My Goddess - NO.4 - Memory

Black mud writhed in the city streets, Flames burned, consuming all life they devoured.

The once prosperous streets were now filled with ruins.

Where people once gathered and laughed, now lay an ocean of fire.

This was the tragedy caused by the rampaging Black Holy Grail at the end of the Fourth Holy Grail War.

But this tragedy was now over, replaced by a soaring golden light, like divine salvation.

The destructive Black Holy Grail slowly vanished with a thunderous roar...

Rain falling from the sky gradually extinguished the burning flames.

The black mud on the road gradually receded to the side.

The charred trees, the blackened corpses, the miserable screams of humans facing death, all gradually disappeared with the washing of the rain.

Along with their precious lives...

A girl holding a golden sword stood alone amidst the ruins of several floors.

She let the cold rain from the sky drench her body.

Creak...

Footsteps came from behind the girl, and a man in a black trench coat appeared behind her.

His eyes, filled with exhaustion and regret, were quietly looking at the girl before him.

The strong gaze she once had was no more, and her golden hair, which had once shone brilliantly in the sun, was now dull and lifeless.

"Sab...er!" The man opened his mouth, intending to admonish the girl, but his throat, having just made a sound, was already gripped by the girl's single hand and lifted high.

BOOM!!

With a loud bang, the man in the trench coat, his neck held in the girl's hand, was slammed into the ground with a fierce blow.

"Kiritsugu Emiya!!!!" Like a provoked beast, the girl, her eyes bloodshot, roared and raged at the man. Her tightening hand almost twisted the neck of the man known as Kiritsugu Emiya clean off.

"Why did you do this?! Why did you treat me and Xia like this?! Why did you so easily destroy the happiness and hope of others?! Why?!! Answer me!!! Kiritsugu Emiya!!!" The grieving girl was gradually losing her sanity.

"I am the man who will always be by your side! As the great king of the future, please give me at least this much trust!"

"My name is Drake D. Xia! The man who will never betray you!"

"Artoria..., please don't be so sad. It makes me very sad..."

"Standing before you! Blocking all threats to you! That is the happiest and proudest thing in my life!"

"My goddess, even if the sorrowful soul within this body is completely erased, I will pass through the gates of time and space! And return to your side again."

The boy's words, expressing his feelings one after another, echoed in the girl's mind, who was now heartbroken.

Unstoppable tears gushed from the girl's reddened eyes. The expression of anger and regret made her once handsome face slightly contorted.

The happy times she had with the boy in the past replayed in her mind.

As for the man being questioned, he could not answer, nor could he answer, because he no longer had the time...

The girl, completely driven mad by anger and sorrow, swung her golden sword with one hand, aiming for the man's neck and striking!

"Argh!!!!"

A hoarse voice, an angry shout, and tears hidden by her dim golden hair.

The blade of the golden sword had touched the man's skin. The cold, murderous aura it exuded made the man, who was being held by the girl's single hand, close his eyes in despair.

{Hate me if you want, if it will make your heartbroken heart feel any better...} The despairing man thought this at the last moment of his life.

Crack!

Like the sound of a gear suddenly stopping.

The blade, which had already drawn blood, strangely drew a perfect arc in the air, returning to its original position as if time were flowing backward.

And it wasn't just the golden sword that seemed to be reversing time.

Now, in this block, in this city, in this country, in this world! Time reversal events were happening on a large scale.

The Holy Sword that struck with golden light.

The city burning with fire. The ice and snow-covered castle. The arrogant king laughing in the air. The boy who called out the name "Artoria" in a park forest. The boy who walked out of a magic circle wearing red armor.

Time was constantly going backward! Backward! And backward!

Appearing as the Ninth Heroic Spirit, the "Returner." Experiencing the cycles of reincarnation. His true inner thoughts. His anger at Artoria for losing her memory.

And then...

There were the most precious things in his memories...

"Xia, you'll always be with me, right?" This was the girl, leaning on him.

"Xia is too overbearing! I've been seriously getting stronger!" This was the girl, wanting to become stronger...

"Xia! Where did you go?!" This was the girl, when she was scared...

"Xia! Are you going to leave me?" The girl asked, her voice filled with worry.

As these countless memory fragments froze the beautiful girl, who evoked different emotions in his heart, into a single image.

All those expressions finally converged into one picture.

The blue sky, the floating white clouds.

A golden-haired girl stood at the foot of the tree, smiling and extending her arms towards him. She called out softly, "X~~~ia."

Thump!

His heart pounded intensely, and Xia felt his groggy consciousness gradually clearing.

His weak and powerless consciousness drifted out from a mysterious forest, passing through the white clouds, through the blue sky, through the distant stars and the boundless universe.

With Xia slumped on the ground, a golden light suddenly erupted from his eyes!

"I remember... everything..." Xia mumbled to himself, causing the golden-haired girl standing before him to look at him strangely.

Xia sprang up instantly, reaching out with one hand! He embraced the slightly startled golden-haired girl before him.

"I am! A man named Drake D. Xia! One who will forever accompany my King!!"