Chapter 288 - When You Look Back, She Is Still Behind You (2.5k)
Singularity: The Burning Fuyuki City
Beneath the deep night sky, the group had gathered together.
From Cú Chulainn, they had learned of the cause behind this Singularity—
And their true objective within it.
But as a transmigrator,
Promise had already known, what awaited them ahead, from the very beginning.
A King Arthur, tainted by black mud.
And—
A Demonic Pillar.
If luck was on their side—
There was even a small chance they might directly encounter the mastermind behind the Burning of Human Order.
The Beast of Pity—
Goetia.
But, Promise wasn't too concerned about it.
After all, this was only the beginning of the Incineration of Humanity.
And at this point, Mash and Fujimaru still knew nothing.
Not to mention, standing beside them—
Were two Servants whose presence completely broke the script.
One—
The King of the Norse Gods—Odin.
The other—
The Goddess of Wisdom from Greek Mythology—Athena.
Not to mention, Promise himself.
The holder of the Sword of Judgment, capable of judging even gods themselves.
If it weren't for the fact that he was a bit wary of Goetia's Third Noble Phantasm—
"The Time of Birth Has Come, Let All Be Corrected"—
A divine light that declared the end of humanity.
A concentrated stream of billions of beams of light—
Each capable of rivaling the destructive force of Excalibur itself.
Had it not been for that,
Promise might not have even waited for the Human Incineration to begin.
He might have gone straight for Goetia himself.
In fact, he had considered another option.
He had thought about going to Dr. Romani,
Telling him everything.
Before, taking him directly to Solomon's temple, ending everything before it even started.
But in the end, after careful thought—
Promise dismissed the idea.
Because, as someone who walked within the threads of fate, he understood one undeniable truth.
Every miracle born from fate is unique and can never be replicated.
And reckless actions—
Would only make things more complicated.
Would only make things worse.
Only by walking through fate itself—
Could he grasp the miracle that the Goddess of Fate might bestow upon him.
Thus—
On this journey, Promise had remained silent along the way.
Watching as the script unfolded as it should.
Standing off to the side, as if he were an outsider.
But, someone, who knew him far too well, would never believe that for a second.
And sure enough—
A familiar voice broke through his thoughts.
"What are you thinking about?"
.
.
.
A Silent Night in Fuyuki City
At a quiet, moonlit campus, deep within the burning Singularity,
When Mash, Fujimaru and others were resting, Medusa called out to Promise.
Inside the dimly lit hallway,
Bathed in the moon's shadow, she stood against the cold stone wall as her unearthly violet eyes looked at the young man in front of her.
Promise turned around, glanced at Medusa who had called him out, pausing for a moment especially on her purple eyes, then smiled and replied,
"I was thinking, in this script, what kind of role am I playing?
Or rather..."
His voice paused, tone shifting slightly.
"What kind of role... did she prepare for me?"
Medusa instantly understood.
The "she" that Promise spoke of—
It could only be Athena.
And to be honest, she had never expected to keep it from him.
Because whether it was the Gods, or the heroes who followed them—
They had all misunderstood something about Promise.
They all believed—
That at some point in the past,
He had received a divine blessing.
They believed he had been granted something akin to omniscience and omnipotence—
A vision that allowed him to peer into fate itself.
After all,
How could someone rewrite destiny itself—
Without first knowing it?
And in all of Promise's journeys,
There had been far too many Gods, prophets, and seers who could have granted him such a gift.
So...
Tch.
Medusa clicked her tongue, her expression twisting into open displeasure.
"Regardless of whether the other party agrees or not, arranging someone else's life just to witness the epic depicted by the hero."
"On that point, she's as disgusting as ever."
Her words were sharp.
Blunt.
Unrestrained.
And filled with genuine resentment.
Hearing this, Promise couldn't help but turn his gaze back to Medusa, feeling that there was something slightly different about her demeanor.
She felt a little different from the Medusa he remembered.
But then again,
Considering that her hatred was directed at Athena, it was probably normal.
"If you ask me,"
"You should never have just accepted this."
"If you wanted to resist, the Gods would definitely take your side over hers."
"In fact,
You should just shoot her a few more times."
As Medusa said this, she even began to encourage Promise.
Nobody knew, how much joy it had brought Medusa—
When she first learned that Promise's arrow had shattered Athena's perfection.
And when she found out he had even made her cry.
She had nearly laughed out loud.
"...But I'm her follower,"
"And walking the path of a hero was my own wish to begin with."
Promise spoke carefully, after all, he knew.
At this very moment—
Athena was probably hiding inside Medusa's body, listening to every word.
Medusa clicked her tongue again.
"But back then, you wanted to reach the Throne of Heroes."
"Now... if I'm not mistaken—"
"If you die now—
You'll really be dead, won't you?"
Hearing this, although Promise did not respond.
Seeing this, Medusa's lips curled slightly—
A mocking smile touching her face, "See, even I can figure this out. Do you think, that goddess wouldn't know?
"She knew."
"She knew everything."
"And yet—
She never even asked what you wanted."
"She just threw you into this mess without hesitation."
"And despite all that—".l
"You still choose to defend her?"
Listening to Medusa's words, Promise couldn't help but look at her with some amusement.
Because the Medusa he remembered—
She had always been the quiet type.
Rarely spoke.
Kept her emotions bottled inside.
Even though she felt deeply—
She hardly ever voiced it.
Yet now, when it came to Athena—
She was so openly aggressive.
So blunt.
So hostile.
From this, one could see the deep-seated disgust Medusa had for Athena.
But when Medusa finished saying all this in one breath, Promise was stunned, as if he had thought of something, his clear emerald eyes staring straight at her.
"...Then tell me."
"Did she give you an oracle?"
Seeing Promise suddenly looking at her so seriously, Medusa was also stunned for a moment...before..
"No."
She shook her head.
After a brief pause, she continued—
"When I was about to be consumed by the black mud—"
"She found me and removed the corruption."
"And then she left me with only one order."
"She told me... to find you."
"And that was it."
"Nothing else."
When she finished speaking her words, Medusa found that young man in front of her was suddenly laughing.
No a mocking or some self defeating laugh.
But a genuine one
His entire body relaxed,
As if he had just figured something out.
"Ah... I see."
"So that's how it is."
Promise smiled, then turned and walked towards the school gate.
Medusa looked at Promise in confusion, not knowing what had happened to him, but after a brief hesitation, she followed.
When they reached the main entrance, Promise waited for a while.
And soon enough—
The man he was expecting appeared.
A magus, clad in blue.
A man bearing the name "Cú Chulainn"
But behind those sharp, observing eyes, lurked the wisdom of the Norse God Odin.
Odin looked at Promise in front of him, then at Medusa behind him, before raising an eyebrow.
"Where are you two headed?"
His tone was calm, but his gaze held deep curiosity.
He had been watching Promise carefully.
Trying to figure him out.
Trying to understand who he really was.
"I have something I need to do. As for Ritsuka and Mash, I'll trouble you to look after them for now." Promise spoke very politely, even respectfully, to him.
After speaking, he even gave a bow.
A gesture of respect.
Not to a warrior.
But to a God.
Seeing this, Odin's eyes narrowed.
But before he could respond,
Promise had already left.
The Allfather stood there, still frowing as he watched the young man disappear into the night.
And after a long silence—
"Interesting."
This was not the originally somewhat flippant voice of Cu Chulainn, but one filled with authority, as if it were the law of the world itself, possessing the magic to rewrite reality.
In the legends of Norse mythology, the All-Father Odin once hung himself upside down on the World Tree for nine days and nine nights, thereby gaining all the mysteries of the world, which are the runes.
"There's no mistake, that goddess possesses the same eyes as Loki and I, eyes that see through everything in the world, representing absolute wisdom. It must be her."
"And for her to be so concerned, to personally manifest and accompany a human... and that human, carrying the scent of fate upon them, could it be..."
Thinking this, 'Cu Chulainn's' expression slightly changed.
For at this moment, there was no doubt that He had already guessed Promise's true identity.
Where He appeared, Athena might not necessarily appear.
But when Athena appeared, by her side, Promise would always be there!
"Where are we going?"
On the burning streets of Fuyuki City at night, Medusa, quietly following behind Promise, asked him this.
Promise did not turn back.
"To the Greater Grail, to meet the King of Knights who, even while tainted, has been waiting for the arrival of the savior."
Promise answered succinctly.
To this, Medusa's face showed no extra change in expression, for as a summoned Servant, she could naturally feel more clearly that Promise was approaching the Greater Grail.
And, of course—
The location of the Greater Grail, Promise had known from the very beginning.
After all, the Holy Grail War that turned Fuyuki City into a nuclear wasteland is all too famous in the Type-Moon world.
Even if he had not been a transmigrator,
Even if he lacked foreknowledge of events,
He would have known.
Because in this era, his identity was different.
He was a student of Lord El-Melloi II,
A friend to both Tohsaka Rin and Emiya Shirou.
Even if he hadn't crossed worlds,
He would have known that the Grail lay beneath Ryuudou Temple.
"Aren't you going to ask me why I suddenly decided to act?"
As they walked, Promise asked the question with a light chuckle as the latter tilted her head slightly.
"Is there a reason to ask?"
She glanced at him, her violet eyes filled with curiosity.
"Does it matter when you choose to act?"
"After all,
You are Promise."
"The man whose fate intertwines with four Goddesses."
"The one who rewrites destiny itself."
Promise smiled at her words.
There was a truth in what she said.
Then, as they walked in silence for a while, he spoke again.
"At first, when I suddenly woke up here—
And when I saw you,
Just like you, I also assumed this was another one of her scripts.
Just like always."
"But then—"
"I realized that was not the case."
"Because, she never gave you a divine command."
Medusa frowned, looking at the boy in confusion.
"And why is that an issue?"
"Maybe she just wanted you to act freely.
After all, this place poses no challenge to you..."
Her voice trailed off.
She fell silent.
Because—
Even Medusa herself had begun to understand.
After all, for Promise, the darling of the gods, who even judged Typhon, the ancestor of all demons, this was not even a trial.
This was obviously not in line with Athena's usual character.
Her trials were never 'easy'.
Every trial she prepared was always something that seemed impossible.
Because Athena loved to witness miracles.
She lived for them.
She did not simply test heroes—
She crafted the impossible,
And waited to see it defied.
This was also the reason why, during the American Holy Grail War, Promise saw through the fact that it was Hera's imitation, not a trial prepared by Athena.
In America, it was more like a stage for Promise to showcase his strength and boast to everyone, a stage prepared for him by the Queen of Heaven, Hera.
And upon realizing this, even Medusa herself was puzzled.
"If that's the case, then her purpose in saving me and having me find you is..."
Her brows furrowed.
Even she couldn't figure it out.
Facing her confusion, Promise turned slightly, looking at her.
Then, he smiled knowingly, not playing with riddles, he spoke.
"She wanted you to tell me something."
"She wanted me to know that she is still watching over me."
And then,
In that moment—
A figure appeared beside him.
A woman in a pure white dress.
Her silver hair gleamed beneath the moonlight.
Her golden eyes carried wisdom as vast as the heavens.
She stood there.
Like she always had.
Just as she had in the age of Ancient Greece.
No matter where he went,
No matter what dangers he faced—
If he turned around—
She was always there.
Athena.
Yes, she had always been using him.
She was the Mother of Heroes.
And what she loved most—
Was that moment when a hero defied the impossible.
For that reason, she had always been present in countless myths and legends.
But it is undeniable that, in this regard, she has never forced Promise; rather, they have always been in perfect harmony.
Even when the centaur sage Chiron allowed Promise to descend the mountain with confidence, as if a divine breeze from the Age of Gods could topple him, the reason he could remain active throughout the Greek Age of Gods,
Was that no matter when he looked back, he could always see that pure, flawless figure.
Medusa stopped in her tracks,
Listening to these words, she looked at the figure of the young man illuminated by the moonlight and her face couldn't help but show a complex expression.
She naturally understood Promise's words,
Whether it was the knowledge gained from participating in the Holy Grail War, or the memories added from merging with part of a spiritual foundation when Athena saved her.
So even though Medusa still harbored a deep-seated disgust for that goddess, thinking her a villain with a nasty character.
At this moment, she was well aware that Promise was not lying.
And indeed, that was the case.
Athena sensed the hesitation in Promise's heart, so she sent him here and brought Medusa before him to form a contract with him.
And all of this was not a trial prepared for Promise, but merely a way to tell him one thing.
"Even if this is not the past—"
"Even if our promise has already been fulfilled—"
"It doesn't matter."
"No matter where you go—"
"No matter if the road ahead is filled with storms or sunlight—"
"I will walk beside you."
And when you look back—
The Goddess of Wisdom will still be here, smiling at you."
.
New novel 𝓬hapters are published on freёwebnoѵel.com.
.
.
.