A certain crossover anime's nuclear-powered sword immortal

A flash of platinum-gold sword light appeared ahead, and Quetzalcoatl's serrated greatsword, which was almost upon him, was suddenly deflected by a powerful force.

In that instant, the goddess, who had just dropped her weapon, stared wide-eyed at the red-haired boy in front of her.

The image of the red-haired boy holding a sword was reflected in her eyes.

"Such power...!" Quetzalcoatl was somewhat surprised by the power Shirou had just used; it was an incredibly strong power that she was completely unable to resist.

No skill is required whatsoever; simply dazzling speed and overwhelming power are enough to deal with this feathered serpent god.

"Destroying your second Noble Phantasm will make you lose your power..." Shirou chuckled, "That's completely unnecessary."

"How confident you are! You can't be so arrogant in front of a goddess!"

Quetzal Koyatl also grinned from the battle.

"I will crush your arrogance!"

Chapter Thirty-Two: Getting the Goddess to Join 'Voluntarily'

"It's not just about confidence, it's about having a clear understanding of your own abilities."

Shirou smiled and replied, "If I win, you'll obediently join me, okay?"

"You'd better do it first!" Quetzalcoatl said, his figure already leaving his original position, leaving a trail of afterimages, and kicking Shirou.

Bang————!

In that instant, dust was stirred up by her figure, and Shirou finally raised his hand to block the attack.

Seeing that his first attack missed, Quetzalcoatl planned to immediately retreat and attack again.

"This is—!?" Quetzal Koyatl, who was about to retreat, suddenly froze.

Her ankle was grabbed by a hand.

"You—!?" She stared wide-eyed at Shirou, whose white sword had vanished and who had grabbed her right foot with his right hand.

Before Quetzalcoatl could retaliate, Shirou twisted her right foot with a sudden force, forcing Quetzalcoatl to rotate as well to absorb the force.

Seizing the opportunity, Shirou stepped forward, grabbed her ankle with one hand, pressed his knee against her lower back, and pinched her chin with the other hand.

“Ah…!”

His entire body bent backward into an arc shape, and at this moment Quetzalcoatl was no longer able to resist.

Image: "Clear at a glance", Location: "Images/1680255910-100352746-110132247.jpg"

Saliva dripped from his mouth, which he had to open due to physical pain.

"I...I surrender...!" she mumbled incoherently.

Then, Shirou released her hand, and blue ripples spread out beside her, from which chains shot out and bound her hands.

"This is..." Quetzal Koyatir, whose wrists were bound, suddenly realized something and immediately looked at Ishtar and the leopard man, whose wrists were also being helped.

"Hmph~ Now you finally understand what's going on, right?" Ishtar looked at Quetzalcoatl with a gloating expression.

"..." Quetzalcoatl looked at Ishtar, whose wrists were also bound, and fell silent.

"Alright, now shouldn't you honor your bet and obediently join me?"

Shirou looked at the silent Venus and asked a question.

"Before that, why don't you unlock my chains first?"

Quetzal Koyatl tried to break free of the chains the moment his wrists were bound, but he failed without a doubt.

This is definitely not a divine artifact that can be broken free from in a short time, Qezar Koyatl

After realizing this, they decisively gave up the struggle.

"That won't do. Do you want to remain bound, or join my side and I will unlock your chains? You must choose one," Shirou said mercilessly.

"I...I...I join!" Quetzalcoatl was much more generous than Ishtar, who was arrogant, so after a little thought, he chose to join.

Seeing that Quetzalcoatl had fallen so quickly, Ishtar began to hesitate.

At first, she absolutely refused, but that was only because she couldn't bear the thought of a goddess being defeated by a human. But now that she saw Quetzalcoatl had joined, she couldn't help but be tempted.

After all, being bound by these chains made movement very inconvenient.

At this moment, seeing that Quetzal Koyatl had surrendered so quickly, the leopard man immediately raised his hands, which were bound by chains.

"I surrender too, oh no, I mean I'm joining in!"

The leopard-man's words became the final straw that broke Ishtar's back.

"I...I'll join too!" Ishtar finally spoke up, her face flushed, but she still had to be stubborn at the end, "Don't overthink it, I'm just helping you out a little! That's right!"

After 'inviting' the goddess Venus to join their ranks, Shirou and the others returned to Uruk.

That night, they had a big meal and drank to their hearts' content, and then everyone went to sleep.

……

That night, the stars that dotted the Uruk sky twinkled with a faint light, and a gentle breeze, seemingly from nowhere, swept away the last traces of late spring.

As usual, Shirou went to the rooftop alone. Uruk was dark at night, unlike a modern city where lights could be easily lit up.

Suddenly, footsteps approached. Shirou looked up and saw golden hair swaying in the hazy moonlight.

As soon as night fell, Ereshkigal came out again.

She came to Shirou's side and sat down skillfully.

In contrast to Ishtar, whose personality is somewhat eccentric, Ereshkigal is more composed and reserved, like a quiet lady from a respectable family.

"Why are you staring at me?" Noticing Shirou's gaze, Ereshkigal asked, her cheeks slightly flushed, her eyes darting away as she avoided his gaze.

Ever since hearing Shirou's answers last time, Ereshkigal's heart has begun to flutter.

"Of course it's because you're good-looking," Shirou replied with a smile.

"What are you saying! I...I just..." Ereshkigal blushed and glared at Shirou, then lowered her face shyly, covering her cheeks with her hands as they began to burn.

A little over a minute later, the shy goddess finally regained her composure and spoke to Shirou.

"You've won over... no, I should say you've kidnapped another goddess." Shirou sensed a hint of resentment in Ereshkigal's tone, whether it was a sigh or something else.

“How could that be? They clearly did it ‘voluntarily.’” Shirou said, looking at Ereshkigal. “And what about you? Weren’t you supposed to be digging a tunnel between Uruk and Hades? Why did you suddenly drop everything and come to find me?”

Who would have thought that Ereshkigal, one of the "Three Goddesses Alliance" and the "Goddess of the Underworld," would dig a tunnel underground in Uruk to connect with the underworld in order to be the first to conquer Uruk, so that when the time was right, the entire city of Uruk would sink and fall directly into the underworld.

Although the method was somewhat clumsy, with her persistent efforts, she had only three days left to complete this feat on the eve of Tiamat's attack.

Now, although he doesn't know how much work she still hasn't finished, Shirou feels that she shouldn't be so free that she would have time to come to him during the only time she has available in the evening.

"You even know about this kind of thing!?"

Ereshkigal's pupils constricted slightly, and she looked at Shirou with some surprise, only belatedly realizing what was happening.

If that's the case, why didn't he stop himself?

Chapter Thirty-Three: I Was Here First

As if her little secret had been popped like a bubble, Ai Lei's cheeks flushed red again, looking quite alluring under the bright moonlight.

"I haven't settled the score with you for trying to trick me during the handover at Dawn last time. Now you dare to come looking for me again? Aren't you afraid I'll retaliate?"

As Shirou said this, he moved slightly closer to her.

Eresh was startled and quickly distanced herself from Shirou. They were originally very close, but now they were about a meter apart.

Taking a deep breath, Ereshkigal, who had been silent for a while, slightly raised her head and spoke.

"Hmph! That's right, that's exactly what I want to do! Now that you know my plan, you're the one who should be watching out and being dragged to the underworld by me!"

Beneath her tough exterior lies a shy heart. As soon as she finished speaking, she felt quite ashamed and immediately pursed her lips.

"I'm so scared," Shirou said dismissively.

"..." Upon hearing this, Ai Lei immediately felt...

My cheeks felt hot.

After all, the man in front of him had defeated Ishtar and Gorgon, and even Quetzalcoatl was no match for him.

In his presence, she, the goddess of the underworld, seemed utterly insignificant.

Then, Shirou spoke to her.

"Stop digging your tunnel, just join me instead."

"Huh? I've already dug almost halfway, how could I possibly give up now!" Ai Lei refused without hesitation, "Do you think you can force me to do this if I don't want to...?"

It seems like it really can.

Ereshkigal, realizing this too late, fell silent.

"You don't need to worry about that. I won't force you if you don't want to." Unless Tiamat's arrival is delayed, her plan simply won't succeed.

Moreover, even if things really did turn out that way, Shirou would still step in to block the tunnel.

"Anyway, you're just doing all sorts of weird things to me after I joined, right?!"

Ereshkigal straightened her back and stared at Shirou, speaking with a firm tone.

"What's so strange?" Shirou asked in return.

"It's...it's just..." Ai Lei stammered, her face flushed, unable to get the words out. Finally, she stood up, stomped her foot in anger, and then ran downstairs to escape.

"What a shy goddess," Shirou murmured, shrugging.

……

As dawn breaks, the golden sun rises on the horizon.

Early in the morning, Siduli hurriedly arrived at the place where everyone was staying.

"No, no! King Gilgamesh—"

The veiled woman was now covering her face and weeping, appearing to be sobbing uncontrollably, which caused Gudako and the others to change their expressions and quickly ask her questions.

"What happened, Siduri?"

Siduri spoke to the crowd through her tears.

“Last night, King Gilgamesh was still working through the night. I went to handle some matters in the middle of the night, and when I returned, the king had already fallen into eternal sleep on his throne…”