Someone in the Multiverse, Transformed into Fu Hua at the Start Chapter 25

Ereshkigal, who had been blushing a moment ago, froze, then quickly waved her hands. "Wait!? No, no! Forget how we'd even open the gate that far away, are you serious about imprisoning Mother in the Underworld!?"

"Is there something wrong with that?" Amber frowned. "Tiamat's traits can't be dealt with on the surface. If we can't bring her into the Underworld..."

"...Ugh!"

Seeing Amber's expression, Ereshkigal, already burdened with guilt, gritted her teeth and suppressed her flustered mood, beginning to consider the feasibility.

But in the end, she shook her head with difficulty. "Making Tiamat fall into the Underworld isn't impossible, but... the Underworld's gate can't be opened that far away. You all know well that Ishtar and I were summoned by the High Priestess; we've actually only been manifested for less than a year."

"That year isn't enough for me to extend the Underworld over there. In truth, aside from Kusa City, I can only open the gate in Uruk and at the North Wall."

It should be finishable within four chapters, but the outline for the Jujutsu Kaisen arc isn't ready yet... a bit of a headache. I started preparing too late.

Anyway, first, please give me votes and collections! Your support is also my motivation to keep updating!

Chapter 52: The Location of the Holy Grail

"In that case, we'll just have to wait for Tiamat to come here." Gilgamesh nodded thoughtfully, then looked at Amber. "How much longer can that one hold out?"

"Theoretically, she can keep fighting forever." Amber blurted out an absurd statement that made everyone's eyes twitch, but quickly added, "However, she'll probably get bored and come back in about two days."

It wasn't that the Herrscher of Reason was ignoring the bigger picture, but Amber also didn't want Xiao Shi to keep doing something she disliked. If two days weren't enough, she'd go over and switch shifts with Xiao Shi herself.

"Then let's use this time to move all surviving Uruk citizens to the North Wall. Ishtar, go with them and check on the Spirit Base fusion progress between Anna and Gorgon." Gilgamesh gave the orders calmly, then turned his gaze to Ereshkigal. "As for the Underworld gate, just open it in Uruk."

"How can you be sure Tiamat will come to Uruk instead of bypassing it to chase the survivors heading to the North Wall?" Ishtar raised an eyebrow.

"Because this city and Gilgamesh are the symbols of Sumerian civilization." On this point, it was Quetzalcoatl, an outsider, who helped explain. "From Tiamat's perspective, humans and the land share one life. Tiamat should be locking onto Uruk, the heart of this land, through her own life-form instincts."

As someone with Divinity no lower than Tiamat's and who occasionally played the role of the King of Men, Quetzalcoatl's words naturally convinced everyone.

"That's right. If we want to protect human history, we must eliminate Tiamat before this king and Uruk are destroyed." Gilgamesh said.

Ereshkigal also nodded. By now, Tiamat was the greatest threat on everyone's minds. "I think it'll take about three days to fully open the gate in Uruk. After that, whenever Tiamat arrives, you can knock her down into the Underworld at any time."

"Based on her size and speed, if she maintains the pace she had on the sea, it'll take about four days to reach Uruk." Leonidas gave his analysis. "But considering she'll need the Black Mud to spread across the land, it might be a bit slower."

"Mm." Gilgamesh trusted the judgment of this Servant, who was both a king and a general. "Then have your other half stall Tiamat for one day. When Tiamat arrives, that's when we settle everything."

After discussing everything, the group disbanded.

Aside from Ishtar, no one had anything particularly urgent to do. Everyone returned to the houses they had once lived in, quietly waiting for Tiamat's arrival.

Since the time had been agreed upon, after waiting roughly the right amount, Amber directly equipped the Core of the Herrscher of Reason, pulling off a long-distance instant teleport that left even the bored Xiao Shi stunned.

"You only remember me now!?"

The moment she returned, she voiced her dissatisfaction directly.

"That's not it... mainly, someone needed to hold the front line. Besides, coming back would probably just bore you more." Amber pointed out the issue.

Out there, even if the fighting was dull, she could at least kill Lahmu or take shots at Tiamat. But coming back meant nothing but waiting, with literally nothing to do.

Xiao Shi understood that logic, so she didn't dwell on it. Instead, her expression turned more serious. "Let me warn you first: that thing called Tiamat is really strong. At first, my Sword God could stun her for about an hour each time, but with every use, her resistance keeps growing."

Fu Hua wasn't surprised. "She is the creator goddess of Sumerian mythology. We have no right to underestimate her. Consciousness may be intangible, but this is a mythological world where even souls exist. It's only natural that the same trick used too many times gets countered."

Indeed, while consciousness was a foreign concept here, it was at least understandable. But something as vague as a soul was beyond even their comprehension.

Underestimating the enemy would undoubtedly be arrogant.

"Always spouting these big truths like I don't already know!" Xiao Shi pouted, but inwardly acknowledged Fu Hua's point.

This world was really strange. Even though their strength surpassed its inhabitants, there were all sorts of ways to make their power ineffective or even severely reduce their attack's impact.

Amber frowned, her mood complicated.

She actually kind of liked Tiamat... If possible, she really didn't want to be Tiamat's enemy. Unfortunately... Tiamat couldn't become an ally like Ishtar or Quetzalcoatl.

Amid everyone's mixed feelings, a night passed.

Early the next morning, Siduri arrived and informed everyone of Merlin's return and the king's summons.

"Merlin! So you're okay!?"

As soon as they entered the Divine Tower, everyone saw Merlin in his white robe, a smile on his face, showing no sign of pre-battle tension.

"Haha, well, there were a few things, but regardless, I am the court mage. Those were just minor obstacles like pebbles in the road." Merlin said cheerfully.

"Just announcing your return wouldn't call all of us here."

Quetzalcoatl interrupted Merlin with a grin. "Did you make some new progress regarding the battle against Tiamat?"

"Ah, actually, yes." Merlin nodded. "I wonder if everyone still remembers Chaldea's objective?"

"Huh?"

The question left everyone puzzled. Mash hesitated before saying, "Isn't it to repair the Singularities and save the future where the Human Order is destroyed?"

"Thanks for the explanation, but at this point, has everyone forgotten the main step in repairing a Singularity?" Merlin gave a further hint.

"It's the Holy Grail." Ritsuka immediately caught on.

"Exactly."

Merlin nodded. "The Holy Grail is a massive magical crystal. It provides enough magical energy to warp and twist time and space, distorting the normal flow of time. Its immense power helps the holder resist the 'timeline correction' from the Human Order, forcibly maintaining the state they wish to continue changing."

"Conversely, if we take the Holy Grail, this Singularity will lose its core and disappear."

Ritsuka and Mash also remembered—the doctor had once said that the Holy Grail was the key to forming a Singularity. Even if history was corrected, without recovering the Holy Grail, the so-called correction was meaningless.

But...

"I'm just offering an additional option."

Seeing that Ritsuka wasn't entirely on board, Merlin didn't mind, but his gaze shifted to Amber: "I used my Clairvoyance outside and saw it. The Holy Grail is in Tiamat's throat. If someone can resist the Tide of Chaos and pull it out, Tiamat's threat will be greatly reduced."

So impatient. The Demon Beast Frontline arc is way too long. Regret, deep regret. This should have been the second or third arc to write.

I originally wanted to finish the first volume before going on the shelf, then go a few chapters into the second volume before the shelf... looks like it's too late.

I'll just have to speed up as much as I can.

Chapter 53: Merlin's Proposal

This move, as if seeing right through her thoughts, made Amber's heart tighten, then quickly relax.

The strangeness in Merlin's attitude was not hidden, and everyone turned to look at Amber.

"I... don't want to be an enemy of Tiamat..." Amber didn't hide her thoughts and said it outright.

These words brought confusion to everyone's eyes. As the Crimson Kite Immortal of Shenzhou and a guardian of human civilization, even if she didn't want to be Tiamat's enemy, she shouldn't be saying this at a time like this.

Amber knew her words were out of character.

But her expression remained unchanged. Even if she didn't want to be Tiamat's enemy, her actions wouldn't waver. No matter what, she stood on humanity's side.

Seeing this, Merlin spoke up: "After the Crimson Kite Immortal entered the Underworld, she used the power of Imaginary Space, which briefly synchronized her consciousness with Tiamat's. I imagine something happened between them during that time."

Hearing this, everyone understood.

So that was why Amber had seemed preoccupied during that period.

"But you have no intention of siding with Tiamat, right?" Gilgamesh said, his tone a question but his words as if the answer was already certain.

"Mm." Amber nodded. "I understand her thoughts and actions, but..."

No one was surprised by her answer.

What Tiamat sought wasn't the destruction of human civilization, but the destruction of the current human civilization so she could re-create it. The Crimson Kite Immortal was a guardian of human civilization, but it wasn't strange for that boundary to waver between 'the present' and 'the future.'

Besides, before Merlin said all this, Amber had never shown any reluctance to fight. That meant even if she understood, she had no intention of wavering in her stance—just like Ereshkigal before.

If Amber had leaned toward Tiamat even a little, the situation would have been completely different.

Everyone felt a mix of helplessness at this Crimson Kite Immortal's excessive humanity and relief at the firmness of her stance.

Her emotions were full yet unshakable... Quetzalcoatl quickly reined in her wandering thoughts, barely suppressing the feelings threatening to overflow.

Merlin chuckled and said, "The Crimson Kite has already made two choices. I imagine that even for the Crimson Kite Immortal, facing a situation where she inwardly acknowledges someone yet must oppose them isn't easy. Hence this proposal."

"Proposal?" Ritsuka thought of the Holy Grail he'd mentioned.

"Exactly. It's not about having Chaldea take the Holy Grail and leave immediately. It's about taking it to weaken Tiamat. With that much done, even if the Crimson Kite Immortal only assists from the sidelines afterward without directly participating in the subjugation, I think it would be enough to satisfy her conscience."

Merlin nodded, then looked at Amber: "What do you think?"

"..." I think standing.

"If we're talking about someone who can resist the Tide of Chaos to retrieve the Holy Grail, the only one that comes to mind is the 'immortal' Crimson Kite Immortal," Merlin said. "But as you all know, that Black Mud doesn't so much 'kill' as 'assimilate.' So if something goes wrong, we'd be adding a powerful general to the enemy's side."

"In that case, why take the risk?" Quetzalcoatl looked at Merlin in confusion.

Gilgamesh also frowned, but as someone with Clairvoyance, he understood that if Merlin was saying this, there had to be a reason to take the risk.

"Because Tiamat is immortal. Even falling into the Underworld won't change that." Merlin's relaxed expression turned serious. "Her immortality isn't just because of Roman's counter-argument. It's because she, as the mother of all things and the origin of life, has no concept of 'death.'"

These words cast a shadow over everyone. So the plan to drop Tiamat into the Underworld couldn't seal the deal either?

"So that's why this proposal exists... huh..." Everyone frowned deeply.

This proposal was clearly a shortcut. If lucky, it could greatly weaken Tiamat, giving them time to think of other methods—like sealing Tiamat in the Underworld or expelling her back to Imaginary Space. Even if unlucky, they could just take the Holy Grail and leave, leaving the trouble to the Counter Force.

But the problem was...

"If Fu Hua ends up on their side, don't we have no hope at all?" Ishtar frowned, raising what seemed like an overlooked point.

But Gilgamesh said, "There's still a way."

A golden pool of light flickered at Gilgamesh's side, and an exaggeratedly shaped golden dagger fell into his hand.

He held the dagger out toward Amber: "When you think it's not working, stab yourself with this. There's a good chance it can forcibly remove you from the field, but it's not foolproof. Whether to carry out this proposal is still your choice."

Everyone's eyes gathered on her. Amber hesitated, then called out to the Navigator: 'Navigator, I remember we're going to the next world after this, right? Do we have to defeat Tiamat to go?'

She hadn't decided whether to accept, but she wanted to leave a backup plan. If the dagger wasn't reliable, she'd just ask the Navigator to teleport her away.

'When Recognition is sufficient, the host can travel to the next world at any time,' the Navigator's flat electronic voice sounded.

Only then did Amber have time to check her Recognition.

'1... 14k?' How did it suddenly get so high?

'Provided by Ereshkigal: 4000. Provided by Tiamat: 8000. Secondary collection of Recognition: 2000.'

Characters already obtained provide reduced Recognition when offered again—Amber remembered this fact, but... Tiamat actually gave her this much Recognition? Such a huge amount was a first...

'So how much Recognition is needed to go to the next world?'

'1000.' Navigator's voice rang out flatly: 'Recognition from major characters in the current world has been collected. Recommendation for continued stay: 12%. Recommendation for proceeding to the next world: 88%.'

'So, I could actually just never leave?' Amber asked curiously.

If that were the case, then she wouldn't really want to consider this proposal.

'Possible, but this world is a Singularity. Once the Holy Grail is taken, it will rapidly be corrected by the Quantum Record, returning to normal history at great speed.'

'Huh?' Amber was taken aback: 'Normal history?'

Wasn't this mythology? But it wasn't exactly mythology either—more like a derivative of mythology, since it was Fate after all.

'Chaldea will leave. Gilgamesh will die. Ishtar, Ereshkigal, Quetzalcoatl, Jaguar Man, Anna will return to the Throne of Heroes. Merlin will return to Avalon.' Navigator explained the situation at that time: 'Then, history will proceed as it originally should.'

Simply put, all the friends I've made won't be around anymore...

Amber felt a pang of sadness. She had almost no real-world friends, and after finally meeting a few, they could only last less than a month?

Rather than having everyone say goodbye to her one by one, it would be better if she...

"I accept."

Collapse hasn't been considered yet, but it should open up in later worlds.

The summary also said character cards won't be discarded after one world, right? These are all items in the backpack, usable whenever.

Chapter 54: Piedra del Sol

Rather than watching others leave, it's better for her to say goodbye first. At least she hoped to leave surrounded by everyone... Damn, I'm not a pink-haired athlete... But before the world ended and she got bound to the system, she really did want to die surrounded by others.

Because that would be truly happy, like everyone loved her.

"Still, let's treat this as a backup plan for now," Amber said.