Act 8: The Serpent Sheds Its Skin as the Oni Rises Once More

...Yokosuka.

The first time I came here, I was elated to see all the foreign ships floating on the shimmering water...

...but it just doesn't feel the same in this Singularity Edo! I don't feel even a hint of that old elation!

Yokosuka isn't technically part of Edo...

That said, I agree. It's sad seeing these towns without any people in them.

Yokosuka was Dorothea Coyett's territory.

She was a talented Clock Tower mage, and was able to transform all of Yokosuka into her personal magecraft workshop.

She's that good of a mage?

Of course, when she did so, she also made sure to lay traps all over town.

Let's keep moving. Watch your step, Iori. Master of Chaldea.

This is a key defensive position here. During the last Ritual, there was a Bounded Field and all manner of traps here. But now...

You sense something, Gramps?

Hmm... No. I don't sense any magical energy at all.

So no traps and no Bounded Field, huh? Does that mean this was another dead end?

...Wait. Now I'm sensing magical energy getting close!

...A new kind of monster.

Indeed. And not just any monster!

Gramps! Those monsters we just fought!

Indeed. They were the same kind of snakes that Assassin, Dorothea's Servant, used.

A Servant who uses serpents, huh?

If this IS Dorothea's workshop, I would expect to find at least one Bounded Field around here, but so far, nothing.

It's possible she moved it somewhere else. Let's make sure before we rule her out.

Those monsters seemed less like they were trying to attack us and more like they were just trying to stop anyone who entered their territory.

If that IS what they were doing, then we might be closer to the base than we thought.

？！

Can you show us the way to Dorothea's workshop, Gramps?

Of course. Head for the harbor, Iori!

...I see.

So her workshop is an entire ship. I never would've thought of that.

Hmm... I'm surprised it was so easy to get aboard.

I don't see any sign of Dorothea, either. The whole ship seems deserted.

I'm not so sure.

If we are up against an Assassin, they could easily be concealing their presence.

Good grief. I suppose it's too much to ask for the monsters to give us some time to think.

Let's take care of them.

...!

I take it you are a Master chosen by the Waxing Moon.

What business do you have here?

Yokosuka may be home to a great Spirit Font, but this leyline is extremely volatile.

If you value your lives, I suggest you turn around and leave.

I can barely sense you at all... You must be an Assassin.

But you're not the Assassin we know.

Most definitely not. This is an entirely different person from Dorothea's Assassin.

Hmm. Something about her does remind me of Dorothea's Assassin, but I'm not sure what...

？！

It seems you know another version of me from another time and place.

I am now but a Rogue Assassin. I have no part in the Ritual.

A Rogue, huh? So you're a Masterless Heroic Spirit, too.

I heard this ship is a magecraft workshop that belonged to another Master who fought me in the last Ritual.

Do you have any idea where that Master is now?

No, I do not. This workshop was already here when I was first summoned.

But I can tell you that I have not seen so much as a single person in this Singularity, let alone a Master.

It's just like what happened with your row house, Iori.

Indeed... It would seem Dorothea's workshop was also recreated without her involvement.

Master, you are the first human I have met since arriving here.

But my earlier warning still stands. Leave Yokosuka now. There is nothing of value here.

The only thing I have found here is a dreadful monster lying in wait to feast on hapless prey.

The Arther

...

...The Archer in Kanagawa Port said something similar.

"Arther"?

I heard it, too.

Shut up!

There are a number of creatures in this Singularity with strength to match Heroic Spirits...

...but this one is a cut above the rest.

It is sleeping now that its connection to the leyline has been cut off, but there is no telling when it may awaken again.

If we're going to seize the Yokosuka Spirit Font for ourselves, we will need to do something about this monster.

Though whether that is worth the risk is another question entirely.

I don't see a problem.

Yeah. I don't like the idea of leaving some unknown threat to run around doing whatever it wants.

If it's going to be a problem for us eventually, we should take care of it now.

Why? What do you stand to gain from doing so?

If this thing's between us and Yokosuka's Spirit Font, we're gonna have to do something about it sooner or later.

If you're willing to help us, that would be even better.

Hehe. Basically, we're trying to get you to owe us a favor!

？！

...Are you certain about this?

Don't worry. We're only doing this to give ourselves an advantage in the Ritual.

It's nothing you need to feel bad about.

...Well, in that case...

...Thank you. I would greatly appreciate your

I don't think so.

Wha...!?

Oh cra

？！

This world must be destroyed. This world must be corrected.

This world is hell on earth. No one can escape it.

Rider!

My, my. On a first name basis, are we?

It seems this Minamoto-no-Raikou you know has lost herself to an absurd game of house.

Oh? Have you figured it out?

What a joke this Minamoto-no-Raikou you know must be.

She can pretend to be human and play house all she likes...but she will always be an oni at her core.

？！

Rider. If you're here, does that mean Yui is, too?

Rider?

Aha... Hahaha... Hahahahahahaha!

Now that is the most ludicrous thing I've heard all day.

I am Minamoto-no-Raikou no longer. My True Name is...Ushi Gozen.

...Ushi Gozen? Isn't that an oni Minamoto-no-Raikou defeated?

Some say Ushi Gozen was Minamoto-no-Raikou's sibling, but the truth is, Ushi Gozen is the oni blood flowing through Minamoto-no-Raikou's veins.

The fearsome Ushi Gozen is a child of Gozu-Tenno, a hornless oni of divine blood.

That is the other face of Minamoto-no-Raikou, the strongest warrior of the Heian period!

...You haven't changed a bit then, have you, Rider?

No, not at all. I have always had but one purpose:

To destroy this world in the name of righteousness!

These monsters aren't part of Shousetsu's forces!

That's right. Rider is just controlling ones that were already infesting this area.

But if Shousetsu isn't here, then it can't be her spell doing that.

...So this was all your doing then.

You're deceiving Yui again, Rider!?

No, I am not!

I swore that I would devote myself body and soul to realizing the wish we both share!

That's right! Shousetsu and I are going to put this world right together!

Where did this storm come from?

I don't like this. I really, really don't like this!

The magical energy that sleeps within this land... The magical energy that flows within the leyline, entrusted to me by Shousetsu...

I will pour it all into you, my sworn enemy. Now...awaken.

Great tsuchigumo...Kugamimi-no-Mikasa.

Wh-wh-what the...!? That...thing is casting a shadow over the entire deck!

？！

I... I see. So that is the inhuman abomination...

Minamoto-no-Raikou and a tsuchigumo... That's one hell of an ironic team.

Iori. Master of Chaldea. Listen to me.

I have no idea what Rider may be after...but she absolutely will not listen to reason.

？！

Ahh... This aura. This color in your soul.

Master of Chaldea. You truly are...

Ghh... Gaaah!

(Huff... Huff...)

This thing really is on a completely different level than all the other monster leaders we've seen.

It's not just as strong as a Heroic Spirit. It IS a Heroic Spirit.

A being that has accomplished a great feat. And sometimes great can also be terrible.

This thing is no monster. It's the avatar of a great hero that's been brought back to life.

Then I'll just have to use my full strength against it!

Special Technique

Oh no, you don't!

？！

That is my line!

Huh!?

Kuchiyose...

Ibukidaimyoujin-Engi!

Oho! Giant sea serpents!

？！

Now's your chance!

Do it, Saber!

Right!

Special Technique, Eight-Current Raging Storm!

...

Refusing to stay down, Rider? Fine with me.

...

...Ah, well. I'll just have to try again another time.

？！

...Yes?

？！

Yes, Master of Chaldea. It is as you suspect.

This little game is something I copied from Caster of Limbo...

...at the Count's behest.

？！

This little game is something I copied from Caster of Limbo.

？！

What are you talking about?

They must be the one who made this Singularity in the first place.

So not only have you been deceiving Shousetsu, you've been in cahoots with one of Chaldea's enemies, Rider?

And what's wrong with that?

I will right everything in this world eventually. The Foreign God is no exception.

？！

You are no different, Master of Chaldea.

Light all the incense you like. Purify your body all you can. You will never erase the scent of death clinging to your soul.

？！

Don't fall for her tricks, Fujimaru.

She may look human, but she's far from it. Her words don't mean anything.

She's just an overgrown pest, like the insects you hear chirping at night. There's no sense listening to her.

Iori.

My, oh my. That's the worst thing anyone's ever said about me.

Still, I'd best be on my way. I shall see you again, boy who reeks of death.

It shall be on a dazzlingly bright night, when the Waxing Moon has finally become full...

Phew... She's gone. For a moment, I truly thought my heart had stopped.

Your...heart?

Oh, you know what I meant!

Hmm. You know, I feel like we had a similar back and forth before...

Thank you for your help. Without it, I could not possibly have stopped the great tsuchigumo.

？！

However, if you mean to continue the Ritual, then you should prepare yourself for the worst, Lord Fujimaru.

If it succeeds, the Ritual will disrupt the leylines and twist this Singularity beyond recognition.

The Waxing Moon itself will bring calamity, and hell will burst up from the ground itself.

Calamity...

...and hell.

...

That's right. Hell.

That's why I was summoned: to rain hell down upon this earth.

...

If that is what you desire, then I will delve into the depths by your side.

...Tch.

C'mon, let's go. We can't let Yui Shousetsu get too comfortable.

I AM hell. I'm the only hell anyone needs.

And I won't let anyone stand in my way of realizing it!

...