her in doubt as he talked with Da Vinci about the construction of Chaldea's core.
Scathach leaned against the wall with her arms crossed. She was the mysterious archer.
The man Scathach worked alongside was peculiar. He was entirely cynical and sarcastic, but in their missions, he acted completely differently, and the goddess was even surprised by how protective he was. He genuinely did not let enemies harm his allies, which was completely opposite to what Scathach had expected. Was this embittered man putting on a performance... no, that wasn't it. Now that Scathach thought about it, the expression on the archer's face was...
Empty
The nameless man did all of this not because he was protective and wanted the good of the group, but because he had been ordered to. The nameless man resembled a soldier much more than a hero.
Scathach rested her head, wondering where the characteristics of the nameless man matched the descriptions of heroes from the past. Scathach thought and thought, but nothing...
Indian? No, he might have some similarities, but it's unlikely. Based on his characteristics, maybe European? The armor the man wears fits the description... but the archer's cloak doesn't match, and Scathach remembers the archer saying that the mantle he wears was a gift from a nun, so it must be something sacred...
He can't be Japanese; the archer's characteristics don't come close to that of a Japanese person, so that's ruled out.
The more Scathach thought, the more confused the goddess became.
The archer stopped talking to Da Vinci and looked in Scathach's direction. She noticed that he stared at her for a few seconds and then flashed a sarcastic smile before returning to her conversation with Da Vinci.
The goddess's cheeks turned red; the man had a strange talent for embarrassing her.
This mortal... who does he think he is!
Scathach was going to make the mortal regret it.
-15-
Some time had passed since the archer and Scathach began working together. The goddess was starting to get used to the man's attitude, but Scathach felt a sense of déjà vu as she watched the man being scolded by the master.
Ritsuka, the girl with orange hair who had summoned them, was giving the archer a scolding.
Their master was telling the man to relax when they weren't on a mission, but the archer simply ignored her. The master had forced relaxation in Chaldea's artificial hot springs with a command seal, and the nameless man gave Ritsuka a look that she seemed to want to kill someone.
The archer passed by Scathach with a scowl on his face, and the goddess blinked as she watched his back.
The goddess found herself wondering...
What is a hot spring?
-15-
Scathach entered the area while dematerializing her clothing and armor.
The goddess walked slowly, looking for what seemed like an object to retrieve some towels and leave her clothes. She carefully walked towards the opening of the hot springs, removing the cloth in front of her that had a Kanji.
She noticed that the archer was sitting with the lower part of his body submerged in the water, his back turned to Scathach. The goddess simply approached the man completely naked and stood beside him. Scathach sat down gently next to the archer, submerging the lower part of her body as well. She had to admit it was quite pleasant.
The archer didn't say anything, which made Scathach raise an eyebrow. She looked at him and noticed that he had a massive X-shaped scar on his back and a smaller one on his chest, the one on his chest was familiar, as if it had been caused by a spear...
"Gae Bolg?" Scathach let her words slip from her mouth, catching the archer's attention, who had been silently contemplating his own reflection in the water.
"You recognize the wounds well, should I be concerned?" The archer said, looking at his own reflection in the water.
Scathach observed the man for a few seconds and decided not to engage in his game. She was starting to get used to the man's attitude next to her.
"You don't seem to take pride in your scars; they're proof that you're a warrior," Scathach commented, but the man only grunted, causing the goddess to raise an eyebrow.
"Scars are just scars, there's nothing to be proud of in them; at most, one should feel shame, as they are marks of incompetence," the man's words finally made the goddess look at him.
"How can you say such a thing? Have you no honor? Isn't that what warriors do—fight and return with the marks of their battles?" The woman's words only made the man blink, which infuriated her.
"No..." Scathach blinked in disbelief at what he was referring to.
"I have no pride, I'm not a warrior; at best, I'm a soldier," the goddess's mouth hung open. This man... his attitude had always irritated her whenever they interacted. She got up and stood in front of the man, furious.
The archer raised his head and looked at Scathach's sculpted body.
"You care too much about something that doesn't affect you. Besides, why are you bothered? You're not a real Heroic Spirit, after all. You never died, Scathach, and you haven't accomplished enough to earn a place in the Throne..." The man said, looking into Scathach's eyes.
He was right... she shouldn't be on the Throne of Heroes. Scathach hadn't performed heroic deeds of that caliber. She was known as a god-killer, but the tales didn't say much more than that. Being immortal, Scathach shouldn't be on the Throne of Heroes, as the goddess had never died. At most, she should have been recognized as a trainer of heroes.
Scathach lowered herself, practically sitting on the man's lap, and looked into his eyes. Her blood-red eyes met his metallic gray ones.
"How dare you! I have fought in many battles, trained legendary warriors, and killed gods. I am the person who should care the most about something like this. I see in your eyes a nameless man, you are a warrior! A highly skilled warrior at that. I won't let anyone belittle a warrior of your caliber, even if that person belittling you is yourself," both servants stared at each other.
"So, by your logic. I'm a warrior, fought my entire life to become a legend, died, and returned as a Hero. Now as a Heroic Spirit, what should I do, fight even more? And after that, fight even more? And then what?" The archer looked at Scathach with that empty and lonely gaze, and the goddess blinked, not pausing to think about that possibility.
"Ah, now you get it, don't you? We're no longer warriors, Scathach. Stop living in the past, it doesn't matter if you were the most famous hero in Greek mythology or just a random man who shouldn't be on the Throne of Heroes. In the end... we're just tools, not warriors. Think carefully about why we're here, Scathach..." The archer got up, causing Scathach to fall on her rear , soaking her entire body.
When the goddess opened her eyes, all she saw was the massive X-shaped scar on the man's back.
"The time of heroes... is over," as she walked, the goddess stared intently at the man's back.
Is he right? Could it be...
Scathach looked at her own body, with the lower half submerged, and saw no scar. She couldn't have one; she was immortal...
Have we ceased to be warriors?
Have we ultimately become mere tools?
This is not an honorable end...
The goddess simply sank deeper into the hot springs until only her chin remained above the water, lost in thought.
Is this the life of heroes now ?
Grand Order
-15-
The smoke curtain dispersed, revealing Romulus using his spear as support. The man was bleeding, one of his arms was unresponsive, and there was a hole in his back. Reddish-black lines marked Romulus' back of him.
The man noticed that he wasn't healing; blood was coming out of his mouth as he struggled to gather his strength and avoid losing consciousness. He looked up and saw Nero with a conflicted expression on his face.
Scathach and Artoria were both ready to attack if the man tried anything.
"He should have died from an attack of that magnitude..." the goddess whispered, making Artoria glance at her out of the corner of her eye.
Artoria knew well the effects of Gae Bolg and the consequences of being struck by the cursed spear. For Romulus to survive an attack aimed at his heart and still be alive was, at the very least, concerning...
"Impressive... I expected nothing less from my enemy... I don't think I have much time left... after an attack... like that," Romulus spoke with difficulty as he pulled his spear from the ground.
Everyone remained cautious, and the archer's gaze fixed on the man whose arm Romulus had turned off. The archer raised an eyebrow.
"I wonder how someone with such a pure heart carries so much hatred... my enemy," the archer's expression didn't change at all. All the nameless man did was stare at Romulus as if he were just an ordinary mission.
Scathach glanced at the archer out of the corner of her eye, asking herself what the demigod was referring to.
Artoria remained silent...
Da Vinci looked at the archer after Romulus's comment.
The tension in the air was thick, as if everyone couldn't breathe...
Nero took a step forward, apprehensive.
"Divine Founder, surrender. There's no way to win anymore; look at your condition..." Nero said upon seeing the founder of Rome struggling to stay on his feet.
Everyone looked at Nero in surprise.
"What are you talking about? Let's eliminate him; we can't let him live. You're not planning a conspiracy, are you..." Boudica said, narrowing her eyes at Nero.
"What, no! It's just... he's the founder of Rome... I don't think it's right for the Divine Founder to die like this," Nero said, shrinking back as she tightened her grip on her sword.
Upon hearing this, Romulus smiled, "Indeed, little one, I was right about you..."
Nero looked at the smiling man, his eyes widened in agony.
"What are you waiting for, Attack!" Elizabeth's voice caught everyone's attention as the draconian girl hurled her bid.
Romulus saw the lance and used his own spear to deflect the weapon, but someone had not missed the opportunity...
Spartacus was already close to the man and punched him, causing him to lose balance.
"Oppressor!" Spartacus shouted with a huge grin.
Artoria and Scathach noticed that something wasn't right.
Boudica didn't miss the chance and advanced, driving her sword into the man's leg and skillfully immobilizing his other leg with her body.
"What are you waiting for, Nero? Prove that you want to make amends for everything you've caused, Come on!" Nero looked at Romulus, who had his arms immobilized by Spartacus and his legs by Boudica.
Nero looked at Scathach, the archer, and Artoria, hoping they would say something, but nothing came.
"Nero!" The Emperor of Rome looked desperate, not knowing what to do.
"It's the end, oppressor," Spartacus said as he held the demigod's arms.
Nero wondered what she was going to do. She looked at her sword and then at Romulus...
"Nero!" When Romulus raised his head, he saw her smiling at him.
Nero tightened his grip on the sword's hilt and rushed forward with a burst of speed, and in the blink of an eye, the man's heart was pierced.
"I'm sorry..." Nero whispered.
Spartacus and Boudica released Romulus, who didn't resist for a second against the group's attack.
Scathach and Artoria realized that something was truly wrong. From the beginning of the fight, Romulus hadn't been trying. He had shown no intention of fighting, merely going through the motions. And from the beginning of the battle, the man had demonstrated that he wanted to die...
Nero's Colosseum began to disintegrate into particles of light as the Emperor looked down with a shadow on her face.
A hand touched her head and ruffled her hair as if she were a child.
Nero looked up with wide eyes.
"Don't be like this, little one. You truly demonstrated that you hold the title of Emperor of Rome. Don't blame yourself; what happened wasn't your fault, little one. I was brought here against my will, and what I saw happen to my beloved Rome hurt, but what hurt me the most was being the harbinger of destruction for the city I love so much. Rome was created so that people of different cultures, ethnicities, and thoughts could share the same space, making them grow as individuals. In the end, it doesn't matter if they're different or similar... in the end... they are all ROME," Nero's eyes welled up with tears as she watched Romulus disappear into particles of light. Everyone stared wide-eyed, not expecting this to be the man's intentions.
"Please, take care of my beloved Rome..." Romulus uttered his final words before disappearing into particles of light.
A Grail fell to the ground, catching everyone's attention.
Tears streamed down Nero's face as she fell to her knees, gazing at the blood on her sword.
Boudica walked over and stooped to pick up the Grail, but...
?!
"Oppressor!" Spartacus grabbed the woman by the hips like a backpack and pulled her out of the way.
Shadowy hand shapes gripped the Grail and began pulling it into the ground.
"Hey, that's ours!" Ritsuka rushed to grab the sacred object, but her hands were too strong and started pulling her along with it.
"Kyaaaa! Let go of me! This is very strange!" Ritsuka cried out in despair as she was being pulled.
"Senpai!" Mashu ran over and with a spinning blow from her shield, severed her shadowy hands. However, the Grail was pulled back. Both girls fell to the ground on their behinds.
"Are you okay, Senpai?" Mashu asked, looking at her master with concern.
"No, I'm not! Why can't things be easy for once! And you guys, why didn't you help retrieve the Grail? It was right in front of you; it would have been very easy for you to get it back... hey, are you even listening to me?" Ritsuka said incredibly frustrated, but her servants didn't move or respond, they just stared at the spot where Romulus had disappeared, and Nero, who was crying on the ground.
"Hey? Are you guys there..." a hand on the orange-haired girl's shoulder got her attention.
"Mashu?" Ritsuka asked, confused.
"I do not think it's a good time, Senpai..." Ritsuka blinked in confusion and looked at her servants.
Scathach glanced at the projected throw from the archer and then at Artoria. The Saber's black eyes were obscured by shadows, preventing her from seeing her expression, but by the goddess's instinct, she knew that Artoria's thoughts were the same as hers.
Scathach looked at the archer and saw the weapon in his hands disappear into particles of light. She looked again at Nero crying and then at the copy of Gae Bolg, which also vanished into particles of light. The goddess could only think of one thing.
This was the fate of heroes...
Where is the honor?
Was the archer right?
Are we, heroes, nothing more than tools?
Scathach looked at the copy of Gae Bolg disappearing completely from her hands. She clenched the hand where the spear had been until it bled. The goddess looked up and saw Nero crying.
What a wretched end it is to be a hero, couldn't think of a more miserable ending.
Please tell me... what are we to all of you ?
-A-
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