Prologue: The Summer Goddess's Small Kindness

Emergency! EMEEEERGENCY!!!

Ishtar...?

Oho. Nicely handled, Fujimaru.

Always minding your manners no matter the circumstance will help you go far in life! I would expect no less from the man who formed a contract with mwait, never mind that!

I know that! I checked into such things ages ago! That's not why I'm here!

？！

Where's your sense of urgency...of surprise!? This is a real emergency!

We ARE surprised...by how you barged in here yelling at the top of your lungs.

That, and it's hard not to notice that you seem quite upbeat about this supposed emergency.

Huh? Am I smiling? Really? Gimme your mirror. ...Huh. I am smiling, aren't I.

(...Maybe it's the rush from all the gems I brought so I could exercise my Authority. It...wasn't really that many though... I must be kinda high right now...)

Okay, so I know that must seem weird, but don't worry about it.

It's a deity thing. We always hide our anger behind smiles! You know how it is: even gods handing out blessings might turn around and do some smiting at the drop of a hat.

So just chalk that smile up to the dual nature innate to our divinity. You can't hold us to the same standards as you humans, got it?

(Nods) ...All right, so what is this emergency then?

I was just enjoying one of my precious few days off playing reversi and backgammon with Senpai.

I see. Um...those are board games some human came up with, right?

That's right. I thought playing board games with Senpai would be a great way to spend our day off.

Since it's always blizzarding outside Chaldea, we obviously got used to indoor recreation.

I-I see. It looked to me like you were just sitting around being bored, but I guess I was wrong. Sorry for interrupting your happy time.

But that is neither here nor there! From now on, no more board games until summer is over!

And don't you give me that bewildered look! This is important, if you hadn't noticed!

You may have managed to restore humanity, Fujimaru, but you're still a Master of Chaldea, right?

Then as soon as you hear this, you'll have no choice but to hop to: I discovered a new Singularity!

...!

？！

I know. That's because I'm the only one who's noticed it so far. But it's still a big deal.

It may not directly affect humanity...but it WILL affect the world negatively if something isn't done.

Right. The same is true for all Singularities that have been discovered to date. We have to resolve them, no matter how big or small they might be.

Do you already have some information on this Singularity's inner workings, Ishtar?

More or less.

There's a certain lord in charge of it, and she's running it right into the ground.

Its land has gone barren, its ground burns day and night, its people have gone berserk, and in all that mess, only the lord grows fatter.

My guess is that this small fry succumbed to greed and transformed the place when she took it over, making it her own.

At first I thought I'd just take care of it myself, but as luck would have it...

This lady's got a number of Heroic Spirits working for her, which of course complicates matters.

？！

That sounds like a Singularity that could affect the Foundation of Humanity.

We should tell acting commander Da Vinci and plan this out as an official mission

No need for that. This time, I'll be providing you with divine protection personally!

And besides...Da Vinci? She makes running Chaldea seem like this big, super-difficult job, but I could do it just as well as her.

Hehe, in fact, I've been wanting to order Fujimaru aroun

I mean...

...offer Fujimaru the honor of taking part in one of my perfect divine plans for a while now!

？！

The goddess Ishtar's divine protection...! That DOES sound like an enticing offer, Senpai!

Remember the incredible spellwork cast on us in the underworld? That was such amazing divine protection!

With divine aid from Ishtar, I believe we may just be unstoppable!

I-I see. You're a good girl, Mash. ...A little TOO good for my tastes.

Anyway! You two go get ready to Rayshift. The Coffins are all set up...

...and I've already bribed some staff members to program the Rayshift for your destination.

Oh! Make sure you bring gear that's easy to move around in. This's going to be more competition than combat!

There'll be hot places...cold places...all sorts of places! So you should be focusing more on comfort than on durability or protection!

Competition...? Gear that is easy to move around in...? Um, Ishtar...

If you're going to be running this operation yourself, could you tell us a little more about it?

Are you going to be helping us take down this Singularity's lord without wanting compensation, or...?

Hehe, typical limited human thinking! No, I will play a much bigger, more pivotal role than that!

There's no need to actually fight the small-timer...the queen ruling this Singularity. It'd be a big hassle, and I don't think she's got much money on her anyway.

Besides, we shouldn't waste our precious summer fighting! Wouldn't you much rather have a fun, flashy festival that really gets wild!?

Last year you spent the summer on a desert island, right? So we need something even better this year!

Don't you agree, Mash? Indoor activities are all well and good, but wouldn't you prefer to make memories with Fujimaru in the great outdoors?

I, uh, I see... Well, if I'm being perfectly honest, then yes.

Hehehe, right!? That makes all this trouble I've gone to worthwhile!

Okay, so, what I need you two to do is perform this little ritual I cooked up.

It's something I put together myself just for this new Singularity.

If this ritual succeeds, the Singularity will be destroyed, and this so-called lord will basically self-destruct in her own castle.

I mean, you don't want to spend hours on end in the blistering sun fighting wave after wave of overmuscled soldiers, do you?

This way, all you gotta do is complete one little ritual, and you're golden!

Ahh, I really shouldn't spoil you humans like this, but I just can't help myself! Perhaps I'm too kind of a goddess for my own good?

Feel free to show your appreciation by showering me with praise, or offering a mountain of gems in tribute.

？！

A ritual, huh...

If completing this ritual is truly all we need to do to resolve the Singularity, that would greatly lower the risk to Senpai.

But, that would also violate Chaldea's rules, so it's not a decision we can make ourselves...

Ugh, fine, I didn't want to say this because it clashes with my whole divine Authority thing, but I already got permission from Da Vinci to go ahead with it.

"I see. Well, I'm not sure how I feel about trusting you with this, but there don't seem to be any real issues with your plan."

"All right, I officially designate you as the leader of operations for this Singularity. I especially like how your plan doesn't require any of Chaldea's assets!"

？！

I see. I'm relieved to hear that the acting commander has given her approval.

Indeed. I've got the location all fixed up, the system is ready, the rules are in place... I've laid just about all of the groundwork.

On top of that, I'm even paying for this out of my own pockeer, savingsso again, don't be shy about showing your appreciation.

Ishtar, paying for something herself!? A Singularity is one thing, but this is unheard of!

We should have Da Vinci take a look at her Spirit Origin, Master! She might be turning into an Alter!

Oh come on, me spending my own money can't be THAT big of a deal! Besides, how am I supposed to place my bet if I don't cover my table stakes!?

Uh, I mean... Wh-what's a little money compared to the fate of humanity?

...Ahem. Besides, with all these other goddess types running around, I consider it a good deed to remind them all who's still the top deity.

Plus, I really do feel like you two deserve some fun once in a while, since you are technically helping me out and all.

Aaanywho, just do as I say and this Singularity will go away. You have the Ishtar Guarantee on that!

(Sigh) I see...

Right. Back to the ritual... There's just one problem.

It needs participants! Preferably powerful, first-rate Heroic Spirits who will help and encourage each other.

Here's a pamphlet with the event rules and entry criteria. You two will be running things rather than participating yourselves, but you should both familiarize yourselves with the rules.

We're going to need good, solid operation based on good, solid rules if we're going to have an exciting race, so I'm counting on you two to handle that.

？！

Wh-what are you talking about?

Hehe... There's more than one kind of ritual, y'know. Sacrifices... Dances... Sending gifts of gems...

I'm just taking that concept and running with it! That's right, this ritual...

...is a race! The Ishtar Cup will be a cannonball run across the entire Singularity!

...!

The idea is to carve magical energy directly into the ground by running across the Singularity.

But that's so boring that nobody would ever want to watch it, right? So I thought about it and came up with the brilliant idea of making the ritual a race!

The way I see it, every goddess needs composure and a bit of playfulness. That's why this is going to be a major, Chaldea-wide event...

I've got all the equipment in place to livestream and broadcast the whole thing, so we'll be giving it the full festival treatment. Thanks for helping out♡

Livestreaming...broadcasting...spectator stands...checkered flags... This sounds like those F1 races I've heard about...

Exactly. Only in this race, Heroic Spirits will be paired into teams and each drive a single vehicle.

Naturally, I'll reward the winning team handsomely. I think a Holy Grail should do the trick, no?

To put it another way, I'll use my divine abilities to grant the winners any one wish they'd like.

After all, if I'm going to liven up the festivities, it's only right that I use my Goddess Powers™ to prepare a treasure or two on par with a Holy Grail.

I'm not so sure this is cause for celebration, Senpai.

I still feel like there's something Ishtar's not telling us about why she's spending her own money...

(Agreed.)

？！

Okay, now that you're all filled in, I'm going to go pass these pamphlets around Chaldea.

I'll also be inviting Servants to join the race myself, so we should get enough participants soon.

Hehehe, I wonder what sort of reckless daredevils are going to volunteer?

Oh well, with a goddess like me making the arrangements, there's no way this race is going to be anything less than a spectacular success.

And furthermore...hehehehe!

Okay, that's all for now. Bye!

W-wait! I'm sorry, I wasn't planning to say anything, but, I just have to know...

Yes?

I'm extremely grateful that you've come up with a way for us to remove this Singularity...

And I suppose I can understand if this is all just one of your divine whims, but, I guess it just seems a little...overwrought?

I just don't see why this needs to be such a huge event.

...Why are you doing this?

Didn't I already tell you? There are a number of reasons, but the biggest one is to make this...

...To make this?

The best summer ever!