Shirou's Thirty Million Avatars

Asking to take her daughter back from the Matou family? Impossible—she was never a woman with that kind of backbone.

Asking about her daughter's situation in the Matou family? That was more likely, though there was no telling if Kariya would tell the truth.

Chapter 16: Roman Treasure, That's It?

Section 16: Chapter 16: Roman Treasure, That's It?

An hour later, the Citizen Tournament had already reached the finals.

"Next up, we welcome the finalists of the Nero Festival Citizen Tournament: Taiga Fujimura and Irisviel."

"By their draw, the competition format is singing. The song choice is unrestricted—sing whatever you're best at."

"I hereby declare the match—begin!"

Nero stepped to the sidelines, and Taiga Fujimura immediately cleared her throat, her voice rising in song.

Two lines in, she went off-key, and it only got more unhinged from there.

Halfway through the song, she suddenly stopped.

"Huh...? What comes next?"

Seeing this, Irisviel smiled and said:

"Then, it's my turn now."

"Hold on! I haven't finished—I just forgot the lyrics for a second. Let me think."

"No can do. This is an official match."

"Boo..."

Taiga Fujimura's face fell, but the next second, she perked back up with a grin:

"I sang half. Your turn. If you don't make it past halfway, I win."

"Miss Fujimura, I'm starting now."

Irisviel let out a soft laugh, closed her eyes, and began humming quietly.

As her emotions deepened, her voice grew louder.

Unlike Taiga Fujimura's off-key singing, her lullaby was beautiful, stirring memories of childhood and making one want to close their eyes and doze off.

As the song ended, Nero walked forward from the sidelines, clapping steadily.

"Beautiful! Your singing reminds me of my own childhood memories."

"Then, the winner is clear! I hereby declare the champion of this Nero Festival Citizen Tournament—Miss Irisviel."

With that, she snapped her fingers.

The next moment, several Roman soldiers carried chests over from the sidelines.

"Miss Irisviel, the prize is here. Since there's quite a lot, I've arranged for them to escort you all the way home."

"Thank you very much, Your Majesty Nero."

Irisviel glanced at the chest beside her, picked up the small bottle on the tray, and said with a smile:

"I'll take the Fountain of Life. Please keep the gold—I have no need for such things."

"In exchange, might I have the honor of hearing your song?"

Nero burst into smug laughter, then after a long moment, said with a grin:

"My singing is the most precious treasure of the Roman Empire. I must say, you've chosen the finest prize. Very well, I permit it."

"Now, lend your ears to my magnificent song."

As a rain of petals fell from the sky, Nero's voice rose in unison.

The scene was breathtakingly beautiful, and everyone in the city stared up at the projection in rapt attention.

Yet, compared to the gorgeous visuals, the singing was utterly unbearable—a textbook case of tone-deafness.

Irisviel stared blankly at her, mouth unconsciously hanging open, face full of shock.

The most precious treasure of Rome? An artist to rival Apollo? That's it?

Was the Roman standard of appreciation really this low?

Sure, history had rumors that Nero was merely a self-proclaimed artist.

But since the Nero before her wasn't a middle-aged man, but a cute girl who looked exactly like Saber—

Irisviel had actually been quite looking forward to it.

She'd even thought about getting Saber to sing later, comparing the two, maybe teasing her a bit.

But now, the fantasy was completely shattered.

And making His Majesty Nero look this embarrassing—was she going to turn on me later?

Finally, the song ended, and Nero said with a grin:

"So, how about it? Applaud my peerless talent!"

"Does Your Majesty Nero think she sings well?"

"Of course! My singing is the best."

"Uh... what if, what if someone said it wasn't good? What would you do?"

"There are people everywhere who can't appreciate art. Such trivial matters, I wouldn't give them a second thought."

"That... I've heard you once threatened and bribed the judges over a competition result. Is that true?"

"I did do that. Those infuriating fellows claimed my singing wasn't the least bit pleasant. Since that was the case, I had to take the championship to prove to the world that they simply lacked the taste to appreciate it."

So that's how it is, huh?

Irisviel stared at her speechlessly, thinking to herself:

This person is no artist worthy of rivaling the god Apollo—just an overly narcissistic ordinary girl.

I've solved a historical mystery, but it doesn't seem to mean much.

"Your Majesty Nero, may I leave now?"

"Of course. Are you sure you don't want the gold?"

"No. I already have another prize that's enough."

Meanwhile, on the city streets, the crowd was buzzing.

"Whoa... that's Your Majesty Nero's singing? That's way too amateur, isn't it?"

"An artist who can rival Apollo? This? I feel like it drags down Apollo's reputation. Say, could Apollo be tone-deaf too?"

"This is almost on par with Gian... Speaking of which, those two women competing for the championship earlier—their event was singing, right? I wonder how they sounded?"

"Must have been good. No way they could be worse than Your Majesty Nero, right?"

"Don't you think Your Majesty Nero looks beautiful when she sings?"

"Beautiful, sure, but it sounds terrible. It's like a grade-schooler rapping."

"Maybe Your Majesty Nero actually sings well, but something goes wrong when it reaches our ears, making it sound bad."

"Can you say that without feeling guilty? Hah..."

The projection only transmitted Nero's voice, not the contestants'.

So everyone had their own opinion on the singing just now.

Overall, more people were disappointed.

After all, they'd expected to hear heavenly music, only to get grade-school rapping.

That sudden drop was really hard on the heart.

At a stall, Shirou, who had been covering his ears the whole time, only lowered his hands when the expressions of those around him showed the singing had stopped.

Having heard Nero sing more than once, he was mentally prepared.

Though the sight of Nero singing was amusing, the damage to his ears was severe.

"Finally over."

"Senpai, did you know from the start that Your Majesty Nero sings badly?" Sakura asked quietly.

"Yeah, I've had the fortune to hear it a few times before."

"Does Your Majesty Nero know she sings badly?"

"She does."

Sakura looked puzzled, thought for a few seconds, then asked again:

"She knows she sings badly, yet stubbornly believes her singing is art?"

"Exactly. That's Nero for you."

Shirou shook his head with a smile, adding in his thoughts:

A willful, arrogant, and deeply narcissistic person.

Chapter 17: Rome! Rome!!

Section 17: Chapter 17: Rome! Rome!!

Inside the arena.

After Irisviel and Taiga Fujimura had left one after another, Nero was about to declare the Nero Festival over when a chariot crackling with blue lightning drove down from the sky.

The chariot stopped, and Iskandar set down Waver, whom he'd been carrying, laughing loudly:

"I am Iskandar, the King of Conquerors, manifested in this Holy Grail War as the Rider-class Servant."

"Emperor of Rome, Nero—I am thoroughly pleased with this festival you've brought."

"I hereby acknowledge you as an enemy. Crossing blades with you will surely be a splendid thing."

With that, he suddenly turned to look to the side and behind him, raising both hands high, shouting in a voice that pierced the sky:

"What a fascinating festival—every Heroic Spirit must be watching this place right now!"

"Now, all Heroic Spirits summoned by the Holy Grail, gather here for a meeting!"

"Those cowards too afraid to show their faces will earn the contempt of me, Iskandar, the King of Conquerors!"

The next moment, a golden light descended from the sky, and the Servant Gilgamesh, clad in golden armor, landed within the arena.

"To think that rats calling themselves kings, ignoring my existence, would pop up two in a single night."

"That's an unreasonable thing to say. I, Iskandar, am the well-known King of Conquerors."

With that, Iskandar glanced at Nero and smiled:

"And this Emperor of Rome has already earned my recognition—she is an enemy I must conquer."

"Ridiculous. The only hero truly worthy of the title 'king' is me, under heaven and on earth. The rest are nothing but riffraff."

"Since we've come this far, why not start by stating your name?"

"Ask me? A mongrel dares to ask me..."

Before he could finish, a golden longsword suddenly materialized in Gilgamesh's hand. His face twisted in fury, looking utterly enraged.

"Mongrel...! Tokiomi!! How dare you commit such an act of disrespect... Worthless! Can't even manage the simple task of self-preservation? Worthless..."

Yet, despite his endless curses, the longsword in his hand moved uncontrollably toward his own throat.

Pft!

The blade sliced across his neck, blood sprayed out, and the curses abruptly ceased. Gilgamesh's entire form dissolved into spirit particles, gradually fading away.

In the end, he never even gave his name.

Iskandar stared blankly at him for a long moment before snapping back to reality. His expression grew grave as he spoke.