Even just a portion of her power gave her the confidence not to fear the holy sword at all.
"Death wasn't scary... I was someone who had died once already."
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PS: 1. Because of Hestia's display when she unleashed Divine Power in episodes 12 and 13 of the anime, I set Loki up as being able to use a portion of her Divine Power. There were too many novels, and it doesn't come up later in this volume, so I didn't look into it. Anyone who has read them can tell me if there are any bugs.
2. If it can be revised, revise it as you see fit. If it can't, just tag it as an adaptation.
Expanding the Blessing's Possibilities
The snack shop's rolling shutter automatically closed, and the lights developed using Magic Stones as fuel automatically lit up.
When Ritsuka first killed the Minotaur, along with the other monsters she casually slaughtered, most of the drops they left behind after death were crystals containing magic power, known among adventurers as Magic Stones.
Of course, Ritsuka herself preferred to call those things crystals.
"To be able to afford lights like these, Ritsuka-tan... it seems you're not so ordinary either."
Loki had never heard even the slightest bit of information about Emiya Ritsuka before. She had only learned of her because of Riveria.
Even ordinary mid-sized Familias would be reluctant to use the model hanging above her head.
"Since I just arrived in Orario and was a little short on cash, I could only go into the Dungeon and borrow a tiny little hundred million from those kind-hearted Minotaurs."
The girl who was about to slaughter her way through the seventeenth floor smiled and held up a finger.
The terrifying aura around Loki gradually faded, and her opened eyes narrowed once more, returning to the punchable squinty-eyed look she had worn when they first met.
Ritsuka always felt like this woman was looking down on her. She would not even open her eyes to look at her.
(Please apologize to everyone with small eyes, Miss Ritsuka.)
War God Ares's belt was disengaged, and the pseudo-Excalibur was put away. Ritsuka quietly let out a breath of relief.
Being hostile toward a god was even more stressful than she had imagined.
Loki stated with certainty, "Heh heh, this counts as getting revenge for Riveria. I don't know exactly what happened, but her previous coma had something to do with you, right?"
"It did have something to do with me. I'm sorry about that."
Ritsuka bowed to Loki in apology. Gods were like the parents of their children; after making someone else's child suffer, an apology was the least she could offer.
She had even considered forging a few more Noble Phantasms for Loki.
But from a god's perspective, Loki might not care about those things. Ritsuka could not quite make up her mind...
Seeing Ritsuka's troubled expression, the Corner of Loki's Mouth curled upward.
Riveria held a favorable impression of the maiden before her. Loki did not know why, but she knew that much clearly.
And judging by Riveria's reaction when she woke up that day and Loki questioned her, Riveria might have experienced something extremely terrifying as well.
The effect was almost like psychological trauma. Riveria had even sat blankly for an entire day because of it.
Loki became increasingly curious about Ritsuka.
With the intention of testing her, Loki had privately violated the rules and brought out Divine Power. As expected, this girl was a once-in-a-thousand-years talent.
She was almost an uncut jade.
She had not the slightest trace of a "Blessing" or fairy power. She relied entirely on something resembling a Heroic Spirit, along with those special things throughout her body that resembled neural circuits.
She simply did not seem like a creation of this world...
And not only was her willpower extraordinary, even her strength surpassed Freya's Ottar.
For a moment, Loki's desire to bring her into the Familia reached its peak.
"Hey, girl, would you be interested in joining my Familia?"
The goddess Loki asked with great interest, leaving Ritsuka helpless.
This woman had clearly been hiding off to the side and should have heard the entire conversation between her and the members of the Loki Familia, yet she was still trying this.
When Ritsuka rejected Riveria back then, part of the reason had been to tell the person hiding in the shadows that she had no intention of joining any Familia and hoped she would leave on her own.
Her expression turned serious as she slowly said, "I don't need a 'Blessing.' It won't help me much, and I no longer have a reason to seek power."
"Wait, Ritsuka-tan, I have a question."
As if she could not read the mood, Loki ignored the exhaustion and numbness written all over Ritsuka and directly moved closer.
The distance between them shrank to less than half a meter.
"Lady Loki, you..."
Given Loki's previous beastly behavior, Ritsuka decisively picked up Alcides's Sword Axe.
Its construction resembled the cornerstone of a temple, and its rough appearance made the serious-faced Loki instinctively lean back, as if afraid Ritsuka would chop her down.
"Calm down, don't get worked up..."
"Emiya Ritsuka, do you understand what a 'Blessing' truly is? It is not about gaining power, but expanding possibilities."
Not gaining power, but expanding possibilities?
Ritsuka frowned, her beautiful brows drawing together. Clever as she was, she thought of a possibility she had overlooked—one related to the potential of humans as a species.
"You mean..."
"Humans, including all kinds of demi-humans, may not have low limits, but that does not mean everyone can become strong."
"Because the lower limit is right there."
Loki extended a finger and flicked Ritsuka's forehead.
With a crisp smack, Loki used the tiniest bit of Divine Power, turning Ritsuka's forehead red and immediately bringing tears to the corners of her eyes.
"Uwaa—!"
"Honestly, don't look down on our 'Blessings.'"
"If humans are compared to wooden barrels, then the strength of the container is limited by the length of its planks. If legendary heroes are the upper limit of the barrel, then most people are stopped dead by the shortest plank, their lower limit."
After all, how much water a filled barrel could hold depended not on its longest plank, but its shortest one.
Though she did not know how powerful the heroes of history had been, Ritsuka roughly understood what Loki meant. She had misunderstood all along; even with a "Blessing," one would not necessarily become stronger.
The stronger one's talent and current strength, the faster one would naturally grow stronger.
"I see. I've been mistaken all this time."
"Mm-hm, good that you understand. So join my Familia."
Loki looked at Ritsuka with great anticipation. If she could recruit such an outstanding prospect, the Loki Familia would soar.
After all, Ritsuka was not even an adventurer yet, but her individual combat strength already surpassed that Lv. 7 Ottar.
"If it raises my upper limit, then I imagine it would greatly improve my strength..."
"Yes, yes."
Loki nodded naturally.
"—But I refuse."
The air suddenly fell silent. Loki stared stupidly at the calm-faced Ritsuka and began to question her life.
Had she not just successfully talked her into it?
"I think I said this already. There is no longer any meaning for me to become stronger, unless... the power of a 'Blessing' can Resurrect the Deceased."
"Resurrection... I'm sorry, but that is probably impossible."
Loki suddenly understood. Her vague suspicions abruptly became clear, and she realized where the strange sense of unease around Ritsuka came from.
She had witnessed someone important leave her. It was the helpless gloom that seeped from her soul.
Ritsuka's eyes dimmed.
"No, you have to join my Familia!!"
Loki rushed forward on the spot and hugged Ritsuka around the waist, moving so fast that Ritsuka had no chance to react.
Like a rocket headbutt, she charged straight ahead and knocked Ritsuka to the floor.
The Divine Power-enhanced charge was rather fierce. When the dizzy Ritsuka opened her eyes, she saw a perverted goddess trying to cop a feel, and her expression immediately darkened.
The Mighty Bowl That Once Held Up the Heavens and Split the Seas
With the mindset that she could not kill Loki anyway, so she might as well hit her as hard as possible—
Ritsuka slammed a fist into Loki's lower abdomen. As the magic power within her dropped sharply, crimson flames spilled over her body and instantly became a torrent of heat, driving Loki through the floor-to-ceiling window in the wall.
Boom—!!
Loki took flight. Literally.
That Day, She Saw Hell ②
"Wow, that punch was way too fierce! Could it be some kind of close-combat magic?"
"From that power, it has to be at the level of wide-area annihilation, right?"
Loki patted the dust off herself, her cheeks slightly pale as she struggled to rise from the ground.
Raising her head, she shuddered as she looked at the hundreds of meters she had scraped across the ground.
If she had not protected herself with Divine Power just now, then with physical abilities not much better than an ordinary person's under normal circumstances, she might have been blasted into pieces.
After walking back, Loki met Ritsuka's gaze outside the shop.
Behind them was the completely ruined wall. The enormous hole displayed the astonishing power of that punch.
"What a terrifying child."
"Lady Loki, given your deplorable conduct just now, please compensate me for the ruined wall and floor-to-ceiling window."
I, Emiya Ritsuka, demand payment.
With a stern expression, Ritsuka extended her fair left hand toward Loki. At the same time, she lifted the Sword Axe in her right hand and smashed it into the ground before the shop entrance.
With a boom, it sank three inches into the earth.
"I can compensate you, but it will have to wait until the Familia's expedition is over... Also, are you really not going to reconsider?"
"Although no one has developed the ability to resurrect people at this stage, that does not mean it is impossible."
Just because it had never appeared did not mean it did not exist. After all, the strongest adventurers in Orario's history had only reached Lv. 8, still far from the level of gods.
And not every god possessed the ability to Resurrect the Deceased.
Otherwise, there would be no need to establish Familias at all. Would it not be better to simply resurrect dead heroes and the heroes who had once saved humanity?
Most people started from zero, but those heroes and champions had incredibly high starting points. Some might even one day rival the gods themselves, such as Heracles, who ascended into a Demigod after death. He was a being who could truly contend with the chief gods.
This was also why Loki thought so highly of Ritsuka.
The still-mortal Heracles had countless connections to Ritsuka and had even made her extraordinarily powerful.
"I'm sorry..."
Ritsuka sighed and slowly began to speak, but the disturbance in the Crystal Dice abruptly cut her off.
Then, her expression became animated.
Quest name ①: The Road Ahead Quest Type: Optional Quest requirement: Join any Familia and become an adventurer Quest difficulty: Low Quest reward: A brand-new Character Template (corresponding to the current world)
Before you continue