Chapter 161: A Battle That Shook Orario — Astraea Judges Shirou!
"Astraea, the Goddess of Justice, has declared war on the leader of Evilus?" "The current leader of Evilus is… that Sword Demon?" "What on earth happened?!" "Orario has had far too many major events recently!"
For a moment, the direct declaration of war by the Goddess of Justice, Astraea, against Shirou shook the entirety of Orario.
The citizens of Orario never expected that the recently returned Astraea would directly declare war on Evilus of the labyrinth city. Even more surprising was that the leader of Evilus was none other than the notorious Sword Demon from the dungeon.
For the very few people connected to Shirou, the news that "Emiya Shirou is the Sword Demon" was shocking.
Especially for the Loki Familia, apart from Ais and Lefiya, who already knew Shirou's identity, everyone else was learning the truth for the first time.
"Emiya is really the Sword Demon?" Finn bit his thumb. "That's really unexpected… he hid it too well."
"Not only that, he actually became the leader of Evilus?" Riveria held her forehead with her hand. "What is Shirou thinking? Does he really intend to oppose the gods?"
"Shirou…"
Even knowing his identity, Ais was shocked by the news. Since the end of the Great Sea Demon incident, she hadn't heard anything about him.
In that instant, she vaguely sensed that something was brewing and about to occur, realizing that events beyond her ability were unfolding. Yet, she had no power to change anything and could only watch as the conflict erupted.
On the other hand, Lefiya felt similarly to Ais but accumulated even more unease. She was furious that Shirou hadn't confided in her.
"Shirou, that annoying, annoying, annoying guy! Why didn't you tell me?! If you had, I would've joined Evilus willingly…"
Lefiya muttered words of rebellion, showing how strongly she cared for Shirou.
Yet, Shirou had told them nothing. This was undoubtedly a form of his kindness—he didn't want to drag unrelated people into a battle destined to be chaotic and insane.
Even the strongest factions of Orario—the Freya Familia and the Loki Familia—felt deep helplessness when witnessing actions opposing the gods. They could only watch as spectators, observing how a mortal versus god confrontation would unfold.
Babel Tower.
After Astraea's declaration of war on Evilus, Babel Tower immediately erupted into chaos.
Until now, the Order Faction and Dark Faction of Orario had maintained a special balance. Neither had fully annihilated the other, keeping a unique relationship.
This was because Evilus wasn't purely evil. Within it were true evil gods, truth-seeking deities like Thanatos, and gods like Ikeros and Rudra who acted as Ouranos' operatives along with their Familias.
Because of this, a full-scale declaration of war by the Order Faction on Evilus was unprecedented.
Once the news spread, all gods were shocked and immediately convened a divine meeting at Babel Tower.
Almost all gods of Orario, including the declaring Goddess of Justice Astraea, gathered, feeling confusion over the impending war.
"What on earth is going on—?!"
In the high-ceilinged meeting hall supported by towering pillars, Loki slammed her hand on the table.
As the true leader of Orario's Order Faction, she had never heard of any declaration of war against Evilus.
The sudden declaration left her mind buzzing, shocked by the absurd development.
Although Shirou had become Evilus's leader, to Loki, he had earned significant favor. She could not simply oppose him without reason.
Most importantly, Loki herself was now suspicious of the celestial god Ouranos.
After Evilus was defeated, Ouranos and the guild had given the Loki Familia abrupt orders, ruthless and arbitrary.
This directly led to the Xenos Chaos incident and the Great Sea Demon's rampage.
Naturally, Loki could no longer view Ouranos favorably.
Therefore, she turned her anger toward Astraea, questioning:
"Why suddenly declare war on Evilus? Did you even consult us?"
"The order was issued jointly by the Guild and the celestial god Ouranos," Astraea said calmly, sitting quietly at a corner of the round table. "If you have objections, Loki, you may question Ouranos directly."
"Damn it…"
Astraea's words left Loki frustrated.
She knew all of this was Ouranos' plan, yet she still could not accept that Astraea, who should have known better, executed Ouranos' decisions coldly without question.
After all, the Astraea Familia had once, like the Loki Familia, existed to maintain order in Orario and truly uphold justice in the labyrinth city.
Now, Astraea had become Ouranos' pawn.
Such a stark contrast was naturally incomprehensible to Loki.
"Astraea, how did you know that the Sword Demon is the leader of Evilus, and that his identity is Emiya Shirou?" Freya, who had been silent, suddenly asked. "You just returned to the labyrinth city. Where did you get this intelligence?"
"From Ouranos' sources," Astraea replied coldly.
Seeing Astraea's attitude, resolutely acting as Ouranos' pawn, Loki and Freya felt helpless.
Though they were the strongest gods of Orario's Order Faction, facing Astraea—who wielded the greatest powers of Genkai—they could not act too assertively.
The Astraea of the past had been gentle and kind, never imposing or threatening. But now, she had become Ouranos' instrument, showing no mercy to former colleagues. The terrifying pressure she radiated was beyond what any god could endure.
"Astraea, you're serious about this."
Hestia spoke with a complicated expression from the corner of the meeting.
Since the revelation that Shirou was the Sword Demon and leader of Evilus, the Hestia Familia's situation had worsened.
After all, Shirou had once been a retainer of the Hestia Familia, closely connected to Hestia herself.
The citizens of Orario, who held unprecedented blind trust in Goddess Astraea, believed her words completely. They treated the Hestia Familia, which had sheltered Shirou, as allies of Evilus, launching various attacks.
If not for the assistance of the Loki Familia, Hephaestus Familia, and Hermes, the Hestia Familia might already have been expelled from Orario.
"Hestia, accept reality," Astraea said, looking at her, her gaze complex. "As gods, we are often powerless. The more we try to intervene, the more entangled we become, eventually becoming burdens ourselves."
"Astraea?"
The Goddess of Justice's words, as if conveying emotion, left Hestia stunned.
Before she could ask further, Astraea reverted to her extreme coldness, radiating absolute iciness.
"So you really intend to judge Emiya Shirou?" Loki pouted, questioning Astraea again.
"I will use my divine authority against him," Astraea said calmly. "If he can withstand my authority, it proves his innocence. Otherwise, it shows he is indeed an unforgivable evildoer, and punishment by the Sword of Judgment is justified."
"That's an extreme view, Astraea… You once said the Sword of Judgment couldn't distinguish true justice from evil…" Freya voiced her discontent lightly.
Astraea said nothing in response. Her silence conveyed determination; she would not hesitate in judging Shirou.
"What if that Emiya Shirou doesn't come?" a god nearby asked.
This reflected the concern of many gods. Even if Astraea threatened her opponent, if he were truly an evildoer, why would he care?
Astraea quietly replied: "He will come. If he dares not, it means he cannot change anything."
Only a few gods present could understand the weight of her words.
Only those aware of Ouranos' plan knew that if Shirou did not face Astraea, Ouranos' plan would proceed smoothly. Then, Shirou and Evilus would be powerless to alter anything.
Exactly what Ouranos wanted.
In short, with the discontent of Loki, Freya, and Hestia, the proposal to judge Shirou was smoothly approved.
For most gods, this was mere spectacle—they did not care if a mortal was judged correctly, nor about his life or death. For them, it was enough that it was interesting.
As the entire city of Orario buzzed with news of Astraea's declaration of war, shocked by the impending ultimate showdown between the Order Faction and Evilus, Shirou, the protagonist of these events, showed not the slightest panic about the upcoming divine judgment.
He maintained his usual rhythm, immersing himself daily in forging various Noble Phantasms and studying, together with Thanatos, the data from the Juggernaut experiments obtained from the Rudra Familia.
Through their research, they confirmed that Juggernaut's soul fusion experiment could be reversed.
Although reversing it carried significant risk, it was not impossible.
If they could obtain more detailed experimental data, the success rate could be further increased.
In this way, it might be possible to liberate the souls of Astraea's followers.
This conclusion was extremely important to Shirou, enough to potentially influence the upcoming final battle with the Order Faction!
Besides this, Shirou had one more task: to receive treatment from Airmid to heal the divine-power wounds on his body.
To face the Goddess of Justice in battle, the power of Unlimited Blade Works was still necessary.
Thus, as soon as the three-day period ended, Shirou immediately headed to the Dian Cecht Familia's base to meet Airmid.
"You really dare to come?" Airmid showed a complex expression upon seeing Shirou. "Don't you realize that in today's Orario, you're now the number one wanted criminal?"
"Of course I know," Shirou said quietly, "but I choose to trust your integrity, Miss Airmid. You wouldn't abandon a patient, right?"
"Hmph, you win that bet."
Airmid nodded. She had evidently not reported Shirou's situation to the guild.
Even knowing that Shirou was to face judgment by the god Astraea, she chose to conceal his information and treat him without hesitation. Alise's presence had clearly played a significant role in this decision.
"Are you really going to face the divine judgment of Astraea?" Airmid asked on the way to the treatment room.
"Of course," Shirou replied without hesitation. "If I want to achieve my goal, Goddess Astraea is a hurdle I must overcome. Moreover, I don't hold a completely pessimistic view of her actions."
"...What do you mean?"
"Astraea didn't directly use Orario's collective power to exterminate Evilus. Instead, she chose divine judgment, directly judging me. Don't you think that's unnecessary?" Shirou said quietly. "As a god with the strongest authority in Genkai, if she truly wanted to destroy Evilus, there would be no need for such a compromise. She could simply use the guild's power, rally other divine Familias, and surround me. Divine judgment, on the contrary, gives me an opportunity for one-on-one combat with her, doesn't it?"
"..."
Airmid fell silent at Shirou's words.
Ultimately, the healer had to admit that Shirou's reasoning made sense. Astraea may indeed have intentionally given him an opportunity.
"Still, I think Goddess Astraea is serious," Airmid said, her tone complex. "After all, the divine judgment of the Goddess of Justice isn't something simple. If you can't pass her trial, you will die. That is an unavoidable fact."
"I will not die," Shirou replied without hesitation. "No matter what happens, I will survive until the moment the true justice I pursue is realized."
"Heh, then I'll look forward to it."
Airmid smiled, not with mockery, but as if finding Shirou an interesting man.
Soon, she brought Shirou to the treatment room—not to the outer part, but straight into the inner secret chamber.
Inside, a few unexpected figures appeared before Shirou.
"Loki, Freya… and Hestia? Why are you here?"
Seeing familiar gods in front of him, Shirou looked surprised.
The three gods, however, were not surprised. They had evidently already heard the situation from Airmid.
"This treatment requires the assistance of these three gods, of course. Originally, I only invited Goddess Hestia, but the other two just happened to come along from Babel Tower," Airmid explained quietly.
"Oh, how could such an interesting matter not involve me? After all, I still owe you a favor, Shirou!" Loki said without hesitation, patting Shirou's shoulder. "And, how did you secretly become the leader of Evilus? If you had told me earlier, maybe I could've joined you as a little evil god for fun!"
"Stop joking."
Shirou smiled bitterly. If outsiders heard Loki say she wanted to play as an evil god, they'd likely be terrified.
After all, the Loki Familia was the strongest Familia in Orario. If they joined Evilus, it would be a catastrophic blow to the Order Faction.
"Shirou, are you really prepared?" Freya's attitude was extremely serious. "In a battle with Astraea, not only a mortal but even gods might not withstand it. You will die."
"I've made my decision," Shirou said, nodding without hesitation.
"Shirou…"
Hestia was the quietest among them.
Though she cared most for Shirou, she understood his determination better than anyone. After a moment of silence, she said slowly: "I heard from Airmid that healing the divine-power wound on you requires my assistance. No matter what, I'll help you!"
"Hestia…"
Shirou showed complex emotions toward the goddess who had once sheltered him.
He spoke firmly: "No matter the outcome of this battle, I won't drag the Hestia Familia down or bring trouble to you."
"But…"
Hestia clearly didn't want to hear Shirou say that.
Unable to express her feelings, she could only sigh helplessly.
After Shirou finished talking with the three gods, Airmid quietly spoke: "Regarding the divine-power wound, I've reviewed a lot of materials these past days and conducted research. I've confirmed that this wound can be healed. The method is simple: using divine power of the same level to collide with the wound, forcing out the original poison through counteracting power."
"Divine power of the same level? But gods of Genkai aren't allowed to use divine power, right?" Shirou asked doubtfully.
Airmid nodded: "Yes, but that restriction applies to most of the divine power's origin. The power of divine authority is still allowed. Gods can extract a portion of divine power using their divine authority. Though the quality and quantity are much lower than true divine power, with the combined assistance of three gods, it can be assembled into a complete divine power source."
"I see."
Shirou finally understood why all three gods were present.
He took a deep breath and nodded: "Then I'll leave it to you. To face Goddess Astraea, I must heal this divine-power wound!"
"Leave it to us," Loki, Freya, and Hestia all said.
Their absolute goodwill toward Shirou was undoubtedly the result of his past actions.
They were convinced that the path Shirou walked was the correct one. Even if the entire labyrinth city of Orario denied his existence and his sense of justice, it was not Shirou's fault; rather, the world's justice itself had deviated, lost its way.
Therefore, the only thing to do was correct Orario's error and restore true justice.
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