3,384"Now isn't this a surprise?" Erica Blandeli carefully placed a hand to cover her mouth, more to cover the growing smile than it was out of astonishment.
The figure that greeted both Erica and Godou was someone Erica had long predicted would try to get in contact with Godou since the usurpation of Japan's History Compilation Committee.
"Welcome, welcome Sir Andrea," Erica ushered the guest in. "I assume Lord Salvatore is unaware of your visit given that he isn't around?"
The man grunted. Wearing a fashionable suit and tie, the man took off the fedora over his head and hung it on a coat rack.
His name was Andrea, Lord Salvatore Doni's exclusive butler and friend often found cleaning Doni's messes.
"The bastard's as stubborn as always," Andrea sighed, his hunched shoulders belying a deep sense of exhaustion. "It's only gotten worse since his battle and loss against the God Enkidu. He's an air head, a fool, and a man who has many enemies he's either crossed or disregarded as a Campione."
Erica did not deny the words. They were facts. Lord Salvatore was the kind of man who wouldn't remember a name of a person not because he couldn't, but because he didn't find them interesting enough. That sort of personality was bound to grate the wrong way on others.
That twisted character was even more pressing now that Lord Salvatore could barely be considered a Campione without access to his Authorities. At most, Doni still possessed a Campione's physical strength and magic resistance, but that was it. His immortal body, his Steel Authorities, and things he'd taken for granted such as Heretic God Vulcan's ability were no longer available.
If not for his swordsmanship, Lord Salvatore would be in deep danger.
His current state, sealed by Enkidu's Authorities made him the weakest of the present day Campione.
The burden of stress was weighing on Andrea.
When Erica invited him in, he did not refuse and directly entered Godou Kusanagi's house.
Godou himself had no say as he sort of just let Erica decide for him.
Godou had been in a slump ever since Marduk had gotten away even with him and Athena cooperating, and it was largely his fault. Most of his Authorities were directly countered, and Athena's abilities did not extend into the boundary of tracking. Rather, Athena was also known as a Goddess of War, so she possessed a Steel that Marduk would have struggled to break through easily.
In contrast, Godou could not put much of a resistance, and Marduk had escaped using Godou's weakness.
Fortunately, the Heretic God was unlikely to cause any havoc any time soon. The injuries Marduk had sustained were too heavy to ignore, and he'd need a lengthy period to recuperate.
This brings everything back to the present.
Godou and Erica had retreated to Japan along with a fainted Arturia.
Athena dealt with Arturia's matters while the local magic cabals in Italy began studying the use of foreign magic that they had managed to utilize prior.
Andrea's arrival to Japan was the most recent event in a string of growing troubles.
"Lord Seventh, I'm here to ask you a favour." Andrea said. He did not beat around the bush and directly addressed Godou. "Lord Salvatore has told me stories of your battle with him in the past. Therefore, I am aware that one of your Authorities can directly sever the Authorities of another God?"
Andrea was referring to Verethragna's 'Warrior' Authority.
Erica could already see where Andrea was going with this line of thought. Of course, Erica figured it was too early to offer aid, but Andrea was practically an extension of Lord Salvatore himself. Brushing him off here could lead to ill outcomes rather than beneficial ones.
"I would request that you sever Enkidu's Authority that binds the Authorities of my Lord," Andrea said directly. "Sadly, without his Authorities, many have been getting ideas against Lord Salvatore, and I fear that any new Heretic Gods could potentially kill him. Campione are rare, and as adopted children of Pandora, shouldn't brothers and sisters watch out for one another?"
"You want me to set that crazy guy free?" Godou ground his teeth, recalling the many hassles Doni and his personality had put Godou through.
"Precisely," Andrea said before a cough from Erica drew attention to her.
"It can be arranged Sir Andrea, but do you know what that means for us?" Erica narrowed her eyes, her arms crossing together. "Lord Salvatore was sealed by an Authority under the influence of Madame Eighth and one of the Heretic Gods under her control. She even proved herself capable of a degree of self combat in Italy which elevates her position further."
"…"
"What I mean Sir Andrea, is whether helping Lord Salvatore would be worth the risk if relations with Arturia sour?" Erica said. "We all know that Doni doesn't have the most charming of personalities to begin with. Let me guess, he told you not to seek us out?"
Andrea's expression tightened before he sneered. "He's my friend, but he's damn cocky. Just because of the words Lord Enkidu said to him, he's decided to use the seal on his abilities as a new training tool. Vulnerable is all it's making him. So, what if usurped Authorities place him outside the sphere of humanity? Lord Enkidu can have his own thoughts, and we as humans can have our own."
Andrea looked to Erica and read the atmosphere.
"Name your price. I'm not inexperienced in these things. You refuse solely to squeeze out more of a benefit." Andrea said.
"That's not-"
"Not you Lord Seventh, but Lady Blandeli. Someone has to be aware of your worth Lord Seventh, and Ms. Blandeli is milking it." Andrea crossed his legs and stared hard at Erica who grew contemplative.
It was all a matter of price.
"Where is that idiot now?" Godou suddenly interjected.
Andrea's lip twitched incessantly, knowing that Doni had separated from him prior to his arrival to Japan.
How could he possibly admit that he didn't know?
Before, it was easy to find Doni as Vulcan's Authority created localized blackouts, but now there were no easy traces.
Of course, the obvious answer was to look in the direction of trouble.
Salvatore Doni would not be far.
"About that-"
A magic explosion suddenly set the sky ablaze in Japan's northern prefecture.
Rin furrowed her brows with an inexplicable sense of unease derived from an unknown tension in the air. And to think, she was just having a moment with the guy she'd been interested in for the past few weeks…
The way Guinevere and Shirou were staring at the new woman who suddenly intruded into their conversation was rather telling.
Rin wet her lips, feeling her throat growing dry.
"Stay behind me," Shirou said, blocking Rin from Metis's view using his own body.
Whatever reservations he had, Shirou also stood in front of Guinevere, staring down Athena's look-alike.
The resemblance to Athena's younger form was uncanny. The scent of divinity was also similar.
Hissing snakes predominantly formed from Metis's divinity, lacking the collected hoots of the owls Athena often incorporated with her snakes. The feeling was more earthen, grounded to they without wings.
From the beginning, Metis had been focusing her attention solely on Shirou.
"Why are we hiding from a middle school girl?" Rin muttered; her muscles were taut even as she tried to grasp what was going on.
"Forsooth, this must be fate!" Metis could not contain the eagerness in her expression as she slinked forward towards the group.
"Halt by the decree of the Witch Queen!" Guinevere did not shy from asserting her presence. She could feel that Metis was a fellow Mother Earth Goddess and even driven mad by the curse of the Heretic Gods, Mother Earth Goddesses do not lightly attack their own.
Metis glanced at Guinevere, momentarily pausing in her steps.
"I have appropriated the aid of this God of Steel first. Thou may conduct your business when mine own goals are sought through or face this Witch's wrath!" Guinevere warned, divinity blaring in her eyes.
"Hehehe, foolish Fallen Goddess," Metis chuckled, a vein popping over Guinevere's temples.
"No, really what the hell?!" Rin gnashed her teeth before pursing her lips.
Rin shot a stare at Shirou and noted his solemn demeanor. He was taking this seriously as if their words and actions weren't a result of middle school syndrome?
"Ms. Tohsaka, please keep quiet," Shirou said, subtly raising his magic energy.
"What do you mean?" Rin had just about enough. "We can't possibly keep playing along with these two children lost in their delu..s. …why are there snakes forming at that girl's feet?"
Rin blinked, rubbing her eyes, but the image in front of didn't change.
A swath of corporal snakes was spilling down from the skirt Metis was wearing and surrounding the area.
Rin swallowed, tightening her grip on Shirou's sleeve. This had to be some bad dream, or Rin grew careless and someone slipped a hard drug into her drink.
"From the beginning, the snake represents immortality and voracious hunger to swallow whole that which exceeds its means," Metis began to flare her divinity and activate her Authority. "Earth that covets Steel."
"You dare ignore this Witch?" Guinevere was growing genuinely angry, but Metis had no intention of letting Shirou go.
"Close your eyes and pretend none of this ever happened," Shirou bluntly said to Rin.
"How is this all happening?" Rin's thoughts were a blur, but the situation posed no room for idleness.
"Ack!" Rin groaned as Shirou shoved her back. A blade appeared in his hands and swiftly cut down a lunging snake.
Rin's mind sputtered to a halt at the very sight, her legs freezing. This couldn't be real?!
Turning back to face Shirou, Rin only saw a blur as Shirou engaged Metis and Guinevere cursed Metis in the back ground.
Shielding her eyes from a shockwave of wind, Rin screamed as the ground beneath her broke into a fissure and destabilized her balance.
"Kyaaa!" She fell to one side, stopping her momentum by thrusting her palms into the dirt.
S-She had to get out of here!
Scrambling to her feet Rin tucked her head into her shoulders as the shockwaves and explosions just kept happening. Hell, she couldn't even keep track of what was going on.
Guinevere was showing way more composure than Rin, but there was no helping it.
This was Rin Tohsaka's first experience with the hidden world of the magic societies and she felt like crying.
"Thou should keep still," Guinevere called out to Rin who was no longer listening. "We art under the protection of a formidable God of Steel. Indeed, he far outstrips that uncouth snake by a wide margin! We need only wait."
"You're crazy!" Rin's survival instincts were on overdrive as she chose to cover her ears, bow her head, and run away in the chaos.
"Haaa, fool," Guinevere hmphed.
A vein popped over Rin's temple.
She was the only normal civilian here. None of those superpowered people should pay attention to someone as insignificant as her.
Oh, if only.
The Goddess that had subtly nestled in Rin as a vessel, Ishtar, also possessed aspects as a God of Steel Metis could sense.
The only reason Metis hadn't gone after Rin yet was because Shirou was far more appetizing.
Of course, things changed if Rin's actions resulted in 'offering' herself to be eaten so willingly.
Metis's expression brightened as she noted Rin running within range of one of her conjured snakes. All were part of her, and she wasn't against easy pickings.
Shirou was proving…impossible to defeat.
Hell, Metis could notice how languid Shirou was being as if Shirou's mind wasn't wholly on the battle.
Little did Metis know; her appearance was a factor to Shirou's passivity. He was trying to determine if Metis had a relation to Athena and whether it was a good idea to kill her or subdue her?
Nonetheless, numerous factors culminated to an unfortunate lack of battle tension.
Shirou sensed Metis's intention before anyone else, and that was because half of his attention was on a panicked Rin trying to escape the area.
He summoned a sword and fired it at Metis, frowning when she simply swallowed it again and her magic energy increased in proportion to the amount of energy Shirou stored in the blade.
She was consuming and absorbing everything? Weren't all his attacks just feeding her, then?
It was something to consider and test.
Summoning another blade, Shirou overcharged and shattered it mid swing to produce a swell of energy that blasted at Metis.
Rather than swallow it like last time, a black hole formed in front of her and consumed the energy, bolstering her own. So long as Metis faced Steel, her Authority was one that usurped it. She was a natural predator of Steel, and testing something on the level of a Noble Phantasm could likely backfire...
Clicking his tongue, Shirou refocused on Rin in the midst of his observation.
He was the first to see it when a massive snake appeared to swallow Rin whole. Said snake, swapped places with Metis, and Metis appeared next to Rin.
Metis's mouth split open, elongating impossibly wide to swallow Rin whole.
Rin's expression turned ghostly white, her hands flying up in a vain attempt to shield herself.
In the span of less than a second, Shirou made a choice; a foolish one made with the assumption and belief in his ability to survive where Rin could not.
In a burst of speed, Shirou swapped places with Rin, stabbing Metis through the chest with a pair of Traced swords.
Metis was undeterred, rather, her eyes glinted when she saw Shirou take Rin's place. She continued her deathly lunge.
Shirou narrowed his eyes, raising his arm up to Trace a shield, but he knew too little of the adversary in front of him.
"Dodge!" Guinevere's yell in the background registered in Shirou's mind at the same time Metis invoked her Authority.
"Earth that consumes STEEL!"
The sputtering image of Rho Aias that Shirou was Tracing to block Metis was swallowed in her large maw, unable to expand outward or exert strength.
Eyes widening in dumbfoundment, Shirou's figure disappeared as he'd braced behind Rho Aias and was caught up in Metis's mouth.
Rin felt her heart sink as she stared from the ground at Shirou who seemingly sacrificed himself for her.
"This can't be happening…" Rin swallowed, shivering.
"It will be fine."
Rin stiffly glanced up to see Shirou's expression just before Metis's mouth clamped shut. He'd calmed down, and his Mind's Eye had grasped the nature of his enemy.
This may not have been as unfavorable as it appeared on the surface.
Inside Metis's maw, Shirou began to recite an Aria followed by words Rin could barely make out.
He was telling her not to worry, but what he was saying was going right over her head.
"I-Indigestion?" Rin muttered incomprehensibly.
The feel of Shirou's Steel was pulled into Metis whose divinity suddenly surged and surged further still.
"Yes!"
A scream of elation reverberated while accompanied by the back drop of Guinevere's tense face.
"YES!"
A heartfelt scream like none other. It was intoxication.
"T-This power…!"
Metis's eyes suddenly widened before she hurriedly retreated, clutching her stomach but unable to conceal her delight.
Soon. Soon!
.
.
.
In the distance, Athena's spectating owl froze, the complacency it was showing vanishing in an instant while transmitting information to Athena in real time.
That could not have just happened.
Metis was a weakling!
Still, perhaps this hadn't been Athena's best strategy…?
B-But it wasn't fair!
How was she supposed to have known the fool would jump in for some random civilian girl?!
Her plan had been construed and molded from her observation of Shirou's character, motivations, and abilities.
Unless it was for the Master, he shouldn't have risked himself!
T-This wasn't her fault.
It was therefore his.
Yes, truly. It was not that she had been lacking, but rather, it was an unpredictable variable of idiocy.
Hmph.
Athena could feel the tips of her cheeks growing heated back in the house where she stayed to safeguard Arturia.
She wasn't alone, rather, she was with her accomplice.
Athena shied away from the flat stare Mariya Yuri was giving her after Athena had 'assured' her that things were handled.
D-Dammit.
Another stain in her black history, but there was an inkling of doubt.
It almost seemed like Shirou let it happen. Metis was far beneath him, and for someone like him to not be cautious of defeat was impossible.
Countermeasures, countermeasures- loathe she was to do it, but knowing the depth of Shirou's 'Steel' potentially in Metis's grasp, there was no other choice.
She'd…have to contract the aid of other Campione.
Thanks for reading!
Free web novel :[The Apostate in Grim Fantasy] (For those that asked, the web novel is available on webnovel and the patron main page, leave a review if you'd like! New goal is 20 reviews)
Next update: To be announced
P a treon. com (slash) Parcasious
Book links:
Fatedlegacydark
New Book: Out on Amazon (Remove dash on link)
Survivor's Log Reflection: Amazon.c-om/dp/B08VDDGN7Z?