Absolute demonic front of blades

by davido747

After foreseeing the terrible calamity humanity was facing, King Gilgamesh summoned several servants to assist his people in the demonic front. But this time, he ended up summoning a certain nameless hero. Now, the King of Heroes and the King of Fakers will have to put aside their differences to defeat the Gods and save humanity.

7. Chapter 6: Time to fight back!

We meet again, people! Yeah, I know it took me way more time than usual, but what can I say? A combination of work getting hectic, a really bad cold, local festivities, and as a plus, this isn't my only update. By the time you are reading this, the rework of "Date a Density's" second chapter should be out. Also, well, another chapter that ended up way longer than I expected.

Also, the hype for the Lostbelt 7 was impossible to resist, so I ended up reading unofficial translations, and oh boy what a trip. My hype to get this line of my stories into the Lostbelt Arc is quite over the top, so I might do one of my marathons to finish up this one.

Not much to talk about the story and previous chapters now since there weren't many reviews in the last chapter, so I'll leave you with the chapter after an unusually brief AN.

Disclaimer: I don't own any right over Type-Moon or the Fate/Franchise.

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"Nyahahaha! So you lot think you have what it takes to face the jungle aga- NYA!?"

The bizarrely dressed Lancer screamed in panic as a barrage of "arrows", hellish flames, and curses were already coming down on her the moment she made her entrance. But the surprise only lasted an instant as she was already jumping to the side and spinning her peculiar club to deflect as many projectiles as she could.

"You're still not fast enough-"

Once again, the Jaguar warrior found herself under attack. An invisible sword came from the right and a flame-shaped white blade came from the left in complete synchronization. The lack of a gap forced her to evade, jumping above the two attacks with a cat's grace.

Things didn't end there, though. The sound of a bent polearm returning to its original straight shape was the only warning she got before a pair of steel boots were shoved into her face. Jaguar Warrior barely raised the shaft of her club to block the flying kick, the impact flinging her away like a rag doll.

With a movement born more from feral instincts rather than trained technique, she latched her legs onto a tree's thick branch and spun to get her head upwards again. Before ending the motion and landing on the branch, she kicked the trunk of the tree just in time to avoid a lightning thrust aimed at her chest.

The katana missed by mere inches, its blade cutting her weird tiger pajama. And it wasn't the only one. The sound of high heels hitting the trees around her announced the attack of the second Japanese warrior, which she blocked in the nick of time before jumping to another tree.

The Jaguar warrior soared through the sea of trees with more ease than the adapted wildlife, yet both samurai pursued her jumping from tree to tree with their godly footwork.

Clanging sounds soon began to feel the entire rainforest. The two samurai attacked like precise knives without missing the tempo. But even so, the divine pseudo-servant fended off their attacks without problems as she ran around, the feral grin never leaving her face.

"Now this is a lively purrty if I've seen one! It's time for the great Jaguar Man to take this seriously! I don't even know myself anymore-"

Just as she started to accumulate magical energy to release her noble phantasm, her eyes shut wide. She was pretty sure her spatial awareness was top-notch… but when did that purple chain got tied between tries just in front of her?

"NYA-" Her pained scream was muffled by the metallic sound produced when she hit headfirst the tensed chain.

The pajama-clad Lancer spun in the air completely disoriented until she crashed on the ground. Before she could even react, she felt a massive shield bashing her and pinning her to the ground before the rest of the chain was already being wrapped around her and several blades were pointed at her.

"Surrogate Goddess safely reduced, Master!"

"Wow, that was way easier than last time."

"I told you, Sis. Compared to Quetzalcoatl, she had to be a freebie."

The two masters approached the defeated servant nonchalantly with smiles plastered on their faces. They didn't just defeat an enemy that beat them previously, but they did it without wasting energy or resources.

"Well, you didn't just have more power than last time and a solid plan, that bizarre servant no longer had the surprise factor." Romani chimed in the conversation with enthusiasm dripping from his voice. "Now, you should try to pry some information from her. As a surrogate Goddess from the same region, she ought to know something."

"I'm hearing you, y'know!?" Jaguar Warrior still protested and thrashed around despite the… unfavorable situation she was in. "I have four ears! Of course, I would CATch with what are you plotting! And I'm no surrogate Goddess nor do I serve anyone! I'm a proud Nagual God and a rogue servant! I'm only freeloading off of Kuku for meow!"

Her words were met by several sets of blank stares and disbelief.

"A rogue servant!? You!? Are you freaking kidding? I thought you were just Quetzalcoatl's minion!" Alter's reaction was shared by everyone even if they didn't voice it.

"Regardless of that, my feral lady, if you don't want to cooperate…"

"Useless Gods are to be executed." At his signal, Ana let the edge of her anti-immortal scythe to her neck. Just enough to make a small cut that spilled some drops of blood.

"Oh! If we are taking her head then please, allow me, Ana-san! I've never taken one from a Goddess!" And Ushiwakamaru's comment only made it worse. She creeped out even some of her allies.

"WaitWaitWaitWaitWait! You're a rogue servant as well, aren't cha!? Mew must understand what's it like! A once-in-a-lifetime summon with no master! I'm a cat-eared Jaguar Warrior who just dreams of finally getting a proper job!"

"Master, I think this is actually a good opportunity to get more manpower."

EMIYA's intervention got no small number of raised eyebrows, but the tanned Archer ignored them and whispered something to Ritsuka's ear that got him blushing.

"I-I'll give it a try…"

The black-haired boy approached the pseudo-servant after swallowing loudly, and she greeted him with a smirk.

"I don't know why I get a familiar sense from that Archer who looks like an English teacher, but let me get it clear. That is impawssible! I'm a proud jaguar! I will never work under someone! But I will give you a chance! I'll at least listen, so give it a chance."

Ritsuka's face adopted what could just barely be called a gallant face before he spoke in a serious tone.

"Now that I look at you closely, your beastly beauty is really enchanting."

His words seemed to freeze even time itself. The only things moving were the expressions of everyone around.

Mash's jaw seemed to almost touch the ground. His sister and Merlin looked about to bust out laughing. Ushiwakamaru froze in her spot for some reason, confusing Okita even more. Tamamo and Nero threw an empathic look at Mash, while Arturia shot a questioning glance at EMIYA, who just ignored it.

"THAT'S IT! I'm officially on your side, meow! Defeating Quetzalcoatl? You can leave it to your big sis! This tiger will give you all the deets on Kuku, from her bedtime to the moment she wakes up!"

"That worked!?"

"I didn't know Taiga was so desperate…"

"Heh, this time it only took one sentence. I couldn't be prouder of you, Onii-chan…"

Regardless of their varied reactions, Ana reluctantly unwrapped the chains around the servant to let her stand again.

"Then, I'm looking forward to working alongside you, Jaguar Warrior."

The young master reached out for a handshake with a renovated smile, and the Pseudo-servant accepted it, sealing the temporary contract.

"Let's get going then! I'll explain things on the way!"

She started walking without even waiting for the Chaldeans, who hurriedly followed her through the jungle.

The "Anti-Quetzalcoatl force" had been traveling for half a day already. A little less say they took their time to prepare the ambush for Jaguar Warrior, but the point was that they could already see the Sun setting through the dense weeds.

Their plan was to spend the night at Ur and head to Eridu first thing in the morning. Preferably, they would reach Quetzalcoatl's temple before she returned from fighting another 100 of Uruk's soldiers and destroy the symbol of faith to plummet her divinity before engaging in combat.

Having to sacrifice more people to defeat her didn't sit well for the masters and Mash, but it was their best shot. They were simply not equipped to defeat a true God, not without Ishtar and Archer on their side.

And Jaguar Warrior must have guessed their intentions as she was leading them straight at Ur. They ran into some trouble in the form of some of her werejaguar minions trying to rebel because she defected to the enemy side, but she made quick work of them.

The real surprise came when they finally set foot in the city of Ur.

"Wait! Those are the members of the Chaldea embassy, aren't they!?"

"Those are Lady Ushiwakamaru and Lady Souji as well!"

Among the citizens that avoided them like last time, they found a group of soldiers that seemed excited to recognize them.

"You are… soldiers from the Demonic Front?"

"Wait, I think I recognize you… Don't tell me… You are the ones that the foreign Goddess killed?"

All of them nodded fervently at both samurai girls.

"We all thought it was our end, but then we woke up all fine here."

"After that, Quetzalcoatl forced us to train every day!"

That revelation sent everyone for a loop, more so for the ones who saw Quetzalcoatl blowing them away with her wind authority. And for those who don't, there was something that still shrugged them off.

"Quetzalcoatl is building an army with Uruk soldiers? For what?"

"That's just how Kuku is, Ritsuka-kun. She gave them a killer move and then, after moving the corpses here, she used a killer revive." The answer they got from Jaguar Warrior was just as coherent as her entire existence. "I honestly don't get her either. She takes on the ones who are ready to risk their lives but spares the ones who don't want to die. That's why she's taken advantage of by Tezca. As a big sis, I'm worried this policy of hers will cause her to be run over by the other Goddesses."

"So… No one died here?"

"There were no reported casualties back in Uruk, so it seems that's the case… However…"

"They seem to be locked inside Ur…" Ana ended Merlin's sentence in a grim tone.

"That's right! That weird Goddess doesn't let us return to Uruk!"

"Why of course! You can't have your army defecting before even going to battle! Kuku might seem all too cheerful, but she's an experienced King. Don't you know she's super experienced at commanding? Why don't you stay to fight for her?"

"We are soldiers of Uruk! We can't stay away from the city not even for a day! Everyone else is preparing for the end of the world."

"Now now, don't say that. Ur is pretty fun two. The residents look a little down, but that's not important. There are two kinds of people! The ones who can make it and the ones who can't. That doesn't change regardless of the era we're in. But that's why humans have thrived for a long time. If everyone could work THAT hard, it would be really scary. Or at least that's what Kuku said."

"I didn't get 90% of what you are saying, but when you say "Kuku", you mean Kukulkan, right? Quetzalcoatl was the priest-king of the Toltecs, and to the Mayans, he was the conquering king, Kukulkan. He was a God, but at times, he appeared as a human. In other words, that Goddess inherited all that history."

"Quite a busy Goddess, huh?" Tamamo fumed after back-to-back explanations. "But then there is Artemis… Western Gods really are diverse in their character…"

"At least she seems to understand humans, unlike Gorgon. That might not make things easier, but what do you say, Ritsuka? Do you think you can talk things out with her?"

Merlin's question got the blue-eyed pondering about it for a moment. "I… don't know…"

"Well, I can definitely say that won't work. That girl is all laughs just because she's in a good mood, Ritsuka-kun. Quetzalcoatl is a Goddess of war. Her true self is really terrifying. More than the Goddess of the North. If you take out the fun, she'll become a cold, killing machine."

For a moment, Jaguar Warrior's face turned dead serious. "Words alone will never defeat Quetzalcoatl. Listen well, Ritsuka-kun. The only thing that will get through her is an honest head-on battle."

"I see…"

"Well, let's leave the concerns for tomorrow, Master! We came here for a fight anyway, and the soon we deal with this, the soon we will go back and see if Darling triumphed or needs to be rescued by his reliable bride."

"We're on the same wavelength for once, child emperor. I bet everyone's already hungry, so why don't we start unpacking, EMIYA?"

"First thing first. Jaguar Warrior, where can we set up a camp?"

"Follow me then! I have just the right spot!"

The Chaldeans ended up setting up their camp beside the temple of the city. People abandoned it after understanding that the one holding capture was a Goddess and they weren't getting help from their patron deity, and now the jungle had almost devoured it.

The sun was already set when Tamamo and EMIYA finished preparing dinner, and as always, everyone dug in without hesitation.

The conversations started addressing serious issues. Even if they planned to weaken Quetzalcoatl, that didn't mean it was going to be a walk in the park. They needed to carefully plan a formation and strategy if they didn't want to be crushed once again by her Lucha Libre.

Unfortunately, Jaguar Warrior ran who-knows-where after engulfing her portion, so they couldn't ask her for more insight into Quetzalcoatl's skills and powers. Once the Fujimaru admitted that their brains were reaching their overheating points, the conversation shifted to a more relaxed topic.

"Really!? The me summoned by Chaldea is that awesome!?"

"Of course! You and Sasaki Kojiro really carried our way through Orleans and the ludicrous number of wyverns." Ritsuka answered enthusiastically, ignoring the way Ushiwakamaru was leaning her slender body on his. Or perhaps he was already used to it.

"Yeah, we decided to perform an urgent summon ritual before tackling the first Singularity since Mash-chan alone could go so far and we couldn't risk searching for a suitable leyline in the middle of hostile territory."

"With no catalyst and land, I guess the first heroic spirits that were bound to answer our call would be from the legends from our hometown. And, well…"

He shied away, but his sister mercilessly continued the story with a mischievous smile. "I've always been into samurai stuff, the Book of the Five Rings above all else. Miyamoto Musashi and Sasaki Kojiro are often used as characters in modern manga, so I was excited when I managed to summon one! Or at least a heroic spirit close to him… On the other hand, Onii-chan always had his eyes set on another popular legend. The Wandering Tales of Shana-oh."

"Huh? Is that true, Ritsuka-dono!?"

"Yes…" The black-haired master scratched his cheek in embarrassment. He had yet to make this confession to the Ushiwakamaru back at Chaldea. "I was really surprised to know you were actually a girl. Even after fighting against Arturia's alter counterpart, we weren't yet prepared to discover so many heroes with their genders having been mistaken. But aside from that, I was quite excited to work alongside you. Even if you weren't as powerful as Siegfried, we were able to defeat Saint Martha and her Tarasque with our teamwork."

Now he could see stars in her eyes. "Ah… To think that my deeds managed to reach a couple of siblings so far in the future… Hehehe… Now I'm really pumped up! Even if I'm still Gilgamesh's servant, I'll definitely give my all fighting alongside you, Ritsuka-dono! And could you tell me more about our adventures in Orleans?"

"I'm interested, too." Okita took the opportunity to cut into the conversation. "I wanted to ask, did you summon me to Chaldea? Or is it that you aren't interested in the Shinsengumi!?"

"No! I mean, being so close to the present, we have plenty of knowledge about that time in Japan. But we weren't able to summon you."

"We did meet you in a minute Singularity, but… it was quite the ride." The Shielder Demi-servant spoke with a face that had the word "trauma" written all over it.

"You're putting it mildly, Mash-chan! That was the closest thing we experienced to an LSD trip! We met you alongside Oda Nobunaga of all people, who was also a woman, and we had to fight another Nobunaga with an army of weird things called "Mini-Nobu" and brainwashed servants by some weird GUDAGUDA particle!"

"Wow! I think I'm better off having no recollection of that. But for some reason, I can feel my Spirit Origin is somewhat familiar with fighting Oda Nobunaga for some reason… A-at any rate. If I remember correctly, you also knew Archer before arriving at him. When did you meet him?"

"Oh, that was the second Singularity, Septem. Right after Orleans. We met Archer and her Imperial Highness Nero, both of them still alive."

"In fact, the team of servants we formed to solve it was pretty much the same one we brought for this one. We're only missing Kiyohime-chan and Atalanta-chan."

"But I think we shouldn't skip parts. Where were we…"

The three teenagers continued their storytelling session, much to the dismay of a certain Dragon Witch.

"Why do they have to always remind a lady of her past misdeeds…"

"Don't be so down, my lady. Retelling past hardships and battles isn't just a way to pass the time and keep the morale high, but also a more fun way to come up with strategies. It is by recording history and learning from previous mistakes that civilization advances, don't you think?"

Merlin's words only gained a groan from Jalter, but he didn't miss a beat as his gaze drifted to the little girl accompanying her in the corner.

"And what about you, Ana? Why won't you join them? I can assure you, they are interesting stories even for someone like me."

"I'm not fond of heroic epics, thank you. Besides, you already witnessed them from your tower. Why would you find it interesting to hear them again?"

"As you said, I watched events unfold from an outsider's perspective. Hearing those stories from personal standpoints elevates it even further. And it is precisely because this is the furthest thing from a heroic legend that it is interesting. It's just a story of two ordinary humans struggling to keep on living."

Ana had to concede his point. Put it like that, their story didn't seem that far from that of any other regular human. And that actually got her to divide her attention between her bag of sweets and the conversation.

Meanwhile, another conversation was being held by two long-time? rivals.

"Hey, child emperor, what's gotten into you since you returned from the mountain? You aren't even trying to hog all the limelight now that they are about to talk about your Singularity."

Tamamo's crude words did little to sway away the smile on the empress's face. In fact, that smile slowly turned mischievous.

"Hehehe! Do you want to know, burglar fox? Do you really want to hear about my and Darling's second Honeymoon?"

"Heh, as if you had the chance with master and the lecherous mage around." Despite denying it, the kitsune's eyebrows were narrowed. "What did actually happen?"

"Well, we weren't able to get intimate since there were minors around, and there was also that annoying Eastern swordsman. But we slept in each other's arms and finally talked things out."

"What do you mean by that? I can't imagine something aside from you getting dumped again by Goshujin-sama. Your progress through that dense, brick wall is negligible compared to mine~"

"Really? Did he also promise you to answer your feelings once the Human Order Incineration is resolved?" That question with an innocent smile caused Tamamo's face to twist in utter astonishment.

"Hoh? I guess not. But don't worry. As my husband, it is only befitting that he has a harem! I'll allow you to become a concubine."

"Th-that's some big talk for someone who just received a weak excuse to stall time! Just you see! He'll be answering my feelings before we solve this Singularity!"

"If you knew him as well as I do, you would know that he never makes promises he can't keep. In that regard, you're quite behind, isn't that right, Jeanne?"

"Bwah!" The Saint that had been eavesdropping on the conversation blurted in surprise when Nero casually addressed her. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"C'mon, Jeanne, don't be so shy. From your point of view, you are the one who met Darling first, aren't you? It left such an impression on you that those memories actually influenced the you in the Throne of Heroes."

"Well, yes…" The Saint of Orleans fidgeted with her fingers as she answered the empress. "But… He never got to answer my feelings during the war since not even I was aware of them… On the other hand… you are proof that he was finally able to find happiness. I just… don't think intervening with that would be correct…"

"Hehehe… A rival that is just as fervent as me, and now one that is struggling to not lose the will to fight…. I guess this is the cultural difference. I won't stop you if that is your final decision, and Darling won't push it either. But there is nothing stopping you from getting a share of that happiness. Well, at least for now…"

For the first time, the Bride Saber broke character and let out a longing sigh. It lasted but a single moment.

"Darling has a duty to accomplish in the grand scheme of things. I already figured as much, but his words just confirmed. That's why he doesn't feel like this iteration of him should be the one to answer our feelings."

"Don't lie. You were the one shouting 'Darling will show up in the next Singularity!' for the past four ones, so there is no way you knew that beforehand." Tamamo's words broke the solemn atmosphere like knives piercing Nero's chest. "And the chances of whatever you deduced making zero sense are really high, but I'm willing to hear it."

"You'll have to figure it out on your own, burglar fox. It is obvious that there is something preventing him from answering Chaldea's summon, so then, why was Gilgamesh able to summon him, and in the Archer class for that matter? Darling is good with a bow, but regardless of the timeline, he will always be remembered for wielding a sword. Of course, that wouldn't be that weird in a regular Holy Grail War where the number of vessels is restricted, but in this one there is no such impediment."

Tamamo blinked like an owl as she processed the information… or at least she tried. Nero purposefully served pieces that connected would lead to an obvious answer… but no matter how the kitsune was wracking her brain, she couldn't arrive at that conclusion.

"Oh, I see… So it's come to that…" And to make things worse, Jeanne beside her nodded in understanding, her face turning dead serious. In other words, Tamamo was getting behind again!

"Wait! I don't get it at all! Stop acting like an erudite and spill it, child emperor!"

"That won't do at all, burglar fox! This isn't just a matter of kipping a secret trump card! If you want to be a remotely good wife, you should at least figure that much!"

"Kuh…" She clenched her teeth with impotence, but before she could say anything, the others started wrapping things up for the night.

With a hard battle on the horizon, they needed every bit of rest available to them. Servants, at least the ones that weren't incarnated, didn't need to sleep, but even so, Tamamo wouldn't have been able with those words plaguing her mind.

---

Next morning…

"Well… shit…"

Those were the words that escaped Ai's mouth the moment they finally walked out of the jungle and Erido entered their sigh. There, standing proudly on top of the city's ziggurat, was a girl that everyone recognized as Quetzalcoatl, even then ones that didn't meet her previously.

"Well, I guess it can't be helped. Perhaps hoping for a bunch of amateurs to cross the jungle so fast was wishful thinking."

Merlin's brutally honest words hurt, but they were true. Their plan went down the drain before they could even set it in motion.

"You can always wait there the rest of the day and wait for the next opportunity. The decision is up to you, Ritsuka, Ai."

"Well… we can't just let her "sacrifice" more and more soldiers or no one will be left to defend Uruk…"

"And without knowing how things went on Archer and Ishtar's end and Gorgon's threat around the corner, we can't waste time…"

"I think the same." Mash took the side of the two masters. "Even if we decided to assume the risk and wait, Quetzalcoatl will most likely return the moment she senses us approaching her temple."

"You heard the youngsters, Romani. How are things on your end? Have you figured out Eridu's layout?"

"I'm already on it, Merlin. Let's see… I assume the large building beyond the residential area is Quetzalcoatl's temple. Its structure is similar to a ziggurat but simpler. If Mash carries Ritsuka and Arturia carries Mash, you'll get there in 10 minutes if you head straight for it. But given Quetzalcoatl's position, there is no way to avoid fighting her."

"And what the problem with that?" Jaguar Warrior asked casually with her ever-present goofy smile. "With all the servants we have gathered here, we should at least buy enough time for Ritsuka to run up to the top of the temple and destroy the Piedra del Sol. In fact, here you go."

The poor blue-eyed teenager could only blink owlishly when a replica of her weird pawn-shaped club was shoved into his hands.

"This is…"

"It's a spare of my deadly weapon, also known as the "Fearsome Club." I saw this happening, so I spent last night crafting it. One hit with it will reduce even the Piedra del Sol to dust! That should reduce Kuku's Divinity a few notches."

"W-wow… you really are a capable woman…" His honest praise got her again in her little world.

"I assume what she means by "Piedra del Sol" is the symbol of her divinity and that yellow, shining stone embedded at the top of the monolith." EMIYA commented as he scanned their destination with his hawk-like eyes.

However, those steel-grey eyes suddenly squinted, and he clicked his tongue. "I tried to not look at her directly, but she managed to notice us and is waving at us."

"I guess our plan ended up the same as always. Just hit her with everything head-on." Arturia said while lifting Ai. This was going to be their second real battle against a Goddess, and she was eager to make amends for not killing Gordon with that single strike of her Holy Sword.

"That's our general way of doing things in the Demonic Front, so we're better with this approach." Okita seconded her.

"As much as it pains me, I'll sanction this operation. Since Da Vinci is still shouting around about how reckless this is, leave the back up to me."

At their signal, the group broke into a mad dash toward the city. It was mostly abandoned, only inhabited by Uruk soldiers and people from Ur that were "sacrificed", but they ignored them and pushed forward.

What they couldn't just ignore was the literal wall of winged serpents that guarded the stairs leading to the base of the temple. Divine beast that shared the name of their master with a limited domain over her authorities.

There was no time to defeat all of them. The sun would set before they could advance, provided that Quetzalcoatl didn't just spawn more. So they opted for just brute-forcing their way through them.

Their battle roars overshadowed all other sounds as their spear formation pierced through the literal wall of flash and scales. And that was most likely the cause they found Quetzalcoatl's smile wider when they finally reached their destination.

"Hola! Welcome to my Sun Temple!" The cheerful greeting of the Goddess didn't take long.

However, their gazes were stolen for a moment by the massive axe resting beside said temple. Marduk's Axe was definitely way bigger than what they expected now that they were close. It was, after all, a divine construct once wielded by an ancient God against Tiamat.

But Quetzalcoatl's steps as she descended from the temple immediately, and the rattling of her club being dragged through the stairs got everyone with their guard up. The fierce battle was just at hand.

"I love the way you charged straight here without wasting time, yes! But of course, that's how you guys do things, just like I hoped after attacking Uruk. It was worth believing in Ritsuka and waiting, yes!"

"Wow…" Ai nudged her brother gently. "That Goddess really is infatuated with you, Onii-chan… What did you do?"

"I don't know. I don't understand how she thinks-"

"I'm really glad you didn't waste time outside Eridu!" Her smile suddenly became really disturbing, letting her fangs be seen by everyone. Not just that. She started to release a really intense and menacing aura. "If you did something pitiful like that, I would've had to abandon my policy and just kill you all."

The three teenagers couldn't help but feel chills running down their spines. Had they chosen the more pragmatic option, they would have been wiped out.

"The readings I'm getting from her are way superior to last time, master." Mash gritted her teeth, her hands squeezing the handle of her round shield. "But we need to fight if we want him to reach the altar."

"Ay no, silly of me! I'm being childish!" And just like that, all her enmity vanished in an instant, going back to her enthusiastic persona. Her intense glare remained though, focused on a single servant standing alongside them. "I almost lose my cool after seeing a certain dummy who has no business here."

Jaguar Warrior's hair stood on end after she finally realized she was the one in the Goddess's scope. "Oh crap. If the fight starts, she'll kill me first. I just had a premonition and I'm sure of it!"

"Sí! No mercy for you, amiga! I'm going to reap the flesh from your bones!" The way she said that with the biggest of smiles just made it even more disturbing.

The constant back-and-forth of the emotions Quetzalcoatl let out was utterly confusing for everyone, even the ones who already experienced it.

"All right, with that said…" Her green eyes finally left the Naual God and asserted the group. "I see some faces I'm unfamiliar with. With all these new servants, I guess you really have come to defeat me by whatever means take. But who might be that other human girl? Judging by her Command Seals, she must be another master."

"Oh, h-hi there. I'm Fujimura Ai, Ritsuka's little sister!" The girl in question introduced herself as usual, repressing the trembling of her voice as best as she could.

"Oh, Ritsuka's sister? Then I know you will also be a dear~ Now, I respect your courage and decisiveness! I shall never back down from any fight or challenge! That's what I love! Humans are so fun to mess with! You can let them live! You can threaten them, or you can protect them! I don't have any memories from the Cretaceous period, my first generation, but the seeds of information that are generations old tell me this!"

By this point, the Goddess had finally reached the end of the stairs, her eyes finally meeting them on equal ground. And then, she proceeded to throw aside her club and stretch her arms.

"I love humans! I want to coexist with you! Humans give meaning to our lives!"

Her words were followed by an awkward silence that lasted almost a minute until Ritsuka finally broke it.

"That… That doesn't make any sense at all! If you really love humans and they give you purpose to you, then why did you join the Three Goddess Alliance to destroy them!?"

His strong retort got the Mesoamerican Goddess blushing again. "Hehehe, here we go again. I feel funny things in my stomach… But it makes perfect sense. This is normal in human society, right? Purpose isn't just some hobby. It's what you have to do to live, to be you. Yes! I'm a deity who can't exist without messing with humans. And I don't mean just the body of my human vessel. For humanity to survive long, I need to help some of them, and get rid of others, so they can adapt to their environment. This cycle is what my life is about."

"Well, Mesoamerican and South American cultures always revolved around cycles of destruction and rebirthing, but still…"

"I joined the Three Goddess Alliance so I can play with humans more!" As if to respond to Romani or as if to ignore him, the Goddess gave her conclusion. "As long as I'm here, humanity won't go extinct. But of course, they won't be safe or at peace. But smile! I will guarantee you freedom! The freedom to run from the threat of yours truly! I will so enjoy watching you squirm! Like a naughty girl with ants and magnifying glasses!"

"Oh for… This conversation is a waste of time." Ana couldn't resist the urge to speak her mind. "Gods and their love back in my homeland were messed up in their own ways, but she really is on another level…"

"Oh my…" Those words inexplicably caused the blonde Goddess to blush so hard she looked like she would faint at any time. "You figured out why I'm so in love with Ritsuka, yes?"

"Again… When did that happen?" Just as the boy in question was starting to give her a blank stare, he felt a hand rest on his shoulder. Its owner, a certain Magus of Flowers, gave him a pitiful look.

"It's like a traffic accident. Normally, I can ignore a girl's personality if they are beautiful, but in this situation, I can't help but feel sorry for you."

"And that's why you ended up trapped in Avalon…"

"Normally, I would support anyone who pursues love, but even I, the Bride Saber and incarnation of Venus, can't get what she's getting at."

"For once, we are on the same page, child emperor…"

"Heh, if two bad-shit crazy gals like you can't figure her out, then there's really no hope."

"Can we get down to business!?" Ushiwakamaru's dead serious voice broke the recently formed goofy atmosphere, her beautiful face stained by a frown and her hand eager to unsheathe her katana. "Our time with Fuuma Kotarou-dono and Amakusa Shirou-dono was short, but they were precious comrades. Bringing your head back to Uruk is the least we can do to pay you back."

"Oho? Well, well, your objective is to destroy my Piedra del Sol, right? I'll give Ritsuka a chance, for as long as you can hold me off. You can think of it as a game. But first, I have a request." Her eyes drifted from the samurai to the black-haired boy once again as she lifted one finger. "Ritsuka, no matter how this fight goes, don't forget to feel joy, yes? I fight because it's fun, and that also applies to humans! If you don't have hatred in your heart, you won't kill your opponent. That's what makes Lucha Libre so great! It is the best way to understand each other, don't you think?"

"Celebrate not with the joyous one…"

Her nonsensical speech caused those cryptical words to cross Ritsuka's head. Of all the three descriptions, that one definitely fits this Goddess to a T… and led to a hard decision.

At face value, playing along with her desires could make things easier for them… but it didn't feel right. He couldn't bring himself to treat this fight as if it were all laughs and jokes. Not when the future of mankind depended on it, and not after all those past battles where his life always hung by a thread.

With his instincts and Archer's words aligning perfectly, his answer was obvious.

"No, I don't think I'll ever understand you, Quetzalcoatl."

"Huh?" His blunt answer must have been really shocking for the Goddess as her entire body froze for a moment. "I… I didn't expect you to reject my very being… You don't enjoy fighting… Fine! I'll ask you this instead! Fujimaru Ritsuka, what is fighting for you!"

"Isn't it obvious? It's something to give your all, so you can relax later!"

His answer full of conviction caused similar reactions from everyone. It was mundane compared to the heroic figures that filled Chaldea's ranks, but it was to be expected from a regular boy, nor did it undermine his determination. It was an inspiration to the two regular girls beside him.

"Pfft!" While Mashu was smiling, Ai was fighting the urge to not laugh. "That's just like you, Onii-chan. But I would be lying if I said I don't feel the same. Yeah, we just fight because there's no one else to do it in our place."

"I see… so that's the kind of people you two are. A wonderful answer. So wonderful I can't resist the urge to crush you." With those words, the Mesoamerican Goddess crouched in preparation. "Fine! Then give this fight with me your all!"

With that Quetzalcoatl jumped high, readying for a powerful plancha attack aiming at the core of their formation.

"Disperse!"

Everyone dodged to different sides, with both masters getting carried in separate ways.

"Master, we are counting on you!"

"Yes, leave it to me!"

Ritsuka didn't waste a second and started to run as fast as he could towards the temple with the "deadly claw" at hand while Mash hurried back to regroup and protect his sister.

This would be the test for his cardio after walking through all of the USA and Europe. All his travels across the 6 main singularities and all those minute singularities, each crazier than the previous one.

He didn't even make it to the first step when the sounds of battle reached his ears.

"SEI!" Ushiwakamaru's trusted katana cut through the smoke, aiming at the Goddess's neck, but she swiftly evaded it by ducking.

There was no time to rest. A flash of the unmistakable color pattern of the Shinsengumi's haori was the only warning Quetzalcoatl had before another katana was thrust right at her eye.

CLANG!

However, it was batted away by her bracelet, and followed by an upward kick that was evaded by the skin of her teeth. Okita immediately retreated with her flash step technique and tagged in Ushiwakamaru again, who attacked from another angle.

Aware that they couldn't afford to engage in close combat with her for more than a few seconds, the two Japanese warriors used their incredible speed for a classical hit-and-run tactic.

"Nice combination! Big sis here is starting to get fired up!" But it didn't work for long against the cheerful Goddess.

"Wha-" Okita's eyebrows hid behind her bangs when her katana was suddenly caught between Quetzalcoatl's elbow and knee, effectively pinning her.

"I won't let you- Gah!" Ushiwakamaru immediately rushed in for her help, but in doing so, a sudden pain assailed the back of her head and a beeping sound filled her ears.

The club that had been discarded some minutes ago returned to its master's free hand to deal the finishing blow to the Sakura Saber, and the head of the Tenguu Rider happened to be on its way.

Okita's heart raced as she saw the club descending at blinding speeds, but it was stopped at the same speed by a purple chain that wrapped itself around Quetzalcoatl's arm. Ana's tiny arms bulged, needing every ounce of her strength, even augmented by her "Monstrous Strength" skill, to restrain the Goddess for some seconds.

The sounds of blades piercing through the air bought her more seconds. Quetzalcoatl saw the twisted "arrows" coming for her exposed chest and had to react quickly. She jumped with her free leg in a spinning motion and let go of Okita's blade to use her other leg for a roundhouse kick.

It didn't hit anything, but just the sheer wind pressure it released blew away the incoming projectiles and Okita like nothing. Using the same motion, she pulled the chain, hurling poor Ana towards her while she pulled back her other fist.

"Mash!"

"Yes!"

Fortunately for her, Ai activated one of her mystic code's functions, which switched the Lancer's position with the Shielder's.

A deafening, metallic sound was heard across the entire place when the punch landed, and the shockwave ripped away chunks of the ground as Mash flew away in the opposite direction.

"Ole!" And to their horror, Quetzalcoatl used the recoil to hurl herself right at Ai and Ana in a splendid flying quick.

CLANG!

A single drop of sweat slid down Ai's forehead when a Holy Banner blocked the meteor kick in the nick of time. The Saint of Orleans greeted her teeth as the immense strength traveled through her arms in a rather painful way, but she held strong.

Acknowledging her opponent's tenacity, Quetzalcoatl went for a grapple instead of prolonging the contest of strength, but Jeanne quickly spun her polearm to block the Goddess's attempt. That resulted in a tiger knee aiming at her chest but help came just in time.

"O' wind, twirl away!"

Those words, coupled with the violent gust of winds she felt led the Goddess to assume that the incoming attack could be nullified with her authority… "Huh!?" But to her surprise, the Holy Sword in all of its splendor was descending on her.

She had to block the attack with her club, and for the first time, it was she who was thrown away after an exchange of blows.

"Wow! The Sword of the Planet! Now we're talking!" Now she sounded even more excited, her body moving on her own to block a white, flaming blade with a spinning kick.

"Kuh!" The Bride Saber grunted when her Aestus Estus was forced away, but a pair of black and white swords and a freezing blizzard covered her opening, forcing the Goddess to stay on the defensive.

All the Chaldean servants attacked her in tandem. In normal circumstances, such a numeric advantage would be enough to overwhelm even the fiercest of fighters, even more so when all those opponents were heroic figures that have seen countless battles. But the Goddess waved through them like the very wind.

Her attack and defense were one and the same. The maximum expression of the saying "the best defense is a good attack". And there were two defining factors for her to be able to pull it off.

When Jaguar Warrior said that Quetzalcoatl was a Goddess that represented "good", they didn't think that it would literally influence their damage output. It became clear after some minutes of fighting that she could shrug off attacks from the majority of their servants, and given who were the few exceptions, it became obvious.

The only servants that could cause her any significant damage were the ones that had an "evil" alignment. And unfortunately, Arturia, the only one who could match the Goddess's charge without getting blown away for more than a few seconds, had a good alignment.

Tamamo in theory was a good candidate for their main damage dealer, but in the practice… it didn't work that well. Quetzalcoatl's capability to cross distances in heartbeats made it impossible for them to protect her, and it was no secret that Tamamo's best affinity was with her fire curses. After all, she was a divided spirit of Amaterasu, Japan's Sun Goddess.

It came down to the output of their divinity, and the difference was like the distance from Earth to the Moon.

Their other candidate, the Dragon Witch, had a similar problem. Her flames of vengeance did better than Tamamo's, but it was still unable to make the difference… Perhaps with her noble phantasm- Wait…

"Where's Alter- huh?"

Just as the master in command was looking for her only striker, a… meteor? suddenly came crashing down on Quetzalcoatl. Even the Goddess couldn't remain unfazed at that and immediately swung her club at it with all her might.

However, instead of the sound of rock getting smashed, what reached their ears was flesh being torn apart and a pained scritch.

"Ara? A Quetzalcoatlus?" Just as the Goddess said, that had been one of her divine winged serpents. Not only did it attack its master, but she could feel those flames weren't part of her authority. And what was that black stake embedded in its back…

"Have at you, bitch! I'm borrowing your little lizards here!" A cocky voice came from above, which announced an unbelievable sight.

The Dragon Witch was riding atop another of her divine beasts and forcing others to rush at her enveloped in hellish flames. They weren't dragons per se, but they were close enough for her skill to command them to work to some extent.

"This is surprise after surprise, yes! Let's have a little rodeo then!" The Mesoamerican Goddess immediately counter-attacked, jumping over the falling "meteors" and using them as springboards to reach the Avenger servant.

"A plancha from that high is going to hurt like hell! EMIYA, bring out the heavy guns!"

Following his master's command, the red Archer projected a familiar pitch-black sword and quickly fired it.

"Hrunting!" The demonic bulled crossed the short distance in the blink of an eye, leaving no choice to the Goddess but to block it with her divine shield.

She came out unscathed, but the impact tore away the serpent she had been standing on. The detour didn't last long though, as she exerted her command on another of her familiars to land on it before touching the ground and getting surrounded again.

"I got you, Kuku!" However, before she could resume her charge, a wild jaguar jumped on her, her "deadly claw" descending to crush her.

Unfortunately, the scream alerted the Goddess, allowing her to sidestep the swing without problems. Jaguar Warrior tried to keep on the offensive, but she found her "lance" being grabbed by Quetzalcoatl's hands.

"Guh!" The next thing she knew, a jab connected right below her chin, just before a roundhouse kick sent her flying up to the sky.

With a powerful jump, Quetzalcoatl caught up to the Naual Goddess and grabbed her with her legs.

"Ah… I'm dead."

Jeanne Alter widened her yellow eyes when she suddenly found herself on the receiving end of another meteorite strike, this time in the form of a certain Jaguar Warrior.

She didn't waste a second to jump to another of the serpents, letting the poor Goddess hit the floor face first. But there was no time to rest, as Quetzalcoatl was coming at her riding another serpent.

"HAAAAAAAHHH!" With a determined battle cry, the Dragon Witch met her charge head-on, jumping towards her just before their mounts clashed.

A valiant effort, but she failed to stab the Goddess and instead got brutally tackled. However, in the face of a hell of pain at best, a twisted smile spread across Alter's face.

"Now we definitely got'ya! La Grondement Du Haine!"

With her noble phantasm released, her flames of vengeance burst from her body in a massive explosion that finally managed to damage the Goddess and force her away.

"Lil' sis!" Jeanne's worried cry prevented Alter from losing consciousness, and a pair of gentle arms caught her before hitting the floor. "Don't do anything that risky again!"

"What are you talking about, idiot!? We didn't come here for a picnic!"

On the other side of the spectrum, Quetzalcoatl once again turned an attack toward her into one of her own. This time though, her target was-

"Waitwaitwait-"

"There's no place for useless reserve players!"

The Mage of Flowers that had been just sitting aside and watching things unfold received the full brunt of a magnificent aerial attack.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" His cry of pain filled the place, accompanied by the sounds of bones cracking under the immense strength.

"Oh no! We have to help Merlin-" Mash was about to rush to their aid, but a hand resting on her shoulder stopped her. She was met by Arturia's serious, emerald eyes.

"Merlin is there valiantly buying us time. We should let him do his thing."

It certainly didn't look that way judging by how he was now receiving a quite painful armlock, but everyone agreed with her. He got it coming for slacking while everyone else was getting the crap wrestled out of them.

Ai's golden eyes looked at the monolith, and to her dismay, her Onii-chan was still one-fourth away from reaching it. At that rate, even if they actually endured until he reached the top and weakened Quetzalcoatl, they might not have enough gas for the final sprint.

"Haaah…" A loud sigh caught everyone's attention, their eyes drifting to a certain empress of roses who had stabbed her sword on the ground. "I guess it's finally time for me to use one of my trump cards. The absolutely lethal techniques I've been reserving for that Solomon fiend."

"Huh? What kind of trump card do you have aside from the Nuptia Domus Aurea, Her Imperial Majesty Nero-chan?"

"You better don't be bluffing, child emperor! Only something on the level of my Polygamy Castration Fist will do!"

"You've been withholding trump cards all this time, Nero-san!? But why didn't you use them back in America to defeat Cu Chulainn Alter and Arjuna!?"

"Hehehe…" She let out a satisfied chuckle after succeeding at creating an atmosphere filled with hype. "What would be the fun in ending that Singularity so prematurely without confirming if Darling wasn't around or reuniting Rama with Sita?"

Ai couldn't resist the urge to shoot a blank stare. There was no way she had something so convenient up her slip. She would have definitely used it rather than getting everyone whipped out aside from Ai and Robin Hood'.

But she got the underlying message. If anything, she needed the backup of a command spell. They couldn't just throw them around, even if Jeanne could help them replenish them without a ritual on a leyline, but this situation definitely called for it.

"Oho?" Her flamboyant declarations got Quetzalcoatl's attention, finally letting go of the beaten-up Merlin. "What's this splendid technique I'm hearing about? Tell me it's a Lucha Libre technique?"

"No, but quite close." To their surprise, the empress took a boxing stance as easily as breathing. "Foreign Goddess obsessed with your Lucha Libre! Here, I, Nero Claudius, will show you the might of the Mediterranean region that gave birth to boxing and Greco-Roman wrestling!"

"Oh! Why didn't you say earlier you were a fellow luchadora!? Let's have fun then!"

She wasn't. At least not before she used her imperial privilege to borrow those skills. However, she wasn't bluffing about having an ultimate technique up her sleeve. She wanted Darling to witness it, but now she would use it so she can go save him faster.

"Master!"

"Yes! Nero-chan, by my command seal, I order you to wrestle against Quetzalcoatl!"

The boost of magical energy arrived in time for the Bride Saber to block a flying kick aimed at her head. Her slender arms trembled, but she toughed it out and threw a fist towards the Goddess.

"Guh!" To her surprise, Quetzalcoatl let it land and threw a haymaker in exchange. Their arms passed one above the other in a cliché scene with both fists connecting on each other's cheek.

Nero spat out the blood in her mouth and took her stance again. If that was her game, then she needn't prepare the scenery.

"This is the technique passed down to me and uncle Caligula by the Holy Progenitor, who in turn received it from our patron God, Mars! He who witnessed the great feats of our ancestor, the mighty Hercules!"

Her fists were pumped with so much magical energy that they started to emit light through her gloves, and her pink lips parted to reveal the true name of the noble phantasm.

"Behold, my Nine Lives: Roma!"

Her battle roar was followed by several gasps. It truly was an unbelievable technique. Her fists flew through the air at incredible speeds in a ruthless barrage. Like spears of light that pierced the heavens, any kind of enemy in front of her would be vaporized in an instant.

"Oh, yes! This is what I was waiting for!"

But the Goddess didn't fall behind and answered in kind. Punch for punch, she matched all of Nero's attacks with her own deadly barrage.

A cacophony of thunderous impacts filled the place, and chunks of concrete were blown away by the sheer intensity of their clash.

"WOW!" Now they could literally see stars in Ai's eyes. "Thank God for being born and letting me witness a JoJo-style clash of rush attacks! Nero-chan, you have to yell "Useless!" with each punch!"

"Master, this isn't the time for your weird fantasies! Nero is quickly losing ground!"

If Tamamo of all people sounded worried and didn't call her by a nickname, then things really were going south.

Ai couldn't see her face, but the gushes of blood flying through the air were enough to tell that some of Quetzalcoatl's punches were managing to slip through Nero's and hit her like a truck. Her cheat skills were keeping her from falling apart, healing her wounds, and circulating her energy overclock, but she wouldn't last long at that pace.

"Hold in there, Nero-chan!" Ai activated another spell from her mystic code to send yet another boost of magical energy toward the empress.

And she wasn't the only one. The walking corpse that was now Merlin pointed at her with his wand to cast his "Hero Creation" skill.

"UOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHH!"

With renewed vigor, the intensity and speed of Nero's punches increased by several magnitudes. Not only was she managing to avoid more of Quetzalcoatl's punches, but…

"Oh?" A lone gloved fist pierced through the Goddess's attacks and finally found its way to her cheek with enough strength to give her pause. She felt a trail of blood sliding from the corner of her mouth.

One thing was receiving damage from a noble phantasm, but actually receiving damage from a punch from those slender arms in straightforward attacks without care for defense? A feral smile made its way to her pink lips. Now she really was fired up.

And that was the sight that Fujimaru Ritsuka witnessed from atop the temple. The sight of a Goddess that could have demolished Nero if she got serious but was now instead enjoying trading punches with her on equal ground.

"Ritsuka, what are you hesitating for!? Destroy de Sun Stone before Nero is overwhelmed!"

Romani hurried him through his communication device, and his blue eyes drifted from the fight between the empress and the Goddess to the club in his hand. It would be easy to smash the Sun Stone now, and from a pragmatic point of view, it was the correct choice.

However… it felt wrong. Up until now, Quetzalcoatl has been going easy on them. Defeating her in such a cowardly way would leave a really bad taste.

It was an irrational thought. They were fighting to protect their future as regular humans. That kind of thought shouldn't have a place on this battlefield. But something told him that betraying the Goddess's goodness would end up horribly.

Just as Jaguar Man said, there was only one way to defeat her…

"Huh?" Romani let out a surprised voice when the sound of the club hitting the floor reached Chaldea in the distant future. He didn't have visuals, but at that moment, although Ritsuka was biting his lip, his eyes were completely determined.

"Dr. Roman, I'm sorry, but I don't think this is right."

"Hmph. So you figured out that what Kuku wants to see isn't a servant victor but a display of human resolve, huh?"

"…!" A sudden voice at his side startled the master. "Jaguar Warrior!? When did you get here?" The image of the minor Goddess with a massive, bleeding bump on her head definitely wasn't within his expectations.

"I sensed your resolve and came here with a jump, of course! Now, what is your plan? You don't have that much time before Kuku gets bored of the emperor girl. Will you smack her with my "Deadly Claw" after all?"

"No… I think I'll use courage, and of course, height."

"Huh!? What do you… Don't tell me you're planning to use a wrestling move on that Goddess!? Wait, don't start laughing out of nowhere, Da Vinci!"

"I mean, I can't think of a better way to show Quetzalcoatl humanity's resolve." His grin was betraying his reservations.

And the Lancer servant mirrored that grin. "Nice idea, baby! That's my future high-income taxpayer! I like your bravery. Your only hope as a complete amateur then is a plancha."

"A plancha from that high!? Are you two nuts!? Quetzalcoatl only has to sidestep and you're dead, Ritsuka!"

"What the heck are you talking about, dummy!? When it comes to a plancha, the higher the better! C'mon, Ritsuka! I'll get you there!"

"O-ok! I'll be in your care."

"Wait-"

Ignoring Chaldea's acting director completely, Jaguar Warrior picked Ritsuka up and jumped as high as she could after pumping he legs with magical energy to the brim. A vertigo feeling immediately invaded the master as the landscape below him became tinier.

"There, I think this is as much as you can go without starting to feel dizzy! Leave the aim to me and just focus on your posture! You have to slam your belly bottom into her collarbone!"

The master swallowed his doubts loudly. There was no backing down. "G-got it! Let's do this then!"

"Alright, off you go! Good luck!"

And with a bestial roar, the Jaguar divinity threw the master right at Quetzalcoatl from the sky.

---

"This is it! MAYA PUNCH!"

"Gah!"

The Goddess's fist impacted Nero's chin one last time, causing her to fly backward in a clean arc. The moment her back hit the ground she was already unconscious.

Meanwhile, Quetzalcoatl cleaned the blood off her face. She didn't look tired at all, her eyes immediately drifting to the other servants, who had more than enough time to catch their breaths.

"Well, is there someone else who wants to have a one-on-one or should we go back to the tag-team match?"

Despite saying that, she still kept an eye on her temple. If her estimations were right, Ritsuka should have reached the top already…

Wait, where's the master?

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH SKY HIGH RIDER-BUSTER JUSTICE BOMB!"

A mixture of a scream and a battle cry suddenly descended from the sky and put a pause to the fight. Everyone looked up to the sky in order to ascertain what in the world produced that sound, and all their faces turned into pure astonishment without exception.

"Ah… Someone put drugs in my breakfast… I'm seeing Onii-chan falling from the sky, trying to stomp Quetzalcoatl with a plancha…"

"That's not a hallucination, Ai-senpai! I see it, too! We need to catch him!"

"Allow me to, Mash!" Arturia immediately called back her invisible air and pointed her sword at the falling master. "O' wind, twi-"

However, she was interrupted when someone got ahead. To their horror, the Goddess jumped to meet him head-on…

Or so it seemed but then she… received the attack without offering resistance? Not only that. She grabbed him and used her own body to break down the fall, which actually caused a small crater.

All the servants hurried to see what happened, and the sight awaiting it didn't fall behind the previous one.

"Eh? I'm alive?" Fujimaru recovered his senses, and what awaited him when he raised his head was the strict expression of the Mesoamerican Goddess.

"You're alive, yes! Just be grateful that I'm a legendary lucha master, yes! Why were you so reckless? Didn't you think I'd dodge? When it comes to a flying move, someone can end up dead if both parties aren't the best at it! This big sis was really worried…"

"I mean, there's no way you'd do that. Because you love humans."

That simple reasoning that could only be called wishful thinking and the lack of doubt in his voice at best got the Goddess in utter shock. And just a moment later, she turned into a flustered mess once again.

"Ah, Ritsuka, mi amor! I'm so glad I joined the Three Goddess Alliance! And now I'm leaving it, yes! 'Cause I'm making a contract with you! No one has beaten me so badly in a long time, master! From now on, I, Quetzalcoatl, Goddess of Mesoamerica, will use my power for you!"

""WHAT!?""

It took actual minutes for everyone to digest this completely absurd turn of events, and then, by Quetzalcoatl's insistence, they started a round of presentations.

"I see, two samurai girls hailing from the far East, the King of Knights who wields the planet's Holy Sword, the Holy Maiden of Orleans, and a fleeting dream of her, a nameless envoy of Counter, a fellow Goddess of the Sun from the East, my fellow luchadoras, Nero from Rome and Mash, and the mage wanderer of dreams. Quite the party, yes! Oh, and…"

Her emerald eyes landed on Ana, who only lowered her hood more. But before Merlin had to intervene, a loud voice interrupted them.

"Stop ignoring me, Kuku! This isn't how a Goddess should behave! Is this how you pay me for all the unreasonable work you put me through ever since we met!? If I didn't know better, it seems like you hate me!"

"Oh, yes, I hate you. You should just go to a corner and die." The Goddess finally acknowledged the existence of the jaguar with comic tears, only to brutally reject her with a cruel smile.

"Wow, I didn't expect Quetzalcoatl to outright insult someone…" Ai wasn't the only one surprised by that interaction.

"Well, Jaguar Warrior there most likely is an aspect of the God Tezcatlipoca, who is said to be Quetzalcoatl's natural enemy. In fact, there's a myth in which he killed her, causing the downfall of the nation she lovingly raised."

"That… explains a lot of things…"

"Ahem, at any rate." The Goddess in question got back on topic, once again ignoring the Lancer servant. "If I heard correctly, you also came here looking for the Axe of Marduk over there, right?"

"That is certainly the case, my Lady." Merlin's expression became gloomy as his eyes set on the massive weapon. "We require such a weapon for our battle against Gorgon, but no one told me it was that big. As we are now, we possess no means to transport it."

"I thought as much. But worry not. We can make a rope with jungle vines, and have my winged serpents carry it to Uruk. I'll have three teams of three hundred taking turns. It'll take around three days. Is that enough time?"

"That's definitely more than enough! You really work on another scale, Quetzalcoatl. You're already more useful than Merlin."

"Hey, I'm a thinker, not a worker. Don't compare me to a war God."

"The problem is that you think about hitting on women most of the time."

"Yeah, we should rely on Quetzalcoatl more than the useless Merlin."

"UMU!" The bickering was suddenly interrupted when the defeated empress suddenly stood up. "Now that everything is settled we can return to Uruk and see if Darling triumphed or if he needs his faithful Bride to save him!"

"Wait, hold on! Where in the world did you get the energy to even move a muscle!? I didn't even start to treat your wounds!"

"This is, of course, just one of my many talents, burglar fox!"

"Well, seeing the dynamic of your party, I guess I'll have to join as your Big Sis once I finish the preparations to carry the axe."

"Oh, I'm also an "Onee-san" type! In fact, don't you think there are too many girls in this party? This might actually be a ha-"

Jaguar Warrior couldn't finish that word as Quetzalcoatl's fist got her flying in the direction of the massive axe.

"Sorry, but you'll be in charge of leading my winged serpents."

---

After the two-day journey back to Uruk, the city that awaited them was definitely brighter than the day they left for the jungle. In fact, they were celebrating their king's third return from the underworld.

Still, they eagerly made their way to the ziggurat just to confirm it, and the familiar sight of the Golden King once again giving orders from the throne put them at ease.

"Ah, I see the elite force sent to defeat the Goddess of the jungle has finally returned. Just in time. Siduri, let us begin the strategy meeting to repel Gorgon's attack at once!"

At Gilgamesh's command, all the soldiers left the room, and his trustworthy secretary took a step forward to greet them with a smile.

"First of all, from what I see you did a splendid job in your last mission, even bringing the foreign Goddess Quetzalcoatl to our side. Just this morning, a mysterious servant calling themselves "Jaguar Parcel Service" showed up to announce that the Axe of Marduk will be delivered to Uruk today's evening. Per the King's order, we told her to redirect the delivery point to the Northern Wall. The servant left a message for Lady Quetzalcoatl that goes: "This job is burning meowt! This is pawsitively the worst!""

That last mention got some giggles and snorts, and a murderous glare crossed the face of the Goddess in question for a split second.

"You can totally ignore that, yes. Please, make them work even harder, yes!"

"Now, I think it goes without saying, but Lady Ishtar and Archer here were successful in their quest to bring back the King from the underworld. Not only that, but they also struck a deal with its mistress, Lady Ereshkigal, so that she freed all the souls she stole and doesn't interfere with the battle against Gorgon. It's a pity you couldn't partake in the celebrations."

That caused all the eyes to drift in the direction Siduri was pointing with her arm, and they saw the pair of servants in question standing at the side, with Fou clinging to Archer's head like always. But before any of them could comment on it, a certain Mesoamerican Goddess was already jumping at them.

"I finally get to meet the fellow Goddess of Venus that roamed this land, yes! I almost missed you standing on the corner like this. How come you're not presuming your beauty to everyone?"

Ishtar's expression immediately became sour. "More like you are too bright for the sight. My authority is only reserved for a few worthy."

"Oho? I guess this is going to be the only time you will act humble."

She ignored the way the eyebrows of the Mistress of Heaven twitched and looked at the red knight beside her. Fou caused the same impression as with the other Goddesses, giving her pause for a moment, but after that, she took a long look at the grey-eyed man.

"Would you look at that? To think the king could enlist the sword that carves the path for humanity. I can see how is it that Ereshkigal fell at your feet."

"Ahem. Getting back on topic…" Siduri cut them before they continued through the tangent. "Currently, all remaining forces have gathered at Uruk's Northern Wall to prepare for the imminent invasion of Gorgon's army. The demonic beasts have gathered at the Cedar Forest. They number roughly 100000, ten times over the size of our force. Despite our efforts reinforcing the wall, once they invade it won't last more than half a day. And that's not even counting the case in which Gorgon herself leads the charge."

"100000!?"

"Isn't that a little too much overkill!?"

The determination of the two masters flinched in face of such despair-inducing numbers. Even with some anti-army and anti-fortress noble phantasms on their side, facing a literal wave of countless enemies, lead by an immortal monster to top it off, wasn't an experience they were eager to go through.

"I agree with you. She must have concentrated on mass-producing enough for a guaranteed win." The smile once again left Quetzalcoatl's face. "For a 'Goddess of vengeance' who claims to despise mankind, her tactics are oddly human, yes."

"That's right." The Golden King finally decided to join the conversation. "Humanity cannot win if our forces are overwhelmed in quantity AND quality. In face of such a massive attack, defense is simply out of question. In other words, the only thing we can do is attack their base. We of Uruk will buy you some time, half a day to be precise, at the Northern Wall. Meanwhile, you will attack Gorgon's lair, the Temple of Blood, also called Blood Fort, located underground in the Cedar Forest."

"So… it is basically like Quetzalcoatl's Sun Temple. If we destroy it, Gorgon will lose a big part of her authority."

Judging by the nods she received from Gilgamesh and the two Goddesses, Mash's guess seemed to be on point.

"That should give us the edge we need to defeat her…" Ishtar continued, but her momentum started to die out with each word. "…But, do we really have a way to do it? That thing is more like a fortified mountain, and its entrance is protected by a nasty bounded field. In a sense, it's actually like an ant colony. Wouldn't we need to organize some sort of siege?"

"That's where the Axe of Marduk comes in, of course! It should be powerful enough to destroy de Blood Fort and carve a path to its inside."

"Well, you're forgetting a tiny little detail, Goldie. There's no one here that can wield that thing."

"Even if we were to use my winged serpents to carry it all the way there and just drop it, it would take days. And that's assuming the demonic beasts don't shoot them down midway."

"Then you should just throw it." Those few words caused an awkward silence to fill the room for a moment.

"Wait, are you serious, King Gilgamesh? She's crazy strong, but I don't think-"

"Actually, since the distance between the Northern Wall and the Blood Fort is just 30 kilometers, as long as it is just throwing it, my dear Ritsuka…"

""WHAT!?""

"Still, there's another problem. I can't attack that place directly. Even if I defected, the alliance's rules are still in effect. Any Goddess who breaks that pact, like with an act of violence, will be completely annihilated, yes!"

"How petty! Why didn't you say something like: 'The pact of the Three Goddess Alliance is absolute but screw it! I'll throw that axe and die, yes!' Is it that you don't have the guts to do it!?"

"Hey, you're the one being petty here, Golden King. In fact, you don't wear anywhere enough gold to be called 'Golden' if you ask me."

"How dare you bring that up! You might be the king of the City of Gold, but you haven't seen my full strength! My true guise will blow you out of this world, figuratively that is, from surprise."

"Could we stop with the back-and-forth already?" Surprisingly, it was Merlin who interrupted their antics. "Furthermore, I have an answer to the question everyone has in their mind, that is, "how we will get the Axe of Marduk to the Blood Fort?" And that is: I'll handle it!"

His enthusiasm was only met by skepticism and raised eyebrows. His reputation and attitude up until now didn't do him any favor.

"How are you going to do that exactly? I don't need to be an expert in magecraft to know yours won't work in a divine weapon."

"And you are right, my dear Arturia. What I propose is a plan like this: Ritsuka and Ai's team, which includes me, make their way to the Blood Fort. Once we are close enough, I'll give a signal, and Quetzalcoatl will throw the axe right at me! I'll take care of the rest, somehow. Probably. I'll just wrap this cloth from my staff around the handle and you won't have to worry about your aim."

"That isn't reliable at all, but I guess it's less consuming than having to prepare a full release of my Holy Sword. What do you think, Goddess Quetzalcoatl, King Gilgamesh?"

"I think it can work, yes."

"I hate to rely on Merlin, but that's a good middle ground. Any objections, Ritsuka, Ai."

The way he suddenly threw them under the spotlight surprised the two masters, but they immediately gave their seal of approval. It wasn't like they could think of a better plan.

"Right then. Let's go over this one last time for you fools. We have three days until the deadline Gorgon set. We'll never win, though, if we just sit around and wait for her big invasion. Therefore, we will attack at dawn in two days. Chaldea's heroes led by Ritsuka and Ai will enter the Cedar Forest, plunging into enemy territory. At the same time, Uruk's forces, led by my servants and Quetzalcoatl, will begin a diversion at the Demonic Front and lure the demonic beasts out of the forest, allowing you Chaldeans to make it safe to the Blood Fort. At Merlin's signal, Quetzalcoatl will throw the Axe of Marduk to him, and he will use it to smash the temple open. What follows should be obvious. You invade the temple and exterminate Gorgon! I shall call this Operation Marduk Blitz! The future of mankind depends on this, so I'm not sparing any resources!"

The King didn't even leave a second for them to digest that fast summary of the plan before snapping his fingers. The Gate of Babylon opened on the floor right in front of the group, and of all things, what sprung out of it was…

A big number of giant hands that looked to be made out of rock and started to fire flame blasts at everyone in sight...

"What the hell is that, Goldie!? Your sense of humor definitely went down the drain after dying!"

"If you're gonna give us something, then you should just pop out more gems!"

"Wait, aren't those the things that we're always destroying in the simulator?"

"Right! But even if they've been there since… always, we actually don't know anything about them, Ritsuka-senpai."

"Well, let's just clean them up and loot the embers as always!"

With twelve servants and two Goddesses in the room, it couldn't even be called a battle. Those mysterious hands were completely wiped out in a matter of seconds, and the masters were happily collecting the crystalized embers left.

"Jeez, King Gilgamesh, if you planned on giving us Flames of Wisdom, couldn't you just give us the embers?"

"What good will do them receiving something without having to earn it, Romani Archaman? But I think that's enough of a hint from me about what should you be using the rest of this day and tomorrow for, aside from resting and building up energies of course."

"Huh? You mean…"

"You want us to power up our servants?"

The two masters asked in tandem, which surprised all the servants in the vicinity, although for different reasons depending on their precedence.

"Wait, you guys can power up servants!?" Ushiwakamaru didn't waste a second to approach Ritsuka with a hungry look in her eyes. And while Okita didn't display her emotions so eagerly, there was no doubt she was interested.

But it was a completely different matter for the Chaldean servants. "Can we really do it here without all the technology we have back in the future?"

"I thought we opted for just summoning more reinforcements because it isn't that much of a hassle?"

"Well, well, let this genius answer all those questions." A feminine voice came in response to the doubts of the "Jeanne Sisters" from the masters' comm devices and an image of Da Vinci was projected. "The FATE system certainly allows us to strengthen a servant's Spirit Origin with a certain amount of those embers and materials as catalysts. Although in most cases it is more like we're unlocking the servant's real power had their summoning conditions been optimal. In any case, we decided that this time just summoning more servants wouldn't cut it, even in the remote case we find an external source to keep them running. It's true that the process will be way slower without our specialized equipment, but it is doable within the deadline since I've been already preparing it in advance."

Those last words earned her a round of applause and praise that she didn't hesitate to enjoy as always.

"Then… I guess that method doesn't work for we servants summoned by King Gilgamesh…" Unfortunately, Okita's somber conclusion rained on their parade.

However, it didn't last long as the Golden King opened his mouth once again. "What are you talking about, Souji? Do you really think my summoning ritual would be inferior to theirs? Of course, that strengthening method will work for you three. As for the half-breed, well, I think that's hardly necessary."

"Well, what are we waiting for!? Let's go to the embassy right away!"

---

Just as Ai proposed, everyone walked out of the ziggurat and headed to their headquarters without wasting a second. But all that momentum they build up after Da Vinci explained that it would take roughly an hour for each servant, and they also had to add to that the time it would take to send the materials from the distant future.

Yeah, the Golden King didn't give them an extra day of rest out of the goodness of his heart.

So, while Chaldea dealt with the proceedings, the servants were free to spend their time until their turn as they saw fit. And that caused the citizens of Uruk to enjoy a sight they couldn't since the war against the Goddesses intensified.

A most unlikely pair if it wasn't for everyone already used to it. A red knight that towered over 6 feet accompanied a little girl that barely reached his waist. Given that she only ever appeared accompanied by him or Okita, they were actually known as the "unofficial family of the Demonic Front" around the city.

But there was something else about that sight that caused everyone to cease whatever they were doing and look at them with their mouth agape.

"Pardon me if this sounds rude, but… why did you decide to take off your hood, Ana?"

As Archer's question suggested, the little Lancer was now walking around town without her hood hiding her face. Those purple eyes like amethysts and that long, silk-like hair of matching color were mesmerizing, to put it mildly, but it was in fact the small smile on her lips that truly dazzled everyone.

"Uh-huh." Ana shook her head to let him know that it wasn't a rude question. It was only natural to ask that after she spent all these seven months hiding her identity. "I just thought that… since this is going to be the final battle, I should pay back everyone's kindness by at least letting them see my face…"

"I see…"

Now, it was her turn to ask. She knew where they were going. Even if the red knight didn't mention it, she had walked this road so many times it was impossible for her to miss it.

"Why are we going this way? There's nothing else I can do for the old lady…"

"Well, she certainly doesn't think the same." He replied with that easy-going smile he learned to wear from their goofy comrades… just like her. Perhaps it was the reason she didn't feel so uncomfortable seeing it.

The two servants continued walking in that comfortable silence until they finally reached a certain flower store.

"…!" A voice filled with surprise scaped Ana's rosy lips the moment her eyes landed on the old lady running the small shop.

The last time she saw her, that woman looked more like a corpse, clinging to life with her last will so as to not be dragged to the underworld like many others. Now though, she was the picture of health or the most approximate given her worn-out body.

"Oh?" She noticed their presence and turned to look at them.

Well, "look" wouldn't be the right word, as those eyes that had lost most of their color could barely make out a couple of approaching silhouettes, but it was more than enough for her to recognize them.

"Ah, you finally came here, little girl. Thanks for fulfilling this old woman's selfish request, valiant warrior of our King."

"You don't have to thank me, my Lady. Given that the final battle is at hand, I too think it's best to not leave any regrets behind." Having said that, the white-haired man gave Ana a gentle push.

The little girl was still having trouble finding words to shove through her throat, but she had no choice but to swallow her reservations now that she knew this was the lady's request.

"I… I'm glad to see you're doing fine…"

"Fufufu. This is nothing to be surprised about, but those words coming from you really warm this old heart. Just after our King returned from the underworld, my sickness disappeared as if it never had been there in the first place. But I didn't call you here to bore you with my stories."

Ana opened her mouth to deny those words. Just like the stories from the Chaldeans, she would never get tired of lending an ear. Despite her usually stoic face, she enjoyed every second of their time together. Even when they ate cheesecake and this gentle lady pretended it was good even if her sense of taste was as weak as her sight.

But she couldn't even start when the old lady stood up and approached her.

"Huh?"

In her hands, there was a crown of flowers, crafted carefully with the most beautiful and dazzling exemplars available to her. And she didn't need to be a genius to guess the lady's intentions.

"This is… for me? But I don't… I can't acce-"

"Nonsense, my child. You were the one who showed up to lend a hand in this little shop that could never make a difference in the war. You helped me sell the beautiful flowers my children brought and were left to wilt. And when I was starting to feel Lady Ereshkigal's embrace, you clung to me and shouted for everyone to hear that I wasn't done. So, please, accept this small show of gratitude."

The lady's calm voice demolished her weak attempts of rejecting the present, and she proceeded to let the headpiece rest on her head.

"There. Even if my eyes can no longer appreciate it, I'm sure this looks really good on you. Even I can tell you will one day grow up to be an incredible beauty."

"Ah…" Ana used her very being to not let the tears that were threatening to form in the corners of her eye. Even after this show of kindness, the only taste she could feel… was bittersweet. "This is so unfair… Humans are scary… but they are also so warm…"

After whispering those words, Ana looked the lady straight in the eyes. "I… This is a goodbye. Regardless of the battle's outcome… this will be the last time we speak."

"Well, I guess that's inevitable." Despite the somber farewell, that gentle smile never left the lady's mouth. "In that case, I can only see you off with a big smile. May Ishtar's blessing be with you."

With those final words, the two servants undid their steps. Once they were far away enough, Ana's trembling arms couldn't resist anymore and ended up taking the floral headpiece and shoving it into Archer's hands.

"Ana?"

"I'm really grateful…" She started with a weak voice, but her eyes were completely firm. "My time in this city has been like a dream. A really beautiful and happy dream. One that my adult self has long since forgotten… But I don't have the right to wear it. That lady's grandson died in the Demonic Front. So, please, hold on to it for me, Archer."

"Very well." The red knight accepted her decision. But not with one last remark. "I'll keep it safe until you settle your matters with Gorgon."

She was already getting ahead of him, in part to hide the small smile that returned to her face as they resumed their walk around town.

He might not notice it due to his denseness, but she stopped minding people thinking of them as a family a while ago. Maybe not as a father, but as a caring big brother she never had.

---

"Oh, you're finally back, Darling!"

Several hours later, when the pair finally went back to the Chaldean embassy for dinner, a certain empress greeted them with the widest of grins.

"Oh, hi there, Nero. I see you finally got your Saint Graph Ascension."

Well, besides the obvious increase in the magical energy radiating from her spirit core, her "battle dress" didn't change that much. If anything, it just covered less skin, her veil now reaching the floor and adorned by a grass crown.

"What do you think? It now looks more like the one I donned during our wedding ceremony."

The few clear memories he had from that moment confirmed her words. Putting aside the padlocks and zippers, her image was pretty much the same as that fateful day. In fact, those memories caused his cheeks to get flustered, getting a satisfied giggle out of Nero.

"Hehehe, of course, you would be delighted! Our love will shine so bright from now on that even that hideous monster in the North will only be able to admit defeat!"

"Hmph, don't go getting rushed conclusions, child emperor. That's only because Goshujin-sama hasn't seen me yet." A voice so sweet it seemed to be impregnated with honey cut into the conversation as another ascended servant approached them.

"Tamamo-" Her name was the only word he was able to get out of his throat before the air inside his lungs got stuck.

Earlier that day, Ishtar said Quetzalcoatl shone too much, but even if her beauty was unquestionable, it had to do more with her hyperactive personality. In this case though, the young woman in front of him now truly shone in every possible sense.

Her garments now resembled those of a proper shrine maiden, with her skirt and sleeves now reaching the floor. Her pink hair was now as long, and aside from her usual ribbon, it was now adorned with a golden hairpiece between her fox ears with bells hanging from it. But the feature that definitely stood out the most would definitely be the three shining tails peeking out of her back.

"Pretty…" Even Ana by his side felt mesmerized.

"Wow…You really look like a… Goddess now." Those honest words in the spur of the moment caused Tamamo to beam at him while Nero pouted.

"Thanks, Goshujin-sama. I'm still six tales away from reaching my original power, but this is the limit of Chaldea's Saint Graph strengthening methods. However, it will be more than enough to give that Gorgon monster and even Kingu a lesson."

"Well, well, aren't you confident? You shouldn't forget that you aren't the only Goddess with an ace still up her sleeve."

"I don't think those garments will do you any favors as a luchadora, but as a fellow Goddess of the Sun, I will be rooting for you, yes!"

Her two fellow Goddesses joined the conversation as if to not be left behind. Call it the pride of a divinity.

"It is a given for Quetzalcoatl since she has all her divinity, but aren't you gonna try the ascension, Ishtar?"

The mistress of heaven scuffed at the red knight's question. "What are you talking about, Archer? Even if I'm a pseudo-servant, something as trivial as forcing a Saint Graph ascension will be an easy cake the moment I get serious."

Those confident words only got her blank stares and raised eyebrows. She didn't seem to be taking things easy at all during all their battles.

"I you say so… How are the others going?"

"They are getting done. Tengu girl should be walking out soon enough, and then you and the other samurai will be the ones left to go. But honestly, it became quite boring after the first two times, so everyone is killing time as they can."

Just after saying that, Ishtar pointed with her thumb at the common table. There, a Jeanne now clad in pure white armor and her blonde hair flowing untied was brushing her "little sister's", which was not as long as hers. Much like her "big sister", her armor was now a little bulkier and had its color shifted from pitch-black to dark purple, accompanied by a red cape hanging from her waist.

"Eh?" Due to her embarrassment, Jeanne Alter failed to notice the new arrivals until all those eyes landed on her, causing her to freeze on the spot.

"Ah, hello there, Archer, Ana!" On the other side of the spectrum, the Saint of Orleans greeted them with a smile. Her "Onee-san" persona created quite the contrast with her now solemn look. "You got here just in time. EMIYA shouldn't take long to serve dinner while Ushiwakamaru and Okita finish before your turn. But meanwhile, do you know how to brush someone's hair? Lil' sis here isn't used to having it so long."

Those words finally snapped Alter, her pale face quickly turning into a flustered mess. Even before her stuttering mouth pronounced the first word, her hand was already drawing her cursed sword.

"Yo-you didn't see anything! S-scratch that! I'm burning all your memories about this!"

"Wait! Why just me!?"

"Hey, what do you think you're doing, evil woman!"

"Hey, don't go stealing others' identity as a tsundere!"

""Who are you calling tsundere!"" Tamamo had to hold her laugh when Ishtar joined Alter without her even looking at the Goddess of Venus.

"Fou Fou Kyu!"

Even Fou was joining the fray out of the blue, but it ended at once when a voice filled with authority came from the kitchen.

"Cease the hostilities. Dinner is ready."

The sole presence of the owner of that voice could compete with the Goddesses despite not having a single bit of divinity. The essence of the Red Dragon was now leaking from the King of Knights, and the fluffy cape and shining crown that complemented her battle dress only emphasized it.

It would be a pristine image of Artoria back when she was the undefeatable King Arthur that drove away the Saxons… if it wasn't because her mouth was full of the very food she was bringing to the table.

"I would also recommend it. The skills of the chef here seem to have improved after his Saint Graph ascension." Merlin's head popped from behind her, his mischievous smile making it obvious that he was enjoying the situation.

"I can definitely attest to that." Okita got ahead of Arturia, bringing more dishes to the table. It was hard to tell if she was eager to have dinner or to have her Saint Graph ascension.

"I don't know about that nonsense, but I definitely went the extra mile. With the increase of the output of everyone's Spirit Origin, you'll need a good, nutritious dinner to complement it."

The red archer in question appeared with the final batch of dishes like an expert butler, and to the knight and Ana's surprise, there wasn't that much of a change in his garments. The only thing remarkable was the different design of his holy shroud at the end of the sleeves.

"Well, that's kind of a letdown compared to everyone else, EMIYA." Archer threw a small jab and was met with a mirrored snark.

"It's not like I had some hidden origin in my inexistent legend or something like that. And I doubt it will be so different in your case."

"Yeah, my wardrobe was just as varied as yours."

"No, I have absolute confidence in Darling's ascension blowing our minds!"

Nero's confident remark went above everyone's heads as they immediately started to dig in before the now more voracious Blue Saber devoured everything.

"Yes! We just made it in time!"

"Don't mind us!"

A trio of teenagers stormed the room and started to devour the delicious food at a rate comparable to Arturia's. Even the usually quiet and composed Mash was attacking like a starving beast.

"Hehehe, I guess it was exhausting for them even if they got to the point they barely needed Da Vinci's supervision after repeating the process so many times."

A certain Rider servant approached the table at a calmer piece, a smirk adorning her lips. Her clothes now were a more appropriate armor, even if it still exposed a fair share of skin.

Had Benkei still been with them, he would have pointed out that those garments were closer to the armor she used after joining the Minamoto clan again as Overseer Yoshitsune.

"Just- uhm… give us some… mmh- minutes!"

"Yeah, who knew- mmm… standing still for hours- mmm… was just as tiring as normal exercise."

"Besides, Da Vinci said it was also good- mmm… to let the equipment cool down for a moment."

Neither Okita nor Archer was complaining. It would be horrible to miss dinner, and there was no doubt that, by the time they were finished, there won't be a single trace of food in the vicinity.

Once the masters and the Shielder finished, they returned to the room accommodated for the ritual with Okita in toe. Another hour passed away of idle chit-chat and "friendly" bickering among the servants when the Sakura Saber walked out with her new servant attire, but...

"…"

The emotions in her pale face were far from the excitement or energic that were present in everyone else's. Not even her usual expression. It was… melancholic actually.

"Is something the matter, Souji? Did something go wrong?" Archer ventured to ask before walking in the direction she came from, which got a long sigh in response.

"No… everything's okay. It's just… this dress brings me back memories…"

The dress in question was, of course, included the unmistakable Shinsengumi haori. However, instead of letting its lower part as a short skirt, she was using an additional dark, long skirt, and a matching scarf.

No one pressed the subject. If she wanted to leave it at that, then so be it. The red knight finally entered the room and met the last masters of humanity and their kohai after leaving behind some cheers.

Now that he thought about it, this felt more like the waiting room for some type of clinic.

"Ah… the last one at least…"

"Let's get this over…"

"Please, Archer-san, step on Galahad's shield."

Those definitely were the faces of someone who wanted to hit the bed so badly. He silently nodded and didn't waste a second to do as he was told.

"Very well. Have you ever experienced something like this, Archer? Are you excited?" Da Vinci's voice through the intercom took over, asking questions like a pediatrician trying to distract a child before injecting him with a vaccine.

"Not that I remember. As for the other question, I would be lying if I said I don't, but I can hardly expect a big change."

"There's only a way to find out. First of all, let me run a quick analysis over your spirit origin to know the materials that will resonate the most with it."

The next moment, a little tingling let him know that the futuristic machines around the round shield were already on it. It didn't last long though, no more than a minute.

"Let's see… 'Hero Proofs' and… oh? 'Knight Medals?' That's definitely a surprise. We see those mostly in Saber Servants."

Those words caused a trio of raised eyebrows and a nervous giggle from the red knight. Whether the universal genius could connect the dots like Nero or not, she let it be and they started the proceedings with said materials and a big chunk of embers.

Now came the really boring part, as the others put it, which consisted of everyone standing still while Da Vinci did her thing using the shield and the two masters as anchors.

During the course of the next hour, Archer definitely felt something change. He felt invigorated, bordering ecstatic. But something told him that it didn't have to do with the overall increase in his Spirit Origin's output, at least not entirely.

"Aaaand we're done! Good work, everyone!"

Once the blinding lights faded and he was finally able to see the room, there was something… off. It could be just his mind playing him tricks, but he could swear his point of view was some centimeters lower than before.

His eyes then looked at the other three in the room and… they were just staring at him silently. Did they just get shocked?

The red knight immediately looked down, but just like he expected, his combat outfit/mystic code was the same as always. In fact, it didn't even change at all like EMIYA's. Yeah, that was most likely the reason behind their reaction.

"Well, that's disappointing. You guys can go catch a shuteye while I give the bad news to the others."

"…!" The view of him walking out of the room finally snapped them out of it. "Wait! That's going to cause a commotion!" Their legs immediately kicked into the highest gear to chase after him.

The sounds of his steps must have warned everyone about his presence as they were already looking in his direction the moment, he put a foot in the common room.

"Sorry guys, there's no-" But strangely enough, their faces too froze in bewildered expressions in the same way Ritsuka, Ai, and Mash did. "Huh? What's with those looks? Do I have something on my face?"

"More like… you don't even look like the same person, Archer-dono." Those hesitating words from Ushiwakamaru gave the red knight a pause.

What in the world was she talking about? Wait… unlike everyone else, EMIYA's eyebrows were twitching uncontrollably, and his body was tense in preparation to attack at any moment. And in Arturia and Ishtar's case, their expression reflected nostalgia and longing in the latter's case.

"Trace, on." He immediately projected a mirror, and a face he never expected to see again greeted him.

Golden eyes, a mop of reddish, auburn hair, and skin that was no longer tanned. A flitting image of a distant past he barely remembered.

"What the- urp!"

"Young Darling!" He didn't even have the time to be surprised when a certain Bride Saber suddenly hugged him with so much strength he found it hard to breathe. Her pink lips were curved in the brightest smile he had seen ever since they met in this Singularity.

"Easy there, child emperor! You're choking Goshijin-sama!" Tamamo tried to intervene, but her yellow eyes were busy admiring the youth that stole her heart back in the Second Singularity.

"It isn't strange for a heroic spirit to be summoned in a younger age than the one they had at their peak moment, yes…" Quetzalcoatl's eyes drifted for a moment to a certain little girl who still had her mouth agape. "…but why would one that was already summoned revert to that age?"

"Wait, isn't that the same case as that stuck-up El-Mel-something-or-another?"

"You're… right, Lil' Sis. But Mr. Zughe Liang is hardly the most regular servant."

"Da Vinci-chan, we know you don't have clear visuals but tell me you have an explanation!" The masters, who just got there, tried to ask the most reliable person for an explanation, but the genius' voice didn't sound that convinced.

"With only one similar case recorded in our database, I can't give you a definitive answer. In Zughe Liang's case, the reason he reverted to a younger age was because his human vessel had a skill at that age he lacked as an adult."

"Something I no longer had…" Archer pondered out loud while caressing his chin. Some seconds passed until his eyes widened slightly. "Heh, now I see."

"You actually lost some kind of skill, Archer-san?"

"I am the bone of my sword…"

The response Mash received was not expressed in words as Archer called upon his golden sword. Its warm, comforting light filled the place, but everyone who had seen it on former occasions could agree on one fact.

"It's… stronger?"

"I think the correct word would be 'intense'."

"But why?"

A smirk came across Archer's lips. "It is quite simple. By reverting to an age when my journey was just starting, my faith in my dream is at its peak and my view of the world isn't tainted by the harsh reality. In other words, I can wield my sword's power to its fullest. Or at least within the limitations of this vessel."

"So, you just got crazy strong, right!? Awesome! Now we got this for sure!"

"As expected of my Darling! Gorgon has no chance of winning."

"Hey, hold your horses. I'm still in the Uruk time, remember? Someone has to keep busy Kingu after all."

"Aww…"

His words deflated Nero and Ai's enthusiasm, but it wasn't necessarily a drawback. Having the Fake Enkidu join the fight alongside Gorgon would make things impossible, so it was crucial that the team at the Demonic Front at least bought them enough time.

And they couldn't rely entirely on Quetzalcoatl. Not only did she have to throw the Axe of Marduk, but pitting a divinity against the weapon created to bind them wasn't the best option.

"Well, it can be helped." Surprisingly, it was Ishtar who put an end to the argument even before it began. "I'm more than enough to give you an edge against Gorgon, and my servant can handle Kingu, so that's the more optimal choice."

"She's right. Now that you are finally ready, you should already start your deserved rest before the fight."

They did as Romani suggested and finally called it a night.

---

The day of the final judgment arrived. With the Sun rising from the horizon, the attacking team had already left for the Cedar Forest around an hour ago, and the forces of the Demonic Front made their final stand.

All of the remaining soldiers at the wall were now deployed outside of its comfort, with only a few exceptions to fire the Dingirs. Among them, of course, were the coldblooded swordsmen, gripping tightly their katana, the Goddess of Sun with her ever-present smile and club in hand, and a Jaguar Warrior that was overly excited about the premise of blood if her feral smile was anything to go by.

However, strangely enough, the one at the very front was neither of those fierce warriors with godlike powers. The one leading them was a lone red knight with his now unkempt auburn hair and red cloak waving with the wind. In his hands was the golden sword, with its blade's tip buried in the ground.

His figure might not be imposing and majestic as the mighty King of Sparta that had protected this wall during countless battles over the course of these months. The last defender of humanity. An unwavering shield that persisted even in the darkest of times.

But that strong back and that warm light conveyed the same feeling of hope without a doubt.

"The time has come…" The nameless hero finally opened his golden eyes as a solemn voice left his lips. His sword was raised to point at the distant horizon as if to mark the way toward the few stars that could still be seen in the sky. "Soldiers of Uruk! Our role today might not be to finally settle things with the monstrous Goddess of the North. Although we are to act as a simple distraction, the weight of humanity still rests on our shoulders as much as it does on the Chaldeans', nonetheless. And let me be clear! No one is going to miss the celebrations after our victory on my watch! You are to fight, to win, and to live on!"

"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHH!"

His motivational speech was followed by a collective battle roar, filled with all their fearless resolution, and cheers.

But that wasn't his sole intention. The rabid howls and rising dust clouds in the distance were a clear sign that they had succeeded.

The Demonic Beasts birthed by a monster driven only by vengeance against humanity could barely be kept away by their mother until the promised day. Therefore, when a group of humans blatantly sent a challenge, they could no longer repress their basic instincts and immediately threw themselves in a mad run to shred them to pieces.

The absolute horde of bloodthirsty monsters didn't take long to cross the distance between the Cedar Forest and the Demonic Front, and everyone took their position.

"Hehe, I told you, you would do great as a Commander, Archer-dono." Okita allowed herself to drop her cold mask for a moment, causing Archer's own serious face to crumble.

"That is the spirit, yes! Even this Big Sis feels motivated after such a speech. Let's go teach those hopeless creatures without future a lesson!" The Mesoamerican Goddess jumped towards the sky, flames erupting from her body as she reached the peak of the parabola. "I am the Serpent! I am the Flame!"

After letting out those powerful words, she realized a diving attack that looked like a real meteor strike. The impact left a sizable crater and vaporized a good chunk of demonic beasts, but their sheer numbers made such an intimidating opening attack seem like just a drop of water in the ocean.

"Wait for me, Kuku! It's time for me to show you the PAWer of the jungle! NYYAAAHHH!" Her fellow Goddess ended the fray with a roar that sounded more like a cat sound. Despite her club lacking something remotely close to an edge, it tore through the monsters regardless of their size or the roughness of their skin.

"We can't get behind! This is for Hitachibou and Leonidas! OOOOOAAAAHH!" Ushiwakamaru didn't waste a single second either and rushed to battle. The seriousness that came with the Saint Graph quickly faded the moment her katana slashed through meat and bone again, replaced by her usual bloodthirsty grin.

Okita followed her closely, methodically stabbing all the Demonic Beast in her way. She seemed even more serious and cold than usual, like a certain night in which she dealt the killing blow to one of the Shinsengumi's commanders.

Their display wasn't as magnificent as the two Goddesses, but it was equally ruthless. And to accompany them…

"Trace, on!"

The rain of steel that slaughtered the monsters by dozens wasn't lost even if the red knight threw to the wind his bow and joined the battle with his golden sword. They were putting all manners aside, and so, he didn't hesitate to wield the light that reached the stars.

Be it feline, reptiles, or the great dragon-like Bashmus, the golden light erased their existence all the same. Beasts born prioritizing combat to the point they couldn't even perform an essential function to any species like reproducing. As Quetzalcoatl said, even if those hideous monsters won, there was nothing for them after that.

In front of his sword, those beings of hatred that were more like curses with the sole purpose of taking away humanity's precious light stood no chance.

And in the remote case they could get past the five guardians, Uruk's soldiers greeted them eagerly.

"Just like Leonidas taught us! Engage in the front line for just half an hour! Our individual power won't prevail against them!"

"If you get tired, fall back to the fourth line, rest, and get new weapons! Breathe steadily and wait to return to the fight!"

"We are no soldiers but survivors! Let's show the King our power!"

Seeing the whole picture, it really looked like they could hold on for a long time before they tired out or Gorgon had no choice but to enter the battlefield.

As such, their second target was successfully lured out of their hiding in the form of a green comet that targeted Archer specifically. Another massive explosion rang across the battlefield when the Sword of Salvation rose to meet the Weapon of the Gods.

"Heh, I see you actually sharpened your blade. But that isn't nearly enough to make any difference, Faker!"

"Hmph! Pot, meet kettle! Let's see if you can wield that body properly or I'm going to beat your sorry-"

"OOORRAAAAHHH!" The red knight was left astonished when Quetzalcoatl suddenly wrapped her legs around Kingu's body and proceeded to throw them around before they could start exchanging blows properly.

"What the!"

"Sorry, Archer-kun, but leave this muchacho to me for now! I want to show my dear Ritsuka that Big Sis has no problem dealing with some feeble chains!" She didn't even wait for an answer before rushing towards the self-proclaimed child of Tiamat.

"Tsk! So it is really you, Quetzalcoatl!" They immediately answered in kind, firing several segments of the chains of heaven from their body.

But the Goddess weaved through them like the wind. Not just that. She grabbed one of the god-binding constructs and pulled with all her might to gain even more speed. Her other hand was pumped full of magical energy for a devastating punch, which Kingu met head-on, causing another massive shockwave.

"I expected Ereshkigal to desert given her naiveté, but not you! Of all Goddesses, I thought you would understand and share Mother's grief! Don't you feel like turning into a killing machine after that barbaric Hernan Cortés slaughtered your civilization!"

"Well, of course I understand it! That is exactly one of the reasons I'm helping Uruk to put her out of her misery! It is my way of thanking her for letting me meet a wonderful master!"

"If that's the case…" Kingu's magical energy spiked as their expression turned truly murderous for the first time. "We don't need foolish Goddess in our new world! I'll shred you to pieces!"

The Goddess's smile didn't waver as she faced the incongruous anger of a machine with her heartfelt Lucha Libre.

---

"We're here!" Meanwhile, the Chaldeans finally made it to the massive mountain where the Blood Fort was built inside. The colossal entrance of Greek architecture made it unmistakable.

"Given the almost non-existent resistance we met, I guess all the beasts are in the front."

"Can you tell us how things are going over there, Doc!?"

"The Lenses of Shiva we destined to the front are working well despite the massive number of magical energy signatures. Not only did the entire army of Demonic Beast attack the wall, but Kingu seems to have assumed the role of their commander!"

"It's time to begin Operation Marduk Blitz for real then!" Merlin immediately took out a flare and fired it into the sky much to their horror.

"What are you doing Merlin!? Give us some time to evacuate at least!"

"If we aren't at least 300 meters away from the impact at least we will be blown away, too!"

The only response Arturia and Ishtar got from the Magus of Flower as he proceeded to hurl his staff towards the Blood Fort's entrance was a: "Whoopsy. My hand slipped. Womp Womp?"

"I will murder you, Merlin!" Even Ana lost her cool and was seriously considering cutting his neck with her scythe.

"Hey, what's happening!? Can someone give me some context!?"

"The flower bastard just killed us!"

Alter's panicked scream came out just in time before the massive axe came down from the sky and obliterated the mountain in front of them.

"SUUUUIIIICIIIDAAAAA!?" And just after that, they heard a massive, pained scream coming all the way from the Northern wall.

"That was just… evil…"

"Fouu…"

"Hey, I can't help it if my hand slipped, and my staff ended up pointing the axe directly at the Blood Fort. C'mon, we can't let Quetzalcoatl's noble sacrifice go to waste."

Everyone had to withhold their stinky glares at Merlin and follow him to the interior of the ruined temple.

---

Some minutes before…

"That's the signal, Kuku!"

A vicious smile appeared on Quetzalcoatl's face as she saw the flare-up in the distance and proceeded to disengage. "Playtime is over, Kingu!"

"Huh?" The expression of the Fake Enkidu morphed into pure disbelief as they saw a group of winged serpents drop something huge right on the Mesoamerican Goddess. "That's… the Axe of Marduk!? You brought that thing all the way here from Eridu!?"

"Sí! And here you have IT!" Quetzalcoatl threw it with some difficulty after spinning to gain momentum. But as expected, Kingu dodged it without a problem.

"What was that, Bird Brain? You should have thrown that thing to me while the Faker distracted me!"

"Hey, that's uncalled for! But I'll let it pass this once since everything is going according to the plan, yes! The axe is just a mere ticket to get through, and I'm just the courier- SUUUUIIIICIIIDAAAAA!?"

She didn't get to finish her phrase when a massive bolt of lightning struck her from the very heavens. To everyone's surprise, the mighty Goddess that had yet to receive a real grave injury was now left with serious burns throughout all her body and blood came out from too many places to count.

"AAAAAAHH! Kuku got turned into a fried chicken!"

"Who are you calling 'fried chicken'!? I'm a bird of fire!" However, despite her wounds, she still forced herself to stand and berate her natural enemy. "Argh! That was divine punishment!"

"Oh, now I see. You had so much divinity, but now it dropped over to a half! You broke the Goddesses' pact, but maybe it was okay because you didn't really mean to? "

"That Merlin! I see you didn't have enough Lucha Libre last time! You'll pay for this!"

Despite the back-and-forth between the Goddesses making it the perfect opportunity for Kingu to eliminate them, the sentient weapon didn't move a muscle, their face filled with horror.

"Mother's divinity has dropped significantly, too! Did she destroy the temple!? Curse you, Quetalcoatl! Why would you go to such lengths!?"

"It's not like I meant to! I'm siding with humans, but it is them who have to slay that monster."

Kingu's blue eyes immediately scanned the battlefield, and to their growing horror, they finally realized neither the Chaldens, nor the little girl with the immortal-killing scythe were around.

"Damn it! This is just a distraction! I have to go save Gorgon-"

"You're not going anywhere!"

Before they could take off, a flaming red sword almost bisected their perfect body. And that was just the first wind that announced the storm. The red knight attacked ruthlessly with his golden sword and that blade that looked suspiciously similar to the one carried by that bride girl.

If the style resulting from Nero borrowing her husband's Eye of the Mind was already troublesome, the one born from the red knight reproducing her chaotic style was nightmarish for a machine. None of it made sense, but at the same time, it was inexorably accurate and deadly. No, more than that... it seemed as if those two swords were completely synchronized on a deeper level for some reason!?

"Kuh! I don't have time to deal with you, Faker!"

"Well, you are in for a bad time, because he isn't the only one, impostor!"

To make things worse, the two samurai girls attacked from both sides. A lightning speed barrage of attacks at so close range that they couldn't just counter it with their Age of Babylon.

"ENOUGH!" With no easy way to defeat them, Kingu opted to mold the ground around him into a dome that halted their attacks for just enough time for them to rocket into the sky with their massive magical energy.

"Trace, on!" The red knight wasn't having it as he immediately switched to his bow and bombarded him with twisted swords.

Just another annoyance, as they could just fire chains from their body to take them down-

"HUH!?"

"The Wandering Tales of Shana-oh!" In a completely absurd feat, the Tengu rider leaped through the "arrows" as if they were just the boats from her legend. "Dan-no-Ura Hasso Tobi!"

Due to the surprise, Kingu could barely react. They raised their arms reinforced with magical energy, and tried to boost their endurance stat to the maximum, but-

"Usumidori – Tenjin Shukujo!"

"Guh!"

Ushiwakamaru's brilliant katana cut through them and slashed their chest. It was just enough to prevent it from reaching their core, but it still was a fatal wound that would give plenty of time for the Chaldeans-

However, the Rider's eyes widened as a blinding light came out of their wound and started healing. "What the- That's…"

---

With the Chaldeans…

"Master… what are those shadows…" Mash could no longer contain her growing horror as she stared at the strange, pulsating cocoons all over the place.

Everyone had been avoiding that subject as they descended to the inner chambers of the temple. The polished walls and floor were quickly left behind for gross, meaty ones. It was as if they entered the belly of a huge beast.

"It's better not to look… You really don't want to see…" Even the same Merlin that had been playing around a few minutes ago was now sporting a solemn look.

"No, wait! These shadows… they are…"

"We are going to kill Gorgon." Ishtar cut her with an uncharacteristic flat tone. "I too find this going too far. To desire something more productive than humans to get revenge on them… That defeats the whole purpose."

"Even as I fellow Avenger… torturing is one thing, but this is just... disgusting…" The Dragon Witch that turned France into a living hell to get her revenge was now desperately trying to hide her repulsion.

She and the divided spirit of Amaterasu had to contain the impulse of just burning them to take them out of their misery. The enemy ahead would require their very best even with her divinity thwarted. Wasting energy was not an option.

EMIYA, Arturia, and Ana maintained their impassive looks without problem as they advanced, Jeanne offered a silent prayer for the poor souls, and Nero and the masters kept their cool as they could despite the displeasure written all over their faces.

But Mash still refused to just ignore the subject. "But… But they are still alive! They've changed, but they are still alive!"

"Ritsuka, Ai, Mash, please hurry. Kingu has left the Demonic Front and is heading toward you. Given that their speed is lacking compared to previous encounters, it seems they have sustained a grave injury at the cost of escaping, but they won't take that long."

Romani took it upon himself to drop the cruel reality on her. Going out of their way to help everyone they might have been possible in previous Singularities, and it brought them unexpected allies more than once. But not this time.

"Follow me. I know where exactly Gorgon is…" Ana went on ahead, and no one questioned her. At this point, keeping her True Name a secret was pretty much a formality for everyone. "I know this is harsh, but I have to ask you. Will you still lend me your strength to defeat Gorgon, Mash?"

The lilac-haired Shielder bit her lip to the point of drawing blood. She didn't find the strength in herself to just ignore those poor souls as everyone else could. But then, a warm hand took hers, as if to give her the courage that she lacked to take her decision.

"Let's go, Mash. No one else will have to die after this final battle."

There he was. The boy that took her hand amidst that hell in the control room after the detonation of Lev Lainur's bomb, and had always been there to lend her that same hand ever since.

His legs were still trembling, and his stomach must be revolting, but he still forced himself to give her a reassuring smile. In front of such a view, how could she not smile in return?

"Yes, Senpia. Ana, I'll gladly lend you my strength."

It took the group some minutes to finally reach the deepest part of the Blood Fort. A great chamber of shorts, with the same grotesque, meaty walls, and a ceiling supported by flesh pillars that looked disturbingly like massive centipedes.

A massive black, scaled tail was wrapped alongside the walls, and tracing it back to its owner, they saw the gigantic Goddess resting over a pool of blood located at the center of the chamber.

"O Tiamat, Mother of Demonic Beasts… No, composed deity Gorgon!" Merlin raised his voice to put an end to her slumber and gain her attention. "Your divinity is all but gone! Give up and face us!"

"You are so loud, humans." The Goddess slowly raised her head, and surprisingly enough, she didn't burst in anger. Instead, she just threw them a look reserved for insignificant insects. "Do you run amok knowing this is Tiamat's bedchamber?"

"Heh, you call this the bedchamber of a Goddess?" Tamamo was the one who retorted first, her yellow eyes sending an uncharacteristic murderous glare. "Your taste for interior design is just as horrible as your methods."

"Yes, what is it that you want to accomplish with this, Gorgon!?" Mash raised her voice to ask with a firm voice. Even if they came here to kill her, at least she wanted to know the reason behind her atrocities. "You said you wanted to conquer the land that was stolen from the beasts, but why would you do… that!? I can no longer understand you!"

"Hmph." The first answer she received was an amused snort. "You want a reason? There's nothing of sorts to be found here. Maybe there are those out there that still have something to reclaim, but for us who have nothing left, there is only destruction. All we love has slipped through our fingers. All we protected is gone from this land. Even I have burned and vanished. There is only vengeance. I will kill everything, trample everything, slay the whole world, and die myself. That… is what it means to be an Avenger. For you to not comprehend this fact, you must have lived a happy life, little girl."

Mash could no longer meet that piercing look from the dormant mystic eyes, and then, the Goddess looked to a certain Dragon Witch.

"It makes no sense to talk to such a naïve girl or an Eastern Goddess who denies her true nature. But what about you, fallen Saint? I can sense the burning hatred in your soul. You must be one of my kind. An Avenger. You more than everyone should understand."

Now it was the Goddess's turn to be surprised as the same snort was thrown right back at her. "Don't put me in the same bag as a one-trick pony like you. Dying after fulfilling your revenge? That completely defeats the purpose, you jackass! The real fun will begin the moment I have the world at my feet!"

While the Goddess looked quite annoyed, everyone threw Alter amused looks. If her plan to invade the world was starting with her taking math lessons with Paracelsus, then she had a very long road ahead.

"Tsk. How impudent. You're even more naïve than the little girl in a sense. But that is not the case for you two, right?" Those massive purple orbs ended up landing on the last masters of humanity, and a twisted smile spread across her pink lips. "You're humans, and humans created me… Created this Avenger. If you find reason within my words, then nod. If you embrace my purpose, then I will keep you as my masters. Not a bad deal, right? You have been the last humans for very long. You have no reason to keep fighting for the people of this time. Hahahaha! Call it a whim of a Goddess!"

Her laugh was followed by a dead silence, and everyone looked at the two masters. However, their unwavering gaze gave away their response. They didn't need to think about the final riddle given to Archer by Ziusu-dra, as the answer was blatantly obvious.

"That's… the stupidest thing I've heard in my life! Destruction without purpose is just foolish!"

"Your words don't make any sense to us, Gorgon. Even if you have the right to seek revenge, your methods just reflect how rotten you are."

"Yes, master! There is nothing in her words I, or any human, can agree with!"

Mash joined them, and their comeback seemed Goddess the Goddess speechless. "What?"

"Cat's eaten your mouth, huh!? I guess we can't expect more from a fake Tiamat!" Ishtar rubbed even more salt in the wound, forcing Gorgon into a corner in the proverbial fight.

"You dare to call me a fake? A Goddess that needs a human vessel to manifest? You are even more pitiful than the divided fox over there."

"Oh, but you are a pale imitation. Mother definitely never would do something as half-assed as using the very people she wants revenge on to take revenge on them. She could even create a world of her own."

"Ishtar's right. You're not Tiamat. You are just a monster who lost sight of who she truly is." Those cold words containing the slightest bit of pity were the first ones to truly shake the Goddess.

"Huh?" A mixture of surprise, disbelief, and even…fear assailed Gorgon the moment her eyes finally landed on the little girl at the front of the group. The hood covering her feature was pulled back, and the effect was immediate. "Why you… Wh-what is this… Why do I feel so cold… Am I shaking? I can't maintain the composite divinity. My reason… is coming back! What's going on, Kingu!? Kingu!? Where are you!? What is this servant!? I've never seen something so… ugly!"

Slowly as she panicked, the snakes forming from her hair started to take aim at Ana, who could only sigh at such a pitiful sight.

"Get out of my sight! Someone! Anyone. Kill her! Get this monster out of my temple!"

Her voice turned into shouts as her snakes rammed against the little servant. However, all of them were stopped dead in their tracks by the cold steel of a round shield and a barrier expanding from a holy banner.

"I knew it…" Ana hadn't moved an inch, allowing herself to trust her back to her comrades as she talked to the monster descending into madness. "You can't see me, can you, Gorgon? If you had tried at least a little, there may still have been some chance of saving you."

Her immortal-killing scythe was summoned in her hands as she heard the steps of a certain Mage of Flowers approaching her.

"I also thought that I shouldn't live. That it's wrong for me to be here… That is wrong for me to smile… But all that was wrong. I wanted to live. I wanted to be here. I wanted to smile. We both are the result of that. Thank you for helping me to finally see that, everyone…"

"I see. Are you ready then, Ana? To unleash the divinity you've held back all this time." Merlin asked for confirmation, and for the first time, the look he received from the little girl wasn't of disdain.

"Yes, I will allow it, Merlin! I fell for your trick all those months back, so now show me the answer!" Everyone heard her roar to fire up her newfound resolution as the mage slid his fingers in front of her eyes.

As if he removed a blindfold that had been there blocking her eyes ever since they met her, another sizable divinity filled the room. The pupils of those purple, mystic eyes finally took their characteristic square shape, and she looked at her future without wavering.

"AAAAHHH! NO!" The panic showing on Gorgon's face just increased tenfold after their gazes met, and her snakes started to accumulate energy. "Don't look at me with those eyes!"

"Please, everyone, lend me your strength! I'll use my mystic eyes to offset hers!"

With that said, Medusa kicked the floor and rushed toward the monster without even waiting for an answer.

"Wait, Ana!" Mash screamed with concern as her legs ran behind the little servant. Even if she could counter the mystic eyes, she couldn't break through the literal storm of deadly beams with just her own power-

"O' wind, twirl around!" However, the King of Knights caught up to Ana with the release of her invisible air, and with a swing of her Holy Sword, all the beams were exterminated by the golden light.

"DIE! DIE! DIE!" That only caused the monstrous Goddess to redouble her efforts, without caring about damaging her temple. The little Medusa was her sole focus, but after being thrown into a state of disarray, her attacks were complete chaos.

"Jeanne!"

"Luminosite Eternelle!" The Saint of Orleans immediately deployed her noble phantasm around her masters to protect them from the stray beams and falling debris.

"I guess it is Tamamo's turn to take things seriously!" The three-tailed fox wasn't falling behind and threw a myriad of talismans in every direction.

In the next instant, all hell broke loose. Massive torrents of flames clashed against the purple beams, icicles the size of a car pierced the heads of the snakes forming from Gorgon's hair, and black clouds formed above her to strike her with powerful bolts of lightning.

"GAAAHH!" Even if the damage was quickly regenerated, it startled Gorgon, prompting her to swing her massive claws to disperse the clouds.

"Heh." Tamamo let out a snort as she directed a smug look at the mistress of heaven, whose arrows of lights weren't having such an impact.

"What's with that look, Eastern Goddess? Do you want to see me blowing Gorgon away for good!?" Ishtar's eyes turned golden as she started to accumulate magical energy in her divine bow, but a voice beside her interrupted her.

"Instead of getting every one of us buried under a mountain, why don't you do something more helpful!" It was EMIYA who spoke while shooting every holy and anti-monster sword in his arsenal.

"Who said you could order me around!? Just because you looked like-"

"Please, Ishtar! Pick up Mash and get her close to Ana!" Ai's plea seemed to be able to quell the Goddess's anger.

"Fine!"

Just as the Goddess took off with her heavenly boat, another two figures surpassed the Shielder to reach the little Goddess with their superior speed.

"Ana! I'll let you take the spotlight just this once, so make sure to give us an incredible show, Ana!"

"Huh!?" Just as those words from the empress of roses reached Ana's ears, she felt another big boost adding up to Merlin's Hero Creation.

"Why do you have to put everything as if you were the center of a performance!" Alter at the other side cried out loud as she burned to crisp the incoming snakes.

"Because that's how things are, of course!"

The three Saberfaces continued to escort Meduse through the storm that was Gorgon's frantic attacks. Holy light, flames of passion, and fires of hatred paved the way for her scythe, while a myriad of curses and swords kept that road wide.

It was a race against time for them. The Chaldean servants were definitely stronger, but that also meant that their masters' magical energy was getting drained way more faster. That and the collapsing ceiling made everyone burn everything they had to bring the Goddess down as fast as they could.

"There!" Once they got enough close, Ana fired her chain and wrapped it around one of the incoming snakes. With her monstrous strength, she pulled and used it to swing herself up.

"GET OFF OF ME!"

Several snakes came down to devour her, but Harpe cleanly bisected one and she used it as a springboard to get higher while letting the other servants destroy the others.

With that, Medusa had a straight line towards Gorgon's spirit core and she just had to let gravity do her thing… or at least in theory, as the monstrous Goddess fired another barrage of beams against her.

"Ana!" But like an angel descending from the heavens, Mash arrived to block those beams with her unmovable shield thanks to Ishtar. Amidst the spectacle of light dispersing from her Shield like a stream of water hitting a rock, Ana could see Mash's determined expression. "Go!"

"Its finger is iron, its hair is a cage, its whisper is sweet poison! This is me, Caress of the Medusa!"

With her noble phantasm released, her underdeveloped mystic eyes shone as their output increased beyond their capabilities as Ana began her charge.

"HAAAAAAAHHHH!" Her vicious scythe was swung frantically. Without any elegance or grace, she sliced through the last bits of resistance from Gorgon without caring about the damage she received. Her black hoodie was torn away, revealing all her bleeding injuries and painful burns, but she kept jumping through the remnants of the severed snakes to reach her target.

"WHY!? Why are you doing this!? I'm… I'm Tiamat, the primordial Goddess! I cannot be defeated by a lowly monster!"

"You're no Tiamat! You are the monster from the Shapeless Island! Gorgon, the hero-slayer! Your vengeance will never leave that island!"

"GUH!" Those words hurt her physically. Flashes of memories that were buried when the foreign divinity fused with her body were now assailing her mind. Memories of her greatest sin… "SHUT UP! Don't call me by that name!"

The Goddess still refused to disappear, her claws swinging sloppily to squash the little servant, but it was futile.

"I won't let you!"

With some regret on her face, Ishtar shattered several of her precious gems to instantly charge a massive "arrow" in her Maana and fired it at Gorgon's shoulder. That didn't only stop Gorgon's attack in her tracks, but its sheer power of the impact threw the monster off balance.

"THIS IS IT, GORGON!"

The scythe was mercilessly swung down and its blade sunk into Gorgon's chest and pierced her Spirit Origin like a burning knife cutting butter.

That was it. The weapon forged to destroy beings like her immediately stripped away her immortality, and an injury that she could have healed in seconds became completely fatal. Her massive body started to collapse in particles, and the temple seemed to follow her.

"Curse… you… I… I should be… Tiamat… but I can hear… mother's sobs…"

Some words escaped her lips as a lament in those final moments while the floor under her collapsed as well, but the little girl standing over her made no movement to avoid sharing the same fate.

"Yes, Gorgon… Let's disappear together. This is the very reason I was brought to this land." A bittersweet smile adorned Ana's lips as she threw one last look at the Chaldeans.

The group that had no time to celebrate their victory as the temple was coming down on them couldn't notice her silent farewell. All but one shield maiden protected her until the end.

"Ana! Please, take my hand!" Mash tried to reach for her, but it was no use.

The little Goddess shook her head, even if her smile widened for a moment as she descended into the abyss alongside her future self. She wished she could say there were no regrets with this parting, but unfortunately… there were, in the form of her three remaining comrades in the Demonic Front. Regrettably, it was her role to take out this pitiful monster, while the real shining heroes fought the real world-ending calamity.

"Archer… Okita… Ushiwakamaru… Farewell…"

"ANAAAA!" Mash tried to jump after her, but a pair of small, yet strong hands stopped her. "What are you doing, Arturia-san!? We have to-"

"It's no use! This is her decision, and we have to get out of here! Or do you want Ritsuka and Ai to lose someone else, too!?" The harsh words from the King of Knights made her reflect. She once again found herself biting her lips with impotence, but in the end, she ran towards the exit as well.

Their escape was close, with the temple's entrance collapsing mere seconds after Mash and Arturia went through it. There, everyone was taking a moment to catch their breath and process the battle's aftermath.

"Is everyone…" Ritsuka didn't finish his words as the grim realization hit him. "Ana…"

"Don't tell me… She…" Ai spoke with a broken voice as she reached the same conclusion, and Mash nodded to confirm it.

"Yes… She decided to fall with Gorgon…"

"That is… regrettable. Even if this Singularity will start to collapse after we retrieve the Grail…"

"Wait, does that mean we need to dig out the Grail from that pile of rubble?" Alter's words shattered the sad atmosphere.

"I could always blow the mountain away with my Noble Phantasm."

"I don't think using an anti-fortress noble phantasm near a magical energy reactor is a good idea, Ishtar."

"And what do you propose, Fox Goddess?"

"Fou, Fou! Merlin Fou!"

"What are you saying, hideous beast!? I'm a mage, not a construction worker!"

"Wait, what's this!?" Romani's nervous voice immediately put everyone on alert. "I can no longer detect the Grail below you for some reason, but I'm detecting a really similar reading coming at you at great speed! Wait, does that mean-"

"I am the bone of my sword… Rho Aias!" EMIYA was the first one to react, quickly projecting his strongest defense to block an incoming barrage of projectiles.

"Tsk. It would seem I didn't make it in time. Since I wasn't close enough, the Grail couldn't protect her." Their owner was a familiar androgynous weapon floating above them, their face reflecting genuine anger and sorrow. "If the other Goddess isn't here… did she sacrifice herself to slay Gorgon? I guess even Goddesses aren't fit to survive in the new world."

"Kingu!"

"Did they just say they had the Grail all this time!?"

"I'm afraid that's the case. Gorgon was able to restore her lost divinity thanks to the Grail, but she was never the one in possession of it."

"Heh, but what are you gonna do now, Kingu? The Demonic Front is over. You can't expect to defeat us all even with a Holy Grail. Let alone if you can't keep your emotions in check like the real Enkidu. This is our victory."

"Shut up, Ishtar. Right now, my desires to just kill you all out of spite are hard to restrain. You are right. As beings created by Gorgon, the Demonic Beast must be self-destructing now that she is no longer around."

With an incredible effort, Kingu reigned over their emotions and turned off their magical reactor. No… judging by the twisted smile on their face, it had to be something more.

"I would have liked her to live a little longer before mother's awakening, but Gorgon did a good job for us."

Just as they said that a massive tremor shock the entire place. No. Not just the Cedar Forest. That earthquake was…

"What the! Sheba's lenses are getting damaged or giving us just a black screen! And that tremor… it isn't localized! It's a space-time quake! We calculate the spatial rifts are occurring all over Mesopotamia!"

"Wow, wow, wow there, Doc! Stop talking like a rapper!"

"Doctor Roman, can't you dumb it down a little-"

"Guh!" A pained voice and the sound of blood splattering interrupted the masters. To everyone's utter astonishment, Merlin was the one collapsing on the floor with grave injuries that appeared out of nowhere.

"HUH!? I didn't see any attack incoming!" That, coming from their skilled red archer, only made things even more confusing.

"Merlin! What's happening!? It's about time you tell us the real nature of this Singularity!"

Arturia confronted him no longer beating around the bush, and the Mage of Flowers gave his former apprentice the most serious look she had ever seen on his face. "Sorry… It seems… they got me… I thought this would give us some breathing room… but it ended up backfiring completely…"

"That's right, you tricky Incubus. You put mother in a cage of dreams to postpone her awakening, but I thought a strong stimulus would do the trick. After she gave me the Grail, I forced Gorgon to synchronize with mother so they could share their senses. And you just killed Gorgon. Guess what she did the moment she started to wake up and saw her captor. Now, behold the awakening of the true original Sin of Humanity and her children! The new humanity! The Lahmu!"

The fake Enkidu left with a loud laugh, leaving only confused and terrified expressions. The first ones were on the faces of the humans and human-based heroic spirits, while the second was written all over Tamamo-no-mae and Ishtar.

"You have to be kidding! The real mother is really in this world!?"

"I don't know if this has anything to do with that, but I'm detecting a large number of living creatures emerging from the Persian Gulf. Their signals are stronger than that of an Ugallu. And their numbers… their total numbers are… over a hundred million and still growing!"

"WHAT!? How can we defeat something like that!? Not even those barbaric tribes that invaded Rome amounted to such amount!"

"Neither Chaldea nor Humanity has anything to stop that… We can't avoid getting wiped out…"

"Please, don't talk, Merlin! Master, Tamamo, we need to heal-"

"Don't bother, Mash-chan… this Spirit Origin is done for… But you aren't. She might have awakened, but she hasn't started moving yet. Go tell the King of Heroes and the King of Fakers this: One of the Beasts of the Counter Force, one that devours humanity, one that can only be beaten by the seven Grands has roused from her slumber. The Sea of Life. The Primordial Mother. One of the Seven Evils of Humanity… has awakened."

He squished those final words with his last bits of strength as he disappeared, leaving a completely clueless group that only knew things got a turn for the worst.

"Excuse me, can you hear me?" The voice that cut the unbearable silence came from their intercoms, but this time was Da Vinci's. "Since Romani is completely focused on analyzing those creatures, I'll be in charge for the moment. For now, you should head to the Northern Wall and rendezvous with the servants there. And quickly. Even if those thousands of signatures aren't all moving, the ones that did add up to 100000. Ur has been already attacked, and Eridu won't last an hour. Provided some more stop at other cities, I estimate around 10000 will head to Uruk in the next hours."

"10000 of those things!? Sorry, Ai, but I'll be going ahead! I'm pulling out all the stoppers!"

The mistress of heaven literally disappeared with a massive sonic boom with the true speed of her heavenly boat, leaving them with another man down.

"We need to get moving, too! Mash, carry Ritsuka! I'll carry Ai!" Artoria immediately took the command position as the two masters were still processing the shock of how a victory turned into this in a matter of seconds.

But even if they spend all their energy going at maximum speed, by the time they would arrive at Uruk…

---

And that's it for now. Yeah, I cut it right when the real shit is about to happen, but I think this is the best place. I mean, I think it's obvious that the next stop is going to be a lore dump about Beasts even if you haven't played F/GO up to this Singularity or haven't watched the anime, so it is best to leave it in this state of hype.

Now, speaking about the most important points of the chapter, the reason why I kept Gorgon's fight short wasn't just because the chapter was getting too long. Lorewise, that battle is meant to be just Gorgon's last struggle after Ana's presence disturbs her synchronization with Tiamat. Even more, if we have an entire servant squad to back Ana up.

That's why I decided to put more time into Quetzalcoatl's battle, which was also a one-sided massacre but it would emphasize more how much powerful the servants got after the ascension. The way Gorgon was easily defeated with that, even if the Axe of Maduk did half of the job, will also help to make things tenser when the true ending boss appears.

And also, Nero's epic moment with Nine Lives Roma. It is considerably weaker than the version of the Grand Lancer, but since Caligula has it as its extra attack, I said: "Why not?" It is a pity they copyrighted her best OST "Scattering petal curtain"… It also helped me establish already Nero's real ace in the hole, which I'll keep as a surprise until the end. Although I left a small clue as always.

On another note, those of you who have read "Date a Density" now know that the King of Fakers that appears in Chaldea in the future looks young.

And speaking about something completely unrelated, I was finally able to read "Witch on the Holy Night" during these two months, and wow! People were actually understating when they said it is truly a piece of art. Not just that, but it helps you to finally understand how magecraft and True Magic work without having to pick up separate pieces from the Wiki.

As always, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this chapter and I hope I entertained you. I'll start working on the next chapter of "Reenacting a Legend" as always. A lot of people are waiting for it, and I'm looking forward to writing it.

With this, I say goodbye for now. Hasta la vista.