Chapter 587

The Azaka that symbolize the bond between Shirou and Ereshkigal grow tenaciously in this world of death, bringing a glimmer of life.

But the flowers are ultimately inedible and cannot be used to make dishes.

Therefore, they are now using precious ingredients sourced from the earth, and they cannot afford to waste them.

"I didn't mean to blame my mother..."

"Yes, Ereshkigal is a good boy!"

Tiamat strained to stand on tiptoe and stroked the Queen of the Underworld's head.

I meant to offer a reminder, but instead I was showered with affection.

Ereshkigal was both amused and exasperated.

"Okay, let's move on to the next step. Speaking of which, my mother's cooking skills are much better than I expected."

I mastered modern cooking through the body of a human girl I possessed. Where did my mother get her knowledge and skills from?

"Shirou taught me."

"Uh... right, Shirou is a really good Cooking Skills."

"Incredibly powerful! Mother is no match for Shirou!"

Tiamat said, her eyes shining.

"As expected of Shirou..."

Hearing the Goddess of Creation say this, Ereshkigal felt somewhat uncertain.

Can we really make a bento that will satisfy Shirou?

Well... if it were Shirou, he would be grateful to eat any bento made with love.

She knew Shirou; he wasn't the kind of boy who would easily dismiss someone's feelings.

Even so, the Queen of the Underworld was still somewhat uneasy...

She bit her lip and focused even more intently on the ingredients in her hands.

I must make the best bento box ever, and I must make Shirou look at me with new eyes!

The battle on Mount Ebih ended in an instant.

No, it might not even qualify as a battle; it could only be described as ravaging.

The black giant swung its arm, and the dragon claw at the front dug out the foot of Lingfeng Mountain like a pudding.

Before the wrath of God, all beings are equal.

The demon king, who called himself the lord of the mountain, along with the remnants of the Magical Beast he led, were instantly blown away by this "superhuman Monstrous Strength" capable of destroying the world, scattered high in the sky, and finally fell back to the ground.

"Ugh... Guh... You... bastard..."

Just seconds before, Ibaraki-dōji was all arrogant and fearless, now crawling on the ground.

She wasn't even directly hit; she was merely affected by the aftershocks of that force, and her entire body was torn to pieces.

More than the resentment of defeat, she felt anger.

There was no doubt that he had been spared.

If that attack had been aimed directly at her, she would undoubtedly have been reduced to nothing, not even a scrap of flesh, before returning to her seat.

Why?

Was it my childlike appearance that aroused your pity and hesitation?

That guy too...

This guy is also...

Everyone is like that...

I'm not reconciled...

Not willing, not willing, not willing, not willing, not willing, not willing, not willing, not willing, not willing...

I am clearly a ghost!

I am clearly the leader of Mount Ooe!

Why... why must I be pitied by humans?!

"Ah... ah... I'm so regretful..."

The girl's faint voice echoed hollowly.

The black giant that blotted out the sky had disappeared without a trace, and the Chaos Tide that had been eroding the world had returned to the world of imaginary numbers.

Shirou regained his human appearance, and the dangerous Divine Aura he had just exuded vanished from his body.

The red-haired boy looked down at the demon girl crawling on the ground, covered in wounds, and spoke.

"Can you change your bad habit of attacking people at the slightest disagreement?"

"Gulp... What a joke! I'm a demon! Making me abide by your human rules... you might as well just kill me!"

Ibaraki-dōji glared at Shirou with her fiery red eyes, revealing her sharp canine teeth.

"Do it. If you don't kill me now, you'll definitely retaliate later..."

I will attack Uruk... kill and eat all of humanity...!"

"Stop lying."

Shirou looked at her quietly and said, "Since you came to this era, haven't you never eaten a single human?"

"..."

Ibaraki-dōji's expression froze.

Shirou continued, "Although I don't know why, you, who ate countless humans in your previous life, haven't eaten a single human in this present world."

"Why... how do you know about this... uh!"

Ibaraki-dōji's eyes widened. "Did those humans tell you that?!"

Shirou nodded.

That happened before we conquered the Gorgon Temple.

One day, Uruk welcomed a group of citizens who had been missing for a long time.

According to them, they fled Uruk six months ago due to fear of attacks from Magical Beast.

People who felt they could not survive in Uruk fled into a mountain, where they encountered Ibaraki-dōji, who ruled the mountain.

Ibaraki-dōji neither killed nor ate them, but instead said:

"So that's it! You all escaped from that weak king! Hahaha! Very well, from today onwards you are my subordinates!"

The legendary, ruthless demon king has taken human refugees under his command.

No one knows what her considerations were.

Is it repentance for actions taken during one's lifetime?

Is it because you lack playmates that you feel lonely?

It's probably a combination of both.

Regardless of his motives, the result was that Ibaraki-dōji continuously recruited lone humans and Magical Beast as his subordinates, establishing an incredible kingdom where humans and demons coexisted on this apocalyptic land.

However, the humans did not stay around her for long; eventually, they all left.

Perhaps they heard that the battlefield situation in Uruk had improved and wanted to go back to check on things, or for some other reason.

Ibaraki-dōji did not make things difficult for them and released all the humans who wanted to leave.

It was through these people who returned to their hometown that Shirou learned about this story.

Ibaraki-dōji was silent for a moment, then asked, "I see... Is everyone... alright?"

"They're mostly dead, aren't they?"

Shirou didn't hide anything and directly told the cruel truth.

Most of Uruk was killed by Lahmu, and the same was true for those who returned to Uruk.

"I knew it... It's all their fault for being too weak and unwilling to listen to me...!"

Ibaraki-dōji said with a fierce expression.

Shirou said, "Everyone is very grateful to you."

"Thanks to Ibaraki-dōji, I was able to return to Uruk and see my family and friends one last time before I died."

"But if I die, won't I lose everything?!" Ibaraki-dōji roared.

"Don't you know that perfectly well?"

Shirou looked at the Magical Beast behind Ibaraki-dōji and then spoke.

"You occupied Mount Ebih because of these Magical Beasts, didn't you?"

After Gorgon's death, the remaining Magical Beast also weakened day by day.

You wanted to prolong their lives as much as possible, so you took a liking to the power of this mountain, after all, it was a sacred place connected to the goddess Ishtar.

However, Ibaraki-dōji... even if you wanted to use Magical Beast to relieve your loneliness, you couldn't, could you?

They will only tremble with fear, treating you like a burning campfire, and will never be your playmate.

"I already knew about that... Actually, I'm no different from them, I just tremble."

Ibaraki-dōji's voice grew lower and lower.

"In an unfamiliar era... on an unfamiliar mountain, always... all alone... it's so lonely..."

The girl murmured.

Having been given a second chance at life, she didn't want to die.

To want to live as a demon, to exist in the form of a demon's desires—that's all.

Ibaraki-dōji upheld his beliefs as a demon, even undergoing a transformation into Servant and gaining a physical body.

Even so, the wish remains out of reach.

Without companions, and unable to alleviate the emptiness in his heart no matter what he did, Ibaraki-dōji decided to give up.

Just as the girl was about to attain literal enlightenment... and returned to her seat--

"?"

Ibaraki-dōji saw Shirou extend his hand to her.

"Hmm... what do you want to do?"

Should we come back to Uruk?

"What?"

Ibaraki-dōji shouted.

"No! I refuse! I refuse to obey humans!"

"I do not mean for you to obey me, not as Servant, but as a guest... I invite you to Uruk."

"..."

The blonde girl stared in disbelief.

Shirou continued, "If you want to chat or play with friends, there are many children in Uruk who can keep you company."

You should really thank Tomoe Gozen, okay? Thanks to her efforts, the citizens aren't afraid of your current appearance.

If you're looking for snacks, there are even more delicious options here than in the mountains.

There probably weren't butter cakes during the Heian period, right? I think you'll love them.

"..."