Chapter 532

The intense impact caused blood to trickle from the corner of his mouth.

"Shirou!"

Siduri turned pale and tried to rush over, but Shirou gestured for her to keep her distance.

The little girl approached Shirou step by step, simultaneously channeling more power into the giant's arm.

Shirou was forced to the ground, vomiting even more blood.

"Gurgle...!"

Shirou barely managed to stay conscious as he looked at the girl who had walked up to him.

"This spell... I remember now... it's very similar to my witch's spell..."

Honestly... um... if it weren't for me...

That girl will definitely turn into a wicked woman obsessed with human experimentation...

"?"

The little girl, Humbaba, tilted her head, not understanding what Shirou was saying.

Never mind... it doesn't matter anymore...

The goddess commanded that any enemy who enters this forest must be killed.

Before his death—because of Enkidu, it was all his fault.

We accomplished nothing.

They were unable to become human.

They were unable to help the gods.

They failed to protect the goddess's courtyard.

Even becoming a monster is not allowed.

This time... we must absolutely respond properly to the will of the gods.

"Projection, begin (trace on)."

Emerald green Magecraft light burst forth from the giant's hand.

"Huh?"

Humbaba blinked.

"What happened?" "What's going on?" "What exactly happened?"

"Power" is "disappearing" - "magic" - why?

"Body" "Our" "Collapse" "Is"

The giant's arm that Shirou had pressed into the ground began to crumble like a clod of earth.

As the collapse occurred, Humbaba felt her power rapidly draining away.

To be precise, it is the loss of the soul.

The souls of 2,891 children, bound together by the curse of God, are rapidly diminishing, each transforming into golden streaks of light and soaring into the silent night sky.

"Yours" "that" is

The children saw the red-haired boy plunge a golden dagger into their arms.

"Because it's a technique I know, I can understand how to counter it— Erosion Blade Gold."

Shirou refers to the short sword in this way.

"This is a dress that can strip the soul and spirit away from the body."

It was originally intended as a secret weapon to deal with my mother (Tiamat)... but it's been revealed here ahead of time.

The boy said as he scrambled out of the pit in a disheveled state.

"Seriously, what is Morgan planning to do with such a dangerous thing?"

I didn't dare ask or want to know, so I confiscated it right then and there, and it made a fuss about it for a week..."

"Humbaba..."

Siduri stared blankly as the children's souls continued to soar into the night sky.

Humbaba received no redemption during his lifetime.

Because she is an immortal monster.

She is Magical Beast that is equivalent to the concept of calamity itself; to kill her would mean to eradicate calamity from the earth, which is absolutely impossible.

Enkidu wanted to end his friend's suffering, so he chose to attack her.

Result.

Even after removing her internal organs, they were still unable to kill her completely.

Even with her neck broken, she continued to utter resentful cries.

Finally, it was King Gilgamesh who stopped Enkidu from going berserk.

It is said that when the king stopped him, Enkidu, with a ferocious expression, dug out Humbaba's internal organs.

The Battle of the Fir Forest left a shadow in the hearts of Uruk's two greatest heroes.

Humbaba's body was destroyed, but the suffering of her, them, and the children remained on this land as a curse.

I thought it would be a long curse that would last until the planet's end.

Today, it came to a complete end thanks to Shirou.

The souls of thousands of children transformed into a river of starlight, which eventually disappeared into the night.

The forest returned to calm, becoming just as it had been before.

Only the lonely girl remained.

"..."

Shirou walked over, patted the little girl's head, and gently picked her up.

Everyone's left... Aren't you going to go with them?

The girl shook her head, then stared intently at Shirou's face.

Thank you, together.

"Huh? What?"

"Together"

The girl repeated herself.

Siduri observed her reaction and said, "Shirou, I think Humbaba might be saying that she wants to fight alongside you."

"Huh... is that so?" Shirou asked.

The little girl nodded earnestly.

"With Shirou"

Shirou thought for a moment, "I think I'll pass."

I don't want to use the child's power; Kingu and the others will laugh at me... Okay, okay! I understand! Anyway, let's put that dangerous thing aside for now!

Humbaba slowly lowered the giant arm that had extended from behind him.

"... I understand now. Humbaba is also a member of Mesopotamia, and he also has the desire to protect this land."

Shirou looked into the girl's eyes and said, "Let's fight together, Humbaba."

"Um"

The girl smiled.

The next moment--

A brilliant rainbow of seven colors spread out from Shirou's feet.

The girl's body gradually dissolved, turning into light that flowed into the boy's body.

Seven Halos light appeared above Shirou's head in an instant.

The power that symbolized human "calamity" soon disappeared along with the decrease in magical power.

"It's over."

The baby girl in his arms had vanished.

The Magical Beast Humbaba of the cedar forest, like Kingu, became Shirou's godhood.

"Go back, Miss Siduri."

"Um."

Siduri glanced at the temple one last time, then looked away with a sense of loss.

"By the way, Shirou- sama... could you please not be so rough on the way back?"

"Understood."

Shirou agreed, bending down and reaching his arm behind Siduri's knee.

Uh, could this be...?

The high priest's eyes widened.

"Does Siduri like this?"

I don't like it at all!

Siduri, her face flushed, was picked up by Shirou and the two flew towards Uruk.

By the time the two returned to Uruk, it was already past 3 a. m.

"Miss Siduri, I'll take you back to the sacrificial site."

"No, let's go straight back to the embassy... the sacrificial site should be closed by now."

"All right."

The two landed on the rooftop of the Chaldea Embassy.

The entire building was shrouded in Serenity.

This is the last night before the decisive battle, and both the Chaldea maidens and the goddesses are catching up on sleep in preparation for their battle with their mother.

"But Shirou, you no longer need to sleep, do you?"

Siduri asked the question as soon as she landed.

Shirou said, "Ah, um... well, I can't sleep at all. Kingu and Humbaba's powers are both very excited."

"Understood... I'll go to Shirou's room."

"Hmm? Are there no rooms available?"

"That's all, isn't it?"

Shirou thought for a moment. Tonight, the embassy had three new guests: Quetzal the Koyat, Ishtar, and the Jaguar Man. There probably weren't any rooms available.

"But Merlin's room should still be empty..."

"There are no rooms available."

Siduri coldly interrupted Shirou.

The boy clicked his tongue in astonishment. "Wow, Merlin, you're actually disliked by Siduri that much?"

To avoid waking others, they tiptoed into the room.

Siduri closed the door.

Shirou: "?"