Bzzzz—!
Golden magical light blotted out the sun, covering Selene's entire field of view. From the rift torn in the sky, the vast cosmos came into view, twinkling with countless stars.
At the very center of that starry expanse shone the most brilliant star of all.
Just one glance was enough. Its concept flashed clearly in Selene's mind.
The Morning Star.
The brightest celestial body in Earth's sky aside from the sun and moon. A constant, ever-present star—Venus.
Its dazzling light had captured the imaginations of countless ancient civilizations, who ascribed to it meanings of beauty and love.
A radiant jewel of gold.
To the Romans, she was Venus. To the Greeks, Aphrodite. In Aztec mythology, Quetzalcoatl the feathered serpent. In all cases, Venus was synonymous with beauty and brilliance.
Naturally, Ishtar—the most beloved goddess of beauty in Mesopotamian myth—also claimed this brilliant star as her own.
But unlike the others, her approach was... a bit more aggressive.
One of Ishtar's most infamous myths involves her flattening Mount Ebih, a sacred peak revered even by the gods. And she did it simply because she "didn't like the look of it."
She marched up the mountain, gaining divine power with each step. Upon reaching the summit, she plunged her spear into its very heart, shattering the mountain completely.
Based on this legend, Ishtar's Noble Phantasm works similarly. She first teleports to Venus, uses her administrator authority to absorb its conceptual essence, and then brutally loads that concept into her divine bow—Maanna—as ammunition.
And then, she fires it straight at the earth. Directly. Mercilessly.
A move so terrifying even the gods fear it.
"Hmph! Romani, this is what you asked for. Don't blame this goddess if the damage gets too big—this whole island's about to sink anyway!"
Environmental protection? Civilian safety? Ishtar had no such concepts in her mind anymore.
She'd gone all-in, pushed by the hopes of both Fujimaru Ritsuka and Emiya Shirou. Her dual personalities had reached a consensus.
All she saw now was the Beast Goddess lurking in the Imaginary Sea.
Even knowing that using power beyond her Spirit Origin's limit would guarantee Selene's collapse and forced retreat, Ishtar couldn't wait to strike the final blow.
To bask in all the praise, flowers, and worship.
Selene was clearly weakened. This was the perfect moment. Ishtar had a gut feeling—this was the optimal solution.
Who knew what Selene might pull before disappearing?
And due to the retroactive BUFF from Selene's merged Spirit Origin with Tiamat and the reverted Age of Gods environment, Ishtar's Noble Phantasm now revealed a power none at Chaldea had ever seen before.
"This is... far beyond what we saw in the Seventh Singularity, Babylonia."
"The land itself has regressed—this soil is older than even the end of the Sumer-Akkad era under King Gilgamesh's rule (c. 3500–2000 BCE)."
"It's not just a time when gods and humans still spoke—it's a true Age of Gods."
Da Vinci turned toward Romani.
"In this place, modern human heroes may be suppressed, but in contrast, nearly all heroes from before the Middle Ages will receive a massive boost. Except for class constraints, Servant strength may now approach that of their living selves."
The revival of mystery bolstered all Heroic Spirits and Servants—but the source of mystery lies in the supernatural, in gods and demigods. It is they who benefit most.
CLANG—!
Golden light mixed with blue and purple rapidly condensed. Amid the violently surging mana and distorted air, a blade-like sound tore through space as the "Venus" became a dazzling projectile of concentrated energy.
"You little... Are you looking down on me, Ishtar?!"
In the Imaginary Sea, Selene lay sideways with her head propped lazily on her hand, yawning. Her nonchalance infuriated Ishtar.
"Take your arrogance and vanish! Foreign god!!"
Framed by blinding radiance, Ishtar appeared regal. A confident smirk graced her beautiful face as she formed her hand into a pistol gesture. "Bang!"
At that moment, the heavenly ark Maanna converted its mana into a light more brilliant than any gem. In a flash, the world was filled with a single hue—
A wild rose-gold stream of light, streaking down like a meteor. An Gal Tā Kigal Shē unleashed its magnificent radiance.
A head-on collision—Venus crashing into Earth, in all but name.
BOOOOOOOOM—!!
The terrain around Selene—entire canyons—collapsed under the might of this falling star. Even the Imaginary Sea parted, revealing Selene's massive serpentine form scarred with glowing red fissures.
"Goddess of Venus... All the others symbolize happiness and beauty. Only Ishtar is known for brute force and arrogance."
As Selene muttered seemingly to the air, a narrow yet sacred beam of white light appeared before her.
"Goddess of Venus. Daughter of the Sumerian King of Gods. Savior of humanity?" a deep, commanding male voice said.
In the next instant, a man in a red-and-white mage's robe materialized, placing himself directly between Selene and the incoming rose-gold beam.
"If you can't stop it, just say so," Selene said lazily.
"No need for concern, Your Majesty. A mere Servant is no match for me."
Diii—Diii—Diii—!
The moment the silver-haired man appeared, every major Chaldean system lit up red in warning: [Laplace], the event-recording supercomputer; [Chaldeas], the Earth simulation engine; and [Sheba], the near-future observation lens.
The shrill alarms echoed throughout the entire facility.
"...It's him. No doubt about it!" one staff member muttered, swallowing hard.
A man with silver hair.
Crimson eyes filled with madness and wisdom, skin tinged with shadow, clad in regal robes marked by terrifying black patterns across his arms.
Behind him, blood-red tentacle-like particles writhed. Just standing there, he radiated suffocating pressure.
Most eye-catching of all were the ten silver rings on the newcomer's fingers—one on each. The moment this figure appeared, tension spiked throughout Chaldea's command center as if they were facing the final boss.
His identity was unmistakable.
"The King of Magecraft—Solomon!"
Onscreen, the man standing before Selene spread his arms wide. The ten rings glowed simultaneously, and the radiant power surrounding him instantly overwhelmed all opposing Noble Phantasms.
Bzzzz—crack crack crack!
A thin barrier before 'Solomon' held firm like a heavenly wall. No matter how violently the torrent of light struck, no matter how it twisted and thrashed—it didn't budge an inch.
"How...?!"
Seeing her full-power Servant-form attack casually blocked, Ishtar's face darkened to its ugliest yet.
"No way! I won't accept this!"
"Maanna!"
Boom—!
The golden pillar connecting heaven and earth thickened, shaking the war-torn land.
"Ishtar... Compared to your complete self... that pitiful human soul has reduced you to this."
'Solomon' fell silent for a moment, his crimson eyes gleaming as if peering through the very construct of the goddess before him.
Innate Skill – Solomon's Rings: EX
Rings granted by God, worn on all ten fingers. Proof of the King of Magecraft. When united, they nullify all human magecraft and bind it under his authority.
Summoned through the complex Descension Ritual, possessing a human, and bound by Chaldea's magical supply system—[Fate]...
These seals made Ishtar vulnerable to inverse buffs when facing Solomon, weakening her attacks significantly.
If Selene was a brute-force boss fight, fighting Solomon felt like a debuff nightmare.
After all, most modern Servant summoning systems—Command Seals, contracts, magical channels—all traced back to Solomon. Nullifying all human magecraft was ridiculously OP.
Luckily, this Solomon was missing one ring. It was a fatal imperfection: his nullification was downgraded to suppression. The ability to bind all magic under his authority was completely absent.
If he had all ten, Chaldea's own summoning system—[Fate]—would've crumbled. He could have turned their Servants against them with a mere thought.
"Tch! Who asked you?! I do what I want! No mortal has the right to lecture a goddess!"
"Heh...."
Solomon chuckled quietly. With regal poise, he flicked a finger.
"Begone."
Standing in the heavens, Solomon's command instantly silenced the nearby Demon Pillars. Like loyal hounds, they bowed to their master, docile and submissive.
"Tch...."
Try as she might, Ishtar couldn't break through Solomon's blockade. Even with environmental buffs, her Divine Core was nearly exhausted from prolonged Noble Phantasm use. Panting heavily, she reluctantly canceled her attack.
"Damn it!"
"Begone! You disgrace your name and bring shame to the true Ishtar!"
Smiling, Solomon bared a row of sharp, inhuman teeth.
ROOOOAR—!!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOMBOOMBOOM!
Sensing their master's fury, the Demon Pillars surged forth like beasts. One by one, they exploded from the earth, clawing toward the skies.
It was like a hellish eruption. In a chain reaction of tremors, the sky was soon flooded by wave upon wave of grotesque black tendrils.
"Horrible taste."
Watching the slime-coated, eyeball-covered tendrils writhe and twist, Selene winced and rubbed her eyes.
This was beyond disturbing. It was borderline mental contamination—pure sanity damage.
The 72 Demon God Pillars—sure, they're meant to be intimidating, but couldn't they have taken on a better form? Demons, dragons, fallen fae—anything would've been better than tentacles.
Selene didn't oppose diversity among her subordinates. Her standards weren't that high. But this was supposed to be dignified—representing her aesthetics, her pride, her vanity. The mere thought of having tentacle monsters in her Imperial Guard made her shudder.
No thanks. Let them stay as prison wardens and torture officers. That's their place.
Gurgle... hissss...
Tentacles, covered in blood-red eyeballs, emerged en masse. It was like a Lovecraftian god had descended, all its eyes rotating, locking on.
Then—FLASH!
Beams of light launched in every direction! The sea! The cliffs! Even the sky was torn apart.
Ishtar, finally registering what was happening, tried to evade—but her escape route was already blocked. In the next instant, a colossal stream of chaotic light surged toward her face.
"Aaaah—!" She instinctively raised her arms in defense, nearly rolling away like a panicked donkey of a goddess.
WHOOOOOSH—!!
Suddenly, from the cloudless sky, a tremendous storm erupted. All the beams of light twisted midair, drawn like iron filings to a magnet. Even the massive blast headed for Ishtar was diverted, bent and absorbed into the heart of a roaring thundercloud.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
"That... that's a doomsday weapon crafted by the gods. No wonder it can devour my attacks so effortlessly."
"The Bull of Heaven—Gugalanna."
Selene's gaze pierced the horizon where a thunderous vortex loomed, blotting out even light itself.
Rumble—!
"Break time's over. Solomon, deploy your barrier. Fulfill the wish you've waited so long for. As for that thing—leave it to me."
Her words made "Solomon" pause mid-cast.
The massive serpent body rose again. Crimson chaos poured down Selene's flawless skin, cascading along her curves, painting a picture both breathtaking and terrifying.
"Though my vessel has been restored, my Spirit Origin is half-shattered. Your optimal move, Solomon, would be to conserve your strength and recover."
"That's your optimal solution—not mine."
"The real battle is only just beginning."
Shnk—!
With that, to Solomon's astonished eyes, Selene raised her glowing claw—and drove it straight into her own chest!
"You..."
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