Don't forget—before the video had even started, the Council of Gods had already fully analyzed the remains of the Olympian Machine Gods.
They had transformed them into eleven cosmic warships, soaring through space and casting their menace over the entire world.
What infuriated Kirina the most was this:
Those arrogant false gods had even boasted they would storm the imperial palace itself, drag both the First Emperor and Nameless away in chains, and force a sovereign who once ruled an age to kneel, surrender, and beg forgiveness.
One of their councilors, the so-called Sun God, had already proved his ruthlessness—firing a single blast that shattered the Heavenly Court Defense System in a brazen show of unchecked might.
These interstellar god-warships, divine machines beyond human scale, were terrifying black-tech centuries ahead of anything on Earth.
Even Heroic Spirits could not stand against such orbital bombardment.
If Council of Gods had their way, all of humanity would be forced to kneel beneath their shadow.
A new age would dawn—an age where the Council of Gods were worshipped as true deities, equals of the Almighty.
They called it:
The Era of Deterrence.
"Bet they'll be scared out of their wits now," Sanjiro muttered.
He could only hope those false gods weren't shaken so badly they wet themselves.
…Then again, they were no longer human, but machine-gods. That function didn't exist for them anymore.
The summoning ritual had ended.
"Why do I get the feeling Nameless is basically playing some mobile gacha game, and this summoning is just him single-pulling the jackpot—landing the First Emperor?" Kirina tilted her head. "He even prayed to the gods beforehand—just like me!"
It was all too familiar.
Whenever she rolled gacha, she prayed to every deity she could name—God, the Trimurti, anyone who might listen.
Yet she never got lucky. Always the worst pulls, always watching others win big while she could only sulk and grind her teeth in envy.
"Less gaming!" Sanjiro snapped, rolling his eyes.
If only it really were a game.
Then he'd just press a few buttons on his phone—no danger, no risk.
But for him, every fight was life-or-death.
Victory required planning, contingencies, careful preparation.
Healing potions, weapons, armor—he carried them in triples.
One to use.
One as a backup.
And one as backup to the backup.
Those without caution?
They were already dead, long before they ever met the monsters, the gods, or the Beasts of humanity.
Kirina's envy burned hotter.
"Unfair! I prayed to God and Alaya too, but luck never comes my way!"
Nameless just single-pulled the First Emperor like it was nothing.... utterly ridiculous!
Meanwhile, she could barely scrape pity-pulls. The salt was real.
"Maybe because you've done too many bad things." Sanjiro gave her a long, judging stare.
If not for being on the same level, Alaya probably would've strengthened him already—just to wipe her out.
And she still wanted blessings? From Alaya of all things?
Most likely, she was the one who raided the entire Peach Garden bare.
The video finally faded into darkness.
Lines of epilogue text scrolled across the screen—
[Lostbelt No. 3 — Corrected.]
[The undying sovereign chose with his own hands to consign his eternal empire to the grave.]
[The nameless Master and his Servants march onward, their path yet unwritten.]
[To know what comes next… tune in next time!]
[Three days later, at the same time, a special side story will be uploaded—don't miss it!]
"Eh? Side story?" Kirina's eyes widened.
Side stories were usually hidden details or side plots not shown in the main cut.
But the video had already shown everything—even the Emperor being summoned by Nameless into Chaldea as a bonus scene.
"What could they possibly add?" she muttered.
Sanjiro could only shrug.
"No idea."
Who knew what that sly producer wanted to expose next?
It had been uncomfortable the first time. But after so many reveals, he was… getting used to it.
Kirina, however, was convinced. "See? Proof that Alaya favors Nameless!"
The timing was too perfect.
Just when the Council of Gods threatened Nameless and the First Emperor, the video dropped—showing the might of the Emperor.
It was blatant bias. A cosmic referee taking sides.
"Favor, huh…" Sanjiro twitched at the corner of his mouth.
If this was "favor," could Alaya maybe… favor someone else instead?!
After all, he wasn't just fighting here. He was split across countless timelines, battling on every front at once.
Even the Shikotei's two-millennia burden looked like vacation compared to this.
Damn you, Alaya!
At that moment, Fou—now a smug little cat—jumped into Sanjiro's lap, head held high as it meowed proudly:
"Fou! …Fou! (Well? Hurry up and thank me already!)"
Back in the last video, it had passed on all its stored mana to him, allowing him to strike down the Beast.
That transfer had drained it completely.
Sanjiro picked it up gently and kissed its forehead.
"You really are too cute."
Such a cute kitten… almost too cute.
The little creature tilted its head, smirking at the sulky child nearby—
"Fou! Fou! (See that? He kissed me! You could never make him do that!)"
Even without understanding, Kirina's blood boiled.
"Argh! Cats aren't supposed to talk back! One day, I'll turn you into nothing but a fluffy plush ball that only goes 'meow'!"
This cat was insufferable.
Always prancing, always teasing—and never letting her touch it.
Sometimes, she wondered if the two of them had been enemies in a past life.
But for now, she was more curious about the aftermath.
And most of all: what response the Council of Gods would give.
====
The video was over.
But the shockwaves it left behind swept across the entire world.
In Egypt, within the radiant Composite Temple of the Gods—
Pharaoh Ramesses II sat in stunned silence as the last image faded.
"That assassin… actually managed to wound the First Emperor, king of a Lostbelt?"
Unbelievable.
No matter how he reasoned it, he couldn't have imagined Keika—a mere assassin—wielding nothing but a common cellphone, yet managing to strike at one so near omniscience.
"She's no assassin at all!" Ramesses cried.
What kind of assassination was that?
It was a virus!
A digital plague—not true assassination.
He had to insist on this point.
Otherwise, the wager he'd made with King Hassan would be completely lost.
From now on, if King Hassan wanted to come and go as he pleased, there was nothing he could do to stop him.
"The path of assassination does not cling to any single method."
King Hassan rested both hands on his greatsword and replied calmly:
"My assassination is to slay all before me—to strike down the one who hears the final bell in open battle."
Other assassins tended to sneak, creep close, and finish their foes with a single stab.
But in his eyes, the most optimal choice was to openly slaughter every enemy in his path!
"Humph. Do not think I fear your threats. I only tolerate you because you are an old man," Ramses II sneered coldly.
A joke! He, the mighty Sun King, proclaimed as the incarnation of the sun god Ra, how could he be afraid of one old man?
The blue flames danced within King Hassan's eye sockets as he nodded with satisfaction.
"That one, blessed by fate, is indeed worthy of carrying the duty of guarding humanity."
Just like him, the man had chosen without hesitation to abandon his Grand Class and unleash the Sun-Shooting Bow and Arrow—a strike that tore away the fox spirit's stolen solar divinity.
"This fellow even dares to call you 'teacher.' Truly, he respects his master," Ramses II said with a hint of surprise.
Even in such a moment, Nameless remembered the grace King Hassan had once shown him, teaching him the craft of the Grand Assassin.
By contrast, the First Emperor had cast that teaching aside, choosing instead to fight Nameless.
When Shikotei answered the summoning later, it was likely to make amends for that betrayal.
With a touch of pleasure, Ramses II said,
"And yet none of your so-called Hassans, those Assassins of Assassins, have ever reached the height of a true top Heroic Spirit!"
It was laughable.
Here stood King Hassan, strong enough to wound even a Beast of Humanity—yet his successors were each more pitiful than the last.
They could not compare to Nameless he had casually instructed.
No—worse than that.
One of them, Hassan of the Hundred Faces, had even been cut down by Nameless's own hand!
Shameful!
Utterly shameful!
Not strength enough to win—no, let's call it "respecting the elderly." That excuse made Ramses II all the more smug.
"I am the Hassan of Hassans. It is only natural my successors cannot compare." King Hassan replied flatly.
Among the seven Grand Classes—after Grand Caster Solomon—there had even been Gilgamesh the King of Heroes and Merlin the Magus of Flowers considered as candidates.
But he, as Grand Assassin, had no rival.
Even when he sacrificed his Grand Saint Graph, none would take his place.
In the end, Alaya had no choice but to return it to him.
King Hassan looked upon Nameless loosing the arrow and said:
"If Nameless can project the Sun-Shooting Bow, then you, self-styled incarnation of Ra, could not withstand his shot."
"That fox spirit? Do not compare her to our great Egyptian god, Ra!" Ramses II snapped.
That fox—said to be Amaterasu's avatar—had never truly wielded the sun's full power.
If she had, she could have annihilated Nameless effortlessly.
—Buzz.
At that moment, King Hassan's figure suddenly vanished.
Eh? That man left?
—Crack!
Before Ramses II could voice his irritation, a sharp grating sound echoed outside.
Puzzled, he stepped to the grand doors of the temple—only to see King Hassan carving a line of words into them with his greatsword:
[The Great Temple welcomes you—like the sun itself embracing you. Warmly inviting Lord King Hassan to visit often!]
"…."
Ramses II fell into silence.
His divine temple—sturdy enough to withstand nuclear bombardment—was defaced by a casual scratch of the sword.
To carve graffiti on an ancient relic—such barbarism!
"Visit often"? What, did the man think this was his house?!
The audacity!!
====
Chaldea.
The moment the video ended—
Hinako Akuta had already slipped out quietly.
Yet as she pushed the door open—
She found Dr. Romani, who had been watching the video so intently, now waiting outside, calmly eating a strawberry shortcake.
On the other side, Mash stood with her shield in hand, eyes full of suspicion.
Da Vinci, intrigued, said:
"Well then, isn't it time you explained yourself?"
For this woman, despite being the powerful Yu Mei-ren from over two millennia ago, had disguised herself as an ordinary magus to join Chaldea.
Clearly, her intentions were far from pure.
"Be honest—confess, and the punishment will be lighter!" Romani put down his cake, staring at her warily.
Not only was she a spirit, but more dangerously—she was a walking time bomb.
No… a walking nuclear warhead!
Her ultimate technique was to detonate her body without hesitation, weaponizing herself as the deadliest strike—and then revive again, over and over.
A true mobile nuclear arsenal!
"I just wanted to live as an ordinary person… would you believe that?"
Hinako Akuta pushed up her glasses, answering helplessly.
An immortal spirit, she had endured since the age of gods.
From the days of the Flame and Yellow Emperors, through the reign of the First Emperor, she had met that protector of humanity—Nameless.
It was because of him that her cold heart began to warm, her gaze on humanity growing fond.
Perhaps this was what it meant to love someone, and so also love what they loved.
"You just want senpai's body, you vampire!" Mash blurted.
It was normal for so many Heroic Spirits to fall for her senpai's charm.
But she wanted to literally eat him.
"To hell with you! I'm a spirit, not a vampire!" Hinako Akuta retorted, exasperated, her quiet "literary girl" air vanishing in an instant.
She remembered all too well—
In the Lostbelt, she had twice detonated herself to help Nameless defeat the fox.
Nameless had promised her: once the Lostbelt was resolved, he would repay her sacrifices.
Yet that man vanished without a trace, leaving her to forget him entirely.
Everything he took from her—he would pay back.
Everything he devoured—he would spit out.
This time, she would find him, and consume him completely!
"You clearly love sucking blood. You're a vampire through and through…" Romani muttered under his breath.
"Shut it! You damn shut-in doctor with your idol obsession—believe me, I'll expose you!"
Hinako Akuta snapped back mercilessly.
She hadn't even seen Nameless once since arriving in Chaldea.
But after watching the video, her memories returned—and with them, an aching frustration that grew ever more violent.
And this otaku doctor—his beloved virtual idol was, behind the screen, nothing but a sweaty old man!
"…."
Romani fell silent at once, uneasy.
Could it be—this spirit girl possessed clairvoyance at the level of a Grand Magus, able to see through his true self?
Mash stood protectively in front of him, shield raised:
"If you want to eat senpai, you'll have to break through me first!"
"Oh? Then maybe I should eat you instead?"
Hokusai licked her lips, her eyes flashing blood-red.
"No! If you want to live as a human, you can't drink anyone's blood!" Mash trembled, but still held firm.
"Bah. I'm no vampire. I'm a proud spirit! Half-bloods like you are disgusting to me anyway."
Hinako Akuta rolled her eyes.
She had wanted her identity hidden forever.
But Alaya's damnable video had laid everything bare. Now every Heroic Spirit would be on guard against her.
Damn you, Alaya!
Nameless, where are you?
Her lips parted, her hunger rising.
The craving to devour him burned within her.
====
Academy City, Fuyuki.
Inside the headmaster's office, silence stretched long after the video ended.
Tamamo-no-Mae stared in disbelief.
"I… was defeated?"
Nine tails gathered, she was the avatar of Amaterasu, the nine-tailed fox, destroyer of dynasties, the Beast of Humanity—"The Beast Who Loves to Play," Tamamo-no-Mae, child of the sun.
She should have been invincible. Yet she ended like that?
Unacceptable!
She grit her teeth.
"Damn you, Nameless—everything was in your plan from the start!"
The man had stolen the Sun-Shooting Arrow from the sacred tree and the corpse of the golden crow—specifically holding it in reserve for her.
Even as a nine-tailed fox embodying the sun's power, she could not withstand such perfect countermeasure!
"To throw away a Grand Class for one strike… Nameless is ruthless indeed."
Merry's hand trembled as she held her lollipop.
Too ruthless!
A Grand Saint Graph—abandoned without hesitation, sacrificed for a single ultimate arrow.
Not even a Beast could stand against such resolve.