Chapter 331: There Are No Gods in This World
In a forest far removed from the human world, two young boys were scuffling on the ground. However, because one was significantly frailer than the other, the battle was entirely one-sided.
"Brat, let go of me! Let go!" little Gil shouted. Pressed face-down against the earth, he flailed his arms, swatting upward at Shirou, but there was little power behind his strikes. To Shirou, it didn't even itch.
"I'll let you go, but first, promise to answer all my questions," Shirou said, pinning Gil's hands.
"Hmph... humph, hahahahahahaha!!! I shall broadly acknowledge you as a decent powerhouse, but is this the attitude one uses when seeking guidance? Kneel! Amuse me like a jester, and I might magnanimously forgive your insolence and tell you a few things," Gil suddenly laughed, his presence surging with arrogance.
Shirou didn't respond; he simply grabbed one of Gil's hands and applied a firm upward twist.
"Ow, ow, ow! I get it! I get it! Let go first!" Gil agreed, tears pricking the corners of his eyes. Fortunately, no one else was around. The only witnesses to this scene were the birds, chirping insects, and a squirrel clutching a nut, all watching curiously from the trees as two "little monkeys" fought.
Eventually, the two boys and the little beast-girl, Lion Saber, found a clean patch of rock and sat down.
"First question: where is this?" Shirou asked.
"Are you some barbarian who wandered out of the deep mountains? This is the forest outside the city-state of Uruk. This great forest is a sacred land famous for producing 'Mystical Creatures' with special abilities," little Gil said disdainfully.
"Mesopotamia during the Sumerian era... no wonder you're here. Is this ten or even several dozen years before 2600 BC? No wonder there were mammoths, but what was with that crocodile? Are there still this many giant beasts in this era?" Shirou muttered to himself thoughtfully.
Gil hopped onto a flatter rock, sat cross-legged, and folded his arms. "Mammoths? Crocodiles? What of them? You are companions with the rarest form of Humanoid Mystical Creature—this lion beast-girl—yet you seem completely oblivious."
"Beast-girl? So she isn't an isolated case." Shirou looked at the little lion sitting beside him, reaching out to pat her head and scratch her chin.
"Awoo! Awoo!" Lion Saber squinted her eyes, tilting her head to give Shirou better access. She let out a couple of comfortable purrs. This massage is great. A little higher... yes, yes... ho-ho-ho, I'll reward you later.
"Are there others like her?" Shirou asked the golden-haired boy curiously. He wondered if there were versions evolved via Moonstones or other methods—like a black Saber, or versions for Sun, Fire, Water, Thunder, Grass, Ice, and Fairy.
"Of course! Besides lions, there are dogs, foxes, dragons, snakes, bats, birds—all sorts. There are probably a hundred humanoid beast-girls, but each is unique and represents formidable combat power. They are far more powerful than ordinary beast forms like elephants or crocodiles."
At this point, Gil frowned slightly, seemingly remembering something unpleasant. "Though there are exceptions," he added helplessly. "I know a bossy, willful, arrogant blonde brat with twin-tails. She owns a terrifyingly powerful Divine Bull."
Shirou's brow twitched as he wiped away a cold sweat. He can't be talking about the Bull of Heaven... that should be a top-tier Divine Beast. And a bossy twin-tailed girl... I feel like this world is incredibly dangerous.
"So, I came to this forest to find a beast with great potential. I'll train her and strike down that girl's bull!" Gil declared, arms crossed with conviction.
"I see. Good luck with that. By the way, how many beast-girls have you actually met so far?" Shirou asked.
"...One! Just one, alright?! I just started! This forest is huge, and the beast-girls are all hidden in the depths. I haven't had a chance to run into them! You think it's that easy to find them? You must have gone through immense trouble to earn that little lion's approval!" Gil shouted, pointing at Shirou.
"No, I was just making dinner. She wandered over on her own, I gave her some extra food, and she followed me," Shirou said honestly.
"Hah?" Gil looked incredulous, searching Shirou's face for any sign of a lie. Seeing only total sincerity and no openings, he felt the blow even harder. If it were gold, he could dig a few holes anywhere and find treasure or a vein. But searching for these beast-girls was like they were playing hide-and-seek. Even the one little lion he did find refused to pay him any mind.
"Awoo?" Lion Saber sensed the boy looking at her. Thinking this human child was annoying, she turned her head away, ignoring him.
"By the way, Gil, do you know what that golden light rising in the dead of night is?" Shirou inquired, trying to gather as much intel as possible from a local.
This time, however, Gil shook his head.
"I don't know. Uruk is quite far from here, and I go to sleep early. If I had to guess... I heard the adults say that ten years ago, a rift opened in the sky. Something golden fell from above, and then a white light flooded down like a tide. Everything was covered in a brilliant white glare; you couldn't see a thing. Even people inside their houses were blinded. The city folk say an
'Outer God' exists in the center of the forest. It fought a great war with our local gods, was defeated, and sealed in the heart of the woods. Children are strictly forbidden from going near there."
"So there really is something there?" Shirou nodded, thinking, Twenty years ago? Due to the spatial turbulence, something changed in this world after all. It seems I came to the right place.
Little Gil looked at Shirou and laughed mockingly. "Not at all. You're such a kid, actually believing in things like 'gods.' Superstition! It's all superstition! Bored people see a strange natural phenomenon and take it upon themselves to imagine it's a miracle. I've lived here a long time, and whether it's a local god or an 'Outer God,' I've never seen one. The adults say miracles used to happen often—like the Goddess Ishtar fighting some other god somewhere, causing lightning and earthquakes—but since that white light appeared, it hasn't happened once."
"Did nothing else change after the white light appeared?" Shirou asked.
Gil thought for a moment. "Well, if you want to talk about changes... the forest grew larger. And these 'Mystical Creatures' started appearing, like this beast-girl. Some say all the beast-girls in the world originally came out of this forest. In fact, the chances of finding one here are the highest. Because of that, this place became famous. Surrounding tribes moved and gathered here, and Uruk became even more prosperous. The outer city has been expanded twice now."
"Speaking of which, that bossy brat living on the mountain and her family... they moved to the nearby mountains around that time. I heard everyone was shocked when they first saw them, thinking gods had descended. After all, she and her relatives are all blonde, just like the gods in legends. So stupid. Just because I'm blonde too, there are rumors that I'm a 'Child of God' or something." Little Gil threw up his hands.
No, no, no... you, who are two-thirds god and one-third man, will grow up to call everyone 'zasshu' (mongrel)... Shirou criticized in his heart. But in this slightly different world, perhaps he might grow into a better King.
Shirou spoke up, "Thanks. I understand the situation here somewhat now."
"I really don't know what mountain range you crawled out of to be this lacking in common sense. Well, whatever. I've told you everything I know. Satisfied?" Gil asked, arms crossed.
"Yeah. Next, I'm heading deeper inside. If you're afraid of being alone, I can walk you back to the city first. After all, you're quite weak right now," Shirou said, looking at the golden-haired boy.
"Who's afraid?! And I am NOT weak!" Gil retorted angrily. Usually, he could act like a "good boy" in front of others, but for some reason, looking at this kid made his blood boil.
Then who was the one pinned to the ground begging for mercy just now? Shirou thought, but he couldn't be bothered to argue. He wanted the boy to leave quickly.
Waving his hand dismissively, Shirou said, "I get it, I get it. You can go now."
Little Gil huffed and turned his head. "Hmph! Annoying brat! Watch yourself. There are ferocious saber-toothed tigers in the forest ahead, and beasts that breathe fire in the bamboo groves!"
Shirou kept waving. "Thanks. Since it's so dangerous, you should hurry home too."
"Shut up! I didn't say that to warn you! You're a shorty, yet you act like a nagging old hag! Disgusting! Blehh!" Little Gil stuck out his tongue, made a face, and marched away in the opposite direction with high, exaggerated steps.
When he was further away, he turned back, cupped his hands around his mouth, and shouted: "Brat! Don't you dare die! I'm leaving the little lion with you for now, but I'm coming to collect her later!" Then he broke into a run and disappeared.
"I'm not giving her to you," Shirou smiled, waved, and continued into the forest. The two officially parted ways, heading in opposite directions.
On the other side, little Gil walked along, chin in hand, muttering: "The blonde tribe seems to have people coming to this forest every day. If that bossy brat hears I came here looking for beast-girls, she'll definitely come too. I have to hurry and find the strongest Mystical Creature! That kid said he came from the river on the other side of the forest... maybe I should go look over there."
-
-
Meanwhile, Shirou and a high-spirited Lion Saber advanced into the depths of the forest. In this era, without humans using machinery for mass deforestation, the plants were growing wildly. The further in they went, the more ancient the trees became, with massive trunks and lush canopies. Shirou could only see by the dappled sunlight filtering through the gaps in the branches.
Because the area was perpetually shaded, it felt cold—especially when the wind blew; it felt a bit eerie.
"GA-AAAAAH!!"
A roar erupted from within the woods. A gale swept through, shaking hundreds of leaves loose from the great trees.
"A tiger! It really appeared!" Shirou cried out.
This "tiger" was not that tiger, yet this tiger was indeed that tiger.
The tiger that leapt out was a chibi-version of Taiga Fujimura. With brown short hair and the character for "King" (王) patterned into her bangs, this beast-girl looked exactly like Shirou's high school homeroom teacher and neighbor from his previous life.
Speaking of Taiga Fujimura, she was a veteran freeloader at the Emiya household, coming over to scrounge meals almost every day—essentially an older sister figure to Shirou.
However, the current her had a pair of large feline ears on her head, held a spear made of bamboo, and had a long, thin, rounded tail swaying behind her. Shirou felt that if the "Fujinee" of his past life had been this cute, she would have been married off in no time.
Lion Saber hopped out of Shirou's arms, immediately wielding a bone club that looked like a "manga meat" bone, and charged forward.
The beast-girl Taiga was incredibly agile, darting through the underbrush like a blur. Lion Saber's attacks were dodged one after another—sometimes through sheer reflex, sometimes through pure luck. Consequently, Lion Saber ended up with a few scratches while her opponent remained unscathed and high-spirited.
"If it's Fujinee, I feel like there's no need to be afraid. She should be easy to handle," Shirou thought, chin in hand. He opened his hide backpack, pulled out a fried meat patty he'd kept as rations, and tossed it toward the fray.
"Mm!" The Fujimura-Tiger's eyes lit up. She jumped high, caught the patty in her mouth, chewed, and stars appeared in her eyes. She dropped the bamboo spear, cupped her face with her hands, and swayed in ecstasy, her tail curling into a heart shape.
A step too slow, Lion Saber looked at the happily eating Fujimura-Tiger with an aggrieved expression before swinging her bone club down in a fit of pique.
The smiling Fujimura-Tiger, having just swallowed the patty, took a heavy blow to the head and promptly passed out.
And so, a new Mystical Creature—Taiga Fujimura Tiger—Get-daze!
Read ahead (60 chapters) by supporting me on buymeacoffee com/varietl or ko-fi edwriting