Chapter 47. The Fully Released [Holy Sword of the Stars]! The Great Hero Emiya's Deicide!
Elsos Ruins, or rather, the center of world destruction.
The current state of the battle was such that describing it as a "Hellish Portrait" seemed pale and weak. It was as if the final boss battles of every 3A masterpiece had been fused together, and then a sadistic developer had enabled "Hell Difficulty + One Life Clear" mode.
"ROAAAAR!!!"
The Demon God Antares unleashed a roar that shattered the firmament. The goddess statue on its back had turned completely pitch black, and countless tentacles connected to the earth like blood vessels, siphoning the planet's mana. It was no longer a scorpion, but a mobile "Fortress of Destruction."
"Not dead... not dead yet...
I will... devour everything..."
"Has this guy turned on a health-lock hack?!" Hermes hid behind a giant boulder, watching the monster that refused to die no matter how it was hit, clutching his hair in a breakdown.
"It can still move even with its heart exposed? This isn't scientific! This isn't magical!"
"Stop complaining! Think of something!" Hestia, though equally desperate, firmly shielded Lili and Asfi behind her. "Shirou-kun... Shirou-kun, he..."
Everyone's gaze was focused on the red-haired youth standing on the edge of the cliff.
Shirou Emiya. His current state was beyond the help of even the best photo editor. The right side of his body was charred black like coal, his left arm was unnaturally twisted, and the magic circuits across his body were like a circuit board burned out by overload, flickering with dangerous sparks from time to time.
HP: 1 (Roughly). MP: 0 (Absolutely). Mental State: Edge of Blackening (Maybe).
But he still stood. In his hand, he held the long spear radiating moonlight—[The Arrow of Orion].
"Do it! Orion!" Artemis's thought-form's voice echoed in his ear, carrying sobs and pleas. "Kill me! Only this can stop it!"
"I know..." Shirou's voice was as raspy as if he had swallowed hot coals.
He raised the spear. His arm was trembling. Not from fear, but because his body had reached its limit. Muscle fibers were tearing, and his bones let out a mournful creak. But he raised it anyway.
"Aiming... Correction..." [Mind's Eye (True)] was frantically throwing errors in his field of vision; red warning boxes almost completely obscured his sight. But amidst those countless red frames, there was one tiny, blue dot. That was Antares's core. And also... Artemis's heart.
"Go!"
Using the final shred of strength in his body, Shirou hurled the spear.
"Gae Bolg (Spear of Striking Flight)—! No, it's Orion!"
Swoosh!
The spear turned into a pale blue meteor, tearing through the air, the mana storm, and even Antares's thick "Divine Shield." Without suspense, the spear accurately pierced the dark-red core in the demon god's chest.
"AWOOOOOO—!!!"
Antares let out a shrill scream. Its movements froze. The core in its chest began to rupture, and a vast amount of divine power gushed out like a flood.
"We... we did it?!" Ais cried out in joy.
However. Just when everyone thought the battle was over, the classic "Smoke-But-No-Damage" law (though blood was involved here) cruelly mocked their naivety once again.
"..."
The originally disintegrating Antares suddenly stopped collapsing. The spear in its chest was actually... swallowed. Black tentacles frantically wrapped around the spear, assimilating it, even... turning it into its own power source.
"How is this possible..." Artemis's face instantly turned deathly pale. "It... it even swallowed the 'God-Slaying Spear'?!"
"Roar... delicious... this is... Orion's power..." Antares's voice became even more distorted, its size swelling again. The goddess statue on its back actually opened its eyes—those were Artemis's eyes, but they were filled with chaos and madness.
"Thank you... for sending... the final puzzle piece."
BOOM! A divine pressure ten times stronger than before erupted. The entire Elsos Ruins completely collapsed. The sky turned blood-red. The world-ending beam known as the "Arrow of God" condensed in the halo behind it.
"It's over..." The weapon in Hermes's hand dropped to the ground. "This time it's really... Game Over."
Despair. True despair. When even the final trump card is used by the enemy, how do you fight? This was practically the writer forcing a bad ending!
But. Amidst this dead silence of despair, there was still a voice ringing faintly.
"Trace..."
It was Shirou Emiya. He was kneeling on the ground, bleeding from his facial orifices, his consciousness blurred. But he was still chanting.
"..."
"As long as I... still have a breath left..."
"Idiot! Stop!" Ais tried to rush over, but was suppressed by the divine pressure, unable to move. "Your body is already..."
"I know." Shirou laughed miserably. Of course he knew. His body was completely broken. His magic circuits weren't just burned out; they were starting to melt. His soul was collapsing.
But. If he didn't stand up here. If he didn't swing his sword here. Then that Goddess who smiled and said "The moon is beautiful tonight" would truly... be beyond saving.
"I am... an Ally of Justice."
Shirou stood up waveringly. In his pupils, a golden light began to spread, replacing the original amber. That was the essence of a "Heroic Spirit." That was the miracle connecting to the "Throne," transcending time and space.
"Since this spear isn't enough... Since the weapons of this world aren't enough...
Then I'll use... that sword."
Shirou closed his eyes. In his mind, at the end of that infinite wilderness, he searched for the most dazzling light. That wasn't his sword. It was the sword of the King of Knights—the one he once admired, once pursued, and once swore to protect.
"Body is made out of swords."
The incantation was chanted. But this time, it wasn't for projecting a fake. It was for—bringing down the Truth.
"Steel is my body.
Fire is my blood."
The air began to vibrate. Golden light particles emerged from the void, surrounding Shirou. Those particles were so holy, so warm, like... the breath of the stars.
"Roar?" Antares felt the threat. It instinctively aimed all its muzzles at Shirou. "DIE... DIE DIE DIE!!!"
Countless beams of destruction were fired.
"Unaware of loss.
Nor aware of gain."
Shirou did not dodge. The golden light particles formed a barrier—[Avalon Conceptual Deployment]. Although only a projection, at this moment, it blocked the God's wrath.
"Withstood pain to create many weapons."
Shirou snapped his eyes open. In his hand, a sword appeared. The hilt, the crossguard, the blade. Wrapped in golden radiance, its physical form was unclear, but that holy aura made the entire world tremble.
[Excalibur (Holy Sword of the Stars)]. But this was no ordinary Sword of Promised Victory. This was... the Holy Sword that saves the planet, sealed by thirteen restraints.
[Excalibur Proto].
"What is... that?" Artemis looked at the sword, her soul shivering. As a God, she recognized the essence of that sword. That was—a Divine Construct forged by the planet.
"Release..." Shirou's voice was grand and solemn, as if overlapping with the King of Knights from a distant space-time.
[Seal Thirteen—Decision Start]!
Knights of the Round Table. Please, witness this strike.
"—This is a battle for survival (Kay)." [Accepted]. A golden pillar of light shot into the sky, dispelling the blood-color from the heavens.
"—This is a battle against one more powerful than oneself (Bedivere)." [Accepted]. A mortal slaying a God; this was an absolute powerhouse of a foe.
"—This is a battle that does not go against humanity (Gaheris)." [Accepted]. For protection, for love, for justice.
"—This is a battle to defeat evil (Mordred)." [Accepted]. The Demon God Antares; this was the "Evil" that destroys the world.
"—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.
"—This is a battle to seek the truth (Agravain)." [Accepted].
Six seals released. But it wasn't enough. Facing the fully deified Antares, he needed the last one, the most crucial one.
Shirou looked at the monster. He looked at the crying goddess statue on the monster's back.
"Artemis...You said you wanted to fall in love with me.
You said you wanted to see the scenery of Genkai."
"..."
"—This battle, is the battle to save the world (Arthur)!!!"
[Accepted].
The seventh seal, released. More than half of the restraints were set free. The true form of the Holy Sword—Fully Released!
"Excalibur!!!"
Shirou raised the Holy Sword, which had already turned into a pillar of light, with both hands. In that moment, he was no longer Shirou Emiya. He was Light. He was Hope. He was—a Hero.
"STRIKE!!!"
With a roar, the Sword of Light swung down.
BOOM!!!
A grand scene that words cannot describe. The golden flood swallowed Antares, swallowed the ruins, swallowed everything. It wasn't destruction. It was—purification.
Antares's defense, divine power, and flesh melted away like snow before the light of the stars. It couldn't even let out a scream. Because its existence itself had been completely erased by this brilliance.
-
-
-
White space. This is... the end of the soul.
Shirou Emiya stood in a sea of flowers. His body was intact, with no scars, no blood.
"Is this... the world after death?" Shirou scratched his head. "Seems like I really overplayed my hand this time."
"Idiot Orion."
A gentle voice rang behind him. Shirou turned around. Artemis was standing there. No longer a thought-form, but the real Goddess with a physical body. She wore a pure white dress, her smile like a flower.
"Artemis..."
"Thank you." The Goddess walked to him, reached out, and gently stroked his cheek. "Thank you... for saving me."
"Saved?" Shirou smiled bitterly. "I... killed you."
"That was my salvation." Artemis shook her head. "And... you didn't kill me. You just... woke me up from that nightmare."
She pointed around them. "This is the inside of my Divine Core. At the final moment, your Holy Sword purified Antares, but preserved my soul."
"Meaning..." Shirou's eyes lit up. "You can still be resurrected?"
"No." Artemis's gaze dimmed. "The Divine Core is already shattered. I... must go back."
"Go back?"
"Back to Tenkai. To undergo ten thousand years of reincarnation... maybe one day, I will descend to Genkai again." Artemis looked at Shirou, her eyes full of reluctance. "But by that time... I won't be 'me' anymore. I will forget all of this, forget this journey, forget... you."
Shirou fell silent. These were the rules of the Gods. Reincarnation meant a reset. This memory, this emotion, would vanish completely.
"It's okay."
Shirou suddenly smiled. He reached out and took the Goddess's hand.
"Even if you forget... I will still remember. I'll remember the Goddess who cried under the moon. I'll remember the foodie who loved grilled meat. I'll remember... the idiot who said she wanted to fall in love with me."
"Orion..." Tears streamed from Artemis's eyes.
She suddenly lunged into Shirou's arms and stood on her tiptoes.
A kiss. This time, a real kiss. Amidst the sea of flowers, under the starlight. A parting kiss between mortal and God.
"I love you," the Goddess whispered in Shirou's ear.
"Even if ten thousand years pass... even if I become another person... I will definitely... find you again.
Goodbye, my... Orion."
The light dissipated. The Goddess's figure turned into countless light particles, flying toward the sky.
-
-
-
The real world. The ruins of the Elsos Ruins.
"..."
Shirou Emiya snapped his eyes open. What met his eyes was blue sky, white clouds, and... several large faces leaning in very close.
"He's awake! He's awake!"
"Great! Shirou-kun didn't die!"
"Waaaah... Lili was scared to death..."
Hestia, Haruhime, and Lili were crying in a heap. And Ais... she was tightly holding Shirou's left hand; though she wasn't crying, her eyes were as red as a rabbit's.
"Yo, Hero." Hermes sat on a nearby rock, holding the now-dulled [Arrow of Orion] (which had essentially become scrap metal). "Congrats on the clear. Though the cost was a bit high..."
Shirou felt his body. Mana overdrawn, full body fractures, right hand... he'd probably be bedridden for several months. But he was alive.
"Um... where is Artemis?" Shirou asked.
"Gone." Hermes pointed at the sky. "Back to Tenkai. But... she left peacefully."
"I see." Shirou looked at the sky. Even though it was broad daylight, he felt he could see that faint moon.
"Emiya." Ais spoke suddenly. "On your back..."
"Eh?" Shirou was taken aback. He felt the Falna on his back heating up.
Hestia hurriedly pulled up Shirou's tattered clothes (taking the chance to touch him). Right next to the original Loki Familia emblem... a moon mark had appeared.
That was—[Artemis's Blessing]. Effect: Abnormal Status Resistance increased, All stats rise at night, and... special attack bonus against a specific Goddess (False).
"That idiot Goddess..." Shirou touched the mark on his back, a gentle smile curving his lips.
"Talking about forgetting... isn't this just a curse to make sure I don't forget?"
"Alright! Since everyone is here!" Shirou struggled to stand up (but was pushed back down by Ais). "Let's... go home."
"Back to Orario. And then... let's have a great meal!"
"OOOOOOH!!!"
Amidst the cheers of the group, this adventure known as "Deicide" finally came to a close.
Read ahead (40 chapters) by supporting me on buymeacoffee com/varietl or ko-fi edwriting