Chapter 46. The Roundtable Meeting Begins! — This Battle, is the Battle to Save the World
Elsos Ruins, Central Altar.
The air was burning. If one discounted the minor scorpion monsters fleeing in all directions, the current battlefield was nothing short of a portrait of the apocalypse.
"ROAAAAR!!!"
Accompanied by a roar that shattered the very atmosphere, the massive black scorpion, Antares, let out a blinding red light from the goddess statue on its back. Countless dark-red mana beams, like a bombardment from an orbital weapon, covered the entire battlefield indiscriminately.
"Barrier! Fast!" Asfi threw out all her magic items, creating shield after shield of light. But before that crimson divine authority, these defenses were as fragile as potato chips.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The earth collapsed, and dust blotted out the sun. Hestia held her head and crouched in a crater, trembling; Ais and Lili were sent flying by the shockwaves; even the transport wyvern plummeted with a mournful cry.
"Is this... the power of a God?" Shirou Emiya knelt on one knee, only the hilt remaining of his [Pseudo-Magic Sword: Mountain Slasher]. His body was covered in wounds, and his magic circuits screamed from the overload.
"It's no use, Orion." Artemis (the thought-form) stood beside Shirou, her body already beginning to turn transparent. "It is devouring my Divine Core. In a few more minutes, it will completely 'molt' and become a true 'God of Destruction.' When that happens, its arrows will fire upon the surface, turning the entire lower world into scorched earth."
"A few minutes, huh..." Shirou wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his gaze exceptionally calm.
"For an Ally of Justice, a few minutes is enough to save the world several times over."
"Eh?" Artemis was taken aback.
Shirou slowly stood up. He didn't look at the arrogant monster; instead, he looked at the long spear in his hand—[The Arrow of Orion]. And... into his own heart.
[Warning: Mana remaining below 10%.] [Warning: Physical breakdown rate at 40%.] [Warning: High-dimensional Conceptual Weapon projection request detected...]
Shut up, Shirou said coldly in his mind to the non-existent system.
If it's 'Deicide,' then I need to use 'Deicide' specifications.
He thrust the long spear into the ground. Then, his hands slowly rose, grasping toward the empty sky.
"Trace..."
This time, it wasn't for copying. It was for—awakening.
At the end of those distant memories, within the records of the Throne of Heroes, there was a sword. It was not born for slaughter. It was a Holy Sword of the Stars that existed to save all things when the planet faced destruction.
"I am the bone of my sword."
As the incantation began, the air around Shirou started to warp. Golden specks of light, like fireflies, emerged from the void and gathered in his palm.
"Roar?" Antares seemed to sense a fatal threat. It stopped its bombardment, its chaotic eyes staring fixedly at the tiny human. Instinct told it—it must kill him immediately, right now!
"BOOM!" Antares opened its massive maw, and a dark-red energy sphere condensed with all its divine power formed instantly. It was a [God Howling]—capable of erasing these ruins along with the mountains themselves.
"Don't even think about it!" Ais charged from the rubble, her body wreathed in black wind (Avenger fully active), attempting to block the fatal strike. "We're going in too!" Hermes threw all his explosive potions, and Asfi activated her self-destruct magic items.
Even if it was like a mantis trying to stop a carriage, they would fight to buy that single second.
"Steel is my body.
Fire is my blood."
Shirou did not look at the tragic scenes around him. His mind was completely submerged in the concept of that sword.
It was a Holy Sword sealed by thirteen restraints. Only when specific conditions were met could the seals be undone to release its true radiance.
[Seal Thirteen—Decision Start]!
In that instant, time seemed to stand still. A grand and solemn voice echoed in the depths of Shirou's soul and across the entire battlefield.
"—This is a battle for survival (Kay)." [Accepted]. Facing a desperate situation of certain death, to live on, the first seal was released. The radiance in Shirou's hand condensed into a physical hilt.
"—This is a battle against one more powerful than oneself (Bedivere)." [Accepted]. Challenging a God with a mortal body; the condition was met. The crossguard appeared, and golden particles began to rotate frantically.
"—This is a battle that does not go against humanity (Gaheris)." [Accepted]. For protection, not for selfish desire. The blade began to extend, its holy aura purifying the surrounding air.
"—This is a battle to defeat evil (Mordred)." [Accepted]. Facing a demonic beast that swallowed a Goddess and sought to destroy the world; this was absolute "Evil." The light was blinding, even suppressing the red glow in Antares's mouth.
"—This is a battle fought for no personal gain (Galahad)." [Accepted]. Not for fame or fortune, but only for the wish of a sorrowful Goddess.
Five seals released. The Holy Sword in Shirou's hand was fully formed. It was a holy and beautiful sword of promised victory, wrapped in golden light—[Excalibur Proto (Holy Sword of the Stars)].
But it wasn't enough. Facing a God-level enemy, the power of five seals was not enough for a one-hit kill. He needed... the last one. The most crucial one.
Shirou snapped his eyes open. His pupils had turned completely golden, and the skin across his body was cracking under the pressure of the Holy Sword, blood staining his clothes red. Yet he still held the sword high, issuing his final declaration to the monster about to destroy the world.
"—This battle, is the battle to save the world (Arthur)!!!"
[Accepted].
The sixth seal, released. More than half of the restraints were set free. The true form of the Holy Sword—Manifested!
"ROAAAAAR!!!" Antares felt fear. It waited no longer; the energy ball in its mouth shot forth with the momentum to destroy everything.
"Excalibur!!!"
Shirou swung both hands down.
BOOM!!!
The golden pillar of light and the red energy ball collided in mid-air. There was no stalemate. There was no explosion. There was only—swallowing.
The golden radiance, like a hot knife through butter, easily sliced through the red energy ball, the atmosphere, and space itself. Carrying the concept of "Saving the World," it thundered unstoppably toward Antares.
"Im... impossible..." Within that radiance, the monster's desperate roar seemed to echo.
The pillar of light pierced through Antares's massive frame. Its indestructible shell was like paper before the light of the stars. A gargantuan explosion rose to the sky, completely blowing off the ceiling of the Elsos Ruins. A pillar of light reaching the heavens was so bright that even the people far away in Orario could see it clearly.
A long time passed. The light faded. The dust settled.
The once massive monster had vanished. Only a giant, charred crater remained.
"Did we... did we win?" Hestia poked her head out from a pile of dirt, staring blankly at the deep pit.
"That kind of power... even a God couldn't withstand that, right?" Hermes wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, looking at Shirou standing at the edge of the pit with eyes full of awe. "That strike... has already touched the realm of 'Arcanum'."
Shirou Emiya stood at the edge of the cliff. The Holy Sword in his hand had dissipated. His right hand... no, his entire right side of his body, had turned charred black, like burnt wood. But he still stood.
"It's over... Artemis," Shirou said to the air beside him.
However, there was no response.
"Hm?" A strong sense of unease suddenly surged in Shirou's heart. The alarm of [Mind's Eye] had not stopped.
Crack... crack...
A grating sound of fracturing came from the bottom of the deep pit.
"No way..." Ais covered her mouth, a look of despair in her eyes.
In the center of that charred pit. Amidst the ashes. A core radiating an eerie red light—the location of Artemis's main body—still floated there. Though its surface was covered in cracks and its light was dim, it... had not shattered.
Gurgle gurgle...
The residual mana around them, and the resentment from deep within the earth, were frantically gathering toward that core. Countless black tentacles reached out from the ground, enveloping the core. The monster's flesh was regenerating at a staggering speed.
"Roar... it's not... over yet...I... am immortal..."
Antares's voice rang out again. Though weak, it was full of mockery.
"How..." Shirou's body swayed, nearly collapsing. That strike just now was a miracle bought by overdrawing all his life force. He had even released six of the [Thirteen Restraints]. Why... was it still not dead?
"Because... I am inside."
Artemis's thought-form manifested again. Her body was so transparent it was about to disappear. She looked at the regenerating monster in the pit, a tragic and beautiful smile on her face.
"Antares has completely fused with my Divine Core.
As long as I am alive (existing as the core), it can regenerate infinitely.
Your Holy Sword was indeed strong—strong enough to destroy its flesh. But because in your heart... you still wanted to save me."
Artemis turned around and looked at Shirou. Her hand gently stroked Shirou's charred right hand.
"Even a Holy Sword with its seals released cannot slay a God who does not wish to die. Because in your subconscious... you avoided my vital points."
"That tiny bit of hesitation... was the 'difference of a hair's breadth'."
Shirou froze. It was true. At the moment he swung the sword, he had seen Artemis's face on the monster's back. That split-second hesitation had caused the Holy Sword's trajectory to deviate... by one centimeter from the core.
It was this one centimeter that caused this life-risking battle of deicide to fall short at the final step.
"ROAAAAR!!!"
With a roar, Antares's regeneration was complete. This time, it became even more hideous and twisted. It was no longer a simple scorpion, but an aberration of a demon god with countless arms and tentacles.
"Shirou Emiya!
Thank you for your mercy!
In return... I will turn all of you into my nourishment!"
Despair descended once more. And this time, Shirou had no mana left to project a Holy Sword again.
"Is this the end?" Shirou looked at the approaching demon god, clenching his fist, which had lost all sensation.
Unwilling. Truly... so unwilling.
"It's not over yet, Orion."
Artemis suddenly hugged Shirou. Though it was only an ethereal embrace, Shirou felt a surge of warm power.
"You still have... one last trump card."
She pointed to the long spear Shirou had been carrying on his back. The true divine artifact pulled from Orario.
[The Arrow of Orion].
"Use this.Use this spear... to pierce my heart.
This time... do not hesitate again.
If you truly love me (as a friend/believer)...
Then kill me."
The wind stopped. It seemed only the Goddess's gentle yet cruel request remained in the world.
Shirou Emiya looked at the long spear in his hand, then at the roaring demon god. His hand was trembling. Tears, mixed with blood, slid down his cheeks.
"Ah..." Shirou let out a raspy, low growl.
"I understand."
He pulled out the long spear. Not to save the world. But to... give the woman (Goddess) he loved a release.
The final battle. Not for victory. But for—goodbye.
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