Chapter 42: Tamamo-no-Mae
This piece of news had already blown up all over the internet.
Because King Artoria was arguably the most "shut-in" among all Heroic Spirits. Ever since descending onto modern Earth, she had hardly ever left Britain!
Many speculated whether she was actually restricted by Britain itself, preventing her from traveling far.
Heroic Spirits are drawn from local myths and legends, and it's true that they gain regional bonuses.
In the land where their legends were born, their overall strength can multiply several times over.
As such, every Heroic Spirit is undeniably a nation's guardian deity.
Previously, even after over ten years of war, the USA couldn't conquer the Huns, a tribe descending from the Xiongnu. Instead, they ended up provoking a terrifying Heroic Spirit.
Faced with this terrifying Heroic Spirit known as the "Scourge of God," even the Beacon Nation's Pantheon, inheritors of the Olympian gods, were forced into a panicked retreat.
Of course, rumors had it that the USA was developing a true mechanical god-body and might return in force.
Back to the main topic.
The shut-in King Artoria had finally decided to step outside after decades—this alone ignited endless speculation.
BobUchiha-[After staying inside for decades, King Artoria suddenly leaves after watching a video—how could we not overthink this?!]
AlmightyMiddleFinger-[Why bring the third wheel, Mordred?]
DefinitelyNameless-[Fine, cards on the table—I'm Nameless. I got exposed by Alaya, now my wife and kids are coming after me!]
Blorbo-[Please excuse the guy from above, he's an escapee from our Mental Health Institute. For anyone who knows the guy from above, please contact as in 63XXXXXXXXXXX ]
...
The online discussions were getting heated.
A massive wave of people claiming to be Nameless also flooded the scene.
Kirina chuckled and said, "I'll be honest too. I'm the Nameless One. Send money!"
Just as she's about to type it—
Smack~
Her head was flicked by Sanjiro, and she glared at him with tearful eyes.
"You already used up this month's allowance and still want more? If you dare spend money on gacha again, I'll break your legs!"
Sanjiro smiled gently, though his words didn't match the warmth of his expression at all.
"Hmph! You cheapskate!"
Kirina pouted and looked at the news. "King Artoria and Mordred are probably here to find Nameless. I wonder if we can cling to their legs when the time comes. If the King of Heroes shows up too, we definitely need to cling on tight!"
Those were her absolute favorite Heroic Spirits.
Especially the King of Heroes—she even dreamed of meeting him.
She always dreamt of sleeping on a mountain of shining gold coins!
"Don't get your hopes up. You're just a regular person. If they're picking student representatives, they'll probably go for a magical genius."
Sanjiro was blunt in crushing her hopes.
Though deep down, he felt a little uneasy.
The principal of Academy City was that fox who loved stirring up trouble. He wasn't sure whether she'd get involved.
If she turned out to be like Merlin and wanted to watch King Artoria and Mordred act like a harmonious family… things might spiral out of control!
Still, it had nothing to do with him.
If the sky falls, taller folks can hold it up. Right now, he was just a perfectly ordinary high school student in Japan.
All he needed to do was enjoy the show.
Right now, Sanjiro was more concerned about what Gilgamesh was planning.
That guy had Clairvoyance—could he see him?
===============
Fuyuki Academy of Magecraft (Academy City)
In Administrative District 1, all the top officials had gathered.
Standing before them was a man dressed in a traditional onmyouji white robe with a tall black hat—Abe no Seimei.
He pointed at the news and said, "Headquarters has issued an order. Our academy will be responsible for receiving them."
Fuyuki Academy of Magecraft was the largest experimental zone for magecraft in Japan, designed to test the feasibility of integrating magecraft into universal education.
Once the trial phase ends, magecraft will be incorporated into the standard 12-year education system nationwide.
Nickname—
The Magecraft Guinea Pig Lab.
But though people mockingly called it a guinea pig lab, most were just bitter because they couldn't get in.
If given the chance, they'd drop everything to attend!
The entire Japan gathered their most talented young magus here.
It was jointly managed by the genius onmyouji Abe no Seimei, and the fox Tamamo-no-Mae, who was so powerful that even the First Emperor had to personally subdue her.
At this moment—
A woman in a blue-and-gold kimono stood by the floor-to-ceiling window.
Three large, fluffy golden fox tails swayed gently behind her—more than enough to instantly win over any fan of fluff.
Her voluptuous figure and enchanting beauty exuded an otherworldly allure.
On her bewitching face—favored by the world itself—rested a faint smile. "How rare. That one's actually willing to step outside?"
No one else present, not even Abe no Seimei, dared meet her golden eyes.
They had no choice.
This fox's charm was terrifying—enough to bewitch all living things.
Even Heroic Spirits could barely resist her!
And this was just her incomplete form—with only three tails.
If all nine tails were restored—
Just the thought of it was suffocatingly terrifying!
Abe no Seimei reiterated,
"The Chancellor ordered us to treat the King's party with utmost care—they're here to find Nameless. Do not cause panic, or His Majesty's wrath will descend!"
This fox loved causing chaos.
To keep her in line, he had to invoke the name of the First Emperor as a warning.
"Hehe~"
Tamamo-no-Mae let out a soft giggle.
Even her voice was soul-charmingly seductive, causing all the female officials to blush furiously.
To mitigate her overwhelming charm, the academy's top management consisted almost entirely of women—except for Seimei.
However—
Her charm transcended gender. Even women couldn't resist.
One by one, the female staff had turned into older single ladies, declaring, "I'll only marry her!"
Abe no Seimei quickly stepped in front of everyone. "Regarding the student representative to receive King Artoria's group, Principal, what's your opinion?"
"Oh? Who's on the list?"
Tamamo-no-Mae glanced at a chart listing top students.
Talents like Rin Tohsaka, and even the more gifted Illyasviel were all there.
Each of them was monstrously talented and considered a prime candidate for the reception.
Tamamo-no-Mae spoke indifferently, "All magical geniuses, huh? Let's pick a normal person instead."
(T/N: Fate can really fuck you in the ass one way or another XD.)
To her, if not for the Emperor's orders, she wouldn't care about such mundane affairs.
She'd much rather go find this Nameless One herself and test whose charm was stronger!
How could a mere man attract not only female Heroic Spirits, but male ones, and even genderless ones?
Could he really possess an EX-ranked [Charm] skill?
"A normal person? Alright, no problem."
Abe no Seimei was momentarily stunned but didn't oppose the idea.
Though it was called a magic academy city, out of hundreds of thousands of students, 99% were still regular humans.
He made the final call: "Then let the prodigies make the recommendation."
=================
Uruk
After the video ended—
Everyone in the room fell into silence, nervously glancing at their silent king.
The Finance Minister was sweating slightly as he asked, "My King, was everything in the video true?"
"All of it,"
Gilgamesh replied with a faint smile as he gazed at the crowd.
Instantly, cold sweat poured down everyone's backs.
Previously, they had relentlessly cursed Nameless, thinking the video was fake—slandering their King.
But now? The video was real!
Which meant—the King and Nameless were truly friends!
Would the King punish them later?
But Gilgamesh didn't care about their reactions at all.
Watching the news of Artoria heading to Japan, he showed a delighted smile.
"Nameless… looks like you bastard finally need this King's assistance, huh."