Author's note: To start, let me thank you for your many answers after... uh... my wall of words from the last chapter. Since I was asked the question, yes, I read all your answers. I always read your reviews. I respect your opinions and I take them into account. The contradiction doesn't bother me in itself, it's just I don't appreciate the aggressiveness of some people.

Could Shirou have used Triple Linked Crane Wing or Swallow Reversal against Luo Hao? Crane Wing... yes... but it wouldn't have served many purposes against Luo Hao. Between her speed and her fighting instinct, using an attack of this kind against the Chinese Campione was a waste of time. As Shirou himself says, Kanshou and Bakuya (thrown) are too slow for her (in any case for Shirou in his current state).

Hiken: Tsubame Mai presents a virtually opposite problem. It's an attack almost impossible to avoid... three simultaneous strokes that cut through space and time, thus canceling any physical protection. The result is that Sasaki Kojiro is able to cut anything. It is, therefore, an unusable attack in a friendly fight, because it leaves virtually no chance of survival.

Also, does Emiya Shirou post HF know about this attack? He and Archer have never met Kojiro on this Route and I doubt that Archer has met Kojiro at another occasion in his long existence. After All the Assassin of the 5th Grail War is a fictional hero. In any case, canonically, EMIYA never uses this so practical... skill (it's not a Noble Phantasm).

Hakuno and Shirou have a body created by the gods so, are they Age of Gods Human? Short answer: no.

Long answer: Humans of the Age of the Gods had far superior abilities to modern humans for three reasons. The first was that their bodies had been created by the gods. The second is that their soul was created by the gods (so they had much more Od than modern humans). The last reason was that the Ley Lines were very active at the time and the ambient magical energy very abundant... it also allowed extremely powerful Phantasmal Beasts (dragon, Ki-rin, manticores, demons) to live on Earth. As they preyed on the humans of the time, they were forced to fend against them. The winners of these battles became the first generation of heroes (like Gilgamesh).

Hakuno and Shirou have only bodies created by the gods... and shaped by their souls of modern men in an environment that is not as rich in magical energy as the Age of the Gods. However, they have some of their characteristics, such as a very long life span, and... they also have the most annoying characteristic of the first generation of men. That will be important later in the story. I won't say any more.

Why did the goddesses not realize that Erica was spying on them? First, Erica uses a spell that amplifies her hearing and filters out parasitic sounds. It's closer to the Strengthening Magecraft than a detection spell. Then, because of the famous Tohsaka curse: Trivial Mistake. Ereshkigal was so eager to explain to her sister how extraordinary Hakuno is (or rather bragging about it in front of her sister) that she did not wait to be safe from prying ears, and did not even take the most elementary precautions against espionage.

Rider of the Storm

Two virtually identical minibuses were traveling on a mountain road east of Tokyo. A quarter of an hour earlier, these two vehicles had stopped in front of the gates of the Jounan Academy to take two groups of boys and girls... Finally two boys and lots of pretty girls.

The other boys leaving high school to return to their homes had watched the lucky two going on trips with the more beautiful girls of the school choking on jealousy. We were wondering why...

In the lead vehicle, Godou Kusanagi listened to Erica Blandelli finish her report. Those who knew the Japanese Campione only in a superficial way considered him as an attractive teenager (even too attractive) having only the problems of a boy his age. They would have been surprised to discover the expression on his face. Although his eyes were serious and even worried, he smiled without realizing it. And that smile was a predator's smile discovering a new prey.

Erica shivered inwardly. And this pleasant chill was not due to fear...

The first time she saw his smile, the Italian Knight fell in love.

Since then, she had seen this expression several times. Actually, every time the young Campione had faced an ordeal that seemed impossible to overcome. One did not become Campione by accident... only unusual individuals could kill gods.

When he was told of invincible adversaries, of furious gods, or of centuries-old Campiones, where others would fall to cry or flee, Gudou have this smile.

For Goudou's harem, that smile was always a ray of hope. The Japanese Devil King had a knack for turning the most desperate situations in his favor, a mixture of luck and a purely instinctive tactical skill that surprised even the most seasoned fighters.

"What do you think about Hakuno?"

Erica shudders suddenly awake from her daydream.

"Sorry?"

"Do you think she's dangerous?"

The Copper-Black Cross Knight took a few seconds to think. She hesitated before answering... Hakuno KIshinami hardly spoke and showed no emotion. Yet Ereshkigal spoke of her with great affection. Without that, Erica would have thought that the teenage girl from another universe was some kind of... soulless machine.

"I'm sorry, Godou, I don't know."

The Godslayer shook his head.

"I heard what you said and I understand your concern, but even if she is the agent of a very powerful being or... how did you say? A program created by some sort of lunar supercomputer, right? The important thing is not what she can possibly do, but what she wants to do."

Erica Blandelli looked at her king with disbelief... then smiled. After all, this Campione had decided to spare Athena. Among all the Devil Kings he was the only one that did not look at the people around him according to their 'labels' (Campiones, Heretic Gods, normal humans) but according to their actions.

"Ah... my husband is truly unique," said the pretty Italian girl.

Sitting next to the Campione, she hugged him... begging for a kiss.

But they were not alone.

An exaggerated throat clearing was heard.

Sitting in the seat in front of them, Yuri Mariya coughed in her fist.

"I think there's no reason to worry about Hakuno Kishinami."

Goudou looked at her interrogatively.

"Did you have a vision?"

"No, but meditation has made me very sensitive to the emotional state of the people around me. Hakuno is not... a doll without emotion. She is a person with her sorrows and feelings. I feel immense loneliness and a lot of sadness in her. When Ereshkigal hugs her, she seemed uneasy... but simultaneously happy."

"And Shirou Emiya," asked the Campione. "What do you think of him?"

The young Hime-Miko looked down.

"He's angry... but I think everyone's noticed."

Goudou, Erica, and Lilianna nodded.

"But angry at what" insisted the Godslayer.

Lilianna Kranjcar, the only one of them who really spoke to Shirou, looked uncomfortable.

"I think he's mostly angry with himself... his desire to protect Ishtar... even though the goddess is much more powerful than him... is really... I don't know exactly how to formulate this... Disturbing? Emiya-san is so focused on his desire to protect the esteemed Ishtar that I have no doubt that he can jump between her and a deadly attack. It's like his life doesn't matter to him. It's... abnormal."

There was a moment of silence as everyone was thinking about what this entailed. Finally, the Hime-Miko went on to say:

"You know it was Ishtar who asked for them to go to school?"

All turned to Yuri. Godou frowned.

"I thought the History Compilation Committee had..."

He was going to say 'required' but the Campione stopped. The Committee would never have dared to dictate its conditions to goddesses! He pondered and eventually nodded his head.

"Ishtar wanted to present their schooling as a request from the Committee... but why?"

The Hime-Miko nodded vigorously.

"I've been thinking about it since Amakasu Touma informed me and I think I understood through this discussion. Have you seen how esteemed Ishtar reacts to Shirou-san's behavior?"

"She is very worried," replied Lilianna.

"Correct. As for Ereshkigal and Hakuno-san, they suffered a lot from loneliness... I think Ishtar wanted them to be in the most normal environment possible, a place where they could make friends."

Erica winked at Lianna before smiling.

"A real tsundere!"

"Who are you talking about," asked Godou.

"We talked about goddess Ishtar. Didn't you understand? When your 'Nemesis' is involved, you don't see what is obvious to everyone else... Once again she did not want to be 'accused' of an altruistic act. So she asked the Committee to present their schooling as a legal obligation."

Godou Kusanagi winced... Obviously, put like that, it looked like the kind of manipulation that Ishtar's devious mind enjoyed. Finally, of the quartet that landed on Earth, only Ereshkigal seemed really harmless (1)... The others looked like unexploded bombs. Unexploded bombs could remain peacefully in their craters for decades, be covered by vegetation, be forgotten... then explode for no reason.

In the second minibus, Shirou Emiya spoke with Ishtar.

"... throughout sports class, the boys kept asking me about you and Eiri (2).

With her hands folded under her chin, the goddess looked at him with her usual smile... yes, the one perfectly evil one... and her eyes folded

"And what did you say to them?"

"The truth."

"That is to say?"

Shirou shrugged. As usual, the redhead blockhead had not understood why the goddess was so interested in what he might have said.

"That we are friends and have known each other since childhood. For Eiri, I just said I met her for the first time two weeks ago."

Ishtar sighed... massaging her forehead while shaking her head. So soon after his separation from Sakura, the goddess realized that it was too early to tell Shirou about her... um... feelings. But you really had to be called Shirou 'moron' Emiya for not understanding that she had a... personal reason... to save him. A goddess of her status did not betray her pantheon by breaking a taboo just on impulse.

Those who knew her legend would have understood that the Goddess of Venus was in love. Ishtar had always had a big weakness for mortals. Dumezil, her husband, had been a mere mortal at least until Ishtar laid eyes on him.

She immediately went back to Heaven to talk to Anu, her father.

At first, of course, he was reluctant, not listening to her arguments. Then the Mistress of Heaven became angry, screaming loud enough for the whole divine court to flee and the heavens to resound from the dispute. Ishtar could be very persuasive and she was also as stubborn as a donkey. When she made her decision, she didn't go back on it.

And her father was finally convinced...

It must be said that she had threatened to divert the Tigris and the Euphrates into the Mediterranean, raze all the mountains of Mesopotamia, drive the minor gods out of Heaven, and sow discord among all the nations, condemning humanity to an endless war.

The adorable disaster called Ishtar had a tender smile remembering her father at that moment... hiding behind his throne, crying and trembling. Hands raised above the head to protect themselves from her kicking. Anu had evidently ended up fulfilling all his daughter's desires, turning a simple shepherd into a god just to please her. (3)

But that was the normal ending to this story.

What doting father could he have refused that his lovely daughter marries the man of her dreams?

The driver of the minibus turned around at that moment.

"Goddesses Ishtar, goddess Ereshkigal, we have arrived."

The two minibuses had just entered a concrete tunnel that sank far under the mountain. Ishtar looked around her with interest. It was an old construction. The concrete plaster was crumbled and the paint markings had almost lost all color.

"And where are we?"

The Committee member looked at her in the rearview mirror.

"Esteemed Ishtar, Ayabusa is a former factory that manufactured anti-aircraft shells during the Second World War. The premises were abandoned and walled after the surrender. Thirty years ago, looking for a place to quietly experiment with destructive spells, the Committee reopened Ayabusa."

The two minibuses stopped in an underground parking lot. Their guide opened an armored door with a key and lit the light. The light bulbs in wire-mesh globes lit up a corridor that zigzagged strangely, which Godou pointed out.

The Committee member agreed.

"King Godou, these chicane corridors are designed to weaken the blast of an explosion. I remind you that explosives were manufactured and stored in this factory."

After crossing a long corridor, they arrived in front of another armored door which the guide opened with another key from his keychain.

The vast hall looked like a kind of cathedral, even though the ceiling was lower. Once machine tools had cluttered the ground... you could still see the traces of it. Nevertheless, the walls were now covered with weapons from all over Asia.

It took a single look at Shirou to add the blueprints of this arsenal to his Reality Marble.

And there was something to be impressed with. The composite arch on a display case had belonged to Genghis-Khan. The scimitar in a showcase was the weapon of Baibar. The lance decorated with white pompom had been held by Tamerlane. Structural Grasp had also taught him who the current owner of these weapons was...

In the Lotus position, Luo Hao was immersed in deep meditation. As always, her presence was hardly more discernible than a wrinkle dug by the wind on a calm pond.

She opened her eyes.

"King Godou, Emiya Shirou, this Luo Hao welcomes you to your first lesson." She looked briefly at the others present... whom she had not invited. "Goddess Ishtar, goddess Ereshkigal... Also welcome."

Being a Campione, Godou had been the first to be invited into the tatami-covered square where Luo Hao was standing. After having asked him to attack her and dodged several clumsy fists, the Ruler of Martial Art had nodded her head.

She had explained to him that his speed, strength, and endurance were those of a Campione but... without combat training, he was unable to properly exploit his abilities.

Waving at him, Luo Hao asked him to attack her again. This time, as Godou gave her a punch, she grabbed his wrist and gave a slight blow under his elbow with her hand closed... The result was impressive. Godou fell to his knees with his mouth open to a silent cry. When the Ruler of Martial Art dropped his wrist, the arm of the Japanese fell, flabby and numb.

Qin-Na was a martial art with a... magical side.

A master of the Qin-Na never seemed to give any strength in a strike, his gestures were nonchalant. However, a master of Chinese dislocations could control an opponent by a very painful joint, muscular, or tendon blockage.

Seen from the inside, this martial art take was even more impressive. Godou had the impression that a light explosion had taken place in his brain. The next moment... The Devil King was on his knees without even remembering when his legs collapsed under him and looked at his arm completely paralyzed! It was his arm... but the orders given by his brain were no longer obeyed. He just felt numbness in his limbs; all the other sensations had disappeared.

"In five minutes, the paralysis will be completely dissipated."

Luo Hao turned to the silver-haired knight.

"Lilianna Kranjcar, will you be my partner for a demonstration?"

The young Croatian accepted. Luo Hao showed which sensitive points of the wrist to press and how to hit the elbow. She repeated it several times, decomposing the movement for her student.

"All right, King Godou, train with Knight Kranjcar."

Luo Hao stopped in front of the Faker.

"Shirou Emiya, your turn. Use your Tracing to create a weapon and attack me."

The redhead frowned before responding in an annoyed voice.

"I thought you wanted to teach me how to fight with my bare hands."

The Ruler of Martial Art looked at him for several seconds without saying a word. This ended up making Shirou uncomfortable. Finally, she replied.

"You dislike me. This Luo Hao understood it well. However... do you think I'm stupid? You are a magician who uses magic that I do not know to create mystical weapon duplicates and copy the ability of their original users to handle them. But you yourself had very little knowledge of combat."

With a gesture of her hand, she showed the arsenal on the walls.

"My goal is obviously to teach you how to use your talent correctly. Teaching you something that won't help you would be a waste of potential. Come on. Use your Tracing to create a weapon."

With hesitation, Shirou Traced Gae Bolg and stood half-flexed, the spear pointed towards the ground, jumping on the spot...

As Luo Hao made a gesture of invitation, Shirou jumped like a mad dog.

Unsurprisingly, the Chinese Campione jumped aside, dodging the charge. Then she deflected Gae Bolg with a simple wrist move, before counterattacking with a kick that sent Shirou to the ground.

As the teenager caught his breath and Yuri Mariya laid her hands on his wounds to heal him, Luo Hao watched the red spear she had caught up with.

"A Celtic Lanka (4), balanced to be launched. It is cut from a single red bone and engraved with runes...

The Chinese Girl closed her eyes for a moment.

"This weapon is cursed, filled with the desire to kill... I see... it's Gae Bolg."

Erica and Yuri looked at the Chinese girl in disbelief and then turned to Shirou with an expression of respect, having recognized the weapon's name of the Irish Child of Light.

Thanking the shy Hime-Miko for having cared for him, Shirou stood up awkwardly, fleeing admiring looks.

"It's just an imperfect copy." He reached out to the spear "Trace Out!"... and the weapon disappeared in a prana flicker.

Luo Hao agreed.

"This Gae Bolg is indeed an imperfect copy of the original, but it's not the most important. You yourself, Shirou Emiya are not a copy of Cù Chulainn. You are ambidextrous, and from what I have seen of your imitation, Cù Chulainn must be right-handed and his dominant arm is much more muscular than the left (5). His chest is smaller, his legs are longer than yours, and he's faster and stronger than you. You try to imitate the fighting style of an individual with a very different physique than you and don't use your own physical capacities."

Moving away from Shirou, Luo Hao had turned to a gun rack. She seemed to be looking for something.

"That's how Tracing works. I copy the abilities of the user as I copy the weapon itself" explained the redhead.

"Shirou Emiya, do you know when you mastered a martial art technique?"

The Faker shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know... when you managed to reproduce this technique to perfection?"

"Shirou Emiya, martial arts is based entirely on the transmission of techniques from generation to generation. Even if a perfect technique exists, it is still to be discovered. A student masters a technique when he has gone beyond the stage of simply reproducing a movement shown by his master. When the student has adopted this technique, has adapted it to his arm length, physical strength and other abilities, so he knows how to use it."

After choosing a spear on a display, Luo Hao weighted it before turning to the redhead

"Your mistake, Shirou Emiya is blindly copying the fighting style of Cù Chulainn. You should think of the memory of the Irish Child of Light as a teacher who teaches you how to handle the Red Spear, rather than letting yourself be overwhelmed by his experience and 'doing things like' Cù Chulainn."

She threw the spear in her hand to the redhead and took another one in the rack. Instinctively Shiro had used Structural Grasp and... his expression made the Chinese Devil King smile amused. Luo Hao shook her head.

"Indeed, this spear has never been used. It is new. How could you learn how to handle Gae Bolg properly if you don't learn the basics of spear-fighting on your own? First lesson..."

With staggering skill, Luo Hao swirled the spear around her, seeming to dance with the weapon rather than wield it.

Shrirou blinked, suddenly realizing that Luo hao now held the spear in her left hand and... as she had just turned on herself... the spear had returned to her right hand. The hand changes were so quick that he couldn't see them.

"That's how an ambidextrous handle a spear."

Shirou agreed. It is true that he did not like Luo Hao... but he had to admit that the demonstration was convincing. Shirou had limited himself to being a simple imitator of Lancer, without seeking to use the talents he had developed by handling other weapons.

The class had entered its second hour.

Teaching her two students alternately, Luo Hao coached them without hesitation, always seeming to demand more from them.

After spending a long time explaining to him how to use a spear, the Ruler of Martial Art had asked him to Trace Caliburn.

The Chinese Martial Freak only needed a few seconds to understand that Saber was a small woman. This explained Artoria's very aerial fighting style. Smaller than her enemies, she needed to jump to strike high. However, as the Servant of the Sword could not fly, these jumps were simple ballistic trajectories easy to anticipate. And a person attacked in the middle of a jump couldn't change course.

Except that Shirou was rather tall. Artoria's fighting style was obviously not adapted to his size.

Luo Hao then let Shirou train with Erica Blandelli to teach Godou other hand-to-hand combat movements.

The Italian Knight reached out. In front of her palm appeared a scarlet magic circle centered on a rose-shaped motif surrounded by a triangle marked at each corner by a smaller magic circle.

"Cuore di Leone!"

At the call of the knightly woman a steel lion's head emerges from the magic circle. Pushing her arm into the leonine face, Erica pulled a rapier. Swirling like a Danceur Etoile, the teenage girl uses her magic sword to draw a line of red prana. Then she did a fencing salute to Shirou.

The latter could not help smiling.

He had used Structural Grasp on Cuore di Leone and knew she could summon her sword instantly, without all that... 'cinema'.

She must have loved to stage.

Well, if it would please her.

"I'm the bone of my sword

Steel is my body and fire is my blood

I have created over thousand of swords"

Drawn from Unlimited Blade Work Calibur appeared in Shirou's hand, the Sword in the Stone was a reassuring weight, strangely familiar... a bit like holding an old friend's hand.

The invocation of King Arthur's sword of coronation was less impressive than that of Cuore di Leone, but Shirou knew he have the best weapon... by far.

In the battle ahead, only Erica Blandelli's swordsmanship could make the difference.

The young blonde woman took the initiative, jumping forward. She had to use a form of strengthening magic because her speed and strength were far superior to that of a human. Nevertheless... Shirou dodged, blocked, and counterattacked just as quickly. Soon the two adversaries were twirling in all directions running and bouncing, while their swords collided in fantastic discharges of red and golden prana.

The public (Ishtar, Ereshkigal, Hakuno Kishinami and Yuri Mariya) was in awe. It must be said that the two fencers made a demonstration of their talent perfectly breathtaking.

But it was not a battle of equals. Insensibly at first, then more and more quickly Erica was being dominated. She was pushed back and gasped for breath arriving more and more difficultly to keep pace against Emiya's relentless assault

But this did not mean that she was already accepting her defeat. She was a warrior AND a disciple of Hermes.

Throwing her sword in the air, she quickly clasped it in his hands twice.

Instead of falling back Cuore di Leone stopped in the air and... multiplied. Shirou was facing about twenty identical swords all pointed at him.

"Trace One!"

From Unlimited Blade Work about twenty swords appeared around Shirou. Each sword had a different appearance. But the two techniques were strangely similar.

Only when the two groups of swords collided, did the difference between vulgar copies of Cuore di Leone and the Noble Phantasms, the crystallization of heroic legends, become evident.

The replicas of Erika's sword broke into a thousand pieces as the Nobles Phantasms planted all around the Italian knight, encircling her.

Shirou was smiling.

"Such an attack cannot work against me."

But the Italian replied with a confident smile.

"Maybe it's because you don't know the difference between an attack and a feint. I use my head in combat."

Again, she clapped twice in his hands.

And the fragments of twisted metal on the ground gathered and fused in an instant forming a steel cage... enclosing Shirou.

At first surprised, Emiya had a little laugh. This fight began to amuse him.

"I give you a point for originality, Knight Erica Blandelli but..." In his hand, the sword of Artoria was now wrapped in golden fire." Caliburn!"

With a few sword blows, the Faker cut the bars of his prison and came out, always smiling.

"You got another ace up your sleeve?"

"Uh... no... " said Erica suddenly deflating.

As Erica looked at the remains of her sword with an exasperated look, thinking that it would take several hours for Cuore di Leone to be reconstituted, Shirou had joined his female friends. They surrounded the redhead to congratulate him.

The atmosphere was relaxed. Shirou felt happy for the first time since... well since his arrival in this world.

During the fighting and training, he had not thought of Sakura. His mind had worked faster, with less conflict between 'Archer' and 'Shirou'. In fact, even his connection to Unlimited Blade Work had been easier, requiring less prana. It was as if his weapons accepted him more easily today than yesterday.

Absurd...

—or not.

After all, Unlimited Blade Work was a manifestation of Archer's soul... so of his soul... in a way. If he accepted himself better, perhaps it influenced the functioning of his Reality Marble.

He would have to ask Ishtar... when he did not understand something it was always Rin Tohsaka who explained to him what he should have understood. Of course she'd call him at least once or twice 'moron' but her salary to help the Redhead was always making fun of him.

Shirou smiled tenderly... it was his Tohsaka. The one and only... He looked in the direction of Ereshkigal busy talking with Hakuno... uh... is not so unique Rin Tohsaka.

It was at that moment that he noticed a disturbance that did not reflect that moment of peace. Excited voices came from the entrance. Several members of the Committee had just entered, escorting the Tokyo chief branch Sayanomiya Kaoru.

The latter passed them without looking at them, walking straight towards Kusanagi Godou. Arrived at about ten meters, she stopped to greet the Devil Kings.

"King Godou, King Luo Hao, something horrible has happened... in Hungary... the castle of Duke Voban has been razed to the ground. It seems that the First Campione is... dead!"

A few hours earlier, in Hungary.

The whole valley was in flames. Voban Castle had collapsed, shattered by lightning. Nevertheless, the undead army of the Campione and his wolves continued to attack Iskandar.

Straightening up, the Campione used another of his Authorities: Eye of Sodom.

His green eyes with vertical pupils sparkled as he looked for Iskandar.

Normally, this attack turned his opponents into a statue of salt... a very useful power and difficult to counter. Unfortunately for Sasha Dejanstahl Voban, this Authority only worked on the living. Iskandar was a Servant, a kind of Ghost Liner... for a long time he didn't belong to the living world.

This new failure enraged Duke Voban.

He looked at the war wagon moving away into the early morning sky, raining lightning on the hordes of his servants. They fired arrows or used spells against the demigod... but in vain.

All right, this was it. He'd smother his opponent under the number. Appealing to the power stolen from the god Osiris, Duke Voban called even more of his undead slaves.

In heaven, a burst of laughter answered his efforts.

"This is what I call a battle! Alexandros III of Macedonia recognizes you as a worthy rival. And if you have an army, I also have mine, my heroes, those who have sworn loyalty to me and are only waiting for my order to attack."

In his war chariot, Iskandar brandished his sword.

"Ionioi Hetairoi: Army of the King"

A blue, blinding light surrounded the war wagon as a tempestuous wind began to blow.

Blinded Duke Voban closed his eyes for a moment. When he reopened them, he was stunned. He was in a burning desert of sand surrounded by his undead slaves and wolves. As he winked his eyes, dazzled by the sun, he heard a muffled rumor. Metal rattles, voices, and on the other side of the dunes appeared...

An army!

Thousands of men shoulder to shoulder, with large bronze shields and long iron-tipped sarissa, wearing Greek helmets crested with dyed horse hair.

In the sky, the red colossus spread his arms to laugh out loud.

" The king is the one who collects the envy of all his heroes and stands as their guide; therefore, he is not alone - for his will equals that of all his followers combined!"

The clash between Iskandar army (composed of minor heroes) and the undead was immediately in favor of the Greeks. These veterans of dozens of battles were far more dangerous than mere slaves forced to serve in death a tyrant they hated.

Wherever Dejanstahl Voban looked, his slaves were routed or massacred on the spot. Even the presence of spell casters in the ranks of the Devil King's army did not compensate for the enthusiasm of Iskandar's Companions.

As Voban watched the battle turn into a disaster, he resorted to another Authority:

"All the living things in the world are the same: Saints and sinners, villains and heroes, innocent children and even their mothers are the source of my fire."

It was the incantation of Red Punishment, an authority stolen from the Chinese god of fire Zhurong.

In the sky appeared a huge ball of fire falling towards the ground.

In an instant, panic broke the impeccable alignment of the Iskandar's warriors as they watched their death fall on them.

And the fireball exploded as it touched the desert. A burning hurricane spread over the dunes. In a fraction of a second, whole regiments were reduced to slag and molten metal...

Iskandar's Reality Marble collapsed.

Only the speed of Gordius Wheel had allowed Iskandar to survive Voban attack. In the sky of Hungary, he was shaking his head in amazement... except during his fight against Goldie, he had never seen an opponent massacred his army in only one attack. Voban was far more dangerous than he thought. But he felt no fear. On the contrary, his heartbeat was like a war drum giving the order of the charge.

Iskandar laughed.

The First Campione also reappeared, ejected into the real world after the annihilation of Iskandar Reality Marble.

He was exhausted and gasping... yet... he had to resort to his most dangerous authority... an authority that required his own death as a trigger. If he won he could come back to life but could lose some of his strength. Using Otherland's Dragon was really his very last card, an asset that he only revealed if he was cornered.

Duke Voban recited the incantation releasing this authority... ironically, he had won it by defeating Inanna, the Campioneverse's version of the goddess Ishtar.

"Open, gate of underworld. Queen of underworld, the elder sister of mother earth, descending to the territory of the fearsome Ereshkigal, now is the time I surpass death."

The First Campione collapsed, his body asleep lying on the ground as if dead, but his soul had incarnated in the form of a hideous black dragon, titanic and covered with scales as hard as armor plates of a battleship.

The monster was flying straight to Gordius Wheel.

More maneuverable, the king of Macedonia dodged the first attack, but the monster was already returning to him.

Iskandar burst out laughing.

"Light is at the other end of the world — conquer! Via Expugnatio!"

Enveloped in monumental lightning which struck all around him, the war wagon was now heading towards the dragon...

The meeting of the two flying objects generated a powerful blast that made the mountains tremble, causing landslides many kilometers away.

(1) Harmless? Really? Ereshkigal's alignment is Chaotic Evil! This goddess is the archetype of the Yandere character. 99% of the time, she's adorable, sweet, and awkward... but for the remaining 1% ... It's better to be far away from her! In FGO Babylonia, Ritsuka asks her what she thinks of the living people. Her answer can be summed up as "pointless" and "unnecessary"... Ereshkigal feels nothing but indifference to living humans. The Goddess of the Netherworld joined the alliance of the three goddesses, plotted the annihilation of humanity, spread deadly disease in Uruk, and even prepared the opening of a chasm under the city to thrust down the city of king Gilgamesh (and all its living inhabitants) in Kur!

Never forget, Ere is truly endearing... but, if she is upset, the Queen of the Underworld can become ballistic. And for her, the living doesn't matter. Killing without remorse thousands of human beings is absolutely not out of this goddess' character!

Worse, when she feels humiliated (rightly or wrongly) Ereshkigal can be incredibly cruel and ruthless. Consider what she did to Ishtar.

Because the death of the goddess of love and discord undermined the very balance of the world, Ereshkigal agreed (without enthusiasm) to release Ishtar. But she still claimed in exchange the life of Dumezil, god of cattle farmers... and husband of Ishtar. it was both cruel and petty.

... Ereshkigal is REALLY Chaotic Evil.

(2) The academy has segregated physical education for boys and girls. For boys, this is the perfect time to talk about girls... (and vice versa).

(3) I'm not even exaggerating Ishtar's behavior with her father. A Babylonian poem I found while doing my preparatory research gave a fairly similar description of the Mistress of Heaven when she 'borrows' Gugalanna from Anu.

(4) That's the Celtic word behind "lance".

(5) A typical right arm/left arm disparity for spears throwers.