Chapter 41: Tackle Her Down
Ever since forming a "manifestation" connection, a strange bond had developed between Hikigaya and the Heretic Athena.
Not only could the two no longer harm each other, they now had something akin to a symbiotic relationship.
Hikigaya guessed it might be related to how he once entered Athena's divine persona.
His relationship with Athena wasn't the same as in mythology, where Athena manifests as an extension of Zeus.
In those stories, Athena—despite not being able to harm Zeus—could still be harmed by him. Otherwise, where would Zeus's famous ambition to bang everything come from?
Myths only say he might not be able to take her down—not that he couldn't.
By comparison, Hikigaya and Athena's relationship clearly couldn't be summed up simply by "manifestation." That concept was likely just one part of their bond.
This brought things back to divine personas.
Everything about a god lies in their divine persona—even parts of themselves not granted by mythology.
Hikigaya wasn't sure if, in this twisted timeline, his connection with Athena still existed.
After arriving in ancient Egypt, he discovered he could no longer use lightning.
But on the flip side, if Athena could still sense him, then Yukino's changes must be related to her.
In this era, many sources that later contributed to the Athena mythos were coexisting—and some hadn't even emerged yet.
For example, the Serpent Goddess of Minoan Crete, from whom Athena inherited her ties to animals and wild nature.
When blood and fire fused Minoan and Mycenaean cultures, the Mycenaean shield-bearing goddess would be added.
Then the Near Eastern goddesses would join, forming a massive interwoven network of divine personas—each thread or knot representing multiple deities. This organic web gave rise to Athena's complexity.
Because of that complexity, Hikigaya had always chosen to overestimate Athena's unpredictability.
Which was why he had just shouted like that.
And to his surprise—she responded.
Hikigaya now felt… damn, this is awkward as hell.
If Athena could do as he feared—use links to her alternate selves across time to manifest in this era—then that was seriously a headache.
There weren't too many goddesses at this time who would later contribute to Athena's image, but still enough to make it a mess.
Probably not the Serpent Goddess—but who knew who it actually was?
Which one was it?
Hikigaya Hachiman asked himself.
This woman had reacted directly to the name Athena, understood modern Japanese, yet avoided physical contact with him during battle—no, outright fled.
It felt like something seriously abnormal was happening.
"Who are you really?" he asked.
He cautiously shuffled a few steps forward, trying to approach the possessed Yukino.
"You should stop!" she snapped, stepping back again. Her expression grew cold, her gaze drifting past Hikigaya's shoulder.
Behind him was a mess of mangled corpses and shredded limbs, the sand dyed a deep, dark color. Several beasts still prowled atop the body piles…
No, not just prowling—they were clearly forming a siege. Even from afar, Yukino could feel their predatory gazes locked on her.
"If you don't make your beasts retreat, this girl's life will be lost," she warned Hikigaya. "Or are you planning to keep tampering with time?"
"Relax. Time is like water—just needs a little stirring, and it settles again," Hikigaya said casually.
He didn't move forward, but several Set Beasts appeared behind him, crouching by his feet, growling threateningly at Yukino.
The sound was chilling.
Just hearing a bit of it would make ordinary people hallucinate their own violent deaths, collapsing mentally—or else be overwhelmed by a desire to destroy everything, eventually dying of exhaustion and hysteria.
But here, the only things present were corpses and two non-humans—so it was fine.
"You planning to just throw this girl away?" the entity inside Yukino's body seemed annoyed.
"If you won't give her to me, I'll just have to take her," Hikigaya said, scratching a Set Beast's head.
Mmm… nice texture. Might be fun to take for a walk.
He was now on a whole other level in using Set Beasts.
Once he got back to modern times, maybe he'd schedule a walk with Voban and their dogs.
As he happily petted the divine beast, more Set Beasts encircled the possessed Yukino—blocking every possible escape.
"Now that things have gotten this far, let me tell you something," Hikigaya said gently, glancing at her. "Your threats don't matter much to me. Her life is already bound to the Djed Pillar. Even if only ashes remain, she'll be revived. You can't stop it."
He waved his hand—and a Djed Pillar amulet appeared.
The same one he had once given Yukino.
If there was one truly precious thing Hikigaya had gained from this 3000-year journey—it wasn't god-slaying powers or new abilities, but the divine knowledge revered by ancient Egyptians as the truth behind the world's function.
That knowledge deepened his understanding of Osiris and Set's powers.
The way ancient Egyptians interpreted divine strength gave Hikigaya a whole new perspective—and empowered his abilities further.
The Set Beasts were one manifestation of this; the Djed Pillar was another.
In ancient Egypt, the concept of "amulet" had multiple words.
Three-quarters of them meant "protection," the rest meant "health." Egyptians used amulets to protect the living, accompany the dead, and offer to gods in hopes of blessings.
These amulets already had quasi-divine tool properties.
Hikigaya, having finally come to ancient Egypt, of course wouldn't miss the chance to learn.
The craftsmanship behind those amulets had been lost in modern times. But now that Hikigaya had mastered the techniques, the amulets he made were nothing short of formidable.
Even if others couldn't see it, the entity possessing Yukino definitely could.
Sure enough—after a brief pause, Hikigaya saw a flicker of fear on her face.
He seized the opportunity, lunged forward, and slammed Yukino to the ground.