Chapter 97: Thirteen Goddess' Wills

The Second Moon hanging in the sky, [Artemis' Bow,] had finally disappeared.

On the high platform of Babel Tower.

The goddess Loki exhaled lightly, "That was terrifying. If that thing had really been fired, Orario as it is now, us gods, unable to use divine power, wouldn't have been able to stop it at all."

Freya spoke, "Indeed. Artemis' martial prowess ranks among the highest even among the gods."

However, what made [Artemis' Bow] truly fearsome was the divine power imbued within it.

If the gods could use their divine power, things would have been completely different. Without even needing to join forces, quite a few gods in Orario would have been able to withstand that one arrow.

For example, the other goddess present—Hephaestus. Whether using her [World Shield] to block the attack or her [Flame God's Sword] to cleave it apart, either would have been enough to counter the lethal strike of Artemis' Bow.

If given enough time, Loki could have prepared a grand spell for effective defense. As for Freya, if she were allowed to use divine power, the boaz [King] Ottar from the dungeon would have truly unleashed a power capable of devouring the moon.

However, there was one absolute, insurmountable rule for the gods: divine power must not be used.

This was an unbreakable rule. Divine might, divine duties, divine authority, and divine will could all, under specific circumstances, be tolerated to some extent. But divine power alone was an eternal taboo.

Even if the Lower World were on the brink of destruction, gods were absolutely forbidden from using their divine power to save it.

This might seem unreasonable, but the logic behind it was exceedingly simple.

Even those wicked and evil gods, despite failing countless times, losing everything, and becoming laughingstocks, had never resorted to using their divine power to destroy the world.

The power of divinity was too overwhelming. It could create everything, destroy everything, control everything, and grant omniscience and omnipotence. Once this taboo was broken, everything in the [Lower World] would lose its meaning.

For this reason, Artemis' actions could not be forgiven. Even though she had used divine power with the intention of saving her Familia's children, the consequences of her actions went far beyond just sacrificing a few lives.

Ultimately, her actions resulted in an extremely dire catastrophe—the birth of [Antares], a monster that had stolen the power of the Moon Goddess.

In some ways, this was an even greater threat than the Black Dragon, a monster more lethal and terrifying.

Orario, and indeed the entire Lower World, had truly walked on the precipice of annihilation.

And as the instigator of this disaster, the Moon Goddess Artemis would pay the most severe price for it.

"The Moon God's Bow has disappeared. Did those children... win?", Hephaestus murmured.

"They should have," Loki added, "Seriously, that had me worried for so long."

"Say, Loki, you wouldn't have hidden under the covers crying at the thought of saying goodbye to the children, would you~?", Freya chuckled.

Loki snapped, "Shut up! I'd never do that! Only a love-obsessed goddess like you would cry over something like this…"

"I cried, you know," Freya calmly responded.

Loki: "What?"

Freya lifted her head and smiled, "Just thinking that I might never see those children again made me unable to hold back my tears. Is that really such an embarrassing thing?"

"Ugh…", Loki fidgeted awkwardly, "Actually, I also…"

Seeing Freya easily render Loki speechless, Hephaestus shook her head helplessly.

Suddenly, all three goddesses stood up simultaneously, their gazes locking onto the same direction.

"This is Artemis' divine will. What is she trying to do now?"

Artemis' divine will erupted fully, encompassing everything under the moonlight in the mortal world, even reaching the gods still in the Divine Realm.

Among the gods, Artemis had selectively chosen about thirteen to receive her divine will.

Without question, this was another violation, a serious enough one to warrant expulsion back to the Divine Realm. But given Artemis' circumstances, expulsion was likely the least of her concerns.

Her divine will was simply meant to deliver a message.

["The artifact forged by the Child of the Lower World is complete. I sincerely invite you all to form a covenant with it and help it ascend."]

To form a covenant, or rather, a [binding], in exchange for the artifact's ascension. This was a principle Shirou had learned from a certain sword.

It was a rule of causality: the stronger the covenant or binding set upon it, the greater power could be granted to the artifact.

In an instant, dozens of divine wills burst forth across the mortal world. Even if it meant breaking the rules, the gods were eager to send their response.

Each of their divine wills carried the same message: ["I! Pick me!"]

———

"The bindings are set. The Holy Sword is forged."

With an incredible method, that [Sword] had been created. Shirou, holding the radiance that burned like the stars, stepped toward Antares.

Amidst the boundless snowfall of his Reality Marble, the crescent moon and scorching sun had both faded away. Only the sacred flame in Shirou's hands blazed fiercely.

A true divine artifact [Orion's Arrow]; a magical force vast enough to erase a city; the great undertaking of challenging a [Divine Beast]; the divine spirits who sacrificed everything; the infinite swords within the Reality Marble; the thirteen goddesses' covenants—

And the prototype of this "Holy Sword," which was fated to be tied to Shirou's very destiny—[Fate].

All of these had converged into this miracle that would save the world.

[Thirteen bindings released. The goddesses' decree begins.]

[This battle is a battle for survival.]

[Acknowledged —Hephaestus]

[This battle is a battle to uphold justice.]

[Acknowledged —Astraea]

[This battle is a battle for the sake of all that is beautiful.]

[Acknowledged —Freya]

[This battle is a battle fought alongside the goddesses.]

[Acknowledged —Artemis]

[This battle is a battle to protect the earth.]

[Acknowledged —Demeter]

[This battle is a battle to defy the gods.]

[Acknowledged —Loki]

[This battle is a battle for the honor of the goddesses.]

[Acknowledged —Hera]

[This battle is a battle to save the world.]

[Acknowledged —Skadi]

[This battle is a battle to preserve the rules.]

[Acknowledged —Amaterasu]

[This battle is a battle to protect family.]

[Acknowledged —Parvati]

[This battle is a battle to challenge mighty foes.]

[Acknowledged —Ereshkigal]

[This battle is a battle for the ultimate love.]

[Acknowledged —Kama]

[This battle is a battle to protect the children.]

[Acknowledged —Tiamat]

"The Holy Sword, unsheathed."

This sword, radiant with light, was the embodiment of the noble and tragic ideals held in the hearts of all warriors who had perished on the battlefield, past, present, and future.

To take pride in this will, to carry this belief through to the end, at this moment, the undefeated king declared the miracle's true name.

Bear witness—

"[Excalibur Artemis—The Star's Holy Sword at Twilight]!"

The one whom Emiya was imitating was a Noble Phantasm that also possessed the concept of [Thirteen Constraints]—

[The Lance That Shines to the End of the World(Rhongomyniad)]

A Noble Phantasm possessed by King Arthur, Artoria Pendragon.

The Holy Spear, the Storm Anchor that binds the stars.

Its true form is said to be a tower that anchors the surface of the world. When its True Name is released, its rank and nature undergo a transformation.

Even though its original power is limited by the thirteen constraints, it remains the most distant spear that shines as it sings the light of the stars.

The Holy Spear Rhongomyniad takes as its essence the [Pillar of Light] that maintains the surface of the world. Due to the existence of the thirteen constraints, which follow the same system as the [Holy Sword of the Star that Saves the World], it barely retains the form of a Noble Phantasm.

[Sword of Promised Victory (Excalibur)]

Likewise, it belongs to King Arthur, Artoria Pendragon.

Among all Holy Swords, it stands at the pinnacle. It was not forged by humans. Created from the crystallization of people's hopes within the planet itself, it is one of the ultimate god-forged weapons, classified as the [Last Phantasm].

Originally managed by the spirits of the stars, it was later entrusted to the Lady of the Lake and, through the mediation of the magus Merlin, delivered into the hands of King Arthur.

It can convert the wielder's magical energy into light and then release it like a beam from the sword's downward swing, obliterating all in its path.

"Thank you, Artoria," Emiya softly spoke the name of this Heroic Spirit he had never met.

Riviera, her robes stained with blood, rubbed her eyes. In that fleeting moment, she seemed to see two ethereal figures standing beside Emiya—hazy yet mysterious.

They were two blonde female knights, one tall and one short. One had a mature and noble air with a graceful figure, while the other was slender and delicate yet brimming with gallant spirit. Their presence was both beautiful and dignified, like heroic spirits from ancient legends.

Their fingertips gently rested upon Emiya's hands, which tightly gripped the [Holy Sword].

Moonlight filtered through the drifting snowfall, casting dappled radiance upon their golden hair, wrapping them in a divine glow.

Riviera watched, her heart trembling. She could not tell whether this was an illusion or reality.

At that moment, one of the female knights, her golden eyes shimmering faintly, seemed to glance in Riviera's direction.

The instant their gazes met, Riviera felt as if an immense force had struck her from the void. Like a heavy iron hammer slamming into her skull.

Her ears buzzed, her consciousness blurred in an instant, and her footing wavered, nearly making her collapse.

In the next moment, she struggled to focus her vision, but the two figures had already vanished. Only Emiya remained, standing alone, gripping the [Holy Sword] that radiated dazzling light.

The brilliance of the Holy Sword surged, illuminating every corner of the snowfield, as if it sought to shatter this endless winter and awaken all the wills and convictions buried beneath the ice and snow.

As the blade swung, the radiance grew ever more resplendent, becoming an aurora in the snowy night that pierced the sky.

The towering pillar of light, transformed into an endless tidal wave of moonlight, swept across the entire world.

It was an unstoppable force, a divine will from the Moon Goddess herself, carrying supreme judgment and salvation, instantly engulfing Antares. In that moment, time itself seemed to halt.

Under the pressure of the light pillar that pierced heaven and earth, Antares could no longer even release its final arrow. Artemis' will resonated with the light of the Holy Sword, surging violently. The divine power it had stolen began to backfire against it.

The scorpion monster's roars were gradually drowned out in the flood of boundless light. Its pitch-black body crumbled within that radiance, its stinger snapped, its limbs dissolved, and finally, it was entirely devoured by the light.

Antares' form vanished as if it had never existed, erased completely at the edge of the snowfield.

["—Shirou."]

Hearing the goddess's voice, Emiya slowly opened his eyes.

["This place is—"]

Before his eyes stretched an endless snowfield where the wind and snow had ceased. In the sky, fragments of light drifted down like glowing spring rain, silently descending.

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