Chapter 167: Shirou Shocks the Gods of Babel
With the clash between the Kali Familia and the Ishtar Familia, the entire execution grounds turned into a chaotic free-for-all, causing the public to flee in a panic. In this situation, the Freya Familia stepped forward decisively to maintain order.
The first to appear before everyone was undoubtedly the strongest adventurer in Orario, the one and only Lv. 7 adventurer, Ottar the King.
The moment Ottar's figure appeared, the entire scene became filled with pressure, and no one could utter a single word.
However, just as Ottar was about to sweep the area with the Freya Familia, the figure of Ais the Sword Princess suddenly rushed over from a distance. She immediately spoke to Freya on the high platform, saying, "Goddess Freya, Captain Finn has asked me to report that the Kingdom of Rakia is launching an attack on Orario. The Loki Familia is struggling, and they are requesting immediate reinforcement from the Freya Familia!"
"What?!"
Ais's words astonished everyone on the scene.
Not only the two warring factions, but even the gods watching the execution from the high platform revealed shocked expressions, finding it difficult to comprehend.
No one had expected the Kingdom of Rakia to cause trouble at this moment, as if they knew about the public execution taking place in Orario.
"Lady Freya, I don't think the Loki Familia could possibly be unable to stop the Rakia Kingdom's army."
In response to Ais's request, Hedin Selland, the strategist of the Loki Familia, spoke up immediately.
As a Lv. 6 mage, he was on the same level as Riveria, the "Nine Hell Princess" of the Loki Familia, and thus was very aware of the Loki Familia's strength.
The mere Kingdom of Rakia couldn't possibly cause the top-tier Loki Familia to struggle so much.
"Hehe, I think it's not necessarily so," the trickster god Loki on the high platform said decisively when Hedin spoke. "Although the Kingdom of Rakia is controlled by that idiot Ares, it has been increasing the number of powerful individuals within it in recent years, looking for ways to counter high-level adventurers. This sudden attack must have been a well-prepared action on their part, so it's only natural for the Loki Familia to be struggling."
"..."
Hedin was hesitant for a moment at Loki's words.
He could, of course, refute the other party, but the problem now was not refuting Loki's words; ultimately, it was about the Goddess Freya's attitude, as she was the one who needed to make a decision.
Facing the gazes of the many Freya Familia members, Freya herself paused for a few seconds. She slowly opened her eyes and said, "Loki is right. Rather than maintaining the order of this execution, protecting the safety of Orario is what we should be doing most."
"So, how shall we lend our strength?"
Since Freya herself had already made a decision, the Freya Familia, who were utterly loyal to her, naturally had no objections and immediately sought her judgment.
Freya spoke decisively: "Everyone except for Ottar, go and support the Loki Familia. You must ensure the safety of Orario against the Kingdom of Rakia."
"Yes!"
Not a single member of the Freya Familia doubted Freya's command; they all nodded in agreement immediately.
However, while the Freya Familia had no objections, the Guild on the scene showed a skeptical attitude.
The Guild Master, Royman, rushed over immediately and nervously said, "Goddess Freya, are you really sure you want to do this? There's no need to send the entire Freya Familia to help just to fight the Kingdom of Rakia, is there?"
"Are you questioning me? Do you think I am doing this for my own selfish reasons?" Freya countered, and the beautiful goddess's cold attitude made the obese Guild Master elf tremble on the spot.
"N-no, I wouldn't dare..."
No matter what, Royman was just a cowardly mortal. How could he have the courage to question a god? He hurriedly lowered his head, not daring to question Freya's decision again.
While Freya could casually intimidate Royman, a mere mortal, she couldn't act without reason in the face of the Celestial God Ouranos behind Royman.
So she quickly spoke in a more moderate tone: "Don't worry. Although I have sent everyone else to the front lines, I have kept Ottar here. As long as he is present, it is almost impossible for anyone in Orario to cause trouble at this execution site."
"I see! With the Mighty One here, he's a match for a thousand!"
Royman laughed and flattered the Freya Familia.
Freya herself paid no attention to him and quickly made arrangements, sending all of the Freya Familia except for Ottar to the front lines of Orario's conflict with the Kingdom of Rakia.
In this way, the pressure on the Kali Familia and Ishtar Familia was immediately reduced.
However, although it was said to be reduced, in reality, it was only a reduction from 100 to 90.
The oppressive force of Ottar alone was equivalent to an entire Freya Familia. His mere presence made it impossible for the two great Familias to take any action.
In this situation, the group from the "Hostess of Fertility" who had been hiding in the shadows immediately recognized an opportunity.
Taking advantage of the standoff between Ottar and the two Familias, they could seize this chance to go straight in and rescue Ryuu from the execution platform in one fell swoop.
However, the moment they had this thought and instinctively charged toward the execution platform, what happened before their eyes made Anya and the others' eyes widen.
In fact, it wasn't just Anya and the others.
Almost all of the people of the labyrinth city of Orario noticed the sudden anomaly.
Directly above the execution platform, the Goddess of Justice, Astraea, slowly raised her hand to the sky.
In an instant, an unprecedentedly terrifying giant sword began to form in the sky. The greatsword was a standard two-handed sword with a gilded appearance, bearing a 70-80% resemblance to the Sword of Promised Victory that Shirou had projected. However, its massive scale was as vast as a city wall.
The moment it was born, it seemed as if it wanted to pierce the sky, standing high above Orario, with its tip aimed directly at Ryuu below.
"Is that... the Goddess of Justice Astraea's Sword of Judgment?"
"That's... too exaggerated, meow!"
"That kind of Authority is simply unimaginable for a person."
Not only the people from the Hostess of Fertility pub, but most of the people in Orario were shocked by the fully formed Sword of Judgment.
Although Astraea had been away from Orario for many years, the Familias of Orario had not been unaware of the rumors of the Goddess of Justice.
This Sword of Judgment, a symbol of the Goddess Astraea's Authority, had countless legends surrounding it.
But no matter how exaggerated the rumors were, when they actually saw the form of the sword, everyone in Orario subconsciously felt a sense of shock.
The exaggerated greatsword, which seemed capable of cleaving the sky in two, was like the epitome of a myth.
On the execution platform.
Ryuu looked at the Sword of Judgment suspended above her head, seemingly linked to her life. For a moment, she strangely lost all sense of agitation.
The many complex thoughts and even the idea of resistance that had been stirred up by Hermes were now completely gone in the face of this absolute divine power.
Gods and mortals are, after all, completely different beings.
Even if a mortal has many thoughts in their heart, they cannot change reality in the face of a god's unreasonable will.
Moreover, Ryuu felt a sense of relief.
If this great person were to judge her, and if the Goddess Astraea were to give her a final farewell, then she could accept this final outcome.
"Thank you, Lady Astraea..."
Ryuu slowly lowered her head, as if she had already accepted the reality of death.
However, Ryuu did not realize that the Goddess Astraea's expression was not without emotion, despite Ryuu's appearance of having completely given up.
Her seemingly emotionless eyes showed complex fluctuations, as if she were in some kind of internal struggle.
But in the end, she said nothing and did nothing extra, simply and silently activating her Authority, the power of the Sword of Judgment.
"Bring fairness and justice to the world."
Suddenly, a voice that seemed to come from nowhere resounded through the scene.
In addition to the extremely exaggerated greatsword, a huge scale also appeared on the execution platform.
One end of the scale was the absolute standard, the Goddess of Justice's judgment of the measure of justice, while the other end was naturally Ryuu's crimes. Everything Ryuu had done in the past, the justice she had exercised, and the sins she had committed, were all marked and ultimately and completely engraved on the scale!
After measuring everything, the two ends of the scale slowly began to fluctuate.
In the end, Ryuu's crimes heavily weighed down her side, completely exceeding the standard of "justice."
Thus, a voice slowly resounded on the scene.
"Ryuu Lion of the Astraea Familia, you are declared guilty!"
"Begin the execution!"
Suddenly, a massive amount of energy gathered on the Sword of Judgment. The violent fluctuations seemed to make all of Orario tremble, enveloped in a vortex of divine power.
Faced with this astonishing scene, most people subconsciously looked up, wanting to witness the final result of this judgment.
However, the people from the Hostess of Fertility pub ran toward the execution platform without even looking up, wanting to get to Ryuu's side and rescue her.
"Ryuu, run! Ryuu!"
"Don't be scared, we'll save you, meow!"
"Foolish Ryuu, hurry and come back!"
The pub waitresses who had spent several years with Ryuu ran desperately. They completely disregarded the Sword of Judgment that could descend from the sky at any moment, just desperately wanting to save their companion.
Seeing her companions' arrival, Ryuu was stunned.
Although she had vaguely realized the possibility during her previous conversation with Hermes, when she actually saw the familiar figures appear before her, she subconsciously showed a look of helplessness.
However, Ryuu quickly reacted.
She yelled with all her might: "Don't come! Please, don't come!"
Ryuu's voice clearly did not sway Anya and the other waitresses' attitudes. They ran forward recklessly, bypassing the battle between Ottar, the Kali Familia, and the Ishtar Familia, and charged directly toward the execution grounds.
However, Ottar was not the only one maintaining order on the scene. Ganesha and other Familias, faced with these sudden attackers, also came forward to maintain order.
The two sides immediately fell into a fierce battle.
But the Guild side clearly had the advantage.
Neither the unmatched Ottar on the scene nor the overwhelming numbers of the Ganesha Familia and others could be countered by those who came to interrupt the execution.
It was at this moment that an unprecedented reinforcement force suddenly appeared.
The Hestia Familia led by Bell, the Takemikazuchi Familia led by Yamato Mikoto, and even people from the dark faction like the Thanatos Familia suddenly appeared.
The reason they were late was that they had received Shirou's plan a long time ago, which required them to carry out a secret mission.
That was to go to Babel and rescue the two imprisoned goddesses, Ishtar and Kali.
Originally, there was no good plan, but taking advantage of the vacuum in Babel's security during the execution, the mission was successfully completed.
"Ora, I'm here!"
Kali rushed out of the crowd first and charged directly toward Ottar.
Before the crowd could react, Kali used her Authority, trapping him and Ottar in the same fighting arena that Shirou had once experienced.
Just as with Shirou's experience, Ottar was also restricted to Lv. 1, forced into a fair one-on-one duel with Kali.
And in the face of Kali, the battle goddess with endless martial arts, even Ottar, the strongest in Orario, would find it difficult to defeat her when his skills were limited.
At least for a short period of time, the powerful enemy Ottar was completely neutralized!
At the same time, Ottar's disappearance meant that the Freya Familia had completely lost the ability to protect the execution grounds, and they could only rely on Familias like Ganesha to stand guard.
However, in the face of the Ishtar Familia, the Kali Familia, the Hestia Familia, the Takemikazuchi Familia, the Thanatos Familia, and even the secret assistance of the Hermes Familia, without the help of the Freya Familia, the Familias on the Guild's side alone could not stop them.
Everyone quickly advanced, charging straight to the front of the execution platform in one go.
"Ryuu!!!"
The ones who ran the fastest were the waitresses from the Hostess of Fertility.
The cat-girl Anya, the cat-girl Chloe, the human girl Lunoire, and many other companions from the Hostess of Fertility came to the side of the execution platform to rescue Ryuu.
However, even in this situation, Ryuu's expression was not the least bit excited. Her eyes were not filled with hope but with despair.
"Please... don't come... I don't want to see anyone else die anymore..."
Ryuu's voice was already choked with sobs.
After all, no one but her knew how terrifying the Sword of Judgment above the heavens truly was.
As the strongest of the gods' Authorities, the Sword of Judgment's range would encompass the area it was in, wiping out everything within that same area.
So, if Anya and the others rushed into the execution platform, they would not only fail to save Ryuu but would also be buried with her under the pressure of the Sword of Judgment.
"..."
The moment they rushed onto the execution platform, Anya and the others immediately realized this.
As a cat-person, Anya's fur stood on end in an instant. The immense pressure made the girls so weak-kneed that they didn't even have the courage to stand still, and they all collapsed to the ground.
At the same time, the goddess Astraea slowly came before everyone. She spoke with a calm tone: "This is as far as you go. This is not a domain you can set foot in."
Faced with Astraea's words, the crowd naturally didn't accept it easily.
However, the people who came to interrupt the execution soon found that the swords in their hands began to move uncontrollably.
Anyone who used a sword as a weapon suddenly lost control of their blades, which began to fly into the air on their own.
"Is this... the Authority of Goddess Astraea, meow!?"
Witnessing her companions' weapons losing their grip, Anya's eyes widened.
As a lancer who used a spear as a weapon, she was one of the few on the scene who could still fight.
However, she was so intimidated that she couldn't move.
This was because all around her, countless swords, as if proclaiming some kind of death, surrounded everyone in attendance in an arc.
The Goddess Astraea looked at everyone with a cold gaze, her attitude seemingly saying, 'If you dare to take one more step forward, you will become a soul beneath my sword.'
In the face of such a terrifying Authority, no one on the scene dared to act rashly.
Everyone thus realized how exaggerated the so-called Goddess of Justice was. She represented not only justice but also absolute power!
"Why, why are you killing Ryuu, meow!" Anya still refused to give up, trying to persuade the Goddess Astraea, "Wasn't Ryuu once your Familia member? Why do you want to kill her?!"
"..."
Astraea maintained a long silence in response to Anya's words.
She had no intention of responding and simply turned around silently.
"Everything here is none of your business. The verdict of the Sword of Judgment has been made. Ryuu's result is: guilty... If that is the case, there is only one outcome for her in the end."
After the Goddess Astraea finished speaking, the Sword of Judgment in the sky, as if it had completed some kind of preparation, began to unleash an astonishing amount of energy.
The more terrifying aspect of the Sword of Judgment, which was already unbelievably exaggerated in its form, was that it was a divine power amplification device.
It condensed divine power through its massive blade and then further magnified the already astonishing divine power through an internal amplifier, finally releasing an attack capable of piercing through anything.
Under such power, no living creature could possibly survive!
.
.
.
On the high platform.
The gods watched the impending result, their expressions varied.
Among them, the one with the most complex expression and the most concern for the outcome of this judgment was the Goddess of Beauty, Freya.
She watched everything happening on the judgment platform with unprecedented focus. At the same time, she showed a helpless expression upon witnessing Astraea alone blocking all the rescuers.
"..."
Freya's soft call caught Loki's attention.
Loki spoke in a low voice: "We've made so many preparations, but in the end, in the face of that guy's overly abnormal Authority, we can't even fight back. Is it all just a mantis trying to stop a chariot in the end?"
"No, that's not it," Freya shook her head in response. "Everything we've done is not meaningless. In the end, everything will gain its due value."
"Value? Do you think someone can crush Astraea's Authority and even save someone from the Sword of Judgment?" Loki said with a wry smile, "You're still the Goddess of Beauty Freya, aren't you? Don't act like a frail girl full of meaningless fantasies."
"Meaningless fantasies? I don't know if it's a fantasy, but there is definitely meaning to it."
Freya showed an even more determined attitude than Loki.
She clenched her fists, as if she believed something would happen, and stared intently in the direction of the execution grounds. "He will definitely come. I believe that the hero who saves all will appear here!"
.
.
.
The Sword of Judgment was now fully formed.
The greatsword, so violent that it seemed capable of tearing the entire world apart, was about to descend and destroy everything!
With death approaching, or rather, with death already here, Ryuu's expression became incredibly calm for a moment.
She had lost all fear and no longer had any fantasies about the future.
When she saw the Goddess Astraea block everyone and leave her alone to face the Sword of Judgment descending from the sky, she was freed from all burdens.
With gratitude toward the goddess, she silently recalled all of her past, from the Astraea Familia to the Hostess of Fertility...
Two completely different lives and two groups of almost identical close friends made her unable to help but show a look of salvation.
"Goodbye, everyone..."
She had wanted to say goodbye happily.
But when she came to her senses, she realized that tears had inexplicably fallen from her eyes at some point.
The tears flowed down uncontrollably, like a flood that could not be held back, completely collapsing.
It was only in the last moments before her life was about to end that she realized she was not as strong as she had imagined. There was still fear of death and a desire to live in her heart.
.
.
.
As Hermes had said, in the most desperate situations, people always fantasize about the existence of hope.
However, what awaited Ryuu was not hope, but the greatsword descending from the heavens.
The Sword of Judgment, with an unprecedented roar, suddenly cut through the air and fell to the ground—
"Bang!"
When everyone's hearts stopped beating and the entire world fell into silence for a moment.
Some sharp-eyed people suddenly noticed an astonishing scene on the execution platform.
A man's figure had appeared at some point right in front of Ryuu, where she should have been completely torn apart by the Sword of Judgment.
The man was blocking the Sword of Judgment right in the middle, and his single-handed, flame-wrapped quenched sword was pointing straight at the tip of the greatsword.
"Puff…"
"Hiss-hiss…"
With clear friction sounds, the greatsword was firmly blocked by the quenched sword, unable to advance a single step!
"Who is it!?"
The gods were completely surprised that such a thing had happened, and they all widened their eyes.
The man who blocked the Sword of Judgment with one hand spoke to himself: "My name is Emiya Shirou, and I am the Sword Demon you gods speak of! Today, I have come to save Ryuu, and also to realize true justice!"
Important Announcement New Fanfictions
Hello Everyone! I'm VarieTL!
Thank you for all your support!
As an early gift for Christmas for all of you I'm happy to announce:
Not One
Not Two
But 3 New Fanfictions!
Hikigaya returns home from Warhammer...Wait were the Cursed Spirits here before though
Every night, Hachiman Hikigaya dreams of a different wife. Initially, he thought it was just the dreams of an adolescent boy, until he discovered that every single one of them came from the Advanced Nurturing High School... Multi Crossover Snafu, Warhammer, Jujutsu Kaisen, Kaguya-sama: Love is War, BanG Dream!
Hikigaya dreams of his future wives
Every night, Hachiman Hikigaya dreams of a different wife. Initially, he thought it was just the dreams of an adolescent boy, until he discovered that every single one of them came from the Advanced Nurturing High School...
Evolution of Emiya Shirou, Traveler of the Multiverse
Shirou, having traveled through time to the era of the Fourth Holy Grail War, is forced to step into the battle for the Holy Grail. Fortunatly there is the sytem with Dimensional Roulette: blank Class Cards, the Son of the Sun, Unlimited Blade Works... Multi X-Over: Fate zero, Campione, Fate/stay night, FGO, Danmachi and many many others.
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