"Not dead?"
Mash stared at Emiya Shirou, her voice filled with disbelief.
"That's right. None of them are dead."
"I don't fully understand the principle either, but my intuition says so."
"And think back for a moment."
"When Merlin peeked into the temple while Quetzalcoatl was away, didn't he find that the citizens offered as living sacrifices were all still alive?"
"That's true."
Merlin immediately seized the opening and chimed in.
"If that's the case, then calling her a Good God is completely accurate."
"This means there really is a possibility of bringing her over to our side."
"Of course, it won't be easy."
"But it is possible."
"So what if it's difficult?"
Having fully grasped the situation after Shirou's explanation, Fujimaru Ritsuka stepped forward.
Her tone was calm.
And firm.
"As long as there's even the slightest chance, it's something we must try."
"Then I'll leave this matter to you, Ritsuka."
Emiya Shirou smiled brightly.
"After all, she did say you fit her aesthetic perfectly."
He stepped forward and patted Ritsuka on the shoulder, clearly holding back laughter.
"If you really can't convince her..."
"You can always try a honey trap."
"Hahaha!"
The moment the words landed, laughter erupted throughout the room.
"Excellent!"
Gilgamesh spoke loudly after the laughter died down.
"Since the strategy is settled, I leave this matter to you, Fujimaru Ritsuka."
"Win over the goddess."
"Turn her into our strength."
"Yes, King Gilgamesh."
Ritsuka answered solemnly.
...
Once again, Emiya Shirou did not join the journey into the dense forest.
The reason was simple.
The human side now had an additional goddess-Ishtar.
Their previously scarce high-end combat power had suddenly become plentiful.
Leaving one person behind to guard Uruk was the most reasonable choice.
Especially to prevent a sudden assault from the Avenger, Gorgon.
At the same time, Fujimaru Ritsuka's safety would be fully guaranteed.
As for personnel distribution-
Given Ishtar's personality, if she were left in the capital without either Fujimaru Ritsuka or Siduri to mediate, she and Gilgamesh would probably start shouting at each other within minutes.
That would drastically reduce Gilgamesh's work efficiency.
On the other hand, if Emiya Shirou stayed behind to defend the capital, then even if something went wrong in the forest, Ritsuka could summon him immediately.
In every sense, this arrangement was optimal.
Time, however, was extremely tight.
After finalizing the plan, Fujimaru Ritsuka and the others-who had just returned to Uruk and crossed paths with Quetzalcoatl-were already preparing to depart again.
Previously, just recruiting Ishtar had taken three full days of back-and-forth travel.
Now, only seven days remained before the scheduled decisive battle with the Avenger Gorgon.
And Quetzalcoatl's residence lay even deeper than Ishtar's.
Farther.
More time-consuming.
There was no room for delay.
Just as they exited the Ziggurat, Emiya Shirou intercepted Fujimaru Ritsuka, who was about to leave immediately.
He pulled her aside into a quiet corner.
Merlin, Ishtar, Mash, and the others were tactful enough to move away and wait without prying.
"Is something wrong, Senior Shirou?"
Dragged aside so suddenly, Ritsuka asked in confusion.
"Ritsuka."
"You're aware of the other goddess in the Three Goddess Alliance, right?"
"You mean the Mistress of the Underworld."
"Ereshkigal?"
"Exactly."
Shirou nodded.
His expression turned serious.
"My intuition keeps telling me that the Avenger Gorgon isn't our final opponent."
"I suspect that after Gorgon..."
"We'll face the 'Mother' who summoned both Quetzalcoatl and Gorgon."
"And from the intelligence we have so far, it's clear that this 'Mother' is far stronger than either of them."
"She's a true threat."
Ritsuka's pupils contracted slightly.
It sounded unbelievable.
Yet she didn't doubt him at all.
What Shirou said wasn't groundless.
"Then... what should we do?"
She quickly steadied herself and asked.
"At present, we don't even know the enemy's true identity."
"So there's no way to prepare in advance."
"That means there's only one thing we can do."
"Strengthen our side."
"And because of that..."
"Winning over the Mistress of the Underworld, Ereshkigal, is extremely important."
Shirou paused, giving Ritsuka time to process his words.
When he saw her nod faintly, he continued.
"I spoke with Ereshkigal before."
"When she was possessing Ishtar."
"From that conversation, I learned what kind of person she really is."
He then relayed Ereshkigal's explanation to Ritsuka in full.
"From that alone, you can tell how deeply she cares about the humans of this world."
"Someone like that can absolutely be won over."
"And I am trying."
"But so far, aside from a wager..."
"There hasn't been much progress."
"A wager?"
Ritsuka's interest was immediately piqued.
But Shirou clearly had no intention of explaining further.
"The wager itself isn't important."
"What matters is her attitude."
"She's lived her entire life in the Underworld."
"She has no friends."
"And beyond that, she's barely interacted with outsiders at all."
"That's why being able to appear through Ishtar now..."
"Makes her extremely open to communication."
Shirou reached out and placed a hand on Ritsuka's shoulder.
His voice was steady.
"So during this journey..."
"You must find time at night to talk with her properly."
"You are humanity's final Master."
"You've already saved multiple Singularities."
"She'll definitely be interested in you."
"And once it comes to communication..."
"That's your specialty."
Ritsuka nodded without hesitation.
Just as Shirou said, communication was the one thing she excelled at.
She had no combat ability.
None at all.
But this-
This was something only she could do.
For someone who had endured so much and repeatedly saved the Human Order, Shirou believed that most Heroic Spirits would be willing to speak with her sincerely.
"I understand."
"Leave it to me, Senior Shirou."
"With this in your hands..."
"I can rest easy."
Shirou patted her shoulder once more and sent her back to Mash and Merlin.
He stood there, watching their figures fade into the distance.
A faint smile formed at the corner of his mouth.
This move-
This was a textbook substitution play.
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