Fate: Nameless Hero

Vmmm—

The Chain of Heaven, which had been in the form of a belt, completely transformed into a petite, adorable girl.

Her beautiful green hair swayed lightly, and her eyes were as dazzling as emeralds.

Her delicate and pretty features were doll-like, though at the moment completely devoid of expression.

Her small head burrowed into Sanjiro's shirt while her slender arms wrapped around him like chains, raising her cute head slightly to look up at him.

Sanjiro found himself briefly stunned.

The Chain of Heaven was the greatest and most perfect divine weapon forged by the Sumerian gods.

Originally shaped from clay, it had no concept of gender.

But under Sanjiro's influence, it now appeared as an adorable girl.

Back after the final battle, the Chain of Heaven had long since vanished. It was only later recalled in part by the Oldest King video, taking form as his belt.

Which led to the question—

Other people's belts are for transforming into Kamen Riders. Why does my belt turn into a cute girl?

And of all times—why when Ereshkigal is visiting? Are you doing this on purpose?

Hurry up and change back!

Across from him, Ereshkigal was equally stunned.

The Chain of Heaven had always been inseparable from Nameless, following him everywhere like a little tag-along.

But she had never expected that it would just outright cling to him like this—

Crawling completely into his clothes and hugging him so closely.

And without wearing a single stitch of clothing!

How envi—

No, how shameless!

A faint blush appeared on Ereshkigal's face as she glanced down.

So… what gender was the Chain of Heaven supposed to be again?

It was a divine weapon formed from the "concept of the Link" between the mortal and divine, forged from clay by the goddess Aruru, possessing power on par with the King of Heroes.

Its essence was that of a weapon, with no gender concept at all—no reason to treat it as a rival.

And yet… why did it feel like it was showing off on purpose?

Ereshkigal frowned slightly at the scene.

This divine weapon had clearly sensed her presence and deliberately revealed itself—

Just to flaunt the fact that it could stay by Sanjiro's side all the time!

Under their gazes—

The Chain of Heaven rubbed its little head against Sanjiro's chest, just like an affectionate kitten.

Sanjiro quickly took off his coat and draped it over her, cautiously asking, "Can you understand what I'm saying?"

"Ee-ya?"

The divine weapon tilted her head in confusion.

She looked exactly like a delicate little doll, the kind that could melt countless hearts.

"…Right, looks like you still haven't fully recovered," Sanjiro sighed softly, then turned to the goddess. "Ahem, Tohsaka, please don't let this matter get out."

The damage from before had been too severe, and En still hadn't fully recovered even now.

A shame, really.

With her innocent nature, once she recovered she'd definitely be much more sensible than the brat.

"I—"

Ereshkigal looked at the divine weapon still snuggled in his arms, tempted to ask aloud—

"Why are you wearing Sanjiro's clothes?"

This thing was a divine weapon, one that naturally came with an outer defense layer—it could easily conjure clothes for itself.

It didn't need anyone else to provide them!

Enkidu rested her little head against Sanjiro's chest, making no move to leave.

Yes, she had completely recovered.

But once recovered, she wouldn't be able to stay pressed so close to him like this every day.

This must be that "white lie" he'd once talked about.

"You can't be…"

Ereshkigal's brows furrowed further.

She was starting to suspect this might be an act.

But—

The divine weapon had always been pure and straightforward, with none of the complex emotions of humans. Everything she felt would show plainly.

Could it really be she hadn't recovered?

Just then—

Ereshkigal's body trembled. She hurriedly promised him, "All right, I'll keep it a secret, you can rest assured!"

Damn it—her possession time was up. Her sister Ishtar and the body's original owner, Rin Tohsaka, were both fighting to take control.

Just wait—next time I'll mold my own clay body and descend to the human world directly!

Ereshkigal quickly left.

She had just reached the plaza when she sensed the familiar aura descending.

Vmmm—

Control over the body was suddenly gone.

Rin Tohsaka blinked in confusion. "Eh? Why am I here?"

Her last memory—

She had been talking to her sister about Ishtar's embarrassing performance in the Absolute Demonic Front.

In the middle of losing her composure, she'd suddenly lost consciousness.

So… was she possessed by a ghost?

Rin swallowed nervously, a chill creeping over her.

It really felt like a ghost had possessed her and taken control of her body.

Did she, a genius magus, need to go hire Abe no Seimei for an exorcism?

Rin fell deep into thought.

She looked around in surprise. "Huh, this seems close to where Sanjiro lives… What exactly happened?"

Don't get the wrong idea—she didn't memorize the location on purpose.

She had just happened to pass by earlier, happened to see him walking ahead, and just happened to follow for a bit, that's all.

Pure coincidence!

Could it be the ghost controlling her body wanted to see Sanjiro?

"In that case… I'll just go take a look!"

Rin took a deep breath to steady herself.

She was here already—might as well check things out…

In the living room—

Sanjiro glanced somewhat awkwardly at the Chain of Heaven, who was still wearing his coat. "Are you hungry? Want me to cook you some noodles?"

"I am a divine weapon. I do not need to eat like humans—just to replenish my mana," Enkidu said, tilting her head up to look at him.

The oversized coat couldn't hide her petite frame at all.

As she stepped forward, her pale delicate skin was still plainly visible.

"How do you replenish mana?"

Sanjiro froze instantly.

Mana was linked to life force.

The best way to restore mana was, of course, through blood and the like.

Other than that, there was Command Spells.

But he didn't have any Command Spells right now.

He remembered the first time they met—after their fierce battle, she had pinned him beneath her.

And said, "Please make me a real human being."

Forget the audience—even he had misheard that as "make me a woman."

But En had been raised under his watchful care. He'd long since treated her like a daughter, so there was always a strong sense of guilt.

Sanjiro coughed lightly. "My Saint Graph is broken right now, I don't have much mana to begin with, so you'll have to make do for now."

Vmmm—

He began circulating the mana in his body, gathering it to his fingertips to transfer to her.

Then the divine weapon suddenly took his hand and gently placed his finger in her mouth.

"Uh…"

Sanjiro felt a faint tingling at his fingertip, along with a strange sensation.

Beside him, Fou padded over, and upon seeing this scene, his eyes widened—

Looking ready to try the same.

"…Don't you start, I can't handle you too!"

Sanjiro quickly blocked with his other hand.

Cute as Fou looked in cat form, he was in truth the Beast of Humanity.

With Sanjiro being just a broken Saint Graph, not even a proper Heroic Spirit, there was no way he could supply that much mana.

Ding-dong—

The doorbell suddenly rang.

Sensing the aura outside, Sanjiro quickly said, "En, hide for now. Don't let anyone see you."

"Hide?"

Enkidu tilted her head, glanced at his waist—

And then transformed back into a simple belt, using that form to conceal herself.

"…."

Sanjiro's expression was complicated.

There was always a strange feeling about carrying a cute girl around his waist. He went to open the door, surprised. "Huh, Tohsaka? Why are you back again?"

"Back again…"

Rin froze.

So her earlier feeling had been right.

She really had been possessed, and her body brought here!

Damn it, what exactly happened before?

Had she wanted to come so badly she wandered over here in a daze?

Grace! Composure! Elegance!

Rin repeated her family mantra, then smiled. "I just remembered something—our class is organizing an outing the day after tomorrow. Want to come along?"

"I'll pass."

Sanjiro declined without hesitation.

As an aspiring otaku, he basically never participated in any of the social activities that normies enjoyed.

His favorite thing to do every day was stay at home, occasionally going out for a walk.

His hobbies were practically the same as an old man's at this point.

"Oh, then never mind."

Rin nodded.

She was still puzzled as to why she had come here earlier.

Could it be that she really liked him so much that she came over in a daze?

No way—she couldn't let that be exposed!

As an elegant noble lady, there was no way she could be infatuated with some man.

No matter what, he had to be the one to confess first!

Wait, wasn't this exactly like Ishtar?

Rin suddenly remembered how, in Oldest King, Ishtar had also openly demanded that he confess first.

Could it be… that really was her in a past life?

"Alright then, take care." Sanjiro also gave her a strange look.

It was easy for him to tell that the one standing before him was the real Rin Tohsaka.

First Ereshkigal had shown up using her body, and now the original was here—one person turning into three.

No… there was still another one out in the universe!

Was she really aiming to become four people? Or even more?

After she left—

Rin walked down the street, still feeling like it was all a dream.

These past two days, she constantly felt like she wasn't herself—like her body was being possessed by all sorts of spirits.

It seemed she needed to go consult Principal Tamamo-no-Mae and Vice-Principal Abe no Seimei.

Bonk!

Just then, Rin suddenly heard the sound of a small wooden mallet knocking on a table inside her head.

"Convene the Internal Round Table Meeting!"

A voice identical to her own rang out.

Before Rin could react—

Her vision shifted, and she suddenly found herself in a lavish hall.

In the center was a massive round table, the surrounding area shrouded in a hazy mist that obscured everything else.

Around the table were six high-backed chairs.

Three were empty.

One chair radiated an endless aura of death, shadowy ghosts drifting around it.

Another was inlaid with countless gemstones—so gaudy it was almost painfully tacky.

And she herself was seated in the third chair.

Rin immediately assumed a fighting stance, nervously eyeing the two others. "Who exactly are you?"

"I am Ishtar. Mortal, are you not going to properly bow in worship upon seeing me?" Ishtar replied with overwhelming arrogance.

She had originally planned to descend by possessing this body, but she had been met with an infuriating "busy signal" the whole time, leaving her in a foul mood.

"You behave yourself!"

Ereshkigal sternly glared at her, as countless gates to the Underworld began floating into existence around her.

Ishtar's head instantly shrank back as she adopted an obedient posture.

"Ishtar and Ereshkigal, the twin goddesses?"

Rin stared at them in shock.

She'd hit the jackpot—so it really was connected to her!

Ever since Oldest King aired, countless people had speculated that Ishtar was likely her past life.

But that had only been a theory!

Rin nervously looked between them.

"The Final Battle is already over. You gods should have returned to the inner world. You can't descend to the human world anymore!"

Two goddesses who could take over her body at any time—there was no way she could feel at ease.

"Don't misunderstand, our relationship is… special," Ereshkigal said with a gentle smile.

In some ways, the three of them were closer than blood sisters.

After all, what sisters could share the same body?

Unfortunately, the human world was ultimately the realm ruled by humans, so she held the absolute control.

Earlier, Ereshkigal had wanted to stay a bit longer, maybe enjoy a breakfast cooked by Sanjiro.

But she'd already heard:

"Your remaining balance is insufficient—no, correction, your possession divine power is insufficient!"

As a goddess rejected by the world, descending really consumed a lot of divine power.

Even the ruler of the Underworld couldn't maintain it!

"Oh? So you both can use my body to descend?" Rin didn't relax in the slightest at the explanation.

The truth was now clear.

So earlier it really was one of them using her body to go see Sanjiro!

If even goddesses wanted to meet that man—

Eliminate all other possibilities, and the only truth left was—

He was Nameless!

Which meant, back during Unlimited Blade Works, she had truly fought side-by-side with him?

The problem was—why was he treating her now like just an ordinary classmate?

Rin thought about it and finally concluded—

He probably hadn't recovered those memories yet!

After all, that man was a walking embodiment of human history, sung about by countless people.

So strong that even gods couldn't make him bow.

Whereas the Sanjiro she knew was just a lazy bum—completely impossible to compare.

"Four thousand six hundred years ago, I summoned the current you, merged your personality and memories, and became like this," Ishtar huffed.

She had originally been a lofty, imperious goddess—But after using this body as a vessel, her personality had shifted to be more humanlike.

"Let's be clear—you absolutely can't use my body to do… do anything strange!" Rin said firmly.

Her voice grew smaller by the end.

Among the goddess sisters, Ishtar in particular was far too reckless.

If she ever did something outrageous—like forging presses, pumps, or furnaces in bizarre ways—Rin would lose her mind.

"That's fine!"

Ereshkigal agreed immediately.

Although the three were one, they were still different.

If something were to happen with that man—

Cough cough—a faint blush appeared on her cheeks. She would obviously use her own body.

Ishtar pouted.

"Hmph, like I'd even want to!"

That counted as reluctant agreement.

Ever since the Age of Gods ended, it had become almost impossible for gods to descend to the human world.

A god's true body descending would be rejected by the entire world.

More precisely, rejected by the collective human consciousness—Alaya.

When the 'round table' meeting ended—

Rin walked the streets with a dazed look.

She hadn't forgotten—there were still three empty chairs.

So… just how many of her were there?

Would she have to shout during a crisis—

"Please, other me inside my body!"

====

After breakfast—

Sanjiro looked at the brat, then at the quietly coiled Chain of Heaven on his waist, realizing the problem was getting more serious.

He pulled the brat into her bedroom.

In just a few days without supervision, the room had become a complete mess.

The walls were plastered with posters of Artoria, Shikotei, Nameless, and other Heroic Spirits.

The bookshelf was packed with all kinds of prize figures.

There were even piles of assorted merchandise.

Kirina sat on the bed, idly swinging her white-stockinged legs. "Let's be clear, I'm an under-14 loli. Be careful—death sentence as a starting point!"

"…Cut the crap. Clean up your room later, I really can't stand it!"

Sanjiro rolled his eyes.

Glancing over the Heroic Spirit figures, he asked casually,

"Alaya's been releasing one reveal video after another. Which of the girls who appeared do you think would be suitable to take care of you?"

"Take care of me?"

Kirina looked puzzled.

He'd dragged her mysteriously into the bedroom—she'd thought he was about to do something world-shaking.

And it turned out to be—

This? This? This?

She eyed him suspiciously. "You're not about to say… which one would be suitable to be my mom, are you?"

"Ahem, you could put it that way."

Sanjiro coughed lightly.

The kid was growing, and her emotional needs had to be considered. Not to mention—she was a genuine world-ending brat!

"Tch. You're not really saying you want to find yourself a wife, are you?"

Kirina gave him a disdainful look. "Don't tell me you actually think there's a Heroic Spirit who'd be interested in you? No way, no way, no way!"

He'd always treated her like a daughter.

Full-on dad mode.

Even earlier when she had "accidentally" not worn clothes, he hadn't reacted in the slightest.

Of course… maybe she just wasn't captivating enough…

"Just casual talk—think of it as the delusions of an otaku," Sanjiro replied calmly.

Believe it or not, if I revealed my true identity and posted a marriage ad, this whole crowd would be lining up to be your mom.

"Speaking of taking care of me…"

Kirina thought for a moment.

"The Heroic Spirit I've interacted with the most is King Artoria. She's nothing like the cold and distant image in the rumors—she's actually very gentle."

"Artoria, huh?"

Sanjiro thought back to their meeting.

Teaching swordsmanship, pulling the Sword from the Stone, slaying the Vortigern, the Battle at Camlann… one thing after another, all long past now.

He was curious—when the brat found out that the glutton who'd been freeloading meals she disliked—Lily—was actually Artoria, what kind of expression would she make?

Her faith would definitely collapse.

"Unfortunately, King Artoria isn't good at taking care of people,"

Kirina continued, "Then there's the Dark Saint. She's arrogant and forceful toward outsiders, but when we met before, she actually felt pretty nice—still, she also can't take care of people."

The time when Artoria and Jalter both visited, both top-tier Heroic Spirit competing to treat her like a daughter, was probably her moment of peak glory.

If she told people, it'd be enough to make countless others jealous and desperate to trade places with her.

"Then there's Principal Tamamo-no-Mae… but she's a fox spirit, so she's out of the question."

Kirina glanced cautiously out the window, afraid the other party would overhear.

That was the Principal—if she heard this, there'd be no way to keep a place at the Academy.

She was way too dangerous.

At first, they'd avoided hiring male staff because she was a fox spirit.

In the end, it didn't matter at all.

The female staff of the entire academy had all been "bent" by her, and wouldn't marry anyone else!

What a waste of resources.

Single male teachers could only look on helplessly—Until, one by one, they too became her fanatical fans.

"She really is terrifying."

Sanjiro nodded in agreement.

That one was always stirring up trouble—there was no way she was making it onto the candidate list.

Unless one day he chopped all her tails off except one and she turned back into the wife-seeking Little Tamamo, then maybe she'd be considered.

Kirina went on:

"Come to think of it, Miyu is actually pretty good at taking care of people too."

That little best friend was really good at looking after her.

Every time they ate together, she acted like a little mom, sharing good food with her, afraid she wouldn't have enough.

She also helped with clothes and dressing.

She'd even spend time carefully braiding her golden hair into beautiful twin-tails.

"???"

Sanjiro's mind filled with question marks.

That's your best friend—do you also want her to be your mom?

Though, in his mind, he couldn't help recalling the daily life he'd had with Miyu before.

She might be a cute little loli, but she was extremely caring.

When he cooked, she would help out.

When he returned home, she would greet him and help take his coat.

And she'd even stand on tiptoe to fix his collar—basically the most perfect wife.

Too bad she was too young—she could only be a little sister…

"Tch, you really do want to make a move on Miyu, you pervert!" Kirina said with a look of disgust.

"How could I! I'm not into lolis!"

Sanjiro refuted firmly.

This was a matter of his innocence—he wouldn't allow slander.

Kirina pouted.

"Hmph, when I brought Miyu and Illya back, you were happier than anyone. You are!"

"…Let's drop that. What about the others?"

Sanjiro wasted no time changing the subject.

This kid loved painting him as a lolicon, and would never let it go.

"The others… let me think."

Kirina pulled out her phone and browsed a site, feeling more irritated.

If he wasn't into lolis, then she had no chance at all.

Damn it—why couldn't she grow up?

She looked at the Heroic Spirits listed on the site.

"Eresh is too tsundere—can't take care of anyone, and it's exhausting to deal with her. Ishtar is too much of a troublemaker—she'd probably mess something up badly.

As for Jaguar Man—she's just like Fujinee. Fujinee is already turning into a useless bum under your care!

Morgan is a total yandere—way too scary."

…

She rattled off a whole list of female Heroic Spirits, without finding a single satisfactory choice.

Sanjiro was increasingly speechless.

Aren't you supposed to be obsessed with Heroic Spirits? Why are you so picky when it comes to actually living with them?

Could it be she'd awakened some clairvoyance and realized the Heroic Spirits were teaming up to target her?

He was seriously suspicious—maybe he should tie her up with a few more ropes.

And since Enkidu was around, he could help reinforce the bindings—much easier than before.

Kirina opened a picture.

"The most suitable to take care of someone is obviously Tiamama!"

"Uh…"

Sanjiro looked at the picture of Tiamat, tears in her eyes, wanting to keep him, and fell into thought.

Could it be… evils of humanity attract each other?

"She loves humanity so much, and she's so gentle it melts your heart. She's basically the perfect mom choice!" Kirina said matter-of-factly.

In fact, within just a day of Absolute Demonic Front: Babylonia airing, Tiamat's fanbase had skyrocketed like a rocket.

No surprise—a being so strong and supreme, an evil of humanity, yet so gentle she couldn't even bring herself to harm the humans who betrayed her.

In the end, she entrusted all her power to Nameless, allowing him to restore the world.

She gave up all resistance, allowing the King of Heroes to exile her into the Imaginary Number Space with Ea.

Who wouldn't love such a Tiamama?

"But she's an Evil of Humanity!" Sanjiro reminded her.

He gave a brief explanation of why Tiamat's descent to the human world was inherently harmful to human history.

Or rather—it was unfair that she created Mesopotamia and was betrayed by humanity.

Tiamat could be compared to Izanagi and Izanami from Japanese myth, the divine couple who created the islands of Japan.

After creating the world, their bodies and essence became its mountains, rivers, seas, and life. Izanami descended to Yomi, and Izanagi sealed her away, ensuring the balance of the living world.

That means, if Izanami were ever to return in her full divine form, she could reclaim the land, seas, and all life she helped create—pulling everything back into Yomi and plunging the world into chaos.

For the people of Japan, it would be a true apocalypse.

In that case, would you want Izanami to return?

Tiamat was just like that.

Her descent came with a Self-Seal to minimize the damage to humanity.

"As long as the villain looks good, the values follow the face. For an otaku like you, an Evil of Humanity is even more of a draw, right?" Kirina side-eyed him.

Always talking about justice, saving the world—but when otakus saw beautiful villainesses, they got more excited than for kindhearted heroines.

Like Makima, Echidna, Tokisaki Kurumi, Esdeath....

And a gentle "mom" like Tiamat could capture hearts like crazy.

"…I guess that's true."

Sanjiro nodded.

He couldn't exactly argue.

Still, Tiamama could never descend to the human world. Her mere presence would cause irreparable harm to humanity!

If she really did descend, it would terrify every Heroic Spirit in the world.

And then there was the world-ending brat right in front of him.

Forget it—he might as well just cut his own throat, report to Alaya, and go back to work.

"You should just wash up and go to sleep—everything is possible in dreams!"

Kirina reached up and patted his head. "Even if the Heroic Spirits had terrible judgment, there's no way they'd come knocking!"

Or rather, even if the Heroic Spirits did come knocking, they'd have to get through her first!

She wasn't about to let some flying cabbage lure away the pig she'd been raising all this time.

That would be a total loss!

"Fine, we'll leave it at that then."

Sanjiro gave up.

The brat clearly wanted to keep treating the Heroic Spirits as idols, not as family.

That was going to be a problem.

Ding dong~

Just then, Kirina saw a notification pop up on her phone—

[Your favorited uploader has updated early—come watch!]

Seeing the title, Kirina said excitedly, "Wow, speak of the devil—don't tell me Alaya was eavesdropping on us?"

She turned the phone around for Sanjiro to see the title—

[Absolute Demonic Front Extra Episode — "Mother Goddess of Creation"!]