Chapter 77: The Ancestress of Snakes, Ancilla
"I must admit... you have indeed defeated me."
Though deeply unwilling, Athena knew that she had lost at this moment—thoroughly and completely.
If it were merely a defeat, she wouldn't be as indignant as she was now. What fueled her rage was that she hadn't just been defeated; she had been bested by the very individual who had severely humiliated her, and who, even at the end, mocked her.
Despicable, loathsome, hateful! Why did such a detestable fellow possess such immense power?
"Enough nonsense. Kill me quickly and take my authority."
Athena endured the humiliation, closing her eyes and waiting for death. However, death did not come.
Confused, she opened her eyes to see the man tidying his appearance. Her anger flared instantly; she had prepared herself for death, yet this guy acted as if he didn't care about her at all.
"Are you not going to kill me?"
Hearing this, Shirou lightly brushed the grit from his clothes and looked down at the goddess.
"I have no particular interest in your authorities. How about this: I'll let you go today and rack up a favor. You can pay me back once you've recovered your strength."
"Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?" Athena furrowed her brows, looking at the man proposing such a thing with disbelief.
"What do you think?" Shirou looked at the girl lying before him looking up, his lips curling into a slight arc.
"..."
Athena carefully assessed their current combat power. Indeed, even if she recovered her full strength, she wouldn't be able to defeat this 'Demon King'...
Knowing this fact didn't make it any less frustrating; the feeling of wanting to fight but being unable to win was truly vexing.
"Fine... the loser should obey the winner. Although I lost this time, once I have repaid this favor, I will definitely defeat you next time!"
A trace of stubbornness flickered in the young goddess's pale violet eyes as she brushed back her silver hair.
"The name of the man who defeated me is already carved into my heart. Farewell... Orihara Shirou!"
Having said this, the petite Athena made several leaps through the woods, and the aura of a 'Heretic God' radiating from her moved completely away from the coast.
"Finally... this incident is more or less over. A reunion with the goddess... I'm looking forward to it a little..."
-
--
-
"What!? My King, if you don't kill the 'Heretic God' you defeated, your authorities won't increase, right...?"
Upon hearing that Shirou had defeated the goddess Athena but had not killed her, Erica immediately showed a look of disbelief.
"Athena's authorities didn't have enough charm to interest me. If this goddess is left alive, perhaps I'll encounter more interesting things."
To this, Shirou explained with a light chuckle.
"I see... Sorry, My King, I was a bit too agitated..."
Since the King had his own plans, as a knight, Erica had no intention of obstructing his ideas.
"Don't worry about it. It just shows that Erica cares about me."
Sitting in the back seat of the car, Shirou smiled and reached out to stroke the girl's slightly warm cheek.
"My King... woohoo, it's so good that you know my true heart!"
Erica couldn't help but be moved; tears she had struggled to squeeze out appeared at the corners of her eyes. She then reached out to hook Shirou's arm, leaning in with extreme intimacy.
"Hey, Erica! Don't do such shameless things when there are so many people around!"
Seeing this, Liliana immediately grabbed Erica, pulling her away from Shirou's side.
"Darn it, Liliana, if you want to compete with me for the King's favor, just say it straight. No need to be so indirect~"
Erica leaned her face close to Liliana's ear and spoke in a teasing tone. As expected, the effect was outstanding; the silver-white knight-princess's face turned completely red, and she even started stuttering.
"You, you, you... what are you talking about?! I... I didn't..."
"Oh? You didn't?" Erica immediately hooked Shirou's arm again, giving Liliana a provocative smile.
"Without even this much resolve, you want to compete on the same stage as me? In your dreams!"
"Darn it...!!"
Liliana flushed with anger. She went around the front of Shirou to the seat on the other side and hooked his left arm.
"How could I possibly lose to you like this!"
Looking at Liliana, whom she had bluffed to such an extent, Erica showed a little devilish smile, her heart blooming with joy.
"Great. As expected, serving one King with you, Liliana, is quite an interesting thing!"
"What on earth are you talking about!?"
Seeing that even after she had gone this far, Erica still didn't show even a hint of feeling threatened, Liliana gritted her teeth in fury. She couldn't help but start wondering if she had done something wrong.
-
-
-
A boy named Lu Yinghua arrived at a shrine built in a corner of Mount Nikko.
Compared to the magnificent Toshogu and the Futarasan Shrine near the west side, this area was partitioned off from the general public tourist areas. Within these precincts, Mikihiko, dressed in priestly robes, was answering a phone call.
"In other words, the King will be coming here? Of course, you are very welcome... yes, yes, please give my regards to the King."
Standing beside Mikihiko were Lu Yinghua and Ancilla.
"Impressive. From that tone of voice just now, one couldn't tell at all that he was being controlled by you."
Lu Yinghua looked toward Ancilla.
"This kind of mental interference magecraft is extremely difficult. Is it really okay?"
"Hmph. With my magical energy, such a thing is a piece of cake. Don't look down on me, little boy."
Glared at by Ancilla, Lu Yinghua's ingrained wariness and fear of women erupted as soon as the battle ended. He hastily backed away several steps, just to be further from the woman. Being too close to a woman gave him goosebumps all over, and his brain felt as if thousands of mosquitoes were buzzing—it was unbearable.
Ancilla, naturally, didn't know that the boy named Lu Yinghua had such a personality; she was merely slightly puzzled by his actions.
"You must understand, I am a figure who stands at the pinnacle of all witches."
Ancilla spoke as if it were a matter of course. Then, she looked at K Mikihiko like a doll she had grown tired of playing with.
"The trouble is, not only the shrine maiden who serves as the key, but even the 'King' here has smelled the 'Heretic God' and is coming. It's a bit troublesome..."
Lu Yinghua could hear not only Kujiuka Mikihiko's voice but even the voice on the other end of the phone. It seemed to be a call from a woman, her voice sharp and keen.
"Hmph. Let him come. I even dared to compete with John Pluto Smith. A brat who has been a Campione for less than a month can be easily struck down."
Hearing Ancilla's arrogant words, Lu Yinghua spoke with a cold smile.
"..."
Ancilla fell silent for a brief moment, her brows furrowing slightly in displeasure.
"I see. I finally understand the reason why you lost to John Pluto Smith in Los Angeles.
You still don't understand how troublesome a 'King' is. Those people, regardless of their experience—once they kill a god and seize an authority, they are existences that transcend any magus. No matter how powerful or peerless we are in the world of magecraft, in front of a King, even the weakest one is enough to crush us."
Lu Yinghua exhaled as if dealing with a nuisance and continued.
"Martial arts and magecraft, schemes and traps—such things are useless against a Godslayer. My level of martial arts is probably higher than five out of the seven Kings, but I wouldn't dare face them head-on. Those people, no matter who the opponent is, are absolute 'victors.' No matter how much talent one has or a hundred years of cultivation, it's impossible to rival them. That is why they are called Kings."