"Look, I understand the tactical necessity of this! And I'm genuinely thrilled that Ereshkigal has acquired the power to suppress 'Mother'! But... exactly why did I have to shrink down to the size of a thumb-tack?!"
Staring down at her newly miniaturized, action-figure-sized body, Ishtar felt a profound, helpless urge to cry.
If there was no one else around to see her like this, she could probably endure the humiliation. But right now, she was surrounded by a fairly massive audience! Furthermore, that insufferable jerk Gilgamesh was standing right next to her. Knowing his complete lack of decency, she could already perfectly predict what he was going to—
"My, my~. Whatever could have happened to cause our 'fearsome' Goddess to transform into such an adorably pocket-sized commodity? Hahahahahaha...!"
Without a single microsecond of hesitation or restraint, Gilgamesh reached down with two fingers, pinched the tiny crown resting atop the miniaturized Ishtar's head, and gently hoisted her into the air. Watching her helplessly dangle and flail her tiny limbs in an attempt to escape his grasp, the King completely lost his composure.
Already possessing a deeply entrenched, antagonistic dynamic with her, he simply threw his head back and roared with unabashed, belly-aching laughter.
"Hahahahaha! You completely useless, pathetic—hahahahaha..."
"Disgusting! Hearing the word 'adorable' come out of your mouth makes me want to vomit!"
"——Aaaargh! Ereshkigal didn't even place a curse on me this time! So exactly why did I shrink?! I can barely even feel my own Divinity anymore...!"
Her tiny face flushed bright red with unadulterated fury, Ishtar thrashed wildly, screaming her profound confusion and utter frustration.
Hovering nearby, Quetzalcoatl—who also found the miniaturized Ishtar incredibly amusing—glanced between her and the distant Ereshkigal, quickly deducing the underlying conceptual mechanics:
"It's likely because the two of you fundamentally represent the concepts of 'Heaven' and 'Earth.' You are intrinsically two sides of the exact same coin. In order for the 'Earth' to possess sufficient conceptual mass to fully suppress the Mother Goddess of Creation, the 'Earth' must forcefully establish total dominance over the 'Heaven.' Coincidentally, Takumi's flames form a perfect conceptual circuit connecting all of us..."
"Therefore, you can simply view this as your own Divinity eagerly running off to lend Ereshkigal a helping hand~!"
Quetzalcoatl made a playful "running" gesture with her fingers, smiling brightly as she delivered her devastatingly cheerful explanation.
"Hah?!"
Ishtar was completely dumbfounded.
So, after all that... it turns out Takumi and Ereshkigal actually conspired to forcefully siphon away my Divinity?!
Hearing this revelation, Gilgamesh laughed even harder.
"What exactly are you laughing at?! You... wait! When the heck did you change your outfit?!"
Ishtar was just about to scream a venomous retort at Gilgamesh, but upon finally getting a clear look at him, her tiny eyes went wide with genuine shock.
Gilgamesh raised an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth curling upward. It was blatantly obvious he had been eagerly anticipating someone noticing this exact detail for quite some time.
"I merely utilized a fraction of the miraculous power to execute a minor adjustment. Since so many distinguished guests have gone out of their way to visit Uruk, it would be a profound tragedy if they didn't have the opportunity to witness my true, peak condition."
Having seamlessly synchronized with the unimaginable power surging through the [Heart of Fire]'s network, Gilgamesh had effortlessly discarded his Caster vessel. He was currently manifesting his original, prime Archer form: clad in his iconic, blindingly radiant golden armor, his muscular upper torso exposed and etched with brilliant, crimson magical circuits.
Not only had his physical vessel reverted to its peak, but his previously sealed [Gate of Babylon] had been fully, completely unlocked.
"Literally no one is going to feel 'tragic' about missing out on seeing you half-naked..."
Staring with half-lidded eyes at the clearly very self-satisfied King, Ishtar grumbled under her breath, deciding to completely drop the subject.
***
Meanwhile, down below.
Finding herself completely pinned to the floor of the Underworld, and realizing her [Sea of Life] was being forcefully, strictly restricted to a mere few dozen meters around her body by the combined Authority of a hundred thousand Uruk citizens and Ereshkigal's newly supercharged power...
Driven entirely by primal instinct, Tiamat immediately initiated another hyper-accelerated spawning cycle of Lahmu.
However, this time, she didn't just spawn the grotesque, specialized "three-in-one" amalgamation variants. Utilizing her supreme Authority over creation, she actively synthesized and incorporated the conceptual essences of her own original "Eleven Demonic Beasts" into the birthing process. Consequently, every single newly spawned Lahmu possessed raw combat parameters that rivaled, and in some cases completely eclipsed, the power of a fully manifested Demon God Pillar!
A massive, terrifying horde of these supercharged Lahmu violently erupted from the localized pool of black mud, immediately launching a frantic, suicidal assault against the golden, spherical blockade suppressing their "Mother."
Seeing this, Ereshkigal furrowed her brow deeply. Channelling the immense Authority of her supercharged Underworld, she forcefully manifested Ishtar's stolen, Noble Phantasm-tier thermal energy. Transforming the raw heat into towering pillars of crimson hellfire, she ruthlessly incinerated the encroaching swarm.
Unfortunately, while any normal biological entity would inherently feel paralyzing pain and primal fear when subjected to such intense heat, the Lahmu fundamentally lacked those concepts.
Completely ignoring the scorching crimson flames devouring their bodies, the Lahmu mindlessly, relentlessly threw themselves against the golden blockade. In mere seconds, eleven of the most terrifying, Divine Spirit-tier Lahmu managed to forcibly squeeze their way through the barrier, followed closely by a massive swarm of standard, mass-produced variants.
The exact second they breached the perimeter, they initiated a hyper-aggressive assault against the scattered "Golden Stars" containing the souls of the Uruk citizens. If they were still unified within the [God of Humanity], an attack of this caliber wouldn't even warrant a second glance. But since they had disbanded to form the suppression net, their individual durability was naturally significantly lower.
Because Takumi was entirely focused on flawlessly directing the collective willpower of the hundred thousand citizens to maintain the tight suppression of Tiamat, he couldn't spare a fraction of a second to personally intervene. While the golden aura protecting the citizens was undeniably robust, enduring the relentless, coordinated assault of such terrifying monstrosities was rapidly becoming a heavy burden for the ordinary humans.
"Ho? It appears I still have some menial labor to attend to."
Observing the breach, Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed dangerously, a freezing killing intent flashing within his crimson pupils. Without a single word of warning, he fully activated the [Gate of Babylon]. Instantly, hundreds of blinding golden ripples materialized in the air behind him. Acting like an endless gatling gun, the ultimate treasury of humanity unleashed a devastating barrage of legendary weapons.
Weapons capable of effortlessly cleaving mountains and shattering seas tore through the air, emitting a terrifying, high-pitched shriek. They mercilessly skewered the encroaching Lahmu directly into the barren earth. Before the pinned monsters could even begin to struggle, the ensuing waves of legendary armaments violently tore them to shreds. In a matter of seconds, the mass-produced variants were completely annihilated, dissolving into fine, black ash.
However, against the hyper-agile, Divine Spirit-tier variants, a standard, untargeted bombardment had its limits. Displaying terrifying aerial maneuverability, the eleven super-charged Lahmu violently zigzagged and blinked through the air, flawlessly dodging the incoming rain of Noble Phantasms. Their antennae twitching violently, they instantly recognized Gilgamesh as the primary threat and dive-bombed directly toward him.
The sheer, raw speed of these specific variants was genuinely absurd. Even Ishtar, operating at her peak, would have been hard-pressed to simultaneously fight off two of them without being completely overwhelmed.
Unfortunately for the Lahmu, with the sole exception of the miniaturized Ishtar, every single Servant currently present on the battlefield possessed a ridiculously massive, universally applied parameter buff.
"Heh! Has the moment for my long-awaited, glorious contribution finally arrived?!"
Having been entirely unable to unleash her true combat potential since the battle began, Ushiwakamaru cheered with unadulterated excitement. She drew her legendary katana, Usumidori, licked her lips eagerly, and launched herself forward with a resounding WHOOSH.
She had been dying for a proper opportunity to test out the peerless, god-like speed Takumi had shared with her in actual, close-quarters combat!
The others were not about to be outdone. Wielding their respective spears and macuahuitls, they charged directly into the fray. Even Merlin—who had somehow acquired a mass-produced, identical replica of Caliburn from nowhere—let out a wild battle cry and charged forward with them.
While the speed of the eleven super-charged Lahmu was undeniably terrifying, compared to the overwhelming velocity Takumi had bestowed upon the Servants, it was agonizingly slow. Therefore, despite being outnumbered, the Servants completely overwhelmed and brutally suppressed the horrifying monstrosities from the very first exchange.
A brief, chaotic struggle ensued.
"Phew~! What a breeze!"
Standing triumphantly over the rapidly disintegrating corpses of two Divine Spirit-tier Lahmu, Merlin cheerfully wiped an entirely non-existent bead of sweat from his brow.
Despite his constant, insufferable buffoonery, Merlin's actual, raw combat capabilities were genuinely terrifying. Since Quetzalcoatl was currently operating with less than a tenth of her original Divinity, Merlin was currently the undisputed strongest Servant on their team. Utilizing Takumi's speed, combined with a highly exquisite, undeniably insidious, and ruthlessly pragmatic swordsmanship style, he had been the very first to successfully dispatch two of the super-charged monsters entirely on his own.
"Given the current, apocalyptic stage of the battle... shouldn't that specific individual be making his grand entrance right about now...? Oh my! It seems he has already arrived!"
Suddenly remembering a crucial detail, Merlin tilted his head up, his eyes instantly lighting up with profound excitement.
Standing directly at the edge of the colossal crater created by the [God of Humanity]'s devastating impact, a towering, heavily armored silhouette stood perfectly still. The chilling, ethereal blue ghost-fire burning within the eye sockets of his skull-visor stared silently down at the unfolding chaos.
The final puzzle piece required to definitively conquer Tiamat was firmly in place!
"Cast your gaze toward the heavens, Oh Primordial Sea of Creation! Your inescapable Reaper stands waiting!"
Adopting a wildly theatrical, incredibly dramatic tone, Merlin pointed directly at the imposing figure of King Hassan.
Still violently pinned to the earth, entirely incapable of even lifting her head, Tiamat roared: "Aaaaaahhhhh——!!!"
Well. Fortunately, Merlin's highly dramatic narration wasn't actually meant for Tiamat's ears. He was specifically broadcasting it to ensure Takumi paid attention.
Exactly as expected, upon hearing Merlin's voice, Takumi instantly snapped his head up. His eyes burned with an intense, unwavering focus as he locked his gaze onto King Hassan's imposing figure.
When evaluating the sheer, conceptual weight of an attack, the single strike King Hassan was about to deliver possessed an astronomical magnitude infinitely higher than the two previous strikes he had witnessed. He was about to forcefully, conceptually impose the concept of "Death" upon an entity that fundamentally did not possess that concept! Therefore, Takumi was fully determined to burn every single microsecond of this strike into his memory, ensuring he comprehended and completely mastered the technique!
King Hassan noticed Takumi's intense scrutiny. He met his gaze silently, the look clearly conveying: "I shall instruct you one final time."
And then, his majestic, heaven-shaking proclamation began:
"All that begins must end. So too, all that lives, dies, and in dying,
value finds."
"Thy vaunted eternity is but hollow slumber."
"Beast of Disaster, evil born of mankind's folly, thy desperate wish that thy love not go unrequited is itself thy rejection's root."
"Of rank, nor station, no the title Grand have I need. Bear witness, goddess of life, to the testament writ with mine own blade."
"Thou fallen god, to beasthood turned, if Primordial Mother be thy title, attend, and hear my name."
"From the mountain abyss, I come, and only death do I bring. I am the Old Man of the Mountain, The First Hassan-i Sabbah!"
The exact microsecond his proclamation ended, entirely indifferent to whether Tiamat had comprehended his words or not, the ghost-fire within King Hassan's eyes flared violently. He fearlessly leapt directly into the abyssal void, simultaneously raising his massive greatsword high above his head.
The towering, heavily armored silhouette instantly transformed into a blinding, terrifying streak of ethereal blue light. In the blink of an eye, he completely crossed the three-thousand-meter vertical drop, materializing directly above Tiamat's skull.
VMMMM——!!!
"The bell of evening tolls thy name. Touch not the sky, for by Heaven's will, I shall strip thee of thy wings!"
The greatsword swung down in a flawless arc, cleaving directly through Tiamat's colossal form. Simultaneously, within Takumi's intensely focused pupils, the exact same breathtaking, profound blue radiance flawlessly mirrored the strike.
By completely sacrificing his supreme conceptual status as a Grand Servant, executing the strike within the sovereign domain of the Underworld, and capitalizing on the crushing conceptual suppression generated by both the hundred thousand citizens and the Goddess of the Underworld... Tiamat was undeniably cursed with the inescapable concept of "Death."
—Her flawless, unbreakable Immortality had been completely shattered!
"Aaaaaahhhhh——!!!"
Naked-eye visible, terrifying blue-white conceptual fissures began to violently spider-web across her colossal form. Sensing an unprecedented conceptual terror she had never experienced before, Tiamat began to thrash and roar with unimaginable, desperate ferocity.
However, it was entirely futile. No one present was going to abandon the final stage of the operation simply because she was screaming.
The massive suppression net forged by the hundred thousand citizens, perfectly synchronized with Ereshkigal's supercharged Authorities, kept Tiamat completely, securely shackled to the floor of the Underworld, forcing her to await her ultimate, final judgment.
"So... this moment has finally arrived..."
Staring at the heavily chained, conceptually mortal Tiamat, Gilgamesh's crimson eyes flickered. For a brief moment, he felt an overwhelming sense of melancholy.
Ever since he had witnessed the grim, inescapable vision of Uruk's annihilation through his [Clairvoyance], he hadn't slept peacefully for a single night. From that exact moment, he had immediately begun his frantic, desperate preparations: executing the massive Heroic Spirit summoning rituals, commanding the construction of the Absolute Demonic Front, and meticulously weaving the colossal defensive Bounded Field surrounding Uruk... All of these preparations had begun over an entire year ago.
Truthfully, he had occasionally glimpsed the various struggles and impossible triumphs Takumi had achieved across the previous Singularities. But even with his unparalleled foresight, he genuinely never could have predicted Takumi would reach this level of incomprehensible power. In fact, when they first met, he had arrogantly assumed he would need to actively guide and mentor Takumi. But then... in a sudden, completely inexplicable flash, Takumi's future had entirely vanished from his sight.
And the next time he truly, objectively analyzed Takumi's combat capability, he realized the youth was essentially standing before him as a fully maxed-out anomaly possessing world-ending power. To the point where even he, the proud King of Heroes, had to heavily rely on his intervention to salvage the situation.
Shaking off his nostalgic reflections, Gilgamesh firmly anchored himself in the present. Reaching into the [Gate of Babylon], he withdrew a small, unassuming dagger and tossed it directly to Takumi.
"If you do not completely shatter Tiamat's [Nega-Genesis] first, even the maximum output of my Ea might fail to secure a fatal blow. Therefore, I must once again entrust the vanguard duty to you."
As he spoke, the corners of Gilgamesh's mouth curled upward in a fierce, confident grin.
Tiamat's Dragon Form possessed such an absurdly high baseline durability that even A++ Rank Noble Phantasms were fundamentally useless. When coupled with the immense conceptual resistance to Noble Phantasms provided by [Nega-Genesis], there was a highly terrifying possibility she could face-tank Ea and survive. Therefore, before he unleashed his ultimate trump card, that conceptual barrier had to be permanently neutralized.
The specific armament he had tossed Takumi was a Noble Phantasm named [The Golden Blade of Intrusion]. Its fundamental property allowed it to effortlessly pierce through the conceptual gaps between the physical body, the mind, and the soul. When combined with the reality-severing Authority of Takumi's sword, there was a significantly high probability it could successfully shatter the unique Authority exclusive to the "Beast of Regression." And even if it failed...
[The Golden Blade of Intrusion] would still perfectly fulfill a completely different, equally crucial function!
Catch!
Takumi didn't waste a single word. Catching the small golden blade, he instantly released his grip on his blazing flag and launched himself into a hyper-speed sprint directly toward Tiamat's heavily shackled skull.
Bereft of Takumi's physical support, the massive flag began to slowly tilt under gravity. However, before it could fall, a dozen glowing golden Uruk citizens immediately surged forward, firmly grasping the pole and anchoring the massive suppression net in his stead.
Having lost Takumi—the primary catalyst and vital central anchor of the network—the overall rigidity of the suppression barrier naturally experienced a slight, momentary dip in stability, shuddering and vibrating violently against Tiamat's desperate thrashing.
But Takumi's speed was completely unmatched. In less than a second, he materialized directly beside Tiamat's massive skull, perfectly mirroring King Hassan's previous positioning.
POP—!
A blinding flash of golden light erupted.
The entire world seemingly ground to a halt, time itself stretching into an infinite, agonizing crawl. Takumi felt a bizarre, distinct sensation—exactly like physically popping a massive, resilient bubble that had completely enveloped him. The very next second, he materialized within a completely boundless, pristine white void.
And standing directly before him, manifesting perfectly in a human-sized form directly proportional to his own, was Tiamat in her original "Femme Fatale" state.
There was no doubt: he had successfully breached Tiamat's innermost Mental Landscape.
Before Takumi could even fully process his surroundings, the Mother Goddess of Creation spoke first.
"My beloved children... why have you abandoned me...?"
Tiamat stared at the youth standing before her, her eyes overflowing with an unbearable, profound sorrow, large tears welling up in her eyes.
Having successfully infiltrated her mental void, the profound empathetic power of the [Heart of Fire] was no longer obstructed by her external, chaotic malice. Tiamat's deeply conflicted, agonizingly contradictory emotions flooded directly into Takumi's mind.
As the Goddess of Creation, she was paradoxically the very first entity to be ruthlessly banished. As a Mother Goddess who instinctively craved the warmth of companionship, she was mercilessly condemned to exist in hollow, eternal isolation within the lifeless void of Imaginary Number Space...
She desperately, obsessively yearned to return to the world she birthed. Yet, she was simultaneously paralyzed by the profound, terrifying fear that her mere presence would inevitably bring ruin upon the children she loved. Driven by that fear, she had willingly sealed away her own consciousness—
Feeling that suffocatingly complex maelstrom of emotions—a lingering resentment inextricably intertwined with an intensely fragile, desperate caution; a burning fury rooted in an uncontrollable, overwhelming surge of maternal affection; a desperate desire to return, constantly warring with a crippling, paralyzing terror of causing harm... Takumi fell into a heavy silence.
It was undeniably true. The drastic course of action he was currently undertaking to ensure humanity's survival... was an act of unspeakable, heartbreaking cruelty toward this specific Mother Goddess.
Furthermore...
[It hurts... it hurts so much... getting beaten like that... it was so painful...]
"Hearing" the genuine, pitiful whimpering echoing from the deepest recesses of Tiamat's heart, and actually experiencing vivid, phantom flashes of his own brutal "Comet Punches" raining down upon her, Takumi—the direct, unapologetic perpetrator of that horrific violence—felt an overwhelming surge of guilt.
Taking a deep, stabilizing breath to perfectly suppress his own internal conflict, Takumi looked her in the eyes and spoke with pure, unwavering sincerity:
"...I believe... it is simply because children must inevitably grow up and walk their own paths. Furthermore, compared to your unfathomable magnitude as their Mother, your children are incredibly fragile. They are simply doing whatever is necessary to ensure their own survival."
Takumi was fully aware that his words sounded incredibly harsh, ruthlessly pragmatic, and deeply unsympathetic. But he firmly believed that the unified, unyielding stand taken by the hundred thousand citizens of Uruk was the definitive answer Humanity had submitted to this specific Mother. It wasn't his place, as an outsider from beyond the stars, to arbitrarily soften or dilute the true weight of their resolve.
Immediately following his words, Takumi utilized the [Heart of Fire] to gently, flawlessly guide the unyielding, unified willpower of the hundred thousand Uruk citizens directly into Tiamat's Mental Landscape.
A single, heavy second passed.
Feeling the resolve of her children, Tiamat fell silent for a brief moment. A faint, almost imperceptible trace of profound, maternal "pride" seemed to flicker within her sorrowful gaze. But ultimately, the overwhelming despair won out, and she looked even more heart-wrenchingly pitiful than before, massive tears streaming continuously down her cheeks.
"But... I still don't want my children to abandon me..."
ε(┬┬﹏┬┬)3
Seeing her completely break down, Takumi awkwardly scratched his cheek. Then, offering a gentle, reassuring smile, he extended his hand toward her in an open invitation:
"Honestly, I'm really not the best at handling complex emotional stuff like this! But... if I manage to survive this entire ordeal without getting completely obliterated... you are more than welcome to come visit my Chaldea anytime you want!"
At that exact moment, the warm, undeniable flame of [Connection] successfully linked with Tiamat's heart.