Chapter 53: Pandora's Tale, The Great Rite of the Covenant
As if in an impractical, hazy, and hallucinogenic dream, Shirou opened his eyes in a greyish-white space. The first thing he saw was, as usual, the beautiful young girl in a white dress with pink twin-tails and a petite frame. At this moment, she was cradling his head and gently stroking his hair.
"I didn't expect us to meet again so soon, my child. Your strength has grown faster than any child I have ever seen."
Seeing him like this, Pandora patted his head with a look of mock-annoyance.
"What a naughty child. Are you truly so longing for 'Mama'?"
Pandora spoke while looking at Shirou with gentle eyes, her fingers as tender as white jade tracing his cheek.
"In the blink of an eye, you have already defeated so many gods. But as your strength increases, the power of the Last King will also grow stronger. You must be careful."
Pandora's eyes seemed to contain a deep affection—an emotion distinct from the love between a man and a woman. The current relationship between this goddess and Shirou was no longer just that of 'foster mother' and child; it had become much more ambiguous.
"Mm, I will."
Shirou spoke calmly, his hand stroking Pandora's fair and moist skin. Her skin, as delicate and white as milk, seemed to emit a holy glow, making her look as dreamlike and beautiful as a figure in an oil painting. Pandora didn't mind; instead, she actively leaned into Shirou's embrace.
"When the 'Last King' Rama awakens, he can rely on the ancient 'Great Rite of the Covenant' to draw strength from the heavens, the earth, and the stars.
The more 'Campiones' there are living in the world, the more cursed power Rama obtains, and his own immortality increases simultaneously."
"The 'Great Rite of the Covenant'... There are currently seven 'Campiones' in existence. That means the Last King's power will be the sum of those seven."
Shirou murmured to himself. If that were the case, Rama's combat power upon manifestation would naturally be peerless; a 'Campione' encountering him alone would face certain death.
At this point, Pandora shifted her body in his arms, finding a more comfortable position to sit.
"In the past, the Demon Kings had to engage in civil wars with each other to counter the 'Last King' Rama. The final victor would then face Rama. However... though the winning Demon Kings of previous generations were incredibly powerful, they all fell at Rama's hands."
Shirou listened intently to Pandora's narrative.
"Even so... my battle with him is already inevitable."
Hearing Shirou's reply, a moving smile full of trust appeared on Pandora's exquisite face, possessing an aura that was both youthful and maturely charming.
"Then, next, I shall bestow upon you the Authorities of the two Heretic Gods you defeated."
Pandora smiled tenderly, then slightly tilted her face to embrace and kiss Shirou.
"Wu..."
At this moment, Shirou finally realized the benefits of twin-tails. From then on, he fell in love with the wonderful sensation of "riding a horse."
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Shirou obtained the Authorities of Verethragna and Melqart as he had wished.
As expected, one was Verethragna's ten incarnations, 『War God of the East』, and the other was Melqart's Authority over storms and lightning. Shirou did not give the latter a new name, but instead categorized it under the Authority 『Heaven's Wrath』, as they belonged to the same domain.
Even so, Melqart's Authority granted a certain enhancement to Shirou's 『Heaven's Wrath』, particularly in the fields of storms and lightning, allowing him to construct more combination techniques.
As for Verethragna's ten incarnations, Shirou had already experienced them personally. However, the Authority he obtained differed slightly from the original descriptions; this was normal, as Authorities vary based on the person who obtains them.
Melqart's domain of Authority was comparable to Zeus's, as he was the King who unified the ancient Phoenician pantheon. In Christian culture, Melqart is also the Demon King of Gluttony, one of the Seven Deadly Sins; Milton's Paradise Lost depicts him as a Demon King rivaling God; he is also the Lord of the Flies, Beelzebub, and Baal, the Great Emperor of Darkness and head of the seventy-two pillars of Solomon.
By the time Shirou woke up, less than a few minutes had passed since the great battle, but in that "Boundary of Life and Immortality," he had stayed for at least over an hour. If it hadn't been for Pandora's reminder when she couldn't take it anymore, Shirou would have lingered there even longer.
"King! Are you alright?"
After confirming that the disturbances caused by the Heretic Gods had ceased, the three witches ran toward Shirou. They had stayed far away out of concern that they would only cause trouble for the King.
Wise and beautiful—this was what Shirou liked most about them.
"Let's go back."
Shirou stood up and led the three witches back to the capital of Sardinia. His objective for coming here was complete.
After resting in the capital for a few days, the forging of 「Excalibur」 and the 「Golden Armor」 was completed. Shirou then added 「EA: Sword of Rupture」 to the forging queue.
"I should forge multiple copies of the EX-rank Noble Phantasms I remember and can forge."
That way, if one EX Noble Phantasm was destroyed, he could replace it without worry. Sitting on a lounge chair on the balcony of the second floor in Sardinia's capital, Shirou checked the forging progress while planning his next move.
"Next is Japan. I'll go there to investigate and, while I'm at it, look for information regarding the 'Last King' Rama."
At the same time, Shirou ordered the magic associations of Southern Europe and the [Council of Sages] to begin a worldwide investigation, ensuring they maintained control over information.
Knowing oneself and one's enemy is the only way to be victorious; fighting an enemy without understanding them would be an act of sheer arrogance.
Thump, thump, thump...
The sound of hurried footsteps coming from the stairs caught Shirou's attention. Soon, Erica ran up, reporting to Shirou while slightly out of breath.
"King, we have received news. Marquis Voban, the Demon King who leads the North European magic associations, has boarded a plane to Japan."
"Marquis Voban?"
Shirou narrowed his eyes slightly and quickly realized why Voban was heading to Japan. Since he could obtain clues about a Heretic God in Japan, the other Demon Kings weren't fools and would naturally have their own ways of getting information. And Shirou could basically guess which Heretic God would appear in Japan.
To go to that place, what was needed was a shrine maiden with powerful spiritual energy...
"The 'Hime-Miko,' Mariya Yuri!"
On the surface, she was a model student with excellent grades, but in reality, she was a high-ranking ritualist in the spiritualist groups of the Kanto region, belonging to the rare rank of
"Hime-Miko". She possessed the crucial ability to receive revelations from the Netherworld to see through the true nature and origins of Heretic Gods—an ability similar to Princess Alice's.
According to the current timeline, she should be about fourteen years old, a middle school girl. Although her spiritual power wasn't as strong as it would be two years later, it was already very formidable.
However, since Shirou had Princess Alice, the "White Ritualist Princess," Mariya Yuri didn't matter much to him. Both Shirou's and Marquis Voban's goals were the Heretic God appearing in Japan.
"It seems our goals are quite similar, Marquis Voban."
Murmuring this, Shirou stood up.
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