Type-Moon, What Do You Mean You summoned Tiamat?!

Boom!

The magical beam cannon symbolizing the heavenly goddess's strongest Noble Phantasm slammed into the small blue-haired loli who had just stepped into the entrance of the Reality Marble with overwhelming destructive force!

The very instant the beam was fired, Ishtar, who had been floating in midair, finally understood what was happening and belatedly glared furiously at Gilgamesh atop the streetlight.

That wicked Gilgamesh was definitely doing this on purpose!

In that moment, Ishtar understood everything completely.

The cunning Gilgamesh must have already sensed Tiamat's existence with his omniscient eyes. The brief moment of hesitation he had shown earlier was a malicious trap meant to lure her.

What frustrated her the most was… that she had completely fallen for it like an idiot!

This kind of failure at the decisive moment instantly filled Ishtar with regret.

However… it was already too late.

No — rather, the moment this strongest Noble Phantasm containing the heavenly goddess's full power was unleashed, there was no turning back.

Under Ishtar's gaze filled with terror and despair, a terrifying magical beam radiating an aura of destruction powerful enough to shake mountains mercilessly engulfed the small blue-haired figure at the barrier's entrance.

Tiamat Lily seemed completely unaware of the impending catastrophe about to befall her.

She was happily hugging the large bag of snacks she had just bought at the mall.

The instant Tiamat crossed the edge of the barrier and spotted Matou Yuu ahead, a sweet smile filled with reliance and joy appeared on her delicate, adorable little face.

Then—

Boom!

The very next moment, the violent divine punishment of Venus rained down from the sky and completely enveloped her entire body.

However, the expected scene of her spiritual core collapsing did not occur.

Under Ishtar's shocked gaze, the raging magical energy of Venus instantly vanished the moment it touched Tiamat's skin.

Everyone present was momentarily dumbfounded by the sight.

Had the attack symbolizing the heavenly goddess failed because Tiamat had taken no defensive measures?

"Ah, what on earth…?"

A short distance away, Sajyou Manaka observed the scene with great interest, a surprised expression appearing on her delicate face. "Is this... Conceptual Suppression?"

As the Goddess of Creation in Mesopotamian mythology, Tiamat possessed an inescapable conceptual dominance over all gods within this mythological system.

According to the underlying laws of mythology, the blade of a rebellious child could never truly harm its mother.

However...

Although the gods' attacks could not harm the Mother Goddess, the bag of snacks in Tiamat's hands did not receive that protection.

With a dull sound, the violent aftershock of the magic completely disappeared, and dust rose everywhere around them.

Tiamat was unharmed... but the large bag of snacks she had been carefully holding against her chest had been completely reduced to ashes by the aftershock of the divine magical beam cannon.

Tiamat stared blankly at her now-empty hands, as if she had lost consciousness for a long time.

A moment later.

She slowly raised her face and fixed her deep red eyes on Ishtar in the sky.

Meanwhile, Ishtar in midair blinked several times in a daze before breaking into a relieved smile.

"So that's how it was! She wasn't the real mother at all, not even a proper combat clone!"

It was true…

Even the heavenly goddess had broken out in a cold sweat from that final terror. She had even thought she might be dragged into the Sea of Life and become food for the Lahmu.

However, if Tiamat could only maintain this level of magical ability, she was hardly a threat.

Yes… Based solely on the magical feedback from that attack, Ishtar had already made the most accurate judgment.

The blue-haired girl before her was indeed the Mother Goddess of Creation, Tiamat.

However, in order to openly intervene in the Holy Grail War as a Master, she had strictly compressed her own spiritual origin panel to the limits of a "human magus" while in the present world.

If Tiamat tried to use the power of the Mother Goddess that exceeded human standards, Snowfield City's Holy Grail system would immediately classify her as a "serious rule violator" and forcibly eliminate her.

In other words... the "mother" before them was not a troublesome person.

Thinking this, Ishtar stopped looking at the Tiamat Lily staring at her with empty hands.

She smiled at Gilgamesh illuminated by the streetlight and said in a mocking tone, "Too bad, Gilgamesh. Your sweet idea of having someone else do your dirty work has completely failed."

"Hmph... A fool is a fool. Even after thousands of years, your arrogant and ignorant behavior hasn't improved one bit."

Gilgamesh slightly raised his arrogant chin, a mocking smile that he couldn't hide appearing in his crimson eyes. "The only reason you can spout such nonsense here is because you've seen the 'Mother' trapped in the fragile vessel of a mere magus. You brainless goddess, did you really think this king would be so incompetent as to have the Mother I sealed myself deal with a noisy pest like you?"

"You—!" Ishtar was struck where it hurt and immediately frowned in displeasure.

"Aaaaah..."

At that moment, a deep, mysterious voice suddenly came from below.

Tiamat raised her head in anger and glared at Ishtar in the sky with her clear cross-shaped eyes.

"The Goddess of Venus is... a bad child!"

Seeing the girl's expression as if she wanted to devour someone, Ishtar was slightly surprised and a little confused.

However, she didn't care. Her tensed body gradually relaxed as she smiled and said, "Mother, my target tonight isn't you... If you leave now, we can pretend this never happened."

"After all, considering your current situation..."

She paused for a moment and looked down at the blue-haired girl staring at her with a sad expression.

The opponent was the Mother Goddess of Creation Tiamat, but she wasn't even a clone. Her spiritual origin was strictly limited to the realm of a human magus, so it was impossible for her to defeat a god at her peak on the front lines.

The only troublesome part was the possibility that her attacks could be somewhat nullified by the opponent's.

Despite Ishtar graciously offering her an escape route, she could sense that the hostile gaze from the blue-haired loli below had not weakened at all.

Ishtar let out a sigh of helplessness.

"It seems you have no intention of stopping here... In that case, don't blame me——"

Before she could finish speaking...

Her movement stopped slightly.

To her surprise, the black-haired young man had silently stepped between her and Tiamat.

"...Matou Yuu?"

Ishtar raised one eyebrow, a faint smile appearing on her lips. "I see... So you and 'Mother' are in an alliance, then?"

"But... Are you really prepared to become an enemy of a goddess?"

After she finished speaking, she slightly raised her haughty, snow-white chin and radiated an unmistakable divine aura.

Matou Yuu ignored Ishtar's provocation and calmly looked at Draco standing a short distance away. "Draco, can you stop the Root Princess and the monster you're standing on?"

"This is a trivial matter. Please leave it to me with peace of mind!"

Sitting upright on the broad back of the colossal red dragon, Draco reacted as if it were the most natural thing in the world, her wine-red eyes filled with beast-like arrogance.

"Oh?"

Ishtar raised her eyebrows, sensing the meaning behind the young man's words. "From what you're saying, you intend to use a human body..."

"A being with a fragile human body like that, and moreover, together with Tiamat who has joined the ranks of magi, trying to challenge this goddess's dignity... Just what are you thinking?"

A terrifying divine power began to well up from Ishtar's body.

However, she noticed that the young man below remained calm and composed.

He shook his head with a smile and said, "Ishtar, you're misunderstanding."

"What do you mean?" Ishtar furrowed her brows.

"Your next opponent isn't me... Because I can already feel Tiamat's anger."

Matou Yuu paused, a slight warning in his voice. "For Rin's sake too, if you're prepared to leave her body now... I'll give you the chance to leave gracefully."

Ishtar fell silent for a moment.

She blinked and stared at the young man with great interest, as if he were a rare idiot.

"Pfft— Hahahaha!"

After several seconds of silence, she suddenly clutched her stomach and burst into loud laughter that brought tears to her eyes.

After a while, she looked at the young man with interest and said, "Do you even understand what you just said, Matou Yuu?"

"You're going to... give this goddess... a chance?"

She pointed with her slender white finger at the blue-haired loli behind the sulking young man and grinned. "You're telling me to make this 'loli mama' my opponent?"

After she finished speaking, she casually brushed her wind-tousled black hair and a hint of disappointment appeared in her eyes. "I thought the owner of this body had such complicated feelings toward you because you must have some special qualities."

"I never thought you were... just a boastful, unpleasant guy."

As she said this, she couldn't help but recall the conversation she had with Taigong Wang on the Throne of Heroes just a few days ago.

At the time, that person had spoken with strong conviction, his words mixed with unease and curiosity toward Matou Yuu.

But... no matter how she thought about it now, this man was just a magus, still within the category of humans.

Ultimately, considering the quality of his magic, Taigong Wang had claimed that the opponent had single-handedly stopped the combined attack of multiple Grand Servants.

"Fine. If you really want to die, this goddess will mercifully end it quickly."

Matou Yuu raised his face and looked up at the arrogant heavenly goddess, then shifted his gaze to the sulking blue-haired girl behind him.

"I can feel your anger painfully... It's your turn next, Tiamat!"

Tiamat was surprised at first, but soon seemed to understand something. Light shone in her deep red eyes as she obediently nodded.

Boom!

The very instant the girl nodded, a sudden change occurred.

The night sky, which had originally been covered by a natural barrier, was now completely covered by thick lead-colored clouds.

Deep within the clouds, lightning flashed violently.

Crackle.

Soon, large raindrops began to fall from the sky.

Amid the rumbling thunder, Ishtar suddenly felt a chilling sensation run down her spine.

She slightly furrowed her brows. For some reason, her innate intuition was desperately sounding the alarm, and every cell in her body seemed to be warning her, "Run!"

However—

Ishtar's lips twitched slightly as a mocking smile slowly appeared on them.

"Run... Run...?"

Are you kidding me?

She was a proud goddess of the heavens, the "incarnation of beauty" beloved by all gods of Mesopotamia!

If she chose to run away when facing a magus, what kind of face would she show in the Holy Grail War?

Moreover, that talkative Gilgamesh was now standing atop the streetlight, staring at them. If she retreated even a little today, who knew how persistently that golden bastard would mock her for the rest of her life.

"Hehehe... Interesting."

Finally, after her mental struggle, a dangerous smile reappeared on Ishtar's face.

"This is the first time I've seen someone threaten this goddess."

"A human Master plus a Tiamat Lily limited to Master level... Does this combination have the courage to challenge Venus's dignity?"

Whoosh!

The very next moment, the heavenly goddess piloted her celestial ship and soared straight into the sky.

Immediately after, she threw away dozens of glittering, expensive rubies from her chest.

The jewels floated in the air like stars orbiting Venus, instantly unleashing vast and infinite divine magic.

However, at that moment, Ishtar seemed to sense something unusual, and her raised arm stopped abruptly in midair.

She hesitated slightly and looked down at the young man below.

Because she had noticed that Matou Yuu, who had been energetic until now, had suddenly become extremely weakened and listless, as if his magical energy had been depleted and he was about to faint on the spot.

And the divine magic she had been controlling in midair seemed to have changed at this moment.

They were no longer under her control, as if even the wind and rain had frozen in midair.

Something's wrong...?

Ishtar's fingertips trembled faintly for the first time in her life.

She looked down at her hands in disbelief.

Strange...

Why was this happening?

She clearly had a body perfectly suited to her... So why... did it feel like something deep in her heart was afraid?

A short distance away beneath the streetlight, Gilgamesh seemed to have vaguely sensed something and stared at Matou Yuu.

Was what this man said true?

Even though he had lost Tiamat as a Servant, he could still use that technique.

Meanwhile, Ishtar finally seemed to have overcome her inner terror. No — rather, her pride would not allow her to retreat at this moment.

She raised her right hand.

"You fraud, kneel before the heavenly goddess's wrath!"

She looked down at the young man collapsed on the ground as if she were a god judging all living beings and shouted, "—Venus Punish!"

Boom—!

The very next moment, dozens of rubies shattered into pieces in midair.

Vast divine magical energy transformed into a crimson beam tens of meters in diameter and rained down from the sky, tearing through the rain!

In the midst of that terrifying divine magical cannon, Matou Yuu took a deep breath.

Then, to Ishtar's surprise, he suddenly opened his mouth wide toward the cloud-covered sky and shouted, "Mama!!!"

Buzz—!!!

The instant the young man finished speaking, a colossal dragon's shadow covered the sky, broke through the spatial barrier without warning, and instantly enveloped the entire sky above that barrier!

At the edge of the fence, Sajyou Manaka, who had been watching the show, seemed to have realized something.

She suddenly looked up at the sky and stared at Matou Yuu with an expression of surprise and joy, as if she had found a treasure.

Meanwhile, sensing the colossal shadow that seemed about to swallow the entire world, Ishtar, while floating in midair, awkwardly raised her head.

From the middle of the swirling clouds, a mountain-like colossal object slowly emerged from the depths of the void.

The colossal creature quietly opened two moon-like eyes as red as fresh blood and stared at the small Goddess of Venus on the celestial ship with a terrifyingly oppressive presence.

The instant Ishtar saw the silhouette of the Mother Goddess of Creation, her legs gave out instinctively and she collapsed onto her celestial ship, her expression becoming unbelievably complex.

She gritted her teeth and squeezed out two words while her lips trembled faintly.

"...Mother?!"

…

The night wind blew across the rooftop of the skyscraper as a silver-haired woman in a white long dress sat nonchalantly at the edge of the rooftop.

She leisurely swung her white legs and fixed her captivating pink eyes on the distant barrier, her clear voice overflowing with the utmost joy at witnessing the scene unfolding before her.

"Ah... It's finally begun... It was worth coming. What a truly wonderful drama."

Even though he was nothing more than a frail human magus, he had succeeded in forcibly suppressing Tiamat herself by over-drawing his own magical energy. That "projection" had been temporarily dragged into the real world in the form of a Servant.

Matou Yuu... This young man was certainly an extraordinary "Singularity."

However—

What truly troubled her was that even she, with her extraordinary foresight capable of seeing through every aspect of the world, could not predict this young man's past and future.

...But in reality, it wasn't much of a problem.

A mischievous smile appeared on Merlin's lips.

Even though she possessed eyes that could see through everything, she could not see through the causality of physics. However, she was ultimately a nightmare at the pinnacle of dreams.

If she wished, she could forcibly invade anyone's mental world at any time and thoroughly investigate that person's past and present life as if it were her own home.

At this moment, due to Tiamat's forced summoning, Matou Yuu had fallen into an unprecedented state of weakening... This was the perfect opportunity to release her mental defenses and allow her to advance without any hindrance.

"Matou Yuu... Hmm? Onee-chan here will show you the cute, mysterious secret hidden deep in your soul that even its origin cannot be traced. Hehe."

The very next moment, the nightmare power and the highest-level mental interference were quietly activated without anyone noticing.

Merlin's gaze seemed to transcend space, turning into a single ray of light that followed the young man's magic circuits — which were nearing their limit — and sank directly into his sea of consciousness.

…

This was a vast and deep sea.

In the deepest part of Merlin's consciousness, there were no fragments of ordinary people's memories, only a tightly sealed invisible door.

At the top of the gate, a silver keyhole emitting a faint light could be clearly seen.

"Oh? This guy... Could it be that he had sealed his own 'memories'? Had he already anticipated that a mental-type heroic spirit would try to forcibly read his memories?"

Merlin raised her cute eyebrows, her interest deepening further.

For a flower magus who could freely travel even into the dreams of inner planets, this level of psychological defense was almost endearing and primitive.

She didn't even need to use much magic. She simply raised her slender fingers and, relying on the nightmare's intuition, lightly snapped them in midair.

With a clear, magical ringing sound, the logical chain composing the lock was instantly deciphered, and an illusory key took shape directly on her fingertip.

Click.

Merlin elegantly inserted the key into the keyhole and slowly opened the door to the young man's heart.

A soft milky-white light instantly poured into the woman's eyes, causing her to involuntarily narrow them.

Merlin gracefully stepped inside and secretly observed this central area where Matou Yuu's deepest memories should reside.

However, she was dumbfounded by the sight before her.

There were no memories of the corridor behind the main gate at all.

At the center of her vision was... simply a small girl sleeping soundly.

She was a girl with dazzling blonde hair tied with a large black ribbon.

She was wearing a classic black Puritan-style gown reminiscent of 17th-century Salem, and her skin was translucently pale.

At this moment, she was curled up quietly in the deepest part of the young man's sea of consciousness like a delicate porcelain doll, as if she were still tightly hugging a tattered teddy bear.

Who was this...?

Why was a girl residing in this forbidden area?

Merlin's eyes wavered slightly. Driven by the intense curiosity of a nightmare, she tried to extend the nightmare's tentacles to touch and analyze the sleeping girl further.

However—

The very instant her spiritual power was about to reach the golden-haired girl.

Buzz—!!!

A "door" leading to an unknown void suddenly opened behind the girl!

Countless indescribable tentacles, twisting and shimmering silver stars, and eerie whispers that could instantly drive any intelligent being into madness desperately tried to flow into her mind through the mental tentacles Merlin had used for her spying!

"Ugh...!"

Merlin's pupils suddenly shrank to the size of a needlepoint.

As a nightmare standing at the pinnacle of dreams, the extreme sense of crisis engraved in the depths of her soul led her to the most decisive choice in this critical situation.

Click!

Without hesitation, she severed the magical tentacles that had invaded deep into her mind and forcibly cut off the connection with Dream Dive.

…

On the rooftop edge of Snowfield City.

"Haa... haa... haa..."

The silver-haired succubus, who had once been elegant and composed, was now leaning one hand on the cold concrete floor while covering her slightly stinging forehead with the other, breathing heavily.

Cold sweat had instantly soaked her white dress, outlining her graceful figure trembling in the darkness.

It was only much later that the eerie whispers lingering deep in her mind — which could easily distort even her soul — completely disappeared like a receding tide.

Holding onto an unshakeable fear, Merlin wiped the cold sweat from her forehead. The sense of relief and joy she had shown until just now had vanished from her beautiful face... However, there was no terror there either.

On the contrary.

When she opened her eyes again and looked at the black-haired young man whose magical energy had been exhausted, the nightmare-specific curiosity and fanaticism deep in her eyes had grown even stronger.

"That girl sleeping deep in his memories... and that 'interesting' aura... Hehehe..."

Suddenly, Merlin covered her mouth with her hand and chuckled softly.

"Ah... Matou-kun, you really are amazing!"

If she could wake up that sleeping little girl, what interesting things would happen?

Just thinking about it made Merlin feel an excitement and joy she had never experienced before coursing through her nerves.

It was only after quite some time that Merlin's breathing gradually began to stabilize.

She gracefully stood up and quietly stared at Matou Yuu as if admiring an unparalleled work of art.

"Well... I really envy your clairvoyance. It seems you've discovered something very surprising and interesting with those eyes that see through everything!"

At that moment, a clear, beautiful sound like the ringing of a silver bell suddenly came from behind.

Merlin, who had gradually regained her composure, slightly turned her face and was surprised to see an adorable and charming girl in a Gothic lolita-style dress walking over with light steps.

The night wind lifted her skirt, and a sweet smile appeared on the girl's innocent and pure face.

Merlin immediately narrowed her eyes and said, "You are... Francesca?"

"Did Faldeus send you?"

"No no, this has nothing to do with Faldeus at all."

Francesca smiled and leaned forward. "I just suddenly realized that there are actually two 'Merlins' who like to peek on the stage so carefully decorated for this 'Fake Holy Grail War.' Unbelievable. So I came to say hello~"

At that time, Francesca puffed out her cheeks in confusion and said, "But Onee-chan, you wouldn't want such an interesting show to end midway, would you? If we let those people continue causing trouble, the Holy Grail War might not proceed properly, right?"

"Hmm... That's certainly true."

Merlin smiled lightly, neither affirming nor denying, and said, "Since I agreed to Faldeus's proposal earlier, I have to take some action."

"In that case——"

Amid pink flower petals dancing down from the sky, Merlin's figure quietly disappeared into the darkness of the night.

A melodic and somewhat mysterious singing voice slowly echoed across the rooftop.

"Then let's enjoy it together."

"After all... If there's time later, I really want to get to know that boy better."

…

…

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