Olympus's Reception (Second Half)

A bronze giant! According to myth, it is a monster... Now I see!

It must have incorporated legends from the island of Rhodes... So the gods themselves must have minted this bronze giant!

And now, in Olympus, they've no doubt deployed it as an automatic defensive system for the purpose of eliminating intruders!

Its magical energy readings are too high for my sensors to measure!

This output is on par with a Divine Spirit! And its magical energy type isn't like any other kind of giant!

A bronze giant, huh! I guess this means we really are in Greece!

It doesn't look like blades'll be much use against it, either...or that it's about to let us go without a fight!

Fujimaru! Mash!

Now that it's found us, we've got no choice but to send this hardhead packing!

？！

Raising Ortinax output! Engaging combat mode!

All functions are fine-tuned and working properly! Spirit Origin awakening rate is well within standard parameters!

...Here goes nothing!

I've fought and trained in all sorts of different worlds! I've lost track of how many monsters I've cut down!

I'm sure I've never fought a Greek bronze giant before, but now's as good a time as any to see if I can cut through it!

Now...have at you!

Musashi!

Nice cover there, Mash! Okay, you handle defense!

I'm going to try an all-or-nothing, full power, five strike combo there on its right arm!

Amazing! She made a crack in its arm with a combo using the flat side of her swords...

...and actually managed to completely sever its right arm!

The bronze giant's magical energy readings are fading rapidly!

If you can't cut 'em with one strike, keep hitting 'em until you can! Split in half just like Old Man Yagyu's stone lantern!

I-I see. I'll have to remember that one!

Fou fou. Fou.

No problem. This sort thing's a piece ofHm? Hmmm?

...Something doesn't feel right. It's almost as if this battle still isn't over...

Sorry, Fujimaru. It looks like my gambit didn't work at all.

Understood, Master!

？！

The giant's severed right arm is... reattaching itself...

It's been completely restored! And the bronze giant's magical energy readings are rising back to unknown levels!

A self-restoration mechanism! While I would be truly fascinated to learn more about how it works

Well damn! This is exactly what I hate about fighting things that don't bleed!

How're you guys holding up? You ready for round two with this thing!?

I'm ready!

How about you, Fujimaru!?

？！

Now that's what I like to hear! Thanks for getting me fired up!

Unfortunately, there's no way we can take this thing down without attracting more soldiers...

...so let's find some way to do that as fast as we possibly can, whatever it takes, and beat a hasty retreat!

Oh shut up! I wasn't talking to you!

All right, big guy, get ready! This time, I'm taking your head right off!

That did it! The bronze giant has fallen silent! Its magical energy reading has disappeared!

We did it, Master! We beat it!

Right...!

Understood!

？！

We need to move at top speed! Mash, you carry Fujimaru!

R-right.

Fou, you hold onto Fujimaru's arm! How about you, Detective Guy? Need a shoulder to lean on?

Thank you, but that's quite all right. I'm perfectly capable of running on my own.

Spare me the manly-man bullshit! There's no way you can run with a beat-up Spirit Core!

!!!

Fo...

？！

I remember hearing you hadn't completely recovered from that injury, but I never would have thought your Spirit Core was still damaged...

What were you thinking, fighting in that condition!? Your ether body could have fallen apart at any moment!

......

...I suppose I should have known I couldn't pull the wool over your Heavenly Eye, Ms. Musashi. Indeed, you've got me dead to rights.

I didn't want Ms. Kyrielight and Fujimaru to be the only ones risking their lives, so I'm afraid I took some rather foolish risks.

...Forgive me. I would be grateful for the assistance.

Much better. Now come on!

Right!

We've come out on a major road!

Good, that's what I was going for! And it looks like...there's no local Olympians nearby!

I guess they must all be hiding inside now that oh-so-scary Chaldea's come to town!

I was a little panicked when they made that broadcast earlier, but if it got all the civilians off the roads, they did us a huge favor!

Now we've just gotta abscond before more soldiers show up!

Hehe, great word, right!? I've been brushing up on my modern-day slang!

Huh? You're kidding! You mean it ISN'T modern-day slang!?

？！

...Wait! Stop!

Musashi!?

Something's headed our way!

You're right! I'm picking up an incalculably massive magical energy reading right in front of us! Is that...!?

Are you FREAKING KIDDING ME!?

Did somebody hit rewind when I wasn't looking!? I could've sworn I cut its power source thingy in half!

Now I feel like an idiot for ever thinking it looked anywhere near as big and sturdy as a Wisdom King!

Things end when they end. When it's time to die, it's time to die. I'm okay with that.

The intangible may last forever, but all that is corporeal must one day end!

...Master! I just realized we've seen this sort of instantaneous regeneration before!

？！

Right!

The various nanomachines we frequently saw in Atlantis! Of course such technology would have its origins in Olympus!

Right you are.

Behold, people of Proper Human History. This is Demeter's Authority... Demeter Klironomia.

!!!

Reinforcements... And no ordinary ones, by the looks of it.

These definitely aren't soldiers.

(This magical energy is intense!)

(Now that I'm a Servant, I can tell these beings easily surpass even that damn bronze idol.)

(I see. So these are this Lostbelt's Divine Spirits.)

(No... Its gods!)

Stay where you are. Do not bother trying to resist.

My Tálos is protected by Olympus itself. No mere humans can hope to defeat it.

Oh? I'm surprised to see that you deign to speak to them, Queen Europa.

Don't be rude, Big Brother. Remember, Queen Europa has assimilated with Lady Hera.

That thing is no longer human, but a demigod. You mustn't glare at it like that.

Hmph.

It may have a god inside now, Pollux, but it is still human. That makes her no different from that failure Caenis.

Oh, Big Brother...

Fo... Fou!

The Dioscuri, the twin gods!

Master, those are the Divine Spirits we encountered once back in Atlantis!

Hm?

Did you look at me, human? Did you point at me and speak my name?

How dare you?

!

Not so fast!

M-Master. I...

I couldn't...even budge...

Don't worry, I'm totally fine☆ Just make sure Mash is all right, okay?

？！

Why you

Oh, was that rude of me? I'm sorry, I was just so surprised at how light your pitiful little god sword was.

If I hadn't known better, I'd have thought I was batting away a feather pillow!

(Yeah, right! I don't know how I'd even begin fighting back against swordplay like that!)

(How the hell was his strike that strong? Or that fast!? That blade was practically moving at light speed!)

(Maybe it actually was light or something? What the hell!? Not even a bona fide sword saint could manage that strike!)

(Thank goodness for Holmes and his quick thinking. He must have figured something like this would happen when he cast that support spell on me!)

(If he hadn't...Mash's head would be lying on the ground right about now...)

Please, stay your blade, Castor.

...Are you speaking to me in your capacity as queen?

Big Brother.

Tch.

...I won't forget that insolent face of yours, human woman. I'll kill you myself when the time comes.

Oh my, whatever will I do?

Welcome back, Big Brother.

Thank you, Little Sister.

You did wonderful, obeying the queen's orders. I knew you could do it, Big Brother.

...Stop praising me, Little Sister. Not in front of the humans.

Fo...

Oh my, my, my.

Whatever do you think they're doing, Aphrodite?

I can't believe you already started. Don't you know your bad behavior reflects poorly on us, too?

Perhaps you need a refresher on what it means to be a god, Pollux?

You did get a new infusion of Father's blood, didn't you?

...What are you trying to say?

Nothing. She's not trying to say anything. Come now, Aphrodite, you should know better than that.

Whatever happened in the past, the Dioscuri are now a beloved part of our family.

So let's try to be a little kinder, okay?

Fo... Fouuuu...

This magical energy is...overwhelming!

Master! In my estimation...

...these two women are most likely also gods from this Lostbelt!

So, we're up against two Divine Spirit Servants, three gods, and a bronze giant forged by yet another god.

At this point, it would seem they have more than enough power to wipe us all out quite handily.

Suffice to say, these foes will be far more deadly than the Olympian soldiers. Now then, what are we going to do?

Fo, fou fou!

O-over here, Fou. It's too dangerous for you to stay on my shoulder.

... ...

......

...Well? Aren't you forgetting anything?

...?

(Sigh)

Oh for...

Really? You really don't know?

You do realize you're in the presence of gods now, right? Didn't you meet any others in the Scandinavian or Indian Lostbelts?

I'm telling you to bow your heads.

Ah... Aah...! Ahhhhhhhhh!

My brain! I can hear it directly in my brain! What's going on!?

Is she attacking our minds directly!? Do something, Holmes!

Naturally, I've been using our mental protection talismans this whole time...but they aren't working! This must be Aphrodite's Authority...!

Sen...pai...!

？！

There, that's better.

Bow your heads, humans. Know your place. Kneel before the gods.

Do not forget, this is Olympus, the eternal paradise where we gods reign supreme.

... ...

...I think that's enough, Aphrodite.

A revelation is upon us. Their sentence is near at hand.

Gods. Humans. All those gathered here. Open your ears, for the Almighty One is about to speak.

Zeus. Zeus. Our almighty ruler. The heavens incarnate.

All await your presence. Please, speak to us.

The...sky...

Haha. Hahahahahahahahaha! You're getting my hopes up, Father!

Hehe. Hehehehehehehehehe! You said it, Big Brother.

Make it quick.

Oh my... I was hoping to at least let them have some wine first.

Zeus has made his decision. Do not let them suffer.

Make their deaths quick and painless, Dioscuri.

Did you hear that, Big Brother? We have permission now!

At last, you'll get to indulge in your favorite pastime: killing humans!

Since you're usually forbidden from doing so, this is your chance to really enjoy yourself!

Oh yes, you bet I'm going to kill them! Watch this, Little Sister! I'm about to show you the full extent of my wrath!

Die, humans!

...Master! I managed to activate the Ortinax's emergency mode!

Output is at sixty percent! Spirit Origin stabilized!

Our opponents are one Divine Spirit and one hostile giant!

Dammit! Dammit, dammit, dammit! These are the meanest gods I've ever met!

They couldn't even wait until this damn headache wears off before attacking us!

But if that's how it's gonna be, then that's fine with us! Right, Fujimaru!?

Our opponents mean business, and they're more powerful than anything we've ever faced! What do you do!?

？！

You got it! One god destroyer, coming right up! When we're done, they won't know what hit them!

Khh...!

...

(Looks like Aphrodite, Demeter, and Europa aren't joining in the fight...)

(...just to maintain their dignified image in front of their human audience.)

(Those goddesses clearly aren't about to start working together anytime soon. I guess this means gods have their own special way they prefer to win.)

(In which case, that just leaves the giant and the unhinged Divine Spirit Servant to worry about...)

(I could probably take out one of them if I wasn't worried about making it out of this alive, but not both...)

(Ordinarily I wouldn't mind sacrificing myself to take them down, but that really doesn't seem like an option here.)

(Sigh)

(This must be just how Lord Inshun felt back then. How ironic that it took a situation like this for me to realize it.)

...Fujimaru!

It looks like we're all out of options! I'll hold them off here while the rest of you

？！

...Dammit, why'd you have to say that?

I understand this may not be convincing, seeing how I just tried to do the very same thing, but that would not be the best course of action. No, I believe this is where I come in.

I have some experience with finding ways out of desperate odds, you see.

Wait, really? So you've still got some kind of trump card up your sleeve?

Then what're you waiting for!? Odds don't GET much more desperate than this!

It's not the sort of solution I like to employ with any frequency, especially when there are so many unknown variables.

All right

Huh? What was that!?

？！

Fooou!

Fou, please, get back in the storage space! It's not safe outside right now!

Fo fo fou!

Hmm...

The god of the heavens, eh. I see. Apparently, he doesn't care for my trump card.

Fujimaru. Ms. Kyrielight. Ms. Miyamoto. I suggest you focus on your battle with the Dioscuri and the bronze giant.

And one more thing: do keep your distance from me.

？！

...Have you told your own fortune, sage of Chaldea?

Hardly, Your Majesty. This is but an elementary deduction.

Ghh... Agh...

Master! That lightning bolt just struck Holmes!

？！

Foumes! Fou!

Well, that's...certainly one way... to get...my attention.

A thunderbolt...! Zeus must...really... Ha...haha... Now I see...

Fou! Kyaaau!

Holmes!

Ahh...

It seems...I'm still...alive...

But...I'm afraid...I won't last...much longer...

What do you think you're doing!? Didn't you see that thunderbolt!?

Didn't you see how ridiculously huge it was!? You could at least act surprised!

Why should I be surprised? Every bolt that falls from the heavens is but one of Zeus's blades!

What's the matter, Chaldea!? Is one of you getting a bit singed all it takes to knock the fight out of you!?

A bit singed!?

Father's real thunderbolts completely disintegrate whatever they touch.

If he had truly wanted to be rid of your friend, or that ship of yours, both would already be gone.

Now do you understand? The only thunderbolts of his you've seen so far are essentially him flexing his little finger.

If the thunderbolts of his you've seen were rain, they would be no more than a faint drizzle.

Now kneel before us, people of Proper Human History, and tremble in fear!

Did you hear that, Big Brother? Tálos agrees with us!

Indeed he does, Little Sister!

Then come, Tálos, and let us end these humans' miserable lives together.

Then, we will find where their diving machine is hidden and kill every human aboard.

...!

Master! Get behind me!

Fo...

...Fou?

!!!

Ugh! Where did that...accursed dissonance come from!?

Oh my, this isn't good at all. This undulating magical energy...

I think it's...interfering directly...?

What is this unpleasant sensation!? Dammit! Someone is messing with our god-made leyline network!

...It seems matters have taken an unexpected turn.

Gee, thanks for the news flash! Now hurry up and figure out where those people are hiding already!

Big Brother! Somebody is firing magical energy blasts at us from our six o'clock!

Stay calm, Little Sister! Just keep your magical energy focused on defense, and we'll be able to weather this attack just fi

This way! Hurry! Before the cannons' magical energy runs out!

Yes, hurry!

Can you hear us, Chaldeans?

Then go on, run for it! We'll keep those gods over there busy!

!? Who are you

Save your questions for later.

Come with me if you want to live. It won't be long before the Royal Guard shows up.

And I'm sure you don't want to face those insanely powerful gods and their also insanely powerful soldiers at the same time. Right!?

R-right.

Mash! Fujimaru! If these people are offering us a way out, I'm pretty sure we should take it!

Don't worry, I'll carry the pretty boy detective! He might be burned pretty badly, but he's still alive!

？！

...Okay, Master.

This way. Come on.

Oh, right. Minerva! One last blast for good measure!

Why you...! You would dare disrupt our leyline network again!?

Why you...! You would dare interfere with my brother's killing of humans again!?

This treachery will not stand! You'll never get away! I'll kill you all myself!

I'll tear you all limb from limb and set fire to your innards! I'll never sheathe my sword again until I've bathed myself in your screams of agony!

Rrrrrr... Raaaaaah!

You'll pay for this! You'll all pay!

Chaldeaaaaaa!

What is this place...?

It feels like we've been walking forever. So if I'm not mistaken, we're basically underneath Olympus now, right?

I am told this is the underworld.

Huh?

Though that's not to say this is the land of the dead.

This is the foundation of Olympusits underground infrastructure. Once, it was the domain of Hades, god of the underworld.

It is safe here. Zeus cannot find you.

Which is why they were using this place themselves.

It looks like...some kind of headquarters...

I would surmise it's a secret base used by those who rose in revolt against the gods of Olympus.

Nope, you keep leaning on me, pretty boy. You're still in no shape to walk around on your own.

Thank you, but I'm all right now. I appreciate your help, Ms. Miyamoto.

So, most benevolent savior, are my suspicions correct?

Don't call me that. It's absurd. I just happened to be passing by.

I don't recall saving anyone's life, and I have no plans to anytime soon either.

You lot just happened to be walking behind me when I came here.

I didn't go up there to help you. I just made a bad decision.

I don't know what I was thinking. I should've just kept walking.

Stop being so grateful. I mean it. I don't like it. Don't make me tell you again.

？！

...Anyway, I wasn't planning on any of this, but what's done is done.

You lot can use this place if you want to. Or not. I don't care either way, and I'm not getting involved.

If you want to know more, you can ask the two who were firing those cannons when they show up.

Hoot. Hoot.

...Yeah, all right.

I'll do one more thing for you before I go. I'll play the message those Servants left.

...Good day, everyone.

...?

That voice sounds familiar... Is that

Uh, testing, testing. Is the mic working?

Ahhh. Is this being recorded right now? Hello? Testing, testing, one two three.

Hm? What is it, Lady? It's recording successfully?

Thank you. All right, from the top.

I am Nikola Tesla.

I am one of the Heroic Spirits from Proper Human History that made their way to Olympus from Atlantis.

By the time you hear this recording, the rest of us will most likely have lost our transient bodies.

Bluntly...

...we'll have been annihilated.

Yes, that's right. By the time you hear this, every Heroic Spirit from Proper Human History who made it to Olympus will have vanished.

...!

Fo...u... Fooou...

？！

I, um, hope you don't mind that I started off with such bad news.

I just thought that leading with the bad would make the good news that follows it sound even better.

Hm? What is it, Lady? ...Should we start the recording over?

No, let's keep it going. Let me start by introducing myself more properly!

...Hm?

On second thought... You truly want to start over? Well, if you feel that strongly about it...

Okay everyone, we're doing audio and video this time! Are you all ready?

Then three... Two... One...

The God Destroyer Alliance!

We will defeat the gods!

Overcome all odds!

Revolt against this shitty destiny!

And strive for a better future!

We are the forces that have gathered from across Atlantis and Olympus, the two sides of this Lostbelt!

We are the God Destroyer Army that has sworn to defeat the abominable clockwork gods ruling this world!